Post by max23 on Jul 27, 2019 0:25:52 GMT -5
It would never have occurred to me that estrogen plays a role in preventing dementia, but …
A study suggests that the fewer menstrual periods a woman has in her lifetime, the higher her risk of dementia - though the reasons, for now, are unclear.
The study was based on close to 16,000 women. It found that those who started having periods at age 16 or later were more likely to develop dementia than women who started menstruating at a more typical age.
The same was true of women who went through menopause relatively early.
The researchers said the pattern fits a theory that lower lifetime exposure to estrogen may contribute to dementia. Lab research, for example, suggests that estrogen aids resiliency and repair of brain cells.
But the current findings cannot prove that estrogen - or lack of it - plays a role in dementia risk, said lead researcher Paola Gilsanz, of Kaiser Permanente's division of research, in Oakland, Calif.
There could be other explanations for the link, her team found.
"This is an observational study," lead researcher Paola Gilsanz, of Kaiser Permanente's division of research, said, "and we're not suggesting it has any clinical implications."
Specifically, the study cannot say whether hormone therapy after menopause - which would extend a woman's exposure to estrogen - would have any effect on her dementia risk.
The researchers did not have information on other factors that affect a woman's exposure to estrogen - such as pregnancy, birth control pills or hormone therapy. So it's not clear how those things related to women's dementia risk.
consumer.healthday.com/senior-citizen-information-31/dementia-news-738/fewer-periods-may-mean-higher-dementia-risk-744318.html
A study suggests that the fewer menstrual periods a woman has in her lifetime, the higher her risk of dementia - though the reasons, for now, are unclear.
The study was based on close to 16,000 women. It found that those who started having periods at age 16 or later were more likely to develop dementia than women who started menstruating at a more typical age.
The same was true of women who went through menopause relatively early.
The researchers said the pattern fits a theory that lower lifetime exposure to estrogen may contribute to dementia. Lab research, for example, suggests that estrogen aids resiliency and repair of brain cells.
But the current findings cannot prove that estrogen - or lack of it - plays a role in dementia risk, said lead researcher Paola Gilsanz, of Kaiser Permanente's division of research, in Oakland, Calif.
There could be other explanations for the link, her team found.
"This is an observational study," lead researcher Paola Gilsanz, of Kaiser Permanente's division of research, said, "and we're not suggesting it has any clinical implications."
Specifically, the study cannot say whether hormone therapy after menopause - which would extend a woman's exposure to estrogen - would have any effect on her dementia risk.
The researchers did not have information on other factors that affect a woman's exposure to estrogen - such as pregnancy, birth control pills or hormone therapy. So it's not clear how those things related to women's dementia risk.
consumer.healthday.com/senior-citizen-information-31/dementia-news-738/fewer-periods-may-mean-higher-dementia-risk-744318.html