While carcinogenic contaminants are the primary concern, PEG compounds themselves show some evidence of genotoxicity vi,vii and if used on broken skin can cause irritation and systemic toxicity.
The average age of menopause in the United States is about 51. About one out of twenty women have late menopause (after age 55) while another 5% stop having periods between the ages of 40 and 45 (early menopause). The age of menopause is reduced by two years in women who smoke.
As a woman ages and especially as she gets closer to menopause, her ovaries get smaller. This time of changes in hormone levels and menstrual cycles is called the menopausal transition. You might also hear it called perimenopause. It usually lasts several years until 12 months after your last period. Once a woman has gone a full 12 months without a period, she can be fairly sure that she has been through menopause and is now in postmenopause.