 |
|
Menopause transition may cause trouble learning
May 26, 2009ST. PAUL, Minn. - The largest study of its kind to date shows that women may not be able to learn as well shortly before menopause compared to other stages in life. The research is published in the May 26, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
For a four-year period, researchers studied 2,362 women, who were between the ages of 42 and 52 had at least one menstrual period in the three months before the study started.
The women were given three tests: verbal memory, working memory and a test that measured the speed at which they processed information. Scientists tested the women throughout four stages of the menopause transition: premenopausal (no change in menstrual periods), early perimenopausal (menstrual irregularity but no "gaps" of 3 months), late perimenopausal (having no period for three to 11 months) and postmenopausal (no period for 12 months).
The study found that processing speed improved with repeated testing during premenopause, early perimenopause and postmenopause, but that scores during late perimenopause did not show the same degree of improvement. Improvements in processing speed during late perimenopause were only 28 percent as large as improvements observed in premenopause. For verbal memory performance, compared to premenopause, improvement was not as strong during early and late perimenopause. Improvements in verbal memory during early perimenopause were 29 percent as large as improvements observed in premenopause. During late perimenopause, verbal memory improvement was seven percent as large as in premenopause. Combined, these findings suggest that during the early and late perimenopause women do not learn as well as they do during other menopause transition stages.
"These perimenopausal test results concur with prior self-reported memory difficulties--60 percent of women state that they have memory problems during the menopause transition," said Gail Greendale, MD, with the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. "The good news is that the effect of perimenopause on learning seems to be temporary. Our study found that the amount of learning improved back to premenopausal levels during the postmenopausal stage."
The study also found that taking estrogen or progesterone hormones before menopause helped verbal memory and processing speed. In contrast, taking these hormones after the final menstrual period had a negative effect: postmenopausal women using hormones showed no improvement in either processing speed scores or verbal memory scores, unlike postmenopausal women not taking hormones. "Our results suggest that the 'critical period' for estrogen or progesterone's benefits on the brain may be prior to menopause, but the findings should be interpreted with caution," said Greendale.
American Academy of Neurology
The study found that processing speed improved with repeated testing during premenopause, early perimenopause and postmenopause, but that scores during late perimenopause did not show the same degree of improvement. Improvements in processing speed during late perimenopause were only 28 percent as large as improvements observed in premenopause. For verbal memory performance, compared to premenopause, improvement was not as strong during early and late perimenopause. Improvements in verbal memory during early perimenopause were 29 percent as large as improvements observed in premenopause. During late perimenopause, verbal memory improvement was seven percent as large as in premenopause. Combined, these findings suggest that during the early and late perimenopause women do not learn as well as they do during other menopause transition stages.
"These perimenopausal test results concur with prior self-reported memory difficulties--60 percent of women state that they have memory problems during the menopause transition," said Gail Greendale, MD, with the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. "The good news is that the effect of perimenopause on learning seems to be temporary. Our study found that the amount of learning improved back to premenopausal levels during the postmenopausal stage."
The study also found that taking estrogen or progesterone hormones before menopause helped verbal memory and processing speed. In contrast, taking these hormones after the final menstrual period had a negative effect: postmenopausal women using hormones showed no improvement in either processing speed scores or verbal memory scores, unlike postmenopausal women not taking hormones. "Our results suggest that the 'critical period' for estrogen or progesterone's benefits on the brain may be prior to menopause, but the findings should be interpreted with caution," said Greendale.
American Academy of Neurology
Perimenopause Current Events and Perimenopause News RSSOmega-3s ease depressive symptoms related to menopause
Omega-3s ease psychological distress and depressive symptoms often suffered by menopausal and perimenopausal women.
Estrogen therapy helps or hurts the brain depending on reproductive status
Estrogen therapy may limit stroke damage if started close to, but not long after reproductive cycles are over, according to a new animal study. The results were presented Sunday, June 15, at The Endocrine Society's 90th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.
New study: Pine bark reduces perimenopausal symptoms
A study to be published in an upcoming edition of the Scandinavian Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology reveals that Pycnogenol® (pic-noj-en-all), pine bark extract from the French maritime pine tree, reduces "climacteric symptoms" such as hot flashes, depression, panic attacks, cholesterol and other common symptoms associated with women entering menopause transition.
Study finds estrogen therapy gives aging brain cells a boost
Cyclical, long-term estrogen injections protected brain cells from age-related deterioration, according to a new study conducted at Mount Sinai School of Medicine.
Turmeric prevents experimental rheumatoid arthritis, bone loss, University of Arizona study shows
An ancient spice, long used in traditional Asian medicine, may hold promise for the prevention of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, according to a recently completed study at The University of Arizona College of Medicine.
Severe hot flashes associated with chronic insomnia
Women who have severe hot flashes may have more chronic sleep problems than women who do not.
Study shows that genetic quality of sperm deteriorates as men age
New research indicates that the genetic quality of sperm worsens as men get older, increasing a man's risk of being infertile, fathering unsuccessful pregnancies and passing along dwarfism and possibly other genetic diseases to his children.
More Perimenopause Current Events and Perimenopause News Articles
 |
Could It Be...Perimenopause?: How Women 35-50 Can Overcome Forgetfulness, Mood Swings, Insomnia, Weight Gain, Sexual Dysfunction and Other Telltale Signs of Hormonal Imbalance by Steven R. Goldstein (Author), Laurie Ashner (Author) This comprehensive and compassionate book covers everything women need to know about the natural and treatable effects of perimenopause, the changes that occur in the decade before menopause. Steven R. Goldstein, M.D., one of Americas foremost authorities on perimenopause, clearly explains what women can expect when their estrogen levels begin to fluctuate and describes the natural remedies and state-of-the-art medical treatments that can give women the upper hand. |
 |
Before the Change : Taking Charge of Your Perimenopause by Ann Louise Gittleman (Author) Learn How You Can head off Depression and Mood Swings, Weight Shifts, Erratic Sleep, Memory Loss, and Other Changes Leading to Menopause Take charge of your perimenopause simply, safely, and naturally! This breakthrough book details a gentle incremental program for understanding your own changes and offers a wide range of options for taking care of yourself. By following the author's proven techniques for controlling the symptoms of perimenopause, you can continue to feel great through this vital phase of your life. With this essential do-it-yourself program, you can say good-bye to hormone havoc and sail through your perimenopause, the period of about ten years leading up to menopause, by understanding and controlling its symptoms. Before the Change ... clearly... |
 |
The Hormone Survival Guide for Perimenopause: Balance Your Hormones Naturally by Nisha Jackson PhD (Author) Explaining why women between the ages of 35 and 50 often experience significant changes in mood, weight, sex drive, and general well-being due to hormonal imbalances, this guide shows women how to regain control of their hormones-and their lives-and feel good again through natural means. Women who have had long-standing physical and emotional complaints written off by doctors as normal or genetic are provided with step-by-step solutions to such hormone-related problems as weight gain, fibroids, sex-drive doldrums, adult acne, depression, anxiety, irritability, chronic fatigue, and facial hair. Perimenopausal women will be able to regain control of their health by putting together a game plan for renewal-including hormone balancing and weight management plans that will help them feel... |
 |
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM): Premenopause: Balance Your Hormones and Your Life from Thirty to Fifty (What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About...) by John R. Lee (Author), Jesse Hanley (Author), Virginia Hopkins (Author) I'm too Young for Menopause-So Why Do I Feel Like this? You could be experiencing unexplained weight gain...fatigue...mood swings...loss of libido...fibroids...tender or lumpy breasts...endometriosis...PMS...infertility...memory loss...migraines...very heavy or light periods...cold hands and feet...or a combination of these symptoms. You may have been told they're "nothing," or stress, or even menopause-and offered surgery, antidepressants, or prescription hormones. But the startling truth is that you may be suffering from premenopause syndrome-and there are simple, safe solutions. When John Lee wrote the groundbreaking What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause, younger women started asking if natural progesterone could help them, too. In this book Dr. Lee, with women's health... |
 |
The Hormonally Vulnerable Woman: Relief at last for PMS, mood swings, fatigue, hair loss, adult acne, unwanted hair, female pain, migraine, weight gain, ... all the problems of perimenopause by Geoffrey Redmond (Author) According to Geoffrey Redmond, M.D., a majority of the 42 million American women between the ages of thirty-five and fifty-five suffer from vulnerability to their own hormones. Appearance, emotions -- and even sex drive -- may be affected. Symptoms include thinning hair, persistent acne, mood swings, low energy, loss of pleasure in sex, weight gain, irregular periods, and pain. While the media has emphasized the problems of menopause, Dr. Redmond explains that all too many women experience hormonal miseries even in their thirties. Lab tests are often normal because the problem is not the hormones themselves but how a woman's body reacts to them. Healthy, active women suddenly find that once quiescent hormones have taken over control of their lives. Because their problems are often... |
 |
A Woman's Guide to Menopause and Perimenopause (Yale University Press Health & Wellness) by Dr. Mary Jane Minkin M.D. (Author), Ms. Carol V. Wright Ph.D. (Author) The most up-to-date, scientifically accurate, and readable guide to menopause available anywhere Recent groundbreaking research has provided abundant new information on menopause and how women should approach it. This book carefully considers all these findings, explains in detail what we now know about menopause and its treatment, and offers sound guidance for women dealing with the physical and emotional health issues surrounding menopause. Menopause specialist Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, nationally known not only for her expertise but also for her approachability, answers all the questions about menopause that women want—and need—to ask their health care providers. Dr. Minkin presents scientifically grounded information, explained helpfully and in a non-judgmental... |
 |
The Pause: Positive Approaches to Premenopause and Menopause by Lonnie Barbach (Author) |
 |
AM/PM PeriMenopause Formula by Enzymatic Therapy - 60 Tablets by Enzymatic Therapy AM/PM PeriMenopause Formula by Enzymatic Therapy - 60 Tablets |
 |
The Perfect Menopause: 7 Steps to the Best Time of Your Life by Dr. Henry M. Hess (Author), Tiffany Farrell (Collaborator) Praise for The Perfect Menopause: 'Finally, women have a scientifically accurate and up-to-date resource on menopause!' --Tara Allmen, MD, Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, Center for Menopause 'Dr. Hess provides a great deal of information and wise advice. Menopausal women will find answers to their questions and solutions to their problems in this easily read presentation of the variety of approaches now available.' --Philip Sarrel, MD, Professor Emeritus of OB/GYN and Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine In The Perfect Menopause, Dr. Henry Hess provides options for complete solutions by blending natural and traditional medicine. If you have hot flashes, night sweats, mood changes, weight gain, aches, forgetfulness, decreased sexual desire,... |
 |
The Perimenopause & Menopause Workbook: A Comprehensive, Personalized Guide to Hormone Health by Kathryn R. Simpson (Author), Dale E. Bredesen (Author) It’s no stretch to say that the information about hormone health, menopause, and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is considerable, confusing, and often intimidating. But the consequence of ignoring hormone health are pretty scary, too. With so many choices and so much riding on them, what’s a woman to do? The authors of this book have spent many years researching age-related health problems, especially the effects of hormones on health. In this workbook, they put all of the most up-to-date, scientific knowledge about hormone research in one place and use it to help you decide the best treatment available for your particular health situation. Using extensive and interactive checklists, symptom lists, and self-assessments, the book helps you track symptoms. Then it takes you... |
| © 2009 BrightSurf.com |