Herbs For Hot Flashes Are Effective and Safe For Most Women
by Patsy Hamilton
Even though herbs for hot flashes are effective and believed to be safe, because of their history of use in traditional medicine and modern day scientific evaluations, and hormone replacement therapy increases a woman�s risk of developing breast cancer, blood clots, heart disease and stroke, some medical doctors still recommend hormones and won�t recommend herbs. Although the words hot flashes, woman, middle aged and menopause are not synonymous, most women do experience them. And, although they are not life-threatening, they are annoying, they interfere with our sleep and increase our anxiety, frustration and mood swings.
Some researchers have suggested that doctors should discuss alternative treatment options, such as herbs, for hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. In February of 2005, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists expanded estrogen advice and �renounced herbs for hot flashes.� Their latest brochure titled �Herbal Products for Menopause� begins with �Treatment with hormone therapy may relieve some symptoms of menopause, but also poses some health risks.� It is a fairly informative brochure, does not really �renounce� herbs, but doesn�t really support their usage.
The brochure is somewhat misleading, because it states that the federal government does not approve herbal products. When, in fact, the FDA regulates the manufacture of herbal products and dietary supplements by regularly inspecting facilities for cleanliness and safety, evaluating product labeling for improper health claims and by recalling and seizing unsafe or tainted products and those that make unapproved health claims. They do not approve herbal products in the way that they approve prescription drugs. They regulate them in the same way that they regulate other food products.
The FDA was established thousands of years after the use of herbs for hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause began. If you look up hot flashes, woman, middle aged or hormonal imbalances in an herbalist�s encyclopedia or other texts related to herbal remedies, you may find alfalfa, black cohosh, black mustard, celery, echinacea, fennel, ginseng, goldenseal, horehound, Norwegian kelp, papaya, red clover, sarsaparilla, watercress, wild licorice or others. Modern day scientists have evaluated some of these including black cohosh, red clover, sarsaparilla and ginseng.
In ancient times, healers used the plants that were locally available, so recommendations from different cultures vary. The helpful herbs for hot flashes listed above, for example, are those used by Native American healers. Dong quai, on the other hand, was used by traditional Chinese healers to relieve hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. Manufacturers of the best herbal supplements use the knowledge that has been handed down from traditional healers throughout the world, so an effective product for menopause relief may contain a number of different herbs, some familiar, some not so familiar.
There are numerous scientific and clinical studies relating to the use of herbs for hot flashes. You can view them yourself at PubMed, a website provided by the National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health. You can type a general search term like �hot flashes woman middle aged� or search for specific herbs for hot flashes, like dong quai or black cohosh. We summarize many of the studies at the Menopause and PMS guide. Visit us for more information.
Patsy Hamilton was a health care professional for more than twenty years before she became a freelance writer. Currently she writes informational articles related to women�s health for the Menopause and PMS Guide. Read more at www.menopause-and-pms-guide.com.
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