If you’re looking for an alternative to HRT or just wanting to manage your symptoms naturally, phytoestrogens could be your new best friend!
What are Phytoestrogens?
They are natural plant compounds that are structurally similar to human oestrogen and can mimic the action of oestrogen in the body. This is particularly useful in menopause as by including them in your diet, you can trick the body into thinking you have enough circulating oestrogen and reduce many of the symptoms associated with falling levels.
There are many types of phytoestrogens but the most significant for menopause symptoms is the isoflavones, most commonly found in soy products, and lignans, most commonly found in flaxseeds.
Although they are only about one-thousandth as potent as human oestrogen, research shows they can help soothe menopausal symptoms and also protect against heart disease and osteoporosis. They may also help lower your risk of hormone-related cancers.
How do they work?
Phytoestrogens work by latching on to our oestrogen receptors. By doing that, they have an oestrogenic effect, helping to balance levels in the body. Their behaviour depends on your biological levels of oestradiol, the main oestrogen in women.
If levels are high, they can help to regulate them and this can help with PMS, heavy or painful periods – and help to reduce the risk of oestrogen driven conditions like fibroids, endometriosis and breast or ovarian cancers.
Equally, as oestrogen levels start to drop at menopause, phytoestrogens can help to increase your levels naturally. This can help ease hot flushes and night sweats, and protect against osteoporosis, memory loss and heart disease in the long-term.
Natural phytoestrogens are the body’s preferred source of oestrogen next to naturally produced forms. That means they will beat toxin estrogens and even HRT to the oestrogen receptor site. This is great news but of course, you still need to make sure you’re eating a nutrient-dense diet, getting lots of rest and relaxation, maintaining a hormone balancing exercise plan and ensuring minimal exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals so that all your Feisty 4 hormones are behaving!
What are the benefits?
There have been many studies on the benefits of phytoestrogens. These include;
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- Reduce menopausal hot flushes
- Prevent bone loss, protecting against osteoporosis
- Regulate cholesterol levels
- Normalise blood glucose levels
- Regulate the menstrual cycle
- Help prevent oestrogen-dependent cancers (breast, ovarian, prostate)
- Improve brain fog and memory loss
How to include them in your diet
There are lots of sources of phytoestrogens, but the 2 that are most researched and effective are soy and flaxseeds.
Soy – it’s important to avoid any GM soy, so always buy organic where possible (eg good brands are Sojade, Provamel). Here are some ideas;
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- organic unsweetened soy milk
- organic soy natural yoghurt
- organic tofu
- edamame beans
Some people are intolerant to soy, so if you have any reaction when eating soy, do stop! You can always take supplements (see below).
Flaxseeds (or linseeds) = 1-2 tbsp per day (milled to get the lignans)
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- sprinkle on yoghurt
- put in your smoothie
- make some flaxseed crackers
- sprinkle on salads or soups
Other much lesser sources of phytoestrogens;
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- chickpeas and hummus
- sesame seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- alfalfa sprouts
- mung beans
- rye bran
Supplements
If you can’t take soy for any reason, or don’t like it, supplements can help. With so many aimed at menopause on the market, it can be very confusing to know which to take.
Promensil has been shown in many clinical trials to be very effective. It’s a red clover extract which has a high isoflavone content.
So if you’re suffering menopausal symptoms I’d encourage you to include phytoestrogens in your diet and see how they help. If you want some personalised help or find out more about our hormone testing, do contact us and we can set up a call.