Ease the symptoms of menopause with yoga

By Efrosini Costa

Ease the symptoms of menopause with yoga

Hot flushes, low mood and concentration, irritability, heightened pain levels and trouble sleeping. The symptoms of menopause can be debilitating to a woman’s daily life.

While hormone replacement therapies are available to medically treat the symptoms of ‘the change’, it doesn’t have to be the only option for women.

There are a number of non-drug related, stress reducing treatments that could also help to ease discomfort.

Yoga has emerged as a clear forerunner for helping women suffering from menopause.

A recent US study found the exercise helped to limit the severity of symptoms of menopause, with researchers claiming it is a viable alternative to hormone replacement therapy.

The researchers at the University of Washington, Seattle, looked at a range of non-drug studies, including herbal or Chinese medicine, exercise, yoga and relaxation.

Relaxation therapies like yoga showed the most promise, the study, published in the menopause journal Climacteric, argued.

‘Selected mind-body therapies may provide useful treatment for menopausal symptoms, although properly controlled studies are still required to confirm these benefits,’ lead researcher, Professor Nancy Woods, said.

‘In particular, yoga showed significant treatment effects for hot flushes and cognitive symptoms,” Woods argued.

‘In certain groups yoga also showed benefits for sleep, mood, and pain symptoms,’ she added.

Many women did not want to use hormone replacement therapy but were poorly advised about the science behind non-drug alternatives, Woods also said.

The study was the first to look at the effectiveness of alternative therapies on a range of menopause related symptoms rather than targeting just individual problems.

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