My skin used to make me insecure. I tried antibiotics and obscene amounts of Cover Girl foundation in high-school. I took Accutane in college (now the subject of a class-action lawsuit!). In my early 20s, when my acne returned post-Accutane, I turned to random topical chemicals.
Once l addressed the root causes of my skin issues with a right-for-me-diet (i.e. balancing my blood sugar and gut), my skin cleared up for good. Managing our skin at the root of the issue still isn’t mainstream. Which is why I was enthused to join my colleague Jennifer Fugo, MS, CNS on her podcast, Skin Interrupt, which teaches root-cause resolution of skin issues.
In this episode, I share how you can navigate the emotional patterns and shame response that comes from skin issues (that can be applied to our weight too).
Nutrition: An Unsettling Science. Natural health solutions like nutrition are widely underfunded compared to pharma drugs—and the half-hearted research they receive is less than precise. For instance, nutrition study participants do not accurately record their data and the research is widely based on the faulty assumption that there’s one diet for everyone. Israeli researchers found that the same foods elevated different people’s blood-sugar levels—which control appetite, cravings, and hormones—at different rates. In other words, “good” and “bad” foods are unique to the individual. Mounting gut microbiome research adds to this theory, finding that different foods add different weights to different people. Realize that it’s a lack of serious research based on incorrect assumptions, not you, that makes nutrition overwhelming. And that observing and understanding how foods affect your moods, energy, and cravings is your own reliable, personal nutrition research.
Bye, Bye BMI? The body mass index (BMI) was developed by a mathematician, not a physician. And in the 200 years since its inception, we’ve only learned more reasons why it is an inconsequential metric for health. A recent study helps to further unhook us from BMI and health with evidence finding waist size, or where our weight accumulates, is a better indicator of health than BMI. The women in the study who had a normal BMI yet high waist size primarily died from cardiovascular disease and obesity-related cancer.
Natural Pain Remedies. With 1 and 5 Americans experiencing pain that interferes with daily life, addressing pain’s root causes can offer a better solution than over-the-counter medication. For example, getting enough sleep can decrease pain as inadequate sleep leads brain activity to ramp up in pain-sensing regions. Lowering sugar intake can reduce the symptoms of auto-immune disease and related pain with sugar activating inflammatory immune cells. And the same holds for emotional pain. When we add fat to our bodies (with fat being different than muscle), the real and perceived social stigma increases depression rates as does the blood sugar impact that generally results from the processed foods and sugar that often play a role in weight gain. Understanding and owning our own role in how our weight holds us back can go a long way in reversing this root cause of depression.
Pumpkin-everything is already starting. #toosoon. Don’t rush ahead, now is the time to savor the fresh apples and pears of late summer.
This summer slaw recipe, nicknamed “The Mover” is a delicious and detoxifying transition from summer to fall. Slightly sweet with lot of veggies, it’s a client favorite.
You can’t succeed at nutrition or life with rigid consistency
People often fall off track with their food when they assume consistency means eating and exercising the same way, all the time. Consistency requires adjusting based on where we are in our own healing process, the seasons, real-life interruptions, and emerging dreams.
In this Insatiable episode, 2 time NY Times Best Selling author of Practical Paleo and the 21-day Sugar Detox, Diane Sanfilippo shares how changing it up is her key to consistently achieving her health and life goals.
Learn that boredom with the same food can be a good thing —and an invitation to change up your food and life.
Read the transcript
Don’t forget Insatiable returns on September 18 for Season 9: Fiery Fertility!
Know your cycle to prevent cravings, consistently
This month, we’re biohacking our period, hormones and cravings, which all have root issues in blood-sugar control. We’re exploring easy food changes to make based on if you’re having cravings, hunger, or energy issues after meals (pro-tip: these symptoms are also a key to discovering if you’re missing certain nutrients).
Be well,
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