People often turn to alcohol to ‘relieve stress’ . However, alcohol is a toxin for the body therefore increasing stress in the body; it doesn’t reduce it. It can have very serious implications on your health and your day-to-day life especially if you are a woman over 50. In this article I am going to cover why it’s important to cut down or eliminate it altogether so that you reduce your menopause symptoms and decrease various health risks.
Blood Vessels
Body temperature regulation changes in menopause due to the decline in oestrogen and progesterone. This causes blood vessels to dilate bringing on hot flushes and sweats. Alcohol dilates blood vessels further, increasing the severity of these symptoms.
As oestrogen and progesterone decline blood vessels become less elastic and more prone to inflammation. This increases the risk of heart disease. Alcohol’s impact on blood vessels during menopause increases this risk further.
Sleep
Alcohol increases liver function as the body recognises it as a toxin and is trying to eliminate it. The increased liver function disrupts the circadian rhythm, which is your body’s body clock. This leads to waking throughout the night, and the inability to fall into REM or deep sleep. As a result, you wake up feeling tired and groggy.
Bad sleep has a snowball effect on the body. It increases sugar cravings leading to overeating and weight gain. It increases stress in the body which increases inflammation and therefore increases risk of health issues such as heart disease and various cancers. Stress also increases sugar cravings.
Nobody is in a good mood when they haven’t had a decent night’s sleep. They become moody, snappy, and emotional, impacting relationships with people around them.
Osteoporosis
Menopause naturally reduces bone density, and alcohol can further weaken bones, increasing the risk of osteoporosis and fractures.
Weight gain
Alcohol contains calories. Alcohol high in sugar such as cocktails and spirit mixes, as beer, scotch etc increase your overall calorie intake and so therefore contributes to weight gain, especially around the mid-section.
Since the body prioritises metabolism of alcohol because it’s a toxin, it does not focus on burning fat as energy when alcohol is present. As such even if you are dieting and/or exercising you will not be burning stored body fat whilst alcohol is present.
Hormonal Imbalance
Alcohol can affect the liver’s ability to metabolise hormones which can lead to further hormonal imbalances in the thyroid, oestrogen, progesterone, amongst others, worsening symptoms related to those hormones.
Dilated blood vessels combined with hormonal imbalances increase risk of headaches and migraines during menopause. If people suffer hang-overs after alcohol consumption imagine the impact during menopause.
Elevated breast cancer risk
Studies have shown that even moderate alcohol consumption can increase the risk of breast cancer, which is already higher for postmenopausal women.
Mood swings and anxiety
Alcohol is a depressant and can exacerbate mood swings, anxiety, and depression, which are common during menopause due to hormonal fluctuations.
Fluid retention and Bloating
By impacting the balance of hormones, alcohol can lead to an imbalance in the regulation of sodium and water. This can lead to bloating and water retention, making you feel puffy and watery.
As you can see alcohol is not doing you any favors. One of the easiest ways to help reduce menopause symptoms and risks of age-related and menopause related health problems, is to simply cut down alcohol consumption, or eliminate it altogether. Avoid drinking alcohol every day. If you are going to consume it, keep it to one to two serves, once or twice a week.
- Coach Terri
