By Womaness Editors 4-Minute Read
Remember those hot, restless, sweaty nights of your 20s? Well, perimenopause and menopause symptoms can give them a run for their money (with a lot less fun involved). If you’ve started to experience hot flashes, night sweats, or insomnia as you enter menopause, you’re not alone. And while it might seen like artificial hormone treatments are your only option, maritime pine bark extract is a safe and effective plant-based alternative that can offer real relief.
Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
Transitioning into perimenopause—the time when your body is preparing for the end of its reproductive years—can feel like a bit of a rollercoaster. Your levels of estrogen are rising and falling unevenly, your period might be all over the place, and you may begin to experience menopause symptoms like hot flashes, sleep issues, and vaginal dryness.
It's not exactly easy. But even though we’re made to get through tough stuff (and always have!), we'd rather not rely on synthetic medications with a host of not-so-nice side effects for menopause relief. Instead, we at Womaness worked with experts and doctors to find the perfect plant extracts to do the heavy lifting for us.
So whether you’re wondering if menopause is approaching (hint: read our Meno 101 for some guidance) or you said farewell to your period years ago, we believe maritime pine bark is worth exploring.
How Maritime Pine Bark Extract Can Help
Pine bark has been used by indigenous cultures across Europe and North America as an herbal remedy for centuries. Originating in the Mediterranean, Pinus pinaster is one of the most well-known examples—its extract is known as Pycnogenol®, and derives from the bark of monospecies pine trees grown in Les Landes de Gascogne forest in southwestern France. The forest is unspoiled and natural, devoid of pesticides and herbicides. This powerful ingredient is rich in vitamins and phytonutrients (naturally occurring chemicals with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties) and has been tested in 160 clinical trials on more than 13,000 subjects, yielding results that testify to its safety and beneficial health attributes across the spectrum, as documented in more than 450 scientific publications.
"This powerful ingredient...has been tested in 160 clinical trials"
For over 40 years, scientists have been studying the benefits of Pycnogenol® in several fields of application, such as cardiovascular, skin, eye, and joint health, as well as cognitive function. Of particular interest to us was its ability to significantly contribute to reducing the signs and symptoms associated with menopause. In various clinical studies, Pycnogenol® was shown to alleviate menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, skin, memory and sleep problems, and irritability. Case in point: In a 2013 clinical study on 170 perimenopausal women, Pycnogenol® was demonstrated to reduce perimenopausal symptoms by 56% and, most important, shown to be safe, all without incurring hormonal alterations in menopausal women.
Pycnogenol® is based on unique and proprietary extraction technology, and complies with the highest quality standards. The manufacturing plant is GMP(1) compliant, and the production process does not include any toxic solvents. The extraction ratio requires 1000 kg of bark to produce just 1 kg of Pycnogenol®.
The easiest way to reap the benefits of Pycnogenol®? Via an oral capsule. And as far as dietary supplements go, we prefer to take a blend of synergistic natural ingredients in one pill, including our daily dose of Pycnogenol®, because we’re busy and have places to be!
"Pycnogenol® was shown to alleviate menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, skin, memory and sleep problems"
Look For It In...
We wanted to create a one-and-done solution for our least favorite menopause symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, memory, and mood, which is how Me.No.Pause. was born. Incorporating Pycnogenol® was a no-brainer, but to dial things up a few notches we also added Bacognize®, an Ayurvedic adaptogen for cognitive health, and ashwagandha for mental focus. This no-nonsense trifecta is doctor-approved and 84% of primary care physicians would recommend Me.No.Pause., based on a third-party review with 54 physicians specializing in menopause treatments.
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