# Girls Are Reaching Menarche Earlier. Are Women Reaching Menopause Later **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 22, 2009, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353 "2009-05-22T23:38:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![slalexan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@slalexan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slalexan)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2009, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/21 "2009-05-23T18:38:28Z")
I started when I was 11 in 2000. I was definitely more than 100 lbs because I had just finished a growth spurt to my current height of 5’9ish. I remember this vividly because I was the tallest kid in my grade and also the heaviest (only because I was tall). ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2009, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/22 "2009-05-23T20:26:10Z")
Does a lot of sexual activity delay menopause? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/23 "2009-05-23T22:02:14Z")
I didn’t start mine until I was twelve, and I was right in the middle of everyone else - totally average. I too would like to see a cite that says girls are starting earlier. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/24 "2009-05-23T22:02:34Z")
I thought you were set with a certain number of oocytes at birth and that it was merely a countdown to the last one. I would think that starting early would mean ending early. Of course, it could be that girls that start early also have more in them. I’m still banking on the former, though. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/25 "2009-05-24T03:13:46Z")
> [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > I thought you were set with a certain number of oocytes at birth and that it was merely a countdown to the last one. I would think that starting early would mean ending early. Of course, it could be that girls that start early also have more in them. I’m still banking on the former, though. No way, at least if you mean we use them all up. Though we do have them all at birth, we have hundreds of thousands of potential eggs when we start puberty. They die off pretty quickly the last 10-15 years we’re fertile. [cite](http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/27866) ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/26 "2009-05-24T03:35:42Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > I too would like to see a cite that says girls are starting earlier. > [@](#): > > Whether children, especially girls, are entering and progressing through puberty earlier today than in the mid-1900s has been debated. Secular trend analysis, based on available data, is limited by data comparability among studies in different populations, in different periods of time, and using different methods. As a result, conclusions from data comparisons have not been consistent. An expert panel was asked to evaluate the weight of evidence for whether the data, collected from 1940 to 1994, are sufficient to suggest or establish a secular trend in the timing of puberty markers in US boys or girls.\*\* A majority of the panelists agreed that data are sufficient to suggest a trend toward an earlier breast development onset and menarche in girls but not for other female pubertal markers.\*\* A minority of panelists concluded that the current data on girls’ puberty timing for any marker are insufficient. Almost all panelists concluded, on the basis of few studies and reliability issues of some male puberty markers, that current data for boys are insufficient to evaluate secular trends in male pubertal development. The panel agreed that altered puberty timing should be considered an adverse effect, although the magnitude of change considered adverse was not assessed. The panel recommended (1) additional analyses of existing puberty-timing data to examine secular trends and trends in the temporal sequence of pubertal events; (2) the development of biomarkers for pubertal timing and methods to discriminate fat versus breast tissue, and (3) establishment of cohorts to examine pubertal markers longitudinally within the same individuals. [Examination of US puberty-timing data from 1940 to 1994 for secular trends: panel findings - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18245511?ordinalpos=8&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum) > [@](#): > > Tracking secular trends in the pubertal development of a country’s children is important for social and public health reasons. \*\*Although comparable studies are largely lacking for US children over the last half century, existing data on girls, particularly that for menarche, indicate that the trend for earlier sexual maturatin has continued and that racial differences are significant, with African-American girls developing earlier than white girls. \*\*Data on boys, though less reliable, suggest that they may be beginning maturation earlier as well. More studies on boys with reliable methodologies are needed. Earlier development may not be healthy and may indicate environmental problems that need to be further researched and addressed. [Recent data on pubertal milestones in United States children: the secular trend toward earlier development - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16466545?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=4&log$=relatedreviews&logdbfrom=pubmed) > [@](#): > > PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To provide an overview of recent studies from the US and other parts of the world that provide conflicting data as to whether there has been a secular trend for earlier onset of puberty and menarche from about 1960 to the present. RECENT FINDINGS: Studies from the US suggest a decrease in the age of onset of puberty over the past 40 years of between 0.5 and 1.0 years, with black girls maturing 0.5 to 1 year earlier than white girls. \*\*There has been a smaller decrease in the mean age at menarche, on the order of 0.2 years. \*\*Northern European countries have not reported such a trend, but several other countries have. The most likely explanation for this trend is an increase in the prevalence of obesity in children. SUMMARY: In light of the above trends, the view that onset of any pubertal changes prior to age 8 years requires an extensive evaluation should be reevaluated. The majority of such early-maturing girls are normal girls at the early end of the age distribution for pubertal onset. As much attention should be paid to the rate of progression of pubertal findings as to their age of appearance. [Pubertal development in girls: secular trends - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16932041?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=5&log$=relatedreviews&logdbfrom=pubmed) ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/27 "2009-05-24T12:14:33Z")
Another one: [http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1054139X06003946](http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1054139X06003946) > [@](#): > > Methods > > Data from 1999–2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for 6788 females 20 years and over were analyzed. Self-reported age at first menses (in years) by birth year groups is reported overall and for Mexican Americans, non-Hispanic whites, and non-Hispanic blacks. > Results > > Mean age at menarche in the United States declined over time from 13.3 years (95% CI: 13.2–13.5) in the oldest age group, those born prior to 1920, to 12.4 years (95% C.I. 12.2–12.5 years) in the youngest group, born between 1980 and 1984. Declines in age at menarche were observed for all race/ethnicity groups. Non-Hispanic black females had the largest decline in mean age at menarche from 13.6 years (95% CI: 13.1–14.1) in women born prior to 1920, to 12.2 years (95% CI: 11.8–12.6) in the 1980–84 birth cohort. Mean age at menarche among non-Hispanic white females declined from 13.3 years (13.1–13.6) in the pre-1920 birth cohort to 12.5 years (12.3–12.8) in the 1980–84 birth cohort. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/28 "2009-05-25T00:28:54Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > Does a lot of sexual activity delay menopause? Hey, maybe that was it! ---
**Author:** ![bink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/439d5e/32.png) [@bink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bink)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/29 "2009-05-25T01:42:35Z")
I started at 10, and my mom was still going strong at 60, so I’ve got that to look forward to. Maybe it’ll be different because she had kids and I never will? ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/30 "2009-05-25T01:55:35Z")
Could the taking of birth control pills have an effect on the average end of menopause? (I know not all the women take them) I’m sure the having fewer kids and having the later must have some effect too ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353/31 "2009-05-25T02:46:46Z")
> [@Dangerosa](#): > > Another one: [http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1054139X06003946](http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1054139X06003946) And a couple on the OP’s question: “Ages as menarche have become earlier over time . . . such a secular trend has seldom been convincingly demonstrated for age at menopause.” [Menopause: A Biocultural Perspective - Lynnette Leidy Sievert - Google Books](http://books.google.com/books?id=fWH606kOGYQC&pg=PA101&lpg=PA101&dq=trend+age+at+menopause&source=bl&ots=tOan5cvMBv&sig=fVjWszKcP3gdW0H_CUsdYUAZleA&hl=en&ei=nAMaSrjAFI60NaD6yYwP&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2) > [@](#): > > When women were classified into three groups based on BMI at age 40 or 41, the age at menopause in those women in the upper 25% was significantly higher than in those in the lower 25%. Throughout the premenopausal period, only the trend in BMI in late menopausal women shifted upward compared to that in early menopausal women. These results confirm that BMI is related to age at menopause and clarify that the greater the BMI, the later the age at menopause. [The effects of body mass index on age at menopause | International Journal of Obesity](http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v26/n7/full/0802039a.html) > [@](#): > > Age at menopause varies across Europe, shifting toward higher ages. This secular trend seems paradoxical because several adult determinants, that is, overweight, smoking, sedentarity, and nulliparity, associated with early menopause are on the rise in Europe. The heterogeneity of the secular trend suggests additional country-specific factors not included in the study, such as improved childhood nutrition and health, that have an influence on reproductive aging. [Is age at menopause increasing across Europe? Results on age at menopause and determinants from two population-based studies - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19034049) [QUOTE=Flint, 1978] a review of the literature from 1864 to 1964 is undertaken, that suggests there may be a secular trend in Denmark, England, France, Germany, Russia and the USA. This must, however, be corroborated by longitudinal, cross cultural, generational research of mothers’ and daughters’ ages at menopause, or at least, cohort analysis of specific populations. [/QUOTE] [Is there a secular trend in age of menopause? - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/755958?ordinalpos=17&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum) and see, [QUOTE=Flint, 1997] However, since 1978, no attempt has been made to update Flint’s 1978 study, from 1948 to 1964, of menopause ages in Denmark, England, France, Germany and the United States. [/QUOTE] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-are-reaching-menarche-earlier-are-women-reaching-menopause-later/497353.md?page=1)