Hot flashes are caused when estrogen drops suddenly (likely thanks to disregulation from the hypothalamus), which causes the body’s inner temperature to drop as well. The body’s response to this sudden cooling is to cause it to warm up rapidly, hence: a hot flash.
As I mentioned, this is normally caused by a sudden drop in estrogen. Normally they are seen in menopausal or premenopausal women. I am unsure if a hot flash can be a sign of an estrogen imbalance in a cycling woman outside of perimenopause.
Tag: estrogen
But in addition to the roles it plays regarding sex and procreation, estrogen is also responsible for at least three hundred other functions in your body.
“For instance, estrogen triggers the production of enzymes that support the connections between brain cells. It also affects your vision, hearing, taste, tough, and smell; your bones, heart, and skin; your mood; your sleep; your memory; your mental acuity and attention span; and your pain threshold. Estrogen doubtless plays many other roles that scientists have yet to discover.”
-A Woman’s Guide to Natural Hormones, Chapter Five: Hormones and Your Body
(via fertility-matters)
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