Hot flashes are a hot feeling on the neck and face, accompanied by heart palpitation, sweating, dizziness and headache. When the attack comes the blood vessels in the neck and face are dilated and more blood flows, thus raising the temperature of the affected areas. When the attack is over the body feels chilled. The attack can last from few seconds to an hour. Most of the sufferers of hot flashes are women undergoing menopause. Some medical conditions like hyperthyroidism, low blood pressure and low blood sugar cause hot flashes.

Amongst men it is not a common condition, but there are men who suffer from it. As with women, it is the hormonal fluctuations that cause the problem. Andropause is a controversial condition, as some insist that there is no such thing. The secretion of the hormone testosterone reduces as men age. This reduction causes amongst men the same symptoms as menopause. They face difficulty with their sex drive, decreased beard growth, tenderness of breast tissue and increased fat. Hot flashes occur exactly as it does to a women undergoing menopause.

Men having problem with their prostate, like prostate cancer, receive hormone deprivation therapy. 80% of the men receiving this therapy suffer from hot flashes. The men with milder hot flashes may be able to manage them with modifications of their lifestyle. For severe cases hormone therapy is not an option, as the testosterone levels are being reduced to arrest prostate cancer.

Acupuncture is a very promising treatment for such cases. Some anti-depressant medication is effective for hot flashes. Some blood pressure medication, like clonidine and methyldopa, are effective in reducing the severity of hot flashes. Other natural remedies like sog, primrose oil, ginseng and black cohosh have their proponents. But they have not undergone a systematic double-blind clinical trial, and may not be better than a placebo.