Podcast Episode #332: Diet Culture & Negative Body Image

Topics

1. News and updates from Diane & Liz [1:57]
2. Tip of the Week: Self-care [4:21]
3. 21DSD testimonials and the Facebook group [9:43]
4. Listener question: coworkers and diet culture [16:21]
5. Travel hack: humidifier [32:37]

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You’re listening to the Balanced Bites podcast episode 332.

Diane Sanfilippo: Welcome to the Balanced Bites podcast. I’m Diane; a certified nutrition consultant, and the New York Times bestselling author of Practical Paleo and the brand new book, the 21-Day Sugar Detox Daily Guide. I live in San Francisco with my husband and fur kids.

Liz Wolfe: I’m Liz; a nutritional therapy practitioner, and author of the Wall Street Journal best-seller Eat the Yolks; The Purely Primal Skincare Guide; and the online program Baby Making and Beyond. I live on a farm in the mystical land of the Midwest, outside of Kansas City.

We’re the co-creators of the Balanced Bites Master Class, and we’ve been bringing you this award-winning podcast for more than 6 years. We’re here to share our take on modern paleo living, answer your questions, and chat with leading health and wellness experts. Enjoy this week’s episode, and submit your questions at http://blog.balancedbites.com or watch the Balanced Bites podcast Instagram account for our weekly calls for questions. You can ask us anything in the comments.

Remember our disclaimer: The materials and content within this podcast are intended as general information only, and are not to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Before we get started, let’s hear from one of our sponsors.

Diane Sanfilippo: Today’s podcast is sponsored by Perfect Keto. Dr. Anthony Gustin and his teams have created lines of supplements that are super clean and effective, no matter what your dietary needs. I recommend blending the MCT oil powder into your morning coffee, or decaf. The unflavored is also 21-Day Sugar Detox approved. Not only are MCTs, medium-chain triglycerides, a premium source of your body’s preferred type of energy and help to fuel your brain and body, but there’s also no added taste and it makes your coffee wonderfully cream. Check them out at www.PerfectKeto.com and use the code “balanced” for 20% off. And you can get 20% off of their sister products as well at www.EquipFoods.com.

1. News and updates from Diane & Liz [1:57]

Liz Wolfe: Okie dokie. So, Diane. I don’t think it’s negative 1 degrees where you are, so no matter what, you're doing better than I’m doing.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} It’s not.

Liz Wolfe: What’s up with you?

Diane Sanfilippo: I’m home!

Liz Wolfe: Amazing.

Diane Sanfilippo: Which is so great. It’s so nice to be home. So I’m home just for a bit here, and I’ll be heading back out to the Pacific Northwest for a few events with my friend Robyn Youkilis. She has a brand new book coming out too, so we decided to kind of team up and make it a little more fun. You know that I love doing events together. We were together in Kansas City just a bit ago. That was super fun. Yeah, so that’s pretty much it. Just kind of been slamming the whole book tour thing. And it’s been super fun. A little bit tiring. I’ll talk a little bit about that in a couple of minutes what I’ve been doing to kind of protect myself from just a total wipe out. But yeah. What’s up with you?

Liz Wolfe: Oh, not a whole lot. Just trying to survive the winter. Getting really excited about our class. The day before the Nutritional Therapy Association Conference. So this is Thursday, March 1st. If you're going to the Nutritional Therapy Association Conference, it’s that weekend beginning, I believe March 2nd. And we’re doing our workshop, you and I; Diane and myself, on Thursday, March 1st. We’re doing a business success workshop. And if you're already registered for the conference, but haven’t registered for the pre-conference workshops, go do it. NutritionalTherapyConference.com. Just look for those pre-conference workshops.

We’re going to talk about what it takes to establish and to run a successful wellness business, in person and online. We are really hoping people are going to learn from our experiences. We’re going to talk about finding your voice, and connecting, and social media strategies. And it’s going to be really awesome. So I’ve just been thinking about that, and hoping we’re going to see everybody there.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, I’m excited about that. I think it’s going to be a fun time. We have talked about this a lot, over the years, just you and I, little things. You know, one-offs and some bigger conversations. But it’s kind of nice to just sit down and actually get all of our thoughts and strategies and all of that into a format that we can teach, and really bring to everyone in a more organized way. So it’s going to be fun.

2. Tip of the Week: Self-care [4:21]

Liz Wolfe: Alright, so we have a segment for folks today. And we’re calling it Tip of the Week. Diane, I think you have a valuable Tip of the Week for folks.

Diane Sanfilippo: So my tip this week is based on my experience touring. But it applies to pretty much anyone who is going through a stressful time, whether it’s emotionally, physically, what have you. Because touring is super fun for me. I really enjoy getting to meet everyone. I feel very fortunate to be able to do it. It’s just not something that everyone can or wants to do. So I get that, and it’s a self-selected stressor. So let’s just say that.

But this can apply to any type of stressor. Whether you're choosing it or not {laughs}. But, it’s paying attention to self-care in a way that’s personal to you. Because no one else can really understand exactly what it is that you need for self-care. So what I mean by that; this could be something as simple as a little bit of supplementation to help your body physically handle the stress in different moments.

So for me, the two or three things I’ve been doing in terms of supplementation, or I had been doing on tour, first and foremost. This is a full-on self-care move. I was waking up feeling very anxious. My heart was kind of racing upon waking up and just, I obviously did not need caffeine or coffee. So an act of self-care for me has been to actually not drink coffee. Which I feel like I don’t even know who I am. But we’ve gone through this in the last 6 years. You and I have gone on and off of coffee over time for different reasons. And it’s been a tough call, but I’ve had to scale back on that and really not have caffeinated coffee. So that’s number one.

Two is, in addition to not having the coffee, I’ve been taking stress supplements. I think I talked about them on a previous episode, but Gaia Herbs. It’s not a sponsor, but it’s just what I happened to get, and I do really well with their blends. But it’s just an adrenal support. I think it’s called stress relief; I actually forget what it’s called. We’ll get a link in the show notes, and I’ll see if we can get it shared out on the podcast Instagram or Instagram story at some point.

But essentially, not only not drinking coffee but also taking a stress supplement. You could do magnesium, or anything that helps you feel more calm. Do a meditation, or take a nap. Whatever it is you need to do. But for me, that’s really been helping. And also focusing on sleep, and protecting my sleep. And also taking some supplements to help with that, as well.

I’ve talked about this before, too; I don’t do melatonin because I don’t want to artificially initiate that sleep cycle in that way. But I am, again, taking things like adaptogenic herbs and some blends, again from the same brand. That are supportive of sleep naturally. One is an adrenal support that’s like an overnight support. And one is to help you potentially sleep through the night. Things like lemon balm and passion flower. All of that can be really supportive.

So those are things I’ve been doing in terms of either supplements or not. But the other thing is; and I know a lot of you saw this in my Instagram story. I had requests from four different local media outlets to do morning shows. And that was amazing. On my previous tour, we had done some outreach to book those things, and so on the one hand, my schedule was created around knowing that those things were scheduled the last time I did a tour. So even though I did have to wake up early, and go and do media events.

This time, we were contacted. I saw we; just my team. Myself and my assistant. But we were contacted after the tour was already scheduled. And I had planned for the Mondays on tour to be off days. Because I figure; y’all don’t want to come to an event on a Monday evening. It’s like; everyone is trying to get their week set. But I said yes, because I was like; this is amazing. These are great opportunities. And how awesome that they’re contacting me. I just felt so honored and grateful. But I said yes to all of it.

And then I did one; and the problem for me was, because I get so anxious, I didn’t sleep more than about 3-3.5 hours the night before this appearance. And after the appearance, I was like; I can’t do anymore of these. Because even though; Liz you know this. I hate to say yes and then change my mind and say no. I’ll tell you I don’t know, until I know for sure. But I said yes to these other appearances, and I had to go back and say no. And I really hate to do that. The cool thing is, they were all really great about it. They were like; we understand, don’t worry about it. But I had to make that judgement call for myself. And that was a tough one, because I do want to do appearances like that. And I’m grateful for those opportunities. But sometimes, we have to just pull the plug on something, and then feel the great relief that we’re going to feel.

So whether it’s supplementation, or simply saying no to something; even if you’ve already said yes. That’s my tip of the week. Look out for yourself, and watch out for that self-care. I think it’s extremely critical all year. Not just cold and flu season and all of that. But that’s my tip of the week.

Liz Wolfe: Amen.

3. 21DSD testimonials and the Facebook group [9:43]

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, well before we get into today’s topic, I want to share a couple of stories or a couple of things that people are posting in our 21-Day Sugar Detox Facebook community. I know many of you are in there; some of you may not be. We do have a huge Facebook page. But one thing we wanted to do with the sugar detox community is put it into a private group, so if you want to come talk about your experience, your friends and aunt and whoever else doesn’t need to see what you're talking about. So it’s in this private community, which is awesome.

There’s probably close to 10,000 people in there now; but it’s super supportive. People are really loving it. They’re actually calling out exactly how much they love the support, and that it’s not people policing one another. It’s just very, very nurturing, and it is moderated by myself and my team. So you guys can just check that out.

Anyway, so two totally different things I wanted to share. One is we have this woman, Sherry. And I’m going to share three different posts she’s made. She’s made more than that, but this is the kind of thing that I wake up in the morning for, you guys. I’m just obsessed. {laughs} I can’t even lie. I’m literally obsessed with her story, and I can’t wait to see how she goes through the rest of the 21 days. But here’s a couple of notes from Sherry.

She said, “I’m a diabetic, diagnosed last summer. It’s type 2. Using two different pills to control my blood glucose, I started the detox on Monday. From day one, I saw a remarkable decrease in my blood glucose, even when eating a green apple. Yesterday and today, I only took one of my pills, and tomorrow I’m going to try taking neither of them. Yes, my doctor is aware I’m doing, and I have an appointment to go in after it’s all over and let him know my results. He also wants me to get a blood test so he can see the A1c results. I’m checking my blood glucose levels every 90 minutes so I can keep a close eye on what’s going on and so I don’t allow my blood glucose to rise too high. It hasn’t been over 117 since I started. I did a detox this summer that my nutritionist suggested I do, and I didn’t get results like this. It looks like I finally found what I need to get off this medication, and I am elated.”

That was her first post, and that was probably just within a couple of days of her starting. So she said; another post. “Yesterday I posted here that I wouldn’t be taking my type 2 diabetic medications because of the results I’ve been seeing. Well today, day 5, was an amazing day. I did not take either pill, and had amazing blood glucose levels. The highest it got this morning was only 111; for me that number is astonishing. Even on medications, I could have levels of 165. This is a new start to my life; I’m taking it back.”

I’m like, {laughs} goosebumps. And almost tears. Ok, that’s my editorial note. Ok, and then the last one. She’s updating us almost every day on this. I mean, more than 8,000 people, 10,000 people in this group are all cheering her on right now. “For those of you who are following my progress; day 8 of the detox and day 4 of no diabetic medications. Blood glucose still good. I still can’t believe it. And for those of you just seeing this; yes, my doctor is aware and I have an appointment to see him at the end of February to go over my testing and numbers.”

So, yes. That’s the caveat. Of course I tell anybody who is either insulin dependent or on medications to make sure you're working with your doctor on this. And a side note; for those of you who are listening and are like, well I don’t have type 2 diabetes, what does this mean for me? I’ve been sharing with everyone on tour stops; for those of you listening who are healthy. Or maybe you are a health coach, and this does not sound like your story; this is the kind of thing that you can share with others who are dealing with this. Because that is how we impact change, and how we encourage people to try something.

Because if you're generally healthy and you don’t have diabetes, it’s really hard for someone who has just been diagnosed, or who has been diagnosed as pre-diabetic. And we probably all have someone in our lives, whether directly or friend of a friend. It’s hard for them to hear from you, because you don’t understand what they’re going through. It’s not exactly peer reference. They want to hear from somebody who knows what they’re going through, and who knows the experience. And so, feel free to share Sherry’s story. I’m sure we will be sharing it in more detail probably on the blog over at www.21DaySugarDetox.com.

But I hope I make to Florida at some point, because I want to give her a big hug. I’m just so thrilled for her, and this is kind of the stuff I wake up for. For someone to get off of medications, it’s just; that is amazing. And high-five to Sherry.

Ok, so I want to give you guys one other little piece. This is a totally different note. This one was from Tracy. She said, “Now that I’ve completed day 14 of the detox, I found one gigantic takeaway. And it is a renewed appreciation for the power of spices. I truly believe I would not have been successful in this journey if I hadn’t embraced Diane’s brilliant uses of spices, and her stellar recipes. That, coupled with the journal nature of the book, which I do write in with pencil, feels like the ticket to success. Being able to connect with all of you in the supportive Facebook group; wow. Whether I just read the posts and do like I do every day, or ask questions and make comments, I feel so much more inspired and love the ideas and support. Yay, us!”

So, I just wanted to share a couple of different notes there. I’m absolutely loving that group. I love that you all are engaging there and supporting one another. I welcome anyone who is curious and interested to come join us there, as well. And I hope to see you inside there.

Liz Wolfe: The Balanced Bites podcast is sponsored in part by the Nutritional Therapy Association. The NTA trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants (including me; I’m an NTP), emphasizing bio-individuality and the range of dietary strategies that support wellness. The NTA emphasizes local, whole, properly prepared nutrient dense foods as the key to restoring balance and enhancing the body’s ability to heal. The NTA’s NTP and NTC programs empower graduates with the education and skills needed to launch a successful, fulfilling career in holistic nutrition. To learn lots more about the NTA’s nutritional therapy programs, go to http://www.NutritionalTherapy.com. Registration for our February NTP and NTC classes closes soon, so if you’ve been thinking about enrolling, now is the time. There are workshop venues in the US, Canada, and Australia, and a brand new NTC venue in Vancouver, Washington. So chances are you’ll be able to find a venue that works for you.

4. Listener questioner: coworkers and diet culture [16:21]

Liz Wolfe: Ok. So today we’re going to talk a little bit about diet culture, and negative body image, and what to do when you hear those around you beating themselves up about their appearance. This is very personal to me, and I seriously doubt she listens, so I’m just going to say it.

Someone closely related to me by marriage, when we facetime with this person with my daughter, who is 3, will always, always, always; one of the first things that she says is something negative about her appearance. “Oh, I look a little scary today. Oh, I look this and that.”

So, it’s as if it’s just, automatic. Engrained. Like, the second you see her, if she’s not fully made up, she has to comment about it. And I think about this all the time, because it’s really not something I want my daughter to be exposed to at 3 years old. Just this constant referencing of how rough you look. And it’s something that I really watch myself about, when I’m around my daughter. So I’m excited to have this conversation.

This is from Kara. “I hear my female coworkers, who are also some of my very best friends, constantly engaging in diet culture talk and habits. Neither are overweight, but both track every calorie, both in and out. And frequently mention needing to lose weight. They also beat themselves up if they eat something ‘bad’, and congratulate each other when they keep their daily calories under 1200.”

I just died inside.

“We are successful, professional women, and it bothers me how much focus is placed on being thin and eating as little as possible, and then bragging about it later. The negative comments about their appearance and weight are very difficult to hear. It’s also difficult to hear them complain about sleep quality, acne flareups, low energy, sugar cravings, etc. When I know how much they could benefit if they stepped away from the restrictive mindset and the 100-calorie packs. I’ve subtly recommended your podcast and all the books, but that’s it. I do not want to be that preachy paleo person, but it’s hard to see my friends struggle like this on a daily basis.

I’m very passionate about this because a couple of years ago, I did the 21DSD after watching a documentary about paleo, and it changed my life. Eating real food and changing my mindset helped me lose about 40 pounds and feel strong, confident, and energized. Is there a right way to approach this topic with my friends, or is it better to let them come to this realization on their own? Any tactful phrases or suggestions would be super appreciated.”

Well. Diane, I already kind of gave my why as to why this is an important conversation for me. So, the delineation that I’ve made in my life is; I don’t know that I would worry too much about stuff that’s happening between adults. I worry more about these things being impressed on children. I was at Whole Foods, a long time ago, but it stuck with me. And a mom and a dad and their daughter were all shopping together. The daughter was probably 7. I don’t know; I can’t tell the difference between 7 and 10 at this point.

But, the mom had so clearly had this conversation, or had talked about this in front of her daughter at other times. Because her daughter, as they were walking down the food aisle at Whole Foods was saying; isn’t your diet starting? Or, diet starts tomorrow, right? I don’t know. There was just a really; she was parroting all of these things that I think her mom had said to her.

And it was so, so sad. Because kids pick these things up. And it may not be at the front of their mind. They might not think to insult their own bodies. Maybe at that age, they probably will later on in life. But it becomes a; I don’t know what we’d call. A tributary for their narrative. So this is carving out roads in their consciousness that may not be used right away, but they’ll be used eventually as they grow. So from a very young age, these things matter. The words that we use with our; daughters especially, and I’m sure our sons too; really matter.

And I would imagine that this is happening at home, as well. I don’t know if these people have children or not. But if I were to say anything to people who are having these conversations, just as adult conversations, it would be to say something like; “You don’t talk like this around your daughter, right?” I mean, I think that would be completely and totally appropriate. It might not lead to the most smooth work environment, but I don’t know that I could help myself in a situation like that.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. I mean, when it comes to the adult conversation itself; if this were happening around me, to the extreme that she’s explaining it, I think there’s something that goes on where if you remain silent, you are somehow enabling that conversation. And I’m not saying it’s your fault, or you’re responsible for it. I am saying, if you don’t say anything but you continue to spend time with people who are like that, and you just are complacent in that conversation, then you have to know that by saying nothing, you're sort of agreeing in that moment with what they’re doing.

You and I do this all the time; you said something nice to me when we got on this zoom video, and I was like; oh, no it’s just a filter. Whatever. {laughs} We do this all the time where we joke around or we’re dismissive. And it is important to be aware of it. I know, because they’ve come up to me and to both of us at our Kansas City event. But, women in their 20s and 30s or even early 30s. I’m almost 40, and I remember what my mindset was like in my 20s and 30s. Or early 30s. {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: It’s still so impressionable. And it’s so important that we hold each other accountable and hold each other to a different standard as women. So even when we’re in a moment where we are maybe feeling like that’s a conversation that we want to have for real with each other. Like, I’m just not feeling comfortable right now, or something’s going on. I think you and I, Liz; the impact that we’re having with this show, a lot of young women are listening so it’s important that we have this conversation. That was the whole point of what I was saying there.

But, I do think I would have trouble staying in those conversations and interactions and feeling like I’m being genuine and real and true to myself if I remained silent about it. So, how to approach it? I don’t know for sure. Because first of all, I would definitely not approach as you against two of them. That’s never going to be a good way to do it.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: Because then it’s two against one, right? So they’re going to kind of gang up, and team up, and then you're out. So if you're going to say anything, I would be willing to bet that on a one on one basis with each of these women; or at least one of them. Pick the one that you think might actually not really like doing this more, and who feels. There’s probably one who is the ringleader more so than the other.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs} The queen bee.

Diane Sanfilippo: Right? What?

Liz Wolfe: The queen bee.

Diane Sanfilippo: Like which Heather. Yeah, the queen bee, the Heather. Whatever. It’s not like I’m saying, go to the weakest link or; what’s her name. Oh my god, where her hair is full of secrets. Gretchen Wiener.

Liz Wolfe: Gretchen. {laughing}

Diane Sanfilippo: You know, Gretchen Wiener. Getting Gretchen Wiener to crack. But really talk to one of them on a one on one basis, and wait for a moment where you sense that what she’s saying is, she doesn’t like doing this. She feels really bad. And she needs the help of a friend; real, solid support and advice in a moment. And open that conversation up in that moment. It’s probably not going to happen when you're all together.

Be honest, and be supportive and concerned. I would say, be careful around the language that you use. Not to tell her that what she’s doing is wrong, or be super judgmental. But finding a way to be nurturing and supportive around it. And speak from your own experience.

So when you say; let’s just say she’s talking about sleep quality and acne. Whatever. Any one of these things. You could say, “Well, something that worked really well for me when I was struggling with acne was actually making sure I’m getting enough calories. Because if I don’t get enough calories, my body is really stressed, and I notice that my acne flares up more when I’m stressed. I’ve been studying about nutrition for a long time, and I’ve heard that from a lot of other women. When they’re under a lot of stress, they break out more. Not eating enough can actually be a stressor.”

So, not sharing it in an overly medical way. Sharing it in a very personal way. Something that worked for you, or that you have friends who it worked for. That can actually, as I even said earlier about sharing 21-Day Sugar Detox stories. Sharing a personal story can be more helpful, even, than sharing a book or a podcast. Just in that moment, where it’s friend to friend. You know?

And I would say, too, knowing that you may need to have this conversation several times. Because there are people that I’m like; I did not think she was listening to me. And then two or three years later, somebody gave up gluten and felt a whole bunch better. Because I said it to her. Even though she wasn’t ready at the moment, she still heard it. Do you know what I mean? And so, your friends may not be ready in the moment. Or; {laughs} the Gretchen Wiener’s may not be ready to tell Regina George she’s not going to do this anymore. But she’ll still hear it. And if she knows that she has your support, then that’s really important.

And I just do think that you have a responsibility to say something; or alternatively, remove yourself from the situation. Because I think there’s something disingenuous about spending time around people who you just cannot stand the conversation. Do you know what I mean? Liz, you know. If I’m like; I don’t like what these people are talking about all the time, I’ll be like; I’m not spending time with them. I’ll just walk away.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: And I will not put myself in that situation. I would find new friends. We’ve talked about this for years. So those are my tips. I don’t think there’s one clear-cut way to approach it. I think it’s more about your own mindset in approaching it, and understanding that it needs to come from a really supportive, caring place. And again, one on one. Maybe it’s the Regina George who is actually {laughs} has a little; there’s an opening more there. Where she’s struggling, or lost her period, or something’s going on. You can get through to her. So I think you might need to wait for that moment.

But Jeeze. Eating under 1200 calories and tracking all of that stuff; that is just such an obsessive stressful place to be that I hope you can have this conversation at some point or remove yourself from it, and find some other female coworkers who; I mean, it says some of your very best friends. I don’t know. I mean, I need you to be around people who are in a different head space, you know?

Liz Wolfe: I mean, this is just a very yucky, co-dependent sounding situation.

Diane Sanfilippo: Enabling.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah. I mean, in college, I worked in Washington DC for a little bit. And I was not alone all the time, but I was not surrounded by friends at the time. And I kind of got into this; I found my worksheets, actually, a couple of years ago. And I still have them somewhere. These detailed, detailed, down to the calorie spreadsheets of everything I was eating. Fiber and all my six meals a day.

Diane Sanfilippo: I remember you told us about that.

Liz Wolfe: I think I’ve talked about it before. And I would never have felt; I would have felt ashamed, I think, showing that to somebody. I would have felt like crazy, or pathetic. I don’t know, on one side, of course, these things shouldn’t exist in the shadows. I guess it’s better when people are actually talking about them. But there’s also that other side, where you found somebody that will confirm and enable that behavior, it almost becomes harder to break through. But I love the idea that you floated about just waiting for that opportunity, because I think it will eventually come.

This whole discussion makes me think about; you and I have a friend, Kate Criswell who lost her love unexpectedly last year. She has a website now, LiveLargeLoveLoud.com. And she has been such; I hate to say an inspiration, that feels like the wrong word for what happened to her. But one of the things that she said that really struck me was; “When thinking about life, you're alive and you can. So go do something important. Something that matters. Something that inspires you.”

Sitting around and worrying about crap like this is a waste of life. And I think all of us, as we get older; maybe we see more loss, and more pain in our lives. It’s just; I hope that their worldview shifts over time. And they can see what a waste of life this is.

Diane Sanfilippo: Totally. And to the same point, if she’s seeing something that’s going on that’s really; if Kara is seeing this and not saying something, not at least trying to be that positive, supportive friend in a different way. I don’t know. I think that the most loving thing to do is to support people that way. Or to somehow tell them; look. This conversation that keeps happening between the two of you when we’re all together; it’s not positive for me. It’s not good for me. It doesn’t make me feel good, or happy. And it’s not something I want to talk about. This isn’t a place where I want to be.

And I know that that probably is not what she wants to hear, because it might mean that she has a time where she’s not engaging with these two girls. And that is hard. If they’re some of your best friends. But what’s the expression? You're the product or the average of the five people you spend the most time with, or something to that effect. And gosh; I don’t want two of those five to be this for you. It just requires a lot of self-examination. I don’t know; I wish her good luck in this conversation. And please come back and let us know what you decide to do and how you decide to have that conversation with at least one of them. Because I bet that will be the way to open the door. Is one person at a time.

Liz Wolfe: Yep.

Diane Sanfilippo: Today’s podcast is sponsored by Vital Choice seafood and organics. Purveyor of premium sustainably sourced seafood and a certified B corporation. Vital choice offers a wide range of fish, shellfish, humanely raised meat, protein rich bone broths, and paleo friendly snacks like organic dark chocolate, super antioxidant trail mix, and bison jerky. My favorites from Vital Choice are the king salmon, seaweed salad, and canned Ventresca tuna. And Liz’s favorites are the salmon and the tanner crab. Celebrate the new year and your health with premium seafood and organics from www.vitalchoice.com.

5. Travel hack: Humidifier [32:37]

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright. Well, I am going to jump in with a travel hack for this week. Because obviously I’ve been traveling a ton. And I think that we can give you guys different little hacks each week.

So, I want to talk about my travel humidifier. Some of you probably saw me post about it in my Instagram story. I spent probably about four to five days before I left on tour literally hunkered down in the house, totally worried that I was getting sick because I felt it. We all have a different tell, when you're getting sick. I hit that energy brick wall where I’m like; oh no. {laughs} Like, in the middle of the day I just feel; I feel it take over. And I’m like; why am I so sluggish all of a sudden?

Also, just kind of a tickle in my throat. I feel like my glands feel a little swollen. And that’s kind of what starts it for me. So, I have noticed that turning the humidifier on is imperative to me not getting either or sick or a full-blown crazy inflamed sinus infection. Because that’s kind of what always happens to me. So I was really on top of it with the humidifier at home. But then, I have a travel humidifier, and I swear, that thing saved me. Knock on wood, I did not get sick on this tour. And I cannot believe it. With all the airplanes, and all the people I was around; I feel like all of the remedies I’ve talked about before on the show. But the humidifier is absolutely critical for me. And I think you guys would love it. It’s also something that you could do at home if you don’t want to get a big one, to just test it out.

But I think; Liz, you have a humidifier at home that you have been loving. What is the one that you have? You said something about the lights turning off?

Liz Wolfe: Oh gosh. Yes, and now you're putting me on the spot. So I am not remembering what it’s called. But my number one priority with humidifier; it blows my mind that this is not more readily available. Is that all the lights turn off.

Diane Sanfilippo: I can’t even… yeah.

Liz Wolfe: Like the display lights, and the internal basin lights. I do not understand how people sleep with bright shiny lights in their; I have to turn off everything in my room. Anyway, so that’s my priority. And this one does. All the lights will turn off, and it has a pretty good moisture output. And I am going to have to check my Amazon list {laughs} to see exactly which one that was.

Diane Sanfilippo: I think I put one that I’ve used at home on my favorites page on my website. And it does have lights on the front panel; but it’s really easy. I have a box from some item that I just stick right in front of it and it totally covers the lights. And I could easily cover that with some kind of; I don’t know, a T-shirt or something. Just ball it up and stick it right in front of it. So it’s pretty easy to cover that.

The travel one that I have does have this bright blue light in it. Which I’m like; listen. If we’re going to have a light, why is it also blue? But the company makes this little shield, I guess, that goes over the spout that I think is supposed to block the light, and I will report back. Supposedly they’re sending me one, but I think you can just buy it right on Amazon, also.

The brand of the small one I have; I don’t know how to pronounce it. It’s Boneco. It’s a Swiss company. The output of water is amazing. And that’s really important to me. I’ll put a little face towel on the edge of the bed in the hotel so it doesn’t get too damp right there on the bed. But it definitely puts out a lot of moisture, and that’s super important to me, too. So any humidifier we can find, if you have to find a way to block the lights out. But it’s better than not.

Or, you could turn it on in your bedroom for several hours before you go to sleep, at least, and then turn it off if you need to. So if you have one at home, and you haven’t used it, and you're like; but this has so many lights. Turn it on, 4 or 5 o’clock in the afternoon. Let it get your whole room up to a humidity level that’s going to be better than nothing.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, good tip. I’ve used electric tape to cover the display of different electronics. It depends on what the electronic looks like, as to whether it’s easy to cover or not. I found the humidifier that we use is the Avalon 5-liter Ultrasonic digital humidifier. It’s got; let’s see, at least 6 buttons.

Diane Sanfilippo: It sounds fancy.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, it does. It always goes out of stock on Amazon. And I found another one that I used for a while that I don’t know how great the moisture output is. But this is a combination humidifier and space heater. That probably sounds like a really major electrical hazard of some kind.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} That sounds like my dream.

Liz Wolfe: But the display is totally red. And I actually remember liking it. It’s probably in our basement now. It’s a 1500 quartz infrared heater, humidifier, plasma inverter, air purifier. I have no idea if it actually does all those things. But I did like that one, as well.

Diane Sanfilippo: Well I will say the buttons on the machine I have at home; they are like an orange light, so at least it’s not green or blue or something brighter. So it’s not the worst. But I do always cover it. So, yeah. Let us know what humidifier you love. {laughs} That would be amazing, if we could get all kinds of recommendations. Whether it’s a travel one or not. Definitely would love to hear about that.

Liz Wolfe: That’s it for this week then. You can find me, Liz, at http://realfoodliz.com/ and you can find Diane at http://dianesanfilippo.com. Join our email lists for free goodies and updates that you don’t find anywhere else on our website or on the podcast. While you’re on the internet, leave us an iTunes review. See you next week.