Plant-based therapies are linked to fewer hot flashes
Currently, there s no surefire way to ease the symptoms of menopause: the hot
flashes, night sweats and vaginal dryness that herald the end of a reproductive
era. Hormone replacement therapy once seemed like a good idea for many women,
until the medical treatment was linked to an increased risk of breast cancer
and cardiovascular disease.
That s one reason why, despite a lack of conclusive evidence, 40-50% of women
in Western countries use complementary and plant-based therapies to help ease
the symptoms of menopause. Now, a new review published in JAMA shows that some
of these therapies may actually help.
Researchers from Erasmus University Medical Center in the Netherlands and the
University of Cambridge in the U.K. analyzed a ream of randomized clinical
trials 62 in all that involved a total of 6,653 women. The studies looked at
how certain plant-based therapies, including eating soy-rich foods, taking soy
supplements, using herbal remedies and Chinese medicinal herbs, affected
symptoms of menopause. (The analysis was funded by the supplement company
Metagenics Inc.; the authors say it had no role in the design of the study or
how it was conducted.)
Approaches using phytoestrogens chemical compounds in plants that exert a
similar action to the female sex hormone estrogen were linked to a modest drop
in daily hot flashes and vaginal dryness. These include whole-food sources of
soy, soy extracts and red clover herbal supplements. The benefits didn t extend
to night sweats.
The researchers didn t find any beneficial effect of Chinese medicinal herbs or
black cohosh.
During menopause the sex hormone estrogen declines, which may be the reason why
therapies using phytoestrogens appear to be effective against menopausal
symptoms. Phytoestrogens connect with the receptors of estrogen, and therefore
exert similar functions throughout the body, says the study s leading scientist
Dr. Taulant Muka, postdoctoral researcher at Erasmus University Medical Center.
Plant-based foods made from soybeans, like tofu, miso, tempeh and edamame, are
rich in these soy isoflavones. But when it comes to Western countries, the
dietary intake of isoflavones is very small, around 2 mg per day, Muka says,
while women in Asian countries eat 25-50 mg per day. What we found is most of
the studies that have looked at isoflavones and menopausal symptoms had a
dosage of 10-100 mg per day.
More research is needed, especially the kind with a longer follow-up. Many of
the studies kept track of women only for about 12-16 weeks, Muka says, and we
don t know the long-term efficacy and safety. Before adding these supplements,
Muka recommends that women speak with their doctor and report any other
medications they re taking, since plant-based therapies used in combination
with other treatments may have adverse effects.
A healthy lifestyle is the backbone for easing menopausal symptoms and keeping
you healthy in the long run, Muka says.