hormones

X Is For Xenoestrogens

December 1, 2017 By Karen Leave a Comment

OK, I admit it was hard to come up with a gluten-related word that starts with an ‘X’!

But have you ever heard of Xenoestrogens?

How about Xenobiotics?

These are synthetic (i.e. fake) substances found in your environment, commonly referred to as hormone-disrupting chemicals – because they’re known to mess with your body’s natural rhythms.

These harmful chemicals also contribute to weight gain, because they’re favorite place to hide out in your body is your fat cells!

Seriously!

These xenoestrogens are found in things like:

Plastics
BPA
Beef, chicken, dairy
Fragrance
Food Additives

So, it comes as no surprise this week, that the focus of my educational video series “A Gluten Primer – Everything You Wanted to Know From A-Z” is on: X is for Xenoestrogens (and Xenobiotic).

The ‘Xeno’ prefix refers to chemical compounds that are foreign to an organism. In other words, they come from OUTSIDE your body.

Hmmm – does this include gluten? You betcha!

To learn more, & receive the most up-to-date, in-depth information regarding all things related to Gluten Sensitivity, Autoimmune Disease, Inflammation & more – be sure to watch my educational video series “A Gluten Primer – Everything You Wanted to Know From A – Z“. It’s available FREE on my bi-weekly newsletter, but you can have immediate access to all 26 videos – plus a full, 2-hour Tutorial here.

Filed Under: ENVIRONMENT, HEALTH & WELLNESS Tagged With: autoimmune disease, chemicals, endocrine-disrupting, environmental toxins, gluten, hormones, inflammation, xeno, xenobiotics, xenoestrogens

W Is For Weakest Link

November 17, 2017 By Karen Leave a Comment

Halloween is behind us, yes – so why the pink wig?

After all, isn’t November about pumpkins, turkey and gratitude, as evidenced by Thanksgiving preparations?

For anyone with food sensitivities – diagnosed or not – the holidays can present a landmine of challenges. (Challenges or Opportunities? I’ll let you decide….)

Could you be one of those ‘unlucky’ ones, doomed by your genetic blueprint?

Here’s the ONE BIG take-away I have for you today: your genes are completely malleable!

Yes, its true! Your genes literally get turned ‘ON’ or ‘OFF’ by various things in your environment, be it from food, lack of sleep or chemical exposure. This is where personal vulnerability comes in – as in “W is for Weakest Link”.

As you’ll discover in this video, your ‘weakest link’ could be your:

Thyroid
Hormones
Joints
Gut
Brain
Weight

What will it be for YOU? (Of course, it’s a bit of a catch-22, since you won’t actually know until symptoms appear).

Filed Under: EAT, HEALTH & WELLNESS Tagged With: A Gluten Primer A-Z, autoimmune disease, brain health, Celiac disease, digestion, gluten sensitivity, gut, hormones, inflammation, thyroid, weakest link, weight

Is Your Immune System Attacking You?

April 28, 2017 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you have days when your body seems like a bit of a drama queen?

Perhaps you were sick with the flu, you’ve been fighting a migraine, or you’re feeling sore and achy all over for no particular reason. Other days, it might seem that you’re no longer able to tolerate the foods you used to eat with abandon – you’re dealing with a major case of indigestion and you’re carrying around an extra twenty pounds (that you can’t seem to lose, no matter what you eat).

Does any of this sound familiar?

I call these on-going annoyances “mimics, marauders and masqueraders” – because that’s basically what they are – but what I’d really like you to take away from this, is that it’s an important part of your immune system and how it functions.

The good news is that your immune system is beautifully designed to deal with these pranksters at a moment’s notice, and it’s exactly that on your behalf so 24/7 – even though it might seem at times that your body is working against you.

Sometimes your immune system DOES get confused. However, even though you might think it’s making a mistake, the reality is that it’s simply doing what it’s designed to do – protect you. Consider too, that 70% of your immune system is in your gut! But because it’s inside, and you can’t see it, and you can’t necessarily feel it – you’re not at all aware that anything is wrong.

The symptoms are often subtle.

What’s really happening, though, is that some of these invaders are actually very clever, mimicking or masquerading as something other than what they really are.

Let me explain.

Cross-Reactivity

As you may already know, gluten is a family of proteins found in wheat and is therefore present in any foods that are made from wheat – although it can sometimes appear in other guises, as well.

Are You Losing Your Mind?

November 11, 2016 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you ever have days where you’re feeling super forgetful?

Like not remembering the name of your favorite book, or movie, or that ‘thingy’ you’ve been meaning to buy for weeks – what was that called again?

Maybe you’ve realized that the lines have blurred over the sequence leading up to an event that – even though it happened years ago, used to be so clear in your mind.

A ‘Brian Williams’ moment, if you will.

Then again, maybe you’re thinking one thing, but the words don’t come out quite right.

What the heck is that all about?

Are you losing your mind?

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

October 14, 2016 By Karen Leave a Comment

Ever feel like there’s a lot of drama happening in your body?

I call these mimics, marauders and masqueraders. They’re present 24/7. The good news is that your immune system is beautifully designed to deal with these pranksters at a moment’s notice, through the.

However, sometimes your immune system gets confused. You might think it’s making a mistake, but the reality is that it’s simply doing what it’s designed to do – protect you. What’s really happening here is that some of these invaders are actually very clever, mimicking or masquerading as something other than what they really are.

Let me explain.

Cross-Reactivity

As you may already know, gluten is a family of proteins found in wheat and is therefore present in any foods that are made from wheat – although it can sometimes appear in other guises, as well.

Are You A Toxic Mess? (What’s Your Body Burden?)

April 1, 2016 By Karen Leave a Comment

Ever wonder if you’ve got harmful chemicals in you?”

I don’t blame you for being curious! Especially if you’re feeling challenged by:

Excess weight
Digestive issues
Any number of mysterious aches & pains

On the heels of our recent exploration into Internet “fact or fiction” – including the myth that chemicals can be absorbed into your skin in 26 seconds flat – answering this question means taking the conversation a bit further.

As you know by now, chemicals CAN find their way into you through many different pathways – either from:

your food
personal care products
cleaning supplies
home furnishings
pesticides
…& more

And there ARE specific kinds of tests that can determine your overall chemical load – some of which you might have heard about some of, such as urine or hair analysis.

That said, are you familiar with Body Burden testing?

3 Common Myths of Environmental Toxins

February 5, 2016 By Karen Leave a Comment

There are lots of myths out there about environmental toxins, detoxing, and whether or not it’s even a necessary thing to worry about.

So, let’s jump right in and discuss these, one by one. (and be sure to check out the Special Invite at the very end...)

MYTH #1

My Body Is Designed to Rid Itself of Toxins – Without Any Help From Me

This particular myth is, in part, true.

Your body is designed to detoxify it’s internal environment, and it accomplishes this task through various specific pathways:

Your Skin (i.e. sweat)
Your Digestive tract (i.e. elimination)
Your Kidneys
Your Liver

In fact, your liver is the powerhouse for the entire detoxification process.

However, it’s also where things can go wrong.

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

October 16, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you sometimes feel like there’s a lot of drama going on in your body?

With Halloween just two weeks away, it seems like the perfect time to explore this drama in greater depth, since these so-called mimics, marauders and masqueraders are present 24/7.

Yes, you read that correctly.

You see, even though your body is beautifully designed to deal with these pranksters at a moment’s notice, sometimes your immune system does make mistakes.

Or rather, we think of them as mistakes, but in all actuality, your immune system is simply doing what it’s designed to do.

And that is to protect you.

So, what’s really happening here is that some of these invaders are actually very clever, mimicking or masquerading as something other than what they really are.

And the immune system gets confused.

Let me explain.

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

October 31, 2014 By Karen Leave a Comment

Sounds like a lot of drama, doesn’t it?

Halloween, or not – these mimics, marauders and masqueraders are present in your body all the time!

And even though your body is beautifully designed to deal with these pranksters at a moment’s notice, sometimes your immune system does make mistakes.

Or rather, we think of them as mistakes, but in all actuality, your immune system is simply doing what it’s designed to do – which is to protect you.

So, what’s really happening is that some of these invaders are actually very clever – mimicking or masquerading as something other than what they really are.

And the immune system gets confused.

Let me explain.

Cross-Reactivity

As you know, gluten is a protein found in certain foods.

Many of the foods you eat contain proteins, all of them different. And this is why the immune system can get confused – because the proteins (even though they’re different) can look very similar.

For example, the proteins in dairy products – more specifically casein, – look almost identical to the proteins in gluten.

5 Simple Ways to Pamper Your Skin

July 4, 2014 By Karen Leave a Comment

Did you know that your skin is your largest organ?

Not only that, it’s also your body’s #1 defense against the outside world. And it gets more fascinating still – since you have both an outside skin, and an inside skin.

(That inside skin covers things like your digestive tract and your respiratory system – not necessarily something you would think about)

Back in the early days when I first went gluten-free, I attended a lecture that was geared toward gluten-free folks like you and me.

The presenter was very insistent that there was no need to be concerned about putting gluten-containing products on our skin.

He said it was virtually impossible for gluten in skin care products to be a problem – because we weren’t ingesting it.

At the time, I thought it made sense.

But guess what?

He was wrong!

While it’s true that we don’t ingest our toiletries or cosmetics – whatever we put on our skin does get absorbed.

And that’s important!

X Is For Xenoestrogens

W Is For Weakest Link

Is Your Immune System Attacking You?

Are You Losing Your Mind?

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

Are You A Toxic Mess? (What’s Your Body Burden?)

3 Common Myths of Environmental Toxins

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

Mimics, Marauders & Masqueraders

5 Simple Ways to Pamper Your Skin

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