Don't Make Menopause an Excuse for Being Fat

As women approach menopause, weight gain is one issue that becomes a primary concern for many. If you've had a weight problem before, you may find it harder to lose the additional weight. If you've been able to maintain your weight over the years, you many now find you have to work much harder to keep the pounds off. Therefore, menopause and nutrition go hand in hand, so don't make menopause an excuse for being overweight.

While there are some experts who claim that the fluctuation in a woman’s hormone level is the cause for weight gain, others believe it is due to an increase in age and the decrease in muscle mass and metabolism. Who can really say? The key to keeping the weight off, in any stage of a woman’s life, is through a combination of diet and exercise; and should commence during the perimenopausal stage.

It is important to consume foods low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol and it is also recommended that the fat intake should be less than 30 percent of your daily calorie intake. Eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grain cereal products, especially those high in vitamin C and beta carotene. Persons of all ages should consume 20 to 30 grams of fiber daily. Avoid foods and drinks with processed sugar, as many of these products contain empty calories and promote weight gain. Avoid salt-cured foods, which would eliminate pork from your diet. That means giving up ham, bacon, hot dogs, etc. These foods are high in sodium, which can lead to high blood pressure, which is a serious risk for aging women. White bread is also another no-no as it contains starch, which provides no nutritional value.

Regular exercise not only benefits the heart and bones and helps regulate weight, but can elevate one’s mood and create a sense of balance within. Conversely, women who are physically inactive are more likely to suffer from coronary heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and osteoporosis.

While dieting and good nutrition habits are important when we are young, it has become a vital component of good health when we reach menopause. Although it may seem the cycle never ends, maintaining a proper diet is necessary to enjoy this particular time in your life. If you have never had the desire to exercise before, now would be a good time to begin. If you incorporate a healthy diet and exercise into your daily life, there should never be a reason to blame menopause as an excuse for being fat.


Beverly Mahone is the author of "Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age." She recently appeared as a baby boomer expert on MSNBC-TV.

Breaking the Silence: It's not our Mother's Menopause

We drive the ones we love away from us because we are unwilling to share what’s going on with us mentally and physically. Why can’t we tell them when we hurt? Not in an angry tone but in a loving, “do you understand, please help me” tone?”

Some degree of menopause anxiety is to be expected given the dramatic changes a woman goes through during this significant life event. But for some women the symptoms are so severe that they affect their daily activities and relationships.

If you are beginning perimenopause or if you are actually going through menopause and dealing with an anxiety problem, there are things you can do to make menopause anxiety symptoms less troublesome.

Talk to your doctor about the menopause anxiety treatment methods that are best for you. Remember that you do not have to allow menopause anxiety to turn your life upside down. Get some professional advice and discover the joy of being yourself again.

Talk to your spouse and help him understand what is going on with your body as well as the emotional mood swings you experience. He can't help you if he doesn't know what's going on.

Remember, this is not our mother's menopause. There's no need to be silent anymore."

Dancing with Towels on our Heads

The other day I was driving home after picking up my daughter from her school bus stop and all of a sudden an "oldie but goodie" came on the radio.

"Ooh, baby, baby
Where did our love go?
Ooh, don't you want me
Don't you want me no more…"

If you're a baby boomer you know the song made famous by the Supremes. Immediately the song took me back to my childhood and the days when my next door neighbors and I would imitate Diana, Mary and Flo in the middle of our street. Of course, I was always Diana because I was the oldest and just knew I could sing and Loretta and Lynetta were my background vocals.

I don't know if this is an ethnic thing or not, but when we did our thing we had to have towels on our heads. That was to simulate our long flowing hair because you had to have long flowing hair as a singer. Our hair was always in braids and we wouldn't dare take those braids loose for fear of the pain of having them re-braided and the pain we would feel on our behinds for doing something we weren't supposed to.

As I continued to drive, I turned up the radio a little louder (the very thing I tell my daughter NOT to do) and I wailed my heart out—remembering a time and place where it was so much fun to be a little girl who dreamed of being a "Supreme."

I would imagine many little girls got together and imitated The Supremes.

Baby Boomer Talk & other stuff: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...Yes, I'm the Fairest One of All!

Baby Boomer Talk & other stuff: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...Yes, I'm the Fairest One of All!

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...Yes, I'm the Fairest One of All!

When I was in my twenties, I was so busy living for the moment that I never had time to think about tomorrow. I was in the beginning of what was expected to be a big time television news career. I had a body that turned heads and a burst of energy for my very active lifestyle. I was what you would call a Diva.

In my thirties, I started taking life more seriously. I was focused on a lifetime of happiness with my husband and daughter while working hard to develop my career. I was determined not to let anything or anyone stand in my way.

Now I'm in my late 40s reflecting on the would've, should've, could've aspects of my life. What was supposed to be a big time television career resulted in a stressful, dead end job that just paid the bills. That lifetime of happiness with my husband ended abruptly in divorce court and I spent many frustrating days and nights trying to raise a child by myself.

To top it off, I'm now trying to cope with growing older in a world that caters to the young. It seems as though middle age sneaked up on me like a thief in the night and with it came changes for which I wasn't prepared.

These days when I look in the mirror, I see a woman I'm not sure I recognize. She has strands of gray hair and wrinkles in places easily seen. That drop dead gorgeous body has been replaced with some unattractive bulges and cellulite. These are just a few of the road signs pointing to my journey into middle age.

Growing older is a trip but not what I'd call a vacation. I certainly don't have that relaxed feeling you're supposed to get after some hot fun in the sun. These days I don't need any sun to get hot and I definitely wouldn't classify getting older as fun.

Friends contend you can slow down the aging process but I argue you can't stop it. So for all you women who think you'll look twenty-five forever, forget it!

All the plastic surgery in the world will not help. I don't care how many face lifts, botox shots or tummy tucks you receive, at some point in your life you will feel what it's like to grow older.

That’s the frame of mind I was in as I started writing. My book, Whatever! A Baby Boomer’s Journey Into Middle Age began as a journal of frustration that turned into a book of celebration. Throughout the pages I share the discoveries I’ve made about growing older. Yes, I’m getting older---but I’m also getting better. I’ve become so much more mature and confident in being who I am. These days, I’m connected spiritually to a Higher Power that helps me to soar to even greater heights.

OK, so I’ve put on a few extra pounds but it doesn’t change the person I am on the inside. I’m fabulous and bodacious, sassy and classy and as my daughter would say, “all that and a bag of chips!” And guess what else? I finally figured out the difference between LUST and LOVE.

Whatever! A Baby Boomer’s Journey Into Middle Age is for you if you or someone you know was born between 1946 and 1970.

It's for you if you can't figure out your mother's bizarre behavior or are trying to cope with your own emotional roller coaster.

Are you back on the dating scene after spending years believing you had found Mr. Right?

Do you have teenagers who think they know more than you do?

By no means do I claim to be an expert who has the remedy for what ails your middle age heart, body and soul. This book traces my personal into a world that is bringing about new challenges and forcing me to deal with my own mortality.

I know I can't turn back the hands of time so I just say WHATEVER!

You may find we have a great deal in common.

Menopause & Diet

Full-blown meno-pause (also called change of life) is when the menstrual period ends, which normally occurs during middle age. Meno-pause in some women has also been known to occur as early as their mid 30's especially if ovarian production of estrogen and progesterone in their bodies begins to decline.

Needless to say, a deficiency of hormones is going to have a significant impact on both physical and mental health. Diet, exercise, lifestyle changes and dietary supplements like zinc and selenium can reduce the symptoms of menopause.

Here are some common diet solutions for hot flashes for women who are approaching or in menopause:

• Limit caffeine intake. Tea, coffee, alcohol, spicy foods and caffeinated beverages can have an effect. High amounts of caffeine may aggravate hot flashes and weaken the bones.
• Take vitamin D. You can get enough from exposure to sun for a few minutes each day. The daily intake should be 400 to 800 IU.
• Consume calcium. The daily intake should be 800 to 1,500 mg. Good sources of calcium are dark green vegetables, low-fat dairy products, salmon and legumes.
• Stop smoking. Smoking increases the risk of osteoporosis, hip fracture and also increases the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Soy best in moderation
• Eat a diet rich in phytoestrogens. Examples are tofu, nuts, seeds and flaxseeds to protect your heart. Even though soy protein contains phytoestrogens, which help balance your hormones, soy also has other phytochemicals called phytates that can block the absorption of necessary nutrients such as zinc and iodine, so use it wisely. The best way to eat soy is in its fermented form, since it reduces the nutrient-blocking effects.

Weight gain can occur during menopause due to the changes in hormone levels, possibly due to declining estrogen. In order to maintain a healthy weight, you need to eat less calories less and exercise more. Consistency is the key to your exercise program because it will also help keep away any additonal pounds.

Some have asked if men go through menopause. The answer is yes! They do experience the so-called the change of life as a result of declining hormones. Low testosterone is commonly seen in men beginning in their 40s. This is associated with symptoms of aging in males.

Beverly Mahone is an author and baby boomer expert. For more information, visit her website: www.talk2bev.com

Help, My Body is Under Attack!

My doctor said the weight gain was a result of my metabolism slowing down. She said it was one of the symptoms of perimenopause and part of the aging process. But there was good news according to her. “Just cut back on your calorie intake, Beverly, and exercise,” she said. “That will keep your weight under control.” Oh, that’s just great. Not only do I have to eat like a bird but then I have to sweat like a pig in the gym!

Weight gain and hot flashes were my introduction into the world of menopause. As soon as I knew what I was experiencing had a name attached to it other than “lunatic”, I started doing research because I wanted to know more about what I could expect physically and even mentally. I discovered weight gain begins primarily during perimenopause. It is estimated that a woman may gain a pound a year during this time.

It is believed that hormone levels associated with menopause are not the sole cause of weight gain. However, aging and lifestyle does play a major role in how your body changes over the course of time. The reasons are that menopausal women tend to exercise less; eat more; and burn fewer calories. The result is a shift in the composition of your body which results in more fat and less muscle as your metabolism slows down. It is no surprise that genetics most definitely contribute to weight gain. If your parents are on the heavy side, chances are you or one of your siblings will inherit that particular body type as well.

While we all know that weight gain can cause health problems, excess weight gain during menopause increases the chance of developing serious conditions. Studies have shown that women who gain in excess of 20 pounds after menopause increase their breast cancer risk by nearly 20 percent. On the other hand, women who lose weight after menopause can reduce their risk of breast cancer by that much and more. It is estimated that women who lose 20 pounds after menopause reduce their breast cancer risk by as much as 23 percent.

In order to maintain a healthy body and reduce the risk of weight gain after menopause, a proper diet regimen combined with exercise is the answer. Exercise increases the metabolism, which allows you to burn fat. In addition, strength training exercises increase muscle mass, which not only boost your metabolism but strengthens your bones as well. Anyone who is on a diet and exercise program knows this to be true.

We all have to deal with the changes in our bodies; there is no escaping that fact. The ugly truth is as we get older; parts of our body will sag; shrink, and expand. Perhaps the trick is to not worry about what you can’t control, but to control the things you can.

One more thing…..my doctor said during menopause I could even lose my desire for sex. Loss of libido is what she called it. Well, I don’t know about you, but I sure hope it doesn’t happen to me because I’d hate to think I wasted the best years of my sex life on my ex!

Portions of this blog are a part of my book "Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age. It is available on Amazon.com