Hormones And Weight Gain: What Are The Main Culprits?

Nowadays and at any given time, more than 40 million American women are experiencing some stage of menopause and hormonal imbalance. One of the most problematic issue is menopause weight gain.

The other symptoms that women experience during perimenopause and menopause are headaches, irritability and anxiety along with hot flashes, lack of sleep and weight gain.

The most debilitating symptoms I experienced was insomnia and weight gain. I was miserable for a while until I started researching what was going on with my hormones. Hormonal imbalance is 95% of the time responsible for all these symptoms along with your nutrition.

Although we have an array of hormones that play the part in our feeling great and remaining youthful as we enter our middle years, progesterone and estrogen are the first two suspects, particularly when it comes to menopause weight gain.

Progesterone and estrogen are 2 of the main hormones made in the ovaries. Progesterone is produced mainly during the second half of a woman's menstrual cycle and is the hormone responsible for the survival of the fetus during pregnancy.

One of the first signs of perimenopause and menopause is a decline in those 2 hormones and the phasing out of our menstrual period.

When women reach their forties and sometimes as early as in their thirties, the balance between estrogen and progesterone shifts heavily toward estrogen. The excess estrogen compared to progesterone is called estrogen dominance and is often blamed for symptoms such as PMS, night sweats and depression.

Symptoms of a progesterone deficiency include the following: painful, tender, swollen breasts, weight gain, bloating, water retention, low bone density, trouble sleeping, anxiety and stress.

Treatment with bioidentical hormones (which are natural to the body as opposed to syntheric hormones) is recommended. Bioidentical progesterone may protect the breast against cancer and will benefit your bones, brain and mood.

Other benefits of bioidentical progesterone are:

Improved energy and stamina Normalized blood sugar levels It is a natural antidepressant It protects against endometrial cancer It protects against fibrocystic breasts It restores your sex drive

All this is provided that you work with a qualified doctor who understands that you need to achieve the correct balance between estrogen and progesterone. The correct ratios between those two hormones are they key to your well being. Without a balance between them, you will experience mood swings and menopause weight gain among other symptoms. Of course there are other hormones that may need to be balanced. In a next article I will discuss insulin which is very often also involved in menopause weight gain.

1. Prev:Look Skinnier Now
2. Next:Tips For Losing Weight