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Natasha Tuner, ND
Dr. Natasha Turner is North America’s leading naturopathic doctor and founder of the Clear Medicine Wellness Boutique in Toronto, Canada. Bright, energetic and practicing what she preaches, her goal is to inspire others to make positive lifestyle choices in order to enjoy healthier lives. Her passion for promoting wellness, fitness and integrated medicine makes her a sought-after speaker for corporations, the public and the education of other medical professionals. She was recently recognized by the Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors as being a leader in her field. Dr. Turner is also the first Canadian naturopathic doctor to be featured on The Dr. Oz Show.
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Books Discussed in this Podcast
The Hormone Boost: How to Power Up Your 6 Essential Hormones for Strength, Energy, and Weight Loss
Interview Show Notes
02:02 Hormonal Impact of Diet: What you eat, when you eat, which combinations of foods, how you sleep, how you exercise, and how you manage daily stress impact your hormones. Making changes in your kitchen, setting up your bedroom for proper sleep hygiene, and getting rid of toxins and hormone disruptors in your bathroom sets you up for success.
05:39 Kitchen Makeover: A mini blender helps you to make smoothies. Cook your protein in batches. Dr. Turner cooks twice a week. In her book, Dr. Turner has meals in a jar to go. When you eat a hormonally balanced meal, your energy levels will be high, and you will be craving free and brain fog free.
07:41 Thyroid Hormones: Glucagon, adiponectin, DHEA, testosterone, and adrenaline are beneficial, but less popular, hormones. Thyroid hormone is your metabolic master. Four in 13 people have a thyroid hormone deficiency and don’t know it. Symptoms include cold hands and feet, feeling tired, constipation, hair loss, not losing weight, and feeling down. Many who are being treated for hypothyroidism are prescribed synthetic thyroid hormone, which must be converted into active thyroid hormone T3. Your body may not convert it properly. By dropping calories and over exercising, Dr. Turner exacerbated her thyroid hormone deficiency worse. A cheat meal once a week boosts your T3. Sleep deprivation lowers thyroid hormones. Exercising too long and tool hard raises cortisol and lowers thyroid hormone for up to 24 hours afterward.
11:26 Adiponectin: This is a hormone that your body releases when you exercise. It burns fat, reduces inflammation and increases insulin sensitivity. A large amount of adiponectin is released when you have a heart attack. Fiber also increases adiponectin. Olive oil, green tea, good fats and resveratrol all boost it as well.
13:25 Protein: Dr. Turner believes that we should consume protein at every meal. It causes a hormonal response, boosting glucagon the hormone that works opposite of insulin. Insulin is a storage hormone and glucagon takes energy from the cell and dumps it in the bloodstream. PYY hormone, responding to hormone consumption, controls appetite. If you tend to overeat at your meal, eat your protein first. Protein is also an important building block for thyroid hormone, dopamine, serotonin or growth hormone. No matter how old you are, if you eat less than 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, you lose muscle.
17:46 Exercise: After 40 minutes of exercise, you begin to raise your cortisol levels and negatively impact growth hormone. Women need growth hormone to build muscle mass. You only get it when you exercise and when you sleep. In exercise, you want to elicit the hormonal response that is going to increase your strength, increase your bone density, increase your brain power, and increase your metabolism and your overall vitality. Raising lactic acid in the muscle is linked to a rise in growth hormone. Circuit training boosts adrenaline, which is helpful for fat loss, and maintains tension on your muscle longer. Do 12 – 15 repetitions with heavier weight for a maximum of 20 to 30 minutes 3 times each week as the main part of the Hormone Boost workout.
24:16 Testing: Dr. Turner measures all of her patient’s muscle mass and fat mass, as well as adrenal testing, which includes orthostatic blood pressure. Blood pressure is measured laying down and then standing. When standing, your blood pressure should go up by 10 points. If it falls, you have adrenal fatigue.
25:31 Weight Training to Lose Fat: Strength training is more effective at burning fat then cardio. If you do weights and then cardio in the same workout, you will burn more fat and build more muscle than if you do your cardio and then weights.
27:13 Osteoporosis: Dr. Turner’s grandmother broke a rib receiving a hug and was bedridden for the last 9 years of her life with a fractured spine. Her mother and uncle have osteoporosis. Dr. Turner had osteopenia before starting strength training. What you do in your 20s and 30s is important for building and maintaining bone density.
28:18 Blunting Cortisol: Yoga is powerful for insulin sensitivity and blood sugar and insulin balance. It enhances GABA, our calming brain chemical. It helps reduce tension and pain, as well as improving insulin sensitivity. Yoga reduces cortisol. Focusing on one thing boosts serotonin.
31:20 What to Eat: If you consumed too many carbs the previous day, do not start your day with a smoothie with fruit. Dr. Turner prefers to have solid food for breakfast. Eat within an hour of rising to boost thyroid hormone and dopamine.
34:02 Intermittent Fasting: She recommends that you do one day of intermittent fasting every 7 to 10 days, provided that you are getting enough protein on the other days. Intermittent fasting raises growth hormone, aids muscle repair, and accelerates weight loss results. You can fast from dinner to dinner or breakfast to breakfast. If you don’t want to eat in the morning, drink 2 or 3 cups of bone broth.
38:32 Carbohydrates: Consuming carbs at night helps you to sleep and blunt cortisol. A study showed that participants who consumed their carbs during the day lost more muscle than those who ate them in the evening. Sweet potato, rice, chickpeas, and hummus are high impact carbs, within the healthy carbs. If you are overweight or have hormone imbalance, they are not the best choice for you. No diet should recommend the removal of any group of food. You can’t sustain “No Carb”.
43:16 Cravings: Cravings indicate that you are not eating enough protein, you are eating too many carbs you are eating the wrong type of carb for you, you are stressed out, or you are not sleeping well. Keep a food diary or progress tracker. My Fitness Pal is a free food tracker. Recording how you feel is important.
46:04 Dr. Turner’s Morning Routine: Dr. Turner drinks two glasses of water and takes her “smart pills”. They are a combination of tyrosine, phenylalanine, and rhodiola called clear energy. She also takes resveratrol and combination of turmeric and ashwaganda, as well as her thyroid medication. She puts on red underwear. It’s a “brain thing”. She always awakens hungry and eats within 40 to 45 minutes of waking. She sets her intention and word for the day. She exercises later in the day. The night before, she prepares for her day. Habits and rituals are important for success.
49:21 Dr. Turner’s Favorite Supplement: Resveratrol, ashwaganda and turmeric are her top 3, as well as green tea. They are anti-inflammatory and anti-ageing. They enhance insulin sensitivity and memory.
50:14 Dr. Turner’s Elevator Pitch: It’s all about pooping and sleeping. Focus on your sleep and your digestion. They are the two most important factors. Without them in working order, it is impossible to restore your health, optimize hormones, and maintain strength and optimal body composition. Your digestive system is your largest hormone producing tissue in your body.
Sorry to ask,
This ND is pregnant or she has a very large , obese waistline???
Hi Traian,
She’s neither pregnant nor obese. It’s her shirt.
Natasha is very lean.
Sorry to imply what I said about her, I just made a comment on what transpires physically in the video
Thanks Mike
Healthy lean is great