Special line of sleepwear uses technology to help women beat the heat

A new material cools hot flashes that rob women of a good night's sleep.
SCRIPPS HOWARD
What can fashionable but sometimes-overheated women don at nighttime?
They now have a cool option: "Hot Flash" pajamas.
Seattle-based wildbleu is marketing a line of sleepwear designed for women beating the heat as they navigate menopause.
And there are numbers to support the need: About 4,000 women in the United States enter menopause each day.
The average U.S. woman reaches menopause at age 51, but hot flashes can start well before this and last beyond. There are more than 42 million women over age 50. Of women who are going through some phase of menopause, at least 75 percent report having regular hot flashes, according to the North American Menopause Society.
Helen Rockey, co-owner and founder of wildbleu, says the sleepwear's technology is basically the same as clothing targeted at athletes whose body temperatures rise as they exercise.
Cotton pj's, when wet, tend to stick to the body. Pajamas by wildbleu (which include tops, bottoms, gowns, capris and tanks) wick -- or draw -- moisture away, keeping the wearer cool and dry.
Robbed at night
Pamela Boggs, director of education and development at the Cleveland-based menopause society, supports "lifestyle prescriptions" that help women manage the effects of hot flashes. She notes that hot flashes are especially annoying when they rob you of a good night's sleep.
"The key is not to think you've failed in some way because you can't control the hot flashes, and that it's OK to seek help (beyond lifestyle changes) if they get out of hand," Boggs says.
"We always like to say this is a perfectly natural step, but some women do get embarrassed," she says. "That's why I tell them that even men have hot flashes sometimes."
In a survey for www.meno-pauserx.com, women overwhelmingly reported that hot flashes concerned them more than other symptoms of menopause.
A hot flash is a periodic, brief increase in body temperature caused by a drop in estrogen levels. Hot flashes can occur at any time of day. When they happen at night, they're often called night sweats.
Hot flashes can produce anxiety, especially in the middle of the night, and there's the inevitable physical unpleasantness of being lit from the inside out.
Not acceptable
Sticking your head in the freezer is a quick fix, but changing clothes, even bedding, three or four times a night is not acceptable to most women.
Kathy Sowers of Sacramento, Calif., 55, has wrestled with hot flashes for about three years. "I was wearing cotton nightgowns and would wake up drenched, like someone threw a bucket of water over me," Sowers says. "And that clammy feeling is what wakes me up."
A friend introduced her to wildbleu sleepwear.
"I tried the (wildbleu) boxers and cami top, and right away noticed that wherever the fabric touched me I was cool," she said.
Wildbleu's Rockey spent years perfecting the technology. Having worked in the activewear industry (with Nike and Brooks), Rockey realized the dry-release -- or wicking -- component of sports clothing could be used in sleepwear for women.
Provides comfort
But the product had to be comfortable -- and comforting.
"It took us a long time to get the fabric soft enough," Rockey says. "What we ended up with is a migration of performance fabrics into a lifestyle garment. It's 85 percent polyester, 10 percent cotton. The dry-release component, or Freshguard, is the embedded fiber that's blended with the cotton and polyester. That's what keeps you dry and cool."
The pajama labels are built into the tops, not sewn on, so you don't get that scratchy label feeling against your back. They're machine-washable and can be thrown in the dryer or hung to dry.
Cause and effect
Menopause is not the only life experience that can produce a hot flash. Women also can have hot flashes as a result of medications they take.
Linda Reib is owner of Enhance, a Sacramento boutique that assists women who have had breast cancer with specialty items such as clothing and undergarments. She says her clients often have hot flashes because of their medications. She opted to carry the wildbleu line after trying the garments herself and then having her staff test-drive them.
"I wore the pajama pants and three-quarter-sleeve top," says Reib, 52. "And I can say they've become my new best friends."
The wildbleu line retails for about $21 (boxer short) to $55 (long nightgown). The company plans to expand with next spring's collection (due out in January), which will include a duster and all new colors. A line of bedding also is being considered.
For more information: www.wildbleu.com.