Premenopause and Menopause Weight Gain - What Is Important to Know

When women go through premenopause and menopause, they usually start putting extra weight particularly around their abdomen. This is mainly due to hormonal changes. In this article, I will review the causes of premenopause and menopause weight gain and what can be done about it.The relationship between menopause and weight gain has to do with the link between insulin, metabolism and fat. Most women follow a low- fat high carbohydrate diet with lots of highly processed foods such white bread, rice and pasta. In the long run, this diet can bring about a condition called insulin resistance. When you are insulin resistant, the body turns everything you eat into fat.
The answer then is to adopt the right diet. It doesn't mean that you should avoid all carbohydrates. You just have to stay away from the highly processed ones and load your diet with whole grains, fruits, vegetables and lean meats. It's also very important to include good fats such as the ones full with Omega 3 fatty acid. Omega 3 rich foods are found in olive oil and fish such as salmon, tuna and herrings. Good fats are generally not solid at room temperature. So now you know why margarine is not a good fat.
Good fats are important for 2 reasons:
1) they help in the production of your hormones and
2) they help the body not turn everything you eat into extra fat.
As we get older, it becomes important to detoxify the body on a regular basis. Our environment and foods are filled with toxins and additives that accumulate in the body. The accumulation of toxins can be a cause of hormonal imbalance also.
The second link between menopause and weight gain is stress. Stress hormone like cortisone is known to block weight loss. If you don't have the right diet on top of it, you create more hormonal imbalance in your body. That's why you not only have the weight gain but also the other menopause symptoms such as hot flashes and night sweats. Stress worsens all the symptoms. That's why you should do everything possible to avoid stress. There are many tools for de-stressing from aromatherapy to relaxing mind music.
Although menopause weight gain seems to be a natural consequence of this passage of life, the truth is that it doesn't have to be so. With the right diet and attention to manage and control stress, you can minimize the hormonal imbalance that usually comes with perimenopause and menopause.
To learn more and find help to fight the symptoms of premenopause and menopause such as weight gain and stress, download a free e-book at Help with Menopause.

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