Menopausal Diet Tips for Succeeding in LifeFamily Medicine Specialist Boyoon Choi

1. Why menopausal dieting is difficult

When you go through menopause, you say, "I'm gaining weight even though I'm eating the same as before, and my abdomen keeps gaining weight." This is a symptom caused by a decrease in female hormones. Estrogen* is known to regulate body fat and fat distribution in the body through estrogen receptors (ERs). This estrogen is closely related to abdominal fat. So, when estrogen is deprived, visceral fat accumulates, especially in the abdomen.

*Estrogen: One of the female sex hormones, commonly referred to as female sex hormones.

On top of that, various symptoms of menopause also interfere with dieting. Many people suffer from insomnia. Inseparable from diet is sleep. Sleep is related to serotonin, the hormone of happiness, which is involved in appetite. When serotonin increases, appetite decreases, and when serotonin decreases, appetite increases. In other words, lack of sleep leads to a decrease in serotonin and an increase in appetite.

However, sleep deprivation doesn't just increase appetite, it can also affect food choices. Dr. William Kilgore of Harvard Medical School in the U.S. has found that sleep deprivation slows down the activity of the prefrontal cortex, which is a behavioral inhibitor, and it is difficult to control high-calorie foods.

Therefore, female hormone therapy can help you lose weight by replenishing female hormones and relieving symptoms that interfere with dieting.

2. Isn't it dangerous to take female hormone therapy?

I think there are many people who are hesitant to take female hormone treatment because of the risk of developing breast cancer. However, there is no need to worry too much because the progress is constantly monitored and treated, such as breast ultrasound.

Also, female hormone therapy is not necessary for all menopausal women. There are a variety of drugs used to treat hormones, including estrogen, progestogen, and tibolone. Therefore, it is necessary to decide whether to treat it through sufficient examination and consultation with a specialist.

3. Tips to lose belly fat in your life that you can practice without spending money

First of all, the most important thing is to eat fewer carbohydrates.

Among carbohydrates, if you eat a lot of refined carbohydrates contained in bread and ramen, triglyceride levels will rise, making it easier to form visceral fat. It may be a bit of a struggle, but if you want to lose weight, one way to do it is to not eat any carbs for a few days. Insulin resistance decreases, making it easier to lose weight.

I think some of you may be wondering here what insulin resistance has to do with dieting. Insulin is a hormone in the body that is responsible for lowering blood sugar. Insulin resistance is a condition in which insulin is ineffective and the body cannot use glucose effectively. When insulin resistance occurs, blood sugar is constantly out of control, and the body constantly increases insulin secretion to lower high blood sugar. Eventually, glucose accumulates in the body in the form of fat, and you gain weight.

So, reducing carbohydrate intake, intermittent fasting to stabilize blood sugar, and lowering insulin resistance may help with weight loss.

Next, you need about 1~1.2g of protein per kilogram. If you weigh 60 kg, you need about 60 grams of protein, right? However, it's hard to get all the protein you need at one meal, so it's important to share it with each meal. Also, when you think of typical protein foods, you probably think of chicken breast and eggs. Of course, 100 grams of chicken breast contains about 31 grams of protein, while eggs contain 13 grams of protein per 100 grams, making it a good source of protein. However, it's important to keep your protein intake. Therefore, you don't have to stick to chicken breast and eggs, you can choose the protein foods that are right for you.

For example, I chop my chicken breast, add a lot of bean sprouts and vegetables, and stir-fry it with oyster sauce. In this way, we recommend that you search for various recipes on the Internet and use them again.