The two male MPs describe their experience after wearing hot flashes.
Some male members of the British Parliament tried out a vest that stimulates menopausal hot flashes, which some women experience, the guard said in a report. This was part of an event to raise awareness about the acute shortages of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products in the UK, he further said.
The event was hosted in Parliament by Labor MP Carolyn Harris and the campaign group Over the Bloody Moon, the BBC said. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith and Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting were among those who took part, the report said.
Ms Harris said it was “easy to underestimate” the intensity of hot flashes and the impact they have on everyday life, and hoped the vests would help male colleagues empathize with the experience.
Delicious @weststreting and @MPIainDS put on the #MenoVest and experienced how debilitating hot flashes can be during #Menopause
They make a whole team!
I’m sure they enjoyed me and @twocitynickie chew their ears off! pic.twitter.com/6rQQrx4TIE
— Carolyn Harris MP (@carolynharris24) June 28, 2022
The participants described the vest as “volcanic” and “extremely uncomfortable”.
“I feel this on my back now,” the guard Iain quoted Duncan Smith as saying. “Imagine you are making a speech in the House of Commons and suddenly you have a hot flash. If (men) had this we would complain a lot,” he went on to say.
“If you pass out, we’ll have water,” Ms Harris joked.
The vest was developed by Over the Bloody Moon and funded by London-based Theramex, one of the UK’s largest makers of HRT products. It uses an electrical path to generate heat that many women experience during menopause.
Menopause is a transition in a woman’s life as her menstrual cycle comes to an end. It is confirmed 12 months after the last period. Symptoms such as hot flashes, weight gain, headaches, mood swings and inability to concentrate are experienced during this phase.
This happens because levels of an important female hormone known as estrogen begin to decline, disrupting the normal cyclical patterns of other hormones as well.
