Survey Results of Women in Their 40s and Older Nationwide [Awareness Survey on Health Ailments]: Over 80% of Women in the 'Responsible Generation' of 40s-50s May Have 'Hidden Menopause'

Qsai Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Fukuoka City; President: Junro Ishikawa) has launched an initiative to support the healthy daily lives of women in their 40s and older. As part of this effort, the company conducted an 'Awareness Survey on Health Ailments' targeting women in their 40s to 60s nationwide. According to the survey results, despite being aware of some form of symptoms, over 80% of women in their 40s and 50s responded either that they 'do not feel any ailments' or 'the cause of the ailments is not menopause.' Even for typical menopausal symptoms such as fatigue, insomnia, and depressed mood, over 70% of respondents stated they 'do not believe it is the effect of menopause.' It can be interpreted that many of the women affected are likely in a state of unawareness, experiencing ailments but not recognizing the cause in connection with menopause. Our company has named this issue 'hidden menopause.' By eliminating this issue, our company will provide support so that as many women as possible can 'enjoy the present forever.' ■ Survey Results Summary I. 70% of women in their 40s and 50s experience 'dry skin, headaches, insomnia,' but over half do not recognize them as menopause-related ailments. The more familiar the ailment, the more easily signs of menopause are overlooked. Over 70% answered they have 'experienced before' familiar ailments such as 'dry skin,' 'headaches/dizziness,' 'insomnia,' and 'slight anemia.' Recognition of their connection to menopause was under 50% for all: 'dry skin' (42.0%), 'headaches/dizziness' (46.3%), 'insomnia' (45.6%), and 'slight anemia' (45.5%). II. Over half of women in their 40s and 50s leave their ailments untreated. Reasons for not engaging in self-care include 'resignation due to age' and 'lack of information leading to solutions.' Even when aware of their own ailments, 50.6% responded they 'do nothing in particular' or 'don't know what to do.' The biggest reason for not taking action was resignation: 'I thought it was due to age and felt it couldn't be helped' (29.4%). III. The 'responsible generation' overexerts themselves even with ailments. Over 95% of those suppressing painful feelings fear the impact of having their ailments known at work or home. Of those who answered 'I sometimes feel I am suppressing my true painful feelings from those around me and myself,' 95.1% responded they 'have anxiety about losing evaluation or position at the workplace or at home if the ailments become known.' Regarding discussing ailments with people around them, they fear the judgment of others, citing 'It's hard to talk about because they might think I'm exaggerating' (20.0%) or 'I wonder if they won't understand' (19.6%). IV. Their true intent is 'I want to value myself,' with over half desiring a proactive approach to ailments. Meanwhile, 20% currently do not even know how to face ideal physical condition or mood ailments. 51.6% of women answered, 'I want to proactively deal with ailments of physical condition and mood.' Approximately 20% of women answered, 'I still don't know how to face them right now.' V. Facing one's own physical condition reduces 'hidden menopause.' 'Noticing' ailments and 're-evaluating' one's own state is the first step in self-care. Awareness of their own ailments improved by 8.0 points before and after the start of the survey. The number of people realizing their ailments are 'the effect of menopause' also increased by 6.9 points. Survey Period: February 26, 2026 - March 2, 2026 Target: Women aged 40-69 nationwide Subjects: Screening survey: 3,136 samples collected; Main survey: 900 people Survey Method: Web research *If you use the content and data of this survey in your media, please clearly state the source as [Qsai Survey]. *Because component ratios are rounded to the nearest first decimal place, the total may not necessarily be 100. I. 70% of women in their 40s and 50s experience 'dry skin, headaches, insomnia,' but over half do not recognize them as menopause-related ailments. The more familiar the ailment, the more easily signs of menopause are overlooked. The symptoms that women in their 40s and 50s have experienced so far were dominated by ailments easily felt on a daily basis, such as 'dry skin' (85.6%), 'headaches/dizziness' (82.5%), 'insomnia' (79.1%), and 'slight anemia' (72.5%). Despite the high experience rate of these ailments, the percentage of those recognizing them as menopause-related ailments remained below 50% for all. The reality has become clear that familiar ailments experienced daily by many women are not recognized in connection with menopause. On the other hand, the percentage of women who experienced 'hot flashes,' widely known as a typical menopausal symptom, was 50.2%, the lowest among the ailment symptom items women had experienced; yet, over 70% recognized it as a symptom related to menopause. While recognition of typical menopausal symptoms has permeated to a certain extent, the affected women in their 40s and 50s...