Enhancing Fertility with Nutrition

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Whole Food Based // Nutrient Dense // Anti-Inflammatory // Antioxidant Rich // Hormone Regulating // Blood Sugar Stabilizing

When it comes to fertility, pre-conception preparation and regulating your hormones, what you eat is absolutely the most important factor to prioritize.  A majority of fertility challenges can be overcome both safely and naturally.  Nutrition is the foundation of a healthy pregnancy.  Getting the proper nutrients needed, keeping your blood sugar stable, and reducing your toxic load can all be managed with proper nutrition.  It is also important to remember that ultimate goal is not just becoming pregnant, but having having a healthy baby and healthy mama as well.  Using food and specific nutrients before becoming pregnant will reduce the risk of birth defects and lead the way for a healthy pregnancy.  I always encourage both partners to get on board with this fertility nutrition plan.  It takes two to tango!

Fertility nutrition includes nutrient dense foods that are required for hormone production and communication, follicle growth, sperm health, healthy endometrial lining, fetal development, and much more.  It lays the foundation and provides the building blocks to provide life to a healthy child. Read more

Essential Nutrients for Thyroid Health

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For better or worse, the food we put into our bodies can be our greatest friend or our worst enemy.  Food has the ability to completely strengthen your physiology, enhance your vitality, raise your mental and emotional capacity, and ultimately upgrade your whole being. Underestimating the power of food has, in my opinion, been one of the greatest flaws in conventional medicine.  With Thyroid conditions on the rise, over 21 million prescriptions of thyroid medication is now written yearly, making Synthroid our country’s most prescribed drug.  It is not uncommon to be prescribed thyroid medication based on symptoms alone or just one lab marker and never once have a discussion about how to meet the nutritional needs of this complex endocrine gland.

While there are several variables that need to be addressed when evaluating thyroid conditions (environmental toxic exposure, chronic infections, unmanaged stress, gut health, etc.), the overall nutrient status of the patient is often overlooked.  It is important for all thyroid patients to emphasize key nutrients that might be lacking in their diet in order for their thyroid to have the building blocks it needs to function properly.  Now when it comes to the thyroid, there is no on-size-fits-all treatment.   But regardless of the severity or the side of the spectrum you fall on (hypo-hyper), everyone can benefit from building a strong nutritional foundation to keep your endocrine system stable.  Read more

Anti-Inflammatory Spicy Summer Smoothie

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          Inflammation is a natural process that occurs in your body as a response to damaged cells, invading pathogens, irritating chemicals, and other negative factors. It is a normal part of your immune system’s reaction to these stimuli. However, when inflammation occurs chronically, that is for long periods of time, it can do significant damage to your body.

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Immune Boosting Chicken Soup

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Winter is officially here!  Using food as medicine, what better way to boost your immune system this season than with a delicious nourishing soup!  At the fist sign of a cold (or if your family or co-workers has one) whip up the immune boosting soup before reaching for the cold medicine.  Soup made from whole chickens is rich in carnosine, which has been shown to inhibit damage from viruses in the body [1].  Both astragalus and shiitake mushrooms stimulate natural killer cells, whose job is to directly attack viruses and harmful bacteria. The ginger and chili flakes give the soup some heat to stimulate the sinuses to drain. Ginger is also a broad-spectrum antimicrobial and is an amazing anti-inflammatory herb.  Beyond this, doesn’t it just feel good to sip on a warm, brothy soup in the colder weather?

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Probiotics vs. Prebiotics

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A diverse gut microbiome is essential for all aspects of health including digestion, immune modulation, metabolic activity, and gene expression.  Thanks to the vast amount of research done by foundations such as the Human Microbiome Project, a deeper understanding of the symbiotic relationship between human health and the microbial world has been gained.  Additionally, new insights and ground has been broken into progressive functional therapies and treatments for conditions not limited to digestion alone. Read more

Dietary Guidelines For Optimal Health

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I have never been an advocate of “diets”.  The word itself can breed anxiety in many people and has the connotation of being difficult and unsustainable.  There is no single “diet” that is perfect for everyone.  Unique genetic makeups, metabolic individuality, and varying conditions and allergies are always considered when nutrition planning for patients.  Read more

Fish Oils: Omegas Explained

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Okay. I am sure by now you have heard that Fish Oils are good for you.  The benefits of fish oils have become fairly common knowledge, enormous amounts of research and medical studies have been conducted to support the claims, and numerous popular fitness programs such as Crossfit are huge advocates of the supplement.  So, with all the hype, why doesn’t everyone supplement with Fish Oils daily?  Well, just because you are told something is good for you doesn’t necessarily mean you will instantly begin implementing it into your life.  You may try it for a week or so, and then forget all about it.  My theory is that in order to truly incorporate a lifestyle change you need to be educated on why you are doing so.  If you understand what fish oils are, what they do, and why you need them, then daily intake becomes a logical habitual choice.  So here we go…Fish Oils 101! Read more

Preparing For A Successful Detox!

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The idea of “detoxing” can come across as quite a daunting task.  The first thing that comes to most people’s minds is starvation.  “How can I possibly go without eating for days on end?!”  The truth is, an effective liver cleanse does not have to be a compete fast from food, a liquid diet, or drinking mass amounts of lemon water or apple cider vinegar.  Read more

Crazy For Coconuts!

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If you were to travel the world to look for cultures who have a strong grasp on good health and longevity, people who are relatively free from the crippling effects of degenerative disease, I am sure you would be pleasantly surprised while visiting the South Pacific and studying those who have maintained their traditional native diet and steered clear of Western influence. Read more

Fire Cider…Winter Tonic!

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The leaves are changing, the air is cooling, cold and flu season is approaching, and the holiday madness has officially arrived!  As we make the transition from Fall into Winter there is no better time to start home brewing Fire Cider so it will be ready you and your family during the cold winter months.  Fire Cider (also referred to as Cyclone Cider and Dragon Water) has been traditionally used by many herbalists as a winter tonic, immune system booster, cold and flu fighter, and peripheral circulation enhancer.

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