Avaerage Age Of Dating Begins In Usa
- Average Age Of Dating Begins In Usa 2020
- Average Age Of Dating Begins In Usa 2017
- Avaerage Age Of Dating Begins In Usa
Your child might not even wait for the teenage years before they ask you if they can “go out” with someone. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, kids start dating at an average age.
- Forty-nine percent of respondents considered this the ideal age. The next most popular age for getting married was 31-35, with 22 percent of the votes. According to the Pew Center, the average age of first marriage in the U.S. Is 26.9 for women and 29.8 for men.
- Average Age: 12-13. In 1928, Howard Kelly, a gynecology professor at John Hopkins University, claimed that the average age to get your period for American girls was 13.9. Surveys of British teens.
- A massive new study of online dating finds that everyone dates aspirationally—and that a woman’s desirability peaks 32 years before a man’s does.
- What Affects the Age You Start Menopause?
Menopause occurs after a person stops having their period for 12 consecutive months. It naturally happens for many people when they are between the ages of 40 and 58. In the United States, the average age for menopause to start is 52 years.
Certain factors, like never having children and smoking, can make it more likely that menopause will occur earlier.
Before menopause, declining estrogen levels can cause people who menstruate to experience premenopausal symptoms. Menstrual changes, hot flashes, vaginal dryness, sleep problems, and other symptoms are the result of hormonal shifts that are taking place during this time, which is called perimenopause.
Perimenopause can last from two to eight years. On average, people experience perimenopause for four years before menopause begins.
While many people go through menopause in their early fifties, there are a number of unique factors that determine at what age a person will start menopause, as well as what their experience will be like.
When Does Menopause Start?
There is a range of what is considered “typical” in terms of when menopause can start, and the symptoms and stages that each person experiences will be different. Here is what you might be able to expect at different ages.
In Your 30s
Perimenopause and menopause do not generally start when you are in your thirties. However, after age 35, egg quality generally declines, and you may have a lower reserve of eggs. Fertility begins to decrease around age 32, then more rapidly at age 37. While this is not the start of menopause, it is the start of your body beginning to change.
At birth, a person with ovaries has around one million egg cells. By puberty, they have 300,000 to 500,000. By age 37, approximately 25,000 remain. Of these egg cells, ovulation will release only 300 to 400 eggs during a person’s lifetime.
Some people go through menopause in their thirties. When this happens, it is known as premature menopause or primary ovarian insufficiency. Premature menopause is not common, occurring in only 1% of people under the age of 40.
Symptoms of premature menopause are the same as those that occur during menopause.
During premature menopause you may experience:
Average Age Of Dating Begins In Usa 2020
- Irregular menstrual cycles leading up to your last period
- Irritability
- Breast tenderness
- Headaches
- Difficulty concentrating
- Weight gain
If you experience any of these symptoms, it’s essential to talk to your doctor. Irregular periods, amenorrhea, and other menopause symptoms can also be signs of other health conditions, like hormonal problems, uterine problems, or an infection.
Premature menopause may have a medical cause, but it can also be spontaneous with no known cause. Some factors that can lead to premature menopause include:
- Hysterectomy or removal of the ovaries
- Smoking
- Cancer treatments
- Family history
- Chromosomal abnormalities
In Your 40s
In your forties, your fertility continues to decline. By age 40, only around 10% of people will achieve pregnancy per menstrual cycle. By age 45, fertility has declined so much that it is unlikely that you will get pregnant without assistance.
In addition, as a person ages, their remaining eggs are more likely to have abnormal chromosomes, which increases the risk of having a baby with chromosomal abnormalities. It also makes having multiples more likely.
Perimenopause most often begins in a person’s forties and can last anywhere from a couple of years to 10 years. The average age of perimenopause onset is 45. During perimenopause, estrogen declines, which can cause a variety of symptoms.
Average Age Of Dating Begins In Usa 2017
Symptoms of perimenopause may include:
- Periods that are irregular, heavier, or lighter than usual
- Hot flashes
- Vaginal dryness
- Mood changes
- Insomnia
- Irritability
- Dry skin
- Breast tenderness
- Worsening of PMS
- Headaches
- Changes in libido
- Difficulty concentrating
- Weight gain
- Hair loss
Until you have gone 12 months without having a period, it is still possible that you could ovulate.
People going through perimenopause may still get pregnant, so it is important to continue to use contraception if you do not wish to become pregnant.
In Your 50s
The average age of menopause for people in the United States is 52. Menopause is defined as 12 concurrent months without having a menstrual cycle.
In the time leading up to menopause (perimenopause), you may have irregular periods or skip periods entirely. However, if your periods resume, you have not yet entered menopause.
Once you have not had a period for an entire year, you can assume that you are no longer ovulating, and therefore no longer be able to become pregnant. The symptoms of menopause are the same as perimenopause, except that you no longer have a period.
PerimenopauseIrregular periods, heavy periods, light periods, skipped periods
Might still become pregnant
Average age is 45
Periods have been absent for more than 12 months
No longer ovulating, no longer able to become pregnant
Average age is 52
Some people find that symptoms like hot flashes ease as they enter postmenopause—the period following 12 months without a menstrual cycle. However, some symptoms can become more pronounced postmenopause.
Postmenopausal symptoms can include:
- Continued hot flashes
- Vaginal dryness
- Urinary incontinence and urgency
- Irritability and mood swings
- Insomnia
- Difficulty concentrating
- Depression
- Headaches
What Affects the Age You Start Menopause?
Certain factors may affect when you begin menopause. Your family history, medical conditions, and hormones all play a role in when menopause is likely to occur for you.
Smoking may influence the age of menopause onset. Studies have found that smoking during the reproductive years was significantly associated with earlier menopause.
Genetic Factors
Family history and genetic factors play a role in when you may begin menopause and may also predict which symptoms you will experience.
A 2021 study in Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society found that the age at which people began menopause was affected by multiple genes.
Removal of the Ovaries
If you have surgery to remove your ovaries (oophorectomy), you will experience menopause immediately because the organs that produce hormones and release eggs are no longer present.
Menopause that occurs from the absence of ovaries is known as surgical menopause.
Conditions like endometriosis, tumors, and cancer may require a person to have their ovaries removed.
People who have an oophorectomy will experience typical menopause symptoms; however, rather than having them come on gradually as they would with natural menopause, they will experience them all at once, which can be intense.
Hormone replacement therapies can be used to treat menopause symptoms. However, hormone therapy is not recommended for people being treated for breast cancer, as it may increase the risk of recurrence.
Avaerage Age Of Dating Begins In Usa
Cancer Treatment
Radiation to the pelvic area can cause the ovaries to stop working, leading to sudden menopause. People who receive smaller doses of radiation may find that their ovaries begin to function again with time.
Chemotherapy can also damage the ovaries. Menopause can occur immediately or months later. The risk of menopause depends on the type of chemotherapy a person receives and the dose that is given. Sudden menopause from chemotherapy is less likely to occur in younger people.
Treatment options after medical menopause include hormone therapy, vaginal estrogen, antidepressants, lubricants, and medicine for bone loss. Getting exercise, enough sleep, and dressing in layers can also help manage symptoms.
Primary Ovarian Insufficiency
Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) occurs when the ovaries have stopped working prematurely. POI is not the same as premature menopause; people with POI may still get occasional periods and may even become pregnant.
Most of the time, the cause of POI is unknown. Possible contributing factors may include:
- Genetic disorders
- A low number of follicles
- Autoimmune diseases
- Metabolic disorders
- Exposure to toxins
- Chemotherapy and radiation treatment
Symptoms of POI are similar to those of natural menopause. Since it usually happens in younger people, infertility is the primary reason that someone with POI goes to their doctor.
There is no way to restore the ovaries’ function, but there are ways to treat the symptoms of POI.
POI treatment may include:
- Hormone replacement therapy
- Calcium and vitamin D supplements
- In vitro fertilization (IVF)
- Exercise
- Treatment of associated conditions
Frequently Asked Questions
How early can menopause start?
The average age of menopause in the United States is 52. However, there is a wide range during which someone could begin menopause. The typical range is from age 40 to 58, but it may begin even earlier. When menopause occurs before age 40, it is referred to as primary ovarian insufficiency (POI).
How do I know if I am in menopause?
Menopause is defined as 12 consecutive months without having a menstrual cycle. If you are currently not having periods, but it has not yet been 12 full months, you might be in menopause, but you cannot be sure until you have gone a full year without having a period.
Some cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation can also lead to medical menopause, which can be temporary or permanent.
At what age do menopause symptoms stop?
The age at which menopause symptoms stop depends on how old you were when menopause began. Even then, it’s difficult to know because every person is different.
On average, the symptoms of perimenopause last for four years before menopause begins, but for some, they last longer.
A Word From Verywell
While the average age of menopause is 52, there is a vast range of what is considered “normal” for when menopause could begin. For some people, menopause starts in their forties or even earlier; for others, it occurs well into their fifties.
If you aren’t sure whether the symptoms that you are experiencing are related to menopause or perimenopause, talk to your doctor. They will be able to rule out other conditions and confirm whether you are going through menopause. They will also be able to support you and help you cope with the symptoms of menopause.
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Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health. Menopause basics.
Cleveland Clinic. Menopause, perimenopause and postmenopause.
Female age-related fertility decline. Committee Opinion No. 589. Fertil Steril. 2014;101(3):633-634. doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2013.12.032
Cleveland Clinic. Female reproductive system.
Cleveland Clinic. Premature and early menopause.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. My periods have changed. Is menopause around the corner?
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Having a baby after age 35: how aging affects fertility and pregnancy.
Gold E. The timing of the age at which natural menopause occurs. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2011;38(3):425-440. doi:10.1016/j.ogc.2011.05.002
Dalal P, Agarwal M. Postmenopausal syndrome. Indian J Psychiatry. 2015;57(6):222. doi:10.4103/0019-5545.161483
Hayatbakhsh M, Clavarino A, Williams G, Sina M, Najman J. Cigarette smoking and age of menopause: a large prospective study. Maturitas. 2012;72(4):346-352. doi:10.1016/j.maturitas.2012.05.004
Zhao W, Smith J, Yu M, et al. Genetic variants predictive of reproductive aging are associated with vasomotor symptoms in a multiracial/ethnic cohort. Menopause. 2021. Published ahead of print. doi:10.1097/gme.0000000000001785
Rosenberg SM, Partridge AH. Premature menopause in young breast cancer: effects on quality of life and treatment interventions. J Thorac Dis. 2013;5(Suppl 1):S55-S61. doi:10.3978/j.issn.2072-1439.2013.06.20
Lupo M, Dains JE, Madsen LT. Hormone replacement therapy: an increased risk of recurrence and mortality for breast cancer patients?J Adv Pract Oncol. 2015;6(4):322-330. doi:10.6004/jadpro.2015.6.4.3
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National Library of Medicine. Primary ovarian insufficiency POI.
Between 1800 and 1900, women generally married for the first time between the ages of 20 and 22. Less is known about the average age of first marriages for men during the 19th century. In 1890, when the U.S. Census Bureau started collecting marriage data, it was recorded that the average age of a first marriage for men was 26 years, and the average age of marriage for women was 22 years.
Marriage in the Colonies
The average age of a women who married for the first time rose steadily, although not sharply, from 1800 to 1900. North American colonists tended to get married early due to several factors. The first, and perhaps most important, was simply that they could. Many took the advice of the Bible -- to leave home and create your own family -- to heart, and they had the resources to do it. Land was inexpensive, and there was plenty of it to choose from -- it was simple to set up shop. According to a 2010 article in the 'Journal of Southern History' titled 'The Effect of the Civil War on Southern Marriage Patterns,' early colonists married at an average age of around 20 if they were women, and around 26 if they were men.
The Civil War
With the end of the Civil War in 1865 came a 'marriage squeeze' for women, especially in the South. About 620,000 men died in the war, which meant that pickings were slim. Many women married older widowers, or married someone not entirely appropriate -- perhaps above or below their socioeconomic status. This pattern did not last very long, however -- about 10 years -- and it did not significantly affect their average age of marriage, which hovered right around 21. For men, it did not significantly change either as many young men rushed to marriage at the start of the war.
After the War
A second rush to marry occurred after the war, but again, the women marrying for the first time were young -- around 21 years of age -- and the men remained right around the age of 26. The age of the women rose slightly because there were more options becoming available to them. A woman no longer had to fully depend on a man to support her -- she could choose to take a wage-paying job. Still, this option was not all that attractive to most women -- marriage and child-rearing were still much preferred.
Age of Consent
During the 19th century, the age of consent in the United States varied between 10 and 16, depending on the state and year. The age of consent was the age when it was determined that a boy or girl -- but most often, a girl -- was capable of consenting to any sexual activity. This does not mean minors often married, however. Although minors could, and still can, marry with parental consent in America, most did not marry so young.
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