I’m a board-certified gynecologist who practices functional medicine, but I’m also a regular gal—a busy working mom, constant chauffeur for my daughters, devoted wife, and spiritual seeker. I know that good food needs to be easy and convenient, or it’s unlikely to happen. Making wise food choices used to be a daily challenge for me—but it got easier with practice and once I started to see food preparation as a sadhana, or spiritual practice. I also choose a diverse range of foods and drinks that are high in nutrient density, so that my microbiome is happy. I have hypothyroidism, or a slow thyroid, so I try my best to avoid raw goitrogens like cruciferous vegetables and soy. I still eat broccoli, kale, collards, cauliflower, etc., but I lightly steam them to inactivate most of the goitrogens. You’ll find a lot of fermented vegetables on my meal plan because they are nature’s probiotic and help you reset your insulin so that you don’t store fat around your belly. I also eat low-mercury, wild-caught fish almost daily because it keeps my fatty acids in balance. I have a gene called PPARG that keeps my weight down if I eat more fish than meat, so you’ll find a lot of salmon, halibut, cod, and steelhead trout on the menu. Most of all, I eat portions that are right for my body, because I’m a recovering food addict who gains weight if I eat unmeasured food. In the spirit of transparency, I’ve included the measurements of all of my food. I avoid eating at restaurants as much as possible because of “Restaurant Syndrome,” the phenomenon of overeating in response to the convivial atmosphere, drinking alcohol and less inhibition, and large serving sizes, all of which can increase the risk of blood sugar problems and weight gain. So when I’m on the road, I take my food with me in a cute glass container. I start my day with a steamy mug of green tea. My current favorite is genmaicha, a combination of green tea and brown rice. I steep organic loose tea for four minutes and then add a fresh squeeze of Meyer lemon. I encourage my patients to replace their coffee with tea to decrease their intake of caffeine, which can make you feel stressed and disrupt your sleep if you metabolize caffeine slowly. While my tea is brewing, I drink a full glass of filtered water and take my supplements. Here’s the menu (all organic): Eating for hormone balance is now second nature to me. I follow my food code—my personal code for eating congruent with my values and bodily needs, while honoring the fact that I’m a recovering addict who always wants more. It keeps me on the path of hormonal balance and helps me fit into my skinny jeans. If you don’t eat this way, consider trying my food plan for a few days and see how you feel.
