Skip to main content
Advertisement

Main menu

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET

User menu

  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
Pharmacological Reviews
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET
  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart
Pharmacological Reviews

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Visit Pharm Rev on Facebook
  • Follow Pharm Rev on Twitter
  • Follow ASPET on LinkedIn
Review ArticleReview Article
Open Access

Botanicals and Their Bioactive Phytochemicals for Women’s Health

Birgit M. Dietz, Atieh Hajirahimkhan, Tareisha L. Dunlap and Judy L. Bolton
Eric Barker, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Pharmacological Reviews October 2016, 68 (4) 1026-1073; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pr.115.010843
Birgit M. Dietz
University of Illinois at Chicago/National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Atieh Hajirahimkhan
University of Illinois at Chicago/National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Tareisha L. Dunlap
University of Illinois at Chicago/National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Judy L. Bolton
University of Illinois at Chicago/National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Eric Barker
University of Illinois at Chicago/National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Roles: ASSOCIATE EDITOR
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

Botanical dietary supplements are increasingly popular for women’s health, particularly for older women. The specific botanicals women take vary as a function of age. Younger women will use botanicals for urinary tract infections, especially Vaccinium macrocarpon (cranberry), where there is evidence for efficacy. Botanical dietary supplements for premenstrual syndrome (PMS) are less commonly used, and rigorous clinical trials have not been done. Some examples include Vitex agnus-castus (chasteberry), Angelica sinensis (dong quai), Viburnum opulus/prunifolium (cramp bark and black haw), and Zingiber officinale (ginger). Pregnant women have also used ginger for relief from nausea. Natural galactagogues for lactating women include Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek) and Silybum marianum (milk thistle); however, rigorous safety and efficacy studies are lacking. Older women suffering menopausal symptoms are increasingly likely to use botanicals, especially since the Women’s Health Initiative showed an increased risk for breast cancer associated with traditional hormone therapy. Serotonergic mechanisms similar to antidepressants have been proposed for Actaea/Cimicifuga racemosa (black cohosh) and Valeriana officinalis (valerian). Plant extracts with estrogenic activities for menopausal symptom relief include Glycine max (soy), Trifolium pratense (red clover), Pueraria lobata (kudzu), Humulus lupulus (hops), Glycyrrhiza species (licorice), Rheum rhaponticum (rhubarb), Vitex agnus-castus (chasteberry), Linum usitatissimum (flaxseed), Epimedium species (herba Epimedii, horny goat weed), and Medicago sativa (alfalfa). Some of the estrogenic botanicals have also been shown to have protective effects against osteoporosis. Several of these botanicals could have additional breast cancer preventive effects linked to hormonal, chemical, inflammatory, and/or epigenetic pathways. Finally, although botanicals are perceived as natural safe remedies, it is important for women and their healthcare providers to realize that they have not been rigorously tested for potential toxic effects and/or drug/botanical interactions. Understanding the mechanism of action of these supplements used for women’s health will ultimately lead to standardized botanical products with higher efficacy, safety, and chemopreventive properties.

Footnotes

  • This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) and National Center for Complementary and Integrated Health (NCCIH) [Grants P50 AT000155 and T32 AT007533].

  • dx.doi.org/10.1124/pr.115.010843.

  • Copyright © 2016 by The Author(s)

This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC Attribution 4.0 International license.

View Full Text
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Pharmacological Reviews: 68 (4)
Pharmacological Reviews
Vol. 68, Issue 4
1 Oct 2016
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • About the Cover
  • Index by author
  • Editorial Board (PDF)
  • Front Matter (PDF)
Download PDF
Article Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Email Article

Thank you for sharing this Pharmacological Reviews article.

NOTE: We request your email address only to inform the recipient that it was you who recommended this article, and that it is not junk mail. We do not retain these email addresses.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Botanicals and Their Bioactive Phytochemicals for Women’s Health
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from Pharmacological Reviews
(Your Name) thought you would be interested in this article in Pharmacological Reviews.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Review ArticleReview Article

Phytochemicals for Women's Health

Birgit M. Dietz, Atieh Hajirahimkhan, Tareisha L. Dunlap and Judy L. Bolton
Pharmacological Reviews October 1, 2016, 68 (4) 1026-1073; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pr.115.010843

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero

Share
Review ArticleReview Article

Phytochemicals for Women's Health

Birgit M. Dietz, Atieh Hajirahimkhan, Tareisha L. Dunlap and Judy L. Bolton
Pharmacological Reviews October 1, 2016, 68 (4) 1026-1073; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pr.115.010843
Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • I. Introduction
    • II. Botanicals Used by Premenopausal Women
    • III. Botanicals Used during Pregnancy/Lactation
    • IV. Botanicals Used by Menopausal Women
    • V. Botanicals for Breast Cancer Prevention
    • VI. Botanicals/Phytochemicals with Potential Toxic Effects
    • VII. Conclusions and Future Directions
    • Acknowledgments
    • Authorship Contributions
    • Footnotes
    • Abbreviations
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF

Related Articles

Cited By...

More in this TOC Section

  • Arylamine N-acetyltransferase in metabolic disease
  • Pathways for nonhormonal male contraceptive development
  • The SLC6A15-SLC6A20 neutral amino acid transporter subfamily
Show more Review Articles

Similar Articles

Advertisement
  • Home
  • Alerts
Facebook   Twitter   LinkedIn   RSS

Navigate

  • Current Issue
  • Latest Articles
  • Archive
  • Search for Articles
  • Feedback
  • ASPET

More Information

  • About Pharmacological Reviews
  • Editorial Board
  • Instructions to Authors
  • Submit a Manuscript
  • Customized Alerts
  • RSS Feeds
  • Subscriptions
  • Permissions
  • Terms & Conditions of Use

ASPET's Other Journals

  • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
  • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
  • Molecular Pharmacology
  • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
ISSN 1521-0081 (Online)

Copyright © 2023 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics