Today, I am delighted to have Maria Emmerich joining me. Maria is a nutritionist who specializes in the ketogenic diet and exercise physiology. She struggled with her health and weight throughout childhood. That led her to become such a passionate nutrition expert. “My goal is to help transform people’s lives and start living again!” Maria specializes in brain neurotransmitters and how food can increase mental wellness. Her expertise has sent her around the world speaking about ketogenic diets. She has also cooked with Halle Berry and writes for Halle’s website. Twenty-three years ago, Maria was twice her size, and she had some serious issues going on. The doctor told her she had PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome), which is type-2 diabetes that affects female fertility. She also had acid reflux, depression, and IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). The doctor told her she was doing nothing wrong. Those were just the cards she was dealt.  She took her dog to the vet the same week because it was losing its hair, and the first question he asked her was what she was feeding it. When she changed the dog’s diet, its hair grew back. That got her thinking, so she started doing some research. She discovered that PCOS was caused by too much caffeine, sugar, and carbohydrates, which was what she was living on. She was only sixteen at the time, but she started making some dietary changes. Be sure to join us today to hear Maria’s inspiring story and find what she has to say about healing yourself with the food you eat. IN THIS EPISODE YOU WILL LEARN: Maria shares her background story. The journey towards health and wellness does not happen overnight. Some aspects evolve and shift over a lifetime. Maria discusses how she discovered the benefits of the ketogenic diet and what motivated her to stick to it. Why you should avoid processed foods even if they claim to be ketogenic. What makes women different. Some of the mistakes Maria sees women making when they come to keto that cause them to assume that keto is not working. Maria has a free macro calculator on her website. Maria talks about what alcohol does to our bodies and sleep patterns. Maria shares her thoughts on bioidenticals versus supplementation, as women make the transition from being fertile to perimenopause to menopause. Maria talks about the protein-sparing fast and shares some strategies for fasting successfully. Connect with Cynthia Thurlow Follow on Twitter, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia’s website Connect with Maria Emmerich On her ketomaria.com On her Keto-adapted website On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Maria’s free e-book