Perimenopause and Middle Eastern Women: Navigating Culture and Care
How Middle Eastern women experience perimenopause, from cultural expectations and religious context to symptoms, diet, and accessing healthcare.
Perimenopause in a Middle Eastern Context
The Middle East encompasses a diverse range of countries, cultures, and communities, including Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, the UAE, and beyond. While attitudes toward health and medicine vary considerably across these societies, there are shared themes that shape how many Middle Eastern women experience perimenopause. Strong family structures, cultural expectations around femininity and modesty, and the central role of religion in daily life all influence whether and how women seek support for hormonal changes. For women from these backgrounds living in diaspora communities in the UK or elsewhere, these influences travel with them.
How Culture Shapes the Conversation
In many Middle Eastern cultures, reproductive and hormonal health is considered deeply private, and discussing it outside of a close female circle or a medical setting is unusual. Menopause can carry connotations of lost fertility, ageing, or diminished femininity, which makes it harder for some women to approach the topic openly even with their doctors. At the same time, in some interpretations of Islamic tradition, the end of menstruation is associated with spiritual freedom and increased time for prayer and reflection, which can reframe the transition in a more positive light. Cultural and religious framing of this life stage matters, because it affects whether women feel entitled to seek help.
Symptoms and What Research Tells Us
Middle Eastern women report a range of perimenopause symptoms broadly consistent with global data, including hot flashes, mood changes, sleep disruption, joint pain, and irregular periods. Some regional studies have noted higher rates of depression and psychological symptoms during perimenopause in Middle Eastern populations compared with Western studies, potentially linked to the additional stress of managing cultural expectations, reduced social visibility, and limited healthcare access. Vitamin D deficiency, which is common in Middle Eastern women due to limited sun exposure through clothing and indoor lifestyles, can worsen fatigue, mood, and joint symptoms. This is worth discussing with your doctor.
Religious and Spiritual Dimensions
For Muslim women, the end of menstruation removes the ritual purity restrictions that governed prayer, fasting, and pilgrimage during the reproductive years. This is genuinely liberating for many women, offering full participation in religious practice without monthly interruption. However, physical symptoms of perimenopause like fatigue, poor sleep, and brain fog can make spiritual practice harder to maintain, particularly during Ramadan fasting. Planning around energy levels, staying well hydrated in fasting windows, and seeking flexibility from religious community leaders when health requires it are all reasonable approaches. Faith communities can also be a powerful source of connection and support during this transition.
Diet, Lifestyle, and Traditional Practices
Traditional Middle Eastern diets often feature ingredients well suited to supporting health during perimenopause. Olive oil, legumes including lentils and chickpeas, wholegrains, and a wide variety of vegetables and herbs form the basis of cuisines across the region. These components support cardiovascular health, gut health, and stable blood sugar, all of which matter during hormonal fluctuation. Dates, a staple food across the region, are rich in magnesium and potassium. However, diets can also be high in refined carbohydrates and sugar. Regular movement, including walking and gentle strength work, supports bone density and mood. Maintaining adequate vitamin D, whether through diet, safe sun exposure, or supplementation, is particularly important.
Healthcare Access and Advocacy
In many Middle Eastern countries, gynaecological care is fairly accessible, but menopause-specific awareness varies widely among practitioners. Women in the Gulf region may have access to private clinics with menopause-aware practitioners, while in other countries healthcare infrastructure may make specialist care harder to reach. Middle Eastern women living in the UK have the same rights to NHS perimenopause care as any other resident. Requesting a female GP is entirely appropriate. Preparing a symptom list, asking specifically about hormone testing, and requesting a referral to a menopause clinic if needed are all constructive steps. Language support is available within the NHS if needed.
Building a Support Network
The transition through perimenopause is much easier when you are not alone. Middle Eastern women increasingly connect through women-only online spaces, WhatsApp groups, and community gatherings where health topics can be discussed away from mixed company. Sharing experiences with trusted friends or family members normalises the conversation and helps others recognise their own symptoms sooner. Tracking your symptoms regularly, including what you eat, how you sleep, and how your mood shifts throughout the week, gives you a detailed picture that supports more productive healthcare conversations. You are entitled to clear information about your hormonal health and to care that respects both your medical and cultural needs.
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