Severe menopausal symptoms linked to cognitive decline

A recent study found that women with more severe menopausal symptoms may experience greater cognitive and behavioral impairments later in life. The research involved 896 postmenopausal women and was published in PLOS ONE. The study showed that higher menopausal symptom burden correlated with increased scores on cognitive and behavioral impairment assessments. Hormone therapy was linked to lower behavioral impairment scores but did not significantly affect cognitive scores. These findings suggest that menopausal symptoms could indicate a risk for cognitive and behavioral changes, which are associated with dementia.