Hot flushes are characterized by a sudden feeling of heat often accompanied with a reddening of the face and profuse sweating. For some, it is as mild as a brief warm flushing of the face and skin. For others, it is experienced as an intense heat on the face and upper body with intense sweating. Sometimes hot flushes are also accompanied by an increased heart rate, nausea, dizziness, anxiety, weakness or a feel of suffocation.

Physiologically speaking, hot flushes are the body's reaction to a decreased supply of estrogen. Typically this occurs when a women approaches menopause. Every woman's experience of this important life change is different, unpredictable and highly individual and they all follow their own pattern. In some production of estrogen decreases gradually, producing few flushes. In others, the ovaries stop abruptly or start and stop before production ends completely. For these women, hot flushes can become tricky.

Dropping estrogen levels confuse the hypothalamus (the part of the brain that controls appetite, sleep, sex hormones and temperature), where it makes the body think it is too hot. This activates the body's heat releasing mechanism where it causes the blood vessels in the skin to expand, increasing blood flow to help dissipate heat. At the same time, the sweat glands begin producing sweat in an effort to cool the body off even more.

Usually experienced for a short period of time, some women complain of the hot flushes all the time for a number of years. Most women begin to experience hot flushes 1-2 years before menopause and they end within a year of their last menstrual cycle. Some women can experience hot flushes up to and sometimes more than 5 years after their last menstrual cycle.

Alta Care Laboratoires – Paris have introduced Silvia Women Patches, an over-the-counter transdermal patch designed specifically for women suffering from hormone imbalance.

Silvia Women patches contain Soya, phyto estrogens and isoflavones, which compensates for the estrogen & progesterone levels when they are too low or too high. This results in naturally balancing the hormones, thus working on the hot flushes (as the hot flushes are the body’s reaction to a decreased supply of estrogen.).

Besides acting on the hot flushes, Silvia Women Patches also acts on other typical results of hormone imbalances such as:

Pre-menopausal symptoms: PMS symptoms, menstrual pains, acne breakouts, fatigue, mood swings, breast tenderness, bloating.

Menopausal Symptoms: night sweating, fatigue, mood swings, hot flushes.

Silvia Women Patches contain Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa), which is also an ideal remedy for menopausal and pre-menopausal symptoms. Wild Yam contains substances which are highly similar to progesterone; therefore regulate the progesterone levels in the body, thus acting on the menopausal and pre-menopausal symptoms and complaints.

Sage (Salvia Officinalis) is one of the main ingredients found in Silvia Women Patches. Sage has a strong antihydrotic action, and was a traditional treatment for night sweats sufferers. Its appreciable oestrogenic effect makes it particularly beneficial for night sweats during menopause. Its oestrogenic effects may also be used to control menstrual irregularity, PMS and menopausal symptoms.

Silvia Women Patches also contains another phyto-extract which contains phyto-oestrogenic substances is Hops extract, and therefore may also be used in the treatment of hormone imbalances.

The extracts in Silvia Women Patches are released transdermally for a period of 24-36 hours, permitting a fast onset and continuous action.

Silvia Women Patches reduce the frequency and intensity of symptoms related to hormone imbalances. This means that if before using Silvia Women Patches one used to suffer from severe PMS, menstrual pain, night sweats etc; the symptoms will reduce from severe to mild and will also occur less frequently.

Silvia Women Patches are waterproof, skin colour and hypo-allergenic, there are also no side effects or interactions if used as recommended.

To use Silvia Women patches simply stick one patch per day on the lower abdomen or lower back.