1. Start by applying cleansing milk on face and neck with your fingers. Gently massage with your fingers in an outward and circular motion for a few seconds. Wipe off with a damp piece of cotton wool or splash water on your face, to get a perfectly clean face. Pat dry with a clean towel to dry face.

The whole notion of returning to old fashioned herbal treatments and folk remedies has a certain comforting, romantic appeal. Some of herbal medicines which are being rediscovered have been used to treat a range of ailments for literally thousands of years. There is a commonly held belief that medicines derived from natural sources are necessarily free from risk of negative side effects, harmful interactions and allergic reactions. This is simply not true. Whatever kind of medication you choose to take, it’s essential that you fully understand how it works, what dosage level is appropriate for you, and what objective research has been done on its effectiveness and its potential hazards. Your doctor is best person to provide you with professional, individual advice and attention. Information you find online and in women’s health publications is a useful supplement to your doctor’s advice, and it’s wise to read as widely as you can to get an overall picture of issues. Your health is most important thing you have, and while you are free to make your own choices about treating menopause symptoms, it’s vital that you make these choices with your eyes open.

Most experts believe that all of common symptoms of menopause are caused by dramatic decline and fluctuations in body’s levels of estrogen and to some extent progesterone, and imbalance between them. Approaches to alleviating symptoms generally focus around restoring these hormone levels. Natural treatments are typically made from extracts of plants containing substances which are very similar to estrogen and/or progesterone produced by ovaries. The effectiveness of these treatments relies on assumption that these phytoestrogens and plant progesterones have a similar effect in body to body’s own natural hormones. Some herbal treatments work by stimulating glands to produce natural hormones more effectively, rather than restoring hormones artificially.

Another approach is to treat each symptom individually. There is a range of natural treatments which focus specifically on alleviating common symptoms such as hot flashes, depression, libido problems, vaginal dryness and fatigue.

Estrogen treatments.

Soy

By far richest source of phytoestrogens (sometimes called “isoflavones”) is soybeans, and foods made from soy extracts. Soy can be consumed in form of tofu, soy cheese, meat substitute products such as soy burgers, breads and muffins made with soy flour, and soy drinks, sometimes known as “soy milk”. Some studies have shown that consuming soy beverages or breads made with soy flour twice daily can reduce severity or number of hot flashes, but results have been inconclusive and inconsistent. Soy powders and pills contain much higher levels of phytoestrogens than soy foods, and may have a more significant effect in alleviating menopause symptoms than soy foods, but little is known about potential hazards. Consuming soy extracts and soy foods may have a range of other health benefits, including reducing risk of osteoporosis, cancer and heart disease, and lowering cholesterol. Some studies suggest that phytoestrogens may actually help to reduce risk of breast cancer by blocking overproduction of natural estrogen in body.

Herbs containing phytoestrogens