Some gratifying new research

For a number of years now, I have been running Menomelt. Many of you will already be familiar with it.

For those who are newer here, Menomelt is my three-week programme designed to support women through menopause symptoms while also helping with weight loss or weight management, where that is a goal.

Over the years, I have seen an extraordinary range of outcomes. Yes, there has been weight loss. But there have also been improvements in sleep, digestive symptoms, energy levels, brain fog, aches and pains, cravings, confidence around food and, perhaps most importantly, the feeling of being back in control of one's health.

Every group is different. Every woman arrives with her own unique challenges.

What remains consistent is that menopause changes the way many women experience food, weight and health. Strategies that may have worked perfectly well in their thirties and forties often seem far less effective once hormonal changes begin to influence appetite regulation, insulin sensitivity, body composition and energy levels.

That is one of the reasons I continue to spend so much time reviewing the research.

Whilst Menomelt has evolved over the years, the nutritional foundations have always been evidence-based. The goal has never been rapid fixes or extreme dieting. It has always been about creating a way of eating that supports long-term health, symptom management and sustainable weight control.

Which is why I was particularly interested when a new study was published last month examining dietary patterns and weight gain around menopause.

The title was admittedly somewhat dry: Optimal Dietary Patterns for Low Weight Gain and Risk of Obesity Surrounding Menopause.

The findings, however, were very interesting.

The researchers followed more than 38,000 women across a 12-year period, covering approximately six years before menopause and six years after. They assessed the participants' diets against a range of recognised dietary models, including low-carbohydrate diets, plant-based dietary patterns, the Mediterranean Diet, the DASH Diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), measures of dietary inflammation and levels of ultra-processed food consumption.

Across the study period, more than 5,200 women developed obesity & mean weight gain was approximately 0.8 kilograms per year.

The researchers then looked at which dietary patterns appeared most protective.

The women with the lowest risk of obesity and the least/no weight gain tended to follow diets associated with lower fasting insulin levels and those scoring highly on what is known as the Planetary Health Diet Index.

That may sound rather technical, but when the researchers examined the individual foods contributing to those dietary patterns, the findings became much more familiar.

Foods associated with greater weight gain included:

• Red & processed meats
• High salt intake
• Potatoes
• French fries

Foods associated with a lower risk of weight gain included:

• Nuts
• Legumes
• Fruit
• Vegetables
• Whole grains

None of which is particularly surprising, but what was interesting was the study's emphasis on dietary quality, which is something I have spoken about repeatedly over the years.

Healthy eating is about far more than calories alone.

The researchers found that not all low-carbohydrate diets performed equally.

Women following an unhealthy low-carbohydrate dietary pattern experienced greater weight gain.

Women following a healthier low-carbohydrate dietary pattern experienced less weight gain.

In other words, simply reducing carbohydrates is not enough. The quality of those carbohydrates matters. The quality of protein matters. The quality of fat matters.

Two people may consume similar calorie intakes and similar amounts of carbohydrate, yet experience very different health outcomes depending on what those foods actually consist of.

This is one of the reasons why I am often cautious when people ask me whether a particular diet is "good" or "bad" because the answer is almost always more nuanced than that.

A further observation from the study raised some interesting questions for future research.

Low-energy beverages, such as diet soft drinks, were associated with greater weight gain, whereas higher-energy beverages were not.

The study was not designed to explain why this occurred, so we should be careful not to jump to conclusions. It may simply reflect broader dietary patterns or behaviours rather than any direct effect of the drinks themselves.

What it does highlight is that nutrition research is rarely straightforward.

Human behaviour, food choices and health outcomes are interconnected in ways that can be difficult to fully disentangle.

The study also adds to an ongoing discussion around insulin and weight regulation.

The lowest weight gain was observed among women following dietary patterns associated with lower fasting insulin levels.

How elevated insulin directly contributes to weight gain remains an area of investigation, but the findings certainly support the value of dietary patterns that promote stable blood sugar regulation.

As with all research, there were limitations:

Dietary intake was self-reported, which always introduces the possibility of measurement errors.

The study focused primarily on weight gain and obesity risk rather than broader health outcomes.

Body composition was not assessed, meaning we cannot distinguish between changes in fat mass and lean mass.

Nevertheless, the strengths were considerable:

Large sample size.

Long follow-up period.

Detailed dietary analysis.

And perhaps most reassuringly of all for me, the findings align remarkably well with the nutritional principles that have underpinned Menomelt from the very beginning.

A diet rich in vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains; careful consideration of food quality; less reliance on highly processed foods; less emphasis on 'dieting'; more emphasis on nourishment.

Because the evidence continues to point in that direction.

Menopause may bring challenges, but it does not change the fundamental biology of how we support long-term health.

The basics still matter. They simply matter more.

Quick Reminders

If you would like to be added to the waiting list for the next round of Menomelt in September, please do let me know.

Whether you are looking for a fresh start, tired of endless dieting, perhaps wanting support alongside weight-loss medication, or simply ready to feel more confident around food, Menomelt may be a helpful next step.

Our next Menopause Café is also taking place at 6pm on 7th July at Vibe Café, Ridgeway Street, Douglas.

It is a welcoming, supportive space to share experiences, ask questions and connect with other women navigating this stage of life.

The cover charge remains £5, which helps cover the venue and refreshments.

Ready to Take the First Step?

If weight gain, changing symptoms or confusion around food are currently frustrating you, don't wait until September to start the conversation.

Drop me a line and tell me where you feel stuck.

Sometimes a small adjustment is all that's needed to start moving things in the right direction. And sometimes having the right support makes all the difference.