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[matildamouse]

Anyone else noticed an increase in flushes and especially night sweats after eating carb like foods? I generally eat low carb foods and have cut out all flour, bread, cake and sugar. Will have it occasionally on the weekend or when invited to friends.

The increase in the night sweats and flushes are SIGNIFICANT! For example my night sweats might increase from none to only one on waking up ( minimal sweating) to about one every hour during the night with lots sweating!

Makes you realise how all these hormones have a knock on effect! Seems insulin spikes after high carb intake cause a drop in estrogen levels resulting in flushes and nightsweats. 

[babyjane]

Oh yes, I was only thinking this last night and this morning.  I had a lot more bread than usual yesterday and some home made cake too.  I had quite a few flushes and sweats last night.  this is not the first time this has happened and my flushes and sweats have all but gone and the ones I do get are very mild now.  Too much of a co incidence.  Alcohol does it too and there is sugar in alcohol.

[Tempest]

Oh yes! I have to be extremely careful what I eat in this regard. No refined sugar. Definitely no caffeine! Carbonated drinks cause problems too (even caffeine free). No dark chocolate (that REALLY sets me off. I think it's the theobromine in chocolate as it's a stimulant).

I have to have oatcakes before I go to bed, to try to stabilise blood sugar during the night (oats are low GI so good for this).

In general, I always have a nasty hot flush after eating hot food or drinking hot beverages, but that makes sense as it's just adding to the whole body thermoregulation thing I think.

Oh, for the happy days pre meno. when you could find out late, flop into bed and be out like a light! 

[Dorothy]

Never thought of linking it to carbs - I have had to cut caffeine and sugar to the bone because of their impact on hot flushes, but never thought carbs might be a problem.  I recently moved to a low carb diet, but allow myself some starchy carbs at the weekend.  Just realised that for the last few weeks, I've had worse trouble on Saturday and Sunday...

[Hurdity]

If you eat any large meal late at night you will most likely wake up hot and sweat - this happens not only to me but also my husband! It is just the effect of metabolising all the food, and separate from (additional to?) anything to do with menopause. I am sure it will make menopausal symptoms worse though since the added heat won't help. I am interested in the effect of carbs though - matildamouse - do you have a link to some info on this please? I have cut down carbs drastically over the past year but for weight loss reasons -  and would be interested in info on interaction between insulin and oestrogen - as I am on HRT. Thanks

Hurdity x

[coldethyl]

Just a suggestion, it if you are finding carb intake leads to increased night sweats it may be worth having GP run a hba1c test as night sweats are a known component of diabetes.

[coldethyl]

A few folk recently on diabetic forum I read have been talking about adrenaline rushes are high carb meals so I think there is a link with altered body functions in general. You can get excessive sweating with diabetes when you go low ( hypo) and apparently , having just googled it, sweating associated with eating can be a manifestation of diabetes , more so when you are quite advanced and suffering neuropathy.
If you are worried, your GP can do a simple blood test. I seem to recall that you're having tests anyway so they usually tack a blood sugar one on in my experience. Excessive night sweating was what got me diagnosed - I thought it was change and it may well above been, but GP ran tests and I was also diabetic.

[coldethyl]

The hba1c is not fasting as it's a one off test that gives a picture of the blood sugars over last 12 weeks roughly. If your blood test is covering things like thyroid function etc, they usually have also ticked the box for an hba1c as it's something they like to monitor even if they don't  tell you it's increasing!

[Annidav]

Oh my goodness! Yes now I come to think of it - for the past few nights in fact and I have eaten a lot of carbs since about Thursday last week - more than I would normally/lately.

[matildamouse]

Sparkle I am 53 and post menopausal. Symptoms mainly controlled on BHRT but I seem to be sensitive for diet changes and alcohol. Even my husband noticed this effect as he knows when a night sweat happens, within a second the bed linen goes north, the cat goes west and he goes east and the fan is on full speed in the middle of winter...

Hurdity I just made my own assumption based on my experience but also wants to know more. I had a quick google for a specific study on this and this is what I got:

https://crewh21.centre.uq.edu.au/fruit-mediterranean-style-and-high-fat-and-sugar-diets-are-associated-risk-of-night-sweats-and-hot

Will let you all know if I find more.

[matildamouse]

Coldethyl I was tested for diabetes (the test you mentioned as well as fasting bloodsugar) and for insulin resistance and all came back as normal. When I was trying to manage my flushes without BHRT, I fasted a few times and those days would be nearly flush-free as oppose to my normal eating days. Nowadays BHRT takes care of the flushes and night sweats, except when I have eaten high carb foods.

Tempest just for interest sake, I was under the impression oats causes a significant spike in bloodsugar as per many low carb websites and our friend who is a type 1 diabetic. What do you find regards stabilisation of bloodsugar when eating oats?

Another link I found:
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/772465

[Dorothy]

If you eat any large meal late at night you will most likely wake up hot and sweat - this happens not only to me but also my husband! It is just the effect of metabolising all the food, and separate from (additional to?) anything to do with menopause. I am sure it will make menopausal symptoms worse though since the added heat won't help. I am interested in the effect of carbs though - matildamouse - do you have a link to some info on this please? I have cut down carbs drastically over the past year but for weight loss reasons -  and would be interested in info on interaction between insulin and oestrogen - as I am on HRT. Thanks

Hurdity x

I don't eat a large meal, and it's usually around 6.30ish so not that late either. But I am definitely worse at the weekend, when the only thing that has changed is the carb intake.  Don't think it can be diabetes as I was tested for that recently.

[jjyy]

hi im new to this forum. I am 47 going 48. turned menapause this year. still trying to figure out why some things happen to my body. I had been having a lot of sweating and especially, and then I notice some pattern.

I finally know why some days I have more night sweats than other days. when I have more carbs I would be drenched with waking up in the middle of the night sweating...

or when I eat more at night I would be very bloated and sweating.

any diet suggestions?

[CLKD]

Hi 

As we age some foodstuffs might become difficult to absorb, apparently alcohol - apparently  .  Some find that keeping a mood/food/symptom diary of use to chart progress.  It may be necessary to make a note of everything that you eat/drink over 3-5 days/nights to C what you are actually putting into your body.  I've had to cut out processed shop-made cakes for example; which misses out my mid-morning scone and cuppa when DH and I are out and about 

What R your periods up to?  Mine waxed and waned for several years B4 disappearing.  I've been fortunate in that after I went into menopause I had a few months of wet feelings from the neck to the middle of my back as well as intense itching there and in my insteps. 

Ask away.