Women’s Health: Menstruation and Menopause

Although women in Spain were the first in Europe to be given the right to paid leave for period pain, legal restrictions and lack of awareness mean that few take advantage of the opportunity. In the 11 months since the new law was introduced, menstrual leave has been taken 1,559 times, with an average of 4.75 entitled people taking leave daily. The average duration of leave was just over three days.

Researchers from University College London found that women who engage in sports make fewer mistakes and react faster when they have their period. The tests assessed the reaction time, attention, precision, and spatial orientation in team sports of almost 250 women over 14 days. Despite feeling worse, women were, on average, 12% faster in tasks involving a ball’s movement, and their chances of passing a test of the ability to predict events were 25% higher. The researchers believe this is due to hormone fluctuations such as estrogen and progesterone during the menstrual cycle.

A study by the University of Utah Health found that women who go through menopause before age 40 are four times more likely to develop ovarian cancer. Additionally, women who go through menopause early are twice as likely to develop breast cancer. Researchers also found that close relatives of people who went through menopause early, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews, are 1.5 times more likely to develop colon cancer and have a higher risk of breast and prostate cancer.