Soy
Some women use soy to manage menopause symptoms like night sweats and hot flashes. Soy contains large quantities of isoflavones or phytoestrogens, which are estrogens from plants. Isoflavones bind to the estrogen receptors in the body, reducing the frequency of hot flashes.
Several studies have shown that soy might be effective in treating symptoms of menopause. Similar to other natural remedies for menopausal symptoms, other studies did not reveal any benefits. However, experts say menopausal women should only use the food forms of soy, such as soymilk and tofu. They do not recommend using soy in powder or tablet form because the amounts of isoflavones are much higher than what occurs naturally in food.
Aside from tofu and soymilk, you can get isoflavones from edamame, miso, and tempeh. While the acceptance in the medical community is still divided, more doctors are looking at the positive results of the studies, which indicate that soy can help reduce the intensity and frequency of hot flashes by around 50 percent.
For menopausal women who want to try soy, nutritionists recommend having two servings of soy a day. Two servings are equivalent to about 50mg.
