During menopause, many people experience hot flashes. A recent review and meta-analysis investigated whether herbal medicines may reduce discomfort. Although the authors feel encouraged by the findings, more data is needed.
The effects of hot flashes are:
They are,
Although hot flashes eventually stop without medical intervention, they can last for more than a year in some people.
Scientists know that peripheral vasodilation is involved in hot flashes, but they don’t know exactly why it occurs.
One theory is that the decline in estrogen that occurs during menopause may be a factor. Changes in serotonin and norepinephrine levels may also play a role.
Currently, doctors
Although these treatments are effective for many people, they can have unpleasant side effects. Doctors also advise against hormone replacement therapy for people with certain medical conditions, such as breast cancer.
Many people are considering complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for hot flashes because current treatments are not ideal for everyone.In fact, one
CAM comes in many forms, one of which is traditional Chinese medicine. Researchers recently conducted a review and meta-analysis of studies testing herbal medicine treatments for hot flashes. They presented their findings as follows:
After searching the literature, the authors found 19 randomized controlled trials investigating the clinical efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicines for hot flashes. A total of 2,469 participants participated in the study.
Of the 19 studies included in the review, the team included only 16 in the meta-analysis because the remaining three did not have adequate data. Overall, the authors conclude:
“This review showed that [Chinese herbal medicine] The formula could be safely applied [females with menopausal hot flashes] and can be improved [menopausal hot flash]Associated symptom scores and peripheral blood flow. ”
Importantly, the herbal intervention appeared to cause few adverse events.
The authors believe that herbal medicine may relieve hot flashes through estrogenic effects.
For example, herbs such as baixiao, danggui, jimu, chaifu, huangqing, and yinyanhuo that the researchers used in the trial contain phytoestrogens.
Phytoestrogens are structurally similar to estrogen, although they are sometimes called dietary estrogens. If decreased estrogen is contributing to hot flashes, perhaps phytoestrogens can alleviate this symptom.
The authors concluded that if the benefits of herbal medicines depend on estrogen or estrogen-like effects, “they should be used with caution when prescribed to patients with hormone-dependent diseases such as breast cancer.” I’m warning you.
Alternatively, calcitonin gene-related peptides may mediate the effect. This peptide affects peripheral circulation, and some studies suggest that certain herbal medicines may have an effect.
Although the authors’ overall conclusions are positive, their study has important limitations.
For example, authors report large differences between studies in their reviews, making it difficult to compare studies and collate results. Some studies used herbal medicines in the form of granules, while others used them in the form of capsules, decoctions, tablets, or “honey tablets.”
The studies varied in design, with some comparing herbal medicines with a placebo and others comparing them with hormone replacement therapy.
Each study also used a different herbal cocktail. For example, in one study he tested a mixture of only two herbs, and in another he investigated a blend of 31 herbs.
A total of 19 studies used 18 different herbal formulations. This variation itself makes it difficult to generalize the results and integrate the data.
Perhaps more worryingly, the authors detected a “high risk of bias” in almost half of the studies. This prejudice took many forms. For example, “his four studies investigated herbal formulas offered by pharmaceutical companies.”
In 10 of the studies, ‘blinding’ was inadequate. In other words, participants may have known they were receiving a “treatment” rather than a placebo, which may have influenced the results.
Public interest in CAM has never been greater. Currently, the existing evidence supporting herbal medicine is relatively weak. However, this type of treatment is cost-effective and often relatively safe, so it merits further investigation.
Scientists need to conduct many more well-controlled, large-scale studies before revealing the true benefits of herbal medicine.
