Pajamas keep women cool during hot flashes

Here’s a hot news flash. If you’re desperate to take the heat out of menopause symptoms, try changing your pajamas.

New lines of sleepwear, leisurewear and underwear, made of high-tech fabrics designed to help minimize nocturnal temperature fluctuations and dreaded “night sweats” are targeted to baby-boomer women going through that change of life.

With such names as “CoolDryComfort,” “HotCool Wear,” “Wicking J Sleepwear” and “DryDreams,” the nightgowns and loungewear are made from high-performance fabrics designed to wick perspiration away from the skin and keep wearers dry and comfortable.

Manufacturers and designers say the products are getting an enthusiastic response from middle-age women.

It’s a sizable market. Health experts at the North American Menopause Society estimate that 75 percent of menopausal women experience hot flashes and night sweats.

Menopause marks the end of menstruation and a woman’s childbearing years and generally occurs between ages 40 and 55, when estrogen production slows.

Many women of other ages may experience night sweats because of pregnancy, cancer treatments, diabetes or hormone imbalance.

Karen Neuburger – who designs, manufactures and sells sleepwear under her own name through more than 10,000 better retailers across the country – says women’s unique nightwear needs have been ignored by manufacturers

“Our research shows that more than 90 percent of women are looking for sleepwear that keeps them cool and dry during the night,” Neuburger said.

Neuburger, 58, can sympathize. The inspiration for her recently launched line of hot-flash-friendly sleepwear was her own hot flashes and sleepless nights.

“When I started having hot flashes, I found I couldn’t wear my own 100-percent-cotton knit pajamas anymore because they’d just stay damp when I experienced night sweats,” Neuburger said. “I figured other women must be experiencing the same thing, so I started researching options for a fabric that would help keep me cool and dry.”