• Health
  • Science
  • U.S.
  • Technology
  • Business
  • World
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Sports

Building a Better World

News and information

  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Our Team

Menopausal hot flushes linked to depression in women

September 29, 2016 By Jenny Marchal

Menopausal hot flushes linked to depression in women

The study found women suffering from night time flushes are more likely to develop mild depression

For women entering the menopause, it can be hard adjusting to the symptoms that occur during this time. Hot flushes are particularly common and can happen at any time but a new study has discovered a possible link between having hot flushes and developing depression.

Hot flushes can be embarrassing when in public, can cause sleepless nights from night sweats and drain a woman’s energy adding to the stress of starting menopause – flushes can last as long as an hour.

The study led by Hadine Joffe of the Women’s Hormone and Aging Research Program at Harvard, involved 29 women who were pre-menopausal between the ages of 18 and 45. None of the participants suffered from mental illnesses, hot flushes or had any trouble sleeping. Each participant received a pill containing intramuscular leuprolide – a chemical that induces the temporary symptoms of menopause. 

The group were monitored for depressive states, sleeping patterns, sleep quality and physical symptoms such as hot flushes over a period of 4 weeks. Each woman was asked to keep a diary of the occurrence of hot flushes in particular both in the morning and the evening. Results showed the women who experienced night time flushes were more likely to suffer from sadness and mild depression compared to daytime flushes or no flushes at all.

“These common menopausal ‘brain’ symptoms of hot flashes, sleep disturbance, and depressive symptoms often present together, and it is hard to know which came first and which problem may be contributing to the other in naturalistic studies,” Joffe explained to MedPage Today. “This approach also enables us to subtract out each women’s own baseline sleep and mood patterns in order to isolate the effect of hot flashes on sleep and mood.”

The study results show the importance of monitoring mood in women entering the menopause and for clinicians to ask more about sleeping patterns and hot flushes that occur at night as a possible indicator to early signs of mild depression.

Details of the research were published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Sharing

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmail

Filed Under: Front Page, Health

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Follow Us

Facebookrss

Search:

Recent Posts

  • NASA’s InSight spacecraft makes important course correction May 26, 2018
  • Scientists outraged at latest Trump decision May 15, 2018
  • Huge uproar erupts over major incident at Utah park May 13, 2018
  • Incredible moon discovery stuns scientists May 12, 2018
  • Authorities shocked by discovery about common painkiller May 6, 2018
  • Outrageous crocodile experiment stuns scientists May 5, 2018
  • Great Barrier Reef is too quiet, scientists say May 1, 2018
  • Massive Hiroshima bomb discovery shocks scientists May 1, 2018
  • Earth will be slammed by massive asteroid April 29, 2018
  • Teens are doing something incredibly alarming in schools April 29, 2018
  • Huge discovery in Tasmania stuns scientists April 28, 2018
  • Shocking discovery in New Jersey stuns authorities April 22, 2018
  • Huge volcanic explosion could wipe out the United States April 21, 2018
  • Huge controversy erupts over world’s hottest pepper April 15, 2018
  • SpaceX is about to do something astonishing April 15, 2018

Copyright © 2021 Jones Kilmartin Group, LLC · Metro Pro Theme On Genesis Framework · WordPress