gut brain

Learn how to prevent stretch marks by optimizing your nutrition and focusing on nutrient-dense and supportive foods like collagen. Here is how I prevented stretch marks while pregnant: Before I got pregnant, something in the back of my mind worried about my body changing. I think most women are like this, but I was particularly concerned. When my mother was pregnant with my little brother, she routinely told me how disgusting she felt. “I feel fat.” “My body is so gross right now.” I heard this constantly. Even at five years-old, I remember her saying these things about her pregnant body. They always stuck with me. Additionally, my mother had some of the worst stretch marks I’d ever seen. I didn’t mind them, they were just a part of her body. But she hated them. And to be honest, if I put myself in her shoes, I wouldn’t like them…

Did you know that collagen provides natural anxiety relief? Find out how collagen can improve your symptoms of anxiety! What is collagen? Collagen is a hard, insoluble, and fibrous protein that makes up a whopping one-third of the protein in the human body. Think of it as the substance that holds the body together! It is not only the most abundant protein in the body but also an extremely healing food. As you might know, anxiety stems from many factors, and oftentimes it is caused by physical issues within the body like nutrient deficiencies. My battle with anxiety: I started getting severe anxiety when I was 19. It came in the form of panic attacks, of feeling a constant sense of unease, an unending sense of doom and near-constant negative thoughts. I battled with it on and off until my last pregnancy, which due to hormonal fluctuations cause a pretty…

My daily supplement regimen is an example of supplements I regularly take, not an indication of what you personally should take. The contents of this article are not meant to substitute medical advice. Always check with your healthcare provider before adding or removing a supplement or medication. I have shared a few supplement regimens in the past and I wanted to do another because it’s always changing. I have never and would never recommend anyone continually take the same supplements over and over (excluding a few we could all use, like magnesium). I get regular blood work to determine where I may be lacking and supplement based on that, as well as how I feel. ASHWAGANDA I take this brand of ashwaganda. Ashwaganda is an adaptogen that helps you adapt to stress. It reduces anxiety and promotes an overall sense of calm. I’ve been taking ashwaganda on and off for…

CBD, or cannabidiol, has grown rapidly in popularity over the last year or two. And for good reason, emerging research demonstrates its efficacy for a wide range of symptoms – from seizures to anxiety to polycystic ovarian syndrome to PTSD. As it turns out, while CBD is relatively new, there’s a significant amount of science and studies to back up just how beneficial it seems to be – with more science emerging all the time. While a wonder drug doesn’t exist, CBD is incredibly beneficial for a plethora of common ailments. What is CBD? CBD is a natural compound found in the cannabis plant. Unlike THC, which is also found in the cannabis plant, CBD does not have psychoactive properties. What are the benefits of CBD? One of the best features of CBD is that it doesn’t have just one benefit. Research has shown that it works on numerous bodily…

Let me share a shocking statistic with you: 50% of people aged 85 and over will develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease and there’s no cure for it. Prevention is the most impactful way to avoid developing these diseases. In fact, prevention is the best way to avoid developing not just these diseases, but all diseases in general. There are several steps we can take to ensure our life-long health. This is incredibly close to my heart so I want to share ten ways to prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s. My happiest memory growing up was sitting on the floor of my grandmother’s apartment on a sunny day watching TV as she made food in the kitchen. Her apartment was the only place I felt safe and at ease and like I could just be myself. This was before she moved in with us, and her home was my respite. It…

This 20 minute gluten-free shrimp, artichoke, spinach & tomato pasta came about when I felt too lazy to make lunch. I’m pregnant, I work from home and I really just felt like walking up to Chipotle. This is the danger of living within walking distance of a Chipotle. Wanting it ALL the time. Eating ALL the Chipotle. But I persevered. I got my ass up and opened my fridge and stared in for a solid seven minutes. My toddler was running around in his winter boots (it’s August, by the way) and our amazing sitter was chasing him. I tend to look at random ingredients until some sort of plan forms in my brain. I had frozen shrimp and artichokes, spinach that was just beginning to wilt, I always keep brown rice and quinoa pasta in my pantry, Ya’ll know I always have butter. I can’t live without it. If…

Growing up in an unstable environment with a violent, drug addicted mom unfortunately primed my brain for anxiety. But there’s is so much we can do to mitigate its effects, including taking exercise, therapy and meditation. One of my favorite ways to reduce anxiety is through natural remedies – and these are the BEST supplements for anxiety! I have had anxiety for most of my life. Not my adult life, mind you. My ENTIRE life. Literally as far back as I can remember. Unfortunately, it’s only gotten worse over the years, particularly when I was 18, then when I was 21, it was at its absolute worst. I’m 29 now (even though I think I’m 19) and have a great handle on it, but it’s not without some serious effort, which includes taking the best supplements for anxiety. It also includes eating well, avoiding gluten is crucial for me, I…

Most moms are advised to feed their kiddo baby cereal, either in the form or rice or oats, as the first food. Here’s why that’s problematic and why my son’s pediatrician and early intervention nurse both agreed that this is not the ideal first food: It has no nutritional value. None. ZERO. Not to mention, grains can be difficult for even adults to digest. Some argue that this isn’t an issue because the goal of introducing solids is just that – to introduce solids, not actually nourish the baby. But at around six months, baby’s need four times the amount of zinc and nine times the amount of iron as an adult male (source). So even though your baby won’t be an excellent eater immediately – baby will still be consuming a small amount of whatever food is offered. This is why it’s so important to offer healthy, nutrient dense…

I am IN LOVE with this drink. Not only is it delicious, it literally helps improve anxiety. Which to be honest, is something I need right now. Winter, less sun, less movement, just spent four and a half months in the NICU and have a new baby at home after a hard birth. I need all the anti-anxiety help I can get. For me, I have to take steps daily to keep my anxiety at bay. It’s kind of like skincare. If I didn’t keep a routine, I’d start to see acne. If I don’t keep up with my routine, I start to have anxiety. And I’ve found this is true for the majority of people. If you don’t take the steps to take care of yourself, that’s going to manifest as depression, anxiety, unhappiness, etc. I recently spoke with a friend who told me about someone she knew who…