The Gut-Brain Connection: Unlocking the Secrets to Optimal Health

Taylor Knese, a board-certified nurse practitioner specializing in gut health, shares her personal journey and expertise in functional medicine. Discover the importance of gut health and how it impacts overall well-being. 

Key takeaways include:

1. Importance of Hydration: Learn how staying hydrated can improve gut function and overall health.
2. Magnesium Supplementation: Explore the benefits of magnesium for muscle cramping, sleep, mood, and bowel movements.
3. Choosing Quality Supplements: Understand the significance of selecting high-quality supplements and the impact of storage conditions.
4. Mediterranean Diet: Discover the benefits of the Mediterranean diet for a balanced and diverse approach to nutrition.
5. Whole Foods Diet: Embrace the power of a whole foods diet for nourishing your gut and promoting a healthy microbiome.

 Are you ready to take control of your gut health and experience the benefits of a balanced microbiome? Start implementing these tips today and watch as your digestive health and overall well-being improve. Don't let gut issues hold you back from living your best life.

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John & Erin

Episode Transcript

Taylor (00:00):
I had all of these new chronic conditions.

(00:01):
I felt terrible every singleday.
And then to boot, no one couldhelp me.
No one could tell me why thiswas happening.
No one could tell me what to doabout it.
All they kept doing is here, trythis medication and nothing was
working.

John (00:26):
Hi, I'm John.

Erin (00:28):
And I'm Aaron.
You're listening to connect andpower the podcast that proves
age is no barrier to growth andenlightenment.

John (00:36):
Tune in each week as we break down complex subjects into
bite sized, enjoyable episodesthat will leave you feeling
informed, entertained, and readyto conquer the world.

Erin (00:49):
We'd like to welcome our guest today, Taylor Taylor is a
board certified nursepractitioner who decided after
her own health struggles to helpother women rewrite their health
story with the power offunctional medicine.
Taylor specializes in guthealing.
She performs in-depth testingand creates targeted healing

(01:10):
protocols.
She truly believes that ahealthy gut is the single most
important health asset a personcan have.
Her goal is to teach women howto heal themselves so they can
share their wisdom and theirstrength with others.
let's warmly welcome our guest,Taylor Knies.
Thank you, Taylor, for beinghere today.

John (01:30):
Welcome.

Taylor (01:31):
Thank you guys so much.
for having me.
I'm very excited to be here.

Erin (01:34):
This is a topic that's often talked about in our home
because there are a bunch ofdifferent allergies we're, we're
excited everybody has a storyand just curious about your
story and what led you down thefield of gut study, right?

Taylor (01:47):
Yeah, the fascinating field of the gut.
Yeah.
absolutely.
so I am a board certified nursepractitioner by training and
through my own health journey.
That's what led me to functionalmedicine.
I want to tell you, a little bitabout that because I feel like
whenever you understandsomeone's story, you can really
learn about a lot, a lot abouttheir why.
Why they, why they do what theydo and why they want to do it so

(02:11):
well.
so about 6 years ago, whenever Ihad my daughter, well, really,
she's 7 now, but, about 60 yearsago, shortly after having her, I
had.
Developed a lot of really,really chronic symptoms that,
weren't really well explained bythe conventional care models.
So I was experiencing lots ofabnormal bowel movements.
I had a lot of joint pain.
I had really bad plaquepsoriasis on my scalp and I had

(02:34):
never experienced psoriasis myentire life.
So this was very new for me.
I had developed new onsetasthma, which is very odd.
You don't usually develop asthmaas an adult.
I was not sleeping well, andquite frankly, I was very
depressed and very anxious, andit was a really, really rough
time for me.
I specifically remember onemoment, that was just like that

(02:55):
breaking point for me, and I wasIn the shower.
And I remember I was trying towash my hair.
Something that is just sosimple, but I had so many scabs
on my scalp from my plaquepsoriasis that I could not even
put my hands through my hair ortouch it with shampoo.

(03:16):
And it almost brings me to tearsstill.
'cause I just remember thismoment and I just sat down and I
cried.
I couldn't even wash my hairhere I was.
Didn't feel, years later that Iactually saved myself.
So it was really just acompilation of different things
in my life, like nutrition andlifestyle and working with a

(03:37):
therapist and like working on mymindset and also, moving past
some past traumas that I wasactually able to find some
relief, but I wasn't all the waybetter.
And then it wasn't until Istumbled upon gut health and
started understanding, like, howimportant that is and that it
could be causing my symptoms andthen started doing all the

(03:59):
things to improve my gut health.
That was the missing piece forme for everything.
So I could do all of thesenutrition, these lifestyle
things, all of the therapy inthe world.
And while it was improvingthings, it wasn't completely
solving them.
It wasn't until I found thatmissing piece got help.
And now, what I hope to do is tobe that person that I really

(04:21):
needed way back when.
I really needed someone to reachout their hand and say, Hey sis,
I know what's wrong with you andI can help you.
And so now that I have managedto make it to the other side and
improve my symptoms in such away, that's been so beautiful
for me and for my family.
I want to just share that witheveryone and, there's a lot of

(04:44):
noise out there in the healthand wellness space.
And what a, a great position Iam in to have had this
conventional medicine backgroundto then be an authority in this
space, someone who has thatexperience in conventional
medicine to say, I know that youhave been seeing provider after
provider because I used to bethat provider.

(05:06):
I used to refer people all overthe place, but let me tell you,
there's a better way.
And then I can actually walkpeople through the steps that I
went through to improve myhealth and include that gut
healing journey for them andreally turn things around.
So I know that that was a longwinded answer.
But to condense my story, it wasmany years in the making.
But I'm happy to say that nowthat I'm on the other side, it

(05:29):
feels really good.

Erin (05:30):
just to have that willpower too, right?
You just had a brand new baby.
Your hormones all are all

Taylor (05:36):
All over.

Erin (05:37):
then to have that, to be going, Okay, I need to do
something.
No one's doing anything.
That's some strength, right?

John (05:45):
And, and I love your story because some of the most
powerful businesses, startbecome and become really, really
successful because somebody hasexperienced.
What you're going through.
It's just not just didn't go tocollege and learn all this and
how to help and get this degree.
You've actually experienced it.
So it's really neat how yourpassion has created this, this

(06:10):
set of skills and you're goingto be able to help so many
people.
So I want to open this up byasking a few questions.
Like, what are some of the mostcommon gut issues that are faced
by all of us out there?

Taylor (06:25):
Yeah.
I think whenever we talk aboutgut issues, you think about your
very typical ones, right?
You think about like diarrhea,you think about constipation and
sure most of us experience thatnow and again, and some of us
more than others, but what youdon't think about is the common
symptoms.
That don't seem like they'refrom the gut and usually those

(06:46):
are like skin rashes, acne.
It could be fatigue, chronicfatigue, joint pain, brain fog.
the list goes on and on.
And I know that we're going toget into this and like the
mechanisms like behind this andwhy that happens.
But, that dysfunction can lookdifferent for everyone.
It can look very classic or itcan, it can look like mood

(07:08):
disorders or some of the othersymptoms that I mentioned.
So the most common ones I see.
I would say are the diarrhea,constipation, food sensitivities
are another very common one thatI see.
And then a lot of mood changesand brain fog.
Those are very, very common in alot of my clients.

Erin (07:26):
and it gets confusing too, right?
Cause you're like, is it yourhormones?
Is it cause you're aging thatyou're doing this?
to relate it to your gut, it'soh my gosh, that's not the first
thing I think of.

Taylor (07:36):
Yeah.
And let me tell you somethingbeautiful.
if your gut health is not.
Working properly, your hormonesaren't going to either.
It really is just like thisbasis of so many other actions
and processes that happen in thebody, like without having a
healthy gut, you can't reallyhave.
Anything else working orfunctioning properly?

Erin (07:57):
and the lack of sleep, when you said that, I'm like, I
am tired.
And sometimes I'm like, if Iwork out, I'm tired.
I'm like, why am I tired?
If I'm eating healthy, if I'mworking out, why am I still
tired?
So maybe I have a gut issue Ijust don't know about, you know?

Taylor (08:10):
Yeah.
and it could be that you're, youdo have some, and we can, again,
we can go deep into this, itcould be that you have an issue
with stomach acid and you're notbreaking down your food
correctly.
I always like to tell clients,it's not just.
What you're eating.
It's are we digesting andabsorbing what we're eating?
We can be eating all the rightthings, but if our gut isn't
working properly and we're notdigesting the foods, we're not

(08:33):
synthesizing the vitamins thatwe're supposed to be, then it's
not, it's not going to then giveyou energy, right?
You're not going to be able torecover like you should.

John (08:43):
And I have to, you know, I know we have a lot of questions
and a lot to go through today,but one of the things that I
think changes too, that a lot ofpeople aren't aware of is as we
age, our ability to digest ourability to process certain foods
or fiber or whatever.
Really changes and slows down,right?

(09:03):
And then the way that a lot ofthe foods being modified anymore
is starting to create.
Allergens that maybe we didn'thave when we were younger
because our bodies were becomingmore and more sensitive as we
age where, you know, when you'reyoung, you're almost
bulletproof.
You can eat anything, drink allnight, stay up, whatever, right?
Don't sleep.
But yeah, but as we get older,our bodies aren't as forgiving.

(09:26):
Our bodies say, no, you've eatenway too much of this or.
This isn't agreeing with yourbody and we really truly have to
listen to it.
We have to listen to what ourbody's telling us because if we
don't, then it is going tocreate so much adversity in our
lives from being able to focus,being able to sleep, everything,

(09:46):
you know, so I'm sorry I threwthat in there.
I know that was a little off.
Oh no, don't ever be sorry.
I mean our conversations willgo.
Cause then, I mean you just kindof, we start talking about this
and I was like,

Erin (09:58):
wait, what about this?
And wait, let's go back to ourgut and how do I know and when
do I go to the gut specialistand how do I get to a gut
specialist?
And, and so a list of questionsare coming.

Taylor (10:08):
Yeah, but you're, you're so right, though, you're, you're
spot on is like, as we age,things do change.
But I think that a lot of thatcomes from the life that we've
lived, the foods that we haveconsumed, the toxins we've been
exposed to, that sets you up fordifferent conditions.
And, A different path, right?

(10:28):
So we all start with, these veryresilient guts.
We have the microbiome thatwe're born with, whether we're
born vaginally or value Csection, you're set up with a
different microbiome.
And then we all have experiencesas a child.
We're exposed to differentbacteria through dirt or
brothers and sisters or school.
we're all exposed to differentthings.

(10:49):
But generally speaking, we'reborn with a gut that's
resilient.
And then over time, dependingon, like you mentioned, like all
the different types of toxinsthat are in our food or
chemicals, like those cause alot of inflammation, which then
leads to, breakdown of the gutlining and the mucosal barrier,
we're all on differentmedications and that can lead to

(11:10):
further dysfunction of the gut,so there's an artificial
sweeteners.
the list just goes on and onabout.
it really has to do what pathdid you take throughout your
life?
And that's what then sets you upfor these different digestive
issues or problems and evendepression or anxiety as you
age, later on in life.

(11:31):
yeah, you're spot on with that.

Erin (11:32):
where does somebody start?
So if I'm listening to this, I'mlike, yeah, I have some of those
symptoms too.
My doctors have just brushed itoff.
Where do I really start?
Do I call my primary caredoctor?
Do I just change habits?
What's, what would yourecommend?

Taylor (11:49):
Yeah.
I think that's an excellentquestion to ask too, because in
conventional medicine, Althoughthere are a lot of new studies
coming out and there's a lot of,great universities doing a lot
of great research on gut health.
It's not necessarily wellrecognized in the conventional
community.
it can be a little bit difficultwhenever you recognize and, that

(12:11):
you have got dysfunction or animbalance and and your guide
and.
You can't really talk to anyoneabout it, right?
Not not the traditionalpractitioners.
So you do have the option ofworking with a functional
practitioner and, or and or gothealth coach.
There's a lot of us out there,who are willing and ready to
help.

(12:31):
But I do think that it's alsoimportant to keep your primary
on board with any kind ofchanges that you're making,
especially with our agingpopulation.
Because the last thing that youwant to do is take a population
that already has polypharmacy.
They're already on so manydifferent medications for
different conditions and maybenot everybody, but the majority
of the aging population.

(12:52):
And then add a bunch ofsupplements willy nilly.
Hoping that they're going toimprove the symptoms.
And so I think, especially inour aging population, it's super
important to again, workalongside your primary, make
sure they're involved and thenwork along alongside someone
like a functional practitioneror a gut health coach who can
help you move the needle.

(13:14):
And improve the symptoms withoutthen increasing your risk for
bad outcomes.

John (13:20):
Yeah, that makes sense.
You know, I, I've always advisedpeople to it's sometimes helpful
if you keep a log right of whatyou're eating throughout the day
and then how you feel because alot of information can come from
that.
And then when we meet withsomebody like you or somebody
else in the health care, ourprimary physician or somebody

(13:41):
else, it's like, you know, Thisis kind of a record of what I've
done the last three months andthey can say well We noticed
that on the days that you'resaying you don't feel good
You're having an extra cup ofcoffee or you're having too much
gluten those days, you know Somaybe we need to do a test for a
gluten allergy or whatever Isthat is that correct or that is

(14:04):
that a good suggestion or?

Taylor (14:07):
I think it's a great suggestion.
The problem, the only problemis, is that in conventional
medicine, there's not always thetime that's needed to be able to
discuss these things with yourprimary.
And coming as someone who usedto be a primary care provider,
and for the elderly, I had moretime than a lot of other
providers do get and a lot oftimes we only have 20 minutes

(14:27):
with our patients and so it canmake it very difficult to have
the time to go through lists andto help them discern what maybe
could be contributing to theirsymptoms.
And so I think that's why a lotof the times and conventional
medicine people get brushed off.
It's simply because not justbecause conventional medicine
practitioners don't have thetraining sometimes, but they

(14:49):
don't have the time.
And so I think in theseinstances, it would be prudent
or maybe a good idea for,someone to maybe ask for a
referral to a nutritionist,someone that can spend a little
bit more time with them, reallydiving into their diet, looking
at their macronutrients, theirmicronutrients, and then even
tying some correlations forthem.

(15:09):
okay, like you mentioned, okay,every single time I get, Okay.
I eat gluten, I get terriblebrain fog, I get terrible
digestive symptoms and you canmention that to your primary and
they can do testing for celiac,which you can develop later
later in life.
And a lot of people do, througha cascade of events that can
happen.
Remember what I was talkingabout with the different paths

(15:30):
that each person takes, but.
Your primary is not going to beable to sit down and say, Hey,
Lucy, you're sensitive togluten.
we're going to do some tests tosee if you have celiac, but
let's sit down and let's talkabout what are some gluten
alternatives.
What are some things that we canhave you implement now that will
start helping you move theneedle and feel better.

(15:50):
And a lot of times in primarycare, they don't have.
And so a lot of times what youend up with is go gluten free
for six weeks, see if itimproves your symptoms.
If it does, then great, staygluten free.
Now that's good advice to anextent, but when you have a
population that That is newer togluten free foods.

(16:13):
Are they choosing the rightgluten free foods, right?
Are we choosing things that aregoing to nourish our body and
not cause more inflammation justbecause something is marketed as
gluten free doesn't mean thatit's good for you.
And so I think that there's likethat, that disconnect, That
happens.
And that's where someone like anutritionist, if you were
looking to get things coveredunder insurance, or again, like

(16:36):
a health coach can really comeinto play and make.
A huge difference for you.

Erin (16:42):
I, I, yeah, I'm learning a lot.
I just keep talking.
Don't stop.

John (16:49):
It is, it is such a, It is, such an interesting thing
cause I know firsthand, right?
That, the challenges of havingissues with, with all kinds of
different.
You know, and it is, it isfrustrating because like Aaron
can eat whatever she wants andhave no issues whatsoever.

(17:10):
But, you know, I'm subjected tothe same tasty food and I have
to avoid it or I'm going to pay,you know, so, and I, I wasn't
aware of that, but.
I never had issues with glutenwhen I was young, but now I do
never had issues with corn whenI was young.
And Aaron brought something upjust recently that maybe she

(17:30):
learned from somebody.
I don't know who she learned itfrom, but she said, you know,
sometimes when you.
Quit eating something like forinstance, I was having all these
allergic reactions from gluten.
I quit eating them and then oncein a while, I'd reintroduce them
into my diet and I had a farworse effect than I ever had
before and it was like, that'sbecause you quit eating them.

(17:53):
So now your body's used to nothaving them in there and when
you reintroduce them, it's goingto make you pay.
Is that true too with

Taylor (18:02):
I would love to talk about food sensitivities for a
second.
So let's take five stepsbackward really quick for our
listeners.
For anyone who is strugglingwith food sensitivities, I want
to talk about the mechanismbehind this, because I think
that this is a really commonproblem with the majority of the
population and especially withour elderly folks, right?

(18:22):
What happens whenever youdevelop a food sensitivity is
there has to be leaky gut,right?
So there, there has to be thatmechanism at play.
And so for anyone who doesn'tunderstand what leaky gut is,
it's when our intestinalmembrane, which usually
transfers nutrients and bloodthrough the capillaries, through

(18:42):
that intestinal membrane, itbecomes too permeable, like
permeability in itself isnormal.
We expect that anatomically.
That's what we want because wewant it to be able to perform
the processes that that it'ssupposed to.
But what happens in leaky gut isit becomes too permeable and
then food particles.
Poop particles too, and toxinscan leak back out into the

(19:02):
bloodstream.
And so then what ends uphappening is our body creates a
response, an immune response tothat food, because food is not
supposed to go back into thebloodstream.
And so the next time you eatthat food, you then experience
strong symptoms to that food.
going with what you said, it'spossible that maybe you were no

(19:23):
longer desensitized or theimmune system had time to build
up more, more antibodies againstthat food.
And then the next time you ateit, you get this very strong
response.
And so I think whenever we startnoticing symptoms to a certain
food, and then we cut it out,it's that immunity starting, or
it's the antibodies starting tobuild up to that food.

(19:44):
And so the next time we eat it,we get this very strong systemic
reaction, and it's notanaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis is somethingcompletely different.
It goes through a differentcascade.
But whenever we talk aboutsensitivities, you can actually
end up with cramping.
You can end up with a lot ofgas.
You can end up with diarrhea.
Sometimes it can be hives ifyou're having a histamine

(20:05):
reaction to a food.
It's really all encompassing.
It could even be brain fog, butas we go into that food
sensitivity talk, I felt like itwas important for people to
understand, like, why do we getfood sensitivities, right?
And then that leads you to, howdo we get rid of them?
And you can, I'm here to tellyou, I used to be allergic to

(20:27):
nearly every single fruit andvegetable.
I would get terrible stomachcramping.
That would just take me out forhours.
Felt nauseous, felt like Ineeded to throw up, go to the
bathroom, do the whole nineyards, but my body wouldn't do
any of it.
And it was through healing mygut and actually fixing that
intestinal membrane, helping thegut lining heal that actually

(20:48):
then resolved the foodsensitivity, because then that
food particle isn't going backout.
You might still have thatAntibody reaction if your gut
becomes leaky again, becauseit's happened before, but if you
can heal and seal the gut, whichis what I do with clients, then
those food sensitivities goaway.

John (21:09):
it sounds like you need to heal and seal.
I like that.
I do.
I am so glad we are talking toTaylor today because I'm all
about

Erin (21:18):
that.
And What's the process somebodygoes through when they were to
say meet with you?
What are the testing?
Cause to me, like I had a newlittle procedure done today.
I'm like, I'm really nervous.
And she's Oh my gosh, this islike no big deal.
This is what happens.
And so do we come, is it bloodtests?
Is it saliva tests?
Are you going to stick somethingup my rear end and figure

(21:42):
something out?
I don't, a little scope or

Taylor (21:45):
It's a, it's a, it's a stool test.
and again, for your listeners,like it is, it's similar to
something like a blood occulttest.
So whenever you take your fittest in every single year to
test for blood in the colon, andyou have to put your, your stool
on the card, and in my case formy clients, what I do is I have
them, I send them a kit in themail and then they actually,

(22:07):
collect their own stool sample,put it into a jar with Some
liquid that's already in there.
They just follow theinstructions and then they shake
it up really good, send it back.
And then I actually get like afull report on everything going
on within their microbiome.
So it's pretty cool.
And I don't know, should wetouch on the microbiome and

John (22:27):
oh yeah, yeah, for sure.
By the way, you're getting oneof those from me.
I'm going to request a kit.
I got to

Erin (22:32):
I was waiting for you to be like, Ooh, that's right up my
alley.
a

Taylor (22:36):
I need this.

John (22:37):
Sounds like a really crappy job.

Taylor (22:41):
Yeah, it's pretty crappy sometimes.
No, I'm just kidding.
so the microbiome, I like tothink of it.
As like a bustling city, likelots of people living there.
They're all performing differentfunctions in life.
It's really, really similar tothat.
Okay.
but the microbiome itself, it'smade up of different bacteria
and we have some bacteria thatlive there.

(23:02):
They thrive there.
They perform important functionsand then we have some bacteria
that really shouldn't be there.
But usually if we have a lot ofgood bacteria, it keeps it in
check.
So think about it like a bigcity and we've got the good
neighborhood, bad neighborhood,but everything's in check.
Like we've got a good policesystem where nothing too bad is
happening whenever themicrobiome is balanced.

(23:23):
But what can happen sometimes isthrough diet and lifestyle and
stress and a lot of those kindof common root causes I see, is
you can end up with a reallyimbalanced microbiome.
And that is usually what leadsto a lot of the symptoms that we
discussed at the beginning.
A lot of the digestive symptoms,of course, but also a lot of the

(23:46):
brain fog, depression, anxiety,skin rashes.
It's all because of thatimbalance, and we call that
imbalance dysbiosis.
Okay?
a normal, healthy microbiome is,thriving, it's doing everything
it should, and, let's go backto, like, when you're a baby,
and you, Got this really healthyintestinal tract, and
everything's as it should be.
Let's say you had abreastfeeding mom, and you got

(24:08):
all the good gut bacteria.
that's, the ideal situation.
But then you grow up, and you,you throw, cosmetics.
You throw stress.
You throw crap food.
You throw a busy society.
You throw bad sleep,overworking.
You throw all this in, andthat's where it gets imbalanced.
Yeah.

John (24:28):
so interesting.
So, you know, throughout my lifeand stuff, I have faced
different gut issues and I'malways concerned about it
because I'm like, Oh man, nowI'm going to need to go to my
primary care physician.
to get a referral to go see aspecialist.
And, I'm going to have all theseissues.
So, yeah.

(24:49):
In order to correct some of theissues with common gut problems,
such as mine or maybe others.
Can they be resolved somewhateasily, or is it a really
complex, expensive process to gothrough to find out to get us
back to where our gut biome is,is correct, and our lining is

(25:12):
healthy Is it expensive to dothat, or can you do it with some
help like somebody like you andsome guidance?

Taylor (25:20):
Yeah, I think it depends on the route that you go, and it
also depends on the level ofimbalance.
So there's times where there'sjust a slight imbalance and you
can achieve rebalancing thoseimbalances just by eating
better, getting enough fiber andmaking sure that you're getting
enough polyphenols, likecolorful foods, like berries,
like strawberries, blueberries,Exercising, sleeping well, all

(25:44):
of these things contribute torebalancing the microbiome,
right?
And then there are certainsupplements that if they're
approved by your primary, theydon't interact with your
medications, which most don't.
Then you can go ahead and startthose at home.
however, if you have a verysignificant case, of dysbiosis,
let's say, like I can just thinkof a couple of clients off the

(26:07):
bat.
So if we have a really, bigovergrowth of like yeast or we
have H.
pylori, those might actuallyrequire supplements with
supervision.
And I wouldn't recommend doingthat on your own because the
question then becomes, when doyou stop those?
because just like medicationslike antibiotics,
antimicrobials, even naturalones can also destroy good gut

(26:30):
bacteria.
So I think in those situationswhere you're really trying to
get rid of overgrowths, it'simportant to be under the
supervision of some kind ofpractitioner so that this way
they can help guide you and helpyou determine what's the
appropriate amount of time thatwe need to be on this, this
supplement, even if you're goingto go the natural route because
everything has an endpoint.
Where you should stop, right?

(26:50):
Because if we stay onantimicrobials forever, which
like, if you go down the Googlerabbit hole, you'll probably
find different antimicrobialslike Manuka honey.
Manuka honey is great.
You can get it at Costco andit's great for getting rid of a
lot of overgrowth and especiallyH.
pylori.
We can use that as a naturalantimicrobial, but the problem
becomes is whenever we overuseit.

(27:11):
So I think that.
It's like a two, two ways thatyou can think about it.
It depends just on the level ofdysbiosis that's going on in
order to get that assessed.
You do need to start withtesting.
And, if, if your symptoms of gutdysfunction aren't too severe.
You can certainly start at home.
And what I will say is if youcan't afford to work with a

(27:33):
functional practitioner, youcannot go wrong with improving
your lifestyle, decreasing yourstress, improving your
nutrition, like getting enoughfibrin or the polyphenols I
talked about.
it can be affordable, it justdepends on that level of
imbalance that is present and,and how severe are your

(27:53):
symptoms, have you beenstruggling for seven years with
severe digestive issues and theyjust keep getting worse and
overall, your quality of life isterrible, it might be worth
working with a functionalpractitioner, but if you have
intermittent diarrhea orconstipation, generally feel
pretty good.
Yeah, you could probably do someof this at home and for, a
pretty affordable price.

John (28:14):
Great.

Erin (28:15):
Between cortisol as well as hydration, do those play
major parts as well as far asgut health?
Or it's just kind of like, theseare on the side, just be aware,
stay

John (28:26):
Well, hydration of course is important, I think.

Erin (28:28):
But I mean, overall, but for gut, just how much does it
help when we do stay hydrated,

Taylor (28:33):
Yeah.
So two separate questions.
So let's start with hydration.
Hydration is extremelyimportant, not just for
ourselves, like our in order forour body to perform necessary
functions, we have to behydrated, right?
but specifically for gutfunction, hydration is extremely
important because we neednecessary hydration to then

(28:54):
evacuate our bowels.
And I find that this is actuallya very common issue.
And older populations is thatthey don't drink enough water.
They just don't.
I can't tell you how many peopleI've seen where we go over.
They say I'm drinking enoughwater.
And usually their husband orwife is next door going, no, you
don't.
You have four glasses andthey're full of ice.

(29:17):
And so a lot of times, I know wewere going to talk about some of
that, the more common kind ofconditions I see in our older
population.
And 1 of them is constipationand, we can think about that as
our, something very simple.
Are we drinking enough water?
Because water is necessary tomove things through the bowels.
and then to touch on thecortisol.

(29:38):
Cortisol is our stress response,right?
Cortisol is also inflammatory.
But I don't want to paint thisnegative picture of cortisol
altogether.
I feel like in the health andwellness space, yes, cortisol is
a huge problem for people,right?
Because again, it's, it's veryinflammatory.
It's our stress hormone.
But cortisol in and of itself isgood.
When we are in a stressfulsituation, we need cortisol to

(30:01):
then step, stimulate oursympathetic nervous system.
We need it to be stimulated.
We need to be able to react todanger.
So we think like stress hormonesin and of themselves are meant
to get us through stressfultimes.
But the problem with cortisol isthat our bodies don't understand
the difference between runningfrom a lion Or like writing a

(30:24):
really stressful email.
And so we can have these verychronic high levels of cortisol
just happening in our body thatthen leads to systemic
inflammation, which then itconverts to inflammation in the
gut.
Yes, absolutely affects the gut,but on the other side of that is
if we're living in a chronicstate of stress, which is

(30:47):
something that a lot of myclients deal with, and I have to
work really hard to help themmanage their stress better,
because the fact of the matteris we live in a society where
stress isn't going to go away.
We just have to learn how todeal with it better, right?
So that this way, our body isnot constantly in the stressed
out state, but.
With digestion, we have to be ina relaxed state for that to

(31:10):
work, right?
So if we are constantly in astressed out state, digestion is
not going to work.

Erin (31:16):
Yeah, I was going to go back to hydration.
What do you recommend?
Is, I know we always hear likethe eight glass, 16 ounces, is
that still accurate today

Taylor (31:26):
I would say no.

Erin (31:28):
No?
Okay.

Taylor (31:29):
Yeah, I would say no.
and and this is like acontroversial like subject too.
and especially with our olderpopulation, whenever you have
heart disease, or if you'restruggling with high blood
pressure, you have congestiveheart failure, certainly talk
with your primary care physicianabout what you're taking at
home.
Again, just like a caveat.
This is not like medical advice.
But, when we are eating a veryhighly processed diet, we have a

(31:52):
lot of sodium in our diet.
That sodium is not hydrating us.
But if you start eating a verynatural whole food diet, you
then start to need to supplementwith sodium.
And in those cases, you cansupplement with electrolytes to
then help with cellularhydration.
Because it's not just aboutDrinking like plain water all

(32:13):
day.
We also want to make sure thatwe're getting the necessary
minerals in with that.
So like adding just like asimple lemon and like a pinch of
sea salt to your glass of water.
It'll help nourish your adrenalsactually, and which produce the
cortisol.
So if you're very stressed out,like even more so you should do
this, but also it's going tohelp improve your hydration.

(32:33):
So like.
When we're trying to hydrateeffectively, that is something
easy that you can do is add justlike a squeeze a lemon and pinch
of sea salt.

John (32:41):
Sea salt.
So it can't be any other salt.

Taylor (32:43):
ounces a day.
I forgot to mention that.
Yeah.
So most of the time I recommend90 ounces a day.

John (32:49):
So you did say sea salt.
So there's a lot of people thatare on this Himalayan salt or
different salts, but it's

Taylor (32:56):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Let's get specific with thatone.
So Celtic sea salt isspecifically what I'm talking
about.

John (33:02):
Okay.
Good to know.
I didn't know that.
What, what is that?

Taylor (33:07):
Celtic sea salt.
It's from a specific part of theworld.
So it's just helpful for, it's ahigh quality salt that's helpful
for hydration.
Yeah.
Yeah.

John (33:15):
Great.
Okay.
Taylor.
So one of the questions that Iknow I have and a lot of other
people are going to have isthere's been this huge thing all
over the news and books writtenabout it and the correlation of
your gut being your secondbrain.
And, so I'd like you with yourexpertise just to touch on that
a little bit to kind of explainthat maybe help us connect some

(33:38):
of those dots, if you would,

Taylor (33:40):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I love this question too,because this is one of those
symptoms that I was talkingabout earlier, like the anxiety
and the depression, this issomething that I usually have to
tie together for patients andfor clients is to make that make
sense for them.
And so I think 1 important thingto understand is that nearly all

(34:00):
of your feel good hormones aremanufactured in the gut and
those little.
Microbes that I was talkingabout, those little bacteria,
they have a lot to do with,producing the serotonin that's
necessary to feel good.
And then that serotonin thenbreaks down into melatonin, and
then that's how we get to sleep.
And so if you have thisimbalance going on, you're not

(34:21):
going to be producing thehormones that are necessary to
feel good.
So that's like 1 mechanismthat's at play here is you have
to have a balanced microbiome tohave the hormone production to
then feel good.

John (34:36):
That's so incredible because, because we don't think
of that sometimes you justthink, Oh, I have a stomach ache
or gosh, I'm bloated orwhatever.
Right.
But it affects truly so much ofour lives in a huge way.
You know, I've been

Taylor (34:50):
huge way.

Erin (34:51):
I've been hearing more about magnesium too, and the
need to supplement that now ishow do you

Taylor (34:56):
Yeah.
Oh, yeah.
No, I am a huge advocate formagnesium and, because of our
farming practices, our soil isextremely depleted of the
minerals and magnesium.
That we need.
And so magnesium is usually oneof the first supplements that I
start with my clients.
And that's because we can reallyuse it for everything.

(35:17):
It helps with muscle cramping.
It helps with sleep, helps withmood, and it helps with bowel
movements.
So you really, really can't gowrong.
Now finding a good qualitymagnesium supplement is
important because a lot of whatyou can get over the counter is
just going to be your basicmagnesium malate or oxide.
you really want to know whyyou're taking it.
Okay, so something likeglycinate is going to be great

(35:39):
for sleep and for mood and thensomething like citrate just for
anyone listening who isstruggling with constipation.
I know we touched on that.
That's going to be great for forconstipation.
Magnesium in itself, though,usually ends up being one of
those supplements that Irecommend that people take long
term because you're just notgoing to be able to get it from

(36:01):
your fresh food like you used tobe able to because it's no
longer present in the soil atthe levels that it once was.

Erin (36:09):
Magnesium.
I've been hearing about that fora couple of years.
So I was like, Hmm, I, I've beentold at it just a little bit,
and see how you feel.
And you touched on even justyour, your mood,

Taylor (36:21):
Yeah.

Erin (36:21):
it affects your mood.

John (36:23):
Sometimes Erin just shocks me with how much knowledge she's
able to retain in this.

Erin (36:29):
let me see if I shock you with this one.
because of my daughter and herceliacs, she had, one of her
primary care doctors say it'salso important on those bottles.
a lot of filler in them, butthere are specific codes to look
for And I can't remember for me.
I've been searching for this.
I need to go back to her doctor.
Maybe, you know, but there'sthree letter words that are on

(36:49):
there.
there's two or three differentones saying that it has been
processed.
It's gone.
I, I.
just can't remember.
So

John (36:55):
they're almost like codes of how it's been

Erin (36:58):
Like they've gone through the whole FDA process.
They've been like, they legithave what they say they have in
it.
And not some of the other onesthey say they

Taylor (37:06):
Oh, you mean that it's third party tested.

Erin (37:09):
may be, that's what it is.
They're a

Taylor (37:11):
yeah.
Yeah.
and you can look for usuallyit's like a circle with a slash
through it.
No filler.
So you can look for ones like,there's lots of different codes
they'll put on them.
So it's hard to know.
there's also one for glutenfree, corn free, dairy free,
there's different signs for allof those little like symbols on
there, but.
To touch on that, it'sdefinitely very important.
Anytime you're looking for asupplement is that you research

(37:33):
the company that you're goingthrough.
And I think especially in ourolder population, I think that
they're so guilty of this.
And I see this in practice isthey will order their
supplements online from a placelike Amazon, which, I don't want
to bash on But here's theproblem.
What happens When someone ordersa supplement and they then

(37:54):
decide that they don't want it,they then send it back.
How many hours outside did itsit on their porch?
How many hours did it then sitin their humidified bathroom?
How long was the transit back tothe warehouse where it was then
put back into a place where itwas temperature controlled?
So I think you have to be reallycareful buying your supplements

(38:14):
online.
One, you have to research thecompany, make sure that they
have third party testing thatguarantees what they say is in
there is in there, right?
We want to make sure thatthere's nothing additional in
there.
You want to look for things likeheavy metals.
And you want to look for thingslike what did they say is in
there and did the third part,the, the, oh, my gosh, I can't

(38:35):
say it.
The third party test.
Did it say that it's in there?
And then the other thing is youwant to make sure that you're
buying from someone or a storeor an online storefront that
guarantees that they're storingtheir supplements in a correct
temperature controlled facility.
If you notice on the back ofthese supplements, most of them

(38:55):
say store in a cool, dry place.
And I'm telling you, if someonereturned their magnesium to
Amazon in the middle of summerin Texas, it probably was not
stored in cool, dry weather.

John (39:10):
You know, these, these are all such interesting things that
a lot of us don't think about,you know, a lot.
And even though we're alltrying.
So hard to advocate forourselves or the people that we
love.
This is such important awarenessfor people out there, you know,
to start really thinking aboutthese things because most of

(39:31):
these things I haven't thoughtabout.
I have another one you might besurprised about.
Here we go.
liquid liquid form or solidform, which is better?

Taylor (39:40):
As, so anytime you can get liquid, it's going to be
more readily absorbed, butcapsules are not bad.
So in the order of what I woulddo, I typically do capsules for
ease of use.
It's honestly the next bestthing.
what I wouldn't recommend isgummies.
Yeah, lots of fillers, yourbody's not going to absorb them

(40:00):
the same way as you would if youtake something like a capsule
powdered form, or a liquid andyou can actually open most
capsules and sprinkle them intoa smoothie or in your food and
then take them that way as well.

Erin (40:14):
That was one of my other questions because I know I've
debated this, Sorry, mom, butthe capsules, when you open
them, I've been told they'rethere to protect you or time
release.
And so be very careful about notdoing that.
Is that true too?
Or like you say, you can't popthem open.
They're going to do the samething.

Taylor (40:30):
it depends.
So I just want to clarify forour listeners.
Please do not open up yourcapsules for prescription
medications and start sprinklingthem on your food unless you
check with your pharmacist 1st,because there are certain
medications that do have acapsule for a reason.
It does delay the releasebecause they're made out of
different.
Compounds that delay the releaseor allow the release right away.

(40:52):
But whenever it comes to certainsupplements, the majority of
them you can open, but it'salways best to check with the
manufacturer to make sure thatyou can do that.
So for my clients who can'tswallow pills, I typically reach
out to the manufacturer.
Even me knowing most of the onesthat you can, I always double
check.
I always message themanufacturer and say, Hey.
These are the ones I would likemy, my patient or my client to

(41:15):
start opening and putting ontheir food.
Is this okay?
Can they put this in theirsmoothie?
Is there any reason I shouldn'tbe doing that?
You always want to check becauseultimately the manufacturer is
the one who's going to have theinformation on the absorption
that's going to happen if you'regoing to open it, right?

Erin (41:32):
Now with technology nowadays.
is there any kind of tools orresources or just different
things people can use to reallykeep up like these, whether it's
tracking, whether it'ssearching, whether we're self
diagnosing, I don't even reallyknow, but I know technology is
playing a lot in healthcare andhow is that in gut health, a gut

(41:54):
app That's what she needs.

John (41:55):
needs a gut app developed by

Taylor (41:58):
I, if there's anyone listening who develops apps, if
you could reach out [e-mail] No, I'm just
kidding,

John (42:04):
Right?

Taylor (42:04):
no, I think that's such an excellent question.
and I don't know of any reallygreat apps that are specifically
set up to improve.
Your gut health through atracking system, but what I do
know is there's a lot ofnutrition apps, right?
You can log a lot of your foods.
And so if you're working with anutritionist, you can use like
my fitness pal or something likethat to start logging what

(42:28):
you're eating and like you hadmentioned, like bringing a list
of foods into your provider andsaying I noticed whenever I eat
this, it causes this.
actually there is an app thatyou can, I'm thinking of the
name.
Okay.
Okay.
I'm blanking on it.
I can get it to you after theshow, but there is an app that
you can start logging the foodyou ate, the symptoms you got

(42:50):
after, and that could be helpfulfor starting to discern which
foods you should maybe avoidduring your healing period.
But what I don't want people toget mixed about is taking the
food away.
Even if you've had a foodsensitivity test and you've had
a blood test and it says you'resensitive to this, that and the
other.
Remember what I told you aboutthe mechanism behind why that's

(43:13):
happening.
Taking away the food is notgoing to solve the problem.
It might solve your symptoms,but it's not going to solve the
problem.
temporarily removing.
Say it again.
Yeah.

Erin (43:24):
that a quiz?
Was that our leaky gut?

Taylor (43:27):
Yes! Yes.

Erin (43:29):
What, what, what, what?

Taylor (43:31):
The amount of knowledge you have.

Erin (43:35):
I know, I'm

Taylor (43:36):
I know.

John (43:36):
Yeah, it's crazy.
Teacher's pet.
So before, we've kept you solong, and I really appreciate
everything, all the, all theknowledge that you've shared
with our listeners, especiallymyself, because I've learned so
much, but one of the thingsthat, you know, I wanted you to
just kind of touch a little bit,and you don't have to go really
deep into this, but, A lot oftimes people are talking about

(44:00):
different diets and fads andstuff.
Is there any, anything that weshould stay away from attempting
to do?
Like there are people that havegut issues and, and I'm just
trying to educate people so thatthey go, gosh, maybe I should
stay away from this.
If I'm having gut issues like ahigh fat diet or a high protein

(44:21):
diet, Are there any diets thatpeople should stay away from?
Or is there like theMediterranean diet or something
that maybe people should look ata little bit closer?
That's a healthier way to treattheir gut.
What do you,

Erin (44:35):
what do you think?
Wait, can I answer it for you?
She's gonna say, I recommend,but consult your doctor.
Okay, we can delete all of

Taylor (44:51):
it on there.
so I think that yes, that's agood point too.
I love this question though,because a lot of times whenever
people come to me, they havetried lots of different diets
and I'll tell you what I found.
none of them work.
there is no specific diet thatis going to run in and save the
day for most people.
I think that.
if you are trying to live acertain way, you're trying to

(45:15):
live healthier.
Something like the Mediterraneandiet is not bad because it
includes protein, fat, fiber,plants.
It has all of the things, right?
So I do think the Mediterraneandiet, like if you're looking
like, okay, I just, Taylor, justgive me something I can just
stick to, right?
Go Mediterranean.
Sure.
I think that's a great idea.
Lots of polyphenols, lots offiber, lots of protein and fat.

(45:38):
You can't go wrong, But, what Iwill say is that.
I am not a fan of restriction,and so a lot of times with these
diets, these fads that peoplewill hop on, they're
restrictive, they don't lastlong term, and they lead to more
imbalance in the microbiome.
We need diversity in our diet tohave the diverse and strong

(46:02):
community of microbes that'snecessary for our body to
function correctly.
Whenever you go on somethinglike the carnivore diet, or if
you go plant based, like you,something like plant based is
great because you're gettingtons of fiber and polyphenols,
but on the other hand, you dohave to make sure you're getting
enough fat and protein in thatmaybe be maybe easier to get

(46:23):
with a vegetarian diet, butsomething like protein, you
really do have to do it.
And you have to know how to getyour protein in with plant based
foods.
And I'm not talking about beyondmeat or fake chicken nuggets.
That's not how we get ourprotein in, you can lean on like
protein supplements and thingslike that.
But, whenever it comes to diets,I'll leave you with one thing.

(46:45):
I think the most important pieceof advice that I could give to
anyone listening is to follow awhole foods diet.
If you simply focus on eating.
Whole foods, foods that do notneed a nutrition label, foods
that were either grown orthey're animals.
They came from animals or theywere grown, right?

(47:05):
And so if you focus on thesefoods, I guarantee your health
will improve.
It just will.

Erin (47:12):
I want to point this out to our listeners, because you
are not the first person to saythat we had Sherry Fernandes
also say that.
And so it's in my mind, I'mlike, it's the whole foods.
Yeah.

Taylor (47:24):
It's all about the whole

John (47:26):
Yes.
Sherry.
Sherry.
I'll never forget what she said.
And I love that.
She said that she said, if Goddidn't make it, don't eat it.

Taylor (47:34):
Yeah, that's where I wanted to go with it.
I wonder if I want to save it.
If it came from planet Earth,then go for it.
And I think a cool tip too, andshe may have touched on this as
well, is shopping the perimetersof the store.
It's really easy.
did you ever notice, like, whenyou walk in, sometimes the store
doors, naturally lead you to theaisles?

(47:56):
Beeline to the left or right, gotowards the perimeter and just
start stop shopping theperimeter of the store.
That's where you can find a lotof those foods that are either
fresh and can stay out on yourcounter or ones that need to be
refrigerated.
Stay away from things that needto be in your pantry.
They're going to be less If youstay away from the things that
go into your pantry, you'regoing to eat a diet.

(48:17):
That's less processed.
And that's what we're after.
We're after that diversity we'reafter the fiber and we're after
the freshness of the food thatcomes from the perimeter of the
store.
You don't get that in thecenter, no matter how many
protein chips claim it.

John (48:33):
No matter cookies.
Well, they need to move theHaagen Dazs coffee ice cream to
the perimeter of the store then.
Because I'm going to have

Taylor (48:41):
there, just not going to happen.

John (48:43):
But it's from a cow.
Okay.
Hey, what, what are those, whatare those things?
That add to your microbiome thatyou take probiotics.
Do you recommend probiotics

Erin (48:56):
And before you answer that too, when you answer, is there a
difference between, certain onesthat are live, not live shelf
stored, all that?

John (49:06):
She's like, Oh, these two ask a lot

Erin (49:08):
of questions.
No, we have one more after thisand that's it.
I promise.

Taylor (49:12):
guys are fine.
okay.
So on the question ofprobiotics, should everyone be
taking 1?
Who should be taking 1?
there are different strains andprobiotics, right?
And so taking something like, 1,A lactobacillus is typically
what you're going to find overthe counter.

(49:33):
And there's different strains oflactobacillus.
There's, KCI, rhinosis.
the list goes on.
But if you're someone who isstruggling with an overgrowth
inside of your microbiome.
A probiotic could worsen yoursymptoms.
however, in most cases, justgenerally speaking, I think that

(49:54):
it's okay to take a generic overthe counter probiotic.
However, you can get a lot ofthese really good gut bacteria
from fermented foods.
So if you can find fermentedfoods inside, or like kefir,
kefir yogurt is another one,

John (50:12):
Wine, wine.

Taylor (50:15):
Say it again.

John (50:16):
Wine's fermented.

Taylor (50:17):
No,

Erin (50:18):
she said food, not drink.

Taylor (50:21):
things like kimchi, sauerkraut, you can get onions
that are fermented, carrots,jalapenos.
the, it, because of the gutworld, we've really expanded our
access to a lot of thesefermented foods.
But if you want to just go for agood natural probiotic.
Get you some fermented foods,kombucha, something else you can

(50:42):
drink, but anytime we introducea probiotic, I think it's
important for people to rememberthat these bacteria are not
colonizing, so they're notlearning to live inside of your
microbiome.
They are simply fulfilling theprocess that needs to happen for
the gut.
And then they go away.
They're not colonizing.
There are some newer probioticsthat are showing, some promise

(51:06):
for colonizing.
but in general, that's, that'snot what's happening.
So I think it's important forpeople to remember that, because
I don't think that that'scommonly understood.
I think they think if they'retaking it, then it's, it's
replenishing.
And really what it's doing isit's helping support while
you're taking it.
But as soon as you stop, thatsupport stops as well.

John (51:28):
If somebody takes an antibiotic for a period of time
though, doesn't their bodybecome depleted of all the
healthy microbiome?
And so they need to supplementwith some probiotics

Taylor (51:41):
Yeah,

John (51:41):
that?

Taylor (51:42):
yeah.
this is a good question too.
So while you're on antibiotics,like we mentioned, antibiotics,
antimicrobials, they're notalways specific.
They have stronger effects oncertain bacteria, but they're
not specific.
So they really kill everythingin the gut.
And so the probiotics are meantto support the gut while it's
being depleted.

(52:02):
And certain strains likelactobacillus have been shown to
decrease, antibiotic associateddiarrhea.
but also, if you're taking aprobiotic, it will prevent the
overgrowth of other bad bacteriathat can happen whenever your
good bacteria are depleted.
Does that make sense?
It's kind of like a loadedanswer, so I want to make sure

(52:25):
that that makes sense withoutgetting like too technical.

John (52:30):
Well, we could have you on multiple episodes because I
think you're a wealth ofknowledge.
Yeah.
It's

Erin (52:36):
It's fascinating.
Oh, wait, but tell me more andtell me this.

John (52:40):
long night of discussions between me and this one

Erin (52:42):
but That's good though.
That's what we want is thatsparks conversation with us.
for hoping it does for ourlisteners too,

Taylor (52:48):
I really hope it does too.
Cause I think, I think guthealth is something that's just
missing, right?
We all know it, but it'smissing.

Erin (52:56):
and just to thank your guts here and it does this, but
to know no really it is a vitalpart in your body.
It does a lot

John (53:04):
and I think more and more people are going to be affected
in the future than than havebeen in the past.
And the reason being is becausegenetically modified foods and
because our soils are becomingmore and more depleted of all
those different things andpeople are Are making less and
less health healthy choicesbecause they're in such a rush,

(53:24):
right?
So,

Erin (53:25):
I have one more question before I wrap up with my end of
my question.

John (53:30):
Okay.
I'll listen.
Sorry.
One more question

Erin (53:35):
to a client or to the listener today.
What are the three things thatyou would suggest to them to do
right now after listening tothis, whether it's increase
their hydration, modify theirfoods, take the supplement?
What?
As I, as a listener, should I doright now?

Taylor (53:55):
I think that you focus on the things that are going to
move the needle the most, Andone of those things is going to
be whole foods.
So consuming whole foods, makingsure that you're getting in a
very diverse diet, lots offiber, and I tell people to aim
for around 40 to 50 grams offiber each day, but you do have
to increase slowly.
Otherwise you'll get lots of gasand bloating.

(54:15):
the second thing definitelyhydrate well, and gosh, it's so
hard to choose three,

Erin (54:20):
You can list five.
It's just,

Taylor (54:22):
okay, let's do that five is better.
Okay.
The third thing I wouldrecommend is making sure that
you're getting enough sleep.
Sleep is extremely important inour repair processes in our
body.
If we're not sleeping, we're notrepairing.
And so for struggling with ourgut health, if we have
inflammation, we need to makesure that we're, we have time
to, Allow our bodies to repairthemselves for.

(54:44):
I would make sure you're gettingenough movement in movement is
also key and improving our guthealth.
Okay?
and it's also super importantfor improving our bowel
regulation without movement.
We don't have good bowelregulation.
and then the 5th thing I wouldsay is get your stress under
control and if you can't controlthe stress level, learn to

(55:05):
control your stress.
Learn better ways to deal withit.
Don't rely on emotional eating.
Don't rely on alcohol.
all of these things are justgoing to worsen your symptoms.
Start really leaning intohealthier ways, like deep
breathing, meditation, yoga,things that really start moving

(55:26):
the needle for your stresscontrol.

John (55:28):
Ooh, I love that.
You know, it's, it's so funnythat you brought this up because
six months ago, my stomach was awreck and I was really feeling
pretty bad.
And I've started a lot of thesethings you're talking about.
I'm, I'm very good with mysleep.
I'm hydrating a lot more.
We go for nightly walks, even ifit's raining or snowing, we're

(55:51):
out there walking four miles inthe evening, you know.
And, I'm doing all these things,meditation and everything, and
everything is kind of mellowedout and calm down, you know?
So, it's just fun to hear hersay, yeah, I feel like I'm doing
something right, which is, isgreat.
We men need

Taylor (56:10):
Ha,

John (56:11):
we men need

Taylor (56:14):
Good job, you're doing it.

John (56:16):
All right.

Erin (56:18):
My, my absolute favorite question to ask and John once in
a while gets to ask it, but I'mpretty greedy with it.
is what is on your adventurelist?
Where is someplace you wouldlove to go, but some people have
twisted on us and said things Ihave done.

(56:39):
So it could be something thatyou've done too, that you think
is pretty amazing that you wantto share.

Taylor (56:45):
Yeah, I will go with like, where do I want to go?
So I've done a lot of travelingover to Europe.
I've done some traveling in theUnited States, and nearby, but I
really, really, really want tomake it to Peru.
I really want to go to MachuPicchu.
It's on my, Bucket list.
It's something my husband alsoreally, really wants to do.

(57:05):
And I would love to do just likethe hiking camping sort of
situation in Peru and alsoexperience Machu Picchu.
So for me, I like, that whole,I'm really big about experiences
whenever I travel.
So I want to eat the local food.
I want to do the local hikes.
I want to go on the tours.
Like I love that kind of stuff.

Erin (57:25):
That's it, That's been on my list for a long time too.
Probably Like six, seven yearsat least.
Both of ours.

John (57:31):
By the way, you were talking about fermented foods.
We just got, we just came backfrom Iceland and, the, the,

Taylor (57:39):
you get shark

John (57:40):
Yeah.
We ate the fermented shark.
That did not make my stomach.
That did not make my stomachfeel better.
I can

Taylor (57:48):
It's pretty bad.

John (57:49):
it was so nasty.

Taylor (57:51):
it, I had some interesting things.
Did you have sheep's head?

John (57:53):
No.
No, we didn't go sheep's.

Taylor (57:55):
I did.
I had a smoked sheep's head.
It was interesting and notgreat.
I

John (58:01):
Yeah.
Yeah.
No, we won't, we won't be eatingthat.
We did have a lot of lamb andsalmon.
A lot of lamb.

Taylor (58:07):
Oh, much lamb and salmon

John (58:10):
Aaron, Aaron, when she first is she first engaged her
first lamb burger, it was sofunny because I wish I would
have recorded it because we weresitting right across the table
from each other and she picks upthis burger and she takes a big
bite and she chews it up andswallows it and looks at me and
says, you know what?
This is pretty good.

(58:31):
I don't even feel bad about it.

Erin (58:34):
No, I was feeling, I was feeling really bad.
I really was.
No, she wasn't.
No, I was.
She goes, I didn't feel bad.
Oh my gosh.
I did say that, but I wasfeeling bad.
I was like, I don't feel reallybad.

John (58:51):
I wish I

Taylor (58:51):
I love it

John (58:52):
it because it was so hilarious.
yeah.
Poor little lamb.
Well,

Taylor (58:57):
Did you guys

John (58:59):
Oh, go ahead.

Taylor (58:59):
sorry, I was gonna ask, did you guys have puffin too?

John (59:02):
No.
No horse, no puffin.

Taylor (59:06):
I had I had puffin.
I felt terrible.
Felt very Yeah, I, felt

John (59:10):
I'm glad I found that out after we just did this gut
health podcast because if Iwould have found that out
beforehand, it would have been,I don't, I

Taylor (59:19):
over.

John (59:20):
been focused enough to ask questions.

Taylor (59:23):
Just imagining the little

Erin (59:25):
Yeah, and They're so cute.
Oh my gosh.
Oh Oh my gosh.
We appreciate your time and yourpatience and learning all this
with us now that we're slowlyadding video, all of our ups and
our

Taylor (59:37):
Yeah, thank you guys.
This was awesome.

John (59:42):
Thank you for tuning in to another episode of Connect
Empower.
We want to express our gratitudeto you for being part of our
community, and we hope today'sepisode has provided you with
valuable insights andinspiration to enhance your life
and that of a loved one.

Erin (59:56):
We are more than just a podcast.
We are a community dedicated toenhancing the lives of our aging
adults and their support system.
We encourage you to visit ourwebsite now at www.
connect empower.
com.
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and to access our freeresources.

John (01:00:18):
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We invite you to take action nowby sharing the knowledge you've
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Erin (01:00:33):
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John (01:00:53):
I'm John.

Erin (01:00:54):
I'm Erin.
Until next Wednesday.