The Wellness Prepper

Preparation is the key to success!
Are you preparing for an "Ahhhh-May-zing" month?

May is a huge month of celebration and transition.... Mother's Day, graduation, kids getting out of school, summer events, and more! It can be a pretty hectic season.

Emotionally, lots of feels.
Those feelings are usually a mixture of highs and lows. Combine that with the everyday stressors of just living the standard American life, it can really tax the adrenal glands.

Our freebies this month are part of your preparation tool kit for your upcoming adventures in May and the rest of the summer!

They pair so well with the daily self care (going for a walk, quiet meditation time with the Lord, breathing exercises, screen time timeouts, enjoying a cup of herbal tea, daily dose of sunshine etc) you are hopefully implementing! Note that all of those suggestions are free or very low cost 😉, just like our May gifts with purchase. 🌺

100PV loyalty order
5ml Lavender Vitality essential oil - truly the swiss army knife of oils!
Science tip: lavender is calming as we all know.... but did you know it helps support healthy cortisol levels. When you know you are approaching a stressful event, use BEFOREHAND so that cortisol has less of a chance of spiking! (For some of you, this could mean using before your daily drive to work! )

200PV one-time and loyalty order
5ml Valor essential oil blend
Gift Tip: Pairing Valor with a High School or Graduation Gift to a senior about to embark on the next large season of life can be both exciting and a season of doubt. I have yet to meet anyone who doesn't love the fragrance of Valor. This is an oil with so many emotional benefits. You may find you rely on this oil yourself (also pairs nicely with lavender!)

300PV one-time and loyalty order
Super Magnesium supplement
Science Tip: Magnesium is absolutely critical for mitochondria function. The mitochondria is what gives us energy at the cellular level, AND it's involved in HUNDREDS of enzymatic actions in the body. An estimated 80% of the population is magnesium deficient thanks to both poor soil health and poor diet. There is literally no way anymore to get enough magnesium in our food.... it MUST be supplemented. Adequate magnesium is essential to being our best healthy self. What a gift!!! If you have never supplemented with Magnesium, here's your opportunity to do so for free!

Prepare for a successful transition month friends! What are you about to be experiencing...... kids going off to college, a trip, a big move? Share what's going on in your life right now that might need a little support 🙏. I have a HUGE travel/ speaking engagement month coming up and will be using all 3 of these tools as I prepare and execute the plans God has for me. 💖

xoxo~ liz

🔎Mitochondrial Health: Part 3 🔍

Osteoporosis, the mitochondria.... and donating blood.

I know. Superficially, it might appear that there is very little in common between these three things.

(Kinda reminds of the old joke, "a health concern, a cell organelle, and a blood donor walk into a bar.... " 😂)

So, let me explain:

Mitochondria depend on many "ingredients" to function properly. One of those ingredients is iron.
Iron is critical to a body's health, and mitochondrial function. Too much iron or too little iron both have negative impact on mitochondria.

Many people tend to accumulate excess iron (waaaaaay more common than you might think!)

Who are these potential iron accumulators?
👩‍🦳 postmenopausal women (or women who are no longer having monthly cycles)
🧔‍♂️ men.... especially as they age
💥 people who lean towards a heavy red meat diet
🧬 people with genetic tendencies towards storing more iron than is typical.

Iron overload can be tricky. In fact, it can often feel like anemia (low energy, exercise intolerance, brain fog, inflammation), so the best way to establish iron load is proper bloodwork.

👉Iron overload is a common driver of mitochondrial-triggered cell death. The mitochondria are deeply involved in both bone building and bone resorption through regulation of the osteoblasts and osteoclasts. When mitochondrial function is poor, there will be fewer bone building (the "blasts") cells, and at the same time, the bone breakdown cells (the "clasts") can become overactive. Guess what happens over time to your bones?.... yep, they start to get brittle. 👈

Excess iron in the body also increases oxidative stress. Increased / chronic oxidative stress shows up physically in the form of brain fog, poor concentration, anxiety, muscle fatigue or weakness, loss of elasticity in the skin, hair thinning or graying, poor circulation, sugar cravings, increased plaque buildup on teeth, gum inflammation and more! The more oxidative stress you have, the more mitochondrial dysfunction you'll experience. It's a vicious cycle.

There are supplements you can take to help build your mitochondria (we will talk about those at some point), but if you are able to donate blood, one of the best ways to boost your mitochondrial health is to donate!

When you donate blood, you are, in a very natural way:
🩸allowing for safe, inexpensive (free!) removal of excess iron in the body
🩸Improving your mitochondrial efficiency
🩸Ramping up production of new red blood cells which ultimately improves better mitochondrial respiration (this equates to better mito function)

While this post is more about the mitochondria than about osteoporosis, I really want to make sure you understand that osteoporosis is often (ie: usually) more driven by things outside of "too little calcium".

Get your bloodwork done, and go donate! (Donating is also a great way to find out your bloodtype for free if you don't know your 🩸type! )

xoxo~ Liz

PS: I am donating every 3-4 months like a champ! Pro Tip: Work out before you donate and drink lots of water. Drink 2 packets of NingXia Red before you donate. Immediately after you donate, Drink 2 more packets of NingXia Red and eat a beef stick, and drink another large glass of water. I am not a huge person and these steps keep me coming back to donate without feeling weak afterwards. 💪

(Always authentically written by me. Never AI generated.)

🔎Mitochondrial Health: Part 2 - What causes Dysfunction? 🔍

Kelley, I'm glad yours was the first question posed. 💖 This is a great place to start!

Mitochondrial dysfunction is at the root of nearly all body and brain health concerns, and even "feeling old" is also due to declining mitochondrial function. To put it simply, mitochondrial function (or dysfunction) DRIVES the aging pattern.

We've all seen people who age beautifully, and we've also also seen people who look, act, and feel far older than their biological age. In both instances, mitochondria performance is responsible.

We can start "doing all the things" to help enhance mitochondrial function, but first it's a good idea to understand what causes function to decline.

👶Babies are born with highly active, high functioning mitochondria, and as I mentioned last week, their mitochondria come exclusively from their mama. (If their mom's mitochondria are not robust, this will also be passed along to the baby. Thankfully, there are many things that can be done to correct this!)

🧑‍🦰Around the age of 18 (in the average person), mitochondrial function starts to decline by about 1% per year. That might not sound like much when you're 18, but it's a pretty significant shift by the time you enter into your latter years of life.

Additionally, there are BIG drivers to mitochondrial dysfunction. When you stack these upon 1% per year decline, things can head south pretty quickly, even as a young person under the age of 18.

This list is not exhaustive, but it is fairly comprehensive.... so here we go:
🛑Chronic nutrient depletion (no fuel for the powerhouse!... mito's especially have very specific nutritional needs... we will talk about this in another post too). For now, just understand that a diet heavy in processed foods will age out your mitochondria quickly.... kids and adults alike.

🛑 A heavy environmental toxin load. This will include herbicides like glyphosate, heavy metals, heavy plastic exposure.

🛑A sedentary lifestyle. MOVEMENT is a primary stimulus for mitochondrial health. A body in motion stays in motion 😉💪. Likewise, a body at rest for too long is losing "powerhouse functionality")

🛑Circadian disruption. Mitochondria are tightly regulated by light and circadian rhythm. Blue light (especially well into the night), poor sleep, and irregular schedules are no friend to energy production at a cellular level

🛑 Certain medications. (I can't possibly list them all. If you have specific questions about any not listed here, please schedule a call with me).
👉Antibiotics (esp those in the Quinolone, tetracycline, and aminoglycoside families)..... Ya'll.... there are MANY alternatives to synthetically derived antibiotics that work as well or BETTER in most cases (leave them for emergency use only).
👉Statins
👉Mood stabilizing meds in the SSRI or SNRI family
👉Antipsychotics (ex: aripiprazole)
👉Stimulants (ex: Adderall) So interesting, right? Stimulants create short term energy in exchange of long term loss of energy. 🤔🧐
👉Metformin (typically used for type II diabetes or PCOS )
👉Chronic use of Acetaminophen
👉Beta blockers (most commonly used for high blood pressure)
👉Chemo agents
👉HIV medications
👉Proton pump inhibitors (these are your GERD/ acid reflux meds)
👉Birth control pills

🛑 Chronic Gut dysfunction

🛑 Chronic stress (chronic cortisol overload ultimately leads to mitochondrial suppression over time).

As you might be imagining, stacking multiple medications, poor nutrition, little exercise, and toxic environmental stressors is mitochondrial mayhem in the making.

The good news? Age only drives about 25% of mitochondrial function. 75% of mitochondrial health is largely under our own personal control, and ..... get this, it is very possible/ doable to restore mitochondrial function and quantity. 🙌🙌🙌

Also good news.... 🙌🙌🙌🙌.... you are here 💖. Which means you are already working on ways to improve your mitochondria function even though you didn't know it!

Look at the list above. The mayhem makers. Have you been able to avoid some of those mitochondrial mayhem makers I listed above by using an herb, essential oil, lifestyle change, or other holistic practice? Drop a 🙋‍♀️ if you have. I'd love to hear your story!

PS: This is Agnes. I met her on Sunday in our yard. She was one of the largest turtles I've seen on our property. Based upon her size, she's probably over 10 years old. While human mitochondria tend to be high output (by necessity), reptiles have mitochondria that more focused on efficiency over energy. Also interesting... they tend to have a lower mitochondrial mutation rate than mammals do.... which I find VERY interesting! 🤓

xoxo~ Liz
(Always authentically written by me. Never AI generated.)

I'm curious..... how many of you purposefully factor in mitochondrial health and wellbeing when looking for (and acting upon) ways to stay healthy?

PS: this is undoubtedly the largest amaryllis I've ever had, and she is currently showing off! (She is entering into her 4th year at our house and has even had some babies🤩!)