Weight gain

Around 60% of menopausal women complain of unwanted weight gain despite unchanged eating habits. The buttocks become flatter, the waist wider and the chest and stomach larger. The distribution of fat increasingly resembles that of a man, which is due to the falling estrogen level and the resulting increasing influence of the male sex hormone testosterone (a woman has female and male sex hormones as well as many other hormones in her body; if the concentration of one hormone drops, the effect of the others increases).

The increasing fat content of the abdomen also increases the risk of diabetes mellitus, metabolic disorders, high blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases, so weight gain should not progress unchecked. To get an overview of whether your own weight gain is actually a problem, you can determine your own body mass index (BMI). This is done by dividing your weight in kilograms by the square of your height in meters.A result below 19 means that you are underweight (i.e. you are underweight for your height).

A result between 19 and 24.9 is called normal body weight, whereas values between 25 and 29.9 already indicate overweight. However, if the values are over 30, one speaks of a strong overweight. The weight gain that occurs during the menopause is caused by an age-related decline in the basal metabolic rate, i.e. the daily energy requirement (calorie requirement) decreases.

This can be explained, among other things, by the decreasing muscle mass, because the energy metabolism takes place in the muscles and if there are fewer muscles, only less energy can be used. The excess energy is stored in the form of fatty tissue. If a menopausal woman eats the same large portions at meals as usual, this can already be too much, due to the significantly slower metabolism.

In this case, one should carefully consider whether the size of the portion is really necessary to get full. Another factor influencing weight gain in the menopause is the decreasing amount of exercise. This means that fewer calories are consumed and the fat stores increase in volume.

However, if you want to prevent this, it is advisable to exercise regularly and thus support muscle building. In addition, a woman should have a balanced diet, especially during her menopause, and eat many whole-grain products, fruit, vegetable fats, low-fat meat, fish and dairy products. This not only reduces weight gain, but also reduces the risk of osteoporosis (bone loss).

However, weight gain offers a small advantage: fatty tissue produces oestrogen. In this way, the fatty tissue can at least partially compensate for the falling estrogen level. The classic oestrogen withdrawal symptoms such as hot flushes, sleep disturbances, dry mucous membranes, incipient osteoporosis, etc. are thus noticeably reduced.