Study: Sleep loss is top menopause symptom

TUCSON, April 17 (UPI) -- The biggest problem for women entering menopause is getting a good night's sleep, U.S. researchers said.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Nursing, found 95 percent of the participants suffered sleep difficulties, 92 percent had forgetfulness, 87 percent suffered from irritability and 85 percent experienced night sweats.

The researchers at the University of Arizona College of Nursing in Tucson found sleep difficulties were not only the most common symptom of menopause, but also were rated by the women in the study as the most severe symptom, followed by night sweats and irritability.

"This contradicts earlier research which sought to link sleep difficulties with night sweats and problems like hot flashes or flushes" study leader Judith Berg said in statement. "Although the severity of these problems changed as the women progressed through the early stage of the menopause, the sleep difficulties the women reported remained fairly constant."

Study participants included 110 women with an average age of 49 who had experienced their last period in the last three years.