I am starting to have issues with night sweats (hot flashes) around TTOM. I am suspecting that I am in perimenopause. I was thinking about adding a supplement to help regulate my hormones. I had read positive info about omega 3 (fish oil) and evening primrose oil. I only want to add one supplement at this time. I am avoiding soy, due to an allergy.

Has anyone had good results from adding either of these supplements? Any negative results from adding either of these? TIA

I take echium oil for my Omega 3, it's meant to be the best veggie alternative to fish oil, and starflower oil as well (stronger version of evening primrose, basically). I don't know if it's helped the PMDD, but it makes my periods noticeably lighter and shorter, almost back to the levels they were at before I got my copper IUD. I agree with trying one supplement at a time. Make sure you're on a high enough dosage with fish oil or similar, a lot of people just take a low dose and then wonder why it doesn't work.

Is it possible that the hormonal disruption has simply been caused by the dieting? You've lost a huge amount of weight, though I don't know how fast you've lost it. Remember that fat cells store oestrogen, and as you burn off the fat, the oestrogen is released and can wreak havoc with hormones. My hormones have been all over the place since I started dieting, and apparently this is very common indeed.

I have always had horrible TTOM's. It's actually better now, with the weight loss. I am just starting to experience some hot flashes/night sweats now. My weight loss took 3 years and 5 months. :lol: Not exactly fast. ;)

I'm going to start taking krill oil for my omega 3 & 6. It is said to be superior to fish oil and really helps with breast tenderness and cramping and many other health issues (not certain about hot flashes).

I just bought the NOW Krill Oil from amazon and will let you know how it works. Check out the reviews for it here: http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-Nept...8466221&sr=1-4

Just found this krill oil testimonial that I thought would pique your interest:


Here is my testimony following my use of NKO®...
“Going through menopause, I used to take a natural product to help me with my menopause symptoms. This product was efficient for hot flashes; however, if I forgot to take it in the morning, I had hot flashes all day long.

Since I started to take krill oil and krill protein concentrate:
• I do not have hot flashes anymore;
• My mood is more pleasant;
• I have much more energy;
• My skin is healthier and my nails, harder;
• I do not need to take a nap in the afternoon, which could sometimes last 2 hours..

sandcar150 Thanks for the info.

This site is excellent for user reviews, and as far as I can tell they're unbiased. Avoid anything that comes as a testimonial on a site selling a product, they're usually fake. Fish oil and evening primrose oil have been around for long enough that you should be able to find scads of research as well as reviews.

I've a feeling that krill oil is the latest version of the standard fish oil; it's worth checking whether it's an improved version in some way (e.g. better balance and/or higher level of ingredients), or whether it's just hopping on the bandwagon and charging more money. Most of the useful research will be on fish oil; assume that it works similarly.

Starflower oil is also called borage oil. You can use it instead of evening primrose oil, as it's got a much higher concentration of the active ingredient (GLA) but works out a lot cheaper. You should probably try 1-2g a day of starflower oil and 1-2g a day of the fish/krill oil. A lot of the time, women try 500mg a day of one or the other and then don't get an effect because the dose is too low. When I started on echium oil, I was on 4g a day. It worked pretty well (I'm taking it for ME/CFIDS primarily), but I just couldn't afford to keep taking that much of it.

As for the diet influence, I'm glad to hear that your PMS has improved. I'm hoping mine will sooner or later; at the very least, once I've finished dieting and everything's settled down again. I've been told by two doctors that the weight gain is probably what set the PMDD off in the first place. It's still possible that your weight loss could be causing hormonal shifts, though, especially since it's already affected your hormones. Or it could be perimenopause; hard to tell. How old are you, and if you're young for menopause, does early menopause run in your family? Are you still getting your periods at the same intervals as before? Have you recently been losing fat in your abdominal area?

I am 43. My Mom had completely stopped her period at age 40. Yes, TTOM is regular for me.

I think I am going to try the fish oil. I'm sure it will take some time to see any results.