Early-onset menopause linked to increased symptoms of anxiety and depression
Medical Xpress reports on an observational University of Oulu study of more than 2,600 women from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966, all 46 years old. Those already in the menopausal transition reported clinically significant anxiety symptoms more often, approximately 23% versus 16%, and depressive symptoms, just over 30% versus just under 25%. The associations held after accounting for smoking, alcohol, body mass index and education.
Why it matters: Relevant to midlife women and to the gynecology, primary care and mental health clinicians who refer them, noting the study covered Finnish women aged 46.
A summary of another publisher's reporting, written with AI and checked automatically against the story. The reporting belongs to medicalxpress.com. October 6, 2026.