Projects per year
Abstract
Background: Previous studies of childhood psychosocial adversity and age at menarche mostly evaluated single or a few measures of adversity, and therefore could not quantify total psychosocial adversity. Limited knowledge is currently available regarding childhood psychosocial adversity in relation to age at menopause and reproductive lifespan.
Methods: We examined the associations of total and specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity with age at menarche (n=8,984), age at menopause (n=945) and length of reproductive lifespan (n=841) in mothers participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. We used confirmatory factor analysis to characterize lack of care, maladaptive family functioning, nonsexual abuse, overprotective parenting, parental mental illness and sexual abuse. These specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity were combined into a total psychosocial adversity score using a second order factor analysis. We used structural equation models to simultaneously conduct the factor analysis and estimate the association with the continuous outcomes of interest.
Results: Total childhood psychosocial adversity was not associated with age at menarche, age at menopause or length of reproductive lifespan. When we examined the separate psychosocial adversity constructs, sexual abuse was inversely associated with age at menarche, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI: -0.23, -0.12) years per standard deviation higher factor score, and with age at menopause, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI: -0.52, 0.18) per standard deviation higher factor score.
Conclusion: Childhood sexual abuse was associated with lower age at menarche and menopause, but the latter needs to be confirmed in larger samples.
Methods: We examined the associations of total and specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity with age at menarche (n=8,984), age at menopause (n=945) and length of reproductive lifespan (n=841) in mothers participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. We used confirmatory factor analysis to characterize lack of care, maladaptive family functioning, nonsexual abuse, overprotective parenting, parental mental illness and sexual abuse. These specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity were combined into a total psychosocial adversity score using a second order factor analysis. We used structural equation models to simultaneously conduct the factor analysis and estimate the association with the continuous outcomes of interest.
Results: Total childhood psychosocial adversity was not associated with age at menarche, age at menopause or length of reproductive lifespan. When we examined the separate psychosocial adversity constructs, sexual abuse was inversely associated with age at menarche, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI: -0.23, -0.12) years per standard deviation higher factor score, and with age at menopause, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI: -0.52, 0.18) per standard deviation higher factor score.
Conclusion: Childhood sexual abuse was associated with lower age at menarche and menopause, but the latter needs to be confirmed in larger samples.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health |
Early online date | 9 Nov 2017 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 9 Nov 2017 |
Research Groups and Themes
- Cognitive Science
- Social Cognition
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'Childhood psychosocial adversity and female reproductive timing: a cohort study of the ALSPAC mothers'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 3 Finished
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Life course aetiology of dementia and cognitive decline: improving causal inference
Anderson, E. L. (Principal Investigator)
1/06/17 → 31/01/22
Project: Research
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Laura Howe Population Health Scientist Fellowship
Howe, L. D. (Principal Investigator)
1/09/15 → 31/12/22
Project: Research
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Lifecourse epidemiology of female reproductive health and its relation to chronic disease
Fraser, A. (Principal Investigator)
1/12/14 → 20/02/20
Project: Research
Profiles
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Professor Ian S Penton-Voak
- School of Psychological Science - Professor of Evolutionary Psychology
- Bristol Population Health Science Institute
- Bristol Neuroscience
Person: Academic , Member