Does Family History Impact the Age You Go Through Menopause?

Is the age you go through menopause hereditary?

—Shannon

There are several factors that are recognized as determining the timing of a woman’s last menstrual period. Smoking, pregnancy history, night shift work, and, yes, genetics all affect the timing of menopause.

A woman with a family history of earlier menopause is more likely to have menopause early herself. Researchers have looked at different types of genes to see which ones might be responsible for “ovarian aging” with genome-wide association studies. Essentially, researchers comb through the genomes of women with very early or very late menopause looking for versions of genes that show up more often in those women.

two person sitting and talking with doctor — Getty Signature / Canva

They have found that certain versions of genes that regulate how cells repair damaged DNA seem to be associated with a woman’s age at menopause. However, we still don’t fully understand the exact role these genes might play, how they might be inherited from one parent or the other, or how they might be turned on or off by our environment. We still have a lot to learn here.

Depending on your family history, though, you might get some idea of what to expect. The key here is to remember that you get genes from both parents. Your father obviously didn’t go through menopause, but maybe you know something about his mother or sister.

It gets complicated quickly. I’ll use myself as an example. I am 46 (at least for another month). My mother had a hysterectomy and oophorectomy before menopause, so I can’t get any information there. My sister is younger than I am. My maternal grandmother smoked, but she also had a baby at 43. On my dad’s side, my grandmother and aunts seemed to think menopause was unremarkable — I hope I take after them! But so unremarkable that they don’t really remember how old they were.

All this is to say, while genetics are a significant factor in a woman’s age at her last menstrual period, those genetics are not yet well understood, and a variety of other factors may make it difficult to interpret your own family history to get an accurate estimate of when you might experience menopause.