If you had told me a decade ago that I would end up running my own nutrition practice, I am not sure I would have believed you.

As a Clinical Nutritionist, one of my areas of special interest is working with people to support their gut health. This often shows up as bloating, constipation or other digestive issues. Which means that gut microbiome testing can be a really valuable tool to get to the bottom of what is really going on. However, the benefits of gut microbiome testing go beyond just supporting digestion.

If you asked me to name one habit that many people may not realise quietly undermines gut health, hormones and mood, I would say sleep.

Most of us know we should be eating more vegetables. The tricky part is turning that knowledge into a habit that actually sticks.

Good digestion does not start with the first bite. It starts before you even pick up your fork.

If you have worked with me for some time, chances are you have likely heard me bring up bitter foods in relation to your digestion. There is good reason for that.

If you have been to see me in clinic lately, you may have heard me bang on about plant diversity in the diet. Eating 30 or more different plant foods a week is not just a wellness trend, it is backed by genuine research.

Every winter it is the same story. Some people around you seem to glide through cold and flu season without missing a beat, while others (and you might be one of them) seem to catch every single thing going around. And it wipes them out for days on end.

Stress can disrupt the composition of your gut microbiome, weaken the gut lining, and can trigger an inflammatory response. That inflammation is fed back to the brain, amplifying anxiety, lowering mood, and making you feel even less equipped to handle whatever is on your plate.

Stress is something we all experience, but when it becomes ongoing, it can influence many areas of health. Here I share four of my favourite ways to support the nervous system.

As we move into winter here in Melbourne with cooler temperatures, shorter days, and a season that can quietly chip away at our energy, immunity (and mood!), I start to see the same patterns every year. People arriving in my clinic feeling run-down, sluggish, and wondering why their healthy habits seem to stop working when winter kicks in.

The good news? Getting back to basics can make a real difference.

I was first introduced to the concept of "movement snacks" at the 2024 Australasian College of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine conference where Dr Paul Taylor, a psychophysiologist, neuroscientist and an exercise physiologist, spoke about this beautifully simple idea.

It has stuck with me ever since.

You wake up after a full night's sleep and still feel like you are dragging yourself through wet concrete.

You rely on coffee to function.

You feel yourself crashing by 3pm and reaching for a quick energy fix from sweets or carb-heavy foods.

You can barely remember what "energetic" felt like.

Do any of these sound familiar?

GLP-1 medications are changing the weight loss and health landscape in Australia and globally. However, there is a nutrition concern quietly building alongside them, and almost nobody is talking about this.

Magnesium is one of the most underrated minerals in clinical nutrition, yet it underpins hundreds of essential processes in the body.

With the change of seasons, and as we head into cooler weather there is a natural opportunity to look inward and ask ourselves "Is my immune system ready?".

The good news is that with a little nutritional and lifestyle support, you can head into autumn and winter feeling resilient and well.

Hippocrates said it more than two thousand years ago, and modern nutritional science keeps proving him right.

The foods we eat every day are far more than fuel for our body.

They contain compounds that interact with our cells, organs, hormones, and immune system in ways that can genuinely shift our health outcomes.

A perspective for anyone who has ever started a new habit on a Monday (or on the first day of a new month) and has given up later that week (or month).

We often know what we need to be doing, or not doing. Eat more vegetables. Drink more water. Move more. Go to bed earlier. Spend less time doomscrolling.

So why it is so challenging to make changes, especially when they might seem so obvious?

Eating too little can actually work against body composition goals. This is a common experience I see from clients in my clinic, and I completely understand the frustrations for them. They have reduced their food intake, and increased their movement or exercise, but are not seeing the changes they are hoping for. If this sounds familiar, you are not alone. Importantly, the answer is rarely to 'eat less and move more'. In fact, under-fuelling your body is one of the most significant barriers to optimising your body composition.

As a Clinical Nutritionist, my clients are sometimes surprised when their personalised treatment plan includes lifestyle recommendations that go beyond advice around food. But this is very much by design.