Functional Nutrition Blog

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD Your gut contains trillions of microorganisms. And according to the internet, apparently those microorganisms are now something you need to maxx. Because we’ve had looksmaxxing, sleepmaxxing, proteinmaxxing, fibermaxxing… And now, naturally, we have gutmaxxing. [Video Transcript Below Video - it is the same information] What Is Gutmaxxing? The basic promise sounds incredible. Improve your gut microbiome, and supposedly you coul

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD Imagine you were just diagnosed with acid reflux and you asked your doctor what nutrition changes you can make to improve this. And your doctor tells you... nothing. This is exactly what happened to my client, and it was from literally one of the best gastroenterologists in the country. So how could they be so wrong? I've helped many clients improve and get rid of acid reflux using nutrition approaches, and I'm going to share m

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD You brush twice a day. You floss, sometimes. You’ve been to the dentist. So why do your teeth keep giving you problems? What if the answer isn’t in your mouth at all? What if it’s in your gut? [Video Transcript Below Video - it is the same information] The Mouth and Gut Connection Here’s something most people don’t realize. Your mouth is home to over 770 species of bacteria. They live on your teeth, your tongue, your palate, ev

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD Do you know what this is? Licorice root. It’s been used for over 3,000 years across many traditional medicine systems, including Chinese, Ayurvedic, Egyptian, and Greek medicine. Today, it’s still widely used. Especially for digestive health and certain types of stress. But here’s the important part. It’s not for everyone. [Video Transcript Below Video - it is the same information] How Licorice Can Help Gut Health Licorice root

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD Gut health and weight loss. Are you surprised to hear that these two things are connected? Well, I'm not. Even though we're a gut health clinic, we do get a decent amount of clients who come in looking to lose weight. Many of them are unaware that there can be a connection between the gut and stubborn weight loss. The body is not a toaster oven. Everything is more connected than simply calories in and calories out. If you're ha

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD If you've noticed black stool, don't freak out—but don't ignore it either. I'm a Harvard teaching hospital trained gut health dietitian, and I'm about to tell you the five most common reasons this happens— We’ll cover the harmless causes with simple explanations — and the signs that mean it’s time to see a doctor. Stick around to the end, where I’ll explain the difference between seeing red blood versus black in your stoo

Author's Bio: Ashley Oswald, RDN, IFNCP, CLT, LD If you're eating chia seeds for your health, that's great—but if you're making this one mistake, you could end up in the emergency room. I'm a Harvard teaching hospital trained gut health dietitian, and today I'm showing you exactly what NOT to do with chia seeds, plus the right way to eat them for maximum benefits. Since there is one published case in the medical literature, of one unlucky individual, whom I wish had watched t