Understanding Menopausal Weight Gain
Ask most woman over fifty about her battles with weight, and you are quite likely to hear a story of frustration regarding menopause and weight gain. Women often gain weight at this time in their life. Some of this weight gain is possibly linked to lifestyle changes, but lifestyle changes don't answer the question as to why we gain the weight in certain areas of the body, primarily the abdomen. When women gain weight at a younger age, it is more likely to go around the hips.
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The answer to the mystery stems from hormonal changes, although science has not yet fully discovered the connections. At menopause, as you know, a woman ceases ovulating and her menstrual cycle comes to an end. Her body produces lower levels of estrogen, the female hormone that determines the process of ovulation.
Animal studies have shown that low estrogen levels trigger weight gain, and undoubtedly the same process happens in humans. It is also the reason why our bodies change shape at menopause. Women of childbearing age store fat in the lower body but after menopause, the fat goes on the abdomen (similar to men). This leads to a higher risk of heart disease.
At the same time, people of both genders tend to lose muscle mass and increase the amount of body fat stored on their frame. This changing ratio of fat to muscle tends to slow the metabolism. Therefore, without an adjustment to eating habits, men and women are likely to experience a weight gain. Unfortunately, a person of sixty years of age requires fewer calories than a person twenty years younger.
Hormone therapy with estrogen is sometimes prescribed to control menopausal symptoms. Hormone therapy can cause bloating and water retention for the first while after commencing the therapy, but this is a short term effect. It does not indicate that fat has been gained. Hormonal therapy does not cause weight gain and it can lessen the risk of heart disease by preventing the body from storing fat around the abdomen and also by lowering cholesterol. However, hormone therapy has been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer and may not be advisable.
Anyone who is gaining weight at the time of menopause may want to try a more natural approach to addressing the problem. Here are some tips that will help:
- Eat a healthy, low fat diet with plenty of fiber, avoiding sugar.
- Get regular cardio exercise. As women age, the activity levels tend to drop. Work may be easier and less physically demanding. The children are teenagers and we no longer need to chase around after them all day. Holidays become less physically active as we switch from bicycling around the countryside to going on a cruise. Even half an hour of moderately intense physical activity each day will counteracts these changes.
- Maintain your muscle strength and mass. Use weights for arm muscles and walking or cycling for legs.
- Accept the changes to the shape of your body. If you are not overweight, but simply have a thicker waist and slimmer legs, you are okay.
Consult with your physician before starting any exercise program if you have any medical conditions or if your fitness levels are low. Your doctor can also help with symptoms of the menopause and weight gain.
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