Menopause and cardiometabolic diseases: What we (don't) know and why it matters

Cardiometabolic diseases (CMD), including type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cardiovascular disease (CVD), and their associated factors, such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and obesity are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in both sexes.[1] However, men and women experience different trajectories of cardiometabolic risk throughout the life course. At a young age, CMD prevalence is higher in men than women, but this female advantage gradually disappears with aging, particularly after menopause, when cardiometabolic risk factors accumulate.[2, 3] However, the underlying biological pathways remain insufficiently studied, and disentangling the effect of age and menopause on cardiometabolic status worsening has been challenging.[4, 5] Considering that the midlife period could be a critical window of opportunity to optimize cardiometabolic health and initiate early prevention strategies, we conducted a narrative review in which we discuss the current understanding of the impact of menopause (timing, type and menopause stages) and associated modifying and/or mediating factors such as hormone therapy, genes, lifestyle and environment on CMD risk (e.g., risk factors such as blood pressure, lipid and glucose metabolism, obesity and T2D and CVD) in aging women.
Source: Maturitas - Category: Primary Care Authors: Source Type: research