The influence of phytoestrogens on alleviating symptoms associated with menopause

KOTUSIEWICZ, Wiktoria, SIEKIERKO, Nikola, ŻOŁNIEREK, Maja, LEWANDOWSKI, Mateusz, GACOŃ, Ewa, ZEMBALA, Julita, ZAPAŁA, Brygida, ZĄBER, Aldona, KUCHARSKI, Jakub & ŚWIĘTOCHOWSKI, Jakub. The influence of phytoestrogens on alleviating symptoms associated with menopause. Journal of Education, Health and Sport. 2023;38(1):11-22. eISSN 2391-8306. DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.12775/JEHS.2023.38.01.001

https://apcz.umk.pl/JEHS/article/view/43842

https://zenodo.org/record/8007873

 

 

 

 

 

The journal has had 40 points in Ministry of Education and Science of Poland parametric evaluation. Annex to the announcement of the Minister of Education and Science of December 21, 2021. No. 32343.

Has a Journal's Unique Identifier: 201159. Scientific disciplines assigned: Physical Culture Sciences (Field of Medical sciences and health sciences); Health Sciences (Field of Medical Sciences and Health Sciences).

Punkty Ministerialne z 2019 - aktualny rok 40 punktów. Załącznik do komunikatu Ministra Edukacji i Nauki z dnia 21 grudnia 2021 r. Lp. 32343. Posiada Unikatowy Identyfikator Czasopisma: 201159.

Przypisane dyscypliny naukowe: Nauki o kulturze fizycznej (Dziedzina nauk medycznych i nauk o zdrowiu); Nauki o zdrowiu (Dziedzina nauk medycznych i nauk o zdrowiu).

© The Authors 2023;

This article is published with open access at Licensee Open Journal Systems of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland

Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author (s) and source are credited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non commercial license Share alike.

(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper.

Received: 04.05.2023. Revised: 05.06.2023. Accepted: 05.06.2023. Published: 13.06.2023.

 

 

 

 

 

The influence of phytoestrogens on alleviating symptoms associated with menopause

 

Wiktoria Kotusiewicz

Wojskowy Instytut Medyczny- Państwowy Instytut Badawczy, ul. Szaserów 128, 04-141 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4033-0648, ww.kotusiewicz@gmail.com

 

Nikola Siekierko

Szpital Praski p.w. Przemienienia Pańskiego, Aleja Solidarności 67, 03-401 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1113-7112, n.siekierko@gmail.com

 

Maja Żołnierek

Samodzielny Publiczny Specjalistyczny Szpital Zachodni im. Św. Jana Pawła II, ul. Daleka 11, 05-825 Grodzisk Mazowiecki, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9030-7505, maja.zolnierek@gmail.com

 

Mateusz Lewandowski

Centralny Szpital Kliniczny UCK WUM, ul. Banacha 1A, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4968-1770, xm.lewandowski@gmail.com

 

Ewa Gacoń

Szpital Praski p.w. Przemienienia Pańskiego, Aleja Solidarności 67, 03-401 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0009-0009-8080-2655, ewagacon97@gmail.com 

 

Julita Zembala

Uniwersyteckie Centrum Kliniczne Warszawskiego Uniwersytetu Medycznego, ul. Lindleya 4, 02-005 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5709-5691, zembalajulita@gmail.com

 

Brygida Zapała

Szpital Praski p.w. Przemienienia Pańskiego, Aleja Solidarności 67, 03-401 Warsaw, Poland https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1579-5697, brygida.zapala@gmail.com

 

Aldona Ząber

Wojskowy Instytut Medyczny- Państwowy Instytut Badawczy, ul. Szaserów 128, 04-141 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0009-0004-3577-3203, aldonazaber@gmail.com

 

Jakub Kucharski

Szpital Praski p.w. Przemienienia Pańskiego, Aleja Solidarności 67, 03-401 Warsaw, Poland

https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2517-7243, kuba.kucharski.97@gmail.com 

 

Jakub Świętochowski

Uniwersyteckie Centrum Kliniczne w Gdańsku, ul. Dębinki 7, 80-952 Gdansk, Poland

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3848-6520, jakub.swiet@gmail.com

 

Słowa kluczowe

menopause; phytoestrogens; osteoporosis; hot flushes

 

Introduction and purpose. Menopause causes complaints such as hot flashes, night sweats, sleep problems and vaginal dryness. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is an effective treatment option for women with moderate to severe symptoms. In women who are unable to undergo HRT, plant-based preparations containing phytoestrogens can be used as an alternative. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the effectiveness of phytoestrogen supplementation.

State of knowledge. Phytoestrogens are natural compounds structurally similar to estrogens, such as estradiol. They are divided into different classes, including isoflavones and lignans. Isoflavones, including genistein, found in soy products, cause a significant reduction in the severity of hot flashes, as well as improvements in vaginal dryness and sexual function. Lignans, found in flaxseed, sesame seeds and whole grains, have effects similar to endogenous estrogens, but studies to date have not shown significant efficacy of this group of substances in reducing menopausal symptoms. Resveratrol, a naturally occurring compound found in grapes and berries, has a weak estrogenic effect, whereby several clinical trials have demonstrated the effectiveness of resveratrol supplementation in alleviating menopausal symptoms.

Conclusions. Phytoestrogens have been shown to alleviate some symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes and night sweats, and may also have positive effects on bone density and cognitive abilities. Effects may vary depending on the source, dose and duration of treatment. There are also potential risks associated with their use, for which reason more research is needed to fully understand their effectiveness and safety.