Women’s Health: Women sometimes face the problem of irregular periods, including long menstrual cycles, especially during adolescence and adulthood. Now, researchers warn that women facing such problems are at increased risk of early death (before the age of 70). This was said to be stronger in the case of deaths related to cardiovascular disease and when long and irregular cycles were persistently present during adolescence and throughout adulthood.Also Read – Has an alien world been contacted? Radio signals from space say: the details inside
The conditions were also slightly stronger in women who smoked, according to a study published in the journal BMJ. “The results highlight the need to consider the menstrual cycle as an important sign of general health during their reproductive life,” said study authors from the University of Harvard in the USA. Also Read – Cinnamon for Diabetes: How Cinnamon Helps Lower Your Blood Sugar Levels Naturally, Says Expert
Irregular and long menstrual cycles are common among women of reproductive age and are associated with a higher risk of major chronic diseases including ovarian cancer, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and mental health problems. Also Read – ‘Astronauts need breaks too’: This company offers all its employees an 11-day ‘reset and recharge break’
But evidence linking irregular or long menstrual cycles to mortality is scant.
Next, a team of researchers set out to assess whether irregular or long menstrual cycles across the lifespan were associated with premature death (before age 70).
Their findings are based on data from 79,505 premenopausal women (mean age 38) with no history of cardiovascular disease, cancer, or diabetes who were participating in the Nurse’s Health Study II.
Women reported the usual length and regularity of their menstrual cycles at ages 14–17 years, 18–22 years, and 29–46 years.
During 24 years of follow-up, 1,975 premature deaths were documented, including 894 from cancer and 172 from cardiovascular disease.
The researchers found that women who reported always having irregular menstrual cycles experienced a higher mortality rate than women in the same age range who reported very regular cycles.
Mortality rates per 1,000 person-years for women reporting very regular cycles and women always reporting irregular cycles were 1.05 and 1.23 for ages 14–17, 1.00 and 1.37 for ages 18–22, and 1.00 and 1.298 for ages 18–22. .
“These relationships were strongest for deaths related to cardiovascular disease than for deaths from cancer or other causes. The higher mortality associated with long and irregular menstrual cycles was also slightly stronger among current smokers,” the authors wrote.
(With IANS inputs)
