In this episode, Dr. Minni Malhotra gets into the topic of using fasting to detox the body. We are surrounded by and exposed to many kinds of toxins in the environment, and therefore a regular detoxing practice can be extremely beneficial for your health. By eating only fruits and vegetables and cutting out things like sugar, caffeine, nicotine, dairy, and meat, you can give your liver and kidneys a well-deserved break. Dr. Malhotra also explains the benefits of water fasts and juice cleanses, giving guidelines for how you should approach such a fast, what it will mean for your energy levels, and how you can gradually and safely transition back to your regular diet. While the body has its own natural detoxing mechanisms, it does wonders to support these systems from time to time. Be sure to join in to learn more! 

Key Points From This Episode:

• Hear how regularly we are exposed to environmental toxins and why we need to detox. 
• How fasting by eating only light fruits and vegetables can be used to detox. 
• Keep in mind that fasting and detoxing often involves a similar kind of diet. 
• Why detoxing is beneficial despite the body having its own natural detoxing mechanisms.
• Learn about the health benefits of water fasting and the famous people who practiced it. 
• The importance of preparing yourself for a fast and the benefits of intermittent fasting. 
• Suggestions for making fasting easier when you find it too difficult to fast for long periods. 
• Hear what juice fasting involves and how it functions to energize the body. 
• Advice for getting the most out of your juice cleanse and returning to a normal diet. 
• When to avoid juice cleanses and how you should approach your exercise regimen.  
• The many benefits of consuming organic and grass-fed bone broth. 

Tweetables:

“Detox basically means a planned cut back on toxins with a focus to improve our health and general well-being.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:00:46]

“Water fasting has been one of the greatest healing techniques in history and continues to be today.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:02:38]

“Recent studies at the University of California Berkeley stated that a three-day water fast resets your immune system by activating the stem cells and enables you to perform at the optimal levels.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:03:18] 

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

A plethora of conditions, from obesity to anxiety, appear to be linked to the microbes inside our gut. In today’s episode, Dr. Minni Malhotra explains why the microbiome is such a hot topic of research. The human body, both inside and out, is covered with microbiomes. The bulk of them are in the intestinal walls, or in your gut lining. Recent research has shown that there is a relationship between the microbiome and the body, and illustrates the ways in which in this relationship impacts the immune system. Although this research is still in the early stages, some researchers and clinicians believe that microbiome could become a cornerstone for autoimmune disease treatment, diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Tune in to find out more about the link between our gut microbiome and obesity, explained by Dr. Minni Malhtora as she shares a number of study results.

Key Points From This Episode:

• The microbiota are implicated in almost all chronic conditions, including autoimmune disease. 
• The accumulation of these microbes are perceived as pathogens, leading to inflammation.
• There are circumstances in which our microbiome can change profoundly, like pregnancy.
• During childhood, the gut microbiome is influenced by a number of environmental factors.
• This line of research points towards treatments and therapies directed at the microbiome.
• Therapeutic probiotics, which contain spores of healthy bacteria, may be used as a treatment for a wide variety of autoimmune conditions.
• The gut microbiota can exert immune-modulatory effects, particularly antigen-specific T-cells.
• Probiotic treatments may impact the immune system by influencing activity of cells in the gut.
• A breach of intestinal barriers and the translocation of gut bacteria to other organs may trigger an autoimmune response like inflammation.
• High-fat diets of animal-based foods can dramatically shift the structure of the microbiome.
• Studies have shown that the intestinal microbiome composition is strongly influenced by diet.
• A high-fat, high-sugar diet has been proven to diminish health gut bacteria in mammals.
• The association between gut microbiome and obesity – Dr. Minni shares some studies.

Tweetables:

“The microbiota is implicated in almost every chronic condition, including autoimmune condition. An imbalance among the gut microbiota may drive inflammatory conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, colorectal cancer, and also lower the immune system or immune health in the elderly, as well as endocrine or hormonal imbalances.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:01:36]

“It has been shown in research that probiotic treatments may impact the immune system by influencing activity of cells in the gut. One study found that a 4-strain probiotic is capable of modifying immune response in vitro, by enhancing colonic butyrate production in cells from healthy humans.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:05:40]

“Diet plays a big role. Of course, there is probiotics, prebiotics, but if you’re not eating healthy, if your diet is full of fats and you have less vegetables and plant-based products, it can actually alter your microbiome, which can lead to inflammation and affect not only just obesity, but your hormone imbalance, all those things.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:12:40]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

PubMed

The Gut Microbiome and Its Role in Obesity

The accumulation of toxins in the body starts at birth and is linked with hormonal imbalance, impaired immune function, nutritional deficiency, and an inefficient metabolism. The words ‘cleanse’, ‘detox’, and ‘intermittent fasting’ have become buzzwords in today’s health and wellness-focused culture and, in this episode, Dr. Minni Malhotra addresses fasting and whether or not it can actually help you rid your body of these accumulated toxins. A lot of people think that going on a juice cleanse, taking a colon cleanse, or just taking an over-the-counter product to detox will help them rid their bodies of toxins, while also supporting all of their organs. However, if even one organ is not functioning well, you will experience the ill effects of retaining toxins, like inflammation, disease production, hormonal imbalance, and many other health concerns, so it’s really important to educate yourself about detoxing, and understand how to do it in a holistic manner. Tune in today to find out more!

Key Points From This Episode:

• There are a lot of misconceptions about a detox, and people take it too lightly.
• The five major organs of detoxification are the liver, gut, kidneys, lungs, and skin
• If one organ isn’t functioning well, the detox process will have adverse effects on your body.
• Toxins need to be converted to water soluble compounds and expelled.
• The liver is the most important organ for detoxification, which is a two-step process.
• Enzymes in the liver can be affected by genetic mutation, resulting in toxic compounds being broken down slower or faster.
• Many over-the-counter detox products don’t take different genetic configurations into account.
• Dr. Minni explains the six phase two conjugation pathways: sulfation, glucuronidation, glutathione conjugation, acetylation, and methylation.
• When we lose weight, we tend to lose fat, which means these toxins in our fat are released.
• Dr. Minni advises that you know the status of your detoxification pathways before fasting.
• She also recommends going slow or going through process of elimination first.
• Adding certain foods can also be beneficial, like eating more vegetables or fermented foods.

Tweetables:

“Majority of the toxins that accumulate without getting out of your body are fat soluble compounds. In order for these toxins to be safely and efficiently removed from the body, they need to be transformed, or they need to be changed, because fat soluble compounds cannot go out of your body. They have to be converted into water soluble compounds and then you get rid of it through your bile, that is your gallbladder, your liver.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:01:38]

“While it is okay to do some kind of detox, but if you don't know the status of your detoxification pathways, it can actually be more harmful than of benefit.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:09:23]

“When you start a fasting regime, I would advise, if you don't know your status of your detoxification pathways, because there are tests which will tell you. If you don't, then what I would suggest is to go very slow. While it can help you detoxify, it may also cause the opposite that when you're detoxifying, it can cause you more harm.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:11:44]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Dr. Minni Malhotra on LinkedIn

Dr. Minni Malhotra Email

Anchor Wellness Center

Polycystic ovarian syndrome creates hormonal imbalances in thyroid hormones as well as cortisol, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and insulin. Thankfully, many of these imbalances can be corrected by making different lifestyle choices relating to diet, sleep, exercise, and more. In this episode, you will hear some of Dr. Minni’s wisdom from the world of functional medicine that can be used to correct such hormonal imbalances caused by PCOS. A common theme from today’s show and an approach that helps to correct imbalances in almost all the hormones spoken of is the adoption of a Paleolithic diet. That means eating more fruits, vegetables, fish, eggs, poultry, and meat. Other lifestyle choices Dr. Minni talks about that change depending on the hormone include getting more sunlight, sleep, and exercise, trying to reduce stress whenever possible, and avoiding certain food groups too! Make sure you tune in today so you can learn how to crush your hormonal imbalances caused by PCOS!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Hormonal imbalances caused by PCOS which have knock-on effects on other hormones.
• The number of hormones we have, their function, and the need for them to stay in balance.
• Connections between diet and hormones: You can eat to balance your hormones.
• Diet, sleep, and lifestyle advice for those who have hypothyroidism from PCOS.
• What to eat when you are insulin resistant, and the value of an increase in exercise.
• The importance of having healthy cortisol for keeping stress levels low.
• How to increase cortisol by getting sunlight, sleeping right, a Paleolithic diet, and reducing stress.
• The building blocks of cholesterol synthesis and the benefits of cholesterol for cortisol.
• Keeping estrogen and progesterone balanced with calories, a Paleolithic diet, and more.
• The effects of obesity, caffeine, and food that mimics the effects of estrogen on women.
• Keeping protein levels healthy with a Paleolithic diet and ghee, and what to avoid. 

Tweetables:

“There are a lot of hormonal imbalances in polycystic ovarian syndrome, which further lead to hormonal imbalances.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:00:36]

“So as you can see that most of these hormones are supported by eating a Paleolithic diet, but specific hormones have specific needs.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:12:11]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Dr. Minni Malhotra on LinkedIn

Anchor Wellness Center

The toxins that we encounter every day can have extremely harmful effects on our health and body. However, toxins are not something that we can avoid completely, as we are born with toxicity in our bodies and they are too common to buffer ourselves from in normal life. Thus we need to find the best ways to eliminate these harmful presences as much as possible. Toxins can disrupt the endocrine system, creating hormone imbalances and a multitude of persistent issues for us in the long term. In this episode, Dr. Minni runs through a number of the common groups of toxins that we are exposed to and talks about where they are often found. Following that, some simple practices for better elimination are considered, from diet and water intake to avoiding dairy and getting better sleep. These measures are guaranteed to give your system a boost, so make sure to listen in with us today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• The toxins that surround us from the time we are born and accumulate during our lives. 
• Digestion's role in the elimination of toxins — a few different ways this occurs.
• The ubiquity of obesogenic Bisphenol A (BPA) in bottles, cans, and papers.
• Phthalate compounds used in the production of plastics, care and cleaning products, and more!
• The industrial production and usage of dioxin and its harmful effects on multiple areas of health. 
• The embedded nature of pesticides in the modern world — inside the human body and beyond! 
• Poisoning that can occur as a result of contact with toxic metals and preventative measures. 
• Increasing the level of antioxidants in the body, better diet, water intake, sleep, and exercise!
• Preparation for detoxification and allowing the body to safely get rid of toxins. 

Tweetables:

“When a baby is born, it has more than 250 toxins that can be detected in the umbilical cord.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:00:48]

“It is important for us to understand the principles upon which a number of popular detoxification protocols are founded.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra. [0:02:10]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

Dr. Minni Malhotra Email

Anchor Wellness Center on YouTube

World Health Organization

Environmental Working Group

As healthcare continues to evolve, more people are gaining an interest in functional medicine, which is gradually increasing in popularity thanks to a more health-conscious population. In today’s episode, Dr. Minni Malhotra talks about where conventional medicine can go wrong, and why she has taken the journey from conventional medicine to functional medicine, which focuses on the root cause of an issue, creating a lifestyle of health and vibrance for her patients, and producing more positive results. In this episode, Dr. Minni shares six points where conventional medicine can go wrong and explains the methods she uses that have helped thousands of patients get their health back and regain control of their lives. Tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Dr. Minni tells a story about a friend who was on numerous prescription drugs, but still considered himself healthy.
• Medications also have side effects that can cause other diseases and health concerns.
• Six points where medicine can go wrong: When it adopts a one-size-fits-all solution.
• Functional medicine is more evidence-based, where an individual is treated as a whole.
• Order the right tests – a combination of conventional and functional medicine may be needed.
• Treat the cause, not the symptom – Dr. Minni uses the COPE model to treat patients.
• Ordering your labs with drugs – prescription medications alter results, but aren’t the cure.
• Address the body as a whole – functional medicine doesn’t divide the body into organs.
• A systematic approach or methodology is required to get results for chronic health issues.
• COPE stands for cellular detoxification, optimization of hormones, performance nutrition, and enhance mind mastery.

Tweetables:

“I understand conventional medicine is really great to understand the disease. But when it comes to resolving or reversing the disease, it doesn't give you a solution for that.” — Dr. Minni Malholtra [0:02:30]

“To understand functional medicine, to get deeper into your body, to take an approach where you will create a lifestyle that will create vibrant health, create an environment for your body to self-heal. That is what you really want if you want that or you’re committed to that kind of thinking.” — Dr. Minni Malholtra [0:05:19]

“At Anchor Wellness Center, we use the COPE, Dr. Minni's methodology, which is COPE: cellular detoxification, optimization of hormones, performance nutrition, and enhance mind mastery, which has helped thousands of our patients get their health back.” — Dr. Minni Malholtra [0:12:50]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

“Why me?” It’s a question that people living with polycystic ovarian syndrome often ask. This feeling of hopelessness is often felt most strongly when you do everything right but something goes wrong — like eating healthily and still experiencing weight fluctuations. Today host Dr. Minni Malhotra shares how she overcame her ‘victims mentality’ through the practice of self-love. In her discussion, she highlights four key areas to develop on the path to self-love, revealing the power of gratitude, having faith, learning lessons from your situation, and knowing that the deepest part of you is always whole. Dr. Malhotra also presents practical steps to help foster personal growth and align your journey with the universe. You’ll hear which questions to ask yourself when faced with difficult situations and how your challenges can empower you. Tune in to hear more about how self-love can give you a more fulfilling relationship with the world around you. 

Key Points From This Episode:

• Experiencing hopelessness due to the challenges of living with polycystic ovarian syndrome.
• Questioning the fairness of life when you suffer due to unjustifiable reasons. 
• Hear the four key emotions that you can develop for better self-love.
• Our tendency to amplify the bad in our life while neglecting the good.  
• Creating a list of everything that you are grateful for in life. 
• Why you should never take any failures personally; it’s the universe, not you. 
• Aligning your journey with the universe so that you can accept your reality.
• How setbacks can prove to be wonderful learning opportunities. 
• The questions that you should ask yourself that lead to personal growth. 
• Fears that our setbacks will come to define us and that our pain is permanent.  
• Combining conventional medicine and mind mastering for a balanced healing approach.

Tweetables:

“The feeling of being singled out brings out our inner-demons. We wonder if we are good or lovable or balanced enough.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:03:22]

“While we are quick to blame our circumstances, whenever we are in physical or emotional pain, we take many of the blessings for granted.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:04:20]

“Aligning our journey with that of the universe not only allows us to better accept our current reality but also accelerates our personal growth and conscious living.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:06:24]  

“These setbacks are merely an experience of our senses and are limited in their ability to affect the deepest part of us. You are pure, whole, and complete.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:08:22]  

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

Friedrich Nietzsche

Arthur Ashe

Marcel Proust

Rumi

Energy medicine is gaining popularity, and on today’s show, Dr. Minni sheds light on this branch of alternative medicine. We hear about some energy medicine practices from yoga to Reiki that draw on time-honored traditions to heal the body. Dr. Minni explains how things like acupuncture can restore balance and harmony non-invasively. According to energy medicine thinking, blockages cause ailments or diseases, so by clearing these constrictions, you can heal yourself from illness. So, how can you use this for your PCOS? Dr. Minni expands on how her team uses energy medicine to clear their patients’ mental blocks and the astonishing results they have achieved. To hear more, tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Every part of our bodies emits energy!
• Some examples which prove that energy exists in the universe.
• Energy medicine including Reiki, yoga, and tai chi and the knowledge they draw on.
• Insights into how energy medicine works.
• Energy medicine is not associated with a particular religion, but many feel spiritual connections.
• The difference between veritable energy medicine and putative energy medicine.
• Polarity therapy and some of the conditions it’s said to cure.
• You can use energy medicine to heal yourself.
• The three-pronged approach Dr. Minni takes at Anchor Wellness.

Tweetables:

“You get waves from your brain, from your muscles, every part, every organ up your body actually emits energy.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:01:19]

“Energy medicine actually recognizes energy as a vital, living, moving force that determines much more about health and happiness.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:03:25]

“While there may not be a lot of scientific evidence behind all of this energy medicine or there may not be a lot of research that has been done or there are many people who are actually trying to discourage people when you yourself can feel a kind of negative energy in a room or with someone you interact with, you can understand that this energy really exists.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:08:41]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

Issseem

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health

American Polarity Therapy Association

Randolph Stone

American Cancer Society

When embarking on a transformational healing journey, it is important to be aware of all of the options that you have available. In today’s episode, Dr. Minni sheds light on peptide therapy, one of the most effective methods of treatment for a variety of conditions. We first hear about Dr. Minni’s approach to medicine and how her own struggles with PCOS led her down a path of discovery, where she found functional medicine. We then hear about how peptide therapy works, its specific nature, and why it’s so well-tolerated by the body. After this, Dr. Minni walks us through some of the peptide therapy treatments available, including AOD-9604, Bremelanotide, Cerebrolysin, and Delta Sleep Inducing Peptide, and the conditions they are used to treat. As an exciting potential treatment to help you overcome whatever disease you are suffering from, peptide therapy is certainly worth learning more about. Be sure to tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Hear how Dr. Minni found functional medicine after struggling with her own PCOS.
• The power of the mind and the role it plays in healing.
• Dr. Minni’s three-pronged transformational healing approach.
• An overview of peptide therapy and how it works to help your body heal.
• Why the highly specific nature of the peptides makes them so effective in treatments.
• Some of the conditions that peptide therapy can be used to treat.
• Learn more about the various peptide therapy options that are available.

Tweetables:

“There are so many new cutting-edge treatments that are available these days that can help you not only with your health, but also prevention of diseases.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:00:59]

“Peptide therapy is an exciting cutting-edge medical science that uses specific amino sequences called as peptides.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:03:18]

“If you’re looking to get that cutting-edge method, or the science and heal your body, whether it’s a hormone, whether it’s a neurotransmitter, whether it is to reduce stress, or to boost your immune system, we have it all these days and it is so easily available.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:16:59]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Anchor Wellness Center

In this episode, Dr. Minni Malhotra tackles the topic of exposomes, explaining what they are and how they impact PCOS and a person’s health in general. But before Dr. Malhotra gets started, she shares a bit about what she and her team offer patients at the Anchor Wellness Center and how their functional medicine approach deals with health problems holistically. While conventional medicine still plays an important role in health care, conventional practitioners often neglect to ask important questions, dealing with the symptoms rather than the root causes of problems. Dr. Malhotra shares numerous examples of questions that healthcare providers should be asking their patients if they are to provide the best care, including those about in utero exposures. To learn more about the factors that may be affecting your health and PCOS in ways you never imagined, be sure to tune in for another educational episode! 

Key Points From This Episode:

• Learn how Anchor Wellness Center and Dr. Minni Malhotra can help you. 
• The uses and limitations of conventional medicine and the role of functional medicine. 
•  A word of encouragement about your ability to transform your health. 
• Hear what an exposome is and how it impacts your PCOS and other health conditions. 
• The three domains of exposomes: Internal, specific external, and general external. 
• The importance for physicians to know their patient holistically. 
• Understanding the various factors that impact a patient, even from their time in the womb.
• Hear about the LivingMatrix form and how it facilitates treatment in functional medicine. 
• Examples of the kinds of questions that may be asked to make an accurate diagnosis. 

Tweetables:

“At Anchor Wellness Center, we work with patients all over the country and even outside the country with this unique method of combining conventional medicine, functional medicine, and mind mastery to heal and give people the power to take control of their health.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:02:27]

“After going through this detailed history, which we do in our functional medicine approach, it is so easy to pinpoint and find out what the patient actually requires and that makes it customized, personalized to that individual.” — Dr. Minni Malhotra [0:13:21]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

PubMed

The Institute for Functional Medicine

Anchor Wellness Center

Dr. Minni Malhotra Email