How to manage menopause symptoms without hormones

Menopause symptoms can range from mild and slightly annoying to overwhelming and debilitating. Hot flashes and night sweats are usually the worst symptoms because they can significantly disrupt sleep. Long term sleep deprivation inevitably leads to exhaustion, with a significant increase in the risk of depression or anxiety. Vaginal dryness is another common menopause symptom that greatly reduces quality of life for some women.

There are a range of treatment options available to women for dealing with menopause symptoms, ranging from prescription hormones, natural bio-identical hormones, herbal remedies to lifestyle changes. Most women are able to find a treatment that works for them.

Some women wish to avoid the use of hormones because of concerns about their safety, while other women are not able to use hormones because of previous illness, such as breast cancer. What options are available for these women?

The healthier you are throughout your life, the less likely you are to have problems with menopause. Women who are a healthy weight, eat well and exercise regularly usually experience fewer symptoms of menopause.  While women menstruate, most of their hormones are produced in their ovaries, adrenal glands and body fat.  After menopause it is the adrenal glands and body fat that produce sex hormones, albeit in much smaller quantities.

The healthier your adrenal glands are throughout your life, the easier your menopause will be.  That is why women who have experienced intensely stressful situations or women who lived with chronic stress experience much worse menopause symptoms.  Stress depletes your adrenal glands, but so do stimulants.  Stimulants such as caffeine, nicotine and sugar over stimulate the adrenal glands and in time can lead to adrenal gland exhaustion.  Therefore women who consume a lot of stimulants over their lifetime usually run out of hormones sooner and have a difficult menopause.  There are several herbs and nutrients that act as adrenal gland tonics.  They can help to gently increase hormone production and ease the symptoms of menopause.  Beneficial herbs for the adrenal glands include Withania somnifera, Rhodiola and Siberian ginseng.  These herbs are found in Adrenal Plus Support tablets. Magnesium and vitamin C also help to support the adrenal glands.

Hot flashes are not always due to estrogen deficiency.  There are a few other possible causes.  Women who carry excess abdominal weight and women who have a fatty liver are much more likely to get hot flashes than slim women with a healthy liver.  Women who regularly drink alcohol are also more prone to hot flashes and night sweats than women who don’t.  High blood pressure can cause or aggravate hot flashes.

Bringing the blood pressure back down to normal can completely eliminate hot flashes for many women.  If diet and lifestyle changes are not effective at lowering blood pressure, the prescription drug called clonidine (brand name Catapres) is usually very effective at eliminating or reducing hot flashes in women with high blood pressure.

Stress and anxiety can also generate hot flashes.  Therefore nutritional support of the nervous system can address hot flushes in some women.  Magnesium, meditation, deep breathing exercises and yoga can all help stress and anxiety.

Regular exercise is a vital part of any healthy lifestyle and research has shown that regular aerobic exercise is one of the best remedies for hot flushes.

Summary of non-hormonal methods of reducing menopause symptoms

The following list is useful for women who wish to avoid using hormonal remedies for menopause symptoms, and women who have had breast cancer in the past and are unable to use hormones:

• Maintain a healthy weight.  Overweight women are more prone to hot flashes, especially if they carry their weight on their abdomen.  Underweight women are also more prone to symptoms of estrogen deficiency, as they make very little estrogen in their body fat.
• Have a healthy liver.  Women with a fatty liver are more prone to hot flashes.  A good diet and a liver tonic can correct this. See the book Fatty Liver: You Can Reverse It.
• Exercise regularly.  Aerobic exercise that makes you huff and puff and sweat is excellent for preventing hot flashes.
• Reduce your stress levels.  Stress, anxiety and tension can all promote hot flashes, night sweats, mood changes and insomnia.  You can reduce stress by changing the way you perceive situations in your life, learning new coping skills, or making changes to your circumstances.  Taking time out to look after yourself and doing things that make you happy is also important.  In some women, prescription antidepressant medication can be very effective at treating hot flashes and insomnia.  Magnesium supplements can help because magnesium has a relaxing effect on the body.
• Improve the health of your adrenal glands.  After menopause the bulk of your hormones are produced in your adrenal glands and body fat.  There are several herbs and nutrients that can support the adrenal glands.
• Maintain normal blood pressure.  High blood pressure can promote or worsen hot flashes.  Weight loss, a low carbohydrate eating plan, stress reduction and a magnesium supplement can help correct blood pressure.
• Have a phyto-estrogen rich diet.  The mild plant estrogens present in ground flaxseeds, legumes (peas, beans, lentils), nuts and seeds have hormone balancing properties and help to alleviate the symptoms of menopause.
• Magnesium can help insomnia.  Magnesium relaxes the nerves and muscles of the body and can promote a deeper sleep.
• Lubricants help vaginal dryness.  Estrogen deficiency causes thinning of the vaginal lining and this can cause vaginal dryness and discomfort during intercourse.  Choose a lubricant that is completely natural and free of petrochemicals and paraben preservatives (which are estrogen mimics).The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.