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Do You Have Hot Flashes?

By Expert HERWriter
 
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are you having hot flashes? PS Productions/PhotoSpin

Hello Everyone! First, I just want to say I am excited and thankful for the opportunity to start contributing to the EmpowHER community and to help readers on their health journey. I look forward to sharing and learning from you as well. That said, I figured I would jump right into a subject I know many deal with on a daily basis.

Did you wake up this morning in the middle of a steam bath? Were your pajamas drenched with sweat? Welcome to the world of night sweats, and for others, hot flashes!

“What is going on, Dr. Bob?”

I would like to refer you to the second edition of my “Drugless Guide to Balancing Female Hormones” so you can get an in-depth understanding of the “nuts and bolts” of the physiology. Your hypothalamus, the CEO of your body, is doing what it can to have the pituitary in your brain to get your ovaries to secrete hormones. The pituitary continues to work hard and can become irritated, or even swollen, creating a huge surge of hormone fluctuations, resulting in a blood vessel response and a temperature surge as it attempts to make progesterone to balance your natural (or even synthetic) estrogens.

Women who experience menses issues throughout their lives are the ones who usually have more challenges with hot flashes than those who have been conscious of what they put in and on their bodies. I have discovered that women who eat sugar have adrenal glands that are exhausted and unable to produce enough progesterone and estrogen to solve all the hormonal requirements. The adrenal glands are located on top of each kidney and are your backup hormone pump, making female and male hormones. We, as a society, live in a sea of estrogen. Estrogen is everywhere -- in the food we eat, the water we drink, and the grass we walk on. The synthetic estrogens really confuse the entire body and are one of the many reasons I would suggest avoiding putting on anything onto your skin that is not pure.

You want a balance between progesterone and estrogen. When you have too much synthetic estrogen, it is quite possible that your pituitary is doing what it can to have the ovaries make more progesterone to balance the estrogen out. This is the reason it becomes so active and swollen, resulting in the spikes of body temperatures.

A lack of iodine is another hot flash ‘signal’. The thyroid gland and cells of the body require an adequate supply of iodine and iodide to function properly. I encourage our patients to take up to twelve milligrams of iodine everyday. I would suggest that you start slow, but be consistent. Iodine in nature has to battle with bromine, fluorine, and chlorine, so you may notice a rash, headache, or nausea if you begin to dump toxins. The iodine is actually causing these elements to leave -- causing body signals similar to an allergic response.

The iodine helps fuel the thyroid that has a direct impact on some of you who experience hot flashes. If you have a low thyroid and are taking prescription medications for your thyroid and you have hot flashes, you may want to have your urine iodine levels tested. You may also want to have your TSH, T3 and T4 levels assessed. If any of these are low or mid-line, it is an indicator to me that you need to supplement as suggested above.

I have had many women respond favorably by adding one tablespoon of flax oil every day to their diets (I recommend taking one tablespoon per one hundred pounds). The flax oil helps regulate the hormones in your body. Stop eating trans fat -- it confuses the natural oils in your body. Your hormonal system is dependent on an adequate supply of quality oils.

Are you beginning to see that hot flashes and night sweats can be directly linked to your choices? The reason many females have hot flashes is because of stress, either caused by food or emotions. Here are my Dr. Bob “Approved” takeaways:

- Avoid sugar

- Take up to twelve milligrams of iodine daily

- Take one tablespoon of flax oil per one hundred pounds

- Eliminate what you can from your life that is creating stress

For more information, visit us online, www.druglessdoctor.com, or come see us at The Drugless Doctors practice in Cleveland, Ohio.

Add a Comment3 Comments

If I may, I would like to make a comment about your advocating the taking of iodine. I have hypothyroidism and am taking levothyroxine daily. I have researched the taking of iodine as an alternative to medication for hypothyroidism and have found many sufferers of the disease who report that taking iodine made their problems worse by causing their thyroxine levels to fluctuate throughout the day. These fluctuations cause a myriad of symptoms including hot flashes, heart palpitations and confusion of thought processes, which manifestations can be quite severe. I would therefore hesitate to advocate the taking of iodine for any person who has thyroid problems, especially if they are also taking prescription drugs for their condition.

July 21, 2014 - 4:02am
Expert HERWriter (reply to A Seymoure)

Hello A Seymoure,

I go into your comment/concern in my new Ask Dr. Bob, out today. DB

July 25, 2014 - 10:13am
Expert HERWriter (reply to A Seymoure)

Hello,

Thank you for your response. I will help bring clarity in my upcoming Ask Dr Bob, out later this week. DB

July 21, 2014 - 9:59am
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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.

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