Role of Phytoestrogens as an alternative to hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal women

Menopause is characterized by rapid and progressive reduction in estradiol which brings about physiological and psychological changes in a woman’s life. It is estimated that in 1998, there were over 477 million postmenopausal women in the world which may rise to 1.1 billion by the year 2025.Menopause is associated with vasomotor symptoms, loss of bone mineral density, urogenital atrophy, increased cardiovascular risk, sexual dysfunction which decreases the quality of life (QOL).Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the most common preferred treatment option for management of postmenopausal symptoms. The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study demonstrates that the major risks of HRT are venous thrombo-embolism, breast cancer, cardiovascular diseases etc. Hence, alternative treatments are needed to overcome this problem with an intention to improve the women’s QOL. In Unani system of medicine, phytoestrogens are emerging as an alternative to estrogen in the treatment of postmenopausal symptoms and due to the structural similarities to selective estrogen receptor modulator;it does not show negative side effects as compare to conventional therapies. The present paper is an effort to highlight the role of phytoestrogens present in Unanisystem of medicine which have multifaceted pharmacological actions and could be used as alternative to HRT.