Perimenopause can feel like you’ve landed in the wild west without a horse or gun - from itchy ears to anxiety to the many weird and not so wonderful cyclical surprises. Here are the five foods that genuinely help calm the hormonal storm, stabilise your energy, and make everyday life feel a little more manageable.

When my mum was diagnosed with breast cancer at 50, it changed how I understood health, resilience, and prevention. Years later, as a clinician, I’ve seen how knowledge, nutrition, and integrative care can empower women - not only through treatment, but long before diagnosis ever enters the picture.

It’s been years since I made the move to cleaner skincare products, and made the connection that what I put on my skin is just as important as what I put in my body. Admittedly, a lot of my initial interest was driven by finding safe solutions for my extremely sensitive and eczema-prone skin - but the more I learnt about the ingredients and became aware of their effect on our hormone system, the more careful I naturally became in my choices. 

Many mainstream products contain ingredients linked to hormone disruption, skin irritation, environmental harm, and even cancers. The more I learned about beauty products, ingredients, and the industry from my sister (an editorial makeup artist), the less I could ignore it

If you haven’t already packed up and headed off to the sun, chances are you’re planning for it. But before you zip up your bag and mentally check out, here are a few of my tried and tested recommendations to keep you safe and sane in the sun this summer.

No fasting, no bathroom floor moments, no praying to see another day required

Because here’s what you might not know - your body already knows how to detox.

It has specific organs dedicated to the job in hand:

The liver. The kidneys. The skin. The gut.

They work 24/7 - no prompting, celery juice or cabbage soup required.

If I had a euro for every time I heard women say they’re damned if they do, and damned if they don’t, I’d be writing this from a villa in the South of France.

If you’re wondering if you should skip breakfast altogether, stop after a few mouthfuls of peanut-butter laden toast, or go back to eating breakfast like a king before your exercise

This is the post is for you

If you’ve ever found yourself wondering why little Ms Perfect next to you, carelessly biting into her pain-au-chocolat, with a full-fat latte, gets to have her cake and eat it too—while you’re reduced to black coffee and a yoghurt-coated rice cake, you’re not alone.

Weight loss can feel like the love child of ‘Groundhog Day’ and ‘Game Night’- it starts out feeling good, exciting, you know what you’re doing by now - even if it’s a tad over-familiar - but almost as quickly as you’ve gotten started it’s a downhill spiral and what ensues is chaos.

Does this sound familiar? You……..

• Eat less, move more – and still, the scale doesn’t budge.

• Cut the carbs, cut the fat – yet somehow, you feel worse than ever.

• Hit up the latest Tik-Tok trend or old reliable (hello cabbage soup diet) – but the second you eat normally again, the weight creeps back.

So what gives?

Unfortunately, like every aspect of health, if you want a resilient immune system to combat the challenges life, stress and the seasons throw at you, no magic pill or potion on the market will outperform your daily habits. It’s always going to be the tried and true, centuries-old, not very exciting habits that deliver results through action and consistency. Fact. Over the last month, I’ve written about various ways you can nurture and build a stronger, more resilient immune system to get you through the winter cold and flu season. Now that spring has sprung, and we’re heading into a new phase of immune challenges with seasonal allergies, they still apply. But if you’re time shy and can just handle a few pointers, here’s 3 things that will make all the difference

Each season throws something different at your skin. Spring rolls around, and suddenly, you’re dealing with unexpected breakouts or lingering winter dryness that won’t budge. Autumn hits, and your skin starts feeling tight, flaky, or just….lacklustre. Then there’s winter - the time of year when central heating, cold air, and lack of sunlight can leave your skin looking dull, feeling dehydrated, or breaking out in ways that make no sense.

And in your 40s? These seasonal shifts feel even more pronounced. Your skin doesn’t bounce back like it used to. Collagen production slows, hydration levels dip faster, and hormonal changes can leave you dealing with dryness and breakouts at the same time. What worked for you a decade ago isn’t cutting it anymore.