Natural ways to help menopause symptoms

​What is MENOPAUSE? Around age 45-50, oestrogen levels fall, and the menstrual flow becomes less or irregular and eventually stops. Menopause is the cessation of menses. But this does not mean that a woman has stopped making oestrogen. Her body still makes it from androstenedione in her fat cells, so it does not fall to zero. Progesterone, which is a major precursor of corticosteroids, falls close to zero instead. Without progesterone, the body increases another precursor hormone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which produces other hormones like androstenedione, oestrogen and corticosteroid.

Sophia is 47 years old. One year ago, she experienced hot flushes, mood swings, vaginal dryness, facial and body hair growth. Her doctor diagnosed her with menopause and ordered laboratory tests to check her serum progesterone levels and prescribed her progestin (Provera). When her lab results came back with zero levels of progesterone, her doctor doubled the dose of progestin, and kept doubling the dose when subsequent tests came back negative for progesterone. By this time, Sophia was experiencing the side effects of progestin due to the high dose she was taking. Specifically, loss of appetite, nausea, indigestion, fatigue, and depression. Her doctor thought progestin was progesterone, but they are not the same! Progesterone is a naturally occurring hormone made by the body; while progestin is synthetic progesterone, made from natural progesterone derived from a natural source, wild yam, and then chemically altered in the laboratory to become synthetic, that mimics the effects of natural progesterone on the body. Natural products cannot be patented and sold as such, so in order to make a profit, companies create synthetic versions of natural products. Furthermore, the serum progesterone test is not reliable because blood serum has only 10% of progesterone. 90% of bioavailable progesterone is carried by red blood cells. Sophia went to another doctor who advised her to eat plenty of fresh vegetables, whole grains, and fruits, unprocessed and uncontaminated by artificial coloring, preservatives, and toxic ingredients. She should avoid meat but can have eggs and ocean fish. Extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, primrose oil, and pumpkin oil are all especially nutritious because they contain linoleic acid (omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3). Sophia should take vitamin C 1 gram a day, vitamin E 400 IU a day, betacarotene 15 milligram a day, zinc 15-30 milligram a day, magnesium 100-300 milligram a day. Finally, supplementation with natural progesterone as a transdermal cream may be necessary and beneficial as it is low cost, easy to apply and it is an excellent moisturizer for the skin. Sophia can decide to get natural progesterone directly from wild yam, which produces diosgenin that is then converted to natural progesterone. A diet high in yam consumption should provide enough progesterone to prevent menopausal symptoms. There are also plants like Dong Quai, Black Cohosh, and Fennel that can provide relief as they contain oestrogenic and progestogenic substances.

References Lee, John R. Natural Progesterone: The Multiple Roles of a Remarkable Hormone. Jon Carpenter Publishing, 2000. ProgesterAll – Important News (johnleemd.com).