How moderate exercise can control flushes in menopause

Menopausal women suffering from hot flushes can control symptoms with regular exercise, scientists claim.

A study has found that three sessions a week of moderate cardiovascular and resistance training is enough to blunt the severity of flushes while also lifting one’s mood and aiding weight loss.

Hot flushes are experienced by about 75 per cent of menopausal women and involve sweating, palpitations and reddening.

They are caused by the change in oestrogen levels in the body and vary in severity, but some women can suffer up to 20 episodes a day along with disrupted sleep.

However, the research will open new avenues to the many women who are reluctant to undergo hormone replacement therapy (HRT), the principal treatment for flushes, due to reports in the past 15 years about its possible side-effects including a raised risk of breast and ovarian cancer. The research, published in the Journal of the North American Menopause Society, looked at 234 Spanish women, aged 45 to 64 who had been menopausal for at least 12 months and whose lifestyles were mainly sedentary.

They were then put through three one-hour sessions of moderate exercise each week, for 20 weeks. Participants reported improvements to their mental health and fitness but also said their hot flushes had become more manageable.

Dr JoAnn Pinkerton, of the North American Menopause Society, said: “Growing evidence indicates that an active lifestyle, with regular exercise, enhances health, quality of life and fitness in post-menopausal women. Documented results have shown fewer hot flushes and improved mood.”