Gemma Sloan did not instantly believe food was the cause of her mood swings, acne, and irregular periods in her late twenties. Like many women, she explained the changes as either age or stress. She started to reassess her everyday diet, though, after seeing a naturopath and researching the link between hormones and nutrition. She started with dairy.
“I had no idea how sensitive my body was to some components,” Gemma says. Milk with her morning coffee, yoghurt for breakfast, cheese on everything— Dairy had been a consistent throughout her life. Still, it was time to pay attention as her body was attempting to communicate.
Eliminating dairy was not initially simple. She skipped the comfort foods, and occasionally it seemed like a sacrifice. But within weeks Gemma observed something rather amazing. Her skin started to clean, her energy levelled down, and the emotional rollercoaster she knew started to settle down. Her body was in sync once more.
She began creating meals that celebrated what she could enjoy rather than substitutes in order to make the change sustainable. Soups and curries started to call creamy coconut milk a preferred basis. Blended and steeped, cashews become rich sauces and dressings. Smoothies and even handmade sweets started to use almond milk.
Gemma started to recover in her kitchen. “Cooking started to be a kind of self-care,” she notes. It went beyond just eliminating dairy. It was about nourishing my body with what it really required.
Her path let her realise that hormonal health is quite particular and, if we pay attention, food can be quite helpful in balancing.
