Association between Reproductive Factors and Type 2 Diabetes: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

(1) Introduction: The available studies on the association between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and menopause report conflicting results. (2) Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association of menopausal status, age at menopause, and length of the reproductive period with T2DM. (3) Methods: This cross-sectional study is part of the ‘China Eastern Cohort Study’, which is a community-based cohort study. Multistage, stratified, clustered sampling was used to recruit the study participants in Shanghai, China. Age at menarche and menopause was recorded, and reproductive period was calculated. Weighted logistic regression was used to calculate the prevalence ratios (PRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of T2DM. Restricted cubic splines were used to assess the relationship between age at menopause, reproductive period, and T2DM. (4) Results: A total of 20,128 women were included. The prevalence of T2DM was 13.7%. Postmenopausal women exhibited a higher prevalence of T2DM than premenopausal women (p < 0.001) and an unfavorable metabolic profile, including higher body mass index, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. A higher risk of T2DM was observed in postmenopausal women (PR2.12, 95%CI: 1.79–2.51, p < 0.001) compared with premenopausal women, independently of confounding factors. After adjustment for confounding factors, age at menopause and reproductive period were not significantly associated with T2DM. (5) Conclusions: Postmenopausal status is associated with T2DM, while menopausal age and reproductive period are not associated with T2DM. Menopausal status should be considered during T2DM screening.