Hormone-free Through Menopause

Many women suffer during menopause from complaints such as hot flashes, sweats or sleep disturbances. However, an alleviation of the complaints through the administration of hormones is controversial. Studies indicate that hormone replacement therapy can significantly increase the risk of breast cancer. Therefore, it is better to resort to tablets with herbal ingredients against the discomfort of menopause.

Herbal preparations instead of hormones

To relieve menopausal symptoms, doctors often prescribe herbal preparations instead of hormones. Often, these herbal preparations contain extracts from black cohosh. Such tablets can help against sweating and hot flashes as well as irritability and vaginal dryness. In addition, the tablets are also said to have a bone-protecting function.

The advantage of preparations containing black cohosh extract is that they can be taken together with hormone preparations. This is because no interactions have been reported to date.

Soy, red clover and St. John’s wort in menopause.

In addition to the extracts of black cohosh, soy or red clover is also used against menopausal symptoms. However, especially the effect of tablets with red clover is controversial. One study showed that they are no more effective against hot flashes than a placebo. In contrast, sage, for example in the form of sage tea, is said to be effective against hot flashes.

Many menopause tablets also contain St. John’s wort. It helps with emotional complaints and depression and can help to reduce anxiety. If preparations containing St. John’s wort are taken, however, it should be remembered that St. John’s wort may interact with other medications.

Effectiveness of herbal preparations takes time

When using herbal preparations, it should always be kept in mind that the effect of the tablets starts only after a longer period of time. On average, it takes at least one to two weeks, but in some cases four or six weeks, for the tablets to take effect.

Diet and exercise instead of tablets

Not every woman who suffers from menopausal symptoms must immediately resort to tablets. A healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise can also help to alleviate the symptoms. It can also reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

For this reason, special attention should be paid to a sufficiently high calcium intake in the diet. Calcium is present in large quantities, especially in dairy products and certain vegetables. To alleviate the symptoms, menopausal women should also avoid alcohol, coffee and nicotine as much as possible.

In addition to proper nutrition, exercise can also alleviate typical menopausal symptoms. For example, exercising helps against hot flashes and sweating. In addition, women who regularly exercise in the fresh air are less likely to suffer from sleep disturbances at night. In addition, positive effects can also be achieved through athletic relaxation exercises such as yoga.