Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Feb 01, 2026 1 hour, 55 minutes ago
Medical News: Background and Why This Study Matters
Memory lapses and slower thinking are common concerns among women after menopause, a time when estrogen levels fall sharply. Estrogen plays a role in how the brain uses certain nutrients, including choline, which is found in foods such as eggs, liver, and whole grains. Choline helps the body produce acetylcholine, a chemical messenger essential for memory and attention. This
Medical News report highlights a new pilot study that explored whether a single dose of choline could influence how the brain works during memory tasks in healthy postmenopausal women. The findings provide early but intriguing clues about brain efficiency during menopause.
Choline supplements may help the postmenopausal brain use less effort during memory tasks without changing performance
Who Conducted The Research
The study was carried out by researchers from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Vermont, the Department of Radiology at the University of Vermont, the University of Vermont Medical Center Investigational Pharmacy, the Department of Neurological Sciences at the University of Vermont, and the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine in Florida.
How The Study Was Done
Twenty healthy postmenopausal women aged between 50 and 65 took part in this carefully designed experiment. Each woman attended two study sessions. On one day, she received a single oral dose of choline bitartrate, while on the other day she received a placebo. Neither the participants nor the researchers knew which was given on which day. Three hours later, the women underwent brain scans while performing a memory test that required them to remember and compare letters shown on a screen.
What The Brain Scans Revealed
Interestingly, the women performed equally well on the memory tests whether they took choline or placebo. However, brain imaging told a different story. When the women took choline, certain regions on the right side of the brain, especially areas involved in processing sound and verbal information, showed reduced activity during harder memory tasks. Reduced activity does not mean worse performance. Instead, researchers believe it may signal that the brain is working more efficiently, using less effort to achieve the same result.
Changes In Brain Connectivity
The study also found that choline altered how different brain regions communicated with each other. A key area known as the planum temporale became more connected with a wide network of memory-related brain regions during challenging tasks. This suggests that choline may help the brain coordinate information more effectively, even though outward memory performance did not change.
Why Estrogen Levels Matter
After menopause, lower estrogen levels reduce the body’s natural ability to produce choline. This makes dietary intake more important. The researchers believe that choline may partly compensate for estrogen loss by supporting brain signali
ng systems that are vulnerable during menopause.
Study Limitations and What Comes Next
Because this was a small pilot study using only one dose of choline, the findings are considered preliminary. Larger and longer studies are needed to determine whether regular choline intake can lead to noticeable improvements in memory or protect against age-related cognitive decline.
Conclusion
This study suggests that even a single dose of choline can subtly change how the postmenopausal brain functions during memory tasks, possibly making it more efficient. While memory performance itself did not improve, the brain appeared to work smarter rather than harder. These findings open the door for future research into simple nutritional strategies that may support brain health in women after menopause and help reduce concerns about cognitive aging.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Nutrients.
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/3/459
For the latest research on choline and brain issues, keep on logging to Thailand
Medical News.
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https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/menopause
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