Females normally reach puberty during their early teens. At this stage onwards, the pituitary gland in the brain generates hormones that cause a new egg to be released from its follicle each month. The follicle increases the production of the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone; this in turn thickens the lining of the uterus. The lining is then ready to accept a fertilized egg after conception but if fertilization does not take place, estrogen and progesterone levels drop, causing the lining of the uterus to break down and menstruation takes place.

Picture of Uterus

Menopause is a biological event where hormone production declines in the ovaries. Consequently, the follicles stop releasing mature eggs and the level of progesterone drops and estrogen levels may fluctuate dramatically causing periods to become irregular. With time this process accelerates and period will eventually end altogether. This means that the woman has reached menopause. During menopause, the estrogen level diminishes dramatically while progesterone production drops even more substantially.

However, women who are overweight are often found to experience minimal symptoms of menopause. This is because estrogen which is commonly stored in the fat tissues is released into the blood stream during menopause due to low plasma levels, effectuating better balance in the body.