Air Pollutants Can Disrupt Hormone Levels Possibly Exacerbating Menopause Symptoms, Study Says

A study shows that certain air pollutants can alter hormone levels during the menopause transition, potentially aggravating symptoms.

Exposure To Certain Air Pollutants

A woman's menopause is a major life transition marked by an increase in follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and a decrease in estradiol (E2).

Although there is mounting evidence that air pollution may alter hormone profiles and have an impact on reproductive health, little is known about how these effects relate to women going through menopause (MT).

To find out how specific air pollutants affected the sex hormones of 1,365 middle-aged women, researchers from the University of Michigan examined the sex hormones of the women as well as the air quality in the vicinity of their residences.

Researchers discovered that exposure to nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5, a type of fine particulate matter, was linked to a higher rate of rapid estrogen loss during the menopause transition as well as an extra drop in estrogen levels.

"The management of menopause is really important to the woman's health later in life. If air pollution plays a role, we need to take care of that," said Sung Kyun Park, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan and the author of the study.

A person's menstrual cycle begins to alter throughout menopause and eventually ends. The ovaries stop producing estrogen, the sex hormone in charge of controlling the female reproductive system, when ovulation stops.

Beyond a woman's ability to procreate, this decline in estrogen has been related to an increased risk of cardiovascular illness, difficulties with bones, and Alzheimer's disease.

By 2025, 1.1 billion women would be perimenopausal worldwide, according to a report published in 2014.

However, a 2023 paper published in the journal Maturitas suggests that variations in average and high temperatures brought on by climate change may exacerbate hot flashes and nocturnal sweats. The authors point out that hot flashes and nocturnal sweats may worsen in response to increases in both normal and high temperatures.

Menopausal women may experience a range of mental health symptoms as a result of climate change, from mild stress to anxiety and despair, which can complicate the transition. Air pollution can cause issues with bone, cognitive, and cardio-metabolic health, all of which have an impact on the menopausal transition.

Climate Change And Women's Health

Although this particular area of study is relatively new, Audrey Gaskins, an associate professor of epidemiology and environmental health at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, said the results aren't as shocking.

Since 2022, scientists have known that air pollution in rats results in ovarian inflammation and early ovarian follicle death. Ovarian follicles are little sacs filled with fluid that carry eggs.

In a September 2023 study, scientists discovered that every woman in their sample had black carbon particles in both her ovarian tissue and her follicular fluid, which is the fluid that surrounds eggs.

Women may go through menopause earlier or have lower amounts of specific hormones if air pollution affects their ovaries over an extended period of time, according to Gaskins.

Researchers have not yet determined how menopausal symptoms would be impacted by these hormonal changes; they have just examined the hormone levels of women going through menopause. However, insufficient estrogen is already known to be associated with menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and insomnia.

"The question just becomes the magnitude of the effect that we are seeing," said Gaskins.