Can you hear me? Another reason to rethink menopausal hormonal therapy

New research suggests that one female hormone may actually hurt their hearing

Newsweek is reporting that once again a study has shown that taking combined hormones for menopause had a documented hearing loss of 10 to 30 percent compared to women not taking any hormones. In the study by RIT/NTID and the University of Rochester medical school and funded by the National Institutes of Health:

...menopausal women taking combined hormone therapy (estrogen and progestin, a synthetic version of progesterone) were found to have significantly worse hearing than women taking estrogen alone or no hormones at all.

In the meantime, says Robert D. Frisina, a neuroscientist at the University of Rochester Medical Center, along with increased risk of stroke, blood clots, heart disease, breast cancer and dementia, hearing loss should be one more thing women consider when deciding whether to take combined hormone therapy to relieve hot flashes, night sweats and vaginal dryness.

For more midlife health related postings click on the topics and tags below.