Phytoestrogens
One over-the-counter approach to treating menopausal symptoms is to use plant-based sources of estrogenic-like compounds such as soy and flax seed. Most of these substances have 10 to 1000 times weaker affinity for estrogen receptors than do the actual hormone, and so the effects are likely to be smaller and more subtle.
5 Major classes of phytoestrogens
Isoflavones – variety of fruits and vegetables
Unprocessed soy beans have highest amounts
Other places to find: peanut, sunflower seeds, walnuts
Coumestans – hard to get in the diet, legume pods
Lignans – seeds, whole grains cruciferous vegetables
Flax seed most commonly studied
Flavanoids – fruit, hops
Stilbines – Resveratrol (wine, grapes)
In some countries, people consume larger quantities of foods that contain estrogenic-like compounds than we do in the United States. While these differences in food consumption may be shown related to the lower level of menopausal symptoms found in Asia and other parts of the world, current findings from clinical trials remain mixed. Scientific evidence in this area will be discussed further in the next section on soy.