Menopause, a Biocultural Perspective

Posted: 2 Nov 2011

Date Written: October 2011

Abstract

Each menopausal body is the product of decades of physiological responses to an environment composed of cultural and biological factors. Anthropologists have documented population differences in reproductive endocrinology and developmental trajectories, and ethnic differences in hormones and symptoms at menopause demonstrate that this stage of life history is not exempt from this pattern. Antagonistic pleiotropy, in the form of constraints on the reproductive system, may explain the phenomenon of menopause in humans, optimizing the hormonal environment for reproduction earlier in the life course. Some menopausal symptoms may be side effects of modernizing lifestyle changes, representing discordance between our current lifestyles and genetic heritage. Further exploration of women's experience of menopause, as opposed to researcher-imposed definitions; macro- and microenvironmental factors, including diet and intestinal ecology; and folk etiologies involving the autonomic nervous system may lead to a deeper understanding of the complex biocultural mechanisms of menopause.

Suggested Citation

Melby, Melissa K. and Lampl, Michelle, Menopause, a Biocultural Perspective (October 2011). Annual Review of Anthropology, Vol. 40, pp. 53-70, 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1950851 or http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev-anthro-081309-145641

Melissa K. Melby (Contact Author)

University of Delaware ( email )

Newark, DE 19711
United States

Michelle Lampl

Emory University ( email )

201 Dowman Drive
Atlanta, GA 30322
United States

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