There are such serious side effects to traditional menopausal treatments that there has been a huge surge of interest in natural treatments such as herbal supplements. Herbal supplements are safer with far fewer side effects and just as effective. There are many herbs that might benefit your menopausal symptoms but we will only go over just a few of the most used herbs and how they work. How to choose the supplement with the highest quality is important for you to understand.

Herbs for Menopause

Black Cohosh works by decreasing the luteinizing hormone that is largely responsible for many of your menopausal symptoms. Its effectiveness then is from its ability to reduce the levels of this hormone. If this hormone increases, you will experience the typical symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes.

Red Clover extract is not as well known as Black Cohosh. It works because it contains isoflavones (substances similar to estrogen) and the effects of red clover extract tend to differ according to the stage of menopause you might be experiencing.  It is believed that the isoflavones act as weak estrogens.

Chasteberry is very popular in Europe because it contains both estrogen and progesterone-like compounds. This makes it popular for treating menopausal symptoms while it is possible that this herb helps reduce the luteinizing hormone similar to Black Cohosh.

Dong Quai has been around for centuries. It is not known if it is as effective as Black Cohosh but Dong Quai has been used in the Native American cultures and is also thought to have mild estrogenic effects.

Wild yam is supposed to be as effective as estrogen replacement therapy.  According to some studies that have been done on wild yam, it may help post-menopausal vaginal dryness.  Wild yam may also be beneficial in treating premenstrual symptoms.