Health · Medical Research · 1 hr ago
Study finds body changes begin years before the last menstrual period
Researchers analyzed more than 300 million lab tests from health records in the United States and Israel to study menopause-related changes.
They found that sex hormone levels begin changing about seven years before the last menstrual period.
Menopause occurs as ovarian follicles are depleted, bringing shifts in hormones including estrogen, progesterone and FSH.
Around the final menstrual period, the study found sharp changes across several body systems, including bones, liver and kidneys, as well as lipid metabolism and the body’s balance of water and salts.
The findings also point to health concerns such as diabetes, osteoporosis, heart disease and sleep difficulties, while cardiovascular events become more frequent after menopause.
Current hormone therapy was linked to smaller increases in many measured blood levels, though the study does not establish that it prevents health problems.
The researchers reconstructed these changes using data collected from 1999 to 2024.
A study based on more than 300 million laboratory tests found that changes across several body systems are associated with the last menstrual period.
Changes in sex hormones begin years before menopause, and bone loss accelerates around the permanent end of menstruation.
Researchers also found changes involving lipid metabolism, kidney and liver function, bone health, and the body’s regulation of water and minerals.
The study used US health survey data and medical records from an Israeli health service to reconstruct physiological changes around the last menstrual period.
Most of the increases in measured blood substances during menopause were lower among participants who reported currently using menopausal hormone therapy.
- Who
- Researchers analyzed health data from women; the article does not name the researchers.
- What
- A study found that changes in hormones and other body systems are associated with the last menstrual period and can begin years earlier.
- When
- The study was published on October 12, 2026, according to the article. The data covered 1999 to 2024.
- Where
- The analysis used US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data and medical records from Clalit, an Israeli health services organization.
- Why
- The researchers aimed to reconstruct physiological changes around the last menstrual period. The article does not state a separate reason for conducting the study.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Researchers analyzed laboratory test data from this period.
The study was published in the journal Nature.
- Laboratory tests
- More than 300 million
- Data period
- 1999–2024
- Hormone changes
- Begin years before menopause; the article gives estimates of about seven years and more than ten years.
- Data sources
- NHANES in the United States and Clalit medical records in Israel
- Journal
- Nature
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