Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) may be more likely to have memory and thinking problems in middle age, a recent study stated.
In the study published in American Academy of Neurology, last month, 907 females who were 18 to 30 years old participated at the start of the study. The study continued for 30 years in which their memory, verbal abilities, processing speed and attention were measured. The study was funded by the University of California, San Francisco.
What Is PCOS?
PCOS is a condition which causes hormonal imbalance leading to irregular period cycles. PCOS can also cause an increase in the levels of androgen, a sex hormone, and sometimes cysts in the ovaries as well.
According to the study, Polycystic ovary syndrome is a hormonal disorder that is defined by irregular menstruation and elevated levels of a hormone called androgen. Other symptoms may include excess hair growth, acne, infertility and poor metabolic health. “Polycystic ovary syndrome is a common reproductive disorder that impacts up to 10% of women,” said study author Heather G. Huddleston, MD, of the University of California, San Francisco.
PCOS Association With Memory Problems
“While it has been linked to metabolic diseases like obesity and diabetes that can lead to heart problems, less is known about how this condition affects brain health. Our results suggest that people with this condition have lower memory and thinking skills and subtle brain changes at midlife. This could impact a person on many levels, including quality of life, career success and financial security,” Huddleston said.
Of 907 women, 66 participants had PCOS at the time of testing. In a test measuring attention, participants looked at a list of words in different colors and were asked to state the color of the ink rather than read the actual word. For example, the word “blue” could be displayed in red, so the correct response would be red.
The score of participants with PCOS in the test were found to be 11% lower than the people without the condition.
A group of 291 participants had brain scans at the years of 25 and 30 of the study. 25 of those had PCOS. With the scans, researchers looked at the integrity of the white matter pathways in the brain by looking at movement of water molecules in the brain tissue. Researchers found that people with polycystic ovary syndrome had lower white matter integrity, which may indicate early evidence of brain aging.
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“Additional research is needed to confirm these findings and to determine how this change occurs, including looking at changes that people can make to reduce their chances of thinking and memory problems,” Huddleston said adding, “Making changes like incorporating more cardiovascular exercise and improving mental health may serve to also improve brain aging for this population.”
Although, the limitation of this study was that the women with PCOS were not diagnosed by doctor, but it was on the basis of androgen levels and self-reported symptoms. So, the participants may not have remembered information accurately.