Nutrition and menopause

You are what you eat. And if you’re a middle-aged woman, you might say that your menopause experience will be shaped by what you eat as well.

After I sent you the e-Alert “‘Round and ‘Round and ‘Round ” (3/8/04), about yet another HRT study being shut down to protect the health of subjects enrolled in the study, I remembered a book titled “The Menopause Diet: The Feel-Good, Lose-Weight Plan for the Menopausal Woman,” which happens to be written by our in-house “Nutrition Physician” and HSI Panelist Allan Spreen, M.D.

Dr. Spreen explains that when hormonal changes take place, the body sometimes responds negatively to normal foods, prompting headaches, weight gain, bloating and other reactions. “The Menopause Diet” offers a plan to address this intolerance of certain foods.

Naturally, Dr. Spreen also discusses how dietary supplements can help with menopause symptoms. And the book includes a large section on the use of natural botanicals, including Cimicifuga (Black cohosh), Vitex agnus castus (Chaste tree berry), and Angelica sinensis (Dong quai), to treat hot flashes, etc.

The book may be somewhat hard to find in your local bookstore. Unfortunately, we have not been able to make it available through HSI, but if you search “Spreen” and “Menopause Diet” on the Internet, you’ll find several sources listed.

To Your Good Health,

Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute