Soy isoflavones and melatonin for the relief of climacteric symptoms: a multicenter, double-blind, randomized study

Soy consumption for reduction of menopausal symptoms

“…A second critical review of 11 studies using well-characterized isoflavone supplements (Scambia et al, 2000;Upmalis et al, 2000;Faure et al, 2002;Han et al, 2002;Nikander et al, 2003;Penotti et al, 2003;Colacurci et al, 2004;Crisafulli et al, 2004;Petri Nahas et al, 2004;Secreto et al, 2004;Campagnoli et al, 2005) confirmed the importance of dose in determining whether or not isoflavones reduce hot flashes (Williamson-Hughes et al, 2006). In this review, all five studies providing more than 15 mg genistein showed significant decreases in hot flash frequency, while only one of the six studies providing less than 10 mg genistein showed a significant decrease.…”

Iatrogenic Menopause After Treatment for Cervical Cancer

“…Genistein and daidzein are the main isoflavones in soy and have been evaluated in different doses in a variety of placebo-controlled trials. The results ranged from a reduction in symptoms to no difference compared to placebo, in particular in four studies in women with a breast cancer diagnosis [79][80][81][82]. A meta-analysis of six studies did indicate a reduction in the vasomotor symptoms after 12-16 weeks and 26 weeks of use, -0.97 (95% CI -1.82 to -0.12) and -1.22 (95%CI -2.02 to -0.42) [83].…”

The role of complementary and alternative medicine in management of menopausal symptoms

“…Through March 2004, about 18 RCTs of soy therapies specifically examining effects on vasomotor symptoms have been published (Table 1) [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34]. Five of these studies are recent and will be described in more detail.…”

“…In one study, 262 women were recruited from academic centers that included oncology centers [34]. Approximately 10% of the women had a history of breast cancer, and the subjects included those with natural menopause and chemotherapy-induced menopause and those who had undergone an oophorectomy.…”

“…Similarly, studies of evening primrose oil (N = 56; duration of 6 mo) and ginseng (N = 384; duration of 14 wk) found no significant advantage of treatment over placebo with regard to hot flashes [44,45]. Melatonin was included as part of a larger study also assessing isoflavones, and no benefit was observed [34]. A study of vitamin E in 120 breast cancer survivors found a statistically significant reduction in hot flash frequency with vitamin E; however, the reduction was of questionable clinical significance (one hot flash/d) [46].…”