Plasma lipid changes in the female in aging and the menopause. Results from three population studies

Postabsorbtive plasma lipid levels have been analyzed in studies of the female population in the Swedish city of Gothenburg. The population samples cover the ages 15, 23, 30, 38, 40, 45, 46, 50, 54, 60 and 70. In some groups data are available from both cross-sectional and prospective longitudinal studies. Cross-sectional studies showed a successive increase in total plasma cholesterol from 15 to 54 years of age. Longitudinal studies showed a further increase at least up to 60 years of age. The triglyceride level remained rather constant between 15 and 30 years of age, then increased but was again rather similar in the 40--50-year olds and reached the highest level in the 60- and 70-year samples. The total phospholipid curve was approximately parallel with the cholesterol curve at younger ages but nearer the cholesterol curve at higher ages. The composition of the plasma phospholipid fraction apparently changed at the ages around the menopause, mainly due to an increase in the proportions of lecithin and lysolecithin. Data available allowed considerations concerning possible influences on plasma lipids by age, by changes in dietary habits and body composition, as well as by gonadal steroid hormones.