Less Flashing When Fleshier

Very few things are reported to improve with increased weight and advancing age, but hot flashes may be one of them.

A recent study shows that women approaching the age of 60 who are postmenopausal, may have less hot flashes.

Talk to your doctor about relief from menopausal symptoms.

Study lead author, Rebecca Thurston, Ph.D. of the University of Pittsburgh reports that this study looked at the how body size and age related to hot flashes. The study found that higher body mass index (BMI) isn't protective against hot flashes, until a woman is approximately 60 years old.

Dr. Thurston says that women of that age who have larger waist circumference and higher BMI tended to have less psychologically-assessed hot flashes when compared to more slender women in the same age range.

Additionally, Caucasian women were most likely to have this association than other races.

This study included 52 women who weren't on hot flash medications but reported having them. BMI, waist circumference and body fat percentage was measured for all the ladies. The hot flashes were recorded on a portable electronic diary.

This study will be published in the October 2011 issue of The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.