Learn How To Use Soy Products For Menopause Relief

By Carla A. Demtrius


Menopause is experienced by all women. It occurs in women who are 40 to 60 years old, after their ovaries stop producing the hormones estrogen and progesterone, which regulate the menstrual cycle in females. When the ovaries no longer produce estrogen and progesterone, this cycle ends.

After reaching menopause, most women suffer from uncomfortable side effects such as hot flashes and vaginal dryness because of the diminished levels of hormones in their bodies. Thankfully, women can tweak their diets in order to minimize menopausal symptoms. One of the things they can do is to consume more products that contain soy. Taking soy products for hot flashes is effective.

The soybean is different from other plant foods because of its high protein content. It also contains isoflavones and fiber. Isoflavones are a kind of phytoestrogen, which is a chemical that is found in plants and functions like estrogen. The human body uses isoflavones like estrogen in a certain way. They have a beneficial effect on health. The most recent evidence comes from a review of nineteen studies that involved more than 1,200 women.



Researchers were first interested in studying the effects of soy on menopause symptoms after they discovered that Japanese women experienced hot flashes less often. They attributed this to the consumption of many soy foods throughout the lifespan of these women. You can also benefit from soy even if you have never used it in your life. Phytoestrogens can relieve hot flashes effectively, but they may fail to eliminate this menopausal symptom totally if it is severe. For this treatment to take effect, it should be given sufficient time. Generally, the results can be noticed after four to twelve days.

According to some experts, most menopausal women now use natural remedies to cope with symptoms like night sweating, hot flashes and mood swings. They do this because they are afraid of the side effects of hormone replacement therapy. Several studies show that women who take a large amount of soy based phytoestrogens experience fewer menopausal complications.

Some of the soy products you can use include soy milk, tofu, edamame, soy nuts, soy hot dogs, soy burgers, soy ice cream, miso and many other foods to which soy protein or soy has been added. Using soy products daily has no known risks. However, for some individuals, soy foods upset the digestive system. The long term effects of a diet high in soy have not been studied well. Your goal should be to consume an average amount of soy in your diet.

The effects of Isoflavones last for a short time. If you want to use soy foods and supplements for your health, your daily consumption of isoflavones should be between 40 and 80 milligrams. Note that soy protein is not soy isoflavone. Therefore, consuming high protein soy foods does not mean that you will consume a large amount of Isoflavones.

Apart from taking soy products for hot flashes, you can utilize them for caring for the skin. Soy is beneficial for skin in a number of ways. If you use soy products for skin care, you can tighten sagging skin, reduce wrinkles and reverse sun damage. Soy is a good moisturizer and for this reason, skin care products that contain soy make the skin tone even and have a softening or smoothing effect on the skin.




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