Effects of isoflavone on menopausal symptoms and blood lipids in postmenopausal women - Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia

PURPOSE: to evaluate the effects of soy germ isoflavone on menopausal symptoms and blood lipids in postmenopausal women. METHODS: a prospective study was performed on 50 women, randomly divided into two groups: 25 women on soy germ isoflavones (60 mg/day, capsules) (G1) and 25 women on placebo (G2). Inclusion criteria: women with hot flushes and FSH >40 mIU/mL, non-vegetarian, non-smoker, non-Asiatic, not in use of hormone replacement therapy and without disease of the gastrointestinal tract. For six months, the menopausal Kupperman index (MKI) and hormonal and lipid profiles were assessed. For statistical analysis, ANOVA, t test and the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were used. RESULTS: the median MKI values, initially similar in both groups, decreased in G1 at two and four months (MKI = 14 and 9, respectively), and in G2 at two months (MKI = 15) (p<0.01). At six months, isoflavone was significantly superior to placebo in reducing hot flushes (44 versus 12%, respectively). At the end of the study, in the isoflavone group, an increase in estradiol levels (from 16,8±7.3 to 18,0±6.7 ng/dL) (p<0.05) was observed, with no alteration in FSH, LH and vaginal cytology; there was also a reduction of 11.8% in LDL (from 151.5±39.2 for 133,6±26.4 mg/dL) and a HDL increase of 27.3% (from 44.0±11.3 to 56.0±11.9 mg/dL) (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: soy germ isoflavone induced favorable effects on menopausal symptoms and lipid profile, showing to be an interesting option for alternative therapy in postmenopausal women.