Many of our readers and listeners have heard me talk about the zinc and copper relationship. Have you delved into how copper is involved yet? My guest today shares everything from the importance of minerals to how the iron recycling system works. Today's guest, Amanda Montalvo, RD, is a women’s health dietitian that helps women get to the root cause of hormone imbalances and have healthy menstrual cycles. Amanda started off her education in nutrition with the traditional route, but after dealing with her own health problems after getting off hormonal birth control she quickly realized the value of functional medicine.   After healing her acne, balancing her hormones, and learning the value of her menstrual cycle, Amanda found her purpose—to help women create a body in balance and not settle for anything less. Join us as we discuss minerals and WHY so many get iron wrong. Have you been told you're anemic and want to look into your copper or Vitamin A status? Tell me about it in the comments! In this episode: How mineral imbalances affect the whole body How do copper and Vitamin A regulate iron? Organ meats- should you supplement? Beta-carotene versus retinol Opinions on utilizing hair mineral testing to see the overall picture of stress and mineral levels Different labs to ask your doctor for Quotes “Iron is in our tissues. We need to get it into the blood. How do we do that? We have different proteins that are moving it around, but those proteins need enzymes. Those enzymes are just making a reaction happen and that's where the minerals come in, right? Minerals are spark plugs for reactions in the body for enzymes.” [6:56] “As estrogen goes up, hepcidin will also increase, and then that means we have less iron absorption in the gut. So, you can look anemic when you have high estrogen, but in reality, you're actually storing a lot of iron. So, hormones can definitely impact our iron status as well." [20:06] Links Connect with Amanda Montalvo online Follow Amanda on Instagram Find out if you’re at risk for Mineral Imbalances with her FREE mineral quiz HERE Healthy Skin Show ep. 163: Iron Deficiency Skin Rash Healthy Skin Show ep. 169: Why Is Zinc So Important For Your Skin?