Resource created to provide Slimming World members with weight-loss support during the perimenopause and beyond
The UK’s largest weight-loss organisation Slimming World is proud to announce the launch of new information and support for its members around weight management during the perimenopause and beyond.
The perimenopause and the menopause itself are caused by a drop in reproductive hormone levels and naturally happens as women get older. Shifts in hormone levels can influence where body fat is stored which can alter women’s perception of their body and weight. On top of this, every woman’s experience of the menopause is unique, and symptoms can vary in amount and severity. For some women, symptoms can indirectly influence weight by causing shifts in diet and lifestyle behaviours.
Registered dietitian Jennifer Kent, from Slimming World’s Nutrition, Research and Health Team, says: “For many women, there’s a concern that weight gain is ‘inevitable’, or that weight loss is ‘impossible’ during this time, but we know this isn’t the case. Our own research shows that Slimming World members around the average age of the menopause, and beyond, lose weight just as well as younger women.”
Research* suggests that muscle mass reduces during the menopause and as we age, we tend to be less active and more sedentary. This means that metabolic rate can slow, and we burn fewer calories. Evidence** shows that eating a healthy, balanced diet, and maintaining an active lifestyle can help manage symptoms of menopause, sustain lean muscle, maintain metabolic rate, prevent weight gain and support weight loss at this time in life.
Slimming World has produced a free resource for members of its community groups and online programme called You, your weight and the menopause.
Our new resource for members highlights how the physiological changes and symptoms many women experience during the perimenopause can affect weight and provides practical diet and lifestyle advice to help them overcome these new challenges, and optimise their health, on their weight management journey.
Jennifer adds: “The supplementary 7-day example eating plan helps bring the evidence-based advice to life and showcases how foods that can support health and help manage symptoms of the perimenopause can be incorporated into member’s diets.”
*Practice-based Evidence in Nutrition (2021). Women’s health – Menopause. Available online: https://www.pennutrition.com/KnowledgePathway.aspx?kpid=7454&pqcatid=145&pqid=8725
**British Dietetic Association (2019). Menopause and diet: food fact sheet. Available online: https://www.bda.uk.com/resource/menopause-diet.html