Menopause, Female Hormones, and Alzheimer's Risk

What if the secret to protecting your brain from Alzheimer’s and dementia was hidden in your hormones? While scientists have yet to pinpoint the exact cause of these neurodegenerative diseases, they do know that fluctuating hormone levels play a crucial role. From estrogen to insulin, your body's chemical messengers influence brain function, memory retention, and overall cognitive health. Could balancing your hormones be the key to a sharper mind and a healthier future? Let’s explore the surprising connection between hormones and brain health—and what you can do to take control.

Key Takeaways:

• Estrogen helps regulate brain function, and its decline during menopause may contribute to brain fog, memory loss, and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Other hormones like insulin, leptin, and GABA also impact cognitive health, and their decline can accelerate brain aging and inflammation.
• Lifestyle changes such as stress reduction, mindful movement, and a nutrient-rich diet can help maintain hormonal balance and protect brain function.

The Shocking Link Between Menopause and Memory Loss

While scientists don’t know exactly what causes Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, they do know that hormones play a major role.

Hormones are the body’s chemical messengers, responsible for everything from signaling neurotransmitters and directing nutrients and blood to different parts of the body to stabilizing sleep, metabolism, and mood.

When hormone levels in the body change, you can experience both physical and mental/emotional symptoms. For example, low thyroid hormones are thought to account for many cases of chronic fatigue.

One of the most dramatic changes in hormone levels is the one that affects women at menopause. It can put you at greater risk of dementia. Here’s what happens, how it affects brain health, and what you can do to protect yourself. 

Menopause may be the best-known example of the effect of hormones. When estrogen and progesterone start to fluctuate and decrease at the onset of menopause, it causes a host of symptoms including. . .

• Hot flashes and night sweats
• Fatigue
• Hair loss
• Dry skin
• Weight gain, especially around the midsection

While these symptoms are fairly common, and the ones we hear about most often, changing hormones at menopause also cause lesser-known symptoms such as. . .

• Depression and anxiety
• Insomnia
• Mood swings
• Brain fog

Brain fog is an umbrella term for a constellation of symptoms such as trouble concentrating, memory failures, extreme mental fatigue, confusion, and short-to-no attention span. These symptoms are often dismissed as "just growing older," but they’re very real, and can also indicate an increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Estrogen and Alzheimer’s Disease

Estrogen and progesterone are steroid sex hormones that not only contribute to female fertility but also play an important role in brain functioning for both men and women. Estrogen is part of the brain’s signaling system, and it helps direct blood to parts of the brain that are more active.¹

Fluctuation of estrogen contributes to brain fog and mood swings that come with menopause and explains why women going through the change are more focused and feel better on some days than others.

Estrogen is also key in the normal maintenance of brain function in the nucleus basalis of Meynert (NBM). Degeneration of the NBM is found in people with Alzheimer’s disease, and less estrogen in the brain can contribute to this degeneration.²

These fluctuating hormones also contribute to insomnia, which not only impairs memory but also causes extra stress and inflammation in the body because it’s not able to fully restore and repair itself at night. Deep sleep is when the brain moves short-term memories into long-term storage. Frequent interruptions in sleep are deadly to memory.

Beyond Estrogen: Other Important Hormones

It’s not all about "female hormones." Other hormones such as insulin, leptin, and amylin decrease as both men and women age, which means your body has fewer natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents. This makes your body and brain more susceptible to the damaging effects of free radicals, inflammation, and excess cortisol.

Research shows these hormone decreases have a direct effect on brain functioning and contribute to cognitive decline, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease.³

Another important hormone is gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter that regulates communication between brain cells.

A study in the journal Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging found that older adults who had lower levels of GABA in the frontal lobes of their brain (the part that handles complex cognitive functioning) performed worse on cognitive tests compared to those who had higher GABA levels.⁴

How to Manage Your Hormones for Better Brain Health

Two important things you can do yourself to prevent diminishing hormones, especially diminishing estrogen, are:

• Keep stress under control
• Maintain a healthy diet

Excess stress contributes to a flood of cortisol in your body, which, if left untended, can essentially corrode your organs and neurotransmitters, making you vulnerable to disease and dementia.

A healthy diet of whole foods and nutrients can boost hormone production, increasing your body’s natural defenses. Foods said to increase estrogen specifically include alfalfa, barley, baker's yeast, beets, cherries, chickpeas, carrots, celery, cucumbers, dates, fennel, oats, olives and olive oil, papaya, peas, plums, pomegranates, potatoes, beans, rhubarb, rice, tomatoes, wheat, and yams.

Summary

While the exact causes of Alzheimer’s and dementia remain uncertain, researchers know that hormones play a vital role in brain health. Estrogen, in particular, helps regulate brain function, and its decline during menopause has been linked to memory problems and cognitive decline. But it’s not just estrogen—other hormones like insulin, leptin, and GABA also contribute to brain function, and their depletion can accelerate aging and inflammation. Fortunately, lifestyle changes such as reducing stress, engaging in regular movement, and consuming hormone-boosting foods can help maintain hormonal balance and support brain health. For those seeking additional support, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may be a safe and effective option.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does menopause affect brain health?

Menopause leads to a decline in estrogen, which can contribute to brain fog, memory loss, mood swings, and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Are hormones other than estrogen linked to cognitive decline?

Yes, hormones like insulin, leptin, amylin, and GABA also play crucial roles in brain function and can impact cognitive health when they decline.

Can lifestyle changes help balance hormones naturally?

Absolutely! Managing stress, engaging in physical activity, eating nutrient-rich foods, and practicing mindfulness can all help support hormonal balance.

What foods help boost estrogen levels?

Foods such as flaxseeds, soy, chickpeas, oats, and dark chocolate can naturally support estrogen production and overall hormone balance.

Is hormone replacement therapy (HRT) safe for brain health?

Bioidentical HRT, which mimics the body's natural hormones, may be a safer alternative to synthetic hormones and could help maintain cognitive function. Always consult with a healthcare provider to determine the best approach for you.