Author: Ginger Newtrition

Elimination Diet Basics
Unfortunately, intolerances and food sensitivities are common in today’s world. I think this is really obvious when you go to a restaurant. A little over 10 years ago I was a waitress and things were quite different. The menus did not list gluten-free, dairy-free and nut-free options. I would have had no idea what to tell someone if they asked for those things…and they never did! The experience of going to a restaurant today has changed dramatically and in just 10 years!

Many children have sensitivities and intolerances to food as well; this is not just a problem for adults. Actually, it seems to me that the younger my client, the more sesitivities they have! (I have a theory about this but won’t get into it here). We learned this lesson very early on with my daughter. When she was 2 she had an eczema rash that wouldn’t go away for months. Once the lightbulb finally went off and I put her on an elimination diet, we quickly discovered gluten and dairy were the culprits. Within 2 days the rash was gone after removing those foods.

When you ingest food to which you are intolerant, the body releases histamines into the bloodstream, causing inflammation. If the body thinks it is under constant attack, then we start to feel sluggish and may experience other health issues including candida, digestive issues, or blood sugar imbalances.

An elimination diet starts with the premise that everybody is different, and as such, there is no one-size-fits-all diet. What works for you may not work for someone else, and vice versa. One person might thrive on grains, for example while they make another person drag.

Food allergy tests are pricey and are not always reliable, as intolerances shift over time. When my clients test their food sensitivities while their gut is still compromised, their tests often show they are sensitive to EVERYTHING! If we retest after a few months of gut healing it seems to me that at that point we are actually seeing the foods they are sensitive to, instead of a list of the whole grocery store. The most inexpensive and accurate way to determine various foods’ effects on you is to do an elimination diet, in which you eliminate common allergens and add them back in one by one to determine your reaction.

You can hear more about Chris Kresser’s opinion on the accuracy of food intolerance tests here.

We all have one or many foods that may be wreaking havoc on our system, but if we’re eating several of the main culprits (wheat, eggs, dairy, corn, soy, sugar, and caffeine), it’s hard to tell exactly what’s triggering the reaction. Sometimes symptoms of intolerance manifest themselves immediately upon eating food, but other times there is a delayed reaction, further complicating matters.

Using a food diary will allow you to systematically and objectively track your physical and emotional reactions to each meal and determine exactly which foods suit you or not. Ironically, it’s often the foods we crave the most that are harming us.

You will be amazed how great you feel when you eliminate your personal culprits from your diet. And the great news is you can use the same technique of the elimination diet if you ever feel tired or have health issues in the future.

Here are the basics. I suggest you remove the list below:
- Remove the foods that people are most commonly sensitive to as well as foods that are hard on digestion. Ideally you will remove these foods for 3 weeks (this would be ideal if you are dealing with multiple health complaints, autoimmune conditions or severe gut dysfunction) but during the seasonal detoxes that I offer we are only strictly removing the whole list for 1 week. Most people can tell when a foods does not agree with them after eating so cleanly for only 1 week. I also suggest that you remove additives, artificial ingredients, sugar and caffeine. By removing these items you will have a very clean slate to reintroduce foods and see how you feel.
Foods to remove
- Coffee
- Sweeteners (white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, agave or cane juice
- Eggs
- Sugar alcohols (often found in chewing gum, like xylitol)
- Soy milk
- Yeast
- Nuts
- Alcohol
- Dairy products
- Corn
- Cheese
- Gluten
- Grains (only low-glycemic grains, soaked, allowed)
- Soy (except miso)
- Processed foods
- Soft drinks
- Nitrates
- Artificial sweeteners
- Potatoes (except for sweet potatoes or yams)
- Beans (except for lentils, mung, and adzuki)
- Reintroduce slowly and systematically. The most common food sensitivities are to gluten, dairy, soy, corn and eggs. These are good foods to start with and to watch carefully for reactions (if any of these foods are already removed from your diet than there is no need to add them back in).
- Every 2-4 days, add back in foods that are common allergens or hard to digest, giving you the opportunity to see how your body reacts after you have cleansed for at least 7 days.
- Be conscious of how you feel emotionally and physically when you consume food you have not eaten for at least 7 days and take the time to write this down. A journal is really important for this process!
Watch out for any of these signs when adding food back into your diet. These signs can signify a food intolerance:
- White coating on the tongue
- Acid reflux or heartburn
- Bad breath
- Constipation
- Foul-smelling stool
- Headaches or migraines
- Joint pain
- Sinus issues
- Clogged ears
- Rashes or hives
- Fatigue
- Poor sleep
- Water retention
- Gas and bloating
- Dry eyes
- Weight gain or weight loss
- Racing heart
- Bags under the eyes
- Food cravings, sugar or salt
- Canker sores or a sore tongue
- Difficulty breathing or cough
- Poor concentration
- Swelling of hands/feet
This is your opportunity to see what fuels your unique body. I always suggest that you first test the food you most suspect is giving you a problem, often the foods that we can’t live without! Note how your body feels in your food diary during this process.

By eliminating the foods from your diet that you are sensitive to, you may notice great improvements in your health without expensive tests! And this process can be used to check back in anytime in the future if you are not feeling your best. You can be a true health detective!!

Is this overwhelming?

If you feel like you wouldn’t know where to start or would have a hard time sticking to these changes, you can join one of our group seasonal online detoxes!!! The group follows a basic elimination diet over 18 days and you will be provided with recipes, what to eat, what to add back in, daily detox tools , daily emails and an amazing Facebook group for support.

Join us!
September 15, 2015
How to Dry Skin Brush
This is one of the first and easiest additions that I have my clients and detoxers add to their daily routine. This also turns out to be one of their favorites!

What is the largest organ in the human body and releases over a third of toxins in our body? That’s right! It is our skin. Dry skin brushing is an effective daily practice to help the body detox and remove these harmful toxins, not to mention it opens and unclogs our pores.

Unlike our blood which gets pumped around the body by your heart, the lymphatic system counts on our movement to stay moving. And guess what? Many of us aren’t moving as much as we used to. Who else is tied to a chair at a desk for the majority of the day? When we dry skin brush, we are massaging and helping our lymphatic system cleanse itself. We pull waste from the body as well as remove any lingering toxins from soap, environmental factors, lotions, deodorant, and other things to help improve skin health.

The best part is that skin brushing should only take about 5 minutes per day, so it is easily fit into a busy lifestyle and has great benefits! I personally was able to completely remove the bumpy skin that lived on my thighs and the back of my arms after a month of consistently dry skin brushing. Some of the benefits include:
- Exfoliation
- Lymphatic system stimulation
- Reduce or eliminate cellulite
- Unclog pores
- Invigorating; you may feel more energized after brushing
Here are ten simple steps and tips for you to follow to help you get started with dry skin brushing:
1. Get a long-handled, non-synthetic bristle brush.
2. Remove your clothes and stand in the bathtub or on a tiled surface. You will want to do this because you are scraping off dead skin, so you don’t want that to get on your carpet or your rugs.
3. All of your brushing motions should be heart-centered, meaning you will want to have all the motions be moving towards your heart.
4. Start at your feet and use long flowing motions, again, towards your heart.
5. You will want to brush several times in the same area, overlapping your strokes as you continue.
6. For sensitive skin areas, you will want to go easy. Your skin in those areas should become less sensitive with time.
7. Once you have your whole body brushed, hop into the tub or shower. I find that the benefits of an Epsom salt bath are heightened after dry brushing.
8. Alternating cold and hot temperatures help bring the blood back to the top of the skin.
9. Continue this practice daily, but for best results, consider dry brushing twice a day; once in the morning and once before bed.
10. Remember to clean your brush at least once per week with soap and water.
Although this seems like a very simple daily detox tools, some detoxers report having detox reactions such as headaches just from dry skin brushing. If you know that your liver and lymphatic system are burdened than start slowly.

Watch this periscope replay if you want more of a visual!

Want to learn more of my favorite tips and have a group for support? Join our next seasonal detox here!!

What is your favorite daily detox tool? Leave us a comment below!!
September 14, 2015
Wellness Beets Podcast- Hormone Health Q&A

Episode 27: Hormonal and Adrenal Health Q&A with Megan Rand

I just love podcasts, so I am always excited when I get to be a part of one!! The Wellness Beets Podcast, which you can find on iTunes or Podbay, is all about an alternative approach to health. Hosts Alex and Brittany answer your wellness questions, dig into nutrient density, and share tips for offbeat holistic living.

This episode is a Q&A about everything hormonally and adrenally related.

If you’re interested in learning more about hormone and adrenal health, make sure you check out our Free Adrenal Health Video Training Series! And if you’re looking for the full group training experience, check out the details of the Healthy Hormones Group Program here.

They asked their tribe for questions before the podcast to know what their top questions were in the topics of hormones and adrenal health, and here are the questions that we cover in the podcast.

Endometriosis:

@tideandhoney: “I have endometriosis and now am 99% sure adrenal fatigue. I’m afraid years of ibuprofen use caused leaky gut. Any ideas for pain relief that doesn’t include NSAIDs? Nothing herbal works. My endo is severe and debilitating on day 1 on my cycle. I eat paleo and avoid all sugar, caffeine, alcohol, and chemicals. I take turmeric but it doesn’t help my pain.”

Also with that question from @evelynbuni: “I second the question from @tideandhoney. But also, what can I do to get better? I’ve done a lot of work with NDs, acupuncture, liver work, etc. and my cycles are not getting better. My lifestyle, diet, etc have all been addressed for years now.”

Links:

Saccharomyces Boulardii

Down There for Women by Katy Bowman

We mention this post on using NSAIDs and minimizing gut damage.

Skin Issues:

@mweyers23: “My skin has been freaking and breaking out especially on my back more and more over the past 2 years. It almost seems hormonally related? Are there tests I could have done to see if everything’s in order or not? I do suspect I have some more mild leaky gut issues. I guess i just don’t understand the hormonal side of things and want to learn more.”

@tideandhoney: “Can we also discuss skin issues with adrenal fatigue? I have a red rash that comes and goes throughout the month of my face and it’s so frustrating! Not acne, just red patches. I never had this previously. I would also like to hear comments about adrenal fatigue and estrogen dominance.”

Supplementing:

@gourmetcavegirl: “My hormones were basically non existent. My doctor have me Hormone Protect and then also prescribed me progesterone for the last half of my cycle. I feel amazing when I take it. My libido is back, I sleep better, my mood is better. How can I keep this feeling at the beginning of the month?”

@healthandbeing: “What’s your take on progesterone to balance low progesterone levels and balance hormones versus trying a nutrition and supplement approach. Also, I have been prescribed 50 mg and am wondering, if I do decide to take this and go this route, is that too small a dose? I have read that if you take a low dose, it can actually have the effect of lowering your levels as your body might start producing less progesterone in response to a low dose. I’m being followed by a great doc and I know you can’t give medical advice but am wondering what your experience has been with these issues and if you can offer any thoughts. I have AF, Hashimotos, low progesterone, leaky gut, and MTHFR.”

Did you enjoy this podcast?

If so, please leave a review for us in iTunes and subscribe to get the latest episodes!

We are super grateful to you for helping us get the word out!

September 9, 2015
Your Brain and Stress; Neurotransmitter Basics

Many people are becoming aware of the term adrenal fatigue and are starting to suspect that this might be something they are dealing with. But this term can be misleading, because more often that not, it is not as simple as supporting the adrenals to have your fatigue, inflammation and hormonal imbalances disappear. The adrenals gland themselves are often working just fine, but the communication channels and feedback loops might have become disrupted. Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that deliver important and vital messages from the brain and the adrenal gland. These tiny messengers help you respond to stressors and if they become imbalanced, all sorts of symptoms will start to pop up because the correct messages are not being sent. Once I started looking at a neurotransmitter panel in conjunction with an adrenal/hormone panel, I saw a big shift for my clients. The combination of their hormone and neurotransmitter results helps to put the puzzle together as to where the breakdown is in the chain.

What happens with our neurotransmitters during stress?

In time of acute stress or when you are in a constant chronic state of low stress (not just mental/emotional stress but also hidden internal stressors such as food sensitivities, bacterial overgrowth or heavy metal toxicity) neurotransmitters can become depleted. Just having a thought or being scared will alert your brain to alter hormone and neurotransmitter production in response. The neurotransmitters are a part of the stress response cascade. Think about how often we are bombarded with negative imagery and high stress situations in our fast-paced lifestyle. By looking at the levels of different neurotransmitters as well as their relationship to each other, such as the ratio between serotonin and dopamine or norepinephrine and epinephrine, we can see how well your body is adapting to stress.

We have both excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters and some play both roles depending on the situation. Since our body likes to remain in balance, we also function optimally when our excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters are balanced. For example, stimulants such as caffeine push dopamine into the synapse and dopamine acts as an excitatory agent, which improves our focus. You know how you have your coffee and then feel pretty productive for a while? Feeling productive is great except there is a price we pay for that focus. Your body must now send in some inhibitory neurotransmitters to reign in the excitatory neurotransmitters. Serotonin and GABA come to the rescue. This is not necessarily a problem, because this is one of the ways that our amazing body stays balanced, but when we abuse ourselves daily by artificially forcing productivity with excess caffeine consumption, we eventually end up depleted in serotonin and GABA. Among many other functions serotonin is important for a stable mood and GABA is nature’s valium-like substance, you can see where we end up without these precious resources. You always have to ask… is this short-term benefit of being able to focus and have energy worth the long-term risk of an instable mood?

Here is an example of the neurotransmitter testing results that the Healthy Hormones Group Program will have access to. These are just clues to get an idea of the bigger picture because your neurotransmitter levels will change throughout the day. Testing and then retesting after a period of time after trying a protocol or therapy will help us to understand how your body is reacting.

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Here is a quick explanation of the neurotransmitters that we will be looking at during the next Healthy Hormones group program:

Serotonin – This is considered the master neurotransmitter and helps to keep balance between the excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters. Adequate levels is necessary for a stable mood.

Dopamine – Key player in reward-seeking type of behavior such as pleasure, satisfaction and focus. Dopamine also influences muscle control and gastrointestinal motility. Really low or high dopamine levels is correlated with memory issues.

Norepinephrine– Important to the fight-or-flight response and also helps to make epinephrine.

Epinephrine– Also known as adrenaline which we all know well. Epinephrine prepares the body for fight-or-flight by increasing your heart rate, blood pressure and respiratory rate so that you can run away or fight off the danger. This will also elevate your ACTH which raises your cortisol

GABA– Nature’s valium-like substance which also helps regulate muscle tone.

Glutamate– Important for memory and learning but can be damaging in excess leading to depression, seizures and damaging nervous tissue. This is often seen high for those with PTSD but you also have to watch that you are not accidentally consuming glutamate from MSG or DSG sources in food.

Histamine – Helps to control sleep-wake cycle, energy production and memory recall. This reading on your lab is a window into inflammation and the higher the number the more mental fogginess, allergy symptoms and irritability you might be experiencing.

If your neurotransmitters are all trending low in conjunction with low cortisol levels, than this is a sign you are in a chronic state of stress and are now in the tired and “burnt-out” phase. At this point you will need a good amount of support to return to a healthy level.

Ready to find out what is going on at a sub-clinical level before symptoms occur? Ready to get to the root of why you can’t seem to kick the anxiety or get your energy back? Come join us for the Healthy Hormones Group Program!!

September 2, 2015
Hormone Helping Coconut Chips
As Alex of Dig Primal and I have been working on the content for our Healthy Hormones Group Program for the last few months, my favorite part of the process is that I get to learn the tips and tricks that she uses too! We all have different tools that we pick up along the way and I think that it is important to have a really varied toolbox for my clients. Each person that I work with is so uniquely different in their bio-individual and genetic makeup that often a suggestion that works amazingly for one person will leave another feeling sick. A supplement that gives me energy though the roof might cause you to fall asleep at your desk. That is all a part of the puzzle!! I love learning lots of different options, recipes and suggestions so that we can find the perfect combination for each person.

Alex shared this recipe with me for Hormone Helping Coconut Chips and I can’t get enough! I love incorporating coconut flakes into my diet for a lot of reasons. For one, they have an amazing composition of healthy fats, protein, and fiber. Not only does this combination of macronutrients help keep you full longer after meals (which also helps prevent unhealthy snacking you weren’t actually intending), but fueling your body with such balanced caloric intake is great for the hormonal system. Additionally, the fatty acids found in coconut products directly play a role in healthy hormone synthesis so their presence in the diet greatly increases the success of all your other hormone-helping interventions; after all, it makes sense that if you don’t have the building blocks to create hormones, no amount of adjunctive therapies are going to help your cause in the long term.

The spices found in this recipe work through a variety of mechanisms to help the endocrine and adrenal system along. Since glucose metabolism is a huge problem in people with hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal dysfunction (which is often simply referred to as “adrenal fatigue” but is actually an incredibly limited way to look at the problem since it encompasses so much more than the adrenals…no wonder people have a hard time treating it on their own!), the cayenne, turmeric, and cinnamon are in here to help with the proper use and balance of sugar in the body.

As an added bonus, cayenne pepper and turmeric are incredibly effective in tempering the inflammatory response in the body due to stress, high glucose levels, and underlying hormonal imbalances (see how they all work off each other??), incorporating these spices into meals regularly can be really helpful.

Ingredients:
- 2 cups coconut flakes
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon ghee (replace with coconut oil if you can’t tolerate dairy products)
- 5 tablespoons raw honey
Steps:
1. Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
2. Place your coconut flakes into a medium-sized mixing bowl.
3. Add in the cayenne pepper, ground turmeric, and ground cinnamon to the coconut flakes and stir well so that all the spices are well distributed (trust me when I say that you do not want a big bite of cayenne pepper down the line).
4. Place the tablespoon of ghee (or coconut oil) into a small bowl and microwave it until the ghee has melted.
5. Add the honey and vanilla extract to your melted ghee and mix them all together.
6. Slowly pour your honey, ghee, and vanilla extract mixture of the spice-dusted coconut flakes. Mix it all together until everything is evenly distributed.
7. Line a baking sheet with wax paper and evenly spread your coconut flake mixture over the entire area. You don’t want big clumps so take a few moments to spread it all out over the entire baking sheet.
8. Bake in the oven for 5-7 minutes.
9. Take out and let cool.
10. I stored mine in a glass tupperware container.
Want to learn more fun and delicious recipes that can also help support your adrenal glands and balance hormone? The Healthy Hormones Group Program is starting Sept 15^th!!!

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August 28, 2015
Why Adrenal Fatigue is not just about the Adrenals
When Hayley of Primal Palate recently posted a picture of her Adrenal Cocktail on Instagram a flurry of requests came to my inbox. What is this drink? Should I try this? What else can I do for adrenal fatigue? The popularity of such a post magnifies how real the struggle and how far reaching. I created this blog post as a guest post on Primal Palate but wanted to share here as well!

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I know the struggle is real from first hand experience. I have been there. When I first tested my adrenal function, I was in was in the worst phase of adrenal dysfunction. My daily cortisol output had tanked to nearly nothing and my sex hormones were depleted as well. I know what it is like to have a 1 year old and feel like you don’t think you can muster up enough energy to brush your teeth!

Let’s talk a little bit about the term adrenal fatigue.

I was taught to use the term adrenal or hormonal dysfunction, since the idea of adrenal fatigue makes it sound like the adrenal glands are actually tired. In most cases the adrenal glands are not tired at all, but they just might not be receiving the correct message. Here is an analogy. The adrenal gland is a teenager sitting on the couch watching TV. The reason that the teenager is sedentary could possibly be because he is fatigued, but more likely than not, that is not the case at all. He just hasn’t received the message “ Hey, get up and get outside it is beautiful out there!”

This is also what happens in our body, we have many complex systems, one of them being the Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis. The hypothalamus (in the brain) is supposed to tell the pituitary to alert the adrenals that it is time to make cortisol (or other stress mediators). It is like they are a bunch of 6 year olds playing telephone and sometimes there is s a breakdown in the chain. The adrenals may not end up getting the message or get the wrong message. You want a hot cross bun? No, I said I want to go for a RUN!

Seems crazy that a game of telephone in the body could be regulating all the crucial tasks of digestion, energy, sex drive and immune function, but it is true. In our high stress world the inputs are coming into the hypothalamus at rapid speed, all while environmental toxics and endocrine disruptors and pumping through the body just to add a few more obstacles. It is not surprising that the signals get crossed.

So what happens when the signals get crossed? Well, a whole slew of symptoms can occur. You can read the list of signs & symptoms here.

Why I was excited to find out that I had severe adrenal dysfunction?

Seeing my functional lab work that showed I was barely producing any cortisol, very little estrogen, progesterone and melatonin was the first time that my results on paper lined up with my symptoms. Up until this point, I had been to multiple doctors complaining of my vague but annoying symptoms. I was tired all the time, lightheaded, constantly sick and just basically miserable.

My first relief upon seeing my lab work was soon followed by more questions. I realized that although I had found an imbalance and yes it was causing these symptoms, I still didn’t know why I had imbalances.

Maybe you suspect adrenal dysfunction, or even better if you have done a salivary cortisol and hormone test and know that you are either producing way too much cortisol (tired and wired) or have ended up in a state of low cortisol (downright exhausted). Or maybe your test showed that you have an inappropriate level (high or low) of hormones such as estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. What’s next?

What to do if you suspect Adrenal Dysfunction
- Check the numbers – I am a girl who likes to see my progress on paper and have the data and numbers to work with. The Biohealth 205 Adrenal/Cortisol panel is going to be a part of the Group Adrenal Program that Alex of Dig Primal and I will be offering in the Fall. This is an opportunity to see your hormone levels and then learn how to correct any imbalances found. Otherwise you can visit a Functional Medicine Doctor, Naturopath or Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner to get a salivary cortisol and hormone panel or another good option is a urine test (DUTCH). Choose a lab that includes cortisol, DHEA, progesterone, estradiol, estriol, testosterone and melatonin.
- Start with the basics – I think we often (myself included) really want to find that one genetic defect that is the root of all of our misery. We look around and see the neighbors chowing down on McDonalds and they seem to feel great. We work hard to stay away from toxins, follow a strict paleo diet and eat 3 cups of greens a day. It just doesn’t seem fair that we still have health problems, so there must be ONE THING that we are missing. Although genetics of course play a role, don’t bother going down that rabbit hole until you have covered all of the basics.
Do you have good Stress Management techniques? Are you getting adequate sleep, ideally going to bed a couple of hours before midnight? Are you hydrated and is your water from a good source (void of the metals, bacteria & fluoride but still has the minerals that your body is craving?) Are you exercising enough or are you over training?
- Don’t stop at the adrenals – yes adaptogenic herbs and licorice root tea might be helpful, but use these tools to get some relief and then you can dig deeper to really correct and restore the imbalance from the root cause. You can read more about the steps I take with my clients in this
Find your food sensitivities – Undiagnosed food allergies or sensitivities can raise cortisol histamine levels in the body, thereby taxing the endocrine system. Be a detective and make sure you are aware of your allergies and intolerances. Join the group detox program if you need help following an elimination program.

Gut dysfunction – Just as Hippocrates said “all disease begins in the gut”. Whether you have traditional digestive symptoms or not, this is still an area of utmost importance to explore on your journey to balanced hormones. Just think about the dysfunction that will occur in the body if you are not able to absorb or assimilate the food that you are eating and therefore cannot turn those building blocks into hormones?

Liver health – Often we need to cleanse the liver in order to get hormones working again. The liver has over 500 jobs, and keeping the hormones happy is one of them.

Thyroid health – This is a great place to start with your physician and another important piece of the puzzle.

Heavy metals – Do you have a mouthful of metal fillings? Heavy metals toxicity is one of the known causes of intestinal permeability (leaky gut) and also puts a burden on the liver.

Parasite, bacteria, fungus – Make sure to look for possible pathogenic infections that may be depleting your nutrients, taxing you liver or raising your cortisol.

So What Can I Do?

I love to use food as medicine as much as possible to help balance hormones. While we make an effort to minimize the stress in our life, we can also help support our body with the best nutrients available.

5 Tips for Healthy Hormones

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- Eat lots of good fat – We need dietary fats in order to make hormones! Make sure each meal has a healthy fat such as avocado, fish, nuts, coconut oil, avocado oil, olive oil, grass-fed butter (if you tolerate dairy), ghee (clarified butter), duck fat and tallow for ex.
- Add some salt; Pink Himalayan Sea Salt – I put this on everything. Himalayan pink salt has 84 essential minerals that the adrenals need to function properly (very different from iodized table salt which can be harmful). You can even try sprinkling some in your water to see if it tastes better!
- Don’t forget your Vitamin C – Healthy adrenal function requires vitamin C. Tissues in the body use more vitamin C during times of stress. Vitamin C is found naturally in a lot of foods such as citrus fruits, leafy greens, tomatoes, sprouts, kiwi, papaya, red pepper, and cauliflower. One teaspoon of Camu Camu powder added to a smoothie has the same amount of vitamin C as eating 6 oranges, so this is a good option for those of us who really need a boost!
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- Daily Bone broth – You knew this on was coming right? Bone broth made from organic raw chicken or beef bones (all of the bones!) that is cooked over a 24-hour period helps with gut repair, has highly absorbable forms of calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and sulfur and is an easily digestible protein. I add a Tbsp. of coconut oil, Tbsp. of collagen and pink salt to my mug and this becomes the perfect food for someone with adrenal dysfunction to maximize the nutrients with minimum effort.
- Be aware of magnesium deficiency – Magnesium deficiency is incredibly common, some studies estimate 75% of Americans are deficient. Magnesium is important for stable energy, so this small change alone can have a big impact on those who are deficient. One way to increase your magnesium intake is by adding 2-4 ounces of Magnesium oil or 1 cup Epsom salts to a bath and soak before bed. The same thing can be accomplished with a foot bath while you read a book or watch TV. It is a great way to help your body relax while you are also absorbing your way to feeling better!
- Adrenal Cocktail – This Orange Juice creamsicle offers a boost in energy and helps regulate blood sugar. This is great for those of you who are feeling pretty depleted and have low cortisol levels.
The most important change that I see clients make in order to restore hormonal balance is a mindset change. When you discover that your fast-paced lifestyle is depleting your vital reserve it is time to reconsider your priorities. What activities or people are recharging you and which of those are stealing all of your energy? Can anything be re-arranged in your schedule or life to minimize the things that are depleting you?

I hope this helps!! I would love any feedback on what else has worked for you.

NEXT GROUP PROGRAM STARTING SEPTEMBER !

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Want to look at your hormone and neurotransmitter labs and have a group for support? Alex of Dig Primal and I are going to be offering a 3 month group program starting September 15th. You will have receive a customized protocol but all of the coaching will be done in group. Put your name on the Adrenal Fatigue Group Program update list for more information.
August 17, 2015
Lemon Water Elixir

Good morning! Do you have any morning routines that you never miss?

Well, for me it’s my morning lemon water. Although I don’t always drink it in the same form, I almost always have one. Sometimes it hot, sometimes it room temperature and sometimes it is a Lemon Water Elixir with apple cider vinegar. I like to rotate the apple cider vinegar on and off, a couple weeks or a month on and then I take a break for a month. I have just found that is what personally works best for me and if I continue to drink it every single day I get really sick of it.

Why is this a good way to start your day?

The elixir stimulates and wakes up your digestion, releases toxins from the liver, jumpstarts your digestive enzymes, and is loaded with vitamin C. What else could you ask for first thing in the morning? This is a staple for the seasonal detoxes that I offer and sometime this change alone can provide drastic results.

Lemon Water Elixir

1 cup room temperature water

Juice from 1 lemon

1 teaspoon Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon honey (optional)

1/4 in of fresh ginger root os 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (I use Primal Palate spices because the quality and taste are amazing!)

If you feel nauseous or experience tightness in the chest after drinking the morning lemon elixir, please omit the Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar. This reaction can occur from the body’s releasing of bacteria and unwanted toxin. Continue to drink the lemon elixir, omitting the Bragg’s, for at least three days, and then try to re-introduce or use only ½ teaspoon of the apple cider vinegar. If the reactions continue upon reintroduction, continue to only drink the lemon water. I have had this same reaction happen for clients just by adding lemon to their morning water so you might find that you need to start with a 1/4 lemon and work up if your liver is really struggling.

Note: I have heard some dentists say that having apple cider vinegar daily can be damaging to the enamel on your teeth. If you are going to be consistently consuming this beverage you might want to consider drinking this through a straw. At our house we buy either glass or stainless steel reusable straws because who want to be sucking on cheap plastic? (Not to mention filling the landfills!)

Cheers to a healthy liver!

July 29, 2015
Adrenal Fatigue Friendly Gummies
There are many things that I do to maintain my adrenal health (or more specifically, my hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal health) on a regular basis. After struggling with adrenal dysfunction for years it is an aspect of my health that I stay consistently committed to. Working for myself and owning my own business is incredibly rewarding but can also be stressful and draining. Taking note of how many stressors are present in my life can help me realize when I need to ramp up my adrenal health support.

I keep many foods on hand to maintain my adrenal health such as bone broth, various hormone-health-promoting teas, and several notable juices. But, as with everything that we do for our health, staying with these practices can take some time and effort, and it can be really easy to start making excuses for why you can’t do them. “It’s too hot in the summer for bone broth or hot tea.” “I have way too much on my plate to think about adding beneficial juices to my water every day.” (Sound familiar? I’ve totally been there!)

In an attempt to simplify life, this recipe–which incorporates a wide spectrum of adrenal fatigue friendly ingredients–was born. Helping out your adrenals (and your hormone health overall) by eating some gummies after dinner? That’s something I can stick to!

The Players

So what makes the gummy ingredients so good for adrenal and hormone health? As it turns out, this crew helps out our endocrine systems from many different angles.

Raspberry leaf tea has long been used for addressing hormonal imbalances (we’re talking centuries!) thanks to its incredibly high mineral content that can aid in appropriate hormone synthesis. Likewise, lavender tea has been used throughout the world for its stress-reducing properties, which therefore also aids in adrenal fatigue. But it wasn’t until recently that several studies came out suggesting that lavender works by helping to decrease cortisol production when it rises at inappropriate times.

Both pomegranate juice and fresh squeezed lime juice are loaded with Vitamin C, which is crucial for sex hormone balancing. Most notably, vitamin C has been researched as an aid in increasing progesterone levels. Progesterone levels usually plummet the most with adrenal dysfunction. Since low sex hormone productions negatively impacts feedback loops to the hypothalamus and the pituitary, and therefore the adrenals, addressing these imbalances is equally important when you’re struggling with adrenal dysfunction.

Additionally, pomegranate juice helps increase glutathione levels in the body, a very important antioxidant, which can help lower inflammation and help support good liver function. While these processes again can seem unrelated to adrenal fatigue, the proper functioning of these bodily functions is integral to attaining and maintaining hormonal balance. In fact, detoxing is so incredibly important to hormone health, that I offer seasonal group detoxes and suggest that anyone trying to balance hormones considers this crucial step first.

As you can see, adrenal fatigue can be incredibly nuanced and requires the interplay of a lot of moving parts to truly overcome and improve. That’s why I strongly recommend that people with adrenal and hormonal problems get guidance from health care providers who can order the appropriate labs and consequently come up with a holistic plan to address all the different aspects of health.

Check out this easy recipe for a simple way to start supporting your hormonal balance.

Adrenal Fatigue Friendly Gummies

Ingredients:
- ½ tablespoon raspberry leaf tea
- ½ tablespoon lavender tea
- 1 cup water, boiled
- ½ cup pomegranate juice, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon gelatin
- 1 tablespoon raw honey
- fresh squeezed juice from 1 small lime
Steps:
1. First, you’re going to be making a tea blend out of your raspberry leaf tea and lavender tea. Start by placing the loose leaf teas into a tea strainer (or cheesecloth, if that’s what you have) and then steeping it in your cup of a hot water for about 5 minutes. (If you just have tea bags, I recommend steeping 2 of each kind of tea in your cup of hot water)
2. While your raspberry leaf and lavender tea brews, place the tablespoon of gelatin into a small pyrex mixing bowl.
3. Add the ½ cup of pomegranate juice to your gelatin and stir well until everything is combined.
4. Once your teas have brewed, add the hot tea into your pomegranate juice and gelatin mixture. Stir well again.
5. Let everything cool for about 5 minutes. (This is so that the boiling hot water doesn’t degrade the vitamin C in the lime and the enzymes from the raw honey)
6. Add in the raw honey and lime juice and whisk everything together well one last time.
7. Pour your almost-done gummies into a 9-by-9 baking pan and refrigerate overnight (or until the gummies have set).
8. Cut into squares (bonus points for cutting them into cute shapes!) and enjoy.
Note: this recipe isn’t overly sweet so the kiddos in your house may not be very interested. If they are, it’s best for them to stick to a portion every now and again but I wouldn’t let them go overboard.

Ready to balance and support your hormones and adrenals? Are you interested in group coaching? Alex at Dig Primal and I will be offering a 12 week Healthy Hormone Group Program starting April 2016. You can sign up for notifications here.

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July 25, 2015
The Benefits of Seasonal Cleansing
It’s out with the old and in with the new for summer and the same should go for toxin build up in your body. Cleansing should occur at least once a year, but it is also suggested that as the seasons change, a good cleanse can better prepare us for the changes of the seasons. Just like the temperature, the foods we eat during each season changes. Going from spring to summer, the body is working up for some of the busiest months of the year.

Traditionally, cultures all around the world have practiced seasonal cleansing in all types of different ways. Specifically for a liver cleanse, the liver is how the body takes toxins out of the body, and that is how the liver earns the spot of one of the hardest working organs in our bodies! The liver works with many other organs in our body to detox blood, produce bile, hormone breakdowns, and acts as a storage facility for our vitamins and minerals. If the liver is not functioning properly, it affects many other areas of our body.

Some more important functions of the liver include removing old blood cells, helping the intestines process nutrients, chemical production for blood clotting, the breakdown and metabolizing of alcohol and consumed medications, and the production of necessary proteins and cholesterol.

When people hear ‘liver disease’ they typically think of alcoholism, but that is not the only cause of liver disease or liver failure. Some other risk factors associated with liver disease include low potassium levels, drug use, exposure to certain chemicals, obesity, processed foods, viral infections and autoimmune diseases.

Some things you may notice if your liver is not performing at its best include gas or bloating, constipation, heartburn, acid reflux, yellowish tint to skin and eyes, high blood pressure, difficulty losing weight, cognitive difficulties, dark urine, chronic fatigue, poor appetite, and chronic fatigue.

If you want to support your liver there are certain foods you should focus on. These foods include beets, carrots, tomatoes, grapefruit, spinach, citrus fruits, cabbage, turmeric, walnuts, avocados, apples, brussels sprouts, garlic, dandelion root, leafy green vegetables, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, green tea, artichoke, olive oil, and alternative grains like quinoa, millet and buckwheat.

There are many diets, supplements, and programs available to detox; you need to find the one that is best for you. Consult your doctor if you have concerns or questions. Below are some general tips that have worked for me:
- Hydrate!
- Eliminate common food sensitivities
- Eat clean and organic
- Exercise regularly
- Eat a diet high in fiber
- Take a probiotic
- Eat light meals more frequently
- Get the proper amount of sleep
- Avoid alcohol and tobacco products
- Avoid processed foods and whole grains
You will find that when you are done with your detox, you should notice that you have much more energy, your digestion has improved, and your skin looks younger and brighter. You will also have better mental clarity and cognitive functioning, along with a boost to your immune system and more balanced blood sugar levels.

Interesting in removing toxins naturally? If you’d like to shed unwanted weight than join us for the next Seasonal Detox!

Health Hormones Group Program starts September 15th (some spots available now)

If you have been considering joining our Healthy Hormones Group Program starting September 15th, I highly suggest that you start with the seasonal detox. My clients who have focused on their detoxification pathways and liver health for a month or two before trying to balance hormones and support adrenals have been much more successful. One of the liver’s many jobs is to get rid of excess hormones, so this is an important player in the balancing process.
July 21, 2015
Natural Gatorade Electrolyte Elixir
Today we have an awesome guest post from Laura at Radical Roots!! Have you been to her website? It is fabulous, so check it out if you haven’t already! She shares a detox friendly recipe that is a great addition to the seasonal detox programs.

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Laura is a Certified Nutrition Consultant and a Certified CrossFit Trainer.

She has a passion for educating, and absolutely loves teaching others about nutrition, functional movement, and the power each has to set the foundation for health, wellness, and true quality of life. The ability to thrive is not just a product of the way we eat and move, though; nutrition, mindfulness, daily movement, and regular play are the integral parts needed for a healthy, happy life. Asking questions, digging deep, speaking up, and living a little radically each and every day are necessary to grow strong, and the growing never ends, no matter how old we get (and neither should play).

Laura and I see eye to on the way that we approach health and that is why I am so excited to have her share her recipe for her Electrolyte Elixir.

Check out today’s guest blog post by Laura —>

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As an active part of the CrossFit community and a life-long athlete of pretty much every team sport available to me as a kid, I have seen my fair share of sugary sports drinks, advertised, purchased, and handed out for their electrolytes and performance enhancement. The reality? It’s all hogwash.

Just 32 ounces of you average electrolyte drink sold for it’s “healthy” properties and performance enhancement abilities contains 280 calories, 220 milligrams of sodium and 76 grams of sugar. It’s “a ‘sports drink’ marketed to appeal to Olympic couch potatoes” (Katz). This is enough to make me crazy, and I haven’t touched on the issues that the seemingly endless supply of plastic bottles creates for both our health and the environment.

Now, not all electrolyte drinks are created equal. There is a benefit to staying hydrated and to fueling up with nutrient dense, electrolyte providing elixirs. A high quality elixir can improve immunity while replenishing lost essential minerals during physical exertion, periods of detox or sickness, childbirth, or any sort of trauma.

The drink I’ve created below is the latter. With ingredients such as hibiscus, coconut water, pure organic orange juice, raw local honey, and Celtic sea salt, this replenishing concoction has all kinds of beneficial properties. The biggest benefit? It tastes good too without all of the crap they put into drinks like Gatorade.

Kick the sugar, dextrose, citric acid, “natural flavor”, salt, sodium citrate, monopotassium phosphate, gum arabic, sucrose acetate isobutyrate, glycerol ester of rosin, and yellow 6 (actual Gatorade ingredients) to the curb and replace them with the beneficial ingredients below for a delicious drink that will keep everyone happy – mom, dad, grandma, the family athlete, and those rambunctious kiddos too.

So let’s talk about what’s in this:

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- Hibiscus Herbal Tea – is filled with antioxidants and has been used traditionally to maintain normal body temperature, support heart health, keep skin healthy, and promote circulation.
- Organic Orange (juice and peels) – provides Vitamin C and regenerative glucose for the liver (and has been a huge hit with Ginger Newtrition’s adrenal cocktail creamsicle)
- Raw Local Honey – the raw aspect provides minerals, vitamins, enzymes, and powerful antioxidants and has been shown to boost anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal properties; while the local component keep local allergies at bay
- Organic Pure Coconut Water – The naturally occurring potassium, an essential electrolyte, keeps the body hydrated and provides vital minerals that are lost during any kind of physical exertion (from a tough CrossFit or a full day in the garden to a suffering from a bad cold or stomach flu)
- Celtic Sea Salt – provides 84 essential minerals that the body need to function properly (NOTE: this is very different from iodized table salt, which can be quite detrimental)
Bonus points for the fact that this is so easy to make which is especially important because it doesn’t last long at our house. With warmer weather approaching, and all the adventures of spring and summer to look forward to, whip up a batch or two of this electrolyte elixir and toss the Gatorade in the trash.

Recreate. Share. Enjoy… and as always, Live Rad!

WHAT YOU NEED:
- 4 organic hibiscus tea bags
- Juice and the peels from 1 organic orange or 2 organic mandarins
- 1 cup filtered or spring water
- 1-2 TB raw local honey (depending on how sweet you would like it)
- 1/2 cup organic 100% orange juice
- 1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt or Himalayan pink salt
- 2 cups organic coconut water (no additives or sugar added)
WHAT YOU DO:
- bring water to a boil, pour over tea bags and orange peels in a glass cup, cover and let steep for 1 hour
- strain the liquid and put it in the fridge for 15-20 minutes to allow it to cool to room temperature
- in the meantime, put the raw honey, fresh orange juice and salt in a large glass measuring cup, and stir until the honey has dissolved (this can take a few minutes)
- add cooled hibiscus tea and coconut water to the orange juice mixture, and stir until all ingredients are incorporated
- store in the refrigerator, and enjoy fresh within 3 days
On a warm day, this is great over ice or mixed with some sparkling water if you want it to be less sweet. To the moms out there – this is a great choice for you to give the kiddos when they need to replenish!

Let me know what you think! Have you kicked Gatorade (and the like) to the curb yet? What have you used as a replacement? Leave comments below. Happy adventures, everyone. And as always. Live Rad.
May 30, 2015