Hot Flashes During Pregnancy: Hormones to Blame

Hot flashes are quite common during pregnancy, and affect your wellness and wellbeing due to the changes in hormones that occur in your body at this time. Your sexual and reproductive system is largely governed by hormones, which is why hot flashes are most commonly associated with menopause, a time when huge changes are occurring in the hormones associated with the reproductive system. Hot flashes are also common in pregnancy, however, although they tend to occur towards the end of pregnancy rather than in the first two trimesters. They are even more common in the postpartum period (the time just after giving birth).

Hormones such as progesterone, which are common in pregnancy, raise your body temperature, and some of the other side effects of pregnancy, such as nausea, can also increase your temperature or feeling of cold sweats. The heat generated by the developing baby can also lead to you feeling increasingly hot as the pregnancy progresses.

 

Researchers have recently found that pregnant women complain of suffering from hot flashes five times more often than those who are not pregnant (of the same age). In fact, around 90 percent of pregnant women are thought to suffer from hot flashes during the postpartum period, and 81 percent of women start having hot flashes around or before the third trimester.

 

Hot flashes can even occur before you have discovered that you are pregnant, around about the time that the embryo normally implants into the wall of the uterus. This is usually about eight to 10 days after ovulation occurs. Progesterone is produced after ovulation and this may be the reason for hot flashes to occur at this time.

 

As they are caused by hormones, you cannot prevent hot flashes altogether but you can try to use external methods to keep your body temperature down.

Categories: body temperature, flashes, hormones, hot, hot flashes, occur, postpartum period, pregnancy, Pregnant Women, time

Coping With Hot Flashes, Cold Chills and Diabetes

There are various reasons for hot flashes and cold chills, ranging from problems with your wellness and wellbeing in a medical sense, to menopause to anxiety attacks and having a high temperature. Diabetes, too, can cause hot, sweaty flashes followed by chills, if your blood sugar drops too low.

 

What you may not know, however, is that you can use your weight loss and fitness regime to help fight against both hot flashes and cold chills, no matter what the cause is.

 

Aerobic exercise is particularly good, especially for those who have diabetes, as it can help decrease your risk of developing heart disease – a common side effect of diabetes. Aerobic exercise helps to maintain a healthy weight and can help to increase your sensitivity to insulin.

 

If you are a diabetic, try checking your sugar levels before and after a workout, so that you can see how beneficial exercise is on your system. Aerobic exercise includes anything where you work up a bit of a sweat and get your heart racing.

 

You should aim for low impact exercise if you have diabetes, however, as a side effect of your disease means that you have reduced blood flow to your extremities and this can be problematic. If you do an exercise that involves pounding or pressure, it can lead to diabetes-related problems with the nerve endings in your feet. If you do suffer from any tingling or numbness in your feet, check regularly for any unexplained bruising on your feet and go and visit your doctor. Low-impact exercises can involve swimming, cycling or rowing or some simple chair exercises.

 

Make sure that you don’t take any form of exercise if your blood sugar is over 300 mg/dl, as exercise should be started slowly and gradually to help reduce the chances of hot flashes or cold chills.

Categories: Aerobic Exercise, Blood Sugar, chills, Diabetes, exercise, flashes, hot flashes, nbsp

Hot Flashes: The Causes, Triggers and Who Gets Affected

Menopause doesn’t just affect your sexual health; it also wreaks havoc on your wellness with a draining condition known as hot flashes. Sure, hot flashes may not seem like such a big deal. but they can really take their toll on your wellbeing. Brette Sember, author of The Infertility Answer Book, points out, ‘Hot flashes can make your body feel like it has somehow become a raging furnace. The heat you experience during a hot flash is often overwhelming; it really does feel as if it’s taking over your body. Clothes can suddenly feel too heavy to wear. The bed covers feel as if they’re suffocating you, and you’re often drenched in sweat. Hot flashes are often associated with chills – the chills are typically the result of sweat drying on the surface of the skin.’

 

You might find you have hot flashes on a regular basis, or they may occur randomly. These flashes may be over in two minutes, or they could last as long as half-an-hour. The key thing to know is that hot flashes are a condition that a vast number of people worldwide deals with – 85% of all women will experience them at some point – so you’re not alone. You may think that your hot flashes are caused by fevers, illness or even burning desire, but, according to Sember, you would be wrong. In fact, the real culprit is your fluctuating sex hormones. Sember explains, ‘If these hormones are suppressed, such as during treatment for certain types of cancer or if the ovaries are removed, this can cause blood vessels to dilate. The dilated blood vessels allow more blood to rush through the body. This sudden increase in blood flow brings with it more heat – typically to the body’s upper half.’

 

While this all sounds a bit dangerous and alarming, you don’t really have anything to worry about with hot flashes apart from the discomfort you feel. Still, even though there’s no danger involved, you should speak to your doctor if you’re experiencing hot flashes – especially if you’re too young to be going through menopause. The underlying cause of your hot flashes may be hyperthyroidism or one of several types of cancer, and so it’s always wise to be sure. However, more often than not, the cause of hot flashes will be something simple like pregnancy, perimenopause (the phase before menopause) or menopause itself. Let’s take a closer look at the factors at play in your hot flashes.

 

Sember notes, ‘Women’s hormone levels can fluctuate greatly during a typical lifetime…In fact, hot flashes are the most common symptom of menopause. Hot flashes can also be triggered or amplified by environmental factors. Similar to migraine pain, outside factors such as alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, spicy foods, exercise, fat and chocolate can all trigger a hot flash. Climate – such as a hot room, medication, sleep deprivation and stress – can also be to blame.’ So, if you are suffering from hot flashes, eliminating some of these environmental triggers can be helpful in reducing your discomfort. It might be a good idea to keep a diary of your hot flashes, detailing exactly what happened prior to the hot flash, so you can avoid this trigger next time.

 

However, it’s not only women who are fanning themselves due to hot flashes; men also need to watch out for triggers and potentially visit a doctor. Sember comments, ‘Men can experience hot flashes, too. Obviously, menopause is not the reason. Men deal with hot flashes when they experience a drop in testosterone. This can be caused by ageing, but is most often due to a surgical removal of the testes or due to medication that impacts testosterone production. If a man is experiencing hot flashes, he should definitely consult a doctor. Testosterone deficiency is often the reason, and a simple blood test can verify this.’

Categories: Blood, blood vessels, Causes, experiencing hot, feel, flashes, hot flash, hot flashes, Menopause, sember

She-Hulk or the Next Stage of Life? Entering Perimenopause

You’ve got the She-Hulk rage, the sleep-ravaging night sweats, the where-did-I-put-my-keys forgetfulness and suddenly your periods are all over the place – what’s happening to your wellness? The good news is, you’re not going crazy. The not-so good news; you’re in perimenopause. This sexual health condition is a physiological stage in which your body begins its transition into menopause – hooray? At this time, your oestrogen levels are fluctuating, which has a knock-on effect in terms of your wellbeing. Your menstrual cycle becomes irregular, and you get a whole host of other weird symptoms. So, how can you feel like yourself again?

1. Fixing the start date: The problem with perimenopause is that you and your best friend probably won’t experience it the same way, whether that’s in terms of symptom frequency, severity or when they begin. For most women, perimenopause starts between the ages of 45 and 55, but, if you’re one of the unlucky ones, you could begin the transition in your 30s. There’s no way of telling how bad your symptoms will be or when they’ll end; it could be anywhere from two to 10 years before you finish perimenopause. Full-blown menopause becomes official when you’ve gone an entire year without having a period. While there’s no way to postpone menopause, research has shown that your lifestyle factors may be bringing it on earlier. Smoking is one of these factors and there’s also a genetic link with menopause, so as your mum when she started going through “the change.”

2. Fixing your feelings: The cupcakes you always make suddenly go so wrong you’d be laughed right out of the Bake Off tent. Before perimenopause, you may have uttered a few choice swear words and thrown them away (or eaten them anyway because, come on, it’s still cake.) However, now, in the throes of perimenopause, you kick the oven door, collapse onto the lino and cry at your husband, kids and budgie for ruining your concentration. Studies have shown that nearly 40% of women experience such mood swings associated with hormonal dips—from sudden anger to intense moodiness, anxiety, or despair. Unfortunately, you can entirely prevent this from happening. Still, you can alleviate them with vitamin B12. Research has linked B12 deficiency with mood swings and depression, so up you intake of shellfish (clams, mussels, and crab), salmon, lean beef, low-fat or fat-free milk, and eggs. Yoga can also help to ease irritability and ensure you get enough sleep.

3. Fixing your temperature: Hot flashes affect about 80% of women in menopause, and this is often followed by a chill. No one’s exactly sure as to why this happens, but experts guess that it has something to do with your fluctuating hormones. Your hypothalamus – the part of your brain that regulates body temperature – receives mixed signals from these hormone fluctuations and so creates a hot flash. For a few seconds to 10 minutes, you can experience a flushed face, intense sweating, or even heart palpitations. When this occurs in your sleep, typically alongside heavy perspiration, it is know as the night sweats. The best thing you can do is take note of the things that trigger these hot flashes, such as spicy foods, coffee and wine. Studies show that if you participate in deep breathing for 15 minutes twice a day, you can reduce your frequency of hot flashes by 39%. If that fails, herbal supplements such as black cohosh, as well as soya, may be able to help reduce your hot flashes. However, the most effective way to treat severe hot flashes is with prescription medications, so speak to your doctor for more information.

 

Categories: Experience, flashes, hot flash, hot flashes, Menopause, Mood Swings, night sweats, Perimenopause, sleep