Neuronutrition for the Primary Prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease for Women in Perimenopause and Early Menopause

Abstract

Current research hasn’t successfully identified a specific key life stage when women would be most receptive to applying neuronutrition as a primary preventative method to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD). If people adopt and sustain healthy lifestyles from childhood through young adulthood, adulthood, and older adulthood, that would be best. This research study explored whether there was a relationship between hormonal life stage (e.g., perimenopause and early menopause) and attitudes toward adopting primary preventative behaviors for AD based on neuronutrition and lifestyle medicine principles. The focus was on learning more about the best time for practitioners to inform women of peak vulnerability windows by recruiting 50 participants (100 total) in each of the two age groups who were biological women ages 35-55 years old in the United States who had at least one menstrual cycle in the past year. The age range aligned with the average age range of hormonal transition from perimenopause into early menopause. Additional information collected included socioeconomic status (SES) and mental health (e.g., depression or anxiety) because they are potential confounding variables. A lifestyle behavior scale was also administered to account for physical activity, sleep, stress resilience, social connection, and risky substance use. Standardized measures evaluated dietary readiness using the Stages of Change framework, Theory of Planned Behavior constructs, lifestyle medicine behaviors, and baseline knowledge of AD. No statistically significant differences were observed between perimenopausal and early menopausal women across key behavioral or psychosocial variables. These findings suggest that receptivity to neuronutrition and lifestyle-based AD prevention is not confined to a specific menopausal stage, but rather is broadly present across midlife women. This supports the implementation of preventative interventions throughout the menopausal transition, rather than targeting a single critical window.