Top 5 Natural Remedies for Hot Flashes

Four months ago hot flashes started coming in very strongly for me. Based on intuition, I started taking a food based zinc supplement and in 2 days the hot flashes were down about 95%!! It's amazing!

I tried the ACV and baking soda for hot flashes and it works for me. I had been having hot flashes every hour and couldn't sleep at night - this remedy is a lifesaver.

I used ACV 2 T in tea temp water with 1/4 tsp baking soda and within 48 hrs hot flashes disappeared. Be careful with ingestion of baking soda as you do not want to lower your alkalinity too drastically. Only use for 3 weeks at a time then give your body a break.

Hot flashes are THE WORST! I just got through several months of absolute hell! I got some great herbs from a chinese medicine woman in Atlanta and took them for 4 days- and the flashes were gone!

Mine were as severe as can be- she also gave me the food guidelines- and even after they left- I kept up with all of the above to keep them away.

What worked for me is below:

1) Go gluten free- NO WHEAT. There are alot of great gluten free products on the market including pasta, crackers and bread that make this do-able.

2) Avoid SUGAR- nothing with cane sugar - try to go easy on fruit also because it is very high in sugar

3) NO ALCOHOL at all until you get the hof flashes in order (this is the worst because I LOOVVVEEEE wine! ) - this is probably the worst culprit and made a huge difference.

Once you get the flashes in order- if you need a glass- just 1/2 glass occasionally.

4) According to Chinese Medicine- the kidneys need to be strengthened- that is the reason for the urinary urgency. I think to get the urinary urgency part in check- you need chinese herbs.

5) Really pay attention to your food - you would be surprised how much of a difference this makes- EAT COOLING FOODS:

Meats- Fish and Pork are cooling- Beef, Shellfish and Chicken are heaty and will make you hotter than you already are.

Vegetables- no potatoes, carrots, these are heaty foods- go for green veggies and squash which are cooling. I got amazing relief from eating Green Cabbage.

Rice- Brown Rice, not white

Fruits- go easy- if you need fruits- blackberries are good- just things lower in sugar

Juice- No Orange or citrus juice- if you must have some juice- drink apple. Watering down is good too.

NO SPICY FOODS at all. No cinnamon, nutmeg- both are warming.

NO CAFFEINE

6) Take cool showers- I do a warm shower then end with making it as cold as I can stand it.

7) Acupuncture helps also- I do this weekly to balance hormones

8) For me- the fatigue was because I was napping through the flashes at night and not getting enough sleep. It is important to try to get some sleep- try to read at night instead of watching TV or being on the computer- that riles you up more.

9) The sadness of the life shift passed once I stopped sweating to death, and once my body got back in balance. It feels like you are dying- but it is really that your body is trying hard to balance itself and needs assistance. It will get better.

I started getting hot flashes about a month ago. I started taking black strap molasses 2 weeks ago after a chance encounter with someone who told me she was using it for her hot flashes. I figured what the heck, might as well try it. It's natural and cheaper than going to the doctor. Whatta ya know....it works!! I am truly and pleasantly surprised. I wish I had gotten the name of the lady who told me about this. My husband would like to thank her. No more arguing over the thermostat at night.

I wonder if this has something to do with your lymphatic system flowing from the rhythm of the horse. A rebounder might help in this case too. 15 mins of jumping a day will get your whole system moving and is very good for your body.

Hi Drifter (who posted in 2012 on the body odor page),

If you're like me and still getting hot flashes, try Borax! I bought a box of 20 Mule Team Borax, dip my finger in it 1x/day, and swirl it into my water bottle and shake. It is odorless and tasteless, and the only times I get more than a flash here or there is when I run out, like I am now. My hot flashes went from a 6 out of 10 down to maybe a 2. It's weird buying something from the laundry aisle to take internally, but be assured that borax or boron is merely mined from dried up salt-water beds. There's one in CA that has enough to supply the world for hundreds of years! So the stuff is cheap and amazingly wonderful on mitigating hot flashes! Best of luck, fellow hot flashers!

Olive Leaf for Hot Flashes and Night Sweats

I had been suffering from hot flashes and night sweats for over a year when I had to start taking antihistamines for another problem. After I started taking the antihistamines I noticed my hot flashes and night sweats had stopped. Just for fun, I googled antihistamines and hot flashes and saw that a lot of women are taking antihistamines for their hot flashes. Zyterc actually did a study and it showed reduce hot flashes while taking their pills. Well, I liked not having hot flashes anymore but I didn't want to have to keep taking antihistamines so I did a little more online research and found a website that talked about histamine intolerance. I started to remove some of the foods I know cause my face to heat up and turn red, wine, chocolate, anything fermented. I also started cooking with olive oil as they suggested. I also started eating beets once a day. Beets are supposed to help your body produce something called DAO which supposedly gets rid of excess histamine. I also started taking olive leaf capsules. OMG, not only do these capsules take away my hot flashes, my seasonal allergies are non existent this spring. Amazing!

I would like to let people know what I have found, I have tried everything, could not tolerate Apple Cider Vinegar, so I started eating lemons and taking shots of bottle lemon juice. I also drink lemon water and take shots during the day, this is day and night 5. Not one hot flash, after 6 months of misery.

Inositol has greatly relieved my hot flashes! I am 52, and I started having perimenopausal hot flashes about a year ago. Mine are related to estrogen dominance and falling progesterone levels, so any estrogenic substances (i.e. black cohosh, flax seed, etc.) only made things worse.

I used a DIM supplement, which is made from cruciferous vegetables and helps convert estradiol to estriol, very successfully for a year and this kept the flashes and being too hot at night at bay. Then the flashes came back. Mine are not as severe as many people's are, but they were only happening at night and really interfering with my sleep.

I started using a popular brand of an over the counter progesterone cream, along with Vitex (chasteberry) which helps the body favor the production of progesterone over estrogen to help boost my levels. This also helps some, but as far as the cream, I really don't like using hormones at all, even in a low dose. And the flashes weren't gone, they were still happening far too much in frequency and intensity at night.

I began giving my mother some inositol because it is relaxing to many people and helps them sleep. I took some myself one night (1000 mg.) to see if it would perhaps help me sleep through the hot flashes. Well, it had the reverse effect on me and kept me alert and awake for half the night, but I had zero hot flashes! I decided to mete out my dose throughout the day, and yesterday I took 1500 mg. altogether spread out over three 500 mg. doses. I took the last 500 mg. before bed, this smaller amount doesn't keep me awake, esp. if I take it with magnesium. I deliberately did not use the progesterone cream last night and did not have a single flash!

Ladies, I think inositol is definitely worth trying, you can find it at your local vitamin store and it is very inexpensive! I've seen very little research on it for hot flashes, but it works well for me.

Lastly, I eat a pretty low carb diet, favoring seafood. I take antioxidants, high doses of DHA, I drink a gallon of water per day, limit my coffee to two cups per day, and avoid sugars and grains. My diet is mostly Paleo, I guess, although I do eat a small amount of organic/raw dairy. The B vitamin complex I take, however, did not include any inositol, as many of them don't. Inositol is formed by the body from glucose, and I don't eat too many foods that favor glucose production, so I possibly had a deficiency. I also recommend taking the supplement cholin along with the inositol as these two work well together. I hope this works for some of you. Bear in mind that no one supplement works the same for everyone, but at the low price - inositol is definitely worth trying!

Hot flashes help: I'm 83, and have had hot sweats from spring till fall each year "forever." At a yard sale, I paid $l.00 for a wonderful chenille bath robe - brand new. I had it in my closet for sometime without thinking about it. But one early morning when I was staggering out of bed in misery with my sweats, I suddenly put that robe on. I can't tell you how comfortable it was. I crawled back into bed, with it on like a blanket. It soaked up the sweaty misery like a miracle! I've used it for several years. Some people never get over hot sweats apparently. It is so thick that you pull it inside out and you have dry surface again! To me, it's a miracle.

I resolved hot flashes very quickly using good quality essential oils on the body.

1. Soak in sea salt baths once daily. Upto 20 mins of soak with atleast 1 lb sea salt in the water.

2. Take a shower with soap and water after this.

3. Dry off, and liberally apply lavender essential oil, or a combination of lavender, tea tree and rose oils (1:1:1) on your front and back solar plexus, heart, navel chakras. (Google to find a pic of these chakras so you understand locations).

4. Re-apply oils upto 4 times daily, and especially before bedtime and upon waking up.

This combination of oils (after salt baths) adds green and pink prana to the aura, and this in turn keeps the chakras in a normal size. This prevents the body from getting hot flashes.

Nothing has helped resolved my hormonal issues aka hot flashes like this protocol.

And please, find therapeutic grade essential oils, because this stuff gets ingested into the body, so quality is crucial.

Good luck, I KNOW you will be free of hot flashes after this. Tina

I love this! I don't have to go on hormones! Here is a quote on Boron/Borax -which might help you with hot flashes:

"Research has now shown that boron supplementation in postmenopausal women doubles the blood level of the most active form of oestrogen, 17-beta oestradiol, to the level found in women on oestrogen replacement therapy. Equally, the blood levels of testosterone more than doubled (7). With HRT there is a higher risk of breast or endometrial cancer which is not known to happen with hormones produced by the body as with borax supplementation." - health-science-spirit.com

Acupuncture has been very helpful in treating my temperature fluctuations, as well as fatigue, aching bones, stomach pain, and moodiness. I go to the student clinics, which are less expensive, and I find the students gentler and more willing to listen than the fully credentialled acupuncture doctors I've seen. Although that was just my experience. Unlike Western allopaths, alternative practitioners take a much more inclusive history, so expect to spend more than 15 minutes. Caution: acupuncture is not an overnight cure; it is a healing journey. And yes, sometimes it hurts, so clear communication is vital between you and your practitioner.

I only wish I'd realized what an amazing effect acupuncture would have six months ago -- I could have gone back to work months ago! :) I've been going at least twice a week, where possible, and I believe that if a person is going to try it out, that s/he should probably commit to enough time/sessions to give it a fair trial.

Good luck to you!

I am a 48 year old woman have recently started having hot flashes and night sweats. I had no idea how uncomfortable they would be, until it finally happened. I could not sleep because of the constant heat coming and going. During the day, I would have at least 5 episodes of them, but at night I would suffer at least 10 episodes, with constant interruption of sleep. I tried the raw apple cider vinegar with no success. So next I tried the vitamin E. All I had in the cabinet was 1000IU so that is what I took. I must say it worked on the first night, and the second night, so I feel safe in saying it really works. I take it at night about an hour before bed, Peace, Rena.

I used 1000IU of vitamin E and on the first night I noticed a big difference. I have continued and will continue because it work. Vitamin E 1000IU for hot flashes try it.

I AM A 56 YR OLD FEMALE AND BACK WHEN I WAS IN MY 40'S I WAS TAKING HORMONES FOR MY HOT FLASHES AND NIGHT SWEATS. WELL, IT STOPPED WORKING FOR ME SO MY DR TOLD ME TO TRY 1000 UNITS OF PURE VITAMIN E (STANDARDIZED). NOT ONLY DID IT TAKE AWAY THE HOT FLASHES AND NIGHT SWEATS, IT MADE MY SKIN SOFT ALL OVER.YOU MAY WANT TO START WITH HALF THE DOSE AND WORK YOU'RE WAY UP IF YOU HAVE NO RESULTS. VITAMIN E IS GOOD FOR ALL KINDS OF THINGS.ALL I KNOW IS IT WORKED FOR ME AND MADE MY LIFE ALOT BETTER. NOW I TAKE 400 UNITS EVERY OTHER DAY AS A MAINTANCE PROGRAM.YOU CAN APPLY IT TO SORES AND DRY PATCHES ALSO AND THEY HEAL FAST.

That does answer my question! Thanks so much Art. I always find your posts so helpful. You sure are a gem!

I found if I eat sugar of any kind, I will wake up soaked. So a small chocolate bar or piece of watermelon after dinner will do it. I do not eat anything after dinner now. That stopped my night sweats.