The Mel Lawson Show

Ask Me Anything | The Mel Lawson Show

• The Mel Lawson Show

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In this episode, Mel answers your burning questions on omega-3, motherhood and what to feed your ravenous teenagers - including her go-to smoothie recipe.

Do you have a question for Mel? Pop it in a comment below!

Supplements mentioned:

Bare Biology's Life & Soul Capsules
Bare Biology Mums & Bumps Capsules
Skinful Collagen Powder

Iron supplement recommendations:

Pure Encapsulations
Terranova

If you’re enjoying the podcast, do give us a review or subscribe so I can keep my job! 😉

Liv Evans 
Producer of The Mel Lawson Show

Speaker 1:

Hi, welcome to another episode of the Mel Lawson Show. This is another one of my solo episodes. I've only done one before and they're always a little bit nerve-wracking. I don't know why, but I don't have someone else here to bounce off and, yeah, it's quite weird just talking to a camera. So I hope it's good.

Speaker 1:

The format that we're doing today is we asked listeners, customers of ours, people who follow our Bare Biology account on Instagram, to send in questions. For those of you who don't know me, I am the founder and CEO of a company called Bare Biology. We make very good health supplements, so a lot of these questions are about nutrition and supplements. So if you're new to this and you don't know bare biology and you're wondering why do I keep talking about those things, that is why, before I start, it'd be great if you could follow us on wherever you're listening Spotify, apple and subscribe to our YouTube channel, and I will jump straight in, in no particular order. I have a bunch of totally random, different questions. There were a couple that were quite specific around nutrition, and what we're going to do with those is we're going to contact you separately and get our in-house nutritional therapist to to send you some more detail rather than me, because they're quite complicated rather than me try to cover them in this. So an apologies if I don't get to all the questions. We're going to save some up for another episode. So the first question is I'd like to ask Melanie what emotions she went through when she was setting up Bare Biology, ie when making all these very important decisions for the company, and what strategies she used when and if she was feeling overwhelmed.

Speaker 1:

Set up Bear Biology just over 10 years ago and in a way it's quite hard to remember. But I do also remember some things vividly and I think when you're setting something up, everything's very new. You don't really know what you're doing. So obviously you're making decisions and you're thinking about things, but you're just kind of trying to get all the basics in place. So in a way, now that the business is much more established, use now is I would just stop, write down a to-do list. So write down, I have. I use paper and pen, notebook, write down. I've sort of bucket it into different areas, so maybe finances, team marketing, operations, all the different bits and then just literally brain dump all the things that were in my head that I knew I had to do or had to solve, and then I would go through and again I still do this. I did this yesterday and I will circle.

Speaker 1:

The things that are the most important and generally the things that are most important are things that are going to cost you money if you don't do them or you've committed money to Anything to do with customers. So if your business is already up and running, you must always make sure your customers are happy and okay. And then anything that will help grow the business or is a good foundation for your business as it grows when you're in those early days. So getting things done properly is really important in those early days is really important in those early days. So, yeah, if anyone is setting up a business or they've got quite a new business and you're feeling overwhelmed and you've got lots of decisions to make, just literally take a moment, go for a walk, come back, write it all down and then go through, prioritize and then just start doing those things one by one. That's really the only way.

Speaker 1:

And the other thing I used to think was oh, this is so stressful, why am I doing this? I don't even know what I'm doing. I don't even know if this will work. Am I going to be a laughingstock? All of those emotions. I would think, well, I don't want to work for someone else. And what else? Am I going to be a laughingstock? All of those emotions. I would think, well, I don't want to work for someone else, and what else am I going to do? And it sounds a bit odd. But I found that really helpful because it's your choice to start a business and it's hugely rewarding and it does take a long, long time. But yeah, I hope that answers your question. I hope that's helpful. Do come back with other questions if you'd like on that subject and we can cover those in another episode. Okay, next question, totally different Could Melanie please give tips on ideas for healthy snacks for a ravenous 14 year old boy who really just wants to eat biscuits and chocolate?

Speaker 1:

So I have a ravenous, nearly 16 year old boy who also wants to eat a lot of junk all the time. And the reason is A they're teenagers, but B they are growing so much and my son, for example, is doing GCSEs, so physically he's growing and mentally he's using up a lot of energy. They don't get enough sleep, so they're craving those things because they need energy and generally if they're really maxing out on the kind of biscuits and chocolate, it's because they're not getting enough protein. So what I've done with my son, which has really helped, is to give him a protein shake in the morning, and so in his he has protein powder which is around 30 grams of protein. He has almond butter. Obviously, if your child's got a nut allergy, don't put nut butter in Banana. Maybe some blueberries, maybe some flax seeds, so just trying to get more protein into them. It's a lot easier if they're not vegetarian or vegan, because you have to work a lot harder to get that protein in and you might need to supplement with a couple of protein shakes. But if you get enough protein in, that hunger should subside and then hopefully they will eat less of that stuff. But yeah, protein at breakfast and protein at dinner If they're out of school not a lot you can do during the day, but I hope that helps. I think there is a recipe actually for the smoothie I give my son on our website, so we'll link that one.

Speaker 1:

Okay, this is quite a big one. What would you say are your top three essentials for a woman in her 50s? Top three, okay, if I've got to choose. Let's say I have to choose. I'm in my I'm 51. So I'm not quite mid 50s, but it's, you know, ballpark area.

Speaker 1:

I would say weight training, resistance exercise number one for lots and lots and lots of reasons. There's tons of research on it. More so than cardio or any other sort of exercise, you need to be strengthening your muscles. Really important Getting enough protein. So I, based on my weight and my exercise, I need 120 grams of protein a day, and that is quite tricky, so you have to actually work at it. And I have added a protein powder into my breakfast which I add to my AG1, which is a green shaky drink thing. I'm sure you've heard of it.

Speaker 1:

And if we're not getting enough protein, we can't build enough muscle. We actually lose muscle, which happens anyway at this at this life stage. So you have to work really hard at that. Um, we don't have enough energy, um. So yeah, get enough protein. In would be my number one, my number two, rather. So number one weight training, resistance exercise. Number two get enough protein.

Speaker 1:

And number three I wish I could chuck a supplement in there, but if I keep myself to three, I'd say it's get enough fiber in your diet, and that's really important for a couple of reasons. It's the best way to get good gut bacteria. You need good gut bacteria to produce serotonin and in our fifties our mood can be tricky because of hormone swings and just life stage. It's quite a stressful period of life, with teenage kids, aging parents, big workloads and also a lot of women are constipated and then you don't clear out used hormones which can recirculate and cause lots of issues. And that's a whole big topic, actually, which we'll be covering in an episode with a digestion and bowel health expert and we'll talk more about that. But, yeah, top three. I've got to choose. Three is weight training, protein, fiber. I'm not going to add another one, cause you asked me for three.

Speaker 1:

Um, okay, I would love to know the answer to the questions you mentioned. So these are the questions we put in our Instagram post how you navigate perimenopause that's quite a big one what toothpaste do you use and how you support your children through exam stress. I'd also love to know what shampoo you'd recommend for menopausal hair. I'll start with the shampoo one. I have hair loss. I've had it for quite a while now. I don't think it's just to do with menopause, but it affects a lot of women. It's very upsetting.

Speaker 1:

I have probably, I think I've tried every single shampoo there is and all the expensive ones and all the different serums and I have said don't really think they work. So where I've ended up is trying to reduce the amount of chemicals I put in my hair. So I actually use the Dr Bronner's baby soap. It's like a just in a bottle. It lasts forever, you need a tiny amount and it doesn't smell of anything. It's not sexy, but my hair is actually fine and I just, I just personally don't think any of those expensive shampoos work, so I hope that helps. I have tried them all. I've had this issue for quite a few years now and I think minimizing the chemicals you put in your hair is probably the best thing. So maybe give that a try.

Speaker 1:

So the other questions in this were how I navigate perimenopause, which is a massive, massive subject. We are going to do a really good podcast episode on this later in the year. I actually thought, well, I was navigating it quite well, and when I say I'm navigating it, it's like I've got control. If we're going to use the sailor analogy, I don't have any control over the sea, so I think I was navigating my ship quite well, but the sea has recently taken a turn and is quite stormy.

Speaker 1:

So these last couple of months I've been suffering really badly with migraine level headaches leading into my period, then extremely heavy period, then still feeling pretty crap after the period, which is really unfair because you're meant to feel good at that point, and that's quite a new thing for me. So I think that's where I am in that stage and that is I am told by friends of mine who are health experts that that is where I've got a it's called unopposed oestrogen. So I've got too much oestrogen and I don't have enough progesterone. So that is actually quite a new thing for me and it's something I'm looking into how to deal with clearing that oestrogen and then producing more progesterone. I haven't done any HRT yet. I'm not ruling it out. I'm kind of scared of it and I don't know why. I've also got this weird competitive thing going on that I somehow need to do this without, which is obviously not rational, but that is just how I feel.

Speaker 1:

So otherwise I what I do is I do exercise. I know it's really boring and everyone says it, but it does really really help Weight training. I also play a lot of tennis, so I get that social, outdoor cardio element. Obviously, if you're not a tennis player, you need to find your thing, but something outside, social, where you get your heart rate up. Maybe it's even a dance class. I take lots of supplements, which we'll come on to in another question, but I'm religious about taking my mig-3, religious about vitamin d, magnesium, collagen, and then I weave supplements in and out, which I'll talk about later because somebody asked a question about that.

Speaker 1:

How else do I navigate perimenopause? Trying to get enough sleep. Again, it's boring. Everyone says, oh, we make sure you get enough sleep, but that makes a huge difference. Another one that no one likes is really reducing alcohol, massively reducing it if possible. It makes a huge difference because it really affects our mood, affects our energy levels, it affects our sleep. It taxes our liver and our liver is taxed during hormonal shifts and swings. It affects our gut and our gut is also affected during perimenopause. So it's not, it doesn't help us. So, cutting out alcohol as much as possible, cutting out caffeine as much as possible and sugar which is probably not what you want to hear but those things really make a difference. So that is what I do to navigate it. I'm really careful with sugar, alcohol, caffeine. Take my supplements, exercise, go to bed on time and I will keep you posted with my current phase.

Speaker 1:

What toothpaste I use? It kind of varies. I go through phases where I get a bit freaked out about fluoride and then I think, oh, it's fine. And then I get freaked out again. So I swing between an aloe vera one, which is actually very good, and then another one and I can't remember the name. It will come to me. If not, I will link it below.

Speaker 1:

I think toothpaste is, you know, toothpaste. And then the other question how do I support my children through exam stress? Right, well, similar actually to perimenopause. It's looking at all the basics for them. So sleep, which is really tricky because they're little buggers and they stay up on their phones or gaming. So making sure they get enough sleep, making sure they've got good nutrition, so really try and get some protein and some vegetables into them when you're able to. A lot of them don't like eating a breakfast I have this problem with mine so a protein shake can help, or sometimes I can manage to squeeze like a fried egg sandwich or something. Just try and get a bit of protein into them, supplement wise, definitely omega-3 for brain function, definitely vitamin d for various reasons mood, um. But also to keep viruses at bay, because then they get tired, they get stressed, then they're more likely to catch viruses, which is a nightmare when they're studying and they're stressed and they've got exams to sit.

Speaker 1:

Magnesium with their dinner, magnesium glycinate to help them sleep, I think, getting them to go outside. So I try and get mine to get a bit of sunshine, a bit of fresh air, a bit of exercise, if ideally, if they, they will. You know my daughter doesn't love exercise. My son's pretty good at going, you know, doing a bit of weight training or going for a cycle. And I think also accepting that there's only so much you can do and there's a really fine line between nagging them enough that you feel like you've nagged them enough, but not nagging them so much that they then just flip over into bloody mindedness. I'm not doing it because you're nagging me and accepting that it's down to them now. And I think, just being there to listen to them. I've noticed especially my daughter. She needs just extra hugs and putting up with a bit of their lip and they're stressed out. So they're lashing out and I think just being patient and just, yeah, gritting our teeth until it's over. I hope that helps.

Speaker 1:

Next question my question regards a competitive collagen product that is in capsule form, with a capsule that resists stomach acid so allegedly is more effective and direct. I have been taking this in addition to your powder in my coffee and wonder if I need both. So for those of you who don't know, we have a collagen powder which is a marine collagen powder. You definitely don't need both. I know the brand you're referring to. I don't know. I don't really understand how it works. I don't want to criticize a competitor, but I don't really understand how there's quite a small amount of collagen in their capsules, how there's quite a small amount of collagen in their capsules and they say they have research and maybe it does work. I'm sure it does, but you definitely don't need both. I think you need to take if you, if you want to take a supplement, you need to take it in a way that fits with your routine. So if you find putting a powder in your coffee or your protein shake or whatever works for you and you manage to keep that going and you can get that into your routine, then I would stick with that. Obviously, I would say use our powder rather than the competitors capsules. But yeah, you definitely don't need both. So save your money and choose one or the other. Ideally, choose ours, okay.

Speaker 1:

Next question is will collagen help with aging? I've just turned 30 and I feel nervous about getting older. Collagen obviously doesn't stop aging, but as we get older and around the sort of age 30 mark, our skin, our body starts producing less collagen. So that's when you'll start to notice. I mean at 30, speaking as a 51 year old, I wish I'd appreciated how young I looked when I was 30. So try and remember that you will never be as young as you are right now and you will look back at pictures of yourself when you're 13, think, oh my god, I looked amazing, I looked so young. Why didn't I appreciate it at the time? But collagen will definitely help support your collagen, which in turn will help slow that appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It also has other health benefits. It's good for our guts, good for our joints, tendons, so it won't stop the aging, obviously, but it's a good supplement to start taking about around your age. I would definitely look at other supplements like omega-3 is also a great one to start getting in around the age of 30.

Speaker 1:

I think 30 is, I found 30. Weirdly more stressful that's the right word than 50, because I think in your 20s you still feel pretty young and then you hit 30 and it's suddenly like I'm a proper grownup now and the sort of the 40 mark is looming ahead of you. You should think the next big one is 40. And there's not a lot I can do to reassure you, but all I can say is 40 years is still a long way off. 10 years is actually a long time. And try and enjoy being 30, because I look back at photos of myself when I was 30 and I wish I hadn't worried about getting old because I was very young.

Speaker 1:

Okay, next question this is going to be a very easy answer. If you could only use one supplement for the will find so many, she's amazing anyway. And if you want to kind of blueprint for she's in her thirties how to be really healthy, fit, set up for life, going, you know, going through the decades really strong and healthy, she's your woman. She literally can't do a single podcast without talking about Omega-3 and it literally kind of does everything. And it was so life-changing for me, that that's why I started my business. It supports your brain, it supports pretty much everything. And so yeah, long answer definitely omega-3, definitely our omega-3, because it is the best one we will put a link in. That would be my one supplement for the rest of my life, if I could only do one. Next question I'm now at the age of nearly 55 and well and truly menopause. Post-menopause.

Speaker 1:

My symptoms are, to name but a few, night sweats, irritability, joint pain, fatigue, trouble sleeping, weight gain, skin allergies, palpitations, brittle nails, loss of libido, difficulty concentrating. What supplements would you recommend for women like me? Well, first of all, I'm sorry, cause that sounds really crap. And so many women, so many women feel like that and still have to carry on being great moms, great partners, great daughters, cracking out work, and it's really it out at work and it's really, really difficult. It's really unfair that this comes at a time of our life where life is pretty hard. So I'm sorry that you have all of those symptoms.

Speaker 1:

It's difficult to say because I don't know what your lifestyle is like, what your diet is like, what you have going on. I'd say that's a very classic set of symptoms. It's very unpleasant for you that you have all of them, because some people do get all of them. Some people just get some of them. There are some quite specific things that you can do. So night sweats, for example. Sage leaf tea is a really, really good natural remedy for that. If you've got sage growing in your garden, just google how to make a sage tea actually tastes delicious.

Speaker 1:

Supplement wise you probably again, it's hard to say because I don't know what your diet's like but, as I said earlier in the episode, make sure you've got enough protein, make sure you've got enough fiber, and then I would definitely add in omega-3, a collagen for your skin and brittle nails, definitely, and the omega-3 will help with that. Vitamin d for mood, magnesium for sleep and energy production. Trying to think what else is quite tricky one. I think what would be useful for you is we are going to do an episode with Tanya Brovsky, who's done a couple already on menstrual health. We're going to do one on menopause, premenopause, postmenopause. I also have a very good friend who owns a brand called M Powder and I would look at her website and I would look at her products. She has amazing resources and amazing Instagram channel with loads of information, because part. Well, a big part of the problem is there's a lot of information flying around about this, but it's also really hard to decipher and figure out what's right for you. Also, if you're considering the HRT route, that's really terrifying. I think I have been avoiding that and I'm still quite scared of it. So, yeah, finding the right doctor to speak to. So yeah, I would tune into our episodes that we're going to do in the next few months.

Speaker 1:

I would look at the basics of your diet and lifestyle. Would look at the basics of your diet and lifestyle, all the things I said earlier, which are not nice to hear, but alcohol reduction, sugar reduction, having a good diet, exercising, sleeping those should all help, hopefully. Um, okay, next question is about 18 year old. How can I boost my daughter's she's who's 18 iron? She's very low and tired all the time. She has a good diet, including iron rich foods, but needs more. She can't take tablets the doctors give as they make her stomach hurt and she gets sick. Would like a good, natural supplement, not full of junk. Yeah, it's a really tricky one with iron, because I had to take iron supplements after my first child because I had an emergency cesarean, lost a lot of blood and was very anemic, and the iron supplements made me feel shocking.

Speaker 1:

I will ask some of our nutritional therapists what they would recommend and we will put some links below. If you're on YouTube, you can go and find the links. If you're listening, just whiz over to our YouTube channel, bare Biology, and you will find them there to our YouTube channel, bare Biology, and you will find them there. You said her diet's good, because often it's, unfortunately, if they're not eating any red meat, it's quite tricky to get iron in, also iron absorption. So make sure she's got enough vitamin C to help with the iron absorption.

Speaker 1:

I would I think you've. You've done a test, haven't you? Because you know that she's low? Yeah, it's. I don't have a great answer for you on that one, but I would look at vitamin C. Definitely we will find some good, hopefully, suggestions for you. And yeah, it's very tricky because also, if she's um, if she's having her periods assuming she's having her periods um then that makes it very difficult because they can be pretty heavy at that at that age. So yeah, I don't think that's the best, most helpful answer, but we will find out some information for you. I would definitely look at adding some vitamin c as a first port of call.

Speaker 1:

Okay, next question how do you know what supplements to take, which is, yeah, really tricky. I have my basic supplements, which I've talked about already on in this episode, so I don't bore you to death, but I'd say really good basics that pretty much everyone does well on, because most people are deficient in these is omega-3, vitamin D. We've had no sun and even when we get sun, we're in offices or we wear sunscreen. So most people are deficient in vitamin D and that plays a huge role in so much of our health. Magnesium, I think, is also a really good one that most people are deficient in magnesium and that helps with energy production and sleep. So I think there's some basic ones that I would look at that I take all the time. To be honest, I take vitamin D all year round. I just reduce the dose a bit, but I always take it. I generally I take supplements if I feel like I'm getting a virus, for example.

Speaker 1:

I actually quite like some herbal herbal remedies. So I think echinacea and elderberry are amazing and the best, the very, very, very best are from a company called Herb Hands Healing and an amazing woman called Jill Davis, who is the mother of a good friend of mine, and there's nothing she doesn't know about herbs and her tinctures are the best. So yeah, her echinacea and her elderberry. The minute you feel like you've got a cold coming on, or your kids or your partner come home with a cold, get that going down you.

Speaker 1:

Oregano oil is a real favorite of mine. If your stomach's feeling a bit iffy or you think you've eaten something a bit dodgy, or again if you feel like I feel like I'm coming down with something, it's really great because it just kills stuff and you can also break open the capsules and put it on like it's amazing at removing warts and verrucas and, um, yeah, like weird kind of warty growths. They just it's amazing, it just kind of peels off. So oregano oil is one of my favorite, always in my cupboards. Charcoal is another one upset stomach or you've, you've overdone it, you're feeling a bit toxic. That's also a great one. So I use those sort of tactically when me or the kids think, oh, I'm coming down with something. I don't feel good.

Speaker 1:

So I don't know if I answered your question, but effectively it's sort of learning what your basics should be and you take those most of the year. Getting some tests done is really, really useful. We actually sell on our website, barebiologycom, an omega-3 index test and a vitamin d test. They're really easy finger prick tests. Vitamin d, as I said, most people are really, really low and if your vitamin D levels are low, that can make you feel rubbish in so many ways. So start with the basics and then, just yeah, listen to lots of podcasts. I've mentioned earlier Dr Rhonda Patrick. She's great on supplements. Also Hooberman's a great podcast and you kind of start experimenting with things. I also take zinc and quercetin sometimes, again, if I'm feeling I've definitely got a virus coming on. So I hope that helps. Start with the basics and then you kind of figure out which ones you can use periodically.

Speaker 1:

Ok, next question is how do you feel about hitting milestone, birthdays or aging in general? There's a lot of worried people about aging on this episode. Are you one of those ladies who says it's liberating, you embrace it and are living your best life? Personally, I just can't believe I'm now 50. I feel ancient. I am trying desperately to ignore the whole thing as I don't want to acknowledge it. This is the question, by the way, not me Right. Well, how do I feel about hitting milestone birthdays. I totally understand where you're coming from. No, I'm not one of those people who goes, oh whoopee, I'm 50. Um, I wasn't thrilled about turning 50. Um, it's quite yeah, it's quite difficult, um, but I said this earlier, which is you'll never be as young as you are right now.

Speaker 1:

And whenever I feel that, oh my God, I'm 51, I'm really old, I remind myself that I've thought that lots of times, starting my thirties. Obviously, it gets worse as you get older. But look at, go away, go and find a picture of yourself when you were 40 and you'll think how young and amazing you looked. And when you were 40, you were probably freaking out. So that's a useful sort of mental exercise.

Speaker 1:

The thing I have found about turning 50 is it has kind of made me and I don't mean to sound morbid, I actually mean this in a positive way it has kind of made me realise that the clock is actually really ticking and how many years do I have left of really good health and being physically fit and able? And actually it's focused my attention much more on making sure that I am and, to put it crudely, I want to be able to wipe my own bum until I die, because I don't want someone else having to do it for me and that's like a real. So the reason I do exercise, apart from it's good for mental health, is I want to be able to look after myself until the end, and turning 50 has really given me that motivation. It's also, I think, quite a good age to think right, what are my dreams, what are my hopes? I've still got lots of time. I'm not too old. You're not too old to start a business. You're not too old to write a book. You're not too old to change your job. You're not too old to do anything a book You're not too old to change your job. You're not too old to do anything. You're still strong, fit, mentally able. You can do anything you like Apart from cocktail shaking. I found out last week and went to a cocktail shaking class and knackered my rotator cuff. So you can do anything except cocktail shaking, it turns out. But yeah, I think it's.

Speaker 1:

This mindset of 50 is a bit like oh, I got on 50. And I think as a woman you do feel that you become invisible and I remember my mother-in-law saying that to me and I kind of understood, but I didn't. I couldn't really relate because I was in my thirties and, yeah, that's quite hard because, also, your looks start to fade and you don't feel the way you used to, and that's quite hard to accept. On the flip side, you're I think I'm less worried about what people think and what I look like. And, yeah, I, I, I understand what you're saying. It is hard, it is hard, but I would focus on making sure that you stay as young as possible in your body and mind and your outlook, because I think the minute you start to think I'm old, I can't do this, I can't do that, then you will age much, much faster and there are loads of examples of people in their 80s, 90s who are exercising and still have a great life. So I think, hopefully that gives you a bit of right. I am 50 and it is what it is. And just think, just remember what I said about you're never going to be as young as you are right now and when you're 60, you're going to look back at pictures of you on your 50th and think I looked amazing.

Speaker 1:

This is a quite a product specific question about our products. I've purchased Bare Biology Vitamin D Spray I'm just working on sorry, I'm just reading this really badly. I've gone through winter with little sun so I may be vitamin D deficient. I don't want to go to my GP surgery to check with blood test. When do you recommend supplementing vitamin D throughout the year? Can I overdose? If my levels are okay, but I still use a spray? Okay? So this is quite a common concern because you can overdo vitamin D. You can get vitamin D toxicity. It's quite rare but it is a thing, and I think there was something in the press a while ago about somebody who had an issue. But the press love to pick on these extremely rare things, so don't let it scare you, and I have my theories about why they do that, but that's a whole other subject.

Speaker 1:

We do a vitamin D finger prick test on our website. It's really really easy and that will tell you exactly what your level is. So if you are worried about taking too much, I would do a finger prick test. It's unlikely. Your levels are really really high, given where we live, and if you haven't been taking a high dose, as I said earlier, I take it throughout the year. I just reduce it down. So ours is three sprays for the sort of full dose which I would do throughout winter until about now, when the sun should be out. Also, the minute the sun is out and I'm able, I go out and I sit in it and I pull up my sleeves and I pull up my trouser legs and I open up my shirt and I get sun onto bits of my skin that hasn't seen the sun, and that's perfectly safe to do. You don't need to whack on sunscreen, just go out 20 minutes, have a cup of tea and start building up your exposure that way. I think we've all become a bit terrified of the sun and we need the sun. We need vitamin D. So, yeah, I would recommend, if you're worried, do a finger prick test and, yeah, that's the best way.

Speaker 1:

Here is a question about omega-3 in breastfeeding, pregnancy for babies. So, from what I have read, it is important for babies to get omega-3s for brain development up to the age of 18 months. I'll answer that bit right away. So, yeah, really important. It's important for them when they're still in the womb, so really important that mother has enough omega-3 during pregnancy. But children's brains are growing like stink up until the age of two and then they carry on growing like stink. So, yeah, it's not just up to 18 months. So, yeah, all the way up until well ongoing, to be honest, but don't stop it at 18 months.

Speaker 1:

If a mother is breastfeeding continues to take omega-3, will they pass through the milk to the baby? Yes, totally, and that is why mums can become very deficient in omega-3 and that's one of the reasons I believe I had postnatal depression is because in pregnancy, your omega-3 is going to your baby's brain. When you're breastfeeding, your omega-3 is going through your breast milk, so mum absolutely needs to make sure she has enough with, and really supplementing is the best way. Sorry, I'm reading this question in bits. Will they pass through the milk to baby? Yes, should the mother continue taking the same amount she took during pregnancy? Yes, because your omega-3 will be depleted from the pregnancy and if you're breastfeeding, as I said, it's still going into the baby. So, 100%, keep up that supplement while you're breastfeeding.

Speaker 1:

Also, once we stop breastfeeding, do you have any products would you recommend specifically for babies? So, once you stop breastfeeding and if baby's still on, milk formula has to, by law, contain DHA, the type of omega-3 it's important for brains. We have a children's product called action heroes, which is a liquid for a young baby six months upwards, or 12, 18 months. You just need a tiny drop. It comes with a syringe. You just put a tiny drop in the milk or you hide it in the puree and then mom should continue taking either mums and bumps if you were taking that during pregnancy or life and soul, which would be ideal, and, yeah, I would say.

Speaker 1:

The main message here and this is why I started my business is because I suffered so much with postnatal depression and I'm sure it was linked to omega-3 deficiency. Keep taking it, keep taking it. And also, mums are super depleted of lots of nutrients post-pregnancy. So really, look at everything, get make sure you're getting all all your vitamins and minerals and take care of yourself. So that's all of our questions for today. I'm sorry if I didn't answer all of them. A couple of the more specific nutrition ones we will find answers or we will contact you directly and, yeah, I hope you enjoyed it and please follow us. Subscribe on YouTube if you'd like to check out our website. We have tons and tons of health guides on there that cover a lot of things that you've asked today. Thank you.