Contraceptives May Affect a Woman's Memory | Health198

A new study illustrates how much hormones influence the way a woman thinks about events in comparison with a man. Researchers at the University of California Irvine found women who use hormonal contraception experience memory changes. Graduate researcher Shawn Nielsen wants to stress the medications do not damage memory. ?It?s a change in the type of information they remember, not a deficit.? This new information impacts more than 100 million women worldwide, all who use some form of birth control.

Contraceptives suppress the hormones estrogen and progesterone to prevent pregnancy. these hormones have been linked to women?s ?left brain? thinking and memory. This is not to be confused with ?right? and ?left? brain thinkers. Instead, this is a particular part of the brain called the amygalda. It appears necessary for enhanced long-term memory associated with emotional events. Prior research showed women used the left hemisphere more than the right hemisphere; where as men?s brains activated the right.

For the purposes of the birth control study, participants were separated into two groups, one on contraceptives, the other group experienced a normal monthly cycle. Both groups were shown photographs of a mother, her son and a car accident. Each group was also given an audio narrative of the events.

A week later the women were called in for a surprise quiz on the event. Women using birth control remembered the main steps in the traumatic event: that there was an accident, the boy had been rushed to the hospital, doctors worked to save his life. Women not using birth control remembered the story but were also able to share specific details, such as a fire hydrant being next to the car.

Experts of psychiatry and psychology say this study illustrates how estrogen has an influence on how women remember emotional events. It also opens the doors for more research on memory differences between the sexes. we have all heard a joke or two about how men can?t remember what their significant other wore on the first date, while women recall it in great detail. But, ask a man to recap the top three plays of last night?s game and he sounds like a sideline sportscaster.

There are actual biological changes that account for this. by investigating this difference further, we might be able to understand why women experience post traumatic stress syndrome more than men and how men remember differently than women. Additional research is planned to investigate whether hormones affect the retention of details.

Related posts:

1. Women using hormonal contraceptives recall emotional events differently
2. Study Underlines Effects of Contraceptives on Women's Memory
3. UC Irvine TODAY
4. Oral contraceptives and your weight ? Conception
5. Contraceptives for Men : Future of Male Contraception Conference 2007

Source: http://www.health198.com/contraceptives-may-affect-a-womans-memory.html

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