Zestt Wellness

15/09/2025

What My CGM Taught Me in Just 2 Weeks 😮 And Why Oat Milk is Off the Menu ☹️

It’s my last few days with my continuous glucose monitor (CGM). What a great experience, seeing in action how diet, sleep, circadian rhythm and stress levels affect my glucose levels.

The biggest surprise of the two weeks was the extent to which my much-loved oat milk lattes spiked my blood glucose levels. Oat milk often has added sugars or can be high in maltose (with a glycemic index of ~100), which explains the sharp spike. I am now drinking black coffee while I find an alternative for my lattes that doesn’t resemble drinking a can of Coke in terms of mainlining sugar and that I like the taste of (sorry, dairy farmers; I love cow’s milk in my smoothies, but not in my coffees and I understand that the plant stuff is not really “milk”).

Overall, this is what I have had hammered home to me:

✅ When you have a big meal, you have an initial spike and drop in glucose, followed by another spike hours later. This second spike is related to delayed gastric emptying and slower digestion of starches. The second spike can trigger a rise in cortisol, which disrupts sleep. I need to eat my main dinner before 7 pm and limit my intake of simple carbohydrates to ensure good sleep and reduce 2 am glucose and cortisol spikes. One night, I had white sourdough bread in a late dinner - bad, bad idea!

✅ When consuming foods with fructose and/or sucrose, such as fruits or bread, pairing them with fat and protein can help reduce the glucose spike. I noticed this when I had oat and fruit smoothies. When I added a spoonful of peanut butter, the spike was flattened and I felt fuller for longer. Fats slow down the digestion of carbohydrates, helping you to avoid the spike-crash phenomenon.

✅ I’m ok with rye bread. I was worried about this because a friend found that rye bread spiked her glucose levels badly. Every Saturday morning, I have a gym session at 7 am and then go to the Otago Farmers Market and get rye bread from Maggies Cafe. It has become a ritual that marks the start of the weekend. I eat my rye bread with avocado and Evansdale Farmhouse Brie (I know, right - yum!). A definite glucose bump follows, but not a crazy spike, so that was a relief. It does highlight, though, the value of a CGM to determine what works at a personal level.

✅ A walk (or any form of exercise) after a big meal (or a slice of cake) helps reduce the glucose spike and crash as your muscles utilise some of the circulating blood glucose - so too a night dancing after cocktails and fried food 💃🏼. Great 21st though!

My endocrinologist advisor is pleased with my overall nighttime glucose drops, my time within acceptable glucose zones (which were 95% between 3.9 and 6.8 mmol/L). Apparently, my body is doing what it should, BUT she would like me to work on reducing my overall average glucose levels by one standard deviation (by 0.3 mmol/L; my current average is 5.7 mmol/L).

In the next few days, I have a couple more experiments to conduct on myself. Then I will put my lessons into practice for a few months before wearing another CGM to see if I have successfully lowered my average blood glucose level.

A CGM won’t fix your health for you, but it can give you the insight and motivation to make changes that truly matter. I guess the proof for me will be in the pudding (or the not-pudding). I’ll come back to you on that one in a few months.

Otago Farmers Market

03/09/2025

I wasn’t expecting to post again so soon, but my first 24 hours with my continuous glucose monitor (CGM) were super interesting.

Here was my day yesterday:

➡️ Breakfast of 2 black coffees 7:30am
➡️ Protein smoothie and some cheese for lunch 1pm
➡️ Zestt Gut+ lozenges 4pm
➡️ Gym from 5:30 - 6:45, a pretty hard cardio session.
➡️ Dinner, venison curry and rice 7:30pm.
➡️ Two homemade Blis Balls at 8:30pm
➡️ Bed and sleep by 10:30pm.
➡️Awake and wired from 2:30-4:30am 😮

In the graph (the actual results are the red line, target results is the green line), you will see my glucose levels never get out of control (over 10mmol/L), meaning my insulin system is functioning well; however, my nighttime glucose bump coincided with me being awake and wired - not ideal!

My nightly second glucose bump is driven by a mix of:
➡️ Hormones (cortisol, growth hormone) → the dawn phenomenon.
➡️ Delayed digestion of a bigger evening meal.
➡️ A rebound if glucose dips after the first peak.

What I’m Aiming For Tonight:

✅ Protein earlier in the day (I had scrambled eggs for brekky)
A smaller, earlier dinner and no Blis Balls ☹️, I will snack on some nuts if I am really peckish.
✅ Finishing all food at least 3 hours before bed.
✅ A short post-dinner walk to help muscles use up glucose.

The goal:
➡️ A gentler early glucose rise after eating
➡️ No big second bump at 3am
➡️ Flatter, steadier glucose through the night → deeper, uninterrupted sleep

It’s fun; I’m keeping things ‘normal’ at the moment, but next week, I will be experimenting with cheese scones and coke (the cola version) - keep watch and send me any reasonable requests 😅

02/09/2025

Cracking the Code on Insulin, Fat & Heart Health 💪🏼 For Healthy Ageing

As I age, my body shape is changing. Lower estrogen levels mean I carry more weight in higher-risk areas, such as around my organs (I am transitioning from being a pear 🍐 to an apple 🍏!)

Men under 50 suffer from heart disease at a greater rate than women (2-5 times more), but when women reach menopause, the statistics even out. Estrogen has a protective effect on women, supporting healthy cholesterol levels, blood vessels and blood pressure. 🩺

As women go through perimenopause and menopause, their heart disease risk rises sharply and changes can also occur in cholesterol, visceral fat accumulation (fat around your organs) and insulin resistance. By the time women are through menopause, their risk of heart disease and associated diseases can match men’s. This is a critical window of time for women to prevent disease.

I have been burrowing down a few rabbit holes 🐰 in my exploration of this, particularly the connection between the gut microbiome and insulin (which I will write about next time).

Is it just about Calories?

I grew up as a ‘margarine kid.’ My dad, the medical doctor, told us that fat was bad for us and margarine pushed butter out of the fridge. Mum would sneak real butter onto our new potatoes, earning a look of disapproval. Dad’s disapproval was based on the medical thinking of the time. Fats were shunned and weight loss required a simple focus on calorie counting.

Nowadays, this simple model of ‘calories in, calories out’ has shifted because we recognise that calories from different food sources are not metabolically equal.

200 calories of sugar will spike blood glucose and insulin far more than 200 calories of nuts or legumes. 🥜🫛

Insulin is important; it’s the traffic controller of metabolic health🚦:

➡️ It determines whether energy is stored (in the form of fat) or used (as fuel).
➡ Repeated glucose spikes → chronic high insulin → insulin resistance.
➡️ Insulin resistance is at the root of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and fatty liver and it accelerates ageing-related inflammation.

Chronic glucose spikes, not fat alone, drive fat storage, metabolic dysfunction, inflammation, and disease.

I am not diabetic, nor do I have high blood pressure or known heart disease; however, I am overweight and my visceral fat has increased. To gain a deeper understanding of my body’s insulin levels and my response to food, stress, and sleep, I am trialling a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) for a month. (Listen to Episode 25 of our podcast to learn more about using CGMs for preventative health).

By wearing a CGM, I will be able to monitor my responses and learn how to manage my insulin levels (flatten the spikes) to support my metabolic health and reduce visceral fat.

The truth is, for me and many others, menopause changes the rules, but it doesn’t take us out of the game. By understanding insulin, visceral fat and eating for a healthy microbiome, we can play smarter, longer and stronger.

29/08/2025

It's been fantastic to have been able to support local schoolgirls, Emma, Theresa, and Hayley, in developing their anti-inflammatory period pain support product. Check them out .periodcare and if you, or a loved one, suffers from menstrual issues, then we recommend their product as a great natural solution ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
These girls will go far - purpose & work ethic - what a combo!

What a fantastic update! We're thrilled to see one of our student-led businesses, Rhythm, making waves, with a feature in yesterday's Otago Daily Times.
We loved seeing their progress and are even more excited to hear that their period relief drink concentrate is now available in local stores. This is a huge step for Emma, Theresa, and Hayley, and a testament to their hard work.
Head to Roslyn Pharmacy, Health 2000 Sunray, or Taste Nature to get your hands on this amazing product and support our student entrepreneursperiodcare

📸: Otago Daily Times

26/08/2025

Forgetting on Purpose? Why Your Brain Picks Favourites 🧠

I bumped into a friend in a cafe today (she knows who she is), she said to me, “I enjoyed your blog last week,” to which I replied, “Thanks, I can’t remember what I wrote about,” to which she answered, “Mmm, neither can I, but I know I enjoyed it.” Clearly an impactful blog on multiple fronts!

This entertaining conversation led me to write this blog about memory and why some pieces of information stick and others don’t.

What does your brain do to determine what is critical for you to remember and what is not? Why can I remember what Emma wore for m***i day in the 7th form, but I can’t remember what I wrote about in a blog last week?

Firstly, let’s explore why we form memories in the first place.

1️⃣ To help us survive. Learning how to cross a road, what food to avoid and who to trust helps us survive, so these lessons get firmly etched in our brains.
2️⃣ To guide future decisions. Hopefully, we learn from our mistakes and so, with old age comes wisdom. For this reason, I will never invest in a franchise business model again! I am sure you will have your own version of mistakes made, not to be repeated.
3️⃣ Build identity. Memories help us to tell the story about ourselves to ourselves (and to others). This creates our identity, which is not always accurate, but can be related to our outlook on life - that’s a whole other blog!

Memories last when they fit one of the three above and based on how many times you revisit them. Emma looked great on m***i day and she fit in at school. Subconsciously, I was trying to figure out what she wore so I could look similarly cool in the future. For whatever reason, I have revisited that memory many times since, so it has become a memory I will take to my grave.

What affects memory retention?
Memory retention can be hampered by your lifestyle and the activities you engage in at the time of the activity you are trying to remember. If you are multitasking and have lots of things on the go, “being busy,” in other words, then this can mean shallow encoding and poor memory retention. Poor sleep affects memory consolidation, too. Stress and age can affect sleep, which means you don’t lay down the memories like you used to. Which leads to the next point: your brain is a good filter for relevance. Do you really need to remember something unless the activity helps you survive, is essential for future decisions or builds your identity?

Tips to improve memory
In saying all of that, it is damned frustrating when you can’t recall things you want to (or find your glasses). Here are some tips for improving your memory.

✅ Get healthy by prioritising sleep, a balanced diet (anthocyanins are great for brain health), low stress, social activities and regular exercise, all of which are critical for a healthy brain.
✅ Engage in the moment and task at hand (get less distracted) and if it’s important, repeat and then retrieve the information to lock it into your memory.
✅ Engage emotion and meaning. If remembering someone’s name or an event is important to you, connect it to something meaningful - a feeling or a need. For example, instead of trying to remember “eat more beans,” tie it to: “This will help me age strongly and avoid what my father went through.”

So, there you go. If you are still reading at this point, here are the titles of my last two blogs. Did you remember them?

Why Cold Air Makes Your Lungs Spasm ❄️ And How to Stop It.
Ancient Allies: 6 Steps to Rewild Your Gut.

25/08/2025

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✅ Promotes easier breathing and restful sleep

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Step it up to 2 lozenges when symptoms flare or if you have an infection

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18/08/2025

Why Cold Air Makes Your Lungs Spasm ❄️ And How to Stop It

It was 3℃ when I drove to work this morning and snow is forecast for later in the day ❄️. It’s nearly the end of winter, but try telling Dunedin that! Last week was pretty good, clear blue skies led to what is known parochially as ‘Dunner Stunners.’ Today, not so much 😬

It’s always hard to get motivated when the very act of breathing in cold air can set your lungs into spasms. Why do your lungs do that?

There are a few reasons:
1️⃣ Physical Muscle Response: Cold air is often dry and when you breathe it in, it can irritate the lining of your airways. Your body responds by constricting the small muscles around the airways, which makes it feel harder to breathe and can trigger coughing.

2️⃣ Nerve Response: Your airway lining is packed with sensory nerves, which can act as an alarm system, triggering your brain into a cough reflex as a protective response, getting your body to expel the irritant, which in this case is the cold air.

3️⃣ Extra Stress for Asthmatics or Sensitivities: For people with asthma or hyperresponsive airways, cold air can trigger more intense symptoms. Bronchospasm (tightening of the airway muscles) can cause wheezing, coughing and breathlessness. This is technically called exercise-induced bronchoconstriction.

4️⃣Oxygen Uptake and Temperature Differences. When cold air hits your warm, moist lungs, the temperature difference can briefly affect blood flow in the airways and the way oxygen transfers into the blood. This doesn’t usually harm healthy lungs, but it can create a sensation of tightness or difficulty taking a full breath.

What Helps?
🔥Warm the air: Breathe through your nose rather than your mouth; nasal passages are natural humidifiers and warmers for incoming air.
🫁Cover up: A scarf or neck buff over your nose and mouth traps warmth and moisture, reducing irritation.
Prep before moving: A short warm-up indoors before heading out helps your lungs adapt more smoothly to the cold.
⭐️Support from within: This is where Zestt Breathe+ 🌸 can play a role. It’s formulated to support lung lining resilience and airway comfort, helping you adapt to challenges like cold, dry air. Taken regularly, it works in the background to reduce inflammation and keep your airways strong and responsive.
🫁Asthma check: If you have asthma, follow your preventative inhaler plan and check with your doctor if you have ongoing issues which affect your ability to go outside and exercise.

Cold weather does make it harder to exercise from a psychological perspective, but it shouldn’t make it harder physically. Try the steps above and do what you can to brave the elements.

P.S. Having demanding dogs also helps 🐾

18/08/2025

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12/08/2025

Ancient Allies: 6 Steps to Rewild Your Gut for Resilience 🦠🌱

Your DNA is like a palimpsest, a manuscript written, scraped away and written over again, layer upon layer of evolutionary history. That’s how Richard Dawkins describes it in his latest book, ‘The Genetic Book of the Dead.’ There are many fascinating evolutionary examples, including the fact that the little cluster of hair at the base of many people’s spines (especially males) is actually where you would originally have had a tail (chuckle) 🐒!

This has got me thinking about how humans might be evolving under modern environmental pressures. Evolution occurs over millions of years, so at any one point in time, it is hard to see what adaptations will advantage us in the future - you can’t see the wood for the trees.

One interesting change that scientists have traced from hominid ancestors is the altered patterns of microbiomes - the trillions of bacteria, fungi, viruses and protozoa that we carry within and on our bodies, co-evolve with us. These populations are transferred generation by generation via mothers during pregnancy and birth. This transmission has led to the conservation of a family tree of microbes over time.

There have also been changes. The ancient hominids had hunter-gatherer lifestyles; they ate a high diversity of plants and seeds, they ate seasonally and had an intimate connection with nature.

Modern life has broken many of these links, shrinking microbial biodiversity and weakening resilience. What this means for the future of the human species is not known, but it may impact fertility, resilience and longevity.

What does this mean in our everyday lives? For good immunity and resilience, we need to create an environment that optimises microbiome biodiversity. Here are six actions you can take:

1️⃣ Eat for Diversity, Not Just Calories

Why: Ancient diets were seasonally varied, containing dozens of plant species per week, fueling diverse gut bacteria.

Action: Aim for 30+ different plant foods weekly; vegetables, fruits, legumes, herbs, nuts, seeds.

2️⃣ Reconnect with Nature

Why: Soil, water, plants, and animals have historically been a major source of microbial exposure.

Action: Spend time in the garden, go walking, spend time outdoors, have contact with soil - consider this to be microbiological crosstraining!

3️⃣ Preserve Intergenerational Microbial Links

Why: Traditional communities pass microbes across generations through birth, breastfeeding, shared food and close living.

Action: Promote skin-to-skin contact with infants, home cooking and eating together; these nurture healthy microbial exchange. Think of this as savouring your microbiological heirlooms!

4️⃣ Rethink Sterility

Why: Hygiene protects us from infection, but overuse of antimicrobial products strips away beneficial microbes.

Action: Use targeted hygiene; wash hands before meals and after illness exposure, but avoid constant use of harsh antibacterial cleaners.

5️⃣ Align Eating Patterns with Ancestral Rhythms

Why: The microbiome interacts with our circadian rhythm; mismatched eating (late-night snacking) can disrupt it.
Action: Create a consistent eating window and favour daylight hours for larger meals.

6️⃣ Support Fibre-Fermenters

Why: Many ancient gut residents relied on fermentable fibres. Western diets have starved them, reducing short-chain fatty acid production, eg butyrate, which is essential for your gut lining and immune function.

Action: Eat beans, lentils, whole grains and fibrous vegetables daily.

Modern living can be a challenge, but it doesn’t mean abandoning your evolutionary heritage. With intentional habits, you can restore microbial partnerships that made us resilient for millennia and they, in turn, can help us age with vitality.

07/08/2025

Musings from Down Under

Going from 35°C heat, 85% humidity and surrounded by people in Shanghai to white frosts and next to no people in Dunedin this week has been discombobulating. Jet lag has struck; my eyes keep wanting to close in the middle of the day and they insist on being wide open in the middle of the night. It’s a battle, but man, it’s great to be home!

Upon getting home, I realised I have become a ‘Pickleball Widow.’ My husband has taken up the sport in my absence and is playing three times a week, plus a tournament this weekend! Fair enough, while I am swanning around the world, things don’t stand still on the home front.

In my last few days of travel, I pondered various themes that had arisen during my time away. Some of my time away was work, but much of it was spent with family and friends, some of whom are going through challenges. So, from that, here are my philosophical musings:

1. Opportunity cost is not just an economic term.

When you spend money or time on one activity or project, it means you are not spending that time and effort on something else. There are many choices we make in the way we live our lives and the activities we choose to fill our days. It is worthwhile evaluating those choices to determine if they are actually what you want to do. As I travelled and lived in others’ homes, I had a powerful feeling that residing in Dunedin, New Zealand, far away from a lot of global action, but close to nature and part of a small community, was the right choice for me. In saying that, there are elements I miss out on by making that choice. It was great to be part of the European and Asian whirlwinds for a short time. But I still choose to live on a remote island at the bottom of the world - at what cost? Only individuals can answer that for the life they choose to live. I consider myself incredibly lucky to have the choice to make, given the uncertainty and conflict in the world.

2. Kinesis applies to everyday life.

We make decisions every day; some of these decisions are significant and may affect our lives forever. This can be overwhelming. The overwhelm can cause stagnation and delay the decision that needs to be made. More often than not, you have to make decisions in the absence of data; you don’t know what the outcome will be. Make the decision and keep moving; that’s all you can do. Decisions are only ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in retrospect; at the time, your decision is best for you in that moment. Live with your decision and move. Kinesis, it’s all you can do.

3. Make what you do as beautiful as you can.

When I was in the Cotswolds, I visited the textile entrepreneur William Morris’s home. The home is beautifully presented with many of his original textiles on display, like ‘The Strawberry Thief,’ a print showing cheeky thrushes invading a strawberry patch. William Morris spoke out against the Industrial Revolution and its impact on arts and crafts (imagine what he would say if he saw how we lived now!). He also had a book publishing business and some of his books were on display. The books were stunning and made me rethink the book I am in the process of writing. I have been in a hurry to get it finished and published, but I have realised there is more I want to explore and I want to make the book beautiful, in a way that speaks to humans living as part of nature, not separate to it. We often get so caught up in our goals and productivity that we forget to make things beautiful along the way. Food, health, exercise, life: don’t just cram it in and tick off the boxes, enjoy the activities and celebrate the ingredients, wrinkles and aches and pains which come with it. That’s what a beautiful, well-lived life looks like.

There it is, my philosophising for the year. Next week it's time to learn how to play Pickleball!

25/07/2025

From Kratom to Calcium: A Drive Home through Time and Wellness

I’m in the Cotswolds staying with one of my brothers. I spent yesterday wandering around Bath, supping the hot mineral water, like an ancient Roman dignitary. The mineral water contains calcium, sulphate, sodium, and chloride. It also contains bicarbonate, magnesium, silica and iron in smaller amounts.

Growing up, my Grandmother had a big box of Georgette Heyer novels, which I would delve into during my summer holidays. Those novels would take me to London and Bath - the days of empire and empire-waist gowns, bonnets and gloves. A world of debutantes avoiding rakes to find suitable love matches.

Yesterday, as I walked in Jane Austen’s footsteps, I pondered the stories that had gone before me. The health benefits of the Roman baths seem far-fetched when reading a novel. But, yesterday, I heard a story of the people who worked in the lead mines coming down to be treated for lead poisoning. They were, unknowingly, absorbing magnesium to ease their aches, long before anyone coined the term ‘transdermal absorption.’ Similarly, people with muscle aches would have benefited from the magnesium, as people do now with the use of magnesium oils for muscle relaxation. Additionally, the benefits of sun exposure, vitamin D generation and social benefits should not be underestimated.

Like many natural remedies, scientific exploration has sorted the wheat from the chaff in terms of what is effective. Yet, there is a romance and unknown elements in the whole picture that are often overlooked.

To be somewhat tangential, on my drive home, I listened to a podcast (Hubermann podcast with Dr Chris McCurdy ) about a plant leaf, Kratom (which I had never heard of) and the history of the use of plant alkaloids in human health, right through to morphine and other derivatives. I am not advocating experimenting with Kratom, but the podcast highlighted to me how quickly we dismiss traditional remedies without exploring their complexities.
Yesterday was a good reminder of that.

21/07/2025

I’m always reluctant to use the term ‘superfood,’ because all whole foods, fruits, vegetables, and meats, are chock-full of bioactive compounds that are great for your health.

If I could choose the ultimate superfood, my Food Superhero, it would be the New Zealand Blackcurrant.

Here’s why:

Blackcurrants are rich in anthocyanins (fruit grown in New Zealand is particularly high). Anthocyanins are compounds which support lung health, particularly in individuals with respiratory inflammation or compromised airway function. Anthocyanins reduce airway inflammation and increase protective white blood cells. Their anti-inflammatory action inhibits the overactive pro-inflammatory cytokines often found in respiratory conditions.

In addition to these effects, blackcurrants support vascular health by decreasing arterial stiffness and central blood pressure. This dual action contributes to enhanced oxygen delivery and respiratory function.

The anthocyanins in blackcurrants are absorbed quickly by the body when taken in a lozenge form (via sublingual absorption under the tongue). This makes blackcurrant anthocyanins a valuable natural therapy for managing chronic respiratory conditions like asthma and COPD as well as for recovery from infection or exposure to pollution.

To reinforce the Superhero status of New Zealand blackcurrants, scientists have also discovered compounds in the fruit that support mood and brain health. One mechanism of action involves the inhibition of monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B), an enzyme in the brain that breaks down dopamine, a neurotransmitter essential for mood, motivation, memory, and movement. This has been shown to:

-Improve mood and attention;
-Reduce mental fatigue;
-Offer protection against neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, both of which are associated with reduced dopamine levels and increased oxidative stress.

We use organic New Zealand-grown blackcurrants in our Zestt Breathe+ and Zestt Cardio+ lozenges. They are combined with other complementary bioactives and probiotics for optimal pulmonary and cardiovascular health. We have undertaken extensive technical development so that our lozenges retain their bioactivity. This is unlike many products on the market, where bioactivity has been lost due to poor processing and/or the use of low-quality ingredients.

I am not a fan of superfood labels. But sometimes, when the cape fits, it should be worn. The New Zealand blackcurrant is my Food Superhero.