Can an oestrogen patch help with your memory?

The Daily Mail ran a story this week (24 January 2011) about a skin patch that can deliver hormones into the body that may help to boost memory in post-menopausal women.

A trial is underway to establish whether using an oestrogen patch, for a period of 30 days, can actually improve memory. If it can, then the implications could be far reaching. The research is being carried out in Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston with 60 participants.

The latest theories suggest that oestrogen falls during the menopause. Oestrogen is thought to protect nerve cells in the brain as well as having an influence on reproduction.  It has also been suggested that oestrogen may lower the risk of dementia too.

Research in the past has shown that oestrogen may have a temporary effect on memory that lasts a few days, but this is one of the first studies to monitor changes over a longer period of time.

Information written by the talkhealth medical panel

Last Reviewed: 28 January 2011
Next Review Date: 28 January 2013