By popular demand, this page has been carefully put together by our team to guide you through the crowded market of products for women with early menopause. From natural supplements to books, and vitamins to creams — we have you covered.
With all the marketing claims and a lack of reliable reviews around, it can be hard to tell what works and what is just hype. With this list you’ll be able to identify products with proven benefits and ignore those that are unlikely to help you. We will also explain how each product works, as well as it’s advantages and disadvantages.
This guide will work best when followed step-by-step, but you can also use it to pick-and-choose the best products for your exact situation. To help you with this, we analyze each recommended item with a focused and symptom-based perspective.
Alongside the key facts on each product, we’ll also show your best and most cost-effective buying options. Where two equally good choices exist, we’ll provide direct buttons to both so you can decide for yourself.
If you need a quick fix to alleviate a wide range of symptoms, visit Amazon
Our team will add to this curated list regularly so it is advisable to bookmark it for your ongoing reference and convenience. These updates will help to ensure this page is always up to date in terms of both the most recent premature menopause research and the most reliable and cost-effective buying options available.
The Essentials
1. A Powerful Blended Supplement
Best For: Potent effects on a wide range of symptoms, including hot flashes.
A powerful triple assault on the most common and irritating symptoms of premature menopause, this supplement is the gold-standard of clinically proven menopause blends.
It contains soy isoflavones, black cohosh root, calcium, and an additional herbal blend. Why is this important? The supplement is engineered for both short-term relief and long-term protection.
The daily calcium helps fight your elevated risk of osteoporosis. Meanwhile soy isoflavones and black cohosh have shown great promise in scientific trials for relieving an extremely wide list of common symptoms, from hot flashes to raised cholesterol and more.
The powerful cholesterol-lowering properties of soy isoflavones are particularly appealing to those of us striving for better heart health protection. The phytoestrogen content can also help ease symptoms caused by declining estrogen in your own body.
As an added bonus, the supplement contains several ingredients referred to as a ‘herbal energy blend’. These added extras, including magnolia bark and green tea leaf extract, offer a subtle energy boost that can be muched needed after night sweat driven episodes of insomnia.
The supplement is convenient to take: just one caplet, once per day. Some women do however favor a product without energy-boosting ingredients, particularly if they take it in the evening. If that describes you, then consider Hormonal Balance & Menopause Support from Dr. Tobias. This is also a fantastic blend of helpful ingredients including soy, black cohosh, red clover, and more, but without the herbal energy ingredients.
Natural Support: The Essential Herbal Helpers
2. Diindolylmethane (DIM)
Best For: Vital support in stabilizing erratic hormone (estrogen) levels.
DIM has surged in popularity in recent years. It’s effectiveness in tackling menopausal symptoms has been credited to it’s activity on estrogen receptors within the body (1,2,3). When taken as a supplement it appears to stabilize estrogen levels, preventing them from either spiking too high or falling too low during the day.
This can be especially beneficial to women in premature menopause, particularly in the early stages when your hormone levels can be all over the place.
Many women in the EarlyMenopause.com community swear by DIM as a potent herbal helper in their battle against their symptoms. As a nutritional supplement, DIM is produced as an extract from cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower. It is therefore generally regarded as very safe.
This is our favored DIM supplement, chosen for it’s consistent high quality and fanstastic value. It also contains bioperine and dong quai, ingredients with further hormone balancing properties.
3. Black Cohosh
Best For: If there is one criticism of our favored menopause blend above, it is that many women need an extra ‘boost’ of black cohosh to enjoy the full symptom-busting benefits (e.g. hot flashes).
Many women look to black cohosh for relief from hot flashes and night sweats.
Scientists aren’t yet sure how the plant exerts its effects but it has been hypothesized that it may boost flagging levels of estrogen in menopausal women. Others have pointed out potential anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects.
An analysis was conducted in 2010 of nine previously conducted trials. The researchers found that women using black cohosh supplements showed significant improvements in “vasomotor” symptoms (e.g. hot flashes, night sweats) when compared to placebo in six of these trials.
Taking into account all nine studies, a 10-40% (26% average) improvement was discovered.
The best available option on Amazon contains a high quality root extract, meaning you can reap the benefits of this supplement while ingesting less of the root overall in each capsule. Crucially, the product also contains dong quai, a great herbal helper that can act in tandem with black cohosh to reduce hot flash frequency and intensity.
4. Soy Isoflavones
Best For: Powerful cholesterol-lowering properties and, as a phytoestrogen, soy isoflavones are uniquely capable of conquering pesky symptoms of early menopause.
As with black cohosh, many women need an extra boost of soy isoflavones to enjoy the full benefits of this phytoestrogen. You can use an individual soy isoflavones supplement on top of your daily blended capsule to ensure that the soy is working to full effect.
We know that soy is a powerful symptom-reducing food for menopausal women, but getting enough soy-based foods and drinks in your daily diet can be a real challenge. Soy isoflavone supplements have shown great promise in improving common menopausal symptoms, including hot flashes. This same study also found improvements in common markers of bone health in a matter of weeks.
Meanwhile, soy itself has been shown to reduce heart risk in postmenopausal populations.
Our recommended soy isoflavone product comes in a pack of two and is best taken at meal time. Buying a couple of bottles at a time is often the best choice for women because it’s commonly recommended to take 3-4 capsules on top of your regular daily supplement with food to achieve the full benefits.
Tackling Menopause-Related Weight Gain
5. Forskolin
Best For: Forskolin appears to help prevent weight gain and may therefore be useful in the fight against menopause-related changes in your body composition.
The main high-quality study of forskolin in women found no firm proof that the supplement can bring about weight loss. However, the researchers did find that the group of women taking forskolin (instead of a placebo) gained less weight, even when on similar diets (calorie & macronutrient intake). The forskolin group also reported less fatigue when compared to placebo.
This may seem like a relatively small benefit, but in the context of the dreaded menopause “spread”, a supplement that potentially mitigates weight gain can be a great addition to your stack.
A similar study has been conducted on overweight men for a 12-week period. Researchers found that men on forskolin had greater gains in lean mass and greater losses in fat mass than men who didn’t take the supplement. Interestingly, bone mass also increased in these men. The people behind this study concluded that forskolin may be useful in the treatment of obesity. However, because the study included only men, it is not possible to draw conclusions from this study alone regarding the effects in women.
6. Synetrim CQ (Cissus Quadrangularis)
Best For: This natural plant extract from the grape family has shown appetite-regulating and weight loss promoting effects in clinical trials.
Another great option for weight management is Cissus Quadrangularis — research conducted thus far has demonstrated significant weight loss in individuals using the supplement.
The scientists behind these trials have hypothesized that the weight loss may stem from the ability of the supplement to balance declining serotonin levels. This in turn is believed to have strong appetite-regulating effects.
Also promising is the apparent role of cissus quadrangularis in expediting and strengthening bone healing.
A great choice is Estroven’s weight management formula. If you choose this you can substitute it in place of the first item on this list as both products contain a similar blend of ingredients. The only difference is that the weight management formula comes with cissus quadrangularis included.
An Essential Natural Skin Cream
7. Pro-gest Cream
Best For: Great effectiveness in tackling symptoms from hot flashes to insomnia, and night sweats to libido issues.
Hormone replacement products have had numerous well-publicized negative reports over the years. While it’s true that studies have given cause for menopausal women to consider carefully whether HRT is right for them, women in premature menopause are still generally given hormone replacement to protect their health at least up to the age of a “normal” menopause.
Meanwhile, there is no disputing the effectiveness of this handy-to-use progesterone cream. Emerita have a long history in particular with their market-leading option manufactured in the USA from natural ingredients.
The product is sold as a “balancing” cream specifically formulated for menopausal women seeking a more powerful solution to pesky vasomotor symptoms like hot flashes.
Progesterone can also help revive a flagging sex drive and even improve sleep. To achieve results the cream is applied just twice a day and can be rubbed into the skin on any part of the body.
Multivitamin & Mineral Support
8. 1-a-day Multivitamin
Best For: All-round nutritional support.
When focusing on the best natural herbal products for menopause symptoms it can be easy to overlook the basics. A high-quality multivitamin can offer support for your underlying health, particularly if you’re not getting enough Vitamin D or Calcium from your regular diet.
These nutrients, among others, are vital in supporting bone health at a time when your body needs it the most. There are literally hundreds of reasonable quality multivitamins on the market and many of you will already have one in your closet.
However, for a further boost consider a brand formulated specially for women going through the menopausal change of life, be it early or at the “normal” age.
Our favored choice is the 1-a-day Women’s Menopause Formula, which is packed with over 20 fantastic ingredients including vitamins, minerals and micronutrients. Another good choice is i-cool for menopause which contains Omega-3 fish oil, Biotin, and Vitamin E, as well as hot flash conquering ingredient Genistein. This is a useful option for women still struggling with hot flashes even after stacking the supplements featured above.
Equip Yourself With Knowledge
9. The Premature Menopause Book — By Kathryn Petras
The Premature Menopause Book is consistently rated among the most informative and supportive of all books published on the topic of early menopause and premature ovarian failure (POF).
The author, Kathy Petras, founded EarlyMenopause.com in 1999 and laid the foundations for the website that exists today.
There are many great books out there regarding menopause but few offer such a close and in-depth look at early menopause specifically. The book looks closely at a host of topics, including:
• The emotional aspects of dealing with this change in your life
• Seeking a diagnosis and working with a helpful doctor
• Treatment and alternative treatments
• Lifestyle factors
• Starting a family
10. The Wisdom of Menopause — By Christiane Northrup
This book is a little different because the author doesn’t set out to specifically tackle early menopause. Nevertheless, this is a must read that will feel relevant, deeply informative, and touching, even for those who went through this change years early.
Some of the wording in this book will seem exclusionary to those of us going through menopause early. However, accepting that this book’s primary audience is women in their 50s, many are still able to find great use from Dr. Christiane’s words.
She covers topics such as:
• Redefining and re-evaluating personal relationships
• Understanding and handling the emotional fallout of menopause
• Taking care of your body and long-term physical health
• Hormone therapy: Is it right for me? (it’s essential to speak with your doctor too because this decision is different for women with POF)
• Living postmenopausal life to the fullest
Additional Helpers
Brain Fog/Forgetfulness
An unfortunate and all-too-common symptom associated with the onset of early menopause is a troubling dent in our cognitive abilities. We’ve all been there — you head into the kitchen with a task in mind and it somehow inexplicably slips from our consciousness leaving us bewildered and a little frustrated.
After all, we’re still young and there’s surely no way that our minds could be deserting us just yet! Memory lapses and so-called “brain fog” are a normal albeit annoying aspect of coming to terms with menopause. Hormone fluctuations bear the brunt of the responsibility but there are options available to combat the emotional and mental symptoms of early menopause.
Qualia is a nootropic substance that combines a host of different ingredients aimed at sharpening concentration, boosting alertness, and enhancing memory. I’ve found it particularly helpful in clearing early morning brain fog and it also seems to help me maintain my focus on a task for longer than I’d normally be able to manage.
Sore Joints/Muscles
Omega-3 fish oil has been a staple in medicine cabinets for decades but its usefulness varies based on the needs of each individual. Deficiency is a serious concern across the developed world and there is no consensus among experts regarding optimal levels of Vitamin D. This means estimates of the proportion of people suffering from a deficiency ranges from a single figure percentage up to much higher levels depending on who you ask.
Omega-3 fish oil is not only a great source of this essential vitamin, it’s also a potent weapon in the war against soreness of the joints and muscles. The essential fatty acids in fish oil products are also believed to possess mental health promoting properties.
Amazon carries its own brand of Omega-3 under its ‘Elements’ label and the product offers great value for money. It is, therefore, an essential and worthy addition to your nutritional supplements routine, particularly if you are lacking in Vitamin D or are experiencing menopause-related soreness in your joints and muscles.
Thinking of starting a supplementation regimen? Please see our medical disclaimer.