Viral Hormone Trends: What’s Actually Worth Your Time?

Transcript

What if the thing you’re drinking every morning to fix your hormones is quietly making them worse? You’re listening
to hormones metabolism in you. And I’m Doctor Cassie Smith, board certified endocrinologist. Today we’re doing
something different. I’m exposing the viral trends that need to stop. I’m talking about the cortisol cocktail. Influencers
are pushing to fix adrenal fatigue. Except adrenal fatigue isn’t even a recognized medical diagnosis. I’m talking about
fiber maxing 50, 60, 80g a day. That’s wrecking people’s guts. The morning metabolism routine with Himalayan pink
salt, MTC oil, coffee, and skipping breakfast to fast, and the hormone balancing foods for women. The list that
promises pain free periods and stable moods from six magic ingredients. Millions of women are doing this stuff right
now because someone on TikTok told them to. This episode might save you from one of those mistakes. Let’s get into
it. Hi friends. I’m so glad you’re here. Welcome to this week’s episode of hormones, Metabolism and you. This week
we’re going to do something a little different. I’m going to talk to you about some viral trends I’m seeing. So if you’re
someone who’s drinking adrenal cocktails or maybe fiber mixing, millions of women are doing this. They’re following
these viral trends that they see on Instagram because influencers are telling them to do it. But this could actually be
making your symptoms worse. It could be harming your health. It could be harming your hormones. It could be
making your gut health worse.
And so I am Doctor Cassy Smith. I’m a board certified endocrinologist. And I’m going to talk to you today about these
trends that I’m seeing in social media and some of the misinformation that people are getting. I’m exposing the truth
behind some viral trends that need to stop. So I’m so glad you decided to join me today. I want to start by talking
about this cortisol cocktail trend that we’ve all seen. So if you’re somebody who’s drinking cortisol cocktails, let’s
break this down. Okay? So adrenal glands are very important. I love, love, love supporting your adrenal gland. Your
adrenal gland is very important for hormone metabolism, for weight, for stress, all sorts of things. So what I’ve seen
on Instagram, people are toting these cortisol cocktail trends, right? And so what they say is like, this is a colorful
nonalcoholic drink. It usually has like coconut water, citrus juice, maybe certain types of salts. It just kind of depends.
Um, and so people are saying, you know, this lowers your stress hormones. So if you drink these, they definitely
lower your stress hormones. They will boost your energy. They balance your adrenal function. I’ve seen that they
treat adrenal fatigue. Teague And so all these things are kind of trending with these adrenal cocktails. So what are
they. Is it true. So basically it’s some sort of electrolyte with some salt. Because we do know that your blood pressure
is very dependent on, you know, hydration and salt.

And so there is no scientific evidence that this drink actually has a purpose. So like a lot of these are just, again,
random drinks that you put electrolytes into and they’re supposed to make you feel better, right? So what I’m going
to tell you is that nutrients like potassium and vitamin C, magnesium, they’re all very important for your adrenal
function. That’s usually what’s in these like some sort of mix of, of electrolytes that they’re selling you. But they
typically are obtained just fine through a natural balance of diet and hydration. Right. The caveat to this is people
with pots, I see a lot of people with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. You need a lot more salt and sodium,
so you may need a lot more of a replacement. But still, I don’t know that the adrenal cocktail is something that you
must have, right? There’s no evidence that consuming extra amounts beyond what your body needs provides
additional benefits. So most people are not going to need these excessive amounts of potassium, vitamin C,
magnesium for their adrenal function. There’s no evidence that these drinks meaningfully lower your cortisol levels.
So that’s really important because cortisol is a direct reflection of a hormone that’s made in your adrenal gland. And
it is really significant if it’s high. And a lot of times that’s due to stress, whether it be your sleep schedule not being
normal, you have internal stress from past trauma, all the things you need to do, you’re dieting too much, you’re
exercising too much, you’re holding yourself accountable for too many things.
So your to do list is always full and you’re not giving yourself credit for what you get done. So all those things can
increase your stress and your cortisol. And this is something that you significantly need to work on because it does
downstream affect your stomach. And I see a lot of gut issues related to this, but these drinks do not lower your
cortisol levels. Okay. And adrenal fatigue, just so you know, is not recognized as a medical condition or illness.
Although I truly believe that adrenal fatigue is something that exists. Okay. I tell people a lot of times you have
adrenal fatigue, your adrenal glands are stressed out, they are maxed out. And so there’s not like an ICD ten code for
this. But basically it’s, you know, you don’t necessarily have adrenal insufficiency. You’re making some cortisol, your
body’s just not making enough. And so just keep in mind if somebody is like trying to sell you this on adrenal fatigue
and different things like that, know, it’s, it’s not a true medical diagnosis, but it is something that I believe in and that
we see. So just be careful with that. And then also the symptoms that are attributed to adrenal fatigue Sometimes
can be better explained by other things. So sometimes people are just blaming your adrenal veins.
If the adrenals are hot right now, like, oh, it’s your adrenal, like it used to be your thyroid and your cortisol, but things
like poor sleep, uh, mental health conditions like stress, anxiety that are real conditions can actually be a direct
reflection of, of gut issues, your, you know, anemia’s low iron levels, which can cause your heart to beat really fast,
can be blamed on adrenal conditions, hypothyroidism. A lot of people have hypothyroidism and they don’t realize it
and they get, you know, it gets blamed on your adrenals. Same things with PCOS. I have there’s a whole subset of
PCOS patients that have adrenal PCOS. And so you may have hormonal issues that somebody’s blaming on your
adrenal. So just keep in mind that sometimes your symptoms that are attributed to your adrenal gland can be due to
other things as well. So I just don’t want people relying on this remedy instead of actually seeking proper medical
advice. So again, Brief recap of cortisol cocktail. This trend. It can be harmful if you’re missing something else that’s
going on. Most of the time, you’re going to get the micronutrients that you need in a typical diet. So I would just be
cautious of people saying like, you must have this. It will cure your adrenals, it will cure your, you know, lower your
cortisol level because the truth is that a drink is not going to lower your cortisol level. There are multiple things you
can do from a lifestyle perspective of that perspective and things like that.
There are supplements that help. I love supplements that help support your adrenal gland, that have good herbs in
them to help with adrenal function, have modern endocrine. We have one called adrenal assist. But if somebody is
telling you on social media that this drink is going to cure your cortisol issue, I would be very skeptical of that
particular person in general. Okay, so this trend is promoting non-existent conditions. Sometimes this adrenal fatigue
Again, this is not something that’s diagnosed. I do think it is something in in medicine that we do see and that we
help support your adrenal adrenal glands. Um, but they are making a lot of assumptions and just statements about
cortisol, like, oh, this drink will lower your cortisol. And while the ingredients aren’t harmful, there’s no scientific basis
that the claimed benefits are actually happening, that your cortisol is actually coming down. The real concern is that
people that are experiencing like anxiety, fatigue. My concern is like, if you have anxiety, you have fatigue, you’re
stressed out. You may be delaying proper medical evaluation because you’re relying on this remedy, right? Instead of
addressing the underlying cause, which could be your thyroid, it could be diabetes, it could be mental health issues.
It could just be stress, it could be gut issues. So just keep that in mind when you’re seeing these viral things about
adrenal cocktails.

The next thing I want to talk to you guys about is fiber maxing, right? So tons of people are talking about maxing out
the amount of amount of fiber on Instagram. I even do fiber videos, but it’s in a context. Okay, so not everyone fits in
the same box. And people who are pushing like 50g of fiber, just all the fiber you can get fiber does help you feel full.
That is true. Fiber feeds good bacteria in your gut. That is also true if you are not eating any fiber, and then you go to
eating a ton of fiber, you are going to feel miserable. Okay? You have to get your body used to this fiber. And so I see
these reels where it’s like, you know, wanting you to build your meals and build your snacks around all these fiber
rich foods and they’re telling you to eat all these fruits and vegetables and beans and lentils and seeds and nuts and
whole grains and get 50g of fiber and, you know, add functional fiber supplements like psyllium husk. And all those
things are great if we’re doing it in a organized fashion. Right. But anything that’s exceeding about 35g of fiber a day.
Not super beneficial and probably could hurt you long term. So do I think everyone should have 30 to 35g of fiber a
day? Yes. If you can tolerate 40. Great. But like, do you need to eat 70 and 80g of fiber? You don’t.
And like I said, if you’re eating a very little amount, what happens is you’re going to start feeding some bacteria that
could cause some symptoms and make you not feel great. So people are saying, like, all the influencers are
influencers that I’m seeing on social media. This improves your gut health, which it can because again, we’re feeding
the right bacteria. It boosts your metabolism. It can make you feel full longer. So I’ll give you that partially. It aids in
weight loss. I guess if you feel full longer, it could help with weight loss. Improves digestion. If your digestion system
is working okay and you already can tolerate fiber, then adding some more definitely could improve your digestion. It
balances hormones. I don’t know that I can get behind that in any way other than if it is trying to help your gut, right?
So anytime we fix our gut, it can balance our hormones. But fiber in particular on its own, probably not going to move
the needle in our gut all the way. So it’s helpful, but it’s not like the end all, be all. And that’s what I’m trying to get
you guys to understand is like, some people are on social media just like, you must do this. This is the only way
you’re going to fix things. I think that’s a little dangerous. And then then it regulates your blood sugars. So what I will
tell you from scientific research is that fiber does regulate your blood sugar.
It slows down digestion and it improves glucose spikes. So when you have fiber, it kind of crosslinks in your stomach
when you eat it. I tell my patients to try to eat fiber first so that it’s kind of laid down. It’s kind of like a blanket in your
stomach. Then when you eat your protein, but most notably your carbs, which spike your blood sugar, your sugar
doesn’t leave and go into your bloodstream as quickly because of the cross-linked fiber in your stomach, so it will
lower your blood sugar. That’s 100% true. It protects your heart from, uh, they say it’s like healthy heart food
because it helps bind up cholesterol. It does boost digestion and support healthy gut microbiome. And it does feed
our gut, but we just have to be careful of feeding our gut slowly. So we’re not like overfeeding and getting really bad
symptoms if we were having no fiber. And it does promote satiety. So it helps with weight management. All these
things are true. What I’m telling you is, though, you have to increase fiber gradually to avoid bloating, gas, and
abdominal discomfort. So if you are somebody who’s seen all these viral TikTok trends and you’re like, oh, I’m
pushing my fiber and I’m bloated all the time, well, then we need to know, first of all, how much fiber are you eating?
How much were you eating? Did we go too quickly? The other really common thing with fiber, with bloating is maybe
we’re not chewing our food, um, and swallowing slowly too.
So something to, to keep in mind, do not substitute um, this like if you have IBS, if you have Sibo, if you have
diverticulitis, again, if you’re on a really, really low fiber diet, you don’t want to just throw all this fiber into your diet.
It can actually make your symptoms worse. So it’s not suitable for people with IBS, Sibo, diverticulitis, and people
who are eating like basically no fiber. We have to work on that in a slower pace, too much, too fast. Again, causes
diarrhea, constipation, vice versa, nausea, and then 40 to 50g daily without gradual increase causes GI symptoms. So
my reaction to this generally is just that fiber is good. There are good things about it. But if you’re like one of these
people that have seen this rare social media health trend, that’s like, oh my gosh, we must have, you know,
excessive amounts of fiber. Just be careful because adequate fiber intake does support your metabolic health. It
helps your blood sugar, it helps you with weight. It can indirectly benefit your hormone balance through fixing your
gut, but you just have to make sure that we do it in steps and that we’re not giving it to people who could harm. So
the it just kind of oversimplifies this.

I feel like this trend on social where it’s like, just eat all the fiber. It’s oversimplifying a complex metabolic process,
and it can lead to focusing solely on fiber and ignoring other important micronutrients for metabolic health, like your
protein, like your vegetables, you know, polyphenols, things like that. So this maxing mentality could lead to
excessive intake causing GI symptoms. And so again, key is gradual balanced implementation with fiber. I love fiber.
We have a fiber supplement. I really like it. It’s called gut fuel. But again don’t go from ten grams of fiber to 40. You
will be bloated, your stomach will hurt. And if you have Sibo, which a lot of my patients do, you’re gonna feel way
worse. And then you’re going to get flustered because you’re like, I’m eating all this fiber. I’m doing what I’m told,
and I feel worse. So that’s another one that I think is really important, that you just kind of bear in mind and take with
a grain of salt, or just make sure that you’re doing correctly. Another really like viral thing I’ve seen recently on social
media, which could potentially harm people is this metabolism boosting morning routine. Okay. And so, and I may put
some of these links in the show notes so you can see some of these things. But, you know, some people are like, oh,
there’s this four step morning routine, this like, get up and go get up and go.
Like, you must do this, right. And the most common ones I’ve seen are like, hydrate immediately, drink warm water
with lemon, sometimes throw some salt in there and then like move your body right, 10 to 15 minutes of light,
exercise, yoga, stretching, dancing, whatever. Black coffee with a twist. So people are telling you like put these
supplements in their Java, burn different things, different sorts of powder. Empty sea oil to like, light up your
metabolism and then delay breakfast. So intermittent fast until mid-morning. These are kind of like when I look at all
of them, like these are the most common things that people are like, okay, do this, right? So hydrate, move your
body, drink coffee, you can put things in it to help boost your metabolism and then skip breakfast. So they say that if
you do this, most of the people that I’ve seen that it boosts your metabolism for the entire day. You burn excess fat,
you increase mental clarity, you improve energy, support, weight loss, yada, yada, yada. Right. Okay, so here’s my
caveat. This is really going to depend on your age, your current health situation, your adrenal function, your thyroid
function, right? So a lot of things go into this. So the concerning aspect of this is that there’s like heavy promotion on
certain things when they don’t even know what’s going on with you because everyone is, is different, right? So
morning Hydration does help kick start cellular function and metabolism.
Ideally, warm water. You can have cold water, but warm water is a little more beneficial. The thought with lemon in
water is to help with alkalizing environments. So some women are very alkaline, especially if they’re having a lot of
issues with your skin and acne. So like adding some, some different like acidic things, you know, could potentially
help with the lemon. Also just getting like your digestive system going is the thought with the lemon. So a lot of
people are like, I don’t like lemon. Okay, drink water. That’s fine. Hydration, perfect light. Morning exercise can
elevate metabolism. Like it can increase your metabolic rate for hours and improve circulation. So I do like that part
of this routine too. I’m a huge avid proponent of moving your body in the morning. Black coffee. It can increase your
metabolism rate. It’s caffeine. So that is true. And intermittent fasting for 12 to 16 hours has been shown beneficial
for metabolic health and insulin sensitivity in certain people. So if you have adrenal dysfunction and you’re really
stressed, you’re in the luteal phase of your cycle, different things are going on. Then intermittent fasting is not
always best for you. So just know that because you know, an influencer is saying you should intermittent fast for 16
hours every day. You should probably talk with your doctor, assuming you have a good functional medicine doctor
that understands these things, because fasting is not always great for everyone.
So that’s where I’m like, ooh, and sometimes if you want to fast, that’s perfect. I tell a lot of my patients, let’s eat in
the morning. So our body’s not super stressed. And our cortisol awakening response isn’t like way higher than it
already is. And let’s stop eating at like two, three, 4:00. Like I would rather you not eat later in the day, give your
body time to digest itself. Give your, you know, your digestive fire time to calm down before we go to bed and then
light that fire back up in the morning. So you just have to be careful with these like routines that people are saying
like, oh, everyone needs to follow this because it might not be what’s best for, for your body. I also don’t love the
heavy promotion of like different things sometimes to put in your coffee, like I’ve seen one with Java burn. It’s an
unregulated product. I’m not really sure what’s in it, but like, if they’re like, oh, you must put this in your coffee. You
know, sometimes it’s like empty soy oil, different things like that. And there are differing opinions on empty sea oil.
Some people swear it’s great. It’s good for ketosis. It’s good for your brain. It does break down into other things
though. So there’s another school of thought where MTC is maybe not the best, so just keep that in mind. There is
oversimplified claims in a lot of these things about meta metabolism boosting.

So what I don’t want is somebody to hear this and just think, oh, I can do this. But then for the rest of the day, I can
eat whatever I want. I don’t really have to pay attention. Yeah, I’ll have part of that cookie because I did this thing
this morning to boost my metabolism. Right? So I think that’s just, it’s a little oversimplified. And then the pink salt,
like I hear a lot of people say, like, put pink salt in your water in the morning. And from an endocrinology perspective,
like there’s not a lot of data for that either. Could you use some salt? You know, if you’re dehydrated or if you have
pots. Sure. But I’m just saying like, you don’t have to. So the routine has several evidence based elements. The one
we just talked through that can support metabolic health, hydration movement, strategic meal planning. That routine
I gave you in particular doesn’t mean everyone’s meal planning needs to be like that. Again, we talked about maybe
having breakfast and cut it off at four, especially if you’re somebody who wakes up and that sympathetic fight or
flight state, your body is already stressed. Not giving it food for several hours is not making that any better. There
are claims I feel like that are under stated, um, to kind of help sell this, right. So just be careful with that.
Again, I told you, like if they’re hammering a specific supplement that you should take like the Java burn one that I
saw. Just know that sometimes these things aren’t regulated. So make sure you do your due diligence, due diligence
on that. The metabolic boost from these activities is moderate and temporary. And so keep that in mind too, because
this doesn’t mean you get to eat and do whatever you want all day long, because it’s not like this dramatic fat
burning transformation that they imply. And so I don’t want people overeating or, or just leaning on that too much
and not doing what they need to do and then expecting something that they don’t get. So I don’t want you to think,
oh, if I do this, I don’t have to do my walking, do my yoga, do my weightlifting, and I can’t have that cookie because
then you’re going to be in trouble. And the intermittent fasting, like I told you, it’s not for everyone. So it depends on
what’s going on with you. It depends on how stressed out your adrenals are. So just make sure that you’re working
with somebody before you just take this viral trend about a morning, you know, a morning boosting fat routine and
do it. So that’s all I would say about that trend. The other trend, the next trend. So hormone balancing food for
women. So, you know, I’ve seen some things like these are the six hormone balancing foods every woman should
eat.
And if you, you know, are hearing this trend and you are eating these six hormones, chances are it’s not working.
Because if there were six foods that every woman could eat to stay in shape, then nobody would be overweight. And
so let’s just kind of break this down and see and like, maybe you’re even harming yourself, you know, just like with
the, um, fiber one that we talked about, sometimes you can overdo things. And so let’s talk about this. Like you must
eat these foods for, you know, better period, better skin, better mood. Again, if there were six foods that we could all
eat, women to have the best skin, the best mood, no pain with our periods. We would have figured this out hundreds
of years ago, and we would all be eating these foods. But the claims that I see people make are like, hey, these foods
provide natural, you know, support for hormonal harmony and period relief and mood, stability and gut and skin
health, and they promise you better skin and stable mood and pain free periods. And they say that, like these foods
are your natural support system. Now, while certain foods do support overall hormonal health, I completely agree
with that by providing essential nutrients. The claims made here are very oversimplified, simplistic, and sometimes
they’re exaggerated. So there’s not a single food or a group of foods that can guarantee you that you will have pain
free periods.
If there were, we would all know and we would all do it right. And there are dramatic hormonal changes between
myself, the next person who has a menstrual cycle, like we all have different cycles, right? Hormonal balance is very
complex. It’s influenced by multiple things, including your genetics, your stress, which changes every month, your
sleep, which can change every month, your overall diet plan, your gut is huge. And I think that is a lot of times the
missing link in a lot of people with really significant hormonal issues. And you can see that a lot of times with
advanced testing. So at Modern Endocrine, we do Dutch testing, and there’s an organic acid on that test that will tell
us if the problem is your gut, at which point we do gut testing and we fix it and we fix it like we figure it out. But you
have to figure, I mean, you have to keep all these things in mind and then also look for underlying medical causes
too, and conditions, right? If somebody has fibroids, if somebody has PCOS, like we need to make sure we’re not
missing things too. So I don’t want somebody to watch this and think, oh, well, my period is really heavy. I’ll just eat
these six foods and like not seek treatment again, right? So you just have to kind of take these things, you know, for
what they are.

And that’s why I wanted to do this podcast. So the concept of hormone balancing food is a huge marketing term right
now. There’s, you know, a lot of stuff floating around about this. A balanced diet rich in nutrients supports your
endocrine function 100%. I agree with that. These posts often oversell the importance of a specific food, and then
they can delay you actually getting proper treatment for something like PCOS. Like we talked about endometriosis,
thyroid disorder, etc.. So your focus should be on your overall dietary pattern rather than a magical individual food.
So that’s just kind of my caveat with these viral posts, like these are the six things you must eat. Now, if somebody
wants to get on there and say, hey, these are six things that could help and or that I recommend, that’s different. So
I’m not saying that like, nobody should post this. I’m just saying be careful about what you see and hear. If they’re
like, these are the only six foods you should eat every month. Just like this is the only morning routine you should do.
I would be very leery of that. That’s all I’m saying. The next thing I want to talk to you guys about is pink salt. So if
you are somebody who is just like, oh, I must have pink salt, um, you know, for weight loss, pink salt for energy, pink
salt for hydration. I’ve seen a lot of stuff with pink salt recently.
And to be honest with you, my question is like, does this pink salt have iodine? That’s really important to y’all. So if
you don’t have enough iodine in your body, it affects your thyroid function and your immune function. So we check
iodine levels at modern endocrine. Fun fact if you don’t have enough iodine, you literally cannot make thyroid
hormone from your thyroid, even if your brain tells you to. Because iodine is the backbone of T4 and T3, which are
your thyroid hormones, iodine also, there’s a big role in it. We think with cancer. There’s actually some studies right
now with iodine and breast cancer. So there are toxic halides that get into our body. And this is kind of off topic, but
bromide chloride and bromide chloride iodide fluoride fluorides the other one. This is why like I hate fluoride fluoride
and so do a lot of dentists. So these toxic halides so chloride bromide fluoride, they can get into your body set on
cells and then start cells like mutating cells. And then when that happens you can develop cancer. So the cool thing
about iodine is it can kind of help like push these off of cell receptors so that you don’t make cancer. And so that’s
where this like research right now is coming in with iodine and breast cancer. But my point with all of that, the pink
salt. So you iodine, a lot of times we get from salt, you can get it from fresh seafood.
But if you live in Oklahoma, like I do this time of the year, we’re not really getting a whole lot of fresh seafood. So a
lot of people have to supplement iodine unless they get it from salt. So I’m in a lot of these like salt salts that are on
TikTok right now that we’re supposed to be, you know, everyone loves there’s no iodine in it. So iodine is actually
important. But this pink salt tip for weight loss that I’ve seen going around is like, okay, in the morning, you take pink
Himalayan sea salt, you put water, you put lemon, you put honey and you drink it. And allegedly it’s going to like
boost your metabolism. It’s going to reduce bloating. It’s going to accelerate fat loss. Um what else? Oh, and it gives
you like minerals, I think was the other thing that it was, it was saying like, okay, you get all these minerals. So here’s
my, here’s my problem with that. So this is an example, again, of social media overselling a simple ingredient, right?
Pink salt, Himalayan pink salt contains trace minerals that the amount are negligible. And they, they won’t be
meaningful for metabolism or weight loss. I mean, you can’t eat enough of it. So that’s one of my problems. The
lemon and honey add some vitamin C and natural sugar. That’s a fact. But this combination has no proven weight
loss benefit.
And I would even argue that the honey could negate weight loss because honey has a lot of calories, it’s got a lot of
sugar, and you don’t want people thinking, oh, I can just put honey in everything because it’s good for you, right? It’s
going to negate your weight loss because you’re having three and four tablespoons of honey a day. That’s a lot of
calories that a lot of people are not accounting for. Right? And so, and then plus they’re thinking, oh, well, this
boosted my metabolism in the morning. So I can walk less, I can eat more. Not true. So this perceived benefit is likely
due to the increased hydration or placebo effect that, you know, people may get from having this, this drink in the
morning. But in people with hypertension, you have, you have to be a little bit careful as well. Adding salt and sugar
to water can increase your blood pressure. So sugar increases blood pressure, as can excessive amounts of salt.
Allegedly, I will tell you that I feel like sugar increases your blood pressure far more than salt. And so again, this is
just a trend that exemplifies how social media takes very basic ingredients. They can create these unrealistic
expectations. They create unrealistic expectations around hydration and weight loss. And then if you’re following this
viral trend, you’re like, oh, well, I had my salty water this morning with lemon and honey. I don’t have to drink as
much water for the rest of the day.

Oh, I don’t need to go on that extra walk or, you know, do what I was going to do from an exercise perspective
because I’m a boosted metabolism and it’s just unrealistic expectations in my opinion. So if you want to drink water
with salt and honey and lemon every morning. By all means, do it. Account for it whenever you are tracking your
calories. And by no means let that be an excuse to not do the exercise you’re supposed to do, or eat how you’re
supposed to. So that would be my take on that. The other thing I want to talk to you guys about that I’ve seen
recently, so I’m not sure if you guys have seen this Cougar puberty thing going around on Instagram and social
media, but basically people are like trying to rebrand perimenopause and call it cougar puberty, which is kind of
interesting. And so I just want to talk about that really fast. It makes perimenopause sound more empowering, I
guess, which I’m all about because perimenopause is no joke. Neither is menopause. It’s supposed to help women
talk more openly about it, which I also love, because I think that women have been silenced about menopause and
perimenopause for far too long. I want you to be open about it. You know, I want it to be empowering. I want to be
able to educate people about this.
It reframes a negative into a positive. Love all of that. Okay. While you know, talking about this though, and in talking
about perimenopause is very important. This rebranding kind of has some mixed implications in my opinion. So it
does encourage us to talk about this more openly. But I feel like Cougar puberty kind of has this like negative just
vibe to it connotation and just, I don’t know, it’s just it’s interesting. And so I feel like, you know, women are dealing
with a lot of these hormonal fluctuations, mood changes, sleep disturbances, metabolic changes, all sorts of stuff. So
the focus should be on educating us about these symptoms and treatment options and making sure you know what
questions to ask your doctors and what to expect. And when you have symptoms, understand why you’re having
them. It’s not in your head, you’re not crazy and help provide you with good evaluations and evidence based
treatments, not just catchy phrases. So while cougar puberty seems interesting, um, I hope that, you know, you’re
also following the viral trends where we really are trying to educate people and let you know what’s expected from
perimenopause. And I think there’s a lot of people out there that do a good job with that. We try to do it on our page,
but definitely watch for those things and then make sure that when you are looking at this data or listening to these
trends or these, you know, these viral TikToks, viral Instagram posts that it’s coming from somebody who you trust
because again, you don’t want somebody oversimplifying some of these symptoms of menopause or saying like, oh,
when you can’t sleep, just drink this tea, you know? I mean, there’s so many reasons you can’t sleep during
menopause.
And so you would not, you would want to make sure you’re not delaying care because you’re drinking a tea. So just
make sure that if you are going through perimenopause or menopause and you’re having symptoms that are
debilitating to you to seek some help with a provider, There’s so many of us now that understand this, get some lab
work done and figure out how to best get you through this time of your life because it’s it’s not meant to be
miserable. At least I feel like it shouldn’t be. It’s a, it’s a chapter of our life that we get through, but it can be very
empowering if done correctly. So just find the right provider to help you get through that because there are, you
know, treatments to all sorts of symptoms and education is key. The last viral TikTok that I want to talk to you guys
about today is PCOS, weight loss content. So PCOS is very near and dear to my heart. I struggle with it for a long
time. Still. Do I have a whole chapter in my book dedicated to PCOS. I see people who struggle with this every single
day.
There’s lots of people on TikTok now talking about PCOS, multiple accounts, where they’re trying to tell you that
PCOS causes this uncontrollable rapid weight gain. That’s not your fault. Now, what are the facts about that? Does
PCOS cause weight gain for sure. It increases your risk to gain weight. Is it uncontrollable? Usually not like it is
controllable. There are ways to manage and treat PCOS. There’s tons of accounts out there that teach you how to do
that and show you how people lose weight. And so while weight gain is not your fault, I also don’t want you to think
that like, oh, I have PCOS. There’s no hope for me. I’m not even going to try. Right? So PCOS does make weight loss
tricky because it’s a metabolic issue. Weight gain with PCOS, you know, is it does happen, but it is controllable. And it
can be your fault if you’re not educating yourself and doing the things that you need to do to make it better. So just
like with anyone who’s gaining weight, like if we’re not eating like we’re supposed to sleeping, like we’re supposed to
moving like we’re supposed to, then we’re gonna gain weight. So I don’t think that’s necessarily fair either. There are
special supplements and protocols for PCOS, weight loss that have been shown to be utilized into work better
because of the metabolic issue with PCOS. And so people are claiming things like that, like inositol, berberine, things
with alpha lipoic acid.

Those things will help with weight loss when you have PCOS. Microdose GLP ones are phenomenal and life changing
in people with PCOS. But again, microdose under the right condition with a provider that understands what’s going on
with you, I wouldn’t recommend buying them online from random places, or you don’t even know what you’re
getting, but they can be very beneficial. Traditional weight loss methods don’t work with PCOS. I hear a lot of that
too, and that’s not necessarily true either. So just make sure that with PCOS, the content that you’re getting, take it
in context with, with where you’re getting it. So PCOS does create metabolic challenges. As an endocrinologist, I’m
going to tell you 100% it does. I faced them personally and with my patients. That makes weight management more
difficult with PCOS and the message around uncontrollable weight gain, I think is problematic. And I think it needs to
stop because I don’t want people just like leaning on that. Right. Using that as a crutch. Pcos is associated with
insulin resistance. That is true. It can make weight loss more challenging. That is also true, but it is not impossible. So
don’t want people to hear it and give up on it either. So I just want people to be very particular when they’re talking
about PCOS and then letting people know, like, is this challenging? Yes, it may. Will it be a little bit harder? Probably.
Is it possible? 100%. People do it all the time. Right? And it’s not your fault then not your fault messaging. While I
think it’s very well intended to reduce shame, many like what it causes a lot of people to do is it promotes this
learned helplessness. And I don’t necessarily love that either, because I don’t want you to feel helpless, and I don’t
want you to feel like, oh, I’m never going to be able to lose weight. So I just give up because I have PCOS. So I think
you just have to be careful about that too. And I wish some of those trends would would take that in mind, because I
do think that most PCOS weight loss accounts out there are trying to help people. We just have to be careful how we
say it. You know, so that people don’t get this learned helplessness. Evidence based PCOS management includes
lifestyle modifications like diet and exercise, although sometimes these are different. Low impact exercises a lot of
times are better than. High impact walking is wonderful. Lifting weights and. If you can’t lift really heavy lighter
weights. More repetitions. Yoga. Pilates. Wonderful for PCOS. Medications like metformin are sometimes appropriate
with PCOS and addressing underlying insulin issues. Things like inositol, alpha, lipoic acid. Like I said, micro-dosed
GLP ones are phenomenal, but you do need to know all the issues you have with PCOS. Do you have gut issues? Do
you have thyroid issues? Because there is a type of, you know, thyroid, um, subclinical hypothyroidism that goes with
PCOS and also adrenal issues.
So there’s definitely an adrenal PCOS connection as well that I talk about in my book. So you just need to know all of
these things. And then the focus is on special, you know, supplements and PCOS specific protocols. Um, a lot of these
on the internet lack scientific evidence. But if you’re working with a provider that has all of your labs in front of them
and they know our, you estrogen dominant, you know, what, what are your hormones look like? Is your testosterone
high? What does your insulin look like? What is your gut like? Then they can come up with a protocol for you that’s
going to work. It’s going to work. You’re going to lose weight. You’re going to be successful. They just have to put all
the pieces together, right? And so women with PCOS do benefit from working with healthcare providers who
understand the condition, rather than following social media advice that may oversimplify and misrepresent the
complexity, the complexity of PCOS. That’s just my thing with that. Like, if you do have PCOS, please find a provider
to help you. Don’t just get all this information from Instagram and think, oh, I’m going to fix this on my own. Because
again, you are an N of one. And there’s a lot of different things that move with PCOS.
And so you really need to understand what you’re doing so that you can lose weight and feel better because it is not
impossible. All right, friend, let’s land this plane. We walked through seven viral TikTok trends that could actually be
harming you. The cortisol adrenal cocktail. No real evidence that lowers cortisol and adrenal fatigue isn’t actually a
medical diagnosis. So chasing that drink isn’t fixing a thing. I would recommend finding the root cause of the adrenal
dysfunction and fatigue by looking at your gut or a full lab panel. Fiber maxing sure, fiber is good, but jumping to 50
to 80g overnight gives you bloating, cramping, and erect gut slow and steady wins. Here, the four step metabolism
morning routine pink salt water, fancy coffee, skip breakfast promising to burn fat all day. The promises are louder
than the science hormone balancing foods. There’s a list six foods that magically give you pain free periods and
stable moods. That’s a fantasy. It’s not a protocol. Pink salt. Weight loss shots. Same story. Different container.
Cougar puberty. A rebrand of perimenopause that’s more clickbait able than clinical care and PCOS. Weight loss
TikToks telling people with PCOS that uncontrollable weight gain happens with PCOS so that they can sell you their
protocol. Don’t fall for it. If any of these sound familiar? This isn’t your fault. Social media is loud, but your body’s too
smart to be hacked by hashtags. If you’re tired of guessing with your hormones, we can actually help.

Modern endocrine is licensed in 46 states, and we work with patients on exactly these issues thyroid, adrenal, PCOS,
perimenopause, metabolism, gut hormone connection, the whole picture. Head to our website and book a discovery
call www.endocrine.com. Click on the become a patient. That’s where we map out what your body actually needs
before you spend another dollar on viral cocktails. The link will also be in the show notes. Also share this episode. If
you know someone who’s doing the cortisol thing, who’s fiber maxing, who’s buying pink salt shots. Send them this
episode. Seriously, forward it to your group chat right now. It might be the reason they stopped spending money on
what isn’t working. If this at home, please hit the follow button, subscribe to the podcast and leave us a five star
review. This is the single best thing that helps other women find this show. The more people that like it follow and
subscribe, the more it gets pushed out to people who need to actually hear it. And the last thing my book, fix your
gut, fix your hormones. It’s on Amazon. It’s a best seller. It’s now on audible, narrated by me. If you’d rather listen
than read, that’s the move. Grab a copy. Leave a review on Amazon and tag me when you do. Thanks for being here.
Keep questioning the trends. Your hormones deserve better than a hashtag. I’ll see you next week on hormones,
metabolism and you.