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Sara Gottfried MD
  • Home
  • About Dr Sara
    • FAQ’s
    • Media
    • Contact
  • Store
    • Shakes
    • Kits
    • Super Power Protein Bars
    • Supplements
    • Programs
  • Let Me Help You
    • The Younger Book
    • Brain Body Diet Book
    • Hormone Reset Diet Book
    • The Hormone Cure Book
    • Courses
    • Upcoming Events
  • Blog
    • Recipes
    • Women’s Health
    • Hormones
    • Weight Loss
    • Cleanse
    • Stress Management

Posts by Dr. Sara and David Gottfried

Kickstarting Health in the Gottfried Home: Our Morning Rituals

By Dr. Sara and David Gottfried | December 11, 2017

Do you race out of bed to get your morning caffeine, or do you meditate quietly for thirty minutes? Do you take the time to eat a nutritious breakfast, or consciously skip it as you rush out the door? What measurements or supplementation, if any, do you perform or take each morning? In the Gottfried…

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PRAISE

“For the first time in my adult life I feel that I have gained control over food. I feel healthier, look better and have gained an interest in making sure that what I am putting into my body is the best it can be. And I lost 10 pounds in all the right places.”

– Janice Lunde, Dr. Sara’s Detox Challenge Participant

“Dr. Sara is the height of excellence! She is incredibly knowledgeable and gives very generously of her time. I feel so blessed to have been able to work with her.”

– Yvonne Varah

“You don’t have to settle for being stressed out, binging on sugar and chocolate, and aging prematurely. Stop blaming yourself and step into sacred action. It’s your birthright. You can have the joyous, mission-driven life you want, and Dr. Sara is here to show us how.”

– Marci Shimoff, New York Times Bestselling Author of Happy for No Reason and Love for No Reason

“Dr. Gottfried offers powerful and effective tools for addressing the most difficult health issues facing women and men today. She is warm and kind and has so much experience to draw upon, it’s inspiring. Thank you Dr. S!”

– Cassandra Mick

“Dr. Sara Gottfried is a modern-day healer goddess if ever there was one, and she also happens to be a Harvard Medical School graduate and rigorous physician-scientist.”

– Christiane Northrup MD, author of Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom

“Dr. Gottfried’s book and detox came at a time when I was ready to give in to old age. Hot flashes, low energy and libido, weight gain, increasing blood pressure and cholesterol levels were unacceptable to me. I now know that hormone levels and what I eat are a huge influence on how I feel and look. To now be able to control something that was out of control is empowering…”

Cheryl V., Dr. Sara’s Detox Challenge Participant

“My health coach told me about your book and I took the [hormone] test, and lo and behold, I found I was a mess, hormonally speaking. Now I’m getting on track and I love your videos and your book. I feel like I’m getting my life back again, when not long ago I truly thought I was losing it!”

-Tracy, Registered Nurse

“You don’t have to accept the hormonal hell of being tired, stressed, overweight, and never in the mood for sex as you grow older. In her fabulous new book, the brilliant Dr. Gottfried gives you an effective, easy-to-follow plan to balance your hormones and become lean, energetic, and loving life again. Stop settling and reclaim your sexy!”

–JJ Virgin, Author of Six Weeks to Sleeveless and Sexy and The Virgin Diet

“I lost 10 lbs., reset my hormones and metabolism and eliminated my sugar cravings! I have also found that I respond to stress much differently, I feel it, notice it and move on from it. Stress no longer has a grip on me. Dr. Sara’s conference calls and detox information was invaluable. I am so grateful for this program. Thank you Dr. Sara!”

–Sophia, Dr. Sara’s Detox Challenge Participant

“The Hormone Cure is the playbook for your mojo, your mind, and your bootie. With every chapter I thought, ‘So THAT’s how that works.’ I wanted to call every girlfriend and give them the goods on how to glow… now and always.”

-Danielle LaPorte, Author of The Fire Starter Sessions and The Desire Map

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I help you return to wellness even in times of crisis, NYT bestselling author & OB/GYN

Sara Gottfried M.D.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) risk overlaps wit Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) risk overlaps with breast cancer, and the PCOS hormonal profile may be implicated in breast cancer pathogenesis. Women with PCOS are often battling multiple hormone problems at once: insulin block, leptin resistance, low adiponectin, low sex hormone binding globulin, high testosterone and DHEA, high cortisol, high aromatase, and as a result dysestrogenism (know colloquially as “estrogen dominance”). They have signs of unresolved inflammation, like excess belly fat and blood tests showing high cRP, interleukin-6, and TNF-alpha—inflammatory markers which may raise aromatase and makes weight loss very difficult. Breast cancer, the dreaded disease that affects one in eight women over her lifetime, correlates with PCOS in many studies. The most proven link is high insulin and the resulting metabolic dysfunction, but increased bioavailable androgens are also associated with breast cancer recurrence due to conversion to estrogens. While clinical are mixed—some positive and some negative—the negative studies failed to make appropriate statistical adjustments. We need further prospective studies that can help us with breast cancer risk stratification. Meta-analyses show a definitive link between PCOS and endometrial cancer, another hormonally-mediated type of cancer. One intervention that may be effective for both PCOS and breast cancer risk reduction is circadian-based intermittent fasting. It has been shown in multiple studies to help reset high insulin, which is a potential root cause in both conditions. We do not yet know if it can reverse PCOS or reduce risk of breast cancer (though it has been shown in one study to reduce breast cancer recurrence in a 14/10 protocol), but it’s a treatment that many of my patients are able to accomplish successfully. Bottom line: we need more research! #pcos #insulin #insulinresistance #breastcancer #breastcancerawareness #pcosawareness #endometrialcancer #hormones #intermittentfasting
Some 30 percent of women report serious hair loss Some 30 percent of women report serious hair loss by age 30. By age 50, that statistic climbs to 50 percent. This is a major problem, of both vanity and sanity. It’s demoralizing, and conventional medicine often pats you on the back, murmuring, “You’re getting older; you need to get used to it.” Sometimes hair loss is associated with a simple root cause. Most of the time, there are hormonal imbalances such as thyroid, insulin, or testosterone. Nearly any significant hormonal change can trigger hair loss. Occasionally, hair loss is linked to physical and emotional trauma, and probably dysregulation of cortisol. Even rarer, I find underlying health conditions such as autoimmunity as the root cause.⠀ ⠀ One cause of hair loss in women is high testosterone; this is usually the case when the symptom is male-pattern hair loss. Excess androgens are mostly seen in women with PCOS. Scroll back through my recent posts and videos on PCOS tips to learn more about how you can improve or reverse your PCOS symptoms.⠀ ⠀ More commonly, I find that the root cause is low iron, thyroid hormone imbalance, or insulin resistance. Dramatic hair loss is often an early-warning sign of low thyroid, especially if your hair gets thinner, coarse, and brittle.⠀ ⠀ The good news is that you can often stop and even reverse the symptoms of hair loss once you balance your hormones. My advice is to try therapies aimed at the root cause of your hair loss first, and ask your doctor for my top blood tests that include a complete blood count, ferritin, TSH, free T3, possibly reverse T3, cortisol, fasting insulin and blood glucose, testosterone, and antinuclear antibody. ⠀ ⠀ You can also help hair loss with your fork: one study showed that 90 percent of women with thinning hair were deficient in iron and the amino acid lysine, which helps transport the iron that is essential for many metabolic processes. You can add lysine to your diet with foods rich in protein, such as meat and poultry, soy, eggs, cheese (especially Parmesan), and some fish (cod, sardines). Who has reversed their hair loss? Did you and your doctor find the root cause?
Well, at least some of us. I was heading in this d Well, at least some of us. I was heading in this direction! Fix your nutrition. Cut the sugar, booze, and processed fake food. Heal the trauma. Move your body. Sleep. Change your operating system. #brainbodydiet #mindset #stress #stressrelief #alcohol
It seems like we’ve forgotten the basic common s It seems like we’ve forgotten the basic common sense of immune health. Most of the immune system is in your gut, and the gut microbiota teach your immune system what to do. The top disruptors of the gut are unhealthy food, stress, and alcohol/other toxins. Toxic stress and negative emotions take a toll on immune health. I think of the immune system as interdependent with the other systems that we use to take in the environment: the endocrine and nervous systems. We are in a mad rush to find a vaccine or some new treatment, but the truth is that eating brightly-colored vegetables, getting moderate exercise, rising above stress and trauma, and sleeping 7-8.5 hours per night may be a key part of the prevention needed. Yes, there are other options to boost immunity, like consuming more garlic, probiotic foods (sauerkraut, kimchi, yogurt, kefir, miso, tempeh), and selenium (Brazil nuts provide the richest supply). Green tea, palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), vitamins C & D, and zinc have been shown in randomized trials to reduce viral infection. Other immunoadjuvents include beta glucans, astralgalus, and traditional Chinese formulations containing Chinese skull cap and licorice. Not shown but also evidence based: Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG, 1 RCT)—inhibits NLRP3 inflammasome, dose 225 mg QD. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC, 2 RCTs) reduces respiratory infection, 600 mg BID. Summary of SARS-CoV-2 immune modulation * Adhere to CDC health advice to decrease viral transmission * Optimize modifiable lifestyle factors * Personalize therapeutic agents like those mentioned here What helps you support your immune system and avoid the toll caused by stressful events? What helps you get back to basics to support immune health? #immunehealth #immunesupport #immunoadjuvents #health #nutrition #nutritiontips
Detoxification from alcohol is important and often Detoxification from alcohol is important and often overlooked. From a #functionalmedicine perspective, many nutrients may need attention, from amino acids to healthy fats to those listed here. When I run my #hormoneresetdetox based on #THEHORMONERESETDIET — we ask all participants to come off of alcohol for 3 weeks. That’s considered a minimum length of time to clean up the liver but it serves another important function: it’s a diagnostic test. If you can’t come off of alcohol for 3 weeks, chances are you have a sticky relationship with it that demands further investigation. I’ve heard every excuse about why someone can’t quit for 3 weeks. My answer: Try it. Seek professional help if you’re a heavy drinker (8+ drinks/week in women; 15+ in men). I make sure to replace alcohol with plenty of filtered water. Add fresh lemon or apple cider vinegar. Eat whole foods, including plenty of detoxifying vegetables like broccoli sprouts, Brussel sprouts, radishes, watercress, and bok choy. Get the healthy fat, balanced omegas, and anti-inflammatory protein that you need. Here are the most common micronutrient deficiencies that I address in my patients: magnesium, zinc, and glutathione. I recommend taking magnesium, ideally 200-800 mg per day. I suggest repleting zinc, often at a dose 30 mg or more per day depending on status and copper levels. Nearly every drinker is low in glutathione, so I recommend taking the precursor, n-acetyl cysteine, at a dose of 600-900 mg twice per day, or IV glutathione. After taking 30,000 participants through my detox, the most common experience I hear at the end is: “Wow, I didn’t know I could sleep so well. I’m sleeping an extra 30 minutes per night.” Or “My anxiety is gone. I drank to ease my stress and anxiety, which helped short term, but made it worse the next day.” Or “Everything is better. Relationships, mood, stress, resourcefulness. I’m going to stay off of alcohol longer if I can feel this good off of it.” Or “I lost weight, and I think a lot of it was the alcohol.” Of course, I care less about the number on the bathroom scale, but other health benefits make a periodic alcohol detox well worth it.
In response to my posts on PCOS, several people as In response to my posts on PCOS, several people asked about solutions for acne. There can be several reasons for acne. One of the most common is overactive androgens, like testosterone or DHEA, which is why acne is often seen in women who have PCOS. Women with PCOS start making more androgens, which causes the symptoms of high androgens such as acne and rogue hair growth. 🔹Findings indicate that the sebaceous glands (part of the endocrine system) are sensitive to the functions of androgens. Addressing and managing androgens, particularly testosterone levels, can curb breakouts. At the same time, it is important to address insulin as high insulin in the blood stimulates the ovaries and adrenals to secrete excess androgens. Of women with high androgens, most have PCOS, and the high androgens are associated with high insulin, obesity, and inflammation. 🔹The #functionalmedicine protocol detailed in the slides above is what I recommend in my book THE HORMONE CURE for lowering androgen levels. This protocol can also address food intolerances (gluten, dairy) and excess sugar that can be responsible for significant inflammation that drives acne. I am seeing more of this in my clinic in addition to high androgens. As I dive deeper and deeper into my research on #keto for my next book, I have also found positive studies showing how a #ketogenicdiet can reduce the severity and progression of acne. 🔹A review of the therapeutic uses of very-low-carbohydrate (ketogenic) diets (Paoli A, 2013) showed that the beneficial effects of low-glycemic-load diets, apart from weight and blood glucose levels, also include improved skin quality. 🔹A targeted nutrition and exercise protocol, for a period of twelve to twenty-four weeks, helps women with excess androgens. Weight loss reduces insulin resistance and excess androgens. Remember that the exercise program does not need to be dramatic. Even a 5% reduction in weight in women with PCOS is associated with metabolic benefits. 👉Save this post or tag someone who needs this advice.
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