This winter is one for the books. The exposure to RSV, Influenza A and COVID also known as the “triple-demic of 2022” is unparalleled and taking many peoples immune systems to the cleaners. 

Given the serious nature of the sicknesses of the season, I am sharing some strategies to boost your immune system.

It is important to understand that the different flus and upper respiratory illnesses set into the body in different ways. 

While RSV and COVID, symptoms tend to be more gradual and last longer, the flu tends to hit harder quickly yet resolves faster as well.

As a Functional Diagnostic nutrition practitioner and  a student of chinese medicine, I would recommend two steps. First and foremost I would recommend using functional nutrition to support your system to prevent sickness from developing in the first place. This involves putting in place nutritive support to keep your system strong and resilient.

Second, if you have been exposed and are experiencing symptoms, I would recommend altering your supportive treatments specific for your needs. TCM can be an incredible tool to help you with this.

When applying Chinese medicine principles to healing, keep in mind, chinese medicine always advocates for striving for balance in the system. 

This means you may want to attend to a cold or infection in a more specific way based on your constitution. 

Ahhh spring! The blossoms on the trees remind me of a new cycle of growth that comes with sunshine and rain. That new cycle is also happening in our bodies and spring is an amazing time to support the bodies capacity to detoxify so we can stay healthy. 

Chinese medicine has always proclaimed spring to be an important time for liver and gall bladder support as we are coming out of winter and spring is a natural time for cleaning, hence “spring cleaning”. 

One of the reasons for supporting the liver at this time is that the liver and gall bladder are part of our internal infrastructure that is designed to keep us healthy and help us detoxify our bodies.

The livers role specifically is to process waste of all sorts while also cleaning our blood and managing the storage of sugar and filtering our hormones. With all of its jobs, it can easily get overwhelmed. 

Eating processed food, processing chemicals and toxins and incurring stress etc will affect the liver and may result in toxin overload which often shows signs in ways such as:

*constipation

*headaches

*fatigue

*hormone disregulation

*acne

One of my favorite tools for self care is called a Castor oil pack. It’s an inexpensive form of support that I recommend to clients when they are going through any hormone detoxification or gut repair program. 

A castor oil pack can be done easily and is very inexpensive.

The day to day grind of modern life is busier than ever and we navigate a world full of distractions that pull our focus in many different directions. The use of Nootropics or “smart drugs”  has exploded in response to this reality. Nootropics are compounds that support the brain and nervous system which results in improvements in cognitive function, focus, mood and motivation. Some nootropics are already firmly embedded in our daily routines ie…caffeine, while others require a lot of research and secret handshakes to obtain. 

What are Nootropics?

Nootropics are classically defined as substances that enhance cognition, memory, learning, concentration, energy and motivation. These compounds are also known as smart drugs and have been used to enhance performance since the dawn of time. There is a wide range of nootropics in circulation today including many herbs, vitamins and prescriptive drugs.

Nootropics have been made mainstream by biohackers such as Dave Asprey who famously hacked his own biology using nootropics as a cognitive catalyst. The awareness that he and many other brilliant biohackers and health care professionals have brought to the field of cognitive research opened the door for many to nootropics. (I honestly don’t think silicon valley would still be standing if it weren’t for many of these compounds). 

If it feels like you are still slogging though times of uncertainty, apprehension and exhaustion, you are most certainly not alone. After 10 months of living through social distancing protocols, working from home, and cold winter months inside, most people are quite simply “over it”. I know I am. 

“Lockdown fatigue” is a common term used to describe the sluggish, lack of energy, and low moods that have a grip on many of us during these tedious and uncertain times.

While short periods of lethargy and inactivity are not harmful, long periods will age the body in unfavorable ways.  This may show up in the form of symptoms such as unwanted weight gain, brain fog and depression to name a few. 

With spring just a few steps ahead, this is the perfect time to reboot your health to support better moods, energy and sleep. Do this easily by making small changes to your day to day life.

Welcome 2021

I think most will agree 2020 was pretty much a sh** show and the fallout from this past year will take some time to clean up. So in the light of the new year, I  am setting some intention to both refine and bring in new patterns and habits that will support longevity and health. I will admit, for some, goal setting can be a wash, especially at the start of the year. But given all we have moved through in the past year, I am inviting all who read this to create some concrete goals or intentions to commit to. 

As we begin this new year, I wanted to write a blog about biohacking inflammation to create more energy to live a resilient existence. Resiliency is key to recovering from challenges. Resiliency makes us stronger and allows us to overcome difficulties. However, in order to build resiliency you must cultivate energy. 

This blog covers some of my favorite anti-inflammatory strategies to help you regain your energy so you can rebuild and bounce back.

It feels appropriate given our current situation. Living through a pandemic is going to create stress which creates inflammation. It is the nature of the beast. On top of this, most people are already inflamed. After all, we are the result of the lifestyles that we live. 

Our levels of inflammation depend on how sedentary we are, the foods we eat, our stress levels, injuries we carry and illness we harbor. Ultimately, Inflammation signals are important red flags that the body produce when it is under any form of stress.  Inflammation usually sets in at the lowest point of resistance in the body in the weakest tissue so it's important to take note of the areas in your body that need more support in times of stress. 

Inflammation can be an ally if you learn to listen to it. 

This took me years to learn! When I was younger, it was much easier to overwork, operate on little sleep and eat poorly, but now in my 40’s these actions are super depleting and my body lets me know very quickly when I am off track. 

I see this reflected in my practice as well. People come to my practice who have been inflamed and in pain for years. It is truly the American way to reach first for bandaids instead of looking for the root of the issue. The use of NSAIDS, prescription pain meds and steroids used to numb our way back to normal, simply does not work long term. Pain is a signal and the signals get louder the longer you ignore them!

What is inflammation?

The inflammatory response is an important part of the immune response and serves as a tool for healing tissue. Inflammation is the net result of a cascade of immune cells that are triggered whenever body tissues are damaged and acts as a defense against pathogens. 

Most of the body defense elements involve an interaction of immune cells including lymphocytes, macrophages and neutrophils. When a part of the body is damaged, inflammation is a means that the body uses to trigger defense cells and chemicals to enter the tissue around the injured or infected site. The inflammatory response is usually triggered by physical trauma, heat, chemical exposure and infections by viruses and bacteria.