Hey guys. I know that asking for diagnoses is prohibited in this forum…and, unfortunately, that’s just what I’m about to do. Sorry.
Now, before you go ahead and report the thread, please be assured that I have already booked a doctor’s appointment for tomorrow morning and am not using this thread as a substitute for genuine medical advice in any way. I’m just a little disconcerted.
I’m a 28 year old guy in otherwise reasonably ok shape and for the past week or so I’ve been getting intermittant hot flushes. They only last for about 30 seconds, max. Some are very mild, but others are really quite strong. Yesterday, and last saturday, I got several very strong ones in quite quick succession, each time after eating a big meal. However, I’ve also had them at work when I’ve been eating normally. I’ve also been getting night sweats, which I’ve never had before.
As you can probably tell, I’m a bit of a hypochondriac. Dr. Google hasn’t had much to say on the subject, other than that it’s rare for young men to get hot flushes at all. I was just wondering if any of our resident medical boffins would be concerned if they saw a patient like me presenting with these symptoms. As I said, I’m going to see a doctor about this anyway so please don’t think I’m relying on the Dope for a diagnosis. Thanks.
An Incomplete List of Things Which CAN Cause Hot Flashes:
[ul]
[li]Oriental food, particularly Chinese, which contains MSG or Soy Sauce[/li][li]Tenderized meat (MSG agan)[/li][li]Niacin supplements (I believe nicotinic acid is more likely than niacinamide to cause them)[/li][li]Hormonal imbalance[/li][li]Diabetes – often heterodyning with hormonal imbalance, according to the EMT source I relied on for this[/li][/ul]
This is not intended as medical advice, but merely as the results of my own inquiry when I had a bout of them and was reluctant to pay a week’s income to an MD to tell me what I already knew,
Maybe carcinoid syndrome? Would be super rare, especially in a person your age, but it does present as unexplained hot flashes in a person with no other explanation for them. A doctor can test for it by looking for levels of 5-HIAA.
Again, its probably nothing, but there is no harm in consulting with a physician.
To add to the growing list which I’m sure a self-diagnosed hypochondriac is having way too much fun with:
Hyperthyroidism
Adrenal tumors, including Pheochromocytoma (that one’s way cool in a horror movie kind of way, it even made it onto *House *once.)
Cushing’s syndrome
Testicular atrophy
Pituitary tumors
Alcoholism
or, y’know, just one of those things that happens as you age. Yes, even men get age-related hot flashes, as part of andropause(the male counterpart of menopause).
ETA: Oh, I see you’re 28. Probably not andropause, then. But I’ll leave that there for when someone resurrects the thread in three years to add a link to their wonder supplement to cure male hot flashes.