The Menopause Markup: Are We Paying for What’s Inside the Box or the Word on the Front?

Am I paying extra because somebody has written “menopause” on the front of the box?

I asked that question recently, slightly tongue-in-cheek.

Except the more I’ve looked into it, the less tongue-in-cheek it feels.

Because menopause has become big business.

Walk down the supplement aisle or, perhaps more dangerously, spend ten minutes scrolling through social media and apparently there is now something for virtually every part of the midlife woman.

Sleep.

Energy.

Brain fog.

Mood.

Hair.

Skin.

Joints.

Weight.

Libido.

Hot flushes.

Hormone “balance”.

Bloody hell, we’re practically a product category all by ourselves. 😂

Now, before anybody thinks I’m about to declare war on supplements, I’m not.

Some supplements are useful. Some people have deficiencies or particular nutritional needs. Some botanical ingredients have interesting research behind them.

And if you’ve found something that genuinely helps you, I’m certainly not here to take it off you.

What I am becoming increasingly interested in is the gap between what a product appears to promise and what the evidence actually allows us to say.

Because those aren’t always the same thing.

Women are finally being listened to. That’s a good thing.

For years, women going through perimenopause and menopause were too often expected just to get on with it.

Hot flushes? Normal.

Exhausted? Normal.

Can’t sleep? Normal.

Brain gone walkabout halfway through a sentence? Apparently normal too.

So I am genuinely delighted that menopause is finally being discussed openly.

Women are asking questions.

Workplaces are taking it more seriously.

Healthcare is talking about it more.

Products and services are being developed around women’s actual experiences.

That visibility is overdue.

But there’s another side to being visible.

We’ve also become very easy to market to.

And there is a difference between recognising women’s needs and spotting a lucrative audience.

Then I read the Which? investigation…

This is what really caught my attention.

Which? recently looked at 26 supplements marketed at women going through perimenopause, menopause or over the age of 45.

Their nutrition experts examined more than 80 active ingredients and looked not simply at whether an ingredient appeared on the label, but at the evidence for it and — crucially — how much was actually in the product.

And this is where things become interesting.

They found an extraordinary variety of formulations. No single active ingredient appeared in every product, and some products contained ingredients at considerably lower doses than those used in studies suggesting a possible benefit.

None of the 26 products met Which?’s standard for a Best Buy.

And some could cost more than £400 a year.

Now that made me sit up.

Because it raises a question I’ve come across many times in skincare too:

Is an ingredient being included because there’s good evidence that the finished product will do something useful — or because the ingredient looks impressive on the label?

They’re very different things.

“Contains” doesn’t necessarily mean “works”

This is something I think we need to become much better at spotting.

Imagine a study finds that Ingredient X produced an effect when people took 500mg.

Then you find a lovely-looking supplement shouting CONTAINS INGREDIENT X on the front.

Wonderful.

Except when you turn the packet around, there’s 50mg in it.

The statement that it contains Ingredient X may be perfectly true.

But that doesn’t automatically mean the product will reproduce the results of research conducted at ten times the dose.

This is exactly the same principle I talked about in my last blog on skincare.

You can’t simply take an impressive property associated with one ingredient and quietly transfer it to the finished product.

Dose matters. Formulation matters. Evidence matters.

Not quite as sexy as the marketing department, granted. 😂

But rather useful when it’s your money.

And “natural” still doesn’t mean harmless

Here we go again with my favourite little bugbear.

Natural.

I make natural skincare. I love working with natural ingredients.

But natural is not another word for safe.

The NHS makes exactly this point with herbal remedies marketed for menopause. These products aren’t tested in the same way as medicines, evidence for several commonly used remedies is limited or uncertain, and some can interact with other medicines.

NICE takes a similarly nuanced view. There is some evidence that preparations containing isoflavones or black cohosh may help with vasomotor symptoms such as hot flushes, but preparations vary, safety can be uncertain and interactions with medicines have been reported.

That’s much more nuanced than:

NATURAL MENOPAUSE RELIEF!

Which, unsurprisingly, doesn’t fit quite so beautifully on the front of a bottle.

Here’s the really interesting bit: what are companies actually allowed to say?

This surprised me.

Food supplements in the UK are regulated as foods, not medicines.

And that distinction matters.

Government guidance is clear that supplements should not be marketed as though they can prevent, treat or cure medical conditions or symptoms.

The Advertising Standards Authority’s recent guidance makes this particularly clear when it comes to menopause.

Claims suggesting that a food or supplement can treat symptoms such as hot flushes, night sweats, brain fog or sleep problems are unlikely to be acceptable.

And this isn’t theoretical.

In 2026, the ASA upheld a number of complaints involving supplements and products marketed to women experiencing menopause and hormonal symptoms.

So we’re in a slightly peculiar situation.

Women are surrounded by products whose packaging, imagery, product names, testimonials and social-media advertising can leave us with a very strong impression of what they’re going to do.

But when you actually examine what can legally and scientifically be claimed, things become much less straightforward.

And I think consumers deserve to understand that difference.

But Ita, what about people who swear their supplement works?

I believe them.

Or, perhaps more accurately, I believe that they may genuinely feel better.

And that’s important.

Human beings aren’t laboratory machines.

Symptoms fluctuate.

Diet changes.

Sleep changes.

Stress changes.

Expectations affect our experience too.

And some individual ingredients may genuinely benefit some people.

The British Menopause Society makes a sensible distinction here too: relatively few complementary treatments have strong evidence of effectiveness, while individual women may nevertheless feel they experience benefit.

I think we can hold two thoughts in our heads at the same time:

“This really helped me.”

and

“We don’t yet have strong evidence that it will reliably do the same for everybody else.”

Both can be true.

So should we stop buying menopause supplements?

No.

That’s not my point at all.

My point is that we should buy them informed.

Before spending £20, £30 or £40 a month, I’d ask:

What am I actually taking this for?

Which ingredient is supposed to help?

What’s the evidence for that ingredient?

How much of it is actually in this product?

Could it interact with medication I’m already taking?

And perhaps:

Could I get what I actually need in a much simpler and considerably cheaper  way?

Sometimes the answer might still be, Yes, I want this product.

Brilliant.

At least it’s an informed yes.

And perhaps we need to stop trying to “fix” midlife

This is the bit I keep coming back to.

Menopause can be bloody difficult.

For some women it’s mildly inconvenient. For others it has a profound effect on sleep, work, relationships, confidence and quality of life.

Those women deserve proper information, proper healthcare and treatments with evidence behind them.

What they don’t deserve is to have every insecurity turned into another sales opportunity.

Your changing body isn’t a commercial emergency.

Your ageing face isn’t a defect.

And being 40, 50, 60 or beyond doesn’t mean you suddenly require a cupboard containing twelve different bottles labelled MIDLIFE.

For fuck’s sake. We’d never have room for the gin. 😂

I want evidence but I still want joy

I seem to keep arriving back here.

Evidence-based doesn’t mean joyless.

I will still buy beautiful things simply because I like them.

I’ll light an expensive candle because it smells gorgeous.

I’ll use a lovely face oil because I enjoy the ritual and my skin feels wonderful afterwards.

And if I choose a supplement because I’ve looked at what’s in it, checked that it’s appropriate for me and decided it’s worth the money, that’s absolutely fine too.

Not every purchase needs a randomised controlled trial attached to it.

But efficacy claims do need evidence.

That’s the distinction.

And I think women are becoming much more confident about making it.

So the next time I see a beautifully packaged bottle promising to support the midlife version of virtually every organ I possess, I’ll probably still pick it up.

I’ll turn it over.

I’ll read the ingredients.

I’ll look at the doses.

I’ll ask what the evidence actually says.

And then I’ll decide.

Because putting MENOPAUSE on the front of a box doesn’t automatically make what’s inside it more effective.

It may, however, make it more expensive.

And that is worth asking about. ❤️

A little note from me

This isn’t medical advice and I’m certainly not suggesting anyone stops medication or supplements that work for them.

Menopause symptoms and nutritional needs are individual. If you’re unsure whether a supplement is appropriate particularly if you take medication or have a medical condition  speak to your GP, pharmacist or another qualified healthcare professional.

Sources & further reading

Which? — Best menopause supplements: reviewed by nutrition experts
Read the Which? investigation⁠

Which? — Menopause markup: specialist supplements costing more than £400 a year
Read the Which? menopause markup report⁠

NHS — Herbal remedies and complementary medicines for menopause symptoms
Read the NHS guidance⁠

NICE — Menopause: identification and management
Read the NICE recommendations⁠

GOV.UK — Food supplements guidance
Read the UK Government guidance⁠

ASA/CAP — Healthcare: The Menopause
Read the ASA menopause advertising guidance⁠

British Menopause Society — Non-hormonal treatments for menopausal symptoms
Read the British Menopause Society guidance⁠