Articles

Hormones&Improving Memory: Is There a Connection?

By Brock Smith, R.Ph.

Can hormones help improve memory or prevent further loss? In 1988 psychologist Barbara Sherwin discovered the relationship between estrogen loss and a decline in memory in menopausal women. She was a first hesitant to publish her paper for fear it would just be sensationalized. It is good she submitted it for publication because her original paper has led to much research with hormones and memory.

As women today enter into menopause, they want to alleviate symptoms of hot flashes, bone loss, vaginal dryness and more recently Alzheimer’s disease, which affects twice as many women as men. Sherwin’s studies showed estrogen maintains verbal memory and enhances the capacity to learn new things in postmenopausal women.¹

ESTROGEN:
The role of estrogen in maintaining brain function is of great significance as the population ages and the incidence of dementia increases.² The finding of increased activation in the prefrontal cortex in older women using hormone therapy is important and suggestive that hormonal therapies need to be explored further in this role. One study found women who used any form of estrogen hormone therapy before the age of 65 were nearly 50% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or dementia than women who did not use hormone therapy before age 65.³

Animal studies done at the University of Pittsburg show that estrogen improves memory function in rats.⁴ Dr. Gibbs stated, "I would hesitate to say that these results extend to humans, but the findings are encouraging because they help pinpoint a specific biological effect that may underlie beneficial effects on cognitive performance."
Hormones have a broad range of effects, and if used properly can have an influence on age-related cognitive decline, depression, and perhaps Alzheimer’s disease.
The WHI study has raised much controversy as to whether estrogen reduces memory loss. The research battle continues and will do so for many years to come, yet with controversy comes advancement.

PREGNENOLONE:
Pregnenolone has been found to help with learning and memory, mood and energy, speed of thinking, verbal fluency, concentration and focus, creativity, vision, hearing, aware¬ness, and sensory perception.
Pregnenolone is primarily made in the adrenal glands from cholesterol, but it can also be made in other tissues, including the brain. Pregnenolone is the precursor to most of the hormones the body uses it to convert into DHEA, progesterone, and other steroid hormones. Human research with pregnenolone is very limited but several rodent studies have shown it to be a powerful memory enhancer.⁴

TESTOSTERONE:
Literature suggests that testosterone may play a role in key cognitive functions including attention, memory, and spatial ability, though the literature is rather sparse. Preliminary evidence suggests that low testosterone levels may be a risk factor for cognitive decline. Testosterone supplementation has been shown to improve spatial memory and constructional abilities in older men with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment.⁶

STUDIES TO READ:

• Smith, Y. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, Nov. 16, 2006; vol 91: pp 4476-4481. Yolanda R. Smith, MD, MS, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor. Victor Henderson, MD, MS, Professor of Health Research and Policy, Neurology, Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, Calif.

• Am J Psychiatry 158:227-233, February 2001 Enhanced Verbal Memory in Nondemented Elderly Women Receiving Hormone-Replacement Therapy
  Pauline M. Maki, Ph.D., Alan B. Zonderman, Ph.D., and Susan M. Resnick, Ph.D.
  

1. Mcgill Reporter; Restoring remembering: Hormones and memory
   
2. Jon-Kar Zubieta, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry and radiology at the U-M Medical School and associate research scientist at U-M’s Molecular&Behavioral
   
3. Laino, C, Chang, L. Estrogen Therapy May Protect Brain. Retrieved November 19, 2007, from http://www.webmd.org. Data content provided by the American Academay of Neurology.
   
4. Neuroscience Institute University Of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2002, November 7). Animal Studies Prove Hormone Replacement Therapy Improves Memory
   
5. Cherrier M, et al. Neurology 2005;64:2063-2068.