Female Hormonal Imbalance in Women Over 50
This is part 3 in a three-part series on hormone imbalance in women of all ages. You can view part 1 here (women under 35) and part 2 here (women between about ages 35-50).
Have you ever wanted to strip down to a tank top when it’s 15 degrees out? Or have you woken up at 3am with sheets so wet you had to remake the bed?
Do you find yourself suddenly breaking out in a sweat in the middle of a conversation with a colleague or a friend?
Do you notice weight spreading around your middle despite your best efforts to maintain a healthy diet and exercise regimen?
In a culture that celebrates youth and holds women to high (and often unachievable) standards about how they should prevent aging, menopause has been a subject that has gotten relatively low levels of attention. Many women have found themselves ill-prepared for how to manage the changes they experience through perimenopause, menopause, and beyond.
Fortunately there are natural ways to make menopause an easier transition.
What Is Menopause?
Menopause occurs when a woman’s ovaries stop releasing eggs and menstruation ceases. A woman is said to be officially in menopause once her menstrual periods have stopped permanently for at least one full year. There is often a conflation of menopause and perimenopause; however, they are distinct phases in a woman’s life.
Perimenopause vs. Menopause
Perimenopause usually begins several years before menopause actually occurs. Most women start to transition into perimenopause in their late 30s or early 40s, even if they still experience regular menstrual periods.
Menstrual cycles are largely governed by ovarian production of estrogens and progesterone that are influenced by the pituitary gland’s output of FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) and LH (luteinizing hormone).
During perimenopause, the ovaries start producing less estrogen and may struggle to bring eggs to maturity and ovulation. The hypothalamus will recognize that there is less estrogen than expected and signal the pituitary to produce more FSH and LH, which, in turn, will signal the ovaries to boost their estrogen production. The more challenged the ovaries are in their estrogen production, the more FSH and LH the pituitary will produce. LH is a vasodilator and pulses of LH are said to occur with every hot flash. (1)
Hormone Symptoms in Perimenopause and Menopause
As women progress through perimenopause and menopause, the changes in hormone output will often result in perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms such as:
Irregular menstrual cycles (Often cycles between periods will become shorter in the earlier stages of perimenopause and then get longer in the latter stages.)
Heavier periods (These frequently culminate in episodes of what is called ‘flooding’ towards the end of perimenopause.)
Hot flashes
Night sweats
Breast tenderness
Decreased sex drive
Fatigue
Menopause insomnia
Vaginal dryness and thinning
Weight gain
Mood swings
Memory difficulties
Loss of bone density
Post Menopause
After menopause has completed, the ovaries produce very little estrogen and progesterone and the body starts relying on the adrenal glands and fat cells to produce adequate amounts of estrogen. The adrenal glands continue to produce low levels of androgen hormones that can be converted into estrogens via the process of aromatization.
Normal vs. Abnormal Menopause
I want to emphasize that perimenopause and menopause are normal and natural processes rather than problems or female hormone imbalances that need to be corrected. The hormone fluctuations and the resulting changes to the menstrual cycle are to be expected.
About 75% of American women experience hot flashes during the early menopausal years and 15% of these women experience severe hot flashes. While transitions through menopause and some of the associated symptoms are normal and to be expected, severe symptoms are a sign that something is wrong.
The more severe the symptoms, the more likely there are to be other underlying imbalances in functional areas like stress management, digestion, or detoxification.
It also warrants saying that there may be excessive swings of hormones and hormonal imbalances in women that do occur during perimenopause and menopause, leading to frustrating symptoms.
Additionally, while many women experience symptoms consistent with estrogen depletion during perimenopause, it is not unusual for women in the early stages of perimenopause to have elevated levels of estrogen and suppressed levels of progesterone.
The adrenal glands regulate our stress hormone output. Many women reach their perimenopausal and menopausal years during a period of life comprised of multiple demands. Many juggle the demands of caring for teenaged children, aging parents, careers, and multiple and sundry other stressors. Adrenal stress has a direct impact on sex hormone production throughout adulthood but this becomes particularly pronounced as women progress through menopause.
Hormone IMbalances in Postmenopause
Although dramatic shifts in production of sex hormones occur during perimenopause and menopause (usually culminating around age 51), women’s sex hormones continue to decline more slowly throughout the postmenopausal years. As women move into their 60s, 70s, and 80s, symptom profiles tend to shift.
Symptoms that generally resolve in about 4 years: hot flashes and night sweats.
Symptoms that can worsen: vaginal dryness, atrophy, and thinning, as well as bone density issues and other problems. Vaginal dryness and accompanying issues often worsen and cause pain and distress for women who would like to remain sexually active. Since estrogen and progesterone are critical for bone density in women, many experience bone density declines and become susceptible to the development of osteopenia and osteoporosis.
Avoiding these issues: The good news is that with proper evaluation of your hormones through the use of the DUTCH test and with good supports through diet, herbs, supplements, exercise, and lifestyle, you CAN progress through perimenopause, menopause, and postmenopausal years without experiencing these changes in difficult or debilitating ways. In fact, many women come to embrace their menopausal years, moving into more authentic self-expression, wisdom, generativity, and inner peace.
How to Assist Your Body During Menopause
Foods for Menopause
Many women who experience symptoms of hormonal imbalance also experience symptoms of digestive distress. In general, I think it is beneficial to work to restore optimal gut health while trying to manage menopausal symptoms. While this may also require specialized testing and customized protocols, there are a few dietary recommendations that are usually beneficial to everybody. Those include the suggestions below.
Reducing or eliminating the following foods:
Gluten
Dairy
Corn
Sugar
Industrial seed oils
Adding gut healing foods like:
Fermented vegetables
Ginger
Apple cider vinegar
Peppermint
Coconut
It is also important to maintain a diet full of healthy whole foods that includes many colorful vegetables, adequate proteins, healthy fats, and plenty of clean water.
Exercise in Menopause
Maintaining an appropriate level of movement and exercise is critical to sustaining overall health. Weight bearing exercises help build and maintain bone density and they are increasingly important for women over 50. Resistance training also increases human growth hormone, promoting lean muscle mass and decreased fat production.
The Best Way to Help Your Hormones in Menopause
If you want to prepare for a healthy transition through menopause or if you are currently struggling with some aspects of perimenopause or menopause, it could be very beneficial to run a hormone panel that assesses levels of adrenal and sex hormone production.
Proper testing provides a clear view of your hormones and where they are imbalanced, allowing us to build a customized plan to get YOUR hormones back on track.
The DUTCH test is the best hormone test available since it measures many aspects of your hormonal health, including:
levels of cortisol and DHEA produced by the adrenal glands
All three estrogens (estriol, estradiol, and estriol) and their metabolites
Testosterone and its metabolites
Progesterone
Several other important markers providing information about neurotransmitter health, vitamin status, and detoxification.
When running a DUTCH test, it is critical to work with an experienced practitioner who is skilled in its interpretation. This test has many complicated results and they must be evaluated together, keeping in mind a variety of possible patterns in order to use the information most effectively.
Order a DUTCH!
You will have the option to get your results reviewed with our custom consultation at the cost of just a test with most practitioners!
Your DUTCH results will include:
Estrogen and its metabolites
Cortisol levels throughout the day
Melatonin levels
B vitamin levels
Testosterone levels
DHEA levels
Written care plan
And more!
DO YOU WANT A COMPLETE PICTURE OF YOUR HEALTH?
We used to offer all three tests in one package, but now you can order them separately. Running all three of the tests together will give you a well-rounded view of your health.
We called this testing package the ‘Big Three.’ You have the option to get a private review and planning session with your Functional Detox Products functional health coach! Below are the three tests that we included in the package:
the DUTCH test
the GI-MAP test (digestion)
a complete thyroid panel
We can also meet with you with our custom consultation to go over all the results and make a customized plan for your needs.
Bridgit Danner, LAc, FDNP, is trained in functional health coaching and has worked with thousands of women over her career since 2004. She is the founder of Women’s Wellness Collaborative llc and FunctionalDetoxProducts.com.
Check out her easy 5-Day DIY Detox Guide here!