Past Reproductive Events and Finger Digit Ratio as Predictors of Symptom Severity, Psychological Distress, and Medical Treatment-Seeking During the Perimenopausal Period

Researchers have found that reproductive events in which levels of estrogen increase or decrease can influence the emergence of psychological distress in some women, and it has been proposed that some women may be more sensitive to hormonal changes across the lifespan (Brace & McCauley, 1997; Deecher et al., 2008). Further, finger digit ratio (2D:4D) may serve as a measure of prenatal hormonal exposure (Manning, 2008), and may be able to identify women who are sensitive to particular hormone changes.