Menopause Diet: What To Eat & What To Avoid

Women who go through the menopausal stage experience a series of changes and symptoms not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Typically, diet can help alleviate the symptoms that come with menopause, like mood swings, hot flashes, weak bones, much slower reaction times, and a lot more.

While most women focus on negative thoughts like not being able to change these things, there are actually a number of ways that can be done to help you age gracefully and healthy amidst menopause. Some women seek medical and professional help by enrolling in programs that’ll help boost hormones. Others would undergo bioidentical hormone replacement therapy for women as it is the best option available. 

However, not all women are prepared for such drastic changes or procedures; hence, most of them prefer natural options and home remedies to help ease menopausal symptoms slowly but surely. One of which is changing up your grocery shopping list and shifting from unhealthy junk to living a healthier lifestyle!

To give you an even more definite viewpoint on this, here is the ultimate menopause diet, including what to eat and what to avoid when you’re on the menopausal stage:

What To Eat:

Good health normally starts in the kitchen by making informed decisions about your diet and how this can ease your symptoms. Here’s a guide and a list of foods you should be eating for when you’re experiencing symptoms of menopause:

Carbohydrate-Rich Snacks:

Women who are on the peri- and post-menopausal stages suffer from mild depressive episodes because of low serotonin levels. A woman is more likely to crave sweets and feel grumpy later on. Meanwhile, carbohydrate-rich snacks help increase one’s serotonin levels, which is a hormone that helps shut off cravings and restore a more pleasant mood.

Some of these carbohydrate-rich snacks can be whole-grain toasted bagels or air-popped popcorn. You can discover all the different selection of foods that make you happy for a whole lot of other ways you can help boost your happy hormones.

Vitamin D:

Menopausal women often experience weakening of bones. This is because Vitamin D also gradually decreases as women age. With that, you should know that it’s important to consume enough foods rich in Vitamin D so as to help prevent bone loss and absorb calcium.

Foods rich in Vitamin D can be fatty fishes or fortified foods. You can also run to canned salmon as one of the best options since it contains tiny bones rich in calcium. As for drinks, you have quite an option ranging from almond milk, rice milk, and hemp milk down to coconut milk.

Water:

Hydrate yourself! Drinking 8-10 glasses of water a day is a classic that never gets old. Water is an essential factor when you want to avoid dryness symptoms as well as bloating. If plain water isn’t your thing, still better to skip the store-bought flavored water, instead, make it a habit to infuse your drink with fruits and herbs, which is a lot healthier and contains less sugar than those in grocery and convenience stores. Alternatively, make sure you eat foods rich in water content like watermelon or cucumber.

Flaxseed:

Flaxseed is an amazing plant-based food that contains omega-3 fatty acids, which helps add fiber to your diet. Try adding some flaxseed to your cereal, yogurt, or salad so as to also help keep your arteries healthy and boost estrogen even amidst your declining age and menopausal symptoms.

Fruits And Vegetables:

Should we even forget about this one? One’s metabolism slows down as they get older, and, usually, women in their mid-forties start to be inactive. This all the more just adds up to weight gain, which is one of the most dreaded symptoms of menopause. Eating your fruits and veggies daily can significantly help minimize weight gain while also getting all the necessary nutrients that your body needs to stay healthy. It is like, you are hitting 2 birds with one stone.!

What To Avoid:

Now it’s time to identify all other foods you should avoid, especially if you want to lessen a series of hormone imbalances.

Added Sugars and Processed Carbs:

Some illnesses and medical conditions like high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome are linked to higher instances of hot flashes among menopausal women. With that, it’s best that you avoid consuming added sugars and processed foods like white bread, baked goods, or crackers to help reduce hot flashes that more or less occur every night.

Alcohol and Caffeine:

Based on studies, alcohol and caffeine can also trigger and increase a woman’s instance of experiencing hot flashes; hence, it’s one of the very things you should avoid during menopause.

More than that, alcohol and caffeine are also known as sleep disruptors, and many women who suffer menopause symptoms also have a hard time sleeping. So, if this were the case, you better avoid these two as soon as possible to help you get better rest and sleep during the night.

Fast Food:

When you’re in a rush, drive-thru restaurants may be convenient. However, these fast-food chains often serve an amount of nothing but fat, which is obviously, generally not good for the body. Fatty foods can greatly increase the risk of heart diseases, which is common among women who go through stages of menopause. Besides that, such meals can also contribute to weight gain, which only adds up and worsens menopausal symptoms all the more.

Spicy Foods:

Not surprisingly, spicy foods can further aggravate hot flashes. So, if you already know that you’re experiencing hot flashes, especially at night, or if you have high blood pressure, it’s best to avoid spicy foods. This includes peppers, chili, jalapenos, and cayenne.

Wrapping Up:

Food and meals that are good for you during the menopausal stage are essentially and generally good for you at any stage in your life. This is the very reason why there is a need to build healthy eating habits now (or even before the menopausal stage), so you can further enjoy better health even as your age declines, and most especially during menopause. These simple changes in your diet can significantly make such a transition in your life so much easier.