#10 Nutrition and Women's+ Health

Nutrition advice is everywhere, but what does a healthy diet actually look like, especially for women?

In this episode of The Vulvalution, we’re joined by registered dietitian Nilou Deilami to unpack the fundamentals of nutrition and separate fact from fiction. We explore the role of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in supporting overall health, energy levels, and well-being. We also discuss key nutrients that are particularly important for women, including iron and vitamin D, and why deficiencies are so common.

From trendy diets to supplement marketing, Nilou helps us demystify common nutrition myths and provides practical, evidence-based guidance on building a balanced and sustainable approach to eating.

🎧 Whether you're trying to improve your nutrition, navigate conflicting advice online, or simply understand what your body needs, this episode is for you.

Follow Nilou Deilami:
• Instagram: @niloudeilami.rd
• Website: imharmonynutrition.com

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro 

5:07 Introducing Nilou 

6:47 Common Misconceptions 

7:38 What is a healthy diet?

10:58 Carbs

16:11 Protein

26:10 Creatine 

32:26 Fats

34:47 Omega-3

37:19 Anti-inflammatory diets

38.55 Iron 

43:14 Vitamin D

47:25 Calcium

49:10 Fiber

50:28 Collagen Supplements 

51:55 The order of eating foods

52:39 Concluding thoughts

Transcript

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 0:02

there's not like one healthy dietary pattern that everybody should follow. It can look different for different people, but there are a few principles that we want to keep in mind. we see in the research is that taking a collagen supplement doesn't necessarily lead to, those outcomes that we're hoping for,

audio1069137312 0:23

What is enough protein Is there any, negative side effects from consuming too much protein? what is creatine and where does it come from? for women's health especially, are there any risk for someone that is maybe more restricting carbs? So there's different types of fats, saturated and unsaturated. Why do we differentiate them? another thing that we hear a lot about in the media is an anti-inflammatory diet. Could you tell us, you know, what that is? Is that real?

Track 3 1:10

Hello, Vulva Squad.

Track 4 1:12

back. So good to have you back.

Track 3 1:14

Yes, to another episode. This one is very interesting on nutrition

Track 4 1:20

Matilda's area of expertise

Track 3 1:23

Yep. Yeah. So I'm, I don't know if you guys know, but I'm a registered dietician in Quebec, and, I thought it would be fun to not have just me talking about what I know about women's health, and to have someone that's more specialized into women's health. So it was very interesting, and I learned. Yeah, our guest-

Track 4 1:41

was super knowledgeable, especially about stuff directly related to women's health, and we do wanna do a bit of a disclaimer here that we were using the word woman throughout this, and that's just because there's pretty limited research on nutrition generally, and they haven't done a great job thus far at separating s*x and gender, so a lot of the research does say women. It doesn't differentiate between Women, non-binary, and trans people, so unfortunately we're using the term woman because that's what the research was using.

Track 3 2:10

Yeah. And I thought this episode was very interesting because in my undergrad we didn't have any classes focusing on women's health specifically, just because, as we mentioned, there's not a lot of research on this. But I think it was very interesting to see that there are some differences between men and women in terms of, your nutrition needs, and so that was really cool to have this conversation.

Track 4 2:32

Yeah, and as we were getting ready for this conversation, I had so many questions, and I was sitting next to a dietician. So I just wanna share one interesting thing that I learned, which was about milks. As a lactose-free girly, someone with IBS, I can't drink regular milk, which makes me really sad 'cause I actually love milk that comes from a cow. It's delicious. Um, but I was asking which one is the best for me. Matilde obviously was like, "It depends on what your goals are," which is the right approach. But anyway, actually we learned at the end of the conversation that soy milk is the best for me, which is a little bit hard for me to hear because I don't love the taste, but I'm gonna try it out, and I'll report back how I feel.

Track 3 3:14

Yeah. And you mentioned you like it in smoothies, so-

Track 4 3:16

Yeah. Does anyone else feel that when you add soy milk to a smoothie, it tastes like the smoothie that you would get at like Booster Juice or like at a place where you go to buy smoothies? Like, it makes it somehow profesh. Comment if you agree or it's a placebo effect

Track 3 3:31

Yeah. I don't remember last time I had soy milk, so I can't really say.

Track 4 3:35

Well, mine's gonna be soon, so I'll tell you

Track 3 3:37

Yeah. Okay. Well, you guys, I hope you like this podcast,

Track 4 3:41

get into it

audioMathildeWilhelmy11069137312 3:52

Hello, vulva squad. Today we're joined with Nilu, a registered dietician based in Vancouver, BC, and also registered to practice in Ontario. Nilu is passionate about the intersection of nutrition and long-term health and wellbeing. She became a dietician to help people feel more connected to their bodies, more confident in their choices, and more supported through every stage of life.

audio1069137312 4:16

So with over eight years of post-graduate nutrition education and clinical experience in both major hospitals and multidisciplinary clinics, Nilou supports individuals with a wide range of health concerns. Her areas of expertise include PCOS, endometriosis, PMS, perimenopause and menopause, fertility, pre- and postnatal nutrition, as well as cholesterol, diabetes, IBS, and other digestive disorders. Nilou, welcome to the Vulvalution, and thank you so much for joining us today.

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 4:47

Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here today

audio1069137312 5:07

Fantastic. So can you start just by telling us what brought you into the space of nutrition and specifically women's health?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 5:14

So specifically with nutrition, I knew that I wanted to work in healthcare, so from pretty early on when I was, in high school actually. And, when I kind of explored all the different options I had, I just felt like nutrition and dietetics was a good fit because I also love food. So that intersection between health and food was something that was, like, super appealing to me. I felt like being a dietician was really aligned with what I enjoyed, and I love working with people. So yeah, that's sort of how I ended up as a dietician, and then I started my career mostly in metabolic health, so diabetes, cardiovascular disease. And, after I think my second job, I sort of started learning a little bit more about just, like, women's health in general. I was really interested in just, the first PCOS and how... or polycystic ovary syndrome, and I started to learn that, oh my goodness, like, nutrition can have such a massive effect, um, on those people who are living with PCOS. And then I started to explore other areas of women's health as well, and I kind of just started there. And now it's been sort of five years where I've, had that as a main focus of my practice. So it's, yeah, it's kind of evolved that way. But it's, it's a fascinating area and I'm happy that we're talking about it more. We, as dieticians we don't really talk about women's health in our education. So, yeah, that's sort of how I ended up, in my little niche of women's health.

audio1069137312 6:47

Yeah. I think it's great that you found your niche and especially women's health, 'cause we need more dieticians specializing in women's health. So that's amazing and I'm very excited for this episode as well. I think I'm gonna learn a lot too. What's one common misconception about women's nutrition you hear, like, all the time?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 7:06

I think the biggest misconception is that women should be eating like entirely different diets compared to like general healthy eating guidelines and they should be micromanaging and, uh, you know, eating for like differently for different phases of their menstrual cycle if they don't have any like particular symptoms. So I think it's just this idea that

Track 1 7:32

they

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 7:32

need to work harder to be healthier. I would say that's the biggest, misconception.

Track 1 7:37

That's great

audio1069137312 7:39

That's great to hear, 'cause I feel like so many women look online and they see all these trends and they're like, "Oh my gosh, to get my diet right would be like so hard." But it's nice- Mm-hmm to hear that, you know, it's not. It's not that. You can do- make small changes and just make sure you're getting those nutrients. Absolutely. Okay, so we wanna talk about a lot of things about nutrition and women's health today, but I think it's first important to start understanding what a healthy diet actually is and what that looks like. So could you speak to that?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 8:10

So there's not like one healthy dietary pattern that everybody should follow. It can look different for different people, but there are a few principles that we want to keep in mind. Uh, the first is that a healthy diet is one that is safe. It doesn't put you at risk of things like nutrition deficiencies or, other issues like high cholesterol, kidney stones, all of that. So we don't, want like any extreme diets that put people at risk of, um, issues like that. So we also want, uh, the diet to be enjoyable, aligned with your culture, your values, your preferences. And then of course, we want it to provide all the nutrients that help you function and thrive, as an individual as well. So generally, that includes, a lot of, whole foods, things like, whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, foods that give you protein, whether that's like your animal proteins like meat or chicken or dairy protein, or things like, plant protein like beans and lentils. Uh, so a lot of those kind of foods, but then also not being overly restrictive either, where you're not allowing yourself to have those like fun or joyful foods as well. So, a nice balanced diet that gives you all of your nutrition needs, um, and is enjoyable as well

Track 1 9:34

Great. And

audio1069137312 9:35

Great. And then you mention all of your nutrition needs, and I know that there's a lot of things, sometimes online, talking about the 2,000 calorie diet or, like, you need 1,500 calories as a woman or if you're this height, this weight, you need that much calories. Can you tell us maybe what's the amount of calories that we need, or how do we know that we're eating enough calories?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 9:58

That is, a difficult question to answer, mostly because it's so individual, right? Like, depending on your goals, your calorie needs might be different. So that's why it's really good to work with a dietician if you have any specific concerns or questions about your unique needs. But in terms of, knowing if you're eating the right amount, it's usually, if you're, at a stable weight for where you need to be and what's best for you as an individual and that, you know, the way we're thinking about weight is also really, really changing. So, as long as you're, like, healthy, you're not having any nutrition deficiencies, you have muscle on you, you're not losing muscle, like, all of those things can tell us that you're getting the right amount of calories and nutrition, for your needs.

audio1069137312 10:46

Yeah, so there's no specific number that people- No should follow and count and make sure they're... Yeah. No, it's super, super individual. Hmm. Okay. Yeah, that's important to highlight. Yeah. And we're all different. Okay, you also mentioned briefly proteins as we were just discussing there. So there's three different main sources of energy- Mm-hmm carbs, lipids, and protein. So we're thinking we could ask you a bit of questions about each of those specifically. So first of all, can you tell me what carbs or carbohydrates actually are?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 11:19

So carbohydrates are basically like the body's main source of fuel. So sources of carbohydrate that we have, through food are things like your grains. So think, rice or wheat, rye, barley, or anything that's made with, like, those grains. Like bread, for example, that's made out of wheat. So those give you carbohydrates. Things like fruits are a source of carbohydrate, as well as starchy vegetables like, potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn. Beans, lentils, chickpeas can be a source of carbohydrate as well, as well as dairy foods. So, uh, when we eat these foods, we kind of break them down and, that turns into glucose, which then becomes that main source of energy for our brain, and our muscles. The other type of carbohydrate that we, uh, often, like, we forget to mention that it's a type of carbohydrate is fiber. So that's a type of carbohydrate that we actually don't break down. It kind of just passes through, but it does a lot of great things for, for gut health, for blood sugar health. So that's also another type of carbohydrate not to forget about

audio1069137312 12:25

Okay. I love that you mentioned both types and the what they're for, and like we need both types. Mm-hmm. I was wondering for women's health especially, are there any risk for someone that is maybe more restricting carbs?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 12:40

Again, it's like highly individual, right? So, you know, some people can do okay with eating fewer carbs, but for some people it could affect their hormone, especially in women who are active, where over-restriction of carbohydrates and overall calories can affect their menstrual cycles. So we really want to be careful, especially in athletes or very active women, to be getting enough, carbohydrates and also calories in, general. But again, it's one of those questions where it's like very, very individual. Generally, as a dietician, I don't recommend, cutting out carbs completely because they are, again, that source of fiber, they give you B vitamins, all these other great nutrients. So, again, it's very individual, so I wouldn't recommend restricting them. If you're looking to go a little bit lower carb for whatever reason, make sure to work with a dietician, uh, so you can do it safely.

audio1069137312 13:37

Okay. And as the only non-dietician in this conversation, how are the words sugar and carbohydrate like the same and interchangeable and also not? 'Cause I feel like when we're having conversations- with the general public, it's often sugar, which has a horrible rep, whereas carbohydrates we just talked about, very important. Are those the same?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 13:58

So, uh, we have basically three types of carbohydrates. So we have sugars, starches, and fiber, and all of these are considered carbohydrates. Sugar and starches will turn into glucose, whereas fiber doesn't. It's not really broken down or digested. So again, with sugar, we have different types. So we have the type of sugar that's, like, naturally in foods, and then we have added sugar as well. It works in the same way in the body, right? But generally, we do recommend with added sugar just to be mindful of your intake, just because, with excess sugar it can have, other health effects, when we're consuming a lot of added sugar through the diet. But if it's, in moderation, added sugar, sugar from fruit, starches, they can all be part of, um, healthy diet.

audio1069137312 14:50

Thank you for touching on that. Yeah. And I'm just gonna add one more question. So as we mentioned, sugar has a really bad rep, and then carbs, like simple carbs like potatoes, pasta, even rice or bread, some people are scared of them because they think that they're gonna gain weight if they eat too much of these foods. Mm-hmm. Is there a link between eating a lot of these specific foods and weight gain? Like, can they just directly cause weight gain?

0609-2 15:15

gain?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 15:17

Yeah, that's a great question. So carbs don't necessarily directly cause weight gain. If we're ta- talking about weight gain, ultimately it comes down to the amount of calories that are consumed and It doesn't have to do with a specific, like are you eating too much carb or fat or, protein? It's just those overall calories. So, we have a lot of research that's kind of examined, uh,

Track 1 15:41

looked at

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 15:42

or looked at low carb diets versus low fat diets for weight management, and they find that there's really no difference as long as there's, like a calorie deficit, right? So don't be afraid of carbs. They're an excellent, source of energy. They can give you a lot of nutrients. Um, and it's also a big part of a lot of people's cultural diets as well, so we don't want to be taking out, something that offers so much pleasure as well.

audio1069137312 16:09

I love that. Yeah. That's great. okay.

0609-2 16:11

We

audio1069137312 16:11

wanna ask a couple questions about protein as well, which is a super hot topic online. Um, so what are the roles of proteins, and why are they an important part of our diet?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 16:22

So protein is all over social media these days, and it's all over our food supply as well. We see it, like, everything has added protein now or is being promoted as high protein. So I'm really glad that we t- get to talk about this in some detail. So protein is basically the building blocks of our, tissues, our hormones, our enzymes in our bodies. So really important for, how our bodies function, so in terms of sources, we can get them from, animals. So we can get, um, protein from, meat, from fish, from, chicken, dairy products like yogurt and milk, all sources of protein. And then we have our plant sources. So we have beans, lentils, tofu, edamame, like, all those, like, great, plant sources of protein, as well. So getting enough protein will help your body basically function. It will help you maintain your muscle, which we know is really important for our health in terms of our metabolism, but also helping us stay healthy as we age. So super important to be getting enough protein throughout the day

audio1069137312 17:30

Okay. What is enough protein for someone that's, that wanna make sure that they're eating enough?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 17:35

So at the minimum, we recommend 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. But that's like the bare minimum, right? Like, we don't wanna go below that because then you might start to lose a bit of muscle or not get enough protein. Now, in terms of optimal levels, again, it's super individual. So, depending on how active you are, how old you are, um, lo- lots of different factors can influence how much protein you need. So it can be anywhere from one to two or even sometimes 2.2 grams of kilogram of body weight, depending on, that individual. So again, that's one of those questions if somebody's looking to have those personalized recommendations for their protein needs, it's always good to speak to an expert, so a dietitian

audio1069137312 18:20

And do we need to have protein, like, in every meal, or is it okay if we have all of our proteins, like, at dinner and then no proteins throughout the day?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 18:30

Yeah, that's a really great question, and it depends on, the goal, again. So for muscle growth, it really doesn't matter as much. Like, you can,, concentrate all your protein in one meal over 24 hours. It really doesn't make a huge difference. But for appetite regulation, for blood sugar regulation, we like to have the protein distributed throughout the day. So I would, as much as possible, recommend having a bit of protein at every meal rather than only concentrating it in one meal. But if something happens on that day and you just have to have, like, all your protein in one meal, it's not the end of the world. You're still gonna use that protein for your muscle

audio1069137312 19:15

Okay. So no need to panic if there's one meal without protein. Exactly. Okay. Exactly. Okay, are protein powders any good? How do they compare to just getting protein through dietary sources? And also, do they cause inflammation? That's a online thing that people often say

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 19:34

Hmm, great question. So with protein, I generally recommend food first. And the reason is because when, let's say, you're getting, protein from dairy, right? Like, let's say you're getting your Greek yogurt. You're not only getting protein, you're also getting other nutrients along with that protein. You're getting some calcium, for example. That being said, if you're finding it hard to meet your protein goals, protein powders can definitely fit into a healthy diet. There are a few things that we wanna look for on the label to let us know that it's a good choice. So the first is that, we want to make sure that it's third-party tested. That means that what's on the label is actually what is inside the package, right? Because, we're getting reports of, some protein powders may be contaminated or maybe they don't have exactly that, uh, blend that is actually on, the label. And because of this, we wanna look at two things. Either it should say informed choice on the label, or it should say NSF certified. And these two things mean that some other company has come in and looked at the protein powder and confirmed that it's actually what's listed on the label. So we definitely wanna be choosing high quality protein powders that are third-party tested that way. And then you also wanna look at, like, just, like, what's added, right? Like, if a lot of things have been added to it, like a ton of, sugar or, extra vitamins and things, you don't really need those, right? So if you get, like, a nice, protein powder that's just whey protein, um, or just, like, a blend of plant proteins without the all those extra added stuff, then those are the ones that I recommend most often

audio1069137312 21:28

Can you speak briefly just to the difference between a whey protein based protein powder versus a plant one? 'Cause I know personally the whey protein does not sit well with my stomach. Um, are they equally as good for you? What should people consider?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 21:43

the whey protein is what we call, a complete protein. So it has, like, all the amino acids that are essential to our body, and amino acids are those, like, little building blocks that create the protein. So, in general, animal proteins are a complete protein, so whey protein will be, uh, complete. So you don't have to really kind of worry about it. With plant proteins, it depends on the source. So some of them are complete, some of them are not complete. So if you're, choosing a plant protein one, choosing one that has soy, for example, like a soy protein, is a good idea 'cause then that has all the, uh, amino acids in there. But a lot of people don't wanna do whey, because they are either intolerant to it or trying to limit dairy for whatever reason. So there are lots and lots of great plant-based protein, options out there as well

audio1069137312 22:32

Okay, great. Um, a lot of people have difficulties eating protein in the morning, and they know how to eat proteins, like, at lunch and dinner, but in the morning, do you have any tips for people that wanna have a little bit more protein, and, like, how to add it and what's would be considered enough for a morning breakfast?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 22:51

So with, what's considered enough, again, it's different for different people. If you don't have a huge appetite in the morning, you definitely don't have to force yourself to eat a lot of protein, but a little bit can still be helpful. Uh, so some of like the more traditionally like breakfast proteins that we think about are like Greek yogurt is great, cottage cheese, is pretty great in terms of its protein content. If you're a fan of eggs, that's pretty good as well. We're now getting a lot of like higher protein milk on the market, so like we have ultra-filtered milk, uh, that has a lot of protein in just one glass. So if you're having your coffee and you're adding milk in there anyway, if you just make that small switch, you can get, uh, quite a bit of protein like that already. So those are some of the strategies, like a smoothie with a bit of protein powder, right? So lots of different ways. You can just see what you, what feels best to you in that moment, and again, like not pushing it if you're, you're not like... A lot of people don't have a huge appetite in the morning, so just honoring that, and you can make up for it in, throughout the rest of the day as well.

Track 1 24:00

Okay.

audio1069137312 24:00

Okay, think that with trends on social media, people are understanding that protein is important for muscle growth, but sometimes I wonder if it's gone too far. Is there any, negative side effects from consuming too much protein?

Track 1 24:15

Yeah, so for

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 24:16

Yeah, so for general population, it's n- really hard

Track 1 24:18

it's n- really hard

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 24:20

to eat too much protein because it is, like, it does suppress your appetite a bit. So I wouldn't be too worried about eating too much protein in terms of its health effects. The only thing is that when you eat too much protein and you're kind of suppressing your appetite, you might be missing out on other things like fiber, for example, right? Or, uh, it can displace other things. So just being mindful of that. For people who have preexisting kidney issues though, we want to be careful with the protein, 'cause that can put extra load and pressure on the kidneys. So if that is something that's going on, then definitely talking to a physician or a dietician to help you figure out what amount of protein is safe, for you. But for the general population, as long as it's, like, part of a healthy and balanced diet and it's not displacing other things and you're not, like, forcing yourself to eat more than your appetite allows, right, then, I'm not really concerned about, like, going overboard with, uh, protein either. Now that I say that, I actually wanted to mention another thing. The type of protein that you have, plant versus animal, right? If we're going, like, mostly animal proteins, there are some things to consider with that as well, so if you're having mostly red meat, we want to think about the effects on the cholesterol. If you're having just like in general a lot of, animal protein and you have a risk of kidney stones, that's also something to talk to a dietician about. So again, low risk of eating too much protein, but there are specific things to, to think about in terms of, of the types for sure.

audio1069137312 25:59

Mm-hmm. Okay, great. I'll send this to my parents 'cause they never listen when I tell them, but then if another dietician tells them- like, yeah, they're gonna- There's literally so many people I wanna send this to. Yeah. Okay, now we're gonna move on to another hot topic, which is creatine. Yeah. So could you explain to us a little bit, what is creatine and where does it come from?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 26:20

so creatine is like a substance that your own body creates, and that you can also get from food, especially animal foods like, chicken and fish and meats. And what creatine is basically it's like a source of energy, like a rapid source of energy for your, tissues, like your muscle, your brain as well. So it's become, super popular in supplement form as well these days. Another question I get all the time, uh, whether people should be eating, or taking creatine supplements

audio1069137312 26:53

And what's the answer? Should people be taking creatine supplements?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 26:58

with creatine, because it's that rapid source of energy, there's some research into, like, whether it can help with performance, exercise performance and muscle, uh, growth specifically. And we're finding that creatine may help people build a little bit more muscle, uh, just because, like, let's say you're doing 10 reps with your weights, it might help you get up to 12 or 13. Uh, and because of that, over time, people who take creatine may experience some increased muscle mass, which is a good thing, and we like that, right? So because it's good for overall health. What I will say, though, is that, like, it's a modest effect, it's not suddenly gonna cause you to become super muscular in a month or two. It's just a little bit of a boost. So if it aligns with your goals and that's something that's really important to you, it is generally considered a safe supplement. It's well-studied, and it can be part of, you know, your r- routine. Uh, but again, like, if, you know, you're not trying to, like, hyper optimize everything, uh, and you just are trying to follow, like, a healthy diet and exercise, it's also something I would say you don't have to absolutely take it

audio1069137312 28:17

And you also have to, you know, go to the gym or do that exercise in order- Yes for you to see those impacts on muscle.

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 28:24

Absolutely. So the main driver of muscle growth or building muscle is resistance training. So that's like, you know, your weights, like lifting weights, for example. If you eat a lot of protein and you, take creatine, but you're not going to the gym, you're not gonna be building muscle, so that's like the main driver and then your creatine can be supportive, and it has a modest effect

audio1069137312 28:52

Yeah. Okay, so it's not magical.

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 28:55

It's not magical. It's not something everybody should be taking. But if you want to try it, as long as there are, again, no preexisting kidney issues, 'cause that's something that we, again, we don't wanna put extra load or pressure on the kidneys. So for others who don't have any, like, issues with their kidneys, if they want to try it, usually I would, recommend, trialing it for a few months to see if it helps, and if it doesn't and you don't wanna continue it, again, it's not the end of the world

audio1069137312 29:23

Okay, great. And I know that it became also very popular for brain and concentration. Mm-hmm. Do you know a little bit what the evidence is saying about this?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 29:33

we don't have a lot of evidence, to be honest. The studies that have been done are quite small, and they're usually on very specific populations. So for example, they're on, older adults, or they're on people who are sleep deprived or people who have depression and are on certain medications, like super specific populations. And the studies are quite small. They're interesting, we are seeing that there may be something there, but we're not quite there in the research. So it's an area I think we need to kind of watch and see how it evolves, uh, over the next few years.

audioMathildeWilhelmy11069137312 30:08

Mm-hmm.

audio1069137312 30:09

Okay. So people can try it, but it's not necessarily gonna do- Yeah as we mentioned, it's not magical, so just having- Yeah good sleep, good nutrition, um- Exactly exercising might be more helpful.

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 30:21

Exactly. Exactly. Right. It's, it's those big picture things, right? Like, sometimes we get so lost in these, little details that we forget, you're not sleeping seven to nine hours a night. Of course you're gonna have brain fog, right? Or you've, you know, you're deficient in B12, and you're having difficulty concentrating, so maybe that's something that we need to kind of resolve before jumping to creatine, so there's a lot of things that we would talk about before going with creatine, and just, like, supplements in general,

audio1069137312 30:54

mm-hmm. Okay. And in the context of women's health, I've often heard online that women are afraid to take creatine because it increases your water retention, and therefore might make you gain weight per se. Mm. Can you speak to that at all briefly?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 31:10

It may happen temporarily. So, like once you start taking it initially, you may hold onto a little bit more water, but that will resolve once you take it over a few weeks. So if you're looking for those benefits, for the muscle health, then I would, just think of that as a temporary, side effect that will then resolve on its own

audio1069137312 31:33

Okay. And last question on creatine, what is the recommended dose, and is there any risk if someone's taking more than that?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 31:40

so in terms of the dose, generally we recommend either somewhere between three to five grams per day consistently, or to start with a loading phase, which is 15 to 20 grams for a week, and then going down to that three to five

Track 1 31:58

grams

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 31:59

grams after that. In terms of risks, w- we don't really know, like, what happens with, like, really high doses of creatine. But for some people it could cause, like, those digestive symptoms that are uncomfortable. And then just because we don't know what happens if somebody consumes, 15, 20 or more grams, over a long period of time, we just don't recommend th- those higher doses at that time

audio1069137312 32:24

Okay. Thank you. Okay. Let's move on to the last category, um, of general energy sources, which is lipids, or better known as fats. And we were just talking about before we started that we feel like fats need a rebrand because it's tough that they're called fats, because they're actually quite important. So there's different types of fats, saturated and unsaturated. Why do we differentiate them?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 32:49

so your saturated fats are those, fats that are kind of solid at room temperature. So think about things like, butter, things like the fat that you see on meat, even like coconut oil. These are all considered as saturated fats. And then our unsaturated fats are, things like your oils, like your olive oil, canola oil, avocado oil, the fat that you get from nuts and seeds, so all those, like, plant-based fats. And what we're seeing in the research is that over the long term, people who have more of those unsaturated fats tend to have better health, especially heart health, over the long term. So that's why we recommend having more of those unsaturated fats most of the time. Again, like, adding a little bit of butter to your eggs every once in a while, it's not gonna cause heart disease. But if it's, like, consistently that main type of fat that you have in your diet every day, then we would switch to something like more of an unsaturated fat, just because of those, uh, heart-healthy effects that it can have

audio1069137312 33:55

Okay, so you mentioned it's good for the heart. Is there any other benefits of eating fats? Or for some people that maybe are scared of eating fats, like, what would be something that you would tell them?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 34:06

Yeah. So, benefits of fats include that they will help you absorb some of your vitamins. So vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K and vitamin A are all fat-soluble vitamins. So eating fat with your meals will help you absorb these key nutrients. And the other part of it is that it just, helps you feel full and satisfied throughout the day as well. Having a bit of fat with your meals actually also helps with blood sugar balance, as well. So lots and lots of benefits to eating, fats. They are, excellent for, brain health as well, So healthy fats like omega-3, we know that that can support brain health.

audio1069137312 34:47

Well. Okay, and omega-3 is available as a supplement, and it's very popular and very marketed to reduce inflammation and balance hormones. What do you think about omega-3s as a supplement?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 34:59

So again, as with any other supplement, I do recommend getting omega-3 from food as much as possible. So sources of omega-3 that come from food include your fatty fish, so things like salmon, trout, sardines, mackerel are great sources of fat, uh, omega-3. And if you have fatty fish, like, two or three times a week, then you're getting all your omega-3 needs. But there are lots of people who don't eat fish, right? So if you're not eating fish regularly, you can get plant-based sources of omega-3. So you can get, omega-3 from things like flax seeds, chia seeds, walnuts, canola oil. But with those you would have to be eating them consistently every day, to have enough to turn into that human form that your body can use. So if you're having, um, a hard time meeting your omega-3 needs through food, then an omega-3 supplement may be beneficial. Not for everyone, right? Like, again, like, we would have to do an assessment to see if it's appropriate or necessary. But in some cases, like pregnancy fertility, those we do have good evidence that a supplement can be beneficial. But for the general population, it would be, more of a conversation to see if it's appropriate and needed

audio1069137312 36:23

Yeah. I was looking to buy some omega-3 supplements just because fish is so expensive. Um, but they're very expensive too. Do you have any tips, for people to recognize healthy fats and incorporate them more in their diet?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 36:36

So healthy fats, most of them come from plants, right? So that's the best way to kind of... If it's a plant source, then it's usually a healthy source. So, uh, especially the ones that are kind of more liquid at room temperature, again, like your olive oil, your, avocado oil, even like nuts and seeds. If you have, let's say, walnuts and you extract the oil, it's like liquid at room temperature, right? So that's a good sign that it's a, a healthier type of fat.

Track 1 37:04

Okay,

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 37:05

And fish as well

Track 1 37:06

Okay,

audio1069137312 37:07

Okay, great. So if you can, try to add a little bit nuts and seeds in your meals, um, or as a snack. And, uh, fish also if you like it.

audioMathildeWilhelmy11069137312 37:17

Okay,

audio1069137312 37:17

Um, sort of moving on from this, another thing that we hear a lot about in the media is an anti-inflammatory diet. Could you tell us, you know, what that is? Is that real?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 37:31

So there are some eating patterns that can help with, what we call systemic or chronic inflammation. But we don't have, like, one, anti-inflammatory diet, so there are certain patterns like the Mediterranean diet,, or a diet that's called the DASH diet that in the research we find that following these sorts of patterns can help, overall lower that inflammation in the body. But there isn't, a specific, list of foods or one anti-inflammatory diet that has been studied extensively, and all of these, the patterns that I mentioned are aligned with what we talked about earlier. So a lot of plant foods, omega-3s, our fruits and vegetables, a lot of those whole foods that mostly come from plants, that's what we find that can help with, uh, lower inflammation in the body. But again, there's not like, oh, you should be eating, like, walnuts every day or, like, oh, you should be eating, like, this specific food, um, every day. It's more about the pattern, that people follow

audio1069137312 38:38

Yeah, I love that you're mentioning it as a pattern and not as a diet 'cause I don't know, whenever I hear diet, I'm like, "Ugh, I don't, I don't like this word." Um, so yeah, it's great that it's more of a pattern, more of a lifestyle, a way of eating that is- Mm-hmm generally healthy. So now we're gonna move on to the key nutrients for women's health specifically. So just to talk a little bit about the differences between men and women, what are the difference, um, in terms of our needs? And the first one is a very important one. It's iron. So iron deficiency is super common amongst women. And do you know why that would be?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 39:17

Yeah. So women, have periods every month. Uh, well, most women, like, unless you're on birth control or for some other reason are not having a period. But that is usually one of the reasons that iron deficiency is quite common, especially if there's, a bit of heavier, um, menstrual bleeding

audio1069137312 39:37

Okay. What are some signs that someone might be low in iron?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 39:42

Yeah, so fatigue is a big one. So if you're feeling super tired throughout the day, you're not able to concentrate, a bit of, like, brain fog or difficulty, concentrating, that's another type of symptom. Hair loss can be quite common. If you're noticing that you're, like, kind of losing hair or shedding hair, that could be, a symptom. If your hands are cold, and you're, like, a bit more pale than your normal, all of these can be signs of iron deficiency

audio1069137312 40:11

okay. Um, are there any periods in the menstrual cycle during which someone should consume more iron-rich foods?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 40:20

I love this question because I get it all the time. And the way to think about it is that we have, like, iron stores in the body, so we want to be filling up these stores throughout the month and not necessarily just during your, menstrual period. So I would say to focus on iron-rich foods all month long to help build up your stores throughout the month.

audio1069137312 40:45

What are the best sources of iron, and do you have any tips for having good absorption of iron?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 40:52

yeah. We have both animal and plant-based sources of iron. So your animal sources are like, your meat, your eggs. And then your plant sources are the things like beans, lentils, chickpeas, pumpkin seeds. All great sources of iron, um, as well. Now, the body will absorb animal sources without any issues, so nothing can really block its absorption. It's easier for the body to absorb and use. With plant-based sources though, there can be things that can block the absorption, and there can be things that can enhance the absorption. So some things that can block the absorption, includes things like tea or coffee and, foods that have calcium. So like your milk, your yogurt, um, even like non-dairy alternatives that have calcium in there can block the absorption. So you just wanna separate those foods with your iron-rich foods for a few, like two hours, I would say. The things that help us absorb the plant-based sources of iron are, uh, foods that have vitamin C. So things like, tomatoes, lemon juice, strawberries, kiwis, like all of those great sources of vitamin C can help, the absorption of your plant-based sources of iron. I didn't mention oranges or citrus fruits, Those are also a good source of vitamin C, which is why a lot of the times in iron supplements we might see that there's vitamin C, added to them or, orange juice is recommended as drink to take with your iron supplements sometimes. It's because of that vitamin C

audio1069137312 42:28

for people that are vegetarians or vegan, so they're not eating heme iron- Mm-hmm um, coming from red meats or eggs, should they be concerned in their iron levels or should they maybe see a doctor more often about this?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 42:43

Yeah, I would definitely get, those iron levels tested because there is an increased chance that they may be deficient and may need supplementation. In general for women, I would say like at least, once a year get those levels checked, just so you know where you're at. Because sometimes, the levels are at, so low that you do need those supplements, and it might be difficult to bring it up with, diet alone, and vegans and vegetarians are, more likely to have those deficiencies and need supplements sometimes

audio1069137312 43:15

Okay, let's move on to another important nutrient, vitamin D. So could you tell us, first of all, what it is and why it's important for women's health?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 43:24

yeah. So vitamin D, again, is like one of our essential vitamins. It helps with a lot of things. So the one that most people are familiar with is that it helps with,, bone health, so it helps us absorb calcium. Also has other roles that we're learning about, so it might, play a role in hormone signaling, insulin metabolism and signaling. So really important, uh, vitamin to get. It is one of those that's challenging to get from food. Our body will produce vitamin D when our skin is exposed to the sun. Some people, if, they're not having as much sun exposure or based on, the color of the skin, in some older populations, sometimes that absorption, might go down, so then we would need supplementation in most cases because food sources also don't have, a lot of vitamin D in them. I mean, we can get it, like, in things like, um, milk products and salmon and eggs, but it's really hard to get, enough consistently. So we do recommend vitamin D to help keep your bones and hormones strong and working well.

audio1069137312 44:37

Okay, and you mentioned supplements. For someone that is looking for a supplement of vitamin D, is there anything that they need to look at, such as, like, the dose? And then I know there's also vitamin D2 and D3. Which one's the best?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 44:50

Yeah. So generally we recommend vitamin D3, which is the active form. And the dose, again, it's kind of individual. Some people m- may need, higher doses or some people can do like a standard dose. Most people would benefit from somewhere around 1,000 units a day. But you would definitely need to talk to your doctor, about that to make sure that that's the right amount for you. I would say vitamin D is the vitamin that you store in the body, and I'm seeing a lot of people come who are taking really high doses of vitamin D. So they're taking doses of like 4,000, 5,000 a day. And that's too much, you can have too much of a good thing as well, especially when your body will store it. So, definitely talk to your doctor, figure out what dose is good for you, and don't overdo it with, uh, vitamin D as well

Track 1 45:41

well. Okay. And

audio1069137312 45:42

Okay. And are women more likely to have a vitamin D deficiency than men?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 45:48

Not necessarily. Again, things like, age, how much sun exposure you have, uh, whether you're taking supplements, all of these things are, uh, better predictors of vitamin D status than, uh, whether you're female or male, right? So I wouldn't say that women are more likely to have deficiency, with the exception of, those who have PCOS or polycystic ovary syndrome. We're seeing that they, we do have a tendency to have lower vitamin D levels, in those populations. But for, uh, like just the general population, uh, being a woman doesn't necessarily increase your risk of vitamin D deficiency.

audio1069137312 46:30

Mm-hmm. Very interesting. Okay, and in terms of food sources of vitamin D, so where can we find vitamin D in food if we're not really into supplements or if we wanna incorporate it more in our diet?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 46:42

In Canada our, uh, milk and dairy alternatives are fortified with vitamin D. So if you're drinking milk or something like an almond or soy or oat milk, uh, that will be fortified with vitamin D. Other sources include, salmon. And then eggs, the yolk specifically, uh, is a source of vitamin D as well. But most people would benefit from a supplement, I would say

Track 1 47:08

Okay.

audio1069137312 47:09

Okay. And back with the fish, so if you like fish, guys, I think it's a good thing to add to your diet. Fish is great, but I know a lot of people don't love it, right? So there's always ways to work around that. Yeah. Okay, let's move on to calcium. So what is calcium, and why is it important for women's health?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 47:31

Hmm, so calcium is a mineral. Um, it's an essential mineral, so our body needs it, to survive. And, it helps us build our bones basically. So really, really important, uh, for women to focus on getting enough calcium throughout the lifespan. So as early as, like, adolescence and childhood all the way to, like, post-menopause and older adulthood will help us keep our bones strong

audio1069137312 47:57

Okay, and what are sources of calcium from food?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 48:01

So we can get, uh, calcium from both dairy and non-dairy sources. So our dairy sources are, like, your milk, your yogurt, your cheese all can provide calcium. And then your non-dairy can be your fortified non-dairy beverages. So again, like your soy milk, your almond milk, oat milk, all of those are fortified with calcium, so they'll have a very similar amount of calcium to regular milk. Um, also if you do, like, salmon, again, back to the fish,

Track 1 48:35

But

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 48:35

if you do, like, a canned salmon that has, like, those little bones in there, they're really nice and soft, and they're an excellent source of, calcium as well. Although th- uh, that's not a plant source. I put it in the plant sources, but that's not... That's a fish source. But other plant sources, are, like, if you get a tofu that is packed in calcium. That's another really nice way to get, um, a good amount of calcium in the diet from plant sources

audio1069137312 49:04

Okay. That, those non-plant sources are important for us lactose girlies. And we talked about the key nutrients such as iron, vitamin D, and calcium. Are there any other nutrients that we haven't mentioned that maybe you wanna, talk about or focus, our attention on?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 49:21

Fiber.

Track 1 49:22

Mm.

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 49:23

So fiber is super, super important for a lot of reasons, and it's the nutrient that most Canadians, not just women, we don't get enough of it in our diets. But we know that it's important for, of course, our gut health. Um, but it's also important for our metabolic health, preventing chronic conditions like, uh, diabetes, heart disease. Fiber-rich diets we know are quite effective for that. So again, those sources are your plant-based foods like your, vegetables, fruits, lentils, beans, chickpeas, nuts and seeds, whole grains, all of those great sources of fiber. Just really trying to focus on, uh, getting enough fiber at each of your meals is, is really, really, beneficial for long-term health

audio1069137312 50:12

And what is enough fiber in a day for a woman?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 50:17

Yeah, for women it's at least 25 grams per day. If you can get more, like closer to 30, that's even great. But I would say 25 grams is a good place to start

audio1069137312 50:28

The next one is about collagen supplements. So I think you walk into Costco, there's all of these supplements that say collagen. What are they and who might benefit from them?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 50:38

So collagen is a protein that we have in our hair, skin, and nails, and a lot of these collagen supplements are now being, like, promoted for hair, skin, and nail health, and just, like, overall health in general. Um, but what we see in the research is that taking a collagen supplement doesn't necessarily lead to, those outcomes that we're hoping for, like a better hair or skin or nails. The collagen just gets broken down into what we call amino acids. So your body will digest it just like any other protein, and it will get digested into those, like, basic, uh, building blocks that are the amino acids. And then the body will just decide how to use those amino acids, uh, depending on where there, uh, is a need. So I would say the collagen supplements, there's no harm to taking them. It's still giving you amino acids, but it's not like it's, again, gonna transform your hair, your skin, your nails, or have, like, any major effects on your health

audio1069137312 51:41

Okay. I feel like that's important to know. Mm-hmm. That was a good explanation, too, of the fact that, like, it is still protein, so it's still good for you. Yeah. But it's not necessarily doing the things that it's being advertised to do. Exactly. Exactly. Okay. Okay, does the order of eating food matter? So, like, if you're eating your protein first and then your carbs after, So that your sugar spike is not as big as if you were eating- Mm your sugar first. What do you think of this trend?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 52:08

Yeah. So it's not a big difference, like, if you're eating your protein and your veggies first and your carbs last, um, you might have a little bit of a benefit in terms of appetite, but it doesn't make a huge difference. If it's a way that you enjoy eating and you're comfortable with it, then that's okay. But I wouldn't want someone to be, like, picking apart what's on their plate and, like, hyper-focusing, um, on that order because ultimately, like, it's not a huge difference

audio1069137312 52:39

so moving on to sort of wrap things up today, if someone is feeling overwhelmed with eating and all of the information they learned today, where should they start?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 52:50

Yeah, so always good to talk to a dietician if you're feeling overwhelmed. I know there's so much information online these days, um, and it can be really hard to tease apart that information and to know what's accurate and what isn't, and also just, like, where to start from a practical perspective as well. It can just get very overwhelming. Um, so a dietician can really help support you with that. So we provide education. We also help you, uh, put all this knowledge into practice as well. So I think that's a good place to, to start

audio1069137312 53:23

Great answer. Um, and then where can people find you if they wanna have more information coming from you?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 53:30

Yeah. So, uh, you can find me at, uh, niloudelamey.rd on Instagram. Uh, or you can find me on my website, which is inharmonynutrition.com, which is my, uh, website for my practice. You can find me there. You can send me an email. Feel free to reach out at any time

audio1069137312 53:50

Okay. We'll put the links in our description. Thank You Okay, and to really, really wrap up this episode, we always ask our guests two big questions. So the first one is, if you could bust one myth about women's health forever, what would it be?

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 54:05

So I think, again, it would be just that women have to do things that are, like, entirely different than the general population and hyper-fixate on all those, like, little details to balance their hormones or to be healthier. because there's a lot of marketing, uh, that's targeting women, uh, right now, especially in those more vulnerable stages of life. Um, so that's, like, the one m- myth that I would, uh, bust

audio1069137312 54:35

Mm-hmm. Okay. And then our final, final question is what's one change that you hope to see in women's health within the next 10 years?

Track 1 54:44

So

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 54:44

more research, of course. I feel like there's so much that we don't know, uh, about women's health in general, but also women's health nutrition. So more research, and then second, uh, more access as well. We need, uh, more access to timely care. We need to feel heard and, uh, not have symptoms dismissed. So those are two things. And we're... I think we are moving in the right direction for sure. Over the past few years, there's been, uh, a lot of discussion and things have really evolved. So I'm looking forward to seeing, uh, where things go in the next, uh, five to 10 years in women's health

audio1069137312 55:22

Completely agree. Mm-hmm. Well, thank you so much for joining us today and giving us this absolutely wealth of knowledge that I know so many people will find so helpful in their day-to-day lives. Yeah. thank you

audioNilouDeilami21069137312 55:34

Thank you so much for having me, and a great job with this podcast. It's, uh, it's an incredible resource for women, so thank you