Herbal remedies have played a major part in the treatment of all sorts of ailments and conditions since the mists of time.
We’d be the first to agree that modern medicine has moved us on enormously and enabled us to cure and alleviate the symptoms of all sorts of illnesses that were previously impossible to resolve.
However, it’s worth remembering that many modern medicines have their basis in natural products and that it’s not entirely coincidental that the big pharmaceutical companies spend time and money searching for and testing plant extracts from the remote parts of the world in the hope of finding compounds that can be used to develop new drugs
Whilst I was looking into alternative treatments for the effects of my Menopause I was struck by the number of herbal remedies on the market, and the number of individuals I came across in blogs and chatrooms who felt that natural remedies had worked for them.
We’re not experts, but it seems that for something so long term and gradual as the Perimenopause some of these more gentle natural remedies could well work effectively.
Generally speaking it seems that most of the “hard” medical research undertaken into herbal remedies suggests that they have some effect but find it difficult to explain the mechanism by which this takes place. A good place to look if you want more information is The US National Institute of Health web site.
In the survey we undertook of those respondents who were using any sort of medication, including herbal remedies, 25% were currently using either HRT alone, or HRT alongside herbal remedies, and the remainder were using herbal remedies alone.
So it seems that, as with most things, it’s “horses for courses”.