5 Menopause Nutrition Myths to Stop Believing Today

Find out how these prevalent myths can hold you back in midlife.

Misinformation makes me mad, and there are plenty of influencers out there to keep me perpetually pissed off.  The inaccurate messages these so-called experts spread far and wide can leave you confused and fearful about nutrition and wellness. Here are some of the most popular menopause nutrition myths that need debunking, and right now.

You must drastically cut back on carbohydrates for weight loss.

When midlife weight gain hits you like a ton of bricks, you want relief, and fast. I get it (been there!) but cutting carbs to the bare minimum is not the answer. In fact, it may work against you by sapping your energy in the short-run and making weight control harder in the long term.

Foods rich in carbohydrate, such as fruit, vegetables, grains, legumes, and lentils, also provide fiber, which is key to maintaining or losing weight. It’s very difficult to meet your fiber needs when you cut nutritious carbohydrate-rich foods from your eating plan.

Read about fiber’s role in weight control

Evidence from nearly 137,000 people found that eating more foods rich in complex carbohydrates and fiber, such as whole grains, fruit, broccoli, spinach, and green beans, resulted in less weight gain over a 20-year period than eating more sugary drinks, refined grains, and starchy vegetables. 

In another study, the fiber from fruit, bread, and cereal (primarily oats and whole grain bread) was associated with successful aging in older adults over 10-years’ time. Successful aging was defined as the absence of disability, symptoms of depression, cognitive impairment, and chronic illness, such as cancer and heart disease.

You need animal foods to satisfy your protein requirements.

I won’t name names, but there is a popular Instagram account that pushes animal protein only for midlife women, despite research saying otherwise. Meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, and dairy products are concentrated sources of all the amino acids you need to maintain and build muscle and for other bodily functions, but you don’t need animal foods for protein.  

It's possible to satisfy protein requirements with plant foods. In fact, several studies show that when you meet your overall protein needs, plant foods can satisfy amino acid requirements and support muscle mass, including in older adults.

Most of us get protein, the amino acids we need, and a variety of other nutrients by eating a mixture of adequate amounts of animal and plant foods. Plant foods, such as beans, lentils, and soy products, provide phytonutrients- compounds that protect your cells and promote gut health- as well as fiber, vitamins, minerals, and water.  Animal foods, including lean meat and poultry, supply easily absorbed iron and zinc. Seafood harbors omega-3 fats, eggs are rich in choline, and dairy foods supply calcium.

Find out how to get enough of plant and animal protein

Belly fat is harder to lose than the fat on your thighs and buttocks.

There’s no shortage of influencers peddling their diets, supplements, or exercise routines that promise to shed belly fat forever. Some even claim that you must follow their program because midlife belly fat is “resistant” for reasons only they can comprehend (that’s because there’s no science to support them).

Here’s the deal. Women tend to gain fat more rapidly in their abdomens during the menopause transition.  Estrogen levels start dropping in your 40s which favors weight gain around your middle. The extra fat is a mix of subcutaneous, found between the skin and the abdominal wall, and visceral, located behind the abdominal wall.  While both types can prevent you from fitting into your favorite jeans, visceral fat is worse for overall health.

However, contrary to influencer advice, visceral fat is actually easier – easier being relative at this stage of life - to shed than subcutaneous fat and you don’t require any special diet, supplement, or exercise regimen to get shed it.

Check out the details about visceral fat

Diet and lifestyle don’t reduce hot flashes.

About 80% of women experience hot flashes during the menopause transition. Lower estrogen levels disrupt the brain’s ability to control core temperature and it thinks the body is overheating. Hormone therapy and other nonhormonal medications are approved to manage hot flashes, but diet and lifestyle can help, too.   

In one study, weight loss decreased hot flashes in a group of women who started out with overweight. The North American Menopause Society endorses weight loss for treating hot flashes.  Alcohol and caffeine can trigger hot flashes in some women, and women who smoke also tend to have more hot flashes.  

Plant foods can also be helpful for hot flashes. Phytoestrogens, which is plant-based estrogen, helps decrease hot flashes in some women by producing weak estrogen-like effects. Phytoestrogens are found in tofu, tempeh, and edamame, as well as other plant foods including flaxseed, grains, apples, and peanuts. A balanced, plant-based diet with a daily serving of soy foods encourages weight control and may help with hot flashes. 

Read more about hot flashes

Resistance training is better than aerobic exercise for your health.

This isn’t a nutrition myth, but I can’t ignore the buzz about one type of exercise being better than the other for midlife women.

There’s been a lot of chatter lately about intense aerobic exercise raising cortisol levels in your blood. Cortisol is a stress hormone that can stay elevated when you are constantly anxious, on the go, or overtired.  You may have heard talk about elevated cortisol concentrations increasing belly fat, causing inflammation, and sapping energy.

Working out hard has been blamed for high cortisol levels, which is ironic, given that exercise helps decrease stress in the long run. But evidence suggests that consistently exercising at vigorous intensities (jogging, running, aerobic dance) may promote more normal cortisol levels throughout the day and counteract high cortisol concentrations in people who tend to be stressed out. 

Aerobic activity and resistance training (weight training, using bands, or your own body weight) make a great team. They both benefit the body by promoting heart, bone, and lung health, building muscle mass, and supporting bone health and they can play a role in weight control.

One review found that 30 to 60 minutes a week of resistance training was associated with a lower risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and lung cancer. And another study found that cardio (aerobic exercise) andresistance training work better together to reduce the risk of dying early from most causes (but not cancer).

You don’t need to stop walking briskly, jogging, or spinning, but be sure to include resistance training if you haven’t done so yet. Experts suggest resistance exercise on two or more days weekly in addition to at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity spread throughout the week.

What nutrition myth would you like to see busted? Let me know in the comments!