Does calcium help with night sweats during perimenopause?

The honest answer is that calcium is not a proven treatment for night sweats during perimenopause. Night sweats are driven primarily by estrogen fluctuations that disrupt your hypothalamus, the part of your brain that regulates body temperature. When estrogen levels shift unpredictably, the hypothalamus misreads your core temperature as too high and triggers a heat-release response: blood vessels dilate, your heart rate increases, and you sweat. Calcium plays dozens of important roles in your body, but acting as a thermoregulatory agent is not one of them. That said, calcium remains one of the most important supplements you can take during perimenopause, just for a different reason than night sweat relief.

The research on calcium and vasomotor symptoms like night sweats and hot flashes is quite limited and largely negative. A secondary analysis of the Women's Health Initiative data suggested that women with higher calcium and vitamin D intake reported slightly fewer hot flashes, but that study was not designed to test that question. The effect was small, confounded by dietary patterns, and most researchers treat it as hypothesis-generating rather than conclusive. A 2022 review in the journal Maturitas found no consistent evidence that calcium supplementation reduces the frequency or severity of vasomotor symptoms. Most clinical trials that have examined calcium in the context of menopause used bone density as their primary endpoint, not sweating. The conclusion from the available literature is straightforward: calcium is not a night sweat remedy.

What calcium does powerfully in perimenopause is protect your skeleton. Estrogen normally suppresses osteoclasts, the cells that break down old bone tissue. As estrogen levels decline and fluctuate, this suppression weakens and bone resorption accelerates. Bone density can drop at a rate of 1-2% per year in the years surrounding your final period, and women can lose a significant fraction of their lifetime peak bone mass during this window. Adequate calcium intake, combined with vitamin D, regular resistance exercise, and in some cases prescription medication, meaningfully slows this process. Every major women's health organization emphasizes calcium for perimenopausal women precisely because the bone protection window is time-sensitive, even though calcium will not cool your night sweats.

For women aged 51 and older, the recommended dietary allowance for calcium is 1,200 mg per day. Women under 51 need around 1,000 mg daily. Food sources like dairy products, fortified plant milks, canned salmon with bones, white beans, bok choy, and leafy greens are the preferred way to meet this target. Whole food sources deliver protein, magnesium, vitamin K, and other bone-supporting nutrients alongside calcium that supplements do not. If your diet falls short, supplements can fill the gap. Studies have generally used supplemental doses of 500-600 mg at a time spread through the day rather than a single large dose, because absorption becomes less efficient above roughly 500 mg in one sitting. Calcium citrate is better absorbed than calcium carbonate, especially without food or if you take acid-reducing medications. Talk to your healthcare provider about the right dose and form for your specific situation.

A few safety points are important before you start supplementing. The upper tolerable intake level for calcium from all sources combined is around 2,500 mg per day. Exceeding this raises kidney stone risk and may be associated with cardiovascular concerns, though the heart-risk data is still actively debated among researchers. Calcium competes with iron for absorption in your gut, so if you take an iron supplement, space it at least two hours from any calcium dose. Calcium carbonate in particular can interfere with thyroid hormone medication absorption, so if you take levothyroxine, keep at least four hours between it and calcium. These interactions are worth knowing whether you are supplementing for bone health or any other reason.

For night sweats themselves, the options with the strongest evidence base include menopausal hormone therapy, the SNRI venlafaxine for women who prefer or need a non-hormonal approach, and gabapentin. Lifestyle factors that reduce night sweat frequency include keeping your bedroom below 65-68 degrees Fahrenheit, limiting alcohol and spicy foods in the evening, wearing moisture-wicking fabrics, keeping a cool pack nearby, and managing chronic stress. Some women find meaningful relief through cognitive behavioral therapy specifically adapted for vasomotor symptoms, which has a credible evidence base and no side effects.

See your healthcare provider about night sweats if they are happening several times a week, if they consistently soak your clothing or bedding, or if they are significantly disrupting your sleep and daytime functioning. Night sweats accompanied by fever, unexplained weight loss, or swollen lymph nodes need prompt evaluation to rule out causes unrelated to perimenopause, including infection, autoimmune conditions, or lymphoma. The timing and pattern of your night sweats relative to your cycle can help your provider assess whether they are hormone-driven.

Tracking your night sweats over time helps you see whether anything consistently makes them better or worse. A daily log that captures frequency, severity, what you ate and drank that evening, alcohol intake, and your stress level often reveals patterns you would not notice otherwise. The PeriPlan app lets you log night sweats alongside cycle data and other symptoms so you can share a clear, concrete picture with your provider rather than relying on memory.

This content is for informational purposes only and does not replace medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider about your specific situation.