| Take it with aspirin when going to bed to help decrease the risk of hot flashes, a common side effect. You can take a higher dose but need to talk to your doc because higher doses often need to be prescribed (Niaspan). Niacin is rarely associated with liver problems.
Vitamin D
Yes
Recent research suggests that D isn't just good for your bones and immune system, but is good for your heart. Try 800IU daily if under the age of sixty, 1,000 IU if age sixty or over.
Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5)
Yes
It's a water-soluble vitamin that's essential for metabolism and for forming HDL cholesterol. |
Marshall Editions
See book keywords and concepts |
 HOMEOPATHY
Homeopathic treatment can provide invaluable support in easing distressing but common symptoms such as sleep disturbance, hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, fatigue, and poor mental focus and concentration. Homeopathy treats the whole person, and is equally effective in treating the emotional traumas that a difficult menopause can involve. Some women benefit from solely using these remedies, while others use them in a complementary way until they are ready to reduce their conventional treatment. |
| Weight gain may be noticeable, coupled with persistently low energy levels. hot flashes are likely to be come on with the least amount of physical effort, followed by a cold, clammy sensation.
Natrum mur: Symptoms that call for this remedy include dry mucous membranes, particularly of the vagina. The skin is also likely to show signs of major dryness and sensitivity as a result of hormone changes. Emotionally, sufferers tend to bottle up their feelings, resulting in low moods and depression. |
Mehmet C. Oz., M.D. and Michael F. Roizen, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
 Yeah, we know what you're saying: All your little tribesmen stories might make good fodder for a campflre and med school reunions, but what the heck are you going to do about my hot flashes, Doc?
We hear you. We're not saying that you need to just accept a drop in hormone levels and an increase in life-altering side effects. What we want you to do is acknowledge the fact that aging occurs for a reason, and that reason may actually be good for society. When it comes to your hormones, the problems—as we'll talk about in the following chapters—happen when they fluctuate too much or decrease. |
Bottom Line Health
See book keywords and concepts |
| DECISIONS
Given these findings, women need to consider whether they want to use estrogen—which is typically used to ease menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, vaginal dryness and loss of energy—over an extended period, Chen says. "Estrogen only causes cancer after prolonged exposure. For women who use estrogen alone, and have been on it for more than 10 years, they would want to consider how much longer they want to remain on estrogen," she says.
Patients must understand that the benefits of estrogen come with certain risks. |
Mehmet C. Oz., M.D. and Michael F. Roizen, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
| However, if you're one of the 25 percent of women whose hot flashes have given you a misdemeanor rap from threatening to tap fire hydrants, then don't fear putting HT on your radar screen. |
Bill Sardi
See book keywords and concepts |
 Androgen Deprivation Therapy (LHRH agonists)
40% - 70%
Breast Swelling: 5% - 25%, Hot Flashes: 50% - 60%
Source: Systematic Evidence Review No. 16, Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality, 2006
Prostate cancer care
Male Pelvic (Cross Section) bladder prostate uretha rectum
Hormonal therapy
The first line of treatment of advanced prostate cancer involves the reduction, blockage or cessation of testosterone production. Hormonal treatment of advanced stage prostate cancer shrinks the size of the prostate by 25 to 50%. [Minerva Urology Nefrology 57: 71-84, 2005]
Dr. |
Marshall Editions
See book keywords and concepts |
| Palpitations, feeling faint, and hot flashes often accompany heavy periods. Mood swings, anxiety, disturbed sleep, and left-sided premenstrual headaches 782 I may also occur.
Kali carb: If heavy periods are accompanied by lower back pain and fluid retention, try Kali carb. Because the menstrual flow is heavy, there may also be symptoms of anemia, such as feeling chilly and tired, or appearing pale. The areas affected by pain feel cold to the touch, and sufferers are emotionally withdrawn as a result of feeling exhausted and drained. |
| Other symptoms include premenstrual left-sided headaches, migraines, disturbed sleep, night sweats, hot flashes, palpitations, and anxiety.
-a m
3D O a >
HERBALISM a Painful menstruation is typically caused by excessive uterine tone and spasm. Elevated pro-inflammatory chemicals (prostaglandins and \ "1 f / leukotrienes) are commonly found in uterine tissue of women with this M y condition. Many herbal medicines can reduce uterine tone and spasm quite effectively.
Cramp bark: This is a wonderful uterine and intestinal antispasmodic. |
Dr. Timothy Scott
See book keywords and concepts |
 However, my father had concerns about her taking hormone supplements, so she avoided those pills for years—until she began experiencing "hot flashes" shortly before she turned 60. Her friends were also on estrogen, and one declared, "Well, I sure don't want to get osteoporosis in old age. I'm going to keep taking my estrogen." That concern, combined with the discomfort of hot flashes, was enough for Mom to decide it was time to take it herself.2 For nearly 12 years she faithfully took her Premarin brand of estrogen.3 (Premarin is derived from pregnant mares' urine; hence, the name. |
Hyla Cass, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
 ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES/ ESTROGEN REPLACEMENT THERAPY
These two medications are used at quite different times in a woman's life: the first, to prevent pregnancy or regulate menstrual cycles during the years of fertility; and the second, to deal with hot flashes and other symptoms that can crop up at menopause. Both contain some version of estrogen, which is a depleting drug, and—unless the woman is menopausal and has had a hysterectomy—will always contain some form of progestin, a synthetic version of progesterone. |
Gerald E. Markle and Frances B. McCrea
See book keywords and concepts |
 As it turned out, estrogens are effective in controlling menopausal hot flashes. Otherwise, each and every one of these medical claims proved to be false.
Nonetheless, between 1963 and 1975, dollar sales for prescription estrogen replacements quadrupled. As one Harvard researcher noted:
"Few medical interventions have had as widespread application as exogenous estrogen treatment in postmenopausal women." By 1975, with prescriptions at an all time high of 30 million, estrogens had become the fifth most widely prescribed drug in the United States. |
Mehmet C. Oz., M.D. and Michael F. Roizen, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
| Now that we're adults, we blame our hormones for foul moods, for sex drives that can be more like crawls, for hot flashes that keep us up all night, or for the ability to spend thirteen hours on the couch watching football.
Unlike a bone that can break, or blood that can clot, or even a neuron that can occasionally fail to fire to give you the numbers of your combination lock, hormones are enigmatic and intangible. But that doesn't mean that your hormones are any less important than the other systems in your body, or that you should simply accept hormonal decline as a fact of aging. |
| And +r>o women who took estrogen also had higher prtT fgooo1) cholesterol, increased bone strength, and substantially decreased menopausal symptoms. hot flashes, mood swings, and insomnia practically disappeared.
These early studies made es^ogen seem truly beneficial, but with time, women on estrogen replacement also suffered a buildup of uterine tissue that led to an increase in viterine cancer, as well as a proliferation of breast tissue, associated with an inrrea^e in breast cancer. |
C. W. Randolph, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
 They came to my office suffering from symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, irregular bleeding, bloating, memory loss, low libido, and mood swings. In almost every case, these women also evidenced another unwanted side effect: abdominal weight gain. They used all sorts of terms to describe their extra weight: "pooching tummy," "bloated belly," "pregnant stomach," or even "that new continent that has attached itself to my hips." Men who realized that something was shifting with their hormones also sought help. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
See book keywords and concepts |
 Walking briskly every day for 30 minutes cuts hot flashes by 50 percent while improving your heart and bone health at the same time.
Note: The above dosages are daily and in pill or capsule form unless otherwise noted. n O
O n c
73 m to who is firmly planted in the mainstream. (For help on finding a doctor, see Recommended Reading and Resources.)
Bioidentical hormones are compounds that have exactly the same chemical and molecular structure as those produced in your body. |
| You are not going to get the full story on this speaking to a doctor
Natural Prescription for Menopausal hot flashes (and Other Nasty Symptoms)
Black cohosh: The German product Remifemin uses an extract standardized to 1 mg of 27-deoxyactein per 20 mg tablet; The British Herbal Compendium recommends 40-200 mg dried rhizome daily in divided doses. Use each product as directed on package label.
Dong quai: Can be used together with black cohosh, as directed on product label
DIM (diindolylmethane): A balancer of estrogen metabolism. |
| Hot flashes, including night sweats, occur because of an imbalance in the ratios of two primary female hormones, estrogen and progesterone.
Black Cohosh
Off-Balance Hormones and Their Effects
Winding your way through the maze of information related to hormones and their physical effects is simply mind-numbing: Too much estrogen can cause weight gain, headaches, insomnia, bloating, and heavy periods, while too little progesterone can cause anxiety, depression, insomnia, pain, inflammation, osteoporosis, decreased HDL (or "good") cholesterol, and breakthrough bleeding. |
Anne Harrington
See book keywords and concepts |
 In her comparative work on aging in Japan and North America, Margaret Lock found that when older women in Japan stop menstruating, they rarely experience the hot flashes and night sweats that are associated with menopause in North America. In fact, it turned out the Japanese have no word for a hot flash. Lock's view is that these vasomotor differences have their origins in the fact that female aging is not experienced as a sign of diminished status and worth in Japan in the same way as it is in North America. |
David W. Grotto, RD, LDN
See book keywords and concepts |
 The vitamin E in wheat germ may relieve the frequency and severity of hot flashes. Using wheat grass juice as a mouthwash has been shown to diminish toothache pain.
Throw Me a Lifesaver!
LONGEVITY: Eating whole grains is associated with longevity and lower risk of many different types of disease in women.
HEART HEALTH: Several studies show reduction in cholesterol and triglycerides when whole grains, as opposed to refined grains, are part of the diet. |
Joan Liebmann-Smith, Ph. D., and Jacqueline Nardi Egan
See book keywords and concepts |
 Older men, too, occasionally experience hot flashes, usually because of low levels of testosterone—medically known as hypogonadism (aka an-dropause or male menopause).
DANGER SIGN
If you break out in a cold sweat and feel light-headed or have chest or stomach pains, seek immediate medical attention. You may be having a heart attack.
Sweating profusely sometimes signals diabetes-related low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), which is usually accompanied by shakiness, dizziness, weakness, and hunger. Excessive sweating, along with heat intolerance, is a very common sign of hyperthyroidism. |
Andreas Moritz
See book keywords and concepts |
 Menopausal symptoms, however, can just as often have a spiritual basis. hot flashes, for example, may be triggered by an awakening of the spiritual energy Kundalini. The heat waves can "strike" like lightening during mealtimes, while resting and even during sleep. As this intense energy rushes upward from the base of the spine or uterus toward the head, it can cause tremendous heat in the body along with severe sweating. Following the hot flash, the body may experience a cold spell. |
C. W. Randolph, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
| Erectile dysfunction
þ hot flashes ? Night sweats ? Poor concentration
C. Stress Level
1. On a scale of 0-10 (0 = no stress; 10 = high stress), my stress level is_.
D. Exercise
1. Last week I exercised_times per week for an average of_minutes each time.
2. Describe the activity or activities: _
E. Outlook
1. In addition to being grateful for making progress toward losing my unwanted belly fat, I am thankful for (list three things):_
Your Belly Flat Food Diary
Most nutritionists and dietitians agree that keeping a food diary is critical to weight loss success. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
See book keywords and concepts |
| Hot flashes, including night sweats, occur because of an imbalance in the ratios of two primary female hormones, estrogen and progesterone.
Black Cohosh
Off-Balance Hormones and Their Effects
Winding your way through the maze of information related to hormones and their physical effects is simply mind-numbing: Too much estrogen can cause weight gain, headaches, insomnia, bloating, and heavy periods, while too little progesterone can cause anxiety, depression, insomnia, pain, inflammation, osteoporosis, decreased HDL (or "good") cholesterol, and breakthrough bleeding. |
C. W. Randolph, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
| Many doctors routinely continue to prescribe synthetic hormone replacement therapy for menopausal symptoms, such as hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, and moodiness. These prescription drugs are composed of synthetic estrogen or a synthetic estrogen and progestin combination. Synthetic hormone replacement has also been prescribed to protect women from the loss of bone mass after menopause. |
| The study participants also reported that they felt an improvement in several other health areas, including relief of sleep disturbances, hot flashes, anxiety, and symptoms of depression. forms of bio-identical progesterone
Bio-identical progesterone can be administered as a cream, a pill, a capsule, a gelcap, drops under the tongue, or a suppository. Fortunately, for those who don't like taking pills, topical creams have been shown to be the most effective way of administering bio-identical progesterone. |
| Because estrogen dominance frequently causes insomnia or fitful sleeping as a result of hot flashes and night sweats, using bio-identical progesterone cream and eating foods to reduce your estrogen load should help to promote a healthy sleeping pattern. However, you still have to make the choice to stop whatever you are doing and get into bed early enough to allow yourself eight hours of sleep. |
| Pam complained that she was having night sweats and hot flashes. She also reported that she had not had a period for eleven months. When a woman has not had a period for twelve months, she is officially menopausal. Pam was on that cusp, and the production of her other sex hormones had declined to a point that additional help might be necessary. The progesterone cream had not changed, but the balance among her other hormones had. one size does not fit all
As stated in the previous chapter, hormone balance is a process, not a fixed state. |
Ray Moynihan and Alan Cassels
See book keywords and concepts |
 However, among a subset of those in the study, the younger women, aged fifty to fifty-four, who experienced moderate to severe symptoms, the drugs offered some benefit with hot flashes (hot flushes) and sleeping problems.43 Importantly, there is a strong body of good evidence that these drugs are very effective in reducing the frequency and severity of hot flashes (hot flushes) for many women. |
John J. Ratey, MD
See book keywords and concepts |
 They include the so-called vasomotor symptoms of hot flashes and night sweats as well as irritability and mood instability. And as with the other hormonal shifts I've discussed, there's no predicting how someone will be affected—some pass through menopause without really noticing, and others are tormented. Most women experience at least a few of the symptoms, and many of those who exercise find that it helps. |
Email this page to a friend
