Estrogen, Perimenopause and Insulin Resistance
Protecting insulin sensitivity through perimenopause and menopause. Since I see perimenopause in my not-so-distant future I’m focusing here more myself. These hormonal changes bring many challenges including an increased propensity for dysregulated blood sugar which can worsen insulin resistance. It’s important to develop is a game plan for avoiding insulin resistance. Insulin sensitivity it the key to good metabolic health. Estrogen is a key conductor of so many things in female physiology and one of its main roles is helping to manage blood sugar by keeping us insulin sensitive. It does it in so many ways! Check out the graphics from this study to understand a few. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3660717/
Estrogen helps with managing hunger and satiety cues interpreted by the brain.
It helps to keep adipose/fat tissue healthy by regulating hormonal secretion (fat tissue is a very hormonally active tissue).
Estrogen works to keep our cells in muscle, adipose as well as the liver, insulin sensitive allowing them to properly utilize glucose for energy.
Estrogen helps to manage inflammatory response in a variety of tissue types in the body. Inflammation is a driving factor for our cells becoming insulin resistant.
With all that said…. how can we avoid becoming insulin resistant during a time in our lives as women when our estrogen levels are naturally diminishing?
Disciplined Feeding Window: Now more than ever it’s important to establish strong fed versus fasted cues. This greatly aids the body in achieving better blood sugar regulation.
Healthy Sleep Hygiene protocol: Maintaining healthy sleep hygiene becomes even more critical as hormonal disturbances can aggravate sleep challenges. We need to do what we can to protect melatonin production as well as avoiding evening cortisol spikes.
Moderate our carbohydrate intake: During this time in life, we as women tend to become less able to tolerate higher carbohydrate load so it may be necessary to tweak intake and focus on fiber.
Pair adequate protein with resistance training: The changing hormonal environment makes our bodies more prone to breaking down muscle and muscle is one of our greatest protectors against metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance as it acts like a sponge soaking up excess glucose.
Love on our adrenals: As we enter perimenopause our adrenals begin to take over production of key hormones, like estrogen and progesterone, that were previously synthesized in the ovaries. With this additional stress we should consider ways to support our adrenals which also orchestrate release of stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline. Simply choices like limiting caffeine, getting adequate sleep and reducing stress can help with this.
Reference:
Mauvais-Jarvis, F., Clegg, D. J., & Hevener, A. L. (2013). The role of estrogens in control of energy balance and glucose homeostasis. Endocrine reviews, 34(3), 309–338. https://doi.org/10.1210/er.2012-1055