Menopause Age Calculator: Can You Predict It?

There’s no definitive menopause age calculator, but there are some things that can predict whether you’ll reach menopause early.

The age when you reach menopause is down to a complicated mix of your genes, lifestyle, and medical history.

Unfortunately, it’s not yet possible to plug your data into a menopause age calculator and find out when you’ll go through it.

The menopause age range is between 45 and 55 — basically, if it were a person, it would be old enough to vote.

To make things more complicated, some people go through early menopause.

So accurately predicting things is not always so easy.

Here’s what we know.

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How do you calculate menopause age?

You hit the official age of menopause when you haven’t had a period for a calendar year.

On average, we reach the menstruation finish line just after 51.

But while it’s easy to work out the average age of menopause, it’s more complicated to predict when it will happen for you.

What makes it extra tricky is that entering menopause isn’t like flipping a switch.

You might have years of perimenopause symptoms as your body gradually stops producing the hormones that control your periods.

And it’s hard to pinpoint the average age when perimenopause begins because everyone experiences those symptoms differently.

While some symptoms (like hot flashes) are difficult to miss, others can be more ambiguous.

Many women feel low or have mood swings because of their hormone levels.

But there can be a lot of other factors to deal with at this time — career, finances, and family issues are just some of the plates you may have spinning right now.

Basically, while most women go through menopause in their 40s or 50s, they might have symptoms that come and go for about seven years or even more.

And while we have a definition for when menopause ends, it’s much harder to calculate the average age when the menopause journey begins.

Is there a test for menopause?

Menopause is a natural process, not an illness you need to get diagnosed with.

But, if you’d rather know for sure, your doctor can confirm whether you’re in perimenopause.

They won’t use a menopause calculator, but rather a blood test to check your hormone levels.

What is the most common age to go through menopause?

In the absence of a crystal ball or a definitive menopause age chart, your genetics might be the most helpful tool you have for predicting when your periods will check out for good.

Although 51 is the average age to go through menopause, the most common age to go through menopause is… about the same age as your mother.

Put simply, if your mother went through menopause at 54, there’s a decent chance you’ll also go through menopause at 54, plus or minus a year or two.

Depending on your family medical history, though, there are a lot of exceptions to this rule.

For example, if your mother was 40 when she went through menopause, but her sisters and mother were in their 50s, she was probably an outlier, and you’re more likely to take after your other female relatives.

And if your mother smoked or had a condition that generally brings menopause forward (more on this later), your period will probably stick around for longer than hers did.

Other factors that help to predict menopause age

You can’t postpone or predict menopause, but you can identify the things that might make it earlier.

Perimenopause symptoms are rooted in the decreasing level of hormones like estrogen in your body.

Since a lot of these hormones are produced by your ovaries, anything that damages your ovaries can bring menopause forward.

We’re talking about:

Smoking

The harmful chemicals in cigarettes can damage your ovaries and bring menopause forward by an average of 1–3 years.

Surgery

If you’ve had surgery on or around your ovaries, it’s more likely that you’ll reach earlier menopause.

Medical treatments

Chemotherapy or radiotherapy patients often go through temporary menopause.

Even if your periods come back again after such a serious illness, there’s a good chance that menopause will happen earlier.

Certain medical conditions

Some chronic illnesses (like an over- or underactive thyroid) can affect the balance of hormones in your body.

Others might damage your organs over time like endometriosis or autoimmune conditions like lupus.

There’s an overlap between people with these conditions and those who reach menopause before the average age of 51.

Whenever perimenopause begins for you, we’re in this together.

And however much we can’t predict about menopause, we’re certain that the Peanut Community is there for you.