Night sweat is a condition in which your nightwear gets soaked with perspiration even when you are sleeping in air conditioner room. Many people develop night sweats and it has become a common problem for women who are under menopause stage. Night sweat itself is not a disease but is indicative of the underlying health issues. It can be caused due to stress involved in menopause or due to obstructive sleep apnea. In medical terms, night sweat is known as nocturnal hyperhidrosis.
Causes Of Night Sweats :
Night sweats in women of age group 45 and above is often due to menopause hormonal changes. It can also be triggered by certain medications or certain serious medical conditions like cancer or nervous system disorder. Medicines taken for depression, anxiety, drugs like antipyretics and hormone controlling medicines and drugs given for reducing the blood sugar can cause night sweats. It often occurs as side effect of these medications. Taking too much of alcohol or substance abuse can increase night sweats.
Certain medical conditions like leukemia, autonomic neuropathy, bacterial infection like brucellosis, auto-immune disorders like HIV/AIDS, and heart problems like endocarditis, hyperthyroidism, osteomyelitis, myelofibrosis (bone marrow disease) and stroke can cause night sweats. For some people there may not be any identified cause at all.
Symptoms :
Increased sweating while you are asleep is the only symptom for night sweat. Your bedspread may get drenched with your perspiration and sometimes you need to change them.
Read more on Frequent Night Urination
Tests :
No tests are required to diagnose the illness since it produces obvious symptoms.
Night Sweats Treatment :
Your doctor will collect your medical history before attempting to give treatment for night sweats. Treatment depends on the underlying cause and it varies from one individual to the other. Menopause is a stage that every woman has to overcome. There will be plenty of hormone changes, depression and anxiety during that stage.
Common therapy for night sweats is hormone replacement therapy which is very expensive. You will get immediate relief from this problem but it can produce unwanted side effects. You need to take hormone controlling drugs for long time to get relief which can cause different adverse effects including cancer. Hence before opting for this therapy you need to think twice and consult your GP whether the said treatment will interfere with the regular health conditions or not.
Alternative Treatment :
Herbal and acupuncture methods are effective in curing night sweats without any side effects. Some women resort to chiropractic approach or body massage therapy for getting relief from hot flashes. Herbal treatment is gaining popularity among many women of Western countries since it is easy to follow and inexpensive. It cures all the symptoms of menopause in straightforward approach.
Some women are taking acupuncture therapy for reducing the severity of night sweats. Black cohash is a type of estrogenic herb that balances the hormonal reduction in women. There are plenty of non-estrogenic herbs that stimulate production of estrogen by triggering the pituitary gland. Macafem is one such product used for night sweats.
Home Treatment :
This can be done in two different approaches. One is to avoid foods that trigger night sweats and the other is to increase overall health and wellbeing. You can practice yoga and meditation which gives you quality sleeping time. Eat a balanced healthy diet. Increase vitamin B and E in your daily meal plan. Taking soy foods are good for managing hormonal changes. There are plenty of approaches for managing stress.
Consider walking for 30 minutes before going to sleep which will give you quality sleep without night sweats. Avoid foods like hot and spicy foods at night that will trigger night sweats. Wear preferably cotton clothing that gives breathing space for your fiber. In case you sleep in AC room turn off the thermostat before going to sleep.
If you are habitual drinker, avoid taking alcohol or any other hot drinks before evening. You should not even have coffee or tea after 6PM which will trigger this problem. Apply wet compression on the clothing or under the bed lining for getting immediate relief. Many women are still getting night sweats due to the stress caused at workplace. You can avoid this by regular practice of meditation sessions. Generally instead of relying on any one method, you can try combination of herbal therapy with meditation technique for getting positive result in short span of time.