Hot Flashes

Q: Since my menstrual periods stopped several months ago, I have been greatly troubled by hot flashes. I had one breast removed because of breast cancer two years ago, and my gynecologist will not prescribe estrogen replacement to stop my symptoms because she is afraid it will make the breast cancer recur. Is there any safe treatment for my hot flashes?A: A recent report of a study organized by investigators at the Mayo Clinic has shown that small doses of an alternative to estrogen called megestrol acetate improved the symptoms of hot flashes in postmenopausal women.

Every woman will experience menopause, some in the normal course of aging and some before. It can bring on a host of symptoms in addition to hot flashes. But there are things that women can do, from improving their diet and exercising to finding the right treatment, explains Dr. Rakhi Gupta, a gynecologist at the Center for Women's Health at Good Samaritan Hospital. She answers some common questions about this life change. What is menopause? Menopause is a normal life change that occurs as women age, usually between their late 40s and 50s. Menopause is defined as the discontinuation of menstruation for one year or more.

Baltimore County police are investigating a holdup at a nutrition store in Woodlawn committed by a guy who, I'm guessing, suffers from nighttime cramps, cold sores, acne or hot flashes. The bandit took $350 cash and large bottle of Vitamin E. . . .This oughta be special: A senior citizens' version of "The Dating Game" on closed-circuit TV at Oak Crest Village, the Parkville retirement community, this Friday, Valentine's Day. ("Bachelor No. 1: I like mature men. But exactly how mature are you?"

The Pill turns 50 this month, and I swear I am feeling every one of those years. For me, that little disc of pink and white birth control pills has morphed into one of those day-of-the-week pill storage containers that's filled with all sorts of medicines, none of which holds the promise of a wild night of sex. The Pill is now "the pills," and they hold out hope of less joint pain and less risk of clogged arteries and dying of a sudden heart...

By her own account, Sharon "Missy" Peay was a 51-year-old woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown three years ago. After suffering through endless nights interrupted by hot flashes, the California nursing assistant opened her freezer one night, grabbed a box of frozen peas and applied it to the back of her neck. After a few minutes, she felt better. The sweating subsided, the panic was gone, and she went back to bed. Sharon Peay and her husband, Joseph, have used her experiment with frozen peas to develop a product called Hot Stop that they claim offers quick relief from hot flashes.

Novavax Inc., aiming for a piece of the $1.6 billion domestic estrogen-replacement market, has won government approval for a prescription estrogen formulation that is absorbed after being rubbed into the skin like a lotion, the Columbia-based firm announced yesterday. The product, called Estrasorb, received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for short-term use by women suffering from the effects of menopause, the company said. In development for nine years, Estrasorb is the first drug developed by Novavax.

Like a modern-day Mary Poppins, food manufacturers are finding that a spoonful of sugar and other tasty ingredients will make the medicine go down - and that aging baby boomers will pay a premium for it. From small, new start-ups like Zoe Foods in Boston, which makes flax and soy cereal designed to ease hot flashes associated with menopause, to giants like Lipton, which makes a margarine that promises to lower cholesterol, companies are developing so-called...

Every woman will experience menopause, some in the normal course of aging and some before. It can bring on a host of symptoms in addition to hot flashes. But there are things that women can do, from improving their diet and exercising to finding the right treatment, explains Dr. Rakhi Gupta, a gynecologist at the Center for Women's Health at Good Samaritan Hospital. She answers some common questions about this life change. What is menopause? Menopause is a normal life change that occurs as women age, usually between their late 40s and 50s. Menopause is defined as the discontinuation of menstruation for one year or more.

Q. I haven't had a period for months, and I have been tormented with hot flashes and vaginal dryness. So I tried an over-the-counter herbal remedy for menopause containing black cohosh root, ginseng and chaste tree berry. It eliminated my hot flashes and vaginal dryness. But about three weeks later, my period started! As soon as I quit taking the tablets, my symptoms returned and my period stopped. Can I safely resume the herbal remedy? Will the hot flashes and dryness last forever? My doctor is not an advocate of alternative remedies and recommends the prescription hormone therapy, but I am reluctant to take it. A. Black cohosh and ginseng contain plant chemicals that may mimic estrogen.

Question : What's a safe way to kill mosquitoes? We have a cabin on a pond, and the mosquitoes are ferocious. Some always manage to sneak in, and there is nothing worse than being buzzed, especially when you are trying to fall asleep. Trying to swat mosquitoes at night is challenging. When my husband gets totally frustrated, he sprays a powerful DEET mist in their direction. Then we breathe the stuff, which I am not sure is safe. Answer : Instead of spraying DEET or an insecticide at mosquitoes, try 90 percent isopropyl alcohol, which you should be able to find in almost any pharmacy.

Question : What's a safe way to kill mosquitoes? We have a cabin on a pond, and the mosquitoes are ferocious. Some always manage to sneak in, and there is nothing worse than being buzzed, especially when you are trying to fall asleep. Trying to swat mosquitoes at night is challenging. When my husband gets totally frustrated, he sprays a powerful DEET mist in their direction. Then we breathe the stuff, which I am not sure is safe. Answer : Instead of spraying DEET or an insecticide at mosquitoes, try 90 percent isopropyl alcohol, which you should be able to find in almost any pharmacy.

I started taking Chantix and was surprised how quickly it cut my smoking in half. I continued with the Chantix until I finally quit. Depression was slowly creeping up on me, but nothing prepared me for what happened. One day, I woke up feeling as if I'd never be happy again. I have never felt such despair in my life. I have found it almost impossible to get help. I went to a mental-health facility, but they could do nothing unless I was suicidal and committed myself to their locked facility.

Here's a hot flash for you - or rather, a bunch of them. Rebecca Hulem is a Los Angeles-based nurse practitioner and consultant who is known as "The Menopause Expert." Her 2003 book, Feelin' Hot? A Humorous, Informative and Truthful Look at Menopause, is about ... well, the title is pretty self-explanatory. Hulem decided to write the book and to maintain a Web site (themenopauseexpert.com) after experiencing a particularly rocky Silent Passage. "I was having mood swings, fatigue, difficulty focusing," she says.

"It's the show according to Patti LaBelle," the down-home Philadelphia soul legend told the huge crowd Saturday night at the African American Heritage Festival. If anybody in pop has earned the right to play the diva role, it's "Miss Patti," as she frequently called herself during the fun, hourlong set. Over the course of her 45-year career, the two-time Grammy winner has never enjoyed the critical kudos or record sales of some of her peers, namely Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin and Diana Ross.

The widely used herbal remedy black cohosh does nothing to eliminate hot flashes, night sweats and other symptoms of menopause, either alone or in combination with other herbs, federally sponsored researchers reported yesterday. Thousands of women use the supplement, but a controlled trial reported in The Annals of Internal Medicine showed it is no more effective than a placebo. Only estrogen produced a significant reduction in hot flashes. "In the doses we used, and the way we used it, it did not work," said Katherine M. Newton of Group Health, a Seattle health system, who led the study.

My doctor shaved off some skin and put Spanish fly (cantharidin) on my wart. It stung for 24 hours, but the wart went away. Forget the bacon grease, duct tape or other home remedies. This works. Spanish fly has an undeserved reputation as an aphrodisiac. It is actually a very irritating substance made by male blister beetles. Dermatologists have used the active ingredient, cantharidin, to trigger an immune response that helps eliminate warts. This prescription liquid must be applied with care by a physician because it might burn and cause a painful blister.

My 28-year-old son has a receding hairline. I hate to see him look middle-aged before he is in his 30s. Which baldness medicine works better, Rogaine or Prope-cia? Would they work better together than either alone? He can't afford either drug, but I could subsidize a six-month trial. A small study recently appeared in the Archives of Derma-tology comparing topical minoxidil (Rogaine) with oral finasteride (Propecia). Initially, minoxidil seemed more effective. But after two years, the two medications were "equally effective."

I do not understand why everyone thinks estrogen is so wonderful. My doctor prescribed hormone replacement therapy (HRT) a year ago and it almost ruined my life.At first the symptoms were subtle. My hair started thinning and my libido gradually disappeared. After a few months I developed headaches and problems with my vision. My condition grew worse and I experienced dizziness and numbness in my hands and legs.When I finally stopped the hormones I gradually got better, though my vision is not back to normal yet.Is there any way to get the benefits of estrogen from an herbal medicine?