Menopause is marked by a body-wide physiological 'cliff,' study suggests
Researchers analyzed more than 300 million lab tests and found abrupt shifts in hormones, bone, liver and kidney measures at menopause.
- On Monday, Nature Medicine published a study led by Uri Alon of the Weizmann Institute of Science finding menopause is an "abrupt, step-like" transition across body systems, not gradual aging.
- Researchers analyzed more than 300 million laboratory tests from over 1 million women in the United States and Israel between 1999 and 2024, using a mathematical algorithm to align data at the final menstrual period.
- Data revealed significant shifts in bone density, sex hormones, and liver function; notably, 52 of 90 laboratory tests showed statistically significant abrupt changes, while male cohorts displayed no similar pattern.
- University of Melbourne endocrinologist Ada Cheung recommended health checks around age 40, while Martha Hickey of The Women's Hospital Victoria cautioned that "physiological cliff" terminology is "unnecessarily alarming" for women.
- Alon's team plans clinical trials on menopausal hormone therapy to measure effects on bone and brain health, as the study suggests systemic changes may be predictable more than a decade before menopause.
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The evaluation of millions of laboratory data from women shows that not only hormones change, but also blood levels, biomarkers and bones – and this is partly abrupt.
Menopause is marked by a body-wide physiological 'cliff,' study suggests
The final menstrual period is preceded by abrupt "cliff-like" biological changes across multiple body systems, some of which show early signs more than a decade beforehand, according to research published in Nature Medicine. The findings suggest that menopause-related physiological changes may occur over a shorter time frame than previously thought and advance our understanding of how early these changes can be detected.
Discover Israeli researchers: Hormonal changes may begin as early as mid-30s. Metabolism and organs are also affected.
There's A Reason Your Periods Can Get Heavier In Your 40s, Expert Says
For many women, perimenopause, or the period that leads up to menopause, begins in their 40s. This happens when your body is getting ready to stop having periods for good.Often, the process changes your menstrual cycle. It can make your periods irregular, longer, or shorter. And it can lead to heavier periods, too.Here, HuffPost UK spoke to Dr Ghazala Aziz-Scott, a specialist in women’s health at the Marion Gluck Clinic, to work out why this hap…
What happens in the female body after the last period? Researchers have investigated this. Among other things, they found sudden adjustments in liver and kidney function – and speak of a »physiological cliff«.
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