Menopause symptoms, such as hot flashes, tend to get the most attention, but other changes can occur at the same time, including brain fog, mental health struggles, and trouble sleeping.
New research has detected clear changes in the brain that may explain these symptoms.
The study, published in the journal Psychological Medicine, analyzed data from nearly 125,000 women who participated in the UK Biobank, a long-running health study.
About 11,000 of those participants also underwent brain imaging using MRIs, which allowed the researchers to look at specific brain regions.
Researchers found that women who had gone through menopause were more likely to see a healthcare provider for anxiety, depression, or nervousness and were more likely to experience sleep issues.
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The post-menopausal women also had noticeable reductions in grey matter volume in the MRI scans, whether they used HRT or not.
According to the study, three areas of the brain were impacted the most.
Women who had been through menopause and didn’t use HRT had slower reaction times compared to the other groups, although memory performance was similar between the three groups.
Dr. Barbara J Sahakian, PhD, study co-author and professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge, says the brain changes are likely due to hormonal shifts that happen during menopause.
More research is needed to break this down, says Dr. Clifford Segil, DO, a neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA.
As for why HRT didn’t seem to make a difference with brain changes, Dr. Sahakian suggests it may be due to the dose many women take.
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She notes that one study showed that one in four women using the highest licensed dose of hormone replacement therapy still had sub-therapeutic levels of estrogen.
Dr. Sahakian says the overall brain changes could explain another post-menopausal health phenomenon that puzzles scientists.
The changes observed in the study could suggest that menopause-related brain changes may contribute to increased vulnerability to Alzheimer’s disease later in life.
This could help explain why there are about twice as many women than men with Alzheimer’s disease.
The good news is that doctors say there are things you can do to support your brain health as you age.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle will build cognitive reserve and resilience to mitigate the effects of menopause, says Dr. Sahakian.
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She recommends exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, getting 7-8 hours of good quality sleep, having good social support from family and friends, and keeping your mind active through learning new things.
Getting sufficient sleep regularly is very important, says Dr. Sahakian, as sleep is not only a restorative process, but it supports the consolidation of memories from daily experiences into long-term storage and helps with the clearance of toxic waste products from the brain.
If you’re interested in HRT, Dr. Sahakian suggests working closely with your doctor to make sure you’re taking the right amount.
Dr. Segil agrees, saying menopause is a true change in your body, similar to puberty, and the effects are very real.
He recommends going to see an endocrinologist or your gynecologist if menopause is causing mental health or other health issues, as different treatment options are available to make you feel better.
