The Optimal Foods to Eat For Breakfast When You're in Menopause
During menopause women tend to gain weight. While this isn't great it’s pretty common and
there are many reasons why.
Two reasons why women gain weight during
menopause...
Reason #1
Reduced muscle mass. Muscle mass uses energy (burns calories) so
when we have less of it the body burns less energy overall, leading to weight
gain. Unfortunately, this weight gain
may appear as increased belly fat.
Reason #2
During menopause there is an increase in the
hunger hormone “ghrelin”. With an
increase in this hormone comes the tendency to feel hungrier. Menopause also decreased the “satiety”
hormone “leptin” that helps us feel full after eating which can lead to
overeating.
More ghrelin and less leptin = increased hunger
and a decreased feeling of fullness...that’s a problem!
What does all of this have to do with breakfast?
Eating the right type of breakfast has
been shown to help maintain muscle mass, balance levels of leptin and ghrelin,
aid weight loss and maintaining that lower weight.
What makes a food “optimal” for breakfast in
menopause?
Foods that help to increase metabolic rate, fill
you up, and keep you feeling fuller longer.
Let's have a look at the characteristics of
these “optimal” foods.
Protein
Make sure to get protein in the mornings. Eating protein is critical for women in
menopause.
Protein helps to slightly increase metabolism
and give your muscles the amino acids they need to stay strong. Protein also helps keep you feeling fuller
longer which is great to try to offset that hunger hormone known as “ghrelin”.
Protein also helps to reduce bone loss that can
happen very fast during this time.
Which foods are high in protein?
●
Meat and poultry
●
Fish and shellfish
●
Eggs
●
Beans and lentils
●
Nuts and seeds (contain more fat than protein
but still a great source of amino acids)
Read on and check out the great breakfast recipe
for you to try tomorrow morning. It
contains eggs which some say are the “perfect protein”.
Fiber
Fiber is very important to help stabilize your
blood sugars to reduce cravings. The
reason this is particularly important in menopause is because the risk of
diabetes and heart disease increases after menopause due to an accumulation of
visceral fat in the abdomen. (Yes, I'm
talking about the infamous “belly fat”!).
Also, did you know that certain fibers you eat
actually feed your friendly gut microbes?
The ones that help you digest food and even make certain nutrients for
you?
Which foods are high in fiber?
Here are just a few of the items you could add
to your diet to increase fiber intake.
●
Vegetables (squash, peas, sweet potato,
artichokes, collard greens, pumpkin, parsnips, Brussel sprouts, etc.)
●
Fruit (pears, avocados, blueberries,
raspberries, blackberries, etc.)
●
Nuts (almonds, pistachios, macadamia, hazelnuts,
pecans, Brazil nuts, walnuts, dried coconut, etc.)
●
Seeds (sesame, sunflower, pumpkin, chia, flax, etc.)
●
Gluten-free grains (oat, quinoa, wild rice, etc.)
●
Beans and lentils
Bonus points if you get at least some of you
daily fiber from flax. Flax not only
contains fiber but it is also a source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids. Flax has even been shown to help reduce both
hot flashes and the risk of breast cancer.
Win-win!
Conclusion:
What are “optimal” foods for breakfast in
menopause? Ones that give you ample
protein and fiber.
Recipe (Protein and Fiber):
Vegetable Egg Muffins
Makes 12
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 red pepper (diced)
2 cups baby spinach (chopped)
1 cup mushrooms (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
6 eggs
1 tablespoon flax (ground)
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Grease or line a 12 serving muffin tin.
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add oil and saute diced pepper until tender
(about 5 minutes).
Add mushrooms and garlic to frying pan and cook
for an additional minute.
Whisk eggs and flax together in a medium bowl.
Place veggies into prepared muffin tin.
Pour the egg/flax mixture over the veggies.
Bake for 15 minutes or until the tops are firm
to the touch and eggs are cooked.
Serve & Enjoy!
Tip: Use
pastured eggs whenever possible.
Dedicated To Your Success,
John Heary, CFT, SFN, PFTS, MMACC, CUSC, CCFT
Certified Fitness Trainer
Certified Specialist in Fitness Nutrition
Certified Physique and Figure Trainer Specialist
Certified Mixed Martial Arts Conditioning Coach
Certified Underground Strength Coach
Certified Fitranx Instructor
Certified TRX Instructor
Certified Corporate Fitness Trainer
Certified Spartan SGX Coach
(716) 545-4090
References:
https://authoritynutrition.com/leptin-101/
https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/nutrients/index
No comments:
Post a Comment