Study: Toxins in Gulf War Led to Early Menopause for Women Veterans

Women who served in the Gulf War were three times more likely to experience an early onset of menopause based on exposures to dangerous chemicals, according to a new study and reporting from Scienceline.

The study, published in the Women’s Health Issues journal, examined environmental exposures for women during the 1990-91 military campaign and its ramifications for reproductive health. 

Several doctors took part in the research, including Carolyn Gibson, a psychologist and health services researcher at the San Francisco VA Health Care System. The panel researched a cohort of 384 women veterans from the Gulf War, and nearly two out of three said they were exposed to harmful substances. More than half met the guidelines for Gulf War Illness, an ailment that affects more women than men, based on VA research. 

Through the survey, researchers found that of the veterans exposed to hazardous chemicals from burning oil wells and waste, 15 percent said they had experienced early menopause before age 45, three times faster than women who had not deployed to the Gulf War. According to the National Institutes of Health, women who quit producing estrogen before age 45 are at a higher risk of developing heart disease and osteoporosis. 

Doctors involved in the study, which was funded by the VA’s Health Outcomes Military Exposures (HOME) program, declined to comment on the study to Scienceline. 

Other Mental Factors Should Have Been Considered 

While the study focuses on post-traumatic stress disorder, Leslie Farland, a reproductive epidemiology specialist and associate professor at the University of Arizona, believes additional mental health factors like depression and anxiety should have also been included in the study. 

“While there are some limitations, such as having limited statistical power to investigate some of their exposures, the study is very well executed,” Farland said. “As the authors point out, it would have been beneficial to have additional details on PTSD diagnosis, but this information was not collected.”

Some women Gulf War veterans said they experienced migraine headaches or an altered menstrual cycle that mirrored health conditions listed in the VA study. 

Giving up Health for Service 

Retired Army Lt. Col. Gillian Boice spent six months deployed to the Middle East in 1990 and 1991. 

“Everybody knows, when you go into the military service, you’re signing up to give your life for your country,” Boice said. 

Since she left the military, Boice has dealt with a host of health issues, including uterine problems, leading to hysterectomy surgery before age 40. 

“If you’re not killed in combat, it can take a whole bunch of your life in small segments,” Boice said. 

Boice hopes studies like this will place more emphasis on Gulf War veterans and the effects of exposure to toxic materials in combat, from reproductive problems to chronic diseases. 

“I got the care that I needed, but I do know of fellow veterans who that’s not the case,” said Boice.

When retired Army captain Christi Listermann served in the Gulf War, she had a hunch that breathing in dust and chemicals from sandstorms, oil well fires, and burn pits could lead to future health concerns. 

“I remember thinking at the time, this can’t be good for us, breathing all this stuff,” she said. 

But serving in combat, Listermann didn’t have time to worry about her long-term future. It was on to the next assignment. However, when she began dealing with health concerns only a few years after she served in Iraq, she could trace it back to her deployment. 

Both Listermann and Boice hope the VA keeps researching Gulf War Illness and finds more treatment options. It could lead to eye-opening studies that make future generations think carefully before joining the military. 

“I’m willing to put myself out there at risk to serve, but if you know that your children or your grandchildren are going to be affected, that may change the decision,” Listermann said.