Can Midlife Use of Hormones Reduce Dementia Risk?
As with many things in life, timing may be everything when it comes to hormone therapy.
A new study from Kaiser Permanente, presented at last week’s Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease in Chicago, reported that women who began hormones at menopause had a 24 percent reduced risk for all forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Older women who started hormones at age 65 or so had up to a 46 percent increased risk of dementia.
As I have said so often before, for the millions of women going through menopause, I don’t think there is anything more frustrating than trying to make sense of all the confusing research on hormones.
But for older women who have gone through menopause years earlier, the message is clear. Starting hormones later in life to stave off chronic diseases such as osteoporosis, heart disease and dementia is rarely a good idea.
We already have many good lifestyle and medical treatments that will greatly reduce the risk of osteoporosis and heart disease. As we are also learning at this conference, lifestyle choices that are good for the heart are also good for the brain. Everything from a heart healthy diet, regular physical exercise, omega-3 fatty acids and even caffeine may be just what the brain needs to stay healthy.
And we also learned it is never too late to reap some benefits from a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, no older woman should assume the small risks that come with starting estrogen when there is so much she can do to lower her risk.
But what about all the baby-booming women approaching menopause who may be suffering, or the women already in the throes of menopause who want to do everything they can to stay healthy?
Here is what we know. Hormones can protect women from bone loss and fractures but only as long as these women are taking the hormones. Once they stop hormones, the benefits quickly disappear.
A number of observational studies have shown that hormones can reduce the risk of heart disease and dementia by as much as 30 to 40 percent. However, many of these observational studies looked at younger healthy women who chose to take hormones either because of menopausal symptoms or because they and their physicians believed hormone therapy was a good idea for them.
Timing for Heart Disease Protection Important, Too
A breakdown of the larger research studies including the Nurses’ Health Study and the Women’s Health Initiative found that heart disease risk may be reduced by hormones in midlife women starting hormones while hormones increase the risk in older women.
The North American Menopause Society has recently issued a new set of guidelines for midlife women who are experiencing menopause symptoms, which suggested that for them the benefits of hormones short-term may be more important than any small risk.
I have written about this previously. However, research from the Women’s Health Initiative study did not find an overall benefit of hormones, but the average age in this large government study was about 62. The smaller randomized trial that was part of the WHI referred to as WHIMS studied women 65 years and older. Researchers found the risk of dementia for the women who took hormones was twice as great as it was for women who took placebos
So what’s new?
The aforementioned large study from Kaiser found that there just may be a window of opportunity to begin hormones. Researchers tracked all their female patients from midlife on during the 1960s and 1970s. They took note of every woman who started hormones at midlife and followed them to see how many would develop dementia. They found that women who began hormones early in menopause had a 24 percent reduced risk of developing dementia.
The researchers next tracked pharmacy records of all their female patients from age 65 and over, noting who began hormones at this much later date. Over the ensuing years they found that women who began hormones later in life had a remarkable 46 percent increased risk of dementia. All forms of dementia were counted, including Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia.
Why do hormones help protect younger brains and harm older brains? No one knows for certain, but a recurring theme at the Alzheimer’s conference this week emphasized that the earlier we begin caring for our brains, the better. It simply may be too late to change the course of aging brains and Alzheimer’s disease if we start treatments long after the damage is done.
Estrogen researchers believe that the active form of estrogen, estradiol, has protective effects on the brain whereas the synthetic progestin, medroxyprogesterone, may somehow interfere with this good effect. So a second hormone study presented at the meetings tested estradiol at a 1.0 mg standard dose along with another progestin, and found some intriguing (but early) results.
Women who took hormones who had excellent memory at the start of the study had continued good memory throughout. However women with slower memory on a test called the delayed verbal recall test actually had worsening memory when they used hormones. According to the researcher, “It was almost like estrogen helped preserve brain function in the healthy women and failed to protect the brain function in less healthy brains.”
We may also be able to prevent these age-related diseases by boosting brain power and function through diet, exercise of both the brain (did you know that obsessing is good for your brain and body?), a touch of caffeine, and maybe even vitamins such as omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants.
The latest headlines are yet another reminder that no “one-size-fits-all” solutions apply for all women.
If you are young and considering hormones, talk to your doctor about taking: the lowest possible dose of natural estrogen, the skin patch form that bypasses the liver, and a natural form of progesterone such as micronized progesterone capsule or vaginal insert rather than the synthetic progestin’s (you only need progesterone if you have a uterus and need to protect it from estrogen buildup of the lining every month or so for about 10 to 12 days total).
I will be writing about hormones whenever something comes out in the news. Millions of baby boomers (such as me) demand information and answers to the hormone dilemma so we can make the best decisions to preserve our health.
In the weeks to come, I will also fill you in about some of the other exciting research presented at the International Conference on Alzheimer’s disease in Chicago.
As always, I welcome your comments and questions to this very confusing matter.
Dr. Marie Savard is an ABC News medical contributor. Savard’s book, “How to Save Your Own Life,” and her entire system is available on her Web site at www.DrSavard.com.
August 8th, 2008 at 7:24 am
Enjoyed the article, thank you.
November 25th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
I found your blog via Google while searching for symptoms of alzheimers, thank you for posting life Use of Hormones Reduce Dementia Risk? | Dr. Marie’s Healthy Dose!
December 25th, 2008 at 12:12 am
all natural diet patch
Nevertheless there will always be a minority who will not get the point you are trying to make.
January 1st, 2009 at 3:23 pm
hello
Thank you! I would now go on this blog every day!
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:12 am
hey
everything dynamic and very positively
January 9th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Good article and good information. I have a question. I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, stage1 clear cell in Sept/06, had surgery done by great surgeon and had 6 chemotherapy sessions. I did take Estradio before finding the cancer and felt better for taking it. Helped me think clearer and certainly helped with hot flashes! I do not want to do anything to increase risk of increasing chances of recurring cancer but was wondering if I should be taking hormones. Both of my mothers sisters had dementia/lewy body disease. My mother had slight demenia but only near the end of her life.
Thanks,Karen
January 19th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Thank you for this interesting post.
April 7th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Super-Duper site! I am loving it!! Will come back again - taking you feeds also, Thanks.
April 8th, 2009 at 4:57 am
This is one of the best post I ever read,I will digg this!
April 23rd, 2009 at 12:27 pm
You are a very smart person!
April 28th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
Hello, I can’t understand how to add your blog in my rss reader
————————
signature: http://semev.ru/
April 29th, 2009 at 12:32 am
I must admit I find it insightful to read your blogging. Keep up the good work. Jim. RV Covers
April 29th, 2009 at 9:29 am
Ohh … It seems you have done a lot of reachearch before this post .Hope you dont mind me linking this post on my website . hot video songs
April 30th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Only came across your blog by accident and I am happy I did. Nice blog and informative posts. I will check back here often. Thank you
May 1st, 2009 at 12:44 am
Nice way that you present your ideas. You have a well set out blog and I will check back again. Thank you. brite smile
May 2nd, 2009 at 11:13 pm
Nice entry, thanks for the information.
May 7th, 2009 at 9:59 pm
Just wanted to say that I love your blog. You have some real quality information here and its become a bit of a must read for me. Keep up the great work!
May 9th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
is a view somewhat different to reality,
but it made me think. thanks.
May 9th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Good info, its just what I was searching for.
Jason
May 13th, 2009 at 7:08 am
You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and found most people will agree with your blog.
May 13th, 2009 at 7:16 am
I’m glad to join into the discussion. What’s more, I personally think this is stunning.
love sms smsdate
Keep it up
May 21st, 2009 at 5:31 pm
NIce Blog… I THink Ill come back for refference…!~ thx Free Movie Fairy
May 24th, 2009 at 11:51 pm
Your post is really helpful to me. Will surely bookmark your site and come back often. Wow Guide Review
May 26th, 2009 at 8:47 am
Hello
Very Nice blog with good ideas !
Very instructive…
Thanks
John
May 29th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Great post indeed! what i was lookin for!
Thanks,
Mary
June 2nd, 2009 at 7:33 am
Wow fantastic article you got there! it’s so interesting that I want to read more! will check back in the future
June 5th, 2009 at 11:23 am
looks like you put some good thought into this, its nice to see people take pride in their work
June 7th, 2009 at 8:15 am
Your topic about estradiol menopause sounds interesting to me after reading some articles on Sunday .
June 11th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
That was a great post…I love this site…Thanks
June 11th, 2009 at 8:18 pm
Very nice post! What I like most about is the fact that you don?t try to force your opinion on anyone. You just kind of lay the information out there and let people make their own decision. Keep doing your thing. Get Rid of Cellulite Fast
June 15th, 2009 at 2:28 pm
nice post
mubseo mubseo
June 18th, 2009 at 5:50 am
I’m not suet that I agree with absolutely everything you say, but I like your presentation and the very interesting vew pointy you have. Thank you and I will return to offer more comments.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:35 am
You have given me some food for thought. I appreciate that and will thinkj about what you are saying. Kind regards and have a great day.
http://www.realtown.com/members/tedyrogy
June 21st, 2009 at 1:35 pm
thanks for the great article, added your site to my rss! thanks!
great article! thanks! http://www.topnotchboots.com
June 23rd, 2009 at 12:05 pm
You have a decent blog here. I would encourage you to keep writing and posting as often as you are inspired to do so. In the long run, it will really pay off as more and more people will begin to visit, read and refer others. Vazomyne
June 25th, 2009 at 12:48 am
Insightful. Bookmarked.
June 28th, 2009 at 11:08 am
nice ideas
neat commentary
nice work http://topnotchboots.com
June 30th, 2009 at 9:44 am
good work, hope you make more related posts! will keep an eye on this blog
July 12th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Thanks for the updates. http://www.puddingfart.com
July 15th, 2009 at 2:13 am
Cool posting ,like it , Replica Rolex
July 16th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
good blog to bookmark you! Arma tu negocio en internet
July 24th, 2009 at 7:29 am
very interesting article,gonna subscribe:) http://cancercuresecrets.blogspot.com/
July 24th, 2009 at 8:34 am
Hi, Thanks for the great post. I thought I knew what I was talking about until I read your view on it. roulette software
August 4th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Can you please write another article about this? I’m interested to know more. Thanks. dcc 1200
August 12th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
nice blog, thanks for the information
August 17th, 2009 at 8:55 am
It seems that someone has the next big thing, or someone has a ‘new’ technique that has never been heard of. The problem is most, not all but most of them are just rehashed information.
August 23rd, 2009 at 8:48 am
Zoloft
As with many things in life timing may be everything when it comes to hormone therapy.A new study fr […]
August 27th, 2009 at 12:53 am
I like your blog
August 29th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Prescription Naprosyn
As with many things in life timing may be everything when it comes to hormone therapy.A new study fr […]
September 3rd, 2009 at 10:13 am
This has got me juices flowing, I have a related post, I’m going to do some research and probably reference this. Word.
September 5th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
Hey, just wanted to say how great of an article this is..I’ll be sure to implement some of what I’ve read!
September 16th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Good one. Witch Theme are you using?
Looks Good.
Now iPhone OS 3.1 can jailbreak, unlock, activate on 2G
September 24th, 2009 at 2:01 am
Hey! Nice job here! I’ll be dropping by from time to time