Ž . International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 60 1998 155160 Article Consanguinity and the age of menopause in the United Arab Emirates A. Bener a , D.E. Rizk b , M. Ezimokhai b,  , M. Hassan c , R. Micallef d , M. Sawaya a a Department of Community Medicine, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates b Department Obstetrics and Gynecology, United Arab Emirates Uni®ersity, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates c Department of Pharmacology, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates d Primary Health Care, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates Received 30 June 1997; received in revised form 27 October 1997; accepted 3 November 1997 Abstract Objecti®e: The study examined the association between some biosocial factors, consanguinity and age at natural Ž . menopause in the United Arab Emirates UAE . Method: A cross-sectional population-based study using a multi-stage sampling design and face-to-face interview. Results: In a sample of 800 UAE females aged 40 years and Ž . above, there were 742 85.8% respondents. The median age of natural menopause was 48 years. The bodyweight, parity number, occupation, smoking habits and consanguinity in marriage were the significant variables associated with the age at natural menopause. There were statistically significant differences between women in consanguineous Ž . Ž . Ž . and non-consanguineous marriages with regard to BMI P 0.002 , occupation P 0.008 , weight P 0.0001 , age Ž . Ž . Ž . Ž . P 0.03 , age of menopause P 0.005 , parity P 0.0001 , mother’s age at menopause P 0.007 and sister’s Ž . age at menopause P 0.002 . Conclusion: The study showed that among UAE women, consanguinity of marriage, maternal and sister’s age at menopause, BMI, parity number and smoking habits significantly influence the natural age of menopause.  1998 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Keywords: Menopausal age; Consanguineous marriage; United Arab Emirates 1. Introduction With the general increase in life expectancy in many parts of the world, many females are likely  Corresponding author. Tel.: q971 3 672000, ext. 565; fax: q971 3 672067. to live for another 20  30 years after menopause and spend approx. one-third of their lives in a state of estrogen deficiency. Age at natural meno- pause is an important research issue because of the suspected links between it and risk for certain malignancies, cardiovascular diseases and osteo- wx porosis 1 and it could be a strong biomarker of wx the general aging pattern of the individual 2 . 0020-7292r98r$19.00  1998 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Ž . PII S0020-7292 97 00250-6