Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes is scary enough all by itself and when menopause is added to the mix it can get a whole lot more complicated. This is because of those pesky hormonal changes, namely a drop in estrogen and progesterone, have a slew of side effects which can either add to a pre-existing diabetic condition or cause new diabetic symptoms to arise. Spikes and drops in blood sugar levels, created by hormonal imbalances, make the pancreas work overtime which can eventually lead to diabetes. Those same high blood sugar levels, compounded by a lack of estrogen, increases the risk of infection as it becomes easy for yeast and bacteria to thrive in the vagina and urinary tract.

Currently, there are almost 4 million women between the ages of 45 to 64 diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and medical research has made it possible to pinpoint ways to lower the chances of getting diabetes greatly. Not surprisingly, eating a healthy diet low in sugar is a great start in protecting one’s self from diabetes as it gives the pancreas a break and insulin levels healthy. Keeping a healthy weight is also of high priority as it’s been noted that half of the women currently in America with diabetes are clinically overweight. A body mass index or BMI is used to give a rough outline of how much a person should weigh based in their height and age. Women who have had gestational diabetes in the past, typically during pregnancy, are at a much greater risk of becoming diabetic later in life and as such need to be even more careful with what they eat as they age.