Hot flushes.. why and what we can do about them!
Hot Flushes… together with night sweats they are the most common menopausal symptom – affecting as many as 80% of peri/post menopausal women, although the frequency and severity very wildly.
My experience of night sweats was fortunately relatively short lived, and not too severe. But no matter how severe or not, hot flushes and night sweats are extremely difficult to cope with. In my case finding a bedding solution which allowed me to throw off all the covers easily, and then cover back up once the heat had passed and I was left lying shivering took a bit of juggling. There is the inevitable impact on your sleep – both the lack of sleep during the sweats, and the effort needed to get back to sleep after the event. Not to mention the need to cope with all of this without waking your partner!
Needless to say finding a way to manage the symptoms was uppermost in my mind.
Despite the prevalence of hot flushes and night sweats, there is not unanimity around the physiology, however it is typically recognised that it is the change in estrogen levels which cause the body’s temperature regulation to fail, rather than the lower overall level of estrogen.
The peri-menopause is a time of enormous change – for most of our reproductive live our brains have learned to adapt to the monthly cycle in hormones – however during perimenopause the hormone cycle becomes much more unpredictable and erratic making the body work much harder to maintain ‘homeostasis’ or equilibrium. Thinking about the process from this perspective it’s not perhaps surprising that a few things go awry.
What action can you take to help you through this transition? Happily, there are a host of options available – even excluding the medical HRT/SSRI routes. There are a number of menopausal supplements on the market – many of which have at their core a potent form of phytoestrogens – which act like a ‘weak estrogen’ in the body. In addition, you can take further action/supplements to support your hormonal metabolism – which will all help to support you body’s coping mechanism. If you would like to find out what supplements are most appropriate for you give me a call!
From a Nutrition perspective there are also much you can do in terms of your many actions you can take. These include including phytoestrogens (e.g. pulses/chickpeas), ground flaxseed (start slowly!), healthy fats (e.g. oily fish, nuts and seeds, avocados), and lots of veggies – in particular incorporating brassicas into your diet, and avoiding highly processed foods, highly processed vegetable oils and margarines, and added sugar.
Hot flushes and night sweats can be extremely debilitating - and even if you’re not sweating buckets in front of your boss – you don’t want to have to deal with them any more than is essential. The good news is there are actions you can take which can dramatically improve your experience.
The information contained in this post/blog/website is for general information purposes only and is not meant to substitute professional dietary advice or treatment. Consult your doctor or healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet or taking supplements
