Everyday Wellness: Midlife Hormones, Menopause, and Science for Women 35+

Dr. Barr joins me on this episode and I am thrilled! Dr. Barr is a dual board-certified dermatologist and menopause specialist. She is a prominent leader in women's medicine, creating a bridge between hormones, skin, and mind-body medicine to optimize the mid-life experiences of women. She is a fierce patient advocate dedicated to uncovering the root cause of hormonal imbalances. Dr. Barr empowers women worldwide to take control of their health and hormones in menopause. Dr. Barr takes a different approach to skin health. She realized that as women head north of thirty-five, the emphasis is always on the concept of anti-aging and finding ways to camouflage the effects of aging. So she helps women appreciate that their skin can be an ally because it can help them understand what happens in their bodies and empower them to make the changes that are within their control. In this episode, Dr. Barr and I unpack the changes that happen to women's skin from the age of thirty-five onward. We dive into skin physiology, the impact of hormones, and the changes that occur as we age. Dr. Barr explains how our skin reflects our physical, mental, and emotional well-being and talks about progesterone, stress, and regulating the nervous system. We discuss Botox, self-love, the social conditioning of women, the benefits of breath-work, getting enough sleep, and taking the time to enjoy yourself. We talk about psoriasis, food, choosing the best skin care products, and caring for your skin, and Dr. Barr shares her thoughts on skin peels, lasers, and bio-identical hormone supplementation. I hope you gain a lot from this insightful conversation with Dr. Barr! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What motivated Dr. Barr to help women navigate middle age and beyond? Dr. Barr unpacks skin physiology, the impact of hormones on the skin and hair, and the changes occurring in our skin throughout our lives. How does our skin reflect our physical, mental, and emotional well-being? The impact of progesterone on the skin and hair. The impact of stress. The importance of regulating your nervous system. How you see yourself will impact what shows up on your skin. How to make your skin your greatest ally. How can breath-work and rest help your skin repair, recover, and rejuvenate? Some skincare tips. Navigating the choices around cleaner and safer skincare products. Dr. Barr shares her thoughts on skin peels, laser procedures, and bio-identical hormone supplementation. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Keira Barr Social: IG: https://www.instagram.com/drkeirabarr Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keirabarr/ Website: https://www.drkeirabarr.com Book: The Skin Whisperer Books mentioned: Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor Estrogen Matters by Avrum Bluming The XX Brain: The Groundbreaking Science Empowering Women to Maximize Cognitive Health and Prevent Alzheimer's Disease by Lisa Mosconi Resources mentioned: Environmental Working Group

Today, I feel honored to share the first of two episodes with one of my favorite women in the health and wellness space! Dr. Tabatha Barber is a triple board-certified OB-Gyn specializing in perimenopause, menopause, and functional medicine. She is often affectionately referred to as the Gutsy Gynecologist, and she has a wonderful podcast called The Gutsy Gynecologist Show. Dr. Barber is speaking out on behalf of middle-aged women! She does not focus on any specific age group because she prefers to think about women on a continuum. In this episode, she talks with me about perimenopause, lifestyle management, and navigating the transition to middle age. We discuss the impact of oral contraceptives, their effect on the gut microbiome, and informed consent. We talk about vitamin and mineral depletion and therapies typically used in middle age- including IUDs, ablations, and hysterectomies. We dive into how to navigate cycle mapping and successfully integrate intermittent fasting during perimenopause. We also briefly touch on how to manage vasomotor symptoms. I hope you will gain a lot from this invaluable podcast! We will be sharing the second part of this show later this summer. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Barber explains what inspired her to help and support women throughout their lifetime. What changes happen in women's bodies as they move past the peak fertility years? How do we prepare for the time when our bodies are no longer fertile? It is vital to make the connection between gut health and gynecological health. The issue with birth control pills. How can women who have IUDs, or those who have had an ablation or a hysterectomy and still have their ovaries, understand where they are in their cycle? Why is so little research done on women, and why are women not getting the care they deserve from their medical practitioners? Problems that exist within the current medical system. Women need to ask their health care providers “why?”. How to manage vasomotor symptoms. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Tabatha Barber On her website The Gutsy Gynecologist Show On Instagram and TikTok

I am delighted to have the opportunity to connect with Dr. Rick Johnson today! Dr. Johnson is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado and is a clinician and researcher. He is an international expert on sugar and fructose and has made many discoveries on how sugar and fructose play a role in obesity and diabetes. Dr. Johnson is a gracious, humble, and brilliant man! He is also extremely curious and loves diving into things! As well as running a clinical practice, he has been doing medical research throughout his career. In this episode, we talk about his new book, Nature Wants Us to Be Fat. We get into how his curiosity has fueled his entire medical career, and talk about the intricate connection between fructose, weight gain, and re-gaining weight. We discuss the impact of obesity and hormonal regulation and how fructose lowers the ATP and impacts the mitochondria. We talk about artificial sweeteners, the polyol pathway, and uric acid. We dive into dehydration and explain how it can create fructose in the body. We also talk about the impact of alcohol and the Switch Diet. I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation as much as I did while recording it! Stay tuned to find out all you need to know about the biological switch that drives obesity! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What led Dr. Johnson to write the book Nature Wants Us to Be Fat? The role hibernation plays in the metabolic health of wild animals. How being mildly overweight can sometimes be associated with living longer. Dr. Johnson shares his thoughts on the CICO (Calories In Calories Out) model and explains how weight gain and obesity are driven by more than just calories. The role fructose plays in weight gain and metabolic disease. The association between sugar and obesity can be traced a long way back in human history. How do some foods make us hungrier and less active? Dr. Johnson talks about the breakthrough that occurred after the hormone leptin was discovered. How fructose impacts the ATP (the energy sparked in a cell) and triggers weight gain. Why fasting and low carb diets can help to cure obesity and maintain weight loss and overall health. What is dehydration, and why is it so significant? How salt- specifically sodium chloride, impacts weight gain. What happens in the body when we consume alcohol? There is a link between the craving for alcohol and the sugar craving. Dr. Johnson talks about the Switch Diet. He explains what it is and what it incorporates. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Rick Johnson On his website On Instagram and Twitter

I am delighted to have Joel Greene, one of my favorite biohackers, joining me today! Joel is very well-known in the health and fitness community! He is knowledgeable and passionate about science, and he has some fresh and distinctive notions about the gut microbiome and weight loss. Joel is the author of The Immunity Code. He has figured out different ways for us to focus on our gut microbiome and immune function while targeting specific pathways in the body that could amplify our results for body composition and various other things. In this episode, we dive into common ideologies and dogma, diet variations, and how the second law of thermodynamics relates to food. We discuss calories in calories out, the health of the gut microbiome, dysbiosis, inflammation, butyrate, fasting amplifications, and the concept of reductionism. Joel also shares some hacks for overall wellness and better sleep quality, and I talk briefly about my background and health journey. Tune into today's fascinating conversation with Joel Greene to learn how to optimize your health with very little effort! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What motivated Joel to move from being an interval trainer with Olympic lifting to where he is today. There is an ongoing debate amongst scientists around calories in calories out. How he relates the second law of thermodynamics to food and body composition. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is vital for sustained metabolic health. Why people should eat whatever they want, from time to time to get their desired outcomes There are both positives and negatives to following a low-carb diet. There is a good rationale for being flexible and mixing things up in your diet. The Immunity Code is all about doing things that yield big results and require little effort. Joel talks about the main tenets of The Immunity Code. The myriad benefits of increasing the populations of certain species of “lean” bacteria in the gut. Joel shares his thoughts on butyrate. The right way to re-introduce fiber when recovering from dysbiosis. The benefits of amplified fasting. Joel unpacks the concept of pexophagy. You can use ice and menthol to change your body composition. Some effective hacks for better sleep. Joel discusses reductionism. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Joel Greene On his website Find The Immunity Code on Amazon

I have the honor of connecting with Gabby Bernstein today! Gabby is a spiritual teacher, motivational speaker, and catalyst for profound inner change. She recently launched her latest book, the New York Times bestseller, Happy Days. Gabby has been transforming lives- including her own for more than sixteen years. She is a number 1 New York Times best-selling author. She has written nine books, including The Universe Has Your Back, Super Attractor, and her latest, Happy Days. In her weekly podcast, Dear Gabby, she offers real-time coaching, straight talk, and conversations about personal growth and spirituality with unique and inspiring guests. In this episode, Gabby and I dive into undoing the patterns that made us feel unworthy of love. We discuss the impact that big and little T traumas have on the brain, how our coping mechanisms could reflect the traumas we experienced, and the value of supporting the autonomic nervous system- specifically the sympathetic overdrive, which is a chronic state of hyper-arousal. We also discuss the effects of shame and how it clouds our perspective on the experiences we have had, and talk about using compassion as the antidote. I hope you enjoy today’s conversation with Gabby Bernstein! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Noticing the patterns that keep us stuck in our lives is the first step to undoing those patterns. Why is it easier for people to stay stuck in their patterns than change them? How shame keeps us locked into painful patterns in our lives. Gabby talks about trauma and explains why everyone in the world today is traumatized. Using compassion as the antidote to shame. Creating a boundary of distance can help us view people through the lens of compassion rather than the lens of shame or blame. Addiction is an extreme way of managing impermissible trauma. How can those who grew up in traumatic circumstances change the course of their children? The most important thing we can do for our children is to create a secure environment in which they can grow up. The book, Happy Days, is about re-parenting yourself so that you can heal the traumas of your past and undo the generational cycles. Gabby discusses tools and proactive practices for addressing trauma or uncomfortable feelings you may be experiencing from your past. About Gabby’s new book, Happy Days Gabby has long been loved by her readers as a spiritual teacher, motivational speaker, and catalyst for profound inner change. Her new book presents her most powerful teaching yet: a practical plan for transforming the pain of your past, whatever that may be, into newfound strength and freedom. It will answer your questions about why you feel blocked, scared, anxious, depressed, or alone. It will guide you to become the best version of yourself. Happy Days may not look like Gabby’s other eight books on manifesting, spirituality and connecting to the Universe. But it’s actually her greatest spiritual book of all. The journey she underwent to overcome addiction, trauma, and depression has guided her to become the woman she is today. The methods she was led to for healing, and her remarkable path of recovery, are nothing short of a miracle. “This isn’t a book filled with self-help tools offering a quick fix for your discomfort,” Gabby writes. “Instead, it’s a journey toward lifelong transformation filled with stories of resilience.” Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Gabby Bernstein On her website www.deargabby.com/happydaysDear Gabby Podcast Find out more about Gabby’s book, Happy Days On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

I feel honored and privileged to re-interview Dr. Anna Cabeca today! She was with me once before in Episode 94. Dr. Anna is triple-board certified. She is also a fellow of gynecology and obstetrics, integrative medicine, and anti-aging and regenerative medicine. She has special certifications in functional medicine, sexual health, and bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. Over the past 20 years, she has served more than 10,000 women in her private practice and millions more through her books, online videos, and articles. Dr. Anna has a new book out, called Menupause. When reviewing her book, I was surprised to discover that only 20% of those going into obstetrics and gynecology trained in menopause medicine. It almost seems that once women move beyond their child-bearing years, they become irrelevant and invisible. Fortunately, Dr. Anna is helping to change that narrative! In this episode, Dr. Anna and I dive into her new book. In addition, we talk about the need for female empowerment, the stigma of middle age, perimenopause, and menopause. We discuss intimacy as the key to connection and the importance of understanding the changes in a woman's body as she moves through that phase of life. (Dr. Anna refers to that as pausing.) We talk about understanding the role of the connection hormone oxytocin and the importance of women being solution-based when approaching that key phase of their lives. We get into statistics and the microbiome of the gut and the vagina, talk about Dr. Anna’s various six-day eating plans, and explain how those changes can improve our physiology and stabilize symptoms. We also look into stubborn weight-gain issues, the health needs of middle-aged women, and how different cultures view middle age. I am thrilled to be bringing you today’s exciting conversation! I hope you gain a lot from listening to it! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: There is time in menopause for women to re-evaluate their priorities. Dr. Anna challenges you, the listener, to start having girlfriend conversations. Talk to your best girlfriends about what’s going on with you intimately. How to empower yourself by increasing the healing hormone oxytocin in your life. There are many different ways to support your body and improve your quality of life while going through menopause. Following a keto diet and fasting will give you energy, make you feel better, and improve your sex life. What inspired Dr. Anna to write her new book? How to improve your health, and live a long and high-quality life by cooking healthy food in healthy ways. How will you benefit from fasting for six days? Who will benefit from doing a pause and following Dr. Anna’s Keto Green Plans? The predominant proteins that Dr. Anna focuses on in her plant-based plans. Changes Dr. Anna has seen in her patients' gut and vaginal microbiomes as they change their diets and transition from perimenopause into menopause. Some common causes of weight-loss resistance. Dr. Anna talks about some of the delicious hormone-balancing recipes in her book. Getting enough protein is vital- particularly as we get older. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Anna Cabeca Check out Dr. Anna’s website Menupause Book Page 9 Keto-Green Ways to Break a Weight Loss Plateau Free Masterclass: Diabetes and Prediabetes for Women Over 40 MenuPause Book Sneak Peek Clean Keto Recipes for Menopause Quiz: What should you eat to break your weight loss plateau? MenuPause Affiliate site Dr. Anna’s podcast

I am delighted to reconnect with Teri Cochrane today! Teri is the founder of the Global Sustainable Health Institute® and an international thought leader in longevity. Through her decades of clinical work, Teri has developed The Cochrane Method®, a future-facing, multisystem health and longevity model that examines the intersection of gene expression due to pathogenic and environmental causes, energy, and her clients’ unique personal blueprint. Teri specializes in solutions to complex health conditions and serves world-class athletes. She is the author of the Amazon best-selling new release book, The Wildatarian Diet: Living As Nature Intended. Teri’s perspective on health and longevity is fresh and unique, and she has her own quirky way of describing certain potentially intangible concepts. She understands that we are all different, so every individual requires a particular and very granular approach to their diet and lifestyle to achieve optimal health. In this episode, we take a deep dive into the role of bio-individuality and focus on women’s hormones and the endocrine system. We talk about applied kinesiology. We discuss the role of oxalates and the impact of genetics, SMPs, mycotoxins (mold), candida, and strep on our health. We get into methylation, gut health, estrogen detoxification, liver detox, and ways to support our bodies. We talk about why women tend to feel fluffy, the impact of cortisol, how sleep and stress affect our health, the importance of micronutrients- especially for thyroid function, and the role of neurotransmitters. We also discuss the quality of animal-based protein and explain why chicken is a dirty bird. I hope you love listening to this valuable conversation and learn a lot from it! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Teri unpacks what bio-individuality represents. What makes women unique in terms of their hormonal makeup? Teri talks about some of the major contributors to dysbiosis. The impact of genetics, SMPs, mycotoxins, candida, and strep on our health. Why is candida such a beast? How do hormone supplements exacerbate metabolic dysbiosis? How progesterone gets “stolen” to produce the stress hormone cortisol. The feedback we get from applied kinesiology. The genetic tests Teri uses to learn how people might react to various supplements. What are oxalates, and how do they impact people’s health? Teri discusses the two phases of liver detoxification. Teri’s preferred methodology for dealing with extra estrogen. Supporting the immune system function. What is the issue with protein from domesticated animal meats, like chicken, beef, pork, and turkey? It is vital to know your body and genes and understand how food can be either a healer or a poison. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Teri Cochrane On her website On Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube Find Teri’s book, The Wildatarian Diet: Living As Nature Intended, on Amazon

I am delighted to have Dr. Renee Wellenstein joining me today! Dr. Renee is a double board-certified doctor who has been working with women for over 20 years. Due to her own health challenges, she stepped outside the box of conventional medicine to take a radically different approach to heal herself from the deep depths of burnout. She has had her fair share of obstacles throughout her journey, and she has mastered the art of leaping into transitions with each pivot! Now Dr. Renee empowers women to take control of their health, jump-start their energy, improve their confidence, and reignite their libido! Low libido in women is a topic that is grossly misunderstood on many levels and does not get discussed often enough between doctors and patients. Research has shown that 43% of women experience low libido at some point in their lifetime. That is why we need to discuss it and keep the conversation open. We have to talk about low libido even though most women feel some degree of stigmatization around it and tend to feel uncomfortable talking about it with their girlfriends, loved ones, and especially their significant others. In this episode, Dr. Renee dives into connection, intimacy, sleep, exercise, and the influence of food choices on libido. She gives her specific recommendations for women who have experienced vaginal changes and the effects of hormone replacement therapy. She discusses options that can help support women who have had breast cancer treatment whose healthcare providers do not advocate hormonal replacement therapy. Dr. Renee and I explain why we do not love pellets. We also discuss some of the physical reasons for women having low libido, including the effects of certain types of medication, alcohol, gynecological surgery, the impact of hormonal changes and fluctuations, and neurotransmitters. I hope you will learn a lot from this conversation and enjoy it as much as I did! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Where did Dr. Renee's desire to talk openly to women about libido and their sexual issues stem from? How do the synthetic hormones in contraceptives dampen a woman’s desire to have sex? Medications other than oral contraceptives could also cause low libido in women. How does alcohol consumption contribute to low libido in women? Sometimes, gynecological surgery can result in women having low or no desire for sex. How the rhetoric around hormones being harmful hurts women. Some of the synthetic and bioidentical hormone options. Women who suspect they might have too much estrogen should consider changing their diet. Dr. Renee discusses the types of progesterone she usually recommends for women at different stages of their lives, their side effects, and their benefits. Feeding the gut microbiome can help prevent a low libido. Dr. Renee talks about the foods that will assist in keeping the gut microbiome healthy. Supplements can boost and support libido. What can women do about vulva/vaginal atrophy? Mindset is often a contributor to low libido. The problems with pellets. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Renee Wellenstein On her website On InstagramOn Facebook On TikTok On YouTube The Real Heal Podcast Resources: Books mentioned: Estrogen Matters by by Avrum Bluming and Carol Tavris The XX Brain by Dr. Lisa Mosconi

I have the honor of talking to Dr. Michael Breus today! Dr. Breus is the author of The Power of When, and his latest book is called Energize. He is a double board-certified Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Sleep Specialist. He is one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have taken and passed the Sleep Medicine Boards without going to Medical School. After completing his undergraduate studies in psychology, Dr. Breus did all of his pre-meds in one year. Then he went to the University of Georgia to do a P.h.D. in Clinical Psychology. He wanted to do a sports internship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center after getting his P.h.D., but he could not get into the program. They were offering graduate students a sleep track, so he decided to do that initially and then get into the sports internship program through the back door. However, things did not end up working out quite how they thought they would! Most people do not think much about sleep until they experience sleep problems. In this episode, Dr. Breus shares his background and explains how he pivoted into becoming a sleep specialist. He talks about the impact of chronotypes and genetics. He discusses how movement and other lifestyle strategies can influence our chronotype and talks about melatonin and other hormones, including cortisol, serotonin, dopamine, leptin, and touches on biohacking and intermittent fasting. He cautions us about orthosomnia and discusses how napping can influence sleep scores. He also talks about some of his favorite items for sleep modalities. I hope you enjoy this thought-provoking podcast as much as I did! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Breus tells his story and explains how he became The Sleep Doctor. How he managed to take and pass the Sleep Medicine Boards without going to Medical School. When he began doing chronotype research and personalizing it as part of his brand and work. Looking at the four chronotypes and what Dr. Breus refers to as chrono-longevity. Dr. Breus talks about melatonin and shares his thoughts on melatonin supplementation. Dr. Breus explains his concept of body habitus. Intermittent fasting is the best way to supply the body with clean energy. Dr. Breus discusses the five different types of energy and describes his movement program. Dr. Breus unpacks sleep tracking, the physiology of sleep, the sleep stages, and REM sleep versus deep sleep. What is orthosomnia? How does the quality of our sleep affect our hormonal balance? Dr. Breus is a fan of naps. (Unless you have insomnia.) Why is a good pillow vital for a good night’s sleep? Some devices provide a solution for snoring. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Michael Breus On his website On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter The ChronoQuiz

I am delighted to have two respected researchers, Dr. Avrum Bluming and Dr. Carol Tavris, joining me today! They are the co-authors of the book, Estrogen Matters. Avrum Bluming received his MD from the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. He spent four years as a senior investigator for the National Cancer Institute. For two of those years, he was director of the Lymphoma Treatment Center in Kampala, Uganda. For more than three decades, he has been studying the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy administered to women with a history of breast cancer. Carol Tavris received her Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Michigan. Her books include Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me), with Elliot Aronson; Anger: The Misunderstood Emotion, and The Mismeasure of Woman. Estrogen Matters provides a lot of scientific information that refutes much of the fear-mongering around hormone replacement therapy. It is helpful for women who have gone through cancer therapy and those who have not had to deal with cancer, in terms of the conversations they could consider having with their healthcare professionals. Dr. Bluming and Dr. Tavris are both incredible individuals, and it was an honor to interact with them! In this episode, we dive into statistical manipulation and the influence of the Women’s Health Initiative. We talk about the study limitations and the role of data mining. We discuss the benefits of hormone replacement therapy and its impact on cancer risk, coronary artery disease, bone and brain health, and more. We also look at synthetic versus bioidentical hormones, routes of administration, and what we need to think about in our own hormonal health journeys. I hope you enjoy my conversion with Drs. Bluming and Tavris today! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Bluming talks about the Women’s Health Initiative and explains why we went off-course after it came out in 2002. The symptoms of menopause are not trivial. They are physically and mentally harmful to the body. We need to understand the social and political trends against hormone replacement therapy. We need to understand that estrogen for women in menopause plummets to one percent of what it was before menopause. Dr. Bluming discusses the various issues with the article about hormone replacement therapy. If a woman starts taking hormones within ten years of her last menstrual period, she will have a reduced risk of heart disease and strokes and also improved longevity. The women who fear taking hormone replacement therapy are afraid of breast cancer. Estrogen reduces the risk of heart disease by up to fifty percent. Drs. Tavris and Bluming talk about bone health. The impact of hormone replacement on brain health. How the investigators of the Women’s Health Initiative manipulated their findings on dementia. How data mining gets used to sub-stratify data that has already been studied. The truth about bio-identical hormones. There is a lot of misinformation around the route of administration for estrogen. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Avrum Blooming and Dr. Carol Tavris On Facebook On Twitter

I am delighted to have Lara Adler with me again today! Lara is a self-proclaimed environmental toxins nerd. She was on the show last year, in episode 159, where we spoke about the link between chemical exposure, weight gain, and other hormonal imbalances. I asked her to join me again today, to highlight the impact of the quality of our water on our health. Lara Adler is an Environmental Toxins Expert & Educator and a Certified Holistic Health Coach who teaches health coaches, nutritionists, and other health professionals how to eliminate the number one thing holding their clients back from the results they are seeking – the unaddressed link between chemicals and chronic health problems. She trains practitioners to become experts in everyday toxic exposures so they can improve client outcomes without spending hundreds of hours researching on their own. There have recently been so many questions about water! In this episode, Lara and I take a deep dive into the scope of the water issue. We discuss the problems around regulation, water contamination, and the crumbling water infrastructure in the United States. We discuss how differences in geography affect our exposure to certain types of industrial toxins and pesticides and talk about how our water gets disinfected with chlorine, chloramine, and fluoride. We get into the impact of biological contaminants, the role of industry and government, the effects of climate change and pollution, why we need to understand the water quality reports for our homes, and how micro-plastics can impair our health and longevity. We also talk about bottled water, water filters, and Lara’s favorite environmental health books, bottles, and reverse osmosis. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN The concerns expressed in the book Silent Spring started changing the tide around environmental pollutants. The United States still has very poor regulations around the number of industrial chemicals present in the water system. There might be traces of antibiotics, antidepressants, and other drugs in our drinking water. Lara explains why she purposefully does not promote any specific water filtration systems. Problems that exist in the American water infrastructure. Even though utilities in the United States are legally required to produce water quality reports (or consumer confidence reports) every year, they do not always do that. Why is it vital for you to obtain your water quality report, regardless of where you live? Lara explains the difference between groundwater and surface water. The pros and cons of disinfecting water. Why should you avoid drinking untreated spring water? The government and industry in America have not been good stewards of the country’s water supply. Lara talks about the intentional campaign run by the American government and industry to push the environmental responsibility onto the consumer. Why is chlorine added to our water supply? What does it do, and how does it impact our health? Lara shares her thoughts on fluoride. What are micro-plastics, and how do they impact our health? Some advice for re-mineralizing water purified by reverse osmosis. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Lara Adler On her website On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Resources: Ecojarz Books mentioned: Silent Spring by Rachel Carson The Fluoride Deception by Christopher Bryson Slow Death By Rubber Duck by Bruce Lourie and Rick Smith Documentary mentioned: Seaspiracy

I am delighted to have Dr. Bret Scher joining me on the podcast today! Dr. Bret is a board-certified cardiologist and lipidologist in San Diego who is helping to change the narrative around health and prevention. He is the host of the Diet Doctor Podcast, and he also does telemedicine cardiology. Dr. Bret is a forward-thinking cardiologist who is very well-versed in the medical literature. I have the greatest respect for him and believe he is changing the future of medicine moving forward. I feel fortunate to have interacted with him on social media and to have had the opportunity to be a guest on his podcast. In this episode, Dr. Bret shares his background and talks about how he started in preventative cardiology with a low-fat veganism approach and later evolved to focusing more on low-carb ketogenic diets and lifestyle medicine. We discuss the broken medical system, the contributors to it, and the outdated dogma that continues to be perpetuated. We dive into the cholesterol paradigm and what you need to be aware of that could help you figure out whether or not you need to be concerned about your lipid values. Dr. Bret shares his views on biohacking, and we also discuss metabolic flexibility and the future development of preventative cardiology and metabolic flexibility. I hope you enjoy listening to this helpful and informative podcast. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Bret talks about his evolution as a cardiologist, and how his practice was initially influenced by the perspective of Dr. Dean Ornish. Why is it so hard for health care professionals in the U.S. to shift their focus and change the dogma around metabolic health? The perspectives of hospital-based physicians are slowly starting to shift towards lifestyle and prevention. Dr. Bret talks about the valuable pieces of technology he utilizes with his patients. There is a benefit to using tech devices, but it is easy to take things too far and assign too much importance to them. Why is it helpful to count net carbs with whole foods and total carbs with packaged and processed foods? Dr. Bret shares his take on seed oils. Dr. Bret unpacks cholesterol and the different types of LDL. Looking at Coronary CT angiograms for those who want to quantify whether or not they have any plaque in their arteries. Dr. Bret unpacks the issue with saturated fat. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Bret Scher On the Low Carb Cardiologist and DietDoctor websites The Diet Doctor Podcast The Diet Doctor YouTube channel Book mentioned: The Unhealthy Truth, by Robyn O’Brien

I am delighted to have Amanda Nighbert with me on the podcast today! Amanda is a registered dietitian specializing in weight loss nutrition. She was on the show once before, in episode 23, when the podcast was still relatively new. I asked her to join me again today to talk about weight-loss resistance and reverse dieting. As a dietician, Amanda is aligned fully with my perspectives, ideas, and dogmas. Before branching out into the online space, she spent about sixteen years as a weight-loss dietician, working with morbidly obese patients, including renal patients and diabetics who needed to lose more than a hundred pounds. Amanda’s education taught her about calories in versus calories out and led her to believe that fat is bad for you. Her years of experience eventually made her realize that was wrong, and people were doing the opposite of what they needed to do to lose weight and maintain the loss over the long term. In this episode, she explains why reverse dieting is so important and shares strategies for doing it. We go into metabolic adaptation, the diet industry, nutrition apps, and scale management. We also dive into why protein is the most vital macronutrient and how and why so many women are under-eating, over-exercising, and protein-deficient. I hope you learn a lot from today’s conversation! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Amanda explains what it took to realize that the nutrition model had to change. Some of the strategies Amanda uses for women who have hit a plateau. The importance of getting enough sleep- especially as you age. Why does the quality of the food you eat still matter- even if you are getting enough macros? Amanda unpacks reverse dieting and explains when she would implement it as a strategy for her clients. Amanda explains how she helps women trust the process and work through their emotional issues around food. Why is reverse dieting the missing piece for maintenance? How the app built into Amanda’s Lean Program helps people find their way back to a healthy metabolism. Amanda explains why the nutritionix app is her favorite external app. Why should you avoid taking macro and caloric advice from tracking apps? It is all about finding the right balance. (Amanda feels that protein is the most important macronutrient for weight loss, and not all carbs are bad.) Why does it get harder for women to build and maintain muscle as they age? Bio: Amanda Nighbert is a registered dietitian specializing in weight loss nutrition. Her passion and purpose are to empower others to break the all-or-nothing mindset and find sustainable change for long-term weight loss success. She presented this powerful message on the Ted X stage in March of 2021. With 20 years of knowledge and experience under her belt, she provides upper-level nutrition education and support to everyone she works with. With her custom LEAN Program, range of coaching services, and multiple shop offerings, she has cultivated a brand that focuses on giving participants the leading tools and resources to help them reach the best versions of themselves. Amanda’s goal is to provide the most current, cutting-edge nutritional techniques that not only provide results but are also sustainable for life. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Amanda Nighbert On her Website Follow on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, & Tedtalk

I am excited to have Jeffrey Smith joining me on the show today! Jeffrey is a bestselling author and filmmaker. He is also the founder of the Institute for Responsible Technology. He has spoken in 45 countries as a consumer advocate for healthier non-GMO options. For the last twenty years, his research has been bringing to light how biotech companies mislead policymakers and the public and jeopardize the health of our society and the environment. Hardly any regulations exist anywhere in the world today to stop anyone from creating and introducing a GMO microbe with inexpensive and easily-available gene editing. Yet the microbiome is critical and central to life. That motivated Jeffrey to start the Protect Nature Now campaign to protect the microbiome. The process of genetic engineering creates collateral damage to the DNA. That could lead to allergins, toxins, carcinogens, and nutritional problems. In this episode, Jeffrey shares some vital information about GMOs that everyone needs to know. He dives into problems that could result from eating GMO crops, the consumer protection failure of the FDA, and how Monsanto rigged its research. He talks about why no GMO in the world has ever been tested properly and the time-bombs that exist in our food supply. He also discusses how glyphosate impacts our bodies, the impact glyphosate will have on future generations, and how to support healthy life with organic food alternatives. I hope you enjoy our eye-opening conversation! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Jeffrey explains what GMOs are and how they have changed over the years. Why do genetically engineered crops not die when sprayed with herbicide? Problems that could result from consuming genetically engineered crops. Jeffrey discusses the devastating levels of toxicity in glyphosate and Roundup. The role the FDA, the EPA, and other governmental regulatory agencies have played in failing to protect consumers. How and why Monsanto rigged its research. Why has no GMO in the world been properly tested? The health issues that independent studies on GMOs revealed. The correlation between glyphosate and GMOs, and autism and disorders. Jeffrey talks about his award-winning documentary, Secret Ingredients. How does glyphosate cause mineral deficiency? The connection between glyphosate and infertility and birth defects. You can find a list of healthy organic and non-GMO foods at responsibletechnology.org. How you can support a healthy life affordably with organic foods. Jeffrey created the Protect Nature Now campaign to protect the microbiome. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Jeffrey Smith Jeffrey’s documentary Your Milk on Drugs- Just Say No Institute for Responsible Technology Protect Nature Now Live Healthy Be Well Podcast

Today I have the honor of reconnecting with Dr. David Perlmutter. Dr. Perlmutter is a Board-Certified Neurologist and five-time New York Times bestselling author. He joined me once before on episode 141: Reclaim your Brain, and we spoke about his book, Brainwash. He is with me today to talk about his newest book, Drop Acid, which focuses on the role of uric acid, fructose, metabolism, and metabolic health. In the wonderful work he does, Dr. Perlmutter brings to light how our diets profoundly impact our metabolic health and metabolic markers and talks about the many changes we can make regarding our food choices and the supplements we use. In this episode, we have a mind-blowing conversation! Dr. Perlmutter dives into how our bodies process uric acid, the impact of alcohol and fructose consumption, and how our metabolic health is worsening due to our current dietary choices. We talk about how high fructose corn syrup impairs insulin and leptin production signaling which translates into no satiety. We discuss the impact of metabolic health on brain function, resulting in one in every ten people older than sixty-five having Alzheimer’s. We also explain how obesity impacts cognitive and behavioral health and talk about how we can prevent all of those problems. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Perlmutter gives examples of illnesses in the group of chronic degenerative diseases that the World Health Organization tells us are the number one cause of death on our planet. He highlights the importance of identifying their causes. The role of uric acid in human survival. Dr. Perlmutter shares some frightening statistics regarding the health of American adults and children and explains how bad lifestyle choices are threatening our ability to live a long and healthy life. What is uric acid, where does it come from, and how are we getting it into our diets? When we gain control of uric acid and combine it with healthy lifestyle choices, it can become a powerful tool, influence us positively, and help us regain and maintain our health. The difference between high fructose corn syrup and fructose in fruit. What does uric acid do in the body? The impact of fructose and uric acid on the brain. Why do high levels of salt consumption relate to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension? What does uric acid do that is threatening to our physical health? The fundamental importance of following a plant-based diet. Doctors can use a tape measure to measure people’s risk of developing dementia. Why do c-section babies have an increased risk of developing metabolic issues? Dr. Perlmutter talks about his LUV (Lower Uric Values) program, designed to help people reduce their uric acid levels. Bio: Dr. Perlmutter received his M.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine, where he was awarded the Leonard G. Rowntree Research Award. He serves as a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and has published extensively in peer-reviewed scientific journals, including Archives of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and The Journal of Applied Nutrition. In addition, he is also a frequent lecturer at symposia sponsored by institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, Columbia University, Scripps Institute, New York University, and Harvard University, and serves as an Associate Professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He also serves on the Board of Directors and is a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. David Perlmutter On his website Get a copy of Dr. Perlmutter’s book, Drop Acid

Today, I am excited to have Ashleigh VanHouten and Beth Lipton joining me on the show to talk about their new book, Carnivore-ish! Ashleigh and Beth are both powerful women who are helping to rewrite the narrative around the carnivore-ish diet. Ashleigh is a health coach, speaker, podcast host, and author of the only nose-to-tail, organ-meat-centric cookbook It Takes Guts. She is also the host of the Muscle Maven Radio podcast. Beth is a recipe developer, food and wellness writer, and cookbook author. She is an incredibly talented woman, and I was honored to have her working with me on my book, Intermittent Fasting Transformation. Some problems exist within the weight-loss and weight-management industry, especially with how food, fitness plans, and ideologies get marketed to women. When it comes to making money, Beth and Ashleigh prefer to empower people and teach them what food does for them and how to eat it, rather than asking them to keep on signing up for workout plans and diets. In this episode, Ashleigh and Beth discuss their book and dive into the weight-loss and weight-management industry. They explain how mindset impacts food choices- particularly with women, and the need for more nutrient density and protein. We unpack plant-based versus animal-based diets, discuss the benefits of a carnivore-ish diet, and Beth and Ashleigh explain how to eat nose-to-tail and create a strategy to integrate more organ meat into your lifestyle. We also debunk some common myths around protein consumption and talk about spices and ways to jazz up your meals. Carnivore-ish is an inspiring book! It will have a huge impact on anyone considering following a more animal-based diet, particularly those who would like to learn more about organ meats. You are sure to learn a lot from listening to this episode, so stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Ashleigh discusses the red flags within the weight-loss and weight-management industry and explains what she and Ashleigh are doing differently. Ashleigh and Beth debunk the myth that fun, delicious food cannot be healthy. Things that work best for your health are usually not sexy. They are often things your Grandma taught you. Some sustainable first steps that will help you to improve your health. Beth and Ashleigh want to help women understand that eating nutrient-dense animal protein is excellent for their health, particularly pregnant women. The benefits of following a varied omnivorous diet. How you will benefit nutritionally from eating a lot of animal protein, particularly organ meats. Why should plant-based protein not be your primary source of protein? Beth explains why she encourages people to try a carnivore diet to cleanse and reset after eating a lot of sugar or drinking more alcohol than they usually do. Ashleigh talks about the value of eating organ meats. Ashley and Beth share some tips for getting into eating organ meats and making them taste delicious. Beth talks about her favorite spices and seasoning blends. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Ashleigh VanHouten On Instagram On her website Connect with Beth Lipton On Instagram

I am delighted to welcome Vinnie Tortorich back onto the show! Vinnie was with me once before, in episode 133. Today, he is joining me to talk about his impressive new documentary, Beyond Impossible, coming out soon. I was fortunate to be the first person outside of Vinnie’s team to see his new documentary. It homes in on plant versus animal-based protein and takes a deep dive into methodologies, what marginal land represents, and the net impact of methane and cows. Vinnie Tortorich is a truth-teller and disrupter. He encourages people to think outside of their comfort zones in an informational yet non-confrontational way. He has connections with individuals like Nina Teicholz, who can easily articulate scientific ideas and research. Ten years ago, Vinnie launched his Fitness Confidential Podcast. It amasses more than a million downloads per month. The following year, he published his book, Fitness Confidential, which became an instant bestseller. In 2019, Vinnie wrote, produced, and starred in Fat, a documentary that rose to number one in several categories across iTunes and ranked well on Amazon and Amazon Prime. A sequel, titled Fat: A Documentary 2, was released earlier this year. Vinnie was one of the first people ever to talk about the benefits of low carb and ketogenic diets on the internet. In this episode, he and I talk about non-meat products, how our health and wellness have changed since the 1980s, and how much metabolic inflexibility we are currently seeing. We also discuss how some plant-based vegan scientists have influenced public policy and how common misnomers regarding health and wellness can affect our advancement, both as individuals and as a country. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Why Vinnie decided to create his new documentary, Beyond Impossible. Why do we need to consume animal-sourced proteins? The issues with fake meat. Are cows truly an invasive species on earth? Why is veganism a social construct of wealthy countries? Why Vinnie describes the liver as a gangster. Some very wealthy corporate benefactors and investors do not take good care of themselves, yet they drive the public policies that impact everyone else. What happened in the 1980s that changed the narrative around fats? Why the EAT-Lancet Planetary Health Diet will not improve your health. What is driving the concept of the EAT-Lancet Planetary Health Diet, and what will happen as a result of the policies that have ensued from it? You can watch Vinnie’s new documentary, Beyond Impossible, on Amazon or iTunes, or you can pre-order it. It will be out in early January 2022. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Vinnie Tortorich On his website On Twitter and Facebook Book mentioned: Eat to Win by Dr. Robert Haas

I am delighted to have Autumn Smith joining me on the show today! Autumn is a co-founder of Paleovalley, one of my favorite socially-conscious companies. Paleovalley has a mission to create products that live up to their strict standards, and they always prioritize health over profit. From the age of ten, Autumn suffered from intermittent, painful digestive issues. When she got to high school, her digestive issues became even more challenging, and she also started to experience mental health problems. At the time, she was unaware of the intimate connection between the brain and the gut, so she began to abuse substances, and her life spiraled out of control. Years later, when her husband moved in with her, he saw how much she was suffering and researched chronic digestive issues. That led them to change their diet. Within thirty days, Autumn’s digestive issues disappeared, and over the next year, her mental health returned. Autumn and I are in full alignment about the quality of fats, saturated fats, avoiding seed oils, and getting enough high-quality omega 3’s and omega 6’s. In this episode, Autumn shares her backstory. We look at animal-based protein diets from an ancestral health perspective and discuss the importance of eating for satiety. We talk about regenerative farming practices, agriculture, the value of pasture-raised animals, and discuss the impact of pesticides and toxins like glyphosate on our health. We also dive into greenwashing strategies and bringing high-quality, pasture-raised animal products to the general public at more affordable prices. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Autumn tells her story explains what led her to start her company. The foods that caused Autumn to suffer from IBS and skin problems. Exercise and movement contribute to Autumn’s mental and physical health. Tracy Anderson developed a life-changing system that wakes up all the muscles in the body. Why are highly processed and refined seed oils unhealthy? The quality of the animal products we consume does matter. Small changes can have a big impact! How can you make better choices when buying animal products? Eating for satiety is very important. What is the problem with conventional feed-lot meats? We need to be more aware of the cruelty and greenwashing practices that happen with the production of animal products. What is regenerative agriculture, and why is it so important? Autumn’s bio: Autumn Smith suffered from debilitating digestive issues and crippling anxiety for most of her life. Specialist after specialist told her nothing could be done, and she was ready to give up. But as one final attempt at a life free of health issues, Autumn decided to harness the power of whole foods. She cleaned up her diet and in just 30 days, her IBS was cured. But that was just the beginning. She also had less anxiety, was mentally sharper, and a bubbly side of her that she forgot existed came back. Since then, Autumn has dedicated her life to helping others harness the power of whole foods to live vibrant lives. In 2013, she and her husband Chas launched Paleovalley, a company dedicated to helping people get the essential nutrients they need, without added sugars, grains, and other harmful ingredients. But they didn’t stop there. After learning about the healing powers of grass fed, pasture raised meat - both for our bodies and the planet - Autumn and Chas started their next venture. In 2018, they launched Wild Pastures, a regenerative meat delivery service that sends 100% grass fed pasture raised meat directly to your doorstep. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Autumn Smith The Paleovalley website Email Autumn at [email protected] The Wild Pastures Burger Company website

I am delighted to have Dr. Sonya Jensen joining me on the show today! Dr. Sonya is a Naturopathic Physician with a mission to change the way women understand their bodies and themselves. She believes that women are the center of their families and communities, and by supporting them, they create a ripple effect that supports the whole. Dr. Jensen is a mother of two boys, an author, a yoga teacher, a podcaster, and a workshop and retreat leader. She runs her practice with her husband, and they help their community move into a state of thriving from surviving. Her background in cell biology and her lived experience with Ayurvedic Medicine in her home have given her insights into the human body that help her serve the women and families she works with from multiple different lenses. She is the co-founder of Divine Elements Health Center, The Longevity Lab, and The Health Ignited Academy, alongside her husband, Dr. Nicholas Jensen. Dr. Sonya believes it is everyone’s birthright to live a happy, healthy, joyful, and abundant life. Younger women often tend to pressure themselves to be perfect, both personally and in their professional lives. That sometimes occurs unknowingly. It usually happens because of peer pressure and the expectation, influence, and conditioning they get from their families. In this episode, Dr. Sonya talks about her new book, Woman Unleashed: Release Your Story. She discusses the effects of stress, talks about contraception, and explains how synthetic hormones like oral contraceptives can influence women's lives. She also shares some tips for coping with the changes that occur as women approach menopause. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Sonya explains what motivated her to write her book, Woman Unleashed: Release Your Story. The conditioning we get from our families starts in the womb, and it affects many of the choices we make in our lives. Most children experience traumas, micro-traumas, and stresses that impact them in profound ways. What happens in a woman’s body when she is under stress and in survival mode? Dr. Sonya shares strategies for bringing women out of the fight, flight, freeze, or please mode and back to the calm parasympathetic reproductive physical state. The effect that synthetic hormones like oral contraceptives have on women’s bodies. Dr. Sonya talks about various contraceptive options that will allow you to honor your body and stay connected with it. The physical and emotional changes women can expect to experience as they approach menopause. Dr. Sonya shares some tips for dealing with the changes that occur as women transition into perimenopause. Dr. Sonya explains how fasting is a strategy for supporting your hormones, becoming more aligned, and honoring your life. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Sonya Jensen On her website On Instagram Buy a copy of her book (The book is also available from Amazon and other booksellers) Books mentioned: The Body Keeps Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing by Bessel van der Kolk Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor The High 5 Habit: Take Control of Your Life with One Simple Habit by Mel Robbins This Is Your Brain on Birth Control: The Surprising Science of Women, Hormones, and the Law of Unintended Consequences by Sarah Chapman Hill

The amazing Megan Ramos was on the show with me in Episode 116, and I am delighted to have her join me again today! Megan is a Canadian clinical educator and expert on therapeutic fasting and low carbohydrate diets, having guided more than 14,000 people worldwide. She is the co-author of the New York Times Bestseller Life in the Fasting Lane and co-founded The Fasting Method with her colleague, Dr. Jason Fung. Modern agriculture and the processed food industry have led to the mass production of hyper-palatable, highly salted, and sugared foods designed to be addictive. That has resulted in millions of people becoming obese and developing inflammatory and metabolic disorders. Fasting is an effective method for overcoming those problems. Megan and I both feel that it is vital for women to know that and to understand that fasting is a sustainable lifelong strategy for maintaining optimum health. In this episode, we debunk the myths and misconceptions around women and intermittent fasting. We talk about the evolution of the agricultural processed food industry and the impact it has had on people’s health. We also discuss leptin resistance, how stress impacts hormones, different types of body fat, fasting in women who are still cycling versus those in menopause, PCOS, the impact of fasting on thyroid health, weight loss plateaus, and troubleshooting while fasting. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Megan unpacks and busts the myths and misconceptions around women and intermittent fasting and explains how fasting enhanced every aspect of her health and the health of thousands of other women. How modern processed food was designed to be addictive. Why do we need to cut out snacking and start eating less? What leptin resistance is, and how to overcome it with fasting. Megan explains why the fear-mongering around fasting is unfounded. The body is a whole system. So if there is one hormonal imbalance, that will probably trigger others. Megan talks about the success she has seen in women with PCOS who fast. The body composition of a tophi individual and the difference between visceral fat and subcutaneous fat. Why should healthy women fast? Megan explains why postmenopausal women find fasting easier than other women do. What are the benefits of using the DUTCH dried urine hormone test? What can women do to deal with weight-loss plateaus? Megan shares some tips for avoiding having diarrhea when breaking your fast. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Megan Ramos The Fasting Method website The Fasting Method Podcast@ the fasting method on all social media Books mentioned: Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us by Michael Moss

Today, I am thrilled and honored to be talking to Dr. Alexandra Sowa. Dr. Sowa is a dual board-certified physician of internal medicine, specializing in metabolic health, and clinical instructor of medicine at NYU Langone. She has served as a health expert for national media outlets and print publications like SiriusXM, CBS News, NPR, the New York Times, U.S. News, World Report, and more. In addition to her private practice in NYC, she is the founder of SoWell Health, a consumer metabolic health company. Over the years, people kept complaining to Dr. Sowa about weight gain, decreased endurance, brain fog, and irregular periods, even when their doctors had told them they were healthy and their labs looked fine. When Dr. Sowa checked their labs, however, she would immediately see that they had metabolic syndrome, an underactive thyroid, a vitamin deficiency, and in 90% of the cases, insulin resistance too. During the turbulent period of the pandemic, Dr. Sowa finally had the time to sit and think about how she could help those patients. She came up with a unique solution and developed a home-testing kit to assess and address the symptoms of people’s metabolic health issues. In this episode, we discuss the scope of metabolic health in the U.S., and Dr. Sowa explains how she came up with her Weight Biology Kit. We talk about the importance of making the right nutritional choices and improving your health by making better lifestyle decisions. We dive into the role of using technology to monitor health, the influence of alcohol, and using Naltrexone to overcome alcohol cravings. We also unpack the notions of cheat days and biohacking in the wellness space. Remember to check out Dr. Sowa’s Weight Biology Kit, a point-of-care testing kit for insulin resistance. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: How Dr. Sowa came up with her home-testing kit to address people’s metabolic issues. Insulin is often the first biomarker to become dysregulated as people move towards insulin resistance. Dr. Sowa explains why insulin is a better predictor than blood sugar of where people are in terms of their metabolic health. Why do people with high insulin levels gain weight even if they are calorie-restricting and eating very little? How does nutrition impact metabolic health? The two most important things you can do to improve your health if you have elevated insulin, and you show signs of insulin resistance. Three lifestyle changes that, in addition to better nutrition, can be instrumental in helping improve fasting insulin and blood sugar levels. The disruptive role alcohol can play in your metabolic health. Some tips for overcoming alcohol cravings. Why is it best to avoid having cheat days? The benefits of journaling, as a motivator for changing behavior. The roles technology and biohacking can play in metabolic health. The eight areas that get tested in Dr. Sowa’s core point-of-care home testing products. Dr. Sowa explains what the HOMA-IR score is. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Alexandra Sowa On her website On Instagram (@getsowell) On Instagram (@alexandrasowamd)

Today, I am super excited to welcome Gin Stephens back onto the podcast for the third time! She was with me before in episodes 81 and 104, where she spoke about strategies for intermittent fasting. Gin is an intermittent fasting expert who has been living the intermittent fasting lifestyle since 2014. She’s the New York Times and the USA Today bestselling author of Fast. Feast. Repeat, and author of the Amazon number one bestseller in the weight-loss category, Delay, Don’t Deny: Living an Intermittent Fasting Lifestyle. Gin has just written a new book, Clean(ish): Eat (Mostly) Clean, Live (Mainly) Clean, and Unlock Your Body’s Natural Ability to Self-Clean, that will be coming out in early 2022. Gin’s lifestyle shift in 2014 led her to lose more than 80 pounds, launch her intermittent fasting website, self-publish four books, and start three top-ranked podcasts. (Intermittent Fasting Stories, The Intermittent Fasting Podcast with her co-host, Melanie Avalon, and the Life Lessons podcast with her co-host, Sheri Bullock.) In this episode, we talk about Gin’s new book, Clean(ish). We discuss how to navigate the selection of cleaner personal care products, the greenwashing endeavors of the personal-care products industry, subsidies, GMOs, the lack of clarity in labeling, and the dangers of hyper-palatable processed foods. We also touch on the gut microbiome and how to improve your health by cleaning up your nutrition, the environment, and the personal-care products you use. Stay tuned for this informative and enjoyable episode! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What motivated Gin to write her new book, Clean(ish)? A scary statistic about the diet of the average American adult. The negative effect that ultra-processed foods have on children’s health and behavior. How many ingredients in ultra-processed foods impact the gut microbiome and the brain. How kids changed between 1990 and 2018. What Gin learned about toxic chemicals in personal care products while researching her book. The cumulative effects toxic ingredients can have on your body. Having a balanced approach to changing the self-care products you use. What is greenwashing? Finding the cleanest and safest options for cleaning products. Gin unpacks the concept of GMOs. How to view food subsidies in the right context. Why do you need to avoid seed oils? Bio: Gin Stephens is the author of the New York Times and USA Today bestseller Fast. Feast. Repeat., published by St. Martin’s Press, and Delay, Don’t Deny: Living an Intermittent Fasting Lifestyle, an Amazon #1 best seller in the weight loss category. Gin has a new book coming out in early 2022, and it’s available for preorder now: Clean(ish): Eat (Mostly) Clean, Live (Mainly) Clean, and Unlock Your Body’s Natural Ability to Self-Clean. Gin has been living the intermittent fasting lifestyle since 2014. This lifestyle shift allowed her to lose over 80 pounds and launch her intermittent fasting website, Facebook support groups, four self-published books, and three top-ranked podcasts—Intermittent Fasting Stories, The Intermittent Fasting Podcast with cohost Melanie Avalon, and the Life Lessons podcast with cohost Sheri Bullock. Gin splits her time between Augusta, Georgia, and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where she lives with her husband and their three cats. Gin is also a mother to two adult sons (and she is thankful every day for the intermittent fasting lifestyle that makes her life easier). Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Gin Stephens On her website Join Gin’s community On Instagram and Twitter Gin’s new book, Clean(ish), will be available from Amazon and all good book stores from January the 4th, 2022. If you buy a digital copy, download all the documents from Gin’s website. Books mentioned: Brain Allergies by Dwight K. Kalita and William Philpott The Unhealthy Truth by Robyn O’Brien The Dorito Effect by Mark Schatzker

I am excited to have Melissa Boloña joining me today! Melissa used to be an actress and a model. She is now the founder and CEO of a Bone Broth concentrate company called Beauty & the Broth. As an actress, people were constantly judging Melissa for how she looked. She tried everything, including Botox and laser treatments, to keep looking young and beautiful on camera. When she tried bone broth for some digestive issues, she could not believe how much her looks improved! The bone broth made the lines on her skin disappear, and her hair became super thick! Bone broth has amazing properties and is very easy to incorporate into your lifestyle. It is great for improving your immune system, and it can be profoundly healing. In this episode, Melissa explains what bone broth is, and what you need to look out for when buying it as a pre-made product. She talks about how she discovered the benefits of bone broth, how her career as an actress prepared her for marketing her brand of bone broth, and the importance of gut health. She also explains how much our gut health affects our bodies and minds, and talks about some new fun products she and her team are creating, including a pea vegan bone broth option. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Melissa’s acting career prepared her for creating her brand of bone broth. Melissa describes what high-quality bone broth is, what it contains, and what you need to look for in a pre-made product. Bone broths bought from supermarkets are often diluted, so you will not benefit much from them. The potency of a bone broth depends on the number of solid components it has in it. Melissa explains why the quality of her bone broth is far superior to the bone broth you would find in a store or supermarket. There are components of bone broth, other than bone, that are intrinsically beneficial to our health. Why should you only buy reputably-sourced bone broth? Why is bone broth not your average drink? Fecal implants with mice have shown us how gut health impacts personality. How bone broth supports the immune system Melissa talks about the health issues she struggled with when she was in high school. Melissa discusses her exciting new product lines. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Melissa Boloña On her website (This is where you can purchase her products) Purchase Melissa’s products on this Instagram, or connect with her personally on this Instagram.

I am thrilled to have Dr. Mindy Pelz back on the show today! She was with me once before in 2020, on Episode 113. Dr. Mindy is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, nutrition, and functional health expert who has spent over two decades helping thousands of people successfully reclaim their health. She is a recognized leader in the alternative health field and a pioneer in the fasting movement, teaching the principles of a fasting lifestyle, diet variation, detox, hormones, and more. Her popular YouTube channel (which just celebrated 18 million lifetime views) regularly updates followers on the latest science-backed tools and techniques to help them reset their health. She is the host of one of the leading science podcasts, The Resetter Podcast, and the author of three best-selling books: The Menopause Reset, The Reset Factor, and The Reset Kitchen. Both Dr. Mindy and I have reached a point in our lives where we feel inclined towards women who are energetically on the same page as we are in terms of mindset and methodology. We would both like to help the women who follow us thrive as they approach middle age, and we want to inspire them with a sense of optimism rather than despair as they head into menopause. Dr. Mindy offers hope for women and helps them navigate middle age authentically while staying true to themselves. In this episode, we discuss an article in the New England Journal of Medicine about how ill-equipped the new generation of primary health care providers is to manage the symptoms of menopause. We dive into the importance of gut health and escaping the mindset of the rushing women syndrome (a term coined by Libby Weaver), and explain what the estrobolome is. We discuss various gadgets, including the V-Fit, the Apollo Neuro, and the Hyperbaric Oxygen Brain Tap, and talk about ways to navigate middle age as proactively as possible. Dr. Mindy also shares her best strategies for navigating middle age. Be sure to stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: How to support women emotionally and encourage them to talk about their feelings as they approach menopause. Dr. Mindy sheds some light on the changes in middle age that could cause anxiety and depression and impact sleep quality. Some tips for navigating early menopause and bringing sanity back into your life. Dr. Mindy talks about the conversation that permitted her to find her own journey. It is vital to work on the inner you rather than grasping for things outside yourself. What happens to your body as your progesterone starts to wane? Dr. Mindy shares what she encourages her patients to focus on when they are in an estrogen-dominant state. Dr. Mindy goes through five lifestyle changes that middle-aged women need to implement. Dr. Mindy explains how the V-Fit can help women balance their hormones. The estrobolome helps the body break down, detoxify, and rid itself of estrogen. Why is it vital to add diverse foods to your diet? Dr. Mindy talks about her favorite biohacking tools to strengthen the parasympathetic nervous system. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Mindy Pelz On her website On Instagram On YouTube Book Mentioned: Rushing Woman's Syndrome: The Impact of a Never-ending To-do List and How to Stay Healthy in Today's Busy World by Libby Weaver

I am excited to have Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo, an internationally recognized expert in nutritional endocrinology, joining me on the podcast today! Dr. Ritamarie is a doctor of chiropractic with a master’s degree in nutrition and certifications in herbal medicine, acupuncture, and Heart Math. She is deeply committed to transforming our broken disease-management system into a health care system in which practitioners are skilled at finding the root causes of health challenges and using the wisdom of nature combined with modern science to restore balance to the body. Dr. Ritamarie burned out in her early twenties and experienced many health problems. She wondered if her diet might be causing her problems, so she turned to the sphere of holistic natural medicine for solutions. She learned a lot and was able to heal. So she became passionate about using nutrition to help others make choices for better health. She founded the Institute of Nutritional Endocrinology to train doctors, nurses, nutritionists, health coaches, and other practitioners in the science of rebalancing hormones and restoring energy with nutrition and lifestyle approaches. In this episode, she shares her story and we unpack insulin resistance, explain how to manage it, and talk about how intermittent fasting impacts blood sugar and helps overcome pre insulin resistance, insulin resistance, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. We also dive into successfully navigating perimenopause, menopause, and a plant-based keto diet and discuss the benefits of lifestyle medicine. Be sure to stay tuned for today’s educational and information-packed podcast! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Ritamarie talks about how she developed a passion for using nutrition as lifestyle medicine and became interested in managing blood sugar. The link between blood sugar imbalance and sudden heart attacks. The value of lifestyle medicine. What are the signs and symptoms of pre-insulin resistance? How do you maintain ketosis while following a plant-based diet? What is the problem with most of the fats on supermarket shelves? Find the carb-macro ratio that works for you. Why are whole food fats better for you than oil? Intermittent fasting is vital for optimizing your health and positively impacting the pre insulin and insulin resistance phases. How a woman’s diet and metabolic health impact how she experiences perimenopause and menopause. What happens to the brain that makes women more susceptible to type-3 diabetes as they enter menopause? Why is it critically important to get enough sleep? How does exposure to endocrine-disrupters in your home and personal care products negatively impact your hormonal health? Reference: Reinvent Healthcare Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo On her website On Facebook – Dr. Ritamarie or Institute of Nutritional Endocrinology (INE) Practitioners On Instagram On YouTube

Today, I am honored and delighted to have Dr. Adrienne Youdim joining me! Dr. Youdim is an internist specializing in medical weight loss and nutrition. She is the author of Hungry for More: Stories and Science to Inspire Weight Loss from the Inside Out. Before doing her fellowship, Dr. Youdim was a perfectionist who wanted to excel, exceed, operate, and fix people. Then, she became pregnant. This changed everything for her and thus, began her introduction into the space of obesity medicine. Dr. Youdim points out that exploring our relationship with food is an opportunity to explore our relationship with ourselves. When we answer the call to address our hunger with self-awareness and radical introspection, we can engage in the life-changing work of managing our hunger from within. In this episode, we take a deep dive into different types of hunger. We discuss the pendulum bias, beliefs about weight gain, and why Dr. Youdim feels that there should be compassion at every size. We unpack the normalization of body dissatisfaction and shame and discuss the importance of understanding the epigenetic changes associated with weight loss and weight gain. We also talk about the role of hormones in weight gain and weight loss, how to differentiate between needing and craving, how traumas and beliefs play into obesity, and the importance of lifestyle medicine. Be sure to stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Youdim discusses weight-related beliefs and bias and explains why health at every size is a fallacy. Dr. Youdim explains how she fell into the obesity medicine space. What prompted Dr. Youdim to focus predominantly on different kinds of hunger in her book? Navigating away from shame and inadvertently projecting our traumas onto our children. Overcoming epigenetics and the generational patterns that impact our health and lifestyle choices. How sleep deprivation can negatively impact our mood, set us up for metabolic disease, and even change our hunger hormones. What does alcohol do to our brains that negatively impacts the quality of our sleep? How abuse, trauma, stress, and emotions are linked to illness, emotional eating, and obesity. What causes us to regain weight after dieting, and how can we combat it? Adopting a balanced approach to weight maintenance and changing body composition. The impact menopause and perimenopause have on body composition. Using the emotional hunger brought on by menopause and perimenopause as an opportunity for growth. Learning how to differentiate between needing and craving food. Learning how to approach food from a place of mindfulness BIOGRAPHY Adrienne Youdim, MD, FACP, is an internist who specializes in medical weight loss and nutrition. Her mission is to transform the weight loss narrative into one that is both empowering and compassionate, inspiring people to live more physically and emotionally fulfilling lives. Dr. Youdim draws on best medical practices in the field of obesity medicine and on her patients’ value system, trusting that we all inherently know what we need. Dr. Youdim believes that navigating our hunger is a process that requires, introspection, self-acceptance, and a sense of agency. One of the principles of her practice is to provide both inspiration and information. Dr. Youdim encourages her patients not only to consider the tools and logistics of a weight loss plan but also to consider the motivating values that inspire them. She gives her patients information relevant to their weight-loss journey, including resources to promote self-awareness, journaling exercises, and mindfulness practices. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Adrienne Youdim On her website On Instagram You can buy a copy of Dr. Adrienne Youdim’s book, Hungry for More: Stories and Science to Inspire Weight Loss from the Inside Out, from Amazon.

I am delighted to have Dr. Morgan Nolte joining me today! Dr. Morgan is a passionate board-certified clinical specialist in geriatric physical therapy. She is the founder of Weight Loss for Health, an online course, community, and coaching program to help women in c and postmenopause reduce insulin resistance for sustainable weight loss and disease prevention. Dr. Morgan is dedicated to helping women feel empowered, confident, and in control of their health. She teaches women how food, fasting, stress, sleep, exercise, and mindset all play a role in reducing insulin resistance. The key to maintaining long-term weight loss and health is living a low insulin lifestyle. That requires unlearning old weight loss beliefs and overcoming self-limiting thoughts. Thoughts determine emotions. Emotions determine actions. Actions determine results. In this episode, we dive into maintaining weight loss, the role of insulin in the body, understanding macros, overcoming insulin resistance, and keeping your brain healthy after mid-life. Dr. Morgan also shares some actionable tips for overcoming limiting beliefs and maintaining weight loss. Stay tuned to learn what Dr. Morgan has to share in our interesting and informative conversation today! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Morgan unpacks the false dogmatic dieting principles with which many women struggle. Why do we need to change from the caloric model of obesity to the insulin model? What we need to understand about macros. Which macros are the most satiating? Why do you need to forget about the food groups? Lifestyle changes can help reverse insulin resistance. Some key roles insulin plays in the body. What happens in the body when cells cannot communicate with the insulin hormone? The benefits of a low-carb diet and intermittent fasting. Why it is vital to get enough sleep. How stress causes weight gain. What will happen to you if you fail to manage your blood sugar dysregulation? What women in their forties and fifties need to do to maintain their brain health. Understanding the limiting beliefs that could impact weight loss and some tips for overcoming those beliefs. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Morgan Nolte On her website On Instagram and YouTube Reshape Your Health Podcast Books mentioned: The Big Fat Surprise by Nina Teicholz The Obesity Code by Jason Fung Why We Get Sick by Benjamin Bikman The XX Brain by Dr. Lisa Mosconi

I am delighted to have Sam Apple joining me today! Sam is on the faculty at Johns Hopkins. Before he arrived at Johns Hopkins, he taught creative writing and journalism at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from the University of Michigan and an MFA in Creative Non-fiction from Columbia University. Sam has written many books. His most recent is called Ravenous: Otto Warburg, the Nazis, and the Search for the Cancer-Diet Connection. It is about the German biochemist Otto Warburg and his new developments in cancer science. Warburg was a unique individual. He was a Jewish man who managed to keep doing his biochemical research despite living in the extremely challenging time of Nazi Germany. In this episode, Sam talks about Otto Warburg’s incredible discovery regarding cancer cells and the research done by Nazi scientists. He also discusses the shift in the focus on cancer research in the post-war period, how insulin drives cancer and metabolic diseases, and how to make better dietary choices. Stay tuned to hear what Sam has to share about his book, Ravenous, and the connections between diet and cancer. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What motivated Sam to write about Otto Warburg? Otto Warburg’s fascinating discovery about what makes cancer cells unique. Nazi researchers were way ahead of their time in discovering the link between environmental toxins and people developing metabolic diseases and cancer. What happened to much of the advanced research done by German scientists during the war years? What happened in the 1950s that entirely changed the direction of medical research on cancer? The accidental and surprising discovery that was made about the benefits of mustard gas. Insulin drives metabolic disease and causes cancer cells to grow. Why most Americans could develop cancer. Why do you need to get your fasting insulin checked? What does fructose do in the body that differs from what is done by other sugars? Some of the changes that Sam made in his life after researching his book, Ravenous. The cancers that you will be more likely to develop if you eat too often. Bio: Sam Apple is on the faculty of the MA in Science Writing and MA in Writing programs at Johns Hopkins. Before he arrived at Johns Hopkins, Apple taught creative writing and journalism at the University of Pennsylvania for ten years. He holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. Apple is the author of Schlepping Through the Alps and American Parent. His most recent book, Ravenous (Norton/Liveright, 2021), is about the German biochemist Otto Warburg and new developments in cancer science. Apple has published short stories, personal essays, satires, and journalistic features on a wide range of topics. In recent years, he has primarily written about science and health. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Wired, The Los Angeles Times, The Financial Times Magazine, ESPN The Magazine, The MIT Technology Review, and McSweeney’s, among many other publications. Schlepping Through the Alps was a finalist for the PEN America Award for a first work of non-fiction. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Sam Apple On his website Follow on Twitter and Instagram Books mentioned: The Nazi War on Cancer by Robert Proctor

Today, I am delighted and honored to be talking to Dr. Philip Ovadia. He is a board-certified Cardiac Thoracic Surgeon and Founder of Ovadia Heart Health. His mission is to help people stay off his operating table by optimizing their metabolic health to lower the risk of heart disease and other chronic illnesses. In this episode, we take a deep dive into clinical medicine. We explain how it is possible to reverse conditions like high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes and become healthy without taking any medications. Dr. Ovadia defines metabolic health, talks about his journey from being morbidly obese to losing more than 100 pounds, discusses Gary Taubes’s influence on his health journey, and his seven principles for health and wellness. We also get into metabolic health markers, the hyper-palatability of processed food, metabolic syndrome, and the metabolic inflexibility of most Americans. Dr. Ovadia’s approach to nutrition is all about bio-individuality and having enough protein in your diet to ensure satiety. I really enjoy connecting with other western medicine-trained health care professionals who have pivoted towards optimizing metabolic health and flexibility! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Problems that exist within the medical system. Dr. Ovadia shares his health journey and talks about his mission. Why much of Dr. Ovadia’s current education is coming from non-physicians. Dr. Ovadia talks about metabolic health. The physical effects of eating hyper-palatable processed foods versus eating nutrient-dense whole foods. Take control of what you eat rather than letting food control you. What metabolic syndrome is all about. The benefits of using a continuous glucose monitor. Why no one diet will serve everyone. Using metabolic health as a system to guide you to good health. The benefits of pushing for nutrient density to feel satiated. Bio: Dr. Philip Ovadia is a board-certified Cardiac Surgeon and founder of Ovadia Heart Health. His mission is to optimize the public’s metabolic health and help people stay off his operating table. As a heart surgeon who used to be morbidly obese, Dr. Ovadia has seen firsthand the failures of mainstream diets and medicine. He realized that what helped him lose over 100 pounds was the same solution that could have prevented most of the thousands of open-heart surgeries he has performed—metabolic health. In Stay off My Operating Table: A Heart Surgeon’s Metabolic Health Guide to Lose Weight, Prevent Disease, and Feel Your Best Every Day, Dr. Ovadia shares the complete metabolic health system to prevent disease. Dr. Ovadia grew up in New York and graduated from the accelerated Pre-Med/Med program at the Pennsylvania State University and Jefferson Medical College. This was followed by a residency in General Surgery at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey and a Fellowship in Cardiothoracic Surgery at Tufts-New England Medical School. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Philip Ovadia On his website At The Stronger Heart Society On Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter A simple calculator for metabolic syndrome Dr. Ovadio’s book, Stay Off My Operating Table Books mentioned: The Unhealthy Truth by Robyn O’Brien The Case for Keto by Gary Taubes Salt Sugar Fat by Michael Moss

Links and Resources: Hex Ferments Gut Health podcast with Dr. Uma Naidoo The Drive Podcast with Paul Offit Book Preorder Link

I am delighted to have Dr. Tracy Gapin joining me today! Dr. Gapin is a board-certified urologist, world-renowned men’s health expert, best-selling author, and professional speaker. Almost every day during his twenty years as a urologist, Dr. Gapin saw men grappling with issues of brain fog, difficulty in focusing, problems with physical performance, and remaining engaged and present as fathers. That inspired him to help men become the best husbands, fathers, and leaders they can be. Now, Dr. Gapin considers himself a recovering urologist because earlier this year, he formally exited traditional Western medicine to focus on men’s health. In this episode, Dr. Gapin discusses his background and talks about what sparked his interest in integrative approaches to urologic problems and men’s health issues, the contributing factors to low testosterone, and why there is a growing low testosterone pandemic with men. We also discuss hormone replacement therapy that goes beyond just testosterone, the role of peptides, SARMs (Selected Androgen Receptor Modulators), biohacking, libido, erectile dysfunction, and more. You won’t want to miss this conversation, so be sure to tune in! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: How Dr. Gapin developed a passionate interest in male hormones. The story of Dr. Gapin's vasectomy. Contributing factors to the escalating issues with low levels of testosterone. The factors that could hamper a detoxification process. How insulin resistance can drive testosterone levels down. Why it is vital to approach your health systematically. The optimal range for testosterone. Non-prescription treatments to improve testosterone levels versus prescription treatments. Lifestyle and nutritional factors that could negatively impact testosterone levels. Optimizing growth hormone levels. Some possible causes of erectile dysfunction. Are there benefits to using red light therapy for low testosterone? Common reasons for using peptide therapy. Dr. Gapin shares his thoughts about SARMs. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Tracy Gapin On his website Get your free copy of Dr. Gapin’s book, Male 2.0, here

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I am thrilled to have Trina Felber back on the show today! Trina was with me in episode 153, where she spoke about the mouth microbiome and reversing tooth decay naturally. She is joining me today to tell us the truth about skincare. Trina is the Founder and Creator of Primal Life Organics. She is a wife, mother of three, dental health and natural skincare expert, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, Yogi, Paleo advocate, and educator. Trina loves creating products that heal, soothe, mend and repair the body and soul. The personal care product industry is worth seventy-one billion dollars, and it is severely under-regulated. The media has been telling us so many things about skincare for so long that most of us don’t know who and what to believe anymore. There are also many aspects of skincare that many women tend to take for granted. The first episode with Trina was extremely popular, and this one is just as illuminating, helpful, and mindblowing! You will learn about the physiology of the skin, how the unhealthy ingredients in skincare products affect your body, and what you can do to protect your skin. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: How under-regulated the personal care industry is. The hidden toxins and synthetic hormones in tap water. The negative ways in which unhealthy chemicals and other ingredients in skin care products can affect women. Why the skin is such a vital organ, and how our skin speaks to us. The permanent imprint that some chemicals in skincare products and Botox injections leave in your body. How to protect your skin. How the skin changes when women go through the hormonal changes of perimenopause and menopause. Trina discusses the plant-based ingredients that stimulate collagen and elastin production to keep your skin firm. How to put together a routine to keep your skin healthy and looking great. How to avoid getting skin problems from wearing a mask. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Trina Felber On her website On Instagram and Facebook

Links/Resources: Study Wildlytes (Use code Cynthia10 for 10% off!)

I am happy to have Dr. Kyrin Dunston back on the show today! Dr. Kyrin was with me before in Episode 119: Master Midlife and Stop the Menopause Madness. I invited her to join me once again today to take a deeper dive into the topic of testosterone in women. Dr. Kyrin Dunston is a leading OBGYN & Functional Medicine Expert. She has been featured on numerous podcasts and summits on NBC, Fox, Great Day Washington, Reader’s Digest, The Huffington Post, Best Self, and more. She is the host of Her Brilliant Health Revolution Podcast and Her Brilliant Health Secrets YouTube channel, which gives women the knowledge, tools, and support they need to take control of their health and not only heal but to thrive in life. In this episode, we discuss the role of testosterone in women. Dr. Kyrin explains why there is so much ambiguity around testosterone and why it is a controlled substance. She talks about where testosterone is produced in the body, how we test for it, the signs of low testosterone, and how to treat it. She also talks about hormonal illiteracy in traditional allopathically-trained providers, explains how to advocate for your hormonal health, and shares some information about women who have had their ovaries removed in conjunction with a hysterectomy. Testosterone is a misunderstood sex hormone that is intricately related to almost every system in the body. Tune in today to learn all you need to know about testosterone in women and find out why it is vital for you to advocate for your health when navigating midlife. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What does testosterone do in the body? How medical gaslighting happens with women. Why you can no longer allow your health care provider to have all the control of your hormonal health. Why is there so much ambiguity and misinformation around testosterone for women? Some of the more common signs of low testosterone levels. Why a good sex life is vital for a woman’s health. The function of the ovaries. What happens to women who have had their ovaries removed in conjunction with their uterus? Why there is no shame in women taking hormone replacement therapy. Is there any benefit to women ten years into menopause taking hormone replacement therapy? The pros and cons of various forms of testosterone supplement administration. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Kyrin Dunston On her website On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Book mentioned: The XX Brain by Dr. Lisa Mosconi

I am delighted to have Chris Irvin joining me today! Chris is a health researcher, writer, and coach. He has his Master’s degree in exercise and nutrition science, where he studied the effects of low carb diets on human performance and therapeutics. Chris is the education manager at Perfect Keto and is the author of Keto Answers. When finishing his Master’s degree at the University of Tampa four or five years ago, Chris was unsure whether he wanted to pursue a Ph.D. or go out and become an entrepreneur in the exercise and nutrition industry. While doing an internship at the University of Southern Florida, however, he realized that following the Ph.D. route was not for him. He had also started studying keto in grad school, and it frustrated him that all the research information was locked away in journals that were either inaccessible or hard-to-interpret. So he decided to make all the information about the ketogenic diet more accessible to the general population. In this episode, Chris goes into the history of the ketogenic diet and explains how it evolved. He also talks about carbohydrates, reducing food cravings, and moving towards better metabolic health. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: How Chris pivoted into becoming the Ketologist. The history and evolution of the ketogenic diet. Much has changed, and there has been a lot of misinformation about keto products over the last few years. Why a poor keto diet could be better than the standard American diet. Navigating the correct threshold for carbohydrates. Chris unpacks net carbs versus total carbs. Some of the contributors to obesity and metabolic inflexibility. Two things you can do to move towards better metabolic health. Things that happen in your body when you eat less frequently. How a low-carb or ketogenic diet help to reduce food cravings. Some common mistakes people tend to make with a ketogenic diet. Chris has written a book called Keto Answers. What you need to look for to find a good quality MCT oil. Products and supplements that can boost autophagy and ketosis. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Chris Irvin On his website On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Recommended books: Why We Get Sick by Dr. Benjamin Bikman Keto Answers by Chris Irvin and Anthony Gustin

Links and Resources: Link for study Book preorder link Use code GrassfedBeef for 10% off

I am happy to have a good friend and an incredible pediatric advocate joining me today! Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge is a mental health trailblazer! She is the founder of The Global Institute of Children’s Mental Health, and a media expert, who is changing how we view and treat children’s mental health. Her work has helped thousands reverse the most challenging conditions, including ADHD, anxiety, mood disorders, Lyme Disease, and PANS/PANDAS, using proven holistic therapies. Dr. Roseann has often been featured on dozens of media outlets. The impact of the pandemic is undeniable. It has brought about a lot of change globally and has created many new challenges for everyone. Parents are feeling overwhelmed and exhausted, and the landscape for children has altered considerably over the last fifteen or sixteen months. Children have been impacted from an academic, social, and even a psychological perspective. As a result, we are experiencing a surge in mental health problems across America in children of all ages. In this episode, Dr. Roseann talks about how stress is affecting us as parents and explains what we can do to support our children. She also shares some stats and explains what parents need to look out for regarding anxiety, depression, and suicide in young people. Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Some signs of chronic stress or anxiety in our children that we, as parents, need to look out for. Things you can do to benefit your children’s mental health. Maternal mental health is the number one predictor of children’s mental health. Dr. Roseann explains how to help your kids create the inner confidence and resilience they need to succeed in life. Using stress to develop resilience. Teaching your kids coping skills and stress tolerance. There are benefits to experiencing failure. Dr. Roseann talks about neurofeedback and biofeedback and explains what they do for our brains. How to limit your kids’ screen-time during the pandemic. Some signs and symptoms of long-term effects of COVID. Dr. Roseann's Bio: Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge is a trailblazing Psychologist, Pediatric Mental Health Expert, and the founder and director of The Global Institute of Children’s Mental Health and Dr. Roseann and Associates. Her Connecticut-based center has helped thousands of children and adults reverse the most challenging conditions such as ADHD, Autism, anxiety, depression, concussion, learning disability, Lyme Disease, and PANS/PANDAS. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge Dr. Roseann’s website Dr. Roseann on YouTube Dr. Roseann on Tiktok Get Dr. Roseann’s book here

Links and Resources: Paleonola: The Original Grain-Free Granola For the Full Hu Shop: Hu dark chocolate Use CODE: CYNTHIA for 15% off Study: Cardioprotective Mechanisms of Cocoa

I am delighted to have Dr. Uma Naidoo joining me on the podcast today! Dr. Naidoo is an awarded board-certified psychiatrist at Harvard Medical School, professional chef, nutrition specialist, and author of the recently released This is Your Brain on Food: An Indispensable Guide to the Surprising Foods that Fight Depression, Anxiety, PTSD, OCD, ADHD, and More. She was featured in the Wall Street Journal, ABC News, Harvard Health Press, Goop, and many others. Dr. Naidoo has a special interest in the impact of food on mood and other mental health conditions. There were several strong influences in Dr. Naidoo’s early life. She grew up in a loving, nurturing home with a large extended South Asian family. Rather than going to pre-school, she decided to stay at home with her maternal grandmother, who was a wonderful cook. Dr. Naidoo used to help her grandmother pick fresh vegetables from the garden and prepare meals, and her grandparents taught her meditation and yoga. Her mother was a medical student, and she had many aunts and uncles who were physicians, so there was a lot of talk about science and nutrition in their home. In this episode, Dr. Naidoo talks about food and lifestyle choices that can boost your mood and improve mental and emotional health. Tune in today to hear our fascinating conversation! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Naidoo’s background and her journey from medical school to becoming a chef and a nutrition-focused psychiatrist. What caused Dr. Naidoo to have an “aha” moment. The connection between gut health and mental health. Foods that tend to create the most problems with mental health. Why do you need to read food labels and pay close attention to your food choices? The clinical differences between men and women as our brains and bodies get older. Trauma can happen in many different ways. Foods that can impact libido. Foods that can positively impact brain health. What fiber does in the gut? Some lifestyle changes could positively impact your mental and emotional health. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Uma Naidoo Follow on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter Check out Dr. Naidoo’s website Books mentioned: Brain Wash by David Perlmutter

Links and resources: Send a copy of your review to: [email protected] Dr. Gabrielle Lyon's podcast with Cynthia Thurlow Link for the kombucha The study Cynthia referenced

I am honored to be interviewing Robyn O’Brien today! Robyn is a globally recognized voice in the food industry and has been called “food’s Erin Brockovich” by The New York Times. Her TEDx talk (based on her book, The Unhealthy Truth) exposes the shortcomings of our food system and has been viewed millions of times. It has influenced policy, legislation, and product formulation. For the last fifteen years, Robyn has advised CEOs and executives at multinational CPG companies, startups, and farm organizations. Robyn is the co-founder and managing director at rePlant Capital, a financial services firm ambitiously determined to reverse climate change through the deployment of a series of proprietary funds focused on U.S. farmers and their transition to regenerative and organic agriculture. It can be hard for those who want to make real change in our broken systems to initiate change or know where to begin. Robyn O’Brien doesn’t just make noise about problems. She builds solutions and encourages her audiences to participate by identifying their skills and experiences to leverage them as entry points for systems change. In Robyn’s story, capital is an entry point for catalytic change. If biodiversity is resiliency on the farm, Robyn deeply believes that diversity is resiliency in governance. In this episode, Robyn explains how rePlant Capital is pioneering climate solutions by tackling soil health through a model of agricultural financing that no one else is providing. She also speaks to the importance of diverse governance and leadership in addressing these existential food, health, and climate issues. I am very grateful to Robyn for writing her book because it has profoundly impacted the trajectory of everything I am doing right now! Stay tuned for more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Robyn shares her background. Robyn's motivation for investigating how our food gets produced. The additives in our food that drive allergies and food sensitivities. Some of the shocking facts that Robyn discovered about food allergies and American children. How Robyn realized that she had to use love and gratitude rather than fear when sharing her knowledge. The issues with the American food industry. Robyn talks about rePlant Capital. The difference between the conventional farm-debt industry and regenerative farming practices. Why we should never be afraid of starting small. The differences between various types of soil composition. Why water security is as critical as food security and national security. The importance of diversity. What you need to be concerned about regarding GMOs. Why we are seeing an escalated rate of allergies in our children. The importance of transparency in the food industry. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Robyn O’Brien On her website On Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn Kiss the Ground website The documentary, Kiss the Ground (On Netflix)

I am excited to have Courtney Contos joining me today! After years of working in restaurants, cooking, and sixteen years of teaching cooking, Courtney realized that she could probably cook most anything - even without a recipe. But, what she did not know until recently was how to nourish herself. Food is information. After suffering for 12 years with chronic debilitating rheumatoid arthritis and being told she would spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair, Courtney reversed her symptoms. She now helps people as a board-certified health coach specializing in functional medicine. Autoimmune diseases and disorders happen when our immune system mistakenly attacks our bodies, and the onset is usually triggered by childhood trauma, a stressful event, or antibiotic therapy. Autoimmune conditions can be systemic, localized, or both, and they tend to impact women twice as often as they do men. Some other common autoimmune disorders include psoriasis, type 1 diabetes, lupus, and multiple sclerosis. In this episode, Courtney shares her story and talks about healing autoimmunity with nutrition. Stay tuned to find out more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Courtney’s traumatic childhood led to her developing chronic and debilitating rheumatoid arthritis. Traditional, western medicine does not do a great job with the prevention and management of chronic diseases. The point at which Courtney started thinking outside of the box about her condition. The changes Courtney made with her nutrition, that allowed her to heal. The benefits of starting your day with a bowl of bone broth. The various tests that you should have done to determine your nutrient deficiencies and autoimmune triggers. Some of the foods Courtney finds the most healing. The importance of pattern interrupting and trying new things. Some tips to make bitter vegetables taste more delicious. Planning your meals will help you make your cooking more interesting. Courtney talks about herbs and spices. Some tips for controlling the variables when you’re eating out. Some lifestyle choices can help you on your healing journey. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Courtney Contos On her website On Instagram Book mentioned: When the Body Says No by Gabor Mate

I am delighted today to be interviewing Dr. Casey Means! She is a Stanford-trained physician, Chief Medical Officer and Co-founder of the metabolic health company Levels, an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Disease Reversal and Prevention, and a Lecturer at Stanford University. Her mission is to maximize human potential and reverse the epidemic of preventable chronic disease by empowering individuals with tools that can help facilitate a deep understanding of our bodies and inform personalized and sustainable dietary and lifestyle choices. Dr. Means was recently featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and more. Dr. Means has an interesting story to tell. She trained as a surgeon and an ear, nose, and throat doctor. Her interest in the impact of diet, lifestyle, and nutrition on people’s foundational health started at a relatively young age. She began focusing on nutrigenomics when she was still an undergraduate student at Stanford. It was an exciting time at Stanford because the human genome project was happening, and 23andMe was going online. She enjoyed learning about the correlation between nutritional compounds and gene expression and finding out that our genes are a blueprint and not our destiny. Dr. Means is joining me today to talk about metabolic dysfunction and using continuous glucose monitors for facilitating your personalized diet. Stay tuned to find out more! IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Means talks about how her journey started and how she became interested in the impact of diet, lifestyle, and nutrition on people’s foundational health. The shocking amount of refined sugar that gets consumed by the average American each year and the impact that has on their metabolic health. What chronic inflammation is, what it does in the body at the cellular level, and why that is so detrimental. What happens in your body when you are overfed, when your blood sugar stays elevated over time, and when your insulin is kept high. What you should, and should not eat to maintain your metabolic flexibility. The benefits of fasting. Some practical ways of pairing proteins to help reduce blood sugar fluctuations. The impact of sex hormones on blood sugar control. What a continuous glucose monitor is and how it works. Why you need to know what’s going on in your gut microbiome. Why long-term adherence to a low carb or keto diet can cause reverse metabolic inflexibility. The correlation between blood sugar instability and debilitating hot flashes in women in perimenopause or menopause. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Casey Means On her website Dr. Casey’s blog On Instagram @drcaseyskitchen and @levels On Twitter @drcaseyskitchen and @levels

I am delighted to have Dr. Benjamin Bikman back on the podcast today! He was with us once before in Episode 114, where he spoke about the role of insulin resistance, metabolic health, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Ben is the author of a book I frequently recommend, called Why We Get Sick. It can be quite challenging for many women to maintain a healthy weight and good metabolic health after about forty years of age. Just about all of our fat cells are made during childhood and puberty, and when we reach our sixties or seventies, the number of our fat cells starts to decline. Insulin plays a vital role in how fat cells can change and respond to sex hormones. In this episode, Dr. Ben talks about insulin, fat cells, and sex hormones in women. Stay tuned for more! Benjamin Bikman earned his Ph.D. in Bioenergetics and was a postdoctoral fellow with the Duke-National University of Singapore in metabolic disorders. Currently, his professional focus as a scientist and associate professor (Brigham Young University) is to better understand the role of elevated insulin in regulating obesity and diabetes, including the relevance of ketones in mitochondrial function. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Ben explains why insulin is such an important topic for women, especially as they get older. The role of insulin in terms of how fat cells can change and respond to sex hormones. How estrogens protect women against too much fat. Why you need to be mindful about certain plant-based foods and the plastics, detergents, and chemicals we use. Why animal protein is undeniably superior to plant protein. Why your diet does not require carbohydrates even though some cells need glucose. The effects of seed oils and carbohydrates on insulin resistance. How digestion relates to insulin resistance and insulin instability. Vitamin D deficiency will contribute to insulin resistance. Why you need to know what your fasting insulin number is. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Benjamin Bikman On his Insulin IQ website On the getHLTH website On Instagram

I am excited to have the total badass, Dr. Jaime Seeman, joining me as my guest for today’s show! In addition to being an integrative medicine OB-GYN, a wife, and a mom, Dr. Seeman is on the Titan Games and was crowned Mrs. Nebraska in 2020! Dr. Seeman was infatuated with the human body while growing up, so her mom, who was her role model, encouraged her to become a doctor. After getting a degree in Nutrition, Exercise, and Health Sciences, Dr. Seeman went on to graduate medical school, where she completed her OB-GYN residency. Dr. Seeman is challenging some of the more common notions about women’s health issues. In this episode, she talks about PCOS, overcoming insulin resistance, improving your metabolic health, hormone replacement therapy, postmenopausal bone health, and gaining control of your life with good nutrition. Stay tuned for more! Dr. Jaime Seeman is a board-certified Obstetrician and Gynecologist, practicing in Omaha, Nebraska. Born and raised in the state, she played collegiate softball for the Cornhuskers. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition, Exercise, and Health Sciences. After that, she went to graduate medical school and completed her OB-GYN residency at The University of Nebraska Medical Center. She currently has a private practice at Mid City OB-GYN. She offers a full range of services in obstetrics, gynecology, robotic surgery, and primary care. She completed her fellowship in Integrative Medicine at The University of Arizona School of Medicine. She is a board-certified ketogenic nutrition specialist through The American Nutrition Association. She has a passion for fitness, preventative medicine, and ketogenic therapy not only in her medical practice but in her own life. She is married to her husband, Ben, a police Sergeant, and has three young daughters. Dr. Seeman was also Mrs. Nebraska 2020, finished Top 15 at Mrs. America 2021, and appeared on NBC Titan games with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Dr. Seeman talks about her eating habits after she transitioned from being a collegiate athlete to becoming a medical student. What PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) is, how it affects women, and some common misconceptions about it. How PCOS can be treated nutritionally. How and when the nutritional piece started coming together for Dr. Seeman. Overcoming insulin resistance. How women are doing things differently now compared with twenty or thirty years ago, as they transition into perimenopause. The benefits of hormone replacement therapy. Dr. Seeman talks about different vaginal rejuvenation therapies. How low-carb and keto diets impact thyroid health. How to maintain bone health after menopause. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Jaime Seeman Her website Follow Dr. Seeman on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter

I am delighted to have Dr. Eric Balcavage back on the show with us today! He appeared on the podcast once before, in Episode 105, where he spoke about thyroid physiology and chronic illness. Due to the enormous demand, we invited him to join us on the podcast once again to talk about thyroid function. Dr. Eric is the owner and founder of Rejuvagen, a functional medicine clinic in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. He is also the co-host of Thyroid Answers Podcast, where he focuses on answering the pressing questions of those suffering from chronic hypothyroidism symptoms. He recently co-authored a book called Thyroid Debacle. In this episode, Dr. Eric and I take a deeper dive into thyroid physiology, bile physiology, detoxification, and chronic illnesses. We talk about the signs and symptoms of subclinical hypothyroidism, fat malabsorption, and the use of synthetic versus non-synthetic thyroid medications. We also discuss why people can have lab values suggestive of them being persistently hypothyroid despite their use of escalating doses of medications. Stay tuned today to learn what stops the thyroid from functioning optimally and find out what you can do to maintain a healthier thyroid. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: The physiology of the thyroid. Some things that could impact the conversion from inactive to active thyroid hormone. Seed oils, and the association between thyroid physiology, thyroid glands, and cells. Why is it possible to have hypothyroid or hyperthyroid signs and symptoms when there is nothing wrong with the thyroid gland? Why forcing extra thyroid hormone into the bloodstream does not mean that you will optimize the cell function. Why does lab work have to be properly evaluated and interpreted? The last point at which hypothyroidism could be reversed. The use of synthetic thyroid medications versus non-synthetic medications. Is it normal to have insomnia after changing your thyroid medication? The connection between HDL and fat malabsorption. Thyroiditis and Hashimoto’s. Dr. Eric shares his take on how iodine relates to thyroid function. Why do people tend to feel cold when they have an underactive thyroid? Intermittent fasting for perimenopausal and menopausal women with an underactive thyroid. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Dr. Eric Balcavage On his website The Thyroid Answers Podcast Follow on Instagram and Twitter

I am thrilled to have the Menopause Fitness Expert, Debra Atkinson, joining me today! Debra is the bestselling author of You Still Got It, Girl and Hot, Not Bothered. She is also the host of the Flipping 50 podcast with over 1 million downloads and the TEDx talk Everything Women in Menopause Learned About Exercise May Be a Lie. Debra is a 37-year fitness expert, prior Senior Lecturer in Kinesiology, and founder of Flipping 50, the first and only online fitness membership dedicated exclusively to women in menopause. There is a common misconception that everyone should exercise in the same way. People tend to believe that because many authorities in the fitness industry are still operating on guidelines and position statements that view men and women of all ages as a collective. In reality, no one fits the norm. Women in menopause might not even be in the same place right now as they were six months ago, or where they will be, three to six months from now. Stay tuned today to get Debra’s insightful recommendations for navigating where you are and selecting a diet and exercise strategy to suit you as an individual. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Why do women approaching menopause need to exercise differently? Some of the physical changes that happen as women mature. The kind of exercise that helps with muscle development and the kind that helps with bone density. The importance of getting the right nutrition and enough sleep as you approach menopause. Why you need to tune into the feedback that your body is giving you. Reversing the effects of aging with strength training. How to gauge the right intensity for stimulating muscle growth. The best exercises for middle-aged women looking to lose body fat. The supplements that Debra most often recommends for her clients. How the loss of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone manifests in women approaching menopause. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Debra Atkinson Follow Debra on Facebook and Instagram Debra’s website Flipping50 HNB 10 DAY Challenge The challenge offers a daily workout (or recovery) video PLUS an audio recording telling them exactly how what they'll do positively influences hormones. Those who get in early get access to mobility videos and "how-to" videos so they'll feel good even before it starts and complete with greater success. Check it out here: Hot, Not Bothered! Challenge

Today, I am excited to welcome Junaid Kalmadi as my guest! Junaid is the founder & CEO of Farmers Juice, which delivers organic cold-pressed juices and wellness shots, including keto-friendly options, at nearly half the cost of a juice shop. The juice stays fresh for thirty days, using an innovative technology called HPP. Farmers Juice has developed the world’s first keto-friendly and functional green juice line that includes adaptogens, antioxidants, and mushrooms to boost focus, calm, and athletic performance. Their mission is to make the highest quality cold-pressed juicing affordable, support the human rights of 2.4 million farmers in the US, and champion the next generation of farming with regenerative agriculture. Stay tuned today to hear about Junaid’s journey, and learn how to upgrade your diet by incorporating cold-pressed juices into your lifestyle. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: What motivated Junaid to jump into the entrepreneurial space and get to where he is today. How the Standard American Diet (“SAD”) impacted Junaid’s mental, emotional, and physical health and wellbeing. How Junaid managed to overcome his unhealthy lifestyle habits and improve his mental health when he was in college. Why you should care about soil. Why Junaid focuses on supporting the farmers. What you need to be looking for when purchasing a good quality cold-pressed juice. What cold-pressing does to fruit and vegetables. How you can prevent food waste in your home. The daily rituals that Junaid recommends for grounding yourself and helping you to evolve as an individual. What prompted Junaid to create a line specifically for carb and keto-conscious individuals. How to home-blend a delicious and nutritious smoothie. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Junaid Kalmadi On his website On Facebook, and Instagram Get five dollars off your juice here. Use the coupon code CYNTHIA at checkout

I am delighted to have Dr. Gil Blander, an internationally recognized anti-aging researcher, joining me on the show today! Gil has a background in the basic biology of aging and translating his discoveries into new ways of detecting and preventing age-related conditions. He received a Ph.D. in biology from the Weizmann Institute of Science and completed his postdoctoral fellowship at MIT. He has been featured In CNN Money, The New York Times, Forbes, The Financial Times, and The Boston Globe. There are many connections between Gil’s childhood in Israel and his quest for longevity. One of his relatives passed away when he was twelve years old. When that happened, Gil realized that he would not live forever. It worried him, and that concern stimulated his interest in longevity and aging and prompted him to study biology, do a Ph.D. at the Weizmann Institute of Science, spend five years at MIT in the best lab to study aging, and found InsideTracker. Listen in today to find out all you need to know about the lifestyle choices that will promote anti-aging and longevity. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN Gil shares his background. What prompted Gil to leave the lab at MIT to go into the private sector. How and why caloric restriction extends our lifespan. How Gil transitioned from academia into the private sector. Gil explains what happens in the body when calories are restricted. How Gil managed to find the best blood biomarkers for longevity, performance, and wellness. How Gil found the interventions to optimize anti-aging blood biomarkers. How nutrition and lifestyle changes can aid longevity. How the InsideTracker process works, and why it utilizes blood rather than saliva or urine for the testing. Gill talks about bio-individuality and clarifies some of the confusion often associated with epigenetic testing. Foods that promote or prevent longevity. The lifestyle choices that are essential for anti-aging and longevity. Gil talks about supplements. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Gil Blander (InsideTracker) On the website – Save 25% on Inside Tracker by using this referral link! On Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter Book mentioned: Lifespan: Why We Age―and Why We Don't Have To by Dr. David Sinclair