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Ladywell sells Daily Hormone Balance, a capsule and powder aimed at women in perimenopause and menopause. It combines adaptogens, functional mushrooms, amino acids, vitamins and minerals in a proprietary blend. Three things about that formula matter, and none of them are on the label.
What It Is
Daily Hormone Balance is available as capsules or a powder. The named botanicals include ashwagandha, dong quai, wild yam, shatavari, chasteberry (Vitex) and black cohosh, alongside functional mushrooms, amino acids, vitamins and minerals.
That is a recognisable menopause botanical stack — most of these ingredients appear together across the category. The questions worth asking are how much of each is present, and whether any of them carry cautions. The answers are: not disclosed, and yes.
The Proprietary Blend Problem
A proprietary blend lists what is in the product but not how much of each ingredient. You are told the recipe and not the quantities.
This has three consequences. You cannot check any ingredient against the dose used in the research that is implicitly being invoked — ashwagandha trials typically use 300 to 600mg of a standardised extract, and a blend could contain a tenth of that. You cannot compare the product on price per active ingredient against a single-ingredient alternative. And you cannot assess your own exposure to ingredients that carry warnings, which is the part that matters most here.
We have applied this standard consistently across every supplement on this site. It is the same objection we raised in our Moon Juice review, and the reason products that publish full per-ingredient amounts score better in our supplement rankings.
Two Ingredients With Liver-Injury Reports
Black cohosh and ashwagandha have both been associated with rare cases of clinically apparent liver injury. Black cohosh is listed in the NIH LiverTox database as an established cause. Both are in this blend, at undisclosed amounts.
These events are rare, and the great majority of people take either ingredient without any problem. We are not claiming this product causes liver damage. But two flagged botanicals combined in one formula, with no published quantity for either, is a specific reason to be cautious — and it is precisely the information a proprietary blend withholds.
We applied the same caution to ashwagandha in our Moon Juice review, where at least the dose was knowable. If you take this product, know the symptoms of liver trouble — unusual fatigue, dark urine, pale stools, abdominal pain, yellowing of the skin or eyes — and stop and seek medical attention if they appear.
Wild Yam Does Not Become Progesterone
This one is worth stating flatly because the belief is so widespread. Wild yam contains diosgenin, a plant steroid that can be converted into progesterone — in a laboratory, by chemical synthesis. The human body does not carry out that conversion. Eating wild yam, or taking it in a capsule, does not produce progesterone in you.
The confusion is historical: diosgenin genuinely was the industrial starting material for synthesising steroid hormones, which is how the association began. But the chemistry that makes it useful in a factory requires steps human metabolism does not perform.
If you want progesterone, the route is prescribed micronized progesterone — an FDA-approved bioidentical, available at $39 a month through services like Winona. That is a real molecule at a verified dose, and it costs less than most botanical blends.
The Rest of the Botanicals
| Ingredient | What to know |
|---|---|
| Ashwagandha | The best-evidenced ingredient here — modest effects on perceived stress and cortisol at 300–600mg standardised. Rare liver-injury reports. Dose undisclosed. |
| Black cohosh | Studied for hot flashes with mixed results. Established cause of rare liver injury. Often cautioned in hormone-sensitive cancer history. |
| Dong quai | Contains coumarins — a real interaction concern with warfarin and other anticoagulants. Can cause photosensitivity. |
| Chasteberry (Vitex) | Acts on prolactin via dopaminergic pathways. Should not be combined with dopamine agonists or antagonists without medical advice. |
| Wild yam | Does not convert to progesterone in the human body. See above. |
| Shatavari | Traditional Ayurvedic use for women’s health; human clinical evidence is limited. |
Three of these six carry a meaningful interaction or safety note. In a formula that publishes no amounts, that is more than a labelling preference — it is the difference between being able to have an informed conversation with a pharmacist and not.
Product Facts
| Active ingredient | Amount per serving |
|---|---|
| Ashwagandha | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Black cohosh | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Dong quai | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Chasteberry (Vitex) | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Wild yam | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Shatavari | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Functional mushrooms, amino acids, vitamins and minerals | Not disclosed — proprietary blend |
| Manufacturer | Ladywell |
|---|---|
| Serving size | Not published in sources available to us |
| Servings per container | Not published in sources available to us |
| Other ingredients | Not published in sources available to us |
| Intended use | Marketed for hormone balance in perimenopause and menopause. Not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. |
| Directions | Follow the label. Available as capsules or powder. |
| Warnings | Contains black cohosh and ashwagandha, both associated with rare cases of liver injury. Contains dong quai, which may interact with anticoagulants such as warfarin. Contains chasteberry, which acts on dopaminergic pathways. Not for use in pregnancy or breastfeeding. Discuss with a clinician before use if you have a history of hormone-sensitive cancer, liver disease, or take prescription medication. |
| Allergens | Not published in sources available to us |
| Pricing | Not published in sources available to us at the time of writing |
| Subscription options | Not confirmed |
| Refund policy | Not confirmed |
| Shipping | Not confirmed |
The Menopause Weight Question
Products in this category are frequently bought by women who have noticed abdominal weight gain during perimenopause. That change is real and it has a documented mechanism: as estrogen declines, fat storage shifts centrally, and visceral fat rises from around 5 to 8 percent of total body fat before the transition to 15 to 20 percent during it.
Nothing in this blend has established activity on that mechanism. Hormone therapy does — it is associated with reduced visceral adiposity rather than the weight gain it is popularly blamed for, which we cover in the Winona review. A botanical blend at an unknown dose is not an alternative to that; it is a different category of product being sold to the same worry.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Ingredient names are disclosed, even if amounts are not
- Ashwagandha has a genuine evidence base for perceived stress
- Available in both capsule and powder formats
- Addresses a period of life that is genuinely under-served
Cons
- Proprietary blend — no per-ingredient amounts published
- Two ingredients with documented liver-injury reports
- Dong quai interacts with anticoagulants
- Wild yam does not do what the category implies it does
- No third-party testing confirmed in available sources
- No pricing published in sources available to us
- No evidence of effect on menopausal fat redistribution
Who Should Use It
Consider it only if you have decided against hormone therapy, you have cleared the ingredient list with a clinician or pharmacist, and you accept that you will not know how much of anything you are taking.
Do not take it if you are on warfarin or another anticoagulant, have liver disease or a history of liver injury, have a history of hormone-sensitive cancer, take dopamine agonists or antagonists, or are pregnant or breastfeeding — in each case without specific medical advice first.
A better use of the money for most people: a single-ingredient ashwagandha at a published, standardised dose if stress is the target, or a consultation about actual hormone therapy if menopause symptoms are.
Limitations of This Review
This review is based on the published ingredient list and independent research on those ingredients, checked on 7 August 2026. Because the formula is a proprietary blend, we could not assess doses — that is the central criticism rather than a gap in our research. We could not establish current pricing, serving size, servings per container, third-party testing status, manufacturing standards, subscription terms or refund policy. Safety information about individual botanicals comes from published pharmacological sources, not from Ladywell, and describes the ingredients rather than this specific product. Nothing here is medical advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does wild yam convert to progesterone in the body?
No. Wild yam contains diosgenin, which can be converted to progesterone in a laboratory through chemical synthesis. The human body does not perform that conversion. This is one of the most persistent myths in the hormone supplement category.
Is black cohosh safe?
It is associated with rare but documented cases of clinically apparent liver injury, and is listed as an established cause in the NIH LiverTox database. Most people take it without incident, but it is not a neutral ingredient — and in a proprietary blend you cannot see how much you are getting.
What is wrong with a proprietary blend?
It discloses the ingredient list but not the amount of each one. You cannot tell whether an ingredient is present at a researched dose or a token trace, you cannot compare it against trial evidence, and you cannot assess your exposure to ingredients that carry cautions.
Will it help with menopause weight gain?
There is no evidence that it will. The abdominal fat gain at menopause is driven by declining estrogen shifting fat storage centrally — visceral fat rises from around 5-8% of total body fat before the transition to 15-20% during it. Botanicals with no established hormonal activity are not addressing that mechanism.
Verdict
2.6 / 5
A proprietary blend is the wrong format for a formula containing two botanicals with liver-injury reports and one with an anticoagulant interaction. The undisclosed doses are the problem, not an inconvenience.
Perimenopause is badly served and the demand for something to take is completely understandable. But the most useful thing on this page is free: wild yam does not become progesterone in your body, black cohosh is not a neutral herb, and the abdominal weight change you may be trying to address has an actual mechanism with an actual treatment.
If you want the ashwagandha, buy ashwagandha at a stated dose. If you want hormones, ask for FDA-approved bioidenticals. This product sits between the two and discloses less than either.
Supplement Disclaimer & Review Date
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Dietary supplements are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Dietary supplements are not FDA-approved medications, are not reviewed by the FDA for safety or effectiveness before they go on sale, and are not a substitute for prescription treatment.
Nothing on this page is medical advice, and nothing here should be read as a promise of weight loss or of any particular result. Supplements can interact with prescription medications and are not appropriate for everyone. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist who knows your medical history before starting any supplement — particularly if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take prescription medication, manage a chronic condition, or are already taking a GLP-1 medication.
Details about Ladywell Daily Hormone Balance come from the manufacturer's own published materials as of the date below. Ingredients, amounts, pricing, and policies change frequently — check the current label and product page before purchasing.
Last reviewed: August 7, 2026
Check the Label Before You Buy Any of These
If a hormone supplement will not tell you how much of each botanical it contains, you cannot check it against the evidence or against your other medications.