Perimenopause and Menopause: The Two-Way Street Between Your Hormones and Gut

Historically, and luckily for us ladies, medical research has generally focused on males, leaving our female-specific conditions relatively unchecked.

Considering around half the world’s residents will experience menopausal symptoms, tackling these questions head-on and looking at up-to-date research is a must. However, due to menopause being vastly understudied and the gut microbiome being somewhat in its infancy, the evidence so far is limited, to say the least.

Here's what we do know:

As an overall view, current evidence suggests that the two-way street between our hormones and gut bacteria goes along the lines of this: The higher our levels of progesterone and estrogen, the more they boost our gut bacteria diversity by feeding them. On the flip side, greater gut bacteria diversity means more hormones are recycled, sending them back into circulation.

So, it’s a win-win from both angles and a good reminder to make sure we’re keeping those gut bugs of ours well-fed and in good condition.

Getting to the bones of the matter:

As estrogen levels reduce, our risk of developing osteoporosis increases, a condition that causes bones to become weaker, thereby increasing our fracture risk—“Oh joy!” I hear you cry... we seriously get all manner of short straws, us girls.

Gut bacteria are again thought to play a role in maintaining bone health, and some early research suggested that using probiotics to help manipulate the gut microbiome may, in fact, also keep bones fighting fit.

Keeping the party alive and thriving:

Ensuring you have a thriving and diverse population of bacteria partying in your gut is essential, but that’s where we want them to stay. If these merry microbes or the chemicals they make translocate (i.e., they make it into your bloodstream) out of the party house, it can have quite the opposite effect.

To dissuade these digestive disco-goers from leaving the dance floor, the lining of your gut plays a major part; when this defensive barrier is compromised, it causes inflammation.

Plant-focused:

Particular plants contain phytoestrogens, which include isoflavones that are found in soy, and as luck would have it, some of our savvy little bacteria have the ability to convert said isoflavones into estrogen-like compounds. Research suggests that consuming these insatiable little soy isoflavones may help to reduce the risk of certain symptoms, such as hot flushes, by mimicking estrogen’s action.