Menopause Diet Confusion? Start Here – With Balanced Blood Sugar

When the menopause weight creeps up, many women start searching for the best menopause diet.

You’re munching on cookies or chocolate, because your cravings got the best of you again, and you’re scrolling Instagram or Facebook in search of a diet that will give you weight loss in menopause.

I want you to stop for a second and I want you to think about blood sugar instead of the best menopause diet for weight loss. You won't be disappointed by reading this blog post, or watching this video, because thinking about your blood sugar will help you decrease some the risk factors that come with menopause.

It may even help you with those cravings for sugary things that happen daily at 3 pm. like clockwork!

Balanced blood sugar in menopause your cognitive health, your liver, your thyroid, your mood, your heart health, in fact—all areas of your body.  

And yes, managing blood sugar may even affect your weight.

You may not know this but when I left dental hygiene, I started nutrition coaching, and I've coached in many areas from detox, to yes, weight loss. The most common question, after “How do I lose weight in my 50’s?” or "How do I eat for hormone balance?” was “What’s the best menopause diet?"

While we will touch on some nutrition tips or tweaks in the end of this article and video, we’ll also cover:

• What is blood sugar?

• What is insulin resistance?

• Take a birds eye view of why you should make it a focus in menopause.

If you are struggling with perimenopause or menopause symptoms like weight gain, hot flashes, or anything else, I will always invite you to tune in to the many foundational aspects of lifestyle:

• Stress reduction

• Relationships

• Purpose

• Nutrition

• Sleep

And also blood sugar. Blood sugar balance is like giving your hormones a stable foundation to land on. Without that, you're building your wellness plan on quicksand.

The way you reacts to foods and how your blood sugar rises, and falls and stabilizes is personal. What spikes one person's blood sugar doesn't spike another persons. There's many individual factors that go into the topic of blood sugar balance in menopause. There are some nutrition basics that are easy to implement and can support you in menopause.

The Definition of Blood Sugar and Blood Sugar Balance.

Blood sugar is the term used to define the amount of glucose in your blood. Your body, including your brain, uses glucose for energy. I know, if you follow a ketogenic diet, you’re going to comment that your brain can run on ketones. Yes, it can. That’s for another video along with the whole topic of carbohydrates.

Insulin and glucagon are key players in blood sugar balance. Your blood sugar rises after a meal, as insulin is released from the pancreas to help that glucose, or blood sugar, go into cells. If your blood sugar is dropping (say, your lunch is late or something is keeping you from your next meal) glucagon is triggered from the pancreas - they are like partners on a teeter totter.

Glucagon talks to the liver to release stored glucose (glycogen) for the body to use. This is one of the beautiful checks and balances that we have within our wise body.

Once we hit menopause, keeping blood sugar balanced may become a bit of a struggle and many of us may develop insulin resistance.

What Can Blood Sugar Imbalance Feel Like?

Watch for these clues:

• You crash after meals or need caffeine to get through the afternoon

• Cravings for sugar

• You wake up at 3am and can't fall back asleep

• You feel 'hangry' or irritable 

• You're gaining weight around your midsection even though your diet hasn't changed

4 Reasons Why Balanced Blood Sugar Matters in Menopause

There's many - here’s four reasons why balancing blood sugar in menopause matters, and this includes those cravings.

#1 Insulin Resistance.

When estrogen drops during menopause, your risk of becoming insulin resistant is higher. Insulin resistance is when your body cells don’t respond to insulin when it comes around trying to get blood glucose into your cells for energy.

If you are insulin resistant this raises your risk of (and here is my source):

• Hyperglycemia or high blood sugar

• Hypertension or high blood pressure

• Dyslipidemia or high cholesterol, triglycerides, or low high density lipoprotein (this is your “good” cholesterol which is linked to lower heart disease risk)

• Hyperuricemia or high uric acid

• Elevated inflammatory markers

• Endothelial dysfunction or changes inside the lining of blood vessels

• Prothrombotic state or increased risk of blood clots

There’s a lot that can come with imbalanced blood sugar as we move into and beyond menopause.

A cell can only use so much glucose.

There are also certain cells that really need this energy, with muscles being a primary site for the dumping of glucose (hmm think of all the advice to pick up weights in menopause). If your muscles cells become insulin resistant that glucose goes to your liver.

The liver is a major player in blood sugar balance as it also stores and creates glucose. If your liver cells become insulin resistant, your body goes through metabolic changes.

Insulin resistance can set the stage for metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes — and that sets the stage for more:

• Fat storage

• Stress in the body

• Inflammation

• Cravings & energy crashes.

Not exactly ideal when you’re already navigating hot flashes and mood swings.

*On the topic of body fat - your body is smart - it's storing fat for when you need energy.  What we don’t want is the liver to get fatty and what many women dont want is excess body weight.

#2 Brain health.

Do you have brain fog or do you worry about your cognition? Maybe you have the unfortunate experience of watching one of your parents struggle with Alzheimer’s disease, and worry about the same fate.

While there are many components to cognitive decline, when blood sugar is imbalanced, your brain can be imbalanced too.

Your brain is your central command centre and is a very high energy consumer. It’s the most hungry organ in your body.

There is a possible link between blood sugar issues like Type 2 diabetes and diseases like Alzheimers. The CDC notes that “Both high and low blood sugar levels can cause these harms.”

Frequently high blood sugar is not great for your brain, due to the damage it may cause in your blood vessels. Conversely low blood sugar is not great for the brain either. 

Other organs like your adrenal glands play a role in blood sugar balance, These glands make hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline to help bring blood sugar up and then get it into the cells, including those brain cells that need energy. This is why chronic stress may be linked to blood sugar imbalances and inflammation. 

#3 Heart health

The drop in estrogen in menopause also is linked to changes in cardiovascular health. This is because estrogen may have a protective role in heart health.

Loss of ovarian hormones may have an effect on your blood lipid levels. This means your total cholesterol, your HDL cholesterol (High-density lipoprotein), HDL cholesterol (High-density lipoprotein), and triglycerides.

Estrogen also protects the lining of blood and lymph vessels. 

What does this have to do with blood sugar? Insulin resistance (which I mentioned is a risk factor in menopause due to the changes in estrogen) then becomes a risk factor for heart disease. This is how blood sugar plays a role in heart health. This is where those changes I noted above as endothelial dysfunction (changes inside the lining of blood vessels) come in to play. High blood sugar may damage your blood vessels over time. 

#4 Cravings. 

Food cravings are intense desires to eat a specific food item. They're usually focused on something in particular, like chocolate, chips, salty or sweet foods. They are not like regular hunger.

Cravings can be driven by:

• Biological factors (e.g., hormonal shifts, blood sugar imbalances)

• Psychological factors (e.g., stress, emotions, habits)

• Environmental cues (e.g., seeing an ad or smelling food)

As you can see, imbalanced blood sugar can kick off cravings. Many women complain of cravings when in perimenopause and menopause. These can happen at certain times of the day, such as the 9 pm Netflix binge (habit) or the 3 pm slump (a biological factor).

This may be where you reach for the chocolate which is a high glycemic food. Consuming high glycemic meals regularly may give you a blood sugar roller coaster, or make your blood sugar swing too high, or too low.

What are high glycemic meals or snacks? The ones that cause a rapid rise in blood sugar. They tend to be simple refined carbohydrates, or sugary foods like soda, candy or even some baked treats.

Learn more about the glycemic index here.

The Blood Sugar-Craving Cycle looks like this:

You eat something high in sugar or refined carbs (like white bread, pastries, or sweet drinks).
→ These cause a quick spike in blood glucose (sugar) levels.

Your body releases insulin to bring that sugar down.
→ Sometimes, it overshoots and brings your blood sugar too low—this is called a blood sugar dip.

Low blood sugar = low energy and brain fog.
→ Your brain sees this as an emergency and signals: “We need energy—fast!”

Cue the cravings.
→ You start wanting quick-energy foods: sugar, carbs, caffeine—anything that will boost glucose fast.

PULSE CHECK: should you never eat cake?
That’s not what I’m saying. Mindfully incorporating foods you enjoy, while keeping your own personal health needs in mind can help you keep the foods you love in your life all while supporting your overall health.

Health is not one food way of eating or rigid thinking.

When it comes to balancing blood sugar the topic of restriction comes in to play.

Here’s where you may be tempted to jump into a sugar detox or a keto lifestyle or a paleo diet or maybe the carnivore lifestyle, and well, that's up to you. I’m not going to tell you how to eat - but what I'm going to do is give you a few things to think about.

In reality there are some people that have to stay away from super sweet foods. Everyone is different.

6 Tips For Blood Sugar Balance In Menopause

These aren’t sexy, but they make sense. The good news: you can start balancing It today. You don’t need a fancy plan to start stabilizing your blood sugar. Here’s what I recommend for women in perimenopause and menopause:

1. Prioritize protein — especially at breakfast
Start your day with 25–30g of protein to help keep blood sugar steady and reduce cravings.

2. Pair your carbs:
Avoid “naked carbs.” Always pair starches with fiber, fat, or protein.

3. Don’t skip meals (at least not yet):
Intermittent fasting might be trendy, but if your blood sugar is dysregulated, it can backfire. Eat regularly and focus on blood sugar balance before going down the fasting rabbit hole.

4. Take a post meal walk!
A 10-minute walk after eating can significantly blunt blood sugar spikes — and it’s great for digestion and stress too.

5. Track symptoms, not just weight:
Mood, energy, sleep, and focus are all tied to blood sugar. Notice how small tweaks shift how you feel — it’s not always about the scale. Tracking how you feel in relation to what you eat, how much you sleep and even your emotional triggers will tell you so much about what your body is going through in menopause.

Watch the 9 benefits of a post meal walk!

Final Thoughts: Start Here, Not There

Before diving into strict diets or expensive protocols, stabilize your blood sugar first. It’s the foundation your hormones need to thrive — and the simplest, most sustainable place to begin.

You don’t have to get it perfect. You just have to start paying attention.

If this resonated with you, share it with a friend who’s struggling through menopause — and let’s make space for practical, no-fluff support for women in midlife.