We know and have been hearing for so long now that your health is in your gut - but what does that even mean and how does your gut health change as you get older? I'm going to help to break this down and share my tips to treating your mind, body and gut with the love and attention it deserves. Let’s start with the basics. What exactly are people referring to when they are talking about “the gut”?

Our intestines are full of billions of types of bacteria, both good and bad. Our bacterial makeup depends on a lot of things different things - our diet, genetics, environment and whether we’ve taken antibiotics recently. The good news? We have the power to change our microbiome in a matter of days. Research showed an increase in good bacteria in the gut after just 2 days of switching subjects from a high fat, high sugar diet, to a plant based diet. 

When we have more of the good bacteria in the gut, there is less room for the bad guys. When our microbiome is well armed with good bacteria, it enhances our mood, immune system, energy, sex drive and keeps us in better touch with hunger and satiety cues. 

When the bad guys start to take over due to stress or poor diet, our microbiome is unable to function optimally. We may experience uneasy digestion, delayed gastric emptying causing those unsexy symptoms like bloating and constipation, and fatigue. We are also more susceptible to getting sick.  

Many of us start to experience food intolerances or increased digestive discomfort as we age. As women, it is important to work with a physician, nutritionist or functional medicine doctor to understand the woman’s unique biology and your specific hormonal balance, intolerances or allergies. These can have a huge impact on how you feel day to day. Experimenting with elimination diets can help figure out trigger foods and practicing mindfulness through meditation and breath work can help decrease stress related digestive discomfort like bloat and constipation. 

What you eat has a huge impact on the health of our microbiome and how our bodies fight inflammation. Processed foods high in sugar, artificial sweeteners, emulsifiers and stabilizers can cause leaky gut, digestive discomfort and chronic low grade inflammation, making us more susceptible to acute and chronic illnesses. Understanding nutrition labels and sticking to natural, whole foods can improve the health of your gut and digestion quickly. Cutting out processed foods will also help with weight management, energy and mood!

While you can shift the makeup of your microbiome within days, maintaining gut health is important, especially as we age. There is even a correlation between gut health and brain/memory health. Preventing chronic illness, skin cell degeneration (what causes wrinkles!), and maintaining high energy levels as we age ALL starts with gut health. 

Where to start?

• Eat a plant heavy diet
• Limit processed, high sugar foods
• Learn how to read nutrition labels to avoid artificial sweeteners, emulsifiers and additives
• Add meditation or mindfulness practices to your daily routine
• Eat and take your probiotics
• Find a general physician or functional medicine doctor that can help you understand your unique biology

Start by putting these practices into place for a week, then two weeks, then another two weeks and see how different (amazing!) you feel. Slow and steady wins the race and remember to be kind to yourself along the way as you put these new habits into your daily routines.

With love, 

Molly

Inflammation is a term we hear thrown around a lot in the wellness world, but what does it actually mean and how can we ease or reduce inflammation? 

The first thing to note is that inflammation is a natural process in our bodies and is actually an essential part of our body’s healing process. Inflammation is triggered when our body recognizes a foreign or dangerous microbe or chemical. Acute inflammation is necessary to fight threatening invaders and protect us. Chronic inflammation is when this process becomes a problem that actually gets in the way of our health rather than protecting it. Chronic inflammation keeps our bodily processes from working efficiently and can lead to chronic disease. 

So how do we prevent and ease chronic inflammation? 

Luckily we have the power to reduce inflammation just by changing our diets. First, we want to limit refined carbohydrates like white breads, pastries and refined flours, sugar sweetened beverages, fried foods, added sugars and alcohol. These are the same foods that we all know to be bad for our health for a myriad of reasons! In place of these inflammatory foods, we want to pile on the anti-inflammatory superfoods, formerly known as the Mediterranean Diet. High quality olive oil, fatty fish, leafy greens, nuts, seeds, tomatoes and fruit are going to be inflammations worst enemy. And yes, a glass of red wine and/or a few pieces of dark chocolate per night are both still known to be anti-inflammatory! 

Besides diet, there are lifestyle changes that can help reduce inflammation. Stress is one of the biggest inflammatory triggers and while stress is inevitable, how we respond to it is in our control. 

Here are a few stress reducing techniques I urge you to incorporate into your daily life:

• 10-15 minutes of meditation or breath work. This can also be through a moving meditation. I love doing a 10 minute yoga flow to move stagnant energy and reset my mindset.
• Move your body! Mixing in 20-30 minutes of cardio a few times a week is crucial for fighting inflammation and reducing stress. You don’t need to pound the pavement or the “dreadmill” if that is not for you. Get up and dance to your favorite songs and get your heart rate up!
• Incorporate adaptogenic herbs to help your body respond more effectively to stress.
• Try a high quality CBD or hemp oil before bed if you have trouble getting a good night’s sleep. Getting those 8 hours of sleep is crucial for balancing hormones and managing our body’s response to stress. 

We are all superheroes working to fight against chronic inflammation and we all have the strength and capability to do so! What are you doing to combat inflammation?? Reach out to me with any questions or comments! 

With love, 

Molly

I love making a big batch of this sauce and keeping it in the refrigerator to mix with a pasta, grain bowl, or as a sauce for fish or chicken...it tastes great on almost anything! 

Of course, it also has tons of health benefits as well. Raw garlic is one of the healthiest foods we can eat. It's antibacterial, antimicrobial and antiviral and contains a compound called allicin that helps boost white blood cell count to aid in the body’s detoxification process. It also contains prebiotics that feed the good bacteria in our gut to strengthen our microbiome. 

Basil is a flavorful herb that also happens to be full of antioxidants that help fight chronic disease.

Avocado is full of those healthy fats crucial for brain and skin health. It lubricates our skin from the inside out keeping it dewy and youthful looking while also working to strengthen our mental clarity and focus. 

Olive oil is a main part of the anti-inflammatory diet as we discuss in this month’s blog post. 

Lemon also has antibacterial and antimicrobial properties, and its high vitamin C content helps boost collagen production in our skin.

Finally, pine nuts also contain those healthy fats and a punch of protein, iron and magnesium. 

So all in all, each ingredient in this delicious sauce is working to promote your wellness. Most importantly, it tastes delicious. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch fresh basil
• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped and minced
• 1/2 cup pine nuts (can also use walnuts or hemp seeds)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Dash of sea salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons water (can add more or less depending on how thick you want it)

Directions:

1. Rip the basil leaves off the stem and add to food processor with the rest of the ingredients
2. Pulse until smooth and creamy
3. Add more water if you want it to thin out
4. Mix with pasta or use as a dipping sauce with veggies or protein

Bon appétit!

Brain and gut health go hand in hand. Preventing brain fog and maintaining mental energy and clarity are rooted in a balanced gut microbiome which I care for by feeding it lots of probiotics and fiber from leafy greens, nuts, and seeds. This salad also includes some chopped apples and lemon and olive oil for a light, refreshing dressing!

Something that I personally do to help me wind down before bed is meditating using my favorite app, the @kelseyjpatel pure joy app. This helps me transition into relaxation mode. It helps me unwind and stop thinking about everything I need to do! When I’m not pregnant, taking a dropper full of CBD with a cup of chamomile tea also helps me get the best night’s sleep!