It is part of October’s Menopause Awareness Month which is an annual campaign aimed at breaking down the stigma surrounding the menopause and to raise awareness about the symptoms.
Despite being a natural life stage, menopause remains a taboo topic in many workplaces, leading individuals to feel ashamed about discussing their symptoms or seeking help.
Did you know?
👉 18% of the average UK workforce is menopausal
👉 70% of people experience stress because of menopause
👉 1 in 10 leave work due to their experience during menopause
👉 46% will not disclose their struggles due to fear of negative perception
Shedding light on menopause in the workplace is crucial, benefiting both individuals and organisations by boosting productivity, reducing absenteeism, and retaining valuable talent.
So, I would like to take you through each of Zest Lifestyle’s five pillars of vitality to showcase how each one can help support women both in and outside of the workplace while they transition through the menopause.
1. Sleep
According to research around 57% of women suffer from sleep disturbance during the perimenopause and menopause. This is a result of changing levels of hormones, such as oestrogen and progesterone, which contribute to sleep disturbances.
Common issues affecting women’s sleep during this time include hot flushes, night sweats, restless leg syndrome and poor sleep quality. This lack of sleep only exacerbates some of the symptoms that go alongside the menopause such as brain fog and fluctuations in mood.
Therefore, it’s more important than ever for women during this period to prioritise their sleep in order to maximise on the amount and quality of sleep they are getting.
The focus this year for World Menopause Day is HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy), a treatment that addresses the decline of oestrogen and progesterone levels during menopause, which can often lead to disturbed sleep patterns. Research indicates that HRT can support those experiencing symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats, consequently enhancing overall sleep quality.
In addition (or indeed as an alternative to HRT) there are also plenty of ways that you can support your quality of sleep through lifestyle and environmental changes.
Here are our Zesty tips for you to try:
🌶 Avoid eating spicy food
☕ Reduce your caffeine intake
🍷 Avoid alcohol
🚭 Don’t smoke
👘 Wear loose clothing made from natural fibres
😤 Manage your stress and anxiety
🛌 Invest in natural bedding (such as sheep’s wool)
😰 Keep your bedroom well-ventilated
2. Eat
Fluctuations in reproductive hormones during the menopause result in changes to both hunger levels and appetite. Women going through perimenopause have been shown to have higher levels of the hunger hormone – ghrelin – prompting women to want to eat more.
If weight gain is something you are battling against, here are some Zesty tips to try:
🥗 High fibre diet: having a fibre rich diet will not only keep you healthy, it will also ensure you are kept fuller for longer, helping to avoid snacking and overeating.
💧 Keep hydrated: many of us aren’t drinking enough water, which can often lead to us feeling low in energy and reaching for quick fix sugary snacks, so ensure you drink plenty of water throughout the day.
☀️ Mediterranean diet: a diet such as this is which full of vegetables, fruit, healthy unsaturated fats, fish and lean meat is ideal for those going through the menopause. Providing plenty of beneficial nutrients and fibre along with supporting diverse gut bacteria.
🥚 Protein: during the menopause our muscle mass reduces so increasing your daily protein intake can not only help you to manage your appetite, but it will also help you to maintain lean muscle mass. Ideal sources of protein include eggs, nuts, seeds, fish, beans, tofu and legumes.
🐟 Omega 3: ensuring you include plenty in your diet will help to manage your moods along with reduce certain symptoms such as night sweats. Try to include plenty of oily fish in your diet along with nuts, seeds and plant-based oils.
3. Move
Regular physical activity is crucial at all stages of life, but it becomes particularly vital during perimenopause and menopause. The fluctuating hormones during this time increase the risk of conditions like osteoporosis and heart disease. Additionally, mood swings and the tendency to gain weight around the abdomen are common during this phase. Research has shown that a mix of cardio and resistance training can be beneficial in easing symptoms related to menopause.
Even for those exercising already, it’s important to be doing the right kind of exercise along with finding something you enjoy.
So, here are our top Zesty tips of forms of exercise that you might wish to try:
🏋️♀️ Resistance training: this will help to build your muscle mass along with supporting your bones and joints. Aim to do shorter workouts but with heavier weights to maximise on your workouts
🏃♀️ Cardio: walking is a brilliant weight-bearing exercise that helps to build bone strength. If you’re feeling more energetic try running or cycling. All of which will help to boost your heart health along with your mood and help clear that brain fog.
🏊♀️ Wild swimming: this is something we are huge fans of here at Zest Lifestyle. Studies have shown how a cold dip can boost your immune system and metabolism, along with improving your sleep and mood – all of which will help to support a healthy transition through menopause.
🧘♀️ Stretching: movement classes such as Yoga and Pilates are incredibly beneficial during the menopause. Not only will it help to manage your blood pressure and stress levels (which tend to elevate during this period) it will also help aid your sleep.
4. Think
When going through the menopause, women’s oestrogen levels drop – this has an impact on the areas of the brain that control mood such as the amygdala, hippocampus and hypothalamus.
Therefore, when this drop in oestrogen occurs, these areas work less effectively, often resulting in mood swings, irritability, depression and sometimes anger and rage:
😞 62% of women report that their mood has been affected by the menopause
😤 70% of women report feeling irritable during menopause
If this is something you identify with either in yourself or someone you know, then here are some Zesty tips to help:
🌞 Expose yourself to fresh air and plenty of natural daylight everyday
🧘♀️ Try meditating
🌳 Immerse yourself in nature
😚 Practise breathing exercises
👭 Speak to friends and family about the way you are feeling
📆 Book an appointment with a menopause specialist
💊 Consider HRT
👩⚕️ Talk to your GP
5. Body
Did you know?
📢 There are up to 55 recognised symptoms associated with the menopause,
📢 The journey from perimenopause through to post menopause lasts on average 10 years
📢 The average woman reaches menopause at the age of 51 years
Given the length of time this transition lasts along with the variety of symptoms that may be experienced, it’s important to be in tune with your body and the changes that may be occurring.
Symptoms will look different from person to person. For some the symptoms will be mild, but 25% will experience debilitating symptoms.
As we have explored earlier, many of these will be related to mental health however there are many physical symptoms that women will often experience such as:
💚 Joint pain
💚 Hot flushes
💚 Vaginal dryness
💚 Hair growth
💚 Headaches
Weight gain is also prevalent amongst those going through the menopause. Research has found that during perimenopause, there is a shift in body composition resulting in an increase in body fat and waist size, along with a decrease in muscle mass. And that due to hormonal changes, fatty tissue tends to accumulate around the abdomen.
Oestrogen plays an important role in energy metabolism and studies have shown that the way women’s bodies process fat and other lipids changes during the transition into menopause. This often leads to an increase in belly fat and/or “bad” fats such as LDL cholesterol.
Try keeping a journal to log the various experiences you are experiencing. These might be ever changing, so it will be helpful to look back on patterns and to identify the root cause of the symptoms and the appropriate way to treat these – be that through HRT and/or therapeutic and lifestyle practices. This is especially important as you approach perimenopause as it can be tricky to pinpoint this and get an exact diagnosis. If you are unsure, it’s always worth booking an appointment with your GP or menopause clinic.
I hope this article has been helpful in supporting you, your colleagues, and loved ones who may be transitioning through the menopause.
I am available to come into your workplace and do talks and/or workshops for your teams – for men as well as women. I even have a specific “Menopause 101 for Blokes” talk as I believe it’s vital that everyone is educated on this important topic.
Rachel Williams
Chief Vitality Officer, Zest Lifestyle
Email: rachel@zestlifestyle.com