The 21st Century Woman – Part II
Herbal Medicines for PMS and Menopause
By Dr. Michael Ruscio
Many women have heard about anti-depressants or birth control for their PMS and menopausal symptoms, but what about natural herbal alternatives? Let’s take a moment to discuss what herbal medicines have to offer the 21st century woman so that you are aware of all your options.
In my last article we laid a good foundation, discussing the most common causes of female hormone imbalances. If you didn’t read the article, the main premise was PMS and menopausal symptoms are usually caused by hormonal imbalances. Building on this foundation, let’s continue with natural treatments.
We first need to break down female hormone imbalances as causing two different categories of symptoms; neurological and physical. Of course the mental and physical symptoms are linked and do influence one another, but to help understand natural treatments it helps to discuss them separately.
Neurological symptoms typically result from an imbalance in brain hormones, technically known as neurotransmitters. There are 3 hormones that are of importance. They are serotonin, dopamine and GABA. Serotonin makes you feel happy and helps you sleep. Dopamine helps you focus, be energized/motivated, learn and not feel overwhelmed. GABA helps you relax. Most anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications work to increase serotonin, dopamine and GABA.
Natural medicines and conventional pharmaceutical drugs can both increase serotonin, dopamine and GABA. However, natural medicines may provide a safer alternative as the side effects are usually mild to none. Please don’t take my word for it though; we will discuss what current science is showing in a moment.
Before we do, let’s address the physical symptoms associated with PMS and menopause. Most physical symptoms are caused by fluctuations or imbalances in estrogen and progesterone. Estrogen and progesterone share a yin-yang relationship, meaning they have to be in the proper balance relative to one another for a woman to feel well. The beauty of herbal medicines is that they can restore your hormones to the appropriate level whether they are high or low. This is referred to as a process called adaptogenicity. Let’s take a brief look at what modern science is showing.
For all of the following scientific research studies I will provide an ID number. If you would like to see this study yourself, simply go to www.pubmed.com and type the ID number in the search box.
A very well performed study (17461529) found that combining the herbs Black Cohosh and St. John’s Wort provided significant relief for menopausal symptoms, especially hot flashes. Shortly after this study, another was published (15863547) showing that in the 304 women studied, Black Cohosh was again an effective treatment for menopausal symptoms.
Another very effective herb is Chaste Tree (aka Vitex Agnus). A study published in 2010 (20334585) showed that Chaste Tree was effective for treating PMS symptoms. In fact, all measured PMS symptoms (mood, water retention, food cravings and pain) were significantly reduced within 3 months of treatment. Another study of 170 women (11159568) showed a similar positive effect on PMS with Chaste Tree.
If you’re asking yourself, aren’t drugs more powerful? You might find this interesting. A study comparing an anti-depressant medication to Chaste Tree (aka vitex agnus) showed nearly identical improvements in PMS symptoms (12672170). Let’s not forget about intimacy. A review of 26 published studies showed DHEA provided mood and libido improvements for women with adrenal fatigue (17208951).
Herbal medicines have much to offer the 21st century woman. One word of caution though, please be careful not to self-diagnose and treat. A skilled clinician can ensure proper use of herbal medicines, especially when it comes to navigating issues of quality control and dose.
If PMS or menopausal symptoms are bothering you, there is help. Invest the time and energy to feel better. Your family, friends, loved ones, and especially You deserve to have the healthiest, happiest version of you.
