SPEAKER_00 0:12

Welcome back to Empower Your Menopause. It's coaches James Elliott and Julie Medeta here from the team behind Fabulous Beyond 40. And today we're going to talk about a plateful of insights that's going to nourish both your body and mind as we dive into the world of nutrition during the menopause. So if you've ever wondered how to navigate the wild ride of hormonal change with the right foods on your side, today you're in exactly the right place. We're going to talk about why nutrition is crucial at this time of life, how to balance your blood sugar, and which nutrients you absolutely don't want to miss out on. Plus, we're going to be sharing some practical tips to help you eat well without sacrificing flavour or your sanity. So whether you're sipping on a green smoothie or sneaking a piece of dark chocolate, sit back, relax, and let's get started on our journey to feeling fabulous through food. So, Julie. Let's pick those apart one by one then. But before we start doing that, why don't you tell us a little bit about your experience and your journey? Because you obviously went through a transformation journey at the time of menopause. What did you add nutritionally and what worked for you?

SPEAKER_01 1:28

Well, there are there are a lot of things there. Um, first of all, I was a serial dieter. Um, probably one of those people who fit the statistic of adult women who try at least 126 different diets in their lifetime. Staggering. Um I'm pretty sure I kept up the average for more than myself. Everything from cabbage soup to very weird black scoop and supplements. And of course, none of those things worked. Um when I finally got real with myself and stopped that, you know, that definition of insanity is trying the same things over and over and expecting different results. Um so I I worked with a coach, which was a big step forward. And then we started taking apart um my first of all my relationship with food because that was really a key player in how I approached my nutrition. I am a firm believer that we only take care of things that we love, and if we don't feel good in our own skin, it's harder to take care of ourselves in in a an appropriate way. And then starting to realize that my nutritional needs are different than someone else's. So following these one size fits all prescriptions was really holding me back from letting my body do what it needed to do to shed the weight that it didn't need or want anymore. And of course, you know, throughout all of that hormonal roller coaster period, there were lots of experiments, some were successful, some weren't. Um, patience was the biggest ingredient that helped me through. And uh curiosity. And when I started focusing mostly on whole foods, um, in the right amounts for me, and then paying attention to how my body responded to foods that I was eating. So certain foods make me not feel good, even though in theory they're technically healthy, um, and really tuning into what my body was saying. Lots more fresh vegetables and greens and um plenty of protein. I think protein was the biggest surprise for me because I thought I was eating really well. I'm a nutritionist and have been for a long time, since well before the transition started for me. But when I actually took a look and started measuring how much protein I was eating in a day, it was shockingly low for what my body needed. And when I increased my protein intake, everything changed from cravings to energy to hormone spikes to a lot of different things. And again, that's my story, but not necessarily the same for everybody else. And of course, occasional supplements because there are certain things that we just need a little more of here and there.

SPEAKER_00 4:12

Sure. One of the things that we talk about with our clients is a a main starting point when it comes to nutrition is this concept of balancing blood sugars and trying not to have these huge spikes and these huge dips in our blood sugar levels. In your opinion, why is that an important step for people to take?

SPEAKER_01 4:40

Well, I I hear a lot of women especially we turn to sugar and alcohol as our comfort foods typically. But it's it's really important because blood sugar balance is super key in how we store fats. Um, and then when you add stress on top of that, because that's one of our favorite topics to discuss every time we bring up women in in this phase of life. But the when cortisol is already spiking and and your sex hormones are all over the place, and then you start looking at insulin levels not being properly balanced, we can create insulin resistance, we can um change the way we store fat, um, we can lead to some health implications um that are pretty serious from that. And I think all of those things create the perfect storm for in increasing the experience of the different menopause symptoms that we may have. So when we look at reducing um those fluctuations and and really focusing in on what we're eating to help do that, I think that that's a great starting point. I think it's it's critical for most people because they don't realize how much they're fluctuating.

SPEAKER_00 5:57

Sure. Um I think for those people who don't know, it's probably worth just explaining a little bit about what insulin is. And if you've never heard of that before, it's uh in fact, you probably have heard of it, but if you will have heard of it, you might have heard about it from a friend who might be type 1 or type 2 diabetic. Insulin is a hormone that helps us basically shift uh broken down sugars in our bloods either for use as energy or shifting them into storage. And when your body becomes insulin resistant, if you're having too much sugar in your or or too many refined carbohydrate carbohydrates in your in your diet, then what's happening is your body's becoming resistant to that insulin because there's too much of it there all the time, it's spiked all the time, and then your body doesn't recognize what to do appropriately with those blood sugars anymore, and that can lead to weight gain, metabolic syndrome, and further complications down the line. I think one of the things that is always key for me in the blood sugar and insulin discussion is the fact that the symptoms of irregular blood sugar management really reflect those symptoms of perimenopause to a point many of them do anyway. So things like feeling jittery, feeling anxious, feeling sluggish, having energy levels that aren't inappropriate to what you what you've eaten or what they should be at that time of day. And then obviously, oestrogen plays a role in blood sugar management as well, and women tend to become more prone to being insulin resistant, which is one of the challenges of having irregular blood sugars, the older they get, too. So, once again, we're looking at this multifaceted area where all our hormonal symptoms and systems are actually layering on top of each other and adding added levels of complexity, some of which will exacerbate some of those symptoms that are already there. So it's really crucial to get it under control, really, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 8:04

Yeah, for sure. And I and I think, you know, to your point, we as we said before about different menopause symptoms, it's easy to mistake them for other things. And when you when you add in this blood sugar balance issue um alongside of menopause, it be it it's hard to separate them to understand which which is which. And something else that we we haven't really talked about yet, but talking about blood sugar balance that I think is important to note because um we've talked about this in some of our workshops about snacking in between meals because we don't understand when we're looking at how to eat, and we'll get into this in more detail in a little bit, but when we're looking at how to eat, do you have five to seven meals a day? Do you have three meals and snacks? Do you have you know two meals and intermittent fasts, like all of those things? But can you go into a little bit about that rise and fall of insulin and why it's important?

SPEAKER_00 9:04

Sure. So when I first started out in personal training, and you know, when you do it when you do a personal training course, you do you you scrape a little bit around nutrition, so you do some bit really, really basic nutrition, and the big trend 10-15 years ago was to graze rather than gorge, so to eat lots and lots of small amounts over the course of the day in an effort to try and stop these big peaks and troughs in blood sugar management. You've got two insulins that are actually at play here, two sorry, hormones that are at play here. One is insulin, which is the one that shifts excess blood sugar that we don't need for our energy needs at that point into storage in either fat or muscles, and then you've got another one that is called glucagon, glucose from glucose. When those glucose levels drop in our blood sugar, that shifts that stored energy back into our bloodstream. Now, one of the challenges here when it comes to the idea of grazing throughout the day is that yes, that will keep some kind of stability in your blood sugar levels, but it keeps a stability that tends to be with insulin being high all the time. So we're constantly pumping stuff back into storage, back into the muscles, back into fat cells, but we're never letting glucagon come into play, we're never letting that other hormone come into play that brings the stored energy back out. And what one of the challenges that that can happen there is that because you've got this persistently high, slightly elevated levels of insulin and blood sugar throughout the day, you're not only becoming resistant to the to the insulin, but you're also steadily just putting on more and more. You're encouraging more and more this storage of the blood sugars. And so it can be a real real challenge, and what we'd advise, particularly given that insulin resistance and blood sugar management is such a such a challenge for women over 40, is to maybe start off by trying to look at going back to old school thinking, which was actually three meals a day or two meals a day, whereby you're giving your body the chance to actually recognize things like hunger signals, you're giving your body chance for that other hormone, glucagon, to come back into play and release some of that stored energy. So your body's working in a way in which it was. If you go back to you know tens of thousands of years of human evolution, people didn't have a snack cupboard that they could just walk up to and grab an apple, you know, however healthy it may be, there wasn't yogurt pots in the fridge on tap, there wasn't a big bowl of fruit there all the time, there wasn't uh you know deli meats there, so even if you're even if your diet is is amazing, we aren't really designed as human beings to to eat constantly, and so going back to that sort of like more old school thinking of giving yourself three big meals a day, which is allowing that insulin to rise gently through adding in things like whole foods uh uh and eating as naturally as possible, letting your insulin levels rise slightly, but then allowing yourself that time so your hunger mechanisms can come into play, both from a psychological point of view and a physiological one, and allowing glucagon to do its job as well. So you so when we're talking about hormonal balance, and we know that hormonal balance is something that nobody can actually promise, our hormones tend to balance each other because they actually counteract and work together, and we talk about this in a lot of our webinars and the things that we talk about that hormones need to play nicely together, and if they aren't playing nicely together, then the cascade effect of that can go right along the whole endocrine system, so affecting all your other hormones as well. So I think it's really really important this idea of uh blood sugar, insulin balance. Some thoughts on things that people can do aside from that three meals a day. Well, high protein certainly helps with with insulin resistance, blood sugar balance, but blood sugar levels. That higher protein also, and we'll talk probably more about protein in a second, but that higher protein also helps keep you fuller for longer as well. And then obviously the things that we want to minimize or avoid things like sugary snacks, refined carbs, processed foods, they're all things that can play havoc with our blood sugar levels by making them spike to inordinary levels. So I think although we talk a lot about working out an individualized approach for each each person, because we do all react differently. There'll be some women out there thinking to themselves, well, I've eaten three meals a day before and stacked on weight, and now I graze, I don't put on weight, and that's fine if that works for you, but as a starting point, we would certainly advise three meals a day, I think.

SPEAKER_01 14:40

Well, and it depends on what's included in those meals. I was just speaking with someone today, and um, she was talking about how hungry she is by dinner time. So I was asking about what is lunch, and lunch tends to be very carbohydrate-focused, sometimes processed foods, and even that mid-afternoon snack is something that's sugar-based or processed carbohydrate-based. So, of course, she's going to be starving by the time she gets home for dinner. Um, so so looking at the the content of your meals is also going to be important. So I would say even if you've tried something before, the fact that your body has changed means that you might be able to go back and try it again and try it in in a way that works with your body and see if it works for you. Be curious because there's there's no one right answer for for everyone.

SPEAKER_00 15:38

Yeah. And I suppose the other thing to talk about when it comes to insulin management and blood sugar levels is that concept of how we that we've talked talked about before again. Stress, our good old friend, always comes into perimenopause, menopause symptoms somewhere along along the the lines. And if you're one of those people, again, however healthy your meal may appear to be, however great it looks on the plate, if you're eating when you're stressed, not only is your body uh not paying the not geared up to digest that great food, so you're not getting the best out of it, but that can also have an effect on blood sugar levels as well. So stress doesn't have to be by the way, you know, I've got financial concerns, or I'm going out of my mind, I'm worried about the kids, or whatever. Stress can just come from something as simple as answering a crappy email from your boss while you're trying to eat lunch at your desk and do six other things as well. So just taking that time out to just chill out, I think, is really really super important for blood sugar management, too. And I think it's always worth saying, you know, if you can do no other self-care across the course of the day, taking 10 big deep belly breaths before you have a meal and taking away distractions can work wonders for how working out whether you're hungry or not, for your digestion, you know, allows your body to to kick into gear and get those rest and digest systems moving. So I think that's really really important when it when it comes to this. Shall we talk a little bit about key nutrients? Then we've mentioned protein, skirted around it a little bit. Let's dive into protein. What are your thoughts on protein for women at this stage in life?

SPEAKER_01 17:35

Well, the the biggest thing is that as we age, we don't process protein as efficiently um as we did, and as effectively as we did when we were younger. Um our bodies are changing, our digestion is changing, our home hormones are changing, a lot of things are changing. But protein is so critical for every function in your body, from the structure of your muscles to the function of your brain to the levels of hormones, and and I can say from personal experience, when I finally upped my protein intake, my cravings went away, my mood swings went away, my energy stayed so much more level, and I was able to exercise better. Um, I saw more muscle definition from my workouts because we need in order to build the muscle, we need to stay strong at this phase of life. We need to have the protein in order to feed the muscular structure that that it's building from. So um I think protein is is essential. And the research shows that most people don't get nearly enough. Half of what we are supposed to get or less, and those recommendations are based on bare minimums to avoid disease, by the way, not optimal health or vibrant health. So when you look at those RDAs or the you know the recommended daily allowances, um, take them with a grain of uh unprocessed sea salt, and uh and bear in mind that that's that's what they're for. So you probably need a little bit more than some of what the standard recommendations are. I believe it's 1.2 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, is the standard recommendation if my memory is working well today.

SPEAKER_00 19:28

Yeah, yeah. That that that sounds about right. What does that look like on a plate? I'm never an advocate for getting people to sit and weigh food out and all that. I think it is just such a an absolute pain in the backside to to do that. So from a if I was just trying to eyeball it, as a if I was a woman over 40, what kind of things would I be looking at, Julie?

SPEAKER_01 19:58

The great thing is that you can you can figure out what your needs are. Um you've got a perfect measuring tool attached to your body all the time. It's uh configured for your body, um, proportion for your body's needs. And that would be if you look at the palm of your hand, the width and thickness of the palm of your hand minus your fingers, that would be about one serving of protein for your body. So that it's for in some cases it might be more than you think, in some cases it might be less than you think. But using that as a starting point is is a really good um is a good measurement tool. And if if you find that feels like it's not enough, you can always increase it um by a little bit. If you feel that's too much, especially if you're just getting used to eating it, you can use that as a target. Um, but I would say that would be a perfect starting point because I'm like you. I if if I have to weigh in, measure and log, I'm just la la la, I'm not there, I'm done.

SPEAKER_00 21:04

Yeah. A palm full of protein, then. So we're talking about that one at breakfast, one at lunch, one at dinner on the plate as a starting point. I suppose if we're trying to visualize that more in, and obviously it will change because, as you mentioned, people's hands tend to get bigger and smaller as their bodies are bigger and s and smaller. So me at six foot will have a larger hand, hopefully, if I'm in proportion, than a woman at five, seven might might have. Um, but I suppose if I'm looking at my own hand, I'm thinking maybe three quarters of a breast of chicken or half a breast of chicken, couple of eggs, um you know, same amount of maybe tofu or something like that. So are they the kind of amounts that you're thinking of as well, then?

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Yep, absolutely. And and making, I think for a lot of people, including protein at breakfast. Is probably the biggest challenge. And I would just remind people that really we don't have foods that are specifically breakfast or lunch or dinner. We only culturally or mentally or emotionally do that or socially do that. Because the truth is in many societies, people are eating different kinds of lean proteins or or plant-based proteins at for all of their meals. So we don't have to have cereal for breakfast. We can have a piece of chicken or we could have some eggs or we could have some tofu or beans and legumes. It's it's really up to you.

SPEAKER_00 22:35

Yeah. It's interesting, isn't it? That cultural norm of eating cereal is very much a western thing and has only really been about since sort of like the 1950s when you know the big farming industries in America were producing loads of wheat, and that wheat needed to go to and it could be sold somewhere. Hey, presto, you know. Wheat-based cereals became the go-to thing for for breakfast. And so I think you're absolutely right, you go elsewhere in the world, and there aren't many cultures apart from from Western cultures you know Western Europe, UK, US, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, etc., whereby having such a carb-heavy breakfast is is a thing. So yeah, absolutely adding in different types of protein, as you say, there's no reason why you couldn't eat chicken for breakfast if if you wanted to, it's just that it has become the accepted cultural norm not to have it. Let's go on then to if we're going to talk macronutrients at this point. That other favourite one that comes up all the time. And it's interesting because the science has changed, or our understanding of the science has changed for maybe about the last 15 or 20 years, but it's still something that I come up against with our clients where they're very, very resistant to it, and it's our good old friend, fat. What are your thoughts on fats then, Julie?

SPEAKER_01 24:06

Fat is your friend. Fat is going to slow your digestion a little bit, it's going to keep you feeling fuller longer. Um, it isn't as satiating as protein, but it it is uh filling. It also gives things a nice texture and taste from an eating perspective. And when you're eating the right kinds of fats, it's gonna be so good for all of your body, your skin cells, your brain cells, your nerve coatings, your um your skin is gonna look amazing. Um you need we need to take in fat. It's important for energy. Um and a lot of a lot of w a lot of women, like you know, we talk to are so fat phobic and they're and they're focused mainly on fat-free foods and and low calorie um foods. Now the the caveat to this is that fat is more nutrient dense, which means it has more calories per serving. So again, we need to talk about what is the serving size of fat and what kinds of fats are the healthiest ones. And I think most people know that the processed oils and um the kinds of fats that we get in fast food and packaged packeted food is not the healthy kinds. We're talking about um extra virgin olive oil, um, extra virgin coconut oil, maybe grass-fed butter if you can handle dairy, um, nut and seed oils that are cold-pressed and not processed. Um, and seed oils are controversial right now, but most of them are processed at very high temperatures. Um, because we don't need to get into all of the science about monounsaturated and polyunsaturated and all of that, but we're looking at a balance between omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids, and we tend to get too many um omega-6s in our processed foods. So we want to look at those omega-3s, fish oil, um, and those other fats that I mentioned. Linseed oil, I think, is another good one.

SPEAKER_00 26:19

Yeah, I think the other thing, as well, is to just note that we want those fats to be in as natural form as possible. So people often say to me, Oh, you know, I've cut out butter and I'm having a spread that is olive oil based. And I'm like, well, nice idea and a good good thought process, right? And we don't like to demonize foods, but really you're taking olive oil and you're putting it in a form that it isn't usually in, and that needs some kind of chemical process to make that make that happen. And I would always say, you know, if you're gonna use a spread, just use some some decent butter. Pretty much any other spread that I can think of is in some way an oil that has been massively chemical chemically altered to turn it into a solid when it should be be liquid at room temperature in its natural state.

SPEAKER_01 27:17

So yeah, I think that's and and saturated fats aren't aren't necessarily bad for you, but they but they should be naturally saturated and and from a clean source. When I say clean source, I mean not factory farmed animals. And um like coconut oil was vilified in the 70s, I think, um, because they did a study on it. But the person who did the study on it um hydrogenated the coconut oil. And coconut oil is a naturally saturated fat, but it melts very easily at a very low temperature, and it has medium chain fatty acids, really healthy for you, it's amazing for your skin and hair. You can use it for all kinds of things internally and externally. It also has a higher smoke point, so when you're cooking, it's healthier to use at a slightly at a higher temperature. Um, but when it was fully hydrogenated, the one study that was done was the one everybody grabbed onto and said, This is really bad for you. Well, anything that's hydrogenated, if you see hydrogenated on the label, put it back, run away, and go find something else to eat.

SPEAKER_00 28:29

Something else, yeah. Okay, so we're running up to about our 30-minute mark here. So I think what we'll probably do is leave it our vitamins, minerals, etc., for another conversation because it could be an episode on on its own, couldn't it? Supplementation. Let's let's put supplements into something else. But let's talk very quickly then before we head off about vitamins and minerals and fibre that come naturally from fruits and fruits and vegetables. And you and I, when we're talking to our clients, we kind of divide these these carbs, if you like, into two different lots, don't we? And I wonder if you could just explain a little bit for the listeners about how we divide those up and and what the reasoning for that is.

SPEAKER_01 29:20

Well, with carbohydrates, you you we do have, I mean, plant foods are carbohydrate-based. It basically means they have carbon atoms in them. So even though a lot of your leafy greens are carbohydrates, they're not they don't have starch, they don't contain starches and sugars like fruits do. So fruits are a kind of carbohydrate because of the sugar and fiber content. And they're really good for feeding good bacteria in your gut. And then we have other carbohydrates that are slower digesting carbohydrates. So things like plantains and sweet potatoes and potatoes that have been cooked and cooled, um, for some reason have a different kind of starch than than potatoes that are just freshly cooked. Um, I think Jerusalem artichokes fall into that category as well. And those things are going to be not only slower digesting, but they're going to contain a lot of fiber that your intestinal tract needs for digestion and elimination. And they also feed the good bacteria in your gut. Um and so they they help a lot with that feeling of of satiety when it comes to eating something that feels carbohydraty, if that's such a word. Um, because I know that that's a favorite craving when when we want something that's comforting. But we can find that in in healthier forms than the refined. I s I call them the whites, right? The white sugar, white flour, white rice, anything that's pro heavily processed because rice doesn't naturally grow white. You have to remove all of the important fiber and outer layers of the rice grain to get the white grain. And oftentimes it's even they go so far as to bleach it to make it prettier for the shelf and more shelf stable. And so your your um carb arbit other carbohydrates would be beans and legumes and pulses, which are high in fiber and more resistant, more resistant starches. And if you're plant-based, those can also serve as your protein source um as well. They just don't contain quite as high a protein level as um animal-based proteins do.

SPEAKER_00 31:35

Yeah. And then we've got we've got the non-starchy ones there as well, then, haven't we? Things like spinach and lettuce, tomatoes, those fall into a different category as well. So if we just start recapping a little bit then to finish off some starting points here are trying to manage blood sugars, so removing sugars, processed foods, etc., from my diet as much as possible. Sticking to three meals a day where where where possible, and slowing down how we're how we're eating, so we're actually eating and digesting things properly. So that all works for blood sugar balance, and then protein also feeds into blood sugar balance as well, helps with it massively. We think protein's a really um key nutrient. We're looking at about a palm size portion as a starting point again. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Uh we've got fats, good fats, healthy fats. We talked a lot about those portion size there, thumb size portion. Um again, breakfast, lunch, lunch and dinner. Some starchy carbs, probably a little bit smaller, would you say, portion size, maybe about um a cupped palmful.

SPEAKER_01 32:55

A cupped palmful. Most people are really shocked by that because we're we're served platters of pasta and massive bowls of rice, and a really it would a serving of starchy carbs would fit into the palm of your hand. And I forgot to say about the vegetables. Yeah. Colorful veggies are are non-resistant starches. Though a couple of fifths of veggies um at each meal, if you can. I like to say half your plate with vegetables, and then a quarter with protein, and then um fill in with a bit of carbohydrate.

SPEAKER_00 33:38

Excellent. So the one thing that we probably haven't talked about, um, because we've talked pretty much top level about nutrition here, what we what we're looking at. Let's just have a quick chat about soya phytoestrogens, what role they can play in in menopause nutrition.

SPEAKER_01 34:02

Um there are different plants that have phytoestrogens in them. Some are pretty effective, and some again will depend on the source. Um I have thyroid issues and my doctor doesn't want me eating soy, but I know that it's it's often helpful for women at this phase of life. The caveat to that is if you live in the US, it you really need to check to make sure it's organic because 96% of the soy crops in the US are genetically modified, and there's a host of issues that go along with that from a health perspective. Um, but it's phytoestrogens can help. Um, but I think the other thing to bear in mind is we see a lot of these uh supplements sold for menopause symptoms that contain a lot of soya, and um more is not necessarily better. And again, quality matters, there's no panacea. Um, you know, one one particular supplement isn't going to work. And I know you have some other thoughts on on phytoestrogens.

SPEAKER_00 35:16

Yeah, so the key thing for me is that soy comes up a lot, and I absolutely agree with you. GM or soy is not something, so genetically modified soy is not something that you want to have in your diet at any stage of life, never mind this stage of life. I think because many of the studies that have been done into phytoestrogens uh tend to involve populations in in the Far East, soy comes up a lot because it is a key staple of of diet over there. One of the things that I really like adding because it kind of is a three-in-one when it comes to adding phytoestrogens, adding good fats, and adding fibre into your diet, it's flaxseed. I think it's a really, really good source. But I think ground for grand, the phytoestrogens, the isoflavons that are in there are probably higher than than soyase, if I if I remember rightly, but then you also get the omega-3s from it as well, and you also get the benefit of fibre. So I think you know, if you are going to insist on sticking with a carb heavy breakfast, like a cereal or something like that, sprinkling some flax over it is a really good way to add start adding some of these uh various nutrients that we're talking about into an actual meal.

SPEAKER_01 36:41

Yeah, I I agree, and I I love flax. It's uh and it's great to keep things moving, keep you regular, and I know that can be an issue for women at this phase of life, especially.

SPEAKER_00 36:54

It can. Well, yeah, maybe uh constipation and the effect that that can have on things like detoxification is a whole other episode of the pod, I think, that we can also come on to. So that's two for our notes there, Julie. We've got uh vitamins and minerals to add in, and at some point talk about detoxification and things like constipation, how that how that can affect it as well. Okay, so we've overran our standard time of about 30 minutes. So apologies if you've had to listen to us for a few minutes later. A bit of bonus content for you there, about seven or eight minutes. Uh, but it's been Julie and James from Fabulous Beyond 40 here helping you to empower your menopause. Until next time, stay Fabulous Beyond 40, and we will see you soon. Take care.