Menopause Causes Shortness Of Breath [STUDY]

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If night sweats and hot flashes weren't enough, menopause also causes breathlessness or shortness of breath. One of the recent studies show that menopause gives rise to declining function of the lungs.

According to study author and graduate student at the University of Bergen, Kai Triebner as the period stops, women often find themselves suffering from shortness of breath. Since women live longer even after menopause, it becomes important to maintain their respiratory health. This is the main aim of the study conducted by Kai Triebner.

Interestingly, researchers have found out two main aspects of lung function in post menopausal women and menopausal women. One of these was the forced expiratory volume and second, forced vital capacity. The first one dealt with the pressure a person can blow out in one second and the latter dealt with the lung measurement.

The researchers found the results to be beyond what aging process can do to women. For instance, the decline in forced vital capacity was similar to that caused by smoking. It was similar to the result someone smoking 20 cigarettes a day might have.

This showed that the decline in the lung function of these women results in shortness of breath, fatigue and declined work capacity. Triebner mentioned as per a news from the American Thoracic Society, "Symptoms depend upon how much lung capacity is reduced, and a few women may actually develop respiratory failure as a result of this decline."

The study was mainly conducted with 14000 women mainly from across the Europe. The age of the participants ranged from 25 years to 48 years when they first became a part of this study. Researchers  tracked these women down for about 20 years.

Triebner further added that women as well as their doctors need to be aware that women's respiratory functions decline after menopause, which results in shortness of breath as well as reduced interest in physical activities.

Moreover, hormonal changes also give rise to reduced lung functions after menopause. Along with this, women also suffer from osteoporosis, which reduce the chest vertebrae height, thereby causing reduced intake of air.