Menopause In Japan
Wouldn’t it be nice never to experience menopausal symptoms or not have it as bad? Imagine never having to deal with hot flushes/flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, and fatigue, that might be the case with Menopause In Japan.
While you can’t stop your body from going into menopause, Japanese women might have found the secret to having an overall better menopause experience. It’s not genetic either, so you might be able to apply some of this information to your current menopause journey.
If you want to learn why Japanese women don’t experience menopause the way Western women do, keep reading the rest of this article. It might just be what you need to go through menopause comfortably. Let’s talk about menopause in Japan.
Menopause In Japan & The Average Age of Menopause
According to a 1987 survey involving 13,996 Japanese women, their average age of perimenopause is 49.33 years. Another study showed a slight variation in menopause age at 52.88 years old.
Caucasian women have it at 52.85 years on average. For other ethnic groups, the average age of menopause is pretty much the same.
This tells us that ethnic differences don’t matter that much at the age of onset of menopause. The studies also made it clear that hormone levels were not that different, either.
So if cultural differences or hormones aren’t the culprits, it leaves one potential reason why women experience varying menopausal symptoms: environmental factors.
Japanese Women’s Symptoms vs Western Women
Studies and anecdotal evidence show that after their last menstrual period and the onset of menopause, American women and other ethnicities have a worse experience than Japanese women.
Japanese women have less severe hot flashes/flushes, insomnia, night sweats, joint pain, urine leakage, and increased heart rate. They generally also have fewer symptoms.
Plus, they have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and brain cancer.
But for Western women, the symptoms typically get better at the end of the menopause period, which isn’t saying much if you were suffering for the first few years.
How to Experience Menopause Japanese Style
The good news is, that you’re not doomed to have a few bad years because of menopause. All you have to do is do what the Japanese do—include soy and soy products in your diet to alleviate your symptoms of menopause.
Soy contains isoflavones, which work like estrogen, albeit weakly. As the average perimenopausal woman produces less estrogen, soy helps balance things out. With a healthy portion of soy in your diet, you can effectively prevent the worst that menopause can do.
Aside from watching your dietary intake, you can also take supplements containing:
- Vitamin D strengthens your bone density
- Magnesium to maintain your hormone balance
- Omega-3 to prevent heart disease
- Iron to improve your energy levels
- Vitamin C boosts your immune system
But as helpful as the proper diet and supplements can be, your best bet against menopausal symptoms is information. Being knowledgeable on menopause and the proper management of symptoms will help you achieve the best outcome possible.
Read more about Menopause & Cultural Differences here:
