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Body mass index in mid-life women: relative influence of menopause, hormone use, and ethnicity

International Journal of Obesity volume 25, pages 863–873 (2001)Cite this article

A Corrigendum to this article was published on 16 July 2002

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To assess the relative influence of menopausal status and hormone use on body mass index (BMI) among a multiethnic sample of mid-life women.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional telephone survey conducted at seven sites where each site targeted an ethnic minority group and Caucasians as part of Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN).

SUBJECTS: A total of 7181 Caucasians, 3949 African-Americans, 1660 Hispanics, 562 Chinese Americans, and 803 Japanese Americans between ages of 40 and 55 y residing in or near Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Newark, NJ, Oakland, CA, and Pittsburgh, PA.

MEASUREMENTS: Self-reported BMI based on weight in kg divided by height in m2 menopausal status, physical inactivity, postmenopausal hormone use, ethnicity, and age in years.

RESULTS: Compared to premenopausal women (covariate adjusted M=27.3), women reporting a surgical menopause (M=28.2) or being in the perimenopausal transition (M=27.7 for early and 27.9 for late perimenopause) had higher BMI. Women reporting a natural menopause (M=27.4) did not have a higher BMI than premenopausal women, after adjusting for chronological age and other covariates. Hormone use was associated with lower BMI (M=26.5 vs 27.3). A comparison of effect sizes showed that menopausal status (F=13.1), followed by chronological age (F=24.0), were the least powerful predictors of BMI, whereas the more powerful predictors were physical activity level (F=1377.1) and ethnicity (F=400.5).

CONCLUSIONS: The menopausal transition affects body mass index in mid-life, but the effect is small relative to other influences. Interventions to increase physical activity are highly recommended to prevent increases in adiposity common in mid-life.

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Acknowledgements

The Study of Women's Health Across the Nation is supported by NIA research grants: University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA (AG12546); University of Medicine and Dentistry, New Jersey Medical School, Newark (AG12535); Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA (AG12531); Rush University Rush-Presbyterian-St Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, IL (AG12505); University of California, Davis (AG12554); University of California, Los Angeles (AG12539); University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (NR 04061); New England Research Institutes, Watertown MA (AG12553), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (AG12495). The study was approved by each site's institutional review board and all women gave informed consent to participate.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

    KA Matthews

  2. School of Public Health, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA

    B Abrams

  3. New England Research Institutes, Watertown, Massachusetts, USA

    S Crawford

  4. Department of Family Practice, University of Texas, Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA

    T Miles

  5. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    R Neer

  6. Department of Preventive Medicine, Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    LH Powell & D Wesley

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Correspondence to KA Matthews.

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Matthews, K., Abrams, B., Crawford, S. et al. Body mass index in mid-life women: relative influence of menopause, hormone use, and ethnicity. Int J Obes 25, 863–873 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0801618

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