Pumpkin Spice & Hormone Balance: Fall Foods That Help (and Hurt)

As soon as the air turns crisp, pumpkin spice season arrives in full force. Coffee shops, grocery aisles, and even candles scream fall comfort—and let’s be honest, a pumpkin spice latte feels like the coziest way to start the season.

But here’s the truth: many of those seasonal favorites can actually make your perimenopause or menopause symptoms worse. The sugar, caffeine, and processed ingredients hiding in fall treats can send hormones on a rollercoaster ride, leaving you with mood swings, hot flashes, and a massive energy crash.

The good news? You can still enjoy all the flavors of autumn while supporting your hormones. It’s about choosing foods that work with your body instead of against it.

🍩 The Hidden Hormone Hazards of Fall Favorites

• Pumpkin Spice Lattes (PSLs) – That cozy cup can pack 50+ grams of sugar. Sugar spikes insulin, raises cortisol, and contributes to estrogen dominance—three things that make perimenopausal symptoms worse.

• Halloween Candy – Quick hits of processed sugar keep your blood sugar on a constant rollercoaster, which often shows up as irritability, brain fog, and belly fat.

• Red Wine Nights – Cooler evenings and added stress from busier fall schedules often mean more wine nights, but alcohol not only disrupts sleep, it also adds stress to the liver, making it harder to metabolize estrogen effectively.

🎃 Fall Superfoods (and Drinks) That Support Hormones

Luckily, fall is full of delicious seasonal foods that nourish your body and help bring hormones into balance:

• Pumpkin seeds – Rich in zinc and magnesium, they support progesterone production and better sleep.

• Beets & root vegetables – Support liver detox, provide steady energy, and help with healthy blood flow.

• Cruciferous veggies (Brussels sprouts, cabbage, broccoli) – Contain compounds that help the body metabolize estrogen more effectively, reducing estrogen dominance symptoms.

• Apples & pears – Loaded with fiber and polyphenols, they keep blood sugar steady and support gut health (which directly affects hormone balance).

• Squash & sweet potatoes – Provide complex carbs that give you comfort and energy without the blood sugar spike.

• Cozy herbal teas and infusions—Herbal teas and infusions (such as warm apple cinnamon drinks) work to balance stress, support sleep, and balance blood sugar.

🍵 Easy Hormone-Healthy Fall Swaps

You don’t have to give up fall flavors—just tweak how you enjoy them:

• Instead of a sugary PSL → Try a pumpkin spice smoothie with almond milk, vanilla protein powder, real pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

• Instead of Halloween candy → Roast sweet potato wedges with cinnamon for a naturally sweet, hormone-friendly treat or switch to dark chocolate (at least 65% dark) for a healthier chocolate fix.

• Instead of sugary coffee drinks → Sip an herbal chai tea latte with unsweetened almond or oat milk or just add sprinkled pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon to your coffee (bonus: cinnamon provides an extra metabolism boost.)

• Instead of alcohol drinks→ Sip sparkling apple cinnamon mocktails or homemade hot cocoa (rich in magnesium) made with unsweetened almond and topped with your favorite fall spice.

💛 The Takeaway

This autumn don’t let sugar and stress hijack your hormones. With a few simple swaps, you can still savor all the cozy autumn flavors and feel energized, balanced, and in control of your body.

It’s ok to celebrate the change in season with a pumpkin spice treat (or two!) but don’t make it your daily or weekly habit. (Full disclosure, I recently treated myself to 1 or 2 pumpkin chai lattes before reining myself in.)

If you’re ready for more practical, real-life strategies to ease perimenopause and thrive in midlife, I’d love to have you in my Hormones & Perimenopause Workshop Series, beginning Wednesday 3 September.

Together, we’ll dig deeper into food, movement, stress, and sleep so you can move through this season (and beyond) feeling your absolute best.

👉 Join the workshop here »