Find Out More About Using Soy Products For Menopause Relief

By Brenda Stephens


All women experience menopause after attaining the age of 40 to 60 years. This is a time when the ovaries do not produce the estrogen and progesterone hormones. These hormones control the menstrual cycle and after the ovaries stop secreting them, the menstrual cycle stops.

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 differs from other plant foods because it contains high levels of protein, fiber and isoflavones. Isoflavones are an estrogen that occurs naturally in legumes. They function in the same way as estrogen in the body and have several health benefits. This was confirmed in 19 recent studies that were done on more than one thousand two hundred women.



The interest in soy and how it helps relieve hot flashes began when researchers in Japan concluded that the low frequency of hot flashes in Japanese women could be due to the fact that they consume many soy foods in their lifetime. Fortunately, soy is also beneficial for women who have never consumed soy food. Phytoestrogens relieve hot flashes, but they many not relive this symptom if it is serious. When using any natural treatment, allowing some time for the treatment to take effect is essential. Generally, women who choose to eat soy foods can begin seeing results after a period of four to twelve days.

Many women who have reached menopause choose to use natural remedies in order to cope with mood swings, hot flashes and night sweating. They prefer natural remedies because of fearing the side effects associated with hormone replacement therapy. Studies indicate that women can experience fewer menopausal complications if they increase the intake of soy based phytoestrogens.

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 using soy products for hot flashes and other menopausal symptoms, you can also use them for skin care. Soy is known to have several positive effects on the skin. Using soy products for skin care is a great way to tighten sagging skin, reverse sun damage and diminish wrinkles. Soy acts as a good moisturizer. Moisturizers that contain soy have a smoothing or softening effect. They also help even out the skin tone.




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