Menopause and Weight Gain
- Is it
inevitable or can it be prevented?
Stop the Middle Age Spread!
 Menopause
occurs when a woman stops ovulating and her monthly period (menstruation)
ceases. Menopause actually means the last menstrual period. The average
age of the natural menopause is 51 years, but can occur much earlier or
later. Menopause that occurs before the age of 45 is called early
menopause and before the age of 40 is premature menopause.
After menopause and over a span of years (usually 10 or more), you may also
see changes in your skin, such as increased dryness and wrinkling, and a
change in hair texture. The vagina’s lining may become thinner, less
pliable and drier. Your breasts lose some of their fullness, and your nipples become less pronounced.
Bone loss also rapidly speeds up in women at menopause (even though bone loss is a natural part of aging).
At this stage, women may become more susceptible to osteoporosis.
Remember, menopause is a highly individual experience;
therefore, every women must approach it differently. You may recognize
many of the changes described when menopause takes hold, or you may not
experience any at all. It’s always a good idea, when experiencing these
symptoms, to consult your health care provider.
Weight
Gain:
At this
time, most women (around 2/3 of women) experience weight gain or difficulty maintaining their
usual weight. Most women will gain about
10 to 15 pounds during their menopausal years. You also discover that the weight gain tends to accumulate
around the abdomen, rather than the hips and thighs as before menopause.
People commonly refer to this as an
"apple" shape, because the stomach area becomes rounder. An extra pound before menopause will settle evenly over hips, bottom,
thighs, and arms. After menopause, it all goes round the middle!
Most of this weight will come on gradually
– generally about a pound a year.
As you enter the early stages of
menopause, maintaining weight becomes more and more difficult, and
losing weight becomes almost impossible. This is because of the
fluctuation in your hormones. Your
body’s hormones have a direct impact on your appetite, metabolism, and
fat storage. At this stage, women develop "insulin resistance"
making their bodies store fat,
rather than burn calories. This "insulin resistance" changes how our
bodies handle the foods we eat. For example, if you ate 1,000 calories
before menopause, you would burn 700 of them and store around 300. After
menopause, your body will store 700 and burn only 300! This is a big
difference, and the result is weight gain! Even a modest weight gain can
result in a change of dress size.
Excessive
weight gain could also be a sign that
something is wrong with your hormone levels, blood sugars, or eating
habits. Visit your doctor if your weight gain is out of control.
Excessive fat stored around the abdomen can lead to an increased risk
for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, breast cancer, and
high cholesterol.
The daily changes you make now
can yield important benefits for decades to come.
Here are a few tips to help you:
-
Reduce calories. Menopausal women need fewer
calories to maintain former body weight.
It
may be necessary to cut calorie intake by 10 to 15 percent
while at the same time increasing level of activity or exercise.
If women don't reduce their calorie intake, they are over
eating. Calories needs are the highest during the mid-20s. The daily calorie needs, as
women age, then reduce at about 2% to 4% for every 10 years added.
Eat a balanced diet. Avoid refined sugars and indulge in fruits and
vegetables. Choose foods low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.
Fat intake should be less than 30 percent of daily calorie intake.
Women of all ages should consume 20 to 30 grams of fiber daily.
Check out my
Food Nutritional Value
Chart
and
Diet Recipe Index.
-
Portion Control. Eat slowly and practice
portion control - this does not mean you have to eliminate your
favorite foods. Just eat smaller quantities. Check out
Making Sense of Portion Sizes - Portion Control
Secrets.
-
Avoid crash or fad diets. Starvation will
only cause your metabolism to slow down, causing you to gain more
weight later on. Fad diets simply don’t work — over 95% of dieters
gain back the weight they lose and more.
-
Maintain adequate intake of water: So many
of the bodily functions rely on the body being adequately hydrated.
Drinking 8 to 10 glasses daily is ideal. New studies say that you
can drink tea and coffee as part of your daily water requirements. A
couple of cups a day are fine as part of your water intake. We are
talking about black coffee, not coffee house drinks. Learn about
Coffee Drink Calories.
-
Don’t lose large amounts of weight.
There is a balance between being too thin and just right. Being
very thin can lead to an increased chance of developing
osteoporosis.
Determine Your Body Mass Index (BMI).
-
Increase your physical activity. Exercise
becomes particularly important as a woman ages. Regular exercise
benefits the heart and bones, helps regulate weight, and can be a
mood enhancer, creating a better sense of well-being. Women who are
physically inactive are more likely to suffer from coronary heart
disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and osteoporosis.
Weight loss still requires that you burn more calories each day than
you take in. Do aerobics to increase your metabolism and burn
fat. Do weight bearing activities such as walking and cycling to
increase muscle mass and ward off osteoporosis. When women
diet to lose weight after menopause, they will not be able to continue
to lose weight unless exercise is added to the daily routine. Exercise
prevents the decrease in metabolism that occurs when women diet without
exercising. But, you must exercise consistently, preferably daily. Start
with 5 minutes of walking each day and work to gradually increase the
duration of whatever exercise you are doing. Work to increase your
exercise time to 30 minutes daily. Check out
What About Exercise?
Calories Burned Per Minute of Exercise By Weight.
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