Menopause is the end of life as you know it. Once you hit 50, its all downhill from there. You are going to gain an unsurmountable amount of weight and experience insufferable hot-flashes and there is nothing that you can do about it. You desire for sex is a thing of the past. Your hair will fall out. And you will just be a grumpy, angry mess.
Do any of these fear-inducing ideas sound familiar? Such ideas are usually passed on to us by older women in our communities; our own mothers, aunts, grandmothers or mentors. Either, as a way to express their disappointment in a life they feel they have lost, or in a way to subtly prepare us for the impending doom that awaits us in ours.
The truth is, our older years could be some of the best years of our lives! In order to harness the beauty of this inevitable ageing process, you can implement a few basic tricks.
- Fasting. Fasting can be performed in a variety of ways. Intermittent Fasting (IF) is a well-researched form of fasting that has been well researched in the menopausal population. IF can improve metabolic function and insulin sensitivity thereby it can help with weight loss, especially that stubborn belly fat. Research indicates IF has a positive impact on heart health by improving low-density lipoprotein, total cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, fasting insulin, insulin sensitivity, and blood pressure parameters. Search “Intermittent fasting protocols” to find the best one that suits you!
- Stress management. Cortisol is notorious as the “stress hormone” and has been given a bad rap. It is one of the most important hormones in the hormonal hierarchy, along with insulin and thyroid hormones. Having too high or too low cortisol levels can result in a cascade of events lower down in the hormone hierarchy chain thereby negatively impacting insulin and thyroid hormone, sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone & testosterone), happy hormone (oxytocin), and sleep hormones (melatonin). Managing your stress: emotional, environmental, physical, etc is the first line of defence in ensuring that your most important hormone-Cortisol- is operating in Goldy-locks ratio…JUST ENOUGH. Having healthy levels of cortisol will positively impact your insulin, thyroid and sex-hormone levels. In turn, this will benefit you in terms of weight-management, libido, fatigue, sleep and overall energy.
- Exercise. Ugh! Why does it always have to come back down to exercise? Exercise is a common practice of placing some sort of physical over-load on the body so that it has to adapt and become stronger. We have to recognise exercise as a stress that we place on our anatomy, physiology and endocrine systems etc. Too little exercise will not place enough stress on the body to reap adaptation benefits however over-exercising could over stress the body causing cortisol to rise and subsequent detrimental effects to ensue. A common misconception that I see when it comes to exercise is that women think they should do cardio ONLY; and lots of it. And yes, cardio is good for heart, lung and blood vessels health but is not ideal if weight loss is the goal. On the other hand, body weight training or resistance training (with weights) is going to reep tonnes of benefits. The main benefit is to stimulate muscle growth & strength. Remember, muscle is the organ on longevity but it is also a metabolic organ. Therefore, when we have higher muscle mass and stronger muscles we can improve metabolic function, improve insulin sensitivity (thereby decreasing the risk of adult-onset diabetes commonly seen in menopause), increase bone density (especially noted to decline following menopause), improve cardiovascular health, decrease risk of falls and hip fractures, improve balance and last but not least, improve sleep.
- Gut health. Gut health is of utmost importance for overall health. Recent studies have indicated that declining sex hormone levels in menopause can lead a decline in microorganisms in the microbiome. This decline in gut microbiome species has a profound effect on digestive health which in turn has been shown to negatively impact cardio-metabolic health. Women in their menopausal years are therefore more at risk of arthritis, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity or depression as a result of this change. Nevertheless, not all hope is lost. Although there is no specific diet or prescribed foods to eat to avoid this shift in your microbiome, there are some basic principles that you can apply. Eat fresh produce that can grow from the earth eg : plants, vegetables, fruits, nuts & seeds. Eat fresh animal protein, especially red meat eg: meat, fish, chicken, eggs. Drink lots of water and avoid overdoing it on the caffeine as it places extra stress on your liver and could ramp up your stress hormones. Avoid processed foods that come from the supermarket shelf, packaged with a label and a nutrition table. Avoid sugars, sugary or calorie rich drinks like sodas/flavoured water/flavoured milks. Minimise your intake of alcoholic drinks.
These are a few tips and tricks to try when you are coming close to your menopausal years or if you are already deeply submerged in them.
The power is in your hands to make this season of your life one of the best ones yet!