Dr. Elena Villanueva is an international speaker, health influencer, & co-author of The Longevity Code. She teaches evidence based approaches for finding & treating the underlying causes of chronic illness & brain related conditions. Dr. V’s unique approach incorporates the merging of science and spirituality & the integration of the mind/body/spirit.
As seen on…
Elena is the producer and host of the Mental Health Masterclass, Inflammation Masterclass, Mastering Trauma Masterclass, The Leaky Brain Summit, Your Brain & Mental Health: What They Aren’t Telling You, and the all new Beyond The Pill Masterclass, plus the TribeTalk Podcast. Find information on these topics and more relevant to your health and holistic healing at ModernHolisticHealth.com.
If you have this, it doubles your risk of major depressive disorder
In our recent masterclass, “Your Brain and Mental Health: What they’re not telling you” we showed you the most common causes of brain-related symptoms, conditions, and diseases, and what solutions are actually working to reverse and heal from these conditions.
But did you also know that insulin resistance can also lead to some serious brain-related conditions and other chronic diseases as well?
Insulin resistance has become rampant not just in the United States, but around the globe, as people around the world have adopted the Standard American Diet. It’s literally killing people, but not the way you might think.
Most diseases don’t start as the disease itself but rather as something completely different. Minor symptoms seemingly unrelated that, in reality, are warning signs telling you that you are heading in the direction of XYZ condition or disease.
One of these gateways to chronic disease, mental health disorders, neurodegenerative disease, and even cancer is known as insulin resistance.
While statistics show that 40 percent of all adults now have insulin resistance, what we are seeing clinically is that over 60% of our clients all have insulin resistance when they first come to us seeking help. Even more alarming, doctors and health providers are now seeing insulin resistance (and type 2 diabetes) in children as young as 9 years old!
While the major contributors to insulin resistance are excess weight from excessive intake of sugars and carbohydrates and lack of physical activity, we have also seen in our clinical studies that environmental toxins, toxic mold, stress, trauma, and lack of quality sleep are also playing a major factor.
Experts also say that obesity, especially excess fat around the waist, is a primary cause of insulin resistance. Scientists used to think that fat tissue functioned solely as energy storage, however, more recent research is showing that belly fat causes a cascade effect of major hormone imbalance that creates the perfect storm for leading to serious health problems such as type 2 diabetes, cysts and nodules on the thyroid, neurodegenerative diseases like Dementia, high blood pressure, imbalanced cholesterol, cardiovascular disease, and even major depressive disorder.
Excess belly fat not only paves the way for developing a host of serious chronic diseases, it also causes a dangerous cascade of long-lasting inflammation in the body and brain. Chronic inflammation can damage the body over time without any signs or symptoms. Complex interactions in fat tissue draw immune cells to the area and trigger low-level chronic inflammation.
Physical Inactivity
Physical inactivity is a common root cause that is associated with insulin resistance and often leads to type 2 diabetes. In the body, our muscles collectively use more glucose than any other tissues. Normally active muscles burn their store of glucose for energy and refill their reserves with glucose taken from the bloodstream, keeping the blood glucose levels in balance.
Studies show that after exercising, muscles become more sensitive to insulin, reversing insulin resistance and lowering blood glucose levels. Exercise also helps muscles absorb more glucose without the need for insulin. The more muscle a body has, the more glucose it can burn to control blood glucose levels.
Other causes…
Thriving During the Gluten Free Holidays
by Ann Hutyra, Certified Gluten Practitioner and Lead Biological Health Coach
I remember dreading my first gluten free holiday season. I was newly diagnosed as a Celiac, and had realized just how sensitive I was to gluten, and how unwell it made me feel. I don’t think I ate much that holiday season, as I went in with the mentality of “I can’t get sick if I don’t eat.” That approach worked, but it was no fun. If you grew up anything like me, then Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year celebrations all tended to blend together every year into a two-month-long smorgasbord of culinary delights.
I grew up in a Czech-American family, so I had a classic Thanksgiving dinner like every other American – turkey and all the sides, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes with baked mini marshmallows on top. The stuffing was always made from homemade bread that my grandma would leave sitting out for days ahead of time, loosely covered in dish towels so it could get a stale crust. But my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner was by far the dessert table (Yes, table.) My mother would always make multiple desserts, including pecan pies using pecans we grew ourselves. (She went on to teach me and my brothers how to make the famous Hutyra Family Pecan Pie which I would later healthify!) She would also make pumpkin bread, peanut butter balls, and a few other sweets, all of which would get added to the countless other desserts that the other women in my family brought to show off.
For Christmas, we always had a classic Czech Christmas Eve celebration with homemade chicken noodle soup, my grandma’s glazed ham, and again an entire table of sweets including Czech pastries like kolaches and poppy seed strudel. My mom was always in charge of the sugar cookies she made from scratch, and would make at least 10 dozen to take to the various holiday parties we attended. (My aunts were known to fight over the last few, or sneak away a plate to hide and take home later!) For New Year’s Eve, it was always black-eyed pea soup and these delicious crackers my mom called “firecrackers,” which were saltines drizzled in oil with red pepper flakes and ranch seasoning.
My Favorite Czech Christmas Cookie Recipe (A Gluten Free Version!)
by Ann Hutyra, Certified Gluten Practitioner and Lead Biological Health Coach
Most of our clients find themselves being very mindful about food around the holidays. While the vast majority of the food offerings this time of year are unhealthy – it IS possible to make healthy versions of your favorites, so you don’t miss out!
Growing up in a Czech family, the holidays were always full of delicious, baked-from-scratch pastries. The Czech culture is most known for kolaches, which are fruit-filled pastries, as well as strudel, buchta (coffee cake), and a whole variety of different styles of cookies. As you can imagine, it’s ALL filled with gluten. So when I had to go gluten-free eleven years ago, in order to get healthy, I had to leave all of these traditional foods behind.
Over the years I have worked to convert most of the recipes I grew up with, to healthier versions that I share today with my own family. Here is one of my favorite Christmas cookies – the Czech Vanilkove Rohlicky, or Vanilla Crescents. While these cookies are traditionally formed into crescent shapes, I like to keep mine round. I hope you enjoy it!
Czech Vanilkove Rohlicky (Vanilla Crescents)
Ingredients:
My Favorite Essential Oils for the Holidays and Diffuser Blend Recipes
by Ann Hutyra, Certified Gluten Practitioner and Lead Biological Health Coach
To me, nothing smells better than freshly baked gingerbread cookies or cinnamon rolls coming out of the oven on a cold December morning. But how often do I get the opportunity to make those from scratch? Not often! So when I want my home to smell like I just spent all day baking, without the hassle – I take out my essential oils.
I love using essential oils all year round especially during the holiday season. Not only do they smell wonderful, but there are some pretty amazing benefits to this season’s favorite oils. Check out my favorite winter oils below, as well as some ways you can use them this holiday season. It’s always recommended to use high-quality essential oils, and not your cheap drugstore brands, which can be full of toxic chemicals. Here at MHH, we love Doterra brand oils!
I hope you enjoy these essential oil blends as much as I do. Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season!
Cinnamon – The use of cinnamon can be traced back to biblical times and was used heavily by the ancient Egyptians. Cinnamon can be used internally to help balance blood sugar, as immune support during cold and flu season, and for your oral health.
Clove – Clove is a powerful antioxidant! You can apply to the bottoms of your feet for liver and brain support, dilute and apply over the thyroid to support metabolism or apply along your spine to help fight off a cold or virus.
White Fir – White fir was often used by the Native Americans to treat respiratory problems. Diffusing white fir can help with chest congestion, it also helps fight airborne germs, and naturally helps with stress and brain fog.
Douglas Fir – Douglas Fir is considered the classic Christmas tree in North America. Applying Douglas Fir oil to the throat and chest can help alleviate a cough, massaging into the skin can help with muscle and joint pain, and applying to your temples can help you relax and ground.
Secrets of Biohacking with Dr. Tom Moorecroft
What is Biohacking? Imagine being a personal scientist for your own body and mind, experimenting with ways to enhance how you feel, think, heal, and live. It’s about optimizing every aspect of your life for the better!
Whether you’re new to the concept of Biohacking or a seasoned enthusiast, this episode offers fresh insights and groundbreaking ideas you won’t want to miss!
My special guest today is Dr. Tom Moorcroft: Not only is he a leading expert in managing complex health issues like Lyme Disease and mycotoxin illness, but he’s also an embodiment of an active, healthy lifestyle. With over 200 days of skiing yearly and a passion for downhill mountain biking, Dr. Moorcroft practices what he preaches!
And as promised, here are the two links to Dr. Tom Moorcroft’s programs.
Winter Viral Protocol for Respiratory Infections (including C-0v!d)
Do you know what supplement protocols can work on viral patterns? Dr. V and Ann discuss the latest holistic protocols and resources that can be used to help combat viruses.
If you want discounted access to this protocol for Winter respiratory infections, click here: https://us.fullscript.com/
Get Inspired and Take Action on Your Health!
It takes the belief that you CAN heal, and sometimes we just need inspiration. I invite you to check out these stories of our clients whose lives have been transformed so that you can see that YOU TOO can have the same transformation in your health and your life! Check out these stories from clients and be inspired.
“Sleep Is Life Changing!”
I started my brain and body restoration program with MHH in July 2022. The #1 problem on my symptom sheet was lack of sleep. I had not had a full night of sleep for more than a decade. Can you imagine life with only 3-6 hours of sleep every night!! 5 weeks into the program I had 4 consecutive nights of sleeping 8-9 hours. Each morning I felt so energetic and thankful for this miracle to happen! Now a full night of sleep is commonplace for me. Thanks to Dr. V & everyone on the MHH team. Give MHH a try, they are here to improve your mental and physical health.
Cathy S., December 2022
Someone Stopped The Merry-Go-Round
I’d like to share a BIG win since joining your program! Rosita’s lesson in Month 2 where she shares several exercises… I have done sooooo many different techniques from SFQG (Qi Gong) to HBL (Higher Brain Living) to Energy Reset Points…
This simple exercise Rosita teaches is a gem of a charm – what did I feel? Within a minute I could feel an easing up, a loosening, relaxing into all of my muscles, soft tissue, connective tissue, brain and body – truly felt like someone stopped the ‘merry-go-round’ and I got off… and I did not even know I was on it! Huge gratitude to Rosita and this brilliant program!
Roxanne, November 2023
This month’s featured program is a part of my mission to spread lifesaving truths around the world. Together we can help as many people as possible to get their health back, their lives back, and live their lives with all the love, joy, health, and vitality they desire.
Remember, your health is in YOUR hands. So join me for some TV viewing time in the evenings to watch this month. Let’s kick up our feet, relax, learn how to be our own guarantee in life, and let’s thrive and heal together!
Dr. Elena Villanueva
Harvard Researcher and Acclaimed Lifestyle Expert Share Their Anti-Aging Secrets
We live in an age of unprecedented abundance. Never before have so many people had access to food, shelter, and basic safety.
And yet, our life expectancy is getting SHORTER…
The opposite should be true, but there are hidden causes of early aging that most people are unaware of — from nutritional deficiencies to environmental toxins to unhealed emotional trauma and stress…
On one hand, aging is just a beautiful part of life that holds many personal teachings for us to learn and mature from. On the other hand, there are some very effective anti-aging secrets that can have a big impact on whether you are living your best and most beautiful life — or limping along from day to day.
To empower you with the most effective anti-aging secrets ever discovered, my friends Debra Poneman and Ronnie Newman have created a FREE masterclass called Ageless that is well worth checking out.
Debra is a world-renowned lifestyle expert — tens of thousands have benefitted from her knowledge and techniques on how to live a long and vibrant life filled with happiness, self-love, abundance, and success. And Ronnie is an award-winning Harvard-trained mind/body researcher with decades of experience lecturing and teaching around the world. Ronnie has been published in numerous peer-reviewed journals on the power of meditation, the breath, and other modalities to decrease stress and increase happiness, clarity, and longevity — and slow down and even reverse mental and physical decline. An award-winning Harvard researcher. Together they are a powerhouse of anti-aging information.
Click here for all the details and to sign up now
While it’s wonderful to be young, your middle and later years can — and should — be the greatest years of your life with health, vitality, and deep meaning!
I hope you will tune into this powerful masterclass!
Save Your Teeth and Save Your Money, Embrace Holistic Dentistry
We have made incredible strides in reclaiming natural methods in conventional medicine. Diet, herbs, gut health, acupuncture, positive outlook, homeopathy, meditation, yoga, light therapy, and more are techniques that are frequently being incorporated into standard medical practices.
But what about dentists?
While there has been tremendous innovation in materials and technology, dentistry (for the most part) is still stuck in the 1950s model of “drill, fill, and get to the next patient as quickly as possible.” These dentists treat your teeth like they’re stand-alone objects that have nothing to do with the rest of your body or health.
But there are a few brave dentists who recognize how connected your entire health is to your teeth. And these rare dentists are creating whole new models of dental health care.
I am so excited to share this video with you today, as it goes over 5 great questions you can ask your dentist and learn how to find one that you can trust.
I urge you to take 4 minutes to watch this interview with Dr. Michelle Jorgensen, so you can find one of those rare gems out there who are pushing the practice of dentistry into the realm of holistic healing… something that is so exciting to me and so essential to our overall health.
Click here to watch Dr. Michelle’s short interview now
You will also have access to a full Holistic Dental Webinar for free! Which I also encourage you to register for… it’s full of vital information such as how to never have cavities again (naturally), which herbs support teeth and dental health, what causes receding gums and how to reverse this, options for dealing with a dead tooth, and holistic techniques for whitening at home.
This is all invaluable information that can save your dental health and your pocketbook!
Save Money And Stay On Top Of Your Health With Our Massive Holiday Sale!
When it comes to your health, prevention is always the best investment. I know how hard it is out there… inflation doesn’t really care about your health, does it? But we certainly do! That is why we’re offering huge discounts over the holidays on every single thing we do here at Modern Holistic Health. Now is the time to save BIG on everything from one-on-one health coaching and health programs to labs and supplements. Give yourself the gift of health this holiday season.
Here is a breakdown:
This is the time to truly invest in your health! We only offer these kinds of discounts once a year and I hope you will take advantage of each and every one of them.c
(For established clients)
This appointment type should only be made for an established client. (After you have had your initial/first visit completed).
Not sure WHO to book with? No Problem! Here at MHH we have an AMAZING team of coaches and EVERY ONE OF OUR COACHES can help you with ANY of your conditions, so just pick the one that has availability on the day and time that works best for you.
This package contains 12 Biological Coaching Visits at 30 minutes each. Purchasing this package can save you 10% vs. if you purchased 12 sessions individually.
Using the combined modalities of EFT tapping, Resonance Repatterning, Color, Light, and Sound, this visit type addresses:
• Anxiety • Depression • Fear • Mind racing • Feelings of anger • Feelings of hopelessness • and more…
This unique approach can address and resolve emotional trauma, present or past, that has been locked into the physical body’s memory, often below the realm of conscious thought. Our bodies replay these memories at different times, and they can adversely affect our health especially in times of great stress and uncertainty.
These packages contain 12 Brain & Emotional Repatterning visits of 60 minutes or 90 minutes each. Purchasing either of these packages will save you 15% as compared to purchasing individual sessions
Not feeling well and looking for help with your condition, diagnosis, or symptoms that won’t go away no matter what you have tried? Our holistic biological health coaches can help you! Our coaches teach you how your body works, what the underlying cause of your condition or symptoms are, and how to fix and address them using long-term solutions that are data-driven and that work!
Our holistic biological health coaches have a deep understanding of advanced functional testing and genetics testing, along with much experience in complex cases.
Our biological coaching team works with you to empower and teach you how to understand and interpret your lab results, what your results mean, how they are connected to your health conditions or symptoms, and most importantly, what to do with the information, how to put protocols together based on your lab results, and when to reorder your various labs to track progress.
You will become your own healing master learning how to navigate the healing process, how to modify your protocols, when and how to detoxify your organs and cells from the toxins discovered on your lab results. You will learn the importance of tracking your assessment forms and symptom sheets and how to troubleshoot your healing process.
In addition, you have the opportunity to learn how to understand YOUR genetic blueprint – Our coaches are trained in the field of epigenetics and understand implicitly that YOU are in control of your own gene expression and how your genes either work for or against you. If you choose to add genetic testing into your program, your genetic blueprint information can be used not only to help drive your plan of action for healing, but also it can be used to understand your body’s unique nutrition, lifestyle, sleeping, eating, and physical activity needs are so that you can optimize once you are healed.
Get help from our functional nutrition coaches who understand that there is no ONE diet that is right for everyone. Our nutrition coaches work hand in hand with our biological coaches so if you need any lab work done or specific protocols that would require supplement protocols, you have a team working on your behalf and your nutrition coach would make recommendations for which other team coaches would be able to help you.
Your coaches will teach and empower you to learn how to determine and navigate your diet modifications which are decided based on your extensive intake forms, history, and your lab data that your coaches may want to order for you. Based on all of this information, they will teach you what foods to eat and not eat according to various conditions and why.
Your functional nutrition coach will help you learn what substitutes you can use when there are certain foods you may need to stop eating for a period of time, how to put your meals together based on your dietary needs per your lab data, how and when to incorporate gut repair protocols, and what lifestyle modifications you want to address based on your labs and your health conditions.
Nutritional coaching can be a great tool by itself or combined with coaching from our biological coaches. You can schedule with either our biological or nutrition coaches and they can help you get started and make recommendations as needed.
Many people who have successfully mentored with our nutrition coaches have had past issues such as:
Mindset, past and present traumas, and limiting belief systems are some of the biggest barriers to healing, so much in fact that gene expression and biological ‘engines’ of the human body can change for the worse because of it.
In the many years, we have been working in the field of holistic medicine, helping people who have tried everything else with no success or little success, we have discovered how great of an impact our thoughts, beliefs, and past and present trauma, and chronic stress can be to the human body, mind, and spirit.
The rate of recovery and healing for those who place emphasis on creating new neurological pathways to imprint new and healthy mindsets and belief systems in how they perceive themselves and the world around them is greatly improved when the psychological aspect of mindset and integration of mind, body, the spirit is addressed through repatterning of the mind and body neurology.
By removing barriers discovered from traumas, mindset, and conscious/unconscious patterns that are not congruent for healing, health, and vitality, you set yourself up for the best outcomes in your healing journey. Healing only occurs when the physical, emotional, and mental barriers to healing are removed.
Therefore we incorporate mind, body, spirit integration work into our programs and in doing so, we see exponential increases in positive outcomes with our clients. We have put together the most comprehensive ‘whole person’ approach in the world, and this is why our results are so successful.
Our Emotional Processing, Stress Release, & Neurological Repatterning coaches work with you to create new neurological connections, anchor new neurology, and habits, and show you how to become aware of any conscious or unconscious belief systems that may be holding you back from healing and total health.
You are welcome to try one or two appointments to see what you think. We typically recommend a minimum of 6 sessions to make an accurate assessment of how this type of modality is working for you.
Here are some of the modalities our Emotional Processing, Stress Release, & Neurological Repatterning coaches use for brain and body repatterning:
Breathwork is more than just a simple exercise of intentional breathing. Specialized breathwork techniques are used to facilitate major transformation and healing by encompassing a wide range of therapeutic practices that are extremely powerful in providing immediate relief for pulling people out of fight or flight (the amygdala hijack we teach about in Part 2 of our Mastering Trauma Masterclass).
This vagus nerve activation through breath work activates the rest/digest (parasympathetic nervous system), stimulates healing, reduces blood pressure, reduces the cortisol stress response, regulates hormone and blood glucose activity, and heart rate variability (the biological stress response). It rewires the body for self-regulation of the nervous system in a manner that optimizes the body and creates resilience in times of stress.
Yoga breath therapy allows you to disconnect from the mind chatter, mind racing, and negative self-talk and reconnect with your body your energy. From this elevated state of awareness, you are able to facilitate healing, growth, and expansion. And if you are looking for some expansion of your body/mind/spirit awareness, then this type of breathwork can be nourishing and can facilitate the next layer of peace, love, gratitude, connection, clarity, and insights.
In the many years, we have been working in the field of holistic medicine, helping people who have tried everything else with no success or little success, we have discovered how great of a damaging impact our thoughts, beliefs, and past and present trauma, and chronic stress (the fight or flight response) can be to the human body, mind, and spirit.
By becoming aware of how to regulate our own nervous system, and resolve traumas, mindset, and conscious/unconscious patterns that are not congruent for healing, health, and vitality, you set yourself up for the best outcomes in your healing journey. Healing only occurs when the physical, emotional, and mental barriers to healing are removed.
The rate of recovery and healing for those who place emphasis on:
….. Find much success and amplification in their healing journey.
🎁 Holiday Sale 🎁
🎉 Black Friday Special 🎉