Sarah Henschel
Naturopath and Nutritionist

More about Sarah

Shannon Stokes
Naturopath and Nutritionist

More about Shannon

  • Feeling down or anxious lately? We all know those days where everything just feels that little bit more gray and sad. Sometimes those days can turn into weeks and it might feel like it’s sticking around a little too long. You might have just had a few tough weeks adjusting to a move or maybe you have been working 12h days on end and feel like you can barely lift your head up off the pillow in the morning. There are a few things you can do to boost your mood and energy levels. ▪️Ensure you are getting enough protein in your diet to make neurotransmitters, 1 palm sized serve per meal is needed as an average ▪️Get your iron and B vitamin levels checked, low iron can make you feel depressed because it is needed to make serotonin! ▪️Gelatine and bone broth are great to get your amino acid levels up to support the brain ▪️Magnesium reduces blood cortisol levels and can help to lower anxiety ▪️Speak to a psychologist to address the core issue, a clear mind is the foundation of health! See one of the excellent psychologists here at the 4Life psychology clinic ▪️If you have been feeling low for no particular reason it’s a good idea to get a neurotransmitters profile done, available here at out natology clinic and check what your levels of serotonin (happy neurochemical), Gaba (calming) and adrenaline are.
  • Hello Autumn! The days are getting colder and it’s time to boost your immune system. Here are our favorite tips to get you through the season: ▪️Take 30mg if Zinc and 1000mg of Vitamin C daily- your white blood cells will thank you, it’s their fuel ▪️Soak up the afternoon sun, 15 min of sun exposure a day gets your vitamin D levels up and boosts your immunity ▪️Echinacea, Andrographis and Reishi Mushroom are the kings among the immune herbs with their anti-viral, bacterial and anti-fungal properties they will keep the bugs away
  • Insomnia? Did you know that if you stay awake for longer than 16 hours your performance is the same as after 2 glasses of wine? Fact is, sleep deprivation makes it harder to concentrate and affects our mood significantly. It should only take you 5-15 min to fall asleep. Less than 5mins might mean that you are sleep deprived. 🤷🏼‍♀️ If you have sleep issues a sleep hormone test can help. It’s a simple saliva test that you could do in your sleep (pun intended 😴).
  • Sleep controls our temperature, memory function and our body’s ability to recover. The main 2 hormones affecting our sleep are Melatonin and Cortisol. Melatonin gets us to fall asleep and Cortisol can affect our waking cycles during the night and in the morning. Our tips for quality sleep: ▪️Take Melatonin for a up to 1 week to establish a healthy sleep and wake cycle - this is especially useful for shift-workers and frequent long-haul flyers ▪️Magnesium taken before bed reduces the amount of Cortisol our body produces at night ▪️Drink hot almond milk before bed to encourage the body’s own Melatonin production. Almonds contain Tryptophan which is needed to make Serotonin and Melatonin in the brain ▪️Eat B-vitamin rich foods such as nuts, eggs, and dark leafy greens to produce healthy brain chemicals to help you sleep at night ▪️Aim for a palm-sized serve of protein with main meals to get essential amino acids such as tryptophan for a good night sleep into your diet. This also helps to control your blood sugar levels when you are asleep. Low blood sugar levels can cause you to wake up more frequently during the night. ▪️It is a good idea to get your Melatonin, cortisol and blood sugar levels checked to establish the cause of poor sleep quality
  • HELLO NEW MUMMA! congratulations your baby is finally here! This time is precious as well as quite an adjustment physically and mentally. Here are a few tips from us on how to enjoy the 4th trimester with your newborn: ◾️Do NOT stop your multi, infact this is a time to ensure your nutritional status is up with that of the very best it has ever been. Even if you aren’t breastfeeding; ◾️Eat foods rich in good fats, think avocado, coconut oil, nuts seeds, oily fish such as sardines, salmon, qood quality extra virgin olive oil drizzled on everything; ◾️Make sure you are having macronutrients with each meal and at least a palm size portion of protein at each meal. ◾️Take a quality probiotic daily; ◾️Don’t focus on trying to lose the baby weight, give yourself a break; ◾️Invest in a pair of SRC health recovery shorts! They are an absolute life saver if you are suffering from abdominal separation or have had a c-section to speed up the wound healing, regain strength and reduce swelling. It really helps to stay mobile and support your body in that precious time after the birth. ◾️Spend 5 minutes a day with your legs up the wall, relax those hips and lower back, take 10 deep breaths; ◾️Spend 10 minutes a day minimum outside in bright morning day light to ensure your body knows its day time and to help regulate those sleep/wake hormones. Check the link in our bio to read the full article. 🖤

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