Rutgers Brain Health Institute

08/28/2026

is one of the main hormones shaping a woman's health, and its level rises and falls in distinct patterns across life.

Expand your understanding of estrogen's changing levels across female life stages and its links to health conditions with our illustrated factsheet — where it comes from, what it does, how it changes across life, and the disorders it drives.

📥 Download the Estrogen Factsheet:https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/R-BHI_Estrogen_Infosheet.pdf
🔎 Check out the interactive dynamic estrogen graph tracking fluctuating hormone levels across women’s full lifespan and explore more women’s brain health research at Rutgers Women's Brain Health Initiative: https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/2026/08/04/menopause-a-key-transition-in-womens-brain-health-a-new-series-from-the-rutgers-womens-brain-health-initiative/

08/27/2026

How the trillions of microbes in your gut shape your immune system and metabolism, and what they mean for your long-term ? 🧠

In Norah O'Donnell's new Healthful podcast, Dr. Laura Cox, assistant professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, explains how the gut microbiome supports our health by making vitamins, educating our immune system, and protecting us from pathogens. It can affect our brains by changing our immune systems and our metabolism, and may be linked to like and .

🔗 Norah O'Donnell's podcast: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gut-microbiome-impact-brain-health-dr-laura-cox-healthful/

CBS News Rutgers University

Dr. Laura Cox, an assistant professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, explains how our dietary patterns play a significant role in our gut and long-term brain health.

08/19/2026

A second pregnancy changes women's brains in the same way as a first pregnancy, but in a different way than the first time, according to a study published in Nature Communications.

The study showed that the brain adapts during both the first and second pregnancy, with each pregnancy leaving a unique mark on the female brain. The first pregnancy saw the biggest changes in the Default Mode Network, while the second brought more changes in networks related to paying attention and responding to stimuli, with links observed between structural brain changes and peripartum depression.

🔗 Nature Communications: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-69370-8
🔗 Read the article: https://www.amsterdamumc.org/en/research/institutes/amsterdam-neuroscience/news/changes-in-the-brain-of-women-during-a-second-pregnancy
🔎 Explore more women’s brain health research at Rutgers Women's Brain Health Initiative: https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/rutgers-womens-brain-health-initiative/

Extending their previous findings of brain changes in a first pregnancy, the authors show that a second pregnancy uniquely alters women’s brains, involving both a further fine-tuning of first-pregnancy effects and distinct changes in other networks.

08/18/2026

Norah O’Donnell’s new Healthful podcast: she sat down with her doctor, Dr. Rachel Rubin, to tackle .

“Menopause is a castration event, whether we like it or not,” Dr. Rubin says. “Your ovaries no longer make estrogen, progesterone or testosterone. You have hormone receptors throughout your entire body,” with common symptoms including hot flashes, poor sleep, mood changes, weight gain, and memory issues. While some men see a natural decline of testosterone as they age, they “don’t really get to ‘castrate’ levels.”

🔎 Check out the interactive dynamic estrogen graph tracking fluctuating hormone levels across women’s full lifespan and explore more women’s brain health research at Rutgers Women's Brain Health Initiative: https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/2026/08/04/menopause-a-key-transition-in-womens-brain-health-a-new-series-from-the-rutgers-womens-brain-health-initiative/
🔗 Norah O’Donnell's podcast: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/menopause-norah-odonnell-dr-rachel-rubin-healthful/

Norah O'Donnell sat down with her own doctor, Rachel Rubin, to tackle the important topic of menopause: How your body changes, why women may be needlessly suffering, and what you can actually do about it.

08/18/2026

🧠 A new study published in Neurology finds women who received estrogen-only hormone therapy at had lower odds of Alzheimer’s brain hallmarks seen on autopsy. The research draws clearer objective results from brain tissue analysis, helping unpack why past hormone therapy studies delivered conflicting conclusions around dementia risk.

These findings show that menopause and shifting estrogen levels are important factors shaping women’s risk, and create momentum to revisit how hormone health may factor into Alzheimer’s prevention strategies for women.

🔗 Neurology: https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000218413
🔗 Read the TIME article coverage: https://time.com/article/2026/08/13/estrogen-therapy-may-protect-against-alzheimers-disease/
🔎 Explore more women’s brain health research at Rutgers Women's Brain Health Initiative and check out the interactive dynamic estrogen graph tracking fluctuating hormone levels across women’s full lifespan:
https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/2026/08/04/menopause-a-key-transition-in-womens-brain-health-a-new-series-from-the-rutgers-womens-brain-health-initiative/

Background and ObjectivesAlthough evidence suggests that the neurophysiologic impact of estrogen decline during menopause may contribute to increased risk of Alzheimer disease (AD) in women, the effect of menopausal hormonal therapy (MHT) on AD risk ...

08/14/2026

💡Stay Sharp After : A Practical Toolkit for Boosting Your Brain's Executive Functions with

Regular aerobic exercise can improve important thinking skills called executive functions — and the benefits appear especially strong for women after menopause. Executive functions help you plan, switch between tasks, stay focused, and maintain independence. The good news: a structured aerobic exercise program may help protect and even improve them.

Post-menopausal women who did aerobic exercise showed greater improvement in executive functions than women in the stretching-and-toning group. Benefits were already visible at 3 months and continued at 6 months.

🔗 This toolkit turns recent research findings by Dr. Sharon Sanz Simon into clear, usable steps you can take: https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/2026/08/10/stay-sharp-after-menopause-a-practical-toolkit-for-boosting-your-brains-executive-functions-with-aerobic-exercise/

🔗 Explore more women's brain health research at the Rutgers Women's Brain Health Initiative: https://www.rutgers.edu/news/rutgers-brain-health-institute-launches-rutgers-womens-brain-health-initiative

Rutgers University

08/14/2026

💡 Check out the August Featured Funding Opportunities from the Rutgers Brain Health Institute!

We’ve curated a selection of federal (NIH) and non-federal (private and nonprofit) opportunities relevant to , , and research. 🔗 https://mailchi.mp/rutgers/bhi-monthly-funding-opportunity-newsletter-august-2026-nih-and-non-federal-rfas-for-neuroscience-brain-health-mental-health-research

Explore the full list on our website and find the next opportunity to support your research! 🔗 https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/funding-opportunities-rfas/

Rutgers University

The Rutgers Brain Health Institute (BHI) shares a monthly Funding Opportunities newsletter, featuring a curated selection of federal (NIH) and non-federal (private and nonprofit) funding opportunities relevant to neuroscience, brain health, and mental health research. Below are the featured NIH RFAs...

08/12/2026

Rutgers Brain Health Institute is hiring a Director of Development to help shape the next chapter of one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive brain research organizations.

The role will work closely with BHI leadership, scientists, the Rutgers University Foundation, and BHI’s communications team to connect innovative research with philanthropic support.

This is an opportunity to join BHI at an important stage of growth and help connect pioneering brain research with the philanthropic support that can move discovery forward.

Learn more and apply:

https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/join-bhi/director-of-development/

08/12/2026

🔎 Discover the expertise behind Rutgers Brain Health Institute! Our directory showcases the diverse expertise of over 300 faculty members driving groundbreaking advancements in across Rutgers University. Search keywords to explore and connect with faculty members conducting research in specialized areas, fostering collaboration and innovation in .
🔗 Explore the faculty directory: https://brainhealthinstitute.rutgers.edu/neuroscience-faculty-directory/

Our directory showcases the diverse expertise of over 300 faculty members who contribute to the mission of the Brain Health Institute. These accomplished researchers, clinicians, and educators drive groundbreaking advancements in neuroscience across Rutgers University. Use this directory to explore....

08/12/2026

Midlife heavy TV viewing links to measurable brain shrinkage two decades later, according to a study published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

Unlike passive TV-watching, mentally engaging desk work does not carry the same cognitive risks, proving that not all sedentary time harms the brain equally. Even regular exercise cannot fully offset the long-term brain changes tied to endless passive screen hours.

🔗 Alzheimer’s & Dementia: https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/alz.71582
🔗 Read the CNN coverage: https://edition.cnn.com/2026/08/08/health/television-brain-dementia-sedentary-health-wellness

INTRODUCTION Longitudinal studies linking sedentary behavior (SB) in different contexts to brain structure and white matter hyperintensity (WMH) volume remain limited. METHODS We analyzed data from...