In a study from Zhejiang University, scientists found that people with a higher cumulative estrogen exposure throughout their life may have a lower risk of stroke.
The lower risk was found for both ischemic stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage.
These findings might help with new ideas for stroke prevention, such as considering screenings for people with short-lifetime exposure to estrogen.
An ischemic stroke is caused by a blockage of blood flow to the brain and is the most common type.
An intracerebral hemorrhage is caused by bleeding in the brain.
In the study, the team examined 122,939 older women living in China without stroke at the start of the study. During an average follow-up period of nine years, 15,139 had a stroke.
Of those,12,853 women had an ischemic stroke, 2,580 had an intracerebral hemorrhage and 269 had a subarachnoid hemorrhage, which is bleeding between the brain and the membrane that covers it.
Participants were divided into four groups determined by their reproductive life span, the number of years from first menstruation to menopause.
The researchers adjusted for other factors and found that participants in the longest group had a 5% lower risk of all kinds of stroke.
When looking at different types of stroke, women with the longest reproductive life span had a 5% lower risk of ischemic stroke and a 13% lower risk of intracerebral hemorrhage when compared to women with the shortest reproductive life span.
Researchers also looked at other factors affecting estrogen levels, such as the number of births and use of oral contraceptives, both of which are associated with higher levels, and length of breastfeeding.
They found that higher estrogen levels led to a lower risk of all types of stroke, as well as ischemic stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage.
The team says estrogen exposure throughout life could potentially be a useful indicator of a person’s risk of different types of stroke following menopause
However, more research is needed on the biological, behavioral, and social factors contributing to the link between estrogen exposure and stroke risk across a woman’s lifespan.
If you care about stroke, please read studies about why strokes can harm women, and men differently, and the new stroke clot-buster drug shows strong potential.
For more information about stroke, please see recent studies about how the Mediterranean diet could protect your brain health, and coffee could help lower your risk of stroke and dementia.
The study was conducted by Peige Song et al and published in Neurology.
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