Night sweats that leave your sheets drenched. Hot flashes that make you feel like you’re standing in the middle of a desert. Brain fog that makes it hard to find the word on the tip of your tongue. Menopause is no walk in the park.
The hormonal shifts of midlife can bring on a wide range of symptoms — including dry skin, hair thinning and even oral health issues. While managing menopause should always include guidance from your doctor, there are also companies offering products to help ease the transition. Many now provide subscription boxes filled with items, including hydrating skin care and mood-boosting treats, tailored for women dealing with menopause-related challenges.
Below, we’ve rounded up some of the various menopause subscription boxes on the market. But, first, read a bit more about menopause and what it is.
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What is menopause?
A woman is considered menopausal once it’s been 12 consecutive months since her last period, says Dr. Cristina Del Toro Badessa, a board-certified physician specializing in personalized and integrative medicine. She’s also the director at Artisan Beaute, a medical spa in Atlanta.
However, many people use the term “menopause” to refer to the time leading up to that — technically called perimenopause — when hormone levels begin to decline and symptoms like hot flashes, mood swings and irregular periods begin. Experts note that this stage can also bring night sweats, weight gain and brain fog.
How we picked the best menopause subscription boxes
To identify the best menopause subscription boxes, I focused on those that include products designed to help alleviate symptoms of perimenopause. According to our experts, these are the areas that subscription boxes may be most helpful for women at this stage of life.
- Beauty: Falling estrogen and progesterone levels can impact skin health, leaving it dry, thinning or more photosensitive, says Dr. Melanie Palm, board-certified dermatologist at Art of Skin in San Diego, California. Your hair is also affected by these changes, with many women noticing thinning or dry hair. With this in mind, we focused on beauty boxes that offer up restorative skin and hair care products.
- Self-care: Life changes can be tough on your emotions, and so can fluctuating hormones. Taking time to focus on yourself and your emotional well-being can be beneficial, so we also prioritized self-care subscription boxes.
- Food: Studies show that weight gain is common during menopause and that one of the best ways to combat that is to make sure you’re getting enough protein. So, we sought out meal subscription boxes that are customizable based on dietary preferences and needs, including high-protein diets.
The best menopause subscription boxes
With the above categories in mind, I focused on subscription boxes that included products designed to help alleviate symptoms of perimenopause and would appeal to women over the age of 40.
Subscribe to this box and each month you’ll get a happiness activity, along with up to eight full-size self-care or wellness products — think sheet masks, tea, candles and more — worth up to $200. Each month, the box has a self-care theme that all the products somehow relate to. Recent themes include slumber, nourish and cozy. A subscription costs $37.99 per month if you pay for a full year upfront, or you can opt for a month-to-month plan for $45 per month.
This subscription box focuses on self-care items like lotions, bath salts, chocolate and more. The box comes with six full-sized products and costs $125 per month. You can cancel at any time before your next box is shipped, or you have the option to put your subscription on pause if you will be out of town or need to take a break for any other reason. Luxe & Bloom also sell one-off boxes, if that is more appealing to you.
Since menopause can do a doozy on your skin and hair, you may find yourself needing to adjust your go-to products to address these changes. BeautyFix by Dermstore is a beauty subscription box that sends you five full or deluxe-sized beauty products per month that collectively have a $100 or more value. The products are from premium brands like Briogeo, La Roche Posay and Peter Thomas Roth. Subscriptions range from $22 to $25 per month depending on how many months you are willing to commit to.
One of our favorite pre-made food delivery services, BistroMD lets you choose from over 150 chef-prepared meals, all of which are based on recipes overseen by a dietician. The single-portion meals can be filtered based on your dietary needs — including gluten-free, heart healthy, keto and even menopause-friendly. Meals start at $7 for the 8-day meal plan or $8 for the 5-day plan and there are also healthy snacks available for an additional cost.
Prefer to do your own cooking? Make life easier with a meal kit subscription. HelloFresh made our list of the best meal delivery subscriptions thanks to its good mix of recipes in its weekly rotating menu. You can customize your diet by choosing from six preferences — like quick and easy, pescatarian, family-friendly, fit and wholesome and more. Meal kits start at $10 per serving (plus a $10 delivery fee) and you can choose between kits that serve two or four people.
Meet our experts
At NBC Select, we work with experts with specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
- Dr. Cristina Del Toro Badessa is a board-certified physician specializing in personalized and integrative medicine and is the director at Artisan Beaute, a medical spa in Atlanta.
- Dr. Melanie Palm is a board-certified dermatologist at Art of Skin in San Diego, California
Why trust NBC Select?
Bethany Heitman is a contributor at NBC Select and a journalist who regularly covers topics like beauty, home and lifestyle.
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