Menopause: basic facts and figures

● The term menopause is derived from the Greek 'menos', which means month, and 'pausos', which means an ending.

● The average age for a woman in the UK to reach the menopause is 52.

● The average age of the menopause hasn’t changed for 2,000 years despite the fact that girls are starting their periods earlier, according to research by Sally Hope, a GP in Oxfordshire who also does research on women’s health in the Department of Primary Health Care, University of Oxford.

● When your mum had her menopause is when you can expect symptoms to start.

● There is no definitive test to diagnose the menopause. Measuring the level of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) in the blood can sometimes help to confirm a diagnosis, because FSH rises in women who are menopausal. However, high FSH levels are not enough to make a diagnosis.

● Your GP should be able to confirm that you have the menopause by considering your age, whether or not you're still having periods and by asking you about your symptoms.

● You have reached the menopause once you haven't had a period for one year.

● Premature menopause is when the menopause occurs in a woman aged under 45. An estimated 1% of women under 40, and 0.1% of women under 30 are affected by premature menopause.

● Around eight out of 10 women in the UK experience symptoms in the run-up to the menopause. Of those, 45% find their symptoms difficult to deal with.

● The first symptom is usually a change in the pattern of your periods. It may start every two to three weeks, or disappear for months. The amount of blood loss may also alter, with most women finding that more is lost.

● Around 70% of women experience the most common menopausal symptoms: hot flushes and night sweats.

● It is possible to get pregnant after the menopause, so carry on using contraception for two years after your last period if you're under 50 and for one year if you're over 50.

● There is no direct link between the menopause and middle-aged spread. Putting on weight could just be part of getting older and being less active.