Familiar with favourite teas picked by most health care practitioners, so you know what to choose next time when you step into a health food store.
Menopausal symptoms, including (but not limited to) night sweats, insomnia, mental disturbance and hot flashes, are usually caused by hormonal imbalance, mainly because of estrogen deficiency.
Dong quai, also known as female ginseng, is a well-known herb used for female health. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Dong quai is used to tonify and nourish the blood, and benefits for premenstrual syndrome (PMS), menopause, and period cramps.
Black cohosh is another popular herb used to relieve perimenopause and menopause symptoms. A German study of 629 women using black cohosh found improved physical and psychological menopausal symptoms in more than 80% of the participants within four weeks. Yet, it is not recommended to take it for the long term.
Vitex berries, also known as chaste tree berries, help to normalize the estrogen level in the female endocrine system and relieve menopausal symptoms. It has been used in traditional medicine for many years.
Some medications may interact with these herbs, carefully check with your current supplements/medications, or consult with your healthcare practitioners.
Dong quai, black cohosh, vitex berries, and licorice are all considered phytoestrogens, or plant estrogens, and help with replenishing low estrogen or balancing high estrogen.
Taken together, these phytoestrogens can also protect against xenoestrogens, man-made chemicals that mimic the estrogen hormone and contribute to a majority of PMS symptoms.
