The Expert Guide To The Best Vitamins for Perimenopause (Plus: Our 10 Favorite Supplements!)
Perimenopause is a natural stage in women’s lives in which we begin to make fewer hormones. Perimenopause can last as short as a couple of months and as long as fifteen years. Fortunately, research has shown that certain vitamins and supplements can be helpful during perimenopause.
We’ve put together this guide to the 5 best vitamins for perimenopause, as ranked by our Periwinkle experts, to help improve your quality of life by reducing your perimenopause symptoms. We even threw in the 10 best supplements for perimenopause, to give you even more ways to manage your symptoms and make your life easier!
How Vitamins and Supplements Can Help Alleviate Perimenopause Symptoms
Perimenopause symptoms can be uncomfortable. Taking vitamins and supplements that have undergone extensive research can help women manage perimenopause symptoms by improving your body’s ability to metabolize hormones.
Perimenopause symptoms that can be managed with vitamins and supplements:
Hot flashes
Cold flashes
Migraines
Insomnia
Worsening PMS symptoms
Breast pain
Low sex drive
Mood swings and depression
Keep in mind: the best vitamins for perimenopause may not be those that are helpful for menopause (in fact, you may not have heard of them at all!)
Keep reading for our top recommended vitamins and supplements specifically for perimenopause. Please talk to your care team before beginning any new supplements or vitamins. Your health is in your hands!
TLDR: Here are some of the best vitamins for perimenopause, plus a few of our favorite supplements:
Milk thistle for estrogen dominance
DIM for estrogen metabolism
Vitamin E for hot flashes
Vitamin C for progesterone production
Fenugreek for libido support
Passionflower for insomnia and help relaxing
Vitamin B for serotonin production
Read on for a detailed breakdown of each of these vitamins and supplements, and how they help support your health during perimenopause!
These Are The 5 Best Vitamins for Perimenopause Symptom Sufferers
Calcium D-G
Besides being generally good for your health, Calcium D-G is definitely one of the best vitamins for perimenopause. It helps ensure estrogen marked for excretion actually leaves the body. Without sufficient levels of calcium D-glucarate, estrogen can be activated and reabsorbed in the body, which means the liver then has to work again on clearing the reintroduced hormone, which strains the liver.
We recommend: Life Extension Calcium D-Glucarate
Vitamin E and Black Cohosh
Research has shown that Vitamin E can help with hot flashes. Similarly, some research shows that the North American woodland herb black cohosh (when mixed with other herbals, Rheum rhaponticum and Franch maritime pine bark) can help with hot flashes.
Vitamin C
We all know Vitamin C helps ward off colds. It’s also one of the best vitamins for perimenopause out there. Research shows that women who take vitamin C have significantly increased levels of progesterone in their systems, in fact, women who took 750 mg of vitamin C per day had an increase of 77%.
Try Nature Made Vitamin C 1000mg Tablet
Zinc
Research shows that Zinc can help with testosterone levels. If you have too little testosterone, Zinc can help increase it and if you have too much (for example, if you have PCOS), Zinc can reduce testosterone. Zinc also supports the stress response which is important because stress affects women’s production of estrogen and progesterone. Zinc also supports thyroid hormones, which is important because many women experience thyroid disease in Perimenopause.
B Vitamins
Serotonin levels fluctuate in perimenopause and may lead to mood swings, depression and rage. Vitamins B6 and B12 play an important role in the creation of serotonin, so aim to include vitamin B–rich food in your diet. Check out these 15 healthy foods that are high in B vitamins.
Supplements can also help provide the Vitamin B needed in perimenopause. Nature’s Bounty sublingual Vitamin B12 is one of the best vitamins for perimenopause symptoms on the market.
…and Here Are the 9 Best Supplements for Perimenopause Symptoms
Milk Thistle
Milk thistle is beneficial for the liver and assists in estrogen excretion, which is particularly helpful if you’re estrogen dominant, a common condition in Perimenopause.
Try Nature’s Bounty Milk Thistle, 250mg.
DIM
DIM, otherwise known as diindolylmethane, is a plant nutrient found in vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, bok choy, brussels sprouts and cauliflower. DIM helps create a pathway for estrogen to be metabolized in our bodies, which can mean reducing the symptoms associated with estrogen dominance.
We recommend Smoky Mountain Naturals DIM 200mg with BioPerine for a metabolism boost.
Chasteberry
The chasteberry plant, also called the chaste tree, is native to the Mediterranean region and Asia. Research indicates it helps with symptoms of PMS and breast pain associated with the menstrual cycle and with perimenopause.
NOW Foods, Chaste Berry Vitex Extract, 300 mg, 90 Veg Capsules may help alleviate some PMS symptoms!
Fenugreek
You may know Fenugreek as a supplement commonly recommended to breastfeeding mothers to increase milk production – but this plant supplement has incredible benefits for Perimenopausal women as well!
Fenugreek is a plant belonging to the Fabaceae family and research indicates supplementing with Fenugreek can increase testosterone levels and sexual desire.
We recommend Herb Pharm, Fenugreek, 1 fl oz (30 ml).
Passionflower
Passionflower is a climbing vine with white and purple flowers. Passionflower is native to the southeastern United States and Central and South America. In addition to its beautiful flowers and delicious fruit, passionflower is also one of the best supplements for perimenopause available.
The chemicals in passionflower have calming effects, so many people use passionflower to ease anxiety and for insomnia. Studies on passionflower have found it to be effective for sleep.
We love NOW Foods, Passion Flower, 350 mg, 90 Veg Capsules for sleep support.
Valerian
Valerian is a tall, flowering grassland plant. The extract of the root of valerian has been widely used to treat sleeping disorders in countries around the world for decades because valerian seems to act like a sedative on the brain and nervous system.
Try Nature’s Bounty Valerian Root for relaxation.
Getting a good night’s rest is critical for managing Perimenopause symptoms. Luckily, there are many natural herbal remedies for anxiety to help you sleep!
Argin Max
ArginMax is a blend of L-arginine, ginseng, ginkgo and damiana, plus multivitamins and minerals. The herbal components of ArginMax are thought to improve sexual satisfaction by increasing blood flow and by promoting muscle relaxation.
Small studies have shown that ArginMax can improve sexual function in both women and men. For example, one double-blind, placebo-controlled study published in 2006, showed ArginMax to significantly improve levels of sexual desire and sex life satisfaction in 68% of women in four weeks!
Zestra
Zestra contains borage seed oil, evening primrose oil, angelica rose extract, Coleaus forskohlii extract, ascorbyl palmitate and dl-alpha tocopherol and is used to address sexual function issues including painful intercourse, loss of desire and difficulty in achieving arousal or orgasm.
A small study suggests Zestra can improve sexual function in both healthy women and in those suffering from female sexual arousal disorder.
Try Zestra Essential Arousal Oils for enhanced pleasure.
Maca
Maca is a plant native to the Andes mountain range that is known as an adaptogen. Adaptogens are natural substances that help the body adapt to stress and help the body normalize and balance its processes. Choosing the right Maca supplement is key – for the best-quality product, look for organic maca grown in Peru.
It is believed that maca can enhance sex drive, increase energy levels and sexual fertility and increase blood flow to the vagina. While it is not completely understood how maca works, research demonstrates it may offset the sexual side effects women experience when they take antidepressants. Those side effects include low libido, vaginal dryness and difficulty reaching orgasm.
Improving your sex life is the main reason we rank maca among the best supplements for perimenopause.
We recommend Gaia Herbs Gelatinized Peruvian Maca Powder.
Women can alleviate many of the painful and uncomfortable symptoms associated with perimenopause. Don’t forget to consult your physician before making any changes to your normal healthcare routine! And, keep in mind that the FDA does not review supplements for safety and effectiveness before they are marketed. Work with your care team to determine whether supplements are right for you.
We hope that our list of the best vitamins for perimenopause symptom sufferers (and all of our favorite dietary supplements!) helps you improve and alleviate your perimenopause symptoms!
Want to learn more about perimenopause and managing your symptoms?