Dr. Lana Talks PCOS and Wellness

Meet the brilliant Dr. Lana, a board certified naturopathic doctor, licensed acupuncturist and the founder of Dr. Lana Wellness. Her mission is to get patients looking and feeling their best by building a customized and attainable wellness plan. She’s an absolute pleasure to talk to and has the kind of warm and welcoming energy that makes you want to tell her everything about yourself (and we pretty much did).

“I want to arm women with the information about what’s going on internally within them”

We mostly talked about PCOS, or polycystic ovarian syndrome, a condition 1 in 10 women will experience in their child bearing years. When you have PCOS, your hormones are imbalanced, and that can cause acne, irregular/painful periods, weight gain, and an increase or decrease in hair - just to name a few. Now more than ever, people are speaking out about just how significant the symptoms are, and the impact PCOS can have on daily life. So after a long discussion about all things wellness, we covered her best advice for managing symptoms and the sneaky things you may not know can make you feel worse. And in case you don’t know what a naturopathic doctor is, we covered that too.

For starters, naturopathic doctors look at patients holistically, and are trained to look for specific connections between symptoms more so than your typical doctor. An example Dr. Lana gave us is routine blood work. When you see a reference range next to your results for something like hormone levels, if your number is in the range, you’ll most likely get the call - “everything looks normal” or no call back at all. And while that may be true, naturopathic doctors focus on “optimal ranges” rather than the “reference ranges.” So even if nothing has been flagged as out of the ordinary, you still may have something that’s not functioning optimally or making you feel unwell. And when it comes to PCOS, Dr. Lana’s approach is a naturopathic one.

“People are not protocols, and just because you’re in a reference range doesn’t mean nothings wrong”

We asked Dr. Lana what her typical patients with PCOS experience, and she said some of the most common things are “an increase in body hair, specifically around the jawline, acne and fertility issues.” A harsh realization for some of her patients, is that they may be unknowingly, exacerbating their symptoms.

One of the biggest watch-outs for women with PCOS is cortisol levels (think: stress). Dr. Lana explained that long ago, stress was a really good thing, and actually helped us survive in the wild, but now, that stress has less of a purpose. And what’s shocking, is that stress can be triggered by something as seemingly harmless as a spin class. Yes, you read that right. Intense running, boxing, and HIIT classes can all raise cortisol levels. So you’re increasing the stress level in your body when trying to do a good thing. And that spike in cortisol can lead to issues like inflammation and weight gain. The solution? Dr. Lana’s advice is “slowing down, and choosing exercises that lengthen and tone like yoga and pilates.” These kinds of workouts help to lower or balance cortisol levels instead of increase them.

Some other things Dr. Lana recommends that help lower cortisol levels are:

• Connecting with the ground and “earthing” (talking your shoes off and letting your feet connect with earth)
• Going for a walk
• Getting some sunshine on your face
• Finding a body of water and breathing in the salty air

Another big part of managing PCOS is diet. Dr. Lana told us that an insulin resistant diet can be really beneficial for those with PCOS, she explained: “when your cells are resistant to insulin you will have extra glucose floating around in your bloodstream, often referred to as  high blood sugar, and when you have higher glucose levels, a lot of what you eat will spike blood sugar levels even further. Once those levels eventually drop, you experience low blood sugar (think hangry, anxious, shaky, and brain fog) and then your cortisol levels go up in an attempt to even your levels out again.” Extended production and secretion of cortisol is inflammatory and it likes to live in your body right around your waistline and below the belly button - making it hard to lose weight. Dr.Lana advised that “it’s good to avoid things that have a lot of sugar like higher glycemic fruits (think tropical), and stay away from red meat and any non-organic meats."

Dr. Lana recommends incorporating foods like:

• Cinnamon on top of smoothies or coffee - it helps to curb blood sugar spikes
• Organic, non-hormonal, non-GMO, free range, cruelty free lean meats
• Organic fresh wild caught seafood
• Broccoli (has more protein per calorie than steak!)
• Spinach
• Asparagus

At this point you’re probably wondering how to make an appointment with Dr. Lana and what a typical session might look like. Don’t worry, we asked ALL of the questions. The first thing that happens is you meet virtually and in the initial appointments, Dr. Lana reviews your labs and analyzes them. Next, you figure out your goals and think about your timeline, and most importantly, identify any roadblocks. We asked Dr. Lana what she meant by a “roadblock”, and she candidly said that:

“A lot can get in the way of being your best self. And we need to identify what those things are.”

Whether roadblocks are constraints related to our jobs, travel or personal lives, it’s important to Dr. Lana that she’s providing something attainable and accessible. Then, Dr. Lana will suggest any additional testing she needs, like a functional hormone test or food sensitivity test so she can help design a full wellness plan. This plan includes medical nutrition, lifestyle modifications and a supplement plan - and everything in between. Dr. Lana told us she prides herself on being there to talk patients through their journey and make any updates along the way. So, if you’re looking to feel like yourself again, whether you have PCOS or not, Dr. Lana is up for the challenge.