Many pricey menopause supplements “lack the nutritional basics” and have less benefit than cheap supplements, according to an investigation. Consumer champion Which? reviewed 26 supplements targeted at women going through the perimenopause, menopause or over the age of 45.
The analysis, which examined 80 active ingredients, found that none of the products contained the right combination of nutrients at appropriate doses to support their use specifically for menopause. Which? Nutritionist Shefalee Loth said: “Navigating mid-life is tricky enough, but with so many products making big claims about how they can help, finding what actually works can be completely overwhelming, and costs can spiral.
“Our research shows that despite these big claims, the vast majority of these products lack the nutritional basics to cover the deficiencies most likely to happen with menopause, despite some costing hundreds and hundreds of pounds a year.”
The most important nutrients during menopause are calcium and vitamin D, which support bone health as oestrogen levels decline, Which? said. Others, including magnesium, iron, B vitamins, vitamins C, E and K, iodine, selenium and zinc, can also play a role.
The analysis found that the “menopause-friendly” Wild Nutrition Women’s 45+ Daily Multi Nutrient, which costs £1.27 a day, contained just 1.5µg of vitamin D, 60mg of calcium and 30mg of magnesium, all way under the daily dose recommended by the NHS.
My Vitamins Menosure, which includes the word “wellness” on the label, costs 63p per daily dose. Which? found that every vitamin, mineral, and botanical ingredient was “severely underdosed” according to its standards. The supplement contained just 100mg of evening primrose oil, while the recommended dose was 500mg.
The most expensive product Which? looked at was Love Mushrooms Empower, which costs £1.33 a day for a two-tablet dose. It was found to contain a good mix of well-dosed ingredients but lacked menopause-specific nutrients like magnesium and calcium.
The consumer champion concluded that buying a high-quality multivitamin and adding targeted supplements where needed could be cheaper and more effective than buying products targeted as menopause blends.
Ms Loth added: “Our advice is to look beyond the marketing hype and think carefully about what you actually need. A higher price doesn’t automatically mean a product will be effective, and a cheap multivitamin could do the same job without breaking the bank.”
Isabelle Nunn, head of nutrition science and formulation at Wild Nutrition, said its formulations were “designed to complement, not replace, a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle alongside weight-bearing exercise, sleep and stress management”.
She added: “This approach is reflected in the NHS guidelines, which state that adults should obtain most of their RDA of vitamins and minerals through a varied diet, not through supplementation.
“Every woman’s journey is unique to them, which is why we recommend speaking to a qualified nutritional expert before taking any supplements to ensure they are supporting individual nutritional needs.”
A MyVitamins spokesperson said: “Our product is a multi-ingredient formulation, so individual ingredients are not intended to be used at the same levels as they would be in a standalone supplement.
“Evening primrose oil is included at 100mg per recommended daily serving as one component of the overall formulation, alongside sage, hops, soya bean, maca, magnesium and other nutrients. There is no single universally recommended dose of evening primrose oil applicable to all products or uses.”
A spokesperson for Love Mushrooms: “Empower was intentionally formulated as a broader combination of specialist ingredients rather than as a conventional calcium or magnesium supplement. It was not designed to be a catch-all multivitamin, but to bring together a carefully selected range of ingredients at meaningful levels.”
They added that the supplement contains a high amount of saffron, “an exceptionally costly botanical ingredient”, as well as mushroom extracts, botanicals, vitamins and minerals, and the supplement’s price reflects the breadth of formulation.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
