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A review of eight clinical trials published in 1998 found that black cohosh
(Remifemin) is a safe and effective alternative to HRT for menopausal patients in whom HRT is contraindicated.

Menopause symptoms responding to treatment with black cohosh include hot flushes, vaginal thinning and drying, night sweats, sleep disturbances, anxiety and depression.

Two clinical studies have been conducted in recent years with the black cohosh extract. A double-blind, randomised, multicentre study compared the effects of  Black Cohosh extract (40 mg/day)  to conjugated oestrogens (0.6 mg/day) and placebo on climacteric complaints, bone metabolism and endometrium.

The study involved 62 postmenopausal women who took their allocated treatment for 3 months. Black Cohosh extract proved to be equipotent to conjugated oestrogens and superior to placebo in reducing climacteric symptoms and both active treatments produced beneficial effects on bone metabolism.

Vaginal superficial cells increased with both active treatments; however, Black Cohosh extract  had no effect on endometrial thickness, which Black cohosh was significantly increased by conjugated oestrogens.

A randomised study (Hernandez & Pluchino 2003) was also performed with 136 young premenopausal breast cancer survivors experiencing hot flushes as a result of tamoxifen therapy.

When black cohosh (Menofem/Klimadynon, corresponding to 20 mg of herbal drug) was used together with tamoxifen for 12 months, the number and severity of hot flushes were reduced, with almost 50% of subjects becoming free of hot flushes, and severe hot flushes were reported by only 24% compared with 74% for those using tamoxifen alone.

One study has investigated the effects of a fixed combination of isopropanolic black cohosh  and ethanolic St John’s wort  in women with menopausal symptoms with pronounced psychological symptoms.

Commission E has approved the use of black cohosh herb as a treatment for menopausal symptoms.

Similarly, the World Health Organization (WHO) recognises its use for the ‘treatment of climacteric symptoms such as hot flushes, profuse sweating, sleeping disorders and nervous irritability’.

The North American Menopause Society recommends black cohosh, in conjunction with lifestyle approaches, as a treatment option for women with mild menopause-related symptoms.

Standardized Black Cohosh Extract

Standardized Black Cohosh Extract 2.5 Black cohosh (cimicifuga racemosa) has traditionally been one of the most important herbs for women. Modern research has focused on its ability to support women through menopause. Planetary formulas standardized black cohosh extract 2.5% contains broad spectrum of the valuable triterpene glycosides considered to be responsible for black cohoshs action.

Black Cohosh Meno-Relief

Black Cohosh Meno-Relief 1650 Used traditionally to relieve the physiological changes associated with menopause, Black Cohosh helps to reduce the occurrence of hot flashes. Features standardized black cohosh, to reduce the severity of hot flashes and support a positive mood. Also includes standardized kudzu extract, providing 40 mg of isoflavones per tablet, with a 4:1 extract of alfalfa and red clover herbal powder, for additional isoflavone support. Includes the uplifting benefits of lavender essential oil.

Hot flashes are among the most ordinary symptom of menopause. Menopause is a organic transition, but for some female it has unpleasant symptoms. To a woman who is suffering with hot flashes, it may not feel organic at all. According clinicals tials, as many as 3 out of 4 female experience them. A menopausal hot flash is characterized by a sudden feeling of warmth, sweating and flushing that is felt most strongly in the head and neck.

Symptoms of Menopaisal Hot Flashes

Aside from flushing and sweating, the severity and frequency of hot flashes can differ from one woman to the next. female may have just one or two incidents a week or several in a day. A variety of other symptoms are sometimes experienced along with hot flashes. female may feel dizziness, pressure in the head, rapid heartbeat, nervousness or weakness. Occasionally female may feel faint or weak, and some even have an uneasy feeling just Before a menopausal hot flash that lets them know it’s coming.

Causes of Menopausal Hot Flashes

The cause of hot flashes isn’t thoroughly known. It is believed that hormone fluctuations affect the hypothalamus, which is the part of the brain that regulates body temperature. Hot flashes don’t seem to be specifically caused by low estrogen, because female that have low estrogen due to medical conditions other than menopause don’t experience hot flashes. Declining estrogen levels specific to menopause somehow affect the hypothalamus and cause the body to feel hot.

Treatment of Menopausal Hot Flashes

Menopausal hot flashes are more bothersome to some female than to others, and not all female need treatment for hot flashes. Hormone therapy is frequently advisable for female having moderate to rigorous hot flashes. female that have a history of breast cancer or a blot clot are not good candidates for hormone therapy. Non-hormone therapy alternatives include antidepressants and gababentin, which is an anti-seizure drug.

For female whose hot flashes are not rigorous, lifestyle changes may offer aid. Stress-reducing techniques such as yoga or meditation may offer some aid from hot flashes and the night sweats that frequently accompany them. Spicy foods trigger hot flashes in some female; avoiding alcohol and caffeine may as well help. Wearing light clothing and sipping cold drinks may as well help to limit the length or severity of hot flashes. Black cohosh and certain other herbal supplements have been reported to offer some aid to some female. female accept as true thating herbal supplements or other forms of alternative treatment should discuss this with their doctor. Herbal supplements are not regulated by the FDA and may not be effective or protected.

Top supplements for Menopausal Hot Flahes relief

Hot flashes and night sweats in perimenopausal and menopausal women are frequently referred to clinically as vasomotor symptoms. The vasomotor symptoms, usually referred to as hot flashes and reported by about 85 percent of menopausal women, are connected to the decline in ovarian function.

Hot flashes are the most common symptoms linked with the menopausal period and second to irregular menses during the perimenopausal period. The physiology of hot flashes, the mechanism of lowered estrogen levels and hot flashes, the average age of onset, factors, duration, frequency aren’t still understanding.

A few factors may affect the frequency and/or severity of hot flashes in some women.
Stress, hot or spicy foods, hot drinks, warm environments, alcohol, and caffeine are the most common factors. Hot flashes are sudden, transient episodes ranging from just feeling warm or overheated to intense heat and perspiration.

Women tend to describe a wavelike sensation over the body, particularly of the upper torso, face, and head. If the hot flashes occur at night and are associated with what can be drenching perspiration, they are called night sweats.

Women with surgically induced menopause often report particularly persistent, more intense, and more frequent hot flashes. It has been determined by one large study that for most women hot flashes last about 2 years, although some women experience them for 5 to 10 years.

It is interesting but not all cultures report the same incidence of hot flashes or other menopausal symptoms. For example, Japanese and Indonesian women report far fewer hot flashes than do women from Western societies.

Mayan women in the Yucatan do not report any symptoms at menopause other than menstrual cycle irregularity.

The clearest explanation for hot flashes is that they appear to be the body’s response to a sudden but transient downward resetting of the body’s thermostat, which is located in the hypothalamus.

This temporary alteration of the set point would cause the sensation of intense heat and flushing. What we don’t know is what factors this event.

A logical correlation between low estrogen levels and hot flashes exists. Estrogen levels have been found to be lower in premenopausal women with hot flashes than in those without hot flashes.

However, not all studies are consistent, and some women never have hot flashes, while others have persistent ones, and yet others have them only sporadically. Prior to puberty, girls have low estrogen levels, but not hot flashes. Also, hot flashes are reported during pregnancy, when the estrogen level is high. Some researchers believe that hot flashes are due to an imbalance in beta-endorphins and other opiates in the brain that in turn may influence the temperature regulation center.

Estrogen and progesterone may alter the activity of these naturally occurring opiates, and it is possible that lower levels of estrogen and progesterone cause a withdrawal of opioids, triggering a hot flash.

What may seem like a hot flash due to perimenopause or menopause may in rare cases be caused by another condition such as thyroid disease, epilepsy, infection, insulin-producing tumors, pheochromocytoma, carcinoid syndromes, leukemia, pancreatic tumors, autoimmune disorders, or allergic disorders.

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Hot flashes and Night sweats remedies

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(Original article)

Most women experience hot flashes at some point before or after menopause, when their estrogen levels are declining. While some women have few to no hot flashes, others have them numerous times each day.

If hot flashes are disrupting your sleep or daily life, you are no doubt looking for relief. Fortunately, you have a number of self-care and medical treatment options that can help you manage your symptoms.

No matter how disruptive and frustrating they may be, hot flashes are not a sign of a medical problem. They are a normal response to natural hormonal changes in your body.

Hot flashes usually subside after the first or second year following menopause, when estrogen levels stabilize at a low level.

Smoking cigarettes, heavy alcohol use, and stress tend to make hot flashes worse. By avoiding these risk factors, exercising regularly, and eating well, you can prevent or reduce hot flashes.
The body-mind connection is a powerful element of hot flashes and emotional symptoms. Rhythmic breathing exercises (paced respiration), which help you meditate and relax, may reduce your hot flashes.

Treatments that may either reduce or stop moderate to severe hot flashes include short-term, low-dose estrogen (hormone therapy), certain antidepressant and blood pressure medicines, and the herb black cohosh.
The biochemical cause of hot flashes is not well understood. However, they are linked to declining estrogen levels, and they do seem to be made worse by stress, heavy alcohol use, and cigarette smoking. Although menopausal hot flashes can be disruptive, frustrating, and at times embarrassing, they are medically harmless. They are not a sign of a medical problem, nor do they cause medical problems.

It is normal for hot flashes to:

• Happen in women of all ages when they are upset or embarrassed.
• Happen during the perimenopausal years before menopause, when estrogen levels fluctuate. They are most common, most frequent, and most intense during the 2 years following menopause (postmenopause), when estrogen declines.
• Be accompanied by mild to severe heart palpitations, anxiety, or irritability. In rare cases, panic attacks are triggered at the same time as hot flashes, usually in women who have a history of panic attacks.
• Be especially severe in women who become menopausal from chemotherapy, antiestrogen treatment for breast cancer, or surgical removal of the ovaries.
• Subside within a couple of years after menopause. But some women do continue to have hot flashes for years after menopause. There is no reliable method for predicting whether, when, or how long you will have hot flashes.

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