Manejo no farmacológico de los bochornos en la menopausia

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: As women go through menopause, hormonal changes occur that cause symptoms such as hot flashes, which influence women's quality of life. Hot flashes occur in 80% of women in the Climacteric stage. For good treatment, hormonal therapy has mainly been used, but due to serious side effects, it has been decided to use new alternatives such as natural and traditional medicine. OBJECTIVE: To determine the non-pharmacological management of hot flashes in menopause, for a better management of women in menopause in primary health care. METHODOLOGY: A search was conducted in scientific databases, such as PubMed and Scielo, using search terms such as "hot flashes", "vasomotor symptoms", "menopause", "treatment", "non-hormonal treatment". We selected articles published in indexed journals during the period from 2018 to 2023, which specifically address the non-pharmacological treatment of hot flashes in menopause. DEVELOPMENT: A diet rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables, showed a decrease in the presence of hot flashes at 1 year by 14% (RR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.01-1.28) for those following the intervention, and by 23% (RR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.05-1.46) in those who lost 10% body weight. Cognitive-behavioral therapy and foods rich in isoflavones have been shown to be effective in reducing hot flashes. CONCLUSION: Among the non-pharmacological treatments to relieve hot flashes in menopausal women we find: changes in lifestyle, which consists of promoting a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables; also the consumption of foods that contain phytoestrogens rich in isoflavones, the same ones found in foods such soy and beans; Finally, cognitive behavioral therapy and hypnosis have been shown to effectively reduce hot flashes and help improve quality of life. Key words: Hot flashes, Vasomotor symptoms, menopause, Non-hormonal treatment, Alternative therapies, Isoflavone.