This post is sponsored by Nature’s Way. I’m exciting to be partnering with the brand to celebrate it’s 50birthday! Since 1969, Nature’s Way has been helping people live their best lives through the gifts of nature.
I recently had a very insightful phone call with Nature's Way's resident integrative medicine fellow, Lynn Green. We spoke about my concerns with supplements as a nursing mama (as well as my concerns when I was trying to get pregnant), women's health, allergies, and the dreaded seasonal weather.With the pollen filling my family's nasal passages, dusting the street yellow and dying our pool water green in Miami, we first started out talking about allergies. I loved that Lynn was not quick to prescribe medication or supplements, and during our conversation, she first suggested gentle remedies, like a Neti Pot or NeilMed bottle to rinse the nasal passage every evening during pollen season, or eating foods with quercetin in them to help with allergies.
Yes, supplements were a part of our conversation, but I was impressed that she encouraged positive and fun nutritional habits like adding elderberries into a pancake syrup or baking it into baked goods, instead of dosing myself with pills every day.
One thing is true though, with today's food and western diet, it is very unlikely that we are meeting our nutritional goals simply by what we eat everyday, and that's where supplements can really help improve our overall well-being.
Next, we chatted about immune support. I am a huge huge huge fan of Sambucus, or Elderberry, any time it's cold out. I love to mix it in with a warm turmeric ginger tea and drink it or even chew it like a gummy. It also doesn't hurt that elderberry tastes so good. Elderberry is an incredible traditional immune support.*
As a nursing mama, there is a list floating around of all the supplements and herbs you can and should not take. Surprisingly, I saw elderberry on the list--and that was so weird to me! But that fact is, there is a lot of misinformation out there about elderberry. Lynn was calm when I shared my hesitation in taking Nature's Way Sambucus while I nurse, and responded with truly interesting facts--and not a sales pitch.The elderberries that Nature's Way uses to make Sambucus go through batch after batch of quality control tests before the Sambucus is made and again after the product is finished. The variety of Elderberries used to make Sambucus constituents that are standardized on the anthocyanins content (a powerful component) are the very highest and best you can find--I kid you not, she even sent me pictures from the farm in Austria they get them from.
My husband, Matt, is quick to grab a hard core OTC medicine at the first sign, and I join him on a rare occasion in that reach for a quick aid when things get uncomfortable. I believe a lot of us are culturally trained to do this! But one thing Lynn said stuck with me and is a mantra I am inviting not only into my "medicine cabinet" but also into my life: "Just because it's gentle does not mean it's not strong."
After an investigative and incredibly insightful conversation with Lynn Green at Nature's Way, I feel very confident in reaching first for the Nature's Way Sambucus Gummies as our go-to remedy in my house.
*This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.Every situation is different and if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, always check with your health care provider before supplementing.
