Does your appetite change during menopause?

Today's topic

Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I take a look at how your appetite can change in perimenopause and menopause.

So, do you feel that you are hungry all the time and no matter how much you eat, you still want to eat more? Do you find you're getting really hungry in between meals, maybe even before you go to bed? Do you find that the foods that you once loved, you can't stand now? They just don't taste the same. You just don't feel hungry, and you literally don't want to eat at all.

So, let's take a look at why these changes occur and what you can do to help yourself.

Increased appetite

So, if you feel that you are hungry all the time, there can be a number of causes for this.

Hormonal changes: We have a hunger hormone called ghrelin. And ghrelin is produced when our blood sugars get low. Oestrogen is thought to help control the release of ghrelin. So when oestrogen falls during perimenopause and menopause, more ghrelin can be released leading to feeling hungry more of the time.
So, this is not about self-control. It's not about feeling that you're losing control. This is very much one of the body's survival modes that it's going into, and it's very difficult to fight this sometimes.

Nutritional needs increasing: You might find that you're wanting to eat specific food groups at certain times of the day. With all the hormonal changes, your nutritional needs go sky-high. Your body needs more of practically every single vitamin and mineral. And sometimes, your body is really seriously hungry because it needs specific vitamins and minerals.

So, if you do find that it's certain food groups that you are tending to eat more of, that could be an indication that you're slightly low in these vitamins or minerals, and maybe, even look at adding in a food supplement to help.

Stress and anxiety: It can be stress-eating. That's me. If I get stressed, I eat whatever I can get hold of. And, obviously, during menopause, so many women are stressed and anxious along with everything else that's going on in the world today, so stress is an extra addition that can really put a lot of pressure on our diet.

Poor sleep: Studies have shown that if you don't sleep well, you will feel hungrier and eat more the following day. Having poor sleep can also cause fatigue. And what do we do when we're tired? We just want sweet things to give us a bit of a boost or we want an extra cup of coffee just to lift us up.

So, what can help in this situation?

Eat well and often to keep your blood sugars balanced: It is really important to keep your blood sugar stable because the more stable they are, the less cravings and the less hungry you are going to feel. So, breakfast is really important here. If you think about it, if you were going on a long car journey, the first thing you would do with your car is you would check the oil, you would check the water, and you would check the fuel.

Our bodies are going on a long, long journey every day through perimenopause and menopause. So, we need to make sure that everything's topped up before we start our day.

If you're not very keen on breakfast, you can look at some kind of protein drink that can give you a bit of everything you need and will help to stave off the hunger and cravings later on in the day.

So, make sure that you also get plenty of protein with each meal. Eat healthy fats, they're really important. Go low carb. I don't recommend a lot of carbs in menopause because they can cause weight gain, but things like round grain brown rice, quinoa, and some of the really good grains, like wholemeal. A little bit of wholemeal bread can be really helpful at keeping your energy levels going.

Manage your stress. Doing things to help ease your stress is very important. Have that 30-minutes "me" time a day. It's worth its weight in gold and can really make a lot of difference to your blood sugar levels too.

If sleep's an issue, look at our sleep aid Dormeasan, which contains fresh extracts of Valerian root and hops. You take this in a little water or fruit juice about 30 minutes before going to bed.

Loss of appetite

Some women find that their appetite actually decreases. It's not so common during perimenopause and menopause but it does happen to some women. So, it's important, again, to resolve this.

If you have lost your appetite, there can be a number of causes for this.

Nausea: So many women end up with nausea in menopause. And, again, it's a bit like morning sickness in pregnancy. It can really affect your eating patterns and if you're also being physically sick, that can cause issues as well. You can end up becoming really seriously, nutritionally deficient here.

Stress and anxiety: For some women, you can go off food instead of having the emotional eating.

Dry mouth: This can be a common problem for many women during perimenopause and menopause. If your mouth is really dry, you're not producing saliva and eating can just be very, very uncomfortable which can affect how you eat.

Sense of taste and smell changes: And, again, if you're not tasting food, if you're not smelling food, sometimes, you just don't want to eat because there's no pleasure involved in the whole process.

Digestive problems: Some women find they can experience digestive issues such as gastric reflux, or indigestion, or bloating, or constipation, all of which can affect your appetite.

So, what can help in this situation?

Eat little and often and sit and relax whilst you're eating. Also, chew really slowly because that can help, especially if your mouth is a little bit dry, if you chew slowly, that can help to increase the production of saliva.

If it's a dry mouth, you could look at a supplement called Sea buckthorn oil. You can also try the herb Centaurium, which we recommend for things like gastric reflux.

Again, if you're not eating a lot, go for the protein powders. Your nutritional needs go sky-high as I've mentioned before and if you're not eating, you're not getting enough nutritional goodness, which can make all of your symptoms a lot worse. Your body basically just can't cope without anything to keep it well-fuelled.

If you're getting nausea, look at ginger, either things like a low-sugar ginger biscuit, or some ginger sweets, or even a cup of ginger tea. These can be really soothing and can help ease nausea.

For easing digestion issues, if you're getting bloating, try a herbal bitter such as Yarrow Complex. If you find that smell is an issue, sometimes that can be due to low zinc, so maybe try a zinc supplement, 15 milligrams once a day, to see if that can help.

When do you go and see the doctor about either of these two?

If you're finding that you've tried all these things, your appetite is still going way out of control, it could indicate an underlying health issue such as diabetes. If you're not eating, if you're really losing weight quickly and there's nothing you can do to stop it, it could be to do with an overactive thyroid.

So, again, if these issues don't resolve with the things that I've mentioned, then it's certainly important just to double-check with your doctor to make sure that other health issues aren't causing these changes.

So, I hope you found this one helpful. Again, if you had any issues with these two situations, if there's anything that you found worked really well for you, please do share them.

And until next week, take care.