Investigating the Effect of Foeniculum Vulgare (Fennel) in Reducing Menopausal Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women: a Randomized Double Blind Clinical Trial with a Control Group

Abstract

Purpose: The present study investigates the effect of fennel on reducing menopausal symptoms compared to placebo in Iran. Methods: This study was a randomized clinical trial with a control group. In this regard, 101 people were selected by convenience sampling from the Rahe Sabze Salamat Clinic and were randomly allocated to two groups of fennel (n=49) and placebo (n=52). Data were collected through the menopause rating scale (MRS). The collected data were statistically analyzed using SPSS-27 software. Results: The results revealed that the studied groups did not differ significantly from each other regarding age, height, weight, BMI, education level, marital status, and employment status (P>0.05). Also, the results revealed that fennel significantly reduced menopausal symptoms compared to placebo in the post-test and follow-up stages (P<0.05). Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, fennel has reduced menopausal symptoms compared to placebo. Therefore, fennel can be used to reduce menopause symptoms along with other treatment methods or alone. However, conflicting results of the studies conducted in this area make it necessary to repeat these studies.