Panel Discussion: Defy Menopause with Your Microbiome: Gut Health as Your Secret Weapon

Explore how menopause-driven microbiome changes impact gut, vaginal, and urinary health—and discover targeted strategies to restore balance and empower women to defy menopause.

Cost: 199 - entire conference access
Speaker: Tracy Verrico, DO, FACOOG, MS

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ABOUT THIS LECTURE

Menopause is more than hot flashes and hormone shifts—it’s a whole-body transformation, deeply influenced by the body’s microbial ecosystems. This panel will explore the critical roles of the gut, vaginal, and urinary microbiomes in the health and well-being of women navigating menopause and beyond.

Emerging research reveals that hormone-induced dysbiosis during menopause contributes to a range of physical changes—from genitourinary syndrome and urinary incontinence to gut inflammation, brain fog, and metabolic shifts. We’ll dive into how microbial imbalances can affect everything from estrogen metabolism to bladder pain and weight gain—and how restoring microbial balance can be a powerful tool in the menopausal care toolbox.

Join us to uncover how targeted lifestyle, dietary, and therapeutic strategies can optimize microbiome health and help women truly defy menopause—from the inside out.

Target Audience:
This session is intended for OB/GYNs, primary care physicians, urologists, nurse practitioners, functional and integrative medicine providers, pelvic floor therapists, dietitians, and wellness professionals who want to understand the multidimensional impact of menopause on the microbiome—and how to apply this knowledge in practice to improve quality of life for midlife and postmenopausal women.

Learning Objectives:
By attending this session, participants will be able to:

Describe the physiologic changes in the gut, vaginal, and urinary microbiomes that occur during menopause.
Understand how estrogen decline alters microbial composition and function—impacting vaginal pH, genitourinary syndrome, and urinary health.
Recognize the role of the gut microbiome in estrogen metabolism, immune function, and the development of menopausal symptoms such as bloating, fatigue, and weight gain.
Identify signs of microbiome-related dysbiosis in perimenopausal and postmenopausal patients.
Implement evidence-based strategies—including diet, pre/probiotics, hormone therapy, and lifestyle interventions—to restore microbial balance and support overall well-being in menopausal women.

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The Speaker

Panel Discussion: Defy Menopause with Your Microbiome: Gut Health as Your Secret Weapon

Tracy Verrico, FACOOG, DO, MS (moderator): board-certified OB-GYN, hormonal health expert, wealth educator, and speaker. Empowers women to live their healthiest and wealthiest life.

Irina L. Weil, MD, ABOIM is a Double-Board Certified Family and Integrative Medicine Physician who practices Functional & Integrative Medicine. Dr. Weil is dedicated to uncovering the root causes of patients' chronic conditions. Through comprehensive, patient-centered care, Dr. Weil integrates lifestyle medicine, nutritional supplements, herbal medicine and pharmaceuticals when necessary to create a personalized treatment plan for each patient. You can learn more about Dr. Weil and her medical practice at her website: https://innerbalancemedicine.org/

Jessica Cording, MS, RD, CDN, IFNCP is a registered dietitian, health coach, and author who helps people build sustainable healthy habits by connecting nutrition, lifestyle, and mental health, with a special focus on women's health. She is the author of The Little Book of Game-Changers and The Farewell Tour and hosts the Drama-Free Healthy Living podcast. Jessica also creates wellness content and speaks to organizations about making healthy eating and lifestyle approachable.

Niva Herzig, MS, PT is a physical therapist specializing in pelvic health for all genders including pelvic pain, sexual health, bladder and bowel incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, prenatal and postpartum, etc. Common diagnoses seen include Vulvovaginal disorders (Vulvodynia/Vestibulodynia), Dyspareunia, Endometriosis, Vaginismus, Interstitial Cystitis, Prostatitis (nonbacterial/CPP), Cystocele/Rectocele, etc. Niva received a BS from George Washington University in 1996 and a MSPT from Thomas Jefferson University in 2003. She has completed a Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner Certification from Herman and Wallce, Women’s Health Coaching Certification with Integrative Women’s Health Institute, Biofeedback Certification- Pelvic Muscle Dysfunction (BCIA-PMDB) and is and AASECT certified Sexuality Counselor. Niva, originally from Israel, grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia. She currently lives in Northern New Jersey with her 2 kids and dog. She is fluent in Hebrew and English. Niva has been active with community education on pelvic health topics. She has served as faculty for the Endometriosis Summit. Niva has written several articles related to pregnancy and also to pelvic floor muscle dysfunction, has been an assistant in several pelvic floor muscle dysfunction and pregnancy courses. Niva has attended abundant courses and conferences on pelvic floor muscle dysfunction and is always eager to continue her education. She is a proud member of the Section on Women’s Health of the American Physical Therapy Association, as well as other associations. She holds a volunteer position with APTANJ as their Pelvic Health SIG (special interest group) coordinator. In November 2007, she proudly opened the doors to Core Dynamics Physical Therapy; A Pelvic Floor Clinic. In her free time, she loves to exercise including weight training and run as well as motivate others to do the same. She enjoys cooking and playing tennis, hiking, reading and watching movies.

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