Study, 2020
Does how the brain processes words change across the menstrual cycle?
The pattern of how the brain is organized for word problems stayed the same across the cycle. However, performance actually improved during the high-hormone phase of the cycle.
What they did
30 right-handed young women were tested during their period (low hormones) and during their midluteal phase (high hormones). They did finger-tapping exercises while silently solving word puzzles or saying the answers aloud to measure how their brains managed both tasks at once.
What they found
The same side of the brain (left hemisphere) was used for silent word problems and both sides were used for spoken problems, at both times in the cycle. However, when women solved silent word problems while tapping with their right hand during the high-hormone phase, they performed significantly better than during their period.
What it means for you
Higher hormone levels during the cycle may improve how well your brain works on word problems, even though the pattern of which side of the brain is used stays the same. This is a small study that only tested two points in the cycle, so we don't know if this happens throughout the cycle or matters in everyday life.
30
women tested
2
menstrual cycle phases tested
18-21
age range
About the study
- Original title
- Dual-Task Paradigm Reveals Variation in Left Hemisphere Involvement in Verbal Processing Across the Menstrual Cycle in Normally Cycling Women
- Authors
- Wong-Goodrich SJE, DeRosa HJ, Kee DW
- Journal
- Psychological reports
- Year
- 2020
- Study design
- Study
- What was tested
- None
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1177/0033294119862992