Foods That Prevent Hot Flashes

Garlic, peppers, mushrooms, pasta, strawberries, and red wine. These foods might heat up a romantic dinner—and new evidence suggests they cool you down during menopause, too.

The menopausal women who most closely followed a Mediterranean diet rich in vegetables, noodles, and red wine were about 20 percent less likely to report hot flashes and night sweats than those who didn't stick to the diet, according to a new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Women who regularly ate certain fruits, including strawberries, pineapple, melon, and mango, were also less likely to report these symptoms.

On the flip side, women whose diets were high in fat and sugar were 20 percent more likely to develop hot flashes and night sweats, collectively called vasomotor symptoms. The results come from a group of more than 6,000 women followed for about nine years.

Hot flashes and night sweats occur when fluctuating estrogen levels interfere with your body's ability to maintain a steady temperature. Eating the right diet can stabilize your shifting hormones, reducing your flushing and excess perspiration, says Carmella Sebastian, M.D., M.S., internist and author of Sex and Spaghetti Sauce: My Italian Mother's Recipe For Getting Healthy and Getting Busy In Your 50s And Beyond.

Scientists aren't yet sure exactly why the Mediterranean way of dining (or the extra fruit, for that matter) specifically offers relief, but the study authors offer several hypotheses. For one thing, the fruits, vegetables, and whole grains in these eating patterns provide ample fiber. This nutrient has been linked to lower estrogen levels, perhaps through stabilizing blood levels of the hormones insulin and cortisol, says Dr. Sebastian, who wasn't involved with the study. "You won't have that variability in estrogen and thus you're not going to have as many symptoms," she says.

Similarly, these diets feature carbohydrates lower on the glycemic index, a measure of how quickly a food causes your blood glucose to spike. And other recent research found women with more stable blood sugar have fewer vasomotor symptoms.

Although women eating a healthy diet in the study also drank red wine, there's little evidence of an individual link between vino and hot flashes, Dr. Sebastian says. However, moderate drinking in general and red wine in particular have been linked to better heart health, offering a good reason to drink up—within reason. Stick with no more than a glass a day at most.

Read more: http://www.prevention.com/health/health-concerns/eat-ease-menopause-symptoms

When to see Your Gynaecologist about Your Reproductive Health Problems?

It is always very important to look after your body, so you should always be doing what is advised to stay healthy. This includes participating in at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, eating enough fruit and vegetables and drinking a reasonable amount of water each day. By following these daily rules you will find that your body will immediately feel much healthier, however there are some problems which you cannot ignore by eating more fruit.

If you start noticing some abnormal symptoms from your body, this is something that you should never ignore. Whatever the problem is you should always immediately contact your doctor or gynecologist. Some symptoms which some women may face could be:

Pelvic pain or menstrual cramps

If this cramps or pains are happening on regular occasions then you should contact your doctor immediately, as it could be a sign of further problems. If the pain is so severe that it is disrupting your daily routine you book yourself in for an examination immediately so that the problem can be dealt with accordingly.

Abnormal bleeding

Abnormal bleeding is when you are changing your sanitary towel or tampons more than once every two hours. If you have noticed that your bleeding is becoming increasingly heavy and it is disrupting your daily routine, you should contact your doctor so that they can discover what is causing this.

Bleeding between periods

Random bleeding between periods can be a sign of many different things; it can be part of the contraceptive pill that you are taking or a sign of more worrying things. You should not just ignore the random bleeding as you don’t want any problems to develop to something worse.

If you start noticing that you have any of these problems, then you should contact your doctor and asked to be referred to a gynecology that will be able to examine you to discover what is causing any of the problems.

You should also contact your gynecologist if:

You are planning on getting pregnant

A gynecologist will advise you on how to get pregnant and any things which you should change in your current lifestyle which will help you become pregnant quicker.

You have a sexually transmitted disease

If you believe you have contracted a sexually transmitted disease, it is important that you contact your doctor or gynecologist immediately so that you can be tested and any appropriate action can be carried out. If you do not get the appropriate medicine if you have a sexually transmitted disease, it can cause further health problems in the future.

Are There Long Term Negative Effects of Using Make Up?

Women around the world use make-up on a daily basis. This could mean everything from foundation and concealer to eye-liner and eye-shadow. However, many cosmetics today have some harsh or serious man-made chemicals in them. These items can dry out the skin, quicken the aging process and clog pores, among other things. Understanding the possible side effects of long-term make-up use is important. This allows people to protect themselves. The following includes some of the possible effects.

Develop Allergies

Many cosmetics items today include serious chemicals. Over time, one may develop irritant contact dermatitis. This is basically an itching sensation. Other possible effects include swelling. Over time, the skin becomes sensitive to the harsh chemicals, which can cause a serious reaction.

Irritate the Skin

The chemicals in a lot of cosmetics today are quite harsh. These items can dry out the skin, which can then flake. This makes the skin painful or tender to touch, and it can cause some painful blisters too. Anyone who already has sensitive skin experience some painful effects from using such cosmetics.

Speed Up the Aging Process

Dry skin is more than just itchy or blotchy. Instead, it can quicken the aging process and produce not only wrinkles but also age spots and even scarring. This is why it is important to remove make-up, use moisturizers and sunscreen and to be careful about near-constant use. It is proven that people who use make-up on a daily basis and do not follow a careful removal and skincare routine will age quicker than people who forgo make-up or use all-natural options.

Worsen Acne Breakouts

Even the most diligent person may not be able to remove every single speck of make-up. Having one’s pores covered day in and day out can’t be good for the skin. The oils will build up, which causes or makes acne that much worse. Adults who never experienced pimples as teenagers could suddenly have some serious skin issues to deal with. This is especially true for people who use foundation and concealer and do not remove make-up at night.

Dark Circles and Wrinkles Around the Eyes

Constant eye make-up can cause the sensitive skin under the eyes to darken with time. The harsh chemicals also cause crow’s feet and other wrinkles around and near the eyes. Over time, a person may also develop sensitive tear ducts because of such make-up use.

It is important to understand the possible effects of make-up use. Having a consistent skincare routine can prevent some of the aging and skin effects from happening. However, it is important that people are smart about the type of cosmetics they use. Harsh chemicals will eventually take their toll.

Thankfully, there are some all-natural, hypo-allergenic and organic options from which to choose. Investing in these items ensures people can use make-up without having to deal with acne, dried out skin and wrinkles, among other effects. Making smarter cosmetic buying choices, removing make-up at night and following a skincare routine will protect the skin.