Victoria O'Sullivan Naturopath Interview

Victoria O'Sullivan Naturopath Interview

Victoria O'Sullivan (BHSc; Dip Naturopathy) is a leading Sydney-based naturopath with 14 years' experience in the wellness industry. In her Sydney practice, Victoria runs programs to assist patients to achieve weight loss, hormonal balance, reduced stress, optimum nutritional levels, relieve pain and beat tiredness. From her teenage years, Victoria played a pivotal role in establishing and operating O'Sullivan Health Foods, her family-owned chain of Sydney health-food stores.

As a naturopath, Victoria has been exposed to every fad, product and idea that promises miracles but has, in fact, provided lack-lustre results for myriad disappointed Australians. She can bust common myths about wellness, uncover the fads that don't provide results, and demystify hard-to-understand health concepts.

Question: It's more common for Australians to utter "I'm tired" than anything else. Why are we all so tired?

Victoria O'Sullivan: A cause that's commonly overlooked is poor digestive function, leading to insufficient uptake of nutrients from our food. For example, our digestive system manufactures vitamin B12, but it needs the right bacteria and environment to do this. Sugar, stress, antibiotics and processed foods can create an unfavourable environment. If we include fermented foods - such as yoghurt, sauerkraut, Kim Chee and miso - in our eating plans we can help re-establish harmony in our digestive systems.


Question: How does poor liver health affect us?

Victoria O'Sullivan: We associate liver dysfunction with cholesterol, triglycerides and fatty liver. But if we are experiencing migraines or headaches; weight gain around the middle; difficulty sleeping between 11pm and 3am; blood sugar irregularities leading to peaks and troughs in our energy and mood throughout the day; or hormonal symptoms such as period pain, these could also be signs of an unhealthy liver - even though our blood tests may be clear.


Question: Can you provide your natural 10-Step Program to a Healthy Liver?

Victoria O'Sullivan:

Start the day with a glass of filtered water with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice: This helps to alkalise the body. As the lemon juice hits the stomach it will get the digestive system moving, flushing out the liver.

Reduce saturated fats: such as dairy and red meat - in your diet. The more saturated fats, the harder the liver has to work. By reducing saturated fats, we take the load off the liver. Three serves of red meat per week are adequate.

Eliminate toxic fats from the diet: such as processed vegetable oils that are oxidised, margarines and deep fried food - as these inflame the liver and contribute to weight gain. By eliminating toxic fats the liver is able to work more efficiently.

Choose your cooking oils wisely: The best high-temperature cooking oil is coconut oil. Cooking, for instance, olive oil at high temperatures can create oxidation, which slows down liver function. This can lead to an increase in cholesterol and weight gain.

Consume lots of raw vegetables: I encourage all my clients to measure out 6-7 cups of vegetables a day to get an idea of how much we need daily. By focusing on bitter green leafy vegetables such as watercress, rocket, and endive we really stimulate the liver. Another vegetable to focus on is the cabbage family, such as broccoli, as it is high in indoles which are excellent for maintaining hormonal balance.

Consume berries daily: They are rich in antioxidants and plant nutrients such as vitamin c and are low on sugar.

Take a break from alcohol and coffee now and again: Dandelion root tea is a great liver cleanser and can replace your morning hot drink.

Eliminate processed sugar: Limit your sugar intake to 2 pieces of fruit a day.

Consume good-quality protein: from eggs, raw nuts, seeds, poultry, lean red meat, legumes, fish.

Request a functional liver detoxification profile test from your naturopath: This test delivers safe doses of caffeine, aspirin and paracetamol to assess your liver's detoxification function.


Question: Is acid-alkaline balance really a key factor in preventing disease?

Victoria O'Sullivan: The analogy I use here is too much acid in the body is like putting diesel in an unleaded petrol car. When acid builds up, we can start to experience headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, or women can experience problems with their menstrual cycle. While they aren't life-threatening stuff, these symptoms hold us back from experiencing optimum health, energy and vigour. If left unchecked, however, the gauge can go into the red zone.


Question: What does stress do to our body and health?

Victoria O'Sullivan: Stress is a massive issue in our society and it has the capacity to have a very negative impact on our health, particularly the type of stress that makes us feel like our options are limited and our perceptions and outlook are affected. When we feel stressed our nervous system is affected and we can have trouble sleeping. This can contribute significantly to hormonal cascade, and burn through our vitamin B, making us more tired. It also affects our blood sugar, making us crave sugar which can lead to weight gain.


Question: How are stress and food allergies related?

Victoria O'Sullivan: Chronic stress can throw our immune system into a state of "alarm", weakening it, which can, in turn, trigger food allergies. Just how anxiety can make us overwhelmed and sensitive, continued distress on the immune system can cause it to overreact when we eat normal harmless substances such as milk, or bread (wheat). Our bodies react to those substances as harmful, triggering the onset of allergic reactions.

Question: Do you have tips for Australians to 'stress-less'?

Victoria O'Sullivan: Breathe: When we get stressed our breath shortens, which increases anxiety - in turn, keeping us in a stressed state.
Meditate: This calms our brain cells and our response to stress.
Have a positive mindset: Saying to ourselves positive mantras such as "Whenever I am under the pump the best of me comes out" may help us to feel less overwhelmed.
Get plenty of sleep: Try to get regular sleep from 10pm to help you drop into correct sleep rhythms.
Stop the caffeine. : It's like a shot gun to your nervous system, keeping you in the stress response.
Exercise: It will expend the excess stress hormones circulating in the body and release endorphins, which helps our perception and mood.


Question: Why is sugar so, so bad for us?

Victoria O'Sullivan: Sugar releases insulin into the bloodstream and insulin is a fat-storing hormone, which contributes to weight gain (particularly around the middle) if the energy is not utilised. Weight gain around the middle increases the fat around our vital organs, placing us in a higher risk category for metabolic disorders such as diabetes and heart disease. Overconsuming sugar can also create a yeast overgrowth in our digestive systems, causing symptoms such as thrush, bloating, headaches and constipation.


Question: What is the Paeolithic Diet and how does it help our bodies?

Victoria O'Sullivan: The Paeolithic diet - also known as the "caveman diet" - refers to the ancestral human diet and consists mainly of fish, grass-fed raised meats, vegetables, fruit, roots and nuts. It's a diet free from processed foods such as sugar, grains, dairy and vegetable oils.

Our human biochemistry takes thousands of years to create a shift and our bodies are not "programmed" to eat sugar and processed foods. If we live by a Paeolithic diet we are feeding our body the foods it expects and thus feeding it the right information. This way our metabolism works for us and not against us.


Question: What is a typical days food menu look like, for you?
Victoria O'Sullivan: 6.30am - I start the day with a glass of filtered water with 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.
7:00am - My breakfast consists of organic yoghurt, pea protein power, acai berry powder, chia seeds, fresh blueberries, green tea
10am - For a morning snack I have a boiled egg and cucumber
1:00pm - Lunch is Fish, salad and brown rice or quinoa, and green tea
4:00pm - My afternoon snack is a ¼ cup of nuts, an apple and a drink with vital greens and magnesium powder
7.00pm - For dinner I have either a chicken and veg combination, or baked salmon and stir-fried greens.



Interview by Brooke Hunter