How to Treat Menopause Naturally

Menopause is a natural part of life, and every woman can expect to go through it at some point in her life. The issues that occur during menopause are where significant differences appear, and what is a concern for one person is not a problem for someone else.

People associate a variety of symptoms with menopause, including:

• Hot flashes
• Weight gain
• Mood swings
• Depression
• Night sweats
• Muscle and bone loss
• Memory concerns
• Poor sleep
• Decreased focus
• Hair loss or thinning
• Changes in skin texture and tone

Dealing with these symptoms is not always easy. Do you choose the standard therapies that could increase your risk of cancer, blood clots, and strokes or do you suffer through the wet sheets at night? While there are ways to use natural hormone replacement such as estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and human growth hormone to reverse the adverse effects of menopause, these treatments only work if a woman’s body is deficient in the corresponding hormone. An HRT specialist will run blood tests before prescribing the appropriate treatment in a safe and legal manner, providing all prescriptions from a licensed US pharmacy. More information you can find on www.nexelmedical.com.

For those women who want to try all other avenues for dealing with menopause before resorting to HRT options, here are some steps to take that can lessen or alleviate the annoying symptoms:

Nutrition

Proper nutrition is crucial for many reasons besides dealing with menopausal symptoms. Eating right provides the body with vital nutrients that can stimulate hormone production. Conversely, eating the wrong foods can reduce the secretion of essential chemical messengers, furthering the adverse effects female faces during menopause.

Here are the best ways to use nutrition to alleviate menopause symptoms:

• Consume an abundance of heart-healthy fats, including coconut and olive oils, avocado, nuts, seeds, and grass-fed butter.
• Hydrate with at least eight glasses of water each day, using cool temperatures to reduce the severity of hot flashes. Keep water by your bed for help with night sweats.
• Eat foods high in iron content, including fish, leafy green vegetables, lean red meat, chicken, nuts, and eggs. Aim for 8 mg a day of iron.
• Choose high-fiber whole grains, pasta, and cereals.
• Get 1,200 mg of calcium each day from a variety of foods. Good choices include dairy, salmon, sardines, legumes, and broccoli.
• While you are at it, reach for five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Choose fruits high in fiber and plant-based estrogens while loading up on these vitamin-rich foods.
• Pumpkin, sunflower, and sesame seeds are high in crucial phytoestrogens that help increase hormone production.
• Consume cottage cheese, oats, or turkey at night to help increase tryptophan for better sleep.
• Avoid caffeine, spicy foods, chocolate, and alcohol late at night. These stimulants can trigger night sweats and hot flashes.

Herbal Remedies

Some women turn to herbal remedies as a way of controlling their menopausal symptoms. It is important to discuss these options with your doctor or hormone replacement therapy specialist before using to avoid interactions with medications or other health conditions. Some herbal supplements do carry potential side effects, and proper guidance can lead to a better outcome from this treatment.

Possible herbal remedies for menopause include:

Flaxseed – flax contains a substance called lignans that are similar to plant estrogens in the way they moderate hormone metabolism. Buy flaxseeds and grind them yourself as needed to maintain freshness. Use 1 to 2 tablespoons each day added to food or beverages.

Vitamin E – 400 IU’s of vitamin E can reduce hot flashes. Externally, vitamin E can reduce vaginal dryness. Do not take if using blood-thinners.

Black Cohosh – this herb helps some women get relief from night sweats and hot flashes, but it does not work for everyone. Black cohosh should not be used by anyone who has had liver problems.

Evening Primrose Oil – effects are hit or miss, some women get benefits while others do not. It may take up to two months before relief is noticeable.

Wild Yam Creams – although made up of the same compound in some versions of natural progesterone, not all creams contain this hormone. Again, not all women find relief in this product.

Soy – please discuss the use of soy with a doctor before using.

Dong Quai – this traditional Chinese herb may help to regulate your hormones and ease menopause symptoms. Do not use when taking blood-thinners or in cases of heavy menstrual bleeding.

Emotional Wellness

Your emotions play a large role in how your body may respond to menopause. If you are extremely stressed, certain hormones such as cortisol will increase, and this can have an adverse effect on the symptoms of menopause. To protect your emotional wellness, there are a number of lifestyle changes you can easily incorporate into everyday life.

Try as many of these recommendations as possible to reduce the symptoms of menopause :

• Get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night to aid in hormone production – keep your room dark and remove LED lights from near your bed
• Set your bedroom temperature at night to 65 degrees
• Wear loose fitting cotton pajamas or nothing at all during sleep
• Quit smoking – it can worsen menopause symptoms
• Meditate daily to reduce stress – sit or lie in a comfortable position and pay attention to your breathing (guided meditation CD’s are available that can help)
• Practice deep breathing exercises to lower your blood pressure, reduce your heart rate, and calm your body and mind
• Do yoga to help relieve feelings of stress while also stretching your muscles and improving fitness and breathing techniques
• Use acupuncture to improve sleep, reduce pain, and possibly help with other menopause symptoms
  Get a massage to reduce stress, relax muscles, and improve mood
• Do not exercise within 3 hours of bedtime
• Please know that there are safe bio-identical hormone replacement therapy options that can help reduce the effects of menopause if these steps do not work for you. Contact a hormone specialist for further information.