Doctor Reviews: Estroven

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If you’re going through menopause and looking for relief, you might have heard about Estroven. It’s a supplement that’s supposed to be useful for people going through menopause.

One of its variations is marketed as a weight management solution. But does it really work? And what should you expect?

Let’s talk about gaining weight during menopause and see if the ingredients in Estroven Menopause Relief Weight Management can actually help.

Menopause and weight gain

Menopause is a natural and inevitable stage of life that’s often associated with a host of unpleasant symptoms, including hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, mood changes, irritability, difficulty sleeping, fatigue, and changes in sex drive.

To make matters worse, weight gain is another possible side effect of menopause, and it can be frustratingly difficult to manage.

The main reason why menopause can sometimes cause weight gain is the decrease in estrogen levels in the body:

When estrogen levels drop, it can worsen insulin sensitivity, which means that the body has a harder time using insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. This makes your body more likely to store fat, especially in your belly.
Lower estrogen levels can also cause changes in the distribution of body fat. Typically, women tend to accumulate fat around their hips and thighs. However, during menopause, the distribution of fat shifts towards the abdominal area, leading to a more apple-shaped body.
Another factor that contributes to weight gain during menopause is a decrease in muscle mass. As we age, our muscle mass naturally decreases, which can lower our metabolism and make it easier to gain weight.
Additionally, some women may experience water retention, which means their body holds onto extra fluids. This can make them feel bloated and swollen, especially in the hands, feet, and ankles. It’s caused by changes in hormones that affect the body’s fluid balance. This can lead to weight gain due to the extra fluids.

While low estrogen levels during menopause can contribute to weight gain, it’s important to remember that it’s not the only reason why some women gain weight during menopause.

As we get older, we may become less active, and end up burning less calories as a result. Menopause can also be a stressful time, which can increase our craving for high-calorie foods.

So, gaining weight during menopause is caused by many things, not just low estrogen levels.

Ingredients of Estroven

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the ingredients of Estroven. Here are the doses per capsule. The recommended dosing is 1 per day.

Estroven-Menopause-Relief-Weight-Management-review-ingredients — Ingredients of Estroven Menopause Relief Weight Management supplement.

We’re going to analyze each ingredient to see whether they contain a sufficient dose, whether it contains the active compounds to work, and how effective they might be for weight loss.

Black cohosh

Black cohosh is a natural remedy that some women use to manage symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes and night sweats. It’s not clear exactly how it works, but it might mimic estrogen in the body.

Studies suggest that it can help with some menopausal symptoms, but it doesn’t seem to help with weight loss.

It’s important to note that the studies use a standardized extract of black cohosh, and better quality black cohosh supplements are standardized to around 2.5% triterpene glycosides.

Estroven uses a crude form of black cohosh with no labeled standardization, which may not be as effective as those used in the studies.

Soy isoflavones

Soy isoflavones are a type of phytoestrogen. Phytoestrogens are natural plant compounds that act like estrogen in the body.

You can find them in certain foods like soy products, legumes, flaxseed, and some fruits and veggies.

Phytoestrogens can help with some menopause symptoms, like hot flashes and vaginal dryness, by weakly binding to estrogen receptors in the body. However, their impact on weight loss during menopause is not clear-cut.

As we’ve seen before, weight gain during menopause can be caused by many other factors, like genetics, lifestyle habits, and overall health.

Low estrogen levels may only play a small role in weight gain during menopause. Additionally, while phytoestrogens offer similar benefits to estrogen, they are not as potent.

Therefore, their effect on weight loss may be more subtle and indirect than that of estrogen. Studies using phytoestrogen supplements, like soy isoflavones, for weight loss have had mixed results and have not consistently shown significant weight loss.

However, research suggests that increasing the intake of foods that are high in soy, which are rich in phytoestrogens, may help with obesity in menopausal women, but not necessarily because of their estrogenic value.

Soy-based foods are high in protein and fiber, which can aid in weight management. And although these foods have some estrogenic properties, they’re not the main reason why they are helpful for managing weight.

Therefore, managing one’s diet by increasing protein and fiber intake, which can include consuming more soy foods, is more effective for weight management in menopausal women than just taking phytoestrogen supplements.

Phytoestrogen supplements are better suited for managing symptoms related to low estrogen levels, rather than managing weight gain associated with menopause.

Cissus quadrangularis

Cissus quadrangularis is a plant that grows in India and Africa and has been studied for its potential to help with weight loss. It works by stopping the body from breaking down and absorbing some of the fats and carbs we get from food.

Some small studies have been done and suggest that it can help people lose around 6% of their body weight over 8-10 weeks.

However, it’s important to note that these studies are small and of moderate to low quality. Additionally, all of the studies conducted so far have been short-term, which limits the reliability of the findings.

Estroven Side effects and warnings

Natural remedies like black cohosh and soy isoflavones may help with menopause symptoms, but they can also cause side effects.

The most common side effects are stomach problems such as bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and nausea.

There are also case reports of black cohosh being potentially harmful to the liver, especially if someone has liver problems or takes medication that can damage the liver.

Also, soy extracts may not be suitable for everyone. Individuals with thyroid issues should exercise caution when consuming soy extracts, as they may have negative effects. However, it’s worth noting that such effects appear to be limited to those who have an iodine deficiency.

Cancer risk?

Because black cohosh and soy isoflavones have been known to affect estrogen levels, some concerns have been raised about their potential to exacerbate hormone-related cancers like breast or endometrial cancer by activating estrogen receptors.

However, this concern is mostly hypothetical, and many studies indicate that black cohosh and soy isoflavones are safe to consume, even for those with a history of hormone-related cancers.

In fact, several studies suggest that soy isoflavones may actually offer protection against these types of cancer, especially when consumed from dietary sources.

However, soy extracts have the potential to interfere with certain hormonal cancer medications, such as Tamoxifen. So you may be advised to discontinue the supplement while undergoing cancer treatment.

Is Estroven effective?

Estroven can help a little with menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, but it might not be very effective for weight loss.

Estroven-Menopause-Relief-Weight-Management-review-ingredient-analysis — Estroven Menopause Relief Weight Management supplement ingredient analysis.

The main ingredient for weight loss, Cissus quadrangularis, doesn’t have enough strong evidence to support its effectiveness, although preliminary research suggests it can weakly affect the metabolism of food.

So if you aren’t experiencing many symptoms of menopause, Estroven may not be very useful to you or your weight.

However, if you’re experiencing strong menopausal symptoms, including water retention and weight gain after entering menopause, and your diet and lifestyle haven’t changed, Estroven might help you lose a little weight, but don’t expect significant results.

Overall review: Estroven

Estroven-Menopause-Relief-Weight-Management-review-overall-summary-rating — Overall Estroven Menopause Relief Weight Management review rating.

Reviewing Menopause Relief Weight Management by effectiveness for weight loss, I’m giving it a C. It’s a supplement for menopause first and foremost, and how much it can help with your weight really mostly depends on how much of your weight gain is caused by your drop in estrogen.

Reviewing Menopause Relief Weight Management by cost, I’m giving it a B. Estroven seems to be somewhat fairly priced, although you could still get the individual ingredients for cheaper.

Reviewing Menopause Relief Weight Management for safety, I’m giving it a B. While the ingredients in Estroven are mostly safe to take, you may need to be more cautious if you’re undergoing cancer treatment, or have thyroid or liver issues.

Overall review, I’m giving Menopause Relief Weight Management a C. While I would not recommend it for most people, certain people with strong menopausal symptoms like water retention may benefit a little from taking Estroven, although the amount of weight loss may not be that much.

Top alternatives to Estroven

If you’re looking to achieve effects similar to, or perhaps even better than, those of Estroven, I would combine a quality black cohosh extract + cissus quadrangularis + soy isoflavones.

Black cohosh (generic) – 1 to 3 caps / day
Black cohosh (Remifemin) – 2 caps / day
Cissus quadrangularis – 1 to 2 caps / day
Soy isoflavones (Estroven) – 1 cap / day
Soy isoflavones (generic) – 1 to 2 caps / day

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Citations

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