Menopause Matters: Kate Wells
It can be hard to drink less, for many people, socializing seems to revolve around food and alcohol.
Watching the game? Let’s get the beers out. End of the workday? Let’s go home via the bar for a few drinks to unwind. Having a party? The cocktails will start flowing…and flowing. Our culture has normalized drinking alcohol as part of a way of life…and our biochemistry likes it – to a point.
Horrifying though it is to write it now, as a young high school teacher in England in the mid-1980s it was normal for a group of us to go to the pub for lunch. Two pints of hard cider later, there we were, back in the classroom teaching afternoon classes. Oh my!
Menopause And Alcohol:
Perimenopause and the menopause transition can be a tough time for women, the changes in hormone levels mean that we often don’t feel as good as we used to. We are also often at a highly stressful stage of our lives with work, managing the household, and corralling teenagers all at the same time.
“Finding time to eat well is a challenge and so often we don’t. “
Finding time to eat well is a challenge and so often we don’t. Getting home at the end of the day feeling hungry, with low blood sugar, it is oh so easy to reach for the glass of wine. That surge of sugary goodness provides glucose and releases a burst of dopamine and oh my, does the brain feel happy for a little while.
Our Thinking-Reasoning Brain:
That dopamine does more than make us feel good – it also can act to inhibit our thinking-reasoning brain. While we may know that we should stop at two glasses and very definitely at three glasses, the “Oh that tastes good” message from the pleasure-seeking part of the brain drowns out the “I will stop now” message from the thinking brain. Before we know it, the bottle is empty, and we are not really hungry anymore.
Both progesterone and estrogen are important for making neurotransmitters that keep us happy and relaxed, GABA, Serotonin, and Dopamine especially. As progesterone and estrogen decline through menopause, so can mood – and a cocktail or four can be a quick and easy band-aid solution to make us feel better.
A glass of wine or a cocktail does increase our calming neurotransmitter GABA, creating a sense of relaxation. Alcohol will also increase the excitatory neurotransmitter Glutamate – which can make us more energetic and provide the impetus to make dinner and turn to the evening chores.
That seems like a great partnership at first. But, GABA breaks down about twice as fast as glutamate so the relaxing effects wear off faster than the excitatory effects. After three or four drinks, the brain can end up overstimulated and this will disrupt sleep. And sleep is what we need more than anything at this transition phase of our lives.
Alcohol As A Coping Mechanism:
Research shows that alcohol use becomes a coping mechanism when our normal hormone biochemistry has gone to hell in a hand basket. Recent data suggest that excessive alcohol use is increasing among women and older adults.
Such trends are concerning, as women are more vulnerable to alcohol-related health consequences, and such health problems may be exacerbated with age. Women were more likely to transition from non-excessive to excessive drinking during the early peri- and postmenopausal stages.
The liver is critical for cleaning up the body’s waste and we have both more to clean up as we age and fewer enzymes available to do that cleaning.
“Women were more likely to transition from non-excessive to excessive drinking during the early peri- and postmenopausal stages.”
Women in particular have a diminished capacity to metabolize alcohol with age. High alcohol use is associated with increased risks for injury, depression, memory problems, liver disease, cognitive changes, sleep problems, and harmful medication interactions.
There are actions we can take, however, to reduce alcohol use and navigate through the changes that menopause brings.
4 Ways To Manage Menopause And Drinking Habits:
Fortunately for those who decide to step away from alcohol – there is a much greater understanding of this choice. Nondrinkers aren’t always assumed to be alcoholics, not drinking can now simply be a health choice. The profusion of new drink options makes it easier for women to be at a party holding a glass of something without it being alcohol based.
- Invest in a soda water maker and some sugar-free flavorings – the mouth loves fizz!
- Keep lemons, limes, oranges on hand to add some fun and flavor.
- Experiment with low-sugar kombucha-style drinks to support your gut health.
- Choose alcohol-free beers, wines, and spirits.
4 Ways To Avoid The Initial First Glass That Hijacks Our Brain Chemistry:
Low blood sugar is often at the root of reaching for that first glass. You can stock up on snacks to keep in your purse or the car. Not sugary snacks though, or those with high carbohydrates – this type of snack will give a quick sugar surge for the brain, but not last long. Other snack options can be:
- Small bags of almonds, walnuts, or mixed nuts (without the M&Ms!)
- Low sugar, high protein snack bars.
- Packets of almond or peanut butter you can squeeze out.
- Good quality meat jerky (not the stuff with nitrates).
The goal with snacks is to give your brain some glucose so it can function and also provide more of a slow-release supply of nutrition, so it doesn’t send out the “feed me now” distress signal.
The key thing to remember is that once your blood sugar drops – a biologic imperative from your brain is “give me glucose now” – with the insistence of that high-pitched scream a hungry baby emits. Even the strongest will has a hard time fighting the “feed me now” message, so avoid that place with your healthy snack packs!
Mocktails really are a thing now – some ideas here will help you have something fizzy and fun without alcohol.
Some Alcohol-Free Socializing:
- Strawberry Colada: 3-4 strawberries, 2 oz nonalcoholic white rum OR coconut water, 1½ oz sparkling lemonade, ice
- Fruit Spritzer: 3 oz kombucha, 2½ oz sparkling white grape juice, ½ oz lemon juice, ice, lemon slice for garnish
- Cherry Cosmos: 5 oz tart cherry juice, ½ oz lime juice, ½ oz soda water, ice, cherry for garnish
- Magic Mojito: 6-8 mint leaves, 6 oz coconut water, ¾ oz lime juice, ice, club soda, mint sprig for garnish
Keeping alcohol consumption for a few special times goes a long way to reducing inflammation, reducing weight, reducing the number of toxic metabolites in your body, and making sure you are able to sleep soundly at night.
Combining this change with the right hormone supplementation can help you turn menopause mayhem into menopause marvelous!
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About the Author:
Kate Wells is a hormone expert and true biochem nerd who has been educating practitioners about hormones for many years. Starting out as a High School science teacher, and then pivoting to the business world, Kate new she wanted to combine her passions for science and business and found the perfect match in leadership roles at labs specializing in hormone testing and hormone formulation.
She currently runs her own bioidentical hormone product companies where she writes educational articles and continues to educate practitioners on the role of hormones in optimal longevity. Beyond nerding-out on the latest research, Kate is an avid hiker, regularly putting in 20-mile hikes in the beautiful wilds of Colorado, loves to build stuff, swing dance, and work with fabric to make colorful quilts. Kate is the author of A Forecast for Health and is the CEO and co-founder of Parlor Games LLC. Kate holds a BS, MBA, and has completed a Fellowship in Herbal Medicine.
