A new study found that women who experience early menopause have a higher risk of acquiring type 2 diabetes.
Women who have early menopause have 4 times higher risk
The study was conducted on 4,000 women in the Netherlands, and the researchers found that the women who went through menopause before 40 had 4 times higher risk of acquiring type 2 diabetes later on in life. The researchers also found that the risk for diabetes fell by about 4% for every additional year before menopause.
According to Dr. Taulant Muka, "Early onset of [natural menopause] is an independent marker for [type 2 diabetes] in postmenopausal women."
The research doesn't show a cause and effect relationship between early menopause and type 2 diabetes, but it does show that there is a connection between them.
However, she adds that "future studies are needed to examine the mechanisms behind this association and explore whether timing of natural menopause has any added value in diabetes prediction and prevention."
Why does early menopause happen?
Generally speaking, menopause happens for women who are around 40-50 years of age. However, due to a number of factors, including genetics, medical procedures, or illness, a woman can undergo premature menopause, or menopause under 40.
The symptoms of early menopause include irregular periods, hot flashes, too much or too little flow during a period, and other symptoms that are connected with menopause.
If you think that you might have early menopause, then you can get it checked through a test that will measure the amount of estrogen in your body. It's important to know if you're undergoing menopause since women who are in menopause have an increased risk of ovarian cancer, osteoporosis, gum disease, tooth loss, and cataract formations.
The danger with it is that women who undergo early menopause have a longer period of time wherein they are no longer protected by estrogen, and thus they have a higher risk of acquiring diseases related with menopause.
Source: webmd.com,
READ: 8 Things that can cause you to go into early menopause
