Does it feel like a heater is radiating deep inside your body? Do you experience night sweats that leave your drenched? You’re not alone.
For some women, hot flashes and night sweats are infrequent and manageable. But for others, they can be intense and interfere with quality of life.
Women experience these symptoms due to an imbalance in their hormone levels. Previously, it was thought that being too low in estrogen was the problem. But today, we understand the cause may also be too much estrogen and too little progesterone, or other hormone imbalances in your body that come from the adrenals, ovaries, thyroid pancreas or gastrointestinal tract. There’s a fine dance to keeping all these systems in balance, which becomes especially challenging as women go through midlife changes. But there are several things you can do to help maintain that delicate balance.
Learn how to recognize your triggers
Although it may feel like your symptoms occur randomly, if you take time to listen to your body, you’ll discover what triggers them. The next time you have a hot flash, take note of the circumstances surrounding it.
- What time of day is it?
- What have you had to eat or drink in the last hour?
- Did you get enough sleep last night?
- Have you gotten any exercise today?
- Are you feeling anxious or stressed?
After a while, you’ll recognize a pattern and learn what triggers your hot flashes and night sweats. Although it varies from woman to woman, here are some common culprits that may be on your list:
- Spicy foods
- Foods high in sugar and starches
- Lack of exercise
Solutions: What you can do to ease your symptoms
There are many steps you can take to prevent an internal buildup that leads to hot flashes and night sweats. You can make some of these lifestyle changes today discuss the others with your health care provider.
For hot flashes
- Layer your clothing and skip the turtlenecks. As soon as you feel a hot flash coming on, remove a layer or two.
- Avoid flannel sheets and flannel pajamas. Sleep on cotton sheets and look for pajamas made of moisture–wicking fabric.
- Use a fan to keep the air moving in your office and your bedroom.
- Aim for a diet free of processed foods. Choose organic whenever possible to avoid preservatives, pesticides, hormones and other substances that disrupt hormone balance.
- Whole foods are healthiest, so pick the orange instead of the orange juice. You’ll receive more hormone rebalancing nutrients and fiber to keep you healthy and well.
- Shop the perimeter of the grocery store, where the most nutritious foods are found. Check labels: and avoid foods loaded with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), refined carbohydrates and sodium (salt) as these can contribute to more imbalance symptoms.
- Be aware of portion sizes. Honor your cravings with gratitude for yourself, but do so in moderation.
- Aim to eat at least 5 servings of vegetables and 2 servings of fruit each day. The more colorful ones are packed with valuable nutrients to help your body achieve stellar function. Dark green and leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale and collards have been shown to help in memory recall and other mental functions.
Drinks to sip on
- Drink more filtered water and green tea. General recommendations for water intake are half your body weight in ounces, every single day. You can work your way up to this amount, of course!
- Limit your caffeine intake; drink less coffee and soda.
The importance of movement
- Go for a walk, take the stairs and park farther away. Exercise gets your endorphins moving and helps alleviate symptoms associated with menopause.
- Your health care provider may choose to prescribe a short course of anti-anxiety medication while you establish a long term management plan.
- They may also choose to assess your neurotransmitter balance. Neurotransmitters are hormones in the nervous system (such as serotonin, epinephrine, norepinephrine, GABA and dopamine) that regulate mood and sleep.
- Talk to your health care provider or pharmacist about adrenal support vitamins and herbs. Increasing your intake of B & C vitamins, particularly vitamins B5, B6 and B12 can be very helpful. Health food stores and compounding pharmacies are also good places to look for adrenal support vitamins specially formulated for your needs. Don’t be tempted to buy cheap products, invest in yourself.
- Make time to do the things you love, whether it’s relaxing with a good book or pursuing a favorite hobby. These activities will help you tackle the stressors of life with more resiliency and perspective.
- Get your life in order; getting rid of clutter can reduce your overall stress and help you manage midlife challenges.
- Reduce your stress with massage therapy, join a yoga class or practice meditation.
- Get more rest and a better night’s sleep. For tips, see theTrouble Sleeping symptom page
Vitamins, minerals, herbs
- Ask about black cohosh, an herb that has helped some women with hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. To learn more, see theVitamins, supplements and herbs page.
- Load up on berries that packed with anti-oxidants, like blueberries, blackberries, cranberries and strawberries. Fresh or frozen, they reduce oxidative stress which assaults the cells of the body. So, “berry up” to reduce inflammation and improve your brain cell signaling.
- Avoid saturated and trans fats and choose olive oil and canola oil instead.
- Choose foods high in Vitamin C, like red peppers, oranges, pine nuts, and roasted sunflower seeds. These foods are great for skin protection, leading to fewer wrinkles and less skin dryness overall.
- Boost your omega-3s: a beneficial fatty acid found in fish oil, walnuts, canola and flaxseed oils.
- Spice up your diet with herbs that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, like turmeric (also known as curcumin), garlic, rosemary and cayenne.
- If you’re a smoker, seek the support you need to quit. On average, women who smoke experience menopause symptoms two years earlier than non-smokers, and smokers’ symptoms are often stronger and more troublesome. It’s never too late to quit smoking, so get started today.
- Chemical disruptors can also throw off your balance, so avoid perfumes and go fragrance-free. Many natural alternatives to perfumes can be purchased or made, often lasting longer and delivering therapeutic effects as well as delicious fragrance!
Hormones, hormones, hormones
- If hormone therapy is recommended, consider bioidentical therapy which matches your body’s hormone structure.
- Discuss over-the-counter progesterone options with your health care provider.
- See a licensed health care provider for a comprehensive exam and full assessment of your overall physical, mental and emotional health. The type, timing and dosage of your therapy will be tailor-made so that you may attain the wellness you’ve been waiting for!
- Talk to a Chinese medical practitioner about herbal therapy and acupuncture.
- The naturopathic medical approach also has much to offer women struggling with hormonal transitions. By stimulating your body’s innate ability to heal- a force also known as the vis- naturopathic physicians can create a powerful individualized plan and adjust it whenever necessary.