Some ways I can help
Nutritional Therapy uses a personalised and functional approach to look at all the systems of the body and to understand the drivers of symptoms.
I am happy to help you with all aspects of your health and well-being. Below are some of the areas I often work with, however please get in touch if there is anything you would like to discuss.
Gut health
Are you living with bloating, wind, constipation, diarrhoea or digestive discomfort? Do you feel full quickly after meals or have reflux? Have you observed that any foods exacerbate your symptoms? Do you lack energy? Have you any skin irritation or inflammation? Is your mood erratic or your mind 'foggy'?
Your gut hosts your microbiome, but did you know your skin, lungs, bladder and your mouth also have a microbiome? Our bacteria play countless functional roles to regulate our body and many symptoms throughout the body are related to microbiome composition.
When your digestion is disrupted nutrient malabsorption and hormonal imbalance can occur, triggering symptoms including migraine, fatigue, hair loss, joint pain, poor skin health.
Working together we can understand what may be contributing to your symptoms and I can guide you through the changes you can make to help put you on a robust path for recovery.
Weight loss
Weight loss can be challenging to tackle and a source of worry for many people. Social media is crowded with solutions that have worked miracles for some individuals. Weight loss injections are becoming normalised despite the acknowledged risks to digestive and pancreatic health, muscle strength and weight regain.
Weight can increase slowly with changes to our hormones including insulin, cortisol or oestrogen that can trigger a negative cycle of dysregulated eating patterns, poor sleep, low energy, poor mood that can lead to further weight gain.
Evidence shows that weight loss can be achieved and sustained with a personalised approach to diet and lifestyle that takes into account individual drivers of your weight gain.
Together we can work on a plan that works for you.
Insulin and cholesterol imbalance
Errant blood sugar levels and increased cholesterol are common health conditions that are becoming normalised and medications are easy to obtain. However 'taking a pill for an ill' masks the underlying imbalances that are contributing to raised blood sugar or high cholesterol and medications can lead to further complications.
Metabolic imbalances occur as we age and with hormonal change. Changes to insulin and cholesterol levels can contribute to weight gain, kidney dysfunction and neurological decline.
However we now know that metabolic health can be controlled by gaining an understanding of the drivers of hormonal change and making diet and lifestyle changes.
I can take you through some simple and proven steps to restoring metabolic health and reducing your risk of future chronic disease.
GLP-1 support
GLP-1 medications are commonly used to achieve rapid weight loss, however influencing natural digestive processes with a medication may result in changes to gastrointestinal function that can lead to nutrient deficiency, constipation, kidney and pancreatic dysfunction and muscle loss. Studies have shown that the weight that is lost using GLP-1 medication is rapidly regained and some people are left with long-standing complications associated with their change in digestive function.
If you are taking GLP-1 medication I can help you to maintain your health while you lose weight and guide you through the steps you can take to sustain your weight loss after you stop taking the medication.
Menopause reset
Our hormones are the master regulators of all of our physiological systems. Our hormones naturally change as we age and in women there is a loss of ovarian function that leads to changes in oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone levels. The impact of this loss of signalling around the body can have countless consequences in areas we previously felt 100% secure such as our mental health, metabolism, heart rate, sleep, cholesterol balance and diabetes risk. In many women the onset of menopause is a silent driver of gradual weight gain that impacts our overall health and chronic disease risk.
Every woman is individual and it is important to assess the symptoms and triggers that are specific to you. Only by looking at your individual case in the context of your lifestyle can we find a path for you that can help resolve your symptoms.
Rest assured diet, nutrient balance, stress and exercise are all powerful modulators of symptoms that arise from hormone dysregulation and we can work together to design a tailored plan that works for you.
My dissertation was on changes to metabolism and weight gain as a result of a loss of oestrogen and as part of this research I identified whole foods and supplements that can help to increase metabolic output and reduce weight gain.
Bone & joint health
Our bones and joints are integral to our ability to move well as we age and maintain an active life, therefore bone health is at the heart of healthy longevity.
Do you have a family history of osteoporosis or arthritis? Are you perimenopausal or menopausal? Have you started to notice joint discomfort?
Bone and joint health can be affected by inflammation, blood sugar balance, oestrogen levels, toxins, sedentary lifestyle and over-weight.
I can work with you to identify the risk areas in your diet and lifestyle and identify simple changes to help protect your bone and joint health so you can have an active future.
Migraine
Migraine is a challenging and multifactorial symptom that many struggle to resolve and suffer with over years. However more and more knowledge is emerging about its root cause and in particular how various systemic imbalances including digestion, detoxification, stress and nutrient deficiencies can contribute to its regularity and severity.
By looking at your health history, lifestyle, diet and other symptoms as a whole we can work towards unpicking your individual migraine triggers and how we can work towards resolving it.
Medications are often thought to be the only route to supporting those with migraine, however the integrative approach of Nutritional Therapy is essential to discover the unique circumstances of a migraine sufferer and to redress the associated imbalances.
Energy
Do you wake up unrefreshed? Does your energy ebb and flow throughout the day or do you have crashes in energy that leave you feeling like you can’t achieve your best? You may be lacking the nutrients required to support optimal energy production. You may be eating foods that your body struggles to take energy from or that release energy too quickly, or you may have a build up of toxins and this may make you feel groggy.
The energy output from food can vary from one individual to another depending on your physiology, your lifestyle and your lifestage.
Together we can work to understand your individual contributors to energy regulation and help you gradually regain your energy so you can be your best self.
Longevity
Today we know it’s important to think not just about our life-span but our health-span. Most people want to live long, well and active.
Our everyday foods contribute on a microscopic level to the cellular processes in our body and inform our health today and how we age. I can help you to reframe how you eat, to consider how food can promote your long-term health and support you on a path to healthy longevity.
