Night sweats (medically called nocturnal hyperhidrosis) is a condition in which someone suffers profuse sweating at night. This can be sometimes accompanied by fever, feeling hot or cold. There are many reasons for a woman to have night sweats but if it is just an episode or two of night sweats, you probably don’t need to worry much.
Night sweats can happen for several reasons such as:
Menopause
Menopause usually occurs when a woman is in her forties or fifties. This often results in night sweats and hot flashes due to hormone levels going down. However, birth control pills can be responsible for some cases of night sweats because of varying levels of female hormones.
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) which can result to symptoms like weight loss, fatigue, fever, infections as well as night sweats.
Lymphoma
Night sweats may occur in women suffering from Hodgkin’s lymphoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The most likely symptoms include body pains and a swollen lymph node.
Antidepressant Medication
Antidepressant medications can cause nausea, sleeplessness and sudden sweating at night. Several types of antidepressants have nocturnal hyperhidrosis as one their side effects.
Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes mellitus may also be responsible for night sweats when blood glucose levels drop at night. This may be due to a skipped dinner, unstable sugar levels, or the use of insulin treatments.
Hyperthyroidism
Women suffer heat intolerance and sweat at night due to an overactive thyroid gland. This is a condition medically known as hyperthyroidism. Often times, it is accompanied by restlessness, high blood pressure and sleeplessness.
Kidney Infection
A woman suffering from kidney infection may experience night sweats too. Other symptoms may include body pain, fever and nausea.
If you believe your night sweats are abnormal and may be occurring due to a medical condition, then you should see a doctor and run some tests.
