A recent survey of over 4,400 U.S. women aged 30 and older found that more than half of women aged 30–35 and nearly two-thirds of those aged 36–40 reported moderate to severe perimenopausal symptoms.
Despite how common these symptoms were, fewer than 5% of women under 40 sought medical support.
The women surveyed reported a wide range of symptoms, including:
- Irregular or shortened menstrual cycles
- Increased PMS or mood swings
- Fatigue that doesn’t improve with rest
- Trouble sleeping or waking in the middle of the night
- Anxiety, irritability, or feeling emotionally reactive
- Brain fog or forgetfulness
- Hot flashes or night sweats
- Breast tenderness
- Low libido or vaginal dryness
- Worsening migraines or new-onset headaches
Historically, women did not experience menopause this early. From the early 20th century through the 1980s, the average age of natural menopause in most Western countries held steady at around 50 to 51 years. Earlier onset was uncommon and typically linked to medical conditions, smoking, or severe undernutrition.
But in the past few decades, that pattern has started to shift, we’re seeing a widespread trend affecting otherwise healthy women.
So what’s driving early menopause?
Many people think estrogen is the main hormone that declines in menopause. But in reality, it often remains elevated or erratic during perimenopause, especially in the absence of enough progesterone to balance it.
This creates a state of relative estrogen dominance, which is associated with mood changes, irregular periods, inflammation, and tissue overgrowth. Today many women are experiencing erratic estrogen or estrogen dominance at younger ages.
A major contributor to this hormonal imbalance is the disruption of ovulation. Chronic stress, nutrient deficiencies, overexercising, under-eating, excess estrogen, and exposure to synthetic estrogens can interfere with the brain’s signaling to the ovaries. When ovulation doesn’t occur, progesterone levels remain low, and the cycle becomes estrogen dominant by default.
Environmental endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are a major factor in elevated estrogen levels. Excess estrogen, whether from our own bodies or from xenoestrogens, can suppress the hormones that trigger ovulation. Over time, this can shut down the normal cyclical production of progesterone. Since ovulation is the only way we make significant amounts of progesterone, anything that blocks ovulation will tip the balance in favor of estrogen, accelerating ovarian aging and the onset of perimenopausal symptoms.
A study published in the journal PLOS ONE found that women with higher levels of certain phthalates in their blood and urine went through menopause 2.3 years earlier on average than women with lower levels. Depending on the specific chemical, women with higher levels experienced menopause 1.9 to 3.8 years earlier.
For more than a decade, scientists have known that these chemicals are linked to early menopause and are deeply disruptive to the endocrine system.
The study identified several persistent EDCs linked to significantly earlier onset of menopause. These compounds tend to accumulate in the body over time and are incredibly difficult to break down, making their long-term biological effects concerning.
- β‑hexachlorocyclohexane: A chlorinated pesticide banned in many countries but still present in the environment. It lingers in contaminated soil and water, and is most concentrated in animal fats like those found in conventional (non-organic) meat and dairy.
- Mirex: A now-banned insecticide used in the U.S. until the late 1970s. Still found in old electronics, building materials, and fatty tissues of contaminated fish and wildlife. It is highly persistent in ecosystems and bioaccumulates in the food chain.
- p,p′-DDE: A metabolite of DDT, another infamous pesticide. Even though DDT was banned decades ago in the U.S., its breakdown product DDE still contaminates meat, dairy, and water supplies in areas that were heavily sprayed in the past.
- 1,2,3,4,6,7,8‑Heptachlorodibenzofuran: A type of dioxin/furan formed during industrial combustion and chlorine bleaching in paper production. Also released from incineration of plastics and chemical waste. Dioxins are extremely toxic and disrupt hormone receptors even at very low levels.
- MEHHP & MEOHP: These are phthalate metabolites, specifically of DEHP, a common plasticizer. Found in soft plastics (like food containers, vinyl shower curtains, plastic wrap), personal care products, medical tubing, and household dust. These metabolites are detectable in most people’s urine and have been shown to disrupt sex hormone signaling.
- PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls): Industrial chemicals banned in the late 1970s but still present in the environment. Found in old electrical equipment, paints, sealants, transformers, and contaminated fish. PCBs persist in human tissues and have been linked to breast cancer, thyroid dysfunction, and early menopause.
Some other factors:
- Early puberty. Girls who go through puberty at a younger age are more likely to experience early menopause. Early puberty is often driven by environmental estrogens (like EDCS in plastics and food). The same exposures that trigger early puberty can later disrupt ovulation and reduce progesterone, leading to earlier ovarian aging and hormonal imbalance.
- High intake of phytoestrogens which worsen estrogen dominance: soy, flaxseed, black cohosh, chasteberry, licorice root, etc.
- Elevated cortisol from long-term stress disrupts the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis, the communication system between the brain and ovaries. This can interfere with ovulation and further reduce progesterone output. Cortisol also increases insulin resistance, promotes inflammation, and can alter thyroid function, all of which contribute to hormonal instability.
- Low thyroid function which affects metabolism, weight, and progesterone synthesis.
- Blood sugar imbalances drive cortisol production. High insulin can boost estrogen production in fat tissue.
- Liver detoxification issues which can reduce estrogen clearance, intensifying symptoms.
Many women who report symptoms of hormonal decline are offered estrogen therapy as the first line of treatment. While this can be appropriate in certain cases, it is not universally beneficial, especially when the underlying issue is estrogen dominance caused by environmental or metabolic factors.
Giving more estrogen to an already estrogen-dominant system can worsen symptoms and increase long-term risk of conditions like fibroids, endometriosis, and estrogen-sensitive cancers.
Progesterone, either produced endogenously or supplemented, can help regulate the timing of reproductive events. When progesterone drops too soon, whether from chronic stress, chemical exposure, or nutritional deficiencies, the brain and ovaries may interpret this as a signal to shut down reproduction. This feedback can initiate an early menopausal trajectory.
What can women do?
- Avoid plastics, especially when heating food.
- Choose clean personal care products without phthalates or parabens.
- Eat organic when possible to reduce pesticide exposure.
- Filter drinking water to remove industrial contaminants.
- Consider supporting liver detoxification with nutrients like glycine, magnesium, and B vitamins.
- Consider bioidentical progesterone or pregnenolone therapy.
The endocrine system thrives on regular, cyclical feedback. When that rhythm is disrupted by external chemicals and chronic stress, the body adapts, sometimes in ways that accelerate reproductive aging.
