Menopausal symptoms? Treat them with Ease…

Posted by Liz on Aug 20, 2010 in herbal medicine | 3 comments

Or not.

I just wind of a new product called EaseFemin™, a supplement with a proprietery formulation that the manufacturers are calling IsoFactor™. These specific isoflavones and flavare derived from a unique Brazilian red propolis, which is a resin collected by honeybees. Evidently, propolis has been used in folk medicine since around 300 BC and clinical data show that it is non-toxic.

Theoretically, Ease-Femin™ taken once-daily, addresses irritability, hot flashes and night sweats. Moreover, an antioxidant has been added to fight cellular damage caused by free radicals circulating in the bloodstream.

Does this sound a bit too good to be true?

I would say, yes.

My first concern is that I did a search on propolis. And as an isoflavone compound, it’s not been studied extensively in menopause or any other condition. The second concern I have lies with isoflavones themselves. As I’ve written of late, it seems that only specific isoflavone compounds, namely S-Equol and daidzein, appear to have any sort of demonstrable effect on hormonal symptoms. So I am not entirely convinced about whether or not this is an exciting new avenue or the promise of spending money ($36.99 a month) for a product that won’t do much of anything.

This is another case of buyer beware. The research simply isn’t there to back the use of the product. At least not yet.