Call it part of the midlife crisis. Once we hit middle age, it seems like a spare tire settles around our mid-section, pants with a defined waist no longer fit and flabby arms ban sleeveless clothes from our wardrobe. Are we doomed to gain weight as we age, or is there something we can do about it?

According to the North American Menopause Society, most women change from a pear shape (larger thighs and smaller waist) to an apple shape (larger tummy) as we go into menopause. Part of this is due to decreased levels of estrogen, but simply taking hormones doesn't help lose the extra weight.

Typical menopause weight gain stacks up to 12 to 15 pounds, a source of constant complaint along with the night sweats and hot flashes. In addition, our metabolic rate ‑- the calories our body burns just to exist ‑- decreases by five percent per decade as we go into midlife. That means even if we eat the same amount of calories we always did, we'll still gain weight. Who said life was fair?

Estrogen, metabolism ‑- can we blame anything else? Almost 10 percent of women develop hypothyroidism. Hypo means lower or less ‑- and hypothyroidism means your thyroid is producing less of the hormones that keep your metabolism humming. Hypothyroidism is another reason behind decreased metabolic rate, although in this instance taking thyroid medication truly does help and is definitely recommended.