Soy Power
Add soy foods like tofu to your diet and keep estrogen levels in balance—safely.
By Catherine Guthrie
Eating soy foods is an easy way to keep your body in balance during both perimenopause and menopause, says Susan Lark, M.D., author of Dr. Susan Lark's Hormone Revolution (Portola Press, 2007). "The beauty of soy is that it's a switch-hitter," she explains.
Soy expresses itself differently according to how much estrogen is floating around in the body. For instance, during perimenopause, when estrogen surges can trigger heavy bleeding, soy can ameliorate symptoms by putting the brakes on the body's conversion of testosterone to estrogen. Later, during menopause, when estrogen levels nose-dive, soy's plant estrogens insert themselves in the cellular slot reserved for real estrogen. The body thinks its estrogen is back in town, she explains, and symptoms abate. "The dual benefit makes soy an awesome food for women at both stages," says Lark.
So far, however, soy foods have fallen short in the lab. In a recent review of studies published in Obstetrics & Gynecology, they failed to snuff out hot flashes in seven out of eight trials. Still, experts basing their advice on anecdotal evidence say women who are fed up with their menses have nothing to lose by giving soy a try. There is one caveat: The safety of high-dose, concentrated forms of soy phytoestrogens, called isoflavones, remains questionable—especially for women who have had reproductive cancers.
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How it works
Soy expresses itself differently according to how much estrogen is floating around in the body. For instance, during perimenopause, when estrogen surges can trigger heavy bleeding, soy can ameliorate symptoms by putting the brakes on the body's conversion of testosterone to estrogen. Later, during menopause, when estrogen levels nose-dive, soy's plant estrogens insert themselves in the cellular slot reserved for real estrogen. The body thinks its estrogen is back in town, she explains, and symptoms abate. "The dual benefit makes soy an awesome food for women at both stages," says Lark.
Evidence
So far, however, soy foods have fallen short in the lab. In a recent review of studies published in Obstetrics & Gynecology, they failed to snuff out hot flashes in seven out of eight trials. Still, experts basing their advice on anecdotal evidence say women who are fed up with their menses have nothing to lose by giving soy a try. There is one caveat: The safety of high-dose, concentrated forms of soy phytoestrogens, called isoflavones, remains questionable—especially for women who have had reproductive cancers.
Dosage: Aim for 50 to 100 mg of isoflavones per day. Some good sources include tofu (½ cup = 35 mg isoflavones), soy milk (1 cup = 40 mg isoflavones), and whole soybeans (½ cup = 150 mg isoflavones).
For more on herbs and supplements that can relieve symptoms of PMS, perimenopause, menopause, and even hormone-related depression, see the March issue of Natural Health.
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