Eat to Beat the Menopause

Hot flushes, memory loss, insomnia, anxiety, loss of sex drive...Many women fear the onset of the menopause. However, the menopause varies for every woman. Some women seem to get hardly a single hot-flush from the start of the perimenopause (the few months or years before your periods stop), while others have severe symptoms for a decade or more.

To make things worse, experts can't agree on the benefits and risks of HRT, the most common medication prescribed to ease menopause symptoms, with some experts citing it as an increased risk factor in blood-clots and breast cancer. One thing that is known is that HRT is not suitable for women who have already had breast cancer.

Concerns about HRT are driving more women to find more natural methods to control their symptoms. Here, we look at how you can eat to ease your menopause symptoms.

Symptom: Hot flushes

A.K.A. "Hot flashes"

For many women, this is the most noticeable symptom. Hot flushes get you running out of rooms, throwing open windows and doors, and fanning yourself with any piece of paper that comes to hand.

There are several things you can eat to control hot flushes:

Green leafy vegetables

Cruciferous vegetables (such as watercress, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli) are packed with phytochemicals, and healthy fibre. The fibre is great for your gut, helping eliminate waste products so they don't sit in your body and become toxins. This reduces your number of hot flushes.

Oily Fish

Studies have shown that oily fish (such as salmon and mackerel) reduce the number of hot flushes but not the severity. It's thought this is due to the anti-inflammatory component EPA. You should eat 2-3 portions per week, or take a 1g fish oil supplement daily.

Seeds

Seeds (linseeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds) are full of phytoestrogens, which are similar to your own natural oestrogen. These will reduce your hot flushes, and revive a waning sexual libido.

Wholegrains

Wholegrains (such as brown rice, barley and wholewheat pasta) can prevent hot flushes due to the lignan they contain. Lignans mimic naturally-occurring oestrogen in the body. They are also high in fibre, which prevent spikes in blood glucose levels, which occur as oestrogen dips in the body.

Cut these triggers:

Spicy foods, caffeine, alcohol and nicotine.

Symptom: Mood Changes and Anxiety

Anxiety and mood changes (most typically depression and irritability) are a common part of the menopause. To beat these symptoms, try these foods:

Tryptophan-Rich Foods

Such as legumes, cottage-cheese, oats and turkey. Tryptophan converts into the happy neurotransmitter serotonin, making it essential for a balanced mood.

Symptom: Tiredness

Many women have the physically and emotionally-draining experience of being tired throughout the menopause. If this is you, practice good sleep hygiene, and try this:

Avoid

Caffeine and sugary-foods. These will give you a short-term boost, but the uneven effect on your blood glucose levels will leave you feeling more tired in the long-term.

Instead

Eat a healthy, balanced diet with lots of nutrients. Snack on fresh fruits and nuts to keep your blood glucose levels stable in a healthy way throughout the day.

READ Menopause Herbal Remedy: Could I relieve my menopause naturally?

Symptom: Insomnia

Menopausal women with insomnia are in a bad situation: exhausted all day, can't sleep all night. Tossing and turning, throwing back the covers. If that's you, take a look at these foods that can help you beat insomnia:

Legumes

Beans, chickpeas, and lentils are chockfull of healthy magnesium. Magnesium can soothe racing thoughts when you can't sleep. It's also essential for GABA function. GABA function is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that binds to neurons, controlling anxiety experienced when neurons are excited. This helps calm you down and relax.

Warm milk and oatcakes

Dairy and oats are full of the amino acid tryptophan, which converts into the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin. Try this combination before bed to help you settle down at night. Also eat plenty of tryptophan-rich foods throughout the day, like chicken, nuts and seeds.

More Foods to Eat to to Beat the Menopause

Symptom: Dry skin and hair

Dry skin and dry, thin hair are very common symptoms. To combat them, try eating these:

Radishes

Radishes are a rich source of Silica, which aids the production of collagen, the mineral building-block of healthy hair, skin and nails.

Radishes also contain high levels in Vitamin C, which increase the rate of cell renewal, helping replace old, dead skin and hair cells.

Nuts and Seeds

Almonds, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds are high in Vitamin E, zinc and calcium. Vitamin E helps to build new tissue and encourages hair growth; zinc is vital for healthy hair and skin and calcium is vital for the maintenance of healthy skin and hair. Additionally, the oils in nuts and seeds can help prevent dry hair and skin.

Symptom: Weight gain

Many menopausal women gain weight, with the average menopausal woman gaining a pound per year. Menopausal women are particularly prone to abdominal weight gain, a particular cause of insulin resistance.

Try these simple food tricks to avoid gaining excess weight:

Complex carbohydrates

Brown rice, wholewheat pasta, wholegrain bread, and barley are good choices to keep you fuller for longer and stabilise your blood glucose levels. This will keep you from overeating and prevent you seeking sugary snacks between meals.

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a really good spice for warding off insulin resistance (where your body stops reacting to insulin, causing weight gain and potentially Type 2 Diabetes). Less than half-a-teaspoon a day has been found to speed the stomach emptying rate from 37% to 34.5% and to reduce the rise in blood glucose levels.

Ginger

Variety really is the spice of life, and - when it comes to weight gain, insulin resistance and menopausal women - spice also seems to be the spice of life.

A study found that ginger powder (3 one-gram capsules per day) lowered fasting blood sugars by 10.5%, and increases insulin sensitivity.

This is massive news. Diabetes is the 6th highest killer of menopausal women in the USA.  It also increases your chance of other killers such as heart and kidney disease.

READ Perimenopause Problems: Depression, Bleeding and Weight Control

Tumeric

Tumeric contains curcumin. When 250 milligrams of curcumin was given to prediabetic adults in a study, daily for nine months, it was found that none of the participants developed diabetes. However, of the participants who were given a placebo, 16.4% developed diabetes.

A further study found that Tumeric was between 500 and 100,000 times more effective than the diabetes drug Metformin at activating glucose uptake.

Considering how many menopausal women develop Type 2 Diabetes, this is vital information. It's thought women who have an early or late menopause are at particular risk of Type 2 Diabetes, with women who had their last menstrual period before age 45 being at a 25% increased risk and women who had their last period after age 55 being at a 12% increased risk (according to a report in Science Daily, see links).

Symptom: Weak, painful bones

The menopause leaves women at an increased risk of osteoporosis. To keep your bones strong and healthy, try:

Fruit and vegetables

Many fruit and vegetables (especially tomatoes, strawberries, and green leafy vegetables) have natural anti-inflammatory properties. Additionally, a diet rich in fruit and vegetables can help many symptoms of the menopause covered here.

Dairy

Milk, cheese and yoghurt are all rich sources of calcium. These will prevent your bone density declining too much. Postmenopausal women should consume 1200mg every day.

Nuts, wholegrains, dried fruit

These are vital sources of magnesium, which is essential for the correct absorption of calcium.

Oily fish

Salmon, mackerel and tinned tuna, and sardines are all high in Vitamin D, another Vitamin which is essential for the correct absorption and utilisation of calcium. It is vital to ward off osteoporosis.

Avoid

Red meat, fizzy drinks and processed food. These foods are high in phosphorous, which leach the calcium from the bones and make osteoporosis more likely.

Symptom: Vaginal dryness

Menopause induced vaginal dryness can make sex difficult, causing bleeding during intercourse, and even leading to urinary tract infections if left untreated. It is caused by a loss of oestrogen. It affects up to 50% of menopausal women.

Drink plenty

Although not a cause, dehydration can exacerbate vaginal dryness and increase discomfort. That's because, when we dehydrate, our mucus linings (including those around the vagina) dry-up, as our bodies divert fluid to support our most essential processes.

Also, avoid alcohol, as alcohol dehydrates the body.

READ Herbal supplements and Vitamins to Relieve Menopausal Symptoms

Symptom: Breast pain

Around 70% of women have breast pain at some point. If you experience breast pain as part of your menopause, try these foods:

Brown rice and beans

High in fibre, these foods can help balance oestrogen levels, which can in turn improve breast pain.

Sunflower seeds, salmon, spinach and avocado

High in B vitamins (particularly Vitamin B6) and Vitamin E, these foods can really ease breast pain. B6 is a building block for amino acids.

In a study on Vitamin E and breast pain, 100 women were divided into 2 groups. One group received a placebo. One got Vitamin E. 76% of the Vitamin E group improved, compared to 29% of the placebo group.

Avoid caffeine

Caffeine dilates the blood vessels, even the ones in the breasts. This can increase pain, especially if you're already prone to breast pain.