Nutritional Therapy isn't just about what we eat and drink.
We have all heard of the phrase 'you are what you eat', and that's because what we eat is used by the body to make us, to create new cells, new bodily tissues, and organs. If we eat rubbish, we feel, and look rubbish. Simple.
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Naturopathic Nutritional therapy also look at an individual’s inherited factors, their environment, lifestyle, attitudes, and psychological and emotional state, especially stress, when assessing overall health and the most appropriate programme for healing.
Stress in all its forms is a major cause of health issues and chronic disease because it stops the systems within the body from working properly. You could be eating a well-balanced diet, but if you live life in a perpetual state of stress, you are undoing all that good work.
Investing in your health isn't a nice to have, its essential.
If you could look into a crystal ball and see your future self, you would want to see a happy, healthy, energetic, and resilient person fully engaged in life interacting physically and mentally with friends and family.
Through detailed case taking, Naturopathic Nutritional Therapy seeks to explain how you have arrived at your present symptoms, and provide you with a structured plan for restoring health, straightforward advice and guidance for maintaining health, and the knowledge you need for protecting your future health. Understanding why you have your symptoms and having a plan for addressing them immediately reduces anxiety because it takes away the fear and puts you back in control of the situation. Working with me removes the confusion caused by flip-flopping between the latest food fads and diets or from following the latest 'expert' advice that changes from one day to the next.
The principles of Naturopathic Nutrition are reassuringly consistent, simple, and clear.
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As you move through the stages of re-establishing your health foundation, or healing and recovering from dis-ease, anxiety reduces, energy levels increase, we feel more positive, optimistic, and capable because once the body is able to clean and nourish itself, everything within the body begins to flow and our life force regains its resiliency, strength, vibrancy, and energy.
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Muscle Response Testing is a diagnostic biofeedback tool that uses the body’s own nervous system to uncover hidden problems.
Muscle Response Testing uses the body’s own nervous system to uncover hidden problems such as allergies, food intolerances, sensitivities, heavy metal toxicity, nutrient deficiencies, and other imbalances and is a useful diagnostic tool that may used during your consultation using specific muscles in your arm or leg.
For example, if a gluten or dairy intolerance is suspected, specific muscles in the arm and leg can be tested before and after a small amount of a substance or specialist test vial is placed on or close to the body. If the muscle ‘unlocks’ or ‘weakens’ in the presence of the substance or test vial but remains ‘locked’ or ‘strong’ in its absence, this indicates the body treats the substance as a toxin providing valuable information for the case and subsequent treatment.
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No two people are the same, we are all genetically different.
Common variations in our genetic code called Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms or SNPs have small but significant impacts on our life and health, from hormones to heart and metabolism to mental health. Looking at our genetic differences unlocks a personal health blueprint, offering a detailed insight into our unique biological strengths and weaknesses providing a deeper understanding of our health.
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We all have variations in our genetic code, but just because we have a particular variation, doesn’t mean we will develop any associated health issues. Whether or not the SNPs are ‘switched on’ or become ‘active’ is significantly influenced by our environment and lifestyle. We can't change our genes, but we can change what we do to support them.
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When undertaken as part of a Naturopathic consultation, genetic analysis can help you understand how variations in your genetic code could be contributing to your current symptoms and how diet and lifestyle changes can influence gene expression to reduce symptoms and optimise your health and well-being.
Consultations are available in my clinic in Hertford or online.
​Your initial in-depth consultation takes approximately 90 minutes includes a full naturopathic case taking and muscle response testing for imbalances and food sensitivities. Follow-up consultations are for 60 minutes.
​​Prior to your consultation you will be sent a questionnaire to complete together with a 7-day food diary to record your typical daily diet. The questionnaire goes back two generations and covers your current health and past medical history from birth to the present day and questions on every body system.
Chronic stress is a major digestive and hormonal disrupter.
​The hormonal and digestive systems are especially sensitive to stress, so if these systems are not working properly, neither are the immune or reproductive systems.
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It is well understood that stress affects our mental and physical health and wellbeing.
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We think of stress as negative, but a small amount of stress can sharpen our performance and focus when we have a task that requires completing, an exam to sit, or a presentation to deliver. Our fight or flight stress response is activated if we are in danger so that we can escape, therefore this type of stress is an important evolutionary reaction necessary for survival. The debilitating type of stress is the sort that doesn’t go away or subside, examples include relationship difficulties, financial worries, a demanding job, shift working, and having multiple demanding responsibilities.
Chronic stress exhausts the adrenal glands through the unrelenting demand for cortisol until eventually they fail to make enough disrupting the entire hormonal system. Our body prioritises the production of cortisol above production of the sex hormones which is why we see menstrual and fertility disturbances during times of stress. Stress also suppresses the parasympathetic nervous system responsible for regulating the digestive, immune, urinary and reproductive functions because these systems are not considered important when the body is in survival mode. As a result, digestion slows down causing pain, bloating, constipation, bacterial overgrowth, and intestinal permeability which then impacts the immune system.
“The natural healing force within each of us is the greatest force in getting well”, Hippocrates.​
Naturopathic Nutritional Therapy and Nutritional Medicine can help with many common complaints, many with their roots in poor digestive health or hormonal instability, including:
Digestive problems incl IBS, pain, bloating, wind.
Blood sugar irregularities.
Food sensitivities, intolerances, and allergies.
Low energy, low mood, fatigue, and chronic fatigue.
Skin issues and diseases.
Poor immunity and autoimmunity.
Stress related conditions.
Headaches and migraines.
Anxiety and depression.
Circulation and joint problems.
Hormonal problems incl. PMT, Fertility, Menopause.
Feeling unwell with no known or obvious cause.
Weight loss / gain.
Maintaining and protecting health.
The best part is that changes do not have to be big to start yielding results.
A few small, gradual, and consistent changes are more beneficial to sustained healing than a sudden overhaul that proves impractical, unsustainable, demotivating and just makes symptoms worse. Healing requires time, patience, determination, and dedication, but the rewards are significant, life changing, empowering, and enduring.
Genetic testing looks in detail at our DNA, the chemical ‘instructions’ in every body cell.
This biological code tells the body how to do everything, including how well we absorb and use specific nutrients like vitamins, affecting our nutrient needs.
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Nutrigenomics looks at how nutrition and lifestyle factors impact our genetic potential. It gives us an understanding of how our life choices (nurture) interact with our genes (nature) so that we can make positive changes that align with our genetics and optimise our health and well-being.
Genetic testing looks in detail at our DNA, the chemical ‘instructions’ in every body cell.
This biological code tells the body how to do everything, including how well we absorb and use specific nutrients like vitamins, affecting our nutrient needs.
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Nutrigenomics looks at how nutrition and lifestyle factors impact our genetic potential. It gives us an understanding of how our life choices (nurture) interact with our genes (nature) so that we can make positive changes that align with our genetics and optimise our health and well-being.