Ep: 32: 5 Healthy Fats You Need in Your Diet to Heal IBD (Part I)

What comes to mind when I say the word, fat?

Nothing positive, right? Society has conditioned us to believe that fat and everything that has to do with it, is bad.

Fat is bad.

But what if I told you that everyone needs fat to be healthy?

What if I told you that those of us with IBD need fat even more than most people.

Sure, many of us with Crohn’s and colitis are underweight and wouldn’t mind gaining a few pounds, but quality fat that comes from food is about so much more than gaining a few pounds.

Health fats in the food we eat is about healing inflammation. It’s about boosting our immune system. And most importantly, healthy fats have the power to transform our digestive system into a balanced, happy belly.

Who wouldn’t want that?

Stick with me for this special 2-part episode of The Cheeky Podcast as we explore the 10 best, healthiest fats we can eat to transform our gut junk into gut love.

Today, we’ll focus on healthy fats #’s 1-5.

We’re talking about:

  • What went terribly wrong with the 80’s low fat/fat free craze (and why it should never be repeated again)
  • The no-holds-barred truth on what are the healthiest and unhealthiest oils so you can stop your “say what?” expression every time you go down the oils aisle at the grocery store
  • The would-be healthy fat that’s actually watered down with other ingredients 70% of the time (and how you can play detective to get the real deal)
  • The decadent recipe for avocado chocolate mousse that’s delish and gut healing at the same time.

And so much more!

After this episode, you’ll be ready to ditch the fats that are bringing your gut health down and welcome in the healthy fats and oils that are the key to healthy gut repair and maintenance.

Episode at a Glance:

  • [07:06] What went terribly wrong with the 80’s low fat/fat free craze (and why it should never be repeated again).
  • [10:45] The 3 reasons why fat is the key to healing our gut troubles.
  • [12:15] The no-holds-barred truth on what are the healthiest and unhealthiest oils so you can stop your “say what?” expression every time you go down the oils aisle at the grocery store
  • [18:40] The “drop the mic” unrefined oil that’s anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory (the bam you need to heal your IBD).
  • [20:55] The good fat that protects not only our gut health, but also lubricates your joints too (goodbye IBD arthritis).
  • [23:20] The problem ghee can solve for those of us who are sensitive to lactose and casein.
  • [28:30] The fruit that’s high in healthy gut healing fat and also several nutrients like omega 3’s, choline, calcium, and selenium.
  • [34:30] The healthy fat that’s the heart of the Mediterranean diet and is also a gut healing super star.
  • [36:06] The would-be healthy fat that actually watered down with other ingredients 70% of the time (and how you can play detective to get the real deal)
  • [40:50] The polyphenols and flavonoids in this gut healing high-quality fat help decrease inflammation in our body.
  • [43:09] The decadent recipe for avocado chocolate mousse, that’s delish and gut healing at the same time.
  • [50:08] The best way to take your IBD healing journey to the next level.

Rate, Review and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Your FREE Healthy Oils Guide 101 &102

The Gut Love Community

Ep 30: You’re Doing Everything Right—How Come Your IBD Isn’t Getting Any Better

Additional Resources from the Episode:

Hu Chocolate

Equal Exchange Chocolate

So, This is Exactly How Sugar Makes Us Fat

Why Fats Matter to Your Gut and Your General Health

All About Fats and Why We Need Them in Are Life

What are the Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate?

20 Coconut Oil Benefits for Your Brain, Heart, Joints, and More

The Top 20 Health Benefits of Real Butter

Ghee Benefits: Are They Better Than Butter?

Episode Transcript:

[Music]

INTRO: You are listening to The Cheeky Podcast for Moms with IBD, a safe space for moms with Crohn’s and colitis, connect, explore powerful tools for healing and transform our lives to thrive in motherhood and in life. I’m your host, Karyn Haley, IBD health coach, integrative wellness enthusiast, and mom to three outstanding kids. After having Crohn’s disease for 30 years and working as a health advocate exclusively with IBD clients for the last 10 years, I know it’s time to bring the types of candid conversations I have with my clients out into the open. It’s our time to go on an IBD healing journey and do it like only a mom can. Let’s do this.

[music]

[00:51] Well, hello there fellow IBD mama. If this is your first time listening, welcome, I’m so happy you found The Cheeky Podcast and I’m honored to have you here as we tackle IBD together. If you’re a long time listener, welcome back dear one. If you’ve been around for a while and if you are loving what I’m dishing out here each week, definitely consider subscribing to the podcast so you never miss an episode. It’s been an exhilarating ride so far, and I am so happy to be on this IBD journey right by your side.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU SAY “FAT?”

I’ve got a great episode for you today. And it’s all about a word that nobody likes saying— FAT. As women especially, we hate that word. But today we’re talking a fat, mama. I dare you to say it out loud with me. Fat! How about this one– Fat is good. Especially for those of us with Crohn’s and colitis.

Today, I’m taking you through the first 5 of the 10 healthy fats you need in your diet to help your IBD heal. There’s a lot to get to through when we’re talking about healthy fats and I want to give each gut healing, healthy fat the time it deserves. That’s why we’re making this episode a two-parter. So today we’re talking about the first five of the 10 healthy fats, next week we’ll tackle the last five. So, if you want to know about all of them, you definitely have to tune in next week as well.

For today, as we discuss the first 5 on our healthy fats list, we’re going to start by touching on the time not that long ago in our history when fat was a toxic word, next we’ll get into why fat is not something to be feared, but instead, a food group to be revered, and so important for your gut health and lastly will dive into the healthy fats 1-5 that every IBDer needs in their diet to heal. One of the fats I’ll be talking about in this 2-part episode is positively decadent and another is truly the ultimate goddess of good fat.

Are you ready for some fat loving, gut healing goodness? Let’s get to it.

WHERE DID THE 80’S GO WRONG?

So if you’re an old woman like me, I bet you remember the low fat craze of the 80s. Snackwell’s, Tab, fat free salad dressing, fat free Pringles and Wow chips. And the bulk of doctors, scientists, and the food industry telling us all fat was akin to the devil. Candy sales surged because it was easy to make tasty low-fat or no fat versions of these sweet treats. All you had to do was add in extra sugar.

I remember my best friend in high school eating huge bags of Twizzlers every day because the bag said low fat… practically like eating air. They didn’t count. I, myself, was a Snackwell junkie.  

Guess what happened? Everybody got fat!

Why? Well, to figure out why this happened we have to understand the power of a hormone called leptin. Leptin is a hormone that is made of a fat cells. It regulates your metabolism and the rate of fat breakdown in the body. Higher rates of Leptin equal higher metabolism, and a higher rate of fat breakdown in the body, while lower rates of Leptin equal a slower metabolism and a lower rate of fat breakdown for the body.

Leptin has the power to tell your brain that it’s energy thermostat is working and all systems are go, according to leptin hormone expert, Dr. Robert Lustig. But when we diet, or eat less fat, and instead, eat large amounts of sugar, leptin doesn’t have enough energy to tell your brain that you are full.

And when we overwhelm our body, and especially our liver with extra sugar, like all that high sugar, fat free food, the extra sugar gets turned into liver fat. The insulin spike that all of this sugar creates, can stop leptin from doing its job of keeping us feeling hungry when we are actually full.

Now we’ve got a problem because even though we were eating low fat foods, we were overeating on unhealthy, high sugar foods, which put us at risk of high triglycerides, heart disease, obesity, and fatty liver disease.

[07:06] So that low fat 80’s craze with high sugar to make everything fat free taste OK was a recipe for disaster.

Thankfully we are no longer in the high sugar/low fat phase, but I still hear negative comments about fat all the time. I still see fat free and low fat on the shelves, and it makes me want to gag. What a money-making scam! Why hasn’t the food industry changed to keep up with modern scientific discoveries?

THE TRUTH ABOUT FAT.

All fat is not bad. Bad that is bad. Fats you find in fast food, potato chips, nachos, cheeseburgers, packaged, boxed, and canned food… these are examples of foods that usually contain trans fats—fats that are not good for you.  But there’s many fats that actually are good for you and these are the kinds of fats that we called “good fats.” And it turns out these fats are particularly helpful when it comes to healing Crohn’s and colitis.

As IBDers, we need fat to be successful healers. I’m going to say that one more time just to make sure we’re all on the same page mom friend. We need good fat to help us heal. It’s that important. And not all fat is created equal, some fats are better than others when it comes to gut healing.

Good quality fats can help us absorb vitamins which is so crucial for gut healing. Fat soluble vitamins (which means that are absorbed better in fat) like vitamins A, E, D, K– these vitamins are necessary for healing. Quality fat in the foods we eat increases satiety– that feeling of fullness we get so we don’t overeat.

When my newbie SCDer’s come to me and say, “Karyn, I am so hungry.” I always tell them to load up on good fat. Keep the fats we’re talking about today and next week on hand while you’re in the early stages of any gut healing diet like SCD. It will help you feel fuller, longer. Plus, good fats help us reduce the glycemic index spike we can have when we eat too much sugar. So, no blood sugar crashes, and we especially don’t want those when we are new to an IBD healing diet.

SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOUR GUT HEALTH?

And let’s not leave this idea, here, with this general information. I want to get really specific about how eating quality fat is going to help your gut heal. Because for us, that’s what it’s all about. Many of the fats we’ll be talking about today and in part-2, next week, are anti-inflammatory. This is definitely a good reason to consume quality fats because we are trying to lower our inflammation levels when it comes to Crohn’s and colitis.

Fats are also the building blocks of all your membranes, and cell regeneration for gut healing is dependent on fat cells. Fat helps support and helps grow our gut flora through the same anti-inflammatory properties. Fats support healthy immune function, and nutrient absorption. Our gut flora—those awesome gut bugs that, when balanced, help our IBD remain in remission—actually communicate with the fat in the foods we eat. Research has been conducted on people who are classified as obese. And it’s been found that people who are obese have a greater proportion of bad bacteria than those who are of normal weight. Eating healthy fat, on the other hand, promotes the health of your gut bacteria, and a stable weight too.

Now, today with the first 5 of these 10 healthy fats you need have in your diet to help heal your IBD, we’ll be talking about a mixture of cooking fats and oils as well as foods that are high in gut healing fat.

GIVE ME THE LOWDOWN ON COOKING OILS. I’M CONFUSED.

But before we get started, because I know that so many of you have questions about which cooking oils are healthiest for you and the ones you should stay away from, let me give you a quick list of those first. We all know the feeling of standing in the grocery store oils section, just standing there, feeling overwhelmed, wondering which oils are healthy and which we should never put in our shopping cart.

Do you have something to write with, or an app on your phone open? OK, here’s the list.

Your best, healthiest cooking oils, the ones that are best for gut health are a butter, ghee, tallow (which is beef fat), lard (which is pork fat), chicken, duck, and goose fat, avocado and coconut oil.

Less healthy fats, ones you want to avoid when you are cooking are safflower, sunflower, vegetable, corn, canola, peanut, and soybean oil. And trans fats like margarine and shortening are never a good option.

I’VE GOT YOU COVERED WITH YOUR HEALTHY OILS 101 & 102 PDF.

[14:10] I have a great healthy oils series of pdf guides if you’re interested. It’s called Healthy Oils 101 and Healthy Oils 102. If healthy oils have been a mystery for you, if you’ve been that confused shopper at the grocery store, and if you want to dive deeper into which healthy oils you should buy and how to cook with them, this is the pdf series for you. Healthy Oils 101: Not Your Mamas Oils, is a great starter resource, and the follow up Healthy Oils 102: Smoke Point, gives you all the information you need to know about oils and the temperature they are best at. Some oils should never be heated, some only up to medium, and some can get cranked up to high without deteriorating. This guide will help you figure all that out.

You can get both of these healthy oils resources by going to karynhaley.com/oil.  That’s karynhaley.com/oil

I just know when it comes to cooking with high quality fats, oils can be of the hardest things to master. There’s just so many options and we’re given very little honest direction with what’s healthy and what’s not. If you’d like a little help in this area, definitely check out this Healthy Oils resource. I’ll also link to it in the show notes so you can just click on it there.

OK, let’s go ahead and dive into the best gut healing, healthy fats #’s 1-5 (out of 10- remember I’m saving the last 5 for next week’s part-2 episode). These are the fats you need to eat to help heal your IBD.

DROP THE MIC ON COCONUT OIL. WHAT A HEALTH BUILDER!

[16:30] #1 Coconut Oil

And yes, it is a saturated fat. Gasp, this is the reason why many believe it to be unhealthy. The American Heart Association focuses on how saturated fats may increase your LDL (and that’s our bad cholesterol), but it misses out on coconut oil’s benefit as being anti-inflammatory. It also supports brain health and gives us energy. Super important benefits.

Coconut oil’s health factor comes from its medium chain triglycerides. It includes compounds like caprylic acid, which is helpful for those with Candida. This is what makes coconut oil antibacterial, anti-viral, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory. And speaking of Candida, we just touched on this IBD related challenge a couple episodes ago—episode 30. So, if you think that you might have Candida, which is an overgrowth of yeast in the gastrointestinal tract, you might want to check out episode 30. I’ll link to it in the show notes. Coconut oil also boasts of having lauric acid, which is great as an anti-microbial, so it helps fight off viruses and bacteria.

When it comes to your gut, coconut oil helps you absorb your fat soluble vitamins and helps improve bacterial balance as well as helps to lower gut inflammation.

Talk about a healthy fat!

2 TYPES OF COCONUT OIL

There’s two types of coconut oil you’ll definitely want to be familiar with, unrefined and refined. Although one is touted as being healthier than the other, they both have their benefits. Personally, I have both in my house. Unrefined coconut oil is minimally processed so it does have more health benefits. Use this one with raw food, uncooked food, like when you make those cute little energy bites, or put unrefined coconut oil in a smoothie. You’ll never know it’s there, but you’ll still get the health benefits. Unrefined, or sometimes called virgin coconut oil, has a stronger coconuty taste. Coconut lovers love it, coconut haters, not so much because of its stronger flavor.

Refined coconut oil is great for cooking. It’s not as healthy as unrefined coconut oil because it’s more processed, but it also doesn’t have a big coconut taste, something that non-coconut lovers appreciate. Refined coconut oil is great for anything you cook.

Lastly, I just want to mention that coconut oil is just one healthy coconut product when it comes to healthy fats. Full fat coconut milk as well as coconut water are also fantastic coconut products that can help your digestive tract function at its best.

DITCH THAT MARGARINE MAMA!

#2 Butter and Ghee

Butter is another excellent high-quality fat. When you’re at the grocery store, skip the partially hydrogenated margarine and go straight for the real butter. Butter also contains lauric acid so it is antimicrobial just like coconut oil. Butter is a great source of vitamins E and K, and it helps prevent calcification of your joints–those stiff joints we can often get when we have crohn’s or colitis. Because of its high fat content, butter is also a great source of energy. It’s a great pick me up in the morning, even in your morning coffee or tea.

When you’re looking for a butter at the grocery store, it’s best to buy organic and grass fed. Grass fed (vs grain fed) cows make a butter that’s significantly richer in fatty acids as well as fat soluble vitamins. Grass fed butter is also higher in conjugated linoleic acid. It’s a fatty acid compound found in higher amounts in grass fed butter, which is great for immune system boosting and disease fighting.

Butter can be used to sauté anything, you can put a pat on top of your veggies, spread it on gluten or grain free bread, or even make avocado butter with it. There’s so many uses for butter both raw, as well as in cooking, frying, or baking.

WHAT IF I CAN’T EAT BUTTER?

And it’s good to know that if you have trouble tolerating butter, there’s another option available. Ghee, similar to clarified butter, has no lactose and no casein in it. Just like with butter, when it comes to ghee, choose grass fed and organic for the same reasons I already mentioned. It helps with better digestion and inflammation. Ghee is great for those of us with leaky gut or IBD because it helps digest the fat soluble vitamins we might have difficulty digesting due to deficiencies in our digestive tract.

Ghee is loaded with butyrate which is a fatty acid and important for gut health. Studies show butyrate can be helpful for lowering inflammation levels in Crohn’s and colitis specifically. Ghee also helps increase our gut flora and therefore gives us a healthier microbiome.

Ghee can be used very much like butter, in cooking, frying, or sautéing. It has a high smoke point so you can cook without worrying that it will burn a turn into a trans fat. You can put ghee on your veggies, spread it on a slice of gluten-free or grain free bread, and when it comes to ghee, you can even make your own from butter at home. I’ve done it and had clients do it occasionally. It’s actually fun!

IF YOU’VE NEVER GIVEN AVOCADO’S A TRY, IT’S TIME FOR A SECOND LOOK.

[25:20] #3 Avocados and Avocado Oil

In a word, avocados are awesome. I know people seem to either love avo’s or hate them. I’m in the love category. It’s up there in my top 5 favorite foods. But I didn’t always love avocados. They were green and slimy looking, they browned so easily.

I still remember the day I ate my first avocado. I’ve probably mentioned this before to the moms in the GLC, but I used to live in England. As you might expect from my accent (or as we so egotistically see ourselves in the US, non-accent) I live in America. But for 4 years, I got to live in one of the most special places on the planet, England. I had 2 tiny tikes at the time who’s favorite thing to do was visit Father Christmas (aka Santa Claus) at Harrod’s Department Store in London every year during the holidays.

If you think taking your kid to see Santa at the mall is a big deal, holy cow, this department store takes it to a new level at Harrod’s in London. One year, during our annual Harrod’s visit, we stopped in at the department store café for a quick bite after our Santa visit and I accidentally forgot to ask the server to remove sliced avocados from my sandwich. So when it came with avocados, I thought what the heck, I’ll take a bite. Well, as you might expect, this story has the happiest of endings. It was love at first bite, and avocados and I have been inseparable ever since.

Truthfully, I always felt kind of sinful eating an avocado, it couldn’t be good for me. It tastes too rich, too creamy to be healthy. Imagine my surprise, almost 10 years later when I realized these delightful fruits (yep, not a veggie), are actually not just delish, but are quite healthy too.

[28:30] Avocados are full of omega-3’s, choline, calcium, and selenium. They even have more potassium than a banana. Avocados are high in antioxidants and they’re also a great source of fiber, which helps grow healthy bacteria in your gut. Avocados also help give some bulk to your stool, so if you’re struggling with oatmeal or soft serve poops, regular eating of avocados might help to firm things up for you a little bit. Avocados are a great source of quality fat, the monounsaturated kind and they are also high in oleic fatty acid so they can help decrease inflammation.

HOW ABOUT AVOCADO OIL? IS THAT HEALTHY TOO?

Avocado oil is also an amazing high-quality fat to use in your cooking and uncooked as well. It’s detoxifying because it contains chlorophyll. And as a side benefit, avocado oil is wonderful for your skin and nails and your hair. Which by the way, while I’m thinking of it, coconut oil is too. I love a good coconut oil moisture hair bath—something us curly girls need lots of.

Back to avocados, now if you’ve never had an avocado before and you’re thinking what could I possibly do with it besides eat it straight, I’ve got you covered there. First of all, eating an avocado straight, with a spoon is delicious, but if you’re new to this healthy fruit you might want to start with avo toast, which is just a mashed-up avocado on bread. Bonus points if you make it gluten or grain free bread. You can chop up avocados and use them as a salad topper, you can put avocados in a smoothie to make it super creamy. Avocados can also be used to make deliciously creamy and healthy brownies or raw cacao pudding. Am I making your mouth water? Chopped avocados are an awesome topper for any stew or chili. And, of course, the most common use of the avocado is to make guacamole. Of course, you can buy that at the grocery store too. Just be sure to check the ingredients first to make sure it’s not full of crappy preservatives or additives.

Avocado oil also has a multitude of uses. My favorite is to put it in my homemade salad dressing. There’s actually a recipe for that dressing in that pdf I mentioned earlier, Healthy Oils 101: Not Your Mama’s Oils. The healthy oils info and the salad dressing recipe is yours if you go to karynhaley.com/oil. Remember, even if you are not eating salad because you’re in a flare or it upsets your stomach too much, you can still use salad dressing to add some healthy fat on cooked veggies or as a cooked veggie dipper. I like my avocado oil straight as a drizzle on veggies, and it’s also delicious as a drizzle on top of a puréed soup. Would it be weird to put avocado oil on my new favorite avocado soup? OK, maybe that would be just a bit too much avocado, even for me.

THE WONDER FAT THAT’S MISLEADING YOU AT THE GROCERY STORE.

#4 Extra Virgin Olive Oil

EVOO, as my gal Rachel Ray calls it. You knew this one was coming. Just about everyone knows of the health benefits of this healthy fat. It’s been well-researched and it’s anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties have been reported on in mainstream medicine and throughout media. EVOO is at the center of the heart and gut healing Mediterranean diet.

[34:34] EVOO is a monounsaturated fat that contains oleic acid, so it fights free radicals and is full of antioxidants. A 2019 research review found that the phenol compounds in EVOO, which make it an abundant source of antioxidants, help to boost intestinal immunity and gut health of the microbiome for those with IBD.

And besides gut health, EVOO has many other benefits. It’s even been found to aid with lowering depression and anxiety levels, fighting cancer, dementia, and obesity. Talk about a wonder fat!

The one problem with EVOO is not in the rich quality fat itself, but in purchasing this healthy oil. With EVOO, it’s all about finding a quality brand that is reputable. A recent CBS report found that up to 70% of EVOO sold in stores is actually watered down with other ingredients, including canola oil.

To make sure that you get what you are paying for and the health benefits it touts, look for EVOO that is cold pressed or expeller pressed. Some bottles even have an IOC seal, that’s the Olive Oil Counsel seal that certifies that it is actually olive oil in the bottle.

Olive oil should be purchased in dark green glass bottles. That’s best for packaging because it protects the delicate oil from the light coming in and damaging its properties due to oxidation. Olive oil does become rancid quickly so the dark green glass helps protect its quality.

Don’t buy olive oil in those large plastic jugs, especially if you don’t use it very often. Olive oil, once opened, should be used within a few months. And because it’s so delicate of an oil, it’s not the best oil for cooking. Olive oil is best used as a drizzle on veggies, in salad dressings, sprinkled on toast or rolls. I love to mix EVOO with balsamic vinegar and use it as a finishing sauce for chicken. It’s also great in pesto, hummus, or drizzled over your soup like avocado oil.

THE DECADANT DESSERT YOU DON’T HAVE TO DESSERT.

#5 Dark Chocolate

Let’s end our conversation today with the most decadent fat of all, dark chocolate. Aaaahhhhh, dark chocolate. Delightful, sinful, almost made for a private, uninterrupted moment with yourself, dark chocolate.

Remember, I’ll be back next week with #s 6-10 on our list of the 10 healthiest fats you need in your diet to heal your IBD. But let’s wrap up today and with my personal favorite, dark chocolate.

Now when you think about dark chocolate, fat might not be the first thing that comes to your mind, but the fat in dark chocolate comes from the healthy and healing fat in the cocoa butter used to make it. Dark chocolate is rich in minerals like magnesium, iron, and zinc. All super powerful for us IBDer’s to help us relax, give us energy, as well as the ability to fight off infections. It has so many benefits, even non-gut healing benefits, like lowering cholesterol and blood pressure, and helping brain function and heart health. Dark chocolate has even been linked to helping fighting cancer.

But when it comes to gut health, dark chocolates’ properties are just as outstanding. Chocolate is anti-inflammatory because it contains high amounts of antioxidants. It releases polyphenols in flavonoids which then help to decrease inflammation in our body.

70% CACAO IS WHAT YOU WANT. AND 1 TO 2 SQUARES IS ALL YOU NEED.

Are you ready to go out and buy some dark chocolate? I definitely am. Try to choose at least 70% cacao to get your biggest health benefits from dark chocolate. And eating dark chocolate doesn’t mean to eat a candy bar a day. You can get beneficial health benefits from 1 to 2 ounces per day. That’s 1 to 2 squares. One more thing about dark chocolate is that it does contain caffeine. If you’re sensitive to even small doses of caffeine, you’ll want to skip this healthy fat.

I think I’m going to wrap this episode up so I can go grab me some dark chocolate. I’m a huge fan of the dark chocolate from a company called Hu. I also love the dark chocolate made by Equal Exchange. Forget an apple a day, I’m all for a square a day keeps the doctor away. I’ll link to Hu and Equal Exchange in the show notes so you can check them out.

So thankful that dark chocolate is healthy! Not sure if I’d choose avocado’s over dark chocolate. Thankfully, I don’t have to choose. Avocado chocolate mousse anyone? There’s a great recipe I’ve made several times for avocado chocolate mousse from Feel Good Foodie. I’ll link to in the show notes. Feel free to check it out and let me know how it goes for you. FYI, I usually sub out the maple syrup and use honey, but whatever floats your gut boat, go for it.

LET’S DO THE MOM-SIZED RECAP.

OK my love, let’s do a quick recap of the 5 healthy fats we talked about today. We started with the mother of all healthy oils, coconut oil. Remember to use refined for baking and cooking and unrefined for anything raw or uncooked and you’ll be set with that.

Next up was butter and ghee. Don’t be afraid of real butter darling. It’s antimicrobial and high in vitamins that support your digestive tract. And if you are super sensitive to lactose (butter only has small amounts) or casein (higher amounts) choose ghee. It’s the perfect butter substitute. No matter which one you pick, make it organic and grass fed to reap as many gut health benefits as you can. I buy mine from an Amish farmer who makes it himself. You can’t get much better than that.

High quality fat #3 was avocados and avocado oil. You know I passionately love this healthy fat. And don’t be afraid to experiment with this gut healthy gem. Avocado brownies, avocado egg boats—google them if you don’t know what I’m referring to. Delish. Avocado oil is fantastic too! It’s great for salad dressings and remember salad dressing isn’t just for salad.

An absolutely delish salad dressing is included in your free healthy oils pdf series. The one with Healthy Oils 101: Not Your Mama’s Oils and Healthy Oils 102: Smoke Point. You’ll learn all about the best oils for your health, how to use them, what states their best in, and how high you can heat them and have them still be safe. Get your free pdf at karynhaley.com/oil or just click the link in the show notes.

Healthy fat #4 was EVOO- extra virgin olive oil. Can I get an Amen for this gem of a gut healthy fat? Amen! Check your pantry today. What’s your EVOO situation like? Do you have a fake that’s been laced with canola oil, or is it pure EVOO goodness? I once went to an EVOO tasting in Italy. Holy moly, it was green and had almost a bite to it. Super fresh and really delicious. Nothing like I’ve tasted in the states, but you can find quality EVOO here. You just have to look for it—and in all honesty, be willing to pay a little more for it. Just use it sparingly.

Lastly, we dove into guilt free decadence with our last healthy fat for the day, healthy fat #5, dark chocolate. Don’t be afraid of good quality dark chocolate. Choose 70% cacao and you are good to go. Reap the benefits of dark chocolate for your gut and many other parts of your body too. Not to mention all the goodness it does for your mental health. It just makes you smile when you eat it, doesn’t it? Gotta love a snack that’s good for your mind and body!

WHICH OF THESE HEALTHY FATS ARE YOU READY TO TRY?

So, which of these good healthy fats do you currently have in your kitchen? Which ones are you going to go out and buy? Let me know. Give me a shout at hello@karynhaley.com. I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on healthy fats!

Remember mom friend, I’m here if you need help getting over your IBD challenges. I coach clients in my private practice, so reach out if you need me, and we’ll figure out how we can best work together to help you find remission and get your friggin’ life back, cause you deserve it mama. No more wasting time. It’s time to heal today.

Until we meet again, I’m wishing you a cheeky and healthy IBD healing journey.

Chat soon!

[49:34] Thank you so much for joining me today and for listening to today’s episode. When it comes to IBD, I know there’s a lot of resources out there, and I’m truly honored that you chose the Cheeky Podcast to get your IBD information today. If you found this information helpful, please give us a rating and review. It helps other moms find the podcast and see what we’re doing over here to help IBD moms everywhere. And if you feel called feel a call to do it, share this podcast with an IBD mom who you know could really use an uplifting message today, ’cause that’s what we’re all about over here at the Cheeky Podcast.

One last thing, if you’re still with me, and if you are, you’re definitely my kind of gal. We have to get to know each other better. If you’re tired of living on the hamster wheel of IBD with all the ups and downs between flares and remission, if you’re struggling to get control of your abdominal pain, gas, bloating, diarrhea and other troubling IBD symptoms, go to my website. It’s karynhaley.com, and my mom had to be just a little bit different, she spelled my name with the Y. So it’s K-A-R-Y-N H-A-L-E-Y.com and schedule your very own free 30-minute IBD root cause trouble-shooting session with me where we discuss the challenges you’ve been having, we set goals to help you move forward, and we talk about how we can work together to help you get your life back. It’s a power packed 30 minutes. You don’t have to live in IBD status quo. There’s so much that can be done to transform your life so you can thrive in motherhood and thrive with IBD. I’ve seen my clients walk this path and it gives me so much joy to take that journey with them.

My entire coaching practice is run online, so you never have to leave your house and you never have to get out of your jammy or yoga pants for us to work together. You know I’m wearing them to. If you’re ready to take your first amazing step towards healing, I’m ready to chat with you. Schedule your free 30-minute IBD root cause trouble shooting sesh today at karynhaley.com. Click on the work with me tab and I’ll see you soon. It’s important to note that the information in this podcast and in this episode is for general information purposes only and not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The statements made in the Cheeky Podcast for moms with IBD, either by me or my guests, is not intended to diagnose, treat, to cure, or prevent any disease. Before implementing any new treatment protocols, do yourself a favor and consult your physician first.

Thank you so much for listening, for being here, for saving this space for us to spend some time together. Until we chat again, I’m wishing you a cheeky and healthy IBD journey.

Thank you so much for joining me today and for listening to today’s episode. When it comes to IBD, I know there’s a lot of resources out there, and I’m truly honored that you chose the Cheeky Podcast to get your IBD information today. If you found this information helpful, please give us a rating and review. It helps other moms find the podcast and see what we’re doing over here to help IBD moms everywhere. And if you feel called feel a call to do it, share this podcast with an IBD mom who you know could really use an uplifting message today, ’cause that’s what we’re all about over here at the Cheeky Podcast.

One last thing, if you’re still with me, and if you are, you’re definitely my kind of gal. We have to get to know each other better. If you’re tired of living on the hamster wheel of IBD with all the ups and downs between flares and remission, if you’re struggling to get control of your abdominal pain, gas, bloating, diarrhea and other troubling IBD symptoms, go to my website. It’s karynhaley.com, and my mom had to be just a little bit different, she spelled my name with the Y. So it’s K-A-R-Y-N H-A-L-E-Y.com and schedule your very own free 30-minute IBD root cause trouble-shooting session with me where we discuss the challenges you’ve been having, we set goals to help you move forward, and we talk about how we can work together to help you get your life back. It’s a power packed 30 minutes. You don’t have to live in IBD status quo. There’s so much that can be done to transform your life so you can thrive in motherhood and thrive with IBD. I’ve seen my clients walk this path and it gives me so much joy to take that journey with them.

My entire coaching practice is run online, so you never have to leave your house and you never have to get out of your jammy or yoga pants for us to work together. You know I’m wearing them to. If you’re ready to take your first amazing step towards healing, I’m ready to chat with you. Schedule your free 30-minute IBD root cause trouble shooting sesh today at karynhaley.com. Click on the work with me tab and I’ll see you soon. It’s important to note that the information in this podcast and in this episode is for general information purposes only and not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The statements made in the Cheeky Podcast for moms with IBD, either by me or my guests, is not intended to diagnose, treat, to cure, or prevent any disease. Before implementing any new treatment protocols, do yourself a favor and consult your physician first.

Thank you so much for listening, for being here, for saving this space for us to spend some time together. Until we chat again, I’m wishing you a cheeky and healthy IBD journey.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
This podcast, video, and blog post is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Leave a Comment:

2 comments
Cynthia Kane says December 30, 2021

That was so informative. Thank you! New fan!

Reply
    Karyn Haley says January 5, 2022

    I’m so glad Cynthia! Wishing you gut health and happiness in 2022 💜

    Reply
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