The longer you’re on a contraceptive, the longer you have an IUD—copper or hormonal, the more years you live with tubal litigation, the more Depo injections you take, the more morning after pills you swallow, the more rounds of IVF you undergo and the more eggs you bank the more health outcomes you’ll experience (I’m going to teach you how to start undoing this mess, so hang tight).

All of the mainstream contraceptive options have one thing in common:
They increase estrogen levels and restrict progesterone production.

Estrogen is an abortifacient. This is why contraceptives target estrogen production.

Today, I want to talk about copper and estrogen. Their relationship and why we should use caution with bound copper (bound copper = non-food sources of copper) to safeguard our hormones and progesterone levels. I’ll specifically address my concerns about copper IUDs, copper cookware, copper water bottles (thank you for bringing this to my attention, Lynn<3), and why limiting bound copper supports healthy hormones, thyroid function, and metabolic health.

Subscribe now

Progesterone vs Estrogen
Women’s monthly cycles experience a brief period of estrogen dominance and low thyroid function during ovulation. This is natural. Very short-term (a few to 48 hours). This is why waking temperatures drop to their lowest just before or on day one of ovulation (and now you know how to track your ovulation cycle).
Estrogen rises during this time to support conception. Whenever estrogen rises, thyroid function drops (reflected in a lower basal metabolic temperature).

This increase in estrogen and decrease in thyroid hormone is something menstruating women experience naturally during ovulation. However, this estrogen-dominant, low thyroid phase isn’t meant to be prolonged. But, all too often, it is especially in women who have a history of IUD or other contraceptive use (to be clear, even if you’ve never used contraceptives, like myself, you can still develop estrogen-dominant symptoms—contraceptive use is just a very clear pathway to estrogen dominance).

After ovulation, progesterone builds gradually during the luteal phase (from ovulation until day one of bleeding). Progesterone supports oxidative metabolism and lowers stress as it has an indirect relationship with cortisol. This is why, when women take progesterone, they feel calmer, more relaxed, and regulated (as long as their metabolic rate is adequate enough to utilize the progesterone).

Progesterone also regulates estrogen mainly by facilitating estrogen removal from the cell and its detoxification via the kidneys and liver.

IUDs and contraceptives disrupt natural ovulation, preventing the healthy, natural production of progesterone. A woman on contraceptives never truly ovulates. This is problematic for short-term and long-term hormone and thyroid health, as it prevents progesterone production.

Note on Progestins
Some contraceptives (as well as some HRT/MHRT) contain progestins. Progestins may sound like progesterone, but they are not the same. In fact, progestins, the synthetic version of progesterone, act more like estrogen in the body, with a similarly diminishing effect on progesterone levels.

Once you start contraceptives, your progesterone levels start to decrease—the pill, patch, and ring stop your ovaries from making progesterone. Unlike other contraceptives, IUD studies claim that these devices continue to allow the ovaries to produce progesterone. But those who’ve observed symptoms in long-term IUD users, including myself, know this story is far from accurate. IUDs also prevent the production of ovarian progesterone.

The more you restrict progesterone production during your fertile years, the more likely you are to experience estrogen-dominant issues later in life.

How Copper IUDs Work
Women are conned into thinking that copper IUDs are safe because they don’t release hormones.

But every contraceptive has an estrogen connection.
And it’s always a big one, and it’s never a good one.
Copper IUDs are no exception.

Copper and estrogen share a reciprocal, synergistic relationship. High estrogen levels increase copper retention in the body, and excess free copper can impair liver function, slow estrogen clearance, and contribute to estrogen dominance.

Elevated estrogen terminates pregnancy.

The industry chose copper because of its relationship to estrogen—as copper stores build, estrogen stores simultaneously increase, and elevated estrogen makes one infertile (they won’t tell you this side of the copper IUD story, however).

The intrauterine device (IUD), primarily in the form of the copper IUD, is used by more than 150 million women around the world, making it the most widely used reversible method of contraception.
This means that over 150 million women have a drastically higher risk of developing estrogen-dominant issues throughout life.

When copper levels rise in the body, estrogen levels simultaneously build.
I wish there was a huge, deep rabbit hole to go down with the estrogen-copper relationship, but like most things in the health world, it’s pretty simple to diagnose and put the pieces together:

The longer you have a copper IUD, the more estrogen levels build in the organs, in the liver, and in your tissues. The higher your estrogen levels, the more infertile you become.

Excess estrogen would make a milkmaid infertile.

But that’s just the beginning…

If you’ve read my past two articles on estrogen, Rethinking Estrogen Therapy and Estrogen Detox: The key to healthy hormones, you already have a solid foundation as to why estrogen isn’t the hormone hero we’ve made her out to be.
She’s not bad. She’s not the devil. But she becomes dangerous and a threat to physical, mental, and emotional health when she isn’t met with adequate progesterone.

Beyond infertility, excess estrogen has huge health implications.
Acne, activation of stress metabolism (fat oxidation), and blood sugar imbalances are all too common. Every diabetic is estrogen dominant.

Long-term exposure to estrogen has major health effects, and the longer the exposure (even in microdose amounts), the more significant the health outcomes.

In the early phases, excess estrogen often expresses itself as histamine reactions. The body starts rebelling, spewing out welts, acne, eczema, boils, and rashes as an SOS attempt to get estrogen out of the system. Even the smallest insect bite leaves you looking disproportionately inflamed, as if you spent the night sleeping on the floor of the Amazon jungle.

What soon follows is poor sleep. Constipation. Migraine headaches. Chronic pain. Low energy.

Endometriosis is a strong case of hypothyroidism driven by excess estrogen.

MS, a condition that largely affects women; approximately 80% of people diagnosed with MS are female, is fueled by estrogen dominance.

Gallbladder attacks (75% of cases are in women). Rheumatoid arthritis (75% of cases are in women). Sleep apnea (increases by over 20% after menopause). Unexplained dyspnoea (affects more women than men).

All a result of too much estrogen. And not enough progesterone.

Keep on the sunny side…
The positive news is that many of these symptoms and conditions can be eliminated once the hormone and low thyroid imbalance are reversed, mainly through proper nutrition and supporting the thyroid and hormones naturally (this is exactly what I help people overcome with my 1-on-1 nutrition + metabolic healing work).

Why don’t these women get better on mainstream care? Because doctors aren’t really doctors. They’re pharmaceutical reps. They have a vast knowledge of pharmies but absolutely zero clue about symptoms, diagnosis, and healing.

Yesterday, my dad printed out the Lab Testing PDF from my Low Carb Recovery Course and asked his doctor to run the suggested labs. Our family has a strong history of hypothyroidism. But the doctor refused to test his rT3 and Total T3 because he didn’t think it was necessary. Anyone who knows their head from a hole in the ground knows how important these numbers are when assessing thyroid function. But allopathic thyroid medication strongly favors T4 (Synthroid). So, that’s what they test for. Which, btw, makes the hypothyroid person worse, not better. Pharmaceutical rep in a doctor's coat. Absolutely useless when it comes to healing the root causes of our health struggles.

I’m teaching you this because no other health practitioner will (well, a few will—but three’s a crowd). They just give women the quick-fix approach to avoiding unwanted pregnancies or treating their hormonal symptoms with birth control, which is really code for estrogen. Which will just keep you on their medical merry-go-round.

Copper Estrogen Overview…
Bound copper, including copper IUDs, causes estrogen to build up in the tissues and liver, creating a state of estrogen dominance. It slows liver function and makes one more prone to estrogen-dominant conditions.

Additional concerns of copper IUDs include
a) mineral deficiencies, especially an imbalanced copper-to-zinc ratio and
b) places significant stress on the reproductive organs

Copper Cookware + Copper Water Bottles
We need copper. It’s a crucial trace mineral essential for mitochondrial energy production; copper keeps iron stores in check and helps prevent hypothyroidism.
However, we need to distinguish between bioavailable copper, the copper that occurs naturally in foods such as oysters, wild-caught shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, cacao, and grass-fed beef liver, and bound copper, the copper found in copper IUDs, cookware, water bottles, and copper-lined utensils and dishes.

They are not equal.

We need bioavailable copper for cellular energy production, to minimize iron toxicity, and for a healthy thyroid.

We want to minimize sources of bound copper in cookware, water bottles, and dishware. Of course, minimal usage is likely fine. However, if copper cookware is your go-to kitchen set and you’re a woman and you struggle with estrogen dominance and low thyroid, I would suggest putting it up for sale on eBay. And getting yourself a nice stainless steel set.

Note on cookware
Once cookware is scratched, it becomes concerning.
Cast iron, carbon steel (also contains high amounts of iron), Teflon, copperware- if these become scratched or the metals start to flake away over time (very common if you cook acidic foods in them, such as tomato sauces), they can be harmful to health.

Stainless Steel
This is my go-to cookware. But, not all stainless steel is actually stainless steel. Here’s how you can tell. It’s the magnet test. Take a simple kitchen magnet, the one likely holding up some useless papers that you never look at on your refrigerator (I have my fair share), and stick it to the back of your stainless steel pan. If it sticks, it’s real stainless steel and gets the green light for healthy cookware.

If the magnet doesn’t stick, it’s not true, authentic stainless steel but a combination of nickel and other metals which can be carcinogenic and harmful to health. These are best avoided.

Contraception Take Away
The truly empowering approach is to teach women how to track their cycles and help them understand when the body can actually conceive (it’s only about 1-3 days out of the month around ovulation), which you can detect using basal metabolic temperature, observing ovulation fluid discharge, and sex drive. And if you really want to be on the safe side, wrap it up. Make him do it or walk out.

~Heathar

UPDATES + RESOURCES

The PUFA Detox
A course teaching you how to detox PUFAs as a path to reducing estrogen-dominant conditions, improving estrogen detox, improving thyroid function, improving energy levels, and more!
Coming this month — available to all paid subscribers. Stay tuned!

Work with Heathar
Get the 1-on-1 health support you need around your thyroid, metabolic, and hormone health. Learn more about my healing practice and book your session right here.

Practitioner Training Nutrition Course
A course teaching you how to utilize metabolic nutrition therapies and hormone-supportive therapies to help women heal from diseases and conditions that their doctors often have no idea about (pharmaceutical reps in doctors' coats).
Launching soon!

The Eat Heal Farm Podcast
A free resource teaching you about metabolic, thyroid, and hormone health.
Tune into the podcast.

Health & Wellness Disclaimer

The information, education, and nutritional guidance provided through Eat Heal Farm are intended to support your overall health and well-being. I am a nutrition professional and educator, but I am not a licensed medical doctor, and my services are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition.

The recommendations I provide are based on whole foods, lifestyle practices, and accurate nutritional science, and are designed to complement—not replace—the advice and care of your metabolically informed physician or metabolically informed healthcare provider.

Every individual is unique. Improvement rates will vary, and you are encouraged to consult with your healthcare provider before making significant changes to your diet, supplements, medications, or lifestyle, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition.

Ladies, I know your estrogen levels might look low on paper.
But that’s all it is: low on paper, not low in your actual body.

I want to help you understand this because, like so many things in the health world, they’ve duped women, big time, into thinking they need more estrogen as they age.

Lab testing for estrogen measures the amount of estrogen in your serum.
There’s a major problem with testing serum estrogen:
Most estrogen is stored in tissues, not serum.
The advice I give my clients regarding their serum estrogen levels (often performed during routine bloodwork): IGNORE IT.
This information is absolutely unhelpful. Misleading. Inaccurate. Flat-out wrong. Deceiving even. Their marketing plan to get you on estrogen therapy.

Serum Estrogen, What it Really Says:
After the age of 38, low serum estrogen in women often more accurately points to estrogen detox issues, potentially high levels of estrogen stored in the tissues, low progesterone, and low thyroid function.
But your doctor won’t have any clue about that (it’s not in their curriculum; HRT is).

Subscribe now

Let’s deep dive into this…
Estrogen in and of itself isn’t the devil.
However, issues with estrogen occur when progesterone levels fall, and thyroid levels fall. Mainstream medicine understands that progesterone opposes estrogen. But their train stops there.
I like to think of estrogen as a wildfire and progesterone as the water.
If the fire rages out of control, you have major issues—histamine intolerance, weight gain, low thyroid, fatigue, edema, puffiness, body pain, insulin resistance, autoimmunity, gallbladder attacks; the list goes on and on…
Progesterone is the control arm for estrogen.
It also plays a vital role in detoxing excess estrogen from the body.
This is where the lab work for serum estrogen gets interesting…

Grab some popcorn (or a milkshake) because, ladies, this is going to change your life. It certainly changed mine…

The majority of estrogen is stored in the tissues (especially as you enter perimenopause and menopause).
Estrogen cannot be detoxed from the tissues when progesterone levels are insufficient.
When progesterone levels are adequate, it stimulates the removal of estrogen from the tissue, transporting it to the kidneys and liver via the serum for excretion via the urine and stool.

This is why, if you test low for serum estrogen, you likely have high levels in your tissues and low progesterone. Because progesterone pulls it from the tissues, where it then enters the serum to be dropped off at the kidneys and liver for removal.
If your progesterone is adequate, your serum estrogen would likely test normal or even high. If your serum estrogen levels are low (especially from the ages of 38 and on), this is actually a sign that your tissue levels of estrogen are likely high. If there was enough progesterone to pull estrogen from the tissues, your serum levels would actually be normal-to-high. And that would be a good thing!

I know that was a mouthful, so please watch the video or listen to the audio below where I explain this in detail.

Important Side Note:
We can say the same for Free T4 and Free T3—the Free versions are wholly inaccurate assessments of your actual T4 and T3 levels. This is why I recommend, on my Lab Testing PDF, testing for Total T4 and Total T3 instead. This information is absolute gold. Whereas the Free versions, trash them, don’t consider them, forget about it. If the checks no good, you can’t cash it.

Back to estrogen testing…
Most women test low or normal for estrogen in the serum. And, if you test low, they’ll prescribe estrogen therapy (that’s their money maker). And you’ll think—because they’ve trained you to think—that your estrogen is low.
Ladies, they say, it’s normal for your estrogen to drop as you age; once you enter menopause, no more estrogen.

Please know this is FALSE. This is their marketing pitch. The same propaganda they’ve been using for 84 years to get women on estrogen. Ever stop to wonder why they don’t encourage women to take progesterone instead? You should. Because it’s not estrogen that women need as we age.
It’s bioidentical progesterone.

NOBODY EVER NEEDS ESTROGEN.
If you’ve had a hysterectomy. If you’ve had your ovaries removed. If you’re in menopause. If you’re in perimenopause. If you have PCOS. If you have PMS. You still don’t need more estrogen.
Period. Point blank. It’s a band-aid approach to the root cause of your hormone struggles. A stress hormone. A promoter of growth (read: cancer).
An abortificant.
When doctors started prescribing estrogen (DES), the women's hormone, to women to prevent miscarriage, women started to abort their babies.

Estrogen causes miscarriage.
Weight gain.
Hypothyroidism.
Histamine reactions.
Autoimmunity.
Alzheimer’s.
Osteoporosis.
Cancer.

Estrogen cools the system.
Doctors have also convinced you that the female body needs cooling. In which you should ask him, What grows in winter? What thrives during the coldest time of year? Nothing. Well, actually, parsley grows through winter ice and snow, popping its head through our raised beds mid-January.
And do you know what parsley contains?
Phytoestrogens.

And what happens to the thyroid when basal metabolic temperature consistently falls below 98.6°F?
Your metabolic rate slows.
You develop hypothyroidism.
Your tissues accumulate and store more estrogen.

Estrogen slows metabolic rate.
Anything that slows metabolic rate isn’t something we should champion as health-promoting. The opposite actually. Whereas progesterone warms the body, regulates and calms the system, improves insulin resistance, and supports healthy thyroid function.

How Do You Accurately Test Estrogen?
It’s not the serum. Nor is it a Dutch Hormone Test (don’t waste your money).
A biopsy.
Estrogen is found in the tissues.
Any tissue has the ability to produce estrogen.
The bulk of your estrogen isn’t in the serum; it’s in your tissues.
Example: Women who suspect breast cancer are often advised to have the tissue biopsied.
And what do the results of that biopsy show?
The amount of estrogen in the breast tissue.
And these women almost always will test low for serum estrogen.
Why?
Because it’s not in the serum; it’s in the tissues!

Women’s Health, New Game Plan
The first step to improving your hormone health and decreasing perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms is to improve your body’s ability to detox estrogen.
This isn’t achieved via a pill. There aren’t any supplements or herbs involved.

4 Steps to Effective Estrogen Detox
(The Ultimate Perimenopause + Menopause Support)

Read more

Let’s combine progesterone, they thought.
But not natural, bioidentical progesterone — that’s too expensive to manufacture.
Let’s create a substance called progestin and add it to birth control, MHRT, hormone creams, IUDs…

Progestin may sound like progesterone.
But the reality is, progestin is the synthetic version and acts more like estrogen in the body.
It’s not progesterone. Not even close. It just sounds like progesterone.
Marketing scam for women.
Today, instead of women experiencing premature death from large doses of estrogen, they get a low, slow estrogen-dominant approach.

Dementia. Reproductive cancer. Breast cancer. Lung cancer. Alzheimer’s. Osteoporosis. A failing thyroid. Autoimmunity. Migraines. Gallstones. UTI.
All conditions more common in women.
Why? Because of estrogen.
And, it’s not because women don’t have enough estrogen.
Quite the opposite.
We have plenty of estrogen. Every single one of us. Even during menopause.
In fact, women have 10-20 times more exposure to estrogen over the course of their life compared to men.
It’s excess estrogen and continuous exposure that’s the issue.
And an imbalance of estrogen:progesterone.

Today, I’m going to talk about why women aren’t estrogen deficient. How prescribing estrogen to women is a really dangerous practice. And why improving progesterone levels and thyroid function are key to improving hormone health (yes, even hot flashes).

Estrogen is a stress hormone.
Estrogen production increases under stress. Metabolic stress (think low-carb, calorie restriction, keto…). Life stress. Injury. Trauma. The huge hormone fluctuations experienced during menarche, perimenopause, menopause. Low blood sugar, elevated blood sugar. A bad night’s sleep. Low energy. Underfueling. Nature deficiency. PUFAs. The body registers all of this as stress.

Estrogen is also a growth hormone encouraging cells to replicate.
A bonus if you’re trying to conceive. A liability otherwise.

We’re told that the only way the body produces estrogen is via the uterus.
And, once you enter menopause, no more estrogen (read: progesterone).
However, that’s not true either (the estrogen part).
Literally, any tissue in the body can produce estrogen.
The bicep, the thigh, the glutes, your uterus…all capable of producing estrogen.

It’s accurate that estrogen levels plummet when you officially enter menopause.
However, this drop in estrogen only occurs during the initiation into menopause for a brief 2-3 weeks. Then, production rises again. Not in the uterus, of course. But in other tissues in the body.

Bloating, inflammation, puffiness, irritability, dry skin, weight struggles, low body temperature, vaginal dryness, hot flashes.
These are symptoms of estrogen dominance and low progesterone (often low thyroid as well).

The estrogen industry responds to the evidence that estrogen causes breast cancer, strokes, heart attacks, blood clots, and Alzheimer’s disease by saying “it’s progesterone that is responsible.”

This is an incredibly unfortunate and damaging message. A marketing scheme for women. Progesterone doesn’t fit into their marketing box because:
a) women on bioidentical progesterone get better, and
b) it’s too expensive for them to manufacture
Their anti-progesterone claims aren’t about health. Nor are they accurate.
They’re about money. It’s always about money.

HRT/MHRT is a $30 billion-a-year industry.
The contraception industry is at $36 billion per year.
And that number is projected to double over the next decade.

Progesterone: The Real Women’s Hormone
Progesterone = Pro-Gestation.

Pro- in favor of; gest- to carry or bear/gestation, ster and -one = a steroid hormone

Even though the word P-R-O-G-E-S-T-E-R-O-N-E clearly spells out its function, the medical world still tries to convince us that estrogen therapy is what’s needed in the infertile, the peri and menopausal, the women suffering from female hysteria (their description, not mine).

Estrogen comes from two Greek roots: oistros (mad desire) and gennan (to produce).
Together, the word literally means “producer of sexual frenzy or desire.”

Yesterday, my cow was in heat. I’m quite certain the neighbors thought we were torturing her. With the guttural screams bellowing from her insides, I’m sure they imagined her tied up to a tree, dehydrated in the high desert sun, without food or water. Abandoned. Starving. Hostile. Stressed. Call animal services.
Quite the contrary.
Albeit piles of fresh green alfalfa, shade trees, and cool water by her side, she still bellowed every 10 seconds. It was so bad my wife said she was going to leave the property for the day because her nerves were fried from the incessant hysteria-like mooing.

Ladies, I’m certain you can relate.
When that time of the month approaches, everyone better step the F back.
Don’t test us.
We’re chockfull of estrogen.

The cow in heat is akin to a woman’s luteal phase.
For a few brief hours, estrogen rises, driving us to procreate.
The cow in heat, driven by estrogen, moos incessantly to call in the bull.
We, women, have a surge in estrogen influencing egg white ovulation fluid, and a surge in desire.

Yet, after a few short hours of estrogen surge, progesterone should sharply rise to rebalance the system.
However, if there’s a lack of progesterone to rebalance the system, someone is going home crying. Likely your partner.
If estrogen continues to elevate without enough progesterone to keep it in check, the result will be: Inflammation. PMS. Irritability. Migraines. Insomnia. Low energy. Dryness everywhere. Weight gain. Bloating. Heaviness. Puffiness.

The “female hysteria”, the PMS, the hot flashes that make you want to throw your clothes off, the insomnia that makes you want to rip your hair out, the sound of your partner swallowing their water too loud, sending your nerves into overdrive…
This is the mad desire. The frenzy. The internal torture of unopposed estrogen.

Their treatment plan. Give women more estrogen.

My plan. Give women progesterone. Improve thyroid function. Make them forget they even have or had a period on the way.
A balanced estrogen:progesterone ratio = no more PMS, hot flashes, or flying off the handlebars.

However, the mad frenzy does have a role. A sole purpose: procreation.
Men have it too. A surge in estrogen increases sex drive in both parties.
In women, this drive peeks for several hours during ovulation.
Then, progesterone comes in (hopefully) to rebalance the system and desire naturally starts to decrease. Mood balances. Nerves calm. No more breast tenderness.

How Estrogen Dominance Tips the Boat
When progesterone levels are low, especially during the luteal phase (when they should steadily and sharply rise) and during menopause, women experience symptoms: PMS, breast tenderness, irritability, bloating, wanting to kill our partners, short-fused, vaginal dryness, pain on penetration, migraine headaches, depression, HOT FLASHES, insomnia, feeling like a waterlogged balloon during your luteal phase, edema, puffiness…a living hell for many women.

These fun symptoms are all a result of unopposed estrogen.
What do I mean by unopposed?
There’s not enough progesterone to put the brakes on estrogen.
When your progesterone levels aren’t sufficient, estrogen rages like a wildfire throughout your system.
When estrogen levels are high, progesterone cannot be high as well.
They have an indirect relationship.
Estrogen and active thyroid hormone also have an indirect relationship.
Neither can be simultaneously elevated.
And, when estrogen is ruling the roost, progesterone levels are low, as is thyroid function.

A woman should naturally be lower in progesterone and thyroid for a few hours to days around ovulation. That’s it. The procreation window is small. But they still pump women of childbearing age full of contraceptives every day of the week, every month of the year.
And we wonder why infertility rates continue to escalate.

I’m sure it’s easier to swallow a pill and track your cycle on an app.
It’s mindless. It’s convenient. And it’s incredibly destructive to women’s health.
It disconnects us from our body. We no longer pay attention to our symptoms. We have no idea if we have ovulation fluid or not. Shouldn’t I have ovulation fluid all the time? This is what happens when pills and technology are swapped for good ol’ fashioned symptoms, tracking through your bodily changes, and women teaching other women about their bodies.

Estrogen vs Progesterone
We don’t want to eradicate estrogen altogether (but there’s also zero need to take it exogenously).
We need to tame estrogen.
Progesterone and T3 tame estrogen.

Progesterone is calming, regulates the nervous system, and improves the cells' ability to utilize glucose as a fuel source. It ensures a safe pregnancy. Is anti-stress and incredibly protective to the fetus.
It warms the system and improves metabolic rate.

Warning: if you take progesterone without first having improved your metabolic function, you’ll get more anxious. Heart palpitations. Insomnia.
You’ll blame the progesterone.
When really, it was an underfueled system that got pushed over its limit.
And this is why I always help women improve their metabolism first before introducing exogenous metabolic inputs like progesterone and thyroid.
But your doctor will not tell you that. Because he doesn’t know that.

Estrogen is excitatory. A stress hormone. Encourages cell replication. Encourages growth.
The excitatory nature of estrogen is why women initially feel better on estrogen therapy.
Just as many feel better initially on low-carb due to the stress hormone cortisol.
Women initially feel better on estrogen because of its excitatory effect, particularly on the brain.
But it’s not an actual healing effect. It’s a stress response. It’s a band-aid to the root problem. Estrogen is a brain excitant.
That’s why when women go off of it, they report feeling worse and are tempted to jump right back on the estrogen train. And, understandably so.

But what if we approached this from a root cause place? From a place that actually balances the system. Calms the system. Regulates the system. Improves metabolic health.
Prevents cancer, osteoporosis, dementia, and corrects the thyroid. Balances blood sugar.
What if we approached it from a real women’s health perspective vs putting a band-aid on symptoms?

Side Effects of Estrogen (the short list)
Blood clots.
Insulin resistance: estrogen encourages fat oxidation and blocks the uptake of glucose into the cell (Randel Cycle). This alone tells us that estrogen is anti-metabolic. We know that optimal metabolic function is key to a healthy life.
Infertility.
Dementia.
Alzheimer’s.
Osteoporosis. The osteoporotic bone is teeming with aromatase (aromatase = a key enzyme that converts androgens [testosterone, androstenedione] into estrogens).
Cancer (breast, uterine, colon, lung).
Gallbladder attacks + stones.
Kidney stones. UTI.

Low metabolic rate. Cold hands and feet. Constipation. Fatigue. Weight gain. Water retention. Puffiness. Edema.
Hypothyroidism.
Anxiety.
Depression.

Irritability.
Migraines.
Histamine intolerance.
Increased susceptibility to stress (low stress threshold).

Abortifacient. This is why estrogen is the main compound in birth control, including the pill and hormone-based IUDs. Remember, any allopathic drug containing progestin is not actual progesterone and acts more like estrogen in the body. Progestin + estrogens are found in many contraceptives and some MHRT formulas.

Don’t let the low-dose lingo fool you…
Doctors try to make you feel safe by saying, “it’s only a very low dose…”
They might even use the word microdose because we’ve somehow associated that word with health…Marketing. Money. Cash money. Los baratos (bargain, discount, great deal in Spanish).

Today, estrogen is prescribed in low doses because when prescribed in high doses, women dropped like flies from blood clots…today, they convince you, as they’ve done with low-dose radiation, that the low dose is a safe dose.
Microdosing somehow = health.
There’s no such thing as a safe dose of estrogen.

Facts
Low, continuous doses of estrogen are extremely problematic to health (as is low-dose radiation). We knew this back in the 1930s and 40s through the work of Alexander Lipschütz. Lipschütz found that if a low, continuous dose of bioidentical estrogen was taken, it was carcinogenic to every tissue he examined. However, if you interrupt estrogen regularly, as the healthy female body naturally does during the luteal phase, where progesterone is produced in huge amounts for two weeks, the progesterone surge interrupts the carcinogenic effect of estrogen. So even a big surge in estrogen, experienced monthly in the menstruating female, isn’t carcinogenic as long as the cells are producing ample progesterone.

The takeaway:
It doesn’t matter if the dose of estrogen you’re taking is small, if it’s a microdose, if it’s a low dose—it’s the un-interruption, not enough progesterone, that’s the problem.
And it’s the long-term un-interruption that’s the big problem.

In my private practice, I never advise estrogen.
I often advise bioidentical progesterone.
I teach my clients where to get high-quality, bioidentical progesterone, how to use it, and
Why it’s important to correct metabolic health before adding thyroid or progesterone into the mix.
And, I often advise active thyroid hormone.

But again, the metabolic health needs to improve first.
These are key ways to reestablish hormone and metabolic balance in the female body both during perimenopause and menopause.

Testing Estrogen: Why lab testing is inaccurate
You might be thinking…
But, Heathar, I’ve tested my estrogen levels, and they test low.

Here’s the problem with lab testing for estrogen…
Lab testing measures the serum levels of estrogen.
But most estrogen is located in your tissues, not the serum.

For example, estrogen is synthesized locally inside tissues—the breast, uterus, bone, brain, liver, fat tissues (literally every tissue can synthesize estrogen)—via the enzyme aromatase.

So, it’s very common for someone, especially women, to have relatively normal or even low serum estrogen but still have incredibly high levels of estrogen in their tissues.

This is why, for those of you in my low-carb recovery course (accessible to all paid subscribers), I list prolactin on the Lab Testing PDF.

I had a doctor the other day totally baffled; she just kept repeating during my wife’s session, I cannot understand why she wants me to test prolactin. You’re not lactating.

From a metabolic perspective, while prolactin doesn’t directly measure estrogen levels, elevated prolactin can be a sign of excess estrogen activity. Prolactin rises naturally during pregnancy when estrogen levels are extremely high. This is also why women on HRT/MHRT often have elevated prolactin levels as well.
The estrogen in those therapies drives prolactin levels through the roof.
Prolactin is an expression of estrogen. And elevated prolactin levels, combined with other lab markers such as thyroid markers, metabolic markers, and one’s symptoms, can give a very accurate picture of estrogen activity.

You can access my Lab Testing PDF right here. Print it out. Hand it to your doctor. If they question any of it, blame me.

Subscribe now

Hot Flashes
Hot flashes are a stress response. Most women experience hot flashes at night, when their liver has run out of glycogen. When the stress hormones surge because they didn’t eat enough carbs that day or ate dinner too early because a leptin reset influencer told them they’d mess up their metabolism by eating late (have you been to Europe?).

When the body runs out of glycogen during sleep (or during the day), adrenaline amps up, making us feel hot, sweaty, and ready to throw off the covers and go stand outside in the cold air.

Estrogen therapy improves hot flashes because it cools the system, lowering thyroid function and the metabolic rate. It suppresses hormone function. Anything that cools the system is anti-metabolic. It lowers thyroid function. Lowers progesterone levels. While your hot flashes might be better, women on estrogen therapy report other symptoms, most commonly weight gain, puffiness, breast tenderness, low sex drive, and vaginal dryness (for which they’ll just prescribe more estrogen).

These are all symptoms of estrogen dominance. Low progesterone. And low thyroid function. The opposite of health.

Improving Hormones Naturally
When we improve progesterone levels, improve metabolic rate and thyroid function, and properly fuel the body, we move away from stress and into a more regulated state. We become more resilient. We have more energy. More stamina.

The first step to overcoming perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms is improving your metabolic rate. Then, consider progesterone and thyroid inputs if needed.

There’s so much more to share about estrogen. This is just the beginning.

~Heathar

RESOURCES
The Low-Carb Recovery Course (available to all paid subscribers)
Teaching you how to heal your metabolism from years of low-carb dieting, and for those struggling with low thyroid, diabetes, and other metabolic conditions.

The Eat Heal Farm Podcast
Most downloaded episodes:
Coffee, Cortisol & Thyroid: What Coffee Is Telling You About Your Metabolism
Low Carb Myths Exposed: Why It’s Hurting Your Metabolism
What Causes Diabetes? Type 1, Type 2, Insulin Resistance & Metabolic Health
Toxic Lean Culture: Why More Body Fat Might Be Healthier

1-on-1 Nutrition Consultations
Get the metabolic + hormone support you need through personalized nutrition work with metabolic expert Heathar Shepard.
Click here to learn more about working 1-on-1 with Heathar.

Now offering In-Person Metabolic Healing Retreats at My Farm in New Mexico
Click here to learn more.

Subscribe now

Health & Wellness Disclaimer

The information, education, and nutritional guidance provided through Eat Heal Farm are intended to support your overall health and well-being. I am a nutrition professional and educator, but I am not a licensed medical doctor, and my services are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition.

The recommendations I provide are based on whole foods, lifestyle practices, and accurate nutritional science, and are designed to complement—not replace—the advice and care of your metabolically informed physician or metabolically informed healthcare provider.

Every individual is unique. Improvement rates will vary, and you are encouraged to consult with your healthcare provider before making significant changes to your diet, supplements, medications, or lifestyle, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition.

The more energy your cells produce, the healthier you’ll be, the fewer food sensitivities you’ll have, the better your thyroid function, the more stable your blood sugar levels, the fewer hot flashes you’ll have, the better you’ll sleep, and the longer you’ll live.

Just by getting your cells producing more energy.

There is 1 primary way your cells make energy:
From the food you eat.

[Sunlight exposure strongly influences how much energy your cells are able to produce from the food you eat—meaning the more sun that hits your eyes and skin, the more energy you’ll produce].

Glucose is the body’s most efficient fuel source.
However, keto, carnivore, and low-carb circles have scared people so far away from carbs that many of them will never make their way back.
Fear mongering has always been the most successful marketing tool, particularly when it comes to fad diets, skin care products (DYK botox is a significant neurotoxin?!?!), pharmaceuticals (how many times has your doctor pushed a statin on you?!?!), and surgical procedures.

The #1 reason women restrict carbs is that they think carbs will make them fat.

False.
(I expand on this below).

Common Low-Carb Diet Damaging Side Effects
When we restrict the most efficient, cleanest fuel source from our diet (carbs), swapping fruit and honey for meaty ribeye steaks and boatloads of beef tallow, cells produce less ATP energy.
This is because fat is a far less efficient fuel source than glucose.
I’m talking up to 1,900% less efficient.

When you don’t eat enough carbs, your body shifts into stress metabolism mode.
Cortisol increases (which gives the impression that you have energy when really you’re just wired, amped up on cortisol-induced steak and keto bombs).
Fat stored in your tissues is mobilized into the bloodstream (in the form of PUFAs).
Estrogen levels build.
Progesterone decreases.
Thyroid function tanks.
But you’re low-carb, ride or die.

The long-term effects of low-carb and keto diets
You won’t have any meat on your bones. No fat on your thighs. No bone strength. Bone minerals are in your arteries instead of where they belong, in your bones. Skinny girl jeans fit well (you consider this a win; I know I did. But mine were slim-fit boy jeans). White girl stuff. Body by patriarchy. Every passing year, less energy. More problems. More body pain.
If you go into perimenopause under-fueled, you’ll enter the 7th circle of hell very quickly. Then you’ll think your estrogen tanked (read: progesterone) and that the answer is HRT or MRT. That your insomnia, hot flashes, and horrifically painful periods are simply a result of not enough estrogen (read: progesterone; always read: progesterone in place of estrogen deficiency. Nobody is estrogen deficient).

The real problem: You’re under-fueled. Not eating enough carbs. No glycogen stored in your liver. No reserves to pull on. Battery charge low. Connect to a power source.

On low-carb diets, you produce 2 or fewer molecules of ATP/molecule of glucose.
That’s barely enough energy to inhale and exhale.
Every nickel costs a dime.

This is a one-way ticket to metabolic failure. The root of every single modern disease today. Including body pain. PMS. Anxiety. Hypothyroidism. SIBO. MS. Migraines. Diabetes. Diabetes. Diabetes. Cancer. Chronic fatigue.

Longevity Points for Carbs
Those who’ve made their way out of the low-carb shame cults, congratulations.
You should be celebrating.
When you recover your energy after years of low-carb depletion, head to the streets, picket the return of carbs to the diet, the key to women’s health, with mason jars of raw milk and slabs of honeycomb (my favorite breakfast btw).
Picket signs might read something like this:
30+ ATP? I’ll Take the Glucose!
Give Glycogen a Chance.
My Mitochondria Called...They Want Orange Juice.
Stress Hormones Are Not a Meal.
Glycogen: Because Adrenaline Deserves a Vacation.
Team Whole Milk.
Cortisol Is Not Breakfast.
I’m Here For The Glycogen.
Fruit: Because My Thyroid Said So.
Make ATP Not Ketones.
Save The Cows…They’re Feeding My Mitochondria.

Or, my personal favorite:
98.6° Is My Love Language.

Maybe I had too much coffee this AM, but that was one of the funnest exercises I’ve done in a long time. If you have more to add to the list, post in the comments; I’d love to hear them.

All that to say…
When your cells are operating off of glucose as a primary fuel source…
For every molecule of glucose consumed, you produce 30-32 molecules of ATP.

That’s literally 1,700-1,900% more efficient than anaerobic metabolism and stress metabolism (cortisol-driven metabolism).

So, I invite you to set down the chia seeds (PUFA city), daily ribeye steaks, nut butters (PUFA bomb), and Blue Zone Diet protocols.
Instead, keep things simple. Start eating carbs again.
I outline how to introduce carbs back into your diet in a way that works for your system in my Low-Carb Recovery Course, available to all paid subscribers. You can access the course right here.

Subscribe now

Fat as Fuel vs Carbs as Fuel
This one is so simple that when I finally came to my senses and started to put down my excessive daily meat consumption (which blew out my thyroid and sent me into a pre-diabetic state), I was like, Why is this so obvious and why aren’t other people talking about this?!?!? No, really?!?!

If a 1,700-1,900% energy production improvement rate isn’t enough to encourage you to eat carbs again…

I’ll give you another reason to reconsider carbs.

Let’s start with a basic, real-life analogy.
Diabetes: What the diabetic & keto diet have in common
Diabetics cannot use glucose as a fuel source.
Even when the diabetic consumes glucose-rich foods (carbs), their cells cannot take it up.
Everyone needs a fuel source to maintain their blood sugar.
When you restrict glucose, the key blood sugar regulating macronutrient, the body will create its own glucose source. Genious. But at a high metabolic cost.

When glucose is unavailable as a fuel source, the body increases cortisol production to keep blood sugar stable.

Historically, this was nature's way of keeping us alive during times of famine, starvation, and low-carb seasons.
When food is scarce, when carbs are scanty, our physiology is hardwired to call on our backup fuel system to survive times of limited carb availability.
This backup fuel system is powered by stress hormones.
The backup metabolic system was often needed towards the end of winter, when the fall harvest ran out. The dehydrated potatoes. The root veggies. The beer and ale. The dried fruit. The honey jar. All emptied.
Cortisol fueled their system until early-to-late spring, when the stress-driven metabolic state was finally broken with the return of carb-rich spring roots, tubers, fruits, and berries.

This stress metabolic famine-induced state was never meant to develop into chronic diabetes. Diabetes = a state of prolonged metabolic stress.
Our backup fuel system (stress hormones) was meant to sustain us short-term through times of food scarcity, rectified when carbs became available again.

Fat Intake & Diabetes
The diabetic cannot use glucose as a fuel source; as a result, cortisol increases to maintain blood sugar levels (note: this happens in everyone; when glucose is limited, cortisol production increases to maintain blood sugar levels until you have a glass of OJ or get home from running errands and have your glass of milk with honey, etc.).
The increase in cortisol also mobilizes fatty acids and breaks down muscle tissue—this is why diabetics are often flabby: cortisol breaks down muscle tissue and sends those amino acids to the liver, where they're converted into “glucose.”

This is why low-carb and keto influencers will tell you that your body can make its own glucose. This is like calling soy milk milk.
Low-carb supporters, including functional docs and naturopaths, often claim that since the body can make its own glucose (gluconeogenesis), there’s no need to get it from your diet.
But this is at a very high metabolic expense: increased cortisol, the breaking down of bone tissue, more fatty acids (in the form of PUFA) circulating in your bloodstream, and breaking down muscle tissue.
Sure, you’re “making glucose.”

Here’s the thing about diabetes…
Everyone focuses on glucose as the issue.
Glucose can’t enter the cells.
There’s too much sugar, so much that it can’t all be taken up by the cells.
That’s the message we’ve been told for decades about diabetes.
It’s the sugar. Sugar. Sugar. Sugar in the urine. Sugar in the diet. Cut the sugar.
Opt for: Diet Pepsi. Xylitol. Monk fruit. Stevia.
This might be a trigger for some, but I’m just going to say it:
Sweeteners without the sugar = more cortisol production. Which means more low thyroid, more diabetes. More stressed metabolism.

The anti-sugar diabetes message is physiologically inaccurate.
It’s scientifically inaccurate.
And, it’s preventing people from truly overcoming diabetes.

Black sheep here we go…

How to overcome diabetes
When you reduce dietary fat intake in the diabetic, while maintaining carb intake, especially in the form of simple carbs, their condition greatly improves.

There have even been thousands of cured diabetes cases who used this approach (especially throughout France) in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Eat as many carbs as you crave while restricting fat. No more diabetes.

Your doctor wants you on metformin. Insulin. Ozempic.
They don’t want you cured. They don’t even think there’s a cure because their education is tailored to surgical procedures and pharmaceuticals.
They know their drugs don’t cure; they only “manage” symptoms.
The studies they reference are all funded by the pharmaceutical industry.
The pharmaceutical industry dictates the medical doctor’s education.
Crooked as they come.
Or, as my off-grid hippie neighbor Jim says, crooked as a dog’s hind leg.

Last week when my wife went to get bloodwork, her doctor said, The only way to improve the hormones is to get on birth control.

Her response: Have you met my wife?

The Real Cause of Diabetes
Everyone focuses on restricting glucose, carbs, sugar as a way to manage diabetes.
The mainstream + naturopathic + functional approach: if glucose can’t enter the cells, restrict glucose. Simple. No sugar. Cut carbs. Go carnivore. Consider keto.
But glucose isn’t the problem. Sugar isn’t the problem.
All of my diabetic patients have zero sugar restrictions.
What do I encourage them to restrict (in the short-term to overcome diabetes)?
Fat.
Fat is the problem. Cortisol is also the problem. They’re connected.
When fat is in excess, glucose cannot enter the cell.
When dietary fat is greatly reduced, glucose makes its way into the cell again.

Diabetes isn’t a glucose issue.
It’s a fat issue.
It’s a cortisol issue.

Glucocorticoid hormones inhibit the metabolism of sugar. Cortisol is the primary glucocorticoid produced in the body.

By reducing fat and gradually increasing carbs, cortisol levels start to drop, and glucose is able to enter cells.

How Keto Diets Fuel Diabetes
Guess what happens when someone adopts a ketogenic diet, a diet that utilizes and mobilizes fats as fuel, for prolonged periods of time?
They essentially are driving themselves into a diabetic state.

When fats are the primary fuel source, glucose cannot enter the cell for energy production. This is known as the Randel Cycle.
Keto diets, rich in fat, low in carbs, shut down the cell's ability to use glucose as fuel. And drive up cortisol production.
Keto diet = diabetes.

I’ve been around long enough to see people I know and love pass on to the other side. I can honestly say, the majority of people I know who’ve passed away have adopted a long-term ketogenic diet.

If you look at a long-term keto dieter or low carber, they will often look like a hollowed-out skeleton. They call it weight loss. But really, it’s cortisol slowly eating away at their tissues.

Why Low-Carb Diets Improve Symptoms (short-term)
People adopt a low-carb diet for many reasons.
For most people, like myself, low-carb is a digestive-driven decision.
SIBO, gas, bloating, diarrhea, Crohn’s, colitis—many go low-carb because those symptoms reduce in severity when carbs are removed from the diet.
But here’s the thing…
It’s not the carbs that are driving the issue.
They’re just pulling the trigger.
The issue is poor metabolism. A low-functioning thyroid. Prediabetes. Stress hormones. All issues made worse by carb restriction.

When you correct the metabolism, you can enjoy carbs again.

What if carbs make my symptoms worse?
When low-carbers decide they should eat carbs again, they often initially have issues with the increase in carbs — hives, itchy skin, acne, bloating, weight gain, insatiable appetite.
They’re quick to assume it’s the carbs. It’s always been the carbs. It was the carbs all along. See, I told you so.
But carb-intolerant symptoms aren’t because carbs are haunting us.
It’s not because carbs are poison or bad for us.

Carb intolerance symptoms point to a stressed metabolism.

Diabetes, unstable blood sugars, hypothyroidism, chronic pain, hot flashes, and autoimmunity all = stressed metabolism.

Low-carb diets train your cells out of utilizing glucose as a fuel source.
Fixing your carb intolerance symptoms and recovering from low-carb and metabolic diseases all require a similar approach: you have to train the cells how to use glucose as a fuel source again.
This often takes several months of consistent carb intake.
Sometimes it requires thyroid inputs. Progesterone inputs. A select few supplements used short-term to encourage your cells to produce more energy more efficiently.
And, utilizing the right kind of carbs for your body (I teach this in the Low-Carb Recovery Course, available to all paid subscribers).

Why teaching your cells to use carbs as a fuel source is vital to health
You have two options when it comes to weight loss or achieving other health goals…

1) You can restrict carbs and lose weight while slowly inching your way toward low thyroid function, diabetes, and other metabolic health issues.

2) You can restrict fat, steadily increase carbs, and lose weight (if this is a health goal of yours). You’ll also experience positive side effects of improved energy, improved libido, decreased pain, and improved overall metabolic health.

Carbs, the more sustainable approach to health
Teaching your body how to utilize carbs as a fuel source is by far the low-and-slow approach.

It’s the unpopular approach. It’s definitely not an IG influencer approach. It’s the underdog. The black sheep.
There are no gimmicks. There’s no hydrogen water. There’s no methylene blue. There are hardly any supplements, if any.
There’s no placebo giving you the impression of health while simultaneously robbing your health.
With carbs at the center of your diet, no one is robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Carbs are the unexpected win.

With carbs at the center of your diet, you slowly, gradually, day-by-day improve your energy production. Reduce pain. Improve thyroid function. Histamine intolerance dwindles. Bloating is gone. Your reserves build, giving you strength to get off the floor and go for a hike.
Carbs can even save your marriage because once you start eating them and your thyroid improves, so does your libido, mood, and outlook on life.

Bringing carbs back into your diet is a lifestyle change with long-term benefits.
It’s your body’s investment account. The key to long-term, improved energy production.
The more energy your cells produce, the longer you’ll live, and the more symptom-free days you’ll experience.

Here’s to more energy and pharmaceutical-free longevity,

Heathar

RESOURCES
The Low-Carb Recovery Course (available to all paid subscribers)

Teaching you how to heal your metabolism from years of low-carb dieting, and for those struggling with low thyroid, diabetes, and other metabolic conditions.

The Eat Heal Farm Podcast
Most downloaded episodes:
Coffee, Cortisol & Thyroid: What Coffee Is Telling You About Your Metabolism
Low Carb Myths Exposed: Why It’s Hurting Your Metabolism
What Causes Diabetes? Type 1, Type 2, Insulin Resistance & Metabolic Health
Toxic Lean Culture: Why More Body Fat Might Be Healthier

1-on-1 Nutrition Consultations (43% off until this Monday—tomorrow!)
Get the metabolic support you need through personalized nutrition work with metabolic expert Heathar Shepard.
Click here to learn more about working 1-on-1 with Heathar.

Health & Wellness Disclaimer

The information, education, and nutritional guidance provided through Eat Heal Farm are intended to support your overall health and well-being. I am a nutrition professional and educator, but I am not a licensed medical doctor, and my services are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition.

The recommendations I provide are based on whole foods, lifestyle practices, and accurate nutritional science, and are designed to complement—not replace—the advice and care of your metabolically informed physician or metabolically informed healthcare provider.

Every individual is unique. Improvement rates will vary, and you are encouraged to consult with your healthcare provider before making significant changes to your diet, supplements, medications, or lifestyle, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition.

But the fish oil supplement industry wasn’t born out of health.
It was born out of desperation.
In 1970, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) threatened the fish industry, demanding that it clean up the piles of fish fat it was dumping into the bays and on land.
Almost overnight, fish oil was suddenly packaged and marketed as a health supplement.
Another waste-product-turned-health-food was born.

Prior to this “health discovery,” the US government warned against consuming too much omega-3 in the diet.

The Physiology of Fish Oil in the Human Body
Highly unsaturated fats are chemically unstable.
These are the PUFAs I often talk about: seed oils, nuts, seeds, flax, soy, chia, sesame, and hemp— they’re main drivers of low thyroid, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and obesity.
They speed aging. Prevent the cell from using glucose as a fuel source. Create estrogen dominance. Lower progesterone. Prevent the thyroid from converting T4 to T3.

The PUFA we often disregard, due to marketing and misleading health claims, is: Fish oil.
Not only is fish oil a source of PUFA, but it’s also the richest source.

PUFAs are prone to oxidation and rancidity.
Unlike saturated fats and authentic olive oil, PUFAs are unstable and, therefore, unhealthy for human consumption because of their precarious chemical makeup.
Unlike saturated fats, which contain zero double bonds, PUFAs contain 3 and up to 6 double bonds.

The more double bonds a fatty acid contains, the more prone it is to oxidation and rancidity.

What this translates to in health terms: the more double bonds a fatty acid contains, the greater the risk of hypothyroidism, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and cancer.

Butter has zero double bonds.
Olive oil, the authentic stuff, has one double bond.
Seed oils, including flax and chia, have 3 double bonds; others have 4.
Soybean oil has 4.5 double bonds.
Fish oil has 5-6 double bonds.

Foods like fatty fish contain up to six double bonds and are so prone to oxidation that by the time they reach the bloodstream, they’re already oxidizing and becoming immunosuppressive.

A series of studies in France throughout the 1950s-1970s examined the effects of thyroid hormones and found that metabolic rate slowed in proportion to the amount of unsaturated fat [PUFA] a person ate.

They found that the enzymes that produce the thyroid hormone in the thyroid gland are blocked in proportion to the number of double bonds in the dietary fats they consume.

With fish oil having the highest number of double bonds, we should start to rethink it as a health food and instead examine its effects on thyroid health, diabetes, cancer, and overall metabolic function.
Since understanding this basic biology, I have stopped eating fatty fish.

What about Inuit diets rich in omega-3s?
Inuits are an indigenous group spread across the entire Arctic—Greenland, Canada, Alaska, Russia…

Historically (not as much modern day, with the advent of Big Box Stores teeming with processed food), they’re known for eating a diet rich in omega-3 fatty fish as well as seal and whale blubber.

When the EPA threatened to penalize fisheries, the fishing industry pivoted. They turned their waste product into a health supplement and “proved” to the world, through randomized controlled trials and observational studies, that the Inuit's omega-3-rich diet was one we should adopt through fish oil supplementation.

This was their solution to escalating rates of diabetes and heart disease.
Sloppy seconds. Fish oil in a pill.

Subscribe now

The sturdy, robust, highly active Inuit people, who eat not only fatty fish but also endocrine glands and organ meats (the government left that part out), quickly became the omega-3 heart-health poster child.
They were reported to be free of diabetes (inaccurate), to have excellent heart health (also inaccurate), and to have low LDL cholesterol (keep in mind: the lower LDL cholesterol [below 100 mg/dL] = a sharp rise in all-cause mortality).

What their studies also failed to mention is that eating more fatty fish would make heart health, diabetes, and cancer rates worse, not better.
This had been well established by unbiased studies conducted in the 1930’s and 40’s before pharmaceuticals had their dirty hand in the research pot.
These early studies demonstrated that PUFAs are non-essential, block glucose oxidation, and are anti-metabolic.

Let’s take a closer look at the Inuit diet…

Historically, the Inuit diet did contain some omega-3s.
However, it wasn’t the bulk of their diet, certainly not for inland Inuit populations.
Their diet also contained heaps of fat from seal and whale blubber (however, nobody is selling seal or whale blubber in a supplement because it’s not a fish industry waste product).
Similar to the PUFA-fueled salmon, a high-fat diet is their survival mechanism.

Inuit people live in harsh landscapes that experience extreme cold, exceptionally long winters, and the world’s shortest growing season.
With a scanty 6-10 weeks of frost-free conditions, the natural foods these individuals have access to are significantly limited.
Forget growing a tomato.
Forget planting anything.
The coastal Inuit cultures, before the advent of greenhouses and controlled-environment agriculture, foraged for their food, spearing salmon, whale, and seal, and harvesting wild tundra plants, including berries, wild greens, roots, and tubers.

Like the bear, the Inuit consume an abundance of fatty fish (rich in PUFA) and blubber (rich in monounsaturated fat, MUFA) in the late summer and fall months, packing on fat and slowing their metabolic rate in a survival effort to make it to the melt.

Omega-3 fatty acids are our richest source of PUFAs.
Together, a diet rich in fat and low in carbs (keto) slows energy production and thyroid hormone conversion, and drives insulin resistance.

The Inuit diet, rich in fat, low in carbs, is not a diet of choice but necessity.
They aren’t keto for health reasons.
In fact, long-term, a keto diet will produce significant negative health effects, fueling diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and hypothyroidism.

Keto is the Inuit’s survival diet—it lowers metabolic rate to ensure survival through periods of extreme cold and extreme food scarcity.
Physiologically, during keto, the body shifts from glucose-based metabolism (our most efficient way to produce energy) to the inefficient anaerobic metabolism fueled by stress hormones.
This keeps energy production going (barely) and blood sugar stable, but at a high cost. One that has several side effects, including:

—Slowing metabolic rate primarily by inhibiting the conversion of T4 to T3
—Mobilizing free fatty acids (FFAs) prevents glucose uptake in the cell. This is the textbook definition of diabetes
—Elevated stress hormones, which deplete glycogen stores in the liver and muscles and slow energy production
—Increase estrogen in the body, which decreases fertility, blocks thyroid function, and increases weight gain in the abdomen, chest, and back (more weight = more resources to pull on when food is limited)

Keto is a biologically wise strategy used for short periods when food is scarce. It’s a famine diet.

Long-term keto will diminish the cells’ ability to utilize glucose as a fuel source.
The inability of cells to use glucose as fuel is the cause of every metabolic disease today.

Eating fatty fish is one survival mechanism the Inuit developed over thousands of years—the extra fat slowed their metabolic rate, decreased fertility, allowing them to survive cold, harsh, long winter months and long periods of food scarcity.

Hibernating animals do the same thing—gorging on PUFAs to pack on pounds, slow metabolic rate, and increasing survival until the return of the sun.

Inuit Genetics
One of the many things that the omega-3 fish oil studies fail to demonstrate is the genetic uniqueness of the Inuit; they are genetically distinct from most other human populations.

For example, variants in genes such as FADS (fatty acid desaturase genes) affect how the body processes dietary fats. Some Arctic populations have variants that affect energy metabolism and heat production, making them genetically better equipped to consume PUFA-rich omega-3 fatty fish.

These adaptations likely evolved over thousands of years in response to an omega-3-rich diet and extreme cold.

But this doesn’t mean it’s an ideal or healthy diet.
It’s a survival diet for those living in the world's harshest environment.

Modern humans are quick to Blue Zone everything.
When it comes to cultures living in extreme climates like the severe cold and long, grueling winters experienced by the Inuit, there’s nothing Blue Zone about it.
What’s really at play is thousands of years of genetic adaptation.
A relationship between an Inuit man and salmon that I will never know.
A connection between an Inuit woman and salmon that stretches far beyond omega-3’s.

So even though the Inuit might do okay with a diet rich in omega-3s, it doesn’t mean an omega-3-rich diet is optimal for someone with primarily European, African, Asian, or other ancestry.

In fact, unless you live in the Arctic, it’s likely wise to leave the fatty fish to them. And, to the bears.

Fish Oil Industry
The fish oil industry banks $3.55 billion in revenue per year.
That figure alone deems it absolutely untrustworthy.

Who invests in the fish oil supplement industry?
Pharmaceutical companies. They fund research, clinical trials, and (according to Google) “advanced” manufacturing to promote fish oil as a health food.

I hope I’m starting to open your eyes to things that we’ve been told to avoid:
Fruit, honey, natural sugars, carbs, milk, and other dairy products…
That I’m helping you pull the wool from your eyes around “health foods” like chia, flax, fatty fish, and fish oil.
And that you’re starting to understand the harmful metabolic effects of low-carb dieting.

Black sheep all the way.
~Heathar

RESOURCES
The Low-Carb Recovery Course (available to all paid subscribers)
Teaching you how to heal your metabolism from years of low-carb dieting, and for those struggling with low thyroid, diabetes, and other metabolic conditions.

Subscribe now

The Eat Heal Farm Podcast
Most downloaded episodes:
Coffee, Cortisol & Thyroid: What Coffee Is Telling You About Your Metabolism
Low Carb Myths Exposed: Why It’s Hurting Your Metabolism
What Causes Diabetes? Type 1, Type 2, Insulin Resistance & Metabolic Health
Toxic Lean Culture: Why More Body Fat Might Be Healthier

1-on-1 Nutrition Consultations
Get the metabolic support you need through personalized nutrition work with metabolic expert, Heathar Shepard.
Click here to learn more about working with 1-on-1 with Heathar.

Health & Wellness Disclaimer

The information, education, and nutritional guidance provided through Eat Heal Farm are intended to support your overall health and well-being. I am a nutrition professional and educator, but I am not a licensed medical doctor, and my services are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition.

The recommendations I provide are based on whole foods, lifestyle practices, and accurate nutritional science, and are designed to complement—not replace—the advice and care of your metabolically informed physician or metabolically informed healthcare provider.

Every individual is unique. Improvement rates will vary, and you are encouraged to consult with your healthcare provider before making significant changes to your diet, supplements, medications, or lifestyle, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition.

Oops.

Osteoporosis. Low thyroid. Diabetes. Cancer. Calcification of the arteries. Gut dysbiosis.
These are all metabolic diseases.
They’re all warning signs that energy production is slowing.
The cells aren’t generating enough energy to keep the body symptom-free.

Many of the symptoms people experience on a daily or regular basis—from energy crashes and migraine headaches to body pain, insomnia, and digestive distress—are signs that the body's energy production is compromised, stress hormones have taken over, and metabolic function is downregulating.

Diary can play a vital role in recovering metabolic health.

While temporarily pausing dairy might be necessary in some cases (I’ll explain more about this below), a main goal I have for my clients struggling with metabolic health isn’t dairy avoidance; it’s getting their microbiome to an improved state that allows them to eat dairy and reap the improved energy levels, optimal nutrition, and digestive ease it offers.

Dairy intolerance can be a real thing for some people. I used to be one of those people. The quick fix is to remove dairy. But this is a big mistake. It doesn’t get to the root of the issue, which isn’t the dairy.

By simply removing dairy, we miss out on nature's most nutritious food — easy-to-absorb, readily available: protein, fat, carbohydrate, vitamins, minerals, and flavonoids.

A system sensitive to dairy is a sign of a stressed metabolic system.
It’s not the dairy (unless it came from a CAFO operation); it’s your metabolism.

The number one cause of dairy intolerance (experiencing symptoms when you eat dairy) is low thyroid function and low progesterone levels.

Within 3-months of eating the low-carb recovery diet, I could eat dairy again. Not only was I free of symptoms I previously experienced when eating dairy (constipation, sluggishness), but my digestion and energy levels actually improved.

But first, I had to repair a failing thyroid.
Then my dairy intolerance healed, and instead of constipation and lethargy, my digestion became more regular, and I had heaps more energy.
But I had to fix the problem first.
Most people simply avoid dairy rather than course-correct. Because that’s what they’ve been taught. This approach omits one of nature’s most nutritious food groups while failing to address the root of the problem, low thyroid and low progesterone.

Instead of getting people off dairy, we need to get their system to a place where they thrive on it.

Metabolic diseases are also an indicator that the body isn’t receiving enough bioavailable calcium.
Nutrition labels mislead us.
When it comes to calcium, the nutrition label doesn’t discriminate—according to the FDA, 50mg of calcium is 50mg of calcium.
On paper, calcium in an almond is equivalent to that in milk.
Calcium from plant-based foods, such as a head of kale, is equivalent to that in a glass of milk.

The truth about calcium:
Calcium that humans absorb and utilize most efficiently comes from animal-derived sources—particularly dairy.

Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body. It makes up about 99% of your bones. Supports strong teeth. Lowers stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol). Promotes fat burning. Is essential for energy production.

If you’re deficient in calcium, not only do your bones suffer, but so do your energy levels. Yet another reason why removing dairy will actually be worse for your health, not better.

How to Overcome Dairy Sensitivity
(so you can reap the benefits of naute’s most nourishing + metabolically supportive food)

Read more

Cortisol is the hormone that makes sure your brain and other tissues never run out of glucose.

The leptin resistance influencers don’t understand this.
The low-carbers aren’t told this.
The diabetic and hypothyroid aren’t taught how to help guide their body out of one major root cause of their issue: cortisol-driven stress metabolism.

If the blood sugar climbs excessively high or dips excessively low, the body will be in great danger. Cortisol prevents these highs and lows. In this way, cortisol is lifesaving. But long-term reliance on cortisol as a fuel source has significant side effects. It’s incredibly damaging to cellular energy production. It breaks down tissues and whatever else it can to keep blood sugar stable. It diminishes the cell’s ability to utilize glucose as a fuel source. There is a better way.

Today, I’m sharing my Low-Carb Recovery diet with you all.

The theme of the diet is: stress reduction.
It teaches you how to use food as an optimal fuel source to guide the body out of a cortisol-dominant, stress-driven state and into an optimal metabolic state that utilizes glucose as fuel.

Correct fuel and food consistency can gradually guide the body away from a cortisol-driven state and into a healthier metabolic state. Whether you’re recovering from years of low-carb dieting, calorie restriction, or struggle with a metabolic condition, especially diabetes or hypothyroidism, the key to recovery is teaching your cells how to utilize glucose as a fuel source.

When the body chooses glucose over cortisol, thyroid function improves, hormone and fertility improve, and diabetes cannot exist.

For some, training your cells how to use glucose as fuel will take a few weeks; for others, it will take several months. You can track your progress by:

1) Understanding the 8 Signs and Symptoms Your Metabolism is Healing
2) Tracking your temperature and pulse rate
3) Running metabolic-focused labs every 6-12 months (in this post, I provide a PDF of the metabolic-specific labs I recommend—you can print it out and hand it to your doctor—make them run all of them—non-negotiable)

If your body struggles with carbs, you’re not alone. This is a very common occurrence, and carb avoidance or restriction only perpetuates carb intolerance. I learned this the hard way.

I walk you through how to navigate adding carbs, the right kind and amounts, into your diet at a pace that your body needs. I also outline several food options for each meal to help meet individual needs and pace. Every body heals at their own pace. With their own timing. This isn’t a lose-20-lbs-in-6-weeks diet. This isn’t a quick fix and then go back to the shitty food you were eating before. This isn’t a sprint; it’s not a contest. The only winner is you.

This is an initial phase diet rooted in restoring metabolic health for the long haul. It’s designed to optimize energy production, increase metabolic rate, decrease digestive burden, and guide the body out of a cortisol-driven stress state and into a more regulated place.

When the metabolism is regulated, it produces more energy, cleaner energy, keeps our immune function robust, and helps us manage life stress with more ease. It is the quintessential path to a healthier life, free of chronic disease struggles and symptoms.

Since every body is different, if you bump into blocks when you start incorporating the diet practices into your daily life, please post below or send a private message my way so I can best guide you and help you succeed.

Let’s do this!

The Low-Carb Recovery Diet

Read more

Today, I deep dive into your questions regarding thyroid medications, why I use a diet-first approach to healing the thyroid, when I consider thyroid medication, including T4 vs T3, Armour or desicated thyroid, what happens to your thyroid when you start medication or thyroid supplements, and what symptoms can occur if your thyroid dosage isn’t meeting your thyroid needs.

I also discuss dairy intolerance and its main drivers: low thyroid, low progesterone, estrogen dominance, and SIBO. And how to start improving your dairy digestibility so you can enjoy one of nature’s most nourishing foods.

I also talk about the ideal phosphorus:calcium ratio in the diet, a key to supporting not only optimal thyroid function and detoxing from years of excessive meat consumption, but also longevity and vitality.

I look forward to sharing the Low-Carb Recovery diet with you this week!

Great questions, everyone, keep them coming, everyone benefits from your sharing!

Thyroid Medication + Overcoming Dairy Intolerance Video + Audio

Read more

When I learned how low-carb actually worked, by fueling stress metabolism, diminishing my body’s ability to utilize carbs as a fuel source, and driving down my thyroid function, I knew something was off.

This eye-opening realization was life-changing and the most important step I took toward healing my metabolism effectively. In ways that support what healthy metabolism actually looks like: heaps of energy, sound sleep, optimal libido, and good poops. Not just once a week. Not every few days a month. But consistently. Most days, feeling vital, energized, with solid digestion.

Most people have one health goal: get lean. However, chisled abs and a lean body aren’t actually healthy and fuel metabolic issues. When I learned to fuel my body with foods that actually produce more energy, I started to have more stamina for the things in life I love: hiking, farming, milking cows, and plunging into swimming holes.

This is module 3 of the Low-Carb Recovery course, where I teach you the foundations of a truly metabolically supportive diet, so you, too, can have the energy and motivation to do all the things you love in life most days of the week.

Here’s to feeling more energized in our bodies. More vital. And to understand how to get there by making food choices based on what your cells need to produce ample amounts of energy.

Read more

Most people start a new healing modality, supplement, or diet and hope it’s working, but aren’t quite sure.

There are some very clear, easy DIY methods for understanding whether your body is improving. The cost is zero dollars. $12 tops for a basic oral thermometer. As you start your Low-Carb Recovery journey, I want you to feel empowered and informed as to how the diet is impacting your metabolic health and thyroid function.

Here are my top 8 ways to tell if your diet is supporting your healing (read: thyroid + metabolic function) in deep, lasting, and vital ways.

Read more

Labs can, however, be used in a much more helpful, insightful, and holistic way, especially when it comes to taking a closer look at your thyroid and metabolic health.

Today, I’ll go over the labs I use to assess metabolic health, how to interpret them in a more empowering and useful way, and share a printable PDF of metabolic-supportive lab testing you can hand to your doctor.

Read more

To access this article, Module 2 of the Low-Carb Recovery course, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Read more

I’m excited to announce the launch of the Low-Carb Recovery course.
All paid subscribers will have access to the course.

Today, I’m providing an intro video to the course.
If you have any questions, feel free to post in the comments below.

Subscribe now

Who is this course for?

• Anyone with a history of low-carb or calorie-restricted dieting (under 1,800 calories per day, IF, fasting) who wants to restore metabolic function naturally to support long-term health

• Anyone who’s experienced low-metabolic function symptoms from low-carb or restriction diets: constipation, low thyroid, blood sugar imbalances, poor sleep, low energy, infertility, low libido (what libido?), carb intolerance, migraine headaches, menstrual or menopausal struggles—PS women approaching menopause have fewer symptoms when their metabolism and thyroid are fueled optimally

• Those who struggle with carbohydrate intolerance, when you eat carbs, you have symptoms such as inflammation, bloating, gas, fatigue, or others

• Those looking to restore metabolic health: improve thyroid function, improve blood sugar levels, reduce risk of cancer, improve diabetes conditions, have an easeful transition from peri-menopause to menopause

• Those looking to achieve their health goals without strict carb restrictions (yes, you can achieve your weight goals AND eat carbs)

The goal of this course isn’t to just eat more carbs.
It’s to restore your metabolic health.

And, to get your physiology to a place where it can efficiently use carbs as fuel.

Everybody is different, which is exactly why I’ll be addressing several similar yet distinct approaches to reintroducing carbs that support your body's healing needs.

What if you struggle with carb intolerance?
It is a real thing. Especially for women, but men can experience it as well.

There will be a module dedicated to this topic.

If you struggle with carb metabolism, know it's not the carbs; it's a faulty metabolism in need of repair. We’re going to repair this at a pace that supports your unique metabolic needs.

Why you need carbs in your diet 101
Carbohydrates and their storage form, glycogen, act as important blood sugar-regulating messengers.
They help you navigate stress and help drive down chronically elevated cortisol levels.
Carbs are the body’s preferred, cleanest burning fuel source. So, even if you currently experience symptoms when you eat carbs, know that elimination only makes the problem worse.

Avoiding carbs is a band-aid approach that only fuels greater carbohydrate intolerance.

Their avoidance also drives insulin resistance, low thyroid, stress metabolism, compromises bone and muscular health, and sets the stage for chronic disease.
Low-carb and carb-restrictive diets often yield short-term gains in body composition, yet in the long term, they are metabolically very costly.

The reason you cannot handle carbs is due to a compromised metabolic state.

If you’re someone who’s sensitive to carbs. Hang in there. This course will teach you how to heal your relationship with carbs. There will be no carb breakups here.

What to expect?

This is not a quick-fix plan.
It is a path to long-term, optimal health.
While you very likely notice improvements within the first couple of weeks or days, and steady improvements thereafter, this is a low and slow healing process.

Think about this…How long did it take you to get into a compromised metabolic state? 30, 40, 50 years? You cannot undo that in 4 weeks.

This is a plan that will correct your metabolism to help you feel better which translates to:
Greater energy, improved sleep, reduced peri- and menopausal symptoms, boosted libido, more energy and endurance to move your body, and heals your digestion so you can eventually eat a diverse diet.

It’s designed to restore thyroid function and stabilize blood sugar levels.

This is not a fad diet. It’s a long-game approach to a healthier, more vital, more energized life.

Eating to restore metabolism flies in the face of both mainstream and alternative ways of eating. At least the approach I’m going to teach you.
Yet many people and doctors have utilized this approach, one that puts carbs at the center of the table, before the pharmaceutical industry monopolized health care. Thousands of metabolic healing success stories document the use of carbs as a primary mode of healing. Those studies and case studies are now relics buried beneath today's pharmaceutical-funded studies.

How long will it take to heal my metabolism?
Everyone will heal at a different pace. Please don’t compare yourself to others. Your body will heal according to its own rhythm. We all have different genetic predispositions, have been exposed to a variety of suppressive therapies, and have different degrees of stress; some are more affected by stress than others. Every body is different.

Because everyone is different and has unique metabolic needs, I will have separate modules to help address core metabolic issues, including diabetes, cancer, SIBO, fat loss, and low thyroid.

Deeper connection with your body
This way of eating will teach you to listen to your body more and feed it what it needs. You will learn that instead of saying, “Wow, I’ve drunk too much milk today,” and instead learn to lean into, “Even though I’ve had 1 quart of milk today, my body really wants more,” and learn to listen to its suggestions.
You’ll undoubtedly feel better by doing so.

The only way out is through
This way of eating is not a fad diet. But it is based on eating to support the most important aspect of health, your metabolism. It’s a way of eating that will support metabolic health, reduce food sensitivity, improve vitality, and increase dietary diversity over time as your gut and thyroid heal.

In the next module, Module 2: Metabolic Tools, I’m going to teach you how to assess your metabolic progress in cost-effective and incredibly accurate ways. In ways your medical doctor was never trained and in ways holistic doctors often miss.

I can’t wait to support you through this process!

~Heathar

Course Logistics
New videos will be posted each week on the Eat Heal Farm substack, available to all paid subscribers. There will be chronological links to access the course provided on the Low Carb Recovery Course tab.

If you’re in the course and want to share your goals, I’d love for you to post in the comments section!

Your liver and muscles aren’t storing glycogen properly.

Improving your body’s ability to store glycogen is foundational to improving metabolic health.
[It is the focal point of my Low-Carb Recovery Course, which will launch here on June 30th, 2026, accessible to all paid subscribers].

Subscribe now

What is glycogen, and why do you need it?
Carbohydrates contain glucose.
When you eat carbs:
1) Some of the glucose is used for immediate energy
2) Some of the glucose is stored, which is known as glycogen (the storage form of glucose)

Glycogen is carbohydrate storage.
It’s your energy battery charge.
Your reserves.
Stored fuel that your body utilizes during times of stress, lack of food, exercise, and during sleep to keep your system fueled.

When the power goes out in our rural village (happens more than you’d think), we call on our backup energy source: a solar panel generator (nobody wants to milk a cow by hand in -2°F or 100°F, sometimes the milk machine provides sanity).

When the body runs out of fuel, it calls on glycogen stores to provide energy.

The caveat
If you don’t have enough glycogen in storage, your body produces stress hormones to keep your system fueled. Which is great as an emergency backup. But, not so great when relied on chronically, as is the case on low-carb diets, deprivation diets, fasting, frequently skipping meals, and the classic metabolic diseases, such as low thyroid, obesity, and diabetes. Cancer also operates off of stress hormones.

Insomnia: A Common Example of Low Glycogen
If you go to sleep underfueled, as promoted by low-carb, fasting, and leptin communities, your body will release more stress hormones during sleep. This can make you feel overheated in bed (adrenaline), cause you to have trouble falling asleep, others fall asleep and wake frequently, even for a few minutes, and then fall back asleep, while others fall asleep and wake around 2-4 am, unable to fall back asleep for hours. If ever.

Insufficient glycogen stores are a main cause of insomnia and sleep issues. Including waking up in the morning feeling unrefreshed and groggy.

It’s a classic story for the low-carb and undernourished—the one suffering from cancer or low thyroid—glycogen storage is notoriously low, virtually nonexistent in such cases.

This is why I encourage eating something small but mighty 15-30 minutes before bed (I teach you my go-to glycogen restore protocol for optimal sleep in the paid section below).

Making sure your liver glycogen stores are topped off before bed is a simple, incredibly supportive way to keep your system in low-stress mode during sleep while supporting deep, restful sleep.

Poor sleep was one of the symptoms my body struggled with more and more as I got deeper into my low-carb years. The combined practice of eating more easily digestible carbs during the day and fueling my system before bed has completely reversed my insomnia.

No exogenous melatonin needed. No sleeping pills. No CBD gummies. Just fueling my system adequately.

I have yet to come across a condition that doesn’t improve drastically when the body starts receiving the right fuel. Consistent fuel. Easy to digest fuel.

Refueling Success Story
Last weekend, one of my family members had a UTI.
Due to the holiday, they couldn’t get in to see their doctor.
I encouraged them to focus on consistent fuel: OJ, fruit, ice cream, milk, and plenty of salt. Just what the doctor should order.

The next day, they felt better. Didn’t need to go to the doctor.
All from eating enough. Eating frequently. And eating simple carbs, adequate minerals, which rapidly replenish glycogen and support efficient energy production.

When the body produces energy efficiently and consistently, chronic disease cannot overtake the organism.

There are several areas in the body that store glycogen.
The two biggest areas are:
1) Your liver (80-120g of glycogen)
2) Your muscles (300-600g of glycogen)

Here’s where things get interesting…(if curing a UTI with carbs and dairy wasn’t fascinating enough)…

Low-carbers have a glycogen deficit.
Diabetics, glycogen deficit.
Low thyroid, deficit.
Chronic fasters, undereaters, and calorie restrictors. Deficit.
Obesity, deficit.

When the body is in a glycogen-deficient state:
1) It doesn’t have clean energy reserves to pull on
2) Produces stress hormones such as glucagon, adrenaline, and cortisol (as a way to maintain blood sugar levels)
3) Transforms your dietary protein into glucose

Physiologically, your body will do whatever it can to keep your blood sugar stable. Carbs or no carbs, it’s going to work hard to accomplish that for you so you don’t die (to put it bluntly).

This is why when glucose isn’t available or cannot be utilized by the body (think cancer, diabetes, obesity, low thyroid), the body will find a way to produce its own source.
But at a very high cost.
A very stressful cost.
In a very energy inefficient way.
In a way that adds significant stress to the body.
In a way that downregulates metabolic function.

Glycogen Deficit: Real Life Example
During the first weeks of my carb refueling and low-carb recovery, as I started to eat more carbs, my muscles literally ached. Like I’d just run a marathon.
Like someone had punched me repeatedly in the hamstrings.

My muscles were so depleted of glycogen that they soaked it up like a sponge.
In came the nutrients, increased muscle mass (just by getting the right fuel, imagine that), a pouring in of electrolytes, my stress hormone levels plummeting (finally), and my glycogen stores adequately replenishing after years of drought.

Nobody talks about the importance of glycogen in the low-carb, carnivore, IF, or keto world.

No one talks about glycogen depletion and how it compromises metabolic health. How it compromises thyroid production. Causes blood sugar imbalances. Increases stress hormone production. Drives many of our “incurable” diseases.

The root of all disease is stress.
Life stress. Relationship stress. Anxiety about health stress. Constant worry. Work stress. Financial stress.
And, the most overlooked cause of stress: metabolic.
Metabolic stress occurs simply by underfueling.
And it is almost always the easiest stress to fix in the shortest period of time.

Why Women Suffer on Low-Carb
Don’t get me wrong, chronic low-carb dieting isn’t good for any man, woman, or child.
However, women tend to experience the carb-restricting side effects sooner and often more intensely than men.
This is because we have such incredible hormone systems. The ability to carry life inside of us makes us much more hormonally complex. It’s our superpower. It’s why we can store glycogen like it's our job in our glutes, thighs, and hamstrings. Because it is our job.
It’s a survival mechanism.
It’s often a sign of metabolic health.
Big hips, thunder thighs, and formed glutes = better glycogen storage. Period.

Women lose glycogen stores in the liver faster than men.
There are a few reasons for this.
One is thyroid hormone production.
Much of the inactive thyroid hormone, T4, is converted to the active thyroid hormone, T3, in the liver. However, if glycogen stores are low, this conversion doesn’t happen.

3 Steps to Restoring Glycogen Levels with Food

(PULS how to build bone strength—bone health is a reflection of metabolic health—with proper nutrition)

Read more

One piece of advice (which will make you a lot healthier, happier, and fun to be around):
Stop regurgitating nutrition claims without knowing how it’s really impacting your physiology.

So many people spout things they hear because they sound good, look good on paper, and make linear sense. When in actuality, it’s completely inaccurate (read: utter horseshit). The nutrition and healing world is teeming with opinions, yet the level of physiological accuracy is severely lacking.

I’ve been there.
This is what my low-carb, carnivore diet was rooted in—information that trendy health practitioners were promoting (albeit I’m sure they’re great people, just preaching the wrong message).
Instagram influencers praising ribeyes over a bowl of fresh mango, monk fruit over honey, electrolyte supplements over carb-rich foods (naturally rich in electrolytes)—unfortunately, this message is completely inaccurate and incredibly damaging to health.
Thyroid blowout sale. Excess estrogen. 2-for-1 deal.

Today I’m going to teach you the physiological benefits of OJ.
A food condemned by every low-carb cult, convinced that juice is the devil.
A blood sugar bomb.
An insulin spiking shit show.
Let’s hope they start walking that one back real soon.
I did, and I’ll never regret it. Never looking back.

OJ is key to healing my thyroid, overcoming my dairy intolerance, and restoring my energy. It’s also an active participant in healing my SIBO and improving diet diversity.
Yes, all of this praise goes to the juice from a baseball-sized citrus fruit, the orange.

Before I teach you the physiology of OJ, I want to offer a bit of advice.
A little nutrition coaching before diving into the good stuff:
The most supportive nutritional dogma I encourage you to do your inner work around is letting go of the idea that sugar = disease, weight gain, cancer, and diabetes.

The ‘sugar is poison’ myth is quite likely the biggest dietary fallacy that fuels our ever-struggling thyroids, low energy levels, failing fertility rates, growing diabetes epidemic, and cancer.

What’s the big deal with OJ?
OJ is literally the most important food in my diet (and soon to be, yours, if you choose to do so).
And, it’s also the most consistent food praise I hear from my clients:
I love the OJ.
I feel so good with the OJ.
I can’t believe how my digestion is healing with the OJ.
I no longer have cravings after adding in the OJ.
It lifts my afternoon fatigue.
Clears my migraine headaches.
What is this magic?

That’s what we’re going to unpack today, the magic, AKA physiology of OJ—how to drink it, why you should drink it, how much you should consume in a day for physiological benefit, and why it's key to overcoming metabolic disease and not the culprit as we’ve been told.

IMPORTANT SIDE NOTE:
To all of my paid subscribers…Starting June 30th, 2026, you will be able to access my courses (worth hundreds to thousands of dollars) on this Substack. The monthly subscription will increase to $10/month, which my wife keeps telling me is a more-than-generous upgrade. I hope so, I want it to feel that way.

Why am I doing this? Basically, giving my courses away for free?
Simple: I want to reach more people and give them access to the health and nutrition care every person on this planet deserves.

Subscribe now

The Physiology of OJ & How I Use It to Heal Metabolism

Read more

Most people fall prey to their cravings (good for you, keep reading to learn why this is a good thing)…
The cardamom custard at the local bakery, the caramel candies in the bowl at the optometrist's office, the pint of Cherry Garcia you couldn’t resist putting in your cart and eating on the way home. When the craving calls, most people answer.

I ignored it. Until I didn’t.
I wish I had listened sooner.
Cravings are your body’s way of telling you something:
There’s something missing, and you need more of it.

I’ve never had a shortage of willpower. This translates to: extreme stubbornness.
I easily say No to things much more than I say Yes.
So, carbs and sugar didn’t stand a chance in my diet when I was low-carb.
Social activities are a 98.9%, No.
Doing things that will take me out of my routine (a routine that I love and keeps me regulated), an easy No.
Getting a tattoo, I love the idea, but hate the heavy metal toxicity reality. Hard No.
If I had a tattoo, it would be of an antique cleaver, my once beloved dairy cow Rose, and an old school milk bottle.
My wife asked me if a tattoo of a heart with an arrow through it, with her name stenciled in cursive, could be added to my fantasy tattoo list. I said, absolutely.

You might not guess, but I’m a classic introvert. A homebody. A socially awkward farmer at heart.
My wife says there’s no way I wasn’t a monk in my past life.
I’ve always loved my alone time.

As a kid, I loved hanging out with my friends, but honestly, I preferred shooting hoops on the paved outdoor basketball court my dad constructed for me out of asphalt, a 10-foot-tall standard basketball hoop, and a leather basketball. For hours, I’d be outside with my basketball—just me and the hoop that stood nearly 5 feet in front of a massive corn field owned by John Linchon, the dairy farmer next door. And not the raw milk kind. Not the regenerative kind. The CAFO kind.

When the wind blew just right, the ripe smell of cow shit wafted into our backyard, compelling my mom to rip the laundry off the clothesline and race back inside to shut all the windows. Some days, the scent was so intoxicating that it made my eyes run.

One of the biggest problems in the world is overcrowding and overpopulation. Of animals. Of humans. And, with those problems comes a massive amount of excrement. Why they don’t teach composting in grade school is beyond me. Instead, they opt for the important stuff, like finding missing side lengths in a right triangle using the Pythagorean Theorem.

I don’t know about you, but I compost animal excrement from our cows and chickens, food scraps, and old meat every single day. I can’t say I’ve ever used the Pythagorean Theorem, however.

If everyone started a compost heap, we’d save at least 50% of waste from entering the landfill (and making its way to India). We’d also have richer soil for our gardens. Cleaner air. No Home Depot Garden Center soil necessary. Pythagorean Theorem.

Cow shit smell or not, most days, unless it was a snowstorm, I was out there, by myself, shooting hoops, saving the world one 3-pointer at a time. If I missed, the consequence was to chase the ball down in the cornfield. The cornfield was about 20 acres wide, so hunting down a 28.5-inch basketball often felt like searching for a needle in a haystack. If you’ve ever gotten lost in a cornfield maze, it’s terrifying, especially to a kid. This motivated me to make every shot count.

All of this is to say that it was easy for me to avoid carbs when I was low-carb. Laser focus. Steel gauge stubbornness. The ace in the hole.

What my hardcore commitment to my decade-plus of low-carb eating got me, however, was not heroic abs or Blue Zone longevity.
What it got me was low thyroid and chronic fatigue.

Full Circle: Why you should listen to your sugar cravings
Sugar, coffee. Sugar in your coffee. These are the most common cravings people have. We’ve been told that our cravings are a sign of weakness. A sign that we lack inner wherewithal, the gusto to just say No.

But cravings are the body’s way of telling you, “Hey, something’s missing here.”

When it comes to carb cravings, your body is telling you it needs more energy. Your energy system, your metabolism, and your thyroid are crashing. Refuel and refuel now.

The most optimal way to refuel is with quick sugar, like a glass of fresh-squeezed OJ with a side of protein. Or, a milkshake.

Where things start to go south with our cravings is when we reach for the insulin-spiking kind of sweets. The type of sugar that also contains PUFA, the very substance that blocks the cell’s ability to take in glucose, a main cause of diabetes.

Learning to listen to your cravings and then making a choice that truly satiates your energy system's needs, choosing simple sugars over complex (read more below to find out what this looks like), is the key to optimal metabolism, thyroid health, and blood sugar regulation.

Don’t ignore these signals. They’re important messengers. You’re not weak-willed, you're underfueled.

Which brings me to…

The Real Cause of Diabetes, Part II
In The Real Cause of Diabetes Part I, I revealed that we have the cause of diabetes backward. Sugar isn’t to blame. Our diabetes epidemic isn’t related to excess sugar consumption. Our insulin resistance is driven by dietary PUFAs. Of course, there are other contributing factors, but PUFAs are at the top of the list for both type I and type II diabetics.

They want you on Metformin. They want you on inuslin. They don’t want you to remove PUFA and heal your metabolism. Medical education is based on a lopsided pharmaceutical-driven agenda. Everything they teach goes back to what drugs “treat” what condition. They aren’t even aware of the fact that PUFA causes diabetes because the “science” they’re taught doesn’t point in this direction.

I discussed in detail how to start healing diabetes and insulin resistance in the first post. I cannot encourage you enough to go back, read that, and start making those changes. Diabetes or not. Removing PUFAs from your diet is one of the most supportive things you can do for your health.

HOW TO OVERCOME DIABETES WITH DIET
Whenever metabolism is broken, as is the case with low thyroid, cancer, and diabetes, quick fuel sources, such as simple sugars, need to sit at the head of the table, not be ignored, condemned, or shoved into the corner.

Read more

The advice I give all of my diabetic and prediabetic clients is completely reversed, a total 180, to the mainstream count carbs and portion control suggestions, and even the holistic low-carb, Carnivore-crazed models.

Instead, I teach them how to eat more carbs, which ones count for improving diabetic symptoms and energy production, and which carbs are best to avoid.

We would expect the diabetic on carbs to be a death sentence.

The interesting thing is,

The more quick-energy-producing carbs they eat (while reducing fat intake), the more stress we take off digestion, and the more glucose their cells are able to utilize as a productive fuel source.

The most important thing with this approach is that they seem to get much better, not worse, as we’ve been told will happen.

Of course, there are other important dietary practices to incorporate, but avoiding simple carbs isn’t one of them. Quite the contrary.

This simple carbs-focused approach to diabetes isn’t something I made up.
In fact, several years ago, I would have called you crazy for encouraging a diabetic or prediabetic to eat more sugar (by sugar, I mean simple carbs like honey, fruit, fruit juices, milk sugar, even organic cane sugar, etc.).

Malpractice. Dangerous. Irresponsible. Just flat out wrong.

But then I started to recover from decades of low-carb eating by increasing my simple sugar intake. Honey, fruit, juice, and milk (rich in lactose, milk sugar) were back in my diet, full force. No restrictions. Still no regrets. Never looking back.

I expected to wreck my metabolism even more. I expected a worst-case-scenario diabetes situation. I expected to feel horrible by eating more of the carb-heavy foods I’d been told for decades would make me more inflamed. Causes obesity. And eventually cause cancer.

But none of these things happened. In fact, I started to feel better.

Low-carb, keto, and carnivore are diets fueled by cortisol-driven stress metabolism. Diets where glucose is shunned. There’s no place for her. She’s not invited, and she is the problem, not the solution.

Low-carb blew out my thyroid, destroyed my sleep, shut down my gut motility, and started to cause blood sugar imbalances.

A decade in, I realized something was terribly off (my genetic default is stubbornness, so I stuck with low-carb far longer than my body was advising).

Eventually, I started researching the physiological truths about low-carb, learned what actually fuels healthy metabolism (read: optimal energy levels, sleep, mood, digestion), and I quit low-carb, cold turkey.

I started eating more simple sugars: fruit, OJ, and honey, without counting carbs, without restriction, without thinking I need to go for a run to burn it off. My sleep improved, my energy was regained, and my digestion improved in ways I thought I’d never recover. All with the main approach of eating more simple carbs, the type of carbs we’re told to avoid, and by removing ALL PUFAs from my diet (more on PUFAs—polyunsaturated fatty acids below—the real diabetes culprit).

During my low-carb recovery research, I stumbled upon medical literature and real case studies from pre-pharmaceutical times. And there it was, case after case of diabetes and other metabolic diseases, including hypothyroidism, cured by increasing sugar intake.
Over 20K diabetes cases cured by increasing sugar, not restricting it.

Why is nobody in the modern medical field talking about this?
Same reason they don’t talk about real cures for any other condition, there’s no money in it. And people get better and untethered from their system. They escape. Free and clear. No more medical debts to be owed. No more pharmy scripts to be written. No more medical procedures needed. Medical freedom. Their business model depends on your failing health, not on real cures.

Today, the forgotten “sugar cures diabetes” case studies — done on real diabetic patients — sit buried under mountains of pharmaceutical-funded research. You have to look really hard, keep digging, fine-tooth-comb stuff, have a needle-in-a-haystack vision, and keep following the breadcrumbs to find them.
The stubbornness gene does have its perks.

Let’s take a look at what unbiased research points to regarding diabetes.

THE 2 ROOT CAUSES OF DIABETES
(type I and type II)

1. PUFA excess

2. Stress metabolism

PUFAs & DIABETES

Diabetes, pre-diabetes, and insulin resistance are not issues related to excess sugar consumption. It is not a disease of gluttony. It is not a disease of sugar overconsumption. How many diabetics and pre-diabetics do you see housing down a hunk of honeycomb? A glass of freshly squeezed OJ? A heaping bowl of juicy mango? A pint of homemade ice cream with honey drizzled on top?
How many diabetics eat jam out of a jar?

The answer is none of them.
Unless it’s with a side of fat: fried dough, pastries, pie, or French fries.

Sugar doesn’t cause diabetes. PUFA is the real culprit.

THE PUFA DIABETES CONNECTION NO ONE SEEMS TO TAKE SERIOUSLY
Historically, rates of diabetes rose dramatically during the same period that industrial seed oils rich in PUFAs became common in the food supply.

The story we’re told about PUFAs…
They told us to eat more seed oils to reduce the risk of heart disease.
We believed them.
Swapped butter for margarine.
Went all in on Crisco, grapeseed oil, flaxseed oil, corn oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, and fish oil to protect our ailing hearts.
A “positive” side effect: lowers LDL cholesterol.
All championed as “heart healthy.”
The rate of diabetes has gone up 1,000% (actual statistic, not exaggerating) since the introduction of PUFAs into the diet.
The diabetes epidemic was born.
75% of diabetics die of heart disease.

It seems to me like we have all the research, facts, and information we need to treat and prevent diabetes. The “we need to do more research to find a cure” line is total nonsense (to put it nicely).

THE PUFA DIABETES CONNECTION DEEP DIVE
When I create a nutrition plan for my diabetic clients, type I and type II, I not only have them increase simple carb intake but I have them reduce total fat intake (even keeping the healthy, saturated fats to a minimum level) and have them avoid PUFA.

Here’s why:

The diabetic state reflects impaired carbohydrate metabolism that improves when fat, especially in the form of PUFA, not sugar, is reduced.

Long-term, consistent intake of PUFAs interferes with glucose oxidation, causing cells to become more insulin-resistant.

When you remove the PUFA, the cells start taking in sugar more efficiently.

This is why a simultaneous dietary approach that increases simple sugars while eliminating PUFAs and reducing overall fat improves diabetic conditions.

PUFA destroys beta cells, mimics estrogen, causing weight gain, particularly around the abdomen, chest, and upper back, and restricts the cells ’ ability to utilize glucose as a fuel source. It also triggers hypothyroidism.

Now you know how to reverse diabetes, a disease caused by bad dietary advice, Big Ag, subsidies, and the modern food system.

DIETARY SOURCES OF PUFAs
Diabetes or not, I encourage everyone to put down PUFAs. Stop eating them. They aren’t essential. They’re the most toxic substances in the modern diet. Period.

Sugar over PUFA T-shirts for all.

Now, I’m pretty much a farming monk. I don’t get out much. And that’s for the sake of my own sanity and nervous system regulation. But when I happen to find myself in the middle of a PUFA conversation at a social event (it actually happens more than you’d think; last week’s social convo was about how all almonds in California are irradiated), the other person is swearing they don’t eat PUFAs. “Oh no, I don’t cook with seed oils. Wouldn’t touch the stuff,” they say.

I shake my head and nod.

I think to myself…That’s a fantastic start.

But PUFAs in the diet include far more than just seed oils.

PUFAs are ubiquitous in our food system.
A bag of raisins with added sunflower oil (why not?); boxed cereal coated in sunflower/safflower and/or corn oil (they couldn’t quite keep track of which one they used so they listed several); 99.9% of restaurant food; 99% of packaged food; the diets of chickens and pigs are PUFA heavy—you eat those animals (no, organic doesn’t matter; all organic chicken, eggs and pork are lagely fed a diet rich in PUFA); fish oil supplements, fatty fish (“heart healthy” AKA the inuit survival diet that we’ve turned into an “anti-inflammatory,” “heart healthy,” ancestral savior), nuts, seeds, nutbutters; the holy grail of seeds: chia, flax and pumpkin.
All teeming with PUFA.

Did I mention anything soy?

Or the “anti-inflammatory” oat milk, always with added vegetable oils (can you milk an oat?).

Peanut butter? PUFA.

Almonds? PUFA. (with an added side of radiation).

That was the short list.

YOUR DIABETES REVERSAL PUFA CHECKLIST
If you eat out at restaurants…
(The more frequently you eat out, the more PUFA is stored in your tissues.
PS, it takes the body 2 years to detox 50% of the PUFA from your tissues—this, of course, depends on whether you’re simultaneously avoiding PUFA. Engaging in the PUFA Detox is an incredibly powerful way to start preventing and overcoming diabetes).
If you eat nuts, seeds, or nut butters…
If you eat packaged foods containing ANY nut, seed, flax or seed oil…
If you’re gluten-free and only eat desserts with almonds, pecans, or pumpkin seeds…(I’ve been there)
If you take a fish oil supplement…
If you eat fatty fish…
If you eat poultry, eggs, or pork (that isn’t labeled “low PUFA”)…

You are likely avoiding seed oils. But, you certainly aren’t avoiding PUFA.

The average person consumes around 20-30g of PUFA per day.

When PUFA intake is consistently above 5g, your risk of these main health issues will drastically increase:
Diabetes
Cancer
Low thyroid
Weight gain
Calcified arteries
SIBO
Age-related macular degeneration
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

DIABETES PLAN OF ACTION
1) Lab Work.
Learn what labs you need to really understand your blood sugar and diabetes risk. Fasting glucose isn’t enough. But MDs routinely rely on fasting glucose levels as a diagnostic tool for diabetes. I list my lab work recommendations for diabetes below for all paid subscribers.

2) Avoid PUFAs Starting Yesterday.
Join The PUFA Detox, a go-at-your-own-pace course I created to help you understand PUFAs, how to avoid them, and most importantly, how to detox them from your cells and tissues to help prevent and overcome metabolic diseases such as diabetes and low thyroid.

3) Book a 1-on-1 Nutrition Session
Get the 1-on-1 support you need to start improving blood sugar issues in a way that truly supports metabolic healing.

Stay Tuned: Next week, Part II: Why increasing simple sugars in the diet improves diabetes + metabolic diseases like low thyroid.

Read more

How much I enjoy honey in my coffee…
My newfound love, chicken piccata…
How I broke out in sobs at the end of Barbara Kingsolver’s Demon Copperhead…
How the medical system thinks calcification issues are a result of too much calcium in the diet…
How people are making thousands to millions from leptin reset protocols when leptin resistance is really code for low thyroid function…

Which brings me to today’s matter:
Leptin resistance, the real cause.

You can also deep-dive into this topic by tuning into my Eat Heal Farm podcast episode, "The Real Story Behind Leptin Resistance."

Subscribe now

What is leptin resistance, and do you have it?
Leptin is considered the satiety hormone. When working properly, it communicates with your brain (the hypothalamus), sending clear signals for hunger and satiety.

Modern thought (including many holistic health circles) believes that when this signal is faulty, your brain constantly tells you that you’re famished, triggering overeating, weight gain, and low energy. And, if this signaling system isn’t functioning optimally, then you have leptin resistance or are leptin resistant.

Treatment of leptin resistance
(Bear in mind, this isn’t a Western medical diagnosis; your doctor won’t diagnose you with leptin resistance, but you may hear these words uttered during a holistic health visit).

Many holistic health practitioners and biohackers have developed “treatment” protocols to address leptin resistance, the most common being fasting, low-carb diets, and intensive cold therapy. The outcome of this approach is all too familiar: seemingly short-term health gains that actually make matters worse in the long term.

Here’s one way low-carb diets and long-term fasting weaken metabolic health:

The body’s preferred, high-octane fuel source is glucose.

When glucose is fully burned with oxygen in the mitochondria (oxidative metabolism):

1 glucose→≈30–32 ATP

This is what healthy metabolism looks like.
It’s efficient, oxygen-rich, thyroid-supportive, and produces ample CO₂.
Think: Longevity. Vitality. Energy.

When you burn glucose as fuel, you experience positive metabolic side effects: warmth, calmness, good digestion, stable mood, restful sleep.

When glucose isn’t available as a fuel source, as is the case with low-carb, carnivore, fasting, and going too long without eating (even skipping lunch, for example), adrenaline and cortisol production are amped up. You may experience these symptoms as shakiness, a dip in energy, migraine headaches, irritability, sleeplessness, muscle soreness, muscle weakness, and/or feeling tired but wired (to name a few).

When you run out of glucose and glycogen, the body releases stress hormones because it thinks you’re in trouble. It thinks food is scarce. Calories aren’t available. Go into starvation mode. SOS.

This is stress metabolism.
This is what happens during fasting, low-carb, and carnivore dieting.

In stress metabolism, adrenaline and cortisol flood your system, shutting down efficient ATP energy production and instead catapulting your body into survival mode by:

Raising blood sugar, depleting glycogen stores in the liver, increasing the circulation of free fatty acids (often in the form of PUFAs), increasing muscle breakdown, suppressing cellular repair, and, long-term, depleting bone density.

In stress metabolism (anaerobic glycolysis) :

1 glucose→2 ATP

Now, math was never my strong subject, but it’s pretty obvious that anaerobic metabolism (aka stress metabolism) is dramatically less efficient than the glucose-burning, oxidative energy production of:
1 glucose→≈30–32 ATP

When stress hormones are circulating in the bloodstream, they change the way your body makes energy. This is not the body’s ideal way of producing energy; it’s the body’s back-up, emergency, starvation mode energy production system. It’s highly inefficient because it wants you to fight-or-flight rather than heal, digest, procreate, and repair.

The ancient ancestor obsession movement
Our ancestors called upon this emergency, survival-mode energy-production system out of necessity. During real food famine. They did it out of survival. No grocery stores. No refrigeration. No cars. Horses were the main mode of transportation. Many experienced periods of dietary drought out of true food scarcity — something modern humans with iPhones, grocery stores, and Amazon don’t experience.

Ancestral living and eating have become quite hip. Paleo this, carnivore that, some sort of biomat for an electron boost. We’re on a mission to be more ancestral. And, I think there’s a lot of good in that approach—less screen time, more time in the sun, more time in nature (if you can find it), more time relating vs scrolling…

I live in a rural village surrounded by nature. Just before writing this, I had to shoo two bull snakes away from my cats. Or rather, shoo my cats away from the bull snakes. I milk our dairy cows. I hike behind our house, where no other soul has stood before. I don’t own a cell phone. I avoid crowds. I make these choices not because my Great Granny Elsie did it, but because they regulate me. They make me feel good. They calm my nervous system. They make me feel alive.

Our romanticized ancestral diet approach has fueled unnecessary suffering and survival metabolism through calorie restriction, fasting, and low-carb dieting (I’ve been there) as a means to health, vitality, and longevity. However, our ancestors didn’t practice these now-trending ways of eating to improve their health. It was their only choice. We’ve idealized ancestral food scarcity and turned it into a heroic health practice. When, really, it fuels stress metabolism and low thyroid function — the root of most chronic diseases, including leptin resistance.

Diet trends always end like a bad breakup: heartache and disappointment, with a side of weight gain. Or, weight loss so dramatic you’ve become infertile, osteoporotic, and need to create a new hole on your belt.

A more accurate take on “leptin resistance”
Leptin resistance is a side effect of low thyroid function. If you correct the thyroid, leptin signaling naturally improves. By focusing solely on correcting leptin (which is impossible without improving the thyroid), as many leptin reset courses do, you miss the root of the problem: the thyroid. Not only does focusing on leptin reset miss the mark, but the prevalent leptin reset approaches, such as fasting, low-carb dieting, and balls-to-the-wall cold therapy practices, also deplete thyroid health in the long term, worsening your metabolic health, not improving it.

I go into detail as to why the low-carb, fasting, and hardcore cold therapy approaches create more “leptin resistance” (read: low thyroid function) and why short-term gains are just that, short-term, in the podcast and paid subscriber video below.

Read more

A dinner party with a plate of shrimp tacos, spicy chipotle salsa, and heaps of tortilla chips sautéed in beef tallow—taco juices running down hands and along forearms—while casually talking about our broody hen Harriet, who just wants to be a mom, Georgia—our 9-month-old Jersey calf—full of piss and vinegar, and how most people’s cholesterol is too low, not too high.

I could spend all night talking about hens, calves, and farm life—but today cholesterol gets the spotlight.

Because, like most things in modern medicine, the industry has this one so incredibly wrong it’s not even funny. It would be funny—if it weren’t actively harming millions of people.

The uncomfortable truth

Most people’s LDL cholesterol—the so-called “bad” cholesterol—is too low, not too high.

We’re told that 100 mg/dL is “optimal.”
If you’re labeled high-risk? They want you under 70 mg/dL.

That’s not protective. That’s dangerously low. Like, shortened lifespan low.

What low LDL actually feels like

When LDL drops too low, people don’t feel “heart healthy”—they feel:

• Weak, fatigued, and chronically exhausted

• Low or nonexistent libido

• Run-down, getting sick easily

• Anxious, wired, or depressed

• Foggy, forgetful, mentally dull

• Digestively off—bloating, constipation, discomfort

This is the real story about lowering LDL that your doctor won’t tell you and likely doesn’t even know due to pharmaceutical + statin-focused “education” models. The doctor is indoctrinated.

How low is too low?

Read more

Read more