Association between menstrual cycle characteristics and mental health in early adolescence.

Résumé

Adolescence marks a critical window for the emergence of mental health problems and reproductive maturation. Menstrual cycle characteristics - including pubertal timing, cycle regularity, menstrual pain, and premenstrual symptoms -may capture biological and experiential processes relevant to psychopathology. However, evidence linking menstrual features to a broad range of mental health outcomes, including ADHD symptoms, remains limited. Using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (v6.1 N = 5,678 biological females; 17,567 post-menarche observations across 7 waves), we examined associations between reproductive timing, menstrual characteristics and symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and anxiety symptoms across repeated assessments in early adolescence using linear mixed-effects models with crossed random intercepts for site, family, and participant. Two co-primary model specifications were used: without BMI (M1, full sample) and with BMI (M2). False discovery rate correction was applied across outcomes. Earlier age at menarche was specifically associated with higher depression symptom scores (B = -0.087, pFDR