Sometimes you just want to sit Mother Nature down and ask her a few questions. Namely, why did you create a system where things get worse with age. Wouldn’t it be way better if we felt better as we got older? Right? If anyone has her number, please let me know.
So what exactly happens? Well, after menopause, estrogen decline reshapes nearly every system in the body simultaneously. Collagen production — already falling roughly 1% per year since your mid-twenties — drops by as much as 30% in the first five years post-menopause. Bone density loss accelerates. Cardiovascular risk increases as estrogen’s vasodilatory and anti-inflammatory protection disappears. The biology is well-documented; what’s less widely discussed is how specific foods can directly compensate for some of what’s changed.
Here’s what’s worth adding to the plate, and why.
1. Wild-Caught Fatty Fish
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Salmon, sardines, and mackerel are the most efficient sources. Farmed salmon has higher total fat but lower omega-3 density than wild-caught; wild sockeye is consistently the strongest pick. And you can usually find them in cans at your local grocery.
The Greenest Recommends
- Wild Planet Wild Sockeye Salmon (canned) — sustainable, BPA-free, ~1,100mg EPA+DHA per serving — the easiest way to hit the twice-weekly target
- Vital Choice Wild Sardines — smaller fish, lower mercury, whole-food calcium from the soft bones
2. Blueberries
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Frozen wild blueberries consistently test higher in anthocyanin content than fresh cultivated ones. The smaller size and deeper color of wild varieties indicates higher phytonutrient density. If you can opt for organic whenever possible, too.
The Greenest Recommends
- Wyman’s Wild Blueberries (frozen) — smaller than cultivated, 2–3x higher anthocyanin density — keeps indefinitely in the freezer
3. Leafy Greens
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Try to eat 1–2 cups of cooked leafy greens each day. That sounds like a lot but it can have a big impact. Cooking concentrates the K1 and magnesium and breaks down oxalates that can otherwise interfere with calcium absorption.
The Greenest Recommends
- Koyah Organic Kale Powder — whole-leaf freeze-dried kale — full K1, magnesium, and folate preserved; blends into smoothies without the prep
4. Whole Soy Foods
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1–2 servings of whole soy daily is ideal. But let’s be honest, that’s a lot. You really need to work at it a bit. And it could look like this: Edamame at lunch, miso soup with dinner, or tempeh as a protein source are the simplest routes.
The Greenest Recommends
- South River Organic Miso — traditionally fermented, live cultures intact — higher isoflavone bioavailability than pasteurized commercial miso
5. Pomegranate
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See if you can squeeze in a half cup pomegranate arils or 4–6 oz of 100% pomegranate juice three to four times per week. To get the biggest impact, the conversion to urolithin A depends on your gut microbiome. Have a few fermented foods alongside pomegranate to improve conversion rates.
The Greenest Recommends
- POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice — no added sugar, full punicalagin and ellagitannin content — the form used in most urolithin A research
6. Bone Broth
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Properly made bone broth provides glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline — the amino acids that form collagen’s triple-helix structure. Collagen peptide research (including a 2019 randomized trial published in Nutrients) shows measurable improvement in skin elasticity and joint comfort at 10g of collagen peptides daily. Bone broth is the whole-food delivery method. Look for broths with 9–12g of protein per cup; anything lower indicates insufficient simmering time.
Target: 1–2 cups daily as a beverage or use as the base for soups, grains, and sauces.
The Greenest Recommends
- Kettle & Fire Chicken Bone Broth — 10g collagen protein per cup, no MSG or natural flavors — simmered 20+ hours from pasture-raised bones
7. Beets
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Beets are the best dietary source of inorganic nitrate, which the body converts to nitric oxide — the molecule that signals blood vessels to relax and dilate. Post-menopause, vascular stiffness increases as estrogen’s vasodilatory effect disappears. Multiple studies show that concentrated beet nitrate lowers systolic blood pressure by 3–5 mmHg and improves arterial flexibility. The effect requires consistency: beet nitrates work over days and weeks, not hours.
Target: ½ cup cooked beets three to four times weekly, or 4 oz of beet juice. Avoid antibacterial mouthwash, which kills the oral bacteria needed to convert nitrate to nitric oxide.
The Greenest Recommends
- Biotta Organic Beet Juice — cold-pressed, no added sugar, standardized nitrate content — the form closest to what’s used in blood pressure research
8. Turmeric
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Curcumin, turmeric’s active compound, inhibits NF-κB — the master regulator of the body’s inflammatory response. Chronic low-grade inflammation (sometimes called “inflammaging”) accelerates measurably after menopause. Multiple randomized controlled trials show curcumin reduces CRP and IL-6, two key inflammatory biomarkers, at doses of 500–1,000mg daily. The catch: standard curcumin has poor bioavailability. Black pepper (piperine) increases absorption by 2,000% — make sure one or the other is present in any supplement form.
Target: ½–1 tsp turmeric + a crack of black pepper in cooking daily. If using a supplement, look for a phospholipid-complexed or piperine-formulated product.
The Greenest Recommends
- Thorne Meriva SF Curcumin — phosphatidylcholine-complexed for 29× better absorption than standard extracts — the form used in most clinical bioavailability studies
9. Walnuts
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Walnuts are the only tree nut with significant alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the plant-based omega-3 fatty acid. They also contain ellagitannins that convert to urolithin A (like pomegranate), and polyphenols that improve endothelial function. The PREDIMED study — one of the largest dietary intervention trials ever conducted — specifically found walnut consumption associated with reduced cardiovascular events. A UCLA study found older adults eating walnuts daily showed improved cognitive scores compared to controls. So load up on walnuts!
Target: 1 oz (14 halves) daily. And key point! You should store your walnuts in the refrigerator or freezer because walnut fats oxidize quickly at room temperature and oxidized ALA will cause inflammation instead of fight it.
10. Eggs (Whole)
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The yolk is the target here, not the white. Egg yolks concentrate two carotenoids that accumulate in the macula of the eye and in skin. Age-related macular degeneration risk increases significantly after we turn 50. Egg yolks are also among the richest dietary sources of choline (147mg per yolk), which most women over 50 are deficient in — and choline is essential for memory consolidation and liver function.
Target: 1–2 whole eggs daily. Pasture-raised hens produce yolks with 2–3x the lutein of conventionally raised eggs — the deeper orange the yolk, the higher the carotenoid content. Although check to make sure that the egg producer doesn’t add certain things to the hen’s food to make their yolks look darker than they actually are.
The Greenest Recommends
- Vital Farms Pasture-Raised Eggs — third-party verified pasture-raised; orange yolk depth is a reliable proxy for lutein and zeaxanthin content
A Note on Supplements vs. Whole Foods
Several items on this list — turmeric, omega-3s, collagen peptides — are also available as isolated supplements. In most cases, the whole-food version delivers supporting compounds (fiber, co-factors, additional phytonutrients) that the supplement strips away. Use isolated supplements where dietary intake is genuinely impractical, not as a first resort. The foods above work; the research behind them is largely based on dietary intake, not pills.
Where supplements are genuinely useful — curcumin’s absorption problem, omega-3s for those who don’t eat fish — the product picks above reflect what the clinical literature actually used.
Adrienne Santos-Longhurst is a freelance health and lifestyle writer that has written for Healthline, Medical News Today and Verily Magazine just to name a few.
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