Fats and Female Hormones: Why Midlife Metabolism Often Changes When Intake Gets Too Low
Fats and Female Hormones: Why Midlife Metabolism Often Changes When Intake Gets Too Low The years surrounding perimenopause and menopause bring metabolic changes that many women find bewildering and frustrating. Weight that was once stable begins creeping upward despite unchanged eating patterns. Energy levels fluctuate unpredictably throughout the day. Body composition shifts, with fat accumulating around the midsection even when overall weight remains steady. Sleep becomes elusive, mood feels less stable, and the body seems to have rewritten its own operating manual without providing updated instructions. While declining estrogen and progesterone production from the ovaries drives many of these changes, the nutritional context in which this hormonal transition occurs substantially influences how dramatically symptoms manifest and how effectively the body adapts to its new hormonal landscape. Among nutritional factors, dietary fat intake occupies a particularly important positi...