Weight Loss, Not Exercise, Helps With Night Sweats And Hot Flashes During Menopause
Studies suggest that striving for a healthy body weight during menopause may be more effective than exercise in helping women deal with most menopause issues.
A report this year from Australia’s Queensland University compared the relationship between increased physical activity and weight loss to the reduction of menopausal symptoms. Researchers surveyed more than 3,000 middle-aged women and found that exercise alone did little for the body aches, hot flashes, night sweats or depression associated with menopause.
The study did show that a change in weight had a strong effect on improving how women felt and how they managed their menopause symptoms. Women who gained weight had more hot flashes, night sweats, body aches and other menopausal symptoms; these symptoms decreased in the women who lost or maintained a normal weight level.
An earlier study from the University of Birmingham in England had also reported a positive effect from lower weight or Body Mass Index (BMI) on menopausal symptoms.
“Women with BMI scores in the normal range reported better health-related quality of life scores than heavy women” during menopause, the authors concluded.
