The Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn, recently announced its findings in a new study, which suggests that estrogen may protect against strokes in premature or early menopausal women. The study bucks the traditional belief that estrogen is a risk factor for stroke at all ages.

Researchers report that when they combined the results from the recent Mayo Clinic study with six other studies from across the world, the data indicated that estrogen protects against stroke before the age of 50.

Walter Rocca, MD, an epidemiologist and neurologist at the Mayo Clinic, (attribution is perfectly done. Nice!) says that the results were unexpected and acknowledges that, “The old idea that estrogen is always a problem in the brain has to be corrected.” Rocca says that estrogen can be problematic for older women, however in younger women estrogen may be an important element to protect the brain from strokes.

Rocca recommends that women younger than age 40, who experience premature menopause, and women younger than age 45 who experience early menopause, should consider taking estrogen supplements up to age 50 to protect themselves against stroke. 

The study was published in the journal Menopause.

Source: Mayo Clinic