| No single symptom turns more women to estrogen | | | | odd trade name of Kampo4WomenMindEase in North |
| replacement therapy (ERT)than hot flashes. In | | | | America. It's also sometimes called Augmented |
| women who have entered their "perimenopause," the | | | | Rambling Powder (referring to a Chinese poem |
| two to seven years before complete menopause | | | | written centuries ago that herbalists thought |
| when periods are becoming irregular, and in women | | | | captured the results of treatment, giving women |
| who have surgical menopause, the sensation of blood | | | | freedom from hot flashes). This combination of herbs |
| rushing to the head followed by heat, dizziness, | | | | does not interfere with tamoxifen (Nolvadex) and |
| redness, and profuse sweating is a common | | | | side effects are not reported. |
| occurrence. Herbs, however, can also control hot | | | | Many women take soy to relieve hot flashes, but |
| flashes, sometimes as effectively as estrogen. | | | | tofu is not what works. The best results come with |
| There are a lot of reasons to avoid ERT. A paper in | | | | eating miso and using shoyu or tamari soy sauce. |
| a 2002 edition of the Journal of the American Medical | | | | Even better results come with taking soy isoflavones |
| Association reported the results of a study that | | | | (daidzein + genistein), 100 milligrams a day. |
| tracked 16,608 women for five years. The study | | | | And herbs are not all that women can do to stop hot |
| found that taking estrogen increased the risk of | | | | flashes. Here are some more tipe: |
| breast cancer by 26 per cent and upped the rate of | | | | - Treating constipation with fiber relieves hot flashes |
| stroke by 41 per cent. ERT doubled the rate of | | | | by reducing the amount of estrogen reabsorbed |
| pulmonary embolism and tripled the rate of ovarian | | | | from bile salts released into the intestine to be mixed |
| cancer. | | | | with stool. Other methods of enhancing regularity do |
| Estrogen replacement does get quick results. Many | | | | not have this effect. The fiber absorbs the estrogen. |
| women know the risks and take it anyway. But | | | | - Hot peppers trigger a nerve reaction that causes |
| women who can stand their flashes for just a few | | | | sweating and eye watering when you place them in |
| weeks often get lasting results from herbs. | | | | your mouth. They usually cause cooling, not heat, but |
| The best known herb for hot flashes is dong quai. It | | | | women who get hot flashes may still find the |
| contains a compound that keeps blood vessels in the | | | | reaction unpleasant. |
| face from opening up to rush blood to the head. A | | | | - Wearing clothes in layers allows you to take off |
| study at the Kaiser Permanent Foundation in California | | | | clothes to cool off without getting chilled or having to |
| found that the herb does not help women who are | | | | undress in public. |
| already on ERT, but other women report good | | | | - Magnets do relieve hot flashes, but a clinical study |
| results. | | | | got some really publishing results. Magnets applied to |
| Also used for hot flashes is black cohosh, found in | | | | the accupressure points for hot flashes stopped hot |
| products such as Remifemin. There have been clinical | | | | flashes, but fake magnets worked even better than |
| studies that find that black cohosh is actually more | | | | real ones. At least you do not have to worry about |
| effective than estrogen replacement therapy for | | | | finding an expensive brand. |
| stopping hot flashes, but there is one significant | | | | - The accupressure points to relieve hot flashes are |
| drawback. Black cohosh make take six months to | | | | the "bubbling springs," smack in the middle of your |
| begin to work. A few women experience mild | | | | feet between the ball of the foot and outer edge, |
| stomach upset when taking this herb. | | | | the "third eye" between your two eyebrows, the |
| Hot flashes in women taking estrogen sequestering | | | | "elegant mansion" or the hollow below the collarbone |
| agents after breast cancer are problematic. There is | | | | next to the breastbone, the "sea of tranquillity" three |
| a Japanese herbal formula called kami-shoyo-san that | | | | thumb widths above the bottom tip of the |
| often works. It's a standardized, quality-tested, | | | | breastbone, and three other points I do not |
| shelf-stable combination of combination of angelica, | | | | recommend because they can cause damage to |
| bupleurum, Cornelian cherry, ginger, licorice, mint, | | | | bones or, at least in Chinese medical practice, induce |
| moutan, peony, poria mushroom, and white | | | | uterine contractions. Gentle pressure or magnets |
| atractylodis root. | | | | applied to these points can sometimes to stop a hot |
| Honso USA sells this formula under the somewhat | | | | flash. |