Abstract
Girls who engage in strenuous physical activity are often amenorrheic and have recently been reported to be at a reduced risk of breast cancer. To determine whether moderate amounts of exercise affect menstrual cycle patterns and ovulatory frequency in young postmenarcheal girls, the menstrual cycles and physical activity patterns of 168 high school girls were monitored for a 6 month period. Anovulatory cycles were associated with later age at menarche, fewer elapsed years since menarche and greater levels of energy expended per week in physical activity. After adjusting for age at menarche and years since menarche, there was a significant dose-related trend in the risk of anovular menstrual cycles associated with increasing levels of physical activity (1-sided P = 0.03). Major determinants of average cycle length were weekly average energy expenditure (less than or equal to 750 kcal wk-1 associated with cycles that were on average 2.4 days longer), age at menarche (an increase of 0.7 days per year of age) and race (Asians having cycles about 1.9 days longer than Caucasians). Because a major determinant of breast cancer risk may be the cumulative number of ovulatory cycles, these data suggest that regular participation in moderate physical activity, by reducing the frequency of ovulatory cycles in adolescence, may provide an opportunity for the primary prevention of breast cancer.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 24 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $10.79 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bernstein, L., Ross, R., Lobo, R. et al. The effects of moderate physical activity on menstrual cycle patterns in adolescence: Implications for breast cancer prevention. Br J Cancer 55, 681–685 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1987.139
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1987.139
This article is cited by
-
Determinants and Assessment of Menstrual Blood Flow
Current Epidemiology Reports (2023)
-
World Cancer Research Fund International: Continuous Update Project—systematic literature review and meta-analysis of observational cohort studies on physical activity, sedentary behavior, adiposity, and weight change and breast cancer risk
Cancer Causes & Control (2019)
-
Background risk of breast cancer and the association between physical activity and mammographic density
Breast Cancer Research (2015)
-
Associations between anthropometric characteristics, physical activity, and breast cancer risk in a Canadian cohort
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment (2014)
-
Adolescent physical activity and inactivity: a prospective study of risk of benign breast disease in young women
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment (2014)