Barrett Emily S, Tran Van, Thurston Sally W, Frydenberg Hanne, Lipson Susan F, Thune Inger, Ellison Peter T
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, New York.
Department of Biostatistics, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, New York.
Am J Hum Biol. 2015 Jul-Aug;27(4):501-7. doi: 10.1002/ajhb.22676. Epub 2015 Mar 7.
Extensive research has demonstrated that marriage and parenting are associated with lower testosterone levels in men, however, very little is known about associations with hormone concentrations in women. Two studies have found lower testosterone in relation to pair-bonding and motherhood in women, with several others suggesting that estradiol levels are lower among parous women than nulliparous women. Here, we examine estradiol and progesterone concentrations in relation to marriage and motherhood in naturally cycling, reproductive age women.
In 185 Norwegian women, estradiol and progesterone concentrations were assayed from waking saliva samples collected daily over the course of a menstrual cycle. Cycles were aligned on day 0, the day of ovulation. Mean periovulatory estradiol (days -7 to +6) and luteal progesterone (day +2 to +10) indices were calculated. Marital status and motherhood (including age of youngest child) were reported in baseline questionnaires. Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine associations between ovarian hormones, marital status, and motherhood.
Women who were married or living as married had higher estradiol than unmarried women (β = 0.19; 95% CI: 0.02, 0.36) and higher luteal progesterone as well (β = 0.19; 95% CI: -0.01, 0.39). There were no notable differences in hormone levels in relationship to motherhood status.
Our results indicate that ovarian steroid hormones may be higher among women who are married or living as married, and suggest several possible explanations, however, additional research is needed to elucidate any causal relationships.
大量研究表明，婚姻和为人父母与男性较低的睾酮水平相关，然而，关于其与女性激素浓度之间的关联却知之甚少。两项研究发现，女性的配对关系和为人母的状态与较低的睾酮水平有关，其他几项研究则表明，经产女性的雌二醇水平低于未育女性。在此，我们研究自然月经周期的育龄女性中，雌二醇和孕酮浓度与婚姻和生育状况的关系。
对185名挪威女性，在一个月经周期内每天采集晨起唾液样本，检测其中雌二醇和孕酮的浓度。月经周期以排卵日即第0天为基准对齐。计算排卵期前后平均雌二醇（第-7天至+6天）和黄体期孕酮（第+2天至+10天）指数。婚姻状况和生育情况（包括最小孩子的年龄）通过基线调查问卷进行报告。采用多变量线性回归模型来研究卵巢激素、婚姻状况和生育情况之间的关联。
已婚或处于婚姻关系中的女性，其雌二醇水平高于未婚女性（β = 0.19；95%置信区间：0.02，0.36），黄体期孕酮水平也更高（β = 0.19；95%置信区间：-0.01，0.39）。激素水平在生育状况方面没有显著差异。
我们的研究结果表明，已婚或处于婚姻关系中的女性卵巢甾体激素水平可能更高，并提出了几种可能的解释，然而，需要进一步研究来阐明其中的因果关系。
