What are wicking pajamas ?

There’s been much talk about pajamas for night sweats lately. So what exactly are these night sweat pajamas and how do they work?

These pajamas are made of a micro fiber wicking fabric. This fabric pulls the moisture and heat away from the skin to the outside of the fabric, so that the body stays dry and cool. The second feature of this fabric is it’s quick drying ability. Once the moisture is drawn through the fabric it dries rapidly. In fact it dries twice as fast as cotton. Cool-jams one of the most affordable brands uses a fabric called moisture wicking smart fabric which seems to sense what the body needs to be comfortable. It keeps the body cool and dry when it’s warm outside and dry and cozy when the weather gets cooler.

There are many reasons for night sweats …chemotherapy, certain medications, thyroid condition, diabetes, obesity and anxiety to name a few, but the primary reason for night sweats in women are the hormonal fluctuations which occur just before menopause and during menopause. Night sweats are not dangerous, but they can certainly be annoying.

If you suffer from night sweats for whatever reason, moisture wicking pajamas might be your answer to a comfortable night’s sleep. Cool-jams is now offering a FREE PAJAMA GIVE AWAY. Enter the contest by going to the COOL-JAMS link and then tell us which pajama or nightgown you like best by commenting on this post. The winner will be picked randomly and will be announced on August 4, 2009. Good luck to you all!!

Can Exercise Help Menopausal Symptoms Like Hot Flashes?

Physical activity isn't a proven way to reduce menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and sleep disturbances. However, for some women, regular physical activity during and after menopause seems to relieve stress and improve quality of life.
Whether you've exercised faithfully for years or you haven't been physically active, physical activity during and after menopause offers many benefits. For example, regular physical activity can:

• Prevent weight gain. Women tend to lose muscle mass and gain abdominal fat during and after menopause. Even slight increases in physical activity can help prevent weight gain.
• Reduce the risk of breast cancer. Physical activity during and after menopause that results in weight loss may offer protection from breast cancer.
• Strengthen your bones. Physical activity can slow bone loss after menopause, which lowers the risk of fractures and osteoporosis.
• Reduce the risk of other diseases. During and after menopause, the risk of various chronic conditions — including cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes — increases. Regular physical activity can counter these risks.
• Boost your mood. Physical activity during and after menopause can improve your psychological health.
For most healthy women, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends:
• At least two hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity a week — preferably spread throughout the week
• Strength training exercises at least twice a week

Although frequent, high-intensity physical activity is ideal, it is certainly more important to choose a fitness program that you enjoy. Be sure to set achievable goals and partner with a friend for motivation. Remember even a 15 minute walk after dinner is better than nothing. When setting up your exercise program try to include some stretching, balance, strength training and of course some kind of daily aerobic conditioning. See the benefits and examples of each category below.

• Aerobic activity. Aerobic activity is the cornerstone of most fitness programs. Try walking, jogging, biking, swimming or water aerobics. Any physical activity that uses large muscle groups and increases your heart rate counts. If you're a beginner, start with 10 minutes of light activity and gradually increase the intensity of your activity.
• Strength training. Regular strength training can help you reduce your body fat, strengthen your muscles and more efficiently burn calories. Try weight machines, hand-held weights or resistance tubing. Choose a weight or resistance level heavy enough to tire your muscles after about 12 repetitions. Gradually increase the resistance level as you get stronger.
• Stretching. Stretching increases flexibility, improves range of motion and promotes better circulation. Stretching can even relieve stress. Set aside time to stretch after each workout, when your muscles are warm and receptive to stretching. Activities such as yoga promote flexibility, too.
• Stability and balance. Balance exercises improve stability and can help prevent falls. Try simple exercises, such as standing on one leg. Activities such as tai chi can be helpful, too.

Remember, you don't have to go to the gym to exercise. Daily activities such as dancing and gardening also can improve your health. Whatever physical activities you choose, take time to warm up and cool down safely.

What’s Going On With Clinical Trials to Target Hot Flashes, Night Sweats?

Women troubled by hot flashes and night sweats during the years around menopause want safe, effective treatment options. A research initiative from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will establish a multisite research network to conduct clinical trials of promising treatments for the most common symptoms of the menopausal transition. This is great news for the menopausal baby boomer.

"Studies such as the Women’s Health Initiative, which raised concerns about the safety of using menopausal hormone therapy, underscore the urgent need for treatments that have been proven safe and effective for alleviating menopausal symptoms," said NIA Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D. "The new initiative MsFlash will speed the evaluation of treatments deemed promising by an independent panel at the recent NIH State-of-the-Science Conference on the Management of Menopause-Related Symptoms."

In addition to the Data Coordinating Center, five clinical research centers make up the MsFLASH network, which will conduct randomized clinical trials to test a variety of approaches for treating menopausal symptoms. "Different approaches will be studied for efficacy against hot flashes and night sweats in diverse groups of women in trials with either placebo or usual-care control groups. Investigators will also look at possible effects on other symptoms at middle age, including sleep disturbance, mood disorder, vaginal dryness and sexual function," said Judy Hannah, MsFLASH program official from the NIA’s Division of Geriatrics and Clinical Gerontology.

The MsFLASH centers and principal investigators are:

• Harvard Medical School, Boston; Lee Cohen, M.D., and Hadine Joffe, M.D.
• Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis; Janet S. Carpenter, R.N., Ph.D.
• Kaiser Permanente, Northern California, Oakland; Barbara Sternfeld, Ph.D., and Bette Caan, Ph.D.
• University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia; Ellen Freeman, Ph.D.
• Group Health Center for Health Studies, Seattle, Katherine Newton, Ph.D.; and University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle; Susan Reed, M.D.
A number of different treatment strategies are under consideration. Possible treatments to be studied during the five-year project period include:

* Antidepressants such as paroxetine (Paxil) or escitalopram (Lexapro)
Paced respiration (slow deep breathing also known as relaxation breathing)
* Yoga
* Low-dose estradiol patch and low-dose estradiol gel

* Exercise programs, both moderate and vigorous

*** Perhaps should also look at of Wicking Pajamas To Help With Night Sweats since for many women this has been an effective treatment.



"For decades, estrogen with or without progesterone has been the treatment of choice for relieving menopause-related symptoms because of the lack of alternative therapies of comparable proven efficacy," noted Sherry Sherman, Ph.D., NIA project scientist for the Menopause Strategies Network. "The collaborative, multidisciplinary, multicenter approach of MsFLASH will enable researchers to test other options—including behavioral and complementary and alternative medicine approaches—to determine whether they are also effective against hot flashes."

Currently, menopausal hormone therapy is still considered the most effective way to control moderate to severe menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and night sweats. Experts recommend that when it is used, physicians prescribe the lowest effective dose for the shortest period necessary, but some women are reluctant to use menopausal hormone therapy because of possible side effects. Women can experience menopausal symptoms for several years before menopause — the date of their last menstrual period — and sometimes for many years after. For some women with severe menopausal symptoms, the resulting discomfort can greatly diminish their quality of life.

The 2005 NIH State-of-the-Science meeting featured presentations from experts on the biology and symptoms of the menopause transition and on established and potential new treatments for symptomatic relief. An independent panel evaluated the data from the presentations and from an evidence-based search of the literature and published its recommendations on the NIH Web site and in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.

Managing the Symptoms of Menopause

There is so much information out there regarding menopause and it’s symptoms. So many experts claiming so many ways to relieve symptoms. It is easy to try everything when those menopausal symptoms seem to be getting the best of you, but it is also important to do the research. As the owner of Cool-jams, a wicking pajama company for women with night sweats, I have the unique opportunity to talk to hundreds of women everyday going through menopause. As part of my job, I try to stay up dated on menopause treatments and solutions.

Each day, an estimated 6,000 women reach menopause—the time in a woman’s life when the ovaries stop producing eggs and menstrual periods stop. Most women experience menopause-related symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats , mood swings, and vaginal dryness. For some, these symptoms can simply be annoying and uncomfortable, but for others, menopausal changes severely affect quality of life, making it hard to focus on much else.

If you are suffering from menopausal symptoms, talk to your doctor. He or she can review healthy lifestyle tips that may help ease symptoms and lower disease risk. Try to consume a healthy, calcium-rich diet that includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, and grains. Get regular exercise to improve circulation, increase muscle strength and flexibility, and fight the mid-section weight gain that can increase your heart disease risk. Stop smoking and limit your alcohol intake. See our other articles on Managing Menopause Through Diet and Exercise.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) replaces the hormones no longer made by the ovaries with synthetic hormones. HRT is an effective option for treating hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. Estrogen-only and combined estrogen and progestin HRT have been associated with an increased risk of blood clot and stroke. Combined HRT has also been linked to an increased risk of heart attack and breast cancer. Some women should not take HRT, including those who have had some types of abnormal bleeding, blood clots, heart attack, or stroke; most women with an estrogen-dependent cancer; and women with liver disease or dysfunction. Ask your doctor if HRT is right for you. Doctors generally recommend that HRT be taken in the lowest dose necessary to relieve symptoms for as short a time as possible.

Some women try to treat their symptoms with so-called “bioidentical” hormones, plant-derived hormones that are hand-mixed by a pharmacist according to a doctor’s prescription. You may have heard about bioidenticals recently amidst a flurry of celebrity endorsements and claims from pharmacists who make them.

The manufacturers of certain “bioidentical” hormones have touted their formulas as superior to hormone therapies approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, claiming that their products offer relief from menopausal symptoms as well as prevention or treatment for serious diseases. The FDA has stated that the pharmacies’ claims of safety and effectiveness are false, misleading, and a violation of federal law. Manufacturers and proponents have also suggested that bioidenticals provide a more tailored form of therapy because a woman’s individual prescription is based on the results of saliva tests that measure the level of hormones in her body. But studies show that saliva testing does not accurately measure a woman’s hormone levels, which change depending on her diet, the time of day, the specific hormone being tested, and other variables.

So ladies before you jump on the bandwagon for just any menopause remedy, be sure to do the research and check with your doctor.

Menopause: Hormones Can Help Memory and Lift Brain Fog

Women in Early Menopause, Often at Top of Careers, Can Get Help for Memory
By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES
May 26, 2009



As Pam approached menopause, she thought she was losing her mind.
menopause.

A new Study of Women's Health Across the National concludes that women do experience a dip in their brain function in the transition leading up to menopause.

"Oh my god, it was horrible," said the 57-year-old from Glenwood Springs, N.Y. "I could not remember words. Even a word like 'cat' might not come to mind. I'd have to go through the alphabet to come up with the word. And words I'd spelled all my life, I'd think I spelled them wrong."

Recently, Pam, who did not want her last name used, enrolled in an introductory mortgage class hoping to learn to be a lender. A high-powered business consultant with experience in banking, she thought she'd pass the exam with flying colors.

"I was in the class for one day and I cannot tell you one thing I learned," she told ABCNew.com. "I walked out laughing because everyone else was getting it. It was like Greek to me.

"In the end, I didn't take the test. I said, 'Forget it, no way," said Pam. "It's very upsetting. Normally this would have come easily to me."

For Pam and millions of other women in their 40s and 50s, "brain fog" seems to roll in as their menstrual cycles wane. Many fear it will never lift, signally the end of their professional lives.

Research published this week in the journal Neurology confirms that women do, indeed, lose their intellectual edge in peri-menopause -- the five- or six-year period leading up to the last menstrual cycle. But the ability to learn rebounds in the later phases of menopause.

For four years, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) researchers looked at 2,362 women between the ages of 42 and 52 who took tests to measure verbal memory, working memory and processing speed at four different points during menopause: pre-menopause, early peri-menopause, late peri-menopause and after menopause.

The Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN), which is based at seven sites throughout the United States and is funded by the National Institute on Aging, concluded that women taking hormones before their last period improved their cognitive skills, but after that, the hormones had a detrimental effect.

"It looks like the time at which you take hormones matters," said Dr. Gail Greendale, head investigator for the SWAN study at UCLA.

When tested year after year, women in their 40s and 50s "get better each time," she said.

"There's a learning effect," Greendale told ABCNews.com. "But on the test of speed, we found that when you get to late peri-menopause, (learning) takes about an 80 percent hit.

"You're a little off your game," she said. "You're not forgetting your way to the grocery store, but you don't feel as sharp or fast on the uptake."

This latest research is significant because it may clear the way for women in the earliest phases of menopause -- when they are typically younger and at the height of their professional careers -- to safely take estrogen to give them their edge back.

Hormone replacement therapy was demonized after the 2002 Women's Health Initiative (WHI), which concluded that it increased risk for cancer and cardiovasular disease.

Since then fewer women are turning to hormone replacement therapy, according to doctors.

But comparing the two studies is "apples and oranges," according to Greendale.

The WHI iinvolved postmenopausal women 65 and over and was designed to test the effects of hormone therapy, diet modification, and calcium and vitamin D supplements on heart disease, fractures, and breast and colorectal cancer.

When compared to a placebo, estrogen plus progestin provided no protection against mild cognitive impairment and increased risk of dementia

But in the SWAN study, with much younger, peri-menopausal women, hormone therapy showed only positive cognitive benefits.

"At 50, many women are at the top of their careers and can't afford this," said Dr. Michelle P. Warren, director for the Center for Menopause, Hormonal Disorders at Columbia University Medical Center.

"For those two to five years when the symptoms are at their worst, we should treat these women," she told ABCNews.com.

But, she cautioned, women should weigh the risks versus benefits with the advice of their doctor.

Hormone Scare After Women's Health Initiative

"Women are scared to take hormones and doctors are scared to prescribe it," Warren said. "We have an issue that is very worrisome."

Menopause technically begins 12 months after a woman's final menstrual period when the ovaries no longer release eggs and there is decrease in the production of the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone.

But a whole array of bothersome symptoms can begin years earlier -- in peri-menopause -- as the woman's cycle transitions into menopause.
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The process can begin in the 40s and accelerates until the early to mid 50s. Symptoms can include hot flashes, night sweats and fatigue, which, in combination with hormone fluctuations, can affect a woman's ability to concentrate and remember.

"My approach to this is if lose your job, your sanity or your husband, you do something about it," Warren said. "I see a lot of women about to lose their jobs because they cannot concentrate, they forget things or they are not sleeping. One of my patients had an auto accident. The consequences are very severe."

Another one of her patients was a lawyer in court presenting her arguments "when she drew a blank," Warren said. "Then she went to get her papers and couldn't find them. It was the most embarrassing thing in her life."

But the good news, according to the UCLA study, is that cognitive function rebounds once women reach menopause, though there is still a debate on what the longterm effects on brain function are.

"As long as there are hot sweats, the theory is that the neurons are sensitive to estrogen, but once you are more than five years out of menopause there is no benefit and, particularly as the brain ages, estrogen leads to deterioration," said JoAnn V. Pinkerton, president of the North American Menopause Society and director of the Mid-life Health Center at University of Virginia.

Hormone Replacement Controversy

As far as the long-term effects of hormones on cognition, "there isn't a clear answer," according to Pinkerton.

"If you look at older women, you get mixed reports that estrogen prevents and increases Alzheimer's disease," she told ABCNews.com. "But it appears there is a critical window."

While the 2002 heart study showed "who shouldn't get estrogen" -- those over 60 -- newer research is pointing to a "critical window" in the stages of menopause when women can benefit from the hormone, according to Pinkerton.

A 2008 study on mice at Yale University suggested that estrogen has a beneficial effect on younger, healthy neurons, but a detrimental one on aging neurons, "perhaps even speeding up dementia," she said.

The new spin on estrogen is likely to be heartening news for women at the pinnacle of their careers, but disabled by brain fog. And even in the absence of any hormone, the memory eventually rebounds.

"I was in the thick of it," said Anita Mahaffey, a 51-year-old San Diego mother of three, who runs her own business called Cool-jams , selling pajamas made of moisture-wicking fabric for menopausal women.

"I used to remember everything -- every little detail," she told ABCNews.com. "I could tell you every number on the spreadsheet and tell you the bottom line. Now, if I don't write everything down right away , it doesn't get done.

"I scared myself so much I thought there was something wrong," said Mahaffey, who enrolled in a university study on memory. But she said tests proved her memory was "100 percent better than most people," so the evaluators sent her packing.

"I do think it's difficult," she said. "And like any muscle, if you don't use it, you lose it. I started doing Sudoko puzzles."

For more information go to the National Women's Health Resource Center or the North American Menopause Society.

Sex Can Be Troublesome For Menopausal Women

In a recent survey of 400 women, researchers found that often menopause symptoms can severely impact women’s sex lives. It seems that over half of those effected are too embarrassed to discuss the problems with their doctors. In fact one in four women make up excuses to avoid sex altogether.

We are all aware of menopausal like night sweats and hot flashes. But women find it extremely difficult to talk to anyone about lesser-known symptoms such as vaginal dryness and discomfort unless they are given the opportunity to do so in an anonymous forum . This means that many women's symptoms are untreated and in many cases this affects their relationships

Seventy-nine percent of the respondents said they had never seen a doctor or another health care professional even though their symptoms were described as “upsetting” and “painful.” On a positive note I'm happy to say that most of these sex related symptoms can easily be treated.

Menopause marks the end of a woman’s fertility and is characterized by night sweats, hot flashes, sleep disturbances, and vaginal dryness among others. Technically, it occurs a year after the last menstruation or at the age of 51 but the signs and symptoms of menopause can occur earlier which is known as perimenopause.

Menopause begins naturally when the ovaries start making less estrogen and the hormones that regulate menstruation. The process gets under way in your late thirties. By that time, fewer eggs are ripening in the ovaries each month, and ovulation is less predictable.

These changes are more pronounced in your forties, as are changes in the menstrual pattern. Periods may become longer or shorter, or lighter, and more or less frequent. Eventually, the ovaries shut down and you have no more periods. It's possible, but very unusual, to menstruate every month right up to your last period, although a gradual tapering off is more common.

While menopause is not a disease and requires no medical treatment, its symptoms can be disturbing. To ease suffering, see a doctor to prevent complications like heart disease and osteoporosis. There are many possible hormonal and non-hormonal treatments that doctors can recommend, so it is important to research to determine the best option for each individual.

What are the most common perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms?

Perimenopause can begin up to five years before menopause. Even though a woman may still menstruate, periods can become irregular with many months passing between each episode. Medical professionals can now administer tests that determine the stage of menopause currently being experienced and is a viable option for women who want to know if they are indeed going trough menopause or simply suffering from the perimenopause stage. The simple blood test involves testing the FSH(follicle stimulating hormone) levels. High FSH levels indicate that the women is indeed going through or finished with menopause. The presence of certain symptoms can also assist in knowing whether or not menopause has set in.

Hot flashes and night sweats
are by far the most common symptom for menopausal women, affecting nearly three-fourths of women during perimenopause and menopause. The occurrence of hot flashes can begin during perimenopause but generally become more severe with the onset of actual menopause. Hot flashes feel like an ultra hot flushing through out the face, neck and sometimes the limbs.
Often hot flashes and night sweats are accompanied by headaches, irritability, anxiety, nausea, heart palpitations, sleeplessness and insomnia, urinary incontinence, discomfort during sexual activity, changes in vaginal appearance and/or discharge

These symptoms are generally attributed to the changes in a woman’s estrogen levels as she is going through perimenopause and menopause. The inconveniences caused by these symptoms can also cause moodiness and depression in some women. Social relationships can become strained while the family and friends of these women find it difficult to understand and sympathize with the mood swings and other hormone-induced negativity common in women going through menopause.

There are other symptoms associated with perimenopause and menopause that pose greater health risks to women going through these stages. These symptoms include the loss of bone density, a rise in bad and total cholesterol levels, and a thinning of the skin. However it is difficult to determine how much of these symptoms are the result of menopause or simply caused by natural aging.

Some women find relief by taking Hormone replacement therapy, while others stick to natural remedies like black cohash, eating more soy based products or wearing wicking pajamas to help relieve night sweats.

Consult your doctor or medical professional to determine which treatment would be best for you. All treatments should be thoroughly researched before use and should not be disregarded because they are "natural", "herbal" or "alternative" treatments.
Check out our featured video about night sweats and ways to combat those menopausal symptoms.