• Posted March 19, 2026

Premature Menopause Increases Heart Disease Risk

Premature menopause can increase a woman’s long-term risk of heart disease from clogged arteries by 40%, a new study says.

This risk is particularly important among Black women, as they are three times more likely to experience menopause prior to age 40, researchers reported March 18 in JAMA Cardiology.

The results suggest that doctors should routinely ask about older women’s age at menopause, as this can have an impact on their heart health, researchers said.

“When menopause happens before age 40, women still have more than half of their life expectancy ahead of them,” lead researcher Dr. Priya Freaney, an assistant professor of cardiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, said in a news release. “Understanding their cumulative lifetime risk of blockage-related heart disease is critical.” 

For the new study, researchers looked at risk of coronary heart disease among more than 10,000 U.S. women followed for decades as part of six long-running health studies.

In the U.S., the average age of menopause is 51. Early menopause is typically considered between ages 40 and 45, and premature menopause prior to 40.

Researchers found that premature menopause is linked to a 41% higher risk of heart disease among Black women and 39% among while women, even after accounting for other heart health factors.

Black women also have a three times higher rate of premature menopause, nearly 16% compared to 5% among white women.

Heart health is affected even by menopause that occurs around the average age, as declining estrogen levels affect a woman’s body, researchers said.

“As the natural estrogen declines, no matter what age it happens in, cholesterol and blood pressure go up, body fat distribution shifts to the abdomen, muscle mass gets lower, blood sugars can become dysregulated and arteries stiffen,” Freaney said. “Together, these changes over a short period increase the risk of heart disease.”

Women who experience premature menopause need to keep close tabs on their heart health, Freaney said.

“Tell yourself: I have to be far more proactive than my neighbor about my own heart health,” she said. “The vast majority of heart disease is preventable, but people need to know that they’re at risk early in life because effective prevention takes decades.”

“Tell your doctor, ‘I experienced premature menopause. What can we do to protect my heart?’ ” Freaney added.

More information

Johns Hopkins Medicine has more on menopause and heart health.

SOURCE: Northwestern University, news release, March 18, 2026