The Peruvian plant maca (Lepidium meyenii) was used by the ancient Incans to increase libido and improve stamina. Maca has been found to have favorable antioxidant, antimicrobial and sexual function effects. Now research reports that maca can help relieve menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, low sex drive and night sweats. This discovery may provide a hormone-free alternative for managing menopause symptoms.
The study, published in the International Journal of Biomedical Science, investigated the effect of maca on menopausal symptoms. Australian and Polish researchers administered 2000 mg organic maca or a placebo daily to 124 postmenopausal women with low estrogen and high follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) levels for four months. Greene’s Score (GMS) and Kupperman’s Index (KMI) measurements of menopausal symptoms were obtained from the participants. Lipid profile and hormone levels were also obtained from the participants.
The researchers found that maca group had significant improvement in menopausal symptoms including hot flashes and night sweats. Furthermore, FSH levels were lowered while estradiol and ‘good’ HDL cholesterol levels were increased. The placebo group had no significant changes.
“Maca-GO [organic maca] significantly reduced both frequency and severity of individual menopausal symptoms (hot flushes and night sweating in particular) resulting in significant (P<0.001) alleviation of KMI (from 22 to 10), thus, offering an attractive non-hormonal addition to the choices available to early-postmenopausal women in the form of a natural plant alternative to Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) – hence, reducing dependence on hormone therapy programs,” the study authors conclude.
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