Women's Health
Menopause brings a range of symptoms as hormone levels decline—from hot flashes to joint pain and mood changes. With proper nutrition, targeted nutrients, and strength training, you can actively shape this life phase and support your health.
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Imagine this: you're having constant hot flashes, can't focus anymore, you're exhausted but can't sleep. Your head is pounding, you're gradually gaining body fat, and both your mood and bones feel as unstable as internet connections in small Swiss towns. Not a pleasant thought, right?
For about 700,000 women in Switzerland, this is daily reality that comes with the onset of menopause with a probability of over 75%. Maybe you're one of them and recognized yourself in the symptoms described above.
Following the World Menopause Day that took place the day before yesterday (October 18th), we want to address a topic you've requested frequently and looked forward to. This article is just the beginning – so stay tuned!
Let's look at what's really going on with menopause and the symptoms that come with it. And this isn't just interesting for women over 40, because preventing menopause symptoms often starts in your 20s!
What happens to your hormones?
Around age 35, progesterone levels begin to drop slowly as ovulation becomes less frequent. Estrogen, meanwhile, remains at normal levels, leading to relative estrogen dominance. This can manifest through breast tenderness, water retention, irregular cycles, or irritability.
In perimenopause, which usually begins around age 40, estrogen levels also start to drop—but not gently and steadily. Instead, they fluctuate wildly. This leads to typical menopause symptoms like hot flashes, headaches and joint pain, sleep and concentration problems, dry mucous membranes, and psychological symptoms.
Due to estrogen deficiency, energy expenditure decreases and carbohydrate metabolism shifts unfavorably. The result: many women develop the classic "menopause belly." This belly fat doesn't just bother women aesthetically—it also increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes.
After the last menstrual period, which typically occurs around age 51, hormone levels stabilize at a lower baseline and typical menopause symptoms gradually subside. In postmenopause, the focus shifts to preserving bone and muscle mass to stay fit and avoid injuries.
Interestingly: bone mass is built primarily until around your 30th birthday. After that, you can only try to slow bone loss. The more bone you've built by then, the longer you can draw on those reserves.
What can I do about the symptoms?
Unfortunately, there's no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. Every woman experiences the transition in her own way, and ultimately each must discover what works for her and what doesn't.
Generally speaking, during menopause it's important to focus on three pillars:
You can support each phase of menopause through your diet.
If you're experiencing estrogen dominance in perimenopause, it's important to ensure sufficient breakdown and elimination of estrogen through your liver and gut. The liver loves bitter compounds (like dandelion greens, radicchio, arugula, grapefruit), and the gut thrives on plenty of fiber and plant fibers.
Conversely, with estrogen deficiency that comes with age, you can influence this through modulating your gut microbiome—think beta-glucuronidase. There's an in-depth article on this topic, [source no longer available]. Plants with hormone-like substances called phytoestrogens—such as isoflavones from soy, lignans from flaxseeds, or prenyl flavonoids from hops—can also have a positive effect on symptoms.
Baseline support (for example with Multi or eduone®) of essential nutrients is the foundation for your wellbeing during menopause. Additionally, menopause specifically requires
to name just a few of the most important nutrients.
Strength training deserves special attention during menopause. It helps preserve both muscle and bone mass—both of which gradually decline with falling estrogen levels.
For example, women lose about 0.5% of their lean mass annually starting in menopause, while gaining 1.7% fat mass instead (1).
Muscles and bones need sufficient stimulus to avoid deterioration. While popular activities like yoga and walking are great for stress relief, flexibility, and cardiovascular health, they can't provide adequate stimulus for muscle and bone preservation. Older women should absolutely not shy away from strength training with dumbbells or machines!
Now it's your turn!
We hope we've given you some helpful tips and would love to hear your thoughts on menopause.
What helps you best against the symptoms?
What product for menopause would you like us to create?
Share your experiences with us!
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