Effectiveness of Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) Decoction as a Non-Hormonal Therapy for Preventing Early Menopause Among Women Aged 40–45 Years in Indonesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55018/janh.v7i3.434Keywords:
Complementary Therapy, Cymbopogon citratus, Early Menopause, Lemongrass, Menopausal Symptoms, Randomized Controlled TrialAbstract
Background: Early menopause (before age 45) increases risks of osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and reduced quality of life. Although hormonal therapy is effective, its adverse effects have driven interest in safer alternatives. However, evidence on community-based herbal interventions for preventing early menopause is scarce in Indonesia. This study examined the effectiveness of Cymbopogon citratus (lemongrass) decoction as a low-cost, non-hormonal preventive therapy for early menopause.
Methods: This parallel two-arm randomized controlled trial, conducted in Perbulan Village, Karo Regency, involved 30 women aged 40–45 years, randomly assigned to an intervention group receiving lemongrass decoction and a control group. Participants consumed 250 ml of decoction daily for 30 days. Menopausal symptoms were measured using the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) and menstrual cycle regularity was recorded. Data were analyzed with the Mann–Whitney U test following the CONSORT 2010 guidelines, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05 and 95% confidence intervals (CI) reported. Ethical approval was obtained from the institutional review board.
Results: Mean MRS scores in the intervention group decreased significantly from 20.5 ± 2.0 to 13.4 ± 1.6 (p < 0.001, 95% CI [5.7, 8.4], d = 1.45, large effect), while the control group showed no significant change. Menstrual cycle regularity improved in 73.3% of intervention participants compared with 13.3% in controls (p < 0.001). Compliance was high (86.7%) and no adverse events were reported.
Conclusion: Lemongrass decoction effectively reduced menopausal symptoms and regulated menstrual cycles, supporting its use as a safe, acceptable, and affordable non-hormonal option for community-based women’s health promotion. The findings suggest potential integration of herbal therapy education into midwifery and public health programs to strengthen preventive reproductive care.
Downloads
References
Bolt, M. J., Oceguera, J., Singh, P. K., Safari, K., Abbott, D. H., Neugebauer, K. A., Mancini, M. G., Gorelick, D. A., Stossi, F., & Mancini, M. A. (2024). Characterization of Flavonoids with Potent and Subtype-Selective Actions on Estrogen Receptors Alpha and Beta. IScience, 27(3), 109275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2024.109275
de Oliveira, J. R., Camargo, S. E. A., & de Oliveira, L. D. (2019). Rosmarinus Officinalis L. (Rosemary) as Therapeutic and Prophylactic Agent. Journal of Biomedical Science, 26(1), 5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12929-019-0499-8
Giri, R., & Vincent, A. J. (2020). Prevalence and Risk Factors of Premature Ovarian Insufficiency/Early Menopause. Seminars in Reproductive Medicine, 38(04/05), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0040-1722317
Golezar, S., Ramezani Tehrani, F., Khazaei, S., Ebadi, A., & Keshavarz, Z. (2019). The Global Prevalence of Primary Ovarian Insufficiency and Early Menopause: a Meta-Analysis. Climacteric, 22(4), 403–411. https://doi.org/10.1080/13697137.2019.1574738
Hamoda, H., & Sharma, A. (2024). Premature Ovarian Insufficiency, Early Menopause, and Induced Menopause. Best Practice & Research Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 38(1), 101823. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beem.2023.101823
Himawan, T., Rachmawati, R., & Rifandani, E. P. (2021). The Effectiveness of Lemongrass Oil Against Brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens Stal. (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) on Rice Plant. Journal of Tropical Plant Protection, 2(1), 14–18. https://doi.org/10.21776/ub.jtpp.2021.002.1.3
Hu, X., Li, X., Deng, P., Zhang, Y., Liu, R., Cai, D., Xu, Q., Jiang, X., Sun, J., & Bai, W. (2023). The Consequence and Mechanism of Dietary Flavonoids on Androgen Profiles and Disorders Amelioration. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 63(32), 11327–11350. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2022.2090893
Kenda, M., Glavač, N. K., Nagy, M., & Sollner Dolenc, M. (2021). Herbal Products Used in Menopause and for Gynecological Disorders. Molecules, 26(24), 7421. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26247421
Leone, T., Brown, L., & Gemmill, A. (2023). Secular Trends in Premature and Early Menopause in Low-Income and Middle-Income Countries. BMJ Global Health, 8(6), e012312. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2023-012312
Madsen, T. E., Sobel, T., Negash, S., Shrout Allen, T., Stefanick, M. L., Manson, J. E., & Allison, M. (2023). A Review of Hormone and Non-Hormonal Therapy Options for the Treatment of Menopause. International Journal of Women’s Health, Volume 15, 825–836. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJWH.S379808
Mbachu, O. C., Howell, C., Simmler, C., Malca Garcia, G. R., Skowron, K. J., Dong, H., Ellis, S. G., Hitzman, R. T., Hajirahimkhan, A., Chen, S.-N., Nikolic, D., Moore, T. W., Vollmer, G., Pauli, G. F., Bolton, J. L., & Dietz, B. M. (2020). SAR Study on Estrogen Receptor α/β Activity of (Iso) Flavonoids: Importance of Prenylation, C-Ring (Un) Saturation, and Hydroxyl Substituents. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 68(39), 10651–10663. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.0c03526
Mohapatra, S., Kumar, P. A., Aggarwal, A., Iqubal, A., Mirza, M. A., & Iqbal, Z. (2024). Phytotherapeutic Approach for Conquering Menopausal Syndrome and Osteoporosis. Phytotherapy Research, 38(6), 2728–2763. https://doi.org/10.1002/ptr.8172
Oliveira, E. R. de, Alves, D. S., Carvalho, G. A., Oliveira, B. M. R. G. de, Aazza, S., & Bertolucci, S. K. V. (2018). Toxicity of Cymbopogon Flexuosus Essential Oil and Citral for Spodoptera Frugiperda. Ciência e Agrotecnologia, 42(4), 408–419. https://doi.org/10.1590/1413-70542018424013918
Peycheva, D., Sullivan, A., Hardy, R., Bryson, A., Conti, G., & Ploubidis, G. (2022). Risk Factors for Natural Menopause before the Age of 45: Evidence from Two British Population-Based Birth Cohort Studies. BMC Women’s Health, 22(1), 438. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-022-02021-4
Silva, F. D. O. E., Soares, J. C. M., Valdez, A., Ferreira, M. V. da S., & Cecim, M. da S. (2022). Cymbopogon citratus Protects Erythrocytes from Lipid Peroxidation in Vitro. Cardiovascular & Hematological Agents in Medicinal Chemistry, 20(2), 166–169. https://doi.org/10.2174/1871525719666210906122948
Sochocka, M., Karska, J., Pszczołowska, M., Ochnik, M., Fułek, M., Fułek, K., Kurpas, D., Chojdak-Łukasiewicz, J., Rosner-Tenerowicz, A., & Leszek, J. (2023). Cognitive Decline in Early and Premature Menopause. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24(7), 6566. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24076566
Sousa, R., Figueirinha, A., Batista, M. T., & Pina, M. E. (2021). Formulation Effects in the Antioxidant Activity of Extract from the Leaves of Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf. Molecules, 26(15), 4518. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26154518
Suharti, B., Kartika, T., & Sugiyanta, S. (2021). Culture and Social: Herbal Medicine as Health Communication to Build Urban Community Empowerment. Jurnal Studi Komunikasi (Indonesian Journal of Communications Studies), 5(1), 151. https://doi.org/10.25139/jsk.v5i1.3124
Sulaiman, A. I., Sugito, T., Suswanto, B., Adi, T. N., & Weningsih, S. (2024). Community Empowerment Program in Management of Health Clinic Development and Herbal Tourism. Proceeding of The International Conference of Inovation, Science, Technology, Education, Children, and Health, 1(1), 82–92. https://doi.org/10.62951/icistech.v1i1.21
Tazi, A., Zinedine, A., Rocha, J. M., & Errachidi, F. (2024). Review on the pharmacological properties of lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) as a promising source of bioactive compounds. Pharmacological Research - Natural Products, 3, 100046. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prenap.2024.100046
Yoshida, Y., Chen, Z., Baudier, R. L., Krousel-Wood, M., Anderson, A. H., Fonseca, V. A., & Mauvais-Jarvis, F. (2021). Early Menopause and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Women With or Without Type 2 Diabetes: A Pooled Analysis of 9,374 Postmenopausal Women. Diabetes Care, 44(11), 2564–2572. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc21-1107
Zhong, W., Wang, Q., Peng, D., Zou, Y., Chen, Y., Xia, Y., Zhang, X., Shu, M., Song, C., Wang, Y., Fu, Y., Wang, S., Ma, Y., Bu, X., Liang, Y., Chen, Y., Bai, W., Chen, Y., Deng, C., … Shang, W. (2024). Genetic Risk Stratification and Risk Factors of Early Menopause in Women: a Multi-Center Study Utilizing Polygenic Risk Scores. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2024.1518288
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Mediana Beru Sembiring, Lasria Simamora, Dewi Sartika Hutabarat, Polma Ria Metawati Panjaitan, Imarina Tarigan, Rika Khairatun Nisa, Ratu Putri Arjuna
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
