5 Best Tips for Relieving Your Menopause Symptoms

So you've hit menopause and now you're wondering what to do next. Or maybe you just SUSPECT that your sliding into menopause (peri-menopause) because you're starting to experience any of the myriad of symptoms, like hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, fatigue, decreased sex drive, mood swings, and relentless weight gain.

The good news is that we now live in a time when menopause is no longer a taboo subject. We feel more comfortable discussing it with our friends, significant others, spouses and doctors. There are more avenues than ever to help support us in our transition. The bad news is that there are a lot of traditional "old" Western medical approaches to menopause relief that are certainly dangerous and sure to be avoided whenever possible.

The beauty of menopause, however, is that it is the time when most women are flowering into the fullness of their personal identity - in what they want out of life, in what dreams and talents they want to give birth to, and what desires they want to fulfill. They spent their earlier years defining themselves as wife, mother, best friend, and trusty employee, but menopause ushers them into a new age - the Age of Wisdom - and here are our 5 little bits of wisdom for you to get you through this transition of menopause in style:

Tip 1: Exercise!

Even a gentle walk every day for 20 minutes (outdoors preferably) will go a long way towards preserving your muscle tone and bone density. Walking can help you lower your bad cholesterol and raise the good, lower your blood pressure, help manage your weight and even improve your mood. What's more is that if you do it outdoors, you also get the benefit of natural Vitamin D which is essential to your immune system and also helps to prevent cancer. (info from "The Mayo Clinic" and "Medical News Today"). Walking also may lead you to be more enthusiastic about starting a more rigorous exercise routine... after all "a body in motion STAYS in motion."

Tip 2: Eat a Healthy Diet

There is a LOT of misinformation out there about what's healthy. If your main source of nutritional knowledge comes from the News at 10 or the government's latest food pyramid, it's important to start doing a little research on your own. Some trusty sources are Dr. Mercola's site or our own "Sugar Control Diet" which is not only excellent for weight loss, but also for balancing hormones (which is so important for menopause symptom relief!) Our Sugar Control Diet guidelines also help in reducing inflammation and even identifying foods that may be causing digestive distress (scroll down to our resource box at the end of this article and you can contact us to request our Sugar Control Diet... it's free).

So many people think that baked potatoes, pastas, rice and breads are good for them - but those all metabolize as sugars in the body, and in doing so, they trigger an insulin release... too much of which not only causes your body to gain more fat but throws all your other hormones out of whack as well (a DISASTER for women seeking menopausal symptom relief!) So educate yourself and start making truly healthy changes in your diet asap - this will help with ALL your menopause symptoms.

Tip 3: Indulge in Some "Me" Time

Menopause often gets a bad rap because we're so inundated with information about the bad parts. But let's try to find its "good" aspects. For example, as we mentioned before, this is a time when women are coming into their own. They know themselves better. They usually have more free time because their children need less supervision - and so they can write that book they never wrote, or attend that class they never had time for in the past. They can build that new meaningful career or find their real purpose and passion that fuels their soul.

Part of birthing this new "you" is learning how to take care of yourself and your needs better. So start laying down the law with some "100% ME" time. Put in some earplugs, declare it a no-kid-zone, and go take a luxurious bubble bath by candlelight. Go to your local gym and indulge in some sauna time. Get a Thai massage - or better yet, some reflexology! As Tony Robbins puts it, schedule your own "Hour of Power" or "Thirty Minutes to Thrive"....if you can't do that, at least schedule "Fifteen Minutes for Fulfillment"! Everyone can find 15 minutes in their schedule somewhere. But put it on the calendar in ink and make it a "must" for yourself. It will calm your nerves, rejuvenate your body, and revitalize your soul.

Tip 4: Avoid Caffeine, Alcohol & Nicotine

If you have excessive consumption of caffeine or alcohol or any intake at all of cigarette smoke (first or second hand), you should know that these substances worsen menopause symptoms. Caffeine & Alcohol serve to exacerbate hot flashes, anxiety, insomnia and bone loss during the critical menopause & perimenopausal years. Caffeine especially disrupts mineral absorption and increases stress. Alcohol ruthlessly dehydrates you (never a good thing!) and is a "magnifier" - so if you're already feeling depressed, alcohol will "magnify" that depression and make it worse. It will take your menopausal anxiety and magnify that too. And you may think it helps you sleep, but when the sugar spike in your blood system finally crashes (remember alcohol = sugar), you will awaken in the middle of the night and find it difficult to go back to sleep.

And did you know that smoking is the main factor in causing early menopause (before age 45) in women?!? Plus it increases the risk of osteoporosis and heart disease, among other things we don't even need to mention. But in regards to menopause itself, according to the British Journal "The Lancet" researchers suggest that nicotine's effect on the nervous system possibly results in changes of the secretion of the hormones involved in menopause, and the smoke itself may affect certain enzymes that influence how the body handles sex hormones. So get help now if you're addicted... hypnotherapy is often a good route for quitting cigarettes and other addictions.

Tip 5: Get Yourself Some 100% SAFE, All-Natural Support for Menopause Symptom Relief

Now this is the MAIN TIP for you: The Big Enchilada. The topic every menopausal woman must educate herself about. It used to be that we all just went to our doctor and he or she prescribed the typical HRT (hormone replacement therapy) for us... you know: Premarin, Prempro, Provera and others. Those synthetic hormone pharmaceuticals that most often are made from the urine of pregnant horses. Yes... GROSS, we know. But it's the truth.

However that all changed when a recent study done as a part of the Women's Health Initiative discovered that long-term use of these synthetic hormone replacement drugs may increase the risk of strokes, heart attacks, blood clots and breast cancer. Even as far back as 1975, they knew these types of drugs substantially increased the risk of endometrial cancer as well. Despite all the findings in this study, doctors continue to prescribe it.

There is no doubt that we do need some source of significant relief for the symptoms of menopause - so we can feel like ourselves, not suffer the mood swings, the insomnia and HOT FLASHES all the time (not to mention the lowered libido), but it's important not to potentially harm yourself by taking traditional HRT.

There are a great many viable and effective, natural herbal remedies for menopause symptoms on the market today... they do work, but some work better than others. We highly recommend getting a full-spectrum product made with trustworthy, quality herbs... not pesticide-laden, and not in capsules that are difficult for your body to digest and assimilate.

For example, most supplements DO contain Black Cohosh for hot flash relief, but make sure your supplement also addresses your other symptoms. Like Sage for excessive sweating, and Damiana with Soy Isoflavones for low-libido and depression. Adrenal support is good as well (the Licorice herb helps with that) - because you need adrenal support during this time... and don't forget Valerian to relax. Full spectrum SAFE support!

Educate yourself also about bio-identical hormones, which are much safer alternatives to traditional HRT. A great source of information for those is found in the book "Ageless" by Suzanne Somers. She even has a directory of physicians in the back so you can find one near you to get help.

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In conclusion, we hope these 5 Tips can help you to have a happier, healthier menopause and guide you toward a smooth transition into the New You. If you'd like to learn more, read our other articles and visit our website where we have a free report on menopause relief - we truly seek to help you live your best life NOW.

Yoga for Menopause Relief

Menopause is a phase of great importance in every woman's life, which may cause a lot of mixed feelings to occur. To think that it is an illness would be incorrect, as it is just a stage that every woman has to cross at a certain age.

Menopause basically means that the woman would no longer be able to give birth to a child and her menstrual cycle would come to an end. Due to this, there might be a blend of emotions that every woman may experience. Some women take this as a positive turn in their life, as menopause means that they can have a closer bond with their love one and a healthier sex life.

While the rest may consider this to be a highly depressing phase, as not being able to give birth would mean that they no longer have the main female characteristic present in them. This would lead to a lot of stress and doubts about oneself. This is not it, as menopause has a number of unpleasant symptoms, which are experienced by most of the women who are going through it.

Yoga plays an important role in providing relief from some of the biological changes that take place in the body of a woman, and benefit the person's emotional well being to a great extent. Many women going through the pre-menopausal stage have reported that yoga seems to be highly beneficial during this time.

If you do not have any prior experience with yoga, it is advised to take classes instead of learning it from a book. By attending classes, one gets exposure on how it should be done practically; this is a lot better than bookish knowledge.

Moreover, one gets to learn what positions should be taken and breathing techniques followed, which would be helpful. For example, one will learn how certain asanas can be of great help to overcome stress and uplifting one's moods.

At times, some confusion forms about which sort of postures should be followed, as different resources may suggest contradictory styles. Some books may provide information about mild and gentle postures being the best during this stage. On the other hand, some yoga instructors would be of the view that such postures lead to further problems such as gaining weight and experiencing mood swings. Therefore, they may suggest being active as a better option. Some postures which are considered to be helpful include triangle pose, half moon and standing postures.

Can Pre Menopause Supplements Delay The Onset Of Menopausal Symptoms?

As a woman, what's your feeling towards 'menopause'?

Many women are scared of it. This word is often linked to uncomfortable physical symptoms and emotional changes, including weight gain, hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, irritability, loss of libido and many other health problems.

So, some women ask: what can I do to delay the menopause? Well, maybe it is best that we find out what influences the timing first.

Menopause is a natural transition of life. A post menopause woman is not productive any more. The word menopause refers to the end of menstruation - 12 months after the last period. The years leading up to menopause is called perimenopause, or pre menopause.

Although most women enter into menopause naturally, there are other factors that could trigger early menopause, such as hysterectomy and chemotherapy.

The symptoms that many women experience happen in the pre menopause period. They are caused by the fluctuating hormone levels in women's body.

The factors that influence the timing of menopause are mainly genetic inheritance and environmental influences.

Genetic Inheritance

Genetic inheritance has a huge influence on the timing of menopause. If your mother and grandmother start to experience symptoms at around the age of 50, it is very likely that your symptoms may begin at a similar age.

A study of singleton and twin sisters revealed that a woman with a family history of early menopause has a higher risk of early menopause as well as early productive failure herself.

Heritability plays a big part in the onset of menopausal symptoms.

Environmental effects

Environmental effects include life styles, diet patterns, race and some other factors.

A heavy smoker with a long history can have their onset of menopause hastened. Women sho smoke may start pre menopause and menopause two years earlier. The reason is that smoking lowers estrogen levels.

Race is also an important factor in the timing of menopause. Menopause seems to occur at an earlier age among Latina women compared with non-Latina women.

Menopause Relief

Even though we have little control on the timing of menopause, we CAN take some actions to go through this period of transition with fewer troubles.

Attitude: 'attitude is everything', this adage applies to menopause as well. Women entering the menopause period need to accept that the change is happening and it's natural. Accept that your symptoms are caused by your hormonal changes, simple as that. I know with all the annoying symptoms, all you want to do probably is to curl up in bed and cry. But if you keep a pleasant attitude towards menopause, you may find it easier to copy with.

Life style change: If you are feeling low or fatigue at this stage, this is very common. Why don't you get up and take a little walk outside? Or learn to pamper yourself, after taking care of all your lovely ones most of the time. An extra hour will help you feel more refreshed and rejuvenated.

Pre menopause supplements: with more information on menopause available, more and more women are seeking relief in natural pre menopause supplements. With a quality supplement, women may have their symptoms reduced or even eliminated. They contain effective herbs such as Dong quai, Wild yam, Red clover and Black cohosh. These plants are very beneficial in treating the common complaints - hot flashes, fatigue, memory lapses, insomnia and other symptoms.

Such supplements work by balancing women's hormones the natural way, and at the same time, alleviating the symptoms. Quality and effective pre menopause supplements may help you pass this natural stage without many troubles.

Make Menopause Easier With The Right Diet

We tend to downplay the impact that our diet has on our health. The truth is that what we eat has a profound effect on our body chemistry. This is not only true in the case of say diet, cholesterol and heart disease, but is true of menopause and diet as well. The often quoted dictum "Let your food be your medicine and medicine be your food" attributed to the father of medicine Hippocrates, is true with regard to menopause as well.

A glaring example of the truth of this is found by comparing the experience of American women versus Japanese women with regard to menopause. Take the most common complaint of menopause, hot flushes and sweats. Eighty to eighty-five percent of American women complain of hot flashes during perimenopause and menopause. Yet only thirty percent of Japanese women do. This stark difference is attributed to the Japanese diet which is high in phytoestrogens.

The Japanese diet relieves menopause hot flashes and other menopause complaints

Among other things the Japanese diet is particularly high in soy. The Japanese consume soy in a variety of forms including tofu, tempeh, edaname, soy sauce and vegetable oil. Soy is eaten at breakfast, lunch and dinner. And as mentioned above, soy is high in phytoestrogens. These estrogen like molecules found in soybeans and certain other foods and herbs help to replace the dropping estrogen levels that occur during perimenopause and menopause. As a result the Japanese women experience far fewer menopause related complaints.

The Okinawa diet

There are other benefits of the Japanese diet. The people of Okinawa are renowned for their good health and long lives. The life expectancy of Okinawans is said to be the longest of anywhere on earth. Their health and longevity is attributed to their diet.

The diet of the Okinawans has been researched and was popularized recently through the book entitled The Okinawa Diet Plan. The diet consists largely of vegetables, legumes (soy), fruit and fish proteins. It is very low in sugar, starches, fat and dairy products. Okinawans consume 60-120 grams of soybeans daily, compared to an average of 0 grams for most Americans

The menopause diet

To get relief from menopause complaints such as hot flashes and sweats, or any other complaint, you've got to look at your diet. There's no way around it. You don't have to eat the Okinawa diet, which would be difficult for most Americans. But you do need to shift in that direction, away from the standard American diet (SAD). The good news is that it will benefit your health, energy levels and enjoyment in life too. Let's make it simple-because it is. There's two major areas you need to focus on.

#1. Eat a healthy diet. What is a healthy diet? I'm talking about the one that's been pounded into our brains the past 10 years. Like grandma used to say, "Eat your vegetables". (Officially its 5-7 servings of fruits and vegetables daily). Don't eat a lot of meat, and try to eat lean meat when you do. Get your protein more from nuts, seeds and beans (especially SOYBEANS).

Starches and sweets are empty calories. You should avoid them as much as possible. Also avoid artificial sweeteners. They're not healthy for your brain. Try using the herbal sweetener stevia when you want something sweet. Don't eat too much dairy-milk, cheese, yogurt. Avoid sugary beverages with stimulants like soda pop, etc. as if they were poison. Save coffee for special occasions rather than drinking it daily as a pick me up.

#2. Eat estrogen rich foods. Here's a short list of some of the foods that contain lots of phytoestrogens. Some of the foods that are high in phytoestrogens are flax seed, soy beans, sesame seeds, mung beans, apricots, alfalfa seeds, dates, sunflower seeds and olive oil. A good resource for recipe's that will help you get more estrogen rich foods in your diet is Estrogen, The Natural Way-Over 250 Easy & Delicious Recipes For Menopause by Nina Shandler.

That's it. Eat a healthy diet and eat estrogen rich foods. Combined with a herbal phytoestrogen like Siberian rhubarb root extract and you'll be amazed at the results. The right combination of natural remedies (ie phytoestrogen herbs and estrogen rich foods) can get much better results than any drug can-because there's little to no downside to a natural approach. That is minimal side effects and no risk.

The Hard Facts About Diet Pills For Menopausal Women

There are people who say that diet pills for menopausal women are harmful. This is so because menopausal women are undergoing chemical and other changes inside their body's systems. The menopausal woman's body is sensitive to chemicals and may induce negative reactions that could result to some chemical imbalances. As such, some medicines are not allowed to be taken or should be limited, most especially those which are inorganic or are made of artificial ingredients.  
 
Diet pills for menopausal women may contain some ingredients that are not compatible with such women. Some kinds of diet pills for menopausal women such as laxatives are potentially harmful to them. Laxatives are foods, medicines or compounds taken to induce bowel movements. This could result into diarrhoea for menopausal women and could prevent proper food absorption, thus lower levels of nutrients are absorbed by the body. Low nutrients can lead to more diseases as the body's immune system will be reduced significantly. Menopausal women are especially prone to this. Therefore, laxatives are not allowed or recommended to be taken by them. 
 
There are other kinds of weight loss pills or programs that are not suitable for women who are at their menopausal stage. Appetite suppressants, diuretics and other similar methods are not allowed as well. These weight loss programs only serve to either reduce the intake of necessary nutrients or accelerate the reduction of essential body nutrients due to the sensitive condition of menopausal women. Some nutrients needed by the body are taken out or are prevented from being absorbed.  
 
As such, the most recommended method in reducing weight for women who are at menopausal stage is to take weight loss supplements. Diet pills for menopausal women are not advisable as these are medicines that contain chemicals that are harmful to them. The supplements should be 100% natural, which means that all the ingredients are organic and taken from natural sources, no artificial elements/compounds are included. By taking natural weight loss supplements, no negative chemical reaction inside a woman's body can occur. 
 
There are weight loss products that are derived from organic materials and yet are more effective than most diet pills. All ingredients of these supplements are taken from organic materials, which mean that they are naturally grown or taken from natural sources. No artificial elements, drugs, or chemicals whatsoever are included. Hence, the product is 100% organic. Absolutely no preservatives, additives, allergens or any harmful ingredients are included.  
 
Since the product is made from organic materials, its effects on the body are as natural as any organic material could be. The weight loss supplement is very effective and no side effects could occur. When compared to the usual diet medicines for women in menopausal stage, the organic weight loss supplements are more effective. This is so because it does not alter the natural process within the body as it is made of organic materials. It is, therefore, highly recommended for menopausal women just as for any individual. The natural diet supplement acts accordingly with the system and binds only those fats that are not needed by the body.

Stop Eating Sugar For Relief Of Hot Flashes And Night Sweats

Can you really relieve hot flashes and night sweats simply by changing your diet and lifestyle? The short answer is "yes". The qualified, longer answer is "usually, yes". How do I know? Well, for one many women friends (who have suffered hot flashes and night sweats say that they have done so). There is also good research showing this to be so.

Let's start with the personal experiences related to me by women friends. One friend assured me that cutting sugar out of the diet would dramatically improve hot flashes and night sweats. Hmmmm! Why would that be so? To understand how cutting sugar from your diet would help reduce hot flashes and sweats, we need to understand what causes them a little more clearly.

Hot Flashes and Night Sweats Reflect An Upset Brain

As I explain the why and wherefore of hot flashes and night sweats, keep my friends experience in mind. (Remember, when she cut sugar out of her diet, her hot flashes and night sweats improved.)

Hot flashes and night sweats arise from lagging production of sex hormones by the ovaries. But it's not the ovaries that produce the hot flashes and night sweats. Hot flashes and night sweats an attempt by your body to bring down your core temperature. This regulatory mechanism lies within the brain, in an area called the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus regulates many critical body functions-blood pressure, the sleep/wake cycle, the stress response, body temperature, and our sexual cycle (puberty, monthly cycling, menopause).

When ovarian secretion of estrogens and progesterone falters during perimenopause, a simultaneous change is occurring in the hypothalamus. Hormone secretion by the hypothalamus surges in an attempt to stimulate the ovaries to secrete more. In a sense the hypothalamus becomes upset. This hypothalamus upset affects its other functions as well.

It is like finding out that a drop in the stock market has evaporated your retirement fund. You don't contain your upset, focusing it only on the market. You find yourself irritable at everything and everybody, including your loved ones. Your hypothalamus behaves the same way.

Brain control of body temperature is upset in menopause.

One hypothalamic function that is disrupted by your upset hypothalamus is its control mechanisms for your body's temperature. With this function upset, it constantly tries to lower your body temperature even though you're not dangerously overheating. Mechanisms like hot flashes and sweats that would normally be reserved for bringing down your temperature when you have a fever, now come into play many times a day. Even when your body temperature is within normal range and you don't have a fever.

Another hypothalamic function that is disrupted by your upset hypothalamus is the stress response. Remember that many critical control systems for your entire body reside side by side within a very small area of the brain-the hypothalamus. Upset one area and the other area's feel it.

Brain control of our stress response is also upset in menopause.

The stress response also originates in the brain and hypothalamus. When you feel stressed (in your thoughts and feelings) your brain is the first to register it. It then dutifully initiates a physical stress response through your entire body. The physical stress response is designed to help you do something about whatever it is you're stressed about. Generally when we're stressed we become motivated to handle it in some active way. We want to do something to solve the problem. The body's physical stress response enables us to act and resolve the source of the stress. What if our body's shut down and went to sleep whenever we experienced stress? We wouldn't be very effective in resolving the causes of our stress if our body did that, would we?

The body's stress response is a complex series of hormone responses that impacts every tissue in the body. Blood pressure increases, the heart rate increases, blood circulates more quickly, digestion shuts down, the adrenal glands secrete cortisol which mobilizes stored sugar and increases blood sugar levels.

The last feature of the stress response (how stress causes the adrenal glands to secrete cortisol which in turn raises blood sugar) takes us back to my friend at the beginning of this article. Part of the stress response is a rise in blood sugar levels. This gives us the energy we need for our brain to think clearly and our muscles to contract.

But still, how does eating sugar have anything to do with hot flashes?

Here's the connection between eating too much sugar and making hot flashes worse. When you eat lot's of sugar it causes a stress response in your body, not too different from the stress response we discussed above. Your body uses the stress response mechanism to stabilize blood sugar. When you eat too much sugar you upset your body's blood sugar level, and your body (under stress) then struggles to immediately stabilize it and return it to normal.

The stress response associated with eating too much sugar also upsets the brain (hypothalamus). Remember that the hypothalamus is already upset by the lagging levels of ovarian hormones. Fluctuating blood sugar levels (from eating too much sugar) further upsets an already upset hypothalamus. This upset spills over into neighboring areas of the brain which regulate body temperature. When you add more upset to the brain's control center for body temperature, you get more hot flashes and night sweats.

Reducing sugar intake to relieve hot flashes and night sweats.

Not everyone will experience the same relief of hot flashes and night sweats by removing sugar from their diet. We each have a unique physiology. Some of us are more sensitive to changes in blood sugar than others. So the response will be different for each of us.

When I say sugar I am referring to a broad class of foods. All sweets obviously contain sugar of some type. So these would be the first foods to avoid. However, many foods release sugar into the bloodstream as soon as they are digested. All starches are in this category. Generally speaking the more processed the starch, the more sugar is released. So in order to prevent fluctuations in blood sugar, one should also avoid starches such as pasta, rice, breads, anything made of flour, potatoes, etc. How much and how quickly a particular food raises blood sugar is measured by its "glycemic index". The higher the glycemic index of a food the more quickly it raises blood sugar. There are glycemic index tables for foods that will show you more specifically which foods to avoid and which to focus on.

One strategy to relieve hot flashes and night sweats that works better for some people than others (and that worked for my friend) is to avoid sugars and starches with a high glycemic index.

3 Tips to Look Beautiful Through Menopause

Yes it pays to be beautiful. Beautiful woman gets more attentions and passes through life easier than her counter part. So when a woman reaches 40+ she thinks she can no longer get all those favors and attentions as when she was younger.

It is not that difficult to attract a single man. Often your fear is baseless when it comes to that specific man. But a woman often makes herself beautiful out of ego or vain or sometimes out of necessities for the job.

The first tip to be beautiful through menopause is to make a decision to be beautiful. Turn your mind into a genie in a bottle and let it finds ways to make yourself beautiful. You just simply decide that you are beautiful. That is all that it takes.

According to the Eastern philosophy our body is renew every 7 days. Inside our body are numerous cells that are just as intelligent as the brain itself. These cells can renew your body and make you beautiful at any age. If an outside job or task is needed, you will stumble upon a tip from someone or something to make it happens.

The second tip to be beautiful through menopause is to retain self confidence in yourself. If you want a favor to be granted, ask for it regardless of how much you think the odd is against you just because you happen to think that you are too old to ask for it.

Think and act as if you are in your 30's and you are 30's. Just be sensible in your actions and don't go overboard. Be yourself in everything that you do but don't let the aging thought has any chance to manifest.

The third tip to be beautiful through menopause is to exercise the face muscles. Many 40+ women tend to do training with weight and achieve fabulous looking body so why not the same for your face. At this age where your metabolism is slowing down you need strong muscles to fight fat and sagging effects. Working facial exercises bring back the tone effect of a younger face. Muscles also fill out hollow cheeks, tight up jaw lines, shorten your nose, open up your eyes and diminish lines across your forehead.