Featuring Cool the Crone Capsules
By 2025 over 1 billion women will experience perimenopause, a natural shift that occurs when a person enters her 40s and 50s and her ovaries begin producing fewer hormones, especially estrogen. This drop in hormones creates irregular periods, hot flashes, mood swings, vaginal dryness, weight gain, and insomnia until the menses cycle stops altogether and eggs are no longer released. If you’re just beginning the perimenopause journey, you’re obviously not alone as there are 1 billion other people out there also on this same journey. And they’re looking for answers just like you are. So how does one navigate the storm of hormones ahead? Keep reading to discover some suggestions for a smoother ride.
It’s not just what you eat, but what you don’t eat.
Avoid processed/packaged foods that are laden with chemical preservatives and synthetic additives that congest the liver, the primary organ involved in flushing out progesterone and estrogen every month to keep you in balance. They are usually high in sodium, sugar, and carbohydrates as well, which can lead to bloating and weight gain – something you may already be prone to because as you reach middle age, you lose muscle mass and your metabolisms slow down, especially after menopause.
Choose high-fiber foods instead because constipation can become an issue due to the drop in hormones you’ll experience during perimenopause or also because of a loss in muscle tone due to middle age. Progesterone and estrogen also bind to fiber, so you support a well-balanced body helping to eliminate these hormones through a high-fiber diet. Finally, diets packed with fiber are associated with higher satiety and less weight gain so start shopping for nuts, seeds, legumes like lentils, beans, ancient grains such as quinoa, avocados, whole fruits, and vegetables.
During perimenopause, your sexual hormones fluctuate, which alters the way that you physically and emotionally respond to stressful situations. Why? Because sex hormones impact stress hormones – as progesterone and estrogen drop, cortisol levels rise. So any additional stressful events in your life can exasperate your perimenopause symptoms. That’s why stress management is crucial to this stage in your life.
Now more than ever is the time to prioritize self-care, as activities that reduce stress can actually minimize hot flashes, brain fog, fatigue, mood swings, and other perimenopause symptoms, plus they bring loads of other health benefits along with them! Yoga, spending time in nature, deep breathing, mindfulness through journaling or meditation, massage therapy, or volunteering are just a few suggestions.
Physical activity will not only help you keep off the weight gain associated with hormonal changes, but it will also help combat the natural muscle loss associated with aging. By exercising and building muscle, you’ll increase your metabolism and the rate your body burns calories each day. It will also prevent heart disease and diabetes, lower blood pressure, and improve your cholesterol levels. And it can help protect your bones, through high-impact movement, as the years immediately following menopause are normally a time of rapid bone loss.
Though research has yet to uncover whether exercise can significantly reduce hot flashes, a study conducted in 2014 evaluating the activities of 248 perimenopausal women for 12 weeks, found that of the 106 participants that completed moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, improvements were seen in their sleep quality, insomnia, and mood that were not seen in the 142 women who were sedentary. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise 5 days a week, with at least 2 days of muscle strengthening. It may seem like a lot, but you can cut it down if you try high-intensity interval training which is super-efficient – allowing you to exercise in less time while still strengthening your bones, preventing weight gain, and preserving lean muscle mass!
Could essential oils help with hormones?
Clary Sage
An experiment in 2014 found that inhaling clary sage oil significantly decreased the stress hormone cortisol in a group of menopausal women while increasing levels of the feel-good neurotransmitter serotonin. Consider installing a diffuser and allowing the scent to waft throughout your home or office.
Peppermint
Peppermint can have a cooling effect during a hot flash. Try applying it directly to the skin through a roll-on which is mixed with a carrier oil such as sweet almond or jojoba oil. Roll-ons are convenient and travel-friendly, allowing you to use them whenever you need them – in your car, picking up groceries, during a meeting, walking your dog, etc.
Neroli
Researchers in another 2014 study discovered that the 63 healthy menopausal women who inhaled this citrus-based scent experienced fewer physical symptoms, reduced blood pressure, and improved pulse rates while also reporting an increase in sexual desire. Perhaps this oil is best used in the bedroom!
The herbal world also contains several allies to help you manage your menopausal journey. Cool the Crone capsules combine the perfect combination of herbs to help balance sexual hormones while also calming the nervous system, including Black Cohosh Root which can help prevent hot flashes and improve sleep quality. Research shows it might also help reduce hormonal imbalances tied to diabetes or fibroids, and even help women with fertility prior to menopause. Sage Leaf is another star player in this blend, as a 2011 study with Advances in Therapy found that it lowered the severity and number of hot flashes in 71 menopausal women who took it once a day for 8 weeks. Lady’s Mantle is a wonderful fertility tonic, reducing water retention and toning the uterus, but its ability to stimulate the production of progesterone is what helps bring regularity to perimenopausal symptoms. Shatavari Root, an Ayurvedic herb from India, contains phytoestrogens, a plant-based, dietary form of estrogen, and is believed to help balance the heat and dryness that often accompanies menopause. Motherwort adds a calming, soothing effect to Cooling the Crone capsules, as does Ashwagandha Root, to which findings in 2019 report that it reduces cortisol levels, which as you know by now are naturally higher in perimenopausal people.
The years that accompany your waning menstrual and ovulatory cycles don’t have to be ones of fret or fear. By educating yourself and openly embracing this new stage, your life can be much more comfortable, healthy, and grounded. Not all of these tips will work for you but don’t give up if one doesn’t seem to do the trick – just move on to another one that does! Your journey is your own – so own it already! Cronehood is beautiful.