by Kate Driver | Mar 14, 2020 | Anxiety, gut health, Health, immune system
Boost your immune system naturally
Live and dried blood analysis, can tell me the state of your immune system.
When I look at your blood under a microscope, how many white blood cells you have, I can see if you are fighting a virus, bacteria or parasites and if you have nutritional deficiencies or inflammation. I can also see if you have weakened adrenals, parasites, candida or leaky gut. I can then set you up on a personalised diet and supplement plan so you can become the healthy resilient person you need to be at this time!
Did you know –
- 70 % of your immune system relies on a healthy gut
- Copper fights pathogens - virus, bacteria and parasites and most people are deficient!
- Viruses and other pathogens feed on Iron ( if its in the wrong place)
- Parasites, candida & leaky gut weaken the immune system
- Stress causes 90 % of illness
- Only 10 % of disease is caused by your genes/ hereditary, 90 % is epigenetic ! (Diet, lifestyle and environmental factors)
This means you need to get as healthy as possible in mind and body !
These are my best suggestions for immune boosting, remembering that 70-80% of immune health relies on a healthy gut/ digestive system!
- Probiotics - especially the lactobaccilus Rhamnosus (preferbaly LGG )
- Colostrum & lactoferrin - sometimes found in prebiotics/ probiotics
- Wholefood vitamin C - (not ascorbic acid or other synthetic C’s), Whole food vitamin C like Eden Valley Wild C powder is high in copper which is antipathogenic
- Cod liver oil - high in vitamin A and D, important for immune health
- Astragalus & medicinal mushrooms such as reishi, Shiitake and codonopsis
- Echinacea, andrographis, olive leaf all fight viruses and boost the immune system
- Zinc and Selenium
In regards to Selenium, Dr. Damien Downing says: “Swine flu, bird flu and SARS (another coronavirus) all developed in selenium-deficient areas of China; Ebola and HIV in Selenium-deficient areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. This is because the same oxidative stress that causes us inflammation forces viruses to mutate rapidly in order to survive. ‘When Selenium deficient virus-infected hosts were supplemented with dietary Selenium, viral mutation rates diminished and immunocompetence improved.'”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21318622
- Eat a healthy, whole food diet your immune system relies on this
- Reduce stress! 90 % of illness is caused by stress.
Please check with myself or your Dr. if you are on any medications before starting to take any new supplements
If you have any questions, or you are travelling soon and want to improve your immune health, please get in contact with me for a consultation.
As you can see and may already know, the live and dried blood analysis is a great tool to tell us what your state of current health is at!
Please contact me here for more information !
or to book an online consultation click here
For in clinic consultations click here
by Kate Driver | Mar 1, 2020 | gut health, gut health, Health, hormones
YOUR GUT IS AN ENDOCRINE GLAND !
An endocrine gland is a hormone producing gland such as the ovaries and adrenals.
Your gut bacteria helps produce-
- Estradiol – the protective estrogen
- 90% of Serotonin production ! Serotonin is one of your happy hormones and its also regulates appetite, sleep, mood and temperature .
Your gut bacteria regulates
- Melatonin - which regulates our circadian rhythm and sleep cycle
- Dopamine – all about rewards / addictions
- Grehlin – your hunger hormone, if your gut bacteria is off you will eat more!
Your gut bacteria
- Metabolise & excretes bad estrogens
- Increase stress hormones (adrenaline & nor-adrenaline)
- Influence your thyroid hormones & thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH)
The gut bacteria regulates estrogens through an enzyme called beta glucaronidase.
This enzyme keeps the ‘bad’ estrogens low in the body and protects you from estrogen dependant cancers.
An alteration in circulating estrogens may contribute to estrogen dominant states.
Estrogen dominant states include
- Obesity
- Metabolic syndrome
- Cancer
- Endometrial hyperplasia
- Endometriosis
- Fibroids
- Polycystic ovary syndrome
- Infertility
- Cardiovascular disease (CVD)
- Cognitive function decline
Your gut bacteria produce enzymes called the ESTROBOLOME. Your estrobolome controls your estrogen metabolism and excretion.
If your estrobolome is unhealthy, you become estrogen dominant and more prone to the ‘bad’ estrogens affecting your health.
One definition of the Estrobolome is –
“…the aggregate of enteric bacterial genes whose products
are capable of metabolizing estrogens”
“By modulating the enterohepatic circulation of estrogens, the estrobolome affects both the excretion and circulation of estrogens. In turn, the composition of the estrobolome can be shaped by factors such as antibiotics, other drugs, and diet that modulate its functional activity.”
Plottel SC, Blaser MJ.
A healthy Oestrobolome in the gut helps the body excrete estrogen appropriately !
To have happy hormones you need to get your gut right!!
🥑A poor diet, antibiotics, toxins/chemicals, and alcohol worsen your microbiome thus potentially increasing estrogen
🤢Constipation will cause hormone imbalance due to poor excretion of toxins and bad estrogens.
🥦Prebiotics and probiotic supplements and foods are your friend.
🥕A diet rich in plant fibres improves your gut microbiota!
Please reach out if you need guidance with this or other health issues, book a complimentary chat or a consultation online or offline.
by Kate Driver | Feb 25, 2020 | Fatigue
Your adrenals, cortisol & how they affect your hormones
Dysfunctional cortisol can lead to adrenal burnout, thyroid issues and sleeping problems
Cortisol, typically increases after age 40. It can also become ‘dysfunctional’ where it is lower during the day and higher at night time. This commonly is when poor sleep patterns develop or even hot flushes at night.
Cortisol is a hormone we produce in our adrenal glands. Its main function is to raise blood sugar levels, increase blood pressure and reduce inflammation.
Cortisol should be high during the day and lower at night, when we need to produce the hormone melatonin to sleep. Long term stress can cause an increase in cortisol and so can ageing!
If your adrenals are pumping out cortisol for long period of time it will inevitably affect your other hormones. Your skin can sag, muscles droop, become ‘stress intolerant’ and you end up with a lack of confidence.
Progesterone steal pathway and estrogen dominance
High cortisol over time reduces progesterone levels. This is because we produce cortisol and progesterone from the same hormonal precursor- pregnenolone. Progesterone is our anti-anxiety hormone and gives a feeling of contentment. And if you feel like you have constant PMT/PMS then you probably are low in progesterone! If this keeps dropping over time because of stress, lowered thyroid function or a sluggish liver, then you end up with estrogen dominance
Excess estrogens can slow down the thyroid function and contribute to an underactive thyroid. And when the thyroid function slows down, this slows the liver function down and it becomes a cycle.
Prolonged cortisol levels also can decrease the livers ability to clear excess estrogen from the blood.
A sluggish liver can mean you end up with insulin resistance and weight gain. Insulin is the hormone which ‘unlocks’ glucose from your food. If you are not unlocking the glucose for energy, it is stored as fat in your body, usually abdominal fat after age 40, which I known as the middle-aged spread…. Eeek! I know no-one really want this to happen!
Also, as we age we become more resistant to insulin, this can cause weight gain. Our body doesn’t utilise glucose from food as efficiently as it did when we were younger. The way around this is to exercise more and eat less sugar and carb’s.
The top health risks of having high cortisol
· Insulin resistance and diabetes
· Increased body fat/ weight gain
· Mood and brain problems including Alzheimer’s disease and depression
· Insomnia and sleep problems
· Delayed wound healing
· Bone loss in menopausal women
· Infertility and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
We can normalise or control cortisol by
· Controlling stress
· Exercising
· Getting adequate sleep
· Meditating
· Doing yoga
· Practising ‘mindfulness’
· Having a positive attitude
· Taking magnesium and herbs to lower cortisol
· Supporting your adrenal health
· Take or balance melatonin at night (By the way, melatonin is very anti -ageing!)
· Increasing progesterone levels
And most importantly reducing the foods which increase cortisol- coffee, sugar, alcohol and too many processed foods and carbs. This will help to reduce the chance of insulin resistance and weight gain.
The low glycaemic diet is the way to go. Watch the simple carbs and sugars during your day and opt for veggies, salad and proteins at meal times, reducing the carbs to 2 small serves a day. These include breads, rice, pasta and biscuits.
Protein also reduces cortisol and can help keep up feeling calm. If you have sugar or carbs it can leave you feeling more anxious and even trigger hot flushes. So…. don’t go for the sugar or carbs when you feel anxious or tired, have some good quality protein!
Would you like some support or have any questions? You can contact me here for a chat or an appointment. I consult online and in person in South Australia.
by Kate Driver | Feb 7, 2020 | gut health, Health, hormones
YOUR GUT & HORMONES
Did you know that your gut bacteria or flora help regulate your hormones, especially estrogen?
Your gut microbiome has far reaching effects.
Signs of a gut - hormone imbalance are
•Acne
•Belching
•Bloating
• Stomach/ digestive upset
•Constipation or IBS
•Gas
•Gut infections
•Headaches
•Heavy, light, or irregular periods
•Hot flashes
•Low libido
•Mood swings
•Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
•SIBO
•Tender, swollen, and/or fibrocystic breasts
•Weight gain
If your gut isn’t healthy then your hormones are not going to be healthy.
An unhealthy gut means estrogen is not metabolised properly and the is can build up in the body and may contribute to estrogen dominant states. This can further lead to more serious condtions such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, cancer, endometrial hyperplasia, endometriosis, fibroids, polycystic ovary syndrome, fertility, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cognitive function. (1)
YOUR ESTROBOLOME
The estrobolome is a collection of these gut microbes that work to metabolise (process / breakdown) estrogens. These microbes produce an enzyme called betaglucaronidase, that switches on estrogen, so it becomes active in the body,
When you have a healthy estrobolome, it will produce the right amount of betaglucaronidase to balance your estrogens. If you have too much betaglucaronidase (which can be caused b the bad gut bacteria), it will increase your estrogen too much. This is associated with estrogen dominance and estrogen dominant conditions, such as heavy and painful menstruation, endometriosis and fibroids.
‘High levels of circulating estrogens from overactive beta-glucuronidase activity could promote cell growth and tumor growth on estrogen-sensitive tissues in the breasts, ovaries, endometrium, and the cervix.’ (2)
When you dont have enough betaglucaronidase it will lower estrogen and reduce the amount of good gut microbes and is linked polycystic ovarian syndrome, cardiovasclar disease, weight gain and osteoporosis.
To improve your Estrobolome balance you can
- Eat an organic, whole food diet
- Increase your veggies, especially broccoli and deeply coloured veggies
- Reduce processed foods and sugar
- Eat broccoli sprouts or take sulforaphane
- Reduce or avoid coffee and alcohol
- Take probiotics and prebiotics in supplements or food
- Exercise (this increase butyrate, which boosts good gut microbes and reduces inflammation!
- Reduce endocrine disruptors (ie- plastics, parabens, BPA etc)
Getting you gut right will go a long way to help balance your hormones!
If you are not sure what state your gut is in, or what your betaglucaronidase levels are, you can get tested. If you would like to know how , or need support on your healing journey, please contact me HERE
References
1- The microboime masterclass, The Estrobolobiome with Carrie Jones ND
2- Laura Schoenfeld - Is an unhealthy gut causing your estrogen dominance?
by Kate Driver | Dec 21, 2019 | Blog, Energy, gut health, Health
How many more celebrations do you have to endure before your body starts to retaliate?
Do you listen to your body ?
Are you getting symptoms such as feeling a bit ‘off’, bloating, headaches or fatigue ?
Look after your health this Christmas and new year with a few simple steps!
⭐️Start the day with fresh lemon juice in a big glass of warm water
⭐️Drink plenty of filtered and alkalised water - at least .03 litre for every 10 kilos your weigh. Sip slowly.
⭐️Have at least 2 alcohol free days a week to give your liver and kidneys a break
⭐️Drink green tea or matcha tea - both protect the body from toxins, boost your metabolism and protect the gut bacteria/ microbiome.
⭐️Take digestive enzymes with large meals or foods you are sensitive to, you will digest them more efficiently and get less symptoms.
⭐️Take a probiotic before bed - a good quality broad spectrum
⭐️If tolerated have fermented veggies daily - add to salads or your eggs for breakfast
⭐️Support your liver with St. Mary’s thistle - protects against alcohol, fatty foods and overindulging ( if you are on medications please check with your health practitioner first before taking a liver supplement)
If you are looking forward to a break from celebrating in the new year and want to get your body and mind back on track after all the madness. come to the MIND YOUR DETOX workshop on January 6th at the clinic at Glenelg South.
It is being hosted by me (Kate Driver ) and Suzanne Ingleton, wellness practitioner.
Give your body the ultimate body & mind detox and start the new year healthier than ever!
Find out more here -
If you have have any questions feel free to contact me
here 
