PCOS and Hypothalamic Amenorrhea: what’s wrong with the contemporary understanding, and how women can have both

PCOS and hypothalamic amenorrhea are two specific, different diagnoses. Most medical professionals would never dream of diagnosing a patient with both. Nevertheless, my research, personal experience, and work with clients have demonstrated without doubt that millions of women suffer from both. PCOS and Hypothalamic Amenorrhea: Why People Think They’re So Different The majority of women … Read more

Phytoestrogens in the Body: How Soy Interferes with Natural Hormone Balance

Soy contains a certain kind of molecule called a “phytoestrogen” that acts like estrogen in the body.Health professionals disagree strongly about whether phytoestrogens are healthy for women to eat. Is soy (and flax, another potent phytoestrogen-containing food) the fountain of youth, or is it a toxin? What is a phytoestrogen? Phyto is Greek for “plant.” … Read more

Women Losing Weight: How I’m a Liar, and Why My Method of Weight Loss is Actually Hard as Hell

Many people liked my post on the Happiest, Healthiest, Easiest Weight Loss in the World. The idea is simple: restore proper hormone function by nourishing the body and eliminating food toxins. This type of weight loss is happy because there’s no psychological damage, and body image issues take a back seat when health is prioritized. … Read more

Carbohydrates for Fertility and Health

I spend a disproportionate amount of my time telling women to eat carbohydrates. In the paleosphere, it is incredibly common to eat a low carbohydrate diet. Plenty of people use low carbohydrate diets to lose weight, to sharpen insulin sensitivity, and to reduce appetite in the short term. A low carbohydrate diet can also be … Read more

Book Review: It Starts With Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig

Let me begin my review by stating outright that I don’t like most books, philosophies, and things. It’s a matter of quality in a vast variety of realms. Intelligence, rationality, common sense, scientific-coherence, clear communication of ideas. Love, feminism, equianimity, no-nonsense approaches to life. Hard-hitting and real and down-to-Earth all at the same time. These … Read more

Paleo and Amenorrhea: How Extremity Can Make even the Best Diet Fail

The volume of emails I receive from women who start having menstrual problems on a paleo diet is staggering. It is not an enormous volume, no. But it is enough to give a woman pause. What gives? Aren’t we supposed to be healthier on a paleo diet? Yes, we are, and really, we are. In … Read more

The Physiology of Women’s Weight Loss Part II: Appetite and Weight Regulation

In the first post I wrote on the physiology of women’s weight loss, I focused on the role estrogen plays in fat stores. I noted at the end of the post that estrogen is involved with sending appetite-regulating signals to the brain. This is an important factor in female weight loss. Men have hormonal feedback … Read more