A woman experiencing the odd hot flush when glimpsing Brad Pitt decked out in his 'Troy' gear might be normal, but uncontrolled flushing because of menopause usually isn't so welcome. A new clinical study by the University of Western Sydney is set to discover if Traditional Chinese Medicine can help relieve the hot flushing and night sweats that come with the 'change of life'.
To be conducted by the UWS Centre for Complementary Medicine Research (CompleMED), the team needs 100 Sydney women between the ages of 45-65 years for the 16-week trial, which will use Chinese herbs to improve their symptoms caused by hormonal changes.
The trials will be carried out at various clinics across Sydney, including the Chinese Medicine Clinical Research Centre at Liverpool Hospital - a joint collaboration between UWS and South Western Sydney Area Health Service - and the Menopause Clinic at Royal North Shore Hospital.
CompleMED researcher, Ms Corinne Patching, says the study aims to find an alternative to Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) that can give women back their quality of life.
"Ask any woman over 50, and she'll tell you the hot flushing and night sweats are probably the most annoying symptom of menopause," says Ms Patching.
"70-80 per cent of menopausal women suffer from these uncomfortable and embarrassing symptoms. At the moment, the only way to treat it is with Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), but with recent research casting doubt on its long-term safety, some women are reluctant to embark on this kind of therapy.
"We're hoping this research will help contribute to finding a safe and clinically-proven option for women that can help them through menopause."
Ms Patching says an important offshoot of the research will be testing if the herbal preparation, which is taken in tablet form, also has a positive effect on bone metabolism.
"Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has a long history in treating bone disorders. A number of the Chinese herbs being used in this trial have been reported to have a favourable effect on bone metabolism, especially bone formation. This may be seen by measuring specific chemicals in the blood and urine," says Ms Patching.