Report: Millennials Are More Informed About Menopause, Concerned For Career Impact

A new report from Carrot Fertility shows 32% of millennial women are already experiencing menopause and are in a better position than Gen X when it comes to understanding how menopause could impact their careers.

According to the Menopause in the Workplace report, which has been conducted for the past two years, there has been a significant shift in menopause advocacy, especially among public figures.

“While this public awareness is promising, we wanted to see whether it’s helping reduce the stigma surrounding menopause in the workplace,” the report’s authors wrote. “With millennials and Gen Xers making up the vast majority of the workforce, we sought to determine whether increased discussion and support of menopause are helping these generations make better-informed decisions about their care and whether organizations are improving workplace wellbeing.”

The 2024 report surveyed 2,000 working women across millennials and Gen X populations.

The report showed the majority of millennial women are having conversations about menopause with their peers and aren’t afraid to change their work arrangements to mitigate the impact of menopause.

According to the report, 51% of millennials think about menopause monthly or more often, and 12% said they think about menopause daily or almost daily.

Less than a third of Gen X women had a high understanding of their menopause symptoms and treatment options when their symptoms began, while 43% of millennial women said they felt already somewhat prepared and 80% said they have begun the learning process.

Two-thirds (67%) of millennials also reported they have discussed the menopause experiences of close friends and relatives, including how their life, marriage, relationship or family life were impacted.

“The term ‘millenopause’ was coined for a reason,” said Asima Ahmad, MD, MPH, FACOG, Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer, Carrot Fertility in a statement. “Millennial women are starting to enter perimenopause and menopause, and we’re seeing a generational shift in how they’re thinking about and preparing for it.”

More than half (51%) of millennials said they are familiar with the transition period into menopause called perimenopause, and 32% said they already have perimenopausal symptoms.

The report showed millennials are also aware of hormone replacement therapy, with 37% saying they were familiar with it and 32% saying they would seriously consider it.

“Our research found that four in five millennial women are already researching and learning about menopause to better understand how it will affect them,” Ahmad said. “They’re more likely to consider HRT, a treatment option that has long been stigmatized, to manage their symptoms. We’re seeing a shift from women suffering in silence due to a lack of access to care to women now demanding better support.”

Millennial women appear to be more concerned than Gen X women about the mental health and emotional impacts of menopause (66% vs 62%) and the end of their reproductive years (42% vs 30%).

The majority of both millennials (88%) and Gen X (81%) women agree that career growth and placement are important to them, but the report showed that millennials are more concerned about how menopause will impact their careers.

More than half (61%) of millennials said they are concerned about going through menopause while working and 75% believe management of menopause symptoms at work will be challenging.

“Women in the workplace have suffered through menopause in silence for too long, and the next generation is ready to break the cycle of menopause stigma at work,” said Tammy Sun, Founder and CEO of Carrot Fertility, in a statement. “Millennials have high expectations when it comes to workplace benefits and aren’t afraid to advocate for themselves, ensuring that their needs during menopause aren’t overlooked. If employers start to act upon the report’s findings now, we believe they can better retain this millennial workforce and secure their future senior talent.”