Some research has shown that women who start estrogen or certain types of hormone therapy around the time of menopause are less likely to get heart disease. But a very large study by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) had different results. The NIH research found that:
- Estrogen alone didn’t affect the risk of a heart attack. Estrogen did increase the risk of stroke. Estrogen also increased the risk of blood clots in the legs.
- Estrogen plus progestin may have slightly increased the risk of a heart attack. Progestin is a manmade form of the female hormone progesterone. Estrogen plus progestin raised the risk of stroke and blood clots in the legs and lungs.
Researchers continue to study this issue. The age at which MHT is started may be the key to whether this therapy reduces your chances of getting heart disease. Most of the women in the NIH study did not start MHT until after the age of 60. Yet menopause happens for most women after the age of 45. Some experts think that many of the women in the NIH study may have already developed narrowing and hardening of the arteries because of many years in which their estrogen levels were low. This would explain why estrogen did not protect against heart disease in the study.
More research on younger women may support the use of some kind of MHT to prevent heart disease. And more research will be needed to ensure that the benefits of such a therapy outweigh its risks. For now, the safest option for menopausal hormone therapy is to stick with the lowest dose for the shortest time to treat menopausal symptoms or treat bone loss, but not to prevent heart disease.
Studies on the effects of MHT on memory and other brain functions also have had mixed results. For now, MHT should not be used to prevent memory loss, dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Source: Office on Women’s Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.