Estrogen may protect women against post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to findings from a 2017 study. Women are more likely to experience PTSD following a traumatic event if their estrogen levels are low.

The study involved 239 women who had been diagnosed with PTSD. Because methylation turns on or off the activity of genes, researchers analyzed methylation patterns in the women’s DNA to see how estrogen influenced gene activity.

They found that estrogen levels were associated with DNA methylation across the women’s genomes. In particular, estrogen influenced the activity of a gene called HDAC4, which plays important roles in memory and fear processing. Women who carried certain variants of HDAC4 exhibited an impaired ability to deal with and recover from a traumatic event. They also had stronger connections in regions of their brains involved in fear learning.

PTSD is a neuropsychiatric disorder that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event. As many as 3 million people living in the United States will be diagnosed with PTSD each year.

These findings demonstrate that estrogen influences a woman’s risk of developing PTSD and suggest that estrogen may be useful as a therapeutic measure following exposure to a traumatic event. Some evidence suggests that psychedelic drugs may be useful in treating PTSD. Learn more in this clip featuring Dr. Roland Griffiths.

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