BONUS: Real vs. Added Sugars, Improving Mental Health + More

Join The Clean Body Podcast host Lauren Kelly for a health and wellness discussion with Celeste Perez (founder of Droplet), Brenden Schaefer (founder of Bright Bar), Alisa Pospekhova (founder of kindroot), and Jennifer Santiago (Director of Communications for Bragg). 

During the live Q&A, you'll learn: 

• The healing benefits of adaptogens (Ashwagandha, Reishi, Maca, Lion's Mane, Cordyceps)
• The different between real sugars and added sugars
• Canola, high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin and other ingredients to avoid
• Health-boosting wellness habits (nature bathing, meditation, avoiding blue light, grounding practices, trying new things)
• How mental and emotional health impacts physical health
• The benefits of apple cider vinegar

For more on the guests and brands featured, please visit: 

• Droplet: http://drinkdroplet.com​
• Lauren Kelly: https://www.instagram.com/holisticlaurenkelly
• Bragg: http://bragg.com​
  • Listen to The Clean Body Podcast episode featuring Bragg: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1675864/8374447-the-do-s-don-ts-of-apple-cider-vinegar-the-clean-body-podcast.mp3?download=true
• Bright Bars: https://brightfoods.com​
  • Listen to The Clean Body Podcast episode featuring Bright Bars: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1675864/8219670-your-protein-energy-bars-aren-t-healthy-with-bright-bar-founder-brenden-schaefer.mp3?download=true
• kindroot: https://kindroot.com​
  • Listen to The Clean Body Podcast episode featuring kindroot: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1675864/8324647-boost-your-mood-with-adaptogenic-lozenges-the-clean-body-podcast.mp3?download=true

Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00:00):

As for why sugars are bad, they're not, but what's bad is the processing. So for me, it, Elena, when you look at history and also just evolution, our bodies have not yet evolved in order to process processed foods. And that's why so many crazy things happen. When you eat a diet of processed foods, you become obese, you get sick, you are opening yourself up to becoming, you know, to getting all different types of diseases. We know that a family that lives in a certain zip code in his desert, who desert, where there aren't, there's not access to healthy foods. There are 70% more likely to die of these diet related diseases.

Speaker 2 (00:00:38):

Welcome to the clean body podcast. I'm Lauren Kelly, a certified nutrition therapist, and soon to be specialized holistic cancer coach with a certification in cancer biology from UC Berkeley. I am so grateful that you're here. This podcast introduces you to the souls and brains behind some of the cleanest food beverage and lifestyle products on the market, because what you put on in and around your body matters from cookies, bread, and mushroom superfoods to adaptogenic lozenges, clean medicines, organic mattresses, and fluoride-free toothpaste. We'll explore how the brands came to be how scientific studies drove decisions about ingredients and materials. And most importantly, how the products support all the physical and mental microscopic miracles that occur in your body every minute of every day. Thank you for being here. Let's get this started. Hey everyone. Welcome back for week seven of the clean body podcast. I'm your host, Lauren Kelly.

Speaker 2 (00:01:42):

And today we are actually going to do things a little differently. About a week ago, I hosted a live Q and a with five guests who some of them, their episodes have already been released on the podcast. Some of them have not and are coming up in the next couple of weeks, but we are going to be airing the live Q and a audio during this week's episode during the conversation, the guests and I discuss adaptogens, which if you've listened to episode three and four with a mushrooms and kind drew, you've already learned a lot about them. So it'll just reinforce some of that information. We discussed the difference between real sugar and added sugars and the impacts those have on your body. And because it is mental health awareness month, we discuss how mental and emotional health impacts your physical health and how you can achieve that whole mind, body, soul wellness.

Speaker 2 (00:02:35):

It's a really great collaborative conversation with health advocates and experts in the industry. I'm so appreciative that they took the time out on a Sunday to talk to me and to answer all of the viewers' questions. We will be having more live Q and a events like this coming up, probably one every four to six weeks. So be sure to follow me on Instagram at holistic Lauren Kelly or the podcast itself at the clean body project on Instagram to stay up to date on when those events are happening. So you can tune in in real time, get your questions answered. Or of course, you'll always be able to listen to them on podcast platforms as well. If you do like this episode, make sure you rate review, subscribe, share it with a friend. And yeah, I won't take any more of your time. Let's just jump right into it.

Speaker 2 (00:03:25):

Hello. Hello. Welcome to the first clean body podcast live Q and a. I am so grateful to have such an incredible group of people with me before we really hop into things and discuss both the food industry and the evolution of health and wellness and just mind, body, soul wellbeing. I want some of the viewers to get to know you a little bit more in case they haven't listened to your specific episodes. So the last episode comes out in two weeks. So you guys get a little teaser of her before hearing her episode, but Elisa, how about you jump in and kind of just share with us what your discovery of health and wellness is and how you got into your own health journey?

Speaker 3 (00:04:08):

Yeah, no, absolutely. Thanks for having me here. I'm Elisa for me, you know, it really was sort of like rooted in my own. My own discovery, my own needs. I've always had autoimmune diseases. I've had asthma since I was a child. And so I generally was that person that like, if anybody, two floors up in an office was sick with something, I would, some hunger was asleep, pick it up and be sick after with it. It's just absolutely crazy. Like there's no traceability that could ever be found. And it just kept on happening to be honest, like more and more often just because I had a really do any lifestyle. And I had a really high-performance, you know, career. And it was about, you know, five years ago where I just really felt like I've had enough. And I felt like I really had to take the time and focus on myself and you know, really health and wellness and sort of get out of this kind of rat race of constantly getting sick and then getting medication and then getting better only then to feel kind of sick and tired afterwards.

Speaker 3 (00:05:08):

So I started working with a holistic practitioner and that is really where I discovered that whole idea of, you know, healing plants and adaptogens. I started taking them and I just really truly felt the transformation in my body. You know, I was sleeping better, I wasn't getting sick as much. And I was just generally I think feeling much better with energy levels. And that then led to everything else that led to better nutrition that led to yoga that led to meditation. And it really, at that point became became a lifestyle. And then in a way that then founded my new career as the founder of kind of root and we make adaptogenic lozenges. And the reason for that really was that I was always seeking a lot of lozenges and I felt like they were just extremely stale and boring both from the standpoint of ingredients, you know, not being organic, having irritants like menthol in them. But I also didn't feel like some of the other adaptogenic offerings on the market in terms of like powders and tinctures were very tasty or very accessible to people they've seem to be really intimidating from the standpoint of formulation and taste. And that's how this whole journey became. And that's how I'm here today.

Speaker 2 (00:06:28):

Well, everyone has their gateway right into health and wellness. It's not like you flip a switch one day you're you have no idea what health and wellness is or how to achieve a healthier lifestyle. And then the next day, you're just like this vibrant, vital, vital example of health and wellness. There's always a gateway that kind of gets you started down that path, but Celeste, that's a great transition into your story because you're also big in adaptogens and we're also going through the experience of they didn't taste very good. And you thought there was a different way to deliver the benefits of adaptogens in a more tasty, cool trendy, medium and mode. So I'd love for you to share your story.

Speaker 1 (00:07:08):

Yeah, actually, you know, my story is a lot like yours, Elisa, where, you know, women like us just have so much we want to do in the world, I think. And and a lot of times it comes down to work and then work since to seep into life and then suddenly you're stressed out and, and can't really get away from it. And you know, same thing for me in, so my background is I was a web developer by day I food tour guy on the weekends and you know, had a lot of different just things that I had to do to, to keep it, you know, keep it together and keep my myself afloat. And you know, eventually I started my own branding studio and we started lots of amazing food related brands and for hospitality and restaurants.

Speaker 1 (00:07:52):

And when I did that, it came with the good and the bad where, you know, we were getting a lot of great experience working with really like dream name clients, and then also having to deal with a lot more, you know, a lot more responsibility, a lot more work. And I ended up in the hospital a few times and I was pre-diabetic because the only thing that, you know I was still, I would say it's still at a day job, you know, at the beginning. And the only thing that that office like gave us was copy was the only free thing that we could have in the office. So I was drinking like five cups of coffee a day and you know, I couldn't have coffee straight. And so I was putting like two spoons full of like creamer and sugar.

Speaker 1 (00:08:34):

And eventually after even just months of that, I was so sick. And and that's really the wake-up call that I had where I woke up. And I was like, Oh my God, okay, I'm in the hospital. I have heart palpitations. I have a murmur. Now I have, you know Brita I'm pre-diabetic and I'm like literally five beat nothing. And I just, I thought know yoga was enough and it really wasn't. And I really learned the difference between stress that you feel emotionally and the stress that, that leads to physically. And and, and I'm, so I'm actually, I'm Filipino American. And in our food we have with medicine is built into our cuisine. You know, like today my mom is making it's called synagogue and that actually has tamarind. It has like a, you know, it just, there's a lot that we put in our foods that are actually known as antiinflammatories.

Speaker 1 (00:09:25):

And, you know, turmeric is part of this moringa is part of this. It's just your daily food language. And that's, my mom was just like, you just have to, you know, go back to your roots. And it's really interesting that that's how it worked out. And that's how I ended up you know, finding out about adaptogens. I, so I made a complete one 80, that's the cause like the three 60 is like the full term. I complete one 80 and you know, I'm the kind of kid, I was actually the opposite of kids who watch like a documentary about animals and were like, Oh my God, we have to be, you know, vegetarians, we have to stop eating animals. No, I actually watched a documentary about agriculture that completely turned me off to fruits and vegetables for a very long time. And so when it came time to really take care of my own health, I was faced with just this world that I had no idea about.

Speaker 1 (00:10:18):

Like, I couldn't even, I like vegetable identification was difficult for me, whereas it's like, I haven't even looked at the produce aisle in years. And it's just funny because that's how media was so important to me or influential in my life. And so that's what put me down the road of becoming a certified holistic nutritionist because I had so much to learn and I, you know, and just kind of learning it from the basics all the way to what's modern in terms of science. Like that's what really worked with me and adaptogens really came through for me. And yeah. And so that's how we came up with droplet. I was like, okay, well, adaptogens are amazing. But they are roots and vegetables and mushrooms. And when you heat them up, they chase like mushroom juice and

Speaker 2 (00:11:04):

Yeah, right.

Speaker 1 (00:11:06):

Like I said, my background was, I haven't had anything but processed foods and really delicious, like I was drinking Kool-Aid in order to like, just have water, you know? And like, and that was, that was such a switch for me where I was like, okay, now that I know what great food tastes like, what healthy food tastes like whole foods how do I put these two things together? So people who are like me, who are struggling to make this switch into healthier, eating better for you eating, how do I make it to that? It's, it's just, it's a simple decision for them. And so for me, it was the formula, the packaging, the branding, how we speak. And that's how we came up with drunk.

Speaker 2 (00:11:43):

It's funny that you say you were eating all this delicious packaged pre-packaged food, right? Because I think we talked about it in our episode, your taste buds change. So when you start eating, you're like, Oh, well I just have to accept nothing will ever taste as good as the pre-packaged foods. But now after you've cultivated that habit and that lifestyle I'll go back and need a Reeses Halloween. And I'm like, this is disgusting. This does not taste like peanut butter. It is not good. And it's funny how your brain changes and the, the labels that it puts on. What's good. And what's not, you can actually change that over time as you change your habit and your lifestyles. Definitely. Brendan, I saw you shaking your head when she mentioned that she was turned off of fruits and vegetables, because you spend a lot of your time tasting a lot of different fruits and vegetables from all of the world, sourcing the ingredients that you want in bright bars. So kind of tell us your background with that.

Speaker 4 (00:12:39):

Yeah, well, and, and I'll, I'll go back one step even further, which was in junior high school and high school, I actually ate garbage. So I grew up eating was junior and going to McDonald's for breakfast and loving hash Browns and pancakes with tons of syrup and double bacon cheeseburgers with onion rings. And it's kind of amazing to me when I look back at what I ate when I was 16, 17, 18, a friend of mine in high school, once remarked, it's amazing to me that you're not obese. And so I kind of got a later start in health and wellness. And it happened for me in college when a senior, actually sophomore year, I started running and weightlifting and I don't even remember what the impetus was for it. But I fell in love with the way I felt. And it was this epiphany for me.

Speaker 4 (00:13:37):

I had never experienced that kind of lightness and that energy, and it evolved from running and weightlifting to swimming and then yoga. And I just wanted more and more of that energy and that feeling of being alive, which, you know, I call it kind of that tingly feeling. And at the same time, as I was getting really into just being active, I also developed a real love of food and cooking. So I was watching food TV and learning about really how to be a chef and intern in a couple of restaurants. And then I would go spend an hour, you know, running up the Hills. And these things were kind of diametrically opposed. I remember I was interning at a restaurant in Berkeley and there was some leftover bacon fat, and the chef made bacon, fat, grilled cheese sandwiches, which were disgusting.

Speaker 4 (00:14:34):

And then I went on this fire road, you know, running for an hour and just feeling so logged down. So I had this one bar to me that was looking at food through the lens of, Hey, what's healthy. What makes me feel good? And another part that I was looking at and saying, well, what's really interesting and new and different. What's what takes me on a journey when I eat it, it makes me forget where I am and I just kind of escape into pure sensory delight. And there's love of both of those things continued. And over time that also led me into meditation and it's really at the intersection of those two things that I've built my career. So I spent a long time working in a big food company. I always, frankly felt kind of like I was living a double life because it was a great place to learn the food business, but I didn't believe in the products that they were making.

Speaker 4 (00:15:22):

And as I was getting more and more active I stopped eating protein bars about 10 years ago. Pretty simply they didn't leave me feeling good packed with tons of sugar. I discovered the, this refrigerated bar brand, which I thought was great. And then after eating that in the first six months, I turned it on and realized there was just as much sugar as a cliff bar inside of it. And I had spent a lot of time in sprouts and whole foods demoing a prior product line. And I heard all these people who had similar experiences to mine. And the thought then kind of hit me really like another epiphany one morning that I should even though there were 10,000 protein bars out there, nobody had really taken protein bars and moved them into the 21st century.

Speaker 4 (00:16:12):

Nobody had figured out how do you make something that's actually fresh? But still great out of the fridge for one week. How do you make something that has a silky smooth texture? And when you eat, it gives you that sensory delay something that's just sweet enough. That's, plant-based, that's nutrient dense. So, you know, we're getting plant protein, we put in prebiotic fiber and you'd never know it to the point you made a moment ago, but we put in kale, spinach, Apple, banana mocca ratio. And so in a lot of ways, I mean, I was really making the food that I wanted to eat. And I had learned over time that other people felt the same way. And so that, that really is kind of the guiding light for us today is how do we make food that, that is delicious. And then afterwards you feel awesome. You feel like you can go out and do yoga. You can you know, go hop on a bike or frankly you can just get ready for a meeting. And I ended up half a bar right before this meeting, knowing, okay, I'm not gonna have a spike. I'm not gonna have a crash. I'm gonna have steady energy and it's gonna help me to feel great. So that's that's my journey from Carlos Jr. To,

Speaker 2 (00:17:21):

I think I ate quite a bit of fish show filets from McDonald's growing up, which now thinking back is so gross. Like that's not fished. I don't know what that is, but I'm also really glad that you called out cliff bars because I'm pretty sure my mother's watching this. And I went to her apartment last weekend and she had cliff bars and I was like, dear God, mom, how many times do I have to tell you, you listened to the bright bar episode. So there you go, mom, you just got cliff bars. Another knock for you, Jennifer. I would love for you to share your story. I know that there's a a through line there for you in a lot of ways, especially with work and burnout and how that impacted your health and you know, manifested in a lot of different ways. So if you want to just share your story.

Speaker 5 (00:18:05):

Yeah. so I, both my parents are from the Midwest, so I grew up with a very heavy meat and potatoes lifestyle, but growing up in California, it kind of evolved over time. And I don't know, I think because of that, I early on was very cautious about health and wellness and just became aware of like green tea early on. And like just started like learning about Maka and like, you know, 10 years ago reading about it. Like I just was super interested in, I think, you know, I landed in the food space totally accidentally, and I have not left for 10 plus years. And I made a point that I always wanted to work at a company that was doing something in the health and wellness space and for the better. So obviously most of the companies I've worked at have all been health and wellness focused they'll I think chips could definitely, you know, chips are okay, but

Speaker 2 (00:19:12):

The one brand that I'm okay with, but the rest of them still use refined vegetable oils and I just stay away.

Speaker 5 (00:19:19):

Yeah. It's interesting. You know, even back then, and that was like six or seven years ago when I started there, like there, we never use canola oil, but no one really was looking at it. And then like two years ago, three years ago at expo last summer, I was like, you don't use canola oil, do you? And we're like, no, we never have. And they, you know, consumers are striving to get savvier. And I was that consumer I eventually, probably about seven years ago really started looking at labels and a big thing that I pushed when I was at Popchips was we have to make something with less ingredients. Like we can not, can't keep doing this. And so here I am relatively healthy and did the whole 30, a few times, like just sort of was figuring out what worked for my body.

Speaker 5 (00:20:06):

And, you know, there are these two weeks randomly where I was breaking out in these huge they're like risen hives. So like, they look like I had like, not like boils, but all over my body. And they happen at 9:00 PM every single night. And they would last through the night and the next morning they would be gone and they're hot to the touch. You're itchy. No one, I went to like 17 doctors, no one knew what was wrong with me. No one could figure out what to do. And I like went to, even to an auto-immune doctor, like all these things. And they're like, well, everything looks fine. So, but we could put you on the steroid if you want. And I'm like, no, I'm not going to take drugs because you don't know what's wrong with me. So I finally, like, as you said, you think you're doing everything right, and your body can tell you no, no something is terribly wrong.

Speaker 5 (00:21:03):

And I eventually ended up parsley health where they have a holistic approach to help them wellness. But they also are MDs, which I really think like the balance is good. And, you know, we eventually figured some things to change and do. And within like six months I was feeling better and, you know, the hives basically were gone and it was just this really weird moment where I was like, how is this happening to me? I feel like I'm pretty healthy, but it's not. I think people forget that like your mental health can also affect your body and also affect like, even if you're being perfect, if I'm eating perfect every single day, like those stress and anxiety at work can really catch up with you in ways that you never thought I could. And in my life, I feel like I've always had like skin things, like I've had eczema on and off my whole life.

Speaker 5 (00:21:56):

And I feel like that's mine, body's way of telling me something's wrong. Like, so if I have something, like if I break out next and I'm like, okay, what's going on? So it was interesting. And I think from then on, I was like, I really want to make sure that I continue to work for brands who believe in a holistic approach. And that's kind of how I ended up at Bragg, which, you know, I call a hundred year old startup because when I got there a little over a year ago, it was like three, five employees and they didn't have, they hadn't implemented anything. They hadn't updated. I mean, it was just, it was quite literally, I have worked at a startup, but that's just really old. So it's, it's been really fun and interesting. And it's you know, the founder is 91 now.

Speaker 5 (00:22:42):

So she obviously no longer is a participant in the brand, but it was a good example of, of when you're tying to take a brand into the new world, but maybe older and you don't know what the new world looks like. So it's, it was an interesting dynamic. And I think again, and I was so inspired by Paul and Patricia because they opened the first health food store in 1921. And they were pioneering and whole grains and not eating meat. And, and they S they were okay with eating fish. Occasionally they were pushing, pushing fruits and vegetables. They started their own product line in the thirties that included supplements and, you know, just stuff that we're doing today, which is insane. They had salt-free seasoning. They had, you know, all these things that they had dates you're up, like in the third. How did you even know that?

Speaker 5 (00:23:42):

Like, so it's just really interesting think that people knew about this stuff and they hold these forums to like educate people. But so it was in that timeframe if you've ever gone to like the food museum in that timeframe in our country was when big food started putting a lot of money towards like saying that eating potato chips was good for you. And that eating ranch was good for you. And, you know, the small guys didn't have money to put ads out and do things like that. So it was just really interesting that that's how, you know, we were all raised a certain way and it just because of mainstream media, it got huge. So, you know, health wellness has always been huge for me. Adaptogens are definitely part of my life. I think yoga and meditation were definitely a big key in my healing.

Speaker 5 (00:24:34):

And, you know, I'm very fortunate that I was able to find someone that was supportive. Cause I wasn't finding it in like full Western medicine. And I think, I think that's where the society we live in today is very much like give me a pill and it will be fixed. A lot of people don't want to do the internal searching that you need to do to figure out what's really going on with you. Like, why do you constantly have allergies? Why are you constantly feeling bad? So a lot of people don't, I think now more than ever realizing what's actually in our food. And I think that that's also starting to be a change. It will take longer, but I think it's becoming more mainstream now, which is good.

Speaker 2 (00:25:15):

Yeah, absolutely. I think it's important that you said, you know, it's not just taking a pill and getting rid of the health ailments that you think you have. It's really just masking the symptoms. It's not curing anything and it's creating other, other monopolies in your body. You know, as you're taking these medications, your body starts to have a higher tolerance for them. So you have to up that dosage, then other things start falling apart. It really does have to be this internal journey to understand what you're putting in your body and how that is affecting the output and everything you see. And food is as basic as it gets. And I, every generation or every other generation, we see these fads, right? So like growing up for me, it was low fat, low sugar. Well, now we know that those products actually cause a lot of inflammation in our body and they're not, they're very, they're packed with manmade chemicals that really aren't doing anything good for us.

Speaker 2 (00:26:10):

And so the one through line we've always had is that whole clean foods that are made by, you know, mother nature and the earth. That's what helps us. The earth is smart. And evolution has gotten, gotten us this far on whole clean foods. So just coming back to that ethos all the time, I think is important, but we're already getting some viewer questions. And there's one that I think is really important to answer before we continue on. And that is what is an adaptogen. So who wants to take that? Because I know you all like talking about adaptogens and you can all chime in Elisa. I want to jump off there.

Speaker 3 (00:26:50):

I feel like it starts in some, our product is called adapt to gems. So those are so linked so closely together. But I mean, I think that, you know, the key thing for people to take away and I mean, you can read so many different studies then you have them going back to the, you know, the twenties and fifties back in Soviet union and really looking at, you know, athlete performance and people's response to stress. There's also a lot of studies actually done on animals, not in a sense of animal testing, but there's actually a lot of adaptogens that are being given to show horses and then people measure their performance. And what's interesting with that is that, you know, there's always like an element of placebo with, with humans, which I'm actually not against because I think there's always a mind body connection.

Speaker 3 (00:27:39):

And if you think you feel better and you're in that feeling better through that, I feel like that's a total win-win, but what's interesting with horses is that, of course doesn't know what you're feeding. And, and so if it, actually, if you are measuring the performance of a horse jumping higher, when it's taking cordyceps, for example, then it, without any other changes, you can kind of actually link the LinkedIn performance directly to that. But so I digress, but I think that the, the simplest way that I was, you know, explained to the, is that it's a special class of mushrooms and other herbs that help your body respond to an adaptive stress. And the key difference with adaptogens and some of the other herbs that are doing that as well, is that their actions is nonspecific. And what that means is that it sort of adapts to what your body needs.

Speaker 3 (00:28:29):

So for example, if I take a short Gunda and for example, my circadian rhythm is off and I'm not sleeping really well. I shut down that can help me kind of relax. You know, we'll kind of come down the adrenals, there's other people who take a shotgun and actually get more energy out of it because the imbalance in our body's a little bit different and it kind of works on that a little bit in a different way. So you kind of can't go wrong. I would say with taking them and pretty much all of them across the board will help you. And then I would say, as you're kind of getting into it, and maybe you're working with an herbalist or doing more research, you can then kind of start playing around with them and seeing different effects. And some of them are better for some things than others. Like for example, you know, Rishi and cordyceps are both like amazing for immunity, but, you know, Rishi is a little bit more like combing immunity, whereas cordyceps is that like fiery immunity, more of a boost. But they're great. They're my favorite. And clearly everybody, everybody here who's own this podcast is all as a big fan, too

Speaker 2 (00:29:33):

Celeste. Do you have anything to add since you have an adaptogenic sparkling drink as well? So lots of knowledge in that realm. Yeah, I think so. My, my thing

Speaker 1 (00:29:42):

Is I like cause we, the last, I think you're freezing a little bit bringing it down. Yeah. Okay. You're back. You're good. Yeah. What I was going to say was that that was great. Yeah. That was like really great to know for us. We totally know that not many people know about what adaptogens are. And so, like she said, absolutely, they are, you know, herbs botanicals that have actually been part of the human herbal medicine just lexicons for thousands of years. So you know, a lot of these traditions come from Eastern Europe. They come from a traditional Chinese medicine, they come from your Veda. And they, like she said, have they have an effect on how your body regulates its hormones? Brendan. Did you want to jump in there at all? I know you mentioned ratio being used in your bars.

Speaker 4 (00:30:46):

Yeah. The, the, the definition that I have found the most effective when explaining adaptogens to people for the first time is that you can think of them as being like a thermostat for your body. So if your body is running too hot they'll help you to cool down. And if your body's running too cool, it can bring you back up to the right temperature. And yeah, once you double click on that, then there's a whole world of nuance, which you were starting to go into Alyssa. But it's been surprising to me really over the past few years. Cause I, I had originally thought that a lot of people knew about them. I think we're really, it's really the people who are kind of at the cutting edge and are listening to your podcast who are learning about them. And then once you start to incorporate them into your lifestyle and you start to feel the benefits it's really no different than what we were talking about before, where in a sense like feeling and experiencing is believing. So it's, yeah, it's sort of scratching the surface here, but again, that's, that's how I think about them and how I most often explained them.

Speaker 1 (00:32:08):

Absolutely. I mean, the one I use the most is probably lion's mane when I'm having brain fog or just like I'm lethargic or just can't get myself motivated, author alliancing and coffee, or in my overnight oats or in my eggs. And it just gives me an extra boost of energy, motivation focus. I get so much work done when it, I should just take it every day. I don't know why I don't take it every day, but it's kind of that go-to remedy for me because I have been using adaptogens for a long time. So my body can respond to quickly. Usually

Speaker 2 (00:32:40):

For most people, you do need to use them on a daily basis and your body needs to become accustomed to working with adaptogens to really see those benefits. But so last year we're going into something. What I could tell was going to be beautiful about the orchestra of hormones. So I'll let you hop back into that.

Speaker 1 (00:32:57):

Yeah. I was I was talking about, so like we have to remember that and you know, when you're sleeping, melatonin is like, let's go, let's kick in when you are, you know, you need energy, your adrenaline kicks in when you have your period it's estrogen and it just tends to different things. So that's and when you're stressed out your body forgets how to regulate that. So that might look like you being stressed out and not being able to sleep at night. That's because your receptors aren't hitting and they're like, Oh, you know, we'll just figure that out later because there's a lot more that your body needs to deal with. And so that's how I explained adaptogens in a sense where whatever is going crazy or out of whack adaptogens help, it helps it come to what's exactly perfect for you.

Speaker 1 (00:33:42):

And so adaptogens also come from this great just background, like I was saying, you know, your Veta and Tricia traditional Chinese medicine. And and they have to have these, they have to hit these four categories. And that's why I like them a lot, especially since they are science back. There's a lot of, I mean, thousands of years worth of data as well. And what I love too is that it's, they're, non-toxic, they, like she said, non-specific they have to, to be classified as adaptogens. They have to really help with your stress. And and that's the thing I think that makes adaptogenic products very different from just your regular calming. So it, or even CBD for example, CBD doesn't really have it like obviously cannabinoids or cannabinoids. And like, for me, I'm just like the emphasis on the syllable.

Speaker 1 (00:34:35):

So the emphasis on that last level, I don't know if you guys know my Mike Myers jokes or whatever, but but yeah, it was like kind of cannabinoids. Yes, that's the class, but adaptogens are a class of beds like that basically just mushrooms, herbs roots that have all different. They all work the same way, but like she said, have different nuances. And for us when I was looking out in the adaptogens space, there are a lot of blends. But when you're just first starting to get to know adaptogens, it's easier to do one at a time to become familiar with reishi, to become familiar with Austra Ghana, because again, you need to calibrate it for you. And so for me, I, we went with a single blend in each drink because after doing, you know, say, you say you do ashwagandha with Rhodiola in it, those two things actually do very separate ones when it's absolutely it's a nootropic, which is a lot like coffee and it brings you up and one is a calm, calming adaptogen, and that kind of just brings you to a really mellow

Speaker 2 (00:35:38):

Place. And when you do those two things at the same time, your body might not know which way to take it. And so for us, I would suggest if you're just starting to learn about adaptogens try one at a time and seeing how each one works for you. I think for people who, like you said, Brendan adaptogens is a bit more advanced in the health and wellness world. Like you don't just come into this. And the first thing you do is start using adaptogens. So even with those descriptions, I would imagine it's still about overwhelming for people listening, who have never engaged with adaptogens. So before we move on to another topic, how would a person figure out what type of adaptogens they should try first? Any tips there?

Speaker 5 (00:36:29):

I mean, I'll just say from my own experience, which, you know, I am not a holistic R D so take this as like just a consumer, but for me it was more about, I figure I've researched. Four Sigmatic was like, actually like my gateway into adaptogens. And then I started, you know, exploring from there. I think that they simplified it really well for me as a consumer to figure out what I needed. And then I sort of had to on my own listens to my body. So something really big for me was they have a product that's hot cocoa with Rishi. And for me, like, I, this is also another strange coincidence, but my mom drinks chocolate every night, first she goes to bed and I finally have gotten her off of like, you know, bad stuff, the actual and like more, but anyways it's, so it was something I was like, okay, well, my mom would do it.

Speaker 5 (00:37:30):

Cause it was like warm milk. And like she wanted something sweet with chocolate. So I started with that and I felt like eventually over time it was not an overnight sensation that I felt like it was easier for me to fall asleep because that was always my thing is I had a hard time falling asleep. I could, once I was asleep, I was asleep, but I had a hard time falling asleep. And that like started early on in my twenties, even in college a little bit. And then, you know, I have, and I, you know, this Lauren, like I've never been a big coffee drinker. I just haven't loved the taste. And I learned really quickly. It was because most coffee beans growing up for me in college and in the twenties were burnt and not necessarily good for you. So I hated it. And I just like never grew a taste for it.

Speaker 5 (00:38:21):

And I always was a green tea drinker or matcha. And when I do drink coffee now, like I'm very mindful of it, but for me, because I didn't grow up drinking, it, it affects me like it, like, I will have a racing heart. I will get jittery, like even after one cup of coffee. So for me, I was like, okay, well, there's gotta be some sort of alternative that I can have. That's not going to make me stress out or give me what I want. And you know, I found a product that had a little bit of coffee and some adaptogens, and they started with like lines made and then eventually now, you know, sometimes I'll do ashwagandha and now there's like in, this was like, you know, seven or eight years ago when there was ton. It wasn't a lot of products out there now there's like tons.

Speaker 5 (00:39:13):

So it's, we're, I shouldn't say not tons. There's more that you can actually find that are more mainstream. And I think I've noticed a huge difference. I think I can actually drink coffee and enjoy it now that I know what kind of coffee beans to drink, and I can not have that crash, which is the other second part of it was that, you know, here I would be like chatting Cathy for like an hour or two. And then all of a sudden I would be so tired and like, so not only did it affect me on the up, but also on the down. And I think that those adaptogens really helped that for me. And so that I can have a cup of coffee and not feel terrible afterwards because that's also what I associated it with. That was like my experience. I don't know. I'm sure you guys, you guys are way more into adoptions or know more than I do. So would love to hear what you guys think.

Speaker 1 (00:40:03):

Yeah. I dunno if you mind, but I actually love talking about coffee when it comes to talking about adaptogens. When people ask like, how do adaptogens work? It's like coffee, you know, you know that when you have coffee, when your body metabolizes, it, it lets out all that energy into your body. And same thing with adaptogens is just a very different type of you know, a type of feeling very different. And the other thing, the adaptogens is that coffee will feel very instantly adaptogens. Like you said, if you haven't experienced, if you've used them a lot and you know, you might feel that a lot more quickly because maybe your stress levels are actually a lot more balanced. And so it doesn't take too much to calibrate, but when you've been stressed out for a very long time and stress can accumulate for years, decades it might take a longer time to get to back to where it is.

Speaker 1 (00:40:54):

So it really just depends on how much stress is in your system. And, but it is, it is the same mechanism or at least, you know if you're going to replace coffee is one of those things where it's like, yeah, you have coffee every day. Most people do tea every day and most people do. And it's that feeling people expect there to be, especially with adaptogens people expect there to be a very instant reaction, but like I said, if you've been dealing with stress for a long time, it might not be as instant. And so when you're just starting to get into it and trying to figure out what works for you you know, you can't expect the changes to be like instantly today. It might take two weeks. I would say most often it takes about that long for people to really see a and the results you're looking for are, did you go to bed, you know did you stay awake without needing coffee?

Speaker 1 (00:41:41):

Did you you know, feel like work out and not be tired afterwards and that's how you would know it makes a difference. And cause it really is kind of confusing when you're just like, okay, I've been taking this now for a day, feel the same. And it's like, well actually there was a lot going on that you're, that it kind of went in and be like, okay, what am I doing here? All right, we're going to need a little bit more. And it might actually not even take that much you know, a quarter teaspoon of cordyceps, a half teaspoon of reishi, you know might be enough to, to make a difference in a lot of people. And so that's what makes it very different again, to, from co coffee, when, you know, you've taken like, you know, you've had nine cups of coffee, you are wired and crazy, you know? But with with the adaptogens, you could have the quarter teaspoon and have that same, you know, have the same sustenance, have the same just, you know, balance. And, and that might be enough maybe the way to make it. Oh, go ahead, Elisa please.

Speaker 3 (00:42:42):

No, so I was actually going to add, I think this is where you know, I think sometimes going the blend route is good for people. Like I think if somebody is very sort of intimidated and you you know, you go into sprouts, you know, the, a good example and you're looking at like 40 different herbs, you know, I think sometimes going for something that's like pre formulated for you, I think is good. And you know, for our blends, we actually, for that reason that it kind of takes a while for people to build up the system. We actually put in sort of a fast acting and a slower acting adaptogen together. So one of our really popular blogs is defend and we make vitamin C, which works like pretty instantaneously with reishi mushroom that kind of builds up in your system together.

Speaker 3 (00:43:26):

So that is where, you know, you kind of getting over that consumer objection of like, I just don't feel anything and same with our slim blend, we have ashwagandha and melatonin. So melatonin kind of like instantaneously, like puts them to sleep and, you know, they start to evolve start to kind of see the improvement and then that kind of keeps them within the category too, because I absolutely you know, I think from customer service perspective, like we're just getting so many inquiries from people who tell us like, well, I just, I tried this and like nothing happened. And I'm like, well, because you're, you're taking something that is supposed to like help you relax, but it's not gonna sustain you, sleep, put you to sleep. So I would definitely say, look for blends and look for something that's put together. But I would say agree with the lastly, if a blend has maybe more than like four things on it, then I would say people are starting to put things in a, just to make it look like super packed and probably things that are on the bottom don't really do anything, but, you know, look for a nice one that has maybe like two or more three ingredients together that have been kind of optimized that maybe kind of help you get into it a little bit easier.

Speaker 3 (00:44:32):

And then you can kind of start going into that aisle and build a whole entire kitchen cabinet that I have. That's just like powders on powders on powders.

Speaker 2 (00:44:42):

Well, apparently we should have done just an adoption session because I'm just getting so many questions. I promise we'll circle back around to them at the end to get them answered. But before I move on, maybe the best way to make it the most approachable as someone doesn't want to try like a blend or doesn't understand how to find that is just to list which ones are, how they benefit you. So like we said, lion's mane is really good for energy and focus. Ashwagandha is good for de-stressing and taking some of the edge off of anxiety. I think cordyceps is great for athleticism and an endurance energy. What about like reishi and Maka?

Speaker 1 (00:45:21):

Reishi, I would say is incredible for the immune system. I mean, yeah, that's, it's literally like the immortal mushroom is what is called reishi Maka also is especially wonderful for women's health. Okay,

Speaker 2 (00:45:35):

Good. We got it about menopause. So Maka menopause. Did those go hand in hand? Oh, absolutely.

Speaker 3 (00:45:43):

And also I would say I should have gone there cause a lot of the medical assist sometimes a lot of times have to do with depletion of adrenal glands and your body kind of not switching from sort of ovarian production of estrogen to adrenal production. So I think a lot of people will think like menopause, you have to take stuff for energy, but you're actually need to take a lot of nourishment. So that's where like ashwagandha, Rishi really, really come into play.

Speaker 2 (00:46:07):

Awesome. Great. Okay. We're going to have to just have an adaption session live Q and a down the road, but for the purpose of this conversation, something Jennifer, you had said that has been sticking with me is around canola oil. And I actually was in the grocery store this past week and I was at sprouts and I was shopping and a girl was there with her mom and she was like, it's canola oil a nut oil, a seed oil. And they were kind of talking about it and I just stopped. And I said, it's, it's a seed oil. Just like, Oh, okay, thank you. So that's healthy. Right? And I said, do you mind if I just give you a little advice, it's a refined vegetable oil. And so I'd suggest you go for an extra Virgin olive oil or an avocado oil because canola oil can be pro-inflammatory in your body. Whereas those have healthy fats that help contribute anti-inflammatory compounds through your meal. And so are there other ingredients that are very popular in pre-packaged foods or just in everyday meals that people eat that they should be staying away from canola oil being that first one, but are there any others that we want to call out that if a food contains that ingredient, it's probably not the best for you.

Speaker 3 (00:47:20):

I mean, my role is if you can't pronounce it and you don't know what it is, it's not good for you. So a good example that

Speaker 5 (00:47:30):

Like we handled that through innovation was like, you know, we, we created chips out of potato pellets, which, you know, that's fine, but I was like, well, you make, we actually put something else in there, like beans, or we landed on piece and we created a product that was just Pisang and all well, and, you know, processed foods like chips and, you know, I'm sure we could go on and on about granola bars because there's people don't realize like Brown rice sugar, like there's some things that like, there's a process that happens to create them to be in a certain form. And then there's a Hasids and things that some brands don't even have to list. So, and that goes into even the supplement world, which is even crazier. And I think one thing that I'll say that affects our brand is like with Apple cider vinegar, there's this huge supplement craze around it, but no one knows really they're making all these claims, but no one really knows what thank you, look at the panel.

Speaker 5 (00:48:37):

And you're like, okay, that kind of sounds okay. Like there's other things in it than Apple cider vinegar and they're making claims, but no one is really talking about what outside are really does for you and what the active benefit is from it and are making claims that literally is impossible, but it's a supplement world and it's not regulated. So it doesn't matter. Like, so I just think in general, like if you can't pronounce it, if it looks like it's a chemistry puzzle, like it's likely like it comes off of you just stay away. I think like whole foods, all of that, another good example would be you know, like all the sugars out there Zilo anxie gum isn't necessarily bad, but you just want to make sure it's coming from a good source. Like that organic is super important and making sure all the products on the back of are organic. Like it's not just trying to claim organic, which they've gotten better about that. But even the sugars, I would say a lot of the sugars, like I listed a million off, but at the end of the day, you probably just want honey or dates syrup, or just plain old sugar because everything else is so processed. And there's so many chemicals in it. And that's like, for me, like if you can't pronounce it, you don't know who it is, stay away from it.

Speaker 2 (00:50:00):

Yeah. One that I always say is maltodextrin, you know, that's just another name for sugar and it's a very strange name, but there's like, I don't know, 70 different names for sugar. And so yeah, some people will see organic cane sugar on the back and they're like, Oh no, it says sugar. I shouldn't have it, but that's, that's at least better than having like maltodextrin or high-fructose corn syrup. You can read that, but that is also man-made compound that you should probably be staying away from.

Speaker 4 (00:50:29):

Yeah,

Speaker 5 (00:50:31):

No, I was just going to say like, you have to just be careful, like with, even with Divia like, is it organic? Is it like, I mean, I'm sure Brendan, you have way more experience with this with bars. So I would love to hear what you have to think, but that's just been my experience

Speaker 4 (00:50:48):

To build on, on what you were saying, Jennifer. The other thing that I always find sort of shocking and disappointing is how many fillers and how much sugar is put in products that don't need sugar. So w when I go even to trader Joe's, I always turn over the bread because I want to see when sugar is being added to the bread. You don't need bigger in your bread. And you can do that in pretty much any aisle. So my rule of thumb is I want to be able to understand what the ingredients are in there. I tend to also keep an eye on for added sugars. And there's, I I've gotten really, really deep down the rabbit hole of, of sugar in various forms. And there's sugar right now is the demon of our generation much as fat was for our parents.

Speaker 4 (00:51:51):

That being said and this may sound like heresy, but sugar tastes good. And there's a reason why people like to eat things that are sweet. You know, we're, we're wired do things that are sweet. We've kind of taken that too far in society. And you know, now I think there's a bit of a correction that's taking place, all that's to say. I think the other thing that I pay attention to often is how much sugar is in something and how much of that is added sugar. You know, if you're, I think a good rule of thumb is if you can find stuff that as less than 10 grams of sugar, and that's great, if you can find stuff that doesn't have tons of added sugar that's great. But there's a lot of trickery that goes into a lot of packaged foods.

Speaker 4 (00:52:41):

Some of it's necessary, frankly, just because packaged foods have to stay on the shelf for a long time. And as manufacturers, that's part of the dance that we have to play with retailers but people can be really thoughtful about it. And so as you look at more and more products, you start to see the people who have who've done that and said, okay, I want something that tastes great, but I want something that's offering neutral, that's nutrient dense. And that's, that's how they're good for you or that's better for you. So that's, that's my philosophy on kind of ingredients at a, at a high level.

Speaker 3 (00:53:20):

And I actually, I agree, I think some things that you both said is I always say have less of the real thing. So one of the things that were, was encouraged to actually say, just have one lozenge a day, and I think with this whole sugar conversation, there's so many like competitive brands that are claiming, like, you can have this whole entire bag for three grams of sugar, and then also like 20 grams of weird fiber, that's going to make you bloated and really mess up your like gut microbiome. Right. So I think it's, it's, we need to sort of look at the quality of ingredients versus like the quantity that we're consuming. And I would say anything that's cleaning, like you could have this much in it for this little, just really means that there is just a ton of things that are being kind of put into it to reduce and like optically make things at your better.

Speaker 3 (00:54:09):

So like just have real fat have real sugar. If you're eating grains, like that's fine. I don't think we need to all be, there's a lot of like movement towards being scared of certain things, right. It's like how real grains, but just having be real. Like if you choose to eat meat, have some good, like real, you know, quality meat once in a while, like have a variety of things just don't go overboard. And I would say, stay away from brands that like promise you that you can just eat bags and bags and bags of things without any consequences it's, it's, it's absolutely, you know, not true in anything that's some kind of chemical substitute for thing is probably not, not great for you, either

Speaker 2 (00:54:48):

All those ice cream cans, I'd say like a hundred calories for the whole pint there. The point behind that marketing is to get you to eat a pint of ice cream every single night. And that contains, you know, man-made sugars, most likely that are don't have those every single night. That's not a solid idea, but I think there's a really big question being asked right now. And it is the, the two questions coming in are the difference between sugar and added sugar on a label. And why is sugar so bad? And that's kind of a thread, at least like you were saying, we don't want to drive fear from sugar, but there's, it's, it's a little complex to explain, but sugar in its natural form, which is called fructose is not, is not bad. Fruit toast is found in fruits and fruits are essential to life.

Speaker 2 (00:55:37):

And to your health, it is refined sugars that go through manmade processes, a lot of refined sugars. They, if you go in the baking aisle and you grab some white sugar off the shelf, it could have been bleached. And that chemical the, the chemistry of the actual sugar molecule or ingredient is changed. It is no longer the sugar or the fruit toast that you're going to find in fruit. And so I wonder if someone can kind of explain the difference between sugar and added sugar and how we can have a safe relationship with sugar and know that we're not doing our bodies a disservice.

Speaker 3 (00:56:14):

Yeah. I'm happy to take a stab at it. So the FDA has a very specific definition of what added sugar

Speaker 4 (00:56:24):

Is. And let me start out by sharing what added sugar is not so added sugar here's probably the best way to, to frame it up. Fruit has zero added sugar. It is all the sugar that's in there is naturally occurring. And it happens to be paired with fiber also which slows down its digestion slows down the process of you eating it. It slows down your metabolizing of it. You're not going to get a spike. You're not going to get a crash. Added sugar is going to be in the form of cane sugar, honey Gabi Brown rice syrup and those sugars. Technically, I don't know if honey would be considered a refined sugar. It might be it is okay. Yeah. I know it's considered considered by the FDA as an added sugar.

Speaker 4 (00:57:27):

Those are all products that are used to sweeten fruits. And the, if you look at them in an absolute if you were just to eat a spoonful of honey, you're going to probably spike your blood sugar a bed, and you're going to feel kind of jittery for a second. And then you're going to crash after that where the story gets a little bit more complex is if you start to look at added sugar in the context of the food that you're eating. So for example, we use organic Agava in our bars. It's something that I thought a lot about at the end of the day, we wanted something that was going to taste really, really delicious. And we wanted to keep that added sugar at a level that we thought was acceptable and the total sugars at a level that was acceptable.

Speaker 4 (00:58:19):

The other thing that was really important as we were designing our product was we were looking at glycemic index. And for those people who don't know glycaemic index is essentially a measurement of how much your blood sugar is liking when you're eating something. So if something has a high-glycemic index, for example, straight people, sugar, if you eat it, you're going to get a huge spike and you're going to get that crash. If something has a low-glycemic index, you're not going to get that. So our product, for example, has a low-glycemic index because it's paired with organic plant protein, fiber, and healthy fats. So you're actually going to get steady energy. And I get into the details here, because I think they're important as with many villains, which triggered, you know, can, can sometimes be portrayed as it's very easy to look at things in black and white terms.

Speaker 4 (00:59:14):

My own evolution has been that again, I think you need to have products that are good for your body. You need our products that are good for your soul. You shouldn't cut out chocolate from your life because you need to have pizza. Like ice cream is really great. But I think to, to kind of wrap it all in a boat you don't want to eat, as you were saying before ice cream every night. And you don't want to have tons of sugar every single day. Because if you put it into the context of everything that's going into your body you want to have a, you know, a balanced set of nutrition. You want to have something that's going to give you energy. That's going to help you to do you. And so love sugar, but don't eat tons and tons of it because at the end of the day, it's, it's not really neutral. It's delicious. And if it helps you to eat more foods that are nutrients. So my personal opinion great to a point you know, don't feel guilty. Don't feel bad, enjoy it, but also just keep an eye on it. You know, don't eat tons of candy every single day. You got a Snickers bar now, and then, but you know,

Speaker 1 (01:00:31):

Don't tell my husband that don't tell him Celeste. I know you wanted to add something to the sugar conversation also. Yeah, I guess this is my theory on it. It, the art, why is sugar bad? And also the other thing too, to remember with added sugars is pretty much anything you add for flavor would be in that category of added sugar. If it doesn't naturally occur, like in fruit, that's a, that's a different category. And FDA is actually requiring us as of January of this year to be separating the two. And a lot of people are actually not, they're skirting that I'm really seeing some labels that are like, there's no added sugars, but you know, if you added sugar for it to be sweet, that's definitely an added sugar. But as for why sugars are bad, they're not, but what's bad is the processing.

Speaker 1 (01:01:21):

So for me, it Atlanta, when you look at history and also just evolution our bodies have not yet evolved in order to process processed foods. And that's why so many crazy things happen when you eat a diet of processed foods, you become obese, you get sick, you are opening yourself up to becoming you know, to getting all different types of diseases. We know that you know, a family that lives in a certain zip code in his desert who desert you know, where there aren't, there's not access to healthy foods. There are 70% more likely to die of these diet related diseases. And I really do think that that's because processed foods are not part of our bodies yet. They're not something that we know how to do. Processed foods have really only been around for the last three generations at the most, you know Jennifer's founders are still alive and they started this in 90, you know, she's 91.

Speaker 1 (01:02:18):

So for us to have evolved to process processed foods efficiently, it's just not really there. We're not there yet. And I don't really like and so when I see it, it's when we eat processed foods, our bodies don't know what to do with that. But when you have whole foods, which is why these are such, there's just such a big movement towards eating whole foods, especially when it comes to your health. You know, for me, pre-diabetic, they're like you've got to start eating real vegetables, not juice. You've got to start eating, you know, real fruits. And I couldn't, I just was like this is so much work, but at the end of the day, our bodies know how to do that. Our bodies evolved to do that very efficiently. And so when it comes to a sugar, like for example you know, well, a really popular one would be a referred tall that's in a lot of drinks.

Speaker 1 (01:03:07):

Xylitol is also a sugar alternative. When you, when your body gets to that, it literally doesn't just put it in. And it's like, all right, let's process that it's like, wait, I need to get the manual out. I need to figure out how to do this. Let me actually store it in your belly fat for a second and get back to this later. And sometimes it doesn't ever get back to it, you know? And that's how for me, when I simplify the process in my head it's really, that's why we should be looking out for processed foods and by process, you know, even like for our drinks, we try to do as least process as possible. So it's, you know we use whole fruit purees, which means it's picked it's peeled it's pureed, and then it's put in our drinks.

Speaker 1 (01:03:50):

Now, when you come to juices, it's picked, it's peeled, it's juiced, which removes the, you know, the stuff that actually our body needs in order to process it, which is fiber. And then that tape gets taken out. That's another step. And then when you get to flavors, which is, you know, when they say natural flavorings, that now that they take that juice, they clarify it, they take all this stuff that you know, might plug up a drain or might like the plant material out. And they just have the chemicals so that it tastes like what it tastes like when it's a whole fruit, but with a lot less like a concentrate. So as you get further and further, you are down the pipeline, you're like, okay. So for example, green tea, green tea extract, pretty simple green tea concentrate, also simple. But that's still like four or five steps of processing. And then you get into GABA or, you know, like the, the, just the extract of what makes green tea energy, like what gives it the energy and you'll have that. But as you get further and further, and if you can't spell it or it gets longer and longer, you know, in, in its name that's how, you know, it's more processed and our bodies might not actually have the manuals to process those.

Speaker 2 (01:05:00):

And that is why we call it holistic, because you do need to look at this through a very full whole lens. And so even something that we haven't mentioned yet, is it, if you are putting something in your body and your body takes out that manual puts it in your belly fat for a little bit, because it doesn't know what to do with it also what's happening around you and your environment can impact the way that your body's going to process that food as well. So if you're in an extremely stressful situation or say, you're grabbing something and eating on the go while you're in the car rushing to get somewhere, your body is in a fight or flight mode, which means it's not even going to digest anything that you put into it, it's just going to store it. And that's, that's when those compounds get stored in your fat.

Speaker 2 (01:05:41):

And over time, especially in this very stressed out world, we live in, it starts to accumulate, and you start to create these more inflammatory hormones that throw off the balance of all of your hormones. So it's really mind body soul health, because the way you're emotionally feeling is going to affect the way that you're digesting everything that you're putting in your body, whether your body knows what it is or not. But something I did want to point out is if you are going to eat a Snickers bar, you can have Bragg, Apple cider vinegar, and it will slow down the blood sugar spike. Right? Jennifer?

Speaker 5 (01:06:14):

Yeah. I was just going to say the whole, like, you know, this was so helpful on sugar, but also what happens to your body is what you really want to know about. And that's when you eat even like pizza or pasta or chocolate, those things spike your blood sugar, and then you like, feel great. You're like, Oh, you know, you're on a sugar high, so to speak, and then you crash and then maybe an hour later, you crave it again. And then that's what happens with the spirals. And people don't realize like why they're always constantly craving sugar and then like salty. And they're just, they're literally trying to stay high because they, they feel good on when they're high. And, but they don't realize is they're constantly just crashing and then you're constantly eating bad food. So I think that's something to really know is that's, what's happening to your blood sugar and you wanna be drying to all day just maintaining your blood sugar all day.

Speaker 5 (01:07:13):

Never want it to spike. And there's a lot of different companies now that are monitoring. You can monitor it yourself and actually watch it. And it's just crazy. Even something like with a date with like almond butter on it can totally spike your blood sugar and something really nice that we have a lot of research on is that if you say you're like, okay, I'm going to treat myself to donut today. You can actually take Apple cider vinegar before, during or after you eat something like that. And it will help level out your blood sugar. So you don't have that spike so that you don't have to have this huge crash. So I don't want to say like, eat all the pizza you want every day and just have Apple cider vinegar. Cause that's not what you should do. But if you are, if you're going to eat something like that, it can help.

Speaker 5 (01:08:01):

So that your blood sugar, you know, it helps with like weight management and appetite suppression. Like it's, you know, it's this weird Alexa that's been around for years and we're still learning a lot about it, but I would just, if you are going, have something like that, a lot of people take it before they go to bed. Like, they'll have a glass always, always dilute, do not drink it straight. It's really bad for your tummy. Or it would really hurt too, before they go to bed. So like after they've had dinner or maybe they've had something sweet and they say they sleep really well. I don't know if that's really, like, I don't know how that would work chemistry-wise but it does help. And I've even done it myself multiple times and I'm like, wow, I'm not cranky. And don't feel like I want to eat another piece of sugar or, you know, so it does, that's something you can do when you do want to indulge. And, you know, we have enough products for you with Apple cider vinegar in it that if it's like too strong for you, there's plenty of other things to do. So yeah. Should definitely try it and see if it works and call me if it doesn't cause maybe, you know, maybe it was not enough for whatever you need, but it does work.

Speaker 2 (01:09:10):

That is not an excuse to just eat sugar all day long and then take a shot of Apple cider vinegar. And like Jennifer said always dilute it like one to two tablespoons in at least eight ounces of water. Don't just take shots of Apple cider vinegar, but there's lots of do's and don'ts that Jennifer and I dig into in her clean body podcast episode, which just released this last Wednesday. So if you want more rules and do's, and don'ts for Apple cider vinegar, go check them out there. But I can't believe it's already been over an hour. So I want to start wrapping up this conversation. And because we've talked about it being mind, body, soul, and a holistic journey to health, I want to hit on wellbeing practices that you all recommend as well, because it's not just about what you put in your body. It's how you treat yourself and your body every single day from an emotional and a mental perspective as well. So open up the floor, any wellbeing practices that you all would like to share? Yeah,

Speaker 4 (01:10:03):

Yeah. I'll, I'll, I'll start off and I'll share one that I discovered fairly recently, which has been a game changer for me which is take a break from your phone by making it harder to access and make hard stuff that you know is important to do easier. So what I have begun doing two things when I wake up in the morning first thing I would do is meditate which I use my phone for. I then put my phone in that room and I, I leave and I go to another room and having that distance prevents me if I'm feeling nervous or stressed or anxious from reaching for it and pulling up Instagram or Googling something was just came to the top of my mind or whatever other escape I'm looking for. I simply can't do it.

Speaker 4 (01:10:58):

It's it's too much work. And the second one that's related to that is don't look at your phone for the first hour after you wake up. Doesn't mean you don't have to, it's a really hard one. Some days were better than others. Again, it helps that in another room. It doesn't mean you don't have to do email like pop, open your computer and your email. I find though that the phone is, is somebody described it really well. Which was, it's a I'm trying to remember the exact phrase. It wasn't that it was a weapon of mass distraction distraction, and it was what it was, it was a weapon, a mass.

Speaker 3 (01:11:38):

I was going to say that sounds right.

Speaker 4 (01:11:40):

Yeah. And I think that's really true. So that's, that's a new one for me, which I've found quite helpful in my repertoire.

Speaker 5 (01:11:54):

For me, I would say, especially in the, during the pandemic taking a break to go for an outside walk with no phone, no headphones, just yourself, even if it's just literally walking around the block and it takes less than 10 minutes. Like there's a lot of studies that I've recently seen that like, I felt like it was helping me creatively and also just in general to step away from my office for a second or even your home or wherever you are just to literally get outside is such like, it's so good for your mind. It's so good for your brain to give it a break. And I would highly recommend people trying to find time for that because I know it's hard and it's easier said than done, but it does super helpful. And then the second thing was, you know, the pandemic was sort of the blessing for me in the sense that I was like, I've always been a runner.

Speaker 5 (01:12:52):

I've always been working out a lot, doing a lot of like intense workouts. And when, like, when I couldn't go to those classes anymore, I realized like that sometimes that there is a barrier of like, maybe you're doing this, maybe this workout wasn't actually good for you. And then maybe you were pushing yourself too hard. And that, that causes a lot of stress in your body. And I think I've would always say that be gentle on yourself and to, you know, not be so worried about a scale and how, you know, how you're just more worried about how you're feeling and worry about like what feels good and what doesn't, if something exhausts you to the point where like you have to go to bed, like after, or take a nap, or it's probably not great for you. So I think it's just learning what's actually works for you and your body, which takes time. I mean, it just does, but not to be so worried about like how many calories you're burning and just thinking about how you actually feel, I think is super important.

Speaker 3 (01:13:56):

That's great. At least I still ask, do you have any to add? So for me, it's trying new things. So I think even like wellness activities or whatever it is, if you keep doing them, they kind of lose that effect on your body. And one of the most important things for brain health is to constantly be a beginner at some things. So I'm like, I just started playing pickleball and I like cooked and it was great to go like start and not know the rules and not know what you're doing, but I always try to do like with Cameron to try like a pottery class, I'm going to try whatever, like dance class you want to do, but like, you just constantly want to be putting yourself in a situation where you are not comfortable, but in a way that it's like fun, you know, like Jennifer's point, like there's that bad, uncomfortable. But it's, it's just really, really important that for your brain to have that excitement of of the new things and sort of being a little bit of that, of the comfort that kind of gets you know, kind of regs up your whole entire system across the board and has been shown to be good for everything from brain health, to your, like, down to your immune system. Actually,

Speaker 2 (01:15:05):

I love that. That's so great. Everything with this podcast and live Q and a, and everything is a new experience for me. So I feel like my brain is being challenged on a daily basis right now. So last, do you want to add any?

Speaker 1 (01:15:17):

Yeah, I think for me, especially during quarantine lockdowns and things like that they're really important part of it. Like while the world is falling apart around you and you're stuck at home, you know, without boundaries relief between what is work and what is, you know, your real life grounding has been really important, like grounding just rituals. And that could be as simple as meditating. It could be simple too. Like if you have crystals holding onto those it's also just kind of being, being able to sit with yourself and affirmations, you know just to kind of remind you who you are and what you, what you do. So for me, it could be as simple as I can do this too. I am respected and my work is valued because I feel like those are kinds of things that we might have gotten. If we were in an environment where we had our, we were around our coworkers, you know, you might get that, you might get that feeling of community, but you have to be your own community in these spaces now. But yeah, so if your grounding practice includes meditating, breathing, yoga, or if it includes going out into nature, you know I think that that's so important to keep us anchored in a time where there's just so much going on.

Speaker 2 (01:16:32):

Absolutely. I'm going to add to based on questions that we're getting one was about using technology before bed. And that's a really great question. You it's the same as Brendan was saying with the morning at night you want to try to avoid blue light. So that's your phone, your TV, your computer, that blue light actually prevents your sleep hormones from being produced. And so your brain is not getting the signals that it's time to go to bed. So that melatonin production actually happens at a lower level when you have that blue light before you're going to bed. So it can be definitely be really hard to avoid phones and TV and computer before bed, but try to get some new habits, like go for a night, walk with your pups or read a book or even, you know, this does have your phone, but you can turn the light down on your phone or turn the blue light off.

Speaker 2 (01:17:27):

There is an option to do that on your phone and listen to a podcast and just lay there that will keep your brain awake a little bit more than like a walk or a book, but it's just cultivating that, that habit of not having those blue screens in front of you right before bed, so that your whole hormone production is happening the way that it's naturally supposed to happen. And then someone else asked about like grand grounding and meditation meditation can be really hard to start doing. So I always say like start really small, you know, as you're making your coffee in the morning and the coffee makers going, just close your eyes and breathe and try to meditate for the minute that you're waiting. You can do mini meditations or micro-meditations, which you literally just close your eyes, exhale your breath, take in one big breath and imagine it's the last breath you're ever going to take.

Speaker 2 (01:18:14):

And then exhale as slowly as you can. And those are just little ways to start getting into meditation. Also, journaling is a really good grounding exercise. So yeah, those are some helpful everyday tips for kind of calming your mind and brain. And I think nature bathing is a huge one. Jennifer, there's so many studies around just being outside in nature and not just being outside, but pay attention. Like what do the leaves, what are the shapes of the leaves? What color is the sky? How many clouds are in the sky? What sounds can you hear really try to be as present as you can in nature. And even three to five minutes, we'll have such a boost on your mood, but this was really wonderful. Next time I'll schedule for four hours because we still, I think we got to like three questions on this bed, but everyone is asking specifically where to buy adaptogens. And obviously we have products here with adaptogens in them. So I just want to go through one by one and have you kind of share how people can get in touch with you if they have more questions after this Q and a and also how they can get their hands on your product. So Elisa, you want to kick it off

Speaker 3 (01:19:22):

Definitely where you can find us on kind route. K I N D R O t.com. Email us say, Hey at kind of rate. And then of course you can was through Instagram. And then we also just started Arctic talk. So follow us for kind of behind the scenes and silly, inspirational videos that we post every day.

Speaker 2 (01:19:45):

Jennifer, go ahead.

Speaker 5 (01:19:48):

We are at Bragg and on Instagram, if you have any other questions I monitor with my team. So if you have questions for me directly, just let them know or just say for Jen all of our products are mainly nationwide, but most of the new stuff that you see behind me is not it's, but you

Speaker 2 (01:20:08):

Can, you'll be able to buy it on Amazon in brag.com and that it's brag with two GS, B R a D D. Yeah. Brendan, go ahead.

Speaker 4 (01:20:17):

So our products are available nationwide at sprouts. You can find us in whole foods Southern California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii. And so pavilions here in Southern California, bright foods.com shipped directly to your door. And you can find us at eat bright foods on Instagram. If you want to get in touch, you can DM, or you can also send an email to hello@brightfoods.com. Those actually all come directly to me. And I, I love doing customer service. I spend a lot of my time with customers. So if you have questions, you know, I mean I will do my best to get back to you within 24 hours.

Speaker 2 (01:20:57):

Oh yeah. Everyone here wears a million hats. That's kinda the name of the game. So if you are, DM-ing them, there's a good chance. You're damning these people you're seeing right now. Celeste, go ahead. If you want to hit me up, it's Celeste Perez at Celeste Perez, you can also hit up the site at drink droplet and you can get us at Erewhon in California and about a hundred different spots on the us, your local app Pondicherry your favorite special individu teak. And I drink droplet.com. We deliver pretty much anywhere here in the U S and you have some spots in Canada as well. Awesome. Yeah, you guys can also get a ton of your questions probably answered in the hour-long episodes with each of these awesome people. Brendan is episode two, at least it's episode four Jennifer's episode five. That one just came out this last week and Celeste is coming out in two weeks. And I do have to just give a plug. If you listen to the podcast, there are discount codes for ordering online. So, you know, everyone can always use 15 to 20% off. That's always a nice thing, but thank you guys so much. I super appreciate you going 20 minutes over and taking the time on a Sunday to talk to me. And I hope we get to collaborate more in the future.

Speaker 2 (01:22:17):

Hey, everyone. I hope you enjoyed that live Q and a don't forget. There will be more coming up soon. So follow us on Instagram, holistic Lauren Kelly, or the clean body project to stay up to date when those events are coming up. So you can either tune in live and ask your own questions, or you can get them on the podcast platform. When they come out. As a reminder, this podcast is for educational purposes. Only. It is not a substitute for professional care for a doctor, otherwise qualified health professional. This podcast is provided on the understanding that it is not a replacement for medical or other health related services. If you're looking for help in your journey, seek out a qualified practitioner, I'll see you next week.