If you are waking up soaked at night, you are not alone. For many women, a night sweat triggers thoughts of menopause but hold up! There is more to night sweats than hormones. This symptom affects people of all ages and genders. If you hop on Dr. Google you will find that in addition to menopause, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, infections, cancer, medications and sleep apnea are common medical causes of night sweats… Before you go down the dark road of self diagnosis, consider these simple lifestyle causes and know when to see your doctor.
The Nightcap
If you are finishing your evening off with a glass or two of alcohol (yes, even 1 glass) you might experience a hot flash. Alcohol affects the internal regulation of body temperature and can cause sweating or the chills. Sweet wine or any alcohol with sugar can cause sweating when consumed in the late afternoon or evening for another reason. It causes your internal sugars to spike and then drop. Dropping blood sugar is a leading cause of night sweats.
Extra pounds
Carrying extra weight makes you warmer, especially at night when you are under the covers. Sweating is the body’s way of cooling you down.
Spicy Food and ‘Diaphoretics’
Any foods or herbs that cause a sweat are called ‘diaphoretic’ in herbal medicine. And they don’t always have to be spicy, although they often are. Catnip, for example, is a herb that can stimulate a sweat but it isn’t spicy at all. In fact, it will make you want to sleep. Take a look at your herbal teas to see if any ingredients are diaphoretic.
Irregular Meals, Fasting & Hypoglycemia
If you are too busy to eat, don’t want to eat or are on an intermittent fasting kick – this can lead to dropping blood sugar at night, which will trigger a night sweat. Dropping blood sugar at night can also be caused by over consuming high sugar foods (particularly before bed). Everything that goes up must come down and blood sugar is no exception. Sugary food causes an internal sugar spike that will be followed by a drop and possibly a night sweat. This does not mean you have diabetes. It reflects normal fluctuations in the body.
The Detox Diet
The evidence is out on whether detoxification causes sweating but in all reality this is probably because there aren’t a lot of good studies. When you stimulate your body to get rid of toxins and the liver and kidneys can’t keep up, the skin starts to kick up a sweat. You do sweat out toxins! Plus, some toxins will affect your body temperature. As they are released from the body you may notice things heating up.
Supplements
Some supplements cause the blood vessels to dilate. ‘Vasodilation’ can cause a sweating response. For example, some B-vitamins such as Niacin or a B-Complex can cause you to sweat. Avoid taking these at night-time (the aren’t helpful for sleep anyways!)
Other supplements that affect hormones or the liver can also have this effect. Check with your naturopath for professional advice.
Dietary Changes that Affect Hormones
Some dietary changes can cause hormones to fluctuate. A diet that is high in phytoestrogens can shift your body towards a weaker and less dominant form of estrogen. Overall, this can lead to a relative estrogen deficiency which may produce a sweat.
Diet changes that lead to low body fat will also cause your levels of estrogen to drop because body fat is where estrogen is stored. Low body fat (less than 18% in women) can set off a sweating response.
A Word About Dropping Hormones
At different points in your menstrual cycle, estrogen can drop low for natural reasons. And although you have regular hormones – you may notice body temperature changes. Interestingly, it is not just estrogen that causes night sweats. Fluctuating progesterone levels can also have this affect. Women often experience a temperature spike somewhere between day 14-21 of their cycle as progesterone rises.
If you think that hormonal fluctuations are the cause of your night sweats, start tracking your morning and evening body temperature with a normal thermometer along with your menstrual cycle. See if you notice a pattern. Or, consider running a month-long hormone test.
When to See a Doctor
If you have persistent night sweats week after week it is important to get it checked out. I tell my patients if they have night sweats 2 nights or more per week for over 3 weeks it is time to run some blood work to screen for the more common medical causes of night sweating.