When a woman's menstrual periods have stopped for a year or when her blood shows high levels of LH and FSH hormones (LH and FSH are hormones called gonadotrophins that are made by the pituitary gland in the middle of the brain) she is said to be in the menopause. Usually this occurs between 45- 55, but there is a lot of variation. Often women follow patterns of older female family members. Menopause is associated with many symptoms and problems, for most women the most significant t is unintentional weight gain. I will discuss menopause in brief, and then the hormonal reasons for the weight gain and what you can do about it.
Ovulation and Irregular Menses:
Prior to menopause, a woman's FSH and LH levels rise and fall each month as eggs are matured and released by her ovaries. The normal aging process effects the ovaries just like every other organ in the body. It's the normal aging process of the ovaries that is the root of the whole problem. As the ovaries decline in function eggs are not released every month and periods begin to be irregular. This period right before menopause is called the Peri-imenopause which may last for years. Women begin to experience hot flashes, night sweats, fatigue, mood changes and weight gain. Gradually the ovaries no longer respond to gonadotropohins and ovulations stops.
Declining Hormones: Estrogens, Androgens, Progesterone and Weight Gain:
Estrogen, the female hormone made primarily in the ovaries, begins to decline as ovarian function decreases. This causes skipped periods and failure to ovulate and eventually full menopause. Estrogens are responsible for fat distribution in females: the "pear shape" where most of the fat on the buttocks and thighs rather than the "apple shape" where most of the fat is around the abdomen. Increasing fat distribution around the belly, itself causing serious medical problems, begins in perimenapause well ahead of the last menstruation. Estradiol (an estrogen) is responsible for the normal cycle of breaking down fat molecules. With low estradiol levels, fat cells become engorged with more and more fat-the result is weight gain. Along with the fall in estrogen are falls in progesterone, another cause of menopausal symptoms and-weight gain.
Women's Body to the Rescue (or I Won't Give Up the Fight!)
Most women's body refuses to give into the aging process (or at least for awhile) and all of the hormones made in different glands in the body rush to preserve that status quo.
The pituitary gland attempts to reverse these processes by making more and more FH and LSH in attempts to get the ovaries functioning again. This causes more and more symptoms and weight gain. The symptoms of hot flashes, anxiety, depression, fatigue and night sweats can be explained by the erratic fluctuations in hormones that occur in these years. Anxiety, sleep problems and the hormones themselves cause-weight gain.
Fat Cells throughout the body have the ability to make estrogens and are stimulated to get large so they can make more estrogens (they are poor producers of estrogens) -the result is weight gain.
Male Androgen hormones: Women and men both have estrogens and androgens- each are held in check by normal body processes. During menopause this whole balance breaks down as estrogens fall, and the effects of androgens increase. What effects? Growth of dark hairs on arms, and face, thinning of hair and most important fat deposition around the abdomen and resulting weight gain.
Testosterone: Again a male hormone, present in females in small quantities. In this case, testosterone made in the ovaries decreases as does estrogens. Since testosterone helps create muscle mass (think of the weight lifters taking these medications illegally) there is fall in muscle mass and a fall in metabolism. (Muscles are more metabolically active than fat cells.) The result a slowing of metabolism and weight gain.
Insulin Resistance: The failure of insulin (hormone produced in the pancreas which regulates blood sugar, principal causes of diabetes) is also associated with menopause. This causes the body to turn as many calories as it can into fat. Eating high carb, high glycemic indeed foods just makes the process easier for the body. The result is weight gain.
All of these hormones, acting together are responsible for the expected and "normal" weight gain and change in body shape so common in menopause. About 93% of menopausal women gain weight between the ages of 35 and 55. This can be as little as 10 lb to as much as 75 lbs or even more.
1. Giving Up Control: It's very hard for anyone, female or male to accept that the fact that there are changes going on in their bodies over which they have little control.
2. Weight gain in menopause is natural: The first step to reversing the weight gain associated with menopause is to understand how it happens from a hormonal point of view.
3. Stop driving yourself crazy, beating yourself up and feeling like a failure. This is the second step.
Making some sensible changes: Changing your diet, physical activity, the times of eating,Estrogen replacement is among the many changes you can make. More in another article.
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