The "Second Spring"

Chinese culture reveres elders. So much so, that "menopause is actually called the 'second spring,' because the end of a woman's childbearing years gives rise to a new phase of life empowered by her accumulated wisdom," says Dr. Maoshing Ni. Now, I do believe I'm in the midst of major peri-menopause. My night sweats leave me soaked and frozen...too cold and tired to get up and change, but miserable for the rest of my beauty sleep (ha). I haven't had a full-on hot flash during the day, and only occasionally do I have an irregular cycle. Also, I promise you, this blog will never become a outlet for my menopausal woes. It's just another part of life that we need to adjust to and everyone needs to do what works for them to make things as least painful as possible.

So, for now at least, I want to do things the natural way, without any synthetic or bio-identical hormone therapy. I'm fortunate to have a few friends in the ob/gyn biz and they both say it's the way to go if you can tolerate the typical symptoms resulting from our lower estrogen production - these include the aforementioned hot flashes, insomnia, headaches, mood swings, dryness, diminished skin elasticity, memory loss...and did I mention mood swings?

Fortunately, there are many foods that are hight in phytoestrogens, the plant estrogens that are a weaker form of the body's hormone. Highest in this category include apples, brown rice, cabbage, carrots, beans, beets, citrus, cornmeal, oatmeal, potatoes, radish, fennel and soy.  Soybean, as well as most other beans, are rich in genistein, which, like estrogen, protects against bone loss and other aging issues. So, let's wait on the hormones while we can, and eat our way through menopause.

Here's a delicious, easy dish that should help with those mood swings..oh wait, I said I only had night sweats...well, just in case.

Chili Chicken over Rice - Recipe from my sister, Sue
I've been making for years now, and the family gives it two-thumbs up.

2 TBS Olive Oil (I cut this down my using organic spray olive oil)
3 Medium carrots, Chopped (I throw in the food processor)
4 Chicken Breasts, cut into thin strips
1 TBS Chili Powder...or more to taste (In Texas, we like it hot, so I put double)
1 Can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can Diced Tomatoes (again, organic, no added salt)
1/4 cup water


Brown Rice (as side)


Heat oil, cook carrots till tender. Stir in chicken and chili powder, cook until chicken browns. Stir in beans, tomatoes, 1/4 cup water and cook until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Serve over brown rice.


ENJOY!! 
PS - Seriously, I was going to make this for dinner last night and instead we had Subway! It's been a crazy week. As soon as I make the dish, I'll post a pic!