Are you or someone you know tired of dealing with the extreme discomfort associated with menopause? Then you might be interested to know that a combination of two popular herbal remedies may be able to provide real relief.

German researchers recently found that a combination of St. John's wort and black cohosh is "very effective" for easing the psychological and physical symptoms of menopause. Both herbs have been widely used by menopausal women in the past, but this is one of the first studies to prove their effectiveness. St. John's wort is often used to treat mild depression and black cohosh is a popular menopause symptom remedy.

One of the goals of the German study was to see if the herbal medicines could offer a viable alternative to hormone replacement therapy, which may cause an increased risk of disease. The researchers gave women a supplement containing 1 milligram of triterpene glycosides (an active ingredient in black cohosh) and .25 milligrams of hypericine (an active ingredient in St. John's wort).

After 4 months the women who took the herbal combination experienced a 50% reduction in menopause symptoms, including sweating and hot flashes. They also experienced significantly less depression than women taking a placebo. In fact, overall depression scores fell by nearly 42% in women taking the herbal medicines.

At the end of the study, over 60% of the women taking the herbal supplement rated the treatment as "good" or "very good" compared to only 25.6% of women taking the placebo. Also, there was no significant difference between the herbal group and the placebo group in terms of side effects reported.

Obviously, if you're looking for safe, natural menopause relief, a combination of St. John's wort and black cohosh may be worth considering. Both are widely available in herb and health food stores.