SPEAKER_00 0:13

Weight loss jabs or GLP1 medications, they're absolutely everywhere now, right now. You can't open up newspapers, scroll social media, or have a conversation without them coming up. And we're getting asked about them all the time. In fact, people are looking for our input as nutritionists and simply telling us they're using them and what they're experiencing without us even prompting them. So we're going to make no apologies for having another episode where we talk about weight loss jabs or GLP1 medications because behind all the noise, there's a really important question. Can you support the same appetite and weight regulating pathways naturally without resorting to weight loss jabs? Welcome back to the latest episode of Empower Your Menopause. I'm James Ellis, functional nutritionist.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

And I'm Julie Medesi, Master Health Coach.

SPEAKER_00 0:58

Yeah, so today we're talking about GLP1 again, and we'll do a quick recap on what that is, why it matters, and then we'll talk about food, your gut, and your lifestyle and how they can all actually influence it. So this is not a black and white alternative to medication or going on the drugs, but so you can actually understand what's going on in your body, and then you can make a more informed decision on whether you want to take these drugs or not. Because we'd be doing you a disservice if we just ignored the conversation. It's really, really important. So let's start then at the beginning and do a quick recap of what GLP1 actually is and what it does. So I'm gonna pass this one straight over to you, Julie.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

Sure. So for those who don't understand it fully, GLP1 is one of the body's main appetite-regulating hormones, and we release it from our gut when we eat, especially when the food reaches the lower part of the small intestine. So the job of GLP1s are to help coordinate what happens after we've eaten something. They signal the brain that food has come in. They can slow down how quickly food leaves the stomach so you stay feeling fuller for longer. And it works alongside insulin to help manage blood sugar levels after a meal because we all know, depending on what we've eaten, they can they can spike a bit. So I certainly have noticed, and I wonder if our listeners have noticed, that when you eat a proper balanced meal, you feel satisfied for hours. You don't even think about food, you don't feel hungry. Whereas when you eat something really light or processed or sugary, that doesn't happen. That's GLP1 in real life without a weight loss jab. So it's the signal that our body gives that says, that's enough now for the food we're eating. It's not the only signal, but it's a really important one, which is why this is something that's coming out in the marketplace. But like we said, it you know, it isn't something that your body doesn't already have. So the drugs that everybody's talking about and these weight loss jabs aren't about creating something new out of thin air or injecting something into our body that isn't already there. Our body already produces GLP1s. So, James, how about you talk a little more about how that actually works?

SPEAKER_00 3:19

Yeah, so GLP1 is produced in specialized cells in your gut lining. So that's why the health of that environment really matters and why we talk about gut health a lot when we talk about it more and more and more. And that happens whether you're on the jabs or not. So it's not just about eating food or the food you eat, it's about how your gut processes and responds to that food. So if let's say your gut lining's irritated for some reason, if your digestion's sluggish, or if your microbiome, that collection of bacteria and yeasts and everything that's in your gut that helps with digestion, helps your process foods, if that's not in great shape, those signals can be weaker or delayed. And that's where people start saying things like, I just don't feel full, or I can keep eating full, and or I don't feel satisfied, or I get sudden cravings out of nowhere. And of course, you know, unfortunately, our modern lifestyle, modern diets, you know, lack of sleep, post-stress mechanisms, all those kinds of things really play into this. So, particularly from a diet perspective, you know, modern westernized diets tend to be low in fibre, high in ultra-processed foods, they just don't stimulate the gut in the same way. So we're often not getting the same level of signalling that we designed to get or we want to get. So this is just not it's not just about having or not having GLP1 or your body not creating it, it's about how effectively your body is using the systems that it already has to create the drug. So I suppose the question that leads on from that then is can we actually influence that in a meaningful way ourselves by diet, lifestyle interventions without having to resort to the jabs? So, Julie, where do we start with all that?

SPEAKER_01 5:16

Yeah, sure. And I I mean the thing that I love is that we can actually support these pathways naturally, but we need to be realistic because we're not trying to replicate the pharmaceutical strength that we get from the jabs or injections. What we want to do is just improve how our body regulates our appetite from day to day. And instead of massively suppressing hunger, which is what those jabs do, but only for as long as you take them, we're aiming for something a little bit more sustainable. So we have fewer spikes in cravings and appetites, we have fewer crashes in our energy. We're not constantly thinking about food, and it helps us have a little bit more predictable appetite so that food doesn't kind of drive the way our day goes. And you know, it's worth saying that this foundation is going to matter whether or not you choose to use the weight loss jabs, right? If you do use the jabs, it's gonna help you get better results and maintain them. And if you choose not to use the jabs, it's gonna become really a foundational and primary strategy for it. So we're we're trying to work with our bodies here, we're trying to work with our biology. And there are a lot of different ways that we can do that. And of course, because we are who we are, we're gonna talk about some of those details. So let's start by getting into what actually helps. And we'll start with one of the biggest levers that we see. And I'm handing this right back to you, James.

SPEAKER_00 6:50

Um, well, people who've listened to any previous episodes of this will be totally unsurprised by one of the biggest levers that you can pull when it comes to working on gut health and helping with um your natural stimulation and production of GLP1, and it's protein, right? It's one of the most effective nutrients you can have for increasing feelings of fullness, increasing your appetite regulation, it helps stabilize your blood sugar, which means that you get fewer dips that trigger cravings, and it also stimulates hormones like GLP1 that help with hunger regulation, also helps with insulin and um and glucagon as well, two other hormones that are really, really important when it comes to that. So, you know, one of the key things that we tend to see when it comes to protein is that people tend to go really light on it, and particularly women over 40. Naturally, as we age, all kinds of studies have shown that people as they age eat less and less protein the older they get, and that is really counterintuitive when you actually need protein. So, you know, if you've got breakfast that's light or really carb heavy or just coffee or something quick, that kind of sets you up on a bit of a roller coaster for later in the day. Now, if you flip that over and do this simple experiment, you know, do a week of eating cereal for breakfast, then do a week of eating eggs for breakfast and see which one makes you feel more full longer into the day. You'll see, I almost guarantee that it will be eggs. So protein-rich breakfast tends to carry people through, yeah, keep you through the day or through until lunchtime at least, without too many cravings. Um, whereas a low protein breakfast really leads to mid-morning hunger, it can lead to afternoon cravings, um, even overeating in the evening can be linked to low protein. So, you know, yes, you need it all day, and you need a regular portion of protein, about a I'm showing this to anybody who's watching on YouTube, but about about the palm of your hand and thickness of your hand would be about a portion of protein. You need at least one of those at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Uh, so you've got it all through the day. But breakfast is really, really important, you know. But of course, it doesn't work in isolation. There are lots of other things that we can pull on as well. Um, one of them is really about food that helps with how your gut works, and that is, of course, fiber. So, Julie, why don't you tell us a little bit about fiber, the gut, the microbiome, how they all work in tandem when it comes to GLP1.

SPEAKER_01 9:34

Sure. And, you know, because fiber is such a sexy topic, um, we we hear about it all the time. But the important thing to know is that fiber isn't only about digestion. We have the gut microbiome, we have bacteria in our gut, and they need fiber to feed them, and then those bacteria produce compounds that are going to help regulate our appetite, including influencing the production of GLP1s. So when we eat a typical Western diet, which is a low fiber diet, generally speaking, because a lot of times even those packaged to quote unquote healthy breads don't actually contain that much fiber. We're not getting the same level of support from our gut. Now, when we're eating a wider variety of plant foods, which are chopped full of fiber, um, and that's not just vegetables, it's vegetables and fruits and legumes and beans and nuts and seeds, you know, all different kinds of plant sources, then we're effective, more effectively strengthening our gut and our digestive system over time. Because we're not going to just suddenly add 20 vegetables in a day and then feel completely better, right? We have to, we have to look at this as a long-term strategy. So we're going to be, we're never going to be perfect with our diets, but when we gradually increase and maintain variety and consistency of our fiber intake, then that makes all the difference because it's it's never about one meal. Just like we say, you're not going to lose weight by eating one salad any more than you're going to gain all of your weight by eating one piece of chocolate cake. So when we when we add more fiber, we're going to shape how our appetite behaves tomorrow and next week and in the months ahead of us. So fiber is really important. Now, having said that, we know that this is like putting pieces of a puzzle together, right? We're giving you lots of different pieces, and we we're only looking at putting a couple pieces in place at a time. You don't just dump a puzzle on the table and expect it to miraculously assemble itself. So it isn't just about what you eat, how you put your meals together and how often you're eating also makes a difference. James, do you want to take this one?

SPEAKER_00 11:50

Yeah, so I think it's really important to notice that one of the things that we see when it comes to like people having too many cravings, people having blood sugar imbalances, people having that typical thing of sort of like not eating during the day and then eating lots at night, you know, reaching for the snack cupboard later on at night, tends to come from under-eating. So that's one element of it, right? Needing enough calories into your diet. So as soon as you start getting people who are radically reducing the amount of calories they have on the plate, that's that's one challenge. The second challenge is when you have a meal and you have three good basic meals a day, where you're including a mix of protein, you're including a mix of fiber, lots of fruit and vegetables, and some healthy fats, then digestion tends to slow down, and those feelings of whether you're hungry or not, the feeling of fullness feels stronger and more sustained. So you feel you know a lot of products have used it in their taglines in the past, but fuller for longer is basically what we're talking about. So you feel full for longer because digestion is slowing down. So that what that's what can keep you feeling steadier rather than constantly thinking about food. Now, there was a point where we're told to graze all the time, right? Just sort of like eat consistently throughout the day or skip meals or eat very lighter in the day, all of those tend to build up some kind of hunger that will often show up later on in the day. So, you know, what you really want to be doing is almost constantly staying ahead of hunger rather than reacting to it. If you're waiting to a time to a time where you're absolutely starving, what's the first thing that you do? You go and you grab the nearest, easiest, most convenient thing. What's the nearest, easiest, most convenient thing? It's gonna be a bag of crisps or chips if you're in America, it's gonna be a bar of chocolate, it's gonna be something from the snack cupboard, or it's gonna be something that you can stick in the microwave really quickly. That is obviously probably gonna have come from you know a highly processed point of view to actually um eat that quickly. Um, so there's some challenges here, and I think we need to recognize that that idea of then going back to what our parents would have told us, which is three sort of like good balanced meals a day, it sounds boring, but you know, it's boring because it actually works and it works on a consistent, slow basis to keep you followed for longer, as I said. So, you know, we often see many women who come to us clients or potential clients, they're trying to be an invert commas good early in the day, and you know, we don't like those terms of good and bad, but what they term to be good tends to be bad when it comes to their hunger signals, if you like. So they eat very little early in the day. I know loads of people get up, they just have a coffee, and then they don't eat anything until one or two in the afternoon. Suddenly they're absolutely starving, and then they blame themselves later on in the day when the body starts to catch up, and that starts off all those kind of negative thoughts around food that we want to try and avoid. So, good, steady, balanced meals is really really important, as is slowing down while you're eating and getting in touch with that side of uh of your meals, actually. So, like sitting down, putting your phone away, you know, by all means have a conversation with a colleague or at work or family if you're sitting down in the evening to eat, but slow down because all those things can help when it comes to hunger signals and whether you feel full or not later in the day. So there are a couple of things obviously that sit outside of food, and we do like to talk about sort of like lifestyle interventions as well. We aren't just nutritionists, we're health coaches as well. So things like street stress and sleep are really, really important, and they have a really big influence on naturally how you naturally produce GLP1, too. So, Julie, talk to us through those.

SPEAKER_01 16:02

Sure. And you know, this is this is a big thing, especially for women over 40, because sleep tends to be a little bit more difficult or challenging. Um, but it also has a direct impact on our appetite. So when we don't sleep well and we aren't feeling rested, it tends to drive greater hunger signals and cravings for things that are quick and high energy foods. Like James was saying, so we're reaching for the sugar-laden protein bars or health bars or the cookies or the crisps or or whatever. And stress does something similar in that it drives our stress hormones up, which are going to make us want something that's again quick and easily accessed to get fuel to address the stress that we're feeling, especially when it comes on on an emotional level, um, because we can't dismiss emotional hunger as well. And that just basically makes it harder and harder to regulate our appetite. And we get into this cycle. And, you know, we're we're not immune to real life. We both also have busy schedules. We work with family, we have households to take care of. You know, it isn't about having a perfect routine, but it's finding ways to improve that step by step and doing things that are realistic given your particular situation. And then we look at movement, that's a whole other piece. Our bodies were designed to move, not just to burn calories, but also because it helps us handle blood sugar better, um, and it it supports it supports overall blood sugar regulation, um, and it not to mention the the contribution it makes to our long-term health when we stay fitter and stronger. So, you know, these are these are kind of the foundational background settings, and we don't pay much attention to them until there's a there's an issue. So if they're turned off and we're not paying attention to them, it makes everything else a bit more challenging. So when you zoom out and look at that whole big picture, where where does that leave us with the injections themselves?

SPEAKER_00 18:23

Well, I think it's important to say that you know GLP1 medications definitely have a place. They can be really, really effective because they can stop people from overeating and they can reduce appetite quite dramatically. Now, if you've got a severe health issue that comes through you being overweight or obese or having type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome, any of those really challenging conditions, then obviously a medication that can bring you down to a normal weight relatively quickly, if it's a life-challenging issue, um, is a really, really important thing to have. Where there seems to be a gap, and this is not always, just sometimes that we see this, they don't address anything underneath, they don't look at gut health, they don't look at food quality, they don't look at habits or lifestyle factors, all those boring things that we keep going on about where we need to be consistent. I was talking to somebody last week who had lost a significant amount of weight on the uh by taking the injections, but by their unadmittance, they had no idea what to do, what to do next, and they found that themselves towards the end of the cycle of administering the medication just before the next set of jabs came up, they were finding themselves going back to their their typical habits, and that of course is a challenge if you're not trying to work on those habits at the same time as you're having something that is chemically or medically helping you reduce your appetite. So that person uh at the end of the week, they'd gone for a walk and they came back and they rewarded themselves, you know, with kind of Red Bull and bar of chocolate. Obviously, that is not going to help if they continue to eat like that, that is not gonna help when they come off the medications, whenever they decide to come off them. So it's really, really challenging. It's important to know that if you do go on the jabs, whether you need them, or whether you know we are seeing an increase of people doing it for vanity reasons, whether whether you actually need them to physically lose weight for health reasons, or you're doing it for vanity reasons, they might change how much you eat, but what they don't really change at all is why things are off in the first place, which is why having some kind of plan to go alongside them that is working on your lifestyle, being coached, being helped in some way, shape, or form is really, really important because what happens if you come off them and you've not put any of the foundations in place, well, just like any other extreme calorific restriction, whether that be a diet or whatever it may be, as soon as you go back to eating like you were eating before, if you've not changed your habits overall, then unfortunately, what tends to happen 99 times out of a hundred is people just end up putting the weight back on. So they're the pros and cons of the medications, yeah. If you do need them, absolutely, for health reasons, then it would be wrong of us to say don't go on them. But you know, trying to find a way to have an off-ramp, think about what coming off looks like, trying to get some things in place before you do start to come off. So once again, you're ahead of the game rather than coming off and suddenly having to find that you've got to change your whole lifestyle because everything's been switched off. Once it switches back on, that can be a challenge, right? So um it's exactly I guess why we created something to help you make sense of all this and help you make an informed decision about whether you want to try GLP1 medications or not. So the weight loss jabs. So, Julie, why don't you talk through the upcoming workshop that we've got on April 23rd?

SPEAKER_01 22:18

Sure. Um, so after having listened to all of this, if you're thinking about weight the weight loss jabs or you're trying to make sense of them, we have put together a workshop that's called Thinking About Weight Loss Jabs, Start Here First. Hopefully that's clear enough. Um, it's just 10 pounds to register, and we've designed it to help give you a clearer and more balanced understanding of your options because we're not anti-jab, but we want them to be used with informed consent and responsibly so that you can enjoy long-term health, whether you choose to use them or not. So during the workshop, we'll walk you through what these medications actually do, how your body regulates appetite naturally, and what you need to put in place again, whether you decide to use them or not. So it's important, we feel, that you make your decision from a place of clarity rather than confusion or really good marketing. So you can find more information and you can register at jabs.fabulousbeyond40.com. And of course, we'll put the link in the show notes one more time, jabs.fabulousbeyond40.com. And that's going to be held on April 23rd. So we hope to see you there.

SPEAKER_00 23:32

Yeah, so that's it for this week, then. If you found this helpful, make sure you do the usual things that you should do when it comes to anything that you see on social media media. That is like, subscribe, share it if you find that some you think somebody might need some help with this, and feel free, of course, to pass that workshop link on to anyone else who's been wondering about this. So that's it from ourselves, James and Julie from Fabulous Beyond 40 Coaching. Until next time, stay strong, stay fabulous, and we'll see you soon. Take care.