Do you have questions about nutrition? Send them to us at comer@lavanguardia.es, our nutritionist Aitor Sánchez will answer all your questions.
What is the best diet for premenopausal women? (Cris M., reader)
Hi Chris,
The menstrual cycle manifests itself every month, throughout a woman’s fertile stage, thanks to changes in hormonal levels that stimulate the growth, maturation and release of eggs.
One of the most important hormones is estrogen. Estrogens have various functions, in addition to being involved in cycle regulation. Among others, we highlight that they protect bone mass, act on lipid metabolism, directly stimulate neurons… In perimenopause, when estrogen levels begin to decrease, all of these systems are affected. For all these reasons, an adequate diet will be essential in managing symptoms, controlling weight, preventing osteoporosis and cardiovascular diseases, and improving mood.
The guidelines for perimenopause are the typical ones that we share in the office regarding healthy eating, although perhaps we should emphasize the following issues:
And I would also recommend that you take a look at this other office on osteoporosis.
Why is it said that four hours have to pass between meals? (Andrea K., reader)
Hello Andrea,
We cannot say that there is a specific number of meals per day that is better than another, nor that they have to be spaced out an exact number of hours. It will depend on each person and what objectives we are looking for.
For example: The number and type of meals to avoid gaining weight is different from that of treating a pathology. Perhaps with our guideline we want to facilitate satiety, or we may be looking to reduce a person’s anxiety. Do your schedules allow it? Are you going to have a healthy choice around you at mid-morning and snack time?
But if we talk about the general population and the typical recommendations we give, there is a very clear message: the number of meals or the separation between them is secondary, since what we eat will matter much more than how we distribute it.
The studies that have been done on this matter do not show clear benefits of eating 3, 4, 5 or 6 meals a day, there are studies for and against and quite a bit of controversy about it. As I said, the reason is that it is not that important, and therefore it does not seem responsible to transmit it as an isolated guideline.
Looking at it strictly from a physiological point of view, it seems that 5-6 is perhaps too much from a hormonal point of view, potentially accustoming the body to draw on our reserves. Before it was recommended to eat many times during the day, now we are moving away from that trend, and it is even being seen that making small calorie restrictions, or simply going for a longer time without eating could be beneficial in terms of health.
Perhaps it should have been recommended to simply tell people to have a healthy snack like fruit or nuts between meals.
