[bernadette]

Hi  – what type of IUD do you have? And can you please share your iron markers: iron, ferritin, TIBC, and % saturation

I also want to encourage you to watch this short video on the risk factors of iron deficiency to help you start thinking about the possible root causes in your case specifically. It’s not always iron related.

And then watch this video for solutions on how to correct an iron deficiency (if it’s truly a need for more iron). Cooking in a high quality cast iron skillet like the Lodge brand can also help bring on board more iron.

Of course, I am going to encourage you to increase heme based iron from animal sources, because they are superior to non-heme plant sources in terms of absorption and bio-availability.

Don’t kill me, but please please please try my liver pate recipe. If you like butter, you’ll likely enjoy this recipe. Spreading a little on a cracker or sourdough bread every day can really help boost your levels of not only iron, but B vitamins, vitamin A, copper, and zinc. True superfood. Plus the butyric acid in grass-fed butter is pure love for your colon. 

[bernadette]

 I’m so happy to hear that you’re gaining some clarity! THAT is exactly what I want for all of you here in B Better.

Can you please share why you believe you need digestive enzymes after watching the videos? The reason I ask is because I truly want you to get to the root cause, and often times, enzymes simply offer rapid relief until you address the actual root cause.

Keeping the North to South approach in mind, are you sure it’s not stomach acid support that you might need instead? Or perhaps bile support? When in doubt, I prefer to start with digestive bitters since these will stimulate all digestive secretions, including digestive enzymes. It covers a wider base than only digestive enzymes. I like Quicksilver’s Dr. Shade’s No. 9 and this is available in B Better’s Fullscript dispensary. You’ll need to create an account here.

[bernadette]

based on the scan, all 3 immune nutrients (zinc, vit A & vit D) are low which makes me question nutrient intake (diet) and nutrient absorption (gut health and more specially liver/gallbladder health!). The videos I shared above will help you understand why.

Do you consume animal proteins? Do you get regular sun exposure?

[bernadette]

 so yes, I do recommend water filtration but the type really depends on your geographical location and current municipal water guidelines/standards.

In my Beginner’s Health roadmap, I have a pillar all about hydration, the different types of water sources, and the common water filters available.

If you don’t have time to watch it all, then I suggest you watch this video specifically to understand the 2 common types of water filters, how to test your water, and brands of filters and certifications I recommend looking for.

Please let me know if this helps and if you have any other questions. Happy to help you find the perfect filter for your needs. ❤️

[bernadette]

Hi  – I’m so excited you’re here with us too!

Just a few pointers about the community spaces since I noticed you posted this comment in the IBS post thread… no biggie. I know it takes some time to get used to the forum.

If you notice on the left (from computer desktop view), there’s a left-side panel with different “themes/topics” or what we call “spaces”.

For any health-related questions, please create a new post in the “Ask Your Questions” space. (I’ve linked it for you here) To create a new post, there are 2 places to do that which I’ve circled in red in the image below. Once you click on ‘new post’, a pop-up will appear and you can type away, add a cover, images, etc.
[image.png]Hope this helps!

[bernadette]

Hi – would you mind sharing your latest thyroid results please? Given what you’ve shared so far, I would be curious to know the status of the following markers:

-Iron, ferritin, TIBC, %saturation
-RBC zinc, serum copper, ceruloplasmin
-vitamin D
-vitamin A

Also, do you take any medications and/or supplements? If so, can you please provide a list so that we can have a broader perspective of possible contributing factors?

As Daniel mentioned, the gut is definitely playing a major role with all of your symptoms. If you have the time to watch the Gut Health Masterclass in its entirety, please do so. Otherwise, you can watch the summary videos of “how digestion works” and “how it dysfunctions” for now.

And since your immunity is affected, I would also recommend watching this video here discussing how the microbiome health impacts immunity, and then this video for some solutions to help support gut immunity.

Hope this helps. Let’s keep this conversation going…

[bernadette]

Hello Joanie – welcome to B Better! I’m so thrilled that you decided to join us and we will do our best to help you overcome your struggles with IBS and continue living a healthy and vibrant life!

To be able to help offer rapid relief solutions, can you please share if you struggle with more days of loose stools or constipation in a week?

If you have the time to watch the Gut Health Masterclass, please do so. The “nuts & bolts of how digestion works” section, will help you understand the major players responsible for proper digestion. If you don’t have the time, then please watch the summary video here. And then it will help to watch how easily dysfunctions happen or just the summary of the dysfunctions video here if your time is limited.

IBS is typically caused by multiple causes:
• dysbiosis (imbalance in gut microbiome), pathogens, SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), and perhaps immunosuppression (ex. stress, medication, viral challenge). Have you checked your vitamin D, RBC zinc and vitamin A levels? Have you ever done a functional stool test like the GI map?
• Maldigestion (poor eating hygiene/frequent snacking, insufficient stomach acid, enzymes, and/or bile) – the videos above will explain this well.
• Food sensitivities or intolerance (are you consuming dairy and gluten? these tend to be the worst culprits)
• Dysmotility (ex. stress, hypothyroid, a need for magnesium, chronic stress)
• Estrogen dominance 

The first step is to address digestion from a North to South perspective. You’ll understand what I mean by this once you review the videos I shared above. If any of the 3 major players of digestion are affected (stomach, liver/gallbladder (bile), pancreas) it will impact everything down south and lead to IBS symptoms. Please take this Gut Health Quiz and let us know your score so we can help provide more targeted solutions.

I’ll leave it here for now and wait to hear from you. Let’s keep the conversation going…

Tagging you so you see my response:


[bernadette]

 please keep us posted with your results. We’re here to support you.

[bernadette]

generally yes, but as always, the best way to know what’s best for your unique needs is to test both iodine, selenium and thyroid antibodies. I share how to test for iodine here.

[bernadette]

 thank YOU for your lovely message. It’s my pleasure to be able to help guide and support you and your family.

Please email support@bernadetteabraham.com with the following details and we’ll help you get access to the OAT test:

-email address
-her name
-her date of birth
-shipping & billing address (if they are different)

[bernadette]

 yes, it’s the correct one. The one I bought must be a new branding, but the dosage per capsule and formula is the same.

IAG is something I keep in my medicine cabinet (actually in my fridge) for immune support, so I always have it on hand. It’s not essential for the protocol, but it’s always my go-to for times when my kids get sick or extra immune support is needed…

[bernadette]

Hello  – welcome to B Better! Yes, those are the supplements I shared in my post on UTIs.

I cannot tell you what dosage to take specifically since we aren’t working on a 1-1 basis, however I can share my own protocol and general guidelines for prevention and acute situations:

Here’s the protocol I used to stop a brewing UTI infection in 3 days, and luckily not need antibiotics (your needs may be different and dosage should be discussed with your practitioner):
1.  Uva ursi (leaf): 4 capsules (~2g), 3 x per day with LOTS of water. Very important for flushing out the bacteria!
2. D-mannose with cranberry: 2 capsules (~1g), 2 x daily

On day 2, I was still feeling the twinge, so I added in 1 tsp of Biotics Research IAG powder (arabinogalactans), 3 x per day, to help my immune system fight off the brewing infection.

Day 3: UTI gone!

Of course dosing needs to be discussed with your practitioner but generally speaking:
• 1-2g daily of D-mannose has been shown in literature to help with prevention (if someone is prone to UTIs) and 1-2g, 2 x daily to help counter an existing infection.⁣
• Similarly, 1-2g per day of uva ursi and should not be taken longer than 7 days

⁣⚠️ NOTE: While d-mannose is quite safe for everyone, uva ursi is not recommended for children or those with liver disease.⁣

Hope this helps.

[bernadette]

Hi  – Dr. Google will scare the best of us, and so I just want to put your mind at ease that her labs are not that scary. In fact, it is normal for white blood cells to be higher and differentials to be skewed after an infection (even after a week), and I would not solely rely on these markers since her body was clearly still fighting an infection.

Just for your knowledge, higher basophils can indicate parasitic infection, and higher lymphocytes can indicate acute or chronic viral/bacterial infection.

A high ferritin is also the body’s way of sequestering iron to prevent feeding an infection, so it’s also a normal reaction when someone is sick.

Hair loss after an illness is also unfortunately normal, and usually settles itself in a few months if that was the reason.

But to be proactive, I would recommend retesting her when she’s feeling 100% herself again (if she doesn’t mind being pricked – that’s also a concern with children), and also checking her thyroid markers, and the following markers given the hair loss:

-Thyroid: TSH, Free T4, Free T3, anti-TPO, anti-TG, Reverse T3
-Vitamin A
-Vitamin D
-RBC zinc, copper, ceruloplasmin
-Iron, ferritin, TIBC, % saturation
-Urine test to check if there’s any infections

If your finances allow, I really like the OAT test (organic acids) for children. Especially that you suspect yeast overgrowth on her skin, it provides the biggest bang for your buck. It checks yeast and bacterial markers, and gives some indications if mold is present, as well as measures key nutrients needed for methylation and detoxification. It costs $349 USD plus shipping. Here’s a sample report.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

[bernadette]

Hello  – severe anxiety following an infection is usually due to a need for more tryptophan – an essential amino acid protein that we cannot make, but need to get through food.

So question #1 to you – do you consume enough animal & plant protein sources rich in tryptophan? Here’s an expanded list of foods rich in tryptophan.

Given that you have hypothyroid function, stomach acid production may also be compromised since everything in the body becomes “sluggish” with underactive thyroid function. We need good strong stomach acid to break down our proteins from food, including tryptophan and other amino acids which are critical for neurotransmitter production (and regulating mood!).

So from a root cause approach – how would you rate your overall digestion and gut health? Given your recent bout of food poisoning, I suspect low stomach acid might be at play since stomach acid acts like a “cleansing tank” preventing pathogens from entering our GI tract.

Supplemental support with hydrochloric acid betaine (if confirmed there is no H. Pylori bacterial overgrowth) or digestive bitters might help offer rapid relief. Have you ever done a comprehensive stool test like the GI map to get an idea of your gut health? I know you’re new to B Better, so here’s the video on GI map interpretation inside the Gut Health Masterclass to give you an idea of what this test offers.

So going to back tryptophan for a minute… it helps with mood and sleep. Has your sleep also been affected?

When we get sick, our immune system needs support. Tryptophan helps with immune activity, so instead of those resources being used to make neurotransmitters like serotonin, which help us feel calm, and sleep well, it will instead be used up to support immunity.

Here’s a diagram that shows these 2 pathways where tryptophan is used in the body. When there’s an infection, the body shifts tryptophan away from the right (down the serotonin/melatonin pathway) and instead shifts it to the left down the “kynurenine” pathway, leaving a person feeling more anxious since low serotonin will lead to anxiety and poor sleep.
[Image]
Increasing your animal protein intake (if it’s been low) and/or supporting digestion (stomach acid), or supplementing with tryptophan with B6 its cofactor might help. You can search for it in the B Better Fullscript dispensary. Here’s one possible supplement option.

For rapid relief, you can also try the ice water face dunk to stimulate the vagus nerve and parasympathetic process or some of these other tips shared in this post. Gargling and humming can also help as they all stimulate the vagus nerve.

Please let me know if you have any questions. Let’s keep the conversation going and get you feeling better again soon.

[bernadette]

just to clarify – I’m referring to vitamin D3, not D2