--- title: Does the menstrual cycle change how the brain responds to emotional faces? description: Yes, brain electrical activity in response to emotional faces is stronger during ovulation than during the premenstrual phase, suggesting hormone changes affe url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/menstrual-cycle-modulation-of-the-late-positive-potential-evoked-by-emotional-2013/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does the menstrual cycle change how the brain responds to emotional faces? Survey study, 2013 # Does the menstrual cycle change how the brain responds to emotional faces? Yes, brain electrical activity in response to emotional faces is stronger during ovulation than during the premenstrual phase, suggesting hormone changes affect emotional processing. Early or limited evidence 29 healthy women ## What they did Tested 29 healthy women during three phases of their menstrual cycle (premenstrual, post-menstrual, and ovulation). They showed women emotional faces and measured brain electrical activity (event-related potentials) and accuracy in recognizing different emotions. ## What they found The late positive potential (a measure of brain activity) was significantly larger during the ovulation phase compared to the premenstrual phase (750 to 1,000 milliseconds after seeing the faces) for all types of emotional expressions. Accuracy in recognizing emotions did not differ by menstrual phase. ## What it means for you Menstrual cycle hormones affect how the brain processes emotional information, but this is a small study in only healthy women with no clear link to daily life symptoms or PMS. 29 women studied 750-1000 milliseconds post-stimulus periovulation phase with stronger response ## About the study Original title Menstrual cycle modulation of the late positive potential evoked by emotional faces Authors Zhang W, Zhou R, Ye M Journal Perceptual and motor skills Year 2013 Study design Survey study Participants 29 What was tested None Read the paper [doi.org/10.2466/22.27.pms.116.3.707-723](https://doi.org/10.2466/22.27.pms.116.3.707-723) ## Topics [Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Cognition, concentration and memory](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-cognition/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Systematic review, 2026 Do brain wave patterns change across the menstrual cycle? Systematic review, 2026 Can digital tools help diagnose PMDD? Systematic review, 2025 How do cognition and behavior change across the menstrual cycle in people with PMDD? Systematic review, 2025 Does how well women think change throughout their menstrual cycle? Randomised trial, 2025 Does the menstrual cycle phase affect how much alcohol impairs women's memory? Randomised trial, 2024 Does estradiol prevent thinking problems before the period in women with suicidal thoughts? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗