Restore Hormone Balance in Menopause

For centuries, the herb fenugreek has been used in traditional medicine to promote hormonal balance and ease the symptoms of menopause.

Modern science has confirmed these benefits.

In multiple clinical trials,^1-5 a standardized fenugreek seed extract was shown to support healthy estrogen levels and ease the most common discomforts of menopause.

In one study, fenugreek extract reduced:³

• Hot flashes by 35%,
• Night sweats by 25%,
• Depressive mood by 43%,
• Sleep problems by 30%,
• Vaginal dryness by 11%, and
• Leg joint and muscle discomfort by 37%.

This article describes clinical data supporting these impressive findings.

How Menopause Harms Health

Menopause officially starts when a woman has gone 12 months without menstruating.

Symptoms usually begin when a woman is in her 40s as a result of reduced production of the hormones estrogen and progesterone.

Worldwide, about 57% of women experience unpleasant menopausal symptoms such as night sweats and hot flashes.⁶

Declining estrogen can also lead to psychological symptoms like mood swings, anxiety, and depression, along with vaginal dryness and discomfort that makes intimacy painful.⁷

Low estrogen levels can also adversely affect women's long-term health.

For example, loss of estrogen contributes to brain aging, slowing synaptic connections in the brain and impairing neuroplasticity. This makes it difficult for women to learn new things and to recall skills and memories formed earlier in life.^8,9

Estrogen has a protective effect on cardiovascular health by maintaining the flexibility of blood vessels, reducing inflammation, and regulating cholesterol levels.

During menopause, the decline in estrogen can lead to loss of blood vessel elasticity, plaque development, and increased inflammation, increasing risk of cardiovascular disease.^10,11

Raising estrogen levels can help reduce these risks and ease symptoms of menopause.

How Fenugreek Helps

The herb fenugreek has long been used in Indian Ayurvedic and Persian traditional medicine to relieve menstrual cramps, enhance libido, and alleviate menopausal symptoms.^4,12

In India, fenugreek is consumed throughout a woman's life cycle, from adolescence to post-menopause. Fenugreek tea is used during puberty to ease menstrual cramps and following childbirth to promote lactation and uterine recovery.¹²

As women enter perimenopause and menopause, research shows that fenugreek can help them achieve hormonal balance and reduce the risk of conditions associated with low estrogen.

Fenugreek's bioactive compounds (protodioscin and trigonelline) help correct hormonal imbalance in two separate ways:

• Promoting production of estrogen and other sex hormones. The compound protodioscin is converted in the body to the hormone DHEA, a precursor of estrogen and other hormones. This enhances the body's production of hormones lost to menopause.¹³
• Providing phytoestrogens, plant compounds similar to estrogen. Trigonelline is a plant hormone that can bind to estrogen receptors on cells, mimicking the effects of estrogen to help offset the estrogen decline during menopause.¹⁴

A standardized extract of fenugreek containing 10% protodioscin and 3% trigonelline has demonstrated benefits for menopause symptoms in clinical trials.³

This standardized fenugreek extract is not the same as fenugreek seed fiber used to increase the bioavailability of certain nutrients into the bloodstream.^15,16

Effects In Human Trials

Several randomized, placebo-controlled trials have confirmed the ability of fenugreek to relieve menopause symptoms and restore healthy hormone balance.^1-5

In one study, postmenopausal women aged 45-58 years old receiving 500 mg of fenugreek seed extract daily for 42 days had significant beneficial boosts in hormones compared to baseline, including:³

• A 31.6% increase in estradiol, the active form of estrogen that binds to receptors and has the strongest effect throughout the body.
• A beneficial 20.4% decline in follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). Elevated FSH is a hallmark of menopause that results from estrogen deficiency.³

These hormonal improvements translated into symptom relief. Compared to baseline, women reported a striking 35.5% total score reduction on the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS), a clinically validated questionnaire used to measure severity of menopause symptoms.

Compared to placebo, among the other benefits in the treatment group were:³

• Hot flashes decreased by 35%,
• Night sweats declined by 25%,
• Depressive mood improved by 43%,
• Sleep problems were reduced by 30%,
• Vaginal dryness lessened by 11%, and
• Leg joint and muscle discomfort decreased by 37%.

The decrease in total MRS score greatly surpassed the threshold for clinically meaningful change, emphasizing the effectiveness of the fenugreek extract.³

Another study of postmenopausal women found similar results. Participants taking 500 mg of fenugreek extract daily (as 250 mg twice daily) for 42 days experienced:¹

• A 46.2% decrease in MRS scores assessing the severity of menopause symptoms,
• Reductions in psychological symptoms (mood swings, anxiety, and depression), sensory symptoms (hot flashes and night sweats), and physical symptoms (joint pain and sleep disturbances), and
• A remarkable 39.8% increase in estradiol (active estrogen) levels and 21.2% increase in progesterone levels.

Overall, 76% of the fenugreek extract group reported a substantial improvement within just two weeks of supplementation.

Along with the potential long-term health benefits of raising estrogen levels, reducing menopause symptoms can vastly improve the lives of women in their 40s, 50s, and beyond.

Summary

As women go through perimenopause and menopause, declines in levels of estrogen lead to an array of menopausal symptoms.

Clinical trials show that taking a standardized fenugreek seed extract safely restores a healthy hormone balance and significantly reduces those symptoms, including hot flashes, night sweats, depression, sleep issues, vaginal dryness, and joint discomfort.

If you have any questions on the scientific content of this article, please call a Life Extension Wellness Specialist at 1-866-864-3027.

References

1. Thomas JV, Rao J, John F, et al. Phytoestrogenic effect of fenugreek seed extract helps in ameliorating the leg pain and vasomotor symptoms in postmenopausal women: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. PharmaNutrition. 2020 2020/12/01/;14:100209.
2. Khanna A, John F, Das S, et al. Efficacy of a novel extract of fenugreek seeds in alleviating vasomotor symptoms and depression in perimenopausal women: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. J Food Biochem. 2020 Dec;44(12):e13507.
3. File Do. Short-term, single-dose study of FenuSMART® in ameliorating the leg pain and vasomotor symptoms in postmenopausal women: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study
4. Khanna A, Thomas J, John F, et al. Safety and influence of a novel extract of fenugreek on healthy young women: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. Clinical Phytoscience. 2021 2021/07/13;7(1):63.
5. Shamshad Begum S, Jayalakshmi HK, Vidyavathi HG, et al. A Novel Extract of Fenugreek Husk (FenuSMART) Alleviates Postmenopausal Symptoms and Helps to Establish the Hormonal Balance: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study. Phytother Res. 2016 Nov;30(11):1775-84.
6. Todorova L, Bonassi R, Guerrero Carreno FJ, et al. Prevalence and impact of vasomotor symptoms due to menopause among women in Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and Nordic Europe: a cross-sectional survey. Menopause. 2023 Dec 1;30(12):1179-89.
7. Available at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2023/09/easing-transition-into-menopause. Accessed July 11, 2024.
8. Russell JK, Jones CK, Newhouse PA. The Role of Estrogen in Brain and Cognitive Aging. Neurotherapeutics. 2019 Jul;16(3):649-65.
9. Daniel JM, Lindsey SH, Mostany R, et al. Cardiometabolic health, menopausal estrogen therapy and the brain: How effects of estrogens diverge in healthy and unhealthy preclinical models of aging. Front Neuroendocrinol. 2023 Jul;70:101068.
10. Ueda K, Fukuma N, Adachi Y, et al. Sex Differences and Regulatory Actions of Estrogen in Cardiovascular System. Front Physiol. 2021;12:738218.
11. den Ruijter HM, Kararigas G. Estrogen and Cardiovascular Health. Front Cardiovasc Med. 2022;9:886592.
12. Akhtari E, Ram M, Zaidi SMA, et al. Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) in Women’s Health: A Review of Clinical Evidence and Traditional Use. Journal of Herbal Medicine. 2024 2024/02/01/;43:100816.
13. Adimoelja A. Phytochemicals and the breakthrough of traditional herbs in the management of sexual dysfunctions. Int J Androl. 2000;23 Suppl 2(S2):82-4.
14. Allred KF, Yackley KM, Vanamala J, Allred CD. Trigonelline is a novel phytoestrogen in coffee beans. J Nutr. 2009 Oct;139(10):1833-8.
15. Kumar D, Jacob D, Ps S, et al. Enhanced bioavailability and relative distribution of free (unconjugated) curcuminoids following the oral administration of a food-grade formulation with fenugreek dietary fibre: A randomised double-blind crossover study. Journal of Functional Foods. 2016 2016/04/01/;22:578-87.
16. Im K, Maliakel A, G G, et al. Improved blood–brain-barrier permeability and tissue distribution following the oral administration of a food-grade formulation of curcumin with fenugreek fibre. Journal of Functional Foods. 2015 2015/04/01/;14:215-25.