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Zen menopause: The calm, cool change
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Yes, it is possible to take charge of "the change" and have a symptom- and stress-free menopause.
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By Ylva Van Buuren
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It's the middle of the night and you've just woken up for the third time -- sweltering hot and dripping with sweat. As you sigh and pull out yet another fresh set of sheets, the air conditioner hums accusingly in the corner. The problem is not the weather. Your intense heat comes from inside: it's a hot flash, also called a night sweat. And the more you worry about them, the more severe they seem to get. You're at the end of your rope.
Fortunately, there's help at hand. A few simple lifestyle changes -- a pared-down commitment schedule, a yoga class or two, subbing herbal teas for those cuppa joes -- and you could regain your cool. Not every woman has to ask her doctor about hormone therapy.
Perimenopause
Of course, we've all heard the debate about using hormones to treat symptoms of menopause (which is when a woman stops having her period, most often in her early 50s). Perimenopause, which is your body's two- to eight-year transition to menopause, can be a problematic time, too. Perimenopause is when the supply and quality of eggs in the ovaries are declining, your reproductive hormone estrogen is increasing and your other reproductive hormone, progesterone, which normally counterbalances estrogen in the body, is declining, explains Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior, a professor of medicine and endocrinology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and a major researcher in this area.
You may or may not notice symptoms, but 10 to 20 per cent of women in perimenopause experience disruptive symptoms such as severe hot flashes, weight gain, sore breasts, heavy menstrual flow, mood swings, depression, insomnia, vaginal dryness, frequent headaches and migraines.
What you can do
But healthy lifestyle habits can help diminish and even prevent some perimenopause symptoms. Dr. Caroline Huh, an obstetrician-gynecologist and certified menopause practitioner at the Menopause Health Clinic in Toronto, says the keys are knowledge, a positive attitude and a willingness to explore treatment options. And, regardless of age, any time is a good time to start making changes. "Women who have a positive body image and perception of their own health," she says, "tend to have an easier time with some symptoms."
Weight
Studies show that women who are closer to -- or at -- their ideal weight in perimenopause will have fewer hot flashes than women who are overweight, says Huh. While doctors don't know exactly why this occurs, Huh suggests excess fat acts as insulation, making it harder to cool down the body.
Losing weight, if you need to, may also help if perimenopause is causing sore breasts, says Prior.
Talk to a health professional about your healthy weight goals because as menopause approaches, your basal metabolic rate naturally begins to decrease and you'll burn fewer calories as a result, which can set you up for easier weight gain.
Diet
Women who have big swings in blood sugar because they're not eating healthfully have more hot flashes than women who stay away from foods high in refined sugar and eat a more balanced diet, says Prior, who is also the founder of the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research and author of Estrogen's Storm Season: Stories of Perimenopause (Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research, 2005).
A healthy balanced diet -- three meals a day with an emphasis on fresh foods and lightly cooked foods -- is also a top recommendation from Dr. Xiaolan Zhao, a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine in Toronto and author of Reflections of the Moon on Water (Random House, 2006). This supports all the body's organs in balance, says Zhao, which will also help you reduce headaches and achieve your weight-loss goals.
Here are other ways diet can help reduce symptoms
- Cut out refined sugar altogether. It encourages the growth of yeast in the digestive tract, says Patricia Wales, a naturopathic doctor at the Acadia Wellness Clinic in Calgary. "This affects the body's ability to get rid of excess estrogen."
- Add soy foods. Studies have shown that populations with a higher soybean intake have less severe symptoms, possibly due to nutrients in these foods called phytoestrogens, which may help balance levels of estrogen in the body.
- Support your adrenal glands (which help you cope with stress) with B vitamins, vitamin C and zinc (in food or through supplements), as well as Siberian ginseng and rhodiola (both herbal remedies). Talk to a holistic practitioner about how much you should take.
- Limit hot fluids, spicy foods and caffeine, which can increase core temperature, advises the Mayo Clinic. Drink six to eight glasses of cool water daily, adds Zhao, to help keep cool.
- Decreasing caffeine (coffee, colas, chocolate and tea) also helps to avoid sore breasts, says Prior.
- Avoid excess alcohol -- it disrupts sleep, exacerbates hot flashes and can cause headaches.
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