Can Gut Health affect Menopause?
Over the last few years the importance of good gut health has become more mainstream.
Last year I did a whole series on the importance of gut health, you can read these HERE.
Further emerging research shows the importance of our gut health when it comes to BALANCING HORMONES, especially Estrogen.
Estrobolome is a collection of bacteria in the gut which is capable of metabolising and modulating the bodies circulation of estrogen.
What is the Microbiome – a quick recap
The microbiome is essential for human development, immunity and nutrition.
The bacteria living in and on us are not invaders but beneficial colonizers. The more healthy bacteria we have the better our defence from disease.
Symptoms of poor Gut Health
There are many contributing factors to poor gut health such as stress, poor sleep habits, a diet high in processed sugar and foods. Some symptoms are:
- Upset Stomach
- Gas
- Bloating/Heartburn
- Constipation/Diarrhoea
- Sleep disturbances/Fatigue
- Skin irritation
- Food intolerances
You will notice this list of symptoms has similarities with the 34 symptoms of menopause.
It therefore makes sense if we are going to tackle the uncomfortable and often debilitating symptoms of menopause, we should look at ways to make our gut as healthy as possible.
Prebiotics for Gut Health
One of the biggest killers of our microbiome is antibiotics. They not only destroy bad bacteria but the good as well.
If you have recently completed a course of antibiotics, the best thing you can do for your health is re-populate your healthy bacteria with probiotic foods and supplements and then FEED them with prebiotics.
Prebiotic foods include:
- Underripe banana’s
- Apples
- Oats
- Blueberries
- Onions/Garlic
- Soybean
- Jerusalem Artichoke
- Asparagus
Eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and incorporating a variety of colours will help ensure a diverse variety of fibre and nutrients to feed the microbiome.
Probiotics for Gut Health
Once we have a nice little colony growing and being fed well, adding a probiotic supplement or increasing foods such as Kefir, Kimchi, Kombucha and Sauerkraut in our diet help the healthy bacteria increase.
Menopause and Gut Health
As you can see from the foods recommended for gut health, a plant based diet in extremely beneficial.
This doesn’t mean you need to become a vegetarian or vegan but if you do eat meat (as I do) try and select the best quality meat you can, organic if possible, to ensure what you are consuming is hormone-free.
Opt for lean meats such as poultry and select oily fish as a good source of healthy fat. A great plant based source of omega 3 is flaxseed.
You have probably noticed that foods which support your gut health also support symptoms of menopause, see last weeks blog post, Balancing your Hormones, Naturally, for more information on the benefit of Phytoestrogens in your diet from ingredients such as flaxseeds, soybeans, chickpeas and beans, all of which are high in fibre.
The balancing act
We walk a very fine line, daily and with our monthly cycles to balance our diet, emotions and physical activity.
Learning to listen to your body, honour what it needs, eat intuitively and make time for self care is the way forward for better health, more vitality and overcoming challenges as they arise.
This can be alien to many women who have been swept up in the modern world of being busy. Constantly being bombarded with the latest diet trends and fads in the media. There is so much conflicting information out there. Add to that diet culture is getting sneaky using terms like ‘healthy’, ‘lifestyle’, and ‘wellness’ to wrap their ‘diets’ up in.
If you would like to talk further about any of the points I have raised today or how you can take control of your lifestyle I would love to chat, follow this link to make a convenient time for a virtual cuppa and chat.
For more support, download my Hormone Balancing Snacks for Menopause.
Next week….. Adaptogens, Hero Herbs to support Menopause.