When you reach the age of 40, you’ve reached a pivotal point in your health. 
Although you may feel as active and energetic as ever, your dietary choices can have an increasingly significant effect on your risk of chronic diseases.
Managing your weight, monitoring your cholesterol levels and protecting your heart health and bones take on more importance at this stage in your life.
In the years when you are getting close to menopause, eating a balanced, nutritious diet lays the foundation for a healthier future.
Fortunately, a proper diet and regular exercise will help you look and feel your best.
40+ Diet For Women
These are foods that should be your favorite when you clock 40.
Oats

Oats are rich in beta-glucans, a soluble fibre that can help lower the unwanted form of cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Avenanthramides – antioxidants unique to oats helps protect against atherosclerosis (the build-up of plaque on artery walls), this gives oats an advantage over other grains.
Cherries
Cherries help in combating several conditions common in middle age, including gout and arthritis. They are a rich source of the antioxidant, anthocyanin.
Eating a dozen cherries or drinking a glass of unsweetened juice three or four times a week is ideal.
Eat fresh with yogurt or seeds to ensure absorption of the beneficial vitamins.
Oily Fish
Omega 3 fats in oily fish can lower heart rate and blood pressure, and reduce the risk of irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia).
Omega 3 fats are sensitive to high temperatures, so make sure you cook on a low heat or steam lightly. Eating raw fish such as sashimi will protect the beneficial fats.
Soy
Isoflavones content in soybeans has been linked to lowering cholesterol and increasing bone density in post-menopausal women.
Eat fresh edamame beans or soy beans in cans. Eat it twice or three times a week.
Soy can influence hormone levels, and over-consumption is not recommended for pre-menopausal women without the advice of an endocrinologist.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are very rich in the antioxidant lycopene. They offer a degree of protection against the formation and spread of cancer cells as well as protecting arteries from atherosclerosis.
Lycopene is more easily absorbed by the body when the sources are cooked, so the best way to get the benefits is to cook the tomato.