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Night sweats, more than hot flashes, went with poor sleep and low energy in 841 midlife women
Hot flashes and night sweats are usually lumped together. A survey of women aged 40 to 60 in Qatar suggests night sweats are the symptom most tied to broken sleep and daytime tiredness.
- A survey study of 841 women aged 40 to 60 in Doha, Qatar, asking about menopause symptoms and sleep.
- Women with both hot flashes and night sweats had worse scores on a sleep habits questionnaire than women with neither.
- Women with night sweats alone had about 1.8 times the odds of trouble sleeping and 2.6 times the odds of low energy.
- Women with hot flashes alone did not differ from those with neither symptom.
- Symptoms were self-reported at one point in time, so this cannot show cause and effect.
Hot flashes and night sweats are usually treated as one symptom with two names, and questionnaires often ask about them together. Women who have them do not necessarily experience them the same way, and the difference may matter most at night.
A study in the journal Menopause surveyed 841 women aged 40 to 60 in Qatar. Night sweats, not daytime hot flashes, were the symptom that tracked with trouble sleeping and feeling drained the next day.
What menopause symptoms involve
MedlinePlus explains that menopause is the time in your life when you stop having your period and can no longer get pregnant, and that the most common age for reaching menopause is between 45 and 55 years old. The years before it, the menopausal transition, are when symptoms often start.
Hot flashes are the best known of those symptoms: sudden waves of heat, flushing and sweating. When they happen during sleep they are called night sweats. The authors set out to test whether the two are differentially associated with sleep problems and with daytime fatigue.
How the night sweats study worked
The data came from a study of midlife women aged 40-60 in Doha, Qatar (N=841). Each woman reported whether she had hot flashes, night sweats, both or neither, and completed questionnaires on sleep and daytime sleepiness.
The researchers then compared the four groups, adjusting for menopausal status, age, low mood, aching joints, education and nationality, all of which can affect how people sleep.
What happened to sleep and energy
Women with both symptoms slept worst on paper. Women with both HF and NS scored significantly higher on the SHQ, the Sleep Habits Questionnaire, than women with neither, 16.3 against 12.6, where higher scores mean more sleep problems.
Separating the symptoms was revealing. Women with night sweats only had about 1.8 times the odds of reporting trouble sleeping and 2.6 times the odds of reporting a lack of energy, compared with women who had neither symptom. Women reporting only HF did not differ significantly, meaning hot flashes during the day, on their own, did not track with sleep or energy.
Why separating night sweats from hot flashes matters
The practical point is that the symptom to ask about, and to treat, may be the one that happens at night. The authors conclude that these findings suggest NS are more disruptive to women’s sleep and daytime fatigue than hot flashes.
That matters for how doctors take a history and how women describe their symptoms. A woman who says her hot flashes are manageable may still be losing sleep to night sweats, and poor sleep carries knock-on effects for mood, concentration and energy.
What a single night sweats survey cannot show
This was a snapshot. Women reported symptoms and sleep at the same time, so the study cannot show that night sweats cause poor sleep; poor sleepers may also notice and report night sweats more.
Everything was self-reported, with no measurement of sleep or of sweating episodes, and daytime sleepiness scores did not differ between groups, which complicates the picture. The women were all living in Doha, and results may differ in other populations and climates.
What this changes for women with night sweats
For women going through the menopausal transition, it is worth separating daytime flushes from night sweats when describing symptoms, and flagging sleep disruption and tiredness specifically.
Practical measures such as a cooler bedroom and layered bedding help some women. Hormone therapy and non-hormonal medicines reduce night sweats for many, and a doctor can help weigh the options and rule out other causes of sweating at night.
People also ask
What did the study find?
Women with both hot flashes and night sweats scored higher on the Sleep Habits Questionnaire than those with neither (16.3 vs 12.6). Daytime sleepiness scores did not differ. Women with only night sweats had higher odds of trouble sleeping (adjusted odds ratio 1.78, 95% CI 1.11 to 2.84) and lack of energy (2.63, 1.48 to 4.68). Women with only hot flashes did not differ from women with neither.
What is the difference between hot flashes and night sweats?
They are the same kind of symptom, a sudden feeling of heat with flushing and sweating. Night sweats are hot flashes that happen during sleep, often soaking nightclothes and waking a person.
Why might night sweats matter more for sleep?
They wake people up, sometimes several times a night, and can require changing clothes or bedding. Daytime hot flashes are unpleasant but do not interrupt sleep in the same way.
Were other factors taken into account?
Yes. The analysis adjusted for menopausal status, age, low mood, joint aches, education and nationality, which can all affect sleep.
What helps with night sweats?
A cool bedroom, layered bedding and breathable nightwear help some women. Hormone therapy and several non-hormonal medicines reduce hot flashes and night sweats and can be discussed with a doctor.
Should I mention night sweats to my doctor?
Yes, especially if they disturb sleep or leave you tired, since effective treatments exist. Night sweats can also have other causes, which a doctor can check. This is general information rather than medical advice.