RESEARCHERS in the UK say women who go through early menopause are at higher risk of heart disease and stroke.
A study by the University of Oxford found a link between women’s reproductive health and heart issues.
The study of nearly 300,000 women found those who give birth at a young age, experience miscarriage or stillbirth, or who go through the menopause early, are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease when they get older.
The team at The George Institute for Global Health also found girls who start their periods before they turn 12 are at greater risk of developing heart disease and stroke in later life.
Lead author Dr Sanne Peters, a research fellow in epidemiology at the institute, said the findings suggest there should be increased screening for women with one or more risk factors.
“Our research suggests policymakers should consider implementing more frequent screening for
cardiovascular disease among women with one or more of the risk factors highlighted here, in order to put in place measures that can help delay or prevent the development of heart disease and stroke,” she said.
Researchers drew on data from the UK Biobank, a large, population-based study of more than half a million men and women.
They found that women who had started their periods before 12 had a 10 per cent greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease than those who had been 13 or older, while those who went through the menopause before the age of 47 had a 33 per cent higher risk of developing heart disease and 42 per cent greater risk of stroke.
Each miscarriage was found to increase a woman’s risk of heart disease by 6 per cent, while giving birth to a stillborn child was associated with a 22 per cent higher risk of cardiovascular disease and a 44 per cent higher risk of stroke.
Women who had undergone hysterectomies or had their ovaries removed were also found to be at a higher risk of heart disease and stroke.
The full paper, Women’s reproductive factors and incident cardiovascular disease in the UK Biobank, can be read in the journal Heart.