Thriving in Menopause: Natural Solutions for Balance & Relief

Menopause is a time of change and transition. Transitions can be good or bad; it all depends on how you handle them. The first step in ensuring it goes well is changing how you view menopause. 

Too many women get down on themselves when they begin menopause and think they are not worth anything anymore or that they are not beautiful anymore, and that could not be further from the truth! You are still your fantastic self!

That brings us to my next point: loving and treating yourself with kindness. Transitioning to a new stage of life can be stressful, and beating yourself up will not improve things. So remember to treat yourself with compassion, as you would one of your friends or loved ones.

This article has a lot of information, which may feel a bit overwhelming. It's certainly okay to take your time and gradually incorporate it into your life. Don't feel like you have to do everything at once. Every step you take will get you closer to your goal of a smooth transition! We are here to support you, so if you need help or have questions, email us at info@rooted-nutrition.com, or schedule a free call.

What lifestyle changes can support my body during menopause?

Thankfully, there are many lifestyle changes you can make to help support yourself during menopause.

The Benefits of sunshine and grounding for menopause

Sunshine and grounding have tremendous benefits. The sun sets the mood for the day. So every morning at sunrise, no matter the temperature or the weather, before you look at your phone, turn on the TV, or make your coffee, go outside, embrace the sun or the rain, and put your bare feet on the ground. Spend a few minutes breathing deeply and digging your feet in the soil. Connect with the earth. This connection provides powerful energy that revitalizes a tired mind and lifts the spirit. If it's cold out, wear natural fiber foot coverings without rubber soles. This will keep your feet warm but still give you the benefits. You do not need to buy fancy grounding gadgets.

At sunset, it’s time for a walk (without your phone). Feel the setting sun on your face, breathe deeply, and let your body embrace the rhythm of a day slowly coming to an end. Make a note of the trees and do your best to clear your mind, only focusing on being present and in the moment.

Stress and Menopause

Chronic uncontrolled stress has a powerful effect on hormonal balance. Any steps you can take to reduce your stress are great. When it comes to stress reduction, the more you can do, the better; check out our blog, Stress 101, to learn how to have a healthy stress response.

Social Media And Menopause

Spending less time on the phone, social media, and watching the news can make a big difference. These things lead to endocrine system exhaustion because of the constant fear they evoke. They also cause dopamine issues. Gradually stop these things earlier and earlier in the day, and you will feel so much better. Go outside, garden, walk in the woods, read a book, do anything but stare at those screens.

Exercise and Menopause

Getting your blood pumping is a great way to help support your body during menopause. Strength training is particularly beneficial. It helps to put muscle on, keeping your bones and joints strong. As you replace fat with muscle, it reduces the levels of xenoestrogens (bad estrogens), which can help a lot with easing unwanted menopausal symptoms. It also makes you sweat, which is one of the best ways to support the detoxification process. Strength training also supports the production of mood-improving neurotransmitters such as endorphins, dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin, making you feel amazing and improving your self-confidence. It can also help support healthy blood pressure, which is always good. You don’t have to go to the gym to get started. You can go into your backyard, start with smaller rocks, and gradually pick up and put down bigger ones. Get creative, but most importantly, pick things up and put them down! No matter your age, you’re never too young or old to start.

Xenoestrogens and Menopause

Reducing Xenoestrogen exposure provides excellent benefits. Our bodies are awash in them from our food and the environment.

Cleaning and laundry supplies are some of their most significant sources. Use vinegar, lemon, baking soda, unscented Castile and tallow soaps for cleaning, and soap nuts for laundry. Unfortunately, even most “natural products” are loaded with endocrine-disrupting compounds, like synthetic and "natural" fragrances. Essential oils like lavender and tea tree oil may smell nice but can be estrogenic and anti-androgenic. Instead of dryer sheets, use wool balls.

When cooking, avoid Teflon and non-stick pans. Instead, use stainless steel, copper, cast iron (unless you have high iron levels), and glass cookware. For storage, use glass containers instead of plastic bags and takeout containers. Avoid microwaving food in plastic containers and bags. Swap your plastic cutting board for a wooden one.

Avoid drinking water from plastic bottles, no matter what the companies claim about safety. There are no good plastic water bottles, none. Get yourself a glass or stainless steel one. Drinking from plastic bottles is a great way to flood your body with xenoestrogens.

Over time, replace your clothing with natural fabrics like cotton, linen, wool, hemp, and bamboo, and avoid synthetic materials like polyester, acrylic, nylon, etc. Plastic is not your friend.

Get a good wool and cotton mattress, 100% natural fiber blankets, pillows, sheets, etc. Sleeping on outgassing plastic is the last thing your body needs.

Replace rugs and furniture with ones made from wood and natural materials.

Replace traditional feminine hygiene products with organic, plastic-free cotton versions.

It would be costly to try and replace all of this at once. Instead, replace things as the old ones wear out.

This next one will be hard to hear, but it’s time to replace all those makeup and body care products with natural ones. They are one of the most significant sources of xenoestrogens in most people's lives. Unfortunately, those ingredients in most body care products get absorbed into your skin and can cause problems over time. Day after day, those things build up in your body, making problems worse over time.

Replace your makeup with truly natural, unscented ones (most “natural” makeup and body care products are anything but natural) made from safe ingredients that nourish and build the health of your skin, not mask problems like those from our friends at Toup and Co. For body care, replace traditional products with tallow-based, natural products like those from our friends at Buffalo Gal Grass-Fed Beauty. As with replacing household items, replace your makeup and body care products as you run out of other things to help keep the cost down.

Sleep and Menopause

Getting enough sleep during menopause can be a considerable challenge. Thankfully, as you implement many of the suggestions in this guide, it will get easier. Check out our blog, From Sleepless Nights to Peaceful Slumber, for lots of great tips to help you get a good night's rest.

Hormonal Testing During Menopause

When you start to go through menopause, it's important to get a checkup at your doctor to make sure everything is on the up and up. Here are some tests we recommend talking to your doctor about to see if they are right for you:

• Pregnenolone

• Dhea

• The three types of estrogen

  • Estrone, estradiol, and estriol

• Progesterone

• Testosterone

• Full Thyroid Panel

  • You may need to see an endocrinologist to get this done.

• Vitamin D

• B12

Don't skip your yearly checkup, and see the doctor if you are experiencing significant symptoms that are decreasing your quality of life.

Hydration and Menopause

Dehydration and menopause are not a good mix. If you don't drink enough fluids and get enough electrolytes, your skin will suffer, and symptoms, such as vaginal dryness, will get worse. So drink plenty of water and eat lots of fruit!

If you have chlorinated water, get a shower filter that removes chlorine. Chlorine may be great for making water safe to drink, but it is drying to the skin and hair. You will notice after just a few weeks that your hair and skin are softer. Invest in a good water filter to remove contaminants from your drinking water. Consider adding some whole-food electrolytes to at least one glass of water daily to ensure you get enough minerals. You will be amazed at the effect it has on your energy levels and the pep it gives your brain after just one or two days of this. It takes hydration to another level, and it’s not full of all the junk (sweeteners, flavorings, and god knows what else) commonly found in electrolyte powders and drinks. If you prefer to drink bottled water, buy mineral water in a glass bottle from good companies (not Nestle, f**k them) such as Gerolsteiner.

Foods to support you through menopause

Feeding your body deeply nourishing food is so important. Swapping out ultra-processed foods for real foods, will make you feel so much better.

One very important category of foods to avoid is vegetable and seed oils. While our bodies do need small amounts of omega-six, linoleic acid, we all get far too much. This leads to a whole host of problems. Check out our blog article, All About Omega's, to learn more about this and see the list of oils to avoid and which ones to use instead.

The first group of foods to eat are those that support your detoxification and methylation pathways. These pathways help the body remove xenoestrogens. These foods are particularly helpful for this and are also deeply nourishing.

• Pastured egg yolks

• Wild-caught fatty fish

• Grass-fed yogurt and kefir

• Grass-fed organ meat, especially liver, kidney, and bone marrow.

• Berries

• Citrus fruits

• Black garlic

• Lacto-fermented vegetables

  • Especially beets, kimchi, and sauerkraut

• Broccoli Sprouts - Don't buy these at the store.

  • Check out our blog on Glutathione to learn why you should grow your own and how. It's very simple!

Try to include some of the following nutrient-dense foods in your diet everyday They provide the most potent and bioavailable forms of critical fat-soluble nutrients, vitamins, and essential minerals that are lacking or completely missing in most people's diets.

• Grass-fed Organ Meats

  • Liver

  • Bone Marrow

  • Heart

  • Sweetbreads

    • If you cannot bring yourself to eat organ meats, properly made organ supplements are a great alternative.

• Wild Salmon Roe

• Grass-fed full-fat milk

  • Preferably non-homogenized and not ultra-pasteurized, like from our friends at Kalona Supernatural.

• Grass-fed raw milk cheeses- available at many supermarkets and health food stores

• Grass-fed full-fat, unsweetened kefir and yogurt

  • Add fruit or a bit of honey if you want some sweetness

• Real Bone Broth

  • A cup of real bone broth every night is excellent for the skin. It is rich in collagen, gelatin, and amino acids that deeply nourish the skin, bones, and joints. It also can help with sleep.

• Pastured Egg Yolks

  
  

Next is lots and lots of good, nutrient-rich fats. These fats provide valuable compounds that help the skin to hold moisture and give it that plump, supple feeling and glow. So don’t skimp out on them.

• Grass-fed Butter

• Grass-fed Ghee

  • Great for high-heat cooking.

• Grass-fed beef tallow from suet

  • Choose beef tallow made from suet, not regular tallow. Suet-based tallow has higher levels of beneficial fatty acids than regular tallow.

  • Great for high-heat cooking.

• Pastured egg yolks

• Olives

• Good olive oil

  • Most olive oils at the store (even the health food store) are adulterated with vegetable and seed oils. Choose one from this list. Check out the book Extra Virginity if you want to learn more about this.

• Avocados

  • Nearly all avocado oil is adulterated and rancid, so we recommend avoiding it and sticking to eating avocados. There were a few good brands, but private equity firms recently bought some out, so the quality will probably not hold up much longer.

    • In addition, avocado oil has no nutritional value, so it’s just empty calories. It's important to choose fats packed with essential nutrients.

High-quality carbs are essential for energy. Don't avoid them! However, not all carbs are equal. Choose nutrient-rich, slow-burning carbs to give your body energy without the crash. Don’t be afraid of carbs; instead, choose more nutrient-dense whole-food sources of carbs.

• Fruit, especially berries

  • All fruits are great; the more variety, the better.

    • In the winter, frozen fruit is often more nutritious and affordable than fresh; if you want the most amazing frozen fruit, check out our friends at Shahlbush Farms.

      • Avoid dried fruits and lots of juice.

• Squashes

  • Butternut, spaghetti, acorn, etc., are all awesome!

• Sweet Potatoes and Yams

• Pumpkin

• Plantains

• Root Vegetables

  • Beets, carrots, turnips, rutabaga, etc.

• Just because you did not see a vegetable listed here does not mean it is bad. It's just that a lot of vegetables don't have that many carbs, so we don't count them as a carb source.

Protein is essential! Nutritional guidelines recommend that the average woman needs 50-60 grams of protein daily. That's enough to keep people alive but not nearly enough to help you thrive. For your body to function optimally, we recommend getting at least one hundred grams of high-quality protein per day. Without enough protein, you will lose muscle, no matter how much you work out, which is not something you want to do. You will feel so much better when you start getting enough protein.

These are our favorite sources of protein:

• Grass-fed beef, bison, buffo, elk, lamb, mutton, goat, and venison

  • Grass-fed organ meats from those same animals

  • Choose red meat over poultry and pork as much as possible. It is much more nutrient-dense and lower in omega-six fatty acids.

• Wild caught fatty fish

• Pastured Eggs

• Grass-fed raw milk and cheeses

• Grass-fed Yogurt and Kefir

• Low-pufa (low omega-six) poultry

  • This can be hard to find as most poultry are fed mostly corn and soy.

  • Your best bet is to contact a farmer near you to find a source. You can also buy it online from places like the awesome people at White Oak Pastures. If you cannot get low pufa chicken, and turkey, eat it without the skin and choose white meat instead of dark meat. Cook it in some butter or tallow to add good fat back in.

• Low-pufa (low omega-six) pork

  • This can be hard to find as most pigs are fed diets high in grains and omega-six rich foods. Your best bet is to contact a nearby farmer to find a source. You can also buy it online from places like the awesome people at White Oak Pastures.

• Grass-fed Native Whey Protein Concentrate

  • If you are unable to get enough protein in your diet, a good protein powder can be helpful. Unfortunately, most protein powder is heavily processed, has poor PDCAA value, has most of its nutrients removed, and is full of unwanted additives (sweeteners, thickeners, flavorings, etc.), and we recommend avoiding it. Grass-fed Native whey protein concentrate is the one exception to that rule. It is not a by-product of cheese manufacturing and is minimally processed, retaining nearly the full range of nutrients and compounds in fresh milk.

• Tempeh is an excellent source of protein for vegans.

If you wish to consume your protein from plants, you will need significantly more grams of protein because of the lower PDCAA value and concentration of protein in plants. Therefore, it can be extremely difficult to consume enough protein from plant-based sources without resorting to ultra-processed products, which are best avoided.

Eggs are one of the best foods for you. Don't be afraid of them!

It's essential to eat throughout the day. Skipping meals is a great way to leave you tired and without the energy to get through the day. Your metabolism can slow if you skip too many meals or fast for too long. It also can lead to that afternoon slump, leaving you reaching for sugar and caffeine. Try to eat high-quality protein, fat, and carbs at each meal. Every snack does not need to be perfectly balanced though. It's ok to just have an apple or a piece of cheese for a snack because that's what you are in the mood for.

One of the biggest mistakes that so many women make is skipping breakfast. Not eating correctly in the morning is setting you up for a hard day and no one wants that.

Getting up, having coffee, and waiting hours or most of the day to eat wreaks havoc on your hormonal system. I often hear people say, but I feel great, why do I need to eat? What you are feeling is your body running off of stress hormones. So, it might feel good now, but it breaks down your endocrine and ECS systems over time. Eventually, you will stop feeling good; it is only a matter of time. If you only make one change, make it this one. What you notice from this alone will hopefully convince you to make more changes. You might say, “Well, I’m not hungry in the morning.” That is because your body's natural systems have been suppressed through years of doing this, especially the hormone leptin. However, as you become more nourished, you will start to feel hungry again in the morning, and your body will crave that morning meal. This is a good thing; you are supposed to feel hungry in the morning. It is a good sign that your leptin levels are starting to normalize!

You want to have a nourishing breakfast, with a big glass of mineral or lemon water, within an hour of waking up and don't have coffee before breakfast. If you must have coffee, please eat breakfast first. It makes a huge difference. When you start the day with just coffee, you cause a much more dramatic and faster rise in cortisol levels than you should have. Try not to have coffee after Noon if possible, you will feel a lot better. Your breakfast should contain at least 30 grams of high-quality protein, some good fats, and long-acting carbs for sustained energy.

Here are some examples:

• One and third cups of grass-fed full-fat greek yogurt with lots of berries and a spoonful of honey

• Two eggs cooked in grass-fed tallow with four ounces of steak and a bowl of melon

• One and a quarter cups of grass-fed cottage cheese with lots of peaches and a spoonful of honey

• Three eggs with a few slices of beef bacon and a big bowl of strawberries

• Three egg omelet with two ounces of grass-fed raw cheddar and a bowl of mango

• Tropical Fruit Smoothie - 8 oz grass-fed full-fat kefir, frozen tropical fruit such as papaya, mango, kiwi, guava, and pineapple, and one scoop of grass-fed native whey protein concentrate

• Three egg omelet with a few ounces of smoked salmon and a bowl of fresh papaya

• A couple of slices of frittata and an apple

  • Easy to make a big batch, and then you have a quick grab-and-go breakfast on the run.

• Roasted Salmon with leftover sweet potatoes

• It does not have to be just traditional breakfast foods; any leftovers from dinner are also great.

Eating a good breakfast and replacing ultra-processed foods with nutrient-dense whole foods will make you feel much better!

If you don't eat enough, Nona will bonk you with her rolling pin, so don't disappoint her.

Supplements to support you through menopause

Nourishing whole-food supplements can be a powerful ally to support you through menopause. However, taking them daily at the correct dosage and for the right amount of time is essential. It can take several months to start to feel the full benefits. Taking too low a dose, taking them inconsistently, or taking them for too short a period will not get you the results you are looking for. It would be best if you committed to using them for at least three months so you can see the full benefits. Always talk to your doctor before starting any supplements.

First up is our Seleno Health Women's Maca Pack. It helps to nourish and support your hormonal system and a healthy response to stress. Properly made maca is one of the best foods to support you through menopause. This should be the foundation that you build off.

Next is NXGEN Wholefoods Fem Harmony. It is a whole food supplement containing a blend of whole foods that deeply nourishes and supports your hormonal system. Think of it as a multivitamin for your hormonal system.

In addition to those, these are some supplements that can be beneficial for specific needs.

Triquetra Whole Food Magnesium is a great way to get enough of a mineral that most people are not getting enough of. Magnesium is essential for sleep and relaxation. Unlike traditional forms of magnesium, whole-food magnesium supplements are gentle on the stomach and GI tract.

 B vitamins help to support a healthy stress response. Rather than take synthetic ones, we recommend an actual whole food b complex. Nutriplex Formulas Bfood contains a blend of whole foods that will leave you feeling nourished without the side effects that synthetic ones often have. Unfortunately, too many b-complex supplements (and many others) claim to be whole food when they are anything but. Check out this blog to learn more about fake whole food supplements. 

NXGEN Wholefoods Grass-fed Placenta is the whole food supplement your skin has been waiting for. It contains a wide variety of nutrients and compounds that support healthy skin. It is the ultimate skin food. If your skin feels lacking, this is for you.

NXGEN Wholefoods Bull Testicle is a whole food supplement for those who want to support a healthy libido. Testicle is rich in zinc, as well as a number of important compounds and nutrients that support a healthy libido.

NXGEN Wholefoods Grass-fed Kidney is a whole-food supplement for those who need additional support for healthy methylation and detoxification pathways. It also supports healthy thyroid function. It is rich in bioavailable minerals such as selenium, vitamins B12 and folate, and many other vital compounds. It is one of the richest food sources of DAO, which supports healthy histamine levels.

Menopause Help And Support

We know this is a lot of information, so if you have questions about menopause or need support, email us at info@rooted-nutrition.com, or schedule a free call. We will be happy to answer any questions you have!