What Causes Nosebleeds in Women?

Physiologically, men and women are very different. The physiological differences in men and women mean that men and women can suffer from separate medical symptoms and conditions. Sometimes, however, the differences can result in men and women experiencing the same medical symptom but for different reasons. Nosebleeds are an example of this. For women, hormones, the environment and other factors play huge roles in whether or not a nosebleed occurs.

Menopause

Menopause is a condition that most women face sometime in their midlife. During this time, a woman's body experiences significant changes in hormone levels. These hormone changes mainly affect the woman's ability to reproduce, but they also can result in other problematic symptoms such as hot flashes. The hormone changes of menopause also cause the tissue of the nose to shrink and become drier. As a result, the tissue is more susceptible to cracking and bleeding, so nosebleeds can become more common.

Pregnancy

Like menopause, pregnancy results in major hormonal changes in a woman's body. In pregnancy, however, blood flow and volume actually is increased. Consequently, the blood vessels in the body, including those in the nose, become more dilated. This means that the vessels can break more easily and that nosebleeds can result. If this happens, the nosebleed may look far more serious than it is because of the increased blood volume of the body.

Environment

Like men, women are exposed to various environmental factors that can irritate nose tissue and cause nosebleeds. Dry air is a common culprit, as are illnesses such as the cold, which can cause trauma to the nose tissue through constant nose blowing.

Genes and Diseases

Women are at risk for genetic conditions and diseases that can have nosebleeds as a symptom. An example is leukemia. Although women are not necessarily any more at risk for these conditions and diseases than men are, genes play a large role in determining whether a woman becomes sick with a particular illness.

Seriousness and Treatment

Regardless of the cause of a nosebleed, both men and women need to know when a nosebleed is serious so that medical attention can be sought if necessary. Nosebleeds are considered serious when the bleeding doesn't stop after 5 minutes, when blood loss is rapid or when the individual feels weak or faint from the amount of blood lost. For a "normal" nosebleed, the individual should lean forward while pinching the bridge of the nose for 5 minutes if attempting to stop a nosebleed alone, and if that doesn't work, a cold compress can be applied.