Chiropractic Care for Menopausal Symptoms

Posted on December 11, 2015 in Uncategorized

Menopause is defined as the stage when women’s menstrual cycle ends. This condition usually happens at age 40 to 60 and is the result of hormonal changes in the body with aging. Specifically, there is significant decrease in the women’s estrogen and progesterone levels as the body stops the production of eggs in the ovaries.

Menopausal Symptoms and Triggers     

Menopause occurs at different stages in women. How do you know then when menopause has set in in your body? Here are some of the common symptoms associated with the onset of menopause:

• Hot flashes – It is generally accepted that hot flashes is the direct result of the sharp decline in the hormone levels with the decrease in functions of the ovaries.
• Sweating especially at night
• Hot skin
• Nervousness / Increased heart rate
• Increased anxiety or irritability

These symptoms may be experienced in the period just before menopause starts and last for years after.

While the symptoms appear randomly during the menopausal period, they may potentially be triggered by the following:

• Stress
• Alcohol consumption
• Smoking
• Consuming caffeine
• Eating spicy foods

Some of the things you can do to get relief from menopausal symptoms, particularly hot flashes, include:

• Wearing clothes made of cotton and using cotton linens for bedding
• Dressing in layers
• Drinking cold water frequently
• Using ice packs and wiping body off with wet cloth or towel when a hot flash starts

Treatment Options for Menopausal Symptoms

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is one of the more popular therapies for menopausal symptoms. It consists of taking estrogen and progestin supplements orally or through a skin patch. There is a growing alarm, recently, over the use of HRT as studies show potentially serious side effects and increased risks with this treatment. The synthetic hormones used in this treatment option do not match human hormones and they usually present increased risk of heart disease, dementia and breast cancer. Also, improper dosages of estrogen may cause risk of uterine cancer and endometrial cancer.

Dietary changes and taking nutritional supplements that include the following are great for providing relief for hormonal imbalances:

• Vitamin E – improves circulation and may reduce hot flashes.
• Vitamin B – may help relieve irritability, depression and insomnia.
• Foods that are good sources of phytoestrogens, compounds that can activate estrogen receptors in the body and have the ability to balance estrogen levels such as soy, flaxseed, the Chinese herb dong quai and ginseng
• Black cohash – normalizes estrogen and helps decrease hot flashes.

Acupuncture is an option to aid in suppressing hot flashes and addressing other menopausal symptoms.

Chiropractic care is gaining acceptance in the treatment of menopausal symptoms. With regular visits to their chiropractors, some women have experienced decreased symptoms from their menopausal condition. Although chiropractors do not directly treat patients for menopausal symptoms, they provide total healthcare through chiropractic adjustment that target your nervous system. These adjustments remove the pressure and interferences in the nervous system, which may include those relating to the estrogen and progesterone levels of your body. By doing this, the nervous system, the master controller for all body functions, is allowed to function optimally, consequently normalizing the body functions. Chiropractic care may be implemented in conjunction with other healthcare options like dietary and lifestyle changes.

By being able to successfully manage menopausal symptoms, you can look forward to a healthier and more enjoyable life despite normal aging. You can then truly say that life begins at 40.