Building Your Foundation: A Functional Podcast

Your Gift Guide for a Stress-Free Season

The stretch from Thanksgiving to the New Year often fills our calendars with travel, events, and endless to-do lists, leading many of us to neglect our own health and well-being. In fact, stress has become as much a holiday tradition as mistletoe and eggnog. Join us in this episode as she provides practical strategies to move beyond feeling frazzled and fatigued, helping you feel more like Santa’s helper than the Grinch. Learn how to give yourself the ultimate gift this season: peace of mind and a healthy body. In this episode, you will discover: * Rethinking Your Holiday Mindset: Strategies for simplifying and prioritizing your schedule. Find out why saying “no” is essential and how choosing experiences (like a yoga class or cooking lesson) often means more than material excess. * The Power of Consistency: Why protecting your routine—including your usual sleep, hydration, and movement habits—is crucial for keeping your stress levels and cortisol balanced. Making your well-being non-negotiable is the greatest gift. * Restoring Balance Through Breathwork: How chronic stress disrupts the HPA axis (the body’s stress-control center) and leads to issues like irritability and poor sleep. We discuss how mindfulness practices, including meditation, yoga, and particularly breathwork, can calm the nervous system. A Stanford study highlighted that just 5 minutes of deep breathing with prolonged exhales significantly improved mood and lowered cortisol levels. * Targeted Support for the Season: Discover supportive supplements recommended for when stress and holiday indulgence are at their peak. Dr. Palermo outlines options for stress balance (including Cortisol Calm and L-Theanine), digestive balance (such as GI Repair and Daily Probiotics), and immune protection. These supplements are available through Thrive, a collaborative platform of conventional, integrative, & functional medicine practitioners. With mindful choices and consistency, you can stock your cabinet with tools that support your stress response and ensure you stay healthy, happy, and jolly through January. This podcast uses an AI scribe to convert Thrive's website content into conversational dialogue you can listen to wherever you are!

Mindful Holiday Health Tips for 2025: Stress, Nutrition & Wellness Strategies

In this episode, we discuss: * Slowing Down and Choosing Presence Over Perfection: Discover the "pause before yes" rule before accepting new invitations and how to set a daily intention for how you want to feel. We emphasize that connection matters more than flawless plans. * Consistency Over Intensity: Learn why staying consistent with foundational habits—like aiming for 20–30 minutes of daily movement, building meals around lean protein, and protecting your bedtime window—will carry you through the busiest weeks. A well-regulated nervous system supports sleep, immunity, digestion, and mood, all vital during the holidays. * Mindful Eating and Alcohol Awareness: Implement simple strategies to enjoy food without discomfort or guilt, such as eating a balanced snack before you leave home and slowing down between bites. Mindful eating strengthens awareness and reduces stress eating. Plus, we cover tips for alcohol awareness, including choosing lower-sugar options and alternating drinks with sparkling water. * Supporting Immunity: Get supportive habits to counter the challenges of travel and increased social events, including prioritizing hydration (aiming for half your body weight in ounces daily) and increasing handwashing. We also review key supplements like Vitamin D, Zinc, Vitamin C, and Probiotics (always discuss dosing with a Thrive provider). * Setting Smoother Boundaries and Prioritizing Rest: Understand that boundaries are essential for protecting your mental and emotional health. We provide examples of healthy boundaries and discuss why choosing rest as a ritual is necessary. This includes scheduling unscheduled time during busy weeks and implementing a technology cutoff time. Embracing health doesn’t mean restricting joy; it means creating space to enjoy it fully. Tune in to move into the new year with intention. Thrive Carolinas is located at 6401 Carnegie Blvd, Suite 2A, Charlotte, NC 28211. This podcast uses an AI scribe to convert Thrive's website content into conversational dialogue you can listen to wherever you are!

The Root Cause Revolution: Why Now is the Best Time to Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner

Are you among the growing number of patients dissatisfied with conventional healthcare? Recent studies show a dramatic drop in trust in physicians, falling from 71% to just 40% as of early 2024. This shift has driven rising interest in Functional Medicine (FM), an approach that prioritizes empathy, collaboration, and prevention over procedures and prescriptions. In this episode, drawing on insights from Nancy A. Palermo, MD, we explore how to navigate this evolving landscape and find a qualified FM practitioner. What is Functional Medicine? We dive into the core concepts of FM, defined as a patient-centered, systems-based model that views the body as an integrated whole. Functional Medicine is focused on identifying the root causes of illness and emphasizes long-term wellness rather than merely managing symptoms. FM practitioners explore how factors like diet, lifestyle, genetics, and environment interact to affect health. They look beyond symptoms, examining nutritional and environmental influences, hormonal and metabolic balance, and stress and social factors. We highlight the crucial difference between FM and conventional care: * In conventional medicine, treatment often begins and ends with a diagnosis and prescription (such as indefinite medication for IBS). * In FM, the practitioner investigates why the symptom developed—exploring gut health, stress, food sensitivities, and environmental exposures—and then designs a personalized plan using nutrition, movement, supplements, or lifestyle changes. A 2019 Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) study found that patients treated at a Functional Medicine clinic experienced greater quality of life and symptom reduction, often with fewer prescriptions and lower long-term costs, compared to those in standard primary care. The ultimate goal of FM is to empower you to no longer need constant medical care, allowing your body to thrive on its own. Finding the Right Practitioner & Understanding the Cost Because the field is not formally regulated, anyone can market themselves as a Functional Medicine provider. We outline the essential steps to ensure quality care: * Always look for an MD, DO, or PA who has completed specialized training and certification through the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM). * IFM-certified practitioners complete advanced coursework and must pass a comprehensive board exam. You can utilize the IFM website’s “Find a Practitioner” tool. We also address practical financial considerations: * FM visits, which typically last 60–90 minutes, are rarely covered by insurance. * Initial consultations generally range from $400–$500 per hour, with additional costs for specialized testing. * However, many offices provide a superbill for potential out-of-network reimbursement, and you can often use HSA or FSA funds for these visits, especially if the practitioner is an MD, DO, or PA. Listen in to learn what to expect from this in-depth, personalized experience—a commitment that leads to profound rewards, including better energy and long-term wellness. Analogy to solidify understanding: Think of conventional medicine as a highly skilled gardener who prunes dead branches and sprays insecticide (treating the symptom), while Functional Medicine is the soil scientist who tests the pH, checks for nutrient deficiencies, and ensures the entire ecosystem is healthy so the plant can grow strong from the roots up. This podcast uses an AI scribe to convert Thrive's website content into conversational dialogue you can listen to wherever you are!

Elevating Everyday Meals to Optimize Health

Tired of the same dinner routine? Join Dr. Nancy A. Palermo, MD, as she dives into why complacency in the kitchen often mirrors a decline in our overall health. Many Americans rely on the same few meals, perhaps just chicken and salad, leaving them uninspired and often tempted by expensive, unhealthy takeout. While eating out may seem more manageable, it usually comes with hidden costs, including excess calories, sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats, as well as a lack of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables. Discover how finding joy and creativity in your home cooking can not only save your health but also reshape your waistline and positively impact your microbiome. In this episode, you will learn the profound power of culinary variety: * The Science of Variety: Dr. Palermo explains that rotating foods and eating a wider variety of plant ingredients is crucial for cultivating diverse gut bacteria. This diverse microbiome is a key factor in improving digestion, immune function, mood, and weight management. Simply put, variety equals vitality. We discuss research showing that women who rotated at least 16–17 healthy foods had a notable 42% lower mortality rate compared to those eating eight or fewer. * Small Tweaks, Big Flavor: Elevating your meals doesn't demand more effort; it just requires curiosity. We cover seven easy ways to boost nutrition and enjoyment, including:  * Blending familiar flavors with new cuisines, such as adding harissa to Bolognese. * Playing with spice blends like cumin, coriander, paprika, and cinnamon to skip the salt on chicken or fish. * Using fresh herbs (like chimichurri with parsley and cilantro) to naturally enhance flavor. * The secret to richness: roasting vegetables, fruits, or nuts to intensify flavor and texture. * Why you must "Eat the rainbow," introducing more colors, phytonutrients, and polyphenols to support immune and cellular health. * Finishing with a flourish—a simple swirl of yogurt or sprinkle of toasted seeds can make any dish restaurant-worthy. Each meal is an opportunity to delight your senses and nourish your body. Tune in to transform your everyday cooking from repetitive and dull into vibrant and health-focused. This article was originally published by Thrive Carolinas, a collaborative platform of conventional, integrative, & functional medicine practitioners dedicated to providing personalized healthcare to clients. This podcast uses an AI scribe to convert Thrive's website content into conversational dialogue you can listen to wherever you are!

Title: The Power of Pumpkin: Fueling Your Fall Health

Episode Description: As the air cools and the leaves change, it's officially pumpkin season—and the real pumpkin deserves the spotlight beyond café drinks. Join us on the Thrive Carolinas platform with Dr. Nancy A. Palermo as we explore the incredible health benefits and versatility of this fall favorite. In this episode, categorized under Healthy Eating, Lifestyle Medicine, and Nutrition, we reveal why pumpkin is a nutritional powerhouse: * Nutritional Benefits: Learn why pumpkin, technically a starchy vegetable, is lower in carbohydrates than potatoes and packed with fiber, which slows digestion and helps stabilize blood sugar. A one-cup serving of cooked pumpkin contains only about 30 calories. * Immunity and Heart Health: Discover how pumpkin's richness in Vitamin A (alpha & beta carotene), Vitamin C, potassium, and manganese helps boost immunity, protect against oxidative stress, and support heart health by lowering blood pressure. We also discuss d-chiro-inositol and B vitamins, nutrients shown to help with blood sugar regulation. * The Seeds: Don't toss those pumpkin seeds! They are nutritional powerhouses packed with magnesium (great for muscle and nerve function), iron, zinc, and tryptophan, the amino acid that aids in producing serotonin—the "feel-good" neurotransmitter that regulates sleep, appetite, and mood. Learn the best way to roast them for a crunchy snack. * Cooking Tips: Get practical advice on choosing a good pumpkin (firm, heavy for its size). Dr. Palermo shares suggestions for incorporating pumpkin's mild sweetness into both sweet and savory dishes, such as pumpkin hummus, chili, soups, or as a substitute for winter squash. * The Takeaway: We discuss how to skip the sugar found in most café versions and embrace real pumpkin in your cooking to enjoy the taste of fall with all the health benefits and none of the guilt. Tune in for personalized healthcare insights from the collaborative platform of conventional, integrative, & functional medicine practitioners at THRIVE. This podcast uses an AI scribe to convert Thrive's website content into conversational dialogue you can listen to wherever you are!