← Culture Apothecary with Alex Clark
Culture Apothecary with Alex Clark
How to Get and Stay Pregnant + Eczema & Heavy Metal Detox | Dr. Nina-Marie Rueda
01:11:42
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- [00:00]
A
70 year old men in the late 80s had 100 points higher testosterone than men in their 50s.
- [00:07]
B
Today when we focus on foods like liver, cod, liver oil, beef, raw milk, eggs, just one or two months of these foods increases it by over.
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A
Did you know that pregnant women need to eat more salt? What about the link between tattoos and heavy metal toxicity? Are you struggling to get pregnant in the first place? As a traditionally trained naturopathic doctor who focuses on perinatal and pediatric health, Dr. Nina Marie Ruda can help your family grow without Big Pharma. Whether you're coming to her for help getting and staying staying pregnant, or because your child is dealing with chronic eczema, constipation, ADHD or autism, you can be sure that she will not be giving you the same one size symptom suppressing approach that your typical doc gives you. You can watch this episode on real Alex Clark YouTube or culture Apothecary on Spotify. We are on a mission to heal a sick culture physically, mentally and spiritually. If you agree with that, please leave a five star review six saying how much you love the show. Please welcome Dr. Nina Marie Ruda to Culture Apothecary. Are more women struggling today with getting and staying pregnant than any other time in history?
- [01:41]
B
I would say yes they are. The reason for that is because what we are dealing with on an environmental level now, and even just thinking about emotional level is impacting how the human body can reproduce. Our reproductive cells, all of the cells that make up our reproductive organs have higher amounts of mitochondria per cell and there's a lot more in our environment, in our food, how we live, that creates mitochondrial dysfunction. With that mitochondrial dysfunction, you aren't able to produce enough energy necessary for that, cells, tissues, organs, proper function. And so when we have this decrease in energy production, decrease in function, then we're not going to reproduce. Well, the female egg has anywhere from 100 to 600,000 mitochondria per cell and other non reproductive body parts have maybe 1 to 2000 per cell. So it's a huge difference. This is why, you know, your first trimester you're really tired because there's so much growth happening, so much energy being utilized for the growth of your baby that you are left with feeling like you have nothing left to give.
- [03:01]
A
Just out of nowhere really. In the last couple of decades you think more women are like I can't get pregnant and I don't know why.
- [03:07]
B
Yes, I do think that that's true. So we have less nutrients in our food because of what's happening to our soil. We have less. Less people connected to eating their food. We have less people connected to one another. And oxytocin helps the body feel bonded to people. The fact that we cannot have the hormonal cascade necessary. We have toxins like metals impacting our brain's production of various hormones. Melatonin, GnRH, TSH, TRH, et cetera. Because of where it deposits in the brain. You can picture it as if it were a clock and these gears are working. And when metals are present, it slows the gears down or stops the gears altogether. And our production of those, those hormones. Because the cascade starts in your brain, then slows down everything else. So the communication to the thyroid, the ovaries, pancreas, et cetera, all of that will be impacted because of how we are living, what we're living in, all of it.
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A
You're a traditional naturopathic doctor. What does that mean?
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B
A traditional naturopath is not the naturopathic doctor that goes to medical school and is trained in surgery and pharmaceuticals. Instead, I've opted out of that particular type of training. I don't want to utilize pharmaceuticals at all. I don't want to utilize surgical procedures at all. I want to empower the body in its own healing mechanisms, Utilizing herbalism, utilizing homeopathy. And that's not to say that naturopaths that have gone through that specific formal training don't utilize those things. They just have that extra training to make it more integrative. And that's not something I wanted.
- [04:51]
A
Did you not want it because you just wanted to challenge yourself? Like, I want to find the natural remedy for things, if at all possible, or what was the reason?
- [05:00]
B
I don't think that they're necessary a lot of the time. I'm not naive enough to think that we don't need western medicine. I've utilized it. We've gone to urgent care, things like that. But it is so heavily depended on, and I. I don't think it's needed a lot of the time.
- [05:19]
A
Why did you choose specifically to go into naturopathic medicine?
- [05:22]
B
You know, I didn't, if I'm honest. So I went to school. Originally, I thought I was going to be an architect. And then I went to Bible college. And then after Bible college, I was working in a health clinic in Chicago, and it was an eye clinic. And I thought at one point I would become an ophthalmologist. I was considering going to ophthalmology school. And so I've kind of had my hand in Chronic health issues for over a decade, just present with people dealing with chronic issues. And it wasn't until I got pregnant with my first that I realized, wow, there's so much more to health that I'm not paying attention to. There was a woman in our church who was a doula, and she led a childbirth class for couples. It was three months long. And so we had to go once a week for three months. And the very first class was, you need to pay attention to what you're eating. You're growing a baby. That was probably the beginning of where I am now. I started to pay attention to the types of things I was putting on my body, in my body. And so I wasn't as healthy for my first pregnancy. And then that spurred on wanting to learn more about labor and birth. And I learned about how doctors will schedule C sections around their vacation or holidays and all of that wonderful business of being born kind of thing. From there, I pregnant with my second. I really wanted to become a doula. And so I went into training for labor and postpartum doulas.
- [07:01]
A
Oh, neat.
- [07:01]
B
And I was working with a lot of clients, and they had a lot of questions about food. And to the credit of my trainers, I couldn't answer them because that wasn't what my training was for. My training was understanding normal physiology, how a woman progresses in labor, how to support her, and then empowering her in her own decisions around labor and delivery. Because I kept getting a lot of questions about food, I pursued more training. And so I went into functional nutrition. And then I went and got tons of training around different functional tests. And eventually I went into naturopathy, or traditional naturopathy, because that's where I was naturally led. I started wanting to help postpartum moms because there's a lot of help with trying to conceive. There's a lot of help in pregnancy. And then once you have your baby, many women experience feeling alone. And so I wanted to help in labor. And then I did a lot of, like, postpartum private chef work for a while when I was in Chicago.
- [07:58]
A
Oh, that's neat.
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B
Actually, it was also extremely, like, satisfying because I knew that this family, I would go in and prep one or two times a week, and h. They would have their. Their fridge stocked, and I would do the grocery shopping for them so that they knew that they had food that were. That would support mom for recovering from birth. It was going to support her production of breast milk if she was breastfeeding. And then dad didn't feel like, he had to take a ton of things on while mom was recuperating. They could become this, like, family unit together without the pressures of all of the other things.
- [08:33]
A
Those 40 days, right?
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B
Yes, exactly.
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A
So a naturopath like you, that means someone would go to you and say, I've got this ailment. This ailment. And you're like, okay, let's do this little mushroom here and let's do this dandelion. And is that what you're doing?
- [08:44]
B
Yes and no. When someone starts to work with me, we usually have a health history call. I spend time with them going over, like, what's been happening, what are your complaints, what are your concerns, what are your goals? And I'm. I always have questions. I'm asking about previous providers you may have worked with, previous tests you maybe have had run, and I'm asking for copies of those, analyzing them. I run at least one test on every client. As helpful as subjective data is, it's subjective in nature. And so I pair how you are feeling and what you are feeling in your body with. With what the lab is telling me is happening in your body as well. Yeah, look at that. And the reason for that is you don't want to just look at lab numbers because they're not. They must be applied to a person. Disregarding symptoms, disregarding someone's experience, and solely focusing on results on a paper is not valid healthcare. But at the same time, there are many people who are unfamiliar with what symptoms are. I can't tell you how many times I would ask someone, are you constipated? And they would say, no.
- [09:58]
A
Oh, my gosh. I mean, I've told this story a million times, but this was me for years. Years and years and years. Basically my entire life, I would poop, like once a week.
- [10:08]
B
Oh, my God.
- [10:09]
A
Every time I was asked, are you constipated? I would say no, because to me, I thought constipation was painful. Can't get it out. Bowel movements. And I was like, well, no, but I'm just. I just poop like once a week. And that's just how I made. I did not know that that was considered constipation. So, see, that was a symptom that I had for majority of my entire life growing up. That was telling me something is desperately wrong that I didn't know until a couple years ago.
- [10:37]
B
Yes. So, like, I'm asking you if you're constipated, you say no. How many times are you having a bowel movement per day? Once A week, you are constipated, you are not in tuned with your body. And so I want to be able to figure out what's happening so that we can help you understand how to get in tune with your body. Symptomatic and subjective data is important. I pair that with objective data and lab results. But even then in my lab training, I'm understanding that what we see in blood work, for example, the ranges given from a specific lab, they change from lab to lab, region to region, depending on the population of that area. One area may have a different set of ranges than another because, because this area is more sick than this one. And so catching something before it begins becomes difficult. When you're purely going on ranges, it's just to check for pathology as opposed to dysfunction. So we're able to look at, okay, where is dysfunction happening? Even though we're not out of range in XYZ markers.
- [11:39]
A
I read the other day that 70 year old men in the late 80s had 100 points higher testosterone than men in their 50s today. Why do you think that is?
- [11:50]
B
There are specific nutrients that support sperm count, sperm motility, sperm morphology. In men, zinc is necessary, selenium is necessary, L carnitine or carnitine is necessary, vitamin c is necessary. Coq 10. A lot of these are in foods that we're not men aren't eating. So what, like organ meats not eating enough fat? Even beef, like carnitine, the main source that you would get it from is muscle meats which would be from like beef main source. You could get your fatty acids or your vitamin A, that's another one. Are going to be from your liver, your cod liver or oil, your raw milk. Not many people are consuming these foods anymore. We know that L carnitine there is 2000 times more L carnitine concentrated in seminal fluids than in your blood plasma. So we know that's an important nutrient for semen parameters. Vitamin C. There's 10 times more vitamin C in seminal fluids than in your blood plasma. It's an important nutrient for all sperm parameters. And so when we focus on foods like liver, cod liver oil, beef, raw milk, eggs, even men who were diagnosed as unexplained infertility or problems with sperm motility or sperm morphology or sperm count. Just one or two months of these foods or supplementation increases it by over half. What? When you have poor blood sugar management, it can lead to an increase in estrogen in men, which is going to decrease your testosterone levels. Because elevated blood sugar levels leads to a stress response in the body leads to adipose tissue or fat tissue being stored, because your body wants to try to shunt that sugar out of the blood somewhere so it'll create adipose cells. When that happens, you have an enzyme called aromatase that can increase and that enzyme will testosterone. We're going to turn you into estrogen. And so the more fat tissue on someone's body, the more the aromatase enzyme is produced, which can lead to decreased testosterone levels. Just because we have this little button that's being pushed that says we're going to make testosterone become estrogen.
- [14:07]
A
If a couple is struggling with infertility, I mean, is one of the things you're looking at? And if it's coming from the man, like, if everything she's testing fine, and it's like, okay, we know it's something with him. I mean, is his weight something that you're looking at?
- [14:17]
B
It could be a contributing factor. Yes.
- [14:19]
A
Okay.
- [14:20]
B
I wouldn't say it's the contributing factor.
- [14:21]
A
Right. But it could be.
- [14:22]
B
Absolutely. Because blood sugar management is going to be a big part of that. Now, when I say weight, I don't want to say a specific number because there are individuals who may be of higher weight but have a ton of muscle. So that wouldn't be the problem. Right. So it's really dependent on other metabolic factors as well. Usually the individuals that have the blood sugar management problem will also have liver enzyme problems, inflammation problems, cardiovascular health problems. So it's never just that one. There's this compilation of them all.
- [14:52]
A
True or false, if you are struggling with infertility, it is highly likely you have a vitamin A deficiency.
- [14:59]
B
Maybe. I mean, it's. It's an important nutrient, for sure.
- [15:02]
A
How often do you see that?
- [15:03]
B
I would say we're optimizing vitamin A in every fertility client. It's important. I wouldn't say they're absolutely deficient. There might be other things. Selenium, zinc, iodine. Your iodine need in pregnancy increases by 50% after your thyroid. The highest place of concentration is at the ovaries in the female body. So understanding the need for iodine for your menstrual cycle, for thyroid hormone production is key. And that often is going to be a big factor for women. Infertility issues because hypothyroidism and or hyperthyroidism can lead to problems with the menses.
- [15:44]
A
Yeah, that's what I'm super scared about because I have Hashimoto's.
- [15:47]
B
Don't let it scare you.
- [15:48]
A
But here's the thing, though. My estrogen and progesterone are basically at zero. My testosterone is normal, but those two are basically at zero.
- [15:56]
B
I have so many questions. I know this is where I would look into, like, what's going on in the brain for malproduction or lack of production of those two hormones. I mean, let me look at one mineral possibility. Selenium is necessary for the conversion of cholesterol to progesterone. So maybe you're eating enough. I mean, our cholesterol levels, like 20 comes from diet. The rest is going to be.
- [16:22]
A
I definitely think I'm not eating enough.
- [16:24]
B
It's worse than.
- [16:25]
A
That's work stress. I mean, is that it?
- [16:27]
B
Oh, 100. It's just. That's number one where I. You mean eating enough cholesterol, not eating enough in general?
- [16:33]
A
Well, both.
- [16:34]
B
Oh, that's number one. I'm not even going to go into, like, what nutrients do you need or how do we optimize hormones if you're not eating. Eating enough food?
- [16:41]
A
Being strict about three meals a day at least, and 30 grams of protein at each at least. And I have to be just diligent.
- [16:48]
B
I don't know that I would say three meals a day at least. Because what you think is a good three meals a day may not be what needs to be three meals a day.
- [16:56]
A
And that's where the deep dive would come in. Like, what are those meals?
- [16:59]
B
Yes, exactly. Okay, so, like, you should be eating a solid 1800, 2000 calories a day. You should be eating a high amount of fat. You need enough fat to produce your estrogen, your progesterone.
- [17:10]
A
And what are your favorite recommendations for somebody who needs to get more healthy fats in their diet?
- [17:15]
B
Butter. I have butter earrings, y'all. Butter is my favorite beef. Like, get a steak with the fat cap on it. Don't be afraid of eating those types of meats. If you love salads. I know some people like to poo poo salads. If you love a salad, great. Like, douse it in a delicious dressing that you love. Pair your salads with a good fat. Avocado, anything nuts and seeds, properly prepared, of course, all of those would be super beneficial to ensure that you're increasing. Like, that's the easiest way to increase your calories as well, because they have more calories per gram than protein or carbs would.
- [17:50]
A
Okay.
- [17:51]
B
So increasing your fat is going to increase calories quickly and it's going to be key for that cholesterol that's necessary to produce your progesterone or your estrogen because it's. It's the foundation to where our sex hormones come from.
- [18:08]
A
This year I've been making it a point to be more active and soak up some much needed sunshine, whether it's my ice skating lessons, Pilates, or just getting some time by the pool. But with all that activity, I know that staying hydrated is key. That's where Taylor Duke's Wellness Electrolytes have become my secret weapon. Taylor Duke's Wellness Electrolytes aren't like most on the market. They're made with organic coconut water powder, unrefined sea salt and real fruit juice powders, which means I'm getting high quality hydration without any artificial flavors, sweeteners or sugars in my handy to go pack. The strawberry lemonade flavor is my absolute favorite. I have to say it's sweet, it's tangy, it's so refreshing after a workout. Also, it's not too salty tasting. I'm not super crazy about electrolytes that are just like real salty. These have the perfect balance of magnesium, potassium and sodium, so I feel energized and glowing all day long with the hot weather coming up. Here in Arizona, I've noticed that these electrolytes are especially great when I need to replenish after time in the sun. Great for sick kids. I would always make sure you have these on hand instead of nasty Gatorade. I've also noticed that my skin looks healthier and I've been craving fewer sugary snacks, which is a really big bonus of electrolytes people don't talk about. So if you want to take your hydration game to the next level, go to Taylor Dukes wellness.com use code Alex Clark for 10% off that's taylordeks wellness.com with code Alex Clark for 10% off. Allergies are basically like your body's passive aggressive way of telling you it hates you. Like hey, here's some pollen to make you wish you were never born. You wake up in the spring and your sinuses are just like yeah, we're not just going to ruin your day, we're going to ruin your life. But I found an all natural herbal solution and it's called Alertica. Alertica is a safe, all natural, non habit forming natural formula for sinus and respiratory health with certified organic stinging nettle, kercetin and rutin to help stabilize irritated mast cells and a unique combination of flavonoids, antioxidants and herbs. Now most antihistamines are like the fake friends you had in high school. Nice in theory, but they don't really help. They just block your histamine receptors. Like, hey, we'll numb you for a few hours, but good luck with the rest of your day looking like you just got hit truck. But Alera is different. So Alertica doesn't just shut down your histamine receptors like some uninvited party guest. It actually helps your body process histamine the right way. So think of it like the good therapist for your sinuses without the expensive co pay. It's non drowsy, which means no more spending your day in a haze, dreaming of a nap in your office chair while everyone around you pretends that they don't notice. It's the natural allergy remedy that works with your body, not against it. Alertica is available@utsi.com Utzy.com with code Alex. You'll get 20 off your first order of Alertica. That's Utzy.com with code Alex for 20 off Alertica. Real allergy relief. No toxic nonsense. What common parasites could lead to struggling to get pregnant?
- [20:57]
B
Oh, one of them that I've probably seen had clients test for is called schistosoma. It is a parasite that has an affinity for, like, the uterus. But I mean, there's so many. There are so many parasites. Any parasitic worm, there are. There are smaller, like parasitic things that can be in your blood, liver, heart, brain. So anytime there is any parasitic infection, it's going to create this stress response in the body. Any infection. Besides, before we even go to parasites, any infection is going to create a stress response in the body. And if you are in this heightened stress state, fertility becomes a backseat priority. I'm not in a place right now where I feel safe enough to be fertile enough to have a baby. If I'm not in a place where I feel safe or calm, then my body is not going to produce the hormones necessary at the appropriate or optimal levels for conception. This is why bonding between husband and wife is so key, because that produces this safe space for bringing in additional human beings.
- [22:09]
A
Okay, when it comes to the parasites though, is it like, everybody should do a parasite cleanse? It'll benefit anybody? Or do you need to get tested first to see if you have them and then do a parasite cleanse?
- [22:20]
B
Yes and no for both your questions.
- [22:22]
A
Okay.
- [22:23]
B
Parasites are a part of human life, like they're part of your microbiome's ecosystem. So they can be problematic. They might not be problematic. It depends on the individual. And even if you test for a specific parasite, there are some individuals that may not tolerate Going through a parasite cleanse. If you're constipated only pooping once a week, me giving you herbs to kill off some parasite would be a, a terrible idea because you don't have the capacity to be regularly eliminating whatever toxins might be produced from killing that off. You also need to be having regular elimination for any waste products that are going to be produced in that whole process as well. So yes, we do need it, it's in America and abroad. But also not everyone should just be doing willy nilly things they find on any social media platform or Amazon.
- [23:23]
A
What parasite cleanse do I do?
- [23:26]
B
One that you work with a highly skilled professional with to figure out what you need.
- [23:31]
A
Because that's what everybody want. They want like what's the name? What do I order on Amazon?
- [23:34]
B
I've seen people train wreck themselves because they found something and someone said something and they went and used it and they felt like trash. You were not ready for that. If your cells aren't eliminating waste products and then you're not eliminating waste through urine, through bowel movements, any like sweating, any of that, if those pathways aren't open, you're not ready for any sort of eradication protocol, you will make yourself worse.
- [24:02]
A
Is pooping once a day good enough or does it really actually need to be 3?
- [24:06]
B
1 a day is definitely enough. I don't know that it's optimal. It could be better, but I'm not going to tell someone. Oh, you're only pooping once a day. You must not be healthy or you're constipated. Like no, that might just be your normal TMI alert.
- [24:20]
A
Ring the bell. I am like so proud of myself because I'm pooping once a day, but it's because after years of my whole life I haven't. So now I'm like once a day and I'm like, yay. I like it's a little celebration. Then I saw somebody say like, oh, it's gotta be three and I'm like, are you kidding me?
- [24:36]
B
The problem I have with many people in the health space is there are so many additional things just piled onto people to make them feel inferior or their body inferior to what it can do. This is where my like Bible training's coming out. It feels like the Pharisees adding to the law to the Jewish people. One a day is not enough. You need three like that. That just needs to stop. We need to understand what is optimal for ourselves and this is where go. It goes back to like being in tuned with your body. How important that is because one a day for me is wonderful. I was like you. I used to go once a week. So the fact that I'm going regularly as a very healthy adult tells me that my body's in a much better place than where I once was. Someone who maybe was only doing twice a day before and now goes every other day that might be a problem. Once a day that might be a problem. And so these extra like, oh, it has to be three or it needs to be this specific thing.
- [25:39]
A
It needs to be individualized.
- [25:40]
B
Absolutely.
- [25:41]
A
What does it mean if a woman keeps getting pregnant, but it always ends in miscarriage?
- [25:45]
B
So there's a lot of possibilities for why a woman would have recurring miscarriages. When I'm working with clients, bare minimum tests that we're running for pregnancy is blood work and a hair tissue mineral analysis. The reason for that is I want to get a really good, comprehensive look at what's going on in your body. Blood work's going to tell me what's in circulation. HTMA is going to tell me what's being stored and patterns on how it's being stored. The reason I want these two tests is because you need a baseline before pregnancy one. But also there are specific things necessary for optimal pregnancy. For example, I'm going to go back to selenium because it's on my mind. Selenium is needed for your follicles to be mature, for the egg to grow and mature inside the follicular fluid. It helps to keep that follicular fluid free from oxidative stress so that it can be protected. The DNA in the egg can also be protected so that when it's ready for fertilization or implantation, we don't have implantation failure. Selenium is necessary for the endometrial lining to be receptive to the embryo. And so just looking at one nutrient and seeing it low in testing can be a big difference for women. I've had many women I've worked with with recurring pregnancy loss, then get pregnant, then have their baby. I have one client now that is still dealing with recurring pregnancy loss. And there's a lot of other factors happening besides just mineral status. And so there's a lot of things that could be going on. Thyroid's one of them, liver is one of them. Blood sugar is one of them. Chronic inflammation is one of them. You want to work with someone who can be a detective and not just hobby horse on one thing.
- [27:36]
A
Tell us about iodine deficiency and its relation to reduced fertility.
- [27:40]
B
Babies are dependent on mom's thyroid function in the first trimester because they don't have a thyroid developed yet. Iodine is necessary to produce different thyroid hormones. The three and four on your T's are telling you how many iodine molecules are for that specific thyroid hormone. So T3 has 3, T4 has 4, etc. When we don't have enough iodine, we have this decrease in thyroid function or thyroid hormone production. And that directly I'm going to go from fertility to pregnancy has an impact on being able to get pregnant. So your brain, the hypothalamus, one part of the brain communicates with the pituitary, another part of the brain and it produces something called TRH. We're used to like TSH, T3, T4. TRH is just the thyroid communication between the two brain parts. When we have hypothyroidism, that TRH level goes up. And when TRH goes up, gonadotropin releasing hormone goes down. And that is what stimulates FSH and LH in the body. Hypothyroidism, higher TRH, lower GnRH, problems with implantation, follicular development, egg development, et cetera. From there, when we get into pregnancy, if we don't have enough iodine stored prior for mom and baby to use because we have this 50% increase in need in pregnancy, you have lower birth weights for babies, you have a higher risk of miscarriage, you have preeclampsia increases. So there's a lot of these perinatal risks when we don't have enough iodine.
- [29:17]
A
You know, all the doctors that have looked at my labs and stuff, why has nobody told me that I need to be supplementing iodine?
- [29:22]
B
The best test for iodine is going to be a urine iodine loading test.
- [29:27]
A
So you haven't done that?
- [29:30]
B
That would be the best test. So HTMA can give you clues about iodine, but it's not a marker on the test because you don't, you don't excrete any in your hair. And so what you look at are like CO factors, like partners to see. Oh, they could be pointing to we need iodine. When you're looking at blood work, you're only looking at this snapshot in time. What's in circulation, not, not what's being used by the body itself. And so seeing lower or higher levels can tell you we might need some iodine. But it isn't until you do an iodine loading test that you'll know for sure. Okay, if you need it, what are.
- [30:04]
A
Some signs that a potassium Supplement could be a game changer. Like, if you have these symptoms, like you are low on potassium, like, it could really help you out.
- [30:11]
B
Okay. Poor response to stress, high blood pressure. So risk for preeclampsia. Any of those. Potassium is so, so helpful. Skin problems.
- [30:22]
A
What kind?
- [30:23]
B
Dry skin. Acne, psoriasis, eczema? Any of those. I often see an issue with potassium in my clients. In pregnancy, potassium is necessary for the contractions. In labor, there's a specific tissue in the ear, myometrial tissue, that needs potassium for contractions. And so a lot of women may have, like, start contractions that start and stop or labor stalls. I honestly think it's partly because there's not enough potassium present or wasn't there wasn't enough potassium present prior to pregnancy necessary for that myometrial tissue to it be able to contract normally.
- [31:00]
A
You brought up the dry skin thing, which is fascinating. I have horrific dry skin problems. I think that's a major Hashimoto symptom. What are some different minerals, vitamins that you would be like, start taking this, this, and this to really improve hydration levels in your body?
- [31:15]
B
Potassium is one of them. Sodium's one of them. Calcium, magnesium. Your electrolytes are going to be necessary for utilizing water in the body. So think of your electrolytes like hooks to water so that when you increase your water consumption, you don't just pee it out. It like, hooks it to hold it and actually use it. So increasing water isn't enough. You need electrolytes to utilize that water. Testing is going to be your best bet to figure out, is it potassium that I need? Is it one of these others? But for skin issues, there might also be fatty acid imbalances. So this is where, like, lifelong constipation tells me that there might be a problem or may have been a problem with absorbing and using fat that's needed for your skin to be moist and voluptuous.
- [32:04]
A
And so what's that? What would that look like? Fixing that.
- [32:06]
B
This is where, like, bile flow is important. Gallbladder markers.
- [32:09]
A
I'm supposed to be taking some kind of gallbladder supplement. And you know what? I don't do it because it's annoying. They want you to remember to do it like, before every single time that you eat a meal and all this. And I'm like, I am not doing this. So I just haven't been doing it.
- [32:19]
B
But maybe whoever's working with Alex, please reach out.
- [32:25]
A
That's funny. Maybe that might be really. Okay, now, you see, I needed to hear that. Because I hate the dry skin stuff, so maybe that would help. Okay, gallbladder. That's very interesting.
- [32:34]
B
Your gallbladder is going to secrete bile. Bile is necessary for emuls. Emulsifying your fat. So think about it as like soap on a greasy pan. It's going to break it down so that you can use it better. And if you're not supporting the gallbladder and bile flow, you're not going to be able to break down fats. And fats are like your mucous membranes. You need that for building up the skin. So take your gallbladder supports the way they told you to.
- [32:58]
A
Okay. Okay, I will. All right. All right. How can we guard against nutrient deficiencies while pregnant?
- [33:05]
B
Oh, test before you're pregnant.
- [33:06]
A
Test what? What are we testing?
- [33:08]
B
All of the things. So all of your nutrient levels for sure that. I test all mineral levels.
- [33:15]
A
I want to be pregnant within this many years. This is when I need to do these tests. Like how. How far out of ideally wanting to.
- [33:22]
B
Be pregnant, you start working toward pregnancy one to two years prior.
- [33:25]
A
Okay, so we're two years out of, like, I think in two years I'm going to want to start trying or I see myself being married or whatever. Now what tests am I getting?
- [33:33]
B
You're gonna get blood chemistry. And with your blood chemistry test, you want a, like, comprehensive panel. So this is looking at your cbc, cmp, liver enzymes, immune cells, thyroid. And with your thyroid, you're not just looking at TSH, you're looking at like, like 10 different markers. That's one looking at copper, ceruloplasmin, zinc, all of that. Then you're doing hair tissue mineral analysis to look at all of your mineral levels and look at heavy metals potentially as well, so that we can work on eliminating what needs eliminating. I often see mercury, aluminum, cadmium, lead, and others in women, in people, period. And then making sure that we have optimal levels for your nutrient stores because they're going to be expended at such a high rate in pregnancy. I don't know how many women I've worked with where they were, like, bottomed out for most of their pregnancy. And because of the work that we did, by the time they got to the end of pregnancy, their levels had actually increased. And we know that there's so many nutrients being used in pregnancy that we were able to not only support the amount of use, but also create storage in her body by the time she had her baby.
- [34:51]
A
Holy smokes.
- [34:52]
B
It's hard work.
- [34:53]
A
This isn't something that I'd Ever heard of until I started looking at your stuff. Are there tests that can tell you what foods specifically a pregnant woman should be eating?
- [35:03]
B
So that is more like, let's figure out where your nutrients are low in and then optimize the right foods for you to increase.
- [35:11]
A
Okay.
- [35:11]
B
Make sense?
- [35:12]
A
Yeah. So how do you do that if.
- [35:13]
B
Someone is low in selenium? I'm on a selenium track today.
- [35:17]
A
Brazil nuts.
- [35:18]
B
Yeah. Well, so Brazil nuts definitely like, yes, they are high in selenium and the go to pitch is like one to two a day and you've got all your selenium. But the potential problem is that we don't have the exact same amount of selenium in all Brazil nuts because it depends on soil, it varies widely how much selenium is in any one Brazil nut. So it cannot be the most dependable source because you may have a really good bag now and then a not great bag the next time. And it can take 12 weeks to see your, your selenium status normalize or become optimal. And so you want to ensure that you have something that is consistent in selenium levels. And so this is where like supplementation and working with the right provider is going to be key because they'll know how much you'll need, what your maximum or tolerable upper limit is going to be, and then how to figure out, okay, we know that eggs consistently have this much selenium. Let's go with this food this many times each week at least. Organ meats are going to be wonderful here you have so many different micronutrients. And so working with someone to figure out which food you need how often, based on your levels and or possible supplementation.
- [36:34]
A
As a doctor, do you think it's safe for pregnant women to drink raw milk?
- [36:38]
B
I'll put it this way. As long as you are sourcing your milk from someone who is credible, who understands how to pay attention to potential infections, cleaning, all the hygiene, all of this, you shouldn't have any issues. I, I drank raw milk in pregnancy. I have friends who drink raw milk in pregnancy. None of us have had any issues. It all comes down to sourcing.
- [37:02]
A
I'm in this camp of like, basically all of these strange dietary guidelines for what pregnant women should or shouldn't eat. I think it's exclusively American. Think about the whole continent of Asia. You're going to tell them no seafood, while I mean they're, that's like basically their entire diet. I mean, it's just unreal.
- [37:20]
B
I won't pretend like Tuna, mackerel, like there is a risk of consuming too much mercury.
- [37:27]
A
Pregnant or not, I'm not getting my sushi at a gas station. You know what I'm saying? Now some people would, I would tell a pregnant friend, sure, eat sushi, but I mean, I'm going to a nice, you know, restaurant, you know, where they're ship, they're flying it in every day or whatever. I'm not going to go get it, you know, at the grocery store or gas station.
- [37:44]
B
So you're not eating whole foods sushi? Is that what you're telling me?
- [37:47]
A
I'm not. But you know, some people might love it.
- [37:50]
B
Even if we're getting the like wild caught flown in every day, fresh fish, mercury is still present. And that becomes more of a problem depending on your mercury status prior to pregnancy. We know that mercury before pregnancy can predict like your levels before pregnancy, your preconception levels can predict how much mercury will be in the placenta that can lead to neural tube defects. So I don't want to downplay the problems that something like a heavy metal from food exposures that we can have, but it needs to be contextualized. So if I'm almost never eating sushi, if I, if I worked on heavy metal detox prior to pregnancy, I don't see a problem with having sushi in, in my pregnancy. If I had high levels of mercury, just got pregnant and was eating seafood regularly, that might be something I want to limit right now because I've already got too much going on that needs to be eliminated, gently removed, et cetera. Even these types of restrictions with should we have this food, should we. Not that it needs to be contextualized to who you are and what your experience has been.
- [39:05]
A
Making America healthy again doesn't start in the White House, it starts at home. So, you know, I recently transitioned my apartment to non toxic cleaning products. Right. Well, now I've been doing the same thing for my boyfriend Steven's apartment. When we first started dating, I noticed that he was still using Clorox wipes and other artificially scented cleaners. Stuff that I wouldn't dream of using anymore. I'm all about clean, safe ingredients. Especially since I'm planning to start a family soon. I'm making sure that my future home and his are both as healthy as possible. And we both have pets on those floors as well. So I got him hooked on Branch Basics. We both have the Glass Premium starter kit now and it's been a lifesaver. Not only is it safe and effective, but I love how it works on everything from kitchen counters to bathroom sinks to laundry. The best part is it's all plant and mineral based with zero synthetic fragrances or toxic chemicals and we've switched to glass bottles. Less plastic exposure in our home a priority especially as we think about the future and well, baby proofing our environment for, you know, days to come. Yes, this relationship is very serious. If you're looking for a non toxic all in one cleaner that works for literally every room in your house, check out Branch basics. Use code ALEX15@branch basics.com to get 15% off your premium starter kit. That's 15% off your new Branch Basics Premium Starter Kit. When you use code ALEX15@branch basics.com It's the healthiest upgrade you'll ever make for your home. Again, use code ALEX15 for 15% off that premium starter kit@ branch basics.com Everyone is dodging the neurovirus right now. Still, it's time to give your immune system the boost that it needs with Cowboy Colostrum. Colostrum is nature's secret weapon for immunity. Packed with antibodies, first line defense, immunoglobulins and immunomodulators, it helps your body fight off infections and strengthens your immune response. Think of it as your own personal superhero, ready to protect you from everything from gastrointestinal infections to upper respiratory issues. But it gets better. Colostrum contains peroxidase, a powerful enzyme that eradicates unwanted organisms in your gut. This works alongside lactoferrin, which neutralizes harmful bacteria, further boosting your body's defenses. It's like having a cleaning crew for your insides. In today's world, our immune system faces all kinds of challenges, from stress to poor diets. Hopefully not you and my audience, but I digress. With regular use of Cowboy Colostrum, however, you're giving your body the tools that it needs to restore and strengthen your natural defenses. Is it's a simple, natural way to support your health and stay on top of your game. If you are ready to take control, head to cowboy colostrum.com and use code ALEX for 15 off. Fortify your immune system the natural way with Cowboy Colostrum. Go to cowboy colostrum.com code Alex for 15 off. Why do you tell pregnant women they need to eat more salt?
- [41:43]
B
Salt, as long as it's unrefined, is going to be full of many micronutrients, including sodium. Sodium and potassium are necessary for your blood pressure in pregnancy. When you don't have enough, this is where we can See the onset of preeclampsia occur and so increasing your salt intake. So Dr. Brewer. Dr. Brewerdiet.com he has so much work on needing salt in pregnancy and not decreasing salt in pregnancy and had so many patients where they would come in with preeclampsia and he's increasing their salt and it's going away, it's resolving. He's able to keep women pregnant longer because of ensuring that they had adequate sodium levels. When the body is retaining sodium, it's an emergency response to something. And so you want to address what are we trying to combat here? Let's fix that so that this could then normalize.
- [42:40]
A
What salt brands do you like?
- [42:41]
B
Baja Gold is one of my favorites. I still use Redmond's. I think those are my two.
- [42:47]
A
What are sunshine's effects on perinatal health? Health.
- [42:50]
B
Oh, this is a can of worms. We know we need sunshine for vitamin D levels. Low levels of vitamin D in pregnancy and in just like most chronic health things. Not that pregnancy is a chronic health problem, but in pregnancy, lack of vitamin D leads to a lot of negative perinatal outcomes. So sunshine can be beneficial to your vitamin D levels. However, there are people who do not have the capacity to optimally change sunshine into vitamin D in their body. And so I am not against vitamin D supplementation. Again, when contextualized, we need vitamin D in pregnancy. We need baby needs vitamin D. However, I used to live in Chicago. I was never outside in the winter. I absolutely hate Chicago winters. I love you guys back in Chicago, go. But I was not outside and my D levels were always low. That, that this is a person who would need vitamin D, especially if she's pregnant in the winter in Chicago. Someone who's living in Colombia or Puerto Rico, probably not as needed. And so again, contextualization. But here, like genetic testing would help us understand, do we have the capacity to appropriately convert sunshine into vitamin D in the body? Can that be something that we depend on? Like, I love my D minder app telling me if I'm outside for this long today, this is how much vitamin D I could be getting.
- [44:18]
A
Okay, what's that app called?
- [44:19]
B
D Minder.
- [44:20]
A
I need it.
- [44:21]
B
It's wonderful. Like, you can you put your location in? It tells you based on where your location is. This is how much time, if you're spending 20, 30 minutes in the sun, how much you should be getting as long as you.
- [44:31]
A
It tells you what time to go out.
- [44:32]
B
No, it could be any time of the day. And it will tell you how much vitamin D you'll get. Now you want to be preferably like before 11am is going to be the better time to go out. It's not as dangerous. How many minutes depends on how much skin you're exposing. So you're like thighs and your abdomen are your solar panels. So if you're trying to get some sunshine for vitamin D, like go into your backyard and like your bathing suit kind of thing, not just sit outside in shorts and a T shirt, it's not the same.
- [45:03]
A
Now I've never heard anybody say this, so that's so helpful. Thighs out, abs out to get that vitamin D. Yeah.
- [45:10]
B
So like, I mean, you will still produce some with it touching your skin. It's just not as much as your solar panels.
- [45:16]
A
What should your first steps be if you discover mold in your home while pregnant?
- [45:20]
B
Leave. I know, I know that sounds like not realistic response, but your number one way to address it is to reduce exposure to leave. Because there are so many negative health outcomes with mold and mycotoxins in pregnancy. There's just so many negative outcomes in health outside of pregnancy with mold that if you know it's there, leaving and remediating is so important. I've worked with at least three women where mold was found in their home during pregnancy and the things that they were dealing with resolved when you leave. So I have a friend, she is a functional nutritionist and she's a certified mold inspector. She's brilliant. She got into this, into where she is now because her home in Florida had a ton of mold and her family got so sick. She had like terrible lesions, rashes. Her children, lots of, lots of problems. They literally had to leave like everything behind. And so she has worked to heal her family. She's in a mud a wonderful place and she helps families now.
- [46:26]
A
What's her name in case someone needs her?
- [46:27]
B
Rachel Graham. Her Instagram handle is Household Wellness.
- [46:31]
A
Let's say somebody found mold in their home and they already have kids. I'm just curious for how long after that mold exposure could children be showing side effects of of mold toxicity?
- [46:45]
B
One of the things Rachel has taught me when I've worked with clients and I'm like, I'm suspecting that they have mold and I need them to also suspect it and not feel like I'm crazy. What should I tell them? She says have them go on a mold vacation where you literally leave your home. Minimum five days, like seven to ten would be better. If you see symptoms improve and or go away. That right there is a dead giveaway. I have A friend who has a daughter who has epilepsy and a year ago she and I were chatting and I said, friend, I think that there's mold in your home. And I think that that's, that's a probably part of what's going on. She left for a vacation that was already planned for her family and it was her first vacation as a family in like two years. She said the day that they were gone, her daughter's seizures stopped and she hadn't seen no seizures in so long. The day they get back, the seizures started up again. And so I'm like, you can see night and day difference in. And this is like an extreme example. But if, if you can see the epileptic seizures completely go away for over a week and then come back when you get home from vacation, that's a dead giveaway that your home is the problem.
- [47:58]
A
What are your favorite pregnancy immune supports?
- [48:01]
B
Helping your body be ready beforehand, not needing immune supports. There are some nutrients that you could have on hand, there are some herbs or some homeopathic things that we can do. But if I'm honest, I'm like, let your body do what it's supposed to and does. It's so important even in pregnancy for you to like get sick and get over getting sick. Now a small cold is not a big deal. Something like mold illness, that's a different ball game altogether. So you want special immune supports there. But like you creating immune cells to this season's flu is important for your baby because it passes through the placenta for your baby and it will pass through your breast milk for your baby. And your baby has all the immune cells that you have in your body at birth and then it wanes and your baby's not going to be able to produce their own specific immune cells for at least two years. Getting sick, getting over that sickness, not suppressing it, not trying to get around it, benefits you in pregnancy. But more so think about like what you're giving your child knowing that their immune system is immature and is going to take literal years to be able to mature and then have a fighting chance against any pathogen later. So that passive immunity is so, so key.
- [49:16]
A
Is there any naturopathic supports for morning sickness?
- [49:20]
B
Yeah, absolutely. So B6 can be really helpful sometimes. There has been a connection to H. Pylori, morning sickness.
- [49:30]
A
Now that's a parasite, right?
- [49:31]
B
It's a bacteria in the stomach, okay? It's a little corkscrew shaped bacteria. It does not thrive in an acidic place. And your stomach is supposed to be acidic so it like burrows itself in the mucosal lining of your stomach, which is your stomach's own protective mechanism against its own acid. And then it breaks down the cells that would produce some the stomach acid so that it could enjoy a non acidic home, essentially. So there have been connections to H. Pylori infections and morning sickness. Now, if you're pregnant, what I would do outside of pregnancy for H. Pylori, we're not doing it all. You're not using those type of eradication things. But there are gentle supports that you can do, homeopathic supports that you can do. There's even some herbal binding things that can help.
- [50:18]
A
Like what?
- [50:19]
B
There's a, an herb called takasumi from supreme nutrition that I would use that has been shown to be helpful with H. Pylori and that's completely safe in pregnancy.
- [50:27]
A
Which prenatal is the best or do you even like prenatals?
- [50:30]
B
That is so controversial. Yes and no. Okay, so there are some brands that are out there that could be beneficial. Generalized supports. You don't want one with iron. You don't want one if you can without copper, unless you've had those proper testing to show you need those things. But even with iron, supplementing iron isn't going to solve the problem on your iron status because there's something breaking down in the body that you're not recycling and utilizing it well. So if we have to go with a generic over the counter thing, go for iron free at the very least. But there are like things that you may not need in general prenatals. There might be things that you need more of that they don't have. I think it could be especially helpful in your first trimester when you can't eat anything that ensures that you have some sort of nutrients going into the body when there's such rapid growth.
- [51:27]
A
Sure, yeah.
- [51:28]
B
But knowing what you need and tailoring what you take or what you consume to that is going to be most important.
- [51:34]
A
What are the right minerals for somebody struggling with eczema?
- [51:37]
B
The minerals that they're testing says they need. So zinc is a big one. It's. Zinc is your, is called your skin mineral. So it's often low when we have any sort of skin problem.
- [51:49]
A
But also, isn't there like limits to how, like how long you should be taking zinc every day, maybe.
- [51:54]
B
So there's definitely limits on how much, depending on age and weight.
- [51:58]
A
Okay.
- [51:58]
B
How long you take it. Testing is going to tell us if we still need it or if we don't. If you can't tell I'm definitely a fan of seeing what you need instead of like blind.
- [52:08]
A
But we need clickbait. Dr. Nita Marie.
- [52:10]
B
Sorry.
- [52:10]
A
I'm so sorry.
- [52:12]
B
Take the zinc if you need it.
- [52:13]
A
Okay.
- [52:14]
B
Copper is another one. Can. This is. Copper can be tricky because you can have skin issues when you don't have enough copper and you can have skin issues when you have too much copper. Beef liver is high in copper. That could induce eczema in some people if they're just taking beef liver every day or beef liver supplements every day. So that's something that like hey, beef liver organs, great. But you could have a problem with that. You may not need it as often as you think you do.
- [52:40]
A
Treat the individual.
- [52:41]
B
Yes. Histamines are often high in that as well, which can lead to this skin problem. So zinc and copper are wonderful, great, helpful. But I often see heavy metal toxicity with my eczema clients. So aluminum's a big one, mercury is a big one, Lead is a big one. Cadmium, zirconium, barium and bismuth. Some really like not so popular metals. They're often high in individuals with eczema. Now is mineral balancing or nutrient support and heavy metal detox or heavy metal elimination going to solve eczema? It doesn't with everyone. I won't pretend like it does. Minerals and metals are also involved in gut health. Specific metals can increase pathogenic microbes. Specific minerals can help support the beneficial microbes in your GI tract. So this is where you see like there's a whole ecosystem designed in the human body and it's never just one thing.
- [53:45]
A
What might be going on with your kids health wise, if they are constantly having explosive tantrums.
- [53:51]
B
When there's a lot of tantrums, there's often an overactive or too fast metabolism and then there's often a chronic just stress response in the body. You need calcium, magnesium and zinc. They're sedative minerals for your central nervous system to just chill when you don't have that. Oftentimes something like phosphorus might be too high or it might be too high in relation to other things and that leads to this excitatory response. Because kids metabolism is already faster, at least it should be. Hence a high rate of growth in childhood when it speeds up even more, that becomes its own stressor on the body and it leads to that stress response. So you've got cortisol going off and you don't have the capacity to, to sit here, talk, chill because your body is operating as if it's running from a bear. If my body is constantly operating as if I'm running from a bear, I don't have what's necessary to relax, to think, to make decisions. I'm just gonna outburst because my life is on the line. I'm not here to make friends. I'm running for my life is how.
- [54:59]
A
You'Re here to find love.
- [55:00]
B
Exactly. I'm here to fight for my life is what the kid is doing.
- [55:08]
A
How does non organic food lead to a mineral deficiency?
- [55:12]
B
So glyphosate has been shown to deplete nutrients in the body, one of which is manganese. It is going to rob the nutrients that your body has in storage in order for the body to properly metabolize and eliminate it. And not only that, but because it disrupts your gut microbiome. The intake or uptake of your nutrients is also disrupted when something like glyphosate or pesticides, depending on the pesticides, is introduced to the human body.
- [55:44]
A
Let me blow your mind with something that you might not know. Not all honey is created equal. Most honey on the market is cut with syrups filled with pesticides. Even Manuka honey isn't always pure. But you again. Raw superfood honey is different. It's 100 raw pure honey source from from regenerative farms in Texas and the Dakotas. It's glyphosate free. In fact, it's NMR tested to ensure the highest quality impurity for honey. No fillers, no junk, just clean natural energy that your body can actually use. So why does that matter? Well, raw honey is not like sugar or other processed energy snacks. It won't spike your blood sugar or cause a crash later on. It's blood sugar balancing, making it the perfect energy snack to keep you sharp and fueled throughout the day. You again Raw Superfood honey actually enhances the health benefits of other ingredients like turmeric and ginger, which is why it's such a powerhouse for your immune system. I love these little on the go pouches. They're perfect for throwing in my purse, a diaper bag or a backpack. Whether I'm about to crush a workout or I need a quick energy boost before meeting you again. Superfood Raw honey gives me the fuel that I need without any heaviness. And moms, this is the best stroller snack for your toddler. All my mom friends rave about it. You again. Raw superfood honey has four delicious blends that will give you all the benefits. Whether it's chocolate honey or turmeric ginger, you're going to feel the difference? Next time you're shopping on Amazon, search for you again raw Superfood honey and add it to your cart. And then use code Alex Clark for 15 off. Your purchase on Amazon, just add you again raw superfood honey to your cart with code Alex Clark for 15 off. How do you know if you need to detox heavy metals?
- [57:17]
B
And how do you do it in the human body? Signs that heavy metals are a problem, aggression, violence, those are going to be two big ones. So the little kid with the tantrum, guilty. Metals are not kidding. Metals are often involved because they displace those other elements that help us to be more interpersonal, more joyful. When you have, like, low potassium, you can become like, really violent.
- [57:49]
A
Wow.
- [57:49]
B
Where you also promote violence in others.
- [57:51]
A
It's a real knife fight out there.
- [57:53]
B
Absolutely. So a lot of people need a lot of heavy metal detoxing. A lot of kids because of the different types of exposures environmentally, medically, also can lead to these problems with behavior and whatnot. So that's a big one. Skin issues is another big one. Constipation is a big one. Lead, for example, will displace calcium in the intestinal tract, and calcium is necessary for the contraction in peristalsis, for the elimination of waste. And so if we have metals displacing minerals at specific sites, then we don't have the movement in the GI tract that we need. You can see fertility issues for sure. You can see postpartum depression is another one. So there's a lot of possibilities in human health with heavy metal toxicity. The way that I go about addressing it, it is by utilizing minerals that antagonize them. So mercury, selenium, iodine, and zinc all oppose mercury, bind to mercury, and help the body to eliminate mercury. Funny enough, mercury deposits heavily in the thyroid gland. What are three of the top nutrients necessary for thyroid hormones? Selenium, iodine, and zinc. So those very elements where mercury is going to deposit necessary for proper thyroid function are the elements to eliminate that heavy metal as well as the elements necessary for that organ to function appropriately.
- [59:20]
A
So a heavy metal detox is just simply like taking those supplements that you just said?
- [59:24]
B
No.
- [59:25]
A
Okay, so what am I missing?
- [59:26]
B
It could be food. It doesn't have to be a supplement. So if mercury were a problem, I'm gonna have you focus on selenium, iodine, zinc rich foods and maybe the supplements. Depending on levels that we're looking at or if you're pregnant or not.
- [59:40]
A
How concerned should we be about lead in food? Because we got people out here that are just flipping out, you know? You know what I mean?
- [59:47]
B
Is it a potential problem? Yes.
- [59:49]
A
Yeah.
- [59:50]
B
Is it a problem as big as some people make it? Maybe. I'll. I'll give a caveat. I would, I would say no. And then maybe if I'm consuming one of the salts I love that have been been shown to have high levels of lead, the amount that I'm consuming nowhere near is going to lead to a toxicity problem in my body.
- [60:14]
A
Right.
- [60:14]
B
If I have heavy metal toxicity already because of my tattoos, then that might be a problem, Right?
- [60:21]
A
Oh, so you agree that the tattoos could lead to heavy metal?
- [60:24]
B
100.
- [60:24]
A
So wait, so you have tattoos, you're a naturopathic doctor, you agree that tattoos can lead to heavy metal toxicity. So now I don't know when you got your tattoos, but now would you get more tattoos knowing what you know not?
- [60:36]
B
I got this way before.
- [60:37]
A
Why, why would you say do not get tattoos if you have a choice?
- [60:40]
B
Now you're introducing heavy metals into the body, and those heavy metals are going to completely disrupt a bunch of different physiological functions in the body. They get deposited into the brain, they get deposited into the pancreas, the liver, your optic nerve, anywhere that you have physiological function. Metals can displace nutrients that are necessary for that function to be optimal. So if I were to go back in time with the knowledge I have now, I, I would not have the tattoos that I have now.
- [61:06]
A
What is the best way to support the body after getting a vaccine for mom and baby? If they do choose to get vaccines, they're like, okay, I want to do it, but I would like to support the body after.
- [61:14]
B
So what I use with clients is homeopathy. You can also do depending on what vaccines were present. So you could do mineral balancing for medal detox. If the vaccines used, most of them are have aluminum in them as an adjuvant. Some like if mom got a flu vaccine in pregnancy, some of the flu vaccines have mercury because of thimerosal. So some mineral balancing can be helpful for that. However, I prefer using homeopathy because it is much more gentle and it, in my opinion, much more effective in addressing where the vaccine may have led to injury in the body. The reason for that is there is a specific type of homeopathic remedy called a nosode, and that is a remedy created from the pathogen or toxin that you are trying to address. So in these instances, I'm using, if it's an MMR vaccine, an MMR NoSOD. Now, something that's important to understand with Homeopathy is once you get to specific dilutions or remedy potencies, there is no more physical presence of that thing inside that remedy.
- [62:26]
A
Okay.
- [62:27]
B
If we're using nosodes for vaccine detox, know that there's none of that vaccine in the remedy itself.
- [62:34]
A
What is a good detox for vaccines? If you regret it?
- [62:36]
B
Definitely homeopathy. But you're gonna have some like homeopathic emotional remedies in there too.
- [62:41]
A
What do you mean?
- [62:42]
B
In homeopathy, we're not looking just at like your physical symptoms. There are also emotional mental symptoms as well.
- [62:51]
A
You're like, if this person's like, I gave my baby this vaccine. And then I didn't, you know, I didn't hear this such and such podcast until two weeks later. Now I totally regret it. And they're like, in high stress, you're saying you have to address that too for mom?
- [63:03]
B
Absolutely. I mean, baby's probably not going to have that emotional response. But when you're using homeopathy, remedies are so specific. So there are multiple that can be used. For example, for a cold, the way that you know which one is the right one is by understanding the other ancillary symptoms that it's addressing as well. So one remedy for a cold may have fever, cough, doesn't want anything cold to drink, lack of thirst.
- [63:34]
A
That is true. The descriptions on these are so bizarre and specific. It's like fear of public speaking.
- [63:40]
B
Yes.
- [63:41]
A
And that. And like strange things. I'm like, what are you talking about?
- [63:44]
B
They're called provings. When Hanuman and his people were trying to figure out remedies for things, they were giving these remedies to healthy individuals and then had crazy note taking saying, give me every symptom that you feel after you take this. Fear of public speaking came up when I took this one. And so did my constipation and so did I really wanted cold water. Like, those are the things. Then we know that's the remedy you need to use. And so there, the specificity in these lists. Lists help us to know which remedy to use. And often there's an emotional component because you're paying attention to more than just what's happening physically. What's happening in the mind is a part of it.
- [64:22]
A
I cannot wait to do a full blown homeopathy episode. I've not done that yet. Oh, I really should do that. Yeah. What should someone consider before taking just any vitamin D supplement?
- [64:32]
B
Consider your vitamin D status. Consider your magnesium status. Consider other nutrients, vitamins A, E and K. They all work Together they're fat soluble. You also want to consider the type of vitamin D in that supplement. So some of them are not optimal, others are. So that could be something to pay attention to.
- [64:55]
A
How do you know if a supplement is natural versus synthetic?
- [64:57]
B
It depends on the supplement itself.
- [64:59]
A
What brands do you like? In general?
- [65:02]
B
I use a lot of biotics research. I use pure encapsulations. The others I use are all herbal and homeopathic. If I'm looking for something comprehensive, there's a lab that I work with where they can create a custom blend on what you need. So we have the minerals you need, the vitamins you need, sometimes amino acids, even some like herbal supports, all in one things that what you take is literally tailored to your specific body.
- [65:32]
A
Oh my gosh, that's so cool. And that's something that somebody can get done with you.
- [65:34]
B
Absolutely, yeah.
- [65:35]
A
What advice do you give women for postpartum hair loss?
- [65:38]
B
The first thing I let you know is some of this is natural. Your body retained hair during pregnancy and so this expedited loss is it's catch up loss. So it could be that. However, in order to have the best understanding at what could be going on, this is where preconception testing is key so that you have a baseline to compare it to. The thyroid could be part of it. Markers for iron status is another one. So there's a lot of change with iron in pregnancy that you want to be able in postpartum to try to get back to your non pregnant levels, whatever that may be. So thyroid check, iron levels check. Top two things for postpartum hair loss.
- [66:22]
A
Are there any natural ways to improve eyesight?
- [66:25]
B
There's this guy, I don't remember his name. I think he was on the Wise Traditions podcast, so Hilda might know. He says that all vision changes is a stress response in the, in the body. And he has worked with people to literally get rid of needing glasses and some of the exercises that he has done. I wish I remember his name. It you have to like just sit, take glasses off, close your eyes and allow for your body to relax. Many I've done this myself. Like, like even eye doctors will say, okay, just take a minute, blink a few times, let yourself relax before finalizing a prescription. If they're unsure on like that one was clear, maybe it wasn't. I'm not sure the relaxation process, getting your body to relax can improve your eyesight. So there might be. I haven't like tiptoed into those waters yet, but I'm not against it because my needing glasses should not be. My eyes should be able to see clearly, so there's something wrong. And I do agree that wearing glasses is somewhat of a, like training wheels that I'm not taking off and not letting my eyes try to correct itself. Now, I'm not going to tell someone who, like, can't see an inch in front of their face without them to not wear glasses. That would be irresponsible and ridiculous. But being able to hone in to what kind of stress response could that be, and correcting that may be a part of the problem.
- [67:46]
A
Why is birth control postpartum a very bad idea?
- [67:49]
B
Yeah, well, I think birth control anytime is a very bad idea. It's a known carcinogen. We know that it can increase the risk of different cancers. Postpartum, you have this huge drop in hormones after giving birth that your body is learning to normalize. And so going in and trying to force it to do something that it's not ready for could be problematic as well. If you are breastfeeding, I won't say 100% of the time, but likely you aren't able to get pregnant postpartum after having a baby while breastfeeding because that high prolactin level necessary for breast milk production is going to suppress ovulation.
- [68:25]
A
Okay.
- [68:25]
B
It's not a need for most women.
- [68:28]
A
How do you know if a naturopathic doctor is going to be right for your family?
- [68:32]
B
Not all naturopaths are created equal is where I would start. If your family values supporting the body to do what it was made to do, if your family values not jumping to a pharmaceutical as a first line of defense or a band aid solution, then a naturopath is who you want to work with if you prefer. None of the things that I just said, then a naturopath isn't going to be for you, because they're going to dig deep into why your body isn't working as it should to fix that, as opposed to matching whatever you're dealing with with some product they're trained to give out.
- [69:11]
A
Okay, so when you talk about how not all naturopaths are created equal and you're a traditional one versus there's other ones. Like what are you asking a naturopath to see if they're more traditional?
- [69:21]
B
It will boil down to their philosophy.
- [69:23]
A
Okay.
- [69:23]
B
In practice, because some naturopaths and some functional medicine doctors practice the way an allopathic doctor would, and instead of giving you a pharmaceutical, they're giving you 30 supplements. So, like, this is where having a conversation with how they practice, what types of things they put into place when working with individuals will help you to know if that naturopath or physician or whoever is right for you.
- [69:46]
A
If you could offer one remedy to heal a sick culture, physically, mentally or spiritually, what would it be?
- [69:51]
B
Repent. One thing that's really important to me as an individual is none of what I have shared will matter. At the end of your life, your body will perish. And so all of the care that I can help you in having it function optimally. As much as I love my work and I value supporting the human body and honoring it and stewarding it well, I know that this body will perish one day and it will need to put on the imperishable. It's corruptible now and it's going to have to put on the incorruptible. Repentance is going to allow for your new body, for your enjoyment of the new body in the new heavens and new earth. And so repent is the remedy that I would give.
- [70:36]
A
How can people work with you specifically?
- [70:38]
B
You could check out my website drninamarie.com it's very colorful. You can email me DM me. I respond to everyone. I voice message people all the time when they're asking if they if I'm the right fit for them.
- [70:50]
A
Oh good. Remember this when you're sending me a thousand dms about this episode. Please DM her.
- [70:55]
B
Yes. So I'm happy to respond. So website Dr.nina marie.com or Dr. Nina Marie on Instagram is where you can find me.
- [71:02]
A
Thank you Dr. Nina Marie for coming on Culture Apothecary.
- [71:05]
B
Thank you.
- [71:09]
A
What did you learn this episode that absolutely blew your mind? I'd love to hear about it in the Cute Servatives Facebook group or when you leave a five star review telling others why they should listen to this show and this episode in particular. We release new episodes every Monday and Thursday night at 6pm Pacific, 9pm Eastern, where a brand new guest brings their own unique remedy to heal a sick culture. Subscribe to Real Alex Clark on YouTube. You can follow me on Instagram at Real Alex Clark. I'm Alex and this is Culture Apothecary.