The 50-plus flow

Your period through the decades: What's normal?

It's common for your menstrual periods to change throughout your reproductive years. Here's how to tell whether those changes are normal or not

By Marcia Kaye

PreviousSlide 5 of 5

The 50-plus flow

The average age of menopause (the point at which you’ve had no periods for one year) is 51, which means that many women are still menstruating well into their 50s—and many women stop well before their 50th birthday.

If you’re in your 50s and you’ve gone a year with no periods but then start bleeding, you may want to talk to your health professional. “Because a rogue period could indicate cancer of the endometrium, it is important to figure out if it’s normal or not,” says Prior. (Which it most likely is: Prior says 10 percent of post-menopausal women in their 50s, and 20 percent of post-menopausal women in their 40s, will have a rogue period after having none for more than a year.) She recommends paying attention to how you felt before the flow—if you had bloating, sore breasts, mood swings or other symptoms, the bleeding is probably normal.

Other causes of vaginal bleeding at this stage include atrophic vaginitis (dryness and thinning of vaginal tissue) and endometrial hyperplasia (overproduction of cells in the uterine lining). But it’s probably your ovaries making a diva comeback, and that’s not unusual at all. Check with your doctor, just to be sure.

Related:
• 3 ways to relieve PMS
• Is it safe to stop your period?
• 6 things you should know about IUDs