The Chronic Illness Coach Podcast

Health Fundamentals: Simplifying The Confusion (E11)

• Alex Morris • Season 1 • Episode 11

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Ever feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of health advice out there? Fear not, as Alex breaks down the essentials of well-being, revealing how your mind, body, and even your dinner plate are intricately connected. This episode peels back the layers of complexity surrounding your health journey, offering clear and actionable guidance that'll leave you and your loved ones empowered.

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Speaker 1:

Hi, how are you? Thank you so much for joining me today. Today's episode is all about the health fundamentals. There is so much information out there and it can be really confusing to work out what is healthy, what is not healthy, what should I be doing, what should I not be doing. So today we're going to break that all down and put it into really simple terms so you can work out the fundamentals for your life, your health and your family.

Speaker 1:

So welcome to episode 11 of the Chronic Illness Coach podcast. I'm Alex Morris and I believe that chronic illnesses can be put into a mission. Join me as I work to engage, educate and empower those living with a chronic illness to change their life for the better. Hello everyone, welcome back to the Chronic Illness Coach podcast. It's lovely to have you with me. It's lovely to be here. So today's episode is all about health fundamentals.

Speaker 1:

It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to talk about this week. As you know, I've been doing some incredible interviews with some really expert guests, and those interviews in the background are being recorded. Every week we have an incredible lineup coming and I'm really excited to share all those insights and all this expertise with you and as a result of doing all of these interviews, I think it's really made me realize and kind of recap on how much information is out there, how overwhelming it can be, and actually one of the guests that I spoke to recently that will be coming on the podcast is the concept that actually even to the specialists, even to people that have been doing this 30, 40 years, are still overwhelmed, they are still bamboozled with the amount of information that they're either reading, learning, and obviously there are continuous experiments and further research being done to improve our knowledge and to improve our understanding of what we think we know and in lots of ways what we think we know is actually completely changing and we're realizing that we've had it wrong for the past, however many years. So we're just discussing this concept of information overload and how much is out there. How do you figure out what's true, what's good to follow, what is bad advice, and it can just be a bit of a minefield. So today's episode is really going to be about talking about some of those basics and talking about some of those fundamentals and just breaking it down, and I hope that I can make this as simple and easy to follow as I possibly can, and you can actually have some really brilliant takeaways from this episode that you can go and implement in your family home lifestyle immediately. So let's get down to it.

Speaker 1:

The first point that I've just briefly touched on is the fact that there is information overload and it is so easy to overcomplicate things. We've obviously now got the emergence of AI, which is incredible and that is bringing a whole new dimension to the realm of searching for things and efficiency and our kind of work is changing and how we take in information is probably going to change drastically again. So it's very easy to google something potentially quite simple and get lots of different answers and probably come away from that feeling maybe more confused than you actually went into it being so. It's just important to acknowledge that actually, it's okay to be confused. It's okay to feel overwhelmed with the amount of information and knowledge out there. There are some incredible experts out there, but I think almost every expert that we come across whether it's tv on a morning show, or whether it's someone doing a radio appearance or maybe even, like that, even has their own podcast is writing a book. There are so many books out there. Some people enjoy reading, some people don't. That could be a really good source of information. But again, even with these really well-written books, that can sometimes be conflicting information and can feel quite confusing as well.

Speaker 1:

So you're not alone. You are not the only person in the world, country, planet, that is trying to improve their own health and well-being and thinking this is just a minefield. Where do I start? Where do I stop? You know, am I ever going to going to be able to dissect all this information and get what I want from it? You're not alone. Let me try and help if I possibly can.

Speaker 1:

So the first point, and actually before I get into it, I probably should say yes, this information is probably going to be slightly guided by my personal and professional opinion. Obviously, there are lots of people that would agree and disagree with me, and that is the beauty of the discussion and what we do. So this is what I would say is really important to prioritize. It is not the only stuff to prioritize, but I think it's a good starting point. It is not the only stuff to prioritize, but I think it's a good starting point because, like I've just said, there's no point me throwing everything at you because you might just. You might as well, just continue with google and stay overwhelmed and confused.

Speaker 1:

So the first point mind and body connection. So it's really really important to acknowledge that our mind and our body are connected, always have been and always will be. Whatever happens to your body affects your mind and whatever happens to your mind affects your body. There is what we well a bit of science for you. So the vagus nerve, which is the longest nerve in the human body, goes between your brain and your gut is a simplified way of explaining it and this nerve basically sends signals both ways, so from the gut to the brain and from the brain to the gut, and we call it the brain-gut connection. And it's really important to acknowledge this connection because there is so much research now showing that nutrition and toxic load and basically what is going on in the gut and things something like gut dysbiosis or leaky gut or other gastrointestinal issues can have a massive effect on mental health and neurological diseases that are increasing. Obviously that is a huge impact on the brain and the brain. We know we can have things on the extreme scale, such as PTSD, or we can just have a traumatic event where obviously it takes time to process that and we can be in shock, the same way that if you eat McDonald's every single day for months on end. That is going to have a huge effect on your gut and then that will trickle up to your brain.

Speaker 1:

So that's where we start. You have to treat both with the same amount of respect, the same amount of love, the same amount of care, and you have to think about what you're doing to both. So, to put this into practical terms, if we're thinking about the brain, we're thinking about relationships. Have you got toxic relationships in your life which is having a negative effect on you? Who are the people you're surrounding yourself with? They say you are a mirror or reflection of the five people that you spend the most amount of time with. Who are those five people? Are they a good influence on you? Are they a bad influence on you? We're thinking about workplace, where you spend a huge amount of time. If we're talking about children, we're talking about an education setting. What is the influence? What are their social interactions? When we think about the body and the gut, we're thinking about what are you putting in your body. Are you smoking? Are you drinking a huge amount? Are you having nutrient dense food? Are you eating many processed food. Are you thinking about where you get your food from? Is it the supermarket have? Have you looked at farm shops? Do you think organic is important or not? It's all those kind of things. So that's where we start. Just remember, always, every single day, every minute of every day, the mind and body are always connected, always, and if you improve one you will find the other improves, and if you improve one you will find the other improves, and if you abuse one, you will find the other goes downhill.

Speaker 1:

So, moving into the kind of first main juicy point, I want to talk about nutrient density. Some of you may have the phrase nutrient density, some of you may have not. Nutrient density is about the nutritional content of the food that we're eating. So it's not about you know. It's not about saying, oh well, I have one apple a week, so that's okay. It's about what nutrients are actually in that apple. Is that apple nutrient dense or is that apple completely devoid of nutrients and has got a huge toxic load? So, before we go into that kind of stuff, nutrient density, I think, is 100% the way forward. It's about thinking where we get our food from, what's in our food and what is our food actually doing for our body? What purpose is it serving? And we need to move away from calorie counting.

Speaker 1:

Calorie counting, in my humble opinion, is just not. It's not, not important, it's not what we should be focusing on. There was a huge movement, I think especially, I think, with my parents kind of in their 20s and 30s where fat was made the absolute enemy and everything became low fat or fat free and it was just made the absolute enemy of everyone and avoid it and don't have it in your food. And here's all the alternatives. And I think within that movement, calorie counting became really really important and was just fashionable and the trend and everyone was doing it and potentially for a while, you know, even the experts maybe thought it was the way to go. But obviously that that's diverged and that's moved away very, very quickly. So calorie counting is not where you want to go.

Speaker 1:

I would say the only reason still potentially that calorie counting might be worthwhile is if you're losing weight really quickly. It actually, me and my partner had this debate a few days ago and he made he made the point that you know, if you want to lose weight calorie counting, counting you have to be in calorie deficit, I'd say that is true. I don't feel qualified enough to argue that that isn't true. There are people that know much more than I do, so that probably has an element there. But again, you know, if you are someone that wants to lose weight, calorie deficit is probably a part of that. Calorie deficit is probably a part of that. But there are so many other healthy fundamentals that you can really get into your new way of lifestyle and your new way of eating and your new kind of approach to healthiness that you can bring in. That is not just calorie counting. So personally I would say focus on nutrient density, stop counting calories, stop focusing on the numbers, and you will find some really amazing benefits and some really amazing changes.

Speaker 1:

So, thinking about nutrient density, the first thing to think about is whole grains. So whole grains are food that have not been tampered with. They are still in their natural form, and whole grains are things that tend to not all the time, but tend to have the most amount of nutrient density. So if we're thinking about comparisons now, I'm also not saying don't eat both sides, don't eat both of these foods. I'm comparing, but I'm just doing a comparison for the sake of the point. So it's things like moving away from white bread to brown bread. It's things like moving away from white pasta to brown pasta or wholemeal pasta. Same thing with rice. Move away from white pasta to brown pasta or wholemeal pasta. Same thing with rice. Move away from white rice to wholemeal rice. Now I'm not saying don't eat white rice bread, whatever. I'm not going to tell anyone you cannot have this and you can only have this.

Speaker 1:

I think part of being really healthy is understanding the enjoyment of food is just as important as what it is that we're putting in our bodies, because that has a huge effect on our digestion and how well our body takes that in. So I'm not going to say to one don't have this stuff, because that's not what this is about, but it is just about making that comparison. So whole grains are really important to think about, foods that are basically still completely whole, have not been tampered with, are in their form, and they will have a huge amount of nutrient density, which is exactly what you're looking for. On that point, something I am very passionate about and very strong on, and I would say to friends and family personally in those personal relationships, if they were asking my honest advice and that would be you are not going to not benefit from completely removing processed and refined foods. There is no downside to that, I think personally, as long as you obviously don't start cutting out different food groups and you're deficient in certain areas. It's important to have a balanced plate, but if you can make sure that you're getting everything from nature, removing processed and refined foods is not going to be a negative. It is only going to be a positive.

Speaker 1:

And when I talk about processed foods, if we're imagining that we're walking through a supermarket, if you look at anything that has not come directly from nature. So when you're walking down the fruit and veg aisle, most of those things have come directly from nature. There are other issues with that which we'll come on to, but that has touch wood, come from nature in its whole form, hasn't been tampered with. So as we come into the meat aisle we then think about so chicken breasts and leg and thighs. We might look at fish, we look at steak or lamb or pork and if it is the raw piece of meat and it is just from what the butcher has done he's separated the animal and sorted the carcass out that is again fairly direct from nature. That is just the animal in its purest form, obviously once it's been butchered. If you are looking on that aisle and you're looking at things like chicken nuggets or dippers or anything that's been breaded or kind of turned into a snacking or a meal, if the supermarkets didn't, if anything's happened from the animal to get into the supermarket and it's changed or looks different from just the raw piece of meat, that is what falls under processed. That is probably lowest on the spectrum.

Speaker 1:

We've got everything from crisps are processed and any tinned sauces. We I remember years ago now when we were still kids, we used to buy lloyd grossman and when you actually look what are in any of those not just his, any of those tinned sauces it is quite terrifying actually what they stick in those sauces. Anything that's pre-made, anything that's pre-prepared, counts as processed and then refined. So we mainly think of refined sugar. Now, actually, sugar has a really important part of our diet, but it should come from those natural sources. So fruits and honey, local honey, are the benefits the local honey has phenomenal. So it should come from those kind of natural sources because we need sugar, but just not refined sugar.

Speaker 1:

Refined sugar is probably quite obvious. It's your biscuit aisle, your chocolate aisle, it's anything again made by supermarket cakes or snacks or muffins or anything like that. It's quite often it's in yogurt. We think yogurt is can be really good, can be a really good thing to have, has lots of benefits, but again needs to be that kind of natural greet yogurt. Lots of these yogurts, especially for kids, which is just awful are pumped. Kind of natural Greek yogurt. Lots of these yogurts, especially for kids, which is just awful are pumped full of refined sugar and all sorts of additives and preservatives and artificial horrible things.

Speaker 1:

So unfortunately, as you kind of walk through that supermarket, maybe after listening to this episode you'll probably be looking around thinking, oh my God, how much of this stuff counts as processed and counts as refined. And unfortunately you'll find that is probably the majority of things, because it is all down to very clever marketing. It's addictive, it does something to our brain where we think, oh, that's exciting, yeah, give us more, give us more. They're very clever at what they do, getting us to eat more and more of this food because obviously it makes makes up a huge amount of money. So that's a really important point If you are willing and able to and again, this is not an overnight thing.

Speaker 1:

You can't go cold turkey with this. I don't think, because if you are very used to it and it has been part of your diet, then obviously that will be quite difficult and we all have a very emotional relationship to food. So we have to be very aware of that and respect that. So that could be a gradual thing. But if you are thinking actually I don't know what, alex, as you're talking, I'm thinking processing, refined foods just need to go, then just take your time doing it, just do it step by step by step. You will make massive improvements and in order to make positive changes it doesn't have to be overnight, it doesn't have to be immediate.

Speaker 1:

So the third point of the nutrient density conversation is this point about organic food. Now I've had some really interesting conversations with just kind of colleagues and friends and people in my life where we've debated the topic of organic years ago and also more recently, and it's really interesting because I think there are a huge amount of people out there, understandably, that think that organic is just some kind of marketing tool and there isn't really any difference and it basically just means that you have to pay more money for your food and actually it's not worth it. And if you are thinking that, if that is what you believe to be true, I ask you just to put that aside for a moment and hear me out for what I'm about to say, because it is so important. Organic food is vital, absolutely vital. We all, every single one of us, should be buying organic, and there are really good reasons for that. Now, before I go into them, I will acknowledge the point that organic food is not cheap. It is not cheap and it's wrong. It's wrong that it's not cheap and that needs to change. But obviously the demand for organic food needs to go up and that is how the price is going to get pushed down, but at the moment that's not quite happening. So I'm really going to kind of sing the praise of organic food now and tell you the reasons why.

Speaker 1:

So obviously, we've all been told to eat our fruit and vegetables. We've heard of five a day, we've heard of eat the rainbow, and actually those concepts, even though they're very simple and they've kind of been used for kids, are very, very true and actually part of what we should be sticking to and what actually is a really good lesson that we should be doing all the time. It's not just to get kids to eat fruit and vegetables in school when they don't want to. It is actually advice that we all should be taking and remembering on a daily basis. So when we think about again going into that supermarket, imagine you know the vegetable aisle, the fruit aisle, you've got all these fruits and vegetables and there are normally only one or two things of each type of fruit vegetable that are organic.

Speaker 1:

Now organic basically means that there are a huge amount of chemicals, pesticides, all things like that that cannot be used on these vegetables and fruits that are grown. The farmers have said we do not use X, y and Z pesticides and chemicals whilst we're farming and whilst we're growing this food. Now, organic doesn't mean that actually it's completely chemical free. It just means it's like pesticides and some other chemicals aren't used. So actually there is almost a loophole in organic, which means that actually there may be some chemicals, unfortunately it may have been exposed to, but the toxic load, as we call it, is incredibly decreased compared to food that is not organic at all. So that's the first point, the use of pesticides. There is a loophole, but it is drastically better, and earlier I talked about nutrient density of an apple and actually I want to make a comparison that hopefully will demonstrate why organic is so important.

Speaker 1:

So let's say that you have an apple that is just pink lady or whatever not organic wrapped in plastic in the supermarket, and then let's say that you have an apple might be a pink lady, might be something else that is organic. They look exactly the same. They're pink and ripe and juicy and sweet. Now, actually, I think if you did have one and then the other side by side when you ate them, I think you definitely would be able to taste the difference. It's quite, it's quite stark when you compare them. But looking at them, they look very, very similar.

Speaker 1:

But it's underneath that you need to think about and is what you need to focus on the toxic load of the apple that is not organic basically, in layman's terms, would mean that it basically is not worth you even eating the apple because the toxic load of the apple is so high. I'll say that again the non-organic, normal supermarket apple has got such a high toxic load that it basically makes the apple not worth eating, which is quite terrifying. And when I first heard that and when I was first speaking to one of the experts about organic food. I was shocked. I was really, really stunned, because you can't imagine that in a modern day world, with the amazing science that we have and what we know and all the problems that we have, that actually that could still be going on. But it is. It is going on and it probably will continue to for quite some time. Hopefully changes will be made, but you know, you never know so.

Speaker 1:

When you think about that, when we think about organic food, there basically is no other option. We have to go organic if you can afford it. You have to go organic because that is the only fruit and vegetable that is going to have any kind of nutritional content that is going to do good things for your body. If you are eating fruit and vegetables that are not organic, they don't have any nutritional content. All they do have are awful, terrible toxins that you are then putting into your body is going directly into your bloodstream or is then passing through, is causing leaky gut or is causing gastrointestinal issues and is just causing more and more issues in your body. It's increasing inflammation and we know inflammation is the root of almost all chronic disease and then over a long period of time it builds up and that's what can then lead to a chronic disease. That's a very quick and shortened version of what happens over many, many, many years, because it is a compound effect, but in essence, that is what could happen. I think other factors would have to come in.

Speaker 1:

But you know, the concept that our food is more toxic than nutritional is is terrifying and is terrible, but we do have ways to get around it. I mean, obviously there needs to be a huge amount of advocacy in supermarkets and farmers and that whole area to say actually, no, it is not okay that we are using these chemicals on our food because the food is now not nutritious, it is actually toxic and we're being told to eat our fruits and vegetables every day. And we're being told to eat our fruits and vegetables every day and we're putting that in our bodies. So that's my little organic rant over. But it is such an important point and if you are listening to this, if you want to go and do further research, I absolutely implore you to do so. Fantastic, go and read about it, go and educate yourself further. But if you just want these short snippets I'm talking about, please, if you can, change to organic immediately, immediately, do not hesitate. It will make an enormous change, absolute, enormous change. I need 30 seconds of your time. If you are enjoying the chronic illness coach podcast, then please subscribe and leave a review, also in order to get this podcast to the people who need it the most. Is there someone you can share this episode with today? Pause the episode quickly and share it with them.

Speaker 1:

So we've talked about nutrient density. We've got whole grains, remove processed and refined foods and organic. We're then moving to hydration, because I think hydration is not something that we talk about enough. I think sometimes we think some things are hydrating when they're not, and it can be a bit of a non-talked-about topic. So just lay the groundwork water.

Speaker 1:

We as a nation, probably as a world, do not drink enough water, just plain water. I have spoken to lots of friends and people that I've known over the years and it shocks me still how many people do not or can or say they can't just drink plain water. They just say I don't like the taste or it's too boring or I don't like it. That probably is. That probably comes from living in a society when we're again bombarded by refined sugar and we're used to things that are very, very sweet, like squash or fizzy drinks or coffee or tea or whatever it might be. So, across the board, we do not drink enough water.

Speaker 1:

If you are listening to this, thinking, yeah, I can't remember the last time I just drunk plain water or oh god, no, I don't really like the taste. I implore you to really try and improve that, because water is so, so important to keeping us hydrated. You don't have to be a monk and just have water all the time. I would say I probably do. I probably do drink just water, herbal teas most of the time. That's just me, that's my preference, that's what I'm used to. But you don't have to. But I would say up your water intake as much as you possibly can.

Speaker 1:

A great piece of advice that we've had on the podcast that will come up in a future episode is as soon as you get up, go for a wee. We, most of us, go to the toilet and then drink two glasses of water and you will notice a massive difference in your alertness when you first wake up. Bowel movements, just general well-being energy. So that might be a really good tip and a really good way to start two glasses of water as soon as you wake up. But in terms of hydration, it's also just good to know that actually there are things that do dehydrate us and then we almost have to play catch up to that. So tea and coffee lovely, really comforting tea is a very british thing but it can be dehydrating. So you need to be aware that if you have tea or coffee, you then need to have a glass of water anyway and then probably have another glass of water to make up for what you've just drunk. And I think most people don't know that. They think if they're just drinking and they're just taking some kind of liquid, in that it is in fact hydrating. It's not necessarily true. Some things are dehydrating, other things are hydrating. So that's just something to be aware of as well.

Speaker 1:

The next point now, this is not going to make many people happy. I'm afraid this is going to be maybe a little bit of a home truth, or you might hear this and think oh really, alex, did you have to say that? Did you have to bring it up? But you know, if we're going to have an open, honest conversation, it needs to be part of it. So the next point is alcohol. Ladies and gents, I'm afraid there's no way around it. Alcohol is not your friend. It is not your friend. It has absolutely zero health benefits. I've had conversations with people before about the fact that you know red wine has antioxidants or polyphenols and you know that can do x, y and z in the body. It may have that on a very small quantity. It may have, you know, tiny amounts of that. That. Yes, okay, technically you are correct, but the bottom line with alcohol again has been shown throughout a huge amount of scientific research and studies is that the bottom line is that when alcohol enters the body it is treated like poison and what it does to the body has absolutely zero positive effects and it puts a huge strain on our bodies.

Speaker 1:

Now, before anyone panics, I'm not saying you have got to cut alcohol out of your life. I personally have not done that. I can say that I have a very, very, very low level of alcohol in my lifestyle. I will never have a drink during the week, or very rarely, and I may have something on the weekend, but again, it's in small quantities and I could easily go a few weekends and just not have anything. I wouldn't particularly be bothered. Now I'm aware that can come from the kind of environment and family home you've grown up in. My parents aren't big drinkers. It can depend on what you do for work, your social group. There are so many factors that you know your kind of alcohol, your relationship with alcohol, can depend on. And I'm not going to demonize or tell anyone not to have it, or if you do have it then you're a bad person because you're not, and it's not about that.

Speaker 1:

But it is important to recognize what this substance does to us because if we live in denial and we bury our heads in the sand, then we're not kind of taking action, we're not taking back that control over our life and over our own health. So it does put a strain on the body, it does behave like a poison in our body and our body has to work so so, so hard to get rid of that and to get that out of our system. And there are so many other jobs our body is doing at exactly the same moment. If we are having alcohol regularly and in large quantities, our body is unable to do the fundamental detoxification processes that it normally needs to do, because it is just focusing on the amount of alcohol in the system and that is putting a huge amount of strain. So if you are someone where alcohol is a big part of your life or it's important to you or it's part of your lifestyle, then maybe just have a look about how you can tweak it. Can you help your body? That's what this is all about. Can you help your body? Can you make your body's life a little bit easier? Take the strain off, take the weight off. It's already working so hard to try and look after you, to try and keep you young and healthy and active and energetic. Can you help it out? Work with your own body. Just be aware that when you're putting things in your body, you and your body are the same thing. Don't identify yourself outside of your own body. You are the same unit. Try and help yourself, try and be kind to yourself and just be aware that certain things, like alcohol, can sometimes be quite difficult for it to process.

Speaker 1:

Moving on slightly to supplementation so supplementation, I think wow, it's a huge market. There's huge amounts of money in it. We are again constantly bombarded by different companies and adverts saying supplement this, supplement that. Oh, increase that, take this, this supplement that. Oh, increase that, take this, take that. This will do this, will do this for you again really overwhelming. And sometimes you feel like you need to buy every supplement and every product on this shelf because you're being told that it will do this amazing thing for your body.

Speaker 1:

And what I would say about supplementation is the fact that basically, it is a getting game unless you go and get a test. So you can go to a functional lab and get a test about what minerals and vitamins you are deficient in and what you should be supplementing. That is an expensive test, or relatively expensive test. You may be able to get on the NHS for certain circumstances, but most people won't be able to get it. So if you want to find out what you need to supplement, then you will need to go and get tested to make sure that it is effective and you are actually taking the right stuff and you're not just basically in the dark grabbing things hoping for the best, because without a test it is just a guessing game. You that's. That's the only way around it to be accurate. And then the other thing to say about supplementation is I think a lot of people think that if they just supplement really hard and they just go crazy and they pop pills and they do it every day and they just take everything on the shelf and they take the new thing and the new fashion and the new fad.

Speaker 1:

Then it can replace something on the plate, especially if it's someone that potentially I don't know might be on a diet or might be trying something. They think, oh well, if I cut out carbs, if I cut out carbs, if I cut out this, I can just take this supplement. That is not how it works. Your plate needs to be balanced and full, and supplementation is an additional. It is like the sprinkling on top. It cannot replace a food group and it shouldn't replace a food group. So, please, if you are going to supplement, get tested, if you can. And then, if you do, please make sure that you're not thinking well, because I'm doing X, y and Z supplement, I can just not have this in my diet or in my balanced meal Because, again, that's not what supplementation was created for. It's an additional, it's not a replacement. And then, finally this is a real passion point for me Again, only personal opinion I would say please, please, please, please, please.

Speaker 1:

Stay away from the trends, the diets and the fads. Just stay away, don't go near them, don't touch them with the barge pole I have the real issue that I have with diets. Firstly is the fact that diets are made the way they're formed the way diets. It's all about the short term. So you just make these sacrifices and you probably create quite an uncomfortable, unhappy environment for yourself where you're just doing something for a short period of time to get really quick results and then the diet ends and I think majority of the time you will see that most people revert or go back to where they started.

Speaker 1:

And the fundamental problem with diets is that exact point. They are not made to be sustainable. Diets are not made for you to go on a journey to recognize your habits, your emotional relationship with food, your lifestyle, your views, your opinions, your limiting beliefs, your blocks. They're not designed for that. They're just designed as a quick fix and to get quick results because, again, it's a marketing thing, it's for someone else to get some money from you.

Speaker 1:

What I would say is, if you want to make fundamental change to your lifestyle, your eating, your healthy habits, it has to be sustainable and it needs to come from a place that is a long-term plan. You have to want to make fundamental lifestyle change and change things at the absolute root, root and core of you that you've been doing for many, many, many years. And that's really tough because we are made to stay in our comfort zone. If you've been doing it for a long time, it's not going to be easy. It's's absolutely possible more than possible for anyone but it isn't easy. And actually diets just promote a way of thinking that isn't sustainable, isn't healthy and actually nine times out of 10, I think, probably get people in a worse situation than when they started. So that's my real issue with diets Please don't do it. Please don't do it. It won't help you in the long run.

Speaker 1:

And then, with the real boom of social media, especially TikTok, the trends and the fads again, I think sometimes can be really dangerous. Some of the things I've seen on TikTok about this is what you drink, or put these things together in a blender, or this is how you do a juice tox, or you know God knows what is coming up this week. They can be really dangerous. So please, whatever you do do if you're looking for health advice or you're looking for lifestyle change please do not turn to somewhere like tiktok or social media to follow the latest trend, because the bottom line is that probably those people that are suggesting that trend haven't done the scientific research. It may well have come from various sources or someone's put it together, but I just don't think this solid foundation is probably going to be there and it is a trend. It's a trend and a fad for a reason. It means that it comes out. It's new and exciting. People are like what's this new thing? It peaks and then it falls off a cliff and then it goes and the new trend comes in, and again, that is for a reason. It's about the fact that it's not sustainable, it's not long term, it's not about making fundamental at the bottom change, and that is what we need to make healthy and sustainable changes. So that is the fundamentals for you.

Speaker 1:

There are so many more things I could talk about. I feel like I've missed out loads, but at the same time, I'm also aware that I've probably given you a lot of information in one episode, so let's just quickly recap. So we've got the mind and body are connected. You've got the gut and brain connection from the vagus nerve. What happens to one happens to the other and the two talk to each other. It is a two-way street. You have nutrient density. Forget calorie counting. Focus on whole grains we're removing processed and refined foods and go organic. Go organic. We've got hydration. Drink more water than you are currently. It can only be a good thing. We've got alcohol.

Speaker 1:

I'm not saying you have to remove it completely, but have a little look at your relationship with it. How much you having? Can you decrease it? Can you swap it out for something else? Why are you using it? That's a good point we didn't touch on. Why are you having alcohol in your life? What is it serving you or what is it giving to you? Supplementation test, or it's a guessing game and it cannot be a replacement and then finally come back to nature. Come back to nature. It will always, always serve you, always serve you. Thank you so much for joining me on this week's episode. I hope you've enjoyed listening, I hope you've learned something and I hope you feel inspired to make one small change. Thank you, thank you.