Hormone therapy isn’t just about easing menopausal symptoms—it can also affect your heart health by changing your blood fat levels. A study of postmenopausal Korean women found that taking estrogen by mouth (oral therapy) led to noticeable improvements in lipid profiles. Specifically, oral estrogen helped lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and lipoprotein(a) levels, while it raised “good” HDL cholesterol. In contrast, using estrogen through a skin gel (transdermal therapy) didn’t change these blood fats much.