Home Remedies and Lifestyle
Menopause is a normal part of a woman’s life, not a disease that needs to be treated. Still, many women seek treatment to relieve symptoms that result from the significant hormonal changes that occur. Not only can these shifts significantly affect the quality of life, but they can also increase the risk of certain health concerns.
Exercise
Exercise is important regardless of your age, but it takes on added importance in menopause. Strength training as well as aerobic-focused exercises can help counteract age-related muscle and bone loss, both of which accelerate after menopause begins. Regular moderate exercise also helps manage the mood disturbances that changing hormone levels can bring. You may even want to consider joining a yoga class. Regular yoga practice has been shown to maintain flexibility, help with bone loss, and improve hot flashes.
Diet
Choosing the right food in menopause can help you stay healthy and may also help you manage symptoms caused by your changing hormone levels. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends a diet based on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean protein (especially from beans and lentils), and low-fat dairy products. In menopause, it is more of a challenge to maintain your muscle and bone mass. Ensuring that you get adequate protein and vitamin D in your diet can help you maintain and/or build muscle. Maintaining a healthy weight can be more of a challenge after menopause. Watching your daily caloric intake is a worthy goal. Follow a balanced, reduced-calorie diet. For symptoms of hot flashes, you may want to cut back on spicy foods and caffeine. Drinking too much caffeine, especially later in the day, might also lead to poor sleep, which is a common problem during menopause.
Limit Your Alcohol Intake
Alcohol can exacerbate some of the symptoms and complications of menopause, including poor sleep and mood problems. In some studies, alcohol has been shown to increase the frequency of hot flashes and night sweats.
Over-the-Counter (OTC) Therapies
Your healthcare provider may recommend vitamin D supplements and possibly calcium supplements to prevent bone loss and lower the risk of osteoporosis. For vaginal dryness, there are a variety of vaginal moisturizers that you can use every two to three days. You can also use vaginal lubricants during sexual intercourse. Always check with your practitioner before taking OTC products, supplements, and herbal remedies as they can interact with prescription medications or each other.
Prescriptions
While a lifestyle approach to menopausal symptoms is preferred, in some cases—particularly when OTC options haven’t been effective, or you have significant symptoms that such treatments cannot help—your healthcare provider may recommend prescription therapy.
Complementary Alternative Medicine (CAM)
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) offers options outside of traditional Western or allopathic medicine. Many of these options are based on centuries-old healing practices like Chinese-medicine, Ayurveda, and herbal medicine. You may choose to seek an integrative approach combining allopathic with naturopathic, homeopathic, or Eastern medicine.
Naturopathy & Homeopathy
Naturopathic medicine, or naturopathy, is based on the principle that disease is caused by a breakdown in the way the body normally heals itself. Naturopathic doctors use a variety of healing practices to help your body heal itself, including clinical nutrition, herbal medicine, homeopathy, acupuncture, light therapy, and energy healing. Some common homeopathic or herbal remedies recommended to treat menopausal symptoms include… However, the evidence is limited to support benefit from these herbal remedies. Most of these herbs have estrogen-like activity, and there is concern that they may have some of the same risks as taking estrogen. They may interact with many different prescription drugs. Further, specific risks of liver damage have been noted for black cohosh and kava.
Chinese Medicine
Chinese medicine is an over 3,000-year-old healing practice based on a complex concept of energy balance in the universe and ultimately in the individual. Simply put, when this energy is out of balance, disease occurs. Traditional Chinese medicine uses varying healing techniques, including diet, herbs, acupuncture, exercise, energy healing, and meditation. Although a definite benefit is not yet supported by significant scientific evidence, there are reports showing that traditional Chinese medicine helps to relieve the menopausal symptoms of sleep problems, hot flashes, mood disturbances, aches and pains, memory and concentration problems, and decreased sex drive.
Ayurveda
Ayurveda, like Chinese medicine, is an ancient healing practice that is over 3,000 years old. Ayurvedic practitioners use several different healing techniques, including nutrition, detoxification, purification, yoga, breathing, and massage therapy. Ayurveda is a well-recognized complementary and alternative medicine option. Unfortunately, it is difficult to apply Western research study design to this healing philosophy, so very limited evidence is available to comment on its effectiveness. But that doesn’t mean it is not effective in helping to treat menopausal symptoms.
Conclusion
Menopause causes many changes in your body. It is a normal process and not a disease. However, the hormonal changes of menopause can cause unpleasant symptoms and long-term health issues that affect your quality of life. Making simple lifestyle changes and integrating different therapeutic approaches can help you live very well through menopause and beyond.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What are some lifestyle changes I can make to manage menopausal symptoms?
- Exercise regularly, eat a balanced diet, limit your alcohol intake, and maintain a healthy weight.
- What are some over-the-counter therapies that can help manage menopausal symptoms?
- Vitamin D supplements, calcium supplements, vaginal moisturizers, and vaginal lubricants.
- What are some prescription medications that can help manage menopausal symptoms?
- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), estrogen replacement therapy (ERT), and selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs).
- What are some complementary and alternative medicine options that can help manage menopausal symptoms?
- Naturopathy, homeopathy, Chinese medicine, and Ayurveda.
- Can I use herbal remedies to manage menopausal symptoms?
- Yes, but be sure to check with your healthcare provider and use them in moderation, as they may interact with prescription medications or have potential side effects.
