Improve Menopause symptoms by changing your gut

The gut microbiome is still an exciting new field of research with new insights all the time, including the microbiome and its influence on our immune, metabolic, and nervous system health in MIDLIFE.

Many midlife women struggle with bloating, constipation, diarrhea, brain fog, low energy, and also hot flushes, weight gain, anxiety and more- and today I would like to show you how all these symptoms are connected and how improving your gut health can directly improve your hormonal symptoms as well.

Sadly, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is reported to be four times as common among women navigating the midlife transition—a phase of life often marked by the disruptive symptoms of menopause. Many women experience changes in their digestive health in midlife, and that is because there is indeed, a connection—a fascinating one at that: Estrogen plays a role in our digestive well-being.

Estrogen isn't just about reproductive health; it's a key player in our digestive process. During our menstrual cycles, when estrogen is still produced in higher amounts, these higher levels help the efficiency of our digestive enzymes.

However, when we transition from perimenopause to menopause and our estrogen levels eventually decline, so does the production of these essential enzymes. This also explains why many women find that Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) doesn't address their gut health and microbiome changes, and why it is always important to improve gut health in midlife..

Research has also shown the role of estrogen in maintaining the gut lining, shedding light on why the drop in estrogen during menopause can lead to digestive troubles and intestinal hyper-permeability.

‘One of the factors that plays a pivotal role in microbiota modulation, although broadly understudied in current research, is the change in female sexual hormones throughout life, including menopause.’ [Veira, A., Castelo, P. et al, (2017)]

I believe we are not yet fully able to understand the complexity of the gut microbiome and its effect on our overall health and it is exciting that we will continue to learn more as technology advances.

Gut dysbiosis is linked to a wide range of symptoms from constipation to bloating, anxiety, depression as well as temperature dysregulation. All of the above are common perimenopause and menopause symptoms as well.

Certain microbes, like Prevotella, might shield against osteoporosis, which is often a common concern for menopausal women. Other microbes such as Lactobacillus Casei could combat vascular stiffness in ageing blood vessels, a contributor to hypertension, as noted by recent studies [Siddiqui et al, 2022].

Here is the take away message: as estrogen changes in midlife, this affects our gut health. If we have bad gut health, symptoms of perimenopause/menopause can worsen. If you want to reduce your symptoms during menopause and manage your weight and metabolism, then sorting out your gut health matters a lot.

This is why I always work on gut health with midlife women, and my 90 day Nourished Gut and Hormones Method is specifically designed to get you better gut health and hormones so you can thrive in midlife.