Now women have yet one more incentive to lose weight as a new study has shown evidence that behavioral weight loss can help manage menopausal hot flushes.

The pilot study, which was published online last month in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS), consisted of 40 overweight or obese white and African-American women with hot flushes, which are the most prevalent symptom of menopause. In fact, more than 70% of women report hot flushes during the menopausal transition, with many of these women reporting frequent or severe hot flushes. Since women with hot flushes are at greater risk for poor quality of life, sleep problems and a depressed mood, interest in identifying methods for managing hot flushes is growing. In addition, newer data indicate that hot flushes are typically persistent, lasting an average of nine years or more.

As hormone levels change during the transition to menopause, the quality of a woman's cholesterol carriers degrades, leaving her at greater risk for heart disease, according to research from the US. 

The first-of-its-kind evaluation was done using an advanced method to characterise cholesterol carriers in the blood.

The results call for further research to evaluate the menopause-related dynamic changes in sex hormones on the quality of cholesterol carriers over time, as well as increased emphasis on the importance of healthy diet and exercise for women undergoing menopause.