Later menopause linked to longer life

Women who go through menopause later rather than sooner may have a somewhat longer life expectancy. The gains in longevity were largely related to a lower risk of death from heart disease and stroke. Since smoking seems to promote earlier menopause, the findings offer one more reason for women to give up the habit Smoking is one of the most important determinants of age at menopause and is, therefore, also the most important modifiable factor. Other factors that may contribute to earlier menopause include a history of irregular menstrual cycles, having no children or only one, and having a long gap between a first and second birth. But these are influences that may not be open to change. Researchers form the University Medical Center Utrecht, Netherlands, studied 12,134 postmenopausal women who completed questionnaires on their medical and reproductive histories and smoking habits, and were then followed for 17 years, on average. More than three-quarters of the women went through menopause sometime between the ages of 45 and 54. On average, smokers had their last menstrual cycles about a year sooner than non-smokers - at age 48 versus 49. Researchers found that the life expectancy crept up with each year menopause was delayed. At the extremes, women who went through menopause after age 55 lived 2 years longer, on average, compared with women who had their last menstrual cycle before age 40. In particular, the risks of death from heart disease and stroke fell as age at menopause rose -- even when accounting for age and factors such as smoking, body weight and high blood pressure. On the other hand, later menopause was tied to a higher risk of dying from ovarian or uterine cancers. But because heart disease and stroke are far more common than those cancers, the net effect was a longer life expectancy for women with a later menopause. It's known that before menopause, women generally have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease than men do, but the risk climbs substantially after menopause. This pattern is believed to reflect a protective effect of estrogen on the heart and blood vessels. On the other hand, late menopause may raise the risk of ovarian or uterine cancer by increasing a woman's lifetime exposure to estrogen, which may feed the growth of cancer cells.