Balancing Your Hormones in Menopause: The Myths & the Facts

Image Source: My Menopause Centre

As more and more women take charge of their health and learn about menopause, innovation around prescription and non-prescription treatments for menopause symptoms has increased significantly. From countless new products that have entered the market over the last few years to the decreased warning label for menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) by the FDA, more options exist for women seeking to increase their quality of life in this important and sometimes stressful lifestage.

As this innovation has increased, so have the variety of claims made by companies with products designed with menopause in mind. Importantly, while supplements in the United States are subject to regulation by the FDA, the claims companies make do not have to be evaluated by any governmental agency before they are put on the market. While many non-prescription options offer significant relief for women in menopause, we believe that one pivotal component of taking charge of your health is accurate, reliable information. This blog explores one major claim made by many companies involved in menopause care, what it actually means and the role it can realistically play in managing your menopause symptoms.

The role of hormones in menopause

Due to the role of hormonal changes in menopause symptoms, many supplements and diet regimens have made the claim to be able to “balance your hormones.” The menopause transition is marked by large fluctuations in hormonal cycles (source). While premenopause hormonal cycles consist of regular, consistent rises and falls in hormones like estrogen and progesterone among others, perimenopause consists of large irregularities between those rises and falls in these same hormones. Ultimately, the decline in progesterone during perimenopause halts menstruation, leading to menopause after 12 months without a period. These hormonal irregularities and gradual decline cause the many symptoms of menopause faced by women in perimenopause and menopause. These symptoms and difficulties understandably lead to many women seeking ways to decrease hormonal irregularities in order to manage their symptoms.

What does it mean to balance your hormones during menopause?

One way women may be able to mitigate the symptoms of menopause through “balancing hormones” is menopausal hormone therapy, or MHT (source). Many times, MHT includes both estrogen and progesterone to deliver a balance of hormones that more closely mimics the regular hormonal fluctuations experienced by women in premenopause (source). This regimen has been shown to significantly reduce menopause symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and sleep disturbances. Ultimately, MHT (and other prescription hormonal therapies like bioidentical hormone therapy) is the only way to properly “balance” the hormones most known for causing menopause symptoms, estrogen and progesterone.

So, what can be managed without a prescription?

Even though there is no way to balance hormones like estrogen and progesterone to premenopausal levels aside from MHT, many natural ingredients and lifestyle choices can help mitigate the disruption caused by hormonal fluctuations during menopause. Additionally, there are other hormones our body produces that natural ingredients and lifestyle changes can affect.

Cortisol

Lifestyle changes like improved diet and exercise can help you balance your cortisol levels, the hormone our body produces in response to stress. One study done on individuals with liver disease associated with metabolic dysfunction found that individuals who engaged in healthy lifestyle changes like dietary changes and increased cardio training had a significant reduction in their cortisol levels than those who did not (source). High levels of cortisol are linked to symptoms like weight gain, muscle weakness, high blood pressure, and even weaker bones (source).

Suggestions:

• Follow the Mediterranean diet (fish, poultry, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats)

• Consume foods high in vitamin B, omega-3 fatty acid, and magnesium 

• Engage in regular movement/exercise. Yoga, qigong, and multicomponent exercise have shown the greatest reduction in cortisol levels.

Insulin

Insulin is the hormone our pancreas produces to manage our blood sugar after eating. This hormone converts carbohydrates into energy, giving us the boost we need to live our lives. Importantly, producing too much insulin through a poor diet can lead to insulin resistance and even type II diabetes. In a study of individuals without diabetes, those who consumed a low glycemic index diet exhibited less insulin resistance than those who consumed a high glycemic index diet (source).

Suggestions:

• Consume low glycemic index foods, like:

• Fruits with skins, especially apples, oranges, cherries, coconut, and strawberries

• Vegetables with skins, especially carrots, green peas, cucumbers, bok choy, broccoli

• Whole grains like barley, whole grain pasta, sourdough bread, wheat tortillas

• Legumes like beans, lentils, soybeans, tofu

Managing menopause symptoms

As noted above, estrogen and progesterone cannot truly be “balanced” through a supplement or exercise regimen alone. However, many non-prescription solutions have been shown in various studies to help mitigate the effects of their imbalance during menopause. Ingredients like black cohosh, red clover, evening primrose oil, and ginseng have all been used in various cultures to manage menopause and period symptoms throughout time (source). What works for one person may not work for you, so we suggest consulting your healthcare professional to find your best fit. For more information about managing menopause symptoms through supplements, check out our blog post here.

Sources:

Cleveland Clinic. (n.d.). Cortisol. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22187-cortisol

Frontiers in Nutrition (2025). Effect of dietary glycemic index on insulin resistance in adults without diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11864931/

Healthcare (2025). The optimal exercise modality and dose for cortisol reduction in psychological distress: A systematic review and network meta-analysis. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12736704/

Illinois Department of Central Management Services. (n.d.). Best foods to reduce stress. https://cms.illinois.gov/benefits/stateemployee/bewell/foodforthought/best-foods-to-reduce-stress.html

Lark. (n.d.). Low glycemic foods list guide. https://www.lark.com/resources/low-glycemic-foods-list-guide

MDPI. (2024). Nutrients, 16(23), Article 4225. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16234225

The Menopause Society. (n.d.). Hormone therapy. https://menopause.org/patient-education/menopause-topics/hormone-therapy

My Menopause Centre. (n.d.). Menopause explained. https://www.mymenopausecentre.com/knowledge/menopause-explained/

National Health Service. (n.d.). Herbal remedies and complementary medicines for menopause symptoms. https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/hormone-replacement-therapy-hrt/alternatives-to-hormone-replacement-therapy-hrt/herbal-remedies-and-complementary-medicines-for-menopause-symptoms

Oregon Health & Science University. (n.d.). Another approach: Hormone balancing in menopause. https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/another-approach-hormone-balancing-menopause

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