VMS (short for vasomotor symptoms) is the medical name for hot flashes and night sweats. Watch the video to see what causes these common symptoms that up to 80% of women will experience during menopause.
No. Natural menopause is the point in time when you’ve gone 12 consecutive months without a period. VMS are the hot flashes and night sweats that many women experience due to menopause.
Yes. They’re all the same thing — sudden and intense sensations of heat in your face, neck and chest, which may be accompanied by sweating, reddening of the skin, chills, and rapid heartbeat. Night sweats are hot flashes that occur at night. They can last between 1 and 5 minutes.
Science isn’t sure what causes hot flashes and night sweats during menopause — also known as VMS (vasomotor symptoms). But it is known that VMS originate in a part of your brain called the hypothalamus, which regulates your body's temperature. It's here that specific neurons called KNDy neurons play an important role in temperature control. To keep your internal thermostat in check, your body relies on having a balance between estrogen and a brain chemical called neurokinin B, or NKB.
During menopause, levels of estrogen and NKB become unbalanced. This causes the KNDy neurons in your hypothalamus to tell your body you're hot when you're not. To cool down, your hypothalamus triggers hot flashes and night sweats. Want to see the science for yourself? Check out this video.
Yes, they can. 57% of women say hot flashes and night sweats affect their sleep, 67% say they affect their energy level, and 50% say they affect their work.
Up to 80% of women will experience hot flashes and night sweats, making these the most common symptoms of menopause.
Everyone is different, but for most women, frequent* hot flashes and night sweats last for more than 7 years. In some cases, though, VMS may last longer than 10 years.
* For some women, VMS can persist for up to 6 days or more within a 2-week period.
While it varies from woman to woman, hot flashes and night sweats, can start before the age of 40, or up to 10 years before menopause.
Yes, and there’s an actual medical name for them: VMS (vasomotor symptoms).
A hot flash can be accompanied by a rapid heartbeat, sweating, reddening of the skin, and chills. In fact, hot flashes and night sweats may increase your heart rate.
Recent studies have reported that the frequency and severity of hot flashes and night sweats can be used to predict future chronic health problems such as impaired memory, cardiovascular disease, and poor bone health, including osteoporosis.
If you feel like VMS is impacting your overall quality of life, talk to your doctor.
Some foods and drinks may trigger hot flashes and night sweats. These include alcohol, spicy foods, hot drinks, and caffeine. Taking steps to limit or avoid these triggers may help reduce the frequency, duration or severity of your symptoms.
Dressing in layers and natural fibers, having a portable fan ready, and sticking with cool non-alcoholic drinks may help.
Always talk to your doctor for recommendations on how to deal with hot flashes and night sweats.
The short answer is, yes, lifestyle changes can help reduce hot flashes and night sweats.
The slightly more detailed answer is that clinical studies have shown that women with a higher BMI and/or those who smoke are more likely to experience hot flashes and night sweats.
No. Everyone's experience is different; however, race and ethnicity has been shown to affect the risk of experiencing hot flashes and night sweats. Black women report experiencing more hot flashes and night sweats related to menopause compared to women of other race and ethnic backgrounds.
Yes, hot flashes are classified by severity:
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