Integral Wellness Nutrition & Health Clinic

Integral Wellness Nutrition & Health Clinic Helping you regain your energy, control your cravings and reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes

“Why am I never hungry in the mornings?” 🤔This was a question posed in clinic recently by a perimenopausal client who wa...
28/05/2026

“Why am I never hungry in the mornings?” 🤔

This was a question posed in clinic recently by a perimenopausal client who was working on blood sugar regulation with our nutritionist, Holly.

And it’s such a good (and common) one.👇🏼

Because not feeling hungry in the morning is often dismissed as personal preference… but it’s usually a signal.

Holly identified six things that can suppress morning hunger:
1️⃣ What you ate (and when) the night before
2️⃣ Elevated or disrupted cortisol
3️⃣ A dysregulated body clock
4️⃣ Blood sugar patterns overnight
5️⃣ Poor or broken sleep
6️⃣ Digestive issues affecting appetite signals

In perimenopause, these factors rarely work in isolation.

Blood sugar, sleep, stress and digestion are all interconnected - and all shifting at the same time.

So if breakfast feels like a chore, or you genuinely can’t face food before midday, that’s worth paying attention to 👀

If this sounds familiar and you’d like to understand what might be driving it for you, comment CALL and Holly will drop you a message.

Your body may feel different in this heat, and that’s completely normal.If you’re feeling:🫪 puffier🥴 more bloated🫨 heavi...
26/05/2026

Your body may feel different in this heat, and that’s completely normal.

If you’re feeling:

🫪 puffier
🥴 more bloated
🫨 heavier after meals
🫣 like your rings and clothes feel tighter

You are not imagining it.

Here’s what’s happening...

Heat causes the body to retain more sodium and, therefore, more water.

That can lead to:
👉🏼 swollen ankles
👉🏼 bloating
👉🏼 fluid retention
👉🏼 that uncomfortable “puffy” feeling

But this is important to know...

IT IS NOT BODY FAT! ❌

Your body cannot suddenly gain body fat overnight because of hot weather.

This is your body responding normally to heat.

And when we’re wearing less clothing in warmer weather…

…it’s understandable if body image feels a little harder right now.

Please be kind to yourself and rationalise this.

What can help?

💚 Keeping blood sugar balanced can also help minimise fluid retention.

✅ protein-rich meals
✅ fibre
✅ fewer sugary drinks/snacks
✅ reducing ultra-processed “beige” foods
✅ gentle movement where you can

💧 Staying hydrated actually helps your body release retained fluid.

If you’ve ever wondered about electrolytes, now, in this heat, can be a great time to use them.

Or make your own: cucumber, lime, salt, water.

Most importantly, your body is doing exactly what bodies do in this heat.

This will pass.

Send it to someone who needs this reminder.

Feeling thirsty is not a simple request💧🥵By the time you feel thirsty, you’re already mildly dehydrated and your body is...
25/05/2026

Feeling thirsty is not a simple request💧🥵

By the time you feel thirsty, you’re already mildly dehydrated and your body is having to work harder to tell you what it needed an hour ago.

In the heat this becomes more urgent.

Dehydration raises blood sugar because your blood becomes more concentrated, pushing glucose levels up.

It raises blood pressure as your body constricts blood vessels and retains sodium to compensate for lower fluid volume.

And it puts direct stress on your heart, which now has to work harder to pump thicker, less fluid blood around your body.

Hydration is not a nice-to-have or something you hope to remember.

It is part of the prevention protocol.

👉🏼 Don’t wait to be thirsty.
👉🏼 Drink water consistently throughout the day. (Set frequent alarms if you forget and carry water bottles.)
👉🏼 Add electrolytes in the heat or if you’re exercising.
👉🏼 Filter it if the taste puts you off.
👉🏼 Squeeze some lime in if that helps. (Other citrus fruits are available.)

And finally, just get on with it because you’re a responsible adult. 😅

So many questions about protein powders.The market is so confusing. With more products and different sources being relea...
22/05/2026

So many questions about protein powders.

The market is so confusing. With more products and different sources being released all the time.

When I started having protein powder it was a choice between whey isolate and concentrate - that was it.

Now we’ve got whey, plant and bovine options all with a variety of ingredients to make them different from their competitors.

But what does it all mean?

I break it down in my latest video and article:

👉🏼 How to choose between the whey, plant and bovine
👉🏼 What impact the sweeteners or sugars have
👉🏼 How much protein is in each gram of the powder
👉🏼 Where have essential amino acids been included or missed
👉🏼 What pharmaceutical grade means and is it worth the price?

Comment PROTEIN and I’ll send you the link.

“Can I still eat bread?” 🍞 🙏🏼It’s one of the most common questions we hear in clinic - especially from clients managing ...
20/05/2026

“Can I still eat bread?” 🍞 🙏🏼

It’s one of the most common questions we hear in clinic - especially from clients managing blood sugar.

And the answer isn’t “no”…

It’s “let’s choose the right kind, and think about what goes with it.”

Low-carb bread has a gentler effect on blood glucose than standard white or wholemeal.

It’s typically higher in fibre, which slows glucose release and it keeps you fuller for longer.

But what you pair it with is just as important.👇🏼

Protein and healthy fats alongside your bread (think eggs, smoked salmon, nut butter, avocado) help keep things steady.

Blood sugar balance isn’t about one food, it’s about the whole picture.

And sometimes having something that feels like a normal breakfast is exactly what makes sustainable change possible.

On of our Nutritional Therapist’s Caroline, shares her favourite low carb bread recipe with clients regularly…

Comment BREAD below and we’ll send it to you too.

Here’s the thing…Most people with high blood pressure, raised cholesterol and elevated blood sugar are told they have th...
15/05/2026

Here’s the thing…

Most people with high blood pressure, raised cholesterol and elevated blood sugar are told they have three separate problems.

They don’t.

They have one 👉🏼 showing up in three places.

And it actually starts years before any of those numbers appear on a blood test.

Because by the time blood pressure rises, cholesterol shifts or blood sugar becomes elevated, the underlying process has usually been developing quietly for a long time.

🛡️ Insulin resistance.�🔥 Low-grade inflammation.�😖 Metabolic stress building beneath the surface.

These markers don’t appear at random… they follow a pattern.

But standard testing is designed to catch problems once they’ve developed, not to identify what’s driving them in the first place.

Which is why so many people are told their results are ‘fine’ 👉🏼 until they’re not.

Swipe to understand the sequence, the shared driver and what’s often missed in the early stages.

Comment BLOG and we’ll send you the full breakdown.

10/05/2026

You went to the gym this morning… so what?! 🤷🏼‍♀️

Ok, I’m being deliberately jabby but hear me out!

You go to the gym for an hour, four times a week but if the rest of your day looks like this?

Car. Train. Desk. Chair. Sofa. Bed.

Then you’re still more sedentary than active and the research is clear.

Sitting for long periods without breaking it up can…

👉🏼 Make your cells less responsive to insulin - driving blood sugar issues over time.

👉🏼 Impair how your blood vessels function which can affect blood pressure and circulation.

👉🏼 Shift your body toward burning sugar instead of fat for fuel.

👉🏼 Change your muscle fibres in ways that reduce their efficiency.

👉🏼 Reduce your cardiovascular fitness - even if you exercise.

👉🏼 Cause you to lose muscle mass, strength and bone density over time.

👉🏼 Increase body fat, particularly the visceral fat stored around your organs.

👉🏼 Raise blood lipid levels including triglycerides.

👉🏼 Drive chronic low-grade inflammation throughout the body.

(PMID: 37326297)

And all of this can happen independently of whether you go to the gym a few times a week.

A ‘prevention protocol’ needs more than just a gym routine - but it’s actually really simple.

Basic movement threaded through the entire day.

🙌🏻 Walk up the escalator - don’t stand!

🙌🏻 Stand between meetings - or take walking meetings.

🙌🏻 Walk after lunch.

🙌🏻 Get off a stop (or two) early.

🙌🏻 Do a few body weight squats or similar while the kettle boils.

🙌🏻 Park the car further away.

🙌🏻 Leave the trolley and walk around the supermarket collecting items (a personal favourite).

🙌🏻 Take a breath and walk between personal life and work to bookend your day.

Small additions like this can make the world of difference when trying to prevent cardio-metabolic diseases.

So, why wouldn’t you?

Share what you’ll be adding to your life or what you already do that others can use as inspiration 👇🏼💬

30/04/2026

You’ve been told not to fry with extra virgin olive oil. 🫒

The research says otherwise.

A 2021 study deep-fried
🍟 chips
🍗 chicken nuggets
🥦 and broccoli

in three different oils…

1️⃣ extra virgin olive oil
2️⃣ canola oil (also know as rapeseed oil)
3️⃣ grapeseed oil

All at 180°C.

Here’s what happened to the food:

→ More antioxidants and monounsaturated fats in food cooked with extra virgin olive oil.

→ Trans fatty acids decreased by ~70% when frying with extra virgin olive oil.

→ Trans fatty acids increased significantly with canola and grapeseed oils.

→ Polar compounds - harmful oxidation products - were lowest with extra virgin olive oil.

→ Highest polar compounds were found in food cooked with grapeseed and canola oils.

Why does extra virgin olive oil perform better at heat?

Polyphenols and monounsaturated fat content can make extra virgin olive oil more resistant to oxidation than polyunsaturated seed oils.

The seed oil concern is most relevant to industrial frying - where oils are repeatedly heated at high temperatures over long periods.

At home is a little different.

But… I still cook with extra virgin olive oil on a low to medium heat.

And it’s clear from this that the evidence supports it.

Save this and share it with someone avoiding olive oil for cooking.

Everything you need to know about buying olive oil 🫒 Extra virgin olive oil is one of the most researched foods for card...
26/04/2026

Everything you need to know about buying olive oil 🫒

Extra virgin olive oil is one of the most researched foods for cardiovascular health - and I love it!

🫒 Rich in polyphenols.
⬇️ Reduces oxidised LDL cholesterol.
🔥 Lowers inflammatory markers.
🩸 Supports blood pressure.
🐛 Feeds a healthy gut microbiome.

This is not just a cooking oil. It is a whole-body health food.

A 2018 study of 7,000 people found that consuming extra virgin olive oil daily reduced heart disease risk by 30% compared to a low-fat diet.

But not all olive oil is equal.

Light olive oil ≠ extra virgin olive oil.
Filtered ≠ unfiltered.
Blended ≠ single source origin.

The polyphenol content - and the health benefit - changes significantly depending on what you buy.

This carousel covers every type of olive oil
🫒 What to look for on the label
🫒 How to maximise polyphenol benefit
🫒 The brands I’d buy myself at every budget

But if this is too much and you want the simple version - I share that too.

Share this with someone who needs its and save this for your next food shop. 🛒

You’ve tried keto. Mediterranean. Low-fat. Paleo.And you’re still here, still looking for the answer.That’s not a willpo...
25/04/2026

You’ve tried keto. Mediterranean. Low-fat. Paleo.

And you’re still here, still looking for the answer.

That’s not a willpower problem.

That’s a personalisation problem.

Every named diet was built around a population average.

It was not built around you.

Not around your cholesterol pattern, your insulin response, your cortisol levels, your gut microbiome, or the 3pm crash you’ve had every day for six years.

And it doesn’t know your goals, or what’s led you to where you are today.

Two people can eat identical meals and have completely different blood sugar responses. Different triglyceride changes. Different energy outcomes.

What works for your colleague, your partner, your favourite wellness influencer may actively not work for you.

And every time you try to force it, you’re left wondering why it didn’t work - again.

The question was never “which diet is best?”

It was always “what does your body actually need?”

That’s a harder question. It requires looking at your blood results, your symptoms, your history, your life.

But it’s the only question worth asking.

We don’t give our clients a named diet. We build them a personalised one.

Let’s talk about what that looks like for you - link in bio, or message us to book a free call.

💚

And thanks to for the quote 🙌🏻

Address

Hitchin

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 3pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Integral Wellness Nutrition & Health Clinic posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Integral Wellness Nutrition & Health Clinic:

Shortcuts

Share

Category