The best healing and wellness support system we have is Nature. Yes, Mother Nature! 

Here is the latest edition of 1 thing I’m doing, 2 things I’ve learnt and 3 things to explore lovingly created so you can live a happier, healthier and longer life. Much love, Sandy xx

1 Thing I’m Doing 

Listening to the World Around Me

Some people jump on every bandwagon. I think they call them early adopters. While I’d say I’m quick to learn and assess something new, I wouldn’t describe myself as someone who rushes out to buy the latest new and shiny gadget. And honestly, that’s probably a good thing.

In fact, one of my go to pieces of advice for my kids is: “If everyone’s doing it, that’s a sign to pause and think twice.” Following the masses is not my style.

And lately, this mindset has been paying off…

Noise-cancelling headphones may be rewiring young brains, experts warn

A series of articles released this week warned about the potential risks of noise cancelling headphones and earbuds. Much to my teenage son’s dismay (my daughter couldn’t care less about them), I’ve never allowed him to use them – despite the endless pleas and reminders that “95% of the boys at school have them”, and “they’re so cool.”

Well, turns out Mama may be right (again). The latest research on these devices isn’t looking good.

What is Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)?

Audiologists are sounding the alarm. It seems blocking out ambient noise may mess with your brain’s ability to process sound naturally.

The concern? A condition called auditory processing disorder (APD), is where the brain struggles to interpret sounds and speech, even when the person’s hearing itself is perfectly fine.

This is most worrying for young people, whose brains are still developing (until their late teens), but can affect everyone. By creating a near silent bubble during these crucial years, we could be stunting their ability to distinguish important sounds from background noise.

In summary, if all you ever hear is just your playlist or podcast, your brain might start forgetting how to filter out all the other sounds around you.

The False Sound Environment Created By Big Tech

It seems big tech has created yet another artificial environment – one where we only hear what we want to hear. The problem with this is our brains stop working as hard to process sound, leading to something called listening loss.

Listening loss is like changing your brain’s natural encryption. Even if we can control what we hear now, we might not be able to undo the changes later. It’s irreversible.

David McAlpine, the academic director of Macquarie University Hearing, sums it up well:

“I do think that we’ve let the big tech companies co-opt our listening habits, monetize them, and sell them back to us. Their solution to the hearing problem is probably creating a listening problem.”

The Beauty of Real World Sounds

After diving into this research (and making my teenage son read a few articles for himself —because Mama isn’t always just the fun police), I realised how sad it would be to walk my dog and not hear the world around me.

Imagine missing out on, birds chirping as the sun rises, kids squealing with laughter at recess, the distant roar of a plane overhead, the rhythm of cars whooshing past, the natural hum of life in motion.

Sure, an occasional barking dog might be a little annoying, but that’s life, and I’d much rather deal with all the messy parts of life that than live in a manufactured sound booth.

We are so blessed with the gift of hearing. It’s time to stop distancing ourselves and trying to disconnect ourselves from the real world. We are human so let’s lower the volume, take out the earbuds, and let our brains do what they were designed to do: tune in.

✔️Action Item: If you use noise cancelling headphones or earbuds, this week, take a walk without headphones and just listen. Notice the natural sounds around you. Feel the difference. Because the real world has the most beautiful soundtrack of all.

And if you’re interested in getting ear buds that protect you from EMF radiation (which even the wired ones don’t do), what you need are air tubes. DefenderShield are the world leader in 5G and EMF protection so you can check them out here.

2 Things I’ve Learnt

A Sweet Way To Put Yourself to Sleep

Looks like Grandma was onto something—again. If you’re struggling to wind down and catch some Z’s, a cup of warm milk with honey might be just the trick – for you and the kiddies.

I recently came across two studies that highlight the natural sleep benefits of honey and milk.

One study, Exploring Honey’s Potential as a Functional Food for Natural Sleep Aid, found that honey’s intrinsic properties can positively impact sleep quality. Meanwhile, The Effects of Milk and Dairy Products on Sleep: A Systematic Review revealed that including milk and dairy in your diet is linked with better sleep.

Dairy products you see, are rich in tryptophan – a key ingredient for producing serotonin and melatonin, hormones essential for initiating and maintaining sleep. They also supply a range of micronutrients that act as cofactors in converting tryptophan to melatonin, further boosting sleep-promoting effects.

Sleep disorders and poor sleep can be debilitating, so here’s my advice to help you catch those crucial Z’s:

• Step 1: Heal your light diet and circadian rhythms.
• Step 2: Create an optimal sleep environment. Think dark, cool, and quiet (just like a cave) — free from technology, Wi-Fi and plugged in devices.
• Step 3: Establish a calming bedtime routine. This is where your warm cup of milk and honey may make an appearance as you take a bath, write in a journal, do some stretches or read.
• Step 4: Consider targeted supplements rich in magnesium.
• Step 5: And if you’re still stuck, check out the 20 Proven Tips for the Best Sleep Ever

A good night’s sleep is the foundation of good health, so here’s to making sure you get all the rest you need tonight.

Honey, Honey—A Sweet Secret for Weight Loss?

Did you know that swapping out sugar for honey might help you lose weight, boost your metabolism, and even treat metabolic syndrome (which includes obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension)?

According to the study A Review on the Protective Effects of Honey Against Metabolic Syndrome, honey’s low glycemic index can help lower blood sugar levels and prevent excessive weight gain.

The study points out that honey may improve lipid metabolism by reducing total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels, while boosting high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels—potentially reducing the risk of atherogenesis (cardiovascular disease). Plus, honey’s antioxidative properties can help ease oxidative stress, a key factor in metabolic syndrome. This suggests that incorporating honey into your diet not only sweetens your world up a little but it could serve as both a preventive measure and a therapeutic strategy against metabolic syndrome.

So, the next time you see a little bee buzzing in your backyard, give a silent thanks to nature’s hard little tiny workers.

3 Things To Explore

Your Life in Reverse

Life only makes sense in reverse—but the thing is, we don’t live our life that way.

Let me explain.

Every chapter of your life – the frustrating job, the heartbreak, the unexpected move, illness, the once in a life time adventure, was necessary to get you to exactly where you are today. Remove even one of those experiences, good and bad, and your story would have a gap, a missing puzzle piece that shaped who you’ve become and where you are today.

This is the concept of convergence – where all the seemingly random experiences, choices, and challenges of your past align to bring you to a moment of clarity, opportunity or transformation.

At the time, things might have been difficult and felt disconnected. But looking back, you can often see how those experiences were leading you somewhere. Like there was a plan to it all. And maybe there was a plan. 😊

Call it “everything happens for a reason”, serendipity or synchronicity, life has a funny way of connecting the dots after the fact. We just need to remember that, when we’re in the thick of one of those uncomfortable dots, that it will make sense one day.

✔️Action Item:  Take a moment to reflect on your life. Do past experiences, especially those challenging times, make more sense now? Was there a purpose to them? You might be surprised at just how perfectly life has been unfolding for you behind the scenes.

We Had It Right for Thousands of Years—Here’s How to Get It Back

For most of human history, we lived in harmony with nature. Then, in just a few short decades (or the past 100 years), we have abandoned what sustained us for thousands of years.

Consider this:

Before 1850, everyone drank water from natural springs, wells, or collected rainwater – no plastic bottles, no chemical-laden tap water.

Before 1870, people lived by natural light – waking with the sun, winding down with candlelight. No artificial blue light hijacking their circadian rhythms.

Before 1880, seed oils didn’t exist – people cooked with butter, tallow, and lard.

Before 1900, walking was the default – no cars or sitting in the office all day.

Before 1920, most homes had gardens, people grew their food without chemicals and ate seasonally from their own land.

Before 1930, doctors prescribed getting sunshine and having a lie down as medicine – not pills.

Before 1940, kids played outside from morning to night – no screens, no artificial light, just lots of running, climbing and fresh air.

Before 1950, people slept with the natural rhythms of the sun – no alarm clocks or chronic sleep deprivation.

Before 1960, families gathered for home-cooked meals – fast food didn’t exist.

Before 1970, no one feared cholesterol – eggs and butter were staples. And sunbaking was considered perfectly fine, as was “coconut oil” as sunscreen.

The Wisdom of the Past

For thousands of years, humans thrived by aligning with nature – eating real food, moving daily, rising with the sun. Then, in just a few generations, we swapped those time tested ways for artificial conveniences that have left us more fatigued, chronically ill, depressed and disconnected from one another more than ever. Sure, there are wonderful advancements from our modern living, but in terms of our health and healthspan, things are heading south fast.

It’s time to go back to basics – to reclaim the simple, powerful habits that built strong, resilient humans. The answers aren’t new. They’ve been here all along.

A Great Society

“A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit.” – Greek Proverb