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Child: Welcome to my Mommy’s podcast.
Hello, and welcome to the Wellness Mama podcast. I’m Katie from wellnessmama.com, and I am back today with a dear friend of mine, Tina Anderson, who is the co-founder of Just Thrive, which was created in 2013 to empower people to live their best lives and to take their health into their own hands, which is something I say so much on here that you guys are probably sick of hearing it, but we are our own primary healthcare provider. And I feel like Tina has really delved deep into the research to create things that actually really help on that journey. And that’s why these are some of the only things I take regularly and some of the few things I’ve seen a measurable difference in my health from. And we talk a lot about some of those things today, including a new really kind of revolutionary product that they have created that’s specific to helping focus and memory. They also have one that helps with calm and actual physiological resilience to stress beyond just if we feel stressed or not, but like the stress our body interprets. So a huge fan of Tina’s work and really grateful for this chance to jump in and nerd out with her. So let’s join Tina Anderson. Tina, welcome back. Thanks for being here again.
Tina: Oh, thanks, Katie. I’m so excited to be here with you.
Katie: It’s always so fun to get to have a conversation with you. And we’ve had several in the past. I will link to all of those in the show notes because we got to cover some really in-depth stuff about gut health and a lot of different areas of health. But today, I really want to go deep on something new that I’m most excited about from you right now. And that is the new thing related to memory. And I feel like hopefully it’s not a secret that this is kind of a rising issue in today’s world, especially with just chronic stress and how that can disrupt our cognitive function and so much else. But I think you guys did a really deep dive on this. And I think this is fascinating.
We’ve all heard, hopefully, that the gut is our second brain. And I feel like you guys took that and really delved into the research to figure out if we understand that, how then can we use very specific things to support the gut in a way that also supports the brain? And I feel like this is a such fascinating, cutting-edge area of research. Can you talk about what you guys found when you started delving into that?
Tina: Yeah. So what we found is there is just such a problem in this. It’s an epidemic in this world of a lack of focus and attention. And because of that lack of focus and attention, we are seeing that people are having a lot of difficulty with memory. And we know that we’ve seen this in the last year, I mean, even more as recently as a month ago or so, there’s a shortage of Adderall out there. There’s this shortage of Adderall because people are craving this need for focus and attention. And we know, of course, Adderall is a pharmaceutical stimulant, and it’s like legal speed and comes with lots of adverse side effects. And we’re just seeing this huge demand out there. In fact, the National Institute of Drug Abuse found that 400,000 adults who use prescription stimulants met the criteria for abuse and addiction. And that’s not including all of the people out there who are, you know, getting these prescriptions, these illegal prescriptions illegally out there. You know, we know on college campuses, it’s a huge problem where we’re seeing people, you know, taking Adderall. And this is just highlighting this craving of focus and attention.
And we’re seeing this, you know, like you said, the brain health, we know that brain health and gut health are so interrelated. And so we’re trying to find ways to just do everything we can to support our brain health and help people find that balance of having, you know, being able to multitask, but being able to have more attention and focus in their lives and then therefore have better memory.
And unfortunately, we’re living, you touched on that also, stress. I mean, the world we’re living in is so offensive to our brain health. We have so much stress out there. And it’s, I’m, you know, we launched our product Just Calm, and it’s been, it was crazy how quickly and how relevant that product was. And people want the product. They want it. Everyone’s craving calmness, but they’re also craving focus and attention. And we know that cell phones, of course, is a huge, smartphones, is a huge, huge offender to our brain health. It’s one of the biggest offenders to our brain health. And that little device that we’re carrying around seems to be wreaking so much havoc on our ability to concentrate on tasks. In fact, it’s been contemplated by researchers that, that these smartphones are actually inducing a sort of ADHD because there’s this increase of, you know, there’s an increase of adults who are having, who are being diagnosed with ADHD. So it’s just, you know, important that this one little device is not just one little device. It’s one little device that allows us to go down all these different rabbit holes. You know, it’s a one little device that opens thousands of different pathways.
And, you know, this is not necessarily our fault. You know, we’re wired for dopamine hits and, and that’s exactly what we’re getting every time we open our smartphones. And, you know, we could, I know I’ve been guilty of just sitting and watching my favorite TV series. And, you know, I’m always like grabbing my smartphone and, you know, I want to like, oh, look at a text and look at email and, and see if there’s any, anyone’s posted something on social media that I find interesting. And I was laughing, my daughter said to me the other day, I can’t even watch YouTube anymore because I just want to watch it on TikTok because I get my information so much faster on TikTok.
So we’re just seeing this increase of people forgetting people’s names, forgetting your keys, forgetting, not being able to concentrate at a meeting, not being able to study for exams, whatever it may be. And, you know, it’s a need out there for people. We’ve heard it from our customers. We’ve heard it from, you know, just the market demand out there that people are craving this ability to have an ability to focus and have more attention on tasks. And so that’s why we wanted to bring a product that’s been researched and studied and one that is natural, that helps people support their need and ability to focus and concentrate.
Katie: You just touched on so many important things. And I think especially relevant to the listeners today as moms is, of course, that feeling of calm is often elusive, especially when you’re a mom in the busy early years of children’s lives. But also focus can be tough because like you said, even away from our phones, there’s just so many demands of our time and attention. And so I know I feel like those are often two very elusive things.
And in our other conversations, we’ve gotten to go deep on the science of gut health, because obviously if your gut is inflamed, if you have inflammation in the body, even if you’re not mentally interpreting that as stress, your body is interpreting that as stress. And so it’s creating some of those same feedback loops, which is why it’s so important to address the gut physiology as well with the ways we’ve already explained. But I think this even builds further on that conversation with then like once we understand that really the prominence of the gut in how our brain functions in the world, we can absolutely use that to our advantage.
And I love that, like you said, these are not things like Adderall that are highly stimulant that do affect the body. And they have a kind of crazy side-effect profile. These are things that support the way the body’s meant to function and enhance it, but without bypassing the natural mechanisms in a way that can have long-term side effects, which we don’t want or certainly don’t want for our kids. And I didn’t even know the statistics were that crazy about those stimulants being used so widespread. That’s really, really drastic and wild to think about. Can you talk about what sets this apart and what makes it different? Because I know the market’s also flooded with essentially natural stimulants supplement that are kind of like a natural version of some of those ones that people take under prescription. So what sets this apart? I feel like this is a really important piece of the conversation.
Tina: Yeah. So we, you know, as you know, with everything we do at Just Thrive, it is very research. We have the highest, you know, rigorous scientific standards in anything that we bring to the market. And our product was formulated by, you know, our favorite microbiologist, Kiran Krishnan, who I know a lot of your listeners know and love and have heard from before. But he brought together ingredients that are really, really important and supportive of long-term brain health. And so we have our Lion’s Mane, which is just so brain protective and it promotes mental agility. Ashwagandha, which not only supports stress, which we kind of know ashwagandha is a product that, an ingredient that supports stress, but it also, or not supports stress, but helps with stress, helps us deal with stress. But it also is supporting our memory and helps us. You know, able to handle stress better.
We also have citicoline involved as an ingredient in our product, which also supports memory and concentration. And, you know, our brain requires a chemical called acetylcholine. And unfortunately, as we age, our natural stores of acetylcholine are diminished. And so, and it makes it harder for us to focus and learn. And so, this product has citicoline in it. And I like to think of acetylcholine as like our building blocks of our cell membrane. It also increases our blood flow to the brain, which is really exciting. And then the ingredient that I’m probably most excited about, and it’s getting so much attention right now, is called CognitiQ. This ingredient is so exciting. It’s winning all kinds of awards because it’s actually been shown to increase BDNF, which of course is brain-derived neurotrophic factors. And the BDNF plays a huge role in the connection and the protection of brain-related health concerns. And it’s actually been shown to help grow our brain neurons. So, it actually will help promote the development of new brain cells. So, really, really exciting ingredient. And it’s actually derived from coffee fruit extract, but it doesn’t have any stimulant effects. You know, there’s no jitters or anything like that, but it’s derived from a coffee fruit extract and uses these phytonutrients for better brain performance. So, it’s really, really exciting. So, it’s a very thought-out formulation that we’ve been able to bring to market and I’m really excited about it.
Katie: Yeah, I really enjoy it as well. And you touched on the choline pathways. And I think these are especially relevant because one thing I know is if you’ve been pregnant, so for all of us moms listening, choline can get depleted during pregnancy. And so that like pregnancy brain thing that they talk about, this could be at least a puzzle piece in that equation. But on a personal level for me, when I was still dealing with autoimmune disease, I avoided eggs for a really long time because I didn’t do well with them. And without realizing it, I was just really not getting any choline. And so I had become pretty deficient in choline. And like you said, this one is really supportive of the brain. And when I figured that out and started getting enough choline, it was absolutely life-changing. It felt like a light had turned on in my brain for the first time.
And now I think of that often with moms. Pregnancy obviously puts a lot of demands on our body in general, but it seems like choline is one that can get depleted often. And if that’s true for someone, it seems like getting that piece is so, so, so helpful. And then, like you said, you stacked it with other things that are synergistic and that help provide that effect in a non-jittery, non-stimulant way. Because I’ve personally gone the other way as well and tried other nootropics and then realized like, oh, this makes me feel like I just drank eight cups of coffee. So I’m not really focused. I have energy and I want to run through a wall, but I can’t focus as well. So I think that’s a really important effect as well.
And then like the foundational conversations, if you’re supporting your gut health, you’re also then able to make use of all of these things and the nutrients in your diet more effectively, which also supports brain health. And I love that you guys have that BDNF component as well. I know we’re hearing a lot in the media about neuroplasticity and the ability of the brain while they once thought it was static is now understanding throughout life, we actually still maintain this ability. And so you guys have stacked in things that help support that as well.
Tina: Yeah, no, exactly. And I will mention, we do have a little bit of caffeine in the product because we know that the caffeine works better with the choline. There were studies on the combination of choline, but it is a tiny bit. It’s equivalent to less than a half a cup of coffee in it. So it definitely will not give you that jittery effect. It’s more just to help support the choline in there too. Like I said, the formulation was very thought out and it would not be meant to give jitters or anything like that. Just that laser focus that we’re all looking for.
And to support the long-term brain health too. That’s another big component of it. And something, you know, as I’ve aged, I’m really excited about just supporting the long-term memory and long-term brain health with all of these offenders that we’re faced with on a regular basis.
Katie: Yeah. Oh, that’s so important. And I know you guys have an incredible, like I read the reviews and the stories on your website sometimes about just like the incredible transformations that people have when they start getting these things figured out. I also know from knowing you that you balance being a very involved mom and very like close relationships with your kids and with your husband with running this company and constantly just innovating and developing and keeping everything on track. And that’s certainly not in the least of you do so many other things in the world as well. So if you could touch on some of the ways that you guys have seen transformations and people that you’ve helped, but also maybe what your own application of some of these things looks like. Because if anybody’s watching on video, I feel like every time I see you, you age backwards. You have like the most energy of anybody I’ve ever met. And so I feel like you walk the walk too.
Tina: Well, thank you, Katie. Yeah, I think for, I mean, myself, I keep saying like, where have you been all my life? Where has, you know, Just Thrive Joot, Focus and Memory been all my life. Because I have been balancing a lot in my life, especially since we launched this business 10 years ago and had kids in lots of different sports. And, you know, they’re still, my youngest is still in college playing sports. And, it’s been so nice to just be able to just, you know, not jump from task to task. I think that’s the biggest thing is I’m finding that I’m able to just focus so much more on, you know, preparing for an interview like with you. Or preparing for an email or a meeting that I’m about to get on, or talking to a new customer, potentially, whatever it might be, I’m just able to focus so much better.
And I’m finding that I’m not like, you know, I was always, I don’t know about you, I’m always like, where’s my phone? Where’s my phone? And you know, I find out it’s in my back pocket. And I’m like, oh my gosh, I can’t believe I, you know, didn’t realize that. So you just, I think I’m better at, you know, retaining information, even learning. I feel like I’m able to just, you know, maybe watch a YouTube video and learn something new and be able to retain it better. And so that’s what I’ve been seeing with myself. We’ve already started hearing feedback from customers saying that, oh my God, this has helped me so much. I feel so like I’m so distracted, which we are. And you know, I don’t think we could be mad at ourselves or angry at ourselves for that. You know, I mean, we’re dealing with just, we’re just being bombarded with so much information on a daily basis. And you know, like I said, those little devices that we have are just bringing us down so many different rabbit holes on a regular basis. And we just really need to be, you know, try and do our best to focus and we’ll be so much more productive. And that’s so much better for our memory too, for our long-term brain health.
Katie: Yeah, I think the long-term effect is also, like you said, an important consideration because so many other things can help us maybe have a short-term effect for a few hours, but then are also like disrupting our sleep or not good for the brain long-term. I’d also just on a personal level love to hear some of your own personal like kind of 80-20 in your life of the things that you focus on that really you feel like are the needle movers for your health. Because like you said, we are bombarded all the time on the internet, including with all kinds of health advice and things that we should be doing. And we probably all have a mental list of a thousand things we know we should do for our health. What are the things that you actually prioritize? Like I know we’ve been on morning walks together when we’ve been in person. And I often say on here, it’s the simple things that can sometimes make the biggest difference, but we overlook them because they’re simple. So what are those things for you?
Tina: Yeah, well, you hit the nail right on the head there, Katie. I’m still walking all the time. I think walking, it’s my drug of choice. More than any supplement I could tell you about, it’s just walking is just so huge for me. I power walk, and it’s a non-negotiable in my life. And people always think I’m doing it to try to stay in shape, and that’s an added benefit. But really, my motivation for doing it is just to support my brain health because I love walking, and that’s huge for me.
I also intermittent fast. I think it’s an interesting topic because I’m a huge fan of intermittent fasting, but I do know that there are people who it doesn’t necessarily agree with, and I certainly support that. But even if you could stop eating earlier in the evening, and maybe even if you’re going to eat breakfast, that’s fine. But maybe just have a nice long 12-, 13-, 14-hour window. But I’m a huge fan of intermittent fasting, and I think that walking, intermittent fasting, and saunaing. I’m also a huge sauner. I love my red-light sauna. And I just would recommend those things. Those are real big needle movers for me and my health.
Katie: Yeah. And what I love about that is walking is free, getting outside is free. And those really do like the studies keep showing us what nature always knew, how supportive those things can be. And your tip, I think is so valuable as well. Even if you don’t want to fast or do any like even extreme long window of not eating, there’s so much data to support what you just said on, if you even just stop eating a few more hours before bedtime, or like ideally when the sun goes down, which would have been kind of our in alignment with circadian rhythm, it tends to have a really positive effect on your sleep. And it gives you more of that repair time while you’re sleeping for your cerebral spinal fluid to flush, for your liver to regenerate and flush, and do all the things it does during deep sleep. And that one is also completely free. In fact, it could save you money if you’re not eating snacks at night.
Tina: Exactly.
Katie: So I know in between our last episode and this one, we’ve gotten to talk specifically about a lot of different things that people can integrate into their life. And people might be wondering now, like, how do they choose which ones to start with? And what would be maybe the ideal protocol if someone was trying to really just optimize all of these areas? How would they integrate them all into their life? And what would that protocol look like?
Tina: Yeah, so I would always recommend people starting with a probiotic because I feel like the probiotic is just foundational. So our Just Thrive probiotic and antioxidant is just foundational. I can’t think of any person out there that couldn’t benefit from being on a spore-based probiotic because we know that when our gut is inflamed, we’re not absorbing nutrients. So we could be taking vitamin D, vitamin C, vitamin K2, whatever it might be. But if you are not absorbing those nutrients because your gut is inflamed, it’s a waste of time, waste of money. So I would recommend everyone starting with a probiotic.
And if I were a good salesperson, I would say, start this and start that. But I’m a huge believer in trying to figure out what you’re noticing on a product. So I’d say, start with a probiotic. Maybe three weeks later, introduce another product. A lot of times people will start with our Just Thrive probiotic and our Just Calm product at the same time because they just are so stressed, and they just want to feel calm. So you could do that. But the probiotic and then maybe the prebiotic three weeks later, introducing that. And then just at least give yourself a week or two to start a new product so that you could see what effect you’re having. And it depends on what you’re dealing with or being faced with. If you’d like to start with the Focus and Memory product, that would be great. I would just start with a probiotic and then maybe a week or so later, start with the Focus and Memory product. If you want to deal with the more stress issues like the Just Calm, then do the probiotic and then start with the, then add in the Just Calm a couple of weeks later. And we have health coaches on our team. If anybody wants to call our 1-800 number, go to our website, justthrivehealth.com. You could set up a call with our health coaches and they could help you decide what products to use. But I always recommend starting with a probiotic. And if you’re already on the probiotic, then you could introduce one of these other ones, quite easily.
Katie: And then any timing notes, like with food, away from food, are there differences that happen depending on when in the day people take them?
Tina: Yeah. So with the probiotic, we always recommend taking it with food. So it’s always better to take it in the presence of food. We’ve actually studied this. We know that the strains in the Just Thrive probiotic actually proliferate in the presence of food. So best to take it with food and maybe at the end of the meal, maybe 10 minutes after a meal. And then the prebiotic you could kind of take throughout the day. I actually put it in a, you know, I mix it with water and I, you know, keep it in my water jug throughout the day. So it sprinkles in throughout the day, but we also have a capsule form. You could take one every couple hours, whatever works for you. And then the other ones you could take with like Just Calm, you could take with or without food. The Memory Focus, you could take with or without food.
Katie: And as a side note, I will say the prebiotic mix tastes awesome. Like it tastes better than I feel like commercial drinks or juices. So my kids, as a tip, love, love, love the taste of that. That’s when I have to like, like ration out because they love it so much versus it’s not a struggle to get them to take it, but they’ll actually use that as the liquid to take their other supplements because it tastes so good and it makes it easier to swallow pills. So that’s a tip for parents out there.
And you mentioned you guys have free health coaches, which I love because I know having been in this world, when you are first starting off, especially it can seem so overwhelming to try to figure out what to do and what order and what’s going to actually be helpful. So I love that you guys offer that. And I believe you also have a special discount just for people who are listening to this podcast. So can you let people know where to find both of those?
Tina: Sure. So if you just go to justthrivehealth.com and use wellnessmama as your coupon code for 15% off, that would be the easiest thing. And then you could set up a call with the health coach if you want, product coach out there just to help you navigate things. But the easiest thing is honestly just start with the probiotic and then any of the other products that resonate with you.
Katie: Well, Tina, thank you so much. You are such a joy to talk to. And I’m so grateful for the products because they are a mainstay in my house and for all the work that you do and for your friendship. And thank you so much for being here today and for everything you share.
Tina: Well, thank you, Katie. I’m grateful for your friendship too. I really appreciate it. You’ve taught me so much and you’ve taught the world so much and I’m so grateful.
Katie: Thank you. And thank you as always for listening and sharing your most valuable resources, your time, your energy, and your attention with us today. We’re both so grateful that you did. And I hope that you will join me again on the next episode of the Wellness Mama podcast.
If you’re enjoying these interviews, would you please take two minutes to leave a rating or review on iTunes for me? Doing this helps more people to find the podcast, which means even more moms and families could benefit from the information. I really appreciate your time, and thanks as always for listening.
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