Whether a woman’s estrogen level is high or low could determine if she may be susceptible to developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to recent research. Estrogen has been found to epigenetically change gene activity in the brain and could even protect a woman from emotional numbness, flashbacks, and difficulty sleeping – all symptoms of PTSD – after a shocking or traumatic situation.
Researchers analyzed an epigenetic mark called DNA methylation, which is known to turn genes off. They used blood samples collected from nearly 300 women of the Grady Trauma Project, including those who suffered from abuse and violence and had a low income. Among this group, some women were of child-bearing age and experienced a rise and fall of estrogen levels during their normal menstrual cycles, and other women had already completed menopause and had significantly lower estrogen levels.
[For more of this story, written by Bailey Kirkpatrick, go to http://www.whatisepigenetics.c...men-traumatic-event/]
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