J Menopausal Med.  2017 Dec;23(3):160-165. 10.6118/jmm.2017.23.3.160.

Effect of Phytoestrogen on Depression and Anxiety in Menopausal Women: A Systematic Review

Affiliations
  • 1Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran. abolfazlfattah.2017@gmail.com

Abstract


OBJECTIVES
In this systematic review, the effectiveness of herbal medicines in improving depression and anxiety in menopausal women was assessed.
METHODS
Three following databases were individually searched: MEDLINE (1966-March 2017), SCOPUS (1990-March 2017), and the Cochrane Library (Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials; 2017).
RESULTS
A total of 9 trials were included in this systematic review. Overall, soy was found to have a beneficial effect. Also, fennel had a significant positive effect on menopausal women with depression and anxiety disorder, but not on healthy women. Red clover showed varying effects ranging from significant to non-significant on depression and anxiety. Moreover, kava was found to have a significant beneficial effect on depression and anxiety at dose of 200 mg/days.
CONCLUSIONS
Our study demonstrated that herbal medicines could improve anxiety and depression in among menopausal women. However, the beneficial effect still remains indefinite due to the poor methodology.

Keyword

Anxiety; Depression; Menopause; Phytoestrogens

MeSH Terms

Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety*
Depression*
Female
Foeniculum
Humans
Kava
Menopause
Phytoestrogens*
Trifolium
Phytoestrogens

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Search strategy of the study.


Cited by  2 articles

Effect of Foeniculum Vulgare (Fennel) on Sleep Quality of Menopausal Women: A Double-blinded, Randomized Placebo-controlled Trial
Maliheh Afiat, Fatemeh Rajab Dizavandi, Leila Kargarfard, Seyede Houra mosavi Vahed, Masumeh Ghazanfarpour
J Menopausal Med. 2018;24(3):204-209.    doi: 10.6118/jmm.2018.24.3.204.

Effect of Lavender on Sleep, Sexual Desire, Vasomotor, Psychological and Physical Symptom among Menopausal and Elderly Women: A Systematic Review
Nasibeh Roozbeh, Masumeh Ghazanfarpour, Talat Khadivzadeh, Leila Kargarfard, Fatemeh Rajab Dizavandi, Khatereh Shariati
J Menopausal Med. 2019;25(2):88-93.    doi: 10.6118/jmm.18158.


Reference

1. Direkvand-Moghadam A, Delpisheh A, Montazeri A, Sayehmiri K. Quality of life among Iranian infertile women in postmenopausal period: A cross-sectional study. J Menopausal Med. 2016; 22:108–113.
2. Golshiri P, Akbari M, Abdollahzadeh MR. Age at natural menopause and related factors in Isfahan, Iran. J Menopausal Med. 2016; 22:87–93.
3. Abdi F, Mobedi H, Roozbeh N. Hops for menopausal vasomotor symptoms: Mechanisms of action. J Menopausal Med. 2016; 22:62–64.
4. Cagnacci A, Arangino S, Renzi A, Zanni AL, Malmusi S, Volpe A. Kava-Kava administration reduces anxiety in perimenopausal women. Maturitas. 2003; 44:103–109.
5. Kwak EK, Park HS, Kang NM. Menopause knowledge, attitude, symptom and management among midlife employed women. J Menopausal Med. 2014; 20:118–125.
6. Zweifel JE, O'Brien WH. A meta-analysis of the effect of hormone replacement therapy upon depressed mood. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 1997; 22:189–212.
7. Ghazanfarpour M, Kaviani M, Abdolahian S, Bonakchi H, Najmabadi Khadijeh M, Naghavi M, et al. The relationship between women's attitude towards menopause and menopausal symptoms among postmenopausal women. Gynecol Endocrinol. 2015; 31:860–865.
8. Rossouw JE, Anderson GL, Prentice RL, LaCroix AZ, Kooperberg C, Stefanick ML, et al. Risks and benefits of estrogen plus progestin in healthy postmenopausal women: principal results from the Women's Health Initiative randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2002; 288:321–333.
9. Balk JL, Whiteside DA, Naus G, DeFerrari E, Roberts JM. A pilot study of the effects of phytoestrogen supplementation on postmenopausal endometrium. J Soc Gynecol Investig. 2002; 9:238–242.
10. Kotsopoulos D, Dalais FS, Liang YL, McGrath BP, Teede HJ. The effects of soy protein containing phytoestrogens on menopausal symptoms in postmenopausal women. Climacteric. 2000; 3:161–167.
11. Hanachi P, Golkho S. Assessment of soy phytoestrogens and exercise on lipid profiles and menopause symptoms in menopausal women. J Biol Sci. 2008; 8:789–793.
12. Aghamiri V, Mirghafourvand M, Mohammad-Alizadeh-Charandabi S, Nazemiyeh H. The effect of Hop (Humulus lupulus L.) on early menopausal symptoms and hot flashes: A randomized placebo-controlled trial. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2016; 23:130–135.
13. Lipovac M, Chedraui P, Gruenhut C, Gocan A, Stammelr M, Imhof M. Improvement of postmenopausal depressive and anxiety symptoms after treatment with isoflavones derived from red clover extracts. Maturitas. 2010; 65:258–261.
14. Tice JA, Ettinger B, Ensrud K, Wallace R, Blackwell T, Cummings SR. Phytoestrogen supplements for the treatment of hot flashes: the Isoflavone Clover Extract (ICE) Study: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2003; 290:207–214.
15. Hidalgo LA, Chedraui PA, Morocho N, Ross S, San Miguel G. The effect of red clover isoflavones on menopausal symptoms, lipids and vaginal cytology in menopausal women: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Gynecol Endocrinol. 2005; 21:257–264.
16. Geller SE, Shulman LP, van Breemen RB, Banuvar S, Zhou Y, Epstein G, et al. Safety and efficacy of black cohosh and red clover for the management of vasomotor symptoms: a randomized controlled trial. Menopause. 2009; 16:1156–1166.
17. Bu L, Lephart ED. Soy isoflavones modulate the expression of BAD and neuron-specific beta III tubulin in male rat brain. Neurosci Lett. 2005; 385:153–157.
18. Koppula S, Kumar H. Foeniculum vulgare Mill (Umbelliferae) attenuates stress and improves memory in wister rats. Trop J Pharm Res. 2013; 12:553–558.
Full Text Links
  • JMM
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr