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Menopause

Fight Menopause Symptoms With Red Clover and Sage

Sep 20, 2017

Menopause is a stage in a woman’s life that affects her both physically and mentally. Most women start showing symptoms like mood swings, inconsistencies in cycle length, hot flashes, insomnia and other sleep problems during the pre-menopausal and menopausal stages. Fortunately, women can find relief in two natural remedies: red clover and sage.

How Red Clover Helps With Menopause Symptoms?

Red clover is a wild plant that has been used to treat menopause for many years. It is linked to estrogen, the primary female sex hormone which drops during menopause. Red clover contains isoflavones, which are compounds that are phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens are plant-derived nutrients that have estrogen-like effects on the body. The chemical structure of red clover is quite similar to that of estrogen. So, when estrogen levels in the body drop, isoflavones bind to estrogen-receptors on cells and help in easing hot flashes, irregular periods and low bone density. Red clover contains more phytoestrogens than soy products (which women generally use to balance their hormone levels.) A typical Western diet lacks isoflavones. So adding red clover to your daily diet can help in dealing with menopause.

How Sage Helps With Menopause Symptoms?

Sage is an herb that helps menopausal women deal with hot flashes, night sweats and memory troubles. Due to changing hormone levels, the hypothalamus raises the temperature of the body randomly. Hypothalamus is important for regulating body temperature. Sage helps in regulating hormone levels due to its estrogenic properties. A study proved that the estrogenic compound helps in reducing hot flashes. Two-thirds of the participants of another study also stopped experiencing night sweats after being treated with sage extract. It also serves as a useful memory-booster. Sage essential oil is known to be largely responsible for its therapeutic properties. You can include sage in your diet through sage tea. You can also have it in the form of fresh leaves, use it in your cooking, use its essential oil or take sage supplements.

References:

http://www.umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/red-clover

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21630133

https://www.womens-health-concern.org/help-and-advice/factsheets/focus-series/herbs-menopause/

http://www.isoflavones.info/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4003706/