Menopausal women who want some relief from hot flashes may consider shedding excess weight, according to the findings of a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Researchers at the University of California at San Francisco randomly assigned 338 overweight or obese women with an average age of 53 to either an intense, behavior-oriented weight loss program or to a health education program.

U.S. News & World Report reports that the women who took part in the weight-loss program lost an average of 17 pounds over six months compared to about 4 pounds for the control group, and they were more than twice as likely as the control group to report relief from their hot flashes.

"In general, each 11-pound decrease in weight was associated with a 33 percent greater odds of improvement in hot flashes," study author Alison Huang told the news provider. "This study provides good evidence that losing excess weight through diet and exercise can improve those hot flashes."

Other ways to reduce hot flashes include hormone therapy, exercise and acupuncture. Some also believe that nutritional supplements such as soy, black cohosh and vitamin E may help ease symptoms.