Women’s Health Care: Get Enough Vitamin D During Menopause

by Melanie Remy | Oct 20, 2022 | Menopause, Wellness

Getting all the vitamins and nutrients your body needs is essential for your health and feeling your best. That’s why it’s important to discuss your whole health with our women’s health care team. We can help you identify vitamin deficiencies and find personalized ways to treat them. One common vitamin deficiency you might experience as you reach menopause is vitamin D deficiency. This is a serious issue because low vitamin D levels can seriously endanger your overall health and quality of life. Read on to learn about how you can get enough vitamin D during menopause.

Why Talk to Our Women’s Health Care Providers About Vitamin D?

Talk to our women’s health care providers about how to get enough vitamin D to stay healthy.

Vitamin D deficiency is a common but treatable condition that many women experience. Unfortunately, many go without treatment and face serious consequences. We’ll get into some of the health risks of low vitamin D later in this article, but it’s important to note that vitamin D plays an important role in many parts of your body, including your bones, muscles, cardiovascular system, and immune system. Therefore, if you do have vitamin D deficiency, working with our women’s health care providers to get enough of this vitamin can help you protect yourself from many health risks.

Up to 80% of Women Have a Vitamin D Deficiency

Experts estimate anywhere between 20% and 80% of women have a vitamin D deficiency. Therefore, your risk for low vitamin D levels is quite high when you look at that statistic. What’s worse is that many people don’t realize they have low vitamin D.

Vitamin D deficiencies may be increasing due to many factors. One is that people on average are spending less time outside in the sun than they did before. Sunlight helps your body produce its own vitamin D from cholesterol. Additionally, more widespread sunscreen use can actually block the sun rays needed for vitamin D production. Another potential contributing factor would be poorer overall diets, which means most of us get less vitamin D from the things we eat than our ancestors did.

You May be More at Risk for Low Vitamin D During Menopause

Menopausal women in particular may have a higher risk for vitamin D deficiency. This is because our bodies don’t absorb as much vitamin D as we get older. Therefore, as you reach your 50s and 60s, when most people experience menopause, your risk for low vitamin D increases. Along with menopause comes many other health risks, like for cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Vitamin D deficiency can lead to further or worse health risks as well. Therefore, it’s important to discuss your health with our women’s health care providers and see what you can do to stay healthy during and after menopause.

Risks of Vitamin D Deficiency Without Treatment from Our Women’s Health Care Providers

If you have untreated vitamin D deficiency, there are many potential health risks you might experience. Our women’s health care team can help you determine if you have low vitamin D levels and create a treatment plan to help you get enough vitamin D to reduce these risks. Here are some of the potential health effects of vitamin D deficiency:

Vitamin D May Reduce the Risk for Pelvic Floor Disorders

Many people are surprised to learn that vitamin D deficiencies are associated with a higher risk for pelvic floor disorders. Remember, vitamin D is important for keeping your muscles strong, and since the pelvic floor relies on strong muscles to support your organs, it makes sense that vitamin D can play a role in pelvic floor health. This is especially important for menopausal women to understand, as around this time your risk for both pelvic floor disorders and vitamin D deficiency increases.

Why Pelvic Floor Disorders Need Women’s Health Care Solutions

Pelvic floor disorders can cause a lot of different issues for your health and everyday life. Yet, many women don’t seek women’s health care treatment for them. Pelvic floor disorders commonly lead to pelvic pain and painful sex. In addition, weak pelvic floor muscles may increase your risk for urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence, and pelvic organ prolapse. Some studies suggest that getting enough vitamin D can reduce your risk for these common but life-altering conditions. There may also be other things you can do to strengthen your pelvic floor to reduce these risks, so talk to your women’s health care providers about your individual circumstances.

Vitamin D is Important for Healthy Bones

Vitamin D is also necessary for keeping your bones strong and healthy and reducing the risk for osteoporosis. As we reach menopause, our risk for osteoporosis increases due to low hormone levels like estrogen and progesterone. However, making sure you get enough vitamins and nutrients can help protect your bones despite these risks. Vitamin D is a key vitamin for bone health because it helps your body absorb calcium. Additionally, vitamin D can help maintain muscle strength to reduce the risks for falls which can cause fractures if you have low bone mineral density or osteoporosis. Therefore, if you have vitamin D deficiency, talk to our team about how to get enough vitamin D.

Other Health Risks of Vitamin D Deficiency

Of course, there are many other potential risks of vitamin D deficiency. For instance, vitamin D may play an important role in your immune system, so you may be more likely to get sick or experience slow healing.

Low vitamin D levels can also increase your risk for cardiovascular disease. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to higher blood pressure and increased risk for heart attack, heart failure, and stroke.

Some studies have even found that low vitamin D can increase your risk of developing depression symptoms. In some cases, treating your vitamin D deficiency can improve your symptoms.

Signs to Ask Our Women’s Health Care Team About Your Vitamin D Levels

Often, vitamin deficiencies are undetectable without help from your women’s health care provider because they don’t cause symptoms. However, there are some symptoms that low vitamin D may cause.

Symptoms of vitamin D deficiency to look out for include:

• Low back pain
• Muscle weakness
• Muscle aches
• Fatigue
• Hair loss
• Depression
• Weak bones

If you notice these symptoms, visit our women’s health clinic for diagnosis and treatment for vitamin D deficiency.

Women’s Health Care Solutions for Low Vitamin D

Treating vitamin D deficiency involves increasing the amount of vitamin D in your body. There are several ways to do this, so our women’s health care providers will recommend a treatment based on your specific circumstances and lifestyle. Some ways to increase vitamin D include:

• Going outside in the sun for 10 to 15 minutes a day
• Eating a vitamin D rich diet with foods like:
  • Seafood
  • Mushrooms
  • Egg yolks
  • Foods fortified with vitamin D:
    • Milk
    • Milk alternatives like soy and almond milk
    • Cereal
    • Some yogurts
    • Orange juice
    • Tofu

In other cases, you may need a supplement to increase vitamin D levels in your body to healthy ranges. Our team can use a simple blood test to look at your vitamin D levels and suggest the right dose for you.

Complete Health Care Solutions from HerKare – A Women’s Health Clinic Managed By Women for Women

Our team at HerKare is dedicated to helping you improve your health as a whole. We make healthcare easy and affordable so you can take care of yourself and feel your best. Whether you want to learn how you can prevent common health risks as you reach menopause or are experiencing symptoms that interfere with your everyday life, we have solutions to help. Make an appointment today at a location near you to learn how we can help you feel better.

Maintaining a Healthy Gut After Menopause

by Melanie Remy | Sep 20, 2022 | Menopause, Wellness

As you go through menopause, there are many things to discuss with our women’s health care providers. You might be dealing with symptoms like hot flashes as well as changes to your body and health. One change that may have major impacts on your overall health is that your gut’s microbiome, also known as your gut flora, may change as you enter menopause. In this article, we’ll discuss why this is important to understand for your health as well as some ways our team may recommend maintaining your gut health after menopause.

Talk to Our Women’s Health Care Providers About Keeping Your Gut Healthy

Talk to our women’s health care providers about what you can to do keep your gut healthy after menopause.

Menopause comes with many changes, including different ways to manage your health going forward. Therefore, it helps to work closely with our women’s health care team to understand how to stay healthy. One thing to talk to our providers about is your gut health.

The gut microbiome is a major part of your overall health. Your body is made up of trillions of good microorganisms, many of them helping your body with various processes. For instance, they help break down your food, assist with manufacturing certain vitamins (like vitamin K and some types of vitamin B), and even help maintain a healthy vaginal flora. Having a healthy gut is important for many different aspects of your health.

Our team can look at your health as a whole and provide recommendations based on your specific circumstances. Our providers are a great resource for staying healthy before and after menopause. A few key things to know about your gut health is that menopause can change it and those changes can cause negative impacts on your health. However, there are ways to help improve your gut’s microbiome with guidance from our providers.

Menopause May Reduce Diversity for Your Gut Flora

Menopause causes many changes in your body, including changes to your gut. Several studies have found differences in women’s gut microbiome before and after menopause. Researchers believe this may be due to changes in your sex hormones, like estrogen and progesterone. Many good microorganisms in your gut’s microbiome help metabolize estrogen and progesterone, so as those decline, those bacteria and other microorganisms might also, leading to less diversity and potential imbalances in your gut.

One recent study from this year looked at a large group of people to understand what kinds of changes happen to the gut microbiome during menopause. They looked at the microbiome of premenopausal women, post-menopausal women, as well as men to understand the changes. What they found is that post-menopausal women had significantly less diversity in their gut flora than premenopausal women. Instead, their microbiome more closely resembled men’s.

In this study, they also found that these changes in gut flora also were associated with several health issues, specifically cardiometabolic risks. Cardiometabolic risks can include things like high cholesterol, weight gain, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure, all of which can cause serious health conditions. Therefore, it’s important to discuss menopause, your gut’s microbiome, and your general health with our women’s health care team.

Why is a Healthy Gut Important for Women’s Health Care?

When you think of the gut microbiome, you might immediately associate it with digestive health. This is certainly an important part of your overall health, and the gut microbiome does play a role in digestion and your gastrointestinal tract. However, many people don’t know about the other effects of your gut’s microbiome that can impact your health. Here are just some of the reasons it’s important to work with our women’s health clinic to learn how to keep your gut’s flora in check:

Gut Changes Associated with Menopause are Associated with Higher Cardiometabolic Risks

As we mentioned in an earlier section, an unhealthy gut can increase the risk for cardiovascular and metabolic conditions. For instance, changes in your gut microbiome during menopause may increase your risk for things like:

• Heart disease
• Obesity
• Type 2 diabetes
• Metabolic syndrome

As you can see, maintaining a healthy gut during menopause may be critical for your health.

Diversity in the Gut Microbiome May Help Keep Your Hormones in Check

While you may not realize it, there’s a pretty strong relationship between your hormones and your gut’s microbiome. Hormones like estrogen and progesterone can affect your gut’s diversity, but your gut’s microbiome can also help regulate and metabolize your hormones. The estrobolome is a part of your gut’s flora that can help maintain hormonal balance, particularly for estrogen in your body. Declining and fluctuating estrogen is often the cause of menopause symptoms like vaginal dryness and mood changes, so keeping it in balance may reduce your risk for these symptoms.

Your Gut Flora May Affect Your Weight

Another reason to work with our women’s health care team to keep your gut microbiome healthy is because it can affect your weight. An unhealthy gut is associated with obesity and can make managing your weight more difficult. Some studies have even found that a healthy, diverse gut microbiome can assist with weight loss, which many women in menopause struggle with. The bacteria and other microorganisms in your gut help you digest food, absorb nutrients, and store energy properly. If your gut flora is out of balance, it may increase your risk for weight gain as well as difficulty losing weight.

Keeping Your Gut Healthy May Help Keep Your Brain Healthy

Additionally, having a well-balanced gut microbiome may even help your brain. A lot of neurotransmitters are actually controlled and produced by the bacteria in your gut. Serotonin is a major one, which is also known as the “happy chemical.” About 95% of your body’s serotonin is produced in the gut by the bacteria that live there. Therefore, working with our women’s health care providers to keep your gut healthy may also have a positive effect on your brain and mood.

Ask Our Women’s Health Care Team How to Promote a Healthy Gut During Menopause

There are many strategies for keeping your gut healthy after menopause. Our women’s health care providers can help you develop a strategy based on your specific concerns and your health history. Here are some things we may recommend for maintaining a balanced, healthy gut microbiome:

Eat a Diet High in Probiotics

What you eat can have a big impact on your gut’s health. There are several foods that are high in the good bacteria and microorganisms you need to keep your gut flora healthy. For instance, some common foods that contain probiotics include:

• Yogurt
• Kefir
• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Fermented veggies

Prebiotics may also be important for your diet to maintain a balanced gut microbiome. Prebiotics are what feed the good microorganisms in your gut. Some prebiotic foods include foods that are high in fiber, such as:

• Oats
• Apples
• Bananas
• Asparagus

It also helps to eat a diverse diet with a variety of different foods and limit artificial sweeteners to promote gut health.

Consider Probiotic Supplements

In some cases, you might need a probiotic supplement during menopause to keep your gut healthy. These are supplements that contain some of the microorganisms necessary for keeping your gut microbiome diverse and well balanced. If you can’t get all your probiotics from your diet, then our women’s health care professionals may recommend a supplement to help.

Estrogen May Help You Maintain Some Gut Diversity After Menopause

Estrogen replacement therapy is a common option for menopause treatment because it helps relieve many symptoms of menopause. Evidence suggests that it may also help you maintain a healthy gut microbiome after menopause. While menopause causes changes to the gut microbiome, studies have shown that estrogen therapy after menopause can correct some of these changes to your gut flora.

Get Quality Women’s Health Care from HerKare

Our team at HerKare is here to help you stay healthy at every stage of your life. We offer personalized women’s health care solutions to help you take care of yourself and feel your best. We take time to listen and understand you so we can help you feel better. Make an appointment now with our team to experience the HerKare difference.