Almost half of women complain about unpleasant symptoms accompanying the menopause. How do you relieve menopausal symptoms when you can't use HRT (hormone replacement therapy)? Reach for plant hormones (phytoestrogens). Check how phytoestrogens work and if they really alleviate menopausal symptoms.

Symptoms of menopausewill alleviatephytoestrogens- especially for women who cannot use hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and take estrogen .

How do phytoestrogens work?

Phytoestrogens in many plants are structurally related to female hormones. The similarity is so great that the body gets deceived and estrogen receptors capture the plant hormone molecule. Phitoestrogens are much weaker than both human hormones and those used under HRT (they have 1-2% of their power). So they work when the symptoms of menopause are not too strong or when we use them as an adjunct to HRT.

Important

Estrogens open a protective umbrella over the woman. When they are depleted, the risk of coronary heart disease increases, and the fat metabolism is disturbed (the level of triglycerides and bad cholesterol - LDL increases). Without estrogen, the bones also become weaker, which promotes osteoporosis.

After menopause: diet and pills with phytoestrogens

We know best the isoflavones contained in soybeans and triterpene glycosides found in European cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa). Preparations based on them effectively fight the symptoms.

Since the amount of estrogen produced in a woman's body begins to decline around the age of 35, doctors suggest not waiting to start phytoestrogen treatment.

It is carried out only after consulting a gynecologist, because plant pills can also be overdosed (there are nausea, headaches, spotting from the genital tract).

The effects of phytoestrogen treatment are usually visible after 2-3 months. Although phytoestrogens are weaker than the hormones used in HRT, not all women can take them.

Plant compounds with estrogen-like effects contained in, for example, soybeans are not recommended after breast or endometrial cancer (or BRCA gene carriers). Then it is better to reach for cimicifuga preparations.

Important

The pituitary glandmanages the production of the female sex hormones (in the ovaries) - estrogens and progesterone. They prepare the woman's body for procreation: estrogens influence the maturation of Graaf's follicles, the release of eggs (ovulation); progesterone prepares the uterus for implantation of the embryo, supports the pregnancy and stops ovulation. After about 30 years of activity, the pituitary gland slows down and the concentration of hormones decreases. Over time, the ovaries stop releasing eggs and your period stops.

Menopause and climacteric

Menopauseandmenopauseis not the same asmenopause . The menopause is the last period in a woman's life and is then bleeding-free for 12 months (any bleeding after this interruption is an abnormality that must be reported to the gynecologist). The words "menopause" and "menopause" mean the period of several years before and after menopause, when the body is rapidly changing. If menopause occurs before the age of 45, it is referred to as early menopause, and after the age of 55 - late. The menopause is related to the hormonal balance of the body, which is influenced, among others, by genetics. Therefore, a daughter usually goes through the menopause at the same age as her mother. Specialists have also noticed that women who mature early on become menopausal faster. General he alth and … smoking, for example, can also affect the acceleration of the menopause.

Symptoms of menopause

Menopause is a process extended over time. It begins with premenopause - a period of "change before change" - which usually lasts 5 to 10 years. Then the symptoms of the so-called baseline, testifying to the beginning of the end of the fertility age. In most women, they start between the ages of 45 and 47 and worsen in the postmenopausal period, i.e. within a year or two after the last menstruation. The most common are:

  • Hot flashes spreading from the face to the rest of the body. Usually they happen 2-3 times a day. They may be accompanied by chills, drenching night sweats.
  • Psychological ailments: mood swings, insomnia, anxiety and depression, memory deterioration, irritability, concentration disorders, difficulties in making decisions.
  • Symptoms of the genitourinary system: vaginal dryness, vaginitis, urination disorders, painful intercourse, decreased sex drive.

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Female diseases