Menopause: a natural approach

indicates the period in which the reproductive cycle in women completely ceases: after about 40 years of menstrual cycles, the cycle initially becomes irregular, until it stops completely.

The average age at which a woman goes through menopause is around 51 years old.

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Menopause, therefore the end of reproductive cycles, is not due to the "pituitary gland, but to the" ovary, which is no longer able to respond adequately to the gonadotropins produced by the pituitary gland: in this way, in the absence of negative feedback (response to negative feedback), the level of gonadotropins increases significantly in an attempt to bring a large number of ovarian follicles to maturity.

In menopause, the absence of estrogen causes symptoms of varying severity: hot flashes, atrophy of the genitals and breasts, sweating, vaginal dryness, irritability, depression and osteoporosis due to the loss of calcium from the bone.

The classic drug therapy is based on hormone replacement therapy based on estrogen and progesterone, with the aim of reducing symptoms and preventing osteoporosis; if on the one hand the benefits are considerable, on the other this therapy is not without side effects. .

Alongside the classic menopause therapy - with medical advice - it might be useful to think of a phytotherapeutic aid able to relieve the annoying associated symptoms: in this sense, black cohosh, red clover, soy and dioscorea can be useful.

The black cohosh, commonly called "women's grass", is a herbaceous perennial plant grown throughout Europe, belonging to the Ranuncolaceae family.

The drug consists of dried or fresh rhizomes and roots, and contains triterpene glycosides (actein and cimifugoside) - important for premenstrual and dysmenorrhoeic neurovegetative dysfunctions - phenolic acids, quinolizidine alkaloids, flavonoids and resins (cimicifugin).

On the market it is possible to find black cohosh in the form of an extract titrated and standardized to 2.5% in triterpenes (actein).

Black cohosh is able to reduce blood levels of LH (luteinizing hormone) but not those of FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) and prolactin.

If used correctly, black cohosh appears to be a safe drug, although it can cause mild stomach upset and can interact with some medications.

The plant contains salicylates, so it must not be taken by anyone with an allergy to acetylsalicylic acid.

(incorrectly called phytoestrogens), which are found in many legumes, particularly soy (Soja hispida) and in red clover (Trifolium pratense).

In soy, the active ingredients useful during menopause are located in the seeds, where we find isoflavones (genistein 70-85%, daidzein 10-30%, glycitein), lipids rich in unsaturated fatty acids (linoleic, linolenic and oleic), proteins and saponins with hypocholesterolemic effect.

The main effects of soy are to reduce hot flashes, sleep disturbances, irritability and depression; due to the presence of cholesterol-lowering components it can be useful for reducing total cholesterol levels.

As for the red clover, the leaves and flowers of this plant are used, where we mainly find isoflavones (biocanin A, which is the precursor of genistein, formononetin, genistein, daidzein).

Finally, we remember the dioscorea (Hairy Dioscorea), a plant rich in diosgenin, a sapogenin very similar from a structural point of view to estrogen. The use of dioscorea extracts seems useful in promoting the improvement of menopausal disorders.

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