Hot flashes may be fewer in older, heavier women

Study finds that obesity's impact on incidence of hot flashes may depend on age

2011-09-01

(Press-News.org) A recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) found that among women aged 60 and above, heavier women have fewer hot flashes than their leaner counterparts. The inverse association between body size and hot flashes was observed only among the older women.

In the last decade, research on perimenopausal women has shown that heavier women tend to have more hot flashes. As a result of this research, clinicians began to observe obesity as a risk factor for hot flashes. However, according to this new study, after a woman reaches an age where she becomes menopausal and her ovary no longer produces estrogen, it appears that the heavier the woman is, the fewer hot flashes she experiences.

"This study provides a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between body size and hot flashes, emphasizing the important role of age," said the study's lead author, Rebecca Thurston, PhD of the University of Pittsburgh. "Our findings show that the benefit of higher fat levels for hot flashes is not apparent until a woman is about 60 years old."

In this study, researchers examined 52 women who had reported hot flashes and were not on medication impacting hot flashes. Study participants had their body fat percentage, waist circumference and BMI measured and were physiologically assessed for hot flashes by use of a monitor that measured skin conductance. Participants also self-reported hot flashes by using a portable electronic diary.

"Our study showed that higher adiposity, BMI and waist circumference were associated with fewer physiologically-assessed hot flashes among older postmenopausal women with hot flashes," said Thurston. "Moreover, associations were most pronounced among Caucasian women. This study underscores the importance of considering how age and race may modify the relationship between obesity and hot flashes."

###Also working on the study was Nanette Santoro of the University of Colorado and Karen Matthews of the University of Pittsburgh.

The article, "Adiposity and hot flashes in midlife woman: A modifying role of age," appears in the October 2011 issue of JCEM.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Podiatrist in Lancaster Enhances Practice Through Online Social Media Accounts

2011-09-01

Dr. Thomas Neuman, podiatrist in Lancaster and Northridge, has recently launched the practice's social media websites - Facebook and Twitter. These social media channels were set up to maintain a superior level of communication and interaction with patients at any point during the day. Patients can now access more personalized information, as well as learn more about other patients' experiences with Dr. Neuman. "My patients use the Internet more and more these days, including sharing information and interacting with other patients on popular social media websites. ...

Not all care homes are bad, argues expert

2011-09-01

Many care homes provide first rate care, despite relentless negative media coverage, argues an expert on bmj.com today. Graham Mulley, Emeritus Professor of Elderly Care at the University of Leeds, calls on the media and high profile individuals to "balance the prevailing nihilism" and celebrate all the excellent work that is taking place in many care homes. His views come after he was asked to be a consultant adviser for an undercover television exposé of nursing homes. Media reporting of care homes is rarely positive, he writes, yet the latest report from the Care ...

Cosmetic Dentist in West Orange Offers Advanced Dental Treatment with Laser Dentistry

2011-09-01

New Jersey top dentist, Dr. Ivan Stein of Northfield Dental Group, is treating patients with more precision and efficiency with recent advancements in dental technology. New laser devices enable Dr. Stein to provide the best possible care in his Livingston office. Laser dentistry is a form of dentistry that allows for the treatment of highly specific areas by laser without damaging the surrounding tissues. For years lasers have been used in dentistry to treat a number of dental problems and they continue to improve and grow in popularity. "The use of lasers ...

A high-tech propulsion system for the next 100 years

2011-09-01

One of the most efficient means of transporting freight is by ship. However, many of the ships sailing today are powered by ageing diesel motors fitted with neither exhaust cleaning equipment nor or modern control systems. Three years ago the University of Birmingham initiated an ambitious trial, converting an old canal barge to use hydrogen fuel. The old diesel motor, drive system and fuel tank were removed and replaced with a high efficiency electric motor, a battery pack for short-term energy supply and a fuel cell with a hydrogen storage system to charge the batteries. ...

Mobile phone data in Haiti improves emergency aid

2011-09-01

Population movements in the wake of disasters make it difficult to deliver the right amount of humanitarian aid to the right places. During the earthquake and ensuing cholera epidemic in Haiti, researchers at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, and Columbia University, USA, developed a new method for solving this problem – they monitored the continual movements of two million anonymous mobile phones and reported directly to the humanitarian relief organisations on the ground. The method, which is now presented in the scientific journal PLoS Medicine, may have a major impact ...

Mobile Dentist Offers Teeth Whitening Special for Next Two Months

2011-09-01

Dr. Nicholas Southall, dentist in Mobile, offers patients a discounted price for teeth whitening for the next two months. Patients can schedule an appointment with Dr. Southall to save $150 on their teeth whitening treatment, regularly $300. "Teeth whitening is one of the most popular cosmetic procedures available, and sometimes patients can't afford it. This is why I am happy to offer my patients teeth whitening at such a discounted price. It allows those who have always wanted a whiter smile to be able to try it out at an affordable rate," said Dr. Nicholas ...

Stressed dad = depressed children? Investigating the paternal transmission of stress

2011-09-01

Philadelphia, PA, August 31, 2011 - Does Dad's stress affect his unborn children? According to the results of a new study in Elsevier's Biological Psychiatry, it seems the answer may be "yes, but it's complicated". The risk of developing depression, which is significantly increased by exposure to chronic stress, is influenced by both environment and genetics. The interplay of these two factors is quite complex, but in fact, there is even a third factor that most of us know nothing about – epigenetics. Epigenetics is the science of changes in genetic expression that are ...

Farming commercial miscanthus

2011-09-01

An article in the current issue of Global Change Biology Bioenergy examines the carbon sequestration potential of Miscanthus plantations on commercial farms. Researchers evaluated Miscanthus plantations in Ireland, where planting has been subsidized by the government. Carbon sequestration is expected to vary among different farming practices and soil characteristics. They found significant soil carbon sequestration under Miscanthus on both former tilled land and former grasslands after only two years of planting with little evidence that its introduction contributes to ...

'Gene overdose' causes extreme thinness

2011-09-01

Scientists have discovered a genetic cause of extreme thinness for the first time, in a study published today in the journal Nature. The research shows that people with extra copies of certain genes are much more likely to be very skinny. In one in 2000 people, part of chromosome 16 is duplicated, making men 23 times and women five times more likely to be underweight. Each person normally has a copy of each chromosome from each parent, so we have two copies of each gene. But sometimes sections of a chromosome can be duplicated or deleted, resulting in an abnormal 'dosage' ...

Doctors' and nurses' hospital uniforms contain dangerous bacteria majority of the time, study shows

2011-09-01

Washington, DC, August 31, 2011 – More than 60 percent of hospital nurses' and doctors' uniforms tested positive for potentially dangerous bacteria, according to a study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. A team of researchers led by Yonit Wiener-Well, MD, from the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel, collected swab samples from three parts of the uniforms of 75 registered nurses (RNs) and 60 medical doctors ...

Hot flashes may be fewer in older, heavier women

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: