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Menopause symptoms - what really works?
I am 50 this year and in pretty good health except for symptoms caused by the menopause. These include mood swings, backache, depression, swollen ankles, night sweats, low libido, and sore breasts. I have taken kava kava, damiana, and ginseng from time to time but am desperate for something that really works.
Since the controversy surrounding the long-term use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has hit the headlines again recently, I make no apology for returning to this subject again or for recommending what I consider to be the very best herbal remedy currently available.
If you missed these headlines, you may not know scientists have now abandoned a major research programme into the benefits of HRT after a new study showed that taking hormone replacements in the longer term not only increases the risk of breast cancer by 26% but also the risk of blood clots.
The herbal alternative is Meno Herb, which is designed to help relieve all the symptoms you complain of. It includes hormone-rebalancing red clover, dong quai and black cohosh, plus wild yam (natural progesterone), raspberry leaf, squaw vine and liver-cleansing nettles. There is no question that this formulation works - 98% of women who use it report a dramatic improvement within three weeks - but you must continue to take it every day and, as with all herbal remedies, give it more time, preferably three months, to take full effect.
Lots of menopausal women cleverly combine Meno Herb with Woman Essence, one of the powerful Australian Bush Essence combinations now on sale in this country. A tincture, which is safe to combine with other medication, it includes She Oak which further works to help regulate the ovaries.
*Meno-herb costs £18.95 for 90 tablets and is only available from Victoria Health on 0800-413596. Take two a day for maintenance but when symptoms are acute, increase this dosage to 3 x 2 tablets a day. Woman essence costs £7.95 for 30ml and is available from Ancient Roots (0208-421 9877).