By IANS
London : Thin women going through menopause are likely to be at higher risk of suffering from asthma, a new study has shown.
Menopause is the medical term for the end of a woman’s menstrual periods. Some women find that their asthma gets worse during this period of hormonal change.
A new multination European study examined more than 1,200 women and found that those who had not had a period in the past six months had worse lung function and more respiratory symptoms.
Scientists think this is due to the effect of failing levels of oestrogen – an ovarian hormone during this period, reported the online edition of BBC News.
Women with a body mass index (BMI) lower than 23 had four times the risk of respiratory problems, the scientists said.
BMI is a statistical measure of the weight of a person according to height.
The researchers said problems appeared to be less pronounced among women with a BMI of 25.