Brenda Gregory is a functional medicine nutritionist who works with Integrated Psychiatry Austin and is the founder of Energized Wellness. She combines the science and philosophies of functional and eastern medicine to get to the root of client health complaints, from issues of healthy weight, autoimmunity, dysregulated mental health, and chronic pain. With the belief that food is medicine, Brenda always leads her consultations around diet. She discusses with her clients which foods may be helping as well as harming and finding the best course of action, all while implementing a mindful approach. Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: ●      [02:24] “I’m always in the deep end.”            “I’m careful with my decisions,” says Brenda. “But once I decided this is it, I’m going in—at least up to my neck.”            Brenda shares her journey toward better health, which began at birth when she was found to have a severe case of pneumonia mere hours after coming out of the womb. She suffered the lasting effects of a compromised microbiome for the first three decades of her life before being encouraged to go gluten-free.Her life was transformed and it uncovered a newfound passion for nutrition and its effects on the body. ●      [11:08] What’s the deal with gluten?            “Gluten is the protein portion of wheat, rye, and barley. There is gluten in corn and rice but those don’t seem to be as problematic.”Those with celiac disease aren’t able to eat gluten because it will damage their small intestine. Depending on the person, celiac may cause digestive issues or fluctuations in emotion. Food sensitivities also emerge from foods escaping the small intestine without being adequately broken down due to celiac.Brenda shares how she deals with clients who have gluten sensitivity or intolerance and how she typically structures an elimination diet. ●      [22:34] Stress and digestive health            Most of Brenda’s clients come to her with either digestive or mental health issues. Brenda approaches each case essentially the same way.“As a practitioner,” says Brenda, “everything comes back to the gut biome. We’re looking at your symptoms, we’re looking at your sleep, we’re looking at your bowel movements.” She even goes in-depth on stressors in their lives, which she says make a huge impact.Brenda combines mainstream Western medicine with traditional Eastern medicine. “I love, love, love herbs for helping to heal the gut,” notes Brenda, adding that she tries to minimize her clients’ dependence on capsulized supplements. ●      [37:30] Addressing hypothyroidism through the gut            “90% of hypothyroid—underactive thyroids—are Hashimoto’s. Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune condition. It’s a condition where your immune system attacks your thyroid and begins breaking down the tissue—tissue you never get back. It’s very, very damaging if you don’t get it under control.”            A lot of doctors try to prescribe medication to those with hypothyroidism. True to her commitment to pinpoint root causes, Brenda prefers to ask why the immune system is tearing down the thyroid in the first place. And in order to address the immune system, we have to address the gut, because the gut controls the immune system. ●      [42:15] Potential problems with veganism            Whenever Brenda has a client who is a vegan, she always asks their reason for being so. If it’s for an ethical or moral reaso Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.