News flash

Nutrition Action Healthletter, Oct, 2003

Isoflavones, the estrogen-like compounds found in soy and some other plants, are heavily marketed as a natural alternative to estrogen. But isoflavones from red clover failed to cut the frequency of hot flashes any more than a sugar pill in a study of 246 menopausal women who were experiencing at least 35 hot flashes a week. Hot flashes were comparable whether women took Promensil (82 mg of isoflavones a day), Rimostil (57 mg of isoflavones a day), or a placebo for 12 weeks. The study hinted that Promensil might work better than a placebo in overweight women, but there weren't enough of them to say for sure.

What to do: Be wary of ads that market isoflavones as a treatment for menopausal hot flashes. And don't forget the placebo effect. In this study, women reported 36 percent fewer hot flashes after 12 weeks on a sugar pill.

J. Amer. Med. Assoc. 290: 207, 2003.