Could IVF bring about an early menopause?
ACTRESS Alex Kingston fears the intensive in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments she underwent in her 30s brought on early menopause
Dr Who star Alex Kingston, who underwent 13 rounds of IVF before eventually giving birth to her daughter Salome, blames the fertility treatment for her early menopause.
The 51-year-old actress reveals she has suffered many health troubles and fears her struggle to have a child had a long-term impact on her body.
As well as unwanted weight gain, the star believes the treatment brought on her premature menopause.
The former ER star told Britain's You magazine: "I was perimenopausal very early. I have no proof, but I feel it was linked to the IVF and the different hormones I was taking.
"There are things that I think aren't fully explained to women when they are going through all of that. It [the IVF] was very tough.
"You are so desperate. You don't really understand what the side-effects can be.
"That's what they don't tell you in the medical profession. I put on weight with all the IVF - it's so insidious because it happens so slowly and then it's almost impossible to get rid of."
As women we are born with our supply of eggs and we literally go through the menopause when we have run out of eggs
In light of this we asked Marilyn Glenville, the UK’s leading nutritionist in women’s health to explain the effects IVF has on the body.
"Some women, around 1 to 4 per cent, experience an ‘early menopause’ before the age of 40, sometimes as early as in their 20s," said Marilyn.
"This is known as premature ovarian failure (POF). There may be a definite cause for POF such as radiotherapy but in the majority of cases, up to 70 per cent of women, there will be no medical reason."
CAN IVF BRING ON EARLY MENOUPAUSE?
Marilyn said: "Logically you could think that going through IVF could cause a woman to go through the menopause early because in any one year a woman only releases one egg a month at ovulation, making 12 eggs in total.
"But in an IVF cycle, drugs are used to stimulate the ovaries to produce 12 to 15 eggs in one go.
"As women we are born with our supply of eggs (ovarian reserve) and we literally go through the menopause when we have run out of eggs.
"So it would seem that simulating the ovaries to produce a lot of eggs at one time would be depleting the ovarian reserve and pushing a woman towards the menopause faster."
"But each month in a normal menstrual cycle, a woman’s own hormones stimulate the growth of about 15 to 20 eggs in the ovaries and as the cycle progresses one follicle becomes dominant and continues to mature, suppressing all the other follicles which stop growing and die.
"With IVF, the drugs that are used allow more of these eggs to become dominant in one cycle so that these can be retrieved to be fertilised.
"So the woman is not producing any more eggs that she would be in a natural cycle."
ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTIONS
"Obviously going through IVF puts a woman’s body on a roller coaster of hormone fluctuations and a woman may become more sensitive to those hormone changes and so register the symptoms of the perimenopause sooner than another woman," added Marilyn.
"But it may also be that the woman who is going for IVF has a lower ovarian reserve anyway and that is why she needs medical help to get pregnant and would be going through the menopause earlier whether she had IVF or not."
THE FACTS
WHAT IS EARLY MENOPAUSE?
When menopause happens before age 40, it is considered early. Early menopause can be caused by certain medical treatments, or it can just happen on its own.
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE EARLY MENOPAUSE?
You should see your doctor if your period stops or changes before you are 40.
The cause may not be early menopause. You may have a treatable health problem, or you may be pregnant.
Usually, menopause is confirmed when a woman hasn't had her period for 12 months in a row.
To help determine if you may be reaching menopause, your doctor will ask if you've had signs like hot flashes, irregular periods, sleep problems, and vaginal dryness. But these signs are not enough to determine that you are reaching menopause.
Blood tests that can measure oestrogen and related hormones, like follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), can help determine if you have reached early menopause.
You may choose to get tested if you want to know whether you can still get pregnant. Your hormone levels change daily, though, so you may need to have a test more than once to know for sure.
SYMPTOMS OF MENOPAUSE
Women who enter menopause early can have symptoms similar to those of regular menopause. These can include hot flashes, mood changes, vaginal dryness and decreased sex drive.
For some women with early menopause, these symptoms are quite severe.
In addition, women who go through menopause early may have a higher risk of certain health problems, such as heart disease and osteoporosis.
Talk to your doctor about treatments like menopausal hormone therapy that can help with symptoms. Discuss ways to protect your health.
For information on Dr Glenville's Women’s Hormonal Health Retreat, at Champneys Tring on October 10-12, see champneys.com or call 0843 316 2222.
