Rachel's Blogs
Are You And Your Patients Stuck?
There are some things we say so often to patients we could record them and just press <PLAY> Like this daily dogma: 'When you're under stress, your demand for Magnesium rises and then in turn that can make you more susceptible to further stress, so we're going...
Functional Medicine Falsehoods ⛔️
An ideal T4 is 15 An 'anti-aging' DHEAs must be >7 A ferritin of 100 is optimal for women... I've heard it all, probably you have too, and far too often & too recently from practitioners who should have rationalised & researched their way beyond these...
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SOS! 2 Distress Flares In 2 Days 🤦♀️
While many of us have made it our business to ensure we are competent IN the business of understanding patients' iron studies, it sadly seems, many even in teaching and training positions, still have not 🙁 I was sent 2 messages this week that had me lost for words...
Elders & Young’uns – Best Of Both Worlds
Last week I had my say about acknowledging our elders & mentors, this week I want to speak to the power of the young peeps. Just like a younger sibling, nipping at your heels can act as a great motivator to move faster, or having children can inspire us to do...
I Stand On The Shoulders Of Others
I stand on the shoulders of my elders. [I hope it's not too painful for them, it's been going on a long time now!!] And I regularly lean on my mentors - who are often my peers, practitioners specialising in areas different from mine. I recite their names often like...
Slippery Little Sucker Indeed!
[Ahem] Ok let me explain...Several catch-cries from Australian ads have earnt themselves a lifelong place in my head and heart,...
Good Great Better Brilliant…
I'm experiencing some serious POTTS exhaustion - how about you? No, not POTS, POTTS: Preposterous Over The Top Selling of supplements, which seems to be at an all time high even amongst our practitioner brands. I saw a product name recently that included the word,...
What’s happening with Lucy’s Labs?
What's your knee-jerk response to 52Y Lipids Lucy & Liver, whose ALT & AST suddenly jumped above range when she was put on statins? They're damaging her liver? You'd be wrong. One of the practitioners who undertook the MasterCourse in Comprehensive...
How Much Can You…?
"How much can you misbehave & get away with it?" I listened with fresh ears, as a practitioner asked my son this question recently. I use similar ones with my own patients but hearing it from someone else, I could sit back and appreciate its true purpose and how...
B12…12kms?
Is it just me or do you view everything with a trained eye? My son always laughed when I wrote him a shopping list: I would list items under each shop and I always wrote down our local supermarket the Independent Grocers Association, like this: IgA...you all see...
Every Woman & Her Dog
The average woman & her dog (& likely every other member of her household, be they furred or otherwise), can tell you that sudden changes in sex hormones can undermine, derange, psychopathise, impact her mind and mood. Hey, for me most days reverse parking is...
Present But Not The Problem
Something's just come up today again and I think we need to talk about it. A positive result on a stool PCR microbiome test for H. pylori, understandably, might be heard as a clear call to action to go in guns blazing with an eradication approach. But is it? Trust...
Real-time Diagnostics on the Couch!
Well, this is different, now I'm watching you! 😆 In early 2021 we released our very popular MasterCourse I:...
Well…Does He Need Iron?!
If I could be granted 1 wish regarding all health professionals, it would be that we were all competent in reading Iron Studies. Think that's overstating the issue? Or not a bodacious enough way to 'spend' my wish? I don't. Especially when you consider the impact of...
We Need To Talk About Kevin…aka B3
Just like Kevin, 'Niacin' is profoundly misunderstood and consequently runs the risk of doing us harm. Unlike 'Kevin', we can't watch the movie to see how this (our arguably excessive use of the wrong forms of B3 in supplements and fortified foods) is all going to...
Ask Alexa?
'Hey Alexa, What's that formula for correcting urinary iodine for hydration status?' Oh yes, if only she could answer these kind of questions! There's no one here by that name but we get these kind of emails all the time [Oh and also for Freya who hasn't worked here...
Do You See What I See?
When I was 12 tartan was in. Like, really in. And I rode that tartan wave as far as it could go, arguably beyond where it should go...I had a tartan bowtie I wore. 🙄 I knew it was on trend because I saw it flashed across magazine covers (we never bought them...
I’ve Been Right Into ‘Glassing’ Lately, Apparently
Don't know why on earth I would be discussing 'Glassing'? I have a hunch. I was supposed to be doing a deep dive into Taurine & Glycine & their CNS effects for the latest Update in Under 30 and due to a technical glitch we produced a software generated...
A Sprinkle Of Precursor & A Dash Of Co-Factor?
There's enormous potency in nutritional medicine for mental health but it ain't in the form of a 'dash of precursor here and a sprinkle of co-factor there', like some may have you believe. Many nutritional prescriptions can look good on paper but that's the extent of...
I’m Gonna Take My Vitamins…They’re Good For You, They’re Good For You!
Don't know this thrash anthem for all nutritional medicine practitioners written by Supernova about 20 years ago? Do yourself a favour and check it out!! It makes me laugh to the point of tears every time. What also got me giggling recently was a coffee catch-up...
Do You Remember?
I've seen two 20-year-old young men in my practice this last month who've already made a lasting impression on me. The first, is buff, full of cheek and humour while deeply engaged with his health, earnest in his desire to understand his 7 years of daily upper gastric...
Someone Say Sulphur?
That's not a word you hear often spoken by people practising nutritional medicine. Which is odd. I mean outside of the whole, 'I'm not good with sulphites so I just have to add these magic drops into my glass of red so I can knock back my share," often overheard at...
I Spy…
I say: Biotin, Broccoli Sprouts & Bone Broth You say....? If you said: 'Sulphur', go directly to the top of the class, passing 'Go' & collecting $200 on your way!🤓 If you nervously said..."I don't know, they all start with 'B' ?", you are not alone. ...