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From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhile social media is inundated with adverts for \u2018magical\u2019 products claiming to ease menopause symptoms for good, a leading expert suggests that simple, everyday habits may be overlooked. <\/p>\n
Ahead of World Menopause Day on October 18, Dr Claire Phipps, GP and BMS (British Menopause Society) menopause specialist at London Gynaecology, highlighted that while everyone\u2019s experience of menopause is unique, the following eight easy health changes could help support you through the journey.<\/p>\n
1. Practise good sleep hygiene<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nMenopause can impact your sleep in many ways, from night sweats to bladder instability, so it\u2019s important to practise good sleep hygiene.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom a lifestyle wellness perspective, really good sleep hygiene is probably the first and best evidence-based way to help,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, that\u2019s things like making sure you\u2019re in a cooler room, you have got cooler clothing on, have got cooler bed linen and are making sure that you\u2019re not using your phone late at night etc. Work out what is affecting your sleep and really hone in on that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTry to reduce the amount of caffeine you\u2019re drinking because that can not only impact symptoms, but can also keep us awake at night in a way that it might not have done in our 20s and 30s,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Caffeine can impact symptoms of menopause (Getty\/iStock)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\u201cAlcohol can also bring on the hot flashes and night sweats, and it can also make our anxiety worse.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also less good at actually processing alcohol as we get older, so it\u2019s good if we can reduce our intake a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
3. Drink more water<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n\u201cHydration is really important because if we are having multiple hot flushes and are experiencing dryness, we can get dehydrated pretty quickly,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, it\u2019s really important to maintain hydration.\u201d<\/p>\n
4. Eat a balanced diet<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n\u201cThink about a balanced diet,\u201d advises Phipps. \u201cThe foundation pillar of any menopause care, before you get to any doctor, is thinking about your nutrition and your movement. If we can optimise those things, menopause symptoms can often improve, sometimes temporarily and sometimes in the long term.<\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>A balanced diet can often improve symptoms (Getty\/iStock)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\u201cReally focus on whole foods, like brown carbohydrates, lots of fruit and lean protein. Think about the Mediterranean diet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Menopause can have a big impact on our bone health, so Phipps recommends upping your calcium intake.<\/p>\n
\u201cMake sure that you\u2019re getting enough calcium in your diet as it\u2019s one of the things that many of us are lacking,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe main source of calcium comes from dairy, like your dairy milks and cheeses. If you\u2019re vegan, obviously, it\u2019s slightly harder to get, but you can get calcium in some fortified plant-based milks and leafy greens as well. Oily fish is also a really good source of calcium to support bone health.<\/p>\n\nPhysical symptoms of menopause and perimenopause<\/h2>\nNHS<\/h3>\nCommon physical symptoms of menopause and perimenopause include:<\/p>\n
\nhot flushes, when you have sudden feelings of hot or cold in your face, neck and chest which can make you dizzy <\/li>\n difficulty sleeping, which may be a result of night sweats and make you feel tired and irritable during the day <\/li>\n palpitations, when your heartbeats suddenly become more noticeable <\/li>\n headaches and migraines that are worse than usual <\/li>\n muscle aches and joint pains <\/li>\n changed body shape and weight gain <\/li>\n skin changes including dry and itchy skin <\/li>\n reduced sex drive <\/li>\n vaginal dryness and pain, itching or discomfort during sex <\/li>\n recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) <\/li>\n sensitive teeth, painful gums or other mouth problems <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cThere\u2019s a great website called the Calcium Calculator, which calculates how much calcium you\u2019re getting in diet, and most of us fall way short of what we should be getting.\u201d<\/p>\n
6. Practise self-care<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n\u201cRemember that we need to make some time for ourselves for self-care,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to be able to make sure that we\u2019re having some joy so that we build up those happy hormones.\u201d<\/p>\n
7. Stay active<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n\u201cThe key thing is movement, because when we move we increase our happy hormones,\u201d says Phipps. <\/p>\n
\u201cNot only will exercise help protect our muscles and our bones, it can also help increase our sense of calm and happiness.<\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Movement is key<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\u201cStrength and resistance training is particularly great for bone health and aerobic exercise in some form, even if it\u2019s just really brisk walking, is also good as it helps improve your heart health. It will also help with weight management which can really tricky at the time of menopause. Things like yoga and Pilates are also really fantastic as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
8. Try some movement hacks<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nIf a vigorous workout isn\u2019t for you, Phipps recommends trying out some \u2018movement hacks\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are new to exercise, don\u2019t start anything that\u2019s really high intensity and is going to make you dread it. Instead try some movement hacks,\u201d advises Phipps. \u201cFor example, if you\u2019re sitting down at quite a sedentary job all day, make sure you\u2019re getting up frequently and maybe see how many squats you can do when you\u2019re boiling the kettle. You could also try and go up and down the stairs a few more times than you would normally.<\/p>\n
\u201cIncorporate something that fits into your lifestyle, and that you can do five to 10 minutes a day, rather than feeling like you have to go to the gym or do a workout class.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more While social media is inundated with adverts for \u2018magical\u2019 products claiming to ease menopause symptoms for good, a leading expert suggests that simple, everyday habits may be overlooked. Ahead of World Menopause Day on October 18, Dr Claire Phipps, GP and BMS (British Menopause Society) menopause specialist at London Gynaecology, highlighted that while everyone\u2019s experience of menopause is unique, the following eight easy health changes could help support you through the journey. 1. Practise good sleep hygiene Menopause can impact your sleep in many ways, from night sweats to bladder instability, so it\u2019s important to practise good sleep hygiene. \u201cFrom a lifestyle wellness perspective, really good sleep hygiene is probably the first and best evidence-based way to help,\u201d says Phipps. \u201cSo, that\u2019s things like making sure you\u2019re in a cooler room, you have got cooler clothing on, have got cooler bed linen and are making sure that you\u2019re not using your phone late at night etc. Work out what is affecting your sleep and real…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6788"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}