Better Late Than Never: Things I’m Glad I Learned During Menopause

Better Late Than Never:

Things I’m Glad I Learned During Menopause

                Have you heard these or felt these personally in your menopause journey?

All those symptoms, yeah that’s just depression. You’re depressed.

Oh, that weight gain is your fault. You need to eat less and exercise more.

There’s no reason that your fasting glucose keeps rising. You’re just eating too much sugar.

Why am I up peeing all night?

No doctor ever warned me to watch over my rising a1c, or to watch my insulin levels. I was told you’re just stressed. It has nothing to do with your sugar. That’s normal. You’re normal.

Adrenal fatigue is not a real diagnosis.

I can’t find my keys! Why did I walk into this room? What was I talking about? Oh, honey! I found the remote….in the fridge!

You’re just getting older. Just accept it.

Menopause or transitioning to menopause is mostly a dreaded thought in a woman’s mind. I remember always hating the phrase “change of life”. I thought, “What are we changing into?” There are recorded events that take place, like hot flashes, vaginal dryness, mood swings, belly fat/weight gain, irritability, depression, insomnia, brain fog; I mean do I really need to continue? But wait! There’s more! Musculoskeletal pain, joint pain, frozen shoulder, tendonitis, hip and back, and body aches, which has now been identified as the primary or main symptoms of perimenopausal and menopausal women, that is equal to or higher than hot flashes!

This is a much wider spectrum of issues and syndromes we must navigate through to maintain good health. This affects our mental health, bones, sleep disruption, weaker muscles, genital/urinary system, our kidneys, our skin, and so on. This is a very individual experience for every single woman. These are the main things I am so glad I learned, even if it was many years into my menopausal years. As I say, better late than never!

When we talk about a healthful menopause diet and lifestyle, we want to bring up the fact that we need to prepare ourselves for healthy eating. Yes, there is a process to this, and God had an intention with everything we do! The first thing we do to begin the digestive process is thinking of the meal. You heard that right. The mere thinking of what we’re going to be eating sets the wheels of digestion in motion. The pancreas gets ready, the digestive enzymes start to build up, and the stomach acids begin brewing as they’re preparing for the food to come down.

The second thing we need to do is to chew. Yes, we need to chew up our food until it is almost liquefied. I know so many of us just gulp down boluses of food, mostly because we were trained to eat this way given the short amount of time we are always given for lunch breaks from the time we are youngsters in school! The third thing is slow down, eat more slowly, and try to avoid thinking about stressful things while we are eating. This greatly impacts our digestive health! Dr. Emoto’s work with water and the use of good and bad words comes to mind when I think of the energy we are taking in when we are eating. Very important to our cells to be in a loving, happy state as much as that is possible.

Now, let’s get into the foods and lifestyle for happy, healthy menopause!  

1.      Diet = for proper muscle build and maintenance, strong bones with aging, and gut health for optimal immunity. Eat plenty of calories for your body and begin each day with a savory breakfast to set the tone for the rest of the day. I should also add here that the majority of us menopausal women gain a lot of belly fat. We typically end up with insulin resistance along with other issues due to the lower estrogen. For this reason, we need to lean into low carb, low sugar, ketogenic eating. We find that we have grown to be quite carbohydrate intolerant.

A.      Animal Protein = The quality of our protein matters, as well as the QUANTITY! We need MORE protein as we age! Protein keeps our bones strong and staves off sugar cravings!

B.      Eggs = Eggs are a superfood! There are so many nutrients, like omega-3, selenium, calcium, zinc, vitamin D, and other vitamins and minerals. Eggs are one of the richest sources of the essential nutrient, choline!

C.     Cruciferous and Low-Carb Veggies

D.     Fiber

E.      Probiotics and Fermented Foods

F.      Proper Hydration

2.      Lifestyle

A.      Mindfulness

B.      Exercise

C.     Stress Management

D.     Sleep

E.      Gratitude and Positive Energy

F.      Quit Smoking

G.     Limit or Eliminate Alcoholic Beverages

3.      Detox

A.      Endogenous (or from within) Tools for Detoxing – activated charcoal, Shilajit, green juices, green smoothies, chlorella, spirulina, green tea, etc.

B.      Exogenous (or from the outside) Tools for Detoxing – castor oil packs, dry brushing, sauna, bathing, Epsom salts, Bentonite clay, etc.  

4.      Supplements = for nutrient deficiencies first, then for “extra” nutrients second.

A.      Magnesium

B.      Vitamin D3

C.     Choline

D.     B Complex, Including B12 and Folate

E.      Zinc

F.      True Vitamin A

G.     Organ Meats

a.      Extra protein, as in whey or plant-based shakes because we require more protein as we age.

b.      Creatine, if working out and building muscle

5.      What to Avoid and/or Limit

A.      Nutrient Deficiencies

B.      Processed and Ultra-Processed Foods

C.     Artificial and Natural Sweeteners and Sugars

D.     High-Carb Foods = The quality of our carb foods is very important as we age!

E.      Sugary Drinks = This includes fruit juices, sodas, Gatorade, energy drinks, etc.

F.      Avoid road rage and killing someone. Jail food sucks!

G.     Seed Oils

H.     Pesticides

I.        Chemicals and all toxins in general as much as possible.

J.        Plastics

K.      Your husband’s opinion

L.      GMO Foods

What I learned during menopause is mostly that we need to keep a serious sense of humor! I’ve learned that accepting that doctors and the medical industry really do not have a full understanding of the body in general, much less the intricate workings of a woman’s body. That’s okay for now. They only know what they know. I’ve learned we have other avenues to learn from with an incredible community of women who love to help other women!

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PHYTOESTROGEN-RICH FOODS

Why should we eat phytoestrogen-rich foods during menopause? Let me begin by saying if you’re on HRT (hormone replacement therapy), you may want to be mindful of some of these foods. I say go by how you feel. Estrogen is considered to be a growth hormone. We can stimulate growth in our body by having too much estrogen. Just something to be mindful of.

Phytoestrogens are plant compounds that have an estrogen-like affect on the body. They are found in various fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, and herbs. It is said that phytoestrogens help to balance estrogen levels, so for this reason they are considered to be more of an estrogen modulator. For instance, if we tend to run high in estrogens, phytoestrogens will help to reduce those levels. If we tend to run low in estrogens, phytoestrogens will help to boost our levels. Also, foods are going to be much less in the amount of estrogen than is what is naturally occurring in the body. It’s not going to be that strong of an affect, but they say you should experience an affect. If you aren’t feeling any affects, refer back to the avoid list above and clean up any areas there that might be blocking your results.

Phytoestrogens can help with some of the menopausal symptoms, like hot flashes, insomnia, defeating insulin resistance and belly fat gain, mood swings, brain fog, low sex drive, and so on. This is a very individual experience. I always say go by how you feel when eating any of these foods and always eat a variety!

·         Seeds: Flaxseeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds

·         Fruits: Berries, green apples, cherries, plums, peaches (be mindful of fructose here)

·         Vegetables: Broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts

·         Legumes and Beans: Chickpeas, white beans, black beans, green beans, alfalfa sprouts, mung bean sprouts

·         Nuts: Pistachios, walnuts,

·         Dried Fruits: Prunes, dates, apricots

·         Herbs: Garlic, onion, fennel, oregano, cloves, nutmeg

·         Grains: Multi-grain breads, rice, barley

·         Beverages: Green tea, black tea

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