What we eat, how we eat, and when we eat all play a critical role in overall health. During the menopausal transition and beyond, women experience significant metabolic changes that affect glucose regulation, as well as muscle and bone health. If left unaddressed, these changes can negatively influence the trajectory of chronic disease after menopause.

Food—and the nutrients it provides—plays a central role in the body’s biochemistry. Yet nutrition guidance is often reduced to vague advice such as “eat healthy” or “eat less,” overlooking the meaningful impact that targeted nutrition can have on alleviating menopausal symptoms and supporting long-term health.

In this session, Dr. Annina Burns draws on her expertise in menopause research, clinical nutrition, and women’s health to examine current evidence on nutrients, nutraceuticals, and dietary patterns relevant to midlife women. Key nutrients and lifestyle factors will be reviewed as strategies to enhance health and reduce menopausal symptoms, both as adjuncts to menopausal hormone therapy and within non-hormonal treatment approaches.

Annina Burns, PhD, RDN, IFMCP, is a registered dietitian nutritionist with expertise in fertility, maternal health, and menopause. She focuses on providing women with the nutrition and whole-body care they need at each life stage. Her practice, SimplinaHealth, provides personalized functional medicine support tailored to individual metabolism, hormonal status, genetic blueprint, and lifestyle.

Dr. Burns has practiced clinical nutrition for 15 years as a registered dietitian nutritionist. She also works at a pelvic health clinic as part of a team with a physician and pelvic floor physical therapist to provide women with comprehensive whole-body care and answers for common concerns, including chronic UTIs, pelvic pain, postpartum recovery, prolapse, perimenopause, and post-menopausal symptoms.