Ovulation strips or OTKs don’t work for everyone (eg those with high LH like in PCOS). They only show a surge in LH which for most people happens before ovulation - They do NOT actually CONFIRM that ovulation has happened!

Most people find ovulation strips a stressor in their journey of trying to conceive - instead, if you are TTC, opt for sex every other or third day from the end of your period until your next one starts. If you are ovulating, with this method you will ‘catch’ ovulation, and not rely on sex 1-2 a cycle on what might be the wrong day!

To properly track ovulation in a way that confirms you have ovulated, see my last reel on nasal body temperature tracking !

#fertility #conceieve #tips #egg #sperm #womenshealth #health #information #ovulation #facts #fertilitytips #fertilewindow #ovulationtracking #ttc #tryingtoconceieve

5. tips for properly tracking BBT Basal Body Temperature:

1. You need a thermometer that is specific to two decimal places.

Oestrogen dominates the first half (follicular phase) of the cycle and promotes vasodilation (opening of blood vessels), allowing more heat to be dispersed, so our resting temperature is lower.

Progesterone dominates the second half (luteal phase) and causes vasoconstriction (blood vessels constricting), not allowing the heat to be released, so we see a higher resting temperature in the second half of the cycle.

2. The result is we see two very distinct phases of temperatures 36.11 - 36.38 degrees Celsius in the first half, then 36.44-37 degrees Celsius in the second half. We are looking for a rise in temp of 0.2-0.6 degrees. A rise is considered sustained if there are 3 consecutively high temperatures. After a few cycles can see the data build up and use it to predict ovulation.

3. Do not overthink your daily temperature as you can go into a spin if even one reading is off! We are looking for overall patterns, we are not looking at each day, or even one cycle - you need at least 3 to see a pattern!

4. You are most fertile the 2-3 days before your temperature rise, so after a few cycles of tracking you should get a better idea of which day of your cycle you ovulate (if you have a relatively regular cycle)

BE CONSISTENT! Temp must be taken FIRST THING on waking. As soon as we start moving the temperature is affected. Try to be consistent - keep the thermometer in the same place by your bed and stick to putting the thermometer on the same side of your mouth each morning. Make sure to put the thermostat all the way in under your tongue.

5. Please note a BBT reading can be influenced by: aircon, getting fewer than 3 hours of quality sleep, having a fever, jet lag, electric blanket, drinking alcohol the night before, very hot weather, stress.

Record the data on an app or graph. This sustained biphasic BBT change confirms that you have ovulated!

#bbt #basalbodytemperature #ovulation #fertility #fertilitytracking #fertilitytips #infertility #nutritionist #womenshealth #pregnancy #ttc #tryingtoconceive #conceivenaturally #natural

• It might surprise you that your chances of fertilisation are only 20% at your most fertile time of the month (1-2 days before ovulation).

• On the day of ovulation this goes down to 1 in 7 chance, listen to find out why.

• 4-6 days before ovulation there’s a 10% chance of fertilisation.

• Listen and save for more facts about ovulation.

#ovulation #facts #fertilitytips #fertilewindow #ovulationtracking #ttc #tryingtoconceieve #fertility #conceieve #tips #egg #sperm #womenshealth #health #information

When to have sex if you are trying to conceive

If you are trying to conceieve and you are relying on period tracker apps (where you only input the days of your bleed) you are not setting yourself up for success!

These apps predict the fertile window correctly in only 21% of cases !!

Best practice is to have intercourse every other, or third day. This will catch ovulation!

#ttc #fertility #infertility #bestpractice #conceieve #conceievenaturally #natural #naturalcycles #tryingtoconceieve #fertilitytips #conception

My number 1 tip if you are trying to conceive is SO simple: drink more water! Most of my clients are dehydrated and don’t know that this affects egg and sperm health, cervical mucus, the endometrium and so much more.

Get one of the water bottles with time markings on it (preferably a glass, BPA free one), whilst it sounds simple, trust me, it really works!

Link here: https://amzn.to/3Ubpygq

#fertility #infertility #diet #nutrition #fertilitydiet #fertilitytips #ttc #tryingtoconceive #womenshealth #health #water #pregnancy #tips #fertilityspecialist #nutrition #nutrionist

Acupuncture is a proven safe treatment modality that can be extremely helpful during pregnancy, a time when normal medication is often not permitted. At Vale of Health we see clients in all different stages of pregnancy.

Acupuncture can be extremely effective for helping alleviate early pregnancy symptoms such as nausea (morning sickness) and exhaustion. All our consultations are completely confidential and tailored to the individual.

Throughout pregnancy, acupuncture can help support any issues that arise from constipation and heartburn through to sciatica and back pain.

During the later stages of pregnancy, acupuncture can help turn a breech presentation, and to induce labour naturally (after 41 weeks acupuncture can be used to promote the body’s own mechanisms to bring on labour).

Acupuncture has been proven to help promote cervical ripening, which is the preparing and softening/opening of the cervix for labour and delivery. The research that’s been done on this protocol has shown some pretty amazing results:

- Decreased need for pain medication during labour / epidurals

- Decreased risk of having to be medically induced

- Decreased overall duration of active labour

- Decreased risk of emergency c-section during birth

Ideally you want to be seeing your acupuncturist weekly from week 35/36 of your pregnancy for these treatments!

We offer a specific cervical ripening package of 3 sessions for £210 (a more than 10% discount).

#pregnancy #cervicalripening #prebirth #treatment #treatyourself #health #wellness #acupuncture #acu #acupunctureforfertility #acupuncturepractice #acupuncturepractitioner #feelgood #csection #epidural #pain #paintreatment

Winter, in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), is associated with the Water Element - symbolising destruction & creation, governing a state between death & rebirth. It signifies a moment of introspection and relaxation, hitting pause before blossoming anew in spring. Just like an object at rest in physics, holding potential but no kinetic energy, our need to hibernate in winter is paramount. Conservation of energy is key during this period of absolute yin - darkness, cold, passivity, and receptivity.

Unfortunately, our Western lifestyles often neglect this essential time for rest and repair, leading many to experience burnout. Acupuncture can play a pivotal role in this season -  we have a few slots remaining this year, with the January booking calendar now open.

The Water element and its associated organs (the kidneys and bladder) govern inner strength - an opportune moment to acknowledge our ability to navigate life’s challenges. Fear, the emotion of the Water element, arises when doubts about inner strength and feelings of isolation surface. In TCM, we address self-doubt and fear through kidney treatments, recognising that fear can paralyse us as profoundly as winter's cold freezes the earth. Winter is a time for connectivity. A time to foster connections with others, nature, the universe and, most importantly, oneself. Winter calls for deliberate self-care, healing and rest, particularly relevant as we get exhausted by venturing beyond our ordinary boundaries.

Winter Nutrition Tips

Cold inhibits digestion, highlighting the importance of consuming warming, hearty, and nourishing cooked foods during winter. Soups, stews, and casseroles take centre stage, preferably cooked for an extended duration at a low temperature.

Salt, the flavour of the water element, is important in winter - miso soup, soy sauce and a small amount of good quality sea salt aid in bringing heat inward from the body’s surface.

TCM recommends bitter foods which include fennel, celery, oats, quinoa, and rye. For those that have not yet tried ground chicory as a coffee substitute, it is a delicious bitter option available at most health food shops.

Ginger, cloves, and cinnamon are warming herbs to include in your cooking. Ginger especially, is recognised for its anti-inflammatory and healing properties helping get rid of any winter colds & flus that may be lurking. Additionally, nettle tea is great in winter as it nourishes the kidneys.

Citrus fruits, rich in phytonutrients, not only warm the extremities for those that suffer from cold hands and feet, but enhance blood flow to the brain, promoting clear thinking and reducing stroke risk.

For those indulging in more alcohol in winter, pair it with cooling, energetic foods like mint to counteract its heat, a practice observed in Middle Eastern countries offering mint tea after wine-filled dinners.

A Winter Routine Must

Make sure to open your blinds first thing in the morning to ensure natural light exposure, even during the limited daylight hours. This is crucial for managing cortisol, melatonin, and serotonin levels, regulating our sleep/wake cycles. A must during this season is a Vitamin D supplement - I personally recommend the VitaminD and K2 oral spray from Better You.

Winter presents us with an opportunity for introspection and self-care. Wishing you a season of balance, warmth, and good health.

Are you thinking about getting your ‘fertility’ tested? Do you want to know how many eggs you have left and want to get your AMH tested?

To start I want to explain that a single fertility test does not exist, fertility is multi faceted and there are a range of tests you can do. For now let’s just speak about AMH or ovarian reserve.

So what is ovarian reserve? When you are a female foetus inside your mum, you have the most eggs you’re ever going to have. At about 20 weeks gestation you have about 6-7 million eggs. Then by the time you are born you have already lost about half of those, and you continually lose eggs all the time. Imagine you have a vault of eggs in your ovaries, and the number in your vault is continuously decreasing since the moment you have an ovary.

Most people assume that a reduction in their egg count is one per month, due to ovulation. But the truth is a number of eggs are released from the vault monthly in that ovulation cycle. But, only one is chosen by the body to be matured and this is the egg that you ovulate with. The rest of the eggs that were released, die. So the commencement of ovulation is just your body saying now you are ready to get pregnant, the loss of eggs is happening regardless of if you are ovulating or not.

So how do you test ovarian reserve? It’s via blood test looking at your levels of anti mullerian hormone, AMH which tells us how many eggs are being released from that vault each month.The more in there, the more you release, and the less in there, the less you release. So an AMH result translates to give us a rough idea of how many eggs are left in that vault.

If you are thinking about getting your AMH tested, I want to make something VERY clear, that your AMH count is INDEPENDENT of your fecundability, that is your ability to naturally fall pregnant that month. So for example if you have two people, they are both 30 years old and one has low ovarian reserve and have 5 eggs coming out of the vault that month, and the other person has a normal ovarian reserve so they have say 20 coming out of the vault. NO matter how many eggs they have left in that vault, both people will be ovulating one egg per month (and the rest of the eggs released will die), and so their ability to fall pregnant with that one egg, that month, is the same for both.

So if you have a low AMH reading and you are trying to fall pregnant naturally, that does NOT decrease your chances of falling pregnant, nor does having a high AMH guarantee that you will fall pregnant easily.

It was actually IVF clinics that started testing AMH to understand how much medication to give you during the stimulation phase of IVF. So, AMH should NOT be looked at as a stand alone test, it needs context!

Are AMH levels stable or what can affect the result? Your AMH is likely to be higher in the follicular phase of the cycle, the first two weeks, and the best time to test it would be in this preovulatory phase. Although, most testing companies include it in a test of all the sex hormones which is done on day 2-5 of your period.

Whilst you are on the oral contraceptive pill your AMH level is about 20% lower, - so you SHOULD NOT get tested soon after coming off the pill as this may indicate that you have lower levels of AMH than the reality. For the average person, it takes around 3 months for those numbers to normalise after stopping the pill, remember that is the average, so it may take you even longer.

Similarly, during pregnancy your AMH is significantly reduced, so you should be waiting at least 5 months postpartum before testing and even then you should look at the results with caution.

Binge drinking (present or past) and vitamin D deficiency have been linked to lower AMH levels. So please make sure if you are testing your AMH levels that you get your vitamin D tested alongside it so you know if you are deficient, to regard your AMH result with that context in mind.

There is a lot of controversy around AMH testing so please make sure you fully understand what is really means before getting yours checked. A low AMH result can cause a lot of people to panic and believe that they will struggle to conceive and that their fertility is ‘running out’. Nowadays a lot of companies are offering AMH testing with at home finger prick tests and a lot of gynaecologists will run an AMH test without letting you know if you ask for a fertility MOT. Some believe that if you are young and thinking about getting your eggs frozen, if you know you do not want to have children anytime soon, that testing AMH will be beneficial as it may impact how you make this choice. Others believe that this test will cause undue stress as it tells you little about the quality of the eggs being released monthly and that it doesn’t decrease your ability to fall pregnant naturally. Please, whatever you do, just understand what the result would mean either way and think before testing.

Am I ovulating and how can I accurately predict my fertile window?

This is not something that is only useful for those trying to conceive, learning to understand your cycle can be hugely empowering for all menstruating women. This can be helpful even if it is only to work out when you are fertile to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.

This is not one for the men in this group, however, if you are trying to conceive, I urge you to read this too. It’s important that you are also knowledgeable on how ovulation works to best support your partner - trying to conceive is not only the woman’s job!

Two important starting points:

1.     If you are on the oral contraceptive pill, you do not ovulate, and this is not information for you.

2.     Period apps (Clue/Flow) only predict your fertile window correctly 21% of the time. The results are not reliable even if you have a regular cycle! Please, please do not try to conceive by only having sex around the time your app tells you that you are in your fertile window.

3.     Having sex 1-2 days before ovulation gives the couple 1 in 5 chances of conceiving. This might surprise you that this is the 2 most fertile days of the cycle and there is still only a 20% chance!

4.     Ovulation strips are not suitable for some women (more detailed below). These strips are testing for a surge in LH which precedes ovulation - for some women this surge happens 12 hours before ovulation, for others it could be anywhere between 18-36 hours. So, whilst you don’t know which is true for you, having sex when you get a positive result may not be the best way!

Some facts about ovulation:

°        Ovulation occurs once a cycle

°        The egg can live for around 24 hours post ovulation but is most likely to be fertilised in the 12 hours after ovulation

°        Sperm can survive in the female reproductive tract for around 4 days

°        So ideally, for conception we need fresh sperm waiting for the egg to drop

°        Having sex 1-2 days before ovulation gives the couple 1 in 5 chances of conceiving. This might surprise you that this is the 2 most fertile days of the cycle and there is still only a 20% chance!

°        The chance of conceiving on the day of ovulation is 1 in 7 - this drops because the egg is most likely to be fertilised in that first 12 hours.

°        6-4 days before ovulation there is a 10% chance of conceiving.

°        Outside of these days there is no chance at all (0%).

The best way to accurately predict when you are ovulating, or your ‘fertile window’ is carrying out a daily practice of recording what’s going on in your body. This includes temperature, cervix position, hormone surges and how you feel (physically and emotionally)

This gives you feedback about your reproductive health:

°        Understanding your hormones and the connection between emotion, lifestyle, and fertility

°        Teaches us to connect with our bodies enough to sense ovulation

°        May unearth pathology or deficiency e.g., with BBT charting you could find out that you have low thyroid function or perhaps are not ovulating at all

°        Provides your practitioner with valuable information for their treatment and feedback about how you are responding to your treatments (if I am treating you, please share all this information with me!).

What you need to chart your cycle - alone each of these are not enough to accurately track ovulation - the best way is a combined method.

°        Somewhere to record your data: pen + paper or apps like Clue, Fertility Friend, or Flow.

°        A specific BBT/ovulation thermometer (different to a normal thermometer as its more sensitive, down to 2 decimal places). Digital is preferable over a mercury one.

°        Ovulation test strips are a tool, they also should NOT be followed alone. Please remember these do not work for everyone.

Some tips for those trying to conceive:

°        TURN OFF the ovulation predictor setting on your period tracking app, these are only correct 21% of the time.

°        Never look at data on one day only. Ovulation tracking is all about patterns which build up over time.

°        The research shows that for most couples, you need to give trying to conceive a go for a year. However, this ‘year’ is based on 12 x 28 cycles with ovulation occurring, not a timeline of 12 months. Please give yourself ovulating 12 times - when you know when you are ovulating and can track it properly.

°        If you have been on the oral contraceptive pill it takes some women up to 9 months to fall back into a regular cycle (or what is regular for them), so please don’t put pressure on yourself to conceive immediately!

°        Talk to your partner about what you are tracking - the onus should not fall on you alone to dictate the schedule

°        Although we are aiming for sex on the day before and day of ovulation, no matter which days you are ovulating, best practice is having sex every 2-3 days of your entire cycle. This alleviates pressure on the sex on the fertile days and allows for any miscalculation in your ovulation or allows for ovulation to occur on a different day than predicted! Remember we are ever changing humans whose hormones are affected by sleep, stress, emotions and so much more, so, even with a regular cycle, ovulation is unlikely to occur on the same day every cycle!

°        Find your support system. Trying to conceive can be an incredibly lonely time for many couples (often more so for the woman), so make sure you have people to talk to, offload and share your frustrations with. This might be a practitioner, friend, family member or a therapist. Please do not underestimate how important this is - remember stress and worry affect your hormones so having strong support is an integral part of a successful conception.

What to record:

1.          Days and details of menstruation -

°        Mark each day of bleeding,

°        It’s intensity (heaviness - how often do you have to change your pad, tampon, or cup),

°        Are there any clots (note size, bigger than 1p, 50p),

°        Colour of blood,

°        Pain (location, duration, sensation, do you take any medication for the pain)

2.          Daily resting temperature (BBT - Basal/Resting body temperature)

°        You need a thermometer that is specific to two decimal places

°        Oestrogen dominates the first half (follicular phase) of the cycle and promotes vasodilation (opening of blood vessels), allowing more heat to be dispersed, so our resting temperature is lower.

°        Progesterone dominates the second half (luteal phase) and causes vasoconstriction (blood vessels constricting), not allowing the heat to be released, so we see a higher resting temperature in the second half of the cycle.

°        The result is we see two very distinct phases of temperatures 36.11 - 36.38 degrees Celsius in the first half, then 36.44-37 degrees Celsius in the second half. We are looking for a rise in temp of 0.2-0.6 degrees. A rise is considered sustained if there are 3 consecutively high temperatures.

°        After a few cycles can see the data build up and use it to predict ovulation. Do not overthink your daily temperature as you can go into a spin if even one reading is off! We are looking for overall patterns, we are not looking at each day, or even one cycle - you need at least 3 to see a pattern!

°        You are most fertile the 2-3 days before your temperature rise, so after a few cycles of tracking you should get a better idea of which day of your cycle you ovulate (if you have a relatively regular cycle)

°        Temp must be taken FIRST THING on waking. As soon as we start moving the temperature is affected. Try to be consistent - keep the thermometer in the same place by your bed and stick to putting the thermometer on the same side of your mouth each morning. Make sure to put the thermostat all the way in under your tongue.

°        Please note a BBT reading can be influenced by: aircon, getting fewer than 3 hours of quality sleep, having a fever, jet lag, electric blanket, drinking alcohol the night before, very hot weather, stress.

°        This sustained biphasic BBT change confirms that you have ovulated

Record the data on a graph/app

3.          Cervical mucus - quality and quantity - monitoring cervical mucus alone really can increase chances of falling pregnant! (Days below based on a 28-day cycle, adapt for your cycle)

°        Check mucus in your underwear, on toilet paper, feel internally (there is always some mucus present at the back of the cervix) and note down any sensations associated.

°        Right after your period (days 6-9) your mucus will be more dry - unlikely to be in fertile window

°        It moves to being stickier (suggesting oestrogen is starting to rise, from day 10), and goes to thin, elastic and able to be stretched out like an egg white (10-14), suggesting we are close to ovulation.

°        On ovulation (14), the mucus is thinner and slippery and wettest!

°        From ovulation, for a short period (1-2 days), it goes back to thick or sticky (15-16)

°        Then back to being dry until your next period (16-28).

°        This can be tricky to track, especially when you first start. If you are trying to conceive, then of course there is likely to also be semen involved. The keynote here is that semen does not stretch.

°        If you are not making much mucus this may be due to vaginal infections, antihistamines, cough medicine, chlorinated swimming pools, high doses of VitC (1000 mg daily), Clomid (fertility drug) and TTC - semen can make it confusing, again semen does not stretch.

°        Dehydration!! Please make sure when you are trying to conceive that you are drinking 2L of water a day minimum.

°        More info on cervical mucus below.

4.    At home ovulation kits / OTKs - ovulation strips

°        These test for the presence of Luteinising hormone, LH which can be tested in the urine. A surge in LH precedes ovulation so seeing a surge in LH suggests ovulation is about to happen - for some women this surge happens 12 hours before ovulation, for others it could be anywhere between 18-36 hours.

°        Start testing at least 2-3 days before ovulation (start from day 8 for the first few cycles if you have a 28-day cycle)

°        Different tests have a different level of ‘positive’ so there is a lack of sensitivity between them.

°        Just because you have a surge in LH doesn’t mean that you definitely ovulate. The hormone LH (luteinising hormone) drives ovulation, but these tests do not confirm that ovulation has occurred! To confirm ovulation a two phase BBT chart is required.

°        These tests are not suitable for women close to or over 40 as sometimes these women have a constantly elevated level of LH (so it will be almost always showing positive ovulation).

°        If you are going through IVF many of the medications used will cause higher levels of LH so again these tests are not suitable.

°        Lastly, if you have PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) then these tests may not be suitable for you. If you are still lucky enough to have a regular cycle of around 28-33 days it might be worth giving these a go, but with very irregular cycles knowing when to start testing might be difficult! If you are seeing constantly positive test results this may mean your LH levels are elevated and so this is not an accurate predictor of ovulation.

5.    Cervix position -

°        The cervix changes shape/position during your cycle to encourage/accommodate conception.

°        Start feeling around for your cervix from around day 6/7 of cycle (shortly after period).

°        Wash your hands then find a comfortable position (squatting/ sitting on the toilet/ one foot up on a bench - like inserting a tampon so whatever is comfortable for that).

°        Insert one clean index finger into your vagina and move it gently upward until the spongey feeling of the vagina gives way, reaching the firmer cervix. Depending on how much of your finger goes in, this tells you if it is high (more space) or low (less space)

°        You will need to go through one full cycle at least to understand these changes!

°        If your cervix feels Open, high, and soft - like touching your lips, this is likely to be around ovulation.

°        If it feels Closed, low and firm - like touching the tip of your nose, this is likely to be outside your fertile window and not ovulating.

°        Somewhere between - approaching your fertile window!

6.       Secondary signs and symptoms - jot these down for 3-5 cycles and see if you start to notice a pattern!

°        For example, skin changes, breast changes, mittelschmerz (one-sided, lower abdominal pain associated with ovulation), libido increase, light spotting, increased sense of smell or taste. Remember these need to be tracked for a few cycles to understand if they are a one off or are a sign of ovulation for you.

Understanding cervical mucus:

°        The 4 types of cervical mucus: L,S,P,G. Practically differentiating between S+P is almost impossible so we group them together. 

°        On the Left you see L type: a small rise in oestrogen drives production of a pre-ovulatory mucus. The fibres act like a filter, catching abnormal sperm (so they can’t enter the vagina). You are likely to see this type 3-4 days before ovulation

°        S+P type (middle image) - in the ovulation window! S type is the egg white, stretchy kind, and P the slippery, wet kind. Together these aligned fibres facilitate sperm movement through the vagina, cervix, uterus into the Fallopian tubes. This type allows the process of activation, the final stage of sperm maturation that occurs in the female reproductive tract. You see this mucus in the 24 hours pre ovulation.

°        G type (right hand image): is thicker and sticky. The fibres have no pattern, and it acts as a barrier to infection and to sperm. This is seen 24 hours after ovulation for a few days. This comes under the presence of progesterone (or with a lack of oestrogen).

FIBROMYALGIA is a chronic, debilitating pain condition, where one gets stiff and tender muscles, joints and tendons. Secondary symptoms include restless sleep, fatigue, anxiety, depression & bowel disturbances.

What is strange about fibromyalgia compared to other pain conditions, is that no inflammation, damage or deformity is seen in the painful tissues. Instead, The brain chemistry involved in pain perception is altered, showing increased levels of substance P and nerve growth factor. There is increase pain sensitivity, decreased amount of opioids (which are natural painkillers we produce ourselves) and reduce levels of serotonin, dopamine & noradrenaline, lowering mood, increasing perception of pain and since serotonin is the precursor to melatonin, low levels of melatonin mean sleep is disturbed and not restorative too.

The hypothalamic, pituitary adrenal axis of the body is disrupted. These are the main areas where hormones are produced and released. As a result someone with fibromyalgia has lost their normal circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle), meaning they have elevated cortisol (stress/awake hormone) at night - stopping them being able to sleep. A lack of proper sleep means the body doesn’t have that chance to recover and causes decreased levels of growth hormone + insulin growth factor. They also have insulin dysregulation, meaning blood sugar regulation issues.

To diagnose fibromyalgia you have to have ruled out other orders that may be causing the condition, e.g. thyroid issues : Widespread pain index WPI, 7+ score with a symptom severity scale, SS of 5+ Or WPI 3-6 with SS 9+ with these symptoms lasting for longer than 3 months.

Western medicine sadly has limited success in treating fibromyalgia. They aim to treat each symptom individually, NSAIDs for pain, anti depressants, dopamine agonists, and growth hormone therapy, sodium oxybate for daytime sleepiness etc.

What foods can help fibromyalgia:

• Remove any excitotoxins from the diet: MSG (Chinese take away), aspartame (Diet Coke) and sources of free glutamate (parmesan, tomato, mushrooms). Avoid colourings, flavourings, additives, caffeine and foods high in arachidonic acid (meat)

• Try a modified elimination diet looking at gluten, dairy, eggs and seafood.

• A low FODMAP diet may help to lower inflammation

• You can increase levels of serotonin by increasing tryptophan intake in the diet (a precursor to serotonin production) sources include turkey, oats, nuts and seeds

• Balancing your blood sugar is of utmost importance to decrease stress on the body - eat protein + fibre + healthy fats with every meal, no processed/refined sugars, instead go for wholegrain like quinoa, amaranth and brown rice.

• Stress management is one of the most important factors in managing fibromyalgia and magnesium rich foods (dark leafy greens, nuts and seeds) help manage stress. Try adaptogens, ashwaghanda, camomile & valerian teas. Epsom salt baths for stress relief and the much needed magnesium absorption.

Exercise (mild, mixed and restorative types) whilst difficult with debilitating pain has shown to help with symptoms of fibromyalgia like pain and depression.

Supplements which have been found to help (as always only take supplements under proper guidance from a qualified nutritionist):

• CoQ10 levels are reduced in fibromyalgia and supplementation can sometimes help with symptoms.

• Transdermal (through the skin) Magnesium chloride helps. I like the Better You Mg spray and Epsom salt baths are helpful for their Magnesium content too.

• Acetyl-L-Carnitine at 500mg 3 times a day has been found to be as effective as duloxetine (a prescribed medicine) for improving quality of life specifically decreasing pain and depression.

• SAMe 200-800mg reduces pain and depression

• 5-HTP (aka serotonin) helps improve pain, stiffness and sleep.

• B6 is a coenzyme required to make GABA (a neurotransmitter in the brain that is effected in fibromyalgia).

Yes! Proteins are one of the essential building blocks that help build and repair our body tissues, such as bones, skin, blood and muscles. They make enzymes, hormones and the antibodies of the immune system. Amino acids (AAs) are compounds that when combined, form proteins. Our bodies need 20 different AAs for our health and normal functioning, 9 of which are essential AAs, meaning our bodies cannot make them, we can only obtain them from food.

So how much protein should we be eating? The recommendation is to go for 0.8-1g x your body weight. I.e. if you weigh 55kg, you would aim for 44g of protein per day. Remember this doesn’t mean eating e.g. 44g of chicken, it means 44g of protein (for example, in 100g of chicken breast there is only 31g of protein). If you are pregnant you should be consuming around 10g of protein per day above this amount. If you are breast feeding, add 20g more per day! If you are an athlete, or engage in regular sports you should certainly be consuming more protein too.

Adding protein to ALL meals (yes, including breakfast), is a great way to make sure you are properly satiated (full). Proteins are broken down slowly, meaning they keep you fuller for longer compared to simple sugars/carbs (e.g. white pasta). This means that they also help regulate your blood sugar, meaning you won’t get dramatic peaks and crashes in energy. If you are someone that always gets a dip in energy alongside feeling hungry for a naughty snack at around 3pm then this is a sign that you are not regulating your blood sugar properly, and adding protein to your lunch would be a good idea.

Try and opt for plant based sources of protein as often as possible - unlike in meat, plant based protein come with a huge amount of other benefits too, for example legumes like lentils and chickpeas are phytoestrogens, meaning they help regulate your hormones. Plus they are full of fibre helping feed your gut bacteria, and regulating your stools.

Most people find breakfast the hardest meal to add protein to so here are some breakfast ideas that contain adequate protein:

• Egg on brown toast with avocado and spinach - protein, plus fibre from the brown toast, healthy fats from the avocado + eggs and lots of vitamins from the spinach.

• Porridge with nut milk/butter with some nuts and seeds on top (which will also add some healthy fats and minerals too), or even better, go for millet porridge which is a high protein grain.

• Overnight oats with almond butter, chia + hemp seeds, raw almonds, shredded coconut, blueberries

• Smoothie made with nut butter, nut milk, seeds, nuts, banana, avocado, spinach and coconut

• Greek yogurt with berries, nuts and seeds

Protein snack ideas:

• Protein balls made from raw cacao, almond butter, dates and coconut oil - deliciously Ella do some great ones

• Rice cakes topped with nut butter + banana + honey

• Hummus or nut butter + vegetables for dipping

Protein food ideas and rough amounts:

• Avocado with a poached egg - 7g

• Avocado + humus - 2.5g

• Peanut butter (sugar free real stuff, no Skippy!) on toast - 8g

• Porridge (depending on oat kind) + nuts/seeds or a nut butter - 4g

• A handful of nuts/nut butters - 3g

• Lentils cup cooked - 16.2g

• Quinoa (my favourite as its a complete protein, full of fibre, vitamins and nutrients and is a complex carb!), cup cooked - 8g

• Beef (fillet steak) - 22g

• Chicken breast - 40g

• Edamame cup cooked - 18.5g

• Chickpeas cup cooked - 14.7g

• Kidney beans cup cooked - 14g

• Amaranth cup cooked - 9g

• Black beans cup cooked - 16g

• Hemp seeds - 3g per tablespoon

• Soybeans cup cooked - 31.3g

• Almonds (raw) 6g per 1/4 cup

• Seitan - 21g per 1/3 cup

• Tempeh cup cooked - 33.7g

• Pumpkin seeds - 8g per 1/4 cup

• Chia seeds 1.6g per tablespoon
  

…so its about adding bits together to make up that total amount for you!

Navigating the supermarket

Ever walked into a supermarket with the intention of only buying healthy food, but been thrown off by how many products there are that are titled ‘healthy’ or tried to read a food label and got overwhelmed by the number of ingredients ? Or ended up at the ‘healthy’ free-from aisle and got some gluten free bread for £7 because surely that must be best?

With the cost of living crisis and more and more brands getting savvy with marketing seemingly ‘healthy’ foods to us, knowing how to shop for healthy and cost effectively has become all the more difficult

Here is a step by step guide on how to read food labels and how to shop healthily whilst understanding where to prioritise your food spending.

Main set of rules:

1. Don’t eat anything your great grandmother wouldn’t recognise as food.

2. Scan the first three ingredients - if they are refined sugars, salt or hydrogenated fats it’s unhealthy. If they are whole foods then its got a higher chance of being reasonably healthy.

3. ‘Free-from’ or ‘Natural’ DOES NOT make food healthy (or natural)! Often these are more unhealthy e.g. gluten free foods are often full of very refined other products.

4. Look at the ‘of which sugars’ line on the back of the pack labelling, if this is high, it is worse for you!

5. Check if the product contains vegetable oils like sunflower or canola/rape seed oil. If so it’s likely a really refined/processed version of this oil and is highly inflammatory. Of note, this is important in products like oat milks which are deemed ‘healthy’ but are actually contributing to your overall inflammatory load.

6. If it’s listed as high fibre, this is a nice bonus to food (but doesn’t make it healthy either, it still may be high in sugar, salt and highly processed e.g. cereals).

7. Reference Intakes are based on an average sized woman who does an average amount of exercise. Remember to estimate up/down for yourself.

8. Don’t go just by the traffic light system, it can be misleading - always look at the ingredients too. Whole foods e.g. organic nuts are always better than processed foods, regardless of the traffic light label (e.g. these nuts may show high levels/red of saturated fats).

9. Avoid GMO food (mostly relevant outside the UK).

10. Low calorie listed on the label? Compared to what? The difference may be negligible. Remember, a calorie from a low calorie donut isn’t the same as a calorie from broccoli.

11. Low fat? Same thing! Likely still high in sugar, additives and preservatives.

12. No added sugar? but what are the naturally occurring sugars? E.g. fruit juice may have no added sugar, but does it have artificial sweeteners to make it taste sweet, and has all the fibre been removed from the fruit? This will still spike your insulin & still counts as sugary.

13. If there are loads of E numbers, avoid it.

The difference between a Best before date and Use by date:

The best before date is more about quality for e.g. tinned and packaged foods. For example bread has a best before date - even if its passed this date it is unlikely to be harmful (carrying bacteria that can make you sick), rather, it is more likely to be stale and taste bad.

Use by date on the other hand is more about safety and is for perishable foods. For example a soft cheese that went beyond the use by date could be carrying harmful bacteria and make you very sick.

The exception: eggs have a best before date, but CAN harbour bacteria like salmonella. Eat them before their best before date and if you are past the date (by only a day or two please) make sure they are fully cooked through.

The list of ingredients are listed according to weight

The highest weight is first, so as a rule of thumb, the more processed a product is, the more ingredients it will contain.

Scan the first 3 ingredients. If they are things like refined sugars, salt, saturated/hydrogenated fats, then you can pretty much guarantee it’s an unhealthy product. If they first three are whole foods then there’s a much higher chance that its reasonably healthy!

A % on the list is required when that specific ingredient is highlighted in the main label or picture. E.g. ‘contains extra blueberries’ this will have to show the % of blueberry in the product. 

Do I need to buy organic? Firstly what does organic mean?

If a product is labelled as organic, 95% of the farmed ingredients must be organic. The producer must show the code for the number of the certifying body. If you’re not buying pre packed foods and there is no clear label, make sure there is proof of a regulatory body.

• Unless you are buying organic the food can be exposed to pesticides, herbicides and insecticides.

• Not all organic food is created equal. If you have a tighter budget, I would prioritise buying organic animal products as a first a foremost. This is especially relevant for women as the added hormones in non organic meat can wreak havoc with your menstrual cycle or worsen signs of menopause.

• For the same reason pregnant or breastfeeding women or those who have hormonal issues eg breast/prostate/ovarian cancer, fibroids, PCOS or endometriosis - eating organic should be more of a priority for you.

• When it comes to fruit and veg, look (often, as this changes monthly) at the dirty dozen and clean 15 which are the most and least contaminated foods in your area. This shows you which fruit and veg may be safer to eat non-organic (clean 15) and which you should prioritise buying organic as they are heavily contaminated (dirty dozen).

• Link: https://www.pan-uk.org/dirty-dozen/

Additives exist to prolong shelf life, alter taste/texture/colour etc. They are identified by E numbers. 

• Rule of thumb, try to eat as much home cooked food as possible. Avoid additive laden, packaged foods! If there’s a list of items which you don’t know what they are… it’s likely they are bad.

• Remember: additives are used until proven unsafe, not only used only once proven safe. Food additives can be added where you least expect it. e.g. Honey - ALWAYS CHECK THE LABEL.

• Companies use tricks when labelling, if they don’t want to list the E number they might use the trade name which is less well known. e.g. Aspartame = E951 = NutraSweet all signify the same thing and any title can be used.

• Additives can also be added to food prior to manufacture, e.g. farmed salmon where colour is added to increase the pinky/redness of the flesh. This is added when the salmon is swimming around into their tank, not when it’s being processed, so it doesn’t have to be listed on the label. Just another reason to go organic with animal products.

• Fruit juice: 100% made from concentrate… healthy? Not really, the flavour is created from fruit essences and oils that are boiled down into their individual constituents in a lab. They are then re-assembled into a new compound and added back into the juice / mixed with water. They are artificial, but can be labelled as natural as the individual components were originally extracted from fruit. This way all the health benefits are lost.

Not all additives are bad, for example some additives are found naturally in foods and are extracted and used In other foods. e.g. E100 curcumin (from turmeric) or E162 Beetroot are used to colour foods yellow or red and are not bad for you. Other good ones include E160a (carotenes), E101 and E106 riboflavin (vitamin B2 - it’s yellow, which is why if you take a B2 vitamin your urine turns bright yellow).

ADHD: a specific note on ADHD, for which over 20 artificial colours + preservatives have been linked: 

• E102, 104, 110, 122, 124, 129, 210-219 found in things like jam, pickles, fruit squash, cordial, ice cream, yogurt, margarine, soft drinks, beer and Salad dressings.

Ones to avoid: 

• E160b Annato, linked to headaches, hives, irritability, sleep issues. Found in cheese, crisps, margarine, smoked fish

• E120 cochineal (red dye made from ground and dried insects) can cause asthma, even in people that have not had asthma before, and allergic reactions - in soups, sauces, desserts and bakery products.

• E240-252 Nitrates/nitrites preservatives = are carcinogenic, psoriasis, hives, SLE (lupus) - processed meats and cheeses and in non organic fertilisers so can make its way into water/crops from nearb

• E320 BHA, E321 BHT - hives, dermatitis, headaches, hormone disruption, respiratory issues, and is carcinogenic - preserved meats, oils, cereals, margarine & cosmetics. These are known to be dangerous and are not allowed to be used in baby food. In Japan they are banned all together + the US has recognised that they are carcinogenic but are still being used in ‘adult’ food in the UK.

• Azodicarbonamide in bread (sticks it together) - no longer used in the UK but used in the US (also what used to keep yoga mats stretchy… not something we want to be eating!)

• E110, E104, E122, E129, E102, E124 - in the UK if included there needs to be a warning on the label as are strongly associated with hyperactivity and poor concentration.

• E211 sodium benzoate, E220 sulphur dioxide (also depletes vitamin B1 in and impedes the oxygen carrying capacity of haemoglobin - wheezing, shortness of breath, asthma attack, hives, nausea, disrupts the gut microbiome - in dried fruit, processed meat, wine), E251 sodium nitrate - all linked with asthma and allergies + other adverse effects.

• Synthetic antioxidants: E310,319,320,321 (PG, TBHQ, BHA, BHT) associated with health issues

• Emulsifiers E433, 466 associated with increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease and colon cancer, mediated in part by disruption to the microbiome

• Carrageenan, E407 stabiliser - a natural product extracted from red seaweed then industrially produced. Linked with gut inflammation, bloating and bowel disease as it disrupts the gut microbiome. This is often found in many ‘organic and vegan foods’ that are listed as natural and healthy. For example organic nut milks etc. Also found in supplements + cosmetics + medications.

• E330 citric acid - naturally occurring in fruits but as an additive is manufactured using cheap GM high fructose corn syrup. This GM component makes it potentially hazardous to health.

• E400s additives are linked to gut issues including bloating, cramping, nausea and flatulence.

• E621 MSG monosodium glutamate is linked to MSG syndrome (headaches, skin flushing, dizziness, numbness, burning in the mouth, muscle tightness, sweating, chest pain, palpitations, shortness of breath, throat swelling - can require immediate medical attention!) it’s not necessarily an allergy to MSG more of a sensitivity based on how quickly the free glutamic acid in MSG is released into the bloodstream. Often on labels this is disguised as hydrolysed protein, yeast extract or protein isolate. Often found in stock cubes, chips, seasoning blends and take away/ pre packed food.

• Synthetic sweetness E900s like aspartame, acesulfame/ace K and saccharin. These are carcinogenic. They cause headaches, nausea, depression, irritability and raise insulin levels, affect insulin sensitivity, overstimulate sugar receptors making less healthy options taste unappealing. They are addictive and increase sweet cravings. They cause DNA damage.

• For bulk sweetness like sorbitol and xylitol More than 10g/100g do require a warning on the product label as they can cause stomach upset.

• Artificial colours E100s are linked with hyperactivity in children, E102 specifically linked to rhinitis, itching, blurred vision, asthma

• E926 Chlorine dioxide depletes vitamin E

Plastic packaging + cling film allow leaching of BPA which is a hormone disruptor, especially oestrogen and is linked to hormonal cancers like breast cancer, issues like endometriosis, fibroids and infertility. 

• Please do not let cling film touch your food! Use greaseproof paper, then wrap the cling film around that. Also, wait until the food has cooled until you wrap it. The best would be to use glass jars. This includes for freezing ! Please only freeze and cook in glass.

• Plastic water bottles, cooking oil bottles, styrofoam food trays, egg cartons and disposable cup (especially the lid you drink from) all contain BPA, PET, PVC, DEHA, PS and PC which are not good for health

Irradiation is used to prolong shelf life using electron beams, x rays or gamma rays. In the UK many foods are allowed to be irradiated including dried herbs, cereals, fruit and veg and a lot more. It must be displayed on the food (‘irradiated’ or ‘ treated with ionising radiation’) or this symbol:

Irradiation can cause radiologic products which are often carcinogenic and mutagens. It also can produce toxic chemicals like formaldehyde and benzene. In animals exposed to irradiated food, cancer and chromosomal abnormalities are seen. The danger of irradiated foods is recognised but still allowed in the UK! The idea of irradiation is it kills bacteria, but the toxins those bacteria produce still survive + so can lead to more virulent strains of bacteria. It can also be used to mask unhygienic food production.
Lastly the vitamin content (esp B and C) is reduced by up to 95% after irradiation. 

Genetically Modified ingredients above 0.9% or if irradiated must be listed. BUT you don’t need to list foods made with the help of GMO technology e.g. GM enzymes to clot milk for cheese, or products from animals that are fed on GMO feed e.g. meat and eggs. Varied research links GMO foods to immune issues, infertility, impaired insulin regulation and accelerated ageing. 

GMOs are living organisms whose genetic material has been manipulated through genetic engineering e.g. GM crops are manipulated to be resistant to pests and pesticides. Europe and the UK are officially GMO free, but the USA freely uses GMO crops & foods. We import a lot from other countries. Any food from the US could be GM unless labelled as certified organic. Common GM crops are corn, rice, soya and cotton. SO many processed foods contain soy and this is likely the most problematic one.

Do I really need to wash fruit and veg?

• Again, this one is more important for pregnant women (as the risk of bacteria affecting you or your baby is much higher).

• For the rest of the population I’m afraid the answer is still yes. Whilst you might not get a life threatening condition, you can get a bad bout of food poisoning more easily than you think. You will also be able to get rid of (a small amount) of the pesticides/herbicides/fertiliser on the surface of the food .

• If you have ever watched a video of what happens to raspberries and blackberries when vinegar is poured on them…and the amount of bugs that come out, you’ll believe me.

• You can also wash fruit and veg in a 2% salt solution (can leave fruit and veg in it for 5-10 mins) or in a white distilled vinegar + water mix and let sit for 15-20 mins and rise.

• Washing will still only clear surface pesticides. Chemicals that have gone into the fruit you can’t get rid of like this, but it’s better than not washing.

Ever wondered if you can loose weight just by the sheer determination? Well new research says maybe you can. 

Recent studies show that the influence of food marketing, and what we think about food, dramatically effects how our body reacts - affecting how full we feel and the hormonal response to food irrespective of how many calories actually consumed.

We would like to believe that we rely on physical and chemical signals from our digestive system to determine if we are hungry, and therefore that we should eat. The truth however, is that we also strongly rely on ‘top-down’ information such as the memory of what we have already consumed and food labelling on the packaging. 

The reality is we often don’t get to see the original ingredients in meals, especially true of ready made food. Most people associate words like lean and healthy with unfulfilling or ‘I’m going to be starving in 20 minutes but will will grin and bear it’. Studies show that participants eating a ‘healthy’ chocolate protein bar actually felt more hungry after, than those eating the same bar but labelled as ‘tasty’. In fact, the association was so strong that they felt even hungrier then the group that had eaten nothing at all.  

Further research:

In a study, two cohorts of people eating the same snack, with one group told that it was ‘lean, healthy and skinnylicious’ with the other told it’s ‘tasty, rich and delicious’ had different feelings of fullness after consuming the food. Despite the snack being identical in both groups, those with the ‘lean’ snack were less full and ate bigger portions later in the day compared to those in the ‘delicious’ group. This shows that the idea that something is directed towards weight loss may actually convince us that it’s less filling, make us more hungry later and in turn hinder our weight loss journey. 

In a second study, before eating a meal participants in one group were asked to list everything they had eaten that day, compared to the other group who answered questions about their general thoughts and feelings. Those that listed their foods, ate 45% less than the other group, showing that a reminder of what you have already consumed impacts how much you eat dramatically. 

In a third study, participants were given an omelette breakfast on two occasions. Before eating they were shown the ingredients to check for allergies. The real purpose however, was to change their expectations. They were told that in the first omelette there was 2 eggs + 30g cheese. In the second, 4 eggs + 60g cheese. In reality both omelettes were identical (3 eggs + 45g cheese), but what they read affected their appetite. After seeing the smaller ingredient list, participants ate more from the lunchtime buffet later in the day compared to when they believed they were consuming a more filling omelette. 

This is not just a trick of the mind - the response goes deeper into the physical and chemical response of our bodies:

For example, consuming a shake that is listed as more calories and ‘decadent & indulgent’ vs one listed as less calories and ‘light, guilt free & sensible’ creates a different response in the hormone Ghrelin, known as the ‘hunger hormone’ as levels rise before we eat and drop straight after. Those consuming the indulgent shake had ghrelin levels dropping after finishing it, in line with what happens after you eat a filling meal. Those eating the sensible shake however, had almost no change at all in their ghrelin levels - signalling to them that they are still hungry. Other studies have shown similar effects on GLP-1, another hormone that, together with gherkin, directly affects our hypothalamus - the area of the brain responsible for our bodies energy intake and expenditure. 

Physically, if you believe a drink/meal to be more filling and dense, it will take longer to travel through the gut and be digested (and keeping you fuller for longer), than a meal you consider to be light. Research even suggests that food labelling might go as far as influencing the way we store fat cells in our gut and how fast we burn calories. 

So what to do about changing your eating mindset?

1. Hard as it might be to ignore, PLEASE try not to count calories. This is the hardest way to loose weight. A calorie from broccoli is not the same as a calorie from a donut. As you can see from above, even just seeing the calories listed on the menu might change how full you feel and how your body reacts to that meal.

2. Before eating a meal, try to take a moment to remind yourself of all the items you have already consumed that day. This will help you with portion control.

3. Try as often as possible to make meals yourself, and bulk up meals with as many ingredients as possible. Remember the more variety of fruit, veg and spices you add to a meal, the more you are boosting your nutrient and antioxidant intake. You are also helping feed your gut bacteria which relies on variety to be as healthy as possible.

4. Try to get savvy with understanding food labels. Gluten, sugar or dairy free does not equal healthy. Often when those ingredients are removed, what is used as a substitute is far worse.

5. Try to stick to the rule of: every meal should contain fibre, protein, complex carbs, healthy fats & a bunch of vegetables. This will help keep you full for longer, and is full of nutrients, antioxidants and vitamins.

6. Drink water, 2L+ a day. Often we think we are hungry but we are just dehydrated!

Feeling low? Overthinking everything? The change in season might be why.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine the seasons are believed to have a profound cyclical effect on our health and wellbeing. We are now entering ‘late summer’, signifying the move from the fire element, yang (summer), to the earth element, yin. This transition is not just about the climate around us changing, but about how it influences us; how we feel, what we should be eating & what’s happening in our bodies. 

At this time the activities of summer start to slow down as we approach the time of the harvest. 

The earth element is all about harmony and simplicity, it’s said to be the center of everything. This time of year is the space between extremes, the expansive growth of spring/summer and the contracting inward, cooling autumn/winter. The warmth of the summer sun is still here athough there is a damp coolness in the air as we move towards autumn.

Emotions: 

On an emotional level the earth element is all about nurturing, grounding and caring. It is the ‘mother’ element. Whilst the fire element pushes us to connect with others and opens us up to instant connection (summer freedom and fun!), the earth is all about long term deeper connections as people share experiences. If you are feeling a slight pull back from wanting to go out all the time as we move back into routine after summer, embrace it during this change of season. Worry, anxiety and overthinking are the emotions associated with the Earth element. In extreme cases worry becomes obsession - a habit of clinging to the same unproductive thoughts over and over again.

Spirit: 

Each organ houses a spirit, the spleen houses the Yi, the intellect. This influences our capacity to study, concentrate and take in information. 

Organs: Stomach and Spleen

During this time we focus on the digestive system, nourishment and stability. In TCM the digestive system is the root of all health, and the earth element, spleen and stomach are the governor of this. 

The stomach is responsible for receiving and ripening the food we eat and the spleen transforms and transports this food into our energy (Qi) and blood which are the basis for our general health, immunity, warmth, mental function and so on. The spleen also governs our blood and keeps it in the vessels.  The spleen rules our muscles and is responsible for their tone and strength. The spleen also opens to the mouth and manifests in the lips.

I’ve spoken before about how the spleen and earth element are damaged by dampness. This is both by a damp climate but also by damp foods such as cold, raw, fatty/greasy/fried food, refined sugars and dairy. Examples of ‘healthy’ but super damp foods are smoothies, sushi and avocado. 

When the earth element is out of balance (which we are more prone to at this time of year), you may see signs of loose stools, bloating, haemorrhoids, poor appetite or overeating, sleepiness after meals and IBS like flare ups (especially linked to anxiety and overthinking), muscle aches/weakness, easy bruising and pale/dry/cracked lips. Like the stomach churns our food, it also churns our thoughts - if digestion is out of whack so is our ability to deal with processing thoughts properly leading to circular thinking/overthinking/anxiety. Because the spleen governs the quality of thought, poor concentration is also a sign of a weak spleen. 

The next season is autumn, the metal element. The kings and large intestine are the related organs. Taking care of your earth element now will also help boost your immunity and healthy lungs for the autumn and winter.

How to care for your earth element:

• Eat warm, cooked food and drinks. Cold, raw food creates dampness in the spleen, interacting with its ability to transform and transport that food. Essentially, It is harder to digest. Swap yogurt & fruit to porridge in the morning. Eat slow cooked soups and stews. Time to ditch the salad, smoothie and sushi diet.

• Don’t skip breakfast. The Chinese clock shows that the digestion is strongest between 7-9 am, the time of the stomach. This sets up your digestion for the day. Opt for a warming hot breakfast like congee or porridge.

• Avoid ice water, dairy, refined sugars and fatty/greasy foods are also all considered damp and block the spleen.

• Consume ginger, fennel and coriander to warm up the tummy.

• Focus on in season foods and those that calm the center:

  • naturally sweet foods such as root vegetables (sweet potato, carrots, pumpkin). These nourish the earth element.

  • complex carbohydrates (quinoa, brown rice, millet) and legumes (beans, peas and lentils).

  • Tofu, soybeans, chestnuts, apricots, and cabbage.

• Prepare food simply with minimal seasoning and mild tastes.

• Chew well and don’t eat too late at night. The spleen loves routine. try to eat regularly and at similar times each day. Avoid overindulgence.

• Calm your centre and find a way to feel grounded. The earth element is all about stability and nurturing. Everyone is different but ideas might include things like meditation, gentle yin/restorative yoga, acupuncture or long walks in nature.

• Cleanse what you’re ingesting mentally. This might mean a social media or news cleanse or socialising less/more selectively. The autumn is all about letting go emotionally and this is the start of that. Overthinking comes from the stomach churning over and over and over the same thoughts. Just like ingesting hot nourishing food, surround yourself by nourishing friends and information.

• The colours yellow, golden, brown (and in some texts oranges) are the colours of the earth element. Include these colours in your living space or clothing at this time of year.

• Lastly, song is the sound of the earth element. So… SING! Sing in the shower. Sing whilst getting ready. Sing on the street… sing like no one is listening :)

The transition from summer to autumn can be tough, and some people dread this time of year. Resistance to the changing seasons can cause stagnation in the body and weaken the immune system. Acupuncture is particularly useful for helping our body and mind transition effortlessly between the seasons.

If you can’t get to an acupuncturist, here is a point you can acupressure at home:

Spleen 9 (Sp-9 Yin Ling Quan), the acupuncture point for resolving dampness anywhere in the body. located on the inside part of the lower leg in a dip. The easiest way to find the point is to run your thumb up the edge of the bone on the inside of your lower leg until it falls into a hole - if the point is active, it will feel tender. Gently press on this point for 20-30 seconds to help relieve a weak spleen (physical and mental-emotional symptoms listed above). 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QKmNRWQaA4

Do you have a family member with breast, ovarian, endometrial or prostate cancer? These are cancers that are linked to the metabolism of oestrogen in the body. For anyone, if you are not processing oestrogen properly you increase your chances of getting these cancers and for those with it in the family your chances are even higher.

Other conditions linked to oestrogen metabolism include lumpy (fibrocystic) breasts, hormonal acne (cystic, around the jawline and the mouth), endometriosis and fibroids. 

So what can you do to decrease your risk of these conditions and help alleviate them if you already have them?

Oestrogen is metabolised (broken down) via 3 different pathways in the body. Of these, 2 produce byproducts which are harmful to the body. So the aim is to encourage the body to utilise that one healthy pathway. 

Secondly, used oestrogen and these metabolites/byproducts are excreted via our stools/urine. If you are constipated and not going to the toilet at least once a day, the used oestrogen can get re-absorbed and re-circulated around the body. This is harmful. You wouldn’t think being constipated can be linked to developing breast cancer, but it really is! Being constipated is not something to be ignored and should be sorted out! 

1. Eat Brassicas/ Cruciferous veggies (kale, cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, Brussel sprouts, rocket, bok/pak choy, radish, turnips, mustard greens) are your new best friend. I have repeatedly shared my love for these vegetables in this group and it’s because they are fantastic for pushing the body to breakdown oestrogen via that healthy pathway. They also help the liver with detoxification generally and are anti inflammatory, anti carcinogenic and help inhibit the growth of existing cancer cells. Broccoli sprouts are up to 200 x more powerful than normal broccoli at doing this so make sure to buy some and include them in your daily diet.

Caution - sprouts grown in warm, humid conditions so can be contaminated. If you are purchasing pre-sprouted then ensure they have been stored in the fridge. Take extra caution if you are pregnant/immunocompromised in any way. You can stir fry them for a hot minute to help kill off any bacteria.

2. Eat Phytoestrogens: plant compounds that are structurally similar to oestrogen. These are oestrogen modulators, reducing oestrogen if you have too much, or substituting as oestrogen if you have too little. They also push the body to metabolise/break down oestrogen via the healthy pathway.

Examples of these foods are soybeans (not soy milk or tofu, instead go for fermented forms made from the whole bean like tempeh, miso, soy paste and natto which are also probiotic), legumes, lentils, chickpeas, flax seeds, parsley, thyme, celery and chamomile tea ! 

Flax seeds in particular have been extensively studied and found to lower a women’s breast cancer risk, especially true for post menopausal women. Flax seeds help decrease existing cancer, literally starving tumours of their blood supply! Flax seeds are also full of healthy fats and fibre, both important here too. Lentils and chickpeas also get special mention as they are FULL of fibre, protein and other nutrients and minerals that overall help maintain a healthy diet.

Further, miso (from fresh miso paste from brown rice is best) + wakame seaweed help to reduce levels of an enzyme (produced by out gut bacteria) called beta glucuronidase, which re-activates sex hormones (not ideal). The wakame can be eaten as is or can be used by adding it to the water when cooking food, like as a stock e.g. when cooking rice. 

3. Consume Fibre: My usual obsession comes into play here - increased fibre helps us have more consistent bowel movements - helping excretion of those sex hormones. Drink lots of water and eat vegetables & whole grains. Instead of aiming for the required 30g per day, try to include one source of healthy fibre with every meal.

4. Avoid endocrine disruptors (BPA, phthalates, dioxins, perchlorate and PFCs) – what is found in plastic containers, many cosmetics, candles etc. We are unable to excrete these products and they interfere with our hormones, especially oestrogen, increasing hormonal disorders like PCOS and infertility. Furthermore they cause mitochondrial damage and increase risk of cancer. They are linked to high androgens and trigger fat accumulation, prevents fat burning and causes gut dysbiosis. Oh and they stay in the body, cross the placenta and are absorbed by our babies. Think about your home cleaning products. Avoid bleach and heavy chemicals. Vinegar works well for cleaning a lot that you might not expect! Oh and avoid drinking out of takeaway coffee cups, the lids contain BPA!

A subcategory of these are called xenoestrogens. They are chemicals that are structurally similar to oestrogen and can bind to oestrogen receptions with very potentially hazardous consequences. The main examples of these are pesticides, herbicides and tap water. So where you can, buy organic and drink mineral (in glass bottles please!) or filtered water. 

5. Sorry to the cheese lovers but.. Avoid dairy. Milk is taken from pregnant cows. These cows have high levels of hormones in their system which pass through into their milk, and then into you when you consume dairy. Even if you have organic dairy products they still contain many hormones including oestrogen ! Whilst the amounts are ‘safe’ they do contribute to your overall oestrogen load and therefore should be avoided for you!

6. Special mention to nettle tea which is anti inflammatory and full of anti oxidants. It helps balance oestrogen and helps the liver with detoxification. Nettle tea is cooling ( this cooling + anti inflammatory is why it helps decrease red inflamed acne), but avoid drinking too much if you are a cold person. Nettle tea also particularly helps men with prostate cancer or an enlarged prostate. Liquorice root tea can also be helpful to the liver and with oestrogen metabolism, but caution having it too often as it can cause diarrhoea

7. Lastly, Blood sugar balance, chronic inflammation, poor digestion, chronic stress, poor sleep and nutritional deficiencies all also affect hormone balance. So, my usual rules apply but here some are again:

1. Avoid processed, refined sugars/foods and fried food and instead opt for whole grains, vegetables, nuts, seeds and fruit

2. Hydrate ! 8 glasses of water a day.

3. Avoid eating whilst working, snacking or eating too late.

4. Avoid caffeine, smoking and alcohol

5. Eat healthy fats: avocado, organic extra virgin olive oil, nuts and seeds, wild oily fish, hummus.

6. Increase your antioxidant intake: varied, colourful fruit and veg (eg blueberries, organic kale, sweet potato, green tea, turmeric and ginger)

7. Eat pro and prebiotic foods: onion, garlic, sauerkraut, kefir

8. Use relaxation techniques to manage stress: Epsom/magnesium salt & lavender baths, meditation, walking in nature, deep breathing, camomile tea.

9. Keep a healthy wake / sleep balance, don’t sit on your phone in the dark before bed or when you wake up. Get exposure to natural daylight as soon as possible when you wake and get good sleep hygiene in!

Feel bloated all the time and can’t figure out why? Low stomach acid might be the cause.

So, what does having low stomach acid look like? 

• Bloating

• Belching

• Flatulence (approx 1-2 hours after meals), especially after high fat or protein meals (e.g. a burger).

• Abdominal pain, cramping/feeling of extra strong fullness after eating

• Foul smelling/floating stools

Read on if this is you.

You probably all know that we have acid in our stomach, but what does this actually mean? When we eat, after our teeth have broken food up and the enzymes in our saliva have started breaking down any carbs we have eaten, food gets sent down to our stomach. Here our stomach muscles churn this food together and mix it with our gastric juice. Gastric juice is a mixture of stomach acid (hydrochloric acid, HCL) and a bunch of enzymes. 

This HCL has a pH of 2-3 (is very acidic) and its functions include: 

1. Breaking down proteins - Without stomach acid we CANNOT breakdown protein. This means proteins go undigested into the small intestine and literally rot and ferment (called putrefaction). This process produces chemicals (polyamines) which can damage the internal lining of the intestines and contributes to colon cancer. The production of these chemicals causes you to feel bloated, overly full and can make you release farts that smell bad (literally releasing these chemicals from rotting food!).

1. Breaking down fats - HCL triggers the release of bile (which helps break down fats) and pancreatic juice (full of more enzymes for more digesting) into the intestines from the gall bladder. So if you don’t have enough HCL, that means that you won’t be able to digest and absorb fats properly either!

1. Killing bacteria, viruses and fungi (which can’t survive such an acidic environment) - This can lead to dysbiosis or poor gut bacteria: if you are prone to getting thrush constantly, or stomach bugs this might be why! The undigested food in the body leads to bacterial overgrowth where it shouldn’t be, like in the case of SIBO (Small intestine bacteria overgrowth).

1. Required to convert iron and calcium into a form which we can absorb, so low HCL can cause iron deficiency anaemia (feeling tired all the time, cuts/sores at the corners of your mouth) or osteoporosis (low bone density, aka constant fractures)!

1. Lastly the cells that release HCL also release intrinsic factor, which is required to make vitamin B12. So, in the long term low HCL can lead to B12 deficiency

Luckily testing your HCL levels is super easy: 

first thing in the morning, mix ½ teaspoon of bicarbonate soda in glass of water and swallow. If you have sufficient HCl you’ll be belching within 2-3 minutes. Early + repeated belching can show excess HCl and no belching within 3 minutes means you have low HCL levels.  

What causes low HCL?

• chronic stress

• low vitamin B6, B1 or Zinc which are required in the production of HCL

• Autoimmune gastritis

• Medications eg proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) like omeprazole,

• Chronic H pylori infection (gets into stomach when the stomach acid levels are low, then can cause levels to increase),

• Ageing (after 50yrs old we gradually have less HCL anyway),

• A long term vegan or veggie diet may mean you have lower levels and hence more difficulty digesting dense proteins (tofu/tempe) as your body may have adapted by lowering HCl levels

So, if you have unexplained anaemia, osteoporosis or just constant bloating and tummy cramps, check our your HCL levels and start working on building it back up.

How to increase HCL levels:

• consume apple cider vinegar (with the mother/unpasteurised) mixed with a little water drunk just before each meal,

• Eat bitters 15-20 mins before a meal to stimulate HCl release: Gentian (v bitter; found in Swedish Bitters), Barberry bark (which is also antimicrobial, good for SIBO, reduces heat, and helps with insulin resistance), Andrographis, Dandelion (bitter + stimulates movement through the digestive tract, is a diuretic and supports the liver) + goldenseal. Bitter tasting foods eg fennel, rocket, chicory, artichoke + watercress are also great for this.

• Eat zinc (nuts, seeds, pumpkin seeds, eggs, oysters, fish, meat) and vitamin B6 foods (whole grains, sunflower seeds, legumes, walnuts, green veg, carrots, potatoes, avocado, fish)

• Avoid over-eating, eat mindfully, avoid processed food

• Eat fermented foods (sauerkraut, kombucha, coconut kefir, miso soup)

• Add some Himalayan/sea salt to food as this provides the chloride for HCl production

• Eat a little Cayenne pepper with food

• Avoid ice in drinks and DO NOT consume cold water. Room temp or hot drinks only!

• And, as a last resort, you can try supplementation of betaine hydrochloride (HCl) (as always please only supplement under proper professional guidance)

Orgasms: more than just for pleasure

For both men and women, studies show that frequent orgasms are *protective against heart disease* later in life. Orgasms generally *boost the immune system*, increasing the number of white blood cells which help us fight off disease and infections.

Orgasms also boost oxytocin (the love hormone) which is known for *increasing bonding and social cooperation* (not only with your partner but also helping us be calmer and more social generally). Orgasms also cause us to release endorphins from an orgasm, which helps *decrease any pain* going on.

Orgasms *decrease stress levels and help alleviate feelings of anxiety and depression*. All importantly, orgasms *help you live longer*. Studies have found that those who orgasm more have a lower mortality risk.

*Orgasms also help boost fertility* What happens physically when a woman orgasms: the pressure in the vagina, womb and uterus goes up. This allows the cervical mucus and sperm to get sucked up through the cervix, getting closer to the ovum in the Fallopian tubes where they are aiming to go.

The vagina is naturally acidic and most sperm die in this hostile environment. The cervical mucus is the safety net for sperm, its less acidic and is found lower down in the vagina at the cervix. This drops closer when a woman orgasms meaning sperm get to safety more easily.

If a woman orgasms 1 minute before or up to 3 minutes after ejaculation then her body will hold onto 10 million more sperm than if she didn’t.

Studies also show that frequent orgasms help *regulate the menstrual cycle* and the surges of hormones from climaxing *stimulate ovulation*. So, whether or not you’re trying to conceive, frequent orgasms help regulate your cycle generally.

These benefits are not just for women.

Regarding conception, whilst a male needs to ejaculate to produce the sperm needed to fertilise an egg, his level of arousal does also have an impact. Studies show that when a man is more aroused (and aroused for longer) the ejaculate contains a higher volume of sperm.

Traditional Chinese medicine stipulated that abstinence would increase the sperm count for mon. Modern research however suggests the opposite. Whilst not ejaculating for a while does means you have more sperm, the studies show that this sperm is actually made up of a backlog of old or damaged sperm. So, frequent ejaculation promotes less but better quality sperm.

Frequent ejaculation also helps *ward off prostate cancer* and other *immune boosting benefits* like increased white blood cells in the body after ejaculation helping ward off illness and infection

So, orgasms are good for your health; physically, mentally, for fertility and to help you live longer!!

Only 14% of women actually get morning sickness exclusively in the morning, so really it should just be called nausea in pregnancy. However, when you look at the reasons people get nausea in pregnancy, suddenly it makes a little more sense:

Blood sugar regulation has a huge part to play in morning sickness. When your blood sugar drops, you feel sick. Similarly to those that are pre-diabetic or diabetic when they enter a hypoglycaemic state. Since when you sleep, you are fasting, this is likely to be the longest period in a 24hour day that you don’t eat. Hence, when you wake up, your blood sugar will be at its lowest, and you will feel (the most) nauseous.

So what can you do about it? - balance your blood sugar! This means eating small amounts VERY regularly (EVEN if you are not hungry, eat pre-emptively), particularly just before going to bed, and having nearby food to eat immediately when you wake up. A good thing to try would be plain crackers such as ones made from quinoa or buckwheat (Amisa do some great ones). These will help stabilise your blood sugar but also are plain tasting so easier to stomach if you’re feeling sick. Try and eat protein with each meal, and opt for unrefined carbs (like quinoa, buckwheat, brown rice) as opposed to white carbs as these will keep you satiated (full) for longer and hence stabilise your blood sugar better. Fibre too, basically all the usual advice to stabilise blood sugar applies here!

What else? Stay hydrated - dehydration is a causative factor in morning sickness. Drink water - plus you need so much more hydration to replace the amniotic fluid (which gets replaced every 3 hours)! Soups/broths are also a great way to keep you hydrated, stabilise blood sugar (giving you all those electrolytes) and are usually easier to tolerate.

If you’re taking any supplements make sure to take them with food to avoid any nausea related to them. B6 supplements can be helpful in treating morning sickness, but as always (and especially in pregnancy) get proper advice before supplementing.

Ginger has been shown to be effective at helping decrease morning sickness. Try sipping ginger tea in small amounts.

Lastly, as already written about acupressure on the acupuncture point Pericardium 6 (see above for two to find it) has been shown to be effective. You can get motion sickness bands from the pharmacy and place the bead onto this point and wear them during pregnancy. Acupuncture is also safe and effective during pregnancy and can be hugely beneficial for morning sickness.

The good news is that morning sickness for the majority of women does ware off after week 13 so just keep going!

What to eat during pregnancy

This is in no way an exhaustive list, it is some items to think about if you are now eating for two!

• Starting with what to avoid: pate, soft/blue/unpasteurised cheeses, raw eggs, raw fish, green/sprouting potatoes, undercooked or cured meat, soft ice cream/fresh cream from dispensers.

• If you have a cat during pregnancy make sure someone else cleans out the litter tray. There is a risk of Toxoplasmosis which is an infectious parasite found in cat faeces, raw/undercooked meat, and in soil on unwashed fruit/veg. It’s rare but can be passed on to, and be dangerous for the baby.

• During pregnancy for the same reasons as above washing your fruit and veg properly is really important. The best washing method is to soak in apple cider vinegar then rinse well before eating.

• Try and drink filtered / mineral water and make sure you are drinking enough (8 glasses a day). Water is required to make up for the increased blood volume during pregnancy (30% more) and to replace the amniotic fluid around the baby (which is completely replaced every 3 hours). Being well hydrated lowers your risk of morning sickness, pre-eclampsia and constipation (very common during pregnancy and can be quite debilitating!)

• Caution with herbs and herbal teas in pregnancy as some can stimulate the uterus. Ginger peppermint and chamomile in small doses are ok but avoid parsley, pesto, rosemary, coriander, basil as they are stimulating.

• Try to avoid taking unnecessary medications during pregnancy - antibiotics and anti depressants have been linked to congenital defects.

• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of premature delivery, cancer and sudden infant death syndrome

What to eat & some supplements (always get proper advice before supplementing): 

• One of the most important, make sure you’re eating enough protein (an extra 6-10g per day). Protein are the building blocks and you are building a new human! It supports foetal, placental and maternal tissue growth. If you are not eating enough protein it can cause obesity, hypertension and blood sugar dysregulation in kids. Good protein sources include beans, lentils, quinoa, wild fish, organic eggs.

• Calcium helps with the building of the babies skeleton, teeth and brain and is protective of the mum’s bones too. Eating enough Calcium lowers the risk of pre-eclampsia. Sources include Kale, okra, green beans, sesame seeds, figs, red kidney beans, sardines, watercress.

• Magnesium lowers risk of pre eclampsia, foetal growth retardation, pre-term labour and metabolic dysregulation. Sources include : Almonds, pumpkin, spinach, barley, kelp, cashew, legumes, eggs, cod. If you are taking supplements stop in the last trimester as it can interfere with contractions.

• Iron is essential for oxygen transport & production of red blood cells. Sources: spinach, quinoa, legumes, pumpkin seeds, clams, beef, oysters.

• Vitamin A is important for foetal growth, development (especially the brain), vision, hearing, immune & respiratory system functions. Caution with supplements as preformed vitamin A is dangerous for the baby. Low vitamin A during pregnancy can cause anaemia. Sources include Apricots, barley, carrots, green leafy veg, kohlrabi, spinach, sweet potatoes. If you are trying for a baby make sure you have an optimal vitamin A status before conception - you can test levels / speak to a doctor or nutritionist about this.

• Vitamin D is always important but even more so during pregnancy. It’s used in calcium homeostasis, cell differentiation, immune function. Later in pregnancy 40-80% of women have low vitD status and this can affect the child’s bone health, brain development and increase risk of heart disease, diabetes, insulin resistance, dental issues, decreased muscle mass and pre-eclampsia. So, get Sun exposure (caution with melasma a darkening of face skin which can happen during pregnancy), eat sun soaked mushrooms, egg yolk, wild oily fish (sardines mackerel herring salmon and tuna) or take supplements. Magnesium, calcium and Vitamin D all work together so its best to make sure all levels are optimal.

• Omega 3 EPA/DHA are important for having a healthy birth weight, increased gestational length, a healthy BMI, improved infant visual performance, lowered levels of allergies, the babies brain function/mental function. Maternal fish oil supplementation helps decrease risk of food allergies and eczema/asthma in the child – eat wild oily fish, eggs, flax/chia seeds (caution not to consume too much flax as it is oestrogenic). Supplements of 200-300 mg DHA+EPA daily during pregnancy can be taken, but be sure to reduce 4 weeks before birth as they are an anti coagulant. Please be cautious with eating fish and supplements, non wild and poorly made supplements are full of toxins and heavy metals and may harm you more than they help! The brand Bare Biology seem to be the UK market leader in supplements of Omega 3.

• Think about your Gut microbiome. Having excess pre pregnancy weight/excess weight gain during pregnancy can cause gut flora changes which can predispose your child to obesity. Having a C section or not breastfeeding affects the babies microbiome. If you are having a C section it’s possible to ask the doctors to take swab of mothers vagina + put on babies face post birth to expose the baby to the vaginal microbiome which will help populate their gut! You can take probiotics (10 bill lactobacillus rhamnosus GG + bifidobacterium) which can moderate weight gain and decrease eczema dev in the child. It’s generally protective against allergy development when there is a family history of allergies.

Exercise & lifestyle: 

• In the first trimester opt for brisk walking, low impact exercise.

• In the 2/3rd trimester go for gentle pregnancy yoga, aqua natal classes.

• Try to rest + relax.

• Sleep!

• Try to lower stress levels and avoid endocrine disruptors/toxins.

• If you are very sporty before getting pregnant do speak to your doctor as you might be able to continue with exercise.

Try eating ginger: Substances in ginger block the vomit centre of the brain and the feeling of nausea (but has to be real ginger not sweets with flavouring/lots of sugar).

Acupressure: Pericardium 6 is an acupuncture point that has been proven in controlled trials to be effective against nausea and vomiting (including morning sickness in pregnancy and motion sickness). 

If you have ever brought travel sickness bands from a pharmacy, they are based on this acupuncture point - however mostly people keep them on at their wrist crease rather than on the correct spot. So here is how to find it, rest the button on the bands on this point - pressing down with the tip of your finger on this point if your feeling sick also helps.

Its located 2-3 finger widths from the wrist below the two prominent tendons of the arm. If you wiggle your fingers you will see the two tendons moving you’re aiming for between them!

In TCM, motion sickness is seen as a sign of damp or phlegm caused by a weakness in the spleen. The best way to work on this is by adjusting your diet, both how and what you eat. 

1. Eat regular meals (same time each day), and not too late at night.

2. Eat warm, cooked food and drinks - don’t have ice in your water/out the fridge and go for room temp or teas. Slow cooked foods for the win

3. Don’t overeat, and chew well. Mindful eating also plays a big part here. Try and take 10 minutes out your day to eat rather than cramming food down whilst staring at a screen

4. Avoid alcohol, dairy, sugar, gluten, white carbs, fried or oily foods, bad oils (margarine, vegetable oils), overly processed foods

5. Specific foods to strengthen the spleen: nettle, beetroot, sweet potato, camomile tea, brown rice, oats, squash, carrots, peas

As a reminder, dampness and a weak spleen in TCM is linked to digestive issues like diarrhoea or constipation, and with overthinking/anxiety (particularly the type that causes a bad stomach when you’re anxious/stressed).