Hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, mood swings… The menopause is accompanied by various more or less unpleasant symptoms. In some women, this period may be accompanied by weight gain, which is characterized by an accumulation of visceral fat in the stomach and abdominal area. This type of fat is also particularly harmful to health, in particular because it increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, cancers (breast, colon, etc.) and chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
Is abdominal fat inevitable during menopause? How to fight against its appearance? Here are the food tips and tricks from an American dietitian.
Low GI foods, proteins, fiber… What to eat to limit abdominal fat?
The expert recalls that if certain eating habits can limit abdominal fat during menopause, these must be associated with a more overall healthy lifestyle. She cites in particular the importance of stress management, quality of sleep, but also physical activity. The expert also suggests discussing the potential benefit of hormonal treatment with your doctor.
Favor foods with a low glycemic index
First step to fight against abdominal fat during menopause, according to the dietician: focus on foods with a low glycemic index, which have the particularity of being digested more slowly. As a reminder, the higher the glycemic index of a food, the more it will cause an increase in blood sugar levels. Result: a spike in insulin, which promotes fat storage.
To avoid this phenomenon, the dietician recommends an approach similar to that of the Mediterranean diet. The idea? Include foods such as fatty fish, poultry, nuts, seeds, avocados, olive oil, lentils, but also fruits with a low glycemic index such as apples, pears, berries, or oranges, as well as vegetables such as leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery and even green beans.
Focus on proteins
The National Food Safety Agency (ANSES) recommends healthy adults consume 0.83 grams per kilo per day of protein to stay in shape. These macronutrients are essential to the body, particularly on the muscular level. The dietician therefore advises consuming proteins at each meal in order to achieve the daily recommendations. To do this, “you can have yogurt with nuts and berries for breakfast, a bean-based soup for lunch, cheese and an apple for a snack, and wild salmon and green vegetables for dinner”she says as an example.
Favor foods rich in soluble fiber
Certain types of foods make you feel full faster. This is particularly the case for those containing fiber, which can thus be real allies in the fight against abdominal fat. Kristin Kirkpatrick recommends focusing on soluble fiber, found for example in cruciferous vegetables, beans, avocados, oats, nuts and seeds.
Limit your alcohol consumption
“Alcohol is a maximum of 2 glasses per day and not every day”. These are the recommendations from Public Health France regarding alcohol consumption. In addition to having multiple consequences on health, alcohol also has an impact on weight, given its sugar content. This is why Kristin Kirkpatrick recommends limiting your alcohol consumption as much as possible. A habit that she implemented herself and which had positive consequences on her weight management.
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