Pycnogenol for hot flashes has few side effects

Q. I read about Pycnogenol for hot flashes and tried it. It worked within only a few days! The main side effect was constipation.

I was quite pleased until I asked my gynecologist about it. I told her I thought the Pycnogenol was working well. She wasn’t happy and did an Internet search on the compound. To her, it looked like a pretty powerful drug with no testing. She suggested I stop taking it and use medicine that has been tested.

A. We are fascinated by your gynecologist’s reaction. Pycnogenol is an extract of the bark of the French maritime pine. It is rich in antioxidant plant compounds called procyanidins, and it has been studied for a wide range of problems, from osteoarthritis of the knee and type 2 diabetes to attention-deficit disorder and hot flashes.

We found 195 scientific articles on studies in humans, animals or cell cultures. She is right that there is not much research on its use for menopause. We found only one double-blind, placebo-controlled study (Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, August 2007). Another study found that Pycnogenol has no estrogenic activity (Journal of Reproductive Medicine, August 2007).

We are sending you our Guide to Menopause with a discussion of Pycnogenol and other approaches to relieving hot flashes. Anyone who would like a copy, please send $3 in check or money order with a long (No. 10), stamped (61 cents), self-addressed envelope to: Graedons’ People’s Pharmacy, No. W-50, P.O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027. It also can be downloaded for $2 from our Web site: www.peoplespharmacy.com.

Compared with prescription drugs such as Prempro, Effexor and Pristiq, Pycnogenol appears to have few side effects.

Q. You recently had a man write in about problems with Lipitor for lowering cholesterol. I’d like to share my personal experience with my 97-year-old mother. She experienced muscle pains on Zocor she was taking for cholesterol control. She discontinued it due to muscle pain and weakness.

After that, she started taking CoQ10. It took about six to eight weeks before she began to get her muscle strength back. It has been a year now, and her cholesterol is still normal. Even better, she is very well; she walks wherever she wants to, and her arms are as strong as before, with no pain.

A. Statin cholesterol-lowering drugs such as Crestor, Lipitor and Zocor deplete tissues of Coenzyme Q10, a compound that is naturally found throughout the body. Other people have reported that taking supplemental CoQ10 can help counteract some of the muscle pain and weakness that may be associated with these cholesterol-lowering medications. At 97, your mother probably doesn’t need to worry about her cholesterol level.

Q. My oldest son used to get canker sores a lot when he got a cold. Then my mother-in-law gave us the ultimate cure that works overnight.

Swish cultured buttermilk in the mouth and hold it there for about a minute before spitting it out. We don’t know why it works, but it does. The buttermilk also heals a sore mouth from a new toothbrush or an abrasion from crispy foods.

A. You are not the first to report that buttermilk can help soothe canker sores (aphthous ulcers). It is certainly a simple, safe and inexpensive remedy.

XIn their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of The Vindicator or e-mail them via their Web site: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com. Their newest book is “Favorite Foods From The People’s Pharmacy: Mother Nature’s Medicine.”

2009 King Features Syndicate Inc.