Make Dietary Recommendations for Menopause_Final
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>> Hello again.
Now that we've discussed the most important things,
you need to know about the inner workings
of menopause and perimenopause,
the hormonal changes involved,
and the symptoms that occur as a result.
You should now have a good idea
of what a menopausal client looks like.
But an important question remains, "How can you help her?"
In this lecture, we'll uncover the information
that your female clients
who are approaching or experiencing menopause
are hungry for,
like which foods they should eat
or avoid to help manage symptoms
and promote health during this phase of life.
While it may not be a surprise to you
as Integrative Nutrition Health Coaches,
diet plays a big role in women's health and wellbeing
during perimenopause and menopause.
There are a number of foods
that can be added in and crowded out
to help alleviate the unpleasant symptoms of menopause
like hot flashes, irritability, and vaginal dryness.
At every phase of life, diet is so important.
With that said, here are our top seven dietary shifts
for clients who are approaching or experiencing menopause.
One, eat an abundance of calcium-rich foods.
These include broccoli, almonds, sweet potatoes, oranges,
leafy green veggies, kelp, sardines, and, of course, dairy.
Once women hit menopause,
the risk for osteoporosis increases significantly
due to the decline in estrogen.
To help prevent brittle and broken bones,
it's important to consume an abundance of calcium.
Women in menopause
may also want to consider taking a calcium supplement.
But it's never a bad idea
to factor in these calcium-rich foods into the diet
in addition to any calcium supplements.
The real deal just can't be B.
Remember, vitamin D is needed for calcium absorption,
so make sure your clients are getting enough vitamin D
so that their efforts aren't made in vain.
Two, limit caffeine.
Let's face it, by the time a woman reaches menopause,
her coffee habit may be well-established and hard to break.
But for some women, caffeine has been shown
to lower levels of estradiol,
this is likely adding insult to injury.
If a client doesn't want to go cold turkey,
encourage her to at least consume
no more than one cup a day in the morning.
Remember that a symptom of menopause is disrupted sleep,
so an afternoon or evening coffee
that used to have no effect on a woman in her younger years
can add to sleep troubles as she ages.
Three, consume good mood food.
Menopause can cause alterations in mood.
Common symptoms include irritability, depression,
anxiety, and mood swings.
Luckily, there are certain foods
that are natural mood boosters.
Specifically, we're talking about foods
rich in omega-3s and B vitamins.
We have discussed food sources
on both of these earlier on in the course,
but to help trigger your memory,
some of the best sources of omega-3s include
wild-caught salmons, sardines, tuna, walnuts, and flaxseeds.
Great sources of dietary B vitamins include
lean meats, eggs, yogurt, dark leafy greens,
whole grains, and shellfish.
Four, load up on fruits and veggies.
When transitioning through menopause,
there's no such thing as too many fruits and vegetables.
And there are two important reasons why.
First, as we talked about elsewhere in the course,
obtaining the proper amount of vitamins and minerals
is important for maintaining hormone balance
and keeping bodily functions working smoothly.
The best sources of micronutrients
are those you get through food.
Particularly important during this time in life
are consuming plants containing phytonutrients.
These can be found in the cruciferous family, broccoli,
cabbage, kelp, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower.
These veggies include the phytonutrient DIM
which helps with proper estrogen metabolism and balance.
Here's another reason to give plants a priority
on your plate during menopause.
As a woman ages, her metabolism starts to slow down.
At the same time, some of the effects of menopause
can promote waking,
the combination of a woman's caloric needs decreasing
coupled with the stress and hormonal imbalance of menopause
can bring on unwanted pounds for many women.
Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables
adds bulk and fiber to the diet
which will help women to feel satiated
while consuming less caloric density.
Life over 50 shouldn't have to be life on a diet,
rather it's a time to focus on eating lighter foods
packed full of nutrients.
Five, be cautious of gluten.
Did you know that celiac disease
is linked to earlier onset menopause?
It's been established that women who have celiac disease
but ignore the condition are more likely to experience
hormonal imbalances in early menopause.
And under these conditions, menopause symptoms can be worse.
A major study from 2011
found that women in menopause with celiac disease
who continued to eat gluten
experienced more intense hot flashes,
joint and muscle pain, and irritability.
A control group of women with celiac disease
who ate a gluten-free diet
didn't experience these intensified symptoms.
So the good news here is that
this can be avoided with proper diet.
Remember, it's possible that a woman
may have gone her whole life
without realizing she has a gluten sensitivity.
So helping her to connect the dots can make a big difference
for how she experiences menopause symptoms.
If you have clients who are approaching
or experiencing menopause,
ask them if they eat gluten.
If they do, you'll want to encourage them to tune in
and pay attention to how they feel
after eating gluten containing foods.
If they find that they're experiencing discomfort
or digestive distress after eating gluten,
an elimination diet may be a good next step to see
how they feel going a few weeks
without gluten in their diet.
Six, supercharge your diet.
There are some nutritional powerhouses
that can be consumed to help deal with menopausal symptoms.
The first is flaxseeds.
Eating two tablespoons of flaxseeds daily has been shown
to reduce the intensity and frequency of hot flashes.
Cool, huh?
Ground flax can be sprinkled into smoothies, and oatmeal,
added on to baked goods or sprinkled on top of a salad.
Another great nutritional supplement for menopause is maca
which has been shown to help reduce hot flashes.
It's also known for boosting sex drive.
Double win.
Maca helps to naturally balance hormones
with out introducing artificial hormones into the body,
so it's a great supplement to explore.
Maca contains glucosinolates which are nutrients
that stimulate the balanced production of hormones.
Maca is available in a variety of forms.
We recommend red powdered maca for menopause.
This can be purchased in many health food stores
or through major online retailers such as Amazon.
Maca can be added to smoothies
without altering the flavor profile as well.
Keep in mind though that in order for maca to be effective,
it must be consumed daily.
It takes an average of about two to three weeks
for a difference to be felt.
So encourage your clients to be patient
and give it some time to see if it helps.
If they're expecting to wake up the next day
feeling different, they'll be disappointed.
A third dietary boost to explore is pomegranate.
Pomegranate seeds as well as their juice and oil
have also been shown to help women with hot flashes,
pomegranates are full of vitamins
and they also contain antioxidants including
polyphenols, tannins, and anthocyanins,
which are just types of phytonutrients.
Pomegranates may also help women in menopause
with vaginal dryness and discomfort.
During menopause vaginal skin can thin out and atrophy.
Pomegranate may help retain vitality in vaginal tissue
which can reduce discomfort and promote natural lubrication.
Advise your clients to consult with their doctor
before adding pomegranate to their daily diet
as it can interfere with some prescription medications.
Also, we recommend pomegranate seeds or oil
over the juice form
as the juice tends to be very high in sugar.
A final word of caution for some people,
pomegranate can trigger allergies or digestive discomfort.
Clients should not consume pomegranate
if they've had bad experiences in the past
or if it produces any negative side effects.
Encourage them to try a little bit at first
and see how their body responds to it.
Lastly, discussion about what to eat for menopause
wouldn't be complete without mentioning phytoestrogens.
This is a hotly debated topic
in the medical and wellness communities.
Phytoestrogens are chemical compounds
found in plants that have estrogenic properties.
Isoflavones are the phytoestrogen compounds found in soy.
They're similar in structure to estradiol
and exert a similar effect on the body.
Isoflavones are what makes soy so controversial.
Phytoestrogens can be confusing
because they can mimic the effects of estrogen in the body,
but they can also have
the opposite effects of estrogen as well.
There are studies which show that phytoestrogens have
negative effects on the body,
and there are studies that show numerous benefits.
So how does one make sense of all of this information?
As we've previously discussed,
processed soy foods are dangerous and should be avoided.
The studies that do show benefits of soy consumption
are linked only to moderate amounts
of whole soy and fermented soy
such as edamame, miso, natto, tofu, and tempeh.
In the Western diet, soy lurks in large quantities
in processed forms and in processed foods.
All of this consumption of soybean oil, modified soy,
and soy lecithin is unhealthy.
And for a person who eats a diet heavy in processed foods,
the quantity of soy they consume can add up quickly.
On the other hand, it has long been observed that
women from Japan who eat traditional Japanese diets
including whole and fermented soy
experience minimal hot flashes.
They seem to, on average,
have a much easier transition through menopause.
This has been tied to the fact
that Japanese women eat a diet rich in whole soy foods
but not in processed foods made with modified soy.
While the medical community has gone
back and forth on this topic,
recent major studies have included
that eating whole soy foods
during perimenopause and menopause
can help many women experience a decrease in hot flashes
and other uncomfortable side effects.
In this stage of life phytoestrogens may actually help
provide hormonal balance.
Phytoestrogens may also help
decrease risk of breast cancer and retain bone health.
Again, the traditional Japanese diet
has pointed towards this
over decades of observation.
But when it comes down to it, like anything else,
it's up to your clients to decide
what is and isn't right for them.
You can provide answers to their questions
and educate them on options,
but ultimately, it's up to them
to decide what feels right in their diet.
If a client feels uncomfortable adding soy
or any other nutrient or supplement to their diet,
it's never appropriate to pressure them into doing so.
We'd also like to note that a few additional foods
should be avoided or limited
during perimenopause and menopause.
These are refined sugars, and carbohydrates,
processed foods, and alcohol.
These should be eliminated for the same reasons
we describe elsewhere throughout the course.
If they're harmful to hormone balance in general,
they're not going to be doing the body any favors
during menopause either.
To recap, the top seven dietary shifts for women
approaching or experiencing menopause
are to eat an abundance of calcium-rich foods,
limit caffeine, eat mood boosting healthy fats,
load up on fruits and vegetables,
be cautious of gluten, supercharge your diet with flax,
maca, and pomegranate,
and consider eating fermented whole soy foods.
Do you feel confident
suggesting these dietary shifts to clients
experiencing menopause and perimenopause?
Where do you stand on the great soy debate?
Head on over to the Facebook group page
and join the discussion.
Thanks for joining me.
Bye for now.