Wednesday 18 July 2012

The Menopause & Diet Part 2

As we know many symptoms of the Menopause are brought on by the result of falling levels of oestrogen.  One way to counteract this is by having a diet, that is based around plant oestrogens, also known as phytoestrogens, along with antioxidant rich fruit and vegetables.

Phytoestrogens are chemicals derived from certain plants.  They are classified as 'natural' foods.  They can be further broken down into 'ligans' and 'isoflavones'.  Ligans are found in seeds, whole grains and some fruit and vegetables.  Isoflavones are found in beans, pulses and soya.  Phytoestrogens have a similar structure to the female hormone oestrogen.  When eaten they bind to the oestrogen receptors and act like hormone regulators and give a boost to falling oestrogen levels. 

There is evidence to suggest that many ladies in Asia, China and Japan have a far less incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis and some female cancers including breast and ovarian.  They also seem to suffer far less from mood swings and hot sweats, just a couple of the symptoms of the menopause.  Could this be down to lifestyle and nutrition choices, some experts say yes.  They agree that ' activity that works your joints as well as your heart and lungs 3 - 5 times per week, and a diet based around fruit, vegetables, whole grains and a meat, fish or alternative protein source eaten little and often' is what we should all be aiming for (not just menopausal women).

Phytoestrogens can be taken as a supplement, check your local health food shop or in dietary form, some of the best sources are included below:

  • Cereals & Grains: Oats, barley, rye, brown rice, cous cous, buck wheat and bulgar wheat.
  • Seeds: Sunflower, poppy, flaxseeds, linseed, sesame and pumpkin.
  • Beans & Pulses: Haricot beans, kidney beans, broad beans, mung beans, peas, lentils and soya products including soya beans, soya milk and soya supplements.

Side Note:  If some of these foods are new to you, I would suggest adding them slowly into your diet to make sure sure you do not have an adverse reaction. 

Another important group are fruits and vegetables high in 'antioxidants'.  These help build up our defences to help fight off 'free radicals' that are unstable reactive cells that can cause untold damage through our bodies.  So always get a minimum of 5 a day of fruit and veggies to send the free radicals packing! 

Below is the ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) scale.  This scale is a way of scoring fruit and vegetables on how effective they are in combating harmful free radicals.  All the foods in this table will significantly raise the antioxidant levels in your blood as well as providing essential vitamins, minerals and fibre.



Top scoring Antioxidant Fruit and Vegetables

Fruit

ORAC score
Vegetable
ORAC score
Prunes *
5,770
Kale
1,770
Raisins *
2,830
Spinach
1,260
Blueberries
2,400
Brussels sprouts
980
Blackberries
2,036
Alfalfa sprouts
930
Strawberries
1,540
Broccoli
890
Raspberries
1,220
Beetroot
840
Plums
949
Red Peppers
710
Oranges
750
Onions
450
Red Grapes
739
Corn
400
Cherries
670
Aubergines
390
Kiwi Fruit
602
Cauliflower
337
Pink Grapefruit
483
Sweet potatoes
301
Banana
221
White potatoes
275
Apple
218
Tomato
189

            table courtesy of 'Food for Fitness' by Anita Bean

*The ORAC values of prunes and raisins appear higher because they contain very little water.

Implement some of the above foods into your diet and hopefully gain the benefits, remember its not just for menopausal ladies. But if you are one, and suffering silently, what have you got to lose, you never know you may gain a good nights sleep!

All the best,
Till next time
Amanda

http://www.mw-pt.co.uk/Personal-Training


  





No comments:

Post a Comment