#9.0 BRAIN HEALTH IN MENOPAUSE AND BEYOND
From birth, the female brain is different from the male brain. Men and women have different hormonal influences on their brains throughout their lives. For women going through the menopause (and the hormonal changes this creates) a definite effect on the brain can occur.
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Whilst there are many differences in terms of the male and female brain, for the purpose of this program we want to discover what influence menopause has on our brain health and what it means in terms of later life for a woman.
Women are more likely to develop and die from Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia than men, and Alzheimer’s disease is now the leading cause of death in the UK. We could look at the possibility that these figures reflect that women tend to live longer than men. However, what is also known is that the changes in the brain that lead to developing Alzheimer’s disease begin years before it develops and the symptoms arise, but that post menopause it is more common. So does the change in our hormones spark something?
Women are more likely to be diagnosed with anxiety disorder or depression, to develop an autoimmune disease (including those that attack the brain such as multiple sclerosis) and four times more likely to get headaches.
Women are also more likely to develop meningeal brain tumours (the most common type) and to die of a stroke if they have one.
So, is this directly affected by the menopause and the change to our hormones?
Because Women now live in their post-menopausal years for so much longer than they used to, it may be more evident that we are more at risk of these illnesses and disorders. One thing we do know though is that we can have a profound effect on our brain health and cognitive decline. In this section we are going to look at what we can do to maintain our brain health.
MENOPAUSAL ‘BRAIN RELATED’ SYMPTOMS
Many women report experiencing ‘brain fog’, ‘forgetfulness’ and ‘memory loss’ as they go through their perimenopause and beyond. Have you ever seen someone whose name you know well and you just can’t recall it?
Maybe you found your house keys in the fridge or you get to the top of the stairs and wonder why you walked up them? This is common at this stage of life but is it the hormones or is it that you are tired because you aren’t sleeping well or are stressed and distracted because you have too much on your plate?
HORMONES AND THE BRAIN
Absolutely, oestrogen does have a connection with the brain. It regulates the main fuel, glucose, to the brain so its decline can have an impact on our brain energy. Oestrogen has a protective effect on our brain by boosting the immune system and is considered to be “nature’s Prozac” too. A decline in oestrogen appears to have an impact on our memory and ability to concentrate. However, we also need to consider if there are other factors contributing to brain fog and poor memory.
The decrease in oestrogen also has an effect on the Hypothalamus, an area of the brain that maintains homeostasis of the body and regulates temperature. The result is that we store more fat around our middle and our temperature regulation becomes more sensitive and is disrupted.
So once our oestrogen levels decline it becomes even more important to ensure that we protect our brain and put the work in to maintain our brain health. There is much we can do but as with everything we explore in this program, it takes some work and thought. Thyroxin imbalance can also have an effect on our concentration and memory. It’s worth noting this, especially if there are no signs of your sex hormones altering at this time.
Once again, taking a holistic approach to ensure our brain stays healthy is the best plan. Whilst many women report that HRT has cured their brain fog we must always consider that there are other ‘lifestyle choices’ that will impact our brain health.
DIET AND BRAIN HEALTH
As we have discussed many times in this program, we know that our choice of foods and drinks have a profound effect on every aspect of our health. You are what you eat is no exaggeration! The brain is affected by nutrition as much as any other part of our body. That includes hydration as 75% of the brain is water. Our brain is responsible for burning around 20% of our daily calories and relies on good nutrition as much as any other organ in the body.
A diet rich in antioxidants and omega 3 polyunsaturated fats along with a healthy, balanced diet will contribute to good brain health. The brain appears to love us ‘eating the rainbow’ and the Mediterranean diet scores highly in terms of brain health. Everything we have discussed in the nutrition section counts towards maintaining brain health as we age.
An inflammatory diet that is high in sugary foods and refined carbohydrates is not beneficial to brain health. Excess alcohol is also detrimental. Excess fish can also be an issue due to the excess mercury naturally found in fish.
EXERCISE AND BRAIN HEALTH
There is a positive connection between exercise and brain health. Amongst other benefits, exercise improves blood flow and memory, improves our mood, helps the brain develop pathways of learning and stimulates feel good hormones from the brain. Aerobic exercise has a highly positive influence on brain health so should definitely feature in your exercise regime.
EXERCISING THE BRAIN
Stimulating the brain and treating it like a muscle has huge benefits to brain health. Cognitive decline can occur because we are not stimulating our brain cells sufficiently. It is important to vary the challenges we give our brain cells, therefore a variety of ‘challenges’ to the brain is most beneficial, we need the brain to have plenty of ‘surprises’ and new stimulants.
COGNITIVE CHALLENGES
Here are some ideas of how to challenge your cognition
• Consider learning new activities and mentally challenging the brain to create new pathways
• Read aloud or be read to
• Consider remembering telephone numbers rather than letting your mobile phone do all the work!
• Learn a new language
• Do sums in your head rather than on a calculator
• Take up some learning or a course
MOTOR CONTROL CHALLENGES
There are some simple ideas you can implement to challenge your motor system (signal system from the brain to the muscles in your body)
• Using your less dominant hand to stir your cup of tea, or eat with
• Rake, sweep or mop on the other side of your body
• Stand on one leg with one eye closed and swap eyes
• Take your first step up the stairs with the foot you don’t want to start with
• New a new skill using your hands
OTHER WAYS TO CHALLENGE YOUR BRAIN
There are so many simple things you can do to stimulate your brain! Here are just a few but I will let you use your brain and think of your own challenges!
• Learn to dance or move in a new way
• Stop using your satnav and plot your route
• Have conversations with people you don’t know
• Start a new hobby
STRESS AND BRAIN HEALTH
We have already established that stress is harmful if it is constant and long term. Living a highly stressed lifestyle can affect memory and brain shrinkage before the age of 50.
Studies have shown that the effect of constant stress are harsher on the female brain than the male brain. Our natural instincts to nurture and care for others mean that our emotional brain is turned on alongside our ‘fight or flight’ reaction.
With the heavy load many women have of juggling family and work, worrying about elderly parents as well as going through the menopause with all the emotional challenges that can bring, it is easy to see why women typically have more stress in their lives than men at this stage.
Stress has been shown to be a contributory factor to Alzheimer’s disease as well as other life limiting diseases. Therefore, managing and reducing stress is of major importance.
SLEEP
This is another big subject we discuss in this program. We can see how all of these major factors come together to affect our well-being and health.
Our sleep has different stages. For brain health, deep sleep really matters. In this stage of sleep our brain is literally having a ‘deep clean’ and the harmful toxins including Alzheimers plaques are cleared out. If you are not getting your sleep you are more likely to be suffering from lower concentration, ‘brain fog’ and mental fatigue
SUMMARY OF WHAT WE CAN DO TO HELP MAINTAIN GOOD BRAIN HEALTH
• MANAGE AND REDUCE STRESS
• EAT A HEALTHY DIET AND INCLUDE FOODS THAT BENEFIT THE BRAIN
• LOOK AFTER YOUR GUT HEALTH
• DRINK WATER
• MANAGE ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION
• TRY NOT TO SMOKE
• CHECK YOUR MEDICINES…SOME DRUGS CAN AFFECT COGNITIVE CHANGES
• LOOK AFTER YOUR DENTAL HYGEINE – THERE ARE LINKS BETWEEN GUM DISEASE AND COGNITIVE DECLINE
• IMPROVE SLEEP
• EXERCISE REGULARLY
• CHALLENGE YOUR BRAIN
• RELAX, TAKE TIME OUT, SWITCH OFF
• REDUCE ENVIRONMENTAL TOXINS
• FORM AND ENJOY LOVING, MEANINFUL RELATIONSHIPS
• DO WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY
The Brain is such a complex organ, still so much about it is unknown.
What we do know though is that our brain health is of huge importance at this stage of a woman’s life and beyond. Many women are concerned about hereditary factors when it comes to Dementia and if you have any concerns whatsoever please ask the advice of a medical professional. Even if it just to put your mind at rest!
I can recommend an excellent book by Dr Lisa Mosconi ‘the XX brain’ if you would like some further in depth reading.