Sex Hormones and Menopause Linked to Bad Cholesterol Carriers and Risk of Heart Disease

As women enter menopause, their hormone levels change. Now, scientists have found that during this transition, the quality of a woman's cholesterol carriers degrades and leaves her at a great risk for heart disease.

"Higher levels of HDL, or what we know as 'good cholesterol,' may not always be protective, as we have thought before," said Samar R. El Khoudary, lead investigator in the new study, in a news release.

In order to better understand how menopause-related changes in sex hormones impact the quality of cholesterol carriers, the researchers used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in order to measure the size, distribution and concentration of lipoproteins that carry cholesterol in the blood. More specifically, they examined 120 women who were enrolled in the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN). The women were all about 50 years old and not on hormone replacement therapy.

There are two major types of lipoproteins: high-density lipoprotein (HDL), which helps keep cholesterol from building up in the arties, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which is the main source of cholesterol buildup and blockage in the arteries.

"We found that lower levels of estradiol, one of the main hormonal changes that mark menopause, are associated with low-quality cholesterol carriers, which have been found to predict risk for heart disease," said El Khoudary. "Our results suggest that there may be value in using advanced testing methods to evaluate changes in cholesterol carriers' quality in women early in menopause so that doctors can recommend appropriate diet and lifestyle changes."

The findings could result in better treatment for women transitioning to menopause. They also underscore the importance of having clinicians who are aware of the risk factors that women face and who can recommend necessary changes in order to lower these risks.

The findings will be published in the July issue of the Journal of Lipid Research.