The disconnect between eating well and being nourished is Nutrient Depletion

Nutrient depletion refers to the loss of nutrients and micronutrients in the most basic of places, the soil in which we grow our food. Over the last 50-60 years, the number of nutrients, including protein, B vitamins, calcium, iron, and magnesium have decreased dramatically in our crops. In some of these, the amounts have decreased as much as 300-400%! Crops are larger, which decreases the richness of soil micronutrients and organic matter. Fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides deplete nutrients and block our ability to absorb them well. Farmers pick fruits and vegetables when they are not fully ripe, therefore, they are lower in phytonutrients.

 

Why the Discrepancy?

Nutrient depletion is why there is a huge discrepancy between what people eat and their nutritional status. In my clinical practice, I often see nutritional testing reveal severe malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies in people eating very clean, whole food diets. Food malabsorption is one obvious reason for this is. Putting food in your mouth and getting it into the cell are two different things. Nourishment requires work from the body. Furthermore, there are many things that affect the food we eat, even before we consume it.

 

Stress and Malabsorption

Malabsorption is a common issue for many reasons. Firstly, we live in a stressed society, with the sympathetic nervous system dominance being the norm. Our gut does not function well under stress. Stomach acid and enzymes underproduce and food goes through partially digested and cannot be absorbed well. Imbalances in the gut microbiome may result, further impairing absorption. Excesses of sugar, caffeine, and alcohol all add to the poor absorption. Anti-nutrients, on foods like grains and nuts, can further block absorption of vital nutrients,

 

Pharmaceutical Drug Use & Nutrient Depletions

The drastic increase in pharmaceutical drug use causes countless depletion in nutrients. They may decrease nutrient absorption, block their use, or increase their excretion. Common nutrient drainers are NSAIDs (aspirin and Tylenol), acid-blocking drugs (Pantoprazole, Rabeprazole, Tums), and statins (Lipitor, Crestor). Antibiotics have also had a huge impact on nutrients through direct effects and effects on the gut microbiome.

 

Toxicity & Nutrient Depletion

Toxicity opposes nutrients. Our bodies suffer exposure to environmental toxins on a daily basis from non-organic fruits and vegetables. Proven harmful toxins cover them. Organic foods are higher in many nutrients, such as antioxidants, lycopene, vitamin C, trace minerals, iron, and magnesium. Studies done on children eating organic diets showed 600% fewer organophosphates (a form of pesticide) than those eating conventional diets. An analysis by the Environmental working group showed that > 20 million children consume more than 8 pesticides daily. Eating non-organic food can pose a great risk to the neurological, endocrine, hepatic, and metabolic health of both children and adults.

 

Nutrients Absorption

Once absorbed, nutrients need to get to the cell, which requires good circulation, healthy cell membranes, and receptor integrity. Factors that block this are toxicity (heavy metals and chemicals) and inflammation. Nutrients use energy more quickly based on the cell’s energy requirements. It is a supply and demand issue. An inflamed or stressed cell has unhealthy cell membranes, blocked receptors, and large energy demand. Nutrients can’t integrate or are used up as quickly as they come in.

So… what can we do about all of this?

 

Food and Supplements

  • Choose organic foods where possible –  eat only the ‘clean fifteen‘ of conventional foods, or at very least, avoid the ‘dirty dozen
  • Eat a diet high in phytonutrients (plant nutrients), including lots of nutrient dense herbs and spices.
  • Limit foods that affect absorption of nutrients, which include sugar, coffee and grains.
  • Avoid spikes in glucose and insulin by consuming a lower glycemic index diet to avoid magnesium and chromium depletion.
  • Support cell membranes with a good quality fish oil and/or phospholipid supplement. Dosing and type are guided by your health care professional. Fish oils need to be of high quality, due tot potential for mercury contamination.
  • Support stomach acid and digestive enzyme function, either by supplementation or increasing acidic and fermented foods, as tolerated.

 

Toxins and Medication

Clean up your environment to avoid toxins. This means clean water, clean air, clean cosmetics, and cleaning products. Filter water with a tabletop filter or reverse osmosis unit. A fridge filter or plastic water filter is not sufficient. A HEPA and VOC air filter will remove particulate matter from the air, which is responsible for much of the toxins we accumulate. 

Avoid acid suppressant medications, unless specifically indicated. There are few long term indications for these medications. If you are already using these medications, wean off them slowly with the guidance of a knowledgeable physician to avoid rebound symptoms.

 

Stress

Stress management and calming the sympathetic nervous system improves gut health and decrease nutrient demand. Achieve through meditation, relaxation, exercise, socializing, and acupuncture, among other things.

Find sources of inflammation and toxicity, which deplete nutrients and have functional medicine testing done. This will help individualize your care. When you are feeling like you are doing everything else right but need to get to the root of why you are undernourished, consider the following tests:

  1. Food sensitivity testing
  2. Gastrointestinal/stool testing
  3. Nutrient testing
  4. Heavy metal/chemical testing
  5. Immune system testing

Let’s help you regain your energy and vitality today. Contact us here.

 

Author:

Dr. Michelle van der Westhuizen, MD

 

Nora Kassay-Farkas is the lead Functional Medicine Health Coach and Natural Nutritional Clinical Practitioner at Linden & Arc Vitality Institute. Nora is pleased to provide nutrition consultations and Functional Medicine health coaching to you in your journey to wellness. We sit down with Nora here to gain insight into the role of nutrition in Functional Medicine.

 

How did your path to holistic healthcare begin?

Like many practitioners, my path to holistic healthcare was inspired by a health crisis. After a series of stressful life events thirty years ago, I developed adrenal dysfunction. This left me depleted physically, mentally, and emotionally. At that time, holistic health care was in its infancy in Calgary. There were only a handful of clinics offering complementary health care. While conventional medicine was able to manage many of my symptoms, it was an intuitive holistic herbalist that truly set my healing path in motion. She revealed to me that the mind, body, soul, and spirit are intimately linked. Furthermore, I needed to heal the less visible wounds in my mind, soul and spirit, to heal my broken body. The journey back to health was long but fuelled my passion and desire to study and work in the holistic healthcare field. 

 

Can you tell us a bit about your educational background?

I have always loved the biological sciences and received a BSc in Microbiology, followed by an MSc in Medical Science with a focus on Cardiovascular Pharmacology from the University of Calgary.  Working as a medical research scientist for a number of years, followed by a brief career in Pharmaceutical sales.


I studied and obtained my Holistic Nutrition Diploma from the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition. I have gone on to complete advanced training in Functional Nutrition, Culinary Nutrigenomics, and Autoimmune Disease Dietary Protocols.

 

What excites you about food and nutrition?

My understanding that food is more than energy. It is information.  The nutrients in food contribute to a cascade of events that sends a multitude of signals throughout our bodies.  Not only are these nutrients involved in events such as the synthesis of hormones or triggering the immune system, but they also have the ability to turn genes off or on. It is so empowering to understand that our genes do not necessarily hold us captive. By harnessing the power of food, we can successfully shift their expression to our advantage.

 

What is your favourite part about working with clients?

I receive my greatest pleasure from seeing clients respond favourably to a nutrition program that I have developed for them.  It is incredibly rewarding to play a role in their healing journey and to be witness to their transformation.

 

What are some ways your Functional Nutrition & Functional Medicine Coach training has affected the way you approach consultations?

The Functional Medicine Coach training has provided me with a host of skills that I now routinely employ in my consultations. A new one for me is to gather myself before a consultation with some breathwork or a short meditation. This allows me to clear my head and to refocus my attention so that I can be present both intellectually and emotionally when I meet with my clients.I also employ character strength explorations during consultations.  Identifying that which is core about a client’s personality has proven to be an invaluable tool for revealing how to best guide and share information with them. Possibly the most impactful skill that I now employ is the art of listening. Allowing clients space and time to share their stories, listen to their challenges, and work through the practicalities of dietary and lifestyle interventions ensures that they feel in control and achieve success.  

 

Favourite nourishing foods?

Nora: My favourite nourishing foods are those that I grew up with. As a child of European parents, some of my earliest and fondest memories were of helping my mother in the kitchen preparing traditional Hungarian dishes. I can still smell the aroma of dishes like Chicken Paprika or a spicy Goulash. Foods prepared from scratch and they subscribed to the tradition of nose to tail cooking.  I routinely ate liver, kidneys, and even blood sausage. While I no longer have the time to prepare many of the labor-intensive dishes, the memory of how delicious and nutritious they were remains with me to this day.

 

Favourite nutrition and lifestyle resources?

I love recipe books and am especially drawn to those consistent with my nutritional philosophies. Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, The Longevity Kitchen and the Healthy Mind Cookbook by Rebecca Katz, Healing Spices by Bharat B. Aggarwal, PhD, and the UnDiet Cookbook by Meghan Telpner are a few of my favourites.


To fulfill many of my medical/nutritional interests, I explore websites and listen to podcasts.

 

My Favourite Podcasts

  • Health Means at healthmeans.com  is an online health channel that provides advice from a vast collection of medical experts on a variety of health related conditions.
  • Rhonda Fitzpatrick, PhD: Podcast- Found My Fitness. Rhonda interviews leading researchers working in the fields of nutritional biochemistry, nutrigenomics, longevity and beyond.
  • Peter Attia, MD:  Podcast- The Drive. Dr Attia is a very curious MD interviewing some brilliant thinkers in health and medicine.
  • Katy Bowman: Podcast- Move Your DNA. Katy is part biomechanist, part science communicator, and full-time mover that has educated hundreds of thousands of people on the role movement plays in the body and in the world. She blends a scientific approach with straight talk about sensible, whole-life movement.  

 

My soulful side enjoys the podcast by author and host Emily P Freeman entitled The Next Right Thing and a daily Sacred Meditation from Encounter.com

 

Favourite nourishing practices for your body/skin?

I enjoy ending my day with a soak in an Epsom salt bath while listening to a relaxing audiobook or podcast.  Other nourishing practices for me include lymphatic massage, far-infrared sauna, and weekly manual physiotherapy sessions.


Essential oils are an important part of my daily self-care routine, whether diffused, applied, or consumed.

 

What lights you up?

As cliché as it may sound, it is my relationships that light me up. It is the relationship that I have with God, my family, friends, co-workers and clients that are the driving force behind all that I do and all that I am. 

I have a deep love of learning and enjoy challenging myself by learning new skills both professionally and personally.

 

To book a session with Nora, contact us at [email protected].