My night sweats were bad in the summer, but now that it’s cold they bother me even more because I sweat through sheets and wake up freezing from dampness. Is there a nutritional fix?

Night sweats are triggered when fluctuations of the hormones estrogen and progesterone interfere with the ability of the brain’s thermostat (the hypothalamus) to determine whether the body is hot or cold.

Fortunately, two dietary strategies can reduce these hormonal swings and the hot flashes they cause:
(1) Enjoy two daily servings of soy milk, tofu or edamame. Japanese scientists found that soy foods can cut the frequency of severity of women’s hot flashes and night sweats by up to 26 percent.
(2) Supplement with 400 IUs of vitamin E at dinner. Fully 8 out of 10 of my patients see relief from night sweats, hot flashes and vaginal dryness within two weeks of supplementing with vitamin E.