Where your DNA places you among other people, and the studies behind it.
Not tailored to your result, and not medical advice
Avoid Smoking: Smoking is the strongest modifiable factor linked to earlier menopause, bringing it forward by roughly 1-2 years through toxic effects on ovarian follicles. Current smokers have close to double the risk of early natural menopause compared with never-smokers, and the risk rises with the amount and duration of smoking. Quitting reduces this excess risk over time. American Journal of Epidemiology
Protect Bone Health: The fall in estrogen around menopause speeds up bone loss, particularly in the first years after the final period. Weight-bearing and resistance exercise loads bone directly and is the lever most under your control. Dairy, tinned fish with bones, tofu and leafy greens are good dietary calcium sources, and not smoking protects bone density too. NIH NIAMS
Manage Cardiovascular Risk at Menopause: The menopausal transition is associated with unfavorable changes in cardiovascular risk factors, including rising LDL cholesterol and increasing vascular stiffness, and earlier menopause is linked to higher cardiovascular disease risk. Attention to exercise, diet, lipid monitoring, and blood pressure control is especially worthwhile around the perimenopausal transition. The Lancet Public Health
Notice Early Changes in Your Cycle: If your periods stop before age 40, that is worth medical attention rather than waiting, and menopause before 45 warrants closer attention to bone and cardiovascular health. Tracking your cycle gives you something concrete to describe. Current Opinion in Endocrine and Metabolic Research
How much of this is genetic?
Genetics explains 50% of why people differ in this trait. The rest is environment, daily habits and chance.
Heritability estimate: Murabito 2005, J Clin Endocrinol Metab
Background and further reading
Age at natural menopause (ANM) is defined as 12 consecutive months without menstruation in the absence of other causes. The average age is around 51 years, and most women reach menopause between 45 and 55 [1]. Menopause before 45 is classed as early menopause, and before 40 as premature ovarian insufficiency. Earlier menopause is associated with higher rates of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and fracture, reflecting a longer span of life with low estrogen [2]. Later menopause is associated with a modestly higher risk of breast and endometrial cancer from longer lifetime estrogen exposure: breast cancer risk rises by roughly 3% for each additional year of age at menopause [3].
Genetic Basis: Twin and family studies estimate the heritability of age at natural menopause at roughly 50%, within a reported range of about 44-87% [4]. The largest genome-wide association study identified 290 loci in around 200,000 women of European ancestry; these variants together explain about 12% of the variation in menopause timing and about a third of the genetic component [1]. Nearly two-thirds of the associated variants sit in DNA damage response and repair pathways, including genes such as BRCA1, CHEK2, and MCM8 [1]. Because these same pathways maintain oocyte quality and repair DNA damage that accumulates in eggs over decades, they link ovarian aging to broader genome stability. Women carrying BRCA1 mutations tend to reach menopause earlier, connecting breast cancer susceptibility to the timing of ovarian aging [1].
Environmental Factors: Smoking is the strongest established lifestyle modifier and brings menopause forward by roughly 1-2 years through toxic effects on ovarian follicles [5]. Body composition also plays a part: very low body weight is associated with earlier menopause, while higher body fat supports peripheral estrogen production. Greater parity is associated with slightly later menopause. Certain medical treatments, including chemotherapy and ovarian surgery, can cause early or premature menopause, and autoimmune conditions can contribute to premature ovarian insufficiency [2].
The published research behind your score, and the variants it draws on.
3 published scores from 1 study
The age at menopause score combines 3 polygenic scores drawn from 1 published study.
These traits are influenced by some of the same genes and variants as this one
Breast Cancer: The most common cancer in women, driven by complex genetic and hormonal factors.
Content updated August 2026.
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