When is it a good time to take estrogen? Every new study on hormone replacement therapy and menopause seems to confuse the question further. Taking estrogen and progestin has been linked to increased risks of heart disease, stroke and even breast cancer in postmenopausal women. But what about taking estrogen alone, for women who have had their uterus or ovaries removed? Studies have suggested that there’s a critical, age-dependent window before menopause during which the hormone — either the body’s natural estrogen or that which is introduced during therapy — is protective. Now, two new, related studies in the Aug. 29 online edition of Neurology lend more support to that theory: these studies show that in women under 50, estrogen acts as a defense against later cognitive impairment, dementia and Parkinson’s disease.
