The gap between the upper and lower numbers of blood pressure is called pulse pressure. In young adults the gap tends to lessen, but in older adults the gap gradually grows. There has been an assumption that menopause causes the growing pulse pressure gap in women. But new research, published in the journal Hypertension, shows the pulse pressure changes start as early as two decades before symptoms of menopause. This study found a higher pulse pressure is a sign of increasing stiffness in the aorta, the body’s largest blood vessel. Authors say women and their healthcare providers should sound an alarm if pulse pressure rises higher than sixty points—such as a blood pressure of 130 over 70—and track it over time, intervening before heart disease develops.’