What is black cohosh? Black cohosh is a medicinal plant use to treat hot flash, vaginal dryness, premenstrual syndrome, and arthritic pain. Despite its name, black cohosh is not black. It has green leaves, white flowers and brown roots. Please see the picture below (the female is not included)



How do you prepare black cohosh? First, you pull the plant from the ground. Then separate the roots and stems from the leaves. Let them dry under the sun for eight hours (1 shift) to let the moisture evaporate. Clean them and use them as herbal tea. If you are lazy, then you can buy them over the counter.



Side effect? Headaches and stomach discomfort are the two most common side effects. However, it has no interactions with prescription medicines.

Is it effective? For menopausal symptoms, the results are mixed. It is not effective for arthritic pain.

Remember, as with many herbs, you want to look for "standardized extract". As for the Black Cohosh, you may want something similiar to:

BLACK COHOSH EXTRACT (CIMICIFUGA RACEMOSA)(ROOT) STD. TO 2.5% TRITERPENEGLYCOSIDES 1 MG AS 27-DEOXYACTEIN
40 Mg
N/A



Evening Primrose (or better, Borage oil or Black Currant) may also help for Menopause.

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Mongo

Be good. If you can't be good, be careful. If you can't be careful...Name it after me.

Im planning to use it for my dryness of course.

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These are some other plants that might have known to help with hot flashes. However, meta analysis proves that they are not effective.

Ginseng root: Not effective for hot flashes. Great for mood and sleep.

Kava: Insufficient evidence about effectiveness for hot flashes. Good for anxiety. Can cause liver problem.

Red clover leaf: Not effective for hot flashes.

Dong quai root: Not effective for hot flashes. Do not use with warfarin. It increases PT/INR.
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