Is naturopathy as effective as conventional therapy for treatment of menopausal symptoms?

Background: Although the use of alternative medicine in the United States is increasing, no published studies have documented the effectiveness of naturopathy for treatment of menopausal symptoms compared to women receiving conventional therapy in the clinical setting. Objective: To compare naturopathic therapy with conventional medical therapy for treatment of selected menopausal symptoms. Design: A retrospective cohort study, using abstracted data from medical charts. Setting: One natural medicine and six conventional medical clinics at Community Health Centers of King County, Washington, from November 1, 1996, through July 31, 1998. Patients: Women aged 40 years of age or more with a diagnosis of menopausal symptoms documented by a naturopathic or conventional physician. Main outcome measures: Improvement in selected menopausal symptoms. Results: In univariate analyses, patients treated with naturopathy for menopausal symptoms reported higher monthly incomes ($1848.00 versus $853.60), were less likely to be smokers (11.4% versus 41.9%), exercised more frequently, and reported higher frequencies of decreased energy (41.8% versus 24.4%), insomnia (57.0% versus 33.1%), and hot flashes (69.6% versus 55.6%) at baseline than those who received conventional treatment. In multivariate analyses, patients treated with naturopathy were approximately seven times more likely than conventionally treated patients to report improvement for insomnia (odds ratio [OR], 6.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.71, 26.63) and decreased energy (OR, 6.55; 95% CI, 0.96, 44.74). Naturopathy patients reported improvement for anxiety (OR, 1.27; 95% CI, 0.63, 2.56), hot flashes (OR, 1.40; 95% CI 0.68, 2.88), menstrual changes (OR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.43, 2.24), and vaginal dryness (OR, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.21, 3.96) about as frequently as patients who were treated conventionally. Conclusions: Naturopathy appears to be an effective alternative for relief of specific menopausal symptoms compared to conventional therapy.