They say aging is just a number, but what if it actually has more to do with your telomere length?

The diet dogma pervades, this time it’s with the alkaline diet that promotes eating “alkaline” foods to help prevent the blood from becoming too acidic.

I recently listened to an online webinar given by a so-called nutrition “expert” who has studied many nutrition modalities and was promoting the notion of eating alkaline foods, mainly fruits and vegetables and some grains and legumes, in order to keep your blood pH healthy. Although she didn’t explicitly say this, her message was quite clear that she was not a fan of eating meat, dairy, or fermented foods because they are very “acidic.” She also mentioned that studies have shown that cancer cells grow in more acidic environments.

While we’re in the middle of a pandemic, people are focusing more on nutrition as a way to support and improve their immune health.

Even though there is a lot of fear mongering surrounding covid-19, the good news is several studies have shown that various nutrients, herbs and foods can benefit the immune system. Moreover, recent studies have shown the importance of having adequate vitamin D levels to protect yourself against covid. The good news is that we can control a lot of aspects regarding our physical health starting with our nutrition.

The infant gut microbiome is characterized as low in diversity that’s dominated primarily by bifidobacteria and unique to the individual. During approximately the first three years of life, the gut microbiome develops and is largely shaped by various factors including delivery mode (vaginal vs Cesarean birth), maternal antibiotic use, home environment and breastfeeding vs formula feeding. The gut microbiome is later influenced by diet and how long the child was breastfed which affects the gut microbiota composition later in early childhood.

Several recent studies have shed light on the benefits breastmilk have on infant health and their developing gut microbiomes because it contains various components, such as beneficial bacteria, prebiotics called human milk oligosaccharides as well as immune cells, that confer long-term benefits for babies’ health including preventing malnutrition. Additionally, breastfed babies have been found to have less instances of allergies and metabolic disease, yet it is unknown how breastfeeding practices (i.e. nursing vs. pumping) affects the breastmilk composition and infant gut microbiome.

Pumping breastmilk has become a popular and convenient way for mothers to continue to feed their babies breastmilk, yet it is unknown as to whether this method affects the transfer of other non-milk-derived bacteria from the pump or bottles compared to maternal skin for example.

The importance of maintaining a healthy gut microbiome has been gaining more attention. 

The gut microbiome contains trillions of microorganisms, most of which are bacteria, and plays a major role in various aspects of our health. 

Probiotics and fiber have gotten a lot of fanfare lately when it comes to gut health, but in order to feed the “good bugs” or beneficial bacteria in our intestines, we also need to eat adequate prebiotics. 

Unlike probiotics, prebiotics are not live microorganisms, and although most prebiotics are different types of fiber, not all prebiotics are fiber. So what are they?

Ever since I was a little kid I have had stomach issues- vomiting, susceptible to stomach bugs, gas, bloating, etc. You name it, I’ve experienced it.

Unfortunately, as I grew older into my adult years, I didn’t outgrow my sensitive stomach. I finally went to a gastroenterologist who concluded that despite my symptoms of heartburn, gas, bloating and diarrhea, all I had was a mild case of acid reflux for which he prescribed me stomach acid blocking medicine.

I left his office infuriated because I knew that an antacid would not solve my underlying digestive issues, so I started to do my own research about digestive health and the gut microbiome and the role diet and lifestyle play in overall gut health, which has led me to publish various peer review articles about the gut microbiome and overall health. With some dietary and lifestyle changes I healed my gut which has greatly impacted my overall health and energy levels.

Many people were taught in school that the mitochondria are those little organelles that act as the powerhouses in our cells. Besides playing a key role in bioenergetics like ATP production, mitochondria are also responsible for glycolysis (the metabolic pathway that converts food into pyruvate) and cellular respiration (transfer of protons and electrons to create ATP), and the number of mitochondria in each cell can range from a few to thousands per cell depending on factors like age, nutrition, and exercise.

Women are cyclical creatures by nature in part because of our menstrual cycle. Unlike men, our hormones fluctuate throughout the month and even daily in most cases. Traditionally the menstrual cycle has been associated with the lunar cycles and seasons of the year. Unfortunately, the sacred nature of the menstrual cycle, its rituals and rites of passage from menarche to menopause has become lost in modern society, and as a result, the menstrual cycle has become a mystery and something to be ashamed of or even hated.

One of the reasons so few women let alone men know how the menstrual cycle works is because we’ve been taught that it’s gross and should be suppressed with hormonal birth control or stopped completely. Newsflash— without menstrual cycles, none of us would exist!

Medical intuition is a type of complementary and alternative medicine that involves a person tapping into their intuitive and psychic senses to gain insight into the energetic and physiological origins of illness and disease.

The practitioner can pick up on imbalances in a person’s energy field (aura), chakras, energy channels, physical organs and systems of the body as well as spiritual contracts and karmic patterns.

Although this practice is called medical intuition, the practitioner does not have to be a licensed medical professional and should therefore not be used as a substitute for medical care, treatment or diagnoses.

While we are in the midst of mandatory lockdowns around the world for the covid-19 pandemic, I can’t help but think that staying at home inside is probably the worst thing we can do for our immune systems, which has been stated by experts.

I know it’s radical to say this but excessively washing your hands, bathing and sanitizing your homes is not conducive of a healthy microbiome and therefore immune system.

This goes against everything we’ve been taught.

Vitamin D is like a superhero for your health, yet vitamin D deficiency is like a global pandemic.

Vitamin D regulates so many aspects of our health, and a deficiency in this nutrient has been linked to numerous autoimmune diseases. Furthermore, I believe the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency is a symptom of a bigger problem in modern society— people spend way too much time indoors and aren’t exposed to enough sunlight and aren’t getting out in nature enough.

One thing that’s become apparent to me throughout the years dealing with two pregnancies, one miscarriage, an autoimmune disease and various digestive issues is the current medical model doesn’t support women and ignores their unique intuitive and mystical nature.

The current allopathic medical model that pervades through most of the world has become toxic over the years. It does not aim to prevent illnesses or sustain optimal health or treat chronic diseases, but rather treats acute conditions. Doctors have little time with their patients, often just a few minutes, and rarely take into account a person’s whole health history, story or energetic imbalances.