Hot flushes

• Over 80 per cent of women experience hot flushes during menopause. The intensity of symptoms varies from woman to woman, ranging from one hot flush per day to one per hour. They usually last a few minutes.
• Hormonal fluctuations disrupt your body’s temperature regulation. Your body receives (unnecessary) signals to cool down or warm up.
• There are various effective and proven treatments to reduce hot flushes, including non-hormonal medications, hormone therapy, and supplements.

More than 80 per cent of women experience hot flushes to some degree during menopause, particularly in the perimenopausal phase. During menopause, the levels of oestrogen and progesterone in your body decrease. These sex hormones have various functions, including regulating your body’s temperature. Oestrogen, in particular, plays a crucial role. When oestrogen levels drop, your brain receives a signal that you are too warm, even if that’s not the case and the outside temperature is perfectly comfortable.

Here’s how it works: when oestrogen decreases, the stress hormone norepinephrine increases. Your body responds by cooling itself down (quickly and intensely). Your blood vessels dilate, you sweat profusely, and your skin turns red. It’s as if your internal thermostat is stuck at 35 degrees Celsius. But it can also work the other way around: you feel cold and start shivering; it feels like freezing. If hot flushes occur at night, they are referred to as night sweats.

During your ‘normal’ menstrual cycle, your body functions in the same way. When you menstruate, oestrogen levels drop, and your body temperature decreases slightly. When you ovulate and oestrogen levels rise, your temperature increases again. During menopause, however, these temperature fluctuations are (much) more intense.

After your last menstrual period, hot flushes decrease for many women. It’s just a matter of time before they become less frequent. Ten years after menopause, only five per cent of women still experience them. Are you among that five per cent? Then it’s worth getting it checked out.

In addition to hormonal fluctuations, we know that stress and tension can trigger hot flushes (and other menopausal symptoms). When you’re busy and constantly ‘on’, the stress hormone cortisol increases. This comes at the expense of oestrogen production and can trigger hot flushes. Women with hectic lives often experience more discomfort from hot flushes. Most women also experience other menopausal symptoms alongside hot flushes, such as mood swings, low energy, or muscle pain.

There are various ways to address your hot flushes. Know that you don’t have to live with them. You can support your body with healthy nutrition, sufficient exercise, and rest. Additionally, there are specific supplements and medications. Hormone therapy (HRT) can also help.

When your hormonal balance changes during menopause, it can affect your energy levels, sleep, digestion, and metabolism. Healthy nutrition, sufficient exercise, and rest can help prevent or alleviate symptoms. Small adjustments can already make a difference. If you use medications or supplements, a healthy lifestyle supports your body in absorbing nutrients and processing medications, enhancing the effectiveness of supplements and medication. Experts recommend the following for hot flushes:

• Are you experiencing a hot flush? Don’t try to fan it away. Instead, focus on calm breathing. Slowly inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. This reduces the amount of cortisol in your blood, and the hot flush gradually subsides.
• Avoid stress, sugar, spicy foods, alcohol, and products containing caffeine. Also, quit smoking. All these factors are known to disrupt body temperature and can trigger hot flushes.
• Exercise. Moderate-impact activities (such as jogging, swimming, or CrossFit) have been shown to reduce hot flushes. Drink cold water during exercise. Working out in the morning can help prevent night sweats.
• Stay hydrated. You lose a lot of fluids during hot flushes.

During menopause, the hormones oestrogen and progesterone in your body change: they fluctuate and largely disappear once your periods have completely stopped. This can cause symptoms such as hot flushes or vaginal dryness. For severe symptoms, hormone therapy (HRT) is the most effective treatment. By replenishing the hormone deficiency, symptoms decrease. This helps restore balance in your body, giving you energy and peace in your daily life.

The treatment is always prescribed by a doctor and tailored to your personal situation to ensure it is safe and effective.

Many people are unaware that, in addition to hormone therapy, there are proven effective non-hormonal medications to relieve menopausal symptoms. While hormone therapy can alleviate multiple symptoms simultaneously, non-hormonal medications often target a specific symptom. For example, certain antidepressants (SNRIs) for hot flushes, anti-inflammatory drugs for joint pain, or antacids for heartburn.

Non-hormonal medications are always prescribed by a doctor and can be a good option for those who cannot or do not want to use hormone therapy. They work directly on the symptom without affecting your hormonal balance, allowing you to address your symptoms in a targeted way.

During menopause, changes occur in how your body produces energy, builds muscle, and repairs skin. You can naturally support these processes with high-quality supplements. Magnesium, vitamin D, and omega-3 are recommended for every woman going through menopause. Supplements can also target specific symptoms, such as hot flushes and poor sleep.

The effectiveness of supplements can vary from person to person and also depends on your lifestyle and health. Additionally, the quality of the product determines how well it works. Choose high-quality supplements without unnecessary fillers.