Hi Cider
I just wanted to say
from me too because I don't think I have yet!
Also you seem a bit like a woman after my own heart - well almost - when it comes to diet and exercise - SO important - you are doing the best thing you can for your health as you start this new phase of your life! I also try to get most of what I need nutrient wise - from food.
I won't say I eat similarly but there are similarities in that I normally now do not eat sugar except in fruit or meals out now and again or perhaps the odd square of choc - but it doesn't feature in my diet, and I eat tons of vegetables, nuts, pulses etc. However I also eat a lot of fish - usually caught locally (by my husband) as I live not far from the sea (or trout caught from a reservoir!), and lean meat, lots of eggs and natural yogurt and cottage cheese. I love avocados too. I also like alcohol (mainly at weekends - but can't tolerate much now) and I love my tea and coffee
. (you said you didn't drink?). I'm 63 and have been on HRT for 9 + years - but I only started when almost 54 and was very late peri - which was an ideal time to start it as my own hormones had stopped fluctuating madly. Like you I managed without anything until then - with periods missing for several months and hot flushes and night sweats keeping me awake, and having 2 young teenage boys at home at the time and working full-time.
I also do a fair amount of exercise - I was doing 3 classes per week but have cut down to two due to summer and gardening and I still work part-time.
What I want to say is that I do feel well most of the time - with a combination of the right diet, exercise AND HRT!
At your stage you probably don't need it - although if you start going 2-3 months or longer between periods before the age of 51/52 - which is the natural average age of menopause - then this is classed as an early menopause so HRT is advisable to help prevent osteoporosis and to protect your heart. HRT taken before this age does not count in terms of cancer or stroke risk (unless you have a genetic predisposition through family history that suggests otherwise).
If you need contraception then an option is to take the latest BCP called Qlaira which contains oestrogen that is bio-identical to our own - although the progestogen is synthetic. This evens out the hormone fluctuations that cause so many problems in peri-menopause.
Anyway I admire you for getting your diet health and lifestyle under control - which is what we should all be doing
. If it helps you feel well for longer then that's fantastic
Hurdity x