As life goes on, we begin to experience several changes along the way. For women, one of the many changes that come with aging is the ceasing of their menstrual cycle. It’s at this point that they experience what’s known as menopause.
Now, with menopause comes several symptoms that can affect a woman’s daily life. It can be a bit unsettling, but you have to realize that your symptoms are natural and not a cause for concern.
Firstly, menopause signals the end of the menstrual cycle and a reduction in the production of hormones in women.
With these natural changes come some indicative signs that can cause some alarm. Some of these include vaginal dryness, chills, hot flashes, night sweats, weight gain, labile moods, and reduced sex drive, amongst other uncommon menopausal symptoms.
The use of herbal supplements for menopause revolves around the management of these symptoms. Sure, you can use drugs, but if you’re searching for a natural and safe option, you could go for other therapies including the use of herbal supplements.
These herbs are just as effective as pills, but are a lot cheaper and healthier. Read on as we look at five herbal supplements for menopause.
Top Herbal Supplements To Take At Menopause
Alfalfa
We kick off this list of herbal supplements for menopause with an unconventional herb. Unconventional in the sense that it's commonly known as a leguminous feed for livestock. However, it's also grown and sold around the world as a herbal supplement, and for good reasons.
For starters, Alfalfa is packed with nutrients that make its consumption beneficial. Some of these nutrients include Vitamin C and K, copper, manganese, and folate, but most importantly, it contains phytoestrogens.
The presence of phytoestrogens helps provide a similar set of benefits enjoyed with the production of estrogen. In other words, alfalfa is useful for reducing the negative effects of reduced estrogen production. It’s also useful for handling hot flashes.
Alfalfa leaves and seeds can be dried and taken as supplements while the seeds are sometimes sprouted and consumed as Alfalfa sprouts.
Vitex
Vitex agnus-castus, chaste berry, monk’s pepper, chaste tree; these are several names used to describe this herbal supplement. In the same vein, there are multiple functions this herb serves but we’ll be placing our focus on why it’s regarded as one of the herbal supplements for menopause.
For a long period, vitex has been embraced as a vital supplement for several problems in women. One purpose it serves is its influence on hormones including prolactin, progesterone, and estrogen. It is also useful for women dealing with menopausal symptoms.
Most of the symptoms that come with menopause are unpleasant, and Vitex functions by reducing or completely removing these effects. The menopausal symptoms vitex is employed as a herbal supplement for include mood swings, chills, hot flashes, and sleep problems.
Vitex is sold in stores and is often consumed in capsules or gummy forms.
Wild Yam
For centuries, this plant has been employed as an alternative therapy for various health problems. This also includes its inclusion in herbal supplements for menopause. Also known as colic root or China root, it is particularly useful for its active ingredients including diosgenin which influences the production of hormones in the body.
One of the hormones influenced by this compound is estrogen. And this produces a great effect of the use of Wild Yams. It reduces or outrightly eliminates the need for estrogen replacement therapy. As a result, Vitex offers a safer method for dealing with the pains of menopausal symptoms.
Wild yam functions by stabilizing or even increasing the amount of estrogen produced in the body. And since menopause is characterized by reduced estrogen production, it’s only natural that menopausal symptoms are effectively reduced with the use of wild yam.
Wild yam is well-known for its bitter taste but you can still consume it in capsules, tinctures, tablets, tea, or even topically as a cream.
Maca
Natives of Peru are well accustomed to this nutty member of the mustard plant family. It’s seen growing on frigid grounds of the Andes mountains, thousands of feet above sea level. Appearance and location aside, Maca root has been employed as one of the herbal supplements for menopause due to its therapeutic effects.
One is the energy boost it gives to those who consume it. As we all know, mood swings are part of the symptoms accompanying menopause. But thanks to this root, women get an extra dose of energy to help shake off those gray periods.
Furthermore, Maca proves beneficial to women experiencing hot flashes and a drop in their libido. The fact that it’s also useful as a supplement for handling fragile bones makes it even more popular on store shelves.
Maca roots are often dried, boiled, and drunk as juice. You could also add the powder supplement to your meals.
Shepherd’s Purse
Our final example of herbal supplements for menopause is a wildflower that comes from the mustard family. It grows worldwide and gets its name from the triangular shape of its fruits which resemble a shepherd's purse.
Moving onto its benefits, Shepherd's purse, also known as blind weed, can be incorporated into medications as supplements for handling menopausal symptoms.
Other benefits of the shepherd's purse include its influence in reducing blood pressure and healing wounds. Women experiencing menopausal symptoms such as headaches and burns can add this to their list of herbal supplements for menopause.
Shepherd’s purse is also safe to consume as it can be taken in tincture form, or you can boil the roots to make tea with.
Conclusion
Menopause is a naturally-occurring phase of every woman’s life and with it comes a host of changes to the body. To deal with these changes various herbs have been incorporated as supplements to make menopausal symptoms more manageable and just for menopause self-care .
Therefore, it’s important to take note of the various herbal supplements for menopause as well as their benefits and uses to properly manage the unwanted effects of menopause.
