More than ever, women are educating themselves, asking their doctors questions, and discovering the range of natural options available to treat menopausal symptoms. Diet changes, exercise, key vitamins and nutrients, and herbal medicine can have a real, lasting impact on your symptoms and how you move through this transition.
No two women experience menopause the same way. Physical, mental, and emotional symptoms can start well before you reach official “menopause” — the term for going a full year without a menstrual cycle.
I offer a personalized naturopathic approach to menopause symptoms and the menopause transition. Contact me today for more information.
When Symptoms Typically Begin
Symptoms usually start between ages 40 and 51, during what’s called perimenopause. Signs and symptoms include:
- Menstrual irregularities
- Hot flashes
- Night sweats
- Vaginal dryness
- Skin changes
- Fatigue
- Low libido
- Mood swings
- Weight gain, joint pain, insomnia, headaches, urinary tract infections, incontinence, anxiety, depression, osteoporosis, and heart disease
Your age, stress levels, and body weight all play a role in your hormonal balance and the symptoms you experience.
A Different Approach
Naturopathic medicine treats menopause differently than conventional care does. I view menopause as a normal life transition, not a disease, and I make it a priority to help you understand what’s actually happening in your body during this time. My approach focuses on the whole woman — your diet, lifestyle, exercise, and your mental, emotional, and spiritual outlook.
Treatment options I use include:
- Vitamin and nutrient supplementation
- Herbal or botanical medicine
- Homeopathic medicine
- Bio-identical hormone replacement therapy, when indicated
Diet
Increasing your intake of phytoestrogens — foods containing plant-based estrogen — can improve many menopause symptoms. Adding 100 grams of tofu and 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed to your daily diet can reduce hot flashes and vaginal dryness. Other helpful foods include natural sources of soy like miso (not the refined soy in soy milk or soy cheese), tofu, flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, nuts, whole grains, apples, fennel, celery, parsley, and alfalfa. Phytoestrogens offer a real advantage over hormonal estrogen, since they haven’t been linked to the same risks — increased cancer rates, gallbladder disease, and blood clots.
Exercise
Moderate to high-intensity weight-bearing aerobic exercise, progressive resistance training, and high-impact activity like jumping can all increase bone density by 1 to 4 percent in both pre- and post-menopausal women. Weight-bearing exercise — walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, weight training, cross-country skiing — reduces fracture risk and improves bone mass.
Herbal Medicine
Black cohosh is a solid natural alternative to hormone replacement therapy, especially when HRT is contraindicated, which can include a history of cancer, liver or gallbladder disease, pancreatitis, uterine fibroids, or fibrocystic breast disease. Dong quai, licorice, and chaste tree berry have mild estrogenic effects and are commonly used for menopausal symptoms. For fatigue, Siberian ginseng combined with a B-complex vitamin is often effective. Damiana, Ashwagandha, and ginseng can improve libido, particularly when low desire is rooted in fatigue.
For trouble falling asleep, herbs like valerian, passionflower, California poppy, and jujube can help. For waking in the middle of the night, consider Ashwagandha, or St. John’s Wort if the waking is tied to anxiety or depression. Jujube, hops, skullcap, passionflower, oats, and chamomile are all used for night sweats and insomnia caused by flushing.
Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement
When diet, exercise, nutrient therapy, and herbal medicine aren’t enough on their own, short-term bio-identical hormone therapy is often the next step. I prefer bio-identical estrogen over synthetic estrogen because it matches the exact chemical structure of the hormones your body already makes. Synthetic estrogen, by contrast, is a mixture of conjugated estrogens derived from horse urine, which can be hard on your liver as it processes hormone forms your body doesn’t recognize. Bio-identical hormones are sourced from wild yam or soybeans, and the dose needed to manage symptoms is usually lower than what’s needed with synthetic hormones.
The bottom line with hormone replacement therapy: use the lowest effective dose for the shortest time needed to manage your symptoms. Hormone levels should be checked periodically, and hormones should only be used while you’re actually symptomatic.
— Dr. Faith Christensen