Hot flashes and night sweats — they can be very uncomfortable and they tend to go hand in hand. If you are experiencing them, you know how life-disrupting they can be. The good news is it is very much possible to put both hot flashes and night sweats under control with the help of your diet. Read on to know how!
Before we take a look at some of the foods you may eat to keep hot flashes and night sweats at bay, let us first check out the reason why they happen in the first place.
The moment that hot flashes and night sweats strike, one thing is for sure — menopause is on its way. Some women who experience them say that they are still bugged by those after getting in the menopausal stage. In other words, hot flashes and night sweats may pester you before and during menopause.
But what is the reason why both of these symptoms appear during both perimenopausal and menopausal stage? Medical experts say that it all boils down to hormonal imbalance.
The imbalance of hormones causes the temperature-regulating part of the brain to be confused, thinking that your body has to cool itself. Such results in the sudden widening of the blood vessels, increase in heart rate and hyperactivity of the sweat glands. It’s also not unlikely for you to feel dizzy and weak, and also experience palpitations.
So to manage both hot flashes and night sweats, it’s important to target the cause, which is hormonal imbalance!
Luckily, dealing with hormonal imbalance can be something as simple as minding what you eat — there are lots of foods in our midst that are scientifically-proven to posses hormone-balancing properties. So if you are constantly bugged by hot flashes and night sweats, regularly include the following in your diet:
Soy
According to scientists, certain compounds in soy have the ability to mimic estrogen. And this is the reason why the inclusion of soy in the diet can help restore proper balance of hormones, taming those hot flashes and night sweats that are nagging you. As a bonus, calcium in soy also helps lower osteoporosis risk.
Fatty Fish
Numerous studies have shown that although healthy fats in fatty fish are not entirely capable of making hot flashes and night sweats go away, they can at least keep their intensity to a minimum. It is recommended for you to add 2 to 3 servings of fatty fish per week, such as mackerel, herring, trout, sardines, salmon and tuna.
Flaxseed
Just like fatty fish, healthy fats present in flaxseed make this tiny yet nutritionally dense superfood very good at keeping hot flashes and night sweats to a minimum. Flaxseed also has the ability to reduce inflammation in the body, making it very good at keeping at bay joint pain and swelling, as well as heart disease.
Whole Grains
Oatmeal, barley, brown rice and other whole grains are good for you if you are constantly being annoyed by hot flashes and night sweats. It’s for the fact that their fiber content is actually capable of flushing out excess hormones, restoring balance within. Whole grains also help fend off weight gain, constipation and even colorectal cancer.
Fruits and Veggies
Lastly, you should also load up on fruits and vegetables as they are loaded with antioxidants that help in taming those hot flashes and night sweats. Just make sure that you opt for the freshest ones that you can find. Also, it’s an excellent idea to choose organic ones to avoid worsening of hormonal imbalance.
While there are foods that you should consume more often to manage hot flashes and night sweats, there are also those that you have to stay away from as they can only worsen the situation. Some of them include processed foods, spicy foods, alcoholic beverages and caffeinated drinks.
