The ovarian cycle is regulated by internal circadian rhythms rather than external processes, says a study published in Science Advances. Using menstrual cycle data from some 3,000 women in Europe and North America, the authors add that the influence of the lunar cycle on women's menstrual cycle is weak, but significant.
The menopause should be tackled not just by treating specific symptoms, but more broadly, argue a group of researchers in an article published in The Lancet, one of a series on the subject. A medicalised approach can disempower women and lead to overtreatment, the authors warn. "Instead of focusing on menopause as an endocrine deficiency, we propose an empowerment model", they say. This model would incorporate the influence of psychological, social, and contextual factors that can be modified, and would also value the patient as the expert on her own condition.
At an informative meeting organized by the Science Media Centre Spain, the coauthor of a paper published this week in the journal Cell discussed his findings with journalists. Although the study was conducted with mice, he is confident in being able to analyze human eggs to see if his conclusions could explain the loss of fertility that occurs in women with age.
An international team, led by a Spanish group, has published the mechanism that allows immature egg reserves (oocytes) to survive for many years, up to almost half a century in the case of humans. The research studies how oocytes are affected by protein aggregates similar to those that damage other cells such as neurons and can cause neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. The finding of how these egg reserves are kept healthy may help to understand some causes of infertility. The results are published in the journal Cell.
Women who follow vegan diets during pregnancy may have an increased risk of developing preeclampsia and giving birth to underweight newborns, suggests an observational study published in Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica. In the investigation, more than 65,000 women identified themselves as omnivores, more than 800 as vegetarians -in some of their different modalities- and 18 as vegans.
A review of epidemiological data examines the physical and psychological complications that occur after childbirth in the medium and long term. More than a third of women reported lasting, and often neglected, health problems six weeks after childbirth. The most common complaints were: pain during sexual intercourse (35%), lower back pain (32%), urinary incontinence (8-31%), anxiety (9-24%), anal incontinence (19%), depression (11-17%) or significant fear of childbirth (6-15%). In their paper, published today in the journal The Lancet Global Health as part of a special series, the authors stress the importance of providing comprehensive health services beyond six weeks postpartum.
An early first menstrual period (menarche) - compared with the average of 13 years - is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in women under the age of 65 and also with an increased risk of stroke among those living with diabetes, says a study published in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health. The research analyses data from a national health survey in the US, focusing on women aged 20-65 between 1999 and 2018.
A review published in the journal Cell highlights the "urgent need" for more studies on the menopause - and at an international level, so that the results can be applied to all countries. The article, published by a research team in Australia, the US and Italy, summarises the available evidence on the biology of the menopause, its consequences for women and therapeutic options. It highlights the lack of studies in certain areas, for example on the efficacy of non-oral oestradiol, or on the efficacy and safety of hormone therapies during the perimenopause.
The use of hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) for menopause is associated with the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, even for short prescriptions before the age of 55, according to an analysis of data from the Danish national registry published in The BMJ. The research - which observes associations and cannot determine causality - also shows that the use of progesterone alone and vaginal oestrogen are not associated with the development of dementia.