Hot Flashes

Anyone who has suffered through a hot flash knows the frustration and embarrassment associated with pulsating heat or sweating through a shirt in a room full of comfortably acclimated people.

Hot flashes can begin two years prior to the onset of menopause, leaving many women wondering about the origin of these internal climate changes.

It is widely believed that low levels of estrogen are the root cause.

However, this is not entirely true. To understand what causes hot flashes, you must be aware of the mechanics of hormone interaction and how they affect body temperature.

Estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone are three hormone groups in any human body – male or female – known collectively as the “sex” hormones.

However, their primary function is regulation of other hormones and body responses. Two glands in the brain, the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus, regulate the production and secretion of estrogen and progesterone into your system.

When estrogen is released then rises to a certain level, the body reacts by secreting progesterone, which then breaks down the estrogen. A complicated feedback system between brain and body regulates this production and release to keep mood, appetite, and body temperature moderated.

The latest menopause studies indicate that around age 40 it is not an overall decrease or increase in estrogen or progesterone that causes the problem for women. The symptoms of menopause appear when there is dominance of one hormone or the other, in any quantity.

During menopause, progesterone naturally decreases because the triggering event, ovulation, no longer occurs. Not unlike over steering to avoid a pothole, the body reacts to underproduction of one hormone by overcompensating with another, and tsunami-sized hormonal surges start to take place.

When a hot flash occurs, the body is merely attempting to remedy one of these surges. The hypothalamus is a part of the brain that controls body temperature, and it is regulated by estrogen. When the cycle of imbalance starts, estrogen levels eventually dip, signaling the hypothalamus that the body is cold.

The hypothalamus smartly responds by instructing the heart rate to increase and rapidly pump blood to the extremities. Some women report a temperature swing of six degrees in only a few minutes.

Unfortunately understanding the mechanics of a hot flash has not yet led to the discovery of any measurable causes other than the hormonal changes precipitated by menopause itself.  However, many women have reported common triggers that you can avoid to lessen the frequency or intensity of severe hot flashes.

Common causes appear to be intense exercise or activity, unresolved tension or stress, spicy or excessively fatty foods, and drinks that have caffeine or alcohol in them.

It is important to remember that as uncomfortable as hot flashes are, they appear to be a natural and common reaction to menopause that subside over time and are not in and of themselves dangerous