Mood, Cognition and Brain Fog in Menopause - are you at risk of dementia?

Mood, Cognition and Brain Fog in Menopause – Are you are risk of Dementia?

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One of the biggest concerns that women have as they enter their perimenopausal years is that the symptoms of brain fog are actually the beginnings of dementia. Every year, the month of October is World Menopause Month, and October 18 is World Menopause Day (WMD). The International Menopause Society marked the theme of WMD to be Brain Fog in Menopause in 2022.  Keep reading to learn more about brain fog, mood, cognition and the risk of dementia in menopause.

 

What are Cognition and Brain Fog?

 

Cognition is how we were feeling before the hormonal changes of perimenopause kicked in – we were able to focus and think clearly, we were rational and could multitask like a ninja.  The definition of cognition is,

 

 “All forms of knowing and awareness such as  perceiving, conceiving, remembering, reasoning, judging, imagining and problem solving.”

 

If you are among the two thirds of women in menopause that experience brain fog, the thought of cognition and being able to think clearly may feel like it was such a long time ago, and maybe you are thinking it is now out of reach.  Over half of women experience brain fog as a symptom, it is a very real experience, so please know, that you are not on your own, and you are definitely not going crazy.

 

The definition of brain fog may sound a little more familiar to you,

 

“A constellation of cognitive symptoms experienced by women around the menopause, which most frequently manifest in memory and attention difficulties and involves symptoms such as difficulty encoding and recalling words, names, stories or numbers, difficulty maintaining a train of thought, distractability, forgetting intentions (such as the reason for coming into a certain room) and difficulty switching between tasks.”

 

There are many different types of symptoms of brain fog that are experienced by women, some may experience them all, and some may only experience a few.  They include:

  • Forgetfulness
  • Slow thinking
  • Difficulty focusing
  • Lack of concentration
  • Confusion
  • Word recall issues
  • Memory issues
  • Issues with organising and planning
  • Not able to multitask
  • Forgetting appointments and events
  • Misplacing items such as car keys
  • Forgetting the reason for doing something, such as why you came into a room
  • Losing train of thought mid conversation

 

Let me say at this point, that I definitely experienced most of these symptoms in my early perimenopause.  I remember not being able to think clearly, forgetting words and even what we were talking about mid conversation (which was really embarrassing), slow thinking and just really not feeling like myself at all.  I wouldn’t say that I was worried about dementia, but that is a very common concern for women suffering from brain fog.

 

Sex hormones and brain fog

 

Perimenopause marks changes in the hormones oestrogen and progesterone. Oestrogen fluctuates wildly as it declines steadily, and has an effect on brain fog due to the oestrogen receptors in the brain not getting the oestrogen they require to allow the brain to function optimally. Oestrogen is also connected to the production of serotonin, our feel good hormone, so the less oestrogen there is, the less serotonin there is.  Progesterone also steadily declines over the perimenopause stage, and it has an anti anxiety and antidepressant effect, so if there is less available, it makes sense that we will feel more anxious and sad, along with the fogginess. Brain fog symptoms are at their worst during perimenopause because of the fluctuations of sex hormones, however, when we reach postmenopause, brain fog symptoms usually settle, because our sex hormones have settled.  

 

Dementia risk

 

The most important thing to remember is that all women will go through menopause, but not all women will develop dementia.  Dementia risk is actually very low at midlife, only 293.1 per 100 000 women will develop dementia globally in their lifetime.  As with all health conditions, there are non modifiable (things we can’t change) and modifiable (things we can change) risk factors that determine our overall risk. The non modifiable risk factors include:

 

  • Our age
  • Our gender, being female sex (women are at greater risk than men)
  • Our genetic profile and family history
  • Our history of chronic illnesses such as heart disease and lung disease
  • Our early life experiences
  • Socioeconomic status
  • Education level

 

However, all is not lost!  There are quite a few modifiable risk factors that we can implement in our lives to reduce our risk of dementia, and improve brain fog and brain health in midlife.  These include:

 

  • Diet
  • Exercise
  • Weight Management
  • Brain Training
  • Blood pressure monitoring
  • Social Connection
  • Smoking
  • Alcohol Intake
  • Sleep

 

Recent research showed that women in midlife increased the risk of dementia from 41% to 78%, which could’ve been reduced with just 5 modifiable risk factors. They were – obesity, type 2 diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol (LDL) and high blood pressure. Taking care of our health and leading a lifestyle that nourishes us is imperative for good brain health, as nearly half of all dementias worldwide are due to these modifiable risk factors.

 

Solutions for brain health

 

The Mediterranean Diet is the most studied eating pattern that is recommended by the World Health Organisation for optimising brain health. Including lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, nuts and seeds, seafood, poultry and some dairy, red meat and wholegrains will set you up for good brain health.  

 

Daily movement is essential for our physical, emotional and mental health. It reduces our risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes, helps with sleep and reduces stress, supports our immune system and releases feel good chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin which help us feel good, by uplifting our mood, memory, motivation and concentration.

 

There is an increased risk of dementia with smoking and the long term effects of drinking alcohol can contribute to the risk of metabolic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, increased risk of cancer, and heart and liver issues.  Alcohol doesn’t kill brain cells, but it damages the ends of nerve cells. using a miscommunication between nerve cells and the brain, affecting cognition.

 

When we sleep, we are in a rest and repair phase, when the brain is undertaking many activities closely linked to our quality of life.  Lack of sleep significantly affects brain function and is vital for brain plasticity – the process of making new neural pathways.  Brain training such as doing crosswords and using a brain training app also strengthens the neural pathways, as does the social connection to our friends and family and weight management.  Visceral fat is the key in relation to weight management, as it is the fat that causes many lifestyle diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, dementia and cancer. 

 

Lifestyle factors including the pillars of self care that I work closely on with my clients can help with symptoms of brain fog and improve brain health as you move through the menopause stages.  Always see your doctor when experiencing brain fog symptoms.  If want more ease and clarity in your menopause, book a Discovery Call to learn more.

 

All information and references for this article are attached to the Mood, Cognition and Brain Health Webinar on 25 Oct 2022