The Effects of Tualang Honey on Postmenopausal Women

Despite evidence supporting the benefits of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), only 15% of postmenopausal women currently use HRT (1). The leading reasons why women refuse or discontinue HRT are fear of malignancy, side effects such as vaginal bleeding, weight gain, depressed mood, and breast tenderness, and social reasons such as regarding menopause as a natural transition, not as a disease that requires treatment. Millions of women expressed their concern on the safety of hormone replacement therapy since the data from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study was released, which reported an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, stroke and thromboembolic disease with conjugated equine estrogen plus medroxyprogesterone acetate compared with placebo (2). The study has also demonstrated that quality of life (3) and cognition (4) were no better in the HRT group than the placebo group. In view of these problems, women are increasingly turning to alternative therapies in an effort to manage their menopausal symptoms (1). Menopause is associated with decreasing sex steroid levels. The effect of menopause on circulating androgen levels has been studied by several investigators with variable findings. The levels of testosterone and androstenedione appear to show a small but significant decrease just before or within the first 2 years after menopause, with a decrease in testosterone amounting to approximately 15% (5,6). Unlike the abrupt decrease in estradiol levels associated with menopause, circulating testosterone, DHEA, and DHEAS levels decrease more gradually, beginning in the years before menopause and continuing thereafter (6,7). As a consequence, some women may experience symptoms of androgen decrease in the period before cessation of menses. By giving Tualang Honey to these postmenopausal women, it is postulated that the symptoms of androgen deficiency or menopausal symptoms should be reduced. The investigators have also reported that tualang h