How to Get the Diet Train Back on Track during Menopause

Articles on Menopause | Topics: menopause, menopausal

by Victor Martin

There are many useful ways to use your diet to benefit the possible side affects one gets during menopause. This will help to increase your vitality and help you build up a better resilience to illness and menopause related illnesses and health concerns. Doing such things as increasing your intake of Vitamin E rich foods such as eggs, nuts, wheat germ, and olive oil can significantly help ward such issues as hot flashes and the like. Increasing your intake in Vitamin A and D along with the minerals magnesium, calcium, and phosphorus will help protect your bones and their density from osteoporosis. Cut down on tea, coffee that promotes the excretion of calcium.

Even though it is quite common do to a changed metabolism for women to gain weight during this time and get higher cholesterol, it is easy to cut down the ingestion of saturated fatty foods like butter, cheese, and oil fats while increasing low fat dairy foods. There has been a significant benefit in using Evening Primrose oil for PMS and menopause. Potassium can significantly reduce the risk of depression, so adding bananas to your diet is highly recommended. They also keep your digestive system in check and thwart off water retention as well.

Phytoestrogens are derived from plants and are substances that have been said to truly help reduce the brutality of hot flashes and other indicants of menopause. These substances mimic the once natural human estrogen that the body was producing before menopause. The most common sources of this chemical are typically found in foods such as soybeans and sprouts. Now a day with the awareness of alternate choices in eating habits and cultures finding these sources of phytoestrogens are very easy and common in the grocery stores. Such foods include soymilk, tofu, and even soy sauce. In fact the benefits of Soy are multitudinous and extremely beneficial. Making soy a normal part of your diet can help you stay fit longer in life and help you to lose unwanted weight that is typically gained in this stage of life.

аQuote of the Day

The menopause is probably the least glamorous topic imaginable; and this is interesting, because it is one of the very few topics to which cling some shreds and remnants of taboo. A serious mention of menopause is usually met with uneasy silence; a sneering reference to it is usually met with relieved sniggers. Both the silence and the sniggering are pretty sure indications of taboo.

—Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929)

In addition, soy is an excellent medicine for thyroid, which is a major issue for many women in menopause and post menopause. Soy also has the ability to increase skin quality as well, which is a bonus. Carrot and beetroot juice is found very useful in many common menopausal disorders. Other foods that offer a great source of phytoestrogens are oats, brown rice, whole wheat, corn, and barley. You will also want to maintain a good and regular exercise regime and avoid such foods as tea, chocolate, coffee, alcohol, pickles, spicy foods, and refined products.

There are so many other foods that are also rich in phytoestrogens as well such as seaweed, yams, legumes, apples, potatoes, and beans. These are a great natural source of natural estrogen and will also give you several meal options. Another great helper in the menopause fight is a limited amount of carbohydrates. These can help reduce the depressive affects that menopause can cause by raising your serotonin levels in the brain. It is common to feel fine one second and be crying the next at this time in life. Eating such foods that are rich in carbs can really help to alleviate this problem. Bagels, whole wheat breads and cereals are great mind boosters but do not cause weight gain like sugary carbohydrate foods can. The fat that resides in the body begins to redistribute itself as menopause progresses and estrogen levels continue to decline. There might be a noticeable amount of fat distribution heading toward the stomach and a reduction of it in the breast tissue and hip areas that are no longer needed since childbearing days are done.

Once the estrogen levels have been depleted it is normal to experience a loss of muscle tone and have your metabolism slow down as well. You will want to increase your water intake to guard against retaining fluids and help jump-start your metabolism into better condition. Osteoporosis is another down fall for woman who are going through menopause because the lack of estrogen causes loss of bone density. Exercise regimes that include low impact such as walking are great ways to help increase and maintain bone density as well as keep great heart health as well. You can easily increase the amount of fruits and veggies in your diet to promote cleaning of your blood vessels and keep a healthy circulatory system. When choosing meats, do not forget to add fish such as salmon and mackerel to your menu. They are high in Omega 3 fatty acids that are essential for proper blood and oxygen circulation. Also make sure all fowl and red meats are lean as can be to avoid clogging up the arteries and make your cholesterol levels higher. Avoid bleach or over processed foods as well and stick to whole wheat or brown grains and rice.

We strive to provide only high quality articles on our website. If there is a specific angle on menopause that you would like us to cover, please contact us here.

Please note: All personal opinions expressed in the "How to Get the Diet Train Back on Track during Menopause" article belong to the contributing author and are not necessarily shared by HealthExerciseSports.com.

Homeopathic Medicine
By Ian Lopez
I used to think that homeopathic medicine was bogus. I did not trust homeopathic doctors, and thought that homeopathy remedies were little more than overpriced water....

Hacking with Halitosis Ц Could the Cause of your Cough be giving you Smelly Breath?
By Zahara Vaughan
Hacking with Halitosis Ц Could the Cause of your Cough be giving you Smelly Breath? When you develop a sinus infection or some other inflammatory disorder that causes coughing due to post-nasal drip, the mucus that is continually produced by the cells lining your sinus passages drips down your throat and nose. This not only causes the coughing spasms associated with post-nasal drip, it also coats the back of your throat and the back of your tongue with mucus....

Get more articles about menopause...