Stay ConnectedHolistic Health | Real Food Nutrition | Functional Medicine | Mind-Body
Honest and eye-opening conversations with functional nutritionist Erin Holt. Erin shares insight into hot topic nutrition, plus interviews with thought leaders in the functional medicine and wellness world. Get informed and empowered with this funky spin on mainstream health information.
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Copyright: © Copyright Erin Holt
Staying healthy while traveling doesn’t have to be a challenge–it just takes planning ahead and knowing some tips and tricks! Being in a different place and off your normal schedule can throw your system off-balance, but these hacks will help you stay happy and healthy while on the road.
This episode responds to listener questions Erin received after returning from a week-long trip. After listening to this episode, you will come away with healthy snack ideas for the plane, the best supplements to bring while traveling and why, how to eat and drink on vacation without derailing your immune system, post-travel best practices, and more.
Timestamps:
(2:24) Erin’s go-to travel snacks
(13:23) Key supplements for travel: what and why
(28:35) Regulating the digestive system while traveling
(38:02) Alcohol: what’s a balanced approach?
(46:25) Sleep and health in a different environment
(51:42) Post-travel lymphatic support
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/256-healthy-travel-hacks
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
When it comes to overall gut and hormonal health, the gallbladder is an unsung hero. It plays a crucial role not just in digestion and your ability to access nutrients in food, but also with detoxification and your hormone systems. Unfortunately early gallbladder issues are often missed in conventional treatment. While there are instances when gallbladder removal is necessary, removing the gallbladder typically doesn’t resolve the gallbladder issue. This is because it doesn’t address WHY the gallbladder issues arose in the first place.
Today Erin packs an information-heavy episode all about the importance and roles of the gallbladder, bile production, and alerts you to some of the warning signs you may be having issues with your biliary tract. The purpose of sharing this is so you can not just take in this information and comprehend it, but to really take preventative measures BEFORE you get to the point of surgery.
Head to our podcast search page to find episodes on any topic!
Timestamps:
(7:10) The gallbladder and its functions
(12:42) Why gallbladder removal surgery may not resolve gallbladder problems
(17:27) Symptoms of sludge and inefficient bile release
(20:36) Why bile is so important
(36:06) Factors that can increase risk of gallstones
(38:53) How to support overall bile production
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/255-gallbladder-bile-gut-hormones
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
From reproduction to physical well-being, pleasure, and partner connection, sex is a fundamental part of life–and yet, our society is so uncomfortable with the topic that productive conversations about sex are rare. As a result, many people (particularly women) end up with shame and confusion about their bodies, and questions about what’s “normal” go unasked or unanswered.
Dr. Jolene Brighten’s work answers these questions. Dr. Jolene is an award-winning board-certified naturopathic endocrinologist, hormone expert, and author of the book Is This Normal. In this episode, Erin and Dr. Jolene discuss the origins of shame around sex and pleasure in our culture, answer common questions about odors, discharges, and pain, and explore the orgasm gap and what women can do both physically and with mindset to increase their experiences of pleasure.
Head to our podcast search page to find episodes on any topic!
Timestamps:
(6:18) Why is there so much shame around sex?
(19:49) Odors and discharges explained
(23:45) The “orgasm gap” and the purpose of orgasms
(35:38) How to explore pleasure around sex
(38:00) Impact of cyclical hormones on female pleasure
(48:13) Virginity as a societal construct
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/254-sexual-health-pleasure
Dr. Jolene Brighten is a hormone expert, nutrition scientist, and thought leader in women’s medicine. She is board certified in naturopathic endocrinology and trained in clinical sexology.
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
Secretory IgA is the dominant antibody in our gut mucosal layer and acts as a “first line of defense” against pathogens. When Secretory IgA is low, it’s like the bouncer at the bar is gone. The lower the SIgA is, the more prone you are to acquiring infections AND the less likely you are to clear up existing infections in your gut.
Today Erin covers Secretory IgA and why it’s so important when it comes to overall immune and gut health. She discusses where this antibody is found and reasons why it may be low or high on a lab test. Erin also highlights an important contributing factor that even functional medicine can miss: your mindset.
Head to our podcast search page to find episodes on any topic!
Timestamps:
(7:58) How Secretory IgA protects us from food sensitivities
(9:11) What happens when Secretory IgA is low (and what it means if it’s elevated)
(12:38) The often overlooked aspect of healing
(23:36) Stress, leaky gut, cortisol dysregulation and their connection to Secretory IgA
(25:01) Factors that support healthy Secretory IgA levels
(29:30) Self-compassion and releasing guilt
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/253-gut-health-mindset-immunity
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
The bacterium Akkermansia Muciniphila comprises 1-3% of gut microbiota in healthy adults, and is considered a keystone microbe–some have even referred to it as the potential “holy grail” of improving metabolic diseases. Low levels of Akkermansia are often seen paired together with low levels of secretory IgA, and the reasons behind that demonstrate just how layered and complex our gut health really is.
In today’s conversation, Erin unpacks the reasons why low levels of Akkermansia and SIgA are often seen together, from deficient mucus layers to overall low beneficial bacteria production; the impact of low Akkermansia and SIgA on immune reactions and food sensitivities; how bacteria cross-feed each other and why that’s important for microbiome ecology; and ways to increase Akkermansia to support overall metabolic health.
Today, we’re also announcing the beta program launch of Manifest Your Health™! Learn more on our website at www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/manifest-your-health.
Timestamps:
(1:22) Manifest Your Health™ beta program launch announced
(8:08) Link between Akkermansia & SIgA
(14:37) How Akkermansia impacts mucus layer of the gut
(17:31) Mucus, SIgA, dendritic cells, and food sensitivities
(20:41) Bacteria cross-feeding in the gut
(24:00) Ways to boost Akkermansia levels
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/252-akkermansia-gut-health
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
Food sensitivities are a growing problem—and the reasons behind it are complex. Unpacking food sensitivities is NOT a straightforward task, but today Erin helps make sense of all the moving parts. In this episode, Erin discusses food sensitivity testing, the differences between food allergies and food sensitivities, symptoms and signs you might have a food sensitivity, the science behind our body’s reactions to foods, how our hormones relate, downsides to restrictive healing diets, and considerations to take if you suspect you may have a food sensitivity.
The truth is, getting to the root of food sensitivities is a lot more complicated than an at-home test commercial will ever tell you. After listening to this episode you’ll understand why, and come away with more knowledge, potential solutions, and hope for getting to the root of your own sensitivities. Please share with anyone who could also benefit from this valuable information!
Head to our podcast search page to find episodes on any topic!
Timestamps:
(6:30) The downsides of restrictive healing diets
(21:47) Food Allergy vs Food Sensitivity
(41:05) Why food sensitivities are more common today
(47:19) The interplay of estrogen, cortisol and dendritic cells
(52:31) Food sensitivity testing: yay or nay?
(1:00:54) What to do and how to truly heal your sensitivities to food
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/251-food-sensitivities-testing-symptoms
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
If you’ve been following along with TFN the last couple weeks, you’ve heard about the external sh*tstorm that severely impacted our podcast listenership. Today, Erin shares the story of what happened and why, and the overwhelming support we received from the TFN community in response (thank you!!). This show goes into some of the lessons learned from the situation and how this moment is an invitation for a total energy revamp, both for the podcast as well as for you, the listener.
Right now, there are cosmic shifts taking place that bring us all to a crossroads, in which we have the choice to step into our power and make decisions for the higher good. Erin talks through these shifts as they relate to the future of the podcast, and also shares the importance of working on the energy around the heart wall, why we need to plug into our own power rather than outsource for answers, and the heart medicine of allowing others to take care of us.
Timestamps
(4:02) Cosmic shifts and self-sourcing for answers
(7:25) What happened to the podcast
(14:58) Belief in your power and capacity to heal
(19:45) Third chakra excess and what it looks like
(21:38) Heart wall healing work
(31:42) The future of The Funk’tional Nutrition Podcast
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/250-heart-energy-expansion
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist:Website | Instagram
A note from Erin:
This week I shared on Instagram what's been going on with the podcast and I was really, really overwhelmed (in the best way possible) with the outpouring of support. I figured I should also share this with the rest of our community.
In the grand scheme of all of the things going on in this world, this is a small problem, and I fully recognize that.
But after reading through all my DMs, and hearing very personalized stories of how my podcast has quite literally changed lives, I don't want to downplay this, either.
It's important that I continue to show up for this work...because the reality is that people need this help.
Today’s minisode has the full story.
Can we take a root cause approach to healing depression? And is our current clinical psychiatry model supportive of finding a root cause? Just like with chronic physical illness, a common pattern in psychiatric medicine is to reach the diagnosis and then manage symptoms, rather than addressing the root issue. But what would it look like to get curious and ask why depression is there, and what it might be trying to tell us on a deeper, psychospiritual level?
Join Erin for a conversation with Astrid Schmidt, LCSW-R, a Certified Gestalt Therapist and the creator of the Spiral Mapping™ Method, a creative healing approach designed to help folks master their core healing themes of this lifetime. This conversation digs into the effects of being labeled a “depressed person,” the invitation of depression, working with the inner child, and ultimately how to find *your* medicine. Please note that this is NOT medical advice or a condemnation of conventional psychiatry; rather, this episode is a big-picture conversation which intends to explore new ways of thinking about our health.
Timestamps:
(5:45) Introducing Astrid and Gestalt Therapy
(12:42) “Organic depression” vs. “clinical depression”
(19:25) What is the Self?
(33:15) Depression as an initiation
(38:35) What does your diagnosis feel like?
(42:25) Spiral Mapping™ explained
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/249-healing-depression-holistically
Just because something is natural doesn’t mean it can’t harm you. Herbs have the capacity to negatively alter our gut microbiome if they aren’t used properly, so it’s important to know the root cause before diving into herbal remedies for gut problems. And it’s especially important to seek professional help rather than self-diagnosing and treating with potentially harmful remedies.
In this episode, Erin discusses problems with antibiotics and herbal remedies (spoiler alert: they have similar problems), why the 5R protocol needs a revamp, when it’s time to explore functional lab testing, and how to safely support your gut health at home. This conversation is also great for practitioners seeking to learn more about how to treat the gut safely and effectively!
If you’re a practitioner and looking for the education and expert support system to help you level up, the Funk’tional Nutrition Academy is currently open for enrollment, with only a few seats left! Spring Cohort begins April 1.
Timestamps:
(14:35) Parallels between antibiotics and herbal remedies
(21:32) Why you shouldn’t use grapefruit seed oil to treat your gut
(30:24) Oregano oil and its effects on beneficial bacteria
(37:41) The 5R protocol and where it falls short
(1:07:26) Steps to support gut health at home
(1:15:09) Erin’s top labs for testing the gut
FOR OUR FULL LIST OF LINKS + RESOURCES, HEAD TO:
https://www.thefunktionalnutritionist.com/podcast/248-gut-health-treatments
Check out The Funk’tional Nutritionist: Website | Instagram
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