Age of menopause, healthy lifestyle and cardiovascular disease in women: a prospective cohort study

Background Menopause is a timely opportunity to screen for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and intervene with healthier lifestyles. We investigated the association between premature/early menopause and the likelihood of CVD and whether a healthy lifestyle is associated with a lower likelihood of CVD in menopausal woman. Methods The Sax Institute’s 45 and Up Study prospectively recruited participants aged ≥45 years (n=267 357) between 2005 and 2009 (New South Wales, Australia). Our study included women without prior CVD and reporting menopausal age at baseline. Primary outcome was new-onset CVD (self-reported heart disease/stroke) based on survey data at Wave 2 (2012–2015) and/or Wave 3 (2018–2020). Logistic regression models assessed the associations of premature (age <40 years) and early (age 40–44 years) menopause with CVD, compared with menopause between 50 and 52 years, adjusting for sociodemographic and clinical variables. Healthy lifestyle adherence was assessed using a score of five factors: smoking, physical activity, sitting, sleep and diet. Results We included 46 238 women (mean age 62.1±8.2 years), with 5416 (11.7%) cases of CVD over 15-year follow-up. After adjustment, the odds of CVD was higher in women with premature menopause (OR 1.36, 95% CIs 1.17 to 1.59; p<0.0001) and early menopause (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.28; p=0.013) compared with menopause between 50 and 52 years. Among all women, high (score 9–10) versus low (score 0–5) healthy lifestyle adherence led to 23% lower odds of CVD (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.86; p<0.0001), and in women with premature menopause, led to 52% lower odds of CVD (OR 0.48, 95% CI 0.30 to 0.77, p=0.0022). Lifestyle effect did not significantly differ between menopause categories (interaction, p=0.71). Conclusion Women with premature/early menopause are at higher likelihood for CVD. Lifestyle modification is associated with consistent reduction of the likelihood of CVD in women and should be encouraged across the life course.