Hot flashes and insomnia problems - what can hops do for you?

We know hops from beer - but it has many other uses. Hops have a long history of medicinal use.

Hops originally originates from China, but since the Middle Ages it has been cultivated as a useful plant in Europe, where it was used as a medicinal plant, and grown exclusively in monastery gardens. Monks in Central Europe found the idea of ​​adding hops when brewing beer, which later became a well-known custom.

Henrik Harpestreng (1164-1244) was a Danish priest and medieval physician, who in his book of herbs, or medical book, called "Liber Herbarum" writes among other things about hops: "It is hot and dry. It cleanses the spleen and liver and helps against their diseases. It expels the urine and cleanses all the organs of the body from inflammation. If women are closed to the bottom, then it cleans their bloodstream and lets out dead baby. If you drink it in honey and water, it helps against thigh pain and pain in the groin."

It is conspicuous that in areas with large hop cultivation, no children were born nine months after the hop harvest! What was not known at the time is that plant estrogen from the hop cups could be absorbed through the skin of the hop pickers, a fact that has only recently been recognized. Another possibility is that the phytoestrogen has been absorbed through the respiratory tract with the dust that comes from the hop cups.

The European Medicines Agency has published a monograph (factual review) on hops (EMEA/HMPC/513617/2006). Here it is stated that hops can be used to alleviate mild stress, as well as to help you get a good night's sleep. The underlying report provides a thorough review of the available knowledge on the health effects of hops

Cited scientific articles show that hops are effective against hot flashes, can improve libido and capability for sex, and can reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

The active plant estrogen is called 8-prenylnaringenin, also called hopein.  But there are many other components with a biological effect. E.g.. xanthohumol,a compound effectively inhibiting the development of cancer cells. Therefore, hops can also be used by women with breast cancer.

Due to the estrogenic effect, hops are NOT recommended for pregnant and lactating women.

Hops are closely related to hemp, but do not have the euphoric effects of cannabis. It contains no CBD.

LadyBalance MENO Vaginal tablet

We have produced a lactose tablet which contains 60 mg of hop extract, an appropriate amount in relation to the published studies. There are no scientific studies of absorption via the vagina, but own tests have not identified problems with this way of adding hop extract.

LadyBalance MENO vaginal tablet – to ensure a healthy vagina – and at the same time add hops extract, which has a known effect against typical discomforts during menopause.

The product consists of lactose tablets with green spots of hop extract. The smell of hops is obvious. Easy to place in the vagina.

Citations from:

https://urteblog.middelalderurter.dk/2020/02/16/humle/

 ASSESSMENT REPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY MONOGRAPHS AND FOR INCLUSION OF HERBAL SUBSTANCE(S), PREPARATION(S) OR COMBINATIONS THEREOF IN THE LIST-  EMEA/HMPC/513618/2006