A new study conducted among British women suggests that certain food groups including oily fish, fresh legumes, refined pasta and rice may be individually able to predict age at natural menopause. The findings were published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
The study included women aged 40-65 years from the UK Women’s Cohort Study who had experienced a natural menopause during the period between baseline assessment and first follow-up (n=914). Diet at baseline was determined using a food frequency questionnaire.
High dietary intake of oily fish and fresh legumes had a significant association with delayed onset of natural menopause (delays of 3.3 years per portion of fish/day [99% CI, 0.8-5.8] and 0.9 years per portion of legumes/day [99% CI, 0.0-1.8]). Consumption of refined pasta and rice were linked to earlier menopause (−1.5 years per portion of pasta or rice/day; 99% CI, −2.8 to −0.2). Among micronutrients, higher intake of vitamin B6 and zinc were associated with later age at menopause (0.6 years per mg of B6/day [99% CI, 0.1-1.2] and 0.3 years per mg of zinc/day [99% CI, −0.0 to 0.6]). After age stratification, higher carbohydrate intake was associated with an early menopause by 0.2 years (99% CI, −0.4 to −0.0) among women aged ≤50 years.
Earlier menopause is associated with an increased risk for osteoporosis and heart disease, whereas delayed onset of menopause may up the risk for breast, endometrial and ovarian cancers. "Our findings have significant relevance at public health level since age at natural menopause may have serious implications on future health outcomes," the authors said.
