Menopause
Menopause is not a disease but a natural change of the body on a hormonal level. Nevertheless, it can trigger symptoms, some of which can be severe and agonizing, and sometimes need to be treated with medication. There are numerous herbal and hormonal medicines that are prescribed and used.
In most cases, these drugs are prescribed by the gynaecologist if the menopausal symptoms affect women and by the family doctor or endocrinologist if the symptoms affect men. Menopause occurs individually, usually after the age of 50. Hormonal replacement therapy is a very common treatment and is covered by the statutory health insurance. However, herbal drug treatments are usually paid for by the patient.
What groups of drugs are there?
There are essentially four groups of drugs used to treat menopausal symptoms:
- Hormone replacement therapy
- Hormones produced on a vegetable basis
- Purely herbal medicines, the so-called phytotherapy
- Homeopathy (
Hormones are the substances that are actually to blame at the beginning of the menopause and which also lead to the symptoms. Among the symptoms of the onset of menopause that are often expressed are sweating, mood swings, malaise, palpitations, weight fluctuations, loss of libido, insomnia, bladder weakness, etc. During the hormonal change, the body reduces the production of different hormones, which results in a strong imbalance between the individual hormones.
Hormone replacement therapy attempts to compensate for this difference and to make the natural decrease in hormone production as mild as possible. The herbal therapy approach is rather a symptomatic treatment. By taking certain herbal substances, symptoms such as palpitations and sweating are relieved. The treatment does not take place by balancing the hormonal imbalance. The homoeopathic approach is not scientifically clarified from a medical point of view, since homoeopathic medicines are not detectable in the body due to their strong dilution, but a positive effect is often described.
Which menopausal drugs do not cause weight gain?
One of the most common and usually unwanted side effects of hormone replacement therapy is weight gain. Especially the estrogens mostly included in hormone therapy cause an average weight gain of 1-2 kg and more. Conversely, adipose tissue produces more oestrogen, i.e. heavyweight women would suffer from an oestrogen deficiency later than thin women.
However, the weight gain is mostly caused by increased water retention. As a positive side effect, however, hormones ensure that fat is redistributed, which counteracts the age-related disturbing weight gain in the abdomen and bottom. While estrogen usually leads to weight gain, androgens (such as progesterone), however, promote fat loss, which in turn leads to weight loss.
Progesterone promotes fat loss on the abdomen and helps with drainage. Progesterone is the hormonal preparation most frequently used during the menopause. It is available as a vaginal gel and also as film-coated tablets and as a gel for the skin.
It is available under the names Progestogel, Utrogestan or Famenita, among others. The phytoestrogens derived from plants have a similar effect to the estrogens. However, the effect is somewhat weaker and patients are much less likely to complain of weight gain after taking it. The same applies to the plants red clover, soya and yam root, which have a weaker therapeutic effect on menopausal symptoms, but do not cause weight gain.
