Natural treatment for menopause: 4 steps to support your patients

Hot flushes that disrupt sleep, vaginal dryness that undermines quality of life, mood that swings from one day to the next… Looking for a natural treatment for menopause to give your patients the best possible support?

In this Simplycure webinar, Marine Dodet and Coraline Ulmer (Nutri&Co) show what research now tells us about menopause, which symptoms deserve priority attention, and how to build a natural treatment that is hormone-free and effective.

Here you will find their actionable, adaptable recommendations, so you can build complete care plans tailored to each patient.

Understanding menopause to manage it better

A quick reminder is in order: not to go back over what you already know, but to set out the hormonal context that determines whether a natural treatment is appropriate.

Menopause results from depletion of the follicular reserve and a sustained fall in oestrogen and progesterone, both regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis. It has knock-on effects across many systems (vasomotor, genitourinary, bone, cardiovascular).

Common menopause symptoms to take into account

Many signs already appear during perimenopause, the transition phase before cycles stop altogether, and they deserve to be distinguished from confirmed menopause. To find out more, see our article on perimenopause.

In practice, the manifestations of menopause fall into 3 broad groups:

Short-term symptoms: hot flushes, night sweats, disturbed sleep.

Intermediate symptoms: vaginal dryness, reduced libido, urinary problems, anxiety, weight gain.

Long-term symptoms: bone fragility, joint pain, raised cardiovascular risk.

Depending on the profile and the clinical priorities, natural support will either target one dominant symptom or work on several fronts at once.

The 4 steps of natural treatment for menopause

To work, a natural treatment for menopause has to be built as a complete protocol: act on the causes, relieve the symptoms, and protect long-term health.

Step 1: optimise lifestyle

Before thinking about supplements, the usual reflex, but still essential: optimise lifestyle. What to recommend to your patients:

Regular physical activity: 150 min/week of moderate to vigorous effort, alternating cardio and strength work.

Stress management: yoga, meditation or relaxation (documented impact on sleep¹ and climacteric symptoms²).

Diet: limit sugars, ultra-processed foods and saturated fats; favour protein, calcium + vitamin D, omega-3 and good hydration.

Moving more, handling stress better and adjusting the diet can already ease the symptoms, they give the patient an active role in her own care… and set the stage for nutraceuticals.

Step 2: act on the causes with herbal medicine

To reduce the impact of the hormone deficit, the best-documented natural option remains phytoestrogens, plant compounds whose structure is close to that of female hormones.

Main sources: soya, red clover, pulses, flaxseed.

Although their effect is more modest than that of endogenous hormones, they may help to reduce hot flushes, improve vaginal lubrication and support mood.

Why herbal medicine is often under-used

In Europe, average dietary intakes are very low (< 1 mg/day), compared with 25 to 50 mg/day in Japan, where vasomotor symptoms are markedly less common³.

Effectiveness also depends on the ability to convert these molecules into equol, their biologically active form, an ability found in only 30 to 50 % of Western women⁴.

In practice, how to maximise the effect on menopause

Introduce daily sources of phytoestrogens into the diet (tofu, tempeh, chickpeas, lentils, flaxseed).

Add, where needed, standardised extracts (e.g. red clover at 80 mg of isoflavones/day) to reach an effective intake.

Optimise equol conversion through work on the microbiota: fibre (25 to 30 g/day), prebiotics, targeted probiotics (e.g. Lactobacillus spp. and Bifidobacterium spp.).

Step 3: relieve the symptomatic consequences

Even when you work on the causes, some manifestations call for targeted support. Here too, natural solutions can be effective, provided you choose the right active ingredient for the right symptom.

Priority symptomRecommended natural protocolPrecautionsHot flushes / night sweats

• Menopause complex: red clover standardised to 20 % isoflavones (60 mg/day), patented fenugreek Libiphyne®, black cohosh.

Course of 1 to 3 months, repeatable.

Not advised where there is a personal or family history of hormone-dependent breast cancer.Vaginal dryness

• Oral hyaluronic acid of multiple molecular weights (200 mg/day)

• Borage and evening primrose oils.

Course of 1 to 3 months.

Caution where there is a known allergy to the source plants.Reduced libidoPhytoestrogen combination (dosage above) + saffron standardised to crocin and safranal (30 mg/day).Same precautions as for phytoestrogens.Recurrent urinary tract infections

• Cranberry standardised to PACs (≥ 36 mg/day)

• D-mannose (1.5 to 2 g/day)

• Vaginal probiotics (L. crispatus, 1 capsule/day).

Course of 1 to 3 months.

Caution with D-mannose in diabetes.Disturbed sleep• Phytoestrogens + gentle sedative plants (passionflower, lemon balm) at the product dosage, taken in the evening.Caution with lemon balm in uncontrolled hypothyroidism.Joint pain

• Hydrolysed collagen (5 to 10 g/day) + chondroprotective complexes (glucosamine, chondroitin).

Course of ≥ 3 months.

Caution where there is a fish or shellfish allergy, depending on the source.

Step 4: prevent the long-term effects

In postmenopause, the hormone deficit becomes established, raising the risk of osteoporosis, fractures and cardiovascular disease. Here again, simple, natural measures can protect health over the long run:

Targeted riskRecommended natural protocolPrecautionsBone fragility

• Plant-based vitamin D3 (2000 IU/day, all year round)

• Calcium (500-1000 mg/day depending on dietary intake)

• Magnesium (300-400 mg/day)

Adjust the calcium to dietary intake. Monitor in renal impairment.Joint wear

• Hydrolysed collagen (5 to 10 g/day, course of ≥ 3 months)
• Chondroprotective complexes (glucosamine, chondroitin)

• Omega-3 (1000-2000 mg/day of EPA+DHA).

Caution with anticoagulants (omega-3). Possible fish/shellfish allergy.Cardiovascular risk

• Omega-3 (1000-2000 mg/day of EPA+DHA)

• Coenzyme Q10 (100-200 mg/day, with a meal containing fat).

Caution with anticoagulants. Possible interaction between CoQ10 and some antihypertensives.

Treating menopause symptoms with a bespoke protocol, patient by patient

As you will have gathered, an effective natural treatment for menopause is never fixed: it combines lifestyle, targeted herbal medicine and symptomatic support, while building in long-term prevention. Above all, it adapts to each patient, to her own symptoms, and to how they change.

With Simplycure, you have the tools and validated formulations to build these bespoke protocols and follow them up. Browse our catalogue or get in touch to find out how to bring these solutions into your practice!