Updates from Andrea Nicholson

In a recent episode of The Addiction Nutritionist Podcast, Functional Nutritionist Andrea Nicholson joins host Kelly Miller to discuss the importance of blood sugar handling. With a background in crime scene investigation, Nicholson now focuses on being a Metabolic Health Investigator, helping clients optimize their blood sugar patterns for improved mood, brain function, and overall well-being. Mismanaged blood sugar is a top relapse trigger for those in recovery, making this topic highly relevant. Nicholson explains the significance of blood sugar management as the gateway to overall health, wellness, and longevity. She also shares surprising statistics about the state of the average American's health and recommends valuable laboratory tests for assessing individual blood sugar levels. In addition, Nicholson and Miller explore ways to become a health advocate and utilize real-time data from monitoring devices like CGMs. This episode offers practical tips for managing blood sugar effectively.

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Functional Nutritionist Andrea Nicholson discusses the importance of critically evaluating health claims that are often seen in various forms of media. She explains that health claims are statements suggesting that a specific product, food, system, plan, or lifestyle intervention can either improve or harm one's health. Andrea emphasizes the need to dig deeper into the research behind such claims and advises seeking the original source of the information to determine its reliability. She highlights the difference between correlational information derived from diet questionnaires and surveys, which cannot prove causation, and well-conducted randomized clinical controlled trials, which provide the best evidence for causation. Andrea also urges readers to consider the source of funding behind studies, as this can potentially create bias. She encourages a critical evaluation of all available data and emphasizes the importance of not taking health claims at face value.

Functional Nutritionist Andrea Nicholson emphasizes the importance of stomach acid for digestive health and immune system function. She discusses the symptoms of low stomach acid, such as heartburn, acid reflux, and digestive discomfort, and explains how inadequate acid production can lead to these issues. Nicholson also highlights the downsides of medications that reduce stomach acid, such as proton pump inhibitors and antacids, which can mask symptoms but contribute to long-term health risks and nutrient deficiencies. Instead, she suggests strategies for improving stomach acid levels, including a nutrient-dense diet, mindful eating, and the use of digestive enzymes and probiotics. By addressing the underlying cause of digestive issues and supporting stomach acid production, we can achieve better digestive health and overall wellbeing.

Functional Nutritionist Andrea Nicholson explains that while conventional lab testing focuses on basic markers necessary to sustain life, functional lab testing provides a more comprehensive analysis of the body's functions and can detect imbalances before they become diseases. She goes on to highlight several specific functional lab tests that can provide valuable insights into overall health, including stress and metabolic profiles, fasting insulin, comprehensive thyroid testing, and stool tests, among others. These tests can help identify imbalances related to hormone levels, blood sugar handling, immune function, cholesterol, iron, inflammation, adrenal health, and more.