How can naturopathic and lifestyle approaches help address peri - menopausal symptoms and help with general women's wellness?

I recently ran a Women's Wellness Workshop along with Tash from NRG Therapy (nrgtherapy.co.uk) focusing on women's hormones. The evening was fantastic and along with talking about symptom management we also discussed some important underlying root cause considerations.

Firstly, phytoestrogens, a crucial component of our diet during the menopausal journey and for general wellbeing. Phytoestrogens are natural plant compounds that can gently mimic the effects of oestrogen in the body. They play a significant role in helping to balance hormones. If your oestrogen levels are low—like during menopause—phytoestrogens can help boost oestrogen. On the other hand, if there’s an excess of oestrogen in the body (which can happen with PMS or hormone imbalances), they can help block that excess.

But that’s not all! Phytoestrogens come with a host of other health benefits. They act as antioxidants, helping to protect our tissues from free radical damage, which contributes to aging and disease. They also help prevent bone loss, support heart health, and may offer anti-inflammatory benefits.

 Here are some fantastic food sources to include in your diet:

• 🌱 Soy (tofu, tempeh, soy milk) Please make sure this is organic. Soy is one of the most heavily sprayed crops in the world.

• 🌱 Flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds

• 🌱 Chia seed

• 🌱 Sesame seeds

• 🌱 Chickpeas & lentils

• 🌱 Berries & red grapes

  
  

Adding more of these foods to your meals can make a real difference in supporting hormonal balance and overall health.

We also discussed how herbal medicine can help with sleep. There are so many herbs that can help you relax, fall asleep, and stay asleep. I touched on three popular ones:

1. Ashwagandha, an herb used in Ayurvedic medicine, it is a gentle herb known for calming the body. It helps balance blood sugar and supports energy levels without being a stimulant like coffee. It nourishes the adrenal glands, giving you more energy reserves for the day but also helps with relaxation before bed.

   
   

2. Lavender is one of the most accessible and calming herbs you can use. You can add it to your bath, place it under your pillow, or make lavender tea. Its relaxing effects are perfect for winding down at the end of a long day.

   
   

3. Passionflower is wonderful for calming the racing thoughts that keep you awake at night. It helps reduce anxiety, stress, and overthinking, which can make it easier to unwind and fall asleep. Passionflower is a go-to for people dealing with mental restlessness and one of my personal favourites'.

   
   

These herbs, like most herbs can be taken in various forms:

• Tea (gentle, but slower acting)

• Tinctures (concentrated, for stronger effects)

• Capsules or powders (easy to add to meals and smoothies)

  
  

Always check with an herbalist for the right dosing and to ensure there are no contraindications with medicines you are on. Herbals medicine should also not be taken when pregnant or breastfeeding.

I then focused on 3 keys symptoms of the menopausal journey:

• Moods

• Vaginal dryness and cystitis

• Hot Flashes

Moods

Let's discuss about moods first. This is a time where we may be feeling imbalanced.  We are potentially not feeling grounded and connected with the body. We can be feeling the stress of various symptoms, and the stress of general life. Children are young, parents are old. Taking time out and getting support is needed. I love the idea of having a room, or a space in your home that is just yours.  A place that you can go to, to retreat, to regather your thoughts and realign yourself.

We couldn’t talk about moods without touching on sunlight. You need to get exposure to sunlight.  This sounds like an obvious thing to say, but most of the population are vitamin d deficient. Low levels of Vitamin D may contribute to poorly regulated mood and behaviour, as a deficiency can impair cognitive function and brain health. You can get Vitamin D in supplement form, The company “Better you”, do a great Vit D spray and offer vitamin D testing - which I would highly recommend, but you can also get it also by getting out into sunlight. The benefit of getting out into nature and sunlight exposure is heavily researched. 

But, let the light actually hit your skin. We are obsessed with blocking out the sun with sunglasses and sunscreen.  I’m not saying go bake in the sun, but especially somewhere like the UK where we get limited sunshine, spending a sensible time getting some morning or afternoon sun on your skin and in your eyes. The knock on effect on our health and happiness of sensible sun exposure is huge. When using sunscreen try using natural brands like the brand “Green People” to avoid harmful chemicals like parabens.

Renee and Tash presenting to a group of women

Secondly, focused on supporting the liver. A lot of menopausal symptoms can be due to a congested liver. This is a very naturopathic way of thinking and may be new to many people.  If you have ever seen an acupuncturist, they may be looking at your tongue, taking your pulse and saying you have something called hot liver / or rising liver heat.

In Chinese medicine, the liver is the seat of anger so we might find our moods being linked to a liver under stress. 

Liver congestion occurs when the liver becomes sluggish and overwhelmed, leading to a buildup of toxins, fats, and waste products. This can result from poor diet, excessive alcohol consumption, chronic stress, or exposure to environmental toxins. When the liver is congested, its ability to detox hormones, and support digestion becomes impaired.

The liver has to do a lot of work detoxing our hormones but also synthetic hormones (think BPA found in water bottles and packing, chemicals found in beauty products (that's another workshop), pesticides and herbicides). The liver is crucial for processing and eliminating excess oestrogen. When liver detoxification is inefficient, oestrogen can accumulate, potentially leading to hormonal imbalances.

Common Symptoms of Liver Congestion include:

• Hormonal imbalances (PMS, irregular periods)

• Mood swings, irritability, or depression

• Digestive issues like bloating, constipation, nausea

• Fatigue and low energy

• Skin problems (acne, eczema, rashes)

• Brain fog 

• Weight gain, especially around the abdomen

  
  
  
  

So, how can we support liver detoxification?

• Firstly, we can increase bitter foods in our diet. (dandelion greens, which you can pick from your garden and add to salad & artichoke and radishes to name a couple). Bitter foods support the liver primarily by stimulating digestion and bile production. Bitters often contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds that protect liver cells from damage caused by toxins, alcohol, and poor diet.

  
  

• Secondly, we can increase vegetables from the cabbage family. (like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, and cabbage) These are excellent for liver health because they support detoxification, hormone balance, and inflammation reduction. These vegetables contain sulfur compounds, which help make toxin removal more efficient.

  
  

• And finally, we can use liver-supportive herbs like milk thistle, dandelion root, burdock root.

  
  

Milk thistle is one of the most well-known herbs for liver health and as side note is often suggested to help with hangovers due to its detoxing properties. Its active compound, silymarin, has powerful detoxifying, anti-inflammatory, and regenerative effects on liver cells. It is what we call Heptoprotective, meaning protecting the liver from damage. 

Dandelion Root: encourages the liver to produce more bile. It enhances liver detoxification by helping the liver filter out toxins, chemicals, and heavy metals more effectively.

And finally, Burdock root. Burdock root is a powerful detoxifying and hormone-balancing herb that supports liver function and skin health—all crucial for women’s well-being.

Burdock root supports the clearance of excess hormones, which can be beneficial for managing symptoms related to PMS, menstrual irregularities, or other hormone-related issues

The great thing about herbal medicine, is you aren’t just working on one specific element of the body, you are working on the whole body.

Vaginal Dryness

Moving on, we discussed how many women experience issues ‘down there’ at this time. Some women may experience vaginal dryness and urinary tract infections.  We need to discuss how we hydrate the body. We don’t just do this through water, we need water and oils to keep the body lubricated.  

Let's talk a bit about Fatty acids. Fatty acids can be taken in supplement form but ideally you would get these from food source:

Sources include:

• Fatty Fish: I like to use the SMASH reference to remember these: 

S:Salmon, M:Mackeral, A:Anchovies, S:Sardines, H:Herring

• Chia Seeds

• Flaxseeds & Flaxseed Oil (Keep in the fridge due to oxidation)

• Eggs (especially pasture-raised or omega-3 enriched)

  
  

The vagina has its own microbiome. There is a lot of research about the gut microbiome and all the bacterias in it, but we don’t talk a lot about the vaginal microbiome.  You can actually get tests to look at your vaginal microbiome and by supporting the gut microbiome with pre / probiotics this will in turn support the vaginal health too. But you can also use vaginal probiotics that can help regulate the microbiome itself.

There are wonderful herbs that can support our vaginal health. Primarily Red Clover. It is rich in phytoestrogens. It can thin the blood, so want to be cautious if you are on blood thinners, but it is very calming, it is good for the liver. Red clover is very good for the whole body.  But the great thing for women at this time is that it is rich in phytoestrogens which can help with vaginal lubrication, relieve cystitis , ease anxiety, and improve hot flashes. It also tastes a bit like black tea so is pleasant to drink.

What I do is infuse red clover overnight in hot water.  What this does is draws out the minerals in red clover, so you are drinking a superfood infusion. 

You can also make salves out of liquorice root, comfrey or fennel. I make a lovely one using Calendula and Red clover in my clinic.

For urinary tract infections, we want to start by promoting the health of the body. Removing processed sugar, getting in probiotics like our fermented food, supporting our immunity. We want to do the foundational stuff to reduce the risk of getting them in the first place. But then when we have them we want stuff on hand as they are horrid. So having in your first aid kit ready to go;

Cornsilk: Is exactly what it says it is. The silk threads on the outside of the corn on the cob. If you have corn on the cob, you can take the silk and add hot water to it. It is incredibly soothing to the urinary track.  You can also buy it dry to have on hand.

And finally, Echinacea. You would have seen echinacea  promoted for preventing colds and flu but it is a wonderful antibacterial so can be very helpful. Then the usual cranberry juice - I also rely on amazing cranberry powder & vitamin C.

There were so many symptoms that I could spoken about but the final one was Hot Flashes.

Sharon Blackie the author of Hagitude describes the internal fire of menopause as a powerful and transformative force. She sees the physical symptoms, like hot flashes, not as discomforts to be avoided but as manifestations of a deeper, inner energy that signals change. This internal fire is a metaphor for the liberation and power that women experience as they move through menopause.

But that doesn't mean that hot flashes are pleasant and always welcome, especially when experienced at a non-opportune moment.  Hot flashes and hormonal change come at a time when we are just starting to feel secure. Big life changes have all been made, this may look like house purchases and career stability. And then bam, a change outside of our control.

Hot flashes are thought to be caused by bursts of the luteinising hormone trying to stimulate the ovaries. And are also exacerbated by poor liver clearance of hormones. So a liver detox should help here.

They are made worse by:

• Alcohol

• Hot drinks

• Hot spices

• Anxiety

• Stress

  
  

And made better by:

• Cool drinks

• Wearing layer of clothing so you can adjust your temperature

• Food with oestrogenic activity…. The phytoestrogens mentioned earlier.

From an herbal medicine POV, Sage is a hero. Sage may dry up night sweats, cold sweats, hot flashes, ease nerves and anxiety. But it can also relieve emotional swings and headaches, reduce bladder infections and improve mental clarity.  My garden is full of sage, it a simple and hardy herb to grow. I tend to make a big pot of it and put it in my drink bottle to have throughout the day. 

Intense hot flashes or night sweats that disrupt sleep or cause significant distress may be worth discussing with a doctor. Some women may experience these symptoms more severely than others, and there are treatment options to help manage them. Remember we always have options available to us.  The more knowledge we have, the more empowered we are.

And as a reminder, always check with an herbalist for the right dosing and to ensure there are no contraindications with medicines you are on. Herbals medicine should also not be taken when pregnant or breastfeeding.