Ten Empowering Tips for Menopausal Women
“WHAT IS HAPPENING TO MY BODY??”
In over two decades of medical practice, I have sat across from frustrated peri-menopausal and menopausal women who exclaimed while absolutely nothing had changed in their diet, exercise routine or stress levels, they were continuously gaining weight. Mainstream medicine often says insulting things like menopausal women do not realize that they aren’t exercising as much or they are eating more carbohydrates. What 55-65 year old woman do you know that has the opportunity to lay around and eat bon-bons all day?
For years, I have researched and read books and articles about sleep, stress, exercise and obviously shifting hormones, with no real answer to the mechanism. It took experiencing it myself for me to really get it.
With menopause, it suddenly becomes more difficult to regulate blood sugar. Increased cravings for carbohydrates and twice as much exercise to balance out caloric intake are common complaints. Only a very low carbohydrate diet has any effect. Put this all together and the common denominator is insulin or more specifically, insulin resistance.
Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas, that regulates the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and protein by promoting the absorption of glucose from the blood stream into the liver, fat and skeletal muscles. The simplest explanation is that the food we eat is broken down in the digestive tract into glucose molecules, the main source of energy for the body. The glucose is absorbed into the blood stream through the small intestine, which signals the pancreas to release insulin. Insulin helps the muscle, fat and liver cells to absorb glucose to either use or store for future energy demands.
Insulin resistance happens when a lot of glucose enters the blood stream and the pancreas pump out larger amount of insulin to balance the blood sugar. Over time, the body stops responding to all of that insulin and becomes insulin resistant. The pancreas keeps producing more insulin in response to the high levels of circulating glucose. Eventually, the pancreas can’t keep up with the demand. This is what seems to be happening in a lot of menopausal women…. a metabolic shift to insulin resistance. This means more storage of sugar as fat (higher triglycerides, more belly fat, increased visceral fat), higher circulating glucose, lower HDL (the “good” kind of cholesterol), increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke and type 2 Diabetes.
Why would we suddenly develop insulin resistance? It turns out, estrogen has a significant effect on the body’s response to insulin. Hot flashes, poor sleep, cognitive changes, changes in our skin, low libido, incontinence, vaginal dryness, bone loss and now this?? But understanding equals empowerment. So now we can choose what to do with this information.
Welcome to your new body model, 3.0! We may have many, many years to enjoy this new model. What can we do to tend to it? Join me in thinking of this as an adventure.
10 Empowering Tips to Lower Insulin and Help with Insulin Resistance
1. Sleep habits. Sleep more than you think you need to - naps are fine; hammocks are for badass women. No screen time after 8:00 pm. The best sleep is between 10 pm-midnight. Sleep in a cool, dark room. And no eating carbohydrates after dinner.
2. Lower stress. Stress is BAD for the body. Don’t sweat the small stuff! Start meditating.
3. Intermittent fasting. Fast 14-16 hours with nothing but water, black coffee, lemon water or apple cider vinegar in water. Binders are OK, too. See Dr Chris’ article on Intermittent Fasting.
4. No snacking. Every time we eat something it spikes our insulin.
5. Exercise. Seven-minute work outs in the morning and walks in the evening at bare minimum. Aerobic exercise and resistance training three times per week. Join a gym, find a group or a partner, or work with a personal trainer. This is very important for your whole body… bones, heart, muscles and brain. It decreases visceral fat, lowers blood sugar, increases sleep quality, and enhances mood. Need I say more?
6. Decrease carbohydrate intake. A friend said to me the the other day, ”I decided not to eat anything that isn’t real food”. I was startled by the simplicity of this. Nobody NEEDS cookies or bread. Eliminating most grains and sugars is an easy way to decrease carbs and leaves many delicious things to eat!
7. Start with protein. When you eat a meal, always start with the protein. Studies have shown that a person who begins their meal with juice or bread first has significantly higher glucose levels than a person who begins a meal with protein.
8. Drink 1-2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar (raw, organic) in a small glass of water or half a lemon in water before meals. Both help lower blood glucose levels as well as stimulate the liver and support digestion.
9. Aim to consume 25 grams of fiber per day. Add 2 Tablespoons of fresh ground flax seeds or soaked chia seeds to your morning meal to help lower blood sugar levels for the rest of the day.
10. Bioidentical estrogen replacement. It doesn’t work for everyone for weight loss but it will help support and protect your body. Talk to your doctor if you want to try this.
Lastly, make friends with your new body. She might be a little softer and curvier but would it be so bad to lose a little bit of that edge that got you to this point? How can you implement some of the ideas above while being ever so kind to your sweet, badass self? You’ve got this!
In love and health,
Ajana Miki, ND, LAc