Home Remedies for Hot Flashes and Night Sweats

Hot flashes and night sweats are common symptoms of menopause. Hot flashes are sudden and a brief sensation of heat. Night sweats are nighttime incidents of sweating and sudden excessive perspiration that can awaken you and make you feeling uncomfortable. Now, let us discuss natural home remedies for night sweats and hot flashes that occur in menopause.

Home Remedies

The following home remedies reduce hot flashes and night sweats during menopause.

Sage tea

Sage (Salvia officinalis) alleviates hot flashes and reduces the frequency of night sweats during menopause. The recent clinical study has suggested that it reduces intensity and frequency of hot flashes. It might inhibit reuptake of selective serotonin. However, it might not have an estrogenic effect, but it calms the mind and reduces heat sensation in the body. (1, 2)

* If fresh sage leaves are not available, then you can also use dried sage leaves in amount of 1 teaspoon.

Instructions

1. Wash fresh sage leaves and add it in pan with a cup of water.
2. Now bring the water with sage leaves to a boil. If you are also adding coriander seeds, then crush them and add in boiling water.
3. Heat the water with sage leaves and coriander seeds for 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Now, remove the pan from the heat and let steep for 5 to 10 minutes.
5. Strain out the solid part and separate the liquid content.
6. You can now add sugar or jaggery in the liquid and mix well.
7. If you would like to add honey, then let the mixture cool down and then add 1 tsp of honey when it is cool.

You should also use coriander seeds or leaves because they are also very helpful in reducing hot flashes and night sweats. In Ayurveda, they are highly used for menopausal symptoms.

Coriander leaves and seeds

Coriander leaves and seeds are both effective in reducing hot flashes, heat sensation, night sweats, heartburn, acidity, etc. It has cooling effect in the body, which helps reducing excess heat, according to ayurvedic science.

You can prepare its tea or extract the juice from its fresh juices. 1 tsp. of coriander leaves juice twice a day helps a lot reducing hot flashes and night sweats.

You can also use coriander seeds by soaking overnight in hot water. In the morning, strain out the seeds and separate the coriander water. Drink this water on empty stomach in the morning. It is highly beneficial for lowering the frequency and intensity of night sweats and hot flashes.

Flaxseed

Flaxseeds are good for reducing menopausal symptoms including hot flashes and night sweats. However, a few research studies are available on this subject, but many women have reported improvement in quality of life on flaxseed supplementation. (3, 4)

You can eat a teaspoon of crushed flaxseeds as dietary supplement during menopause. You should eat flaxseeds before meal to get better results in improving menopausal symptoms, losing weight and lowering cholesterol.

Licorice

Licorice roots (Mulethi) or licorice tea reduces the severity, frequency, and intensity of night sweats and hot flashes. It is a potent home remedy for hot flashes. It can give relief from hot flashes in about 80% women with this symptom. It is also very effective in reducing night sweats. However, the mechanism of action is not yet fully understood, but it might influence hormones levels and help the body adapting to menopausal changes. (5, 6, 7, 8, 9)

How to use licorice in menopause

You can eat a half-teaspoon licorice powder with water twice a day or you can prepare a licorice tea by boiling crushed licorice root into water.

Licorice tea

1. Take a cup of water and add 5 grams crushed licorice root in it.
2. Bring the water with licorice to a boil. Strain out the residues and separate the licorice tea.
3. It is already sweet in taste, so you might not need to add sugar or honey.
4. Drink licorice tea twice a day.

It is also soothing for gastric membrane and aids in acidity and gastritis.

Amla (Indian Goosebery)

According to ayurveda, amla (Emblica officinalis) has cooling effect in the body. It is also very useful in diseases like acidity, heartburn, burning sensation, heat sensation, sweating in feet and palms, hot flashes etc.

In menopause, you can eat amla murabba twice a day. Amla murabba is an Indian sweet prepared from soaking boiled amla fruits into the sugar syrup.

Amla powder with water can also be beneficial. You can also use amla decoction. For amla decoction, take 5 grams dried amla and crush them to make coarse powder. Now, soak crushed amla overnight in a cup of water. Boil the mixture in the morning and let it cool down. Add sugar or honey to taste and drink this amla water.

Tips

1. Nicotine use by women is a common cause of hot flashes and night sweats, according to research studies. Therefore, it is best to quit smoking during menopause. It would help reducing the symptoms.
2. Avoid caffeinated beverages or limit its use to one cup per day. Caffeine also induces excessive heat in the body and it can aggravate the symptoms of menopause.
3. Yoga including pranayama and yoga postures helps reducing hot flashes and night sweats. Yoga influences hormonal levels in the body, which increases the level of serotonin, which helps lowering the inconvenience caused by menopausal symptoms.
4. Do some physical exercises. These exercises also help combating menopausal symptoms.
5. Avoid processed foods and include a plenty of water, fruits and vegetables in your diet.
6. Bathing before sleep can also help reducing hot flashes and night sweats.
7. Meditation and relaxation techniques can help manage the hot flashes and night sweats.
8. Drinking 8 to 12 glasses of water can also help improving menopausal symptoms.