Menopause and weight gain seem to go hand in hand.
鈥淚 went to sleep and I woke up the next day, and I promise you, I鈥檝e gained 20 pounds.鈥 That鈥檚 the complaint Dr. Monica Christmas hears all the time as director of the menopause program at University of Chicago Medicine, where she is also an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology.
This phenomenon isn鈥檛 limited to her patients, Christmas told CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta on his recent podcast. 鈥淚 looked around at my own family members or maybe other people that I knew that were in that age range, and it did seem like, wow, they did seem to gain a lot of weight in a short period of time,鈥 she said.
Women do gain during their 40s and 50s. And a lot of that extra weight seems to land in the midsection, setting the stage for metabolic problems including high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high cholesterol, all of which increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
But is menopause really to blame for women鈥檚 midlife weight gain? As with so many health issues, it鈥檚 complicated.
Christmas said it鈥檚 impossible to talk about weight gain around menopause without talking about the other elephant in the room: aging. 鈥淢enopause is inextricably tied to the aging process,鈥 she said.
鈥淎ging in general , more so because of lifestyle changes: being more sedentary, not as active as we once were,鈥 Christmas said.
She said it usually doesn鈥檛 happen all at once. Instead, changing life circumstances, such as more job and parenting responsibilities, conspire to rob us of time for leisure pursuits that used to keep us active. 鈥淲e started slowly realizing 鈥 鈥業 didn鈥檛 make time for those types of things,鈥欌 she said.
And there鈥檚 at least one more factor that contributes to weight gain as we age. 鈥淭he reality of it is that our as we get older,鈥 she said. found that it remains fairly stable between the ages of 20 and 60 but then declines.
But it is far from a lost cause, Christmas said. 鈥淭he weight gain doesn鈥檛 happen with everybody; people that are really active, that are meticulous about exercise, that are intentional about what they fuel their bodies with, it鈥檚 probably a minimal change.鈥
So, what can you do to mitigate middle-age spread? Christmas has these five tips.
Christmas believes in treating your diet like you treat your bank account: Be meticulous about what you choose to put into it and how you spend your calories.
鈥淢y friends and family refer to me as a 鈥榝ood snob.鈥 If it can live in a vending machine for years and still be considered fresh, I don鈥檛 put it in my body,鈥 she said via email.
Christmas also advises against going too heavy on the meat. 鈥淢ichael Pollan said it best: 鈥楨at real food, not too much, and mostly plants.鈥 He鈥檚 so right,鈥 she said. 鈥淲henever we think of people as 鈥榓ging backwards,鈥 they are usually vegetarians or close to it. Adhering to a plant-forward diet, filled with anti-inflammatory foods (like those found in the Mediterranean diet) and avoiding highly processed foods containing sodium, sugar and trans fats is the best gift you can give yourself.鈥
This doesn鈥檛 mean that you can鈥檛 ever have a treat. 鈥淚f you do indulge in something decadent, scale back later,鈥 she said.
Exercise is key to maintaining a healthy weight and combating the and can put older adults at higher risk of disability.
鈥淭he adage 鈥榰se it or lose it鈥 could not be truer during the menopause transition,鈥 Christmas said.
鈥淪pecifically, what we are losing: our muscle tone, flat tummy, trim waistline 鈥 I鈥檒l stop here because I鈥檓 depressing myself,鈥 she said. 鈥 of moderate-intensity physical activity and two days of muscle strengthening per week.鈥
She is often asked what the best type of exercise is. 鈥淢y response is always the same: 鈥榯he one that you will do,鈥欌 she said. 鈥淚 love walking with a combination of yoga and Pilates. However, the options are endless: hip-hop aerobics, spin class, biking, hiking, tennis, swimming, step class, Jazzercise, lining dancing, boxing, pole dancing, weightlifting, barre. The point is to be intentional; find something you like, take a friend, and go often.鈥
Limit alcohol or avoid it altogether.
鈥淥utside of the extra calories, alcohol can disrupt sleep, exacerbate or trigger depression and often decrease our inhibition,鈥 Christmas said. 鈥淢ost people tend to eat more 鈥 and it鈥檚 usually not more veggies 鈥 when they drink alcohol.鈥
Prioritize sleep.
鈥淩esearch has shown that not getting enough sleep is associated with weight gain,鈥 Christmas said. 鈥淧eople that don鈥檛 get enough sleep often snack more and indulge in all the high-calorie foods we should avoid.鈥
Menopause is a natural phase of life that may be associated with bothersome symptoms including weight gain 鈥 but don鈥檛 let that extinguish your joy.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important to be intentional about engaging in regular exercise and adhering to a healthy diet; however, it is equally as important to create space for self-care,鈥 Christmas said. 鈥淔or some 鈥 not all 鈥 the menopause transition can be frightening. Making time to do things that bring us joy and peace are important to overall well-being.鈥
She added that sadness, irritability, increased anxiety and decreased motivation are very common during . 鈥淐onsultation with a mental health specialist and, in some cases, medical treatment can be helpful, especially if depression is contributing to overeating or lack of exercise,鈥 she said.
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