Hot Flashes!

Hot flashes do not have to be an inevitable part of menopause. Asian women in their native cultures rarely experience discomfort from hot flashes at all. Could it be other lifestyle factors like diet?

Why do only 7% of menopausal Japanese women suffer from hot flashes, while 55% of menopausal US women have this issue?

Here's a clue: edible beans, like soybeans, contain the compounds genistein and daidzein, which are estrogenic and help control hot flashes. The Japanese diet provides more vegetable protein and less animal protein than a Western diet and it's also low in fat.

Many foods are thought to worsen discomfort from hot flashes. Alcohol, caffeine, excess sugar, dairy products, meat products and spicy foods rank among the top aggravators of severe hot flashes as well as mood swings.

Certain lifestyle changes can also help ease hot flashes. For example, regular exercise can help alleviate some women's discomfort.

Also, it pays to quit smoking. According to "Natural Cures and Gentle Medicines" by the editors of FC&A Medical Publishing, "A recent study at the Baltimore Veterans Affairs Medical Center found that women who smoke have significantly more hot flashes than nonsmokers."

In summary, monitor your diet to eat more healthily. Reduce or eliminate caffeine and alcohol consumption. Stop smoking and start exercising. Regular chiropractic checkups insure more normal function.

The good news is that if you are a woman going through menopause, hot flashes are within your control. It will likely involve some diet and lifestyle changes on your part, but you don't have to suffer through hot flashes and accept them as a "normal" part of aging.

You can fight back with food, and, best of all, the foods you eat to help curb hot flashes will benefit your overall health as well.

Imagine...healthy nutrition + Healthy nerve system = healthy function + healthy body!