Black cohosh doesn’t cool hot flashes

Popular menopause treatment, black cohosh, was found to have little benefits in a year long study with 351 menopausal women. The women were between the ages of 45 and 55, and experiencing at least two hot flashes or night sweats each day.

The study results showed that black cohosh, used either alone or in combination with other herbal therapies was unlikely to bring relief to menopausal women.

Although many women were so eager to find an alternative to HRT, the HRT still remains the most effective weapon in fighting menopausal symptoms although it carried serious health risks like heart disease, stroke, and some types of cancer.

The women who took part in the study were randomly assigned to one of five treatment groups. The first group included 160 milligrams of black cohosh daily, the 2nd a multi-botanical supplement containing 200 milligrams black cohosh and 9 other herbal ingredients including alfalfa, pomegranate and Siberian ginseng, the 3rd included a multi-botanical supplement plus increased soy consumption, the 4th a hormone therapy (estrogen with or without progestin) and the fifth group received inactive 'placebo' capsules.

The effects were studied after 3, 6, and 12 months and black cohosh was found to be no better than placebo in reducing hot flashes or night sweats.
The interesting thing was that women who took placebo experienced about a 30% of reduction in the severity and frequency of hot flashes and night sweats within the year the study lasted.

This is good news for all the women suffering from menopause symptoms. They will eventually go away on their own.