Suffering from menopausal symptoms? Femitone may help

Femitone is a herbal combination formulated specifically to help relieve menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes, night sweats, irritability & depression. The herbal phytoestrogens used in the formula include black cohosh, sage, dong quai & wild yam.

Femitone for menopausal symptoms

Femitone is a herbal combination that has been formulated specifically to help relieve the symptoms associated with menopause.

An imbalance or lack of hormones can influence the mind and body in many ways. However, this passage through mid-life does not need to be uncomfortable. Our hormones are part of an interactive process and the key word is 'balance'.

What are phytoestrogens?

Phytoestrogens are compounds found in plants that have mild estrogenic effects. However, these compounds, at high enough levels, are capable of exerting a significant estrogenic action. Unlike conventional Hormone Replacement Therapy - HRT, phytoestrogen containing herbs are unlikely to have adverse side effects. Synthetic estrogens may increase the risk of cancer, strokes, heart attacks and gall bladder disease. These "side effects" are not attributable to phytoestrogen containing herbs.

How do phytoestrogenic herbs work?

There are two ways herbs can balance hormones:

(1) Through their action on the function of the ovaries
(2) Due to the presence of phytoestrogens

Herbs containing these components have a balancing effect on estrogen levels - whether they are too high or too low. Herbs can offer effective treatment in managing the hormonal fluctuations that occur during menopausal states.

There are herbs that contain a steroid-like substance that exhibits hormone-like activities in the body. These plant hormones work differently to synthetic hormones in the body. They can have a specific effect in one area of the body and then work synergistically to help the body restore normal function and balance.

Many woman can achieve a smooth passage through the menopause with the assistance of herbs - and without the many side effects often attributed to HRT.

Low levels of phytoestrogens are present in some foods including seaweed, beans, peas, lentils, whole grains including barley, corn, oats, carrots, apples and the cabbage family. These foods may be used alongside of phytoestrogenic herbs and soy products to manage menopause wholistically.

It is interesting to note that menopausal symptoms are not common in Asian women whose diets are high in foods and herbs containing phytoestrogens.

Herbal phytoestrogens

The scientifically researched herbs for menopausal conditions include the following:

Licorice

Glycyrrhizin, a glycoside in licorice, exhibits a regulatory action over estrogen metabolism ie when estrogen levels are too high, it inhibits the action of estrogen and when estrogen is too low, the glycyrrhizin in licorice, potentiates it. It is therefore useful for many female problems, including PMS and menopausal symptoms.

Licorice contains steroid-like compounds that can change to estradiol and estrone, which are estrogen precursors and therefore produce mild estrogenic properties.

Red Clover

Red Clover contains plant estrogens and has been used as the basis of many European menopausal remedies. As well as this, it is a powerful, but gentle blood purifier.

Black Cohosh

Black Cohosh works on the regulatory centres of the body, such as the hypothalamus and vasomotor centres, which benefits menopause. It assists in inhibiting the secretion of lutenising hormone from the pituitary gland. However, unlike estrogen therapy, Black Cohosh does not affect the release of prolactin or follicle stimulating hormone. Black Cohosh works as a result of complex actions and not by simply mimicking estrogen.

In an open study, 629 female patients were given Black Cohosh as an alternative treatment for menopausal complaints. The result produced physical and psychological improvement of menopausal symptoms in over 80% of patients within 6-8 weeks.

Sage

The phytoestrogenic substances in Sage are known to mimic estrogen, which may benefit menopausal women. This herb is able to suppress perspiration, which can help directly with hot flushes. The action of this herb starts 2 hours after the first dose is taken and may persist for several days.

Dong Quai

Studies have shown that the root of Dong Quai has an action in the body, which competes with estrogen for binding sites, thereby modulating estrogen. If estrogen levels are low, this herb is able to exert estrogenic activity, however if the levels are high, the overall estrogenic activity can be reduced, by competing for receptor binding sites.

Panax Ginseng

The estrogen-like action of this herb on vaginal tissue may prevent atrophy of the vagina. A vaginal smear on a 62-year-old woman, who had undergone a hysterectomy and bilateral ovarectomy 14 yrs earlier, showed normal vaginal and cervical tissue, with no atrophic changes. Upon investigation it was found that this women had been ingesting Romanian Ginseng for the previous year.

Ginseng does not contain estrogen, but components in this compete for estrogen and progesterone binding sites in the human myometrial cytosol.

Wild Yam

Wild Yam is a source of plant steroids, which represent a rich source of principals used as cortisone precursors in the body. Dr Russell E Maker has been successful in synthesizing the hormone progesterone and male hormone testosterone from the saponin in this plant. (Please note that this was done in a laboratory and does not indicate that these hormones can be produced in the body by this herb).

Wild Yam has been used as the starting material to synthesise many of the steroidal drugs now presently on the market - most notably are cortisone and female hormones.

Femitone is a "practitioner style" tonic, containing all of these natural herbs in a liquid formula. Taking 5ml three times a day in water will enhance the general well being of women 45+, helping to relieve the symptoms of menopause and helping relieve stress symptoms and mild anxiety.