Time to menopause in relation to PBBs, PCBs, and smoking.
OBJECTIVE
Because halogenated biphenyl exposure is suspected to disrupt endocrine function, we assessed time to menopause in women aged 24 years and older who were exposed orally to polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) (n = 874). We also examined smoking in relation to menopause.


METHODS
To define menopausal status, women were interviewed in 1997 and asked whether they had had any menstrual periods in the previous year, why their menstrual periods had stopped (e.g. surgery), and age at their last menstrual period. Serum PBB and PCB taken at enrollment (1976-1978) into the Michigan PBB registry was used as the measure of halogenated biphenyl exposure. Women whose menopause occurred before their PBB exposure were excluded. Proportional hazard modeling was used to analyze the "risk" for menopause in relation to exposure. Premenopausal women contributed person-time until their interview date, at which time they were censored.


RESULTS
We did not find an association between either PBB or PCB exposure and time to menopause. Women who were current smokers had a shorter time to menopause than never smokers (menopause ratio 2.02, 95% C.I. 1.21-3.37). Time to menopause was shortest among women who reported started smoking when they were <18 years of age, smoked at least 20 cigarettes per day, or had at least 10 pack-years of smoking.
Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Chronic Disease Nutrition Branch, 4770 Buford Hwy NE, MS K-26 Atlanta, GA 30341, USA.
Heidi Michels
HM
Blanck
Michele
M
Marcus
Paige E
PE
Tolbert
Cheryl
C
Schuch
Carol
C
Rubin
Alden K
AK
Henderson
Rebecca H
RH
Zhang
Vicki S
VS
Hertzberg
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008593:Menopause / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000503:physiopathology*
D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls