Heart Palpitations During Menopause: Causes and Solutions

What Are Heart Palpitations?

Heart palpitations are the sensation that makes you feel your heart is much faster than usual, pounding with force, and irregular. They can occur occasionally or regularly.

A study reveals that 42% of perimenopausal women and 54% of postmenopausal women experience heart palpitations. 

They often feel like,

• Fluttering: A sensation of rapid and irregular heartbeat.
• Pounding: An unusually intense and strong heartbeat that makes you aware of every beat.
• Racing: A feeling of a sudden increase in the heartbeat speed.
• Skipping Beats: A sense that your heart has skipped a beat or momentarily stopped.
• Irregular Rhythm: A feeling that your heartbeat may be out of sync or irregular.

Associated Symptoms

Heart palpitations are usually accompanied by the following,

• Dizziness
• Shortness of breath
• Chest discomfort or pain

Harmless vs Concerning Heart Palpitations

Questioning if your heart palpitations are something to worry about? Let’s take a closer look at it.

• Harmless Palpitations: Some palpitations are occasional and generally harmless. They are often triggered by caffeine, stress, and dehydration.
• Concerned Palpitations: Palpitations that are frequent and severe, especially those associated with dizziness or chest pain, require medical attention.

How Menopause Affects the Heart

Most of the changes during menopause are due to hormonal imbalances. Along with hormonal imbalance, there are other factors which contribute to hormonal imbalance during menopause.

1. Hormonal Changes

The primary cause of heart palpitations during menopause is a decline in oestrogen levels. Oestrogen plays a vital role in,

• Autonomous Nervous System: Regulating the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system influences the heart rate.
• Vascular Health: Maintaining vascular health of the heart by ensuring adequate blood flow. Oestrogen increases HDL (high-density lipoproteins) and decreases LDL (low-density lipoproteins) and cholesterol. It prevents plaque deposition in the blood vessels.

2. Impact on Heart Health

The decline in oestrogen levels brings about the following changes in the body.

• Increase Heart Rate: You feel as if your heart is racing even when you are resting.
• Blood Pressure Changes: You might experience variations in blood pressure, such as hypotension and hypertension.
• Increased Stress Response: Stress response leads to adrenaline surge and palpitations.

3. Increased Risk Factors

The following factors can increase the risk of heart disease during menopause.

• Age-related Changes: As you age, your arteries thicken (atherosclerosis), which leads to the narrowing of blood vessels and blocks the blood flow. Atherosclerosis is the deposition of a sticky substance called plaque (cholesterol, fats, blood cells and other substances) on the walls of the artery.
• Lifestyle Factors: A sedentary lifestyle and poor dietary habits can increase the risk of heart disease.
• Pre-existing Changes: Pre-existing conditions such as hypertension, obesity, or diabetes can contribute to palpitations during menopause.

Common Triggers of Heart Palpitations During Menopause

Even though hormonal fluctuations are the primary cause of heart palpitations, certain factors can trigger it.

• Stress and Anxiety: Emotional stress and anxiety activate the body’s fight-or-flight response. This increases the production of adrenaline in the body. Adrenaline increases the heart rate, leading to palpitations.
• Caffeine and Alcohol: Caffeine and alcohol are stimulants. They increase the production of noradrenaline and norepinephrine in the body. These hormones increase the blood pressure and heart rate.
• Hot Flashes and Night Sweats: One moment, you are fine; the next moment, you are sweating profusely. Hot flashes and night sweats cause sudden changes in body temperature, which leads to stress, increasing the chances of palpitations.
• Poor Sleep: Menopause usually causes sleep disturbances. Poor sleep increases cortisol levels in the body. This leads to an increase in heartbeat and irregular rhythms.
• Hyperthyroidism: An overactive thyroid gland can cause palpitations or irregular rhythm.

Click here to understand the relation between menopause and thyroid health.

• Low Blood Sugar: A decreased level of blood sugar leads to the production of adrenaline. Increased levels of adrenaline cause palpitations.
• Dehydration: When you are dehydrated, there is less amount of blood in the body. When there is less blood in the body, the heart has to work harder to pump blood all over the body. This leads to increased heart rate.
• Medications: Medications for colds, coughs, and asthma can also cause temporary palpitations.

When to See A Doctor?

Even though palpitations are a common symptom during menopause, it is necessary to seek medical help if you’re experiencing these symptoms.

1. Emergency Symptoms

If palpitations are accompanied by

• Chest pain
• Dizziness or fainting
• Shortness of breath

2. Persistent Symptoms

If your palpitations 

• Gets worse over time
• Happens more often
• Lasts for more than a few minutes
• Interrupting your daily activities

Diagnosing Heart Palpitations During Menopause

Your healthcare expert will ask you certain questions about your overall health, any medications you take, and your palpitations. Based on these, you will be advised to take the following tests.

• Electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG): An electrocardiogram test measures the activity of your heart.
• Echocardiogram: This test uses sound waves to assess the structure and function of your heart. It suggests how well your heart is working.
• Blood Tests: They are done to evaluate your hormone levels and check thyroid dysfunction.
• Stress Test: This test is done to assess how well your heart is functioning when you’re working hard. This test involves running on a treadmill (exercising) to understand the status of the heart.
• Holter Monitor: This device is used to continuously monitor the heart rhythm for 1-3 days, which helps the doctor find any problem.
• Event Monitor: This device monitors your heart for about 1 month. Whenever you experience palpitations, you have to press the button to record the event.

Solutions and Management Strategies for Palpitations During Menopause

If you have a problem, there is always a solution to it. Let’s explore simple yet effective solutions to help manage palpitations during menopause.

Lifestyle Adjustments

• Stress Management: Relaxation techniques are the best way to manage stress. Include these practices in your daily life to see changes. Deep breathing brings calmness by reducing the heart rate. Yoga and meditation help reduce stress and anxiety and aid in bringing mental resilience. 
• Regular Exercise: A sedentary lifestyle is the root cause of most of your problems. The solution is exercise. Indulge in walking, riding a bicycle, aerobic exercise or swimming for at least 30 minutes daily. This strengthens the hea
• rt, reduces stress and improves the rhythm.
• Balanced Diet: Your food is your medicine. Eating right is all you need to do. Consume foods which are rich in vitamins and antioxidants. Include whole grains and good fats in your meals. This helps stabilise your blood sugar levels.
• Limit Stimulants: Reduce the intake of coffee, alcohol, and nicotine. This helps minimise the frequency of palpitations.

Medical Treatments

• Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT): Since oestrogen is the main cause of palpitations during menopause. An oestrogen-only therapy involving pills or injections can significantly help reduce palpitations.
• Medications: After assessing your condition, your doctor might prescribe certain medications to reduce palpitations. These medications include beta blockers to help reduce heart rate and anti-anxiety medications to help reduce stress-induced palpitations. 

Natural Remedies

Looking for ways to calm your palpitations? Dive in to learn about simple and natural remedies that you can try at home.

• Herbal Supplements: From time to time, herbal supplements have been proven to treat menopause and associated symptoms. 
  They also help manage palpitations during menopause. 
  Herbal supplements such as valerian root promote relaxation and calmness; passion flower reduces anxiety; and magnesium regulates heart rhythm.
• Hydration and Nutrition: These are two key elements in treating various conditions.  
  Dehydration causes your heart to work hard, which leads to palpitations.  Therefore, it is essential to stay hydrated. 
  Consuming food rich in potassium (banana and avocado) and magnesium (nuts and seeds) supports heart function.

Our client Ana Seya says that various aspects of her life, such as diet, sleep, work and stress management, have significantly improved after her sessions with our Yoga and Ayurveda experts.

Conclusion

Are the heart palpitations bothering you? Menopausal heart palpitations can be pretty disturbing but are manageable with expert medical guidance that involves structured treatment along with diet and lifestyle modifications tailored to an individual’s needs.

Our experts at Nirva Health aim to empower women during menopause by meticulously designing personalised care plans to address their unique needs and ensure a smoother transition during this phase of life.