Night Sweats -- Causes and Cures
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June 30, 2009
By Susan M. Callahan, Associate Editor and Featured Columnist
America is waking up drenched in sweat. Night sweats. As many as
34% of adults suffer from night sweats, according to a 2007 study
from the University of Oklahoma. Putting that another way, of the
217 million adults in the US, 74 million of you suffer from night
sweats. One-half of those 74 million ----37 million people ---
reported that the sweats were so severe that they wake up thoroughly
soaked in their nightclothes.
Night sweats are different from hot flashes. Hot flashes, in contrast to
night sweats, can occur at any time during the day or night. They last
for a few seconds or minutes, and only occur in pre-menopausal or
menopausal women. Sometimes sweating for unknown reasons are
called day sweats, especially when they occur in men or in non-
menopausal women.
Both men and women suffer from night sweats. You go to sleep feeling
normal. But, at some point during the night, something happens, and
you wake up sweating. Night sweats, excessive perspiration during
sleep, can range from a simple moist brow to completely soaked bed
clothes.
The evolutionary reason that we humans experience night sweats is
unclear. Much about night sweats remains a mystery even to
researchers. Why do they only occur at night?
What is known is that night sweats have been found to be strongly
associated with several other kinds of sleep disturbances. If you
suffer from night sweats, you are also at higher risk for daytime
tiredness, waking up with a bitter taste in your mouth, legs jerking
during your sleep, and awakening with pain in the night.
What Causes Night Sweats
Nights sweats can be caused by a number of conditions. Night sweats
are one of the primary symptoms for tuberculosis and lymphoma,
cancer of the lymph nodes. But many other non-life-threatening
conditions can cause night sweats, including simple anxiety, stressful
dreams or heartburn.
Here are the most common causes and effective remedies for night
sweats, based upon medical research:
1. Lose Weight. If you have a high body mass indicator, you face a
far higher risk for experiencing severe night sweats and hot flashes.
What’s considered a high BMI? Anything over 30. This link between
the amount of fat you have on your body and night sweats was found
in a 2003 study by the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive
Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine. Your risk for
night sweats only decreases once your BMI drops to 24 or below.
Here is a table with a few examples of heights, BMIs and risk for night
sweats.
In practical terms, this means that you should stay as close to your
ideal weight, BMI (which translates into ideal waist measurements) to
lower your risk for suffering night sweats and hot flashes.
2. Stop Drinking Alcohol. Drinking alcohol increases your risk for
night sweats. In fact, it puts you at much greater risk for night sweats,
day sweats and hot flashes. According to a 2006 study from the
University of Massachusetts at Amherst, those of us who drink alcohol
every day face a significantly higher increased the risk of hot flashes,
night sweats and day sweats.
3. Avoid Hypoglycemia. Low blood sugar raises your risk for suffering
from night sweats. According to several studies, hypoglycemics suffer
twice as much from night sweats as those with normal blood sugar.
4. Stop Smoking. Smokers suffer far more from night sweats,
according to a 2003 study from the University of Baltimore. Of the
1,087 women included in the study, 56% reported having hot flashes.
Compared with those who have never smoked, current smokers were
at an increased risk for both moderate to severe hot flashes and daily
hot flashes . And if you currently smoke, your risk for hot flashes
increases with each puff.
5. Avoid Chronic Insomnia and Apnea. Insomnia is difficult to treat
but there are natural approaches to sleep pattern problems which are
effective. Apnea, which means the interruption of breathing while you
are asleep, may require the use of a CPAP mask to completely remedy
the problem. Recent studies have linked apnea with heavy snoring.
6. Manage Your Heart burn/ Acid Reflux. Heart burn, alson known as
acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease or (GERD) when it
occurs frequently, has been strongly linked with night sweats.
7. Manage Thyroid Conditions. Hypothyroidism is strongly linked to
experiencing night sweats.
8. Get Your Blood Pressure Down. According to a 2007 study from
Cornell University, Weill Medical College, those of us with a high
systolic (top number) blood pressure are at signifcantly greater risk
for hot flashes and night sweats. Avoid salt, walk 45 minutes a day,
and eat foods that help you to lower blood pressure are the most
effective natural remedies.
9. Hodgkins's Disease and Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Hodgkin's
disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma can cause drenching night
sweats. The reason is that as the disease progresses the body loses its
ability to fight off infections, which can cause fevers and night sweats.
10. Tuberculosis. Night sweats are one of the key symptoms of
tuberculosis. If you experience night sweats and you have none of the
above factors ---no extra body weight, you're not a smoker, no high
blood pressure, acid reflux or alcohol-- then see a doctor to screen for
tuberculosis and lymphoma cancer.
You are just getting started. Find out more useful tips on managing
sleep and related health problems: Night Cramps / Sleep Center /
Snoring Linked to Stroke /Stop Snoring Tips /Foods That Stop Snoring
/Exercises That Stop Snoring
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Child Snoring Different from Adults-Possibly An Allergic Type Disease
Snorers Cost Spouses 2 Years of Lost Sleep
UCLA Center for Sleep Research
Lose 10lbs -A Simple Plan for The Rest of Us
Why Your Dog Snores
My Heart Attack
Adrenal Fatigue-Why You Wake Up Tired
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