A study published in NPJ Women's Health indicates that while brain fog is a commonly reported symptom among peri- and postmenopausal women, the research found no evidence of it having an ongoing impact on a person's cognitive abilities.
Menopause typically occurs at an average age of 51 in women. Cognitive difficulties such as forgetfulness, mental slowing, or attention difficulties—often referred to as 'brain fog'—are reported by 40 to 80 percent of women. The biological basis for these symptoms is not fully understood, and previous research has yielded contradictory findings regarding whether cognitive symptoms directly relate to cognitive performance.
Study Design and Participants
For this study, 14,234 women aged 45-55 from the REACT-Long Covid Study were categorized into pre-, peri-, or post-menopause groups. Participants self-reported menopausal cognitive symptoms and then completed eight online tasks designed to assess memory and reasoning.
Key Findings on Cognition and Mood
An initial analysis determined that overall cognitive performance showed minimal differences across the three groups. The association between self-reported cognitive symptoms and actual cognitive performance in pre-, peri-, and postmenopausal stages was found to be weak.
Further analysis indicated that the experience of cognitive symptoms was more closely linked to an increased reporting of psychological symptoms, including anxiety and low mood, particularly among peri- and postmenopausal participants.