Dr. Connor Anderson, ND

11/04/2026

GOOD NEWS: Eating well still has side effects that are awesome! 🍏🫀⚡️

This was an uncomplicated case in a vibrant young man who was extremely busy but loved to cook (modern day super power).

This process is standard in my work - He came in with a common concern of LOW ENERGY and got personalized care based on his symptoms and biomarkers about what he could do for his heart, inflammation, blood sugar, nutrient deficiencies, hormones, and ENERGY.

This outcome is simple but meaningful.

Follow for more case reviews!

30/03/2026

"I'm just feeling the effects of aging." I see this every week.

Guy walks in, he's 38, 42, 45. Used to have energy. Used to recover quickly. Used to feel sharp. Now he doesn't.

The thing is, most of the time it's not "aging". It's two hormones that are being taxed: cortisol and insulin.

Here's what I mean.

When you're chronically stressed (work, sleep debt, training hard without recovery), cortisol stays elevated. That elevated cortisol drives insulin resistance. Insulin resistance means your blood sugar becomes less stable, which drives more cortisol. It's a loop.

The result? You feel exhausted even after sleeping. Your body holds onto fat around the midsection. Your mood is flat. Recovery sucks. Everything feels harder than it should. You reach for stimulants and stimulating activities just to feel energized and happy.

The frustrating part is that none of this shows up as "abnormal" on a standard blood panel. Your fasting glucose looks fine. Your A1C looks fine (for now). So your doctor says you're healthy.

But physiologically, you're stuck in a stress-insulin cycle that's making you feel old at 40.

Here's where most advice gets it backwards.

You'll hear "just reduce stress" or "cut carbs" or "exercise more." But if you're already in this cycle, those generic fixes often backfire. Cutting carbs aggressively stresses your system further. Pushing harder in the gym without recovery makes it worse.

My approach is the opposite: I focus on rebuilding first.

That means restoring your cortisol's circadian rhythm — getting it high in the morning where it belongs and low at night. Supporting actual sleep quality, not just hours. Modulating stress through nervous system work. And then — once you're not in survival mode — addressing the metabolic breakdown of high insulin.

Because here's what high insulin actually feels like day to day: daytime fatigue even though you slept. Crashing after meals. Cravings for sugar that feel insatiable. Falling asleep after lunch.

Those aren't character flaws. They're signals that your metabolism is dysregulated.

The good news? Once you understand what's actually happening and take the right approach, it's pretty fixable with a personalized plan. It's not about willpower or pushing harder. It's about breaking the cycle the right way.

If this sounds familiar, that's what I work on with guys in your situation.

27/03/2026

4 Things You Can Do This Week to Improve Your Health

Most people think getting healthier requires a complete reset — new diet, new routine, more time, more willpower.

That's usually where things fall apart.

The real constraint isn't knowledge; it's consistency.

So instead of trying to change everything at once, here are
4 evidence-informed habits that work with your biology, not against it.

TLDR: Direct Morning sunlight, Consistent Sleep timing, anchor meals with protein, walk >10 minutes after your largest meal.

These are not personalized recommendations but represent some good lifestyle foundations!

Let us know if you have tried any of these and what happened!

Happy Friday. Go outside

10/03/2026

“Health optimization fatigue” is kicking in for some people, and I get it.

Every week there seems to be a new protocol, new revolutionary evidence, new medicines, or new lifestyle interventions that are going to fix your exact problem. Social media is not a good place to discuss these things.

I'm personally feeling some resistance to contributing to the noise on these platforms. This isn’t the work I was trained to do or what I want to do.

My work focuses on personalized healthcare that’s tailored toward my patients’ individual needs and preferences and thorough investigation. It’s my job to show you what’s most effective and useful for what’s showing up in your health right now. The naturopathic modalities are broad and provide options for personalized care.

I believe that’s the way healthcare should be. That’s what I am trained to do and that’s the work I love to do.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by information here on this platform and feel like you're trying a lot of things but not really getting the results you want, then let's have a chat. I offer free discovery calls (link in bio).

We will talk about your health, your goals, and your preferences, and determine what’s going to be effective for you so you can quiet the noise.

19/02/2026

I see this pattern constantly in men feeling the pressures and responsibility of modern life.

You’re training.
You’re trying to eat well.
You’re pushing hard at work.

But your midsection is slowly increasing.
Energy is inconsistent.
Sleep isn’t as restorative.
Mood is flat or variable
Testosterone or correlated symptoms trend down.

This is rarely a motivation issue.

It’s usually stress physiology.

When cortisol dysregulates, your body:
• Holds onto abdominal fat
• Raises insulin
• Interferes with deep sleep
• Gradually suppresses testosterone

And most routine bloodwork misses the full picture.

The goal isn’t to “reduce stress” in a vague way.

It’s to structure your environment so your nervous system and metabolism feel safe again.

• Protecting and regulating your sleep.
• Morning sunlight in your eyes and reducing digital light at night.
• Moderating stimulation from Caffeine, ni****ne, and cheap dopamine sources.
• Proper strength training dosage.
• Consistent recovery and breaks (try doing nothing for 20-30 minutes a day)
• Closing stress loops
• Prioritizing social connection and quality relationships
• Normalizing essential and micronutrient status

High performance isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about regulating.

If this sounds like you, it’s fixable — but it requires a few months of rebuilding resilience.

16/02/2026

If you’ve been telling yourself that you're “lazy” lately — I want you to pause.

Most of the men I see in their 30s and later aren’t lazy.

They’re exhausted in a very specific, physiological way.

It often looks like:
• Racing mind
• Poor sleep
• Early waking or unrefreshed sleep
• A 2-4pm crash
• Brain fog
• Stubborn weight gain around the waist
• Irritability that wasn’t there 5 years ago

This pattern is frequently driven by insulin resistance and stress hormone dysregulation.

It's not a character flaw. It's not a motivation problem.

It's a physiology problem.

And this physiology can be assessed — and improved.

Call now to connect with business.

12/02/2026

🦠 Can probiotics help prevent colds and upper respiratory infections? This winter has been brutal for URTIs!

A large 2022 Cochrane systematic review (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36001877/) analyzed 24 randomized trials with nearly 7,000 people and found that probiotics offer statistically significant and clinically meaningful benefits for preventing common upper respiratory infections.

Here’s what the research suggests:

• People taking probiotics were ~24% less likely to get at least one respiratory infection (statistically significant)
• Recurrent infections were reduced by ~40% (statistically significant and clinically meaningful)
• Illness episodes were about 1 day shorter on average (statistically significant)
• Antibiotic use for these infections dropped by ~40% (statistically significant and clinically meaningful)
• Side effects were mild gastrointestinal symptoms and similar to placebo (no significant increase in harm)

This doesn’t mean probiotics make you immune to getting sick — but they appear to provide a real, measurable protective effect, especially during cold and flu season. Think of them as one supportive piece of an overall immune strategy alongside sleep, nutrition, stress management, and physical activity.

As always, strain, dose, and individual context matter. If you’re curious whether probiotics make sense for you or your family, I’m happy to help you sort through the options.

28/01/2026

There is a lot of talk going around about Total Cholesterol being protective of longer life, but this is incomplete information.

Total Cholesterol has always been and remains a poor indicator for cardiovascular disease and risk. It can be high due to HDL or any of the non-HDL's (LDL, VLDL, IDL, etc.). LDL, its size and density, inflammation, blood sugar, blood pressure, and central adiposity remain significantly more meaningful.

Total Cholesterol is not useful in isolation. Ignore these posts.

The dietary recommendations below remain the gold standard foods across effective diet pattens.

The Essential Eight Behaviours and Metrics remain meaningful goals that are not being met by too many of us, and social media tends to undermine them.

Images from: Nutrition interventions for adults with dyslipidemia: A Clinical Perspective from the National Lipid Association (PMID: 37271600)

26/01/2026

Some Metabolic Health biomarkers to look into

We cannot ignore the mechanisms these indicators represent and correlate to energy, inflammation, weight gain, mood, health promotion and well-being

19/01/2026

This is an inaccurate and dangerous post with regards to vitamin D dosing.

We do have a significant amount of vitamin D insufficiency in Canada and it is a health risk, BUT 8895 IU/day is very high as a general recommendation and risks causing vitamin d toxicity.

You should get your Vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D, or 25(OH)D) levels tested and personalize your dosing with an ND or MD. Sufficient range is >75 nmol/L, the upper end of normal range is 250 nmol/L, and optimized ranges may be between 90-150 nmol/L.

19/01/2026

A significant portion of my work focuses on chronic metabolic conditions because they are so prevalent. This is a light framework I created to visualize some of the levers we have available for metabolic health support and intervention.

It's not set in stone or all-encompassing, but the base is more essential. The peak is more personalized, specific, and increases involvement with your healthcare providers. Some people want to jump to the peak without ever focusing on the foundation. Some lock in the foundations and still require more specific support depending on the state of their health.

Please let me know if you have any questions or would like more details on what each of these levels of care might entail.