Health
Anti-Depressants Ease Hot Flashes
Hot flashes and menopause: it's rare to have one without the other (unless you're incredibly lucky). But there are things you can do to minimize the discomfort. Hot flashes, though often hormonally related, have been found to respond to low doses of anti-depressants.
A study presented at the 2000 conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology says that the anti-depressant Effexor reduced hot flashes by about 60 percent. Effexor is an ingredient in anti-depressants such as Prozac and Zoloft.
The study, conducted by Dr. Charles Loprinzi, chair of medical oncology at Mayo Clinic, and funded by The National Cancer Institute, studied 229 women, most of whom had survived breast cancer. Often hot flashes are more severe in menopausal breast cancer survivors because the cancer medications themselves can cause more flashes. Cancer patients are usually advised not to take estrogen, the typical hot flash remedy, because estrogen can stimulate cancer growth, says Loprinzi.
While half the standard dose of anti-depressant was most effective, researchers couldn't say why it worked. And while anti-depressants aren't as effective as Hormone Replacement Therapy in terms of treating very severe hot flashes, for milder symptoms they work fine, and they're safer.
A study presented at the 2000 conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology says that the anti-depressant Effexor reduced hot flashes by about 60 percent. Effexor is an ingredient in anti-depressants such as Prozac and Zoloft.
The study, conducted by Dr. Charles Loprinzi, chair of medical oncology at Mayo Clinic, and funded by The National Cancer Institute, studied 229 women, most of whom had survived breast cancer. Often hot flashes are more severe in menopausal breast cancer survivors because the cancer medications themselves can cause more flashes. Cancer patients are usually advised not to take estrogen, the typical hot flash remedy, because estrogen can stimulate cancer growth, says Loprinzi.
While half the standard dose of anti-depressant was most effective, researchers couldn't say why it worked. And while anti-depressants aren't as effective as Hormone Replacement Therapy in terms of treating very severe hot flashes, for milder symptoms they work fine, and they're safer.
