Marshmallow root?
I've posted elsewhere on the boards about some stomach issues I've had since starting Lupron, and again since I'd started Anastrozole (plus also metformin).
I've been reading up on the link between menopause/peri-menopause/hormones and digestive issues. And I came across, on a discussion board (the link I can no longer find), a comment from someone who'd said that marshmallow root had been an immense help to her when she started having problems at menopause. So again, started reading up on it, and decided to purchase some capsules. Haven't yet taken it, and I have seen only a few mentions here on this board about it.
Does anyone else use this?
Comments
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If marshmallow root is supposed to ease menopausal symptoms, it’s probably a phytoestrogen (like black cohosh, aka Remifenin). I wouldn’t go near it with ER+ cancer.
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It doesn't ease menopausal symptoms per se like hot flashes and such in my understanding, that's not what I was saying. I have just read about women who start to have stomach issues as estrogen fluctuates/ceases. That is what I'm talking about. It is not necessarily specific to menopause any more than ginger root is when helping with stomach issues. .
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my husband uses licorice root for helping digestive issues and the stomach lining. I don't take it cuz I hate licorice and I burp it, but you could also look at that. I think marshmallow root also helps the bladder.
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According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: "Studies in animals show that licorice has estrogenic effects, and some of the components of licorice bind estrogen receptors. Human data are lacking." The page gives more details, including uses, side effects, and drug interactions. Unfortunately, marshmallow is not on MSK's list of herbs. But ginger does look like a possible help for digestive problems.
licorice:
https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/diagnosis-treatm...
ginger:
https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medi...
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I used marshmallow tea pre cancer for coughs occasionally and during chemo I used the tea for stomach issues as well as fresh ginger tea and slippery elm tea. I was highly sensitive to the anti-nausea drugs and steroids so other then pre-chemo drugs administered in the hospital I couldn't take anything post chemo and the nausea was awful on A/C. The teas helped, mostly the slippery elm along with acupuncture twice a week and a gravol at night.
That was just my experience. It is best to check with your doctor / pharmacist!
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Can't take licorice root if you have high blood pressure, which I do.
I do use ginger capsules all the time and love it, I find it helps during anxious moments, travel and at times, medication (but it wasn't helping in the early days of anastrozole) or just when I feel a little off. I
Maybe I'm not being clear enough, I do mean general digestive problems, but what I've encountered on a more regular basis is diarrhea, and this only really started to happen after the Lupron shots started (I had been taking metformin for a while by this point btw) . Hormones, or lack thereof, affect bowel function in some (many?) people.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9796084
http://www.menopausecentre.com.au/information-centre/symptoms/digestive-problems/
etc.
I never had issues at all going into all this, I could eat just about anything from fatty foods to searing hot spicy stuff, raw foods etc, and it never bothered me whatsoever. Back when I had my periods, I did notice a change in bowel function around that time, but nothing that required medication or affected my day to day.
I take a daily probiotic and that has helped a bit. This is not a constant thing for me, and I have no other concerning symptoms such as pain or bleeding and I can not tie it to a specific food (no food allergies that I'm aware of) I could literally eat the same thing 7 days straight, and do nothing different, and on one of those days, I'll have problems (it's not always weekly either, I just mention as there's no rhyme or reason to it, including within the day-I can be constipated in the morning and have diarrhea in the afternoon). I do notice that if I get really anxious, like when I have to see my doctor, or I have to fly or something, I'm more likely to have problems, but I consider that pretty normal.
I'm hoping that some of the initial stuff with anastrozole will have settled down again (knock wood). I'm kind of just looking for something to further help my belly stay regular. I feel I'm on enough medications as it is.
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Interesting links, CW. Maybe consult a gastroenterologist at a university medical center? I know someone with IBS who got helpful guidance from such a doctor, and it wasn't just a prescription for meds. I totally get not wanting to take any more of those. Or maybe a palliative care specialist who would focus on relieving symptoms for improved quality of life.
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U Maryland Med Center-Marshmallow
Grossmont Surgery Center-Marshmallow
I took a pretty good spin around the interwebs and didn't see anything worrisome. Maybe worth a try?
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