HRT Replacement: What are the options

HRT is hormone replacement therapy generally adopted by women after menopause. Though HRT has been found effective for treating post-menopausal changes like depression, dryness of vagina etc it leads to an increased risk of a number of diseases. Due to this, alternative therapies have come to be used and have proven effective for women dealing with changes and symptoms related to the perimenopause.

Acupuncture -
Although there is no scientific evidence for explaining how acupuncture works, it is one of the oldest and most common medical procedure in the world. While not being able to cure underlying disease, acupuncture works well to relieve the pain.

Meditation and Yoga -
Meditation is a self-directed practice for relaxing body and mind. Studies have shown that regular meditation can reduce health care use, increases longevity and quality of life, reduces chronic pain, reduces anxiety, reduces high blood pressure, reduces serum cholesterol level, reduces blood pressure, and also lowers blood cortisol levels initially brought on by stress. Research studies show that with the practice of yoga a person can learn to control such physiologic parameters like blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory function, metabolic rate, skin resistance, brain waves, body temperature, and many other bodily functions.

Biofeedback -
Biofeedback is used for treating a very wide variety of conditions and diseases, ranging from stress, alcohol and other addictions, sleep disorders, epilepsy, respiratory problems, and fecal and urinary incontinence to muscle spasms, partial paralysis caused by injury, migraine headaches, hypertension, and a variety of vascular disorders.

Soy Products -
Soy is full with plant estrogens. Eating soy foods such as tofu, tempeh, soy milk or soy nuts can be helpful for hot flashes and other perimenopausal symptoms, but the evidence is not very clear and more research needs to be done.

Herbal Remedies.
There are many herbal remedies which may help some women with perimenopausal symptoms. These include black cohosh extract, which help to reduce hot flashes, menstrual cramps and PMS, goldenseal, which lowers blood pressure, flaxseed, which may decrease heavy menstrual bleeding, evening primrose, which may help increase breast tenderness and regulate hormonal levels, and chasteberry, which can help with breast tenderness and menstrual irregularities by increasing progesterone levels. Other plants reputed to have estrogenic activity are ginseng, fenugreek, licorice, sasparilla, gotu kola, dong quai to name a few.