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Business Owner, 51

Early warning from annual health check

Name / DescriptorSimone, Owner 360 Health Consultancy Ltd
Age51
Primary Health GoalAnnual Health Check
City, CountryCardiff, UK

When did you begin to experience health problems?

I have had very few symptoms but wanted to get an annual health check done to find out if there is anything going on ‘behind-the-scenes’.  The only thing I have noticed is that I have started to put weight on really easily whereas in the past I have never been able to put weight on even if I wanted to!  I’m a light sleeper but generally get around 7 hours per night so feel pretty refreshed each morning.  I eat a healthy diet, mainly organic and all home-cooked.  I don’t drink coffee and usually have herbal teas but occasionally bouts of craving ‘builders tea’. I drink red wine, port or rum at weekends but only a maximum of two glasses.  Moderate exercise walking the dog but lockdown has resulted in much less physical activity over the last 12 months so I wasn’t surprised that I gained weight.

How did functional medicine help you?

I did the Genova Comprehensive GI profile which was very easy to use. The testing kit arrived the day after I ordered it, I did a stool sample on each of the next 3 days then the courier came and collected it.  Three weeks later the lab results came back with a 12-page report on the health of my gut looking at inflammation (immune response), dysbioss (good vs bad bacteria balance) , yeast or parasitic infections, maldigestion and metabolites.  You can see a sample patient report front page here…

The astonishing benefit to me was that this test showed that I was not metabolising oestrogens properly.  This type of thing had never crossed my mind, even though I have worked in healthcare for nearly 20 years.  Being perimenopausal that should not have surprised me, but it did focus my mind.  This kind of imbalance does not usually show up until women get a diagnosis of something like breast cancer that is caused by too much oestrogen in the body.

There are no warning signs until things have got much more serious, so it was then that I realized the true value of functional medicine.

What was the most challenging aspect of your healthcare programme?

I can honestly say there was no hard part!  The report gave me clear instructions on what supplements I could take in the short term and my training had taught me what foods to eat to help metabolize oestrogens better.

I have modified my diet and begun the Institute for Functional Medicine cardio-metabolic food plan to help me lose weight because I now suspect that weight gain to be hormone-related, not just due to lockdown.  I have also come to the conclusion that there isn’t really a ‘healthy diet’ because everyone knows we should all eat ‘five a day’ at least and cut out processed foods etc, but I didn’t eat junk in the first place, so what I have learned is which of the healthy foods to emphasize as my body’s needs change throughout my peri-menopause.

How were you helped to overcome that?

The main thing that helped me stay focused was the Living Matrix tool – knowing that I have to log my weight every week and seeing the graph plot the results over time has made me quite competitive with myself and has kept me focused!

Sample Patient GI Effects Profile

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Functional Nutrition

What would you say to anyone considering starting treatment with Simone?

I would say without any hesitation that PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE!

It was just so simple to do the test and make the changes.  After 6 months on the plan I booked a cervical smear test telling myself that I may have abnormal results because of the oestrogen imbalance I had found, but instead I got the 100% all clear with no need for further routine checkups for 3 years.

I will never know if it would have been like that or if the measures I took made a difference.  The test wasn’t cheap, but I have the peace of mind that I am doing all I can to stay healthy and that if/when something does go wrong later on that I have the best foundations for recovery.  Above that, I am setting an example to my teenage daughter about the importance of preventative medicine and gynae health.

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