Thursday, November 27, 2008

Best Tips for Hot Flash Relief

Tips for Reducing Hot Flashes
There are ways other than taking prescription medication to deal with annoying hot flashes. Some of the best remedies for hot flashes include exercising, reducing stress and avoiding common triggers like spicy food and alcohol.

Maintain a Healthy Diet
There are types of foods you can eat to help reduce hot flashes. Drink milk and eat calcium-rich foods such as yogurt and cheese. Eat dark green, leafy vegetables including broccoli and spinach. Eat vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain cereal products. Consume foods that are high in vitamin C and carotene such as oranges, grapefruit, carrots, winter squash and tomatoes.

Exercise
Exercising regularly is good because it helps you maintain hormonal balance.

Avoid triggers
Hot flashes are triggered by caffeine, alcohol, spicy foods, or drinking or eating something very hot, like soup. Avoid eating large amounts of food at one time. Avoid stressful situations.

Reduce stress
Researchers have found that deep, slow breathing can reduce the effects of hot flashes by half, probably by calming the central nervous system.

Avoid getting overheated
Dress in layers so you can remove them at the first sign of a flash. Keep cool by using cotton sheets while sleeping and by wearing lightweight clothes and lingerie made of natural fibers that allow your skin to "breathe".

Consider Soy
Eating a soy-rich diet might help because soy products contain estrogen-like substances. Foods that contain soy include tofu, tempeh, miso, soy milk, whole soybeans, texturized vegetable protein, and soy powder.

Consider Natural Remedies or Herbs
The most popular herbs for hot flash relief are black cohosh, blue cohosh, dong quai, unicorn root, fennel, wild yam root, sarsaparilla, red clover, and yam.

Consider Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy
BHRT is considered natural because the hormones used in BHRT are taken from soy and/or yams. The advantage of BHRT over traditional HRT is the fact that the BHRT hormones are made to be identical to the moleculer structure of the ones produced by the human body.

For more on natural help with menopause and hot flashes,
visit BHRT-Resource.com.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Remedies for Hot Flashes

Remedies for Hot Flashes.

Exercise
Exercise will directly decrease hot flashes. Exercise at least 30 minutes every day. Women who exercise regularly and maintain a balanced diet suffer less from hot flashes.

Watch Your Diet
What you eat can often trigger hot flashes. If you consume spicy foods, alcohol, or caffeinated beverages, try going awhile without them and see if your hot flashes subside.

Yoga
Meditation like yoga can help. For women at midlife and beyond, Yoga is a unique form of menopause medicine that help women adjust to hormonal changes and cope with a wide range of menopause symptoms, all without negative side effects. Yoga practice is an antidote to the stiffness and fatigue that tends to settle in the body with the passage of time, while also providing a calming effect that reduces stress.

Menopause is not an illness but a natural biological process, though the risk for Heart Disease and Osteoporosis rises after Menopause.

Drink plenty of water and avoid spicy foods
Drink at least 8 glasses of water daily and avoid hot, spicy foods.

Black cohosh
Herbal remedies are popular for relieving menopause symptoms. Black cohosh often provides effective relief of hot flashes, as well as other symptoms of menopause including headaches, heart palpitations, and anxiety.

Vitamin E
Research has shown taking 400 IU to 800 IU of Vitamin E daily significantly reduces the occurrence and severity of hot flashes and night sweats.

Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy
Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) has become a popular method for providing relief from hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause for many women. Natural progesterone cream available OTC, in compounded prescriptions, or as traditional prescriptions are possible options. Be sure you understand both the risks and the benefits of Hormone Replacement and how it's relevant to your personal medical history. Talk with your doctor to see if BHRT is right for you.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy, an Option to Consider for Menopause Relief

Bioidentical hormones are a newer, more advanced approach to hormone replacement.

BHRT has the advantage of using medicines that are bio-chemically identical to the natural hormones that your body develops.

Not all women experiencing menopause need the same treatment and that's why it's important to consider BHRT. The benefit of bioidentical hormone replacement therapy is rather than having your doctor prescribe medication that is the same that's prescribed to all other women experiencing menopause, the doctor can prescribe individualized medication unique to your needs.

For instance, you can get your hormone levels tested. Your hormone levels are tested first then your doctor prescribes the medication specific to what you need.

You then get a prescription compounded by a compounding pharmacist. A compounding pharmacy is the type of pharmacy where a pharmacist or physician mixes drugs creating a prescription necessary to fit the unique needs of a patient.

Compounding may be necessary for medical reasons such as avoiding a non-essential ingredient that the patient is allergic to, changing the form of the medication from a solid pill to a liquid, or to obtain the exact dose needed.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Natural Progesterone for Relieving Menopause Symptoms

Women going through menopause will typically suffer from night sweats, hot flashes, and many other hormone imbalance related symptoms. These symptoms are all due to hormone imbalances within the body. This is mainly because your body has stopped producing progesterone and estrogen like it used to before menopause.

Relieve Your Symptoms Naturally with Natural Progesterone

It is possible to feel good again and you can bring your body back to balance with natural natural progesterone therapy.

Natural progesterone is used by both men and women. Natural progesterone is the natural way to rebalance what age and our lifestyles tend to rob from us.

Natural progesterone cream is used to relieve extreme PMS, issues with infertility, annoying menopause symptoms, issues with premature labor, and many other problems related to hormonal imbalance.

Progesterone for Men

Just like women, as men get older, male progesterone levels decline. In women, progesterone levels decrease starting at about the age of 35. For men, the decrease starts about ten years later.

Men can also benefit from natural progesterone cream. Natural progesterone has been used to improve prostate health in men. Some doctors feel men can benefit by balancing male hormones, enhancing libido, and also counteracting the effects of excess estrogen in men (thought to be the reason for symptoms of aging and sexual dysfunction).

Applying Natural Progesterone

Because progesterone is very fat-soluble, it is easily absorbed through the skin. Progesterone is absorbed into capillary blood from subcutaneous fat. It is best to put the Natural Progesterone Cream at all the skin sites where people blush such as the face, neck, chest, breasts, inner arms and palms of the hands.

For more information about natural progesterone cream, visit bhrt-resource.com.

Remember, nutritionals should be personalized to the individual. One person’s nutrient can be another person’s toxin. Be sure to always consult with your doctor or qualified health care professional for medical advice.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Acne During Menopause, Some Simple Solutions to Clear Up Your Skin

Menopause Acne is connected to a number of other cosmetic related problems women commonly find very upsetting.

During menopause, a deficiency in estrogen leads to a reduction of collagen and elastin. These are the fibers that are responsible for keeping your skin elastic and firm. When you combine acne breakouts with the loss of skin firmness, the result is a texture complexion that most women aren’t proud of.

Since it’s an issue of estrogen deficiency, you might consider bioidentical hormone replacement therapy treatment to help solve these cosmetic problems.

Consult your doctor or health care professional about therapy involving anti-androgen progestin, in addition to natural estrogen, to counteract menopausal acne and other skin problems.

The following are some possible natural solutions to clearing up menopause acne…

Make sure your diet is high in calcium and fiber.

Cut back on carbs and keep your diet low in fat. This is important because carbohydrates are converted to insulin which then produce androgens that increase the production of skin oil.

Drink plenty of water. Drink at least eight glasses of water every day (ten would probably be better).

Maybe consider taking supplements to help stop the acne.

Herbs, minerals, and vitamins are a possible option to help fight off excess oil. Most studies suggest that you should add Vitamin B and Vitamin C to your diet.

Wash and cleanse your skin at least twice a day. Use a good exfoliate and facial cleanser, you can prevent the buildup of bacteria, oil, and dead skin cells that are notorious for creating acne. Follow that by a good toner to help close off the pores and a moisturizer for smooth skin, and you will look amazing, even throughout menopause.

Testosterone Levels In Men

What Menopausal Women Should Know About Testosterone

In women, testosterone helps provide a sense of wellbeing, improves sex drive, and helps maintain vaginal mucosa and bone tissue. It is also involved in heart health, and maintenance of skin elasticity and muscle mass.

Testosterone levels in men differ from that of women.

Some examples of symptoms for low testosterone levels include....

Tendency to pull a muscle or get leg cramps, decrease in physical stamina, and a decrease in muscle size, tone and strength.

These symptoms may seem normal for someone entering middle age. However many symptoms correspond extremely well with the expected results of hormonal deprivation.

For instance, lower levels of estrogen and testosterone have serious deleterious effects on the proper functioning of the brain, resulting in a decreased mental sharpness. It's imporant to note the "sex" hormones are also brain hormones.

How Testosterone Levels in Women are Different

Women have approximately 1/5 to 1/10 the amount of testosterone found in men, which explains why men have more muscle mass than women. Testosterone can be converted to estradiol via the enzyme aromatase. This conversion is particularly pronounced in women with a high percentage of body fat because aromatase is found in fat cells.

Level of DHEA Influences Testosterone

Before menopause, about half the circulating testosterone comes from DHEA, which is produced by the adrenal glands. Adrenal imbalance or chronic illness can lead to low DHEA, which can contribute to low testosterone. This problem is more acute after menopause or after removal of the ovaries, because the ovaries no longer contribute to testosterone production.

Cortisol is Key to the Function of Androgens

Research activity on androgen replacement in women has increased in the past few years, particularly in women who have had their ovaries removed. Cortisol plays a key role in androgen function. Studies indicate that cortisol and testosterone work on the same genes, but in opposite ways. In other words, a woman with normal testosterone but an elevated cortisol level could show symptoms of low testosterone. This is an example of a functional deficiency.

The level of a hormone may be normal, but the system functions as if the hormone level was low. This is why it is important to look at a broad range of hormones, in order to uncover the hidden problems.