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Diets for Women 50+ Going Through Menopause

According to the medical website Medline Plus, menopause brings with it a variety of unwelcome symptoms and side effects such as hot flashes, weight gain, heart palpitations and difficulty sleeping. While those symptoms are not entirely unavoidable, they can be minimized through adherence to a healthy diet, helping the body to cope with the changes of menopause as smoothly as possible.

  1. Menopause Diet Theory

    • Understand the basics behind menopause diet theory to better understand how to implement a diet to combat the symptoms of menopause. According to Epigee.org, a health site for women, the goal of a menopause diet is to eat as balanced and healthy a diet as possible, putting your body in optimal shape to "survive" the rigors of menopause. This should be accomplished by consuming at least three main meals throughout the course of the day, along with several smaller snacks. Each meal or snack should be nutritionally sound, with the goal of consuming as many healthy items as possible while largely eschewing processed foods, refined flour items, additional sugars and alcohol.

    Menopause Diet Advice

    • Consume a diet that is as natural as possible, sticking to food sources that remain in their original state such as fresh vegetables, fruits and lean protein sources like low-fat beef, chicken, fish and turkey. Additionally, aim to consume foods that are known to minimize symptoms of menopause. To avoid hot flashes, steer clear of spicy foods, alcohol, colas, and processed foods while drinking at least eight glasses of water per day and eating foods that are rich in phytoestrogens such as beans, apples, carrots, potatoes and soy products. Increasing your consumption of whole grains can help to balance mood swings by increasing your body's natural production of serotonin. Finally, weight gain can be managed in part by increasing your consumption of healthy unsaturated fats (such as fish oil, olive oil, and canola oil) while decreasing your consumption of saturated fats from red meats. Supplement your diet with omega-3 fish oil capsules--5 to 10 g taken daily can help reduce risk of cardiac conditions. Finally, be sure to consume between 1200 to 1500 mg of calcium daily to avoid the possibility of osteoporosis.

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