Are you worried about Menopause? We often hear most middle-aged women feeling unwell and exhausted during the postmenopausal period, along with some common symptoms of weight changes (most of them experience weight gain) and worsen metabolic systems. Other common symptoms like hot flushes, irritability, mood swings, insomnia, mental confusion, osteoporotic symptoms, depression, and headache would also affect their lives.1
Why do women have Menopause?
It’s all about hormones. Aging is associated with hormonal changes, especially sex hormones in women known as Estrogen. The decline of estrogen level does not only lead to ovarian function loss progressively but also increases risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis!2
In fact, several studies revealed that Menopause is associated with an increased prevalence of obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis.3A large population-based cohort in the United States reported that weight gain is not only related to the menopause transition as well as the fat mass would also increase rapidly in this phase.3
Huh, so most women will experience this moment, right? Do we have any solutions to minimize the risk?
Fear not, let us share with you some foods and nutrients that can help you to have a happy menopause period. Are you ready?
Soybeans, Red clover, and Alfalfa.
If the low estrogen level makes us feel unwell and exhausted then we should consume these foods sufficiently to fix it!
Soybeans, red clover, and alfalfa are abundant in isoflavones.4 Isoflavones function as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) by binding to the receptors for estrogen metabolites, thereby relieving menopausal symptoms. An animal study found that isoflavones could act as estrogens and improve ovarian morphology.4
Besides, the protein of soy can reduce the risk of heart disease by decreasing our plasma LDL (“the bad guy”) cholesterol and triglycerides, as well as increasing our HDL (“the good guy”) cholesterol.
Flaxseed, Legumes, Whole grains
Flax seeds, legumes, whole grains, some fruits and vegetables contain lignan precursors that can be converted to enterolactone and enterodiol by intestinal bacteria.2 Lignans and their metabolites bind estrogen receptors and act as SERMs. Moreover, the high production of enterolactone and enterodiol in the gut may also protect against breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men.5
Vitamin B Complex
Vitamin B complex is a compound group of B vitamins. B vitamins in general are cofactors for the enzymes that involve in the energy-producing metabolic pathways.6 B vitamins play an important role in maintaining the functions of the nervous system.6 Along with aging, intestinal malfunction may cause malabsorption of nutrients and it increases our B vitamins requirement especially B2, B6, Folate, and B12 which are associated with bone mineral density, homocysteine and cognitive function.6
Karlamangla, A. S., Burnett-Bowie, S. M., & Crandall, C. J. (2018). Bone Health During the Menopause Transition and Beyond. Obstetrics and gynecology clinics of North America, 45(4), 695–708
Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc
The Menopause transition is a critical period of change in bone strength in women, which sets the stage for the development of osteoporosis and fracture susceptibility in older ages.7 There is a rapid phase of bone loss in 3 years around the final menstrual period.7 Osteoporosis is also an important cause of morbidity and mortality in elderlies.8
Calcium, Magnesium, and Zinc are important minerals for bone-building elements. So, make sure your daily intake of these minerals is sufficient to meet your body's requirements. Seeds, nuts, legumes and whole bran are high in these minerals and you can always read the nutrition labelling of the product to compare.
Wish this information can help all of you to practice a healthier diet and have happier menopause.
This article is written by Ms Shelley Chew (Nutritionist) for Green Image Organic Enterprise Sdn. Bhd.
References:
- Dalal, P. K., & Agarwal, M. (2015). Postmenopausal syndrome. Indian journal of psychiatry, 57(Suppl 2), S222–S232. https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.161483
- Wylie-Rosett J. (2005). Menopause, micronutrients, and hormone therapy. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 81(5), 1223S–1231S. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/81.5.1223
- Silva, T. R., Oppermann, K., Reis, F. M., & Spritzer, P. M. (2021). Nutrition in Menopausal Women: A Narrative Review. Nutrients, 13(7), 2149. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13072149
- Chen, L. R., Ko, N. Y., & Chen, K. H. (2019). Isoflavone Supplements for Menopausal Women: A Systematic Review. Nutrients, 11(11), 2649. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11112649
- Wang L. Q. (2002). Mammalian phytoestrogens: enterodiol and enterolactone. Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences, 777(1-2), 289–309. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1570-0232(02)00281-7
- Milart, P., Woźniakowska, E., & Wrona, W. (2018). Selected vitamins and quality of life in menopausal women. Przeglad menopauzalny Menopause review, 17(4), 175–179. https://doi.org/10.5114/pm.2018.81742
- Karlamangla, A. S., Burnett-Bowie, S. M., & Crandall, C. J. (2018). Bone Health During the Menopause Transition and Beyond. Obstetrics and gynecology clinics of North America, 45(4), 695–708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ogc.2018.07.012
- Gutzwiller, J. P., Richterich, J. P., Stanga, Z., Nydegger, U. E., Risch, L., & Risch, M. (2018). Osteoporosis, diabetes, and hypertension are major risk factors for mortality in older adults: an intermediate report on a prospective survey of 1467 community-dwelling elderly healthy pensioners in Switzerland. BMC geriatrics, 18(1), 115. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-018-0809-0
