A Lancet study shows South Asian women carry a 34 percent higher risk of premature menopause. Average menopause age stands at 47.4 years for this group, compared with 50.7 years among European women and roughly 50 to 51 years in Western populations overall.
Premature menopause, the end of menstruation before age 40, marks an important signal for later chronic disease. Data come from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiologic study, a 14-year project tracking more than 111,000 women across 26 countries.
Early ovarian decline raises cardiovascular concerns because lower estrogen levels persist longer. Researchers note that women in low- and middle-income countries face a 53 percent greater risk than those in high-income nations.
South Asian women recorded an average menopause age of 44.7 years. In India one in five women between 40 and 44 had already reached menopause. Factors include household air pollution, chronic malnutrition, limited education, and heavy physical work.
The same study links premature menopause to a 27 percent rise in major cardiovascular events, a 30 percent increase in fatal heart incidents, and a 24 percent rise in overall mortality. Early menopause between 40 and 44 carries smaller but still notable elevations in risk. These associations held after statistical adjustments for other health variables.
