Background: An association has been suggested between early menarche and premature natural menopause. However, existing studies in developed countries show mixed findings.
Aim: This study examined whether early menarche (first menstrual period ≤11 years old) is a factor for premature natural menopause (final menstrual period <40 years old) in the context of a developing country.
Subjects and methods: Data came from the Indonesia Family Life Survey (IFLS) 2014, which consists of 1608 post-menopausal women.
Results: Results of hierarchical logistic regression show that women who experienced early menarche (first menstrual period ≤11 years old) were found to be at higher risk of premature natural menopause (β = 0.94, p < 0.01, CI = 0.24-1.63). The results are robust against potential confounding factors including individual reproductive history, lifestyle and sociodemographic characteristics, as well as unobserved factors at the household and community levels.
Conclusion: The findings support early monitoring of women with early menarche, especially those who have no children, for preventive health interventions aimed at mitigating the risk of adverse health outcomes associated with premature natural menopause.
Keywords: Indonesia; Women’s health; early menarche; premature natural menopause.