Cohort study, 2006
Does the hormone change at menopause cause depressed mood in women who have never been depressed before?
Yes. In this study women with no history of depression were much more likely to have high depression scores and diagnosed depressive disorders during the menopause transition, and this was linked to changing hormone levels, not just age.
What they did
Researchers followed a group of premenopausal women with no history of depression for 8 years, as part of a larger randomly selected population study. They tracked each woman's own depression scores (CES-D), clinical depression diagnoses (PRIME-MD), menopausal status, and hormone levels (estradiol, FSH, LH) over time.
What they found
High depression scores were over 4 times more likely during the menopause transition than when the same woman was premenopausal (odds ratio 4.29). Diagnosed depressive disorder was about 2.5 times more likely during the transition (odds ratio 2.50). Rising FSH and LH, and more variability in estradiol, FSH and LH around a woman's own normal levels, were each linked to higher depression scores, even after accounting for smoking, weight, PMS, hot flashes, sleep, health, work and marital status.
What it means for you
This supports the idea that the hormonal upheaval of the menopause transition itself, not just getting older, can trigger new depressed mood even in women who have never had depression before. The study followed each woman over time and compared her to herself, which is a strength, but it cannot fully prove hormones cause depression, since other changing life factors could still play a role.
OR 4.29
odds of high depression score during menopause transition vs premenopausal
OR 2.50
odds of diagnosed depressive disorder during transition vs premenopausal
8 years
length of follow-up
About the study
- Original title
- Associations of hormones and menopausal status with depressed mood in women with no history of depression
- Authors
- Freeman EW, Sammel MD, Lin H et al.
- Journal
- Archives of general psychiatry
- Year
- 2006
- Study design
- Cohort study
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.63.4.375
Topics
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