Episode 175

Published October 20, 2026

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• Outdated symptom lists for perimenopause and menopause, which commonly cite only 34 symptoms, compared to Andrea’s research, which documented over 100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

Key Moments

0:52 Episode Introduction

2:28 Understanding Perimenopause and Menopause

5:40 The Importance of Research and Community

8:28 Uncommon Symptoms of Menopause

11:32 The Role of Healthcare Providers

14:25 The Knowledge Gap in Clinical Training

20:14 The Connection Between Fiber and Hormones

25:54 DUTCH Courses: Perimenopause Management

26:44 Customizing Nutrition for Individual Needs

32:27 Key Micronutrients for Women

37:30 Reclaiming Self-Care and Priorities

43:28 The Role of Hormone Testing

48:38 Beyond Hormone Replacement Therapy

About our speaker

Andrea Donsky turned her own rough perimenopause into her life's work. A Registered Holistic Nutritionist with 26 years in health and wellness, she co-founded Naturally Savvy Media in 2007 and later Morphus, a menopause-focused nutrition and supplement company. Known to her 350,000+ TikTok followers as "the Menopause Researcher," Andrea has surveyed more than 20,000 women and published findings in the journal Menopause documenting 103 distinct symptoms of the transition. She hosts the podcast Menopause Reimagined and is the author of the bestselling Nourishing Menopause (Simon & Schuster, 2026). 

Show Notes

Check out Nourishing Menopause 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.

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