Hormone Health Hub: Expert Insights on Testing, Balance & Better Living — estrogen and neurotransmitters

Alzheimer's disease is a slow and devastating condition that affects memory, cognition, and the ability to perform everyday tasks. Sadly, women are disproportionately affected: by 2050, over 9 million out of 13.8 million Americans with Alzheimer’s will be women. But why are women at greater risk? The answers lie not only in longevity but in biology, hormones, brain structure, and how women respond to stress. What is Alzheimer’s? Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, marked by the gradual loss of neurons and brain function. Characteristic features include the buildup of beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles, excessive neural pruning,...

Many women going through menopause notice changes in their ability to remember things — and this is not just in their heads. A small, seahorse-shaped structure in the brain called the hippocampus is highly dependent on estrogen for synaptic plasticity, memory formation and neuroprotection. In this article, Margaret Groves of ZRT Laboratory explains the science behind menopause-related memory changes, why estrogen receptor expression declines with age, and why the “window of opportunity” for hormone replacement is critical to preserving cognitive function.

Hot flashes, mood instability, brain fog and memory changes during perimenopause are not “all in your head” — but they are very much in your brain. In this in-depth clinical article, Dr. Kate Placzek of ZRT Laboratory explains how declining estradiol disrupts brain glucose metabolism, neurotransmitter signalling and thermoregulation, why perimenopause represents a window of neurological vulnerability, and why the timing of hormone replacement therapy is critical to protecting long-term brain health.