Follicle stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone and adiposity trajectories in postmenopausal women

Postmenopause is characterized by changes in reproductive hormones and body composition. Preclinical evidence suggests that follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) may increase adiposity, but epidemiologic research is limited. This study examined whether postmenopausal FSH and luteinizing hormone (LH) are related to adiposity changes.

The sample included 675 postmenopausal women enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Buffalo Osteoporosis and Periodontal Disease (OsteoPerio) study with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measures. Adiposity measures included visceral adipose tissue (VAT), subcutaneous adipose tissue, body mass index, and total and percent body fat. Group-based trajectory models and generalized estimating equation models estimated associations of baseline FSH and LH with 17-year adipose trajectories and longitudinal measures of adiposity, respectively.

The study estimated three trajectories for adiposity measures, corresponding to low, medium and high levels of adiposity over time. Higher baseline concentration of FSH and LH was associated with reductions in adiposity measures over time. An increase of 1 mIU/ml in FSH was associated with a 0.55 cm² reduction in VAT (95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.69, -0.40); and an increase of 1 mIU/ml in LH was associated with a 0.81 cm² reduction in VAT (95% CI: -1.09, -0.52).

Higher circulating FSH and LH were associated with lower adipose trajectories and lower adiposity levels in older postmenopausal women, counter to our hypothesis. Future research is needed on the relationship between gonadotropins and adiposity during the postmenopausal period.