For years I avoided the colour blue. If I was shopping and came across some clothing that was blue, I quickly passed it by. If a room was painted blue, it actually bothered me. I didn’t think much of it at the time. I just chalked it up to personal taste.

Looking back, during the same period I was also dealing with a low or sluggish thyroid condition. I never once thought about putting the two things together at the time.

Most of the guidance I was receiving about my thyroid back then followed the standard protocol and advice: check your levels, take medication, consider thyroid supporting supplements. No one ever asked me what colours I was drawn to or was repulsed by. Why would they? That’s not exactly part of a lab panel.

But then things began to change. As I worked to bring my autoimmune thyroid condition into remission (which I’ve kept in remission for 7 years now), I noticed I didn’t mind the colour blue so much anymore. It was a change that seemed to happen rather quickly actually. I found myself buying blue things and wanting more blue in my space. And my family noticed the change. They were shocked – ‘you actually like this? But it’s BLUE!?’

I’m not the first person to notice a connection between energy centres in the body and their relationship to certain colours. Knowledge on the body’s energy centres/chakras has been shared for centuries. Caroline Myss (well-known medical intuitive and author of several books on chakras and the mind, body, spirit connection) also goes into detail about this; the connection between the thyroid and the throat chakra, the colour blue, personal expression, setting boundaries, etc.

I’m not saying that disliking blue means your thyroid is struggling, or that liking it again means you’re in the clear. That’s not how this works.

For me, the part caught my attention was that my thyroid issues happened during a time in my life when I spent a lot of years staying quiet, swallowing things I may have wanted to say out loud and putting other people’s needs ahead of my own. I don’t think that proves there was a connection between the two, but I find it interesting.

There are small signals we get all the time that we can either notice or write off because we don’t know what to do with them. As a result of the journey I’ve travelled with my own health and watching and helping others, I feel strongly that the body communicates in ways that don’t always show up on a lab report. It has made me start paying attention to signals I previously wouldn’t have noticed.

I’ve talked to enough women dealing with their own issues now to know I’m not the only one who has wondered about these kinds of connections. Obviously correlation isn’t proof of anything, and I don’t mean to say that it is.

What I do think is worth doing is paying attention to the subtle things a little more closely. Not analyzing, definitely not diagnosing yourself based on a colour preference, just noticing. Could there be colours you are avoiding right now? What colours do you gravitate towards without thinking about it? Are there other little things your body seems to be telling you that you’ve been dismissing because they don’t seem important or make any sense?

It might mean nothing. Or it just might be worth sitting with for a few minutes.

Talk soon,

Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

I was standing in the grocery store some years ago and an acquaintance came up to me to say hello. I completely blanked on her name. It wasn’t a short delay while I took a second to remember her name. It was a noticeably delayed blank stare, while she stood there smiling at me and I smiled back trying to buy myself time. I actually couldn’t remember her name until hours later. I could see she didn’t look well and I worried for a long time that she thought my blank stare was about how unwell she looked, when it was me simply struggling to remember her name.

I had another experience while working. I was climbing the stairs to attend a meeting and I blanked out. I felt fatigued, my brain seemed to have shut off, and I wondered how long I could keep going before someone realized my brain and my memory were not keeping up the way they should be.

That was it. Deep down, I knew my brain was fully functioning, but there had been times lately when it felt like my brain was trying to see through a thick fog. I had to do something.

We might misplace our keys, forget a name, walk into a room and forget why we’re there. People nickname them ‘senior moments’ or ‘menopause brain’. I use to agree until I started to realize that not everyone deals with this.

We’ve been told for years that this is just what happens. You hit your late 40s, 50s, and your brain gets a little softer around the edges, and everyone nods like that’s just what happens when get older. There are tons of jokes about getting older and ‘losing our minds’.

But I have so much more I want to accomplish. I’m also pretty independent and am trying to not find myself having to be ‘taken care of’ down the road. I truly feel for those dealing with cognitive decline and even more so the families that have to watch the decline of their loved one (doing that myself now too).

So using my nutrition background, the many wellness seminars I had attended, my hands-on experience with several supplements over several years and learning who the people were I could trust in the industry to lead me to helpful information, I started looking into what’s actually connected to memory and cognitive decline. Sure enough, it turns out a lot of it has nothing to do with age itself.

We have all heard about doing mental exercises for neuroplasticity, getting exercise to keep the circulation moving, eating healthy foods, etc. For me, I have narrowed down six additional things I feel are important for me in trying to prevent cognitive decline as I age:

1. Vitamin B12

Everyone thinks of B12 as purely a vitamin for energy and healthy red blood cells, but it’s just as importantly tied to nerve function, balance and especially cognitive health.

B12 is one of the nutrients I now pay a little more attention to as I get older. Our actual B12 requirement doesn’t necessarily increase with age, but our ability to absorb B12 from our food can decrease. Why? Because stomach acid plays an important role in pulling the B12 from food, and lower stomach acid becomes more common as we age or when we are under a lot of stress, etc. Certain medications and digestive issues can also interfere with absorption. Getting enough B12 isn’t something I want to leave to chance.

Someone near and dear to me is suffering from severe memory loss and I will always believe that their situation relates to a Vitamin B12 deficiency the individual knew about but left untreated for decades. As the experts warn, once you have run out of Vitamin B12, the side effects such as memory loss begin, and it’s pretty much impossible to reverse a severe, long term Vitamin B12 deficiency.

For me the best form of Vitamin B12 is actually in the form of a lozenge that dissolves under the tongue. Dissolving the lozenge under the tongue means that it doesn’t require my digestion and/or sufficient stomach acid (which most of us don’t have) to absorb it; by dissolving it under the tongue, the vitamin is able to head more directly to my bloodstream.

One other thing I find interesting is that a B12 blood test isn’t always the whole picture. If someone has symptoms that suggest B12 deficiency but their B12 result doesn’t seem to suggest a deficiency, there are additional markers a healthcare provider can look at. I think that’s worth knowing rather than assuming that one number automatically gives you the complete answer. Dr. Ben Lynch talks about it more here.

2. Phosphatidylcholine

Choline is usually talked about for its role in liver health and helping the body transport and process fats, but what got my attention is that it is also important for the brain and nervous system.

As it turns out, our bodies can make some choline, but not enough to meet all of our needs, so we also have to get it from our diet. And as we age we may get less choline from our diet without realizing it.

Interestingly, estrogen plays a role in the body’s ability to make choline, so as my estrogen levels started to decline through menopause, the need to ensure I was getting enough choline became important1.

I’m not suggesting that taking phosphatidylcholine is going to prevent memory loss. But for me personally, I actually notice a difference in my focus and sharpness if I don’t take it regularly.

3. Lion’s Mane Mushroom

Lion’s Mane is another one I started paying attention to because of its potential benefits for the brain.

Paul Stamets, a well-known mycologist and mushroom researcher has spent decades studying mushrooms like Lion’s Mane and their potential effects on body and the nervous system. (You can find a lot of information and research on Lion’s Mane online.)

Research has found that compounds in Lion’s Mane mushrooms help to protect the myelin sheath and may support the growth and development of neurons (a type of brain cell), which is particularly interesting when you’re thinking about maintaining brain function as you get older.

Some people enjoy eating cooked fresh Lion’s Mane mushrooms. I prefer to incorporate Lion’s Mane mushroom powder regularly in my ‘special coffee’ (Here’s a link to a previous article about my daily ‘special coffee’ that incorporates 2 types of health supporting mushroom powders and I think tastes delicious.)

For me, it’s a simple addition, and considering what we know so far about the potential of Lion’s Mane mushrooms to support the brain and nervous system, it’s one I’m continuing to enjoy.

4. Lowering Fats

This is probably the one that goes against almost everything we’ve been told about healthy eating over the past several years.

Avocado toast. A spoonful of nut butter. MCT oil or butter in your coffee. Cooking with olive oil or avocado oil. High amounts of fats including the saturated fat found in meats such as pork and prime rib. We’ve been encouraged to add healthy fats to just about everything, often with the idea that we’re doing something particularly good for our brain.

I used to eat considerably more fat for exactly that reason. But the more I learned about how the brain gets its energy (hint – it needs glucose) and what happens when there is too much fat circulating in the body, the more I started questioning whether I really needed to be adding lots of fat to every meal.

I also came across research looking at fat accumulation and the brain. While the brain naturally contains fat and needs it to function, researchers have found that having too much fat stored in the wrong places is associated with changes in brain structure and cognitive function2.

I now try to follow the advice Medical Medium offers and keep my mornings fat free and I’ve cut the overall amount of fats and oils I eat by about half compared to what I used to consume.

I’m not saying we don’t need fat. But we just don’t need the huge amounts we are consuming. Most people are adding higher amounts of fats and oils than is really needed to almost every meal. It’s surprisingly easy to add a lot without realizing it.

(Did you know that with most weight loss programs, the amount of fats and oils is heavily restricted and kept to around 2-3 tablespoons max per day. Eating less fats and oil can help with weight loss too.)

I’m still eating fat. I’m just no longer buying into the concept that more healthy fat automatically means better brain health.

And of course, limiting the oxidized oils and fats (like deep fried foods, or old oil that has sat too long or been improperly stored) is equally important to help protect the brain.

5. Avoiding heavy metals

Mercury and aluminum keep showing up strongly in research connected to dementia and Alzheimer’s, and that alone is enough for me to take it seriously. I’ve don’t store food in aluminum containers, I only drink from glass containers or ceramic coated travel mugs (not stainless steel lined travel mugs or drinks sold in cans – can anyone else taste metal when they drink out of metals cans?). I use parchment paper instead of foil, and I’m paying more attention to the fish I eat and how often. I also don’t use a fork or metal spoon to stir my food when I’m cooking.

Not because I think I’m going to avoid all toxic heavy metals out there by doing these things. We are already dealing with toxic heavy metals in many cosmetics, hair colour products, skin and body care products; it’s in the pesticides sprayed on our food, in our skies and in our ocean water and there’s just no way to completely avoid them. So I’m choosing to take control of what I can and I believe these choices can make a significant enough difference for me.

I also make a point of including parsley, cilantro and apples in my diet because of their role in helping the body process toxic heavy metals. They’re simple whole foods that I can easily incorporate.

6. Avoiding gluten

I know, gluten is the culprit behind everything these days and it’s exhausting and sad at the same time. Like they say ‘Of all the things I’ve lost, I really miss gluten!’ But for a lot of people, myself included, it shows up as brain fog before it ever shows up as anything digestive. (It also shows up as pain around my joint tissue exactly 2 days later.)

Sometimes people don’t make the association between the bread they ate yesterday and the brain fog they feel today. I didn’t believe it until I cut it out and noticed the difference in how much clearer my head felt within days. Not weeks. Days. That one surprised me.

I didn’t overhaul my whole life overnight and I’m not telling you to either. It’s six things, out of probably a dozen or more I could list, that I’ve learned along the way. It’s important that we do what we can to take care of our bodies and especially our brains.

I’m not expecting to prevent every change that comes with getting older. But I’m doing what I can now to give my brain the best support I can. Maybe there’s something here that makes sense for you too.

Talk soon,

Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

I was doing exactly what I’d been told to do, and I did it for quite some time. “Don’t be afraid of fat.” “Fat is your friend now.” I was even told that you could tell if people were getting enough healthy fats because their face would have a nice ‘glow’.

It was supposed to help me feel better but yet I still wasn’t feeling like myself. I was feeling sluggish. A little foggy. My skin would itch but then it would go away. And very slowly, I found that my weight was also starting to creep up.

It turns out that consuming more fats and oils than you need matters a lot. It’s not just about what kind of oils and fats but how much is equally if not even sometimes more important.

As it turns out, your body doesn’t actually need very much fat to function. But the amount most of us are consuming tends to be far more than what’s actually required.

Here’s what nobody tells you: your liver is already busy. It has hundreds of jobs to do every day, filtering out toxins, conjugating hormones, breaking down protein into usable amino acids, hanging on to toxins it can’t yet process and so much more. When we overburden it with too much fat, it bogs down. It doesn’t have the energy left over to keep up with everything else on its list. And eventually your liver is going to start sending you messages that it needs help. Like weight gain, belly fat, skin rashes, gallbladder issues, hormone issues.

Too much fat can also crowd out the water in your bloodstream, potentially leaving you dehydrated. And when there’s too much fat circulating, it gets in the way of glucose actually reaching your cells, so the sugar you consumed for energy struggles to make it to where it needs to go. The sugar stays in your bloodstream much longer than it should. And you end up feeling tired because the glucose you are supposed to be using for energy is being blocked.

I’m not saying to cut out fat completely. We need some. Essential fatty acids exist for a reason. This isn’t about replacing one hard rule with another. But it might be worth paying attention to how much fat is showing up in your day. The oil in the pan, the veggie dips and sauces, the handful of nuts, the avocado, the oil laden dressing. None of it looks like much on its own. But when you add up the total consumed in a day or in a week, it’s often a lot more than we think.

Maybe it’s time to rethink the amount of fat we’re consuming so we can give our livers a break and at the same time help that glucose make it to where it’s needed.

It’s good to keep the awareness you already have about quality and avoiding seed oils as much as possible. Maybe try cutting back on the quantity for a while (even cutting it by half) and see what happens.

Talk soon,
Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

Almost all of us have times when a symptom develops that starts to concern us. Like having issues with getting a good night’s sleep for instance.

I went through a stretch of this myself a few years ago. Falling asleep was never the issue. Staying asleep was. I would regularly wake up sometime between 2 - 4 am and it would take quite some time for me to fall back to sleep. However, when I mentioned it to others, even my doctor, the typical answer would be “That’s just what happens when you get older.” Like it was just a normal part of aging and I should just learn to accept it.

Something didn’t sit right with me though. Maybe it helped that I wasn’t yet willing to accept any part of the ‘getting older’ category. So the research and the trial and error began.

I learned the importance of magnesium and started taking it at suppertime or early evening. And it helped for a while. Then I learned I had to be careful of the time and what I was eating for supper as too much of the wrong food too close to bedtime would result in my digestion wanting to work while I needed to sleep.

Eventually I was able to really tune in to how my body responds and what it needs, so now when I have sleep issues come up, I start checking off the list to see what my body might be telling me until I can get back to sleeping soundly again.

What I couldn’t accept was that sleep issues were just the result of normal aging. And I was right. Sleep issues are one symptom we experience where our bodies are trying to tell us something is missing or something is off. And rather than just accepting it as a part of getting older, I got to learn for myself that I didn’t have to settle for poor sleep just because I had had a few more birthdays.

Insomnia isn’t the only thing women (and men) get handed this line about. Joint stiffness, brain fog, memory issues, high blood pressure, etc. It all gets filed under the same heading: getting older. And once something has that label, you’re supposed to just accept it. Why would you question it? You’ve already been told there’s nothing to find.

I’m coming to grips with the fact that I’m getting older, and that my body is going to make some shifts. That part is real.

But getting older and giving up the right to ask questions are two different things. “Normal for your age” gets used far too often as a stand-in for “I don’t know.” And once you accept that label, you stop looking for what’s actually going on.

So now, when something shifts or a symptom appears, I don’t ask myself “is this just age?” I ask what changed right before it started. Maybe a new habit, a new stress, new food, missing nutrients or something that I stopped doing. Tuning into my body and questioning what it might need has gotten me so many more answers and solutions than blindly accepting “that’s just what happens as we age.”

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Talk soon,
Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

The rest of my family also enjoy my special coffee, just not as often as me.

We know that coffee is controversial. We worry about pesticides and other chemicals ending up in our coffee. The effects of too much coffee on our adrenal glands. Those concerns are real.

But I, like most people, still want to enjoy a good cup of coffee. Good coffee reminds me of what my Oma used to make. And the delicious and aromatic cup made by a café owner during a trip to Italy with my daughter.

So I decided that if there are certain foods or drinks (like coffee) I’m going to consume that are questionable for my health, I’m going to try and see if I can make it a little better for me. See if I can add something that tips the balance in a healthy way at least a little. That way I enjoy my coffee and don’t worry near as much about any ill effects from it.

Why is my morning coffee special? Because I add a rounded teaspoon of mushroom powder. Reishi and Lion’s Mane mushroom powders, specifically.

Most people have heard of mushrooms as food. Medicinal mushrooms are a different conversation. No these are not psychedelics either.

Reishi mushrooms have been studied for their effects on immune function, stress response, and inflammation. Reishi mushroom powder helps buffer the acidity of the coffee, which makes it a little easier on the body. It’s been referred to as the ‘Medicine of Kings’.

About a third of my blend is Lion’s Mane. The name alone sounds majestic. This one has been studied for its supportive effects on brain health and cognitive function. Specifically the growth of new neurons (brain cells). It has also been shown to protect the myelin sheath (the covering surrounding the nerve fibres). This matters, especially as we get older.

Anything small that I can add into my routine like this just makes me feel like I’m in charge of my health.

It doesn’t have to be complicated. It just has to be something.

Do you have a special ingredient you add to your food or drinks as part of your own self-care?

Talk soon,
Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

Unless you’re someone who is working out or doing something very physical for long periods of time, you don’t need high amounts of protein for rebuilding and repairing tissue.

You’re already getting plenty of amino acids (the building blocks of protein) from the rest of the healthy foods you eat.

What I actually want to talk about is something that got completely buried in all of that noise.

Fruit and protein digest at completely different speeds.

This is one of the first things you learn in nutrition school. Different foods digest at different rates and need different conditions in the body to break down properly.

Fruit digests fast. Your body handles it easily. That’s part of why a fruit-based smoothie gives you a real lift in the morning. Your body gets to use that glucose quickly.

Protein takes significantly longer. Your stomach needs to become more acidic. Enzymes work harder. The process is slower.

When you blend both together, your body can’t handle them the same. The fruit sits in your stomach longer than it should. The glucose your brain and muscles were counting on gets held up in your bloodstream raising your blood sugar. And you end up feeling heavier and more sluggish than you expected, often without understanding why, because everything in that smoothie looked perfectly healthy.

This is Holistic Nutrition 101. Somewhere along the way it got completely buried under the protein conversation.

Most women don’t have a protein problem. They have a digestion problem.

I see this regularly. Women doing a lot of the right things and still lacking the energy they desire. Many have already bought into the idea that they need more protein, so they’ve added powder to their smoothies, their oatmeal, their coffee, and they still don’t feel well. But what’s important to note is that too much protein can be hard for most of us to digest. (And don’t get me started on how this starts to overburden their livers in turn affecting their hormone balance.)

Protein deficiency is for the most part a myth. Most people eating a variety of foods get plenty of protein through whole foods without ever thinking about it. The protein powder industry has a clear financial interest in making you believe otherwise, and mainstream wellness has unfortunately just repeated that message.

When digestion is already compromised, adding more protein makes things worse. Many protein powders also contain sweeteners, binders, and additives your body has to sort through on top of the protein itself. Protein powder is a highly processed ‘food’. I thought we were supposed to be eating fresh, unprocessed foods?

What I actually do.

My smoothies are fruit-based. No protein powder. I add leafy greens, sometimes a strip of dulse for minerals, occasionally some spirulina. I keep it simple.

If I want protein later, I’ll have it at least an hour or 2 after my smoothie if I’m even hungry by then.

I’ve been doing this for years now and feel noticeably better doing it this way.

Consider trying this.

Skip the protein powder (Greek yogurt, nuts and nut butters as well) for two or three weeks. Keep your smoothie fruit and greens based. If you still want protein in the morning, have it separately, at least an hour or two later.

Pay attention to any changes in how you feel. Does your digestion feel easier? How is your energy?

We’ve been thoroughly trained to believe more protein equals better health. Taking it out can feel like you’re doing something wrong. You’re not. You’re just paying attention to what your body wants you to know.

Until next time,
Debbie

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

It started almost 20 years ago. I was following all the wellness advice I heard about and read about. I was eating my “healthy fats” and I had replaced my table salt with Himalayan or sea salt. I was making the ‘better choices’ that the latest marketing hype told me to do.

But along the way, something also started to change with my body.

I was feeling so tired. My eyes were frequently bloodshot. I even fell asleep in the middle of a conversation with a friend. That’s when the idea of a sluggish thyroid came up, and I went down the rabbit hole of learning more about the trace mineral called iodine.

When You’re Running Low

I learned that too little iodine doesn’t always have obvious symptoms. A lot of the time, it’s very subtle.

Fatigue can be a big clue but fatigue can have many other root causes too. Low iodine can be connected to things like cystic acne or those strange ganglion cysts that seem to appear out of nowhere. And without enough iodine, the body literally can’t produce thyroid hormone properly. (You do need other cofactors to make thyroid hormone but iodine is definitely important.)

Research has also linked iodine deficiency to changes in breast tissue and a higher risk of breast cancer. It’s also important during pregnancy and fetal development.

Iodine matters, even if hardly anyone seems to be talking about it anymore.

The Problem Is…

The more I started learning about iodine, the more I realized how easy it is for women to unknowingly end up low in it.

We no longer get enough iodine because it’s another one of those minerals that are deficient in our soil. And the fluoride in some tap water and the bromine in bread compete for absorption of iodine in the body.

TOO LITTLE can eventually lead to symptoms.

But TOO MUCH iodine can also cause unwanted reactions. I’m not trying to scare you here because iodine is important but trust me you want to respect iodine. Too much iodine can not only leave you on the couch for a day (it happened to me personally), but it can also negatively affect your thyroid and I’ve seen it leave someone with a detox skin rash that took months to go away.

Your body does best with steady, small balanced amounts of iodine, not mega-doses.

Iodized table salt provides a very small amount of iodine. It was originally added to deal with a rise in goiter issues. And some people prefer not to consume salt.

Sea salt and Himalayan salt offer more minerals than refined and processed table salt, but sea salt and Himalayan salt contain very little if any iodine.

So What Do We Do?

Adding in more foods that naturally contain iodine can be a gentler and safer approach to getting sufficient iodine. Here are some foods that can provide a source of naturally occurring iodine:

Sea vegetables (dulse strips or flakes, nori, kelp, wakame)
Crunchy seaweed snacks may contain some iodine (check with the manufacturer)
Seaweed wraps may contain some iodine (again check with the manufacturer)
Spirulina powder (start with tiny amounts)
Cranberries
Potatoes
Navy beans
Sprouts
Onions
Dandelion
Parsley
Lettuces/Leafy Greens

My favourite ways to incorporate iodine:

- adding a sprinkle of spirulina powder to my green smoothies.

- adding a small strip of dulse seaweed to my smoothies (not just green smoothies)

- adding 2-3 dulse strips to my slow cooked or pressure-cooked homemade soups and stews

As a Sidenote

One thing I will mention is the old “paint iodine on your skin” test that many people have heard about. It can be somewhat helpful but if you really want to assess your own iodine status, there is another way.

There is an assessment test referred to as an iodine loading test, which can often be done from home over a 24-hour period and then mailed to a lab for analysis. It’s something you may wish to explore with the guidance of a knowledgeable natural health practitioner if you suspect iodine deficiency or want a clearer picture of your levels. I took this test myself 20 years ago.

Obviously, if you have a thyroid concern, or are taking any medications that might interact, please use your own good judgment or obtain the advice of a health practitioner before making any changes. And again, if you have a thyroid issue, there is usually more going on than an iodine deficiency.

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.

A headache. Digestive issues. Anxiety. Brain fog. Tight muscles. Exhaustion.

And of course, when symptoms show up, we want relief. We should want relief. If your body is struggling, it only makes sense to support it physically.

But it’s also worth considering whether there might be something deeper, more emotional or spiritual going on. Sometimes simply becoming aware of it can help us understand what our bodies may be trying to tell us.

Symptoms don’t usually come out of nowhere. They often show up subtly at first. They might come and go. They might flare during stressful seasons. Then over time, after years of overextending, suppressing emotions, ignoring exhaustion, or continually pushing through, they can become much harder to ignore.

This is the piece that often gets missed in both conventional medicine and even many wellness spaces.

We become so focused on “What supplement should I take?” or “What food should I eliminate?” that we forget to ask whether there’s a message underneath that same symptom.

For example, maybe the tightness in your shoulders is due to muscle weakness or tight neck muscles. But if you look deeper, could it also be a sign of the added weight or responsibilities you’ve been carrying for a while now?

Maybe digestive symptoms really are connected to food sensitivities or needing to eat more fresh, unprocessed food. But is there also an underlying anxiety affecting your digestion?

Maybe that exhaustion is strongly connected to hormones, nutrient deficiencies, or sleep disruption. But are you also living a life that no longer brings you joy, fulfillment, or a sense of connection to yourself?

If we want to feel well and whole again, I think we need to start connecting all the dots. Supporting ourselves physically while also paying attention to the emotional and spiritual pieces that may be asking for our attention.

Our bodies process far more than food. They process stress, relationships, grief, fear, pressure, burnout, emotional pain, and the pace of modern life. Sometimes the body starts speaking when we’ve stopped listening.

Sometimes the answer is purely physical. Sometimes it isn’t. Most of the time, I think it’s a combination of things.

I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.

This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.