How Menopause Can Trigger Disordered Eating (and What to Do About It)
Many women are surprised to experience disordered eating or food anxiety during perimenopause, but it’s actually quite common! This post explores how hormonal shifts, aging, and diet culture intersect—and offers tools for reconnecting with your body in midlife.
Awareness of disordered eating has grown tremendously over the last decade, and as an eating disorder dietitian I’m thrilled about this! But harmful stereotypes persist—many people still picture a young, thin, white woman when they think of eating disorders. This narrow image limits research, reduces access to care, and silences others who are struggling. One overlooked population I often see in my practice? Women in menopause.
Before we dive in, I want to acknowledge that I don’t bring lived experience with menopause to this conversation. I recognize that youth is often seen as currency in our culture, and I write this from a place of privilege. What I offer here is drawn from research, clinical supervision, and the rich insights shared by the incredible clients I’ve worked with. In writing this post, I also checked in with my own mother asking her to reflect back on her experience with menopause. I’ll share some of her insights below, so keep reading!
What Is Menopause?
There are actually multiple stages that make up the menopause transition. Perimenopause (“around menopause”) refers to the transitional years before menopause, typically between ages 40–55. During this time, estrogen levels fluctuate and gradually decline, leading to symptoms like hot flashes, mood swings, disrupted sleep, and weight changes. Menopause is officially marked by 12 consecutive months without a period, and the time after that is considered postmenopause (1). For our discussion today, I’ll use the term menopause to refer to all 3 of these stages.
Menopause as a Trigger for Disordered Eating
Menopause is filled with changes—hormonally, emotionally, and physically (2). Lower estrogen levels can heighten anxiety and depression, while changes in body composition (like weight gain in the midsection or loss of muscle mass) may stir up long-held body image concerns. My mother, Anne, shared this valuable perspective: “One thing I would like to say is turning 50 and looking at the other side of the hill is a big deal. Thinking about getting older, mortality, loss of youth, and a culture that disregards and treats older people as unimportant are big deals. So I think a lot of women experience an identity crisis around this time.” These shifts can feel destabilizing in a culture that equates youth and thinness with value and worth.
Women reaching menopause today came of age during the height of toxic diet culture: think 80’s aerobics videos, low-fat diet crazes, and stick-thin supermodels. The menopausal change in body and identity can trigger a desire to control something—anything—and lead to restrictive eating, compulsive exercise, or food obsession. Unfortunately, the modern wellness world often reinforces this with messages about "clean eating," hormone-balancing diets, and anti-aging skincare routines.
What I See in My Practice
Many midlife clients come to me feeling confused or frustrated by body changes. They've spent years dieting and now find that past strategies no longer "work." Some folks are confronting decades of deep-seated fears around food and weight for the first time. Others feel betrayed by their bodies. It's common to see patterns like guilt around eating, escalating restriction, intrusive body thoughts, or emotional eating—all signs of disordered eating.
What complicates this further is how normalized these behaviors are in older women. Severe food restriction might be labeled disordered in younger women but is often brushed off in older adults as “just what you have to do to stay thin.” Restriction in a 50-something body is still restriction, even if society applauds or demands it! I strongly believe that all bodies—regardless of age—deserve nourishment, joy, and care.
Moving Toward Trust and Gentle Nutrition
My work with clients in menopause often focuses on unpacking years of internalized weight stigma and diet rules. This may involve exploring diet influences from childhood into early adulthood, or confronting years of body insecurity. Together we redefine what health looks like now, not through the lens of chasing youth, but through self-compassion and sustainability. This often includes building routines that support bone health, consistent energy, and mental wellbeing—without fixating on a number on the scale.
If you're navigating this season of menopause, consider reflecting on these prompts:
What beliefs about food and body image did I grow up with?
How have those beliefs changed over the years, and how do they still influence me now?
What would it look like to nourish my body without trying to shrink it?
How do I want to define health as I enter the next stage of womanhood?
What might it feel like to embrace my identity as a matriarch - a woman whose age and experience makes her powerful?
Menopause brings real physiological shifts and identity reckonings. These can awaken long-buried food and body struggles—but it’s never too late to rebuild trust with yourself. Gentle, adequate, and enjoyable nutrition is not age-limited; it’s a right that travels with you through every life stage. Health isn’t earned by erasing pounds or years - it’s cultivated in the body you have today.
If you are struggling with your relationship with food and body image, reaching out for support is one of the most empowering things you can do. McArtney nutrition offers specialized support for those navigating diet culture at every life stage, including menopause. Reach out for a discovery call to chat about finding food peace and body acceptance!
Disclaimer: the information provided in this blog is for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Sources
National Institute on Aging. (2021, September 30). What is menopause? U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/menopause/what-menopause
Monteleone, P., Mascagni, G., Giannini, A., Genazzani, A. R., & Simoncini, T. (2018). Symptoms of menopause—global prevalence, physiology and implications. Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 14(4), 199–215. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrendo.2017.180