The dreaded menopause is one of the biggest sexual changes in a woman’s life, with symptoms such as mood swings, vaginal dryness and hot flashes affecting your wellness and wellbeing. Not all women experience a horrible menopause, of course, but those that do can find the whole experience to be somewhat of a nightmare.
Hormone replacement therapy is generally what is prescribed in these cases, and it is the standard treatment for women who struggle with the side effects of the menopause. Hormone replacement therapy is generally referred to as HRT, and is not always a viable or desired option, as supplementing the body with extra oestrogen can post a serious cancer risk.
This has led to more and more women looking for an alternative to HRT, and trying things such as soy, phytoestrogens, black cohosh and some types of traditional Chinese medicine. Few of these have been extensively studied, so the efficacy of these method is still very much in question.
Soya beans contain phytoestrogens, and this is a very popular form of natural menopause treatment. Researchers are starting to look again at these powerful little beans. Phytoestrogens mimic the behaviour of true oestrogens, and so the theory is that they help to reduce the annoying side effects of the menopause in much the same way that oestrogens would. A lot of further studied is needed in this area, however, before we can safely conclude that this method actually works.
A lesser-known treatment is black cohosh, which has been used for a very long time amongst Native Americans. A German study in the 1980s was carried out on a large control group, and found that black cohosh seems to reduce the symptoms of menopausal-related complaints, and also had very little or no side effects. The German agency did, however, point out that the long-term safety of the herb is unknown.
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