In Today's Issue:
🚫 Not All Supplements Are Safe—And One Trend Is Quietly Making It Worse
🧠From Gut to Brain to Liver: The Axis That Could Change Mental Health Forever
đź’¬ Not Your Average Intake Form: What This Postpartum Tool is Doing for Providers (+ Your Download!)
🚫 Not All Supplements Are Safe—And One Trend Is Quietly Making It Worse
We’re living in a time where every mom is being told: “Just take this vitamin, you’ll be fine.”
But what if that vitamin is actually part of the problem?
In this week’s podcast, I’m answering one of the most searched questions I get:
👉 “What’s the best prenatal or postnatal vitamin?”
But I’m not handing you a shopping list. I’m opening a door you can’t unsee.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
💣 The dark side of the supplement world—white labeling—and how even trusted providers are unknowingly recommending generic, poor-quality products.
🔍 Why most “premium” postnatal vitamins are overpriced junk (yes, even the ones that look “clinical” and influencer-backed).
⚠️ How certain ingredients are doing more harm than good—think toxic B6 forms, misused iron, and synthetic folic acid.
🍲 Why FOOD must always come first—and how supplements without real food can create toxicity, not healing.
🌿 Why herbs (not isolated pills) may be your most powerful ally in postpartum nourishment.
Too many providers are blindly repeating marketing lines. Too many mothers are taking bottles of expensive pills and still feeling depleted.
We’ve been taught to chase RDA values, ingredient labels, and influencer codes…
And we’ve lost the actual science, wisdom, and biological truth behind postpartum healing.
In this episode, I break it all down:
- What makes a supplement truly bioavailable
- How to assess quality beyond the label
- The interactions that cancel each other out (hello, iron + calcium)
- The new research showing why some supplements may actually raise health risks
And then? I show you the way back to real nourishment—from food, from herbs, from a place of integrity and intention.
If you’re recommending supplements to postpartum clients, this episode is non-negotiable.
Your healing doesn’t live in a bottle.
Tune in, get empowered, and let’s rewrite how we support the body in postpartum.
🎧 [Listen now to the full episode »]
🎓 And if you’re ready to dive deeper, our Postpartum Nutrition Certification is where we teach everything that influencers aren’t.
🧠From Gut to Brain to Liver: The Axis That Could Change Mental Health Forever
We’ve known for a while now that gut health affects mental health. But what if your liver was also playing a hidden role in your mood, memory, and even depression?
A fascinating new review just dropped, mapping out an emerging superhighway in the body called the Brain–Liver–Gut Axis—and what it uncovers could be a major turning point in how we understand and treat neurological and mental health conditions.
🔗 Here’s what’s wild:
The brain, liver, and gut are in constant conversation through a web of nerves, hormones, microbes, and inflammation signals. A breakdown in one part of the system can ripple through the others—fueling everything from depression and chronic fatigue to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
📉 So what goes wrong?
- Leaky Gut → Inflamed Liver → Brain Fog & Mood Swings
- Liver Dysfunction → Blood–Brain Barrier Breakdown → Cognitive Decline
- Brain Stress → Gut Dysbiosis → Whole-Body Inflammation
And get this: even trauma and toxic exposures can hijack this axis, setting off a cascade of neuroinflammation that looks a lot like depression, anxiety, or PTSD.
🧪 What’s working?
Researchers are already exploring interventions that target this full-body system:
- Probiotics & Prebiotics to rebalance gut microbes and calm brain inflammation
- Vagus Nerve Stimulation to reboot communication between the brain, liver, and gut
- Dietary changes (like more fiber and omega-3s) to protect the liver and reduce neuroinflammation
- Even Fecal Microbiota Transplants (yes, poop!) are being tested to restore gut–brain balance in Alzheimer’s and depression
🌍 What this means for YOUR CLIENTS
Mental health isn’t just about what’s happening in your head. It’s shaped by what’s happening in your gut, your liver, your immune system—even your vagus nerve.
This science confirms what many of us have felt intuitively for years: healing has to be holistic. Mental health doesn’t start with a diagnosis. It starts with regulation, nourishment, safety, and connection at every level of the body.
🧠So yes, your gut matters.
đź’› Your client's liver matters.
✨ And this axis? It might just be the missing link we’ve been waiting for.
Check out the cited article here.
đź’¬ Not Your Average Intake Form: What This Postpartum Tool is Doing for Providers
We’re hearing from so many practitioners about how the Postpartum Restoration Method™ Assessment Tool is transforming their work — and their clients’ lives. Here's what some of them are saying:
🗣️ “I finally feel like I have a tangible way to track and validate what my clients are experiencing postpartum. This tool is what I didn’t know I needed — and now I don’t do an intake without it.”
— Sarah M., Functional Nutritionist
🗣️ “It bridges the gap between clinical insight and intuitive care. It’s helped me tailor healing plans in a way that truly honors the complexity of postpartum.”
— Jessica L., Pelvic Floor Therapist
🗣️ “The conversations this tool sparks are incredible. Clients feel seen, heard, and held. It’s revolutionized my consultations.”
— Dr. Amanda R., Naturopathic Physician
🗣️ “Every practitioner who supports postpartum women needs this. It’s simple, powerful, and deeply aligned with trauma-informed care.”
— Melanie K., Perinatal Mental Health Specialist
✨ Have you had an “aha!” moment using the Assessment Tool? We’d love to hear your story! Email us at admin@postpartumu.com and tell us how it’s impacting your work -> you might be featured in an upcoming spotlight!
📥 Haven’t downloaded your copy yet? Click here to get your Assessment Tool now »
Stay fierce, stay rooted,
Maranda Bower
CEO & Founder of Postpartum University®
www.PostpartumU.com
Current Ways You Can Work With Postpartum University®
đź””Get on the Postpartum Nutrition Certification Waitlist
📝Free Postpartum Restoration Method™ Assessment Tool
🧠Perinatal Mental Health Certificate Training
đź’Ś Know someone who gets it?
This newsletter is basically a secret handshake for providers who are done with surface-level postpartum care and want something deeper, realer, and rooted in truth. Forward this to your people—the ones who need to be in on these conversations. 👉 They can join us here: www.postpartumu.com/newsletter
