Nourishing Your Body: Essential Foods for Thriving Through Perimenopause

Written by: Victoria Biddick

• NZ Associate Registered Nutritionist (ARNutr)
• BAppSc (Human Nutrition), BAppSc (Food Science)

The advice below is general advice, for any specific tailored advice relevant to any health conditions please talk to your health professional.

Perimenopause is a fantastic opportunity to transform challenges into positives and embrace a new approach to your body and diet. As our bodies change, so should our approach to nutrition. Taking care of ourselves means tuning into how our bodies feel and discovering what truly nourishes us. By paying attention to the foods that make us feel good and listening to our body's hunger and fullness cues, we can thrive during this phase of life.

As oestrogen levels decline, our risk factors for disease may increase, but we have the power to counter this with positive lifestyle changes. Start by incorporating nourishing foods that support your health and wellbeing during perimenopause and beyond. When we focus on the abundance of foods we can enjoy, we eliminate feelings of restriction and restraint, which can lead to a healthier relationship with food (1).

Our top three food groups to boost in your daily diet:

• Colourful Fruits and Vegetables: These vibrant foods are packed with vitamins, minerals and fibre, and are low in calories. They support everything from cellular renewal and protection to enhancing mood and overall wellbeing.
• Protein: Protein supports muscle synthesis, body repair and growth and our immune response. Muscle mass declines as we age and during perimenopause. In perimenopause our protein needs increase, and adequate intake is essential for healthy aging (Everee Women™ #3 Peri-menopause Support is a convenient and easy way to boost your daily protein intake).
• Low-Fat Dairy/Calcium-Rich Foods: Increasing dietary calcium during perimenopause is crucial for bone health. While low-fat dairy products are excellent sources of calcium, you can also find it in foods like chia seeds and fish with bones, such as salmon or sardines.

Read on for more detail on how to boost your diet with nourishing foods.

Eat More Fruits and Vegetables

What to Eat:

Choose a variety of colourful fruits and vegetables each week to ensure you get a wide range of nutrients. The daily recommendation is at least 5 servings of colourful vegetables and 2 servings of fruit (3). Non-starchy vegetables like broccoli, carrots, peas, mushrooms, pumpkin, salad greens, and tomatoes are low in energy but nutrient dense. In contrast, starchy vegetables such as potatoes, kumara, yams, and corn contain more carbohydrates and energy, and are treated like wholegrains to fuel the body (3). Starchy vegetables are still nourishing, so it’s important to include them in your diet.

Why It's Important:

An apple a day really does keep the doctor away!

Studies show that individuals who consume more fruit and vegetables a day have a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and all-cause mortality (5).

Fruits and vegetables are packed with vitamins, minerals and fibre.

• Vitamins: Required in small amounts to perform specific functions that support growth, reproduction, and maintenance of life. As we age, we experience low-grade inflammation and general wear and tear in our cells. Vitamins can protect our bodies from oxidative damage. The colour of vegetables indicates the vitamins content, for example, orange vegetables like carrots, capsicum, and pumpkin are high in Vitamin A.
• Minerals: Essential for life these non-organic compounds are required in varying amounts in the body. Fresh fruits and vegetables are high in the mineral potassium, which helps maintain cell integrity by balancing fluids in our bodies. Because of this, eating more fruits and vegetables can help lower blood pressure (4).
• Fibre: Promotes bowel health by keeping us regular. Fruits and vegetables are rich in fibre, which also helps us feel full longer and supports better weight stability (1). A high-fibre diet supports gut health and is linked to improved mood and well-being through the gut-brain axis (5).

How to Get More Fruits and Vegetables in Your Day:

Variety is key. Eating a rainbow of fruits and vegetables ensures you access  a variety of different nutrients. Fresh, frozen, and canned options are all good, especially in colder months when variety is limited, and costs increase.

Some ways to increase your daily intake include:

• Include a serving of fruit or vegetables with every meal and snack. For example, add fruit to your morning porridge, have an apple with your cheese and crackers, add extra salad vegetables to your lunch, and include another serving of vegetables with your evening meal.
• Incorporate colourful vegetables into dishes like soups, curries, and pastas. For example, add grated carrot, courgette, and onion to a bolognaise sauce.
• Include a side of colourful roasted vegetables with main meals. For a quick recipe, toss seasonal vegetables with olive oil, black pepper and herbs, and roast in the oven at 200°C for 30 minutes.
• Order a fruit and vegetable box to increase variety and convenience. We recommend Wonky Box (https://www.wonkybox.nz/), which offers a rescue box of non-perfect produce, well-priced and delivered to your door it makes healthier choices easy.

Up your Protein Levels

What to Eat:

Incorporate a variety of high-quality, minimally processed plant and animal-based proteins into your diet. Excellent sources include beans and legumes, fish and seafood, poultry, lean red meat, and eggs. Consuming a diverse range of protein foods also provides your body with essential B vitamins, zinc, and iron. Aim for about 1.4 to 2.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, tailored to your individual needs such as exercise, health status, and body type. A simpler guideline is to aim for around 100 grams of protein per day (1).

Why It's Important:

• Counters Muscle Loss: Adequate dietary protein helps combat muscle loss due to ageing and perimenopause. Maintaining muscle mass and strength is crucial for movement, balance and overall well-being as we age.
• Supports Growth and Repair: Protein is essential for the body's growth, repair, and immune response.
• Increases Satiety: Protein helps you feel fuller for longer by increasing satiety hormones and suppressing hunger hormones.

How to Increase Your Daily Protein Levels

Unlike carbohydrates and fats, which can be stored by the body, protein needs to be consumed regularly throughout the day to meet your body's needs.

• Spread Your Protein Intake: Include a protein source with every meal and snack. For example, add Greek yogurt to your cereal or have hummus with your carrots.
• Stack Your Protein Sources: Combine multiple protein sources in a meal. For instance, add Greek yogurt, nuts, seeds, and quinoa flakes to your bowl of porridge.  Add in your daily Everee Women™ #3 Peri-menopause Support to your usual smoothie.
• Add in Resistance Training: Combining resistance training with an adequate dose of high-quality protein can enhance our muscle’s ability to synthesize dietary protein and build muscle (7).  

Boost your Intake of Low-Fat Dairy and Calcium-Rich Foods

At 51 years the daily recommendation changes from 2.5 to 4 serves of low-fat dairy and calcium-rich foods (3).

What to Eat:

Dairy products such as milk, yoghurt and cheese are good sources of calcium, protein, carbohydrate and Vitamin D (3). Unsweetened low-fat versions are better for our heart heath so choose these options where you can. Other sources of calcium  include fish with bones such as sardines and salmon. Plant based foods such as fortified plant milks, soy and tofu are also great sources of calcium. Vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli, bok choy and almonds, sesame and chia seeds  also contain calcium (1).

Why it important:

• Bone Health: Calcium is essential for building and maintaining strong bones. Women, especially as they age, are at a higher risk of osteoporosis, a condition where bones become weak and brittle. Adequate calcium intake helps prevent bone loss and reduces the risk of fracture (1)
• Heart Function: It aids in maintaining the action of the heart muscle and helps regulate blood pressure. Calcium is also involved in muscle and nerve function and blood cutting. These functions are necessary for life, if we don’t eat adequate calcium our bones and teeth will be used to maintain our blood calcium levels.

How to Boost your Intake of Low-Fat Dairy and Calcium-Rich Foods:

• Include Low-Fat Dairy Products with your meals: Add a serve of cheese to your sandwich/ salad or yoghurt with your cereal, skim milk to your porridge. Cottage cheese on your toast or a yummy yoghurt dip with your vegetables.
• Eat Leafy Greens:Incorporate these into salads, soups, and stir-fries.
• Choose Fortified Foods:Many plant-based milks (like almond, soy, and oat milk), and cereals are fortified with calcium. Check the labels to ensure they meet your calcium needs aim for about 120g/100ml (1). Tofu and tempeh are often fortified with calcium too.
• Snack on Nuts and Seeds:Add Almonds, chia seeds, and sesame seeds to meals and snacks. Tahini which is a middle eastern cooking spread made of sesame seeds is particularly high in calcium and can be used to make salad dressing and in dips such as hummus.
• Get Enough Vitamin D:Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium. Ensure you get enough sunlight and include vitamin D-rich foods like fatty fish, egg yolks, and fortified foods in your diet. Vitamin D is also in Everee Women™ #3  Peri-menopause Support.
• Consider a Calcium Supplement: If you struggle to get enough calcium from food, consider taking a calcium supplement. Consult with your GP to determine the right dosage for you.

Where to start:

No matter where you are on your menopause journey, it's never too early or late to make positive lifestyle changes.

Kotahi karihi nana ko te wao tapu nui a Tāne.

The creation of the forests of Tāne comes from one kernel .

This Whakataukī reminds us that small changes can be powerful. Starting small leads to growth. Small actions add up over time. Plant the seed of growth and opportunity by doing the little things everyday

Begin with small, manageable steps that are easy to maintain even when life gets busy or stressful. For example, add an extra serving of fruit or vegetables to your daily meals. These small, positive dietary changes can have a significant impact on your health. For instance, eating 10g more whole grains daily can reduce the risk of hypertension, heart attacks and strokes by 4% over a year (2). As these small changes become habits, you can gradually introduce more positive adjustments into your lifestyle.

Remember, every small step you take is a step towards a healthier, happier you.

References

1. Whitney,E.,Rolfes,S.,Crowe,T.,Walsh.,A(2019).Understanding Nutrition.(4 th Australia and New Zealand ed.).Cengage Learning.
2. Bhandari, B., Liu, Z., Lin, S., Macniven, R., Akombi-Inyang, B., Hall, J., Feng, X., Schutte, A. E., & Xu, X. (2023). Long-Term Consumption of 10 Food Groups and Cardiovascular Mortality: A Systematic Review and Dose Response Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies. Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.), 14(1), 55–63. 
3. Ministry of Health.(2020). Eating and Activity Guidelines for New Zealand Adults: Wellington: Ministry of Health.
4. Conlin P. R. (1999). The dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) clinical trial: implications for lifestyle modifications in the treatment of hypertensive patients. Cardiology in review, 7(5), 284–288.
5. Jacka, F. N., O'Neil, A., Opie, R., Itsiopoulos, C., Cotton, S., Mohebbi, M., Castle, D., Dash, S., Mihalopoulos, C., Chatterton, M. L., Brazionis, L., Dean, O. M., Hodge, A. M., & Berk, M. (2017). A randomised controlled trial of dietary improvement for adults with major depression (the 'SMILES' trial). BMC medicine, 15(1), 23. 
6. Aune, D., Giovannucci, E., Boffetta, P., Fadnes, L. T., Keum, N., Norat, T., Greenwood, D. C., Riboli, E., Vatten, L. J., & Tonstad, S. (2017). Fruit and vegetable intake and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer and all-cause mortality-a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies. International journal of epidemiology, 46(3), 1029–1056.
7. Churchward-Venne, T. A., Burd, N. A., & Phillips, S. M. (2012). Nutritional regulation of muscle protein synthesis with resistance exercise: strategies to enhance anabolism. Nutrition & metabolism, 9(1), 40.