20 Oct 2026 12:00
20,000 Women Surveyed: What the Data Reveals About Menopause Symptoms
In this episode, nutritionist Andrea Donsky joins host Dr. Jaclyn Smeaton to discuss her large-scale research on perimenopause and menopause, the deep connection between gut health and hormone balance, and the value of baseline hormone and metabolic testing.
Andrea and Dr. Jaclyn also discuss:
- Outdated symptom lists for perimenopause and menopause, which commonly cite only 34 symptoms, compared to Andrea’s research, which documented over 100
- Most common symptoms are cognitive, such as mood swings, anxiety, and brain fog, rather than physical symptoms
- How the gut changes in perimenopause and menopause and how hormones are intertwined
- The common experience of provider dismissal for perimenopausal and menopausal patients
- Nutrition and lifestyle as the foundation, not a replacement for hormone therapy
Show Notes
Check out Nourishing Menopause by Andrea Donsky and follow her on Instagram @andreadonsky!
Learn more about easy at-home collection for patients with DUTCH Direct.
Become a DUTCH Provider to get access to peer-reviewed and validated research, comprehensive patient reports, and expert clinical support, as well as our Perimenopause Management educational course.
