In this episode of the Friday Food For Thought web series, nutritionist Rashi Chowdhary explains a common mistake when dealing with hormonal health and the yo-yo effect of fad diets.
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00:00Have you ever blamed a bad day on your hormones?
00:06You may even have caught yourself saying, don't talk to me today, I'm feeling hormonal.
00:11Well, you're not the only one.
00:13Hello and welcome to the third episode of Friday Food for Thought.
00:25MyDubai presents Friday Food for Thought in association with Waterfront Market and Al
00:30Abil Trading Company.
00:32In the last two episodes, we talked about the five pillars of holistic lifestyle and
00:37gut health.
00:38Today, we're going to talk about something that we blame for our weight gain and mood
00:44swings.
00:45That's right.
00:46We're going to talk about hormones.
00:48We're back at Danube home with our favorite nutritionist, Rashi Chaudhary.
00:52Rashi, so good to have you with us.
00:54Likewise, always nice to be here.
00:56Let's dive straight in, shall we?
00:59So my recent conversations with a lot of my girlfriends center around two main topics,
01:06weight and relationships.
01:08Yeah, I can imagine.
01:09I'm not surprised.
01:11Because I think about it right at the core, it comes down both of these things come down
01:15to how we look and feel about ourselves.
01:18And most of us know it's really superficial because we've all been there done that.
01:22When we give up our way and we allow the weighing scale and men to decide how we feel
01:27about ourselves.
01:28It's a disaster.
01:29It's an absolute disaster.
01:30Do the men feel the same way?
01:32I'm wondering if they look at the weighing scales and think about what girls are thinking
01:35of them.
01:36You'll be surprised because I have a fair share of, you know, interaction with male
01:39clients, and they all feel the same as well.
01:42But you know, Rashi, I'm just thinking, think about what we see in media on a day to day
01:46basis.
01:47I mean, you go to a magazine and you see these kind of washboard abs and you see these bikinis
01:53and you want that kind of body I mean, you don't just don't feel confident in your own
01:57skin.
01:58I mean, what are your thoughts on that?
02:00Yeah, it's funny you say this, and I've been there so closely.
02:03In fact, the other day I was going through my Instagram and I saw around five years ago,
02:08I think I posted this picture of mine.
02:11I had these abs, and it was really skinny.
02:14And I think I was about 15% body fat.
02:16And for me, everything revolved around being 15% on my body fat analysis machine.
02:22And I got there.
02:23And I thought it's going to make me happy.
02:25But it didn't.
02:26Because, you know, we all know abs really don't make you happy, they do make you happy
02:29for a while.
02:30Like temporarily, you'll feel like, oh, I've reached my goal and that sense of achievement.
02:34But that deep piece that we're all looking for, that's not coming in abs or a number
02:39on the scale.
02:40But we don't realize that, you know, while we're in the process.
02:43And honestly, I can say that very confidently, because when I deal with so many women who
02:48get there, and then their only worry is how do I maintain this, and that becomes a problem.
02:54And I can sit here today and say this confidently also, because I've been there.
02:58And I know that today, I don't have the abs.
03:02I am not close to 15% body fat.
03:05But I'm still happier.
03:07My hormones are more balanced.
03:09And well, most days in my life, if not every day, I just wake up feeling good about myself,
03:13you know, and that's so much more important than having those abs.
03:16Yeah, I mean, 15% body fat, you just feel good about yourself.
03:20What does it matter anyway?
03:22But I'm going to pick up on something you said earlier about hormones.
03:24Yeah.
03:25What does it mean to balance your hormones?
03:27How do you do that?
03:28Yeah.
03:29See, hormones is, again, such a vast topic, right?
03:32And one mistake I've seen people make is that they narrow down to one hormone.
03:37Have you heard people say, you know, my estrogen is off, or men are like, my testosterone is
03:40too much or too little.
03:42That's where we go wrong.
03:43So here's how I like to look at hormones.
03:45We have our major surviving hormones.
03:48And then we have our smaller thriving hormones.
03:52So there's surviving and thriving.
03:54It's a lot like building your life.
03:56All right.
03:57What is the first thing that we think about food, clothing, shelter?
04:00This is our survival.
04:01Till this is not taken care of, we can't thrive.
04:04We can't think of a bigger car, a fancier house, I don't know, relationship, children.
04:10All of this is thriving.
04:12Same thing with your body.
04:13Till your body doesn't feel like its survival is guaranteed, it can't thrive.
04:18So when it comes to hormones, always make sure that your major hormones like your insulin,
04:22your leptin, your ghrelin, your cortisol, thyroid, these are your surviving hormones.
04:26So they are balanced out.
04:28Then your body has enough energy to allocate for the thriving things.
04:33All of us love good hair, great skin, a happy mood.
04:37All of this happens when we are thriving, not when we are surviving.
04:40But how do we balance our survival hormones?
04:42How do we, where do we start?
04:43Yeah, there are so many ways of looking at this again.
04:47But let me try and tell you a couple, right?
04:49So well, let's go back to web series two.
04:52We spoke about the gut health.
04:54It's a no brainer that your gut health is directly proportional to how good your hormonal
04:58health is.
04:59So please do the 30 day gut cleanse that we've spoken about.
05:03Second thing, I'd say keep a long gap between meals.
05:07There's a lot of research now that shows that when you keep a minimum amount of four hours
05:11between meals, that balances out your insulin and leptin, which are your survival hormones.
05:17Once those are balanced out, you'll be happier, you know, hormonally more healthy.
05:21So you know, have you heard of this thing of eating every two hours?
05:23Oh, yeah, the crazy thing about eight meals a day, like little bits and pieces.
05:27Yeah, there is a fair bit of research on that.
05:30But the thing is that some nutritionists really promote that.
05:33And that's fine.
05:34If you want to eat every two hours, go ahead.
05:35But at least make sure you're not eating a lot of high sugar, high carb things every two
05:39hours.
05:40I've seen people pick up oat biscuits and protein snack bars, which are loaded with
05:45carbohydrates and things like that, or I don't know, fruit, you know, every two hours.
05:50And that's not the best way to go about it too, if you're looking at balancing your insulin
05:53out especially.
05:54Also, I think when it comes to balancing hormones, right, the third important thing I would say
06:00is, yeah, this one's really important.
06:03Have you noticed how either we are in the fight or flight mode, or we are in the rest
06:07or relax mode?
06:09Have you noticed that?
06:10Absolutely.
06:11I think we're more in the fight or flight mode these days than rest and relaxation.
06:14Yeah, most of us.
06:16And it's because of the crazy deadlines, the amount of stress we take, some people are
06:20just really anxious.
06:21You know, our lifestyles have made us in this, you know, state of mind where we are constantly
06:26ready for fight or flight.
06:28Now when you are, when you go in this mode, what happens is that your body is preparing
06:32for danger.
06:34But there is no actual danger outside.
06:36But at a cellular level, your body is getting prepared for that.
06:39So your adrenaline goes up, then your fatty acids go up, the blood sugar levels go up
06:44just so you can fight or you can flight, basically run the situation.
06:48But there is nothing in the external environment to run away from.
06:51When you're in this mode, again, survival mode is on, right?
06:55So how will your body rest and relax or digest or absorb nutrition or give you good hair
07:01and skin?
07:02Thriving is not going to happen.
07:04So there's so many...
07:05Until you relax, thriving won't happen.
07:07Absolutely.
07:08Which is why we need to figure out ways to be in this rest and relax mode more, which
07:12is why I think these days mindfulness has become such a hot topic.
07:15And for good reason, because all of us need it in our life.
07:18I try and do a whole lot of morning rituals, without that my day won't start.
07:21There are some people who just don't have the luxury to do that.
07:25And then I tell a lot of my clients to every three to four hours set alarms on their phone,
07:29you know?
07:30To do what?
07:31To breathe.
07:32Oh.
07:33Five minutes take to...
07:34Imagine that.
07:35Yeah, but breathe and just relax and maybe hear a beautiful song that you connect with
07:38and that makes you feel life is good, you know?
07:41So staying in this rest and relax mode is really important.
07:45And lastly, I would say, this is I think something which a lot of people will resonate with.
07:54Not skimping on calories.
07:56How many of you do you know, how many friends or family around you do know, are on diets
08:02where they just really crash their calories down?
08:05I know quite a few actually.
08:06In fact, they're either on a no carb diet or a low carb diet.
08:10And I know some people who are on a, you know, 1200 calorie diet.
08:16Yeah, 1200 is actually very ambitious.
08:18There are some who are on 400 and 800.
08:20Now when you cut your calories down so low, right?
08:24Look your calories are where you get your nutrients from.
08:27Nutrients are your body's currency.
08:29Now what happens when our monthly income goes down?
08:32We find ways to spend less.
08:35That's exactly what your body does.
08:36It's going to find ways to spend less energy.
08:39And one easy way to do that is to give you thyroid.
08:42Because that's one way your body can slow down your metabolism overall, overall.
08:47And that will basically ensure survival, right?
08:50So when you go so low on your calories, don't expect to have beautiful hair and a good mood.
08:55It's not going to happen.
08:56I would recommend...
08:57But people want to see quick results.
08:58Now I suppose that's why they're going to diets like this.
09:01What do you think is a, let's say a healthy way to do this?
09:04Okay, so I would recommend ideally that...
09:07Now I believe in a lower carb lifestyle as well.
09:10I've dealt with like hormonal issues, endometriosis, helped so many clients balance their hormones out.
09:16But please don't go lower than 30, say 25 to 30%.
09:2125 to 30% of your calories need to come from good carbs.
09:24The remaining can be from fat and protein based on where you are with your goals.
09:28But that much needs to come from carbohydrates.
09:30So what is a good carb?
09:32There are so many good carbs, right?
09:34Is rice, for example, a good carb? Potato a good carb?
09:37Yeah, I love white rice.
09:39It's my most favorite active carb.
09:41But isn't that like pure sugar?
09:43Well, not at all, actually.
09:45It is sugar, but the thing is that we...
09:49You have to pick and choose, right?
09:50Where is it that...
09:51You cannot completely give up on white rice.
09:54There are a lot of people who pick brown rice over white rice.
09:57And that depends a lot on where your gut health is.
10:01If your gut does well with white rice, then pick white rice as your active carb.
10:05But don't pick gluten.
10:06Don't pick your parathas, don't pick your bread.
10:08So white rice is definitely better than all the others.
10:11It is in fact the best carb according to me
10:13because it's got very less anti-nutrients compared to all the other grains out there.
10:17So white rice, I wouldn't have any problem with.
10:19Plus, we always have white rice in combination with things, right?
10:22That brings down the insulin response to white rice.
10:25You call it pure sugar, right?
10:26It's really not pure sugar
10:27because we also eat it with a whole lot of other things involved.
10:30Okay, tell me your top 5 good carbs.
10:33So the good carbs would be, I love white rice,
10:35I love sweet potatoes,
10:37obviously regular potatoes are great.
10:38But I always say this, the regular potatoes, when you're eating them,
10:41make sure you cook and then cool them slightly and eat it.
10:45The minute you cool them,
10:46the amount of resistant starch, which is good for your gut bacteria, that triples.
10:51So it's nicer to cook and cool your white potatoes and eat them.
10:54And then obviously veggies are great.
10:56You know, when you're really craving some...
10:58Veggies are carb?
10:59Yeah, exactly.
11:01Vegetables are carbohydrates and a lot of people just don't know this, you know.
11:05And if you are craving sugar,
11:07then picking up a date, picking up figs,
11:10all of these are good carbs.
11:11Rashi, you talked about this magical 25-30% carb diet.
11:16I mean, why do we need that much?
11:18It sounds like a lot.
11:19Why do we need carbs?
11:20Yeah, the thing is, it's nice to give up carbs for a while.
11:23It's all fun initially and then psychologically it catches up.
11:26But physiologically as well, carbs are so important.
11:29And again, there are so many reasons,
11:30but let's pick on a few, right?
11:32Number one,
11:33carbs help us poop.
11:35And without pooping, we're not going to have...
11:38Wait a minute, I thought it was fiber.
11:40We need fiber to poop.
11:41But carbs add a lot of...
11:42They have a lot of fiber, right?
11:43They add bulk to our diet.
11:45Now, what do you think happens when we poop?
11:48It's not just...
11:49Release the toxins.
11:50Yeah, that's amazing because a lot of people feel like
11:53it's just undigested food and it's not.
11:55And you're absolutely right, it's a lot of toxins.
11:57It's also a lot of hormones which our body doesn't need.
12:01Those come out.
12:02So when you don't poop regularly,
12:04all these hormones will recirculate in your body.
12:06The toxins recirculate, which is why we have acne,
12:09we have digestive issues,
12:11we have headaches because the toxins are all there.
12:13And we also have stuff like estrogen dominance.
12:17Most of my clients who are estrogen dominant,
12:19if I track it down,
12:20they don't have a good digestive system
12:22because they are severely constipated,
12:24chronic constipation.
12:26Because they've been on some or the other crazy diet
12:27which hasn't...
12:28That's going to be your alarm bell.
12:30If you have constipation, then something is wrong.
12:32Definitely.
12:33Something needs to be fixed about your diet.
12:36So that's one.
12:37Second thing is,
12:38have you ever experienced hairfall?
12:40Oh my God, what are you talking about?
12:41That's the only thing we talk about these days, hairfall.
12:44It's everywhere, hair is everywhere.
12:45Yeah, and you know what?
12:46People, when they struggle with massive hairfall,
12:49I think I've been there and you feel depleted,
12:53you feel powerless.
12:54It's actually scary to see bunches going off, you know?
12:57What we don't realize when we do these diets
12:58is when you go low on your carbs and your calories,
13:01again, your body's in survival mode.
13:03It can't thrive, right?
13:05Your body allocates energy based on the hierarchy of needs.
13:09Having healthy hair or shiny, lustrous, thick hair
13:12is not your body's survival need.
13:14So it's not going to be able to put that energy out there
13:16into your hair system.
13:17So you've got to eat enough carbs and calories
13:19for that one reason.
13:20Also, people who lose weight too quickly,
13:23sometimes they land up with alopecia
13:25or there's something called...
13:26Oh, balding.
13:26Yeah, and there's something called telogen effluvium
13:29where people lose...
13:30Can you say that again?
13:31Sounds like a tongue twister.
13:32Let's try that.
13:32What did you say?
13:33It's called telogen effluvium.
13:34Telogen effluvium.
13:36Telogen or telogen effluvium.
13:3850% of hair is gone in three months.
13:42And it's disheartening.
13:43And it takes about a year,
13:44because I had a client like this,
13:45it took about a year to bring her back.
13:48Healthy eating, better eating, eating a bit more,
13:51even gaining a little bit of weight
13:53that's what your body needs.
13:54It's okay.
13:56Like you'll have to approach it with more kindness
13:58when you are in this depleted state.
14:01And then of course, it's great for...
14:03Carbs help you sleep better.
14:05You'll end up with dry eyes.
14:06You know, we have this thin layer of mucus in our eyes.
14:09It's also there throughout our gut lining.
14:12When we eat...
14:13It's the same kind of lining.
14:14Yes, it's this mucus lining.
14:16And carbohydrates help to fuel that.
14:19Then it could lead to this depletion,
14:22which causes dry eyes,
14:24which obviously eventually will lead to sleep deprivation.
14:28And when we don't sleep well,
14:29I think we don't turn up as our best selves.
14:31No, we get bags under the eyes.
14:33Not worth it.
14:34More than bags under the eyes, dude.
14:36So there are brain scans that we've seen
14:37of people who are sleep deprived.
14:39You know, there's a part of the brain called amygdala,
14:42which is our survival brain.
14:43It's a lizard brain that lights up
14:45in people who are severely sleep deprived.
14:48And when that lights up,
14:50then you're just in that, again, survival mode.
14:52You're worried all the time.
14:53You're selfish,
14:54because you only care about surviving yourself, you know?
14:57So yeah, all of these negative effects,
14:59if you give up carbs.
15:00Yeah, carbohydrates make you a better person.
15:03I think so.
15:04I think so, man.
15:04I totally agree.
15:06I totally agree.
15:07Okay, so we've talked about carbs.
15:08Can we talk about good fats and good proteins?
15:12I think practically all of protein is good, right?
15:15Well, it depends.
15:16And I'm so glad you asked this,
15:17because you know what?
15:18A lot of people eat lentils
15:19and they think it's good for them.
15:20And it could be good.
15:21But if your gut is giving you a sign,
15:24if you're bloated, you're feeling gassy, you have acne,
15:26then it's a good idea to maybe cut back
15:29on the lentils for a while.
15:32When it comes to good fats,
15:34I love, I love fat.
15:36And yeah, my morning starts
15:38with like a tablespoon of organic butter.
15:39Then there's coconut oil.
15:40My food is cooked in coconut oil or ghee.
15:43There's avocado.
15:45There's eggs.
15:45Egg yolks are so important.
15:47People need to eat that.
15:48So those are great.
15:49Okay.
15:50You've said a lot of stuff.
15:51I mean, there's just so heavy and dense with information.
15:54Let's try and do a little recap.
15:56You've taught me a lot.
15:57So let me see if I remember these things.
15:59Number one, scrap the diets.
16:03Eat, make sure that carbs,
16:06about 25 to 30% of your diet is carbs.
16:08And they're good carbs.
16:09Yes.
16:11Watch out for things that your body's giving you
16:14in terms of signs.
16:16Are you sleeping well?
16:17Are you pooping well?
16:19Bang on, our body's constantly communicating with us.
16:22And balance the survival hormones.
16:24Balance the survival hormones.
16:25Yes.
16:26That rounds up the third episode of Friday Food Fatah.
16:29Thank you so much for joining us.
16:31And thank you, Rashi, for being a part of the show.
16:33Thank you for having me.
16:34I'm sure the viewers have a lot of questions to ask you.
16:37They can reach you on your Instagram.
16:39Can you please give us your handle?
16:41It's at Rashi Chaudhary.
16:42Big thank you to our sponsors, My Dubai,
16:45Waterfront Market, Al Adil Training Company,
16:47and of course, Danny Bhome for hosting us.
16:50Stay healthy, stay hydrated,
16:52and see you next week for our final episode.