Good Food, Good Mood

You’ve probably heard of the term “Good Mood, Good Food”, but what does it mean?

The science about foods that improve your mood is clear; one of the benefits of eating healthy is how you feel.

Research has shown the effect of diet on mental health. This is due to the nutrients contained in mood-elevating foods needed to balance the chemicals in your brain.

These chemicals influence your mood, energy levels, sleep, appetite and sex drive, as well as the healthy functioning of the body. Strongly connected to food for good mood is the production of serotonin — the happiness chemical.

You can boost serotonin with exercise. Doing things that make you feel special and happy is vital for good mental health. There is a lot of talk about self-care, and you will probably have an occasional hot bubble bath or spend an hour just reading a book or listening to music. Doing things just for you is essential to your health and wellness.

What Is Serotonin?

Serotonin is a chemical that transmits signals between nerve cells produced by the central nervous system. Serotonin functions as a neurotransmitter and is vital for neural activity in the brain and nervous system.

The body requires the amino acid tryptophan, various vitamins, minerals and folic acid to produce serotonin. Low serotonin levels have been linked to tryptophan deficiency and low mood. Eating food containing this amino acid is essential for the body to produce serotonin.

Why Does Serotonin Make You Happy?

Although serotonin levels are typically associated with mental health, the chemical also contributes to physical health. The four brain chemicals related to mood are serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphins. Each one of these chemicals has a different role. The effects of the four chemicals are:

1. Serotonin is a mood stabiliser and increases feelings of well-being.
2. Dopamine increases motivation and is released when you feel a “buzz” of happiness, such as getting a promotion or passing an exam.
3. Oxytocin helps you trust and feel a close bond with someone and is released when you feel love.
4. Endorphins are released when you exercise and provide pain relief and an extra boost of energy.

What Are the Best Foods to Boost Mood and Energy?

The key element to eating foods that boost your mood is a balanced diet. To produce serotonin and other chemicals, your body needs a mixture of food containing complex carbohydrates, proteins, fatty acids and various vitamins and minerals.

Additionally, the function of the gut is linked to a good mood. To keep your gut healthy, you should also eat food with probiotics that are high in fibre. Staying hydrated is also vital for your gut health and to prevent constipation.

Sugar is another factor to help with depression. Sugar is needed by the body, but too many people eat too much. Refined carbohydrates like biscuits, cakes, chocolate and sweets are high in sugar. You may need these types of food when you feel tired or low and need a boost. Easily digestible, refined carbohydrates cause a quick rise and then drop in glucose. When glucose levels plummet, it can directly impact serotonin levels and could contribute to symptoms of depression.

To maintain glucose levels and a healthy, balanced diet, you should eat:

1. Complex carbohydrates such as whole-grain bread and pasta, cereals, brown rice, oats, lentils, seeds and nuts.
2. High protein foods like white meat, lean red meat, seafood, cheese, soya products, lentils, seeds and nuts.
3. Probiotics found in live yoghurt and probiotic drinks.
4. Fatty acids such as omega 3 and 6 found in oily fish such as salmon and sardines, avocados, eggs, dairy products, olives, seeds and nuts.

Keeping your glucose levels stable may also help with weight loss and tummy fat reduction, which can also boost confidence and mood.

Nine Superfoods That Boost Mood

1. Avocado
2. Asparagus
3. Spinach
4. Sweet Potato
5. Lentils
6. Raspberries
7. Watermelon
8. Bananas
9. Walnuts.

Including superfoods in your diet is a good way to improve your mood. Certain foods interact with antidepressants and other types of medication. If you take medication, check with your GP and pharmacist if there are any foods you shouldn’t eat.

Eating the right food helps prevent a chemical imbalance in the brain. However, your mood can also be affected by what’s happening in your life, such as financial pressure, struggling with bereavement, relationship or family problems. If your mood is low or you feel constantly anxious, it is often due to more than what you eat. It is a good idea to speak to your GP about how you feel. Life can be hard, so be kind to yourself.

What Is the Best Health and Wellness Treatment?

Do you need some “me” time? At home, it can be almost impossible to find time — or maybe you just need a boost. Infrared sauna therapy gained popularity in 2021 and is still in demand in 2022. Infrared saunas and body pods offer various health benefits associated with boosting your mood and overall health and wellness. Unlike traditional saunas, which heat the body using air, infrared saunas use infrared light.

Research Has indicated using an infrared sauna may help inhibit cortisol production and reduce stress and anxiety, and have other benefits, including:

• Improved circulation
• Lower blood pressure
• Help with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Click HERE to find out more about infrared sauna therapy at Body Lipo Lincoln, a medically-led aesthetic clinic. Offering a wide range of treatments using the most advanced technology, we are here to support you with your health and well-being.

Any questions? Please call our friendly team of therapists who are always happy to help — 01522 523777.

Women are pretty amazing at talking and sharing life experiences when we need to debrief or feel understood. Isn’t it funny though, that while we might be happy to share details about the colour of our baby’s poop or embarrassing moments with strangers, experiencing unexpected leaks is not often shared?

Over 70% of women have problems with unexpected peeing as a result of pregnancy, childbirth, menopause, and natural ageing.

Yep — that’s a lot of us. Two in three women over 35, post-childbirth, leak a little bit when we run, laugh, bend, lift, sneeze or jump, yet hardly anyone talks about it. We don’t need to put up with “oops moments” or stop doing the things we want to do, like jumping on the trampoline with our kids, running for the bus, or simply having a good laugh.

For most women, it starts with a surprise pee that, in most cases, can be resolved with a quick change of undies and a pad. However, left untreated, urinary incontinence may worsen with time; but it does not have to be this way. Urge and stress incontinence may be common, but that doesn’t mean you should accept it as just part of being a woman!

Common Causes of Incontinence in Women

What your body typically goes through is mind-boggling. Can you imagine if men had to get pregnant, give birth or go through the symptoms women often have to cope with during menopause? It’s easy to dismiss all of these things and leaks that may occur as a result, but you shouldn’t, and you most definitely shouldn’t feel embarrassed if you are experiencing incontinence. After all, your body does amazing things, so it isn’t surprising that many women experience leaks over the age of 35. 

Postpartum Incontinence

Giving birth puts the body through extreme change, and the weakening of pelvic floor muscles during natural childbirth increases the risk of incontinence. Incontinence following delivery can also happen with a caesarean section and is associated with weaker bladder and pelvic muscles due to the weight of your uterus during pregnancy and hormonal changes (no surprise!). 

Post-partum incontinence is also referred to as post-pregnancy incontinence. Urinary incontinence is very common after childbirth and is thought to affect one in two women. What you may not know is it can happen months or even years after childbirth. The two most common types of incontinence resulting from giving birth are urge and stress incontinence. 

Incontinence and Menopause

A known cause of incontinence is hormonal changes that occur during perimenopause and menopause. These changes usually start between ages 40 and 50 and as oestrogen levels drop, urethral and vaginal tissues become thinner and pelvic floor muscles weaken.

The two main types of incontinence which usually begin during perimenopause are: 

1. Stress Incontinence — urine leaks when you put your bladder under pressure, such as when you laugh, cough, or during high-intensity exercise.
   
   
2. Urge Incontinence — also called overactive bladder, which causes both frequent and sudden urges to urinate and leaks due to difficulty reaching the toilet in time. 

How Can You Improve Urinary Incontinence?

Urinary incontinence is not something you should put up with or accept as part of ageing. It is always advisable to approach your GP if you have experienced any leaks, no matter how small or infrequent. Leakage of urine may indicate another medical condition and should be investigated. When any other underlying causes are ruled out, there are several things you can do that may help to reduce incontinence, including:

• Pelvic floor exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor can be done with or without using kegel weights.
• Fibre intake can help prevent constipation which can put pressure on your bladder.
• Fluids are essential to prevent constipation and urinary tract infections which may worsen urinary incontinence.
• Avoid coffee and alcohol as they can cause dehydration and irritate your bladder.
• A healthy weight is important as being overweight adds extra pressure on your bladder. 
• HRT oestrogen replacement therapy is available through the NHS and has been shown to improve both urge and stress incontinence during and following perimenopause.
• Pessaries, silicone rings, and medications are available through the NHS to help reduce urinary incontinence.
• Surgical procedures can be performed if all of the above fail.

The Emsella Treatment

The Emsella treatment is an FDA-approved treatment that has been clinically proven, with 95% of users reporting a considerable improvement in the two most common types of incontinence. The treatment is simple, painless and, best of all, it is non-invasive; you don’t even need to get undressed. All you have to do is sit in the Emsella chair for less than 30 minutes. The revolutionary technology uses high-intensity focused electromagnetic energy (HIFEM), stimulating your pelvic floor at a supramaximal level. In just one session, your pelvic floor experiences the equivalent of 11200 kegel exercises. 

Completely safe with no known contraindications or recovery time, you can typically reduce or cure urge and stress incontinence with one weekly session for six weeks. An occasional top-up treatment may be required to maintain the results and remain leak-free. This revolutionary treatment is not available through the NHS, which means finding a private clinic. We spoke to Louise White, Director and Co-Founder of Body Lipo Lincoln, a medically led clinic that was one of the first in the UK to provide the Emsella treatment.

“When I started to suffer from stress incontinence, I knew I didn’t want to risk the side effects of medication or the risks of surgery. The Emsella treatment is recommended by Dr. Kohil a Urogynecologist with a specialist interest in the treatment of urinary incontinence and vaginal laxity. Although six treatments are normally enough, sometimes additional sessions can be beneficial. I am proud to say we are the only medically led clinic that will provide additional treatments without any extra cost.” Louise White

Find out more about the Emsella Chair at Body Lipo Lincoln, a medically-led aesthetic clinic. Offering a wide range of treatments using the most advanced technology, we are here to support your health and well-being.

Any questions? Please call our friendly team of therapists who are always happy to help — 01522 523777.

There’s no doubt that when I perform combination treatments there is real synergy that happens within the skin and body. 
Many of you will know eating healthy and combining this with exercise is a great combination so when it comes to the skin, combining THE RIGHT ingredients leads to a harmonious end point. This improves compliance with product use and this leads to better results. ?
This was the inspiration behind my SKIN CLUB, I know by getting the correct ingredients into the skin at the right time –  when the skin is absolutely ready for those ingredients –  ANd using the correct techniques to do so will enhance the clinical outcome of the treatment.
My aim is to take out the guess work when it comes to skincare, treatments and help you understand what’s happening with YOUR UNIQUE SKIN.
This is me at the end of a long day looking after my own skin! 
Louise ️01522 523777
[email protected]

If extensive and prolonged blushing cheeks and redness across the mid face is causing
you some concern or maybe your skin is becoming irritated when trying to introduce
a more grown up skincare routine and you are noticing that you are developing
blemishes that are certainly different to the usual T-Zone or hormonal breakout then
chances are you have Rosacea.

April is Rosacea awareness month and I thought I would look at this condition that
both myself any so many of clients I see in my clinic suffer with and discuss how to
help improve this irritating and debilitation condition. With the weather changing I
know I will see an increase in Rosacea clients on my clinic couch and my aim in this
blog is to help you take control over it and prevent it becoming worse.

My skin started to change in my 30’s, I would develop a flushed redness across my
cheeks as soon as I took my first sip of red wine, similarly spicy food would instigate a
prolonged flush and introducing skincare that carried a low pH such as Vitamin C

became more and more difficult. As I aged even sunscreen became a problem for my
tingling, flushed cheeks.

If you’re reading this and can relate to these symptoms and causes then the good news
is I can help you navigate your way round, what often feels confusing, skincare
routine.

Different Types Of Rosacea.

More often than not this common condition affects those aged between 30-60. This
group affected with Rosacea is commonly those with lighter skin tones but thats not to
say darker skin tones can’t suffer with Rosacea – they absolutely can, it’s just the
melanin (colour) in the skin often masks the redness and this leads to a difficulty in
diagnosis.

There are 4 main sub-types of Rosacea.

Type 1 – Erythematotelangiectatic Rosace – a mouthful to say but this type of early
Rosacea is characterised by a long lasting flush across the cheeks. The redness that
can be seen is down to dilated capillaries (telangiectasia)

Type 2 – Papulopustular Rosace – This is probably the most common type as there
seems to be an overlap with acne because as well as the redness and flushing you will
see papules (red spots) and pustules (white head spots) often seen across the cheeks,
nose and chin.

Type 3 – Phymatous Rosace – Men tend to suffer with this type of Rosacea and there
is a clear thickening across where the redness sits. If you have ever seen a thickened
nose with a bright red zone then (rhinophyma) then this is classic type 3 Rosacea.

Type 4 – Ocular Rosacea – Sore, red eyes, often blood shot and the skin around the
eyes can also feel gritty.

When I’m in a skin consultation more often than not is someone has Rosacea there is
often an overlap of all these subtypes, but regardless of what category you fall in there
is always have sensitive, irritated skin that stings when it doest like a product and this
is down to the disrupted barrier function.

Know Your Tiggers

To understand your skin and understand what triggers the ‘flare up’ will mean you
are forearmed. Cold weather, Summer days, central heating, air conditioning,
holidays abroad and skiing all have the potential to make matters worse. Because
these conditions pinch the moisture from your skin and if you have a poor barrier
function this is not ideal. Remember, if your skin is inflamed whether thats from skin
sensitivity, Rosacea or acne then your skin won’t keep the moisture in so its essential to
deal with the inflammation.

Food, if consuming alcohol and eating spicy foods cause a flush then it’s triggering a
histamine response and my advise is to go easy on these. Even coffee and hot drinks
can be a skin problem for some Rosacea sufferers.

If like me you enjoy a hot bath or a bit of hot yoga then I’m sorry to tell you this
pastime is not ideal for Rosacea skins. If you enjoy a spa day skip the sauna and relax
in the quiet room!

Skincare for Rosacea.

Keep it gently and uncomplicated. Don’t use fragrance in any of your product choices
and treat your skin like baby skin, soft movements when cleansing, definitely don’t
cleanse your face in a hot shower. If you’ve seen my video on sensitive skin then I
advocate a gentle non foaming cleanser and I’m not a huge fan of a double cleanse
because we don’t want to disrupt the skin. Avoid beauty toners they have no place in a
rosacea skin – or any skin for that matter. No essential oils and avoid chemical SPF’s
opt for a mineral one.

How to repair a disrupted skin barrier

Stop harsh cleansing and stop strong active skincare. Go back to basics. Choose a
moisturiser that has barrier boosting ingredients in it such as niacinamide and
ceramides.

Acids for Rosacea.

Stay clear of AHA;s and BHA’s and even if you have spots with your rosacea these will
be completely different than an acne blemish – the issue isn’t in the pore – so don’t fall
into the trap of reaching for the Salicylic Acid. Opt instead for an Azelaic Acid with
percentages between 5%-20%

Louise’s Final Note On Rosacea.

This is such a challenging condition to manage and can be really tricky navigating
your way through the skincare ingredients – get this bit wrong and its hard to get a
handle on the condition. If your skin is serenely inflamed then you may need to see
your GP for a prescription product, but having a long term strategy in place is

essential and once the Rosacea is managed then we can move on to tackle concerns
like anti ageing,

Louise white Bsc (hons)