---
title: Does cognitive ability change during different phases of the menstrual cycle?
description: No. Women performed equally well on verbal and spatial thinking tests regardless of menstrual cycle phase.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/no-difference-in-cognitive-performance-between-phases-of-the-menstrual-cycle-1993/
---

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- Does cognitive ability change during different phases of the menstrual cycle?

Survey study, 1993

# Does cognitive ability change during different phases of the menstrual cycle?

No. Women performed equally well on verbal and spatial thinking tests regardless of menstrual cycle phase.

 Early or limited evidence

Women with regular menstrual cycles, women on oral contraceptives, and women with no periods

## What they did

Researchers tested women on verbal and spatial thinking tests at different times during their menstrual cycle. They also tested women taking oral contraceptives and women with no periods, and measured hormone levels (LH, FSH, estradiol, progesterone) at each time point.

## What they found

No differences appeared in performance on verbal or spatial tests between menstrual cycle phases. No differences appeared between women with regular cycles, those on oral contraceptives, and those with no periods. Some weak correlations appeared between certain hormones and thinking, but these were very weak.

## What it means for you

Menstrual cycle hormones do not affect how well women think or solve problems. Weak hormone correlations were found but should be treated with caution and do not prove a real effect.

## About the study

Original title No difference in cognitive performance between phases of the menstrual cycle Authors Gordon HW, Lee PA Journal Psychoneuroendocrinology Year 1993 Study design Survey study What was tested None (observational) Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/0306-4530(93)90045-m](https://doi.org/10.1016/0306-4530(93)90045-m)

## Topics

[Cognition, concentration and memory](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-cognition/)[Oral contraceptives and drospirenone](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-hormonal-contraceptives/)[Stigma, attitudes and culture](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-stigma-culture/)

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