Dr. Katie Takayasu initially pursued a path in traditional Western medicine, but as her own health issues began to be evident, she took a step back to assess what would get to the cause of her symptoms rather mask the problem.She has built a practice that is rich is evidence-based medicine that combines both Western and holistic approaches to treat the whole patient.   Dr. Katie teaches patients the value of optimizing their lifestyles - how we eat, how we move, how we sleep, and how we attend to our spiritual selves.  Dr. Katie Takayasu is also the author of the book Plants First - A Physicians Guide to Wellness Through a Plant-Forward Diet, which is sold at booksellers and on Amazon. We spoke quite a bit about the gut-brain connection.  Dr. Katie often recommends gut-based hypnosis for her patients.What is in Dr. Katie's shopping cart?Bitter greens - Arugula, Swiss chard, kale - bitter greens are also good for the liver for bile productionCoconut yogurt -Getting some healthy fat and protein at breakfast is recommended, as it may help you stay more satiated throughout the day, so you eat less.Kombucha as an alternative to wine - 4 ounces or so may "take the edge off" of wanting alcoholOne to two ounces of  tart cherry juice mixed with some seltzer and lime is also a good cocktail alternative (natural source of melatonin)Katie Takayasu, MD, MBA has a private practice Wellness Insights in Stamford, CTLearn more about her Integrative Health approach and detox plan at https://www.drkatie.com/Dr. Katie on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/doctorkatie/Follow Asking for a Friend on Social media outlets:https://www.instagram.com/askingforafriend_pod/https://www.facebook.com/askforafriendpod/Please provide a review and share. This helps us grow! https://lovethepodcast.com/AFAF