Major hormonal changes during pregnancy and the first menstrual period, known as menarche, are reflected in the brain. But during menopause, brain changes seem to take a break.
In a study of more than 1,000 female brains, brain gray matter volume decreased at menarche and again during pregnancy, changes that are permanent and distinct from age-related decline. There was no change during menopause, scientists report September 8 in Nature Communications . The results are surprising, but hint at how hormone ebbs and flows over the lifetime are reflected in brain structure.
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