Ketogenic diets do not work well for most menopausal women, especially as it unfortunately removes a lot of vegetables and greens from the diet by default. When you go into ketosis you go into mineral deficit as you excrete them faster than you can replace them, especially sodium, magnesium and potassium. Definitely go on a lower carb diet, for sure – that will work well, but not ketosis.
You need to have a well-functioning liver if you want ketosis to work, and generally around menopause one’s liver is not in a fabulous state. Eating bitter foods are very good for the liver (rocket, beet greens, radicchio etc) and so are cruciferous veg and sprouts, which help to detoxify estrogen down the right pathways thereby cutting down cancer risk. You especially need to detoxify estrogen in menopause, and these veggies (steamed or cooked) help you do that.
Insulin surges cause estrogen surges and this is one of the things which bring on hot flushes!! If you are insulin resistant you will probably have a lot of hot flushes, blood sugar balance is so crucial during this time. Even if you have low estrogen you can be estrogen dominant because your progesterone is so low – something people are not told.
Probiotics to heal the gut makes a lot of difference at this time of life (good ones, not the cheap supermarket variety), and in time getting your microbiome in a better state through probiotics and good diet will help you enormously. Your microbiome changes within hours depending on what kind of diet you feed them!
VERY important – please avoid SOY – it is a massive endocrine disruptor.
Remove all the other endocrine disruptors too – chemical make-up, cleaning products (estrogen-mimickers) and other chemicals.
We love Dr Hauscka (find them on our online store) for the purity, and it’s what we use. Opt for natural cleaning products or make your own.
Some excellent supplements which will help you at this time include:
• Quercetin
• Organic Turmeric (use as a spice in your food)
• Milk Thistle Premium to regenerate and cleanse the liver
• The Omega-3 Solution Fish oil (take 3 a day)
• Renewed Balance Natural Progesterone Cream (ONLY if not on hormones – read about it here https://sallyanncreed.co.za/why-you-cant-live-without-progesterone-ladies/
