Progesterone supplements

Hormonal Balance Estrogen & Progesterone

Posted by Cathy on

Today we’re seeing a tremendous number of women and men who are struggling with hormonal imbalances. Breast cancer to prostate enlargement, PCOS, and menopause symptoms are easily recognizable hormonal symptoms but what about symptoms such as cold hands, irritability, mood swings, pre-menopausal bone fractures, sluggish metabolism (fatigue), thyroid dysfunction, fibrocystic breasts, anxiety, fibroids, irregular menstrual cycles, insomnia and to name just a few?

All of these symptoms can be related to hormonal imbalance and a state known as “Estrogen Dominance” which refers to as a cumulative load of estrogen effects that outpace progesterone.

So how does someone become “estrogen dominant” and how does estrogen affect our overall health? Understanding the causes requires first a look at the most common places we find estrogen and progesterone. Estrogen (E1) is produced mainly in the ovaries. Progesterone is produced mainly from the outside lining of a mature egg released from the ovaries. Women who take or took birth control pills have a unique situation in that they do not ovulate, therefore they miss out on 90% of their body’s ability to produce progesterone. (HRT and even bio/identical hormones also have effects for brevity this article will not cover.) Without progesterone, estrogen can easily dominate. The progestin in birth control pills does not act like natural progesterone our bodies produce. Natural bio-mimicking progesterone can be created from certain yams and soy plants. However, natural progesterone cannot be patented, which is where progestin comes in.

Estrogen can also become a dominant hormone through the exposure to xeno-estrogens (chemicals that act on estrogen hormone receptors). Our environment is loaded with xeno-estrogens in unprecedented amounts. Xeno-estrogens are known endocrine-disrupting chemicals and can be found in:

Body-care products, including ones like sunscreens we coat on our bodies.
Pesticides in our food supply
Hormones used to plump up animals in our meat supply chain
Hormones in our milk supply
Unfiltered tap water can contain synthetic estrogen from birth control pills
Microwaving food in plastic containers releases xeno-estrogens
Some non-stick coated cookware release xeno-estrogens
Plastic water bottles contain xeno-estrogen chemicals
Processed food can contain propyl-paraben a well known endocrine disruptor (Propylparaben is in 49 widely-available processed foods 1)

We can solve this, right? We can drink filtered water, eat only organic meat and vegetables, change some lifestyle habits and our hormones will go back into balance, problem solved. Theoretically, this approach should work, IF the body can detox/eliminate the accumulated toxic estrogen load. Often this load is stored in fat and obesity becomes another factor.

If you see patients with estrogen dominant symptoms, lifestyle changes alone are often not enough to bring the body back into balance. This is where patients need our help. (Additionally, there are other causes of xeno-estrogens this article does not have space to include: i.e. exposure to household chemicals, building chemicals, years of hormone therapy use including bio-Identical/bio-mimicking hormones and even a person’s gut bacteria aka. microbiome.1

Some considerations

Modalities we can incorporate into our health regimes include ways to release the toxic load of estrogen and create a safer by-product during the break-down or detoxing process. Imbalances of hormones directly affect the liver which tends to be on overdrive when symptoms of estrogen dominance are present. Food, herbs and a few well-known supplements are excellent choices to help this process. Improving liver function is fuel for the detoxification process. Consider what “Functional Medicine” has been teaching; when the liver breaks down estrogen (and xeno-estrogens) by-products termed metabolites are formed. Creating a safer estrogen by-product or metabolite should be part of the overall detoxification plan. Excretion of metabolites can be impaired by poor methylation and abnormal gut flora.

A few ways we can help our patients optimize liver function and the detoxification of estrogen:

Chinese herbs formula Jia Wei Xiao Yao San AKA Relax Herb Pack – This popular Chinese herb formula sold worldwide for stress and anxiety outsells all other Chinese formulas, year after year. Stress dramatically affects liver function through continual overproduction of cortisol, rather than progesterone. Since both hormones are derived from the precursor hormone pregnenolone, a situation known as pregnenolone steal develops. When the body determines cortisol is more important to make than progesterone, estrogen dominance can flourish. Treat the liver stress and the downstream effects will improve.
Methionine – This supplement provides sulfur (not the same as sulfa drugs) and acts as a cellular cleanser. It literally donates methyl groups for the biochemical reaction that rids you of poisons and harmful estrogen by-products. Foods can also donate methyl groups a few good ones are beets, legumes, eggs, broccoli, leafy greens, nuts and sunflower seeds.
Methylcobalamin – A form of B12, this supplement also provides a “methyl” group which helps the estrogen detoxification process. Keep in minds, antacids, some diabetes medications, certain cholesterol-binding medicines and alcohol can wipe out your supply of methylcobalamin.
Calcium D-Glucarate – This is not the same as plain calcium. Toxins must combine with water-soluble substances to leave your body. This supplement combines with estrogen to help move it out.
Reishi Mushroom and other Chinese Medicinal Herbs – Reishi is high in poly-saccharides which feed the body’s microbiome, this in turn benefits liver metabolite breakdown.
Fermented foods such as miso soup, tempeh, kombucha, fermented vegetables i.e. pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi. (For more suggestions see my blogs at http://www.PacHerbs.com/blog/)

Keep in mind, reaching hormone balance can be accomplished faster with the elimination and avoidance of xeno-estrogens. However, most functional medicine doctors will agree, diet, supplements, exercise and lifestyle-based strategies are equally important. Establish realistic patient lifestyle goals and together you will be successful in treating the root causes and symptoms of estrogen dominance and create lifelong habits for balanced hormones.

 

References:

1. Microbiome Researcher, Rob Knight Ph.D. The American Gut Project http://americangut.org/
2. Environmental Working Group. http://www.ewg.org/research/ewg-s-dirty-dozen-guide-food-additives/generally-recognized-as-safe-but-is-it
3. More great info on the human microbiome https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DTrENdWvvM

Hormone Use Increases Breast Cancer Risk

Posted by Cathy on

Newly released research sugherbs for menopausegests that the long-term use of any type of hormones (this includes the birth control pill) can increase the risk of breast cancer. Women taking  long-term hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for menopause symptoms are at an even greater risk. 

Research has already shown that taking birth control pills with combined estrogen and progestin, the most common type, can increase breast cancer risk.

 

The outcome from this new study states any type of hormones (i.e. birth control pills, HRT ) after many years of use, results in cancer.

 

This new study tracked the health of over 100,000 registered nurses and found that use of any kind of hormones for 10 years (or more) raised the chances of developing breast cancer. "There's a continued increase in risk with longer durations of use and there does not appear to be a plateau," said study leader Dr. Wendy Chen of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

 

There are natural and safe answers to menopausal hot flashes, night sweats and other menopause symptoms.Traditional Chinese herbal medicine has been used for generations of women to elliminate the uncomfortable symptoms on menopause such as hot flashes and night sweats. See our Menopause Relief Herb Pack here.

 

 

The hormone picture has been confusing and now doctors say women should use the lowest dose needed for the shortest time possible.

– Estrogen use with progesterone for 10 to 14.9 years had an 88% higher incidence of breast cancer

– Estrogen use with progesterone for 15 to 19.9 years had an increase risk of “more than twofold”

– Estrogen use alone for 10 to 14.9 years had a 22% increased risk of breast cancer

– Estrogen alone for 15 to 19.9 years had a 43% increased risk of breast cancer

"It's hard to be surprised that if you keep taking it, sooner or later it's going to raise risk," said Dr. Robert Clarke of Georgetown University's Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

——————————————————————————————-

Reference:

American Association for Cancer Research –    http://www.aacr.org/

See study here:

http://www.abstractsonline.com/Plan/ViewAbstract.aspx?sKey=489622a8-6ba9-4309-b54c-6e00a5886d06&cKey=726a2cb6-a357-418f-8fe2-cc997d8ce387&mKey={2D8C569E-B72C-4E7D-AB3B-070BEC7EB280}

New Menopause Treatment, Not So Fast

Posted by Cathy on

Menopause Relief by Pacific Herbs relieves menopause symptomsI’m happy to report that a new menopause treatment will most likely not be approved by the FDA. A panel of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration overwhelmingly voted against a Depomed drug called Gabapentin to treat hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. Apparently, the benefits were heavily outweighed by the risks involved with this would be prescription menopause treatment.

Drug makers have been experimenting with non-hormonal treatments for menopause ever since they lost considerable market share with HRT drugs once they were proven to increase the risk for breast cancer and heart disease.

The FDA panelists overwhelmingly recommended the FDA reject the use of generically known Gabapentin pointing out that three company studies failed to show a significant reduction in hot flashes over 12 weeks. Patients also experienced side effects including dizziness, fatigue and balance problems. Gabapentin already carries a warning label that it can increase the frequency of suicidal thoughts.  The FDA often follows the advice of panelists although it is not required to do so.

Looking for a safe Menopause Treatment that works fast!   Look no further, Menopause Relief Herb Pack is here.

Bio- Identical Hormones & Menopause Relief

Posted by Cathy on

Soy for menopause or bio-identical homrmones

 

 

The question many women suffering with menopausal hot flashes and night sweats are asking is whether bio-identical hormones such as progesterone cream and phytoestrogen (plant sourced estrogen) are safe and effective AS  the chemical hormones found in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) drugs?

 

Many women today are being told “bio-identical” hormones are identical to those your body makes. Even though progesterone and estrogen bio-identical creams may be closer to what your body produces there are certainly risks in using any hormone therapy.   Some doctors believe the risks are just as great as taking an hormone replacement therapy drug (HRT) others believe the jury is still out because we have no long term data since these products are still very new to the market.  Risks may be tied to the dosage which varies greatly from women to women.

 

Bio-identical hormones made from plant sources may be perfectly safe in low doses, which is the way we would ingest these chemicals found in yams, soy beans and a handful of herbs but at higher doses may be harmful. Nearly every substance found in nature can be safe in minute doses yet toxic at a higher dose. Even water can kill us when taken in to large a dose over a very short time period.  Knowing what dose is right for your body can be tricky depending on blood, urine and saliva testing which may not give an accurate reading of circulating hormones in your blood which changes daily and even hourly.

 

Bio-identical hormones, make no mistake can be just as powerful and dangerous as taking a prescription hormone replacement drug.  Phytoestrogen  used in minute doses the way we find in nature may be completely safe and effective.  Asian women have a long history of eating soy beans nearly everyday of their life from childhood through adulthood and experience very few menopausal symptoms.  The isoflavones in soy are known to act as a hormone balancing chemicals.

 

So, which should you choose, bio-identical hormones or synthetic hormone replacement therapy for your menopausal symptoms?  How about neither!   There is a third option that women in Asia have used for centuries and the Western world is just beginning to see on store shelves.  Traditional Chinese herbs are another option for menopause symptom relief.   You can learn more about it here.

 

Why Staying Current On Menopause News Matters

Posted by Cathy on

On the same day that I received a wonderful testimonial from a woman taking Menopause Relief Herb Pack, I read the news announcement from the Annals of Internal Medicine, that  HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) creates significant health risks, including stroke and breast cancer.  

 

Wow, what a day!

 

This news is not really a shocker to alternative medicine practitioners like myself. The  Complementary and Alternative Medicine community understands the risks of artificial hormones because we are taught to look at the body from a different point of view than Western medicine doctors.  We don't try to cover up menopause symptoms with a drug rather we look for the root cause of the disease and treat the whole body.  

 

Holistic minded doctors have always known that HRT is not the miracle drug it was once made out to be. Yesterdays announcement that risks outweigh the benefits is something we've known all along.

 

"In this case, the harms – the risk of blood clots, gallbladder disease, those types of things – led us to conclude that, on balance, the harms outweigh any potential benefit" said Dr. Bibbins-Domingo.

 

She added that for conditions such like heart disease and dementia, there was no evidence of any benefit.

Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and a professor at Harvard Medical School who worked on the WHI study, said the latest recommendations track with current medical practice.

 

Manson said it is important to distinguish between hormone therapy used for prevention of chronic disease and short-term use of hormone therapy to treat menopause symptoms, which the guidelines do not address.

 

She said many of the same professional societies that caution against use of hormone therapy for prevention endorse its use in healthy women whose lives are being disrupted by symptoms of menopause.

 

"That is the really key point here," she said.

Because of the potential risks, doctors prescribe hormone therapy for menopause symptoms at the lowest possible dose for the shortest period of time.  "We understand that there is a different balance of benefits and risks when hormone therapy is used for short-term symptom management versus long-term disease prevention," Manson said.

 

The task force said more study is needed on the effects of hormone therapy in younger women.

 

Is This A Trend? Breast Cancer Lawsuits Against HRT and Wyeth

Posted by Cathy on

Breast cancer has climbed to 1 in every 8 women and now the finger is beginning to point to drug manufacturers. Wyeth and Pfizer have made combination hormone drugs for over 30 years and these HRT drugs (hormone replacement therapy) are commonly used for menopause treatments. About 10,000 cases against these pharmaceutical giants have already been filed and Pfizer has spent nearly $900 million to resolve about half of them.

 

Some go to trial, others settle more quietly out of court. Just last week, a Utah jury found Wyeth responsible for one woman’s breast cancer and awarded her $5 million in compensation.  Utah does not allow for punitive damages.

 

Studies, such as the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study, released this statement with it’s results:  “Women using Hormone Replacement Therapy (“HRT”) are more likely to develop breast cancer than those who are not using HRT.”

 

The National Institute of Health completed the Million Women Study in Britain a few years ago. Based on the results, the NIH concluded that the “Current use of HRT is associated with an increased risk of incident and fatal breast cancer; the effect is substantially greater for oestrogen-progestagen combinations than for other types of HRT.” 

 

One expert testified that his research showed as many as 15,000 cases of breast cancer per year occurred in women taking the combination hormone drug. Yet the “defense witnesses told you the same thing, the same story line, that Wyeth wanted them to tell you over and over — that no one knows what causes breast cancer,” said Russell T. Abney, another attorney representing Okuda. “We are not arguing that Ms. Okuda didn’t have an abnormal cell in her body. What we are arguing is that [estrogen plus progesterone] promoted that abnormal cell to grow.”

 

Women don’t have to choose between drugs and cancer for debilitating symptoms of menopause. There are other choices of menopause treatment.

References:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12927427

 

Menopause Hormone Therapy Connected to High Blood Pressure

Posted by Cathy on

natural menopause treatmentWhat’s new in hormone therapy today?   For starters, the name HRT or Hormone Replacement Therapy is being substituted more with just the HT (hormone therapy)  label.   If you’ve found this confusing join the club.  Maybe next it will be Health Therapy (HT)? Any name that is both benign and friendly seems to be a better way to present these drugs, right?

However, now even more new research is proving these drugs have dangerous side effects. There is nothing healthy or therapeutic about artificial hormones. There is more than abundant data on artificial HRT, hormone replacement therapy, and its connection to an increase risk of breast cancer and stroke.  There are ongoing studies in other arenas like this one just published.

Hot off the press from Australia! This study concluded the longer a woman used HRT or HT or artificial hormones (call them whatever you wish)  the higher her risk of developing high blood pressure.  

The study, not small by any means, included 43,405 postmenopausal women and was led by Joanne Lind of the University of Western Sydney.  Dr. Lind explained that the study shows that “longer use of menopausal hormone therapy is associated with having high blood pressure”.

If you are looking for a natural alternative for menopausal hot flashes and night sweats, learn why Chinese herbs are the first choice for millions of women around the world who want a safe natural alternative.    

Hopefully this message will be conveyed to women who are considering using hormone therapy for menopause symptoms.  Talk to your doctor if you have high blood pressure and are using and form of HRT or HT.

 

References:

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0040260

Citation: Chiu CL, Lujic S, Thornton C, O’Loughlin A, Makris A, et al. (2012) Menopausal Hormone Therapy Is Associated with Having High Blood Pressure in Postmenopausal Women: Observational Cohort Study. PLoS ONE 7(7): e40260. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0040260

 

Chinese Herbs Growing in Los Angeles

Posted by Cathy on

China has given us so many incredible jewels of nature in the form of medicinal herbs.  Chinese herbs such as Ginseng,  Cordyceps and this amazing beauty.   Not exactly a Chinese herb, but I was impressed with this redwoods story, I had to add it here. 

This amazing jewel lives in Los Angeles. Her name is Dawn Redwood or Metasequoia. Her grandparents were only known as a fossil until her parent was found in central China in 1944.

In 1948, Dawn was brought to Los Angeles as a seed. She has been living by this stream at UCLA ever since.   She is most probably the tallest of her kind in North America. Don't you love her stately pose with the sun shinning through her?

Amazing to think she came from just a tiny seed. 

Tomorrow I will post the Chinese herbs growing in Los Angeles.

 

Chinese Herb Helps Prevent Osteoporosis

Posted by Cathy on

The Herb Salvia Miltiorrhiza Used in an Extract Helps Osteoporosis.

dan shen herbNew evidence now exists about the Chinese herb, Salvia Miltiorrhiza.  This herb has been used for thousands of years and has been praised for its benefits for cardiovascular disease.  The latest study on Salvia Miltiorrhiza  indicates that this Chinese herb can also be beneficial to those suffering with osteoporosis, a thinning of the bones or loss of bone density over time.

The recent osteoporosis study results showed Salvia Miltiorrhiza (also known as Dan Shen) “significantly reduced the decrease in bone density.”  The researchers believe the preventative effect of this Chinese herb was “due to its anti-oxidative stress via modulation of osteoclast maturation and number.”  The researchers went on to say it “appears Salvia Miltiorrhiza could be a promising new osteoporosis therapeutic natural product.”
As women age and go through menopause they often begin to worry about their bone density.   Chinese herbs are a safe and natural answer for this concern.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, TCM, Dan Shen is well known for promoting blood circulation and soothing nerves.  It improves micro-circulation, is an excellent anti-oxidant, reduces blood fat and helps the liver and kidneys to regulate.

More Menopause Posts Here:

Menopause Treatment Food Options

____________________________________________________________________________

References:

Yan Cui,  Bidur Bhandar,  Anu Marahatta, Geum-Hwa Lee, Bo Li , Do-Sung Kim, Soo-Wan Chae,  Hyung-Ryong Kim and Han-Jung Chae, BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2011, 11:120doi:10.1186/1472-6882-11-120  Published Nov. 28, 2011.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1472-6882-11-120.pdf

Cheap Chinese Herbs Are Not Worth It

Posted by Cathy on

Best Chinese herbs for sleep If you are looking for cheap Chinese herbs you won’t find them here.  Sorry, but I refuse to buy cheap quality raw materials for my products.  Why?  Well like just about anything, you get what you pay for.  So if you don’t mind having heavy metals and bacteria in your Chinese herb products then go ahead… buy those cheap ones.

If you want to know your herbs are tested for contaminants they keep reading.  You are in the right place.

But how do you know what’s good and what’s not.   First, find out who is the manufacturer or processor of the herbs.  When you buy drugs you are told who makes it.  When you purchase fruits and vegetables labels tell you the processor and country of origin.  When you buy herbs, a product you plan on ingesting, the rule should be the same.  If  a seller is not telling you where the herbs are processed and by whom, don’t buy them from these companies. Don’t be fooled, if the information is missing from the website, it’s missing for a reason.

I offer a free report titled “What you need to know before purchasing Chinese herbs”. It’s available on our home page and it’s FREE!  Get educated, Chinese herbal remedies are offered all over the internet cheap for a reason.  Because cheap Chinese herbs are cheap quality and not worth the money you are paying for shipping.

We are completely transparent about our manufacturer our testing and our finished products.  Watch our 3 minute factory tour and see how our herbs for sleep, PMS Relief, and Menopause  are processed in our pharmaceutical factory.

Look for lot numbers and expiration dates on every product.   Lot numbers can be traced to batches of herbs and with our products correspond to “COA’s or Certificates of Analysis which detail all the testing and list quality assurance numerical standards of each test performed.   Many herbal companies do not have the high tech equipment or resources to perform COA’s. Check with the manufacturer and ask at the retail store where you purchase herbs if they are requiring COA’s from their suppliers.

We guarantee everything we sell and we guarantee our herbs are pure, unadulterated botanicals with no fillers and nothing artificial.  Ask the other guys who sell herbs cheap if they will make that guarantee.

 

 

Breast Cancer Linked to HRT Menopause Treatment

Posted by Cathy on with 1 Comment

Chinese herbs for menopause treatmentThe climb in breast cancer rates over the last two decades in the U.S. has been unprecedented.

Now Premarin and Preplus, artificial hormones used for menopause treatment are being blamed by thousands of women in both the U.S. and Canada.   A  Canadian Supreme Court has taken the first stem and certified a class-action lawsuit on behalf of women who contracted breast cancer after taking hormone replacement therapy also known as HRT.

The drugs in question, Premarin and Premplus were used by women to control hot flashes, night sweats and other symptoms of menopause.  The lawsuit alleges the makers of these drugs, Pfizer Pharmeceutical, failed to inform patients about research that demonstrates a link between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and breast cancer, and even went so far as to hire ghostwriters to downplay those risks in medical journals.

Dianna Stanway of Sechelt, B.C., is the main plaintiff. She took Premarin for seven years, but stopped when she read news reports warning it could cause cancer. Two months after quitting, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

“I never would have taken Premarin if I had been told of the risks. Fortunately, I won my battle with breast cancer. Not everyone is so lucky. I want my lawsuit to help all Canadian women, and their families, who have been harmed by this drug,” Stanway said in a news release issued by her law firm, Klein Lyons.

But the defendant in the lawsuit, pharmaceutical company Wyeth, which has since been purchased by Pfizer, says there’s no way to prove HRT gave Stanway cancer.

“It is widely accepted that science cannot determine what caused or contributed to any individual woman’s breast cancer except in rare circumstances where genetics play a role. Wyeth acted responsibly by conducting or supporting more than 180 studies on hormone therapy’s benefits and risks, and including science-based information in Premarin and Premplus’ labels that accurately communicate these benefits and risks to doctors and patients alike,” Pfizer said in a statement.

Pfizer has already used that argument successfully. A jury in Charleston, West Virginia, recently ruled in favour of the pharmaceutical giant, saying there wasn’t enough evidence to show HRT caused Leah Royce Hines’s breast cancer.

But Pfizer has also lost battles in the many lawsuits it has faced, and still faces, over HRT.

In 2009, Donna Scroggin of Arkansas, who developed breast cancer after taking HRT, won $29.5 million in a lawsuit against Wyeth.

The state of Nevada is currently involved in a lawsuit against Pfizer, alleging the company gave Nevada doctors deceptive information about the benefits of HRT.

“We look forward to bringing this case to trial. Many similar lawsuits have already been successfully tried to conclusion in the United States, resulting in repeated verdicts against the defendants,” said David Klein, Stanway’s lawyer.

Stanway’s lawsuit alleges the company tried to cover up the risks associated with HRT by hiring people to write positive articles for scientific journals, a practice also alleged in a 2010 investigation published in the Public Library of Science’s medical journal.

Adriane Fugh-Berman of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., who was an expert witness in a U.S. lawsuit against Pfizer, told QMI Agency at the time that the company hired ghostwriters to pen articles to spin the benefits of HRT, and published them under the names of actual doctors.

Wyeth hired a company called DesignWrite to co-ordinate its communications strategy, said Fugh-Berman. DesignWrite recruited doctors to appear as authors, chose journals, and set about to “position the product appropriately to influence prescribers,” she said.

Wyeth dismissed the allegations.”This article completely — and conveniently — ignores the fact that the published manuscripts were subjected to rigorous peer review by outside experts on behalf of the medical journals that published them,” the company said at the time.

Internal Pfizer documents made public during litigation revealed DesignWrite created over 50 peer-reviewed articles and over 50 scientific abstracts and posters, journal supplements, internal white papers and slide kits between 1997 and 2003, Fugh-Berman said.

In 2002, the Women’s Health Initiative published a five-year study of 16,608 women ages 50 to 79, and concluded that HRT actually increases the risks of most of the things it claims to prevent, including heart disease, and greatly increases a woman’s chances of developing breast cancer.

Compared to women who received placebo treatment, women who used HRT saw a 41% increase in strokes, a 22% increase in cardiovascular disease, a 29% increase in heart attacks, a 26% increase in breast cancer, and double the likelihood of blood clots.

We hope more women will learn about herbal options for menopause treatment of hot flashes and night sweats.

Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to reduce menopause symptoms.

Menopause Treatment Food Options

Posted by Cathy on with 1 Comment

natural menopause supplementsMenopause symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, irritability, brain fog and other symptoms seem to be considered the norm for women over the age of 50, yet this is not true for women around the globe. Researchers from the Department of Integrated Health at Westminster University polled 1,000 British women ages 45 to 55 and compared their answers to those of women from the U.S., Canada, Japan and China. The conclusion was that Japanese and Chinese women suffer the least amount of menopause symptoms. British women suffer the most and Americans are somewhere in between.
If you want to know how to turn down your body’s internal “thermostat” you are in the right place. Alternative medicine, including food therapy, is a viable option for managing menopause symptoms.

What causes this disparity between menopausal women in the East and West? In Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and China women do not generally seek medical attention for menopause symptoms.9 The reasons for these cultural differences are complex. Certainly diet and lifestyle choices play a key role. The question is why don’t women in these cultures need Hormone Replacement Therapies (HRT) or medical treatments the way that the majority of Western women do?

 

The last year has been a confusing time with medical flip-flops on the benefits and dangers of artificial hormones. I see more and more women who are giving up on trusting research produced by the health care establishment and looking to alternative medicine for answers.

 

Not only is it difficult to stay keep up with the latest menopause drug treatment information, but much too often this advice is influenced by drug companies or doctors who fail to disclose their ties to study outcomes. One truth every doctor knows is that medicines have risks. Medicines should be prescribed only when the benefits outweighs the risks, including the risks of side effects which may not show up until years later. Healthy diet and lifestyle therapies have no risks. Cooking with Chinese herbs and incorporating food therapy have been done for centuries and have absolutely no known risks.

 

This article is part two on the subject of alternative medicine for menopause. Part one (see it here) explained how Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) views menopause. TCM recognizes menopause as part of the natural aging process and is often termed Kidney Yin Deficiency. The manifestations of aging include gray hair, dryness and the end of menstruation — in other words, signs the kidney energy is waning.

TCM views the kidney energy as sustaining the metabolic process and decreases naturally as we age. When the balance of kidney yin and yang energy is “upset,” symptoms such as hot flashes and night sweats may appear. Throughout Asia it is Chinese herbs and food that are most commonly used to gently tonify the kidney energy and restore the balance between yin and yang. Acupuncture is also used to restore this balance and studies have proven its effectiveness.10 The role of herbal medicine was discussed in part one and I now want to address the roll diet plays in menopause.

 

It seems Asian cultures understand Hippocrates, the father of medicine’s credo, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Asian cultures blend four important principals into every meal.

1.    Meals consist of varying food temperatures, i.e. peppers are a hot food, seaweed is cold and black beans are warm.

2.   A large variety of foods with five flavors are eaten in every meal. The five flavors are sour, sweet, pungent, bitter and salty.

3.   Organic (Non-GMO) freshly prepared soy products are eaten nearly every day.

4.   An old Chinese Proverb says, “He that takes medicine and neglects diet, wastes the skill of the physician.”
Food Temperatures
Since our goal here is to turn down the thermostat, let’s start the discussion with “cold” foods — or foods that cool us off. This is the same principle applied to eating watermelon on a hot summer day. Asian cultures use food temperatures to balance the body’s needs.

Cold herbs and foods simply cool you off. But the principal is best practiced in combination. Mixing cold foods and warm foods is best. Too much cold food inhibits digestion and may lead to diarrhea. A few of the best cold foods are: cucumber, diakon radish, mung bean, dandelion greens, cabbage, bok choy, cauliflower, celery, carrots and romaine lettuce. Eat a least two servings of these a day for your internal air conditioner to kick into action. Cold fruits include lemon, cantaloupe, grapefruit, mulberry, apples, pears, watermelon, apricots and persimmons.

 

Five Flavors
Incorporating the five flavors into your meals may be a new concept but is not all that difficult. There are several good books on this subject. One of my favorites is The Tao of Nutrition by Ni and McNease. Bitter foods will help the most for those suffering with menopause symptoms. They operate as an internal air conditioner, because bitter foods disperse heat. Examples of bitter foods include kale, green tea, watercress, turnips, asparagus and tangerine peel. Tangerine peel is used in Chinese herbal medicine and in TCM food therapy. Adding tangerine peel to meat or vegetables helps by promoting the circulation of stomach Qi, (energy) thereby improving digestion. Its bitter and acrid flavor not only helps digestion but relieves indigestion. Tangerine peel strengthens the stomach and works like a carminative to clear excess mucus. (More herbs for menopause here.)

 

Soy Foods
One interesting cultural advantage for menopausal women in Asia may be the amount of soy or tofu eaten daily. Soy is full of protein, rich in vitamins and enzymes. It’s an isoflavone, a class of phytoestrogen (plant derived compounds) with estrogenic activity.11 Soy has been part of the Asian diet for thousands of years. Unprocessed tofu is made fresh and sold in nearly every market. Soy tofu is eaten in small amounts daily from the time children are very young to the end of their lives.

But, the key here is the soy and tofu they eat is made from “unprocessed and non-gmo” soy beans. Sadly, this is increasingly difficult to find in American stores and nearly all American soy beans are derived from genetically modified organisms (GMO). Not a healthy choice to start with and unfortunately most of our tofu is manufactured through a highly refined process. For this reason, I would not consider soy tofu a healthy food in the U.S. right now.

Refined food products almost always lose their nutritional value after being heated to extreme temperatures. This process kills all of the nutrients and all of the important enzymes which the body needs to digest them. As a result, eating processed American soy tofu can give you terrible gas, bloating and indigestion and even worse, it’s becoming a common allergen. A small serving of soy a couple of times a week won’t harm you, but I recommend eating only fermented and non-GMO soy. Products such as miso, sprouted tofu, soy yogurt and tempeh are my first choice. A little organic soy sauce is also ok . If you can be certain your tofu is organic and unprocessed I would consider it a healthy choice.

 

Changing the way you look at food according to temperature and taste takes some time. Maybe this is a new concept for you and maybe you’ve never seen some of the foods listed above. Although you may not choose to eat everything on this list, you can certainly eat some.

 

Tapping into your body’s internal thermostat doesn’t work exactly likethe thermostat on your wall. So, be patient. Be consistent with dietary changes and enjoy the food you eat. Find some recipes you like and bring variety to your diet every day. Incorporate the five flavors of salty, bitter, sour, pungent and sweet into your lifestyle. Chinese medicine uses food therapy full of phytochemicals, vitamins and nutrients to restore vibrant health and balance to the entire person. This therapy has been adopted for thousands of years without any side effects.

What part of your diet will you change to help your menopause symptoms?

 

References:

1. Women of UK study http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2233879/

2. Lock M. Menopause in Japanese women. Womens Health Iss. 1995;274(16):12-65.

3. Kagawa-Singer M., Kim S., Wu K., Adler S.R., Kawanishi Y., Wongvipat N. Comparison of the menopause and midlife transition between Japanese American and European American women. Med Anthropol Q. 2002;16(1):64-91.

4. Haines C.J., Rong L., Chung T.K.H., Leung D.H.Y. The perception of the menopause and the climacteric among women in Hong-Kong and Southern China. Prev Med. 1995;24(3):245-248. [PubMed]

5. Lam P.M., Leung T.N., Haines C., Chung T.K.H. Climacteric symptoms and knowledge about hormone replacement therapy among Hong Kong Chinese women aged 40-60 years. Maturitas. 2003;45(2):99-107. [PubMed]

6. Chen Y.L.D., Voda A.M., Mansfield P.K. Chinese midlife women’s perceptions and attitudes about menopause. Menopause. 1998;5(1):28-34. [PubMed]

7. Tsao L.I., Chang W.Y., Hung L.L., Chang S.H., Chou P.C. Perimenopausal knowledge of mid-life women in northern Taiwan. J Clin Nurs. 2004;13(5):627-635. [PubMed]
8. Ismael N.N. A study on the menopause in Malaysia. Maturitas. 1994;19(3):205-209. [PubMed]

9. Chim H., Tan B.H.I., Ang C.C., Chew E.M.D., Chong Y.S., Saw S.M. The prevalence of menopausal symptoms in a community in Singapore. Maturitas. 2002;41(4):275-282. [PubMed]

10. Acupuncture for Menopause hot flashes and http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20060667

11. Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/phytochemicals/soyiso/