Struggling with Menopause? This Diet Plan Changed Everything
- Evgeniya Zhukovskaya
- Jul 9
- 10 min read
Eight in ten women deal with difficult menopause symptoms. A healthy diet and lifestyle become especially important at this stage of your life.
Your body changes might feel out of your control if you are one of the many women going through this major life change.
Many women's bodies react to menopause with extra weight. The scale typically shows a 1.5 kg increase each year during perimenopause. By the time menopause arrives, women gain about 10 kg on average. The good news? Your diet and lifestyle choices can help.
Research shows that eating more whole grains, fruits and vegetables while cutting back on fats reduces hot flushes. This works even better when you lose a bit of weight. A balanced menopause diet doesn't just help with today's symptoms. It also protects you from health risks that come with hormone changes, like cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and osteoporosis.
Understanding Menopause and Its Impact
Menopause marks a natural biological change that happens between ages 45 and 55. This transition signals the end of a woman's reproductive years and takes place over several years.
What happens to hormones during menopause
Your body goes through major hormonal changes during menopause. The process begins when your ovaries no longer produce high levels of reproductive hormones. Your ovaries start making less oestrogen and progesterone - these hormones control your menstrual cycle.
The time before menopause, called perimenopause, brings noticeable changes in hormone levels. Your periods become irregular. They might be shorter, longer, heavier, or lighter than before. These changes continue until your periods stop completely.
The loss of ovarian follicular function drives most menopausal symptoms. Lower blood oestrogen levels create various changes in your body. Oestrogen does more than control reproduction - it helps your body use calcium and maintain healthy cholesterol levels.
Common symptoms and how they affect daily life
Every woman experiences menopause differently. Some notice few changes, while others face severe symptoms that affect their daily life. About 75% of women deal with hot flashes - the most common sign of menopause.
These hormonal shifts can affect your life in several ways:
Physical well-being: Hot flushes and night sweats can wreck your sleep. Many women wake up throughout the night because of low progesterone. Two-thirds of women in perimenopause say they have trouble with memory and focus. Bladder control becomes an issue, and some women find it hard to hold their urine.
Emotional health: Mood swings range from mild to intense during this time. Women face higher risks of depression and anxiety during the change, but these usually improve after menopause. Your body's hormonal changes cause these emotional symptoms that can turn your life upside down.
Daily functioning: Menopause can shake up your relationships, social life, family, and work. Hot flashes might surprise you during meetings. Night sweats leave you tired the next day. Mood changes can strain your relationships.
Long-term health: Your bones lose density faster, leading to more cases of osteoporosis and fractures. A good menopause nutrition plan should give you enough calcium and vitamin D.
These changes often start before your periods stop and last several years. Most women deal with symptoms for about seven years. Some might experience them for up to 14 years after menopause.
Early support helps reduce menopause's effect on your health, relationships, and work. Understanding these changes helps you create a diet plan that eases current symptoms and protects your future health.
Why Diet Matters More Than Ever
Your food choices become more significant during menopause - not just to manage symptoms but to protect your health. The drop in oestrogen levels that marks menopause creates basic changes in your metabolism and body composition. These changes make your dietary choices more meaningful than before.
The role of oestrogen in metabolism and health
Oestrogen does more than regulate reproduction - it powers your metabolism and influences how your body uses energy. Your reproductive years see oestrogen regulating basal metabolism, controlling food intake, and maintaining insulin sensitivity. This hormone increases gluconeogenesis in the liver (having an opposite effect to insulin) and improves glucose uptake in skeletal muscles.
Oestrogen determines where your body stores fat. Women with normal oestrogen levels typically store fat under the skin around their hips and thighs - creating the classic "pear shape". The body starts storing more visceral fat around the abdomen and organs as oestrogen drops.
This visceral fat isn't just different in appearance - it actively affects metabolism and leads to more inflammation and health risks.
Your basal metabolism can drop by up to 250-300 kcal daily as oestrogen levels decrease. This slower metabolism can add about 2 kg yearly without diet changes. Women gain about 6.8 kg on average by menopause, regardless of their initial size or ethnicity.
How food choices influence symptoms
What you eat directly affects how strongly you experience menopausal symptoms. Research shows that eating more wholegrains, fruits, and vegetables while cutting back on fat can reduce hot flushes. These effects become stronger with weight loss.
Some foods can trigger or worsen hot flushes. Research points to:
Caffeine and alcohol
Spicy foods
High-sugar processed foods
Very hot foods and drinks
A balanced whole-food diet helps manage symptoms and weight. Women who eat plenty of fruits and vegetables report fewer menopausal symptoms. Proper hydration matters even more because thirst signals often decrease during menopause.
The link between diet and long-term health risks
A carefully selected menopause diet plan can have an impact on your future health risks. Post-menopausal women face higher risks of:
Cardiovascular disease - following a healthy diet can reduce cardiovascular death risk by 14-28%
Osteoporosis - 50% of women over 50 will suffer a fracture due to poor bone health
Type 2 diabetes - insulin resistance rises as oestrogen falls
Weight gain - 55% of women gain weight around their abdomen
The Mediterranean diet stands out as especially helpful. This diet features plenty of vegetables, fruits, wholegrains, seafood, nuts, seeds, and pulses, with some dairy and healthy fats like olive oil. It helps with weight control, blood sugar management, and lowers heart disease risk.
The right nutrition during menopause does more than ease symptoms - it helps offset the basic metabolic changes in your body. Smart food choices can help you manage hot flushes while reducing your risk of serious health conditions that become common after menopause.
The Diet Plan That Can Change Everything
Small adjustments instead of major changes work much better during menopause.
1. Focus on whole foods and fibre
A good menopause diet plan starts with whole, unprocessed foods. Studies show that eating more wholegrains, fruits, and vegetables while cutting down on fat can help reduce hot flushes. The Mediterranean-style diet works really well, with its focus on vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, seafood, nuts, seeds and pulses.
Your menopause eating plan needs plenty of fibre. Adults should eat at least 25 grams of fibre daily, but most women don't reach this goal. Foods rich in fibre help your digestion, keep blood sugar steady, and make you feel full longer. This helps manage weight during menopause.
2. Include calcium and vitamin D daily
Your bones need extra protection during menopause because less oestrogen means higher risk of osteoporosis. You should eat 2-3 servings of calcium-rich foods every day. One serving could be a small pot of yoghurt, cheese the size of a matchbox, or 1/3 pint of milk.
Vitamin D plays a crucial role in helping your body absorb calcium. The daily recommended amount is 10 micrograms (400 IU). Many women need supplements in autumn and winter when there's less sunlight.
3. Add plant-based proteins and phytoestrogens
Plant-based proteins should be a key part of your menopause diet plan. Legumes like chickpeas, lentils, and beans give you protein and boost your weekly fibre intake.
Phytoestrogens—plant compounds like human oestrogen—might help with menopausal symptoms. You can find these in soya products, flaxseeds, and legumes.
Research shows mixed but promising results for reducing hot flushes. These foods work best when you keep having them for at least 2-3 months as part of a balanced diet.
4. Limit caffeine, alcohol, and spicy foods
Some foods make menopausal symptoms worse. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, alcohol, and spicy foods can increase hot flushes and night sweats. On top of that, processed foods with high sodium or added sugars can cause water retention and bloating. Try decaf drinks, herbal teas, and mild seasonings like cumin, curry, turmeric, and basil instead.
5. Eat healthy fats like omega-3s
Healthy fats, especially omega-3s, are great during menopause. Research links higher omega-3 levels to better health in postmenopausal women. These fats reduce inflammation, protect heart health, and might improve mood and brain function.
Good sources include fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, and sardines, plus plant options like flaxseed, chia seeds, and walnuts.
If your symptoms persist, book a free 30 min call with a nutrition specialist to see if supplementation might help alongside diet changes.
6. Stay hydrated and eat at regular times
Your body needs more water during menopause because it doesn't retain moisture as well. Try to drink 6-8 glasses daily. Dehydration can trigger hot flushes by affecting your body's temperature control.
Drink water throughout the day, even without feeling thirsty, since age reduces thirst signals. Starting your day with water helps replace overnight losses and boosts metabolism. Regular meal times help to keep blood sugar stable and support hormone balance.
Managing Weight and Body Changes
Weight gain affects over half of all women in perimenopause. Most women gain about 1.5 kg yearly. This change goes beyond mere frustration - your body's composition undergoes a fundamental transformation that needs special attention.
Why weight gain happens during menopause
Hormone replacement therapy doesn't cause weight gain, despite what many believe. Hormonal changes and ageing are the actual causes. Your body stores more visceral fat around your abdomen as oestrogen levels drop.
Your metabolism slows down significantly because muscle mass decreases. This decline starts around age 30, dropping 3-8% every decade, then speeds up to 5-10% per decade after 50. Your body burns fewer calories while resting with reduced muscle mass, which makes maintaining weight nowhere near as easy.
Combining diet with resistance training
Diet changes combined with exercise work better than either method alone. The best results come from creating a daily 300-500 calorie deficit while staying physically active.
Muscle-strengthening exercises 2-3 times per week will help maintain lean muscle, improve metabolism, and protect bone density. These exercises work better than intensive cardio, which might increase stress hormones. Basic moves like squats, bicep curls and resistance bands deliver excellent results.
Avoiding crash diets and common mistakes
Crash diets usually fail during menopause. Very low-calorie diets, juice fasts, and extreme approaches reduce muscle instead of fat. Your metabolism slows down even more when you lose muscle, since it burns more calories than fat.
Cutting out carbohydrates completely doesn't help, especially with increased physical activity.
Your body needs carbs as exercise fuel—without them, muscle loss increases.
Those methods that worked in your 20s and 30s might not give you the same results now. The key lies in building sustainable eating patterns rather than obsessing over calories. Regular mealtimes, consistent portions, and balanced food groups help manage weight effectively during this transition.
Supplements and Foods to Consider
Supplements play a vital role in your menopause nutrition strategy. The right supplements can help manage symptoms and support your long-term health when used correctly, alongside dietary changes.
When to consider vitamin D or calcium supplements
The UK government suggests a daily intake of 10 micrograms of vitamin D, especially during autumn and winter when we get less sunlight. Adults aged 19-64 need about 700mg of calcium daily. Your diet should be the primary source of calcium rather than supplements.
Research shows mixed results for calcium and vitamin D supplementation. These supplements can boost total-hip bone mineral density by 1% compared to placebo. However, high doses might increase your risk of kidney stones - studies show 1 in 273 women developed stones over 7 years. Talk to your healthcare provider about supplementation, especially if you have risk factors for osteoporosis.
The truth about soy and phytoestrogens
Plant compounds called phytoestrogens have sparked both excitement and uncertainty. Soy foods rich in isoflavones help about one-third of women with their menopausal symptoms. The results vary because only 20-30% of Western women produce S(-) equol, the active metabolite, while 50-60% of Asian women can produce it.
Whole soy foods are safer than isolated supplements. You might want to add tofu, tempeh, or calcium-enriched soy milk to your meals for 3-4 weeks. This will help you know if you're someone who benefits from soy.
Probiotics and gut health during menopause
Your gut microbiome loses diversity during menopause. This change can affect hormone regulation and mood. Lactobacillus strains of probiotics might protect against bone loss from low oestrogen levels and improve bone mineral density in your lumbar spine.
Probiotics support gut health by:
Enhancing intestinal barrier function
Producing anti-inflammatory compounds
Regulating immune responses
Start with fermented foods like yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, and kimchi before trying supplements. These foods provide beneficial bacteria and extra nutrients that support your menopausal health.
Conclusion
Dietary changes are one of the best ways to ease through menopause naturally. Your food and lifestyle choices become more important than ever as your metabolism and hormonal balance change.
Menopause brings its share of challenges. But with the right nutritional knowledge, you can direct yourself through this important life stage more comfortably and confidently. Your menopause experience is unique to you, but proper nutrition gives you powerful tools to handle symptoms well and protect your long-term health and wellbeing.
FAQs
Q1. What dietary changes can help manage menopause symptoms?
Focus on whole foods rich in fibre, including plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Include calcium-rich foods, healthy fats like omega-3s, and plant-based proteins. Limit caffeine, alcohol, and spicy foods, as these can trigger hot flushes.
Q2. How can I maintain a healthy weight during menopause?
Combine a balanced diet with regular exercise, particularly resistance training. Aim for a modest calorie deficit of about 500 calories per day. Avoid crash diets, as these can lead to muscle loss and further slow your metabolism.
Q3. Are supplements necessary during menopause?
While a balanced diet is ideal, some women may benefit from supplementation, especially during autumn and winter. Discuss with a nutrition professional whether supplements are necessary based on your individual risk factors.
Q4. Can soy foods help with menopausal symptoms?
Soy foods, rich in phytoestrogens, may help relieve symptoms in about one-third of women. Try incorporating whole soy foods like tofu, tempeh, or calcium-enriched soy milk into your diet for a few weeks to see if you notice any benefits.
Q5. Why is hydration important during menopause?
Proper hydration becomes crucial during menopause as the body naturally retains less moisture. Aim for 6-8 glasses of water daily. Staying well-hydrated can help regulate body temperature and potentially reduce the frequency and intensity of hot flushes.
References
[16] - https://www.drlouisenewson.co.uk/knowledge/how-to-keep-hydrated-during-perimenopause-and-menopause
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