A vital indicator in some women's brains can increase the risk of stroke

 Stroke is described as a "life-threatening" emergency, caused by a disruption in the supply of blood to the brain.

As with the majority of health conditions, there are some risk factors that can be adjusted to prevent the risk of stroke, from smoking to lack of exercise, however, there are also risk factors that are not adjustable. Unfortunately, new research adds another element to this list.

• The research identified the new risk factor, which affects women who have experienced menopause.

• Menopause refers to the time when hormone levels drop and menstrual cycles end. This usually occurs between the ages of 45 and 55.

• Although this change is quite normal, it is associated with countless uncomfortable symptoms, including brain fog and hot flushes.

Now, research published in the journal Neurology has found that women who have undergone menopause may have a biomarker in the brain called hyperdense white matter than women in the perimenopause period or men of the same age, a factor that may increase the risk of stroke.

"Excessive white matter intensity is a small lesion that appears in brain scans and becomes more common with age or uncontrolled hypertension," the research explains.

Furthermore, these biomarkers in the brain have been associated with an increased risk of stroke and Alzheimer's disease in some studies.

Research author Monique MP Bretteller said

1. "White matter increases in density as the brain ages
2. and while its emergence does not mean that a person will develop dementia or stroke
3. large amounts of it may increase the risk of injury.

The research examined the role that menopause may play on the quantities of these biomarkers in the brain. Our results indicate that excessive white matter density develops differently for men and women, as menopause or factors that determine when menopause begins, such as changes in the aging process, are crucial. "

The study looked at the data of 3,410 participants with an average age of 54, 58% of whom were women.

Of those participants, 59% went through menopause.

All participants underwent MRI scans to calculate the amount of excessive white matter density.

After controlling risk factors related to age and blood vessels, such as hypertension and diabetes, the research team noted that postmenopausal women had more of these biomarkers in the brain.

The research explained: "In people aged 45 or older, post-menopausal women had an average magnitude of 0.94 ml total white substance overcapacity compared to 0.72 ml for men."

However, pre-menopausal women and men did not have a difference in the average amount of excessive white matter density.

In addition, there was no difference between postmenopausal and perimenopausal women using hormonal therapy.

Breitler explained that this finding suggests that post-menopausal hormone therapy may not have a protective effect on the brain.