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Your sister set down her coffee and asked one question.
She had just watched you fan yourself through your third flash of the afternoon.
“Did your doctor ever check your heart?”
You laughed and said hot flashes are just the price of being a woman past 45.
Then you thought about your last checkup. You had said six a day. The doctor said everybody gets them, then skipped the blood pressure cuff.
Her husband got a stent at 58 after years of feeling fine.
Maybe you've wondered what all that heat was for… Twenty years of data has a partial answer.
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A hot flash begins in the system that opens and narrows your blood vessels, called the vasomotor system. Blood rushes toward your skin, and the heat follows.
SWAN, the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation, is a huge study of midlife women. It followed them from their early 40s for about 22 years. Frequent flashes meant six or more days in two weeks. Those women had about a 50 percent higher risk of a heart event later, like a heart attack or stroke.
Picture the warning light on your dashboard. It comes on when a part under the hood needs a look, long before the engine stalls.
Hot flashes may work the same way. Studies have found weaker blood vessel function in women with more flashes, and researchers do not yet know why the link exists…
The light is worth reading.
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Read this part twice
The flashes you were told to just endure may be an early warning light for your heart. You caught it years ahead, which gives you time to check the engine before anything breaks.
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No one warns you that a symptom filed under comfort may also belong under heart. You get a shrug, a handheld fan and advice about layers…
But the flag comes with a plan. Women with frequent flashes also tend to have higher blood pressure, higher blood sugar, and higher LDL, the “bad” cholesterol. One visit can measure all three.
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A few things that may help, starting tonight |
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| Ask for three numbers. Blood pressure, LDL cholesterol, and blood sugar. Women with frequent flashes tend to run higher on all three, and all three can be treated. |
| Count your flashes for two weeks. Six or more days out of 14 is the line SWAN used for frequent. Bring the tally to your visit. |
| Move hard enough to breathe faster. Moderate to vigorous exercise is a recognized way to lower heart risk. Aim for effort that makes talking a little hard, most days. |
| Ask if hormone therapy fits your case. It treats flashes directly, and your doctor will weigh your timing, so write down the date of your last regular period. |
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Your feed is selling hot flash trackers, a sensor or a ring that counts every flash and promises to predict the next one…
Here's the grain of truth. A count of how often flashes hit is just what your doctor needs, and a device can keep that count for you.
So it may save you from scribbling on a calendar. It can't read your blood pressure, your cholesterol, or your heart risk.
A tracker counts flashes. Only a checkup counts risk.
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The words to bring to your appointment
“I have frequent hot flashes, about six a day. Could they be linked to my heart risk, and can we check my blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar now?”
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Of course, I could be wrong about your own case, and researchers say cause and effect is not settled. Chest pain or trouble breathing needs an emergency visit today, not a tally…
Book the checkup this week.
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Did a doctor ever mention your heart when you raised hot flashes?
Just a quick poll. Your answer helps me choose what to cover next.
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We'll figure out the rest together.
— Diane
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P.S. Write down the date of your last regular period and today's blood pressure, if you own a home cuff. Two numbers on one index card make a short appointment count.
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