Claire Luckman Naturopath in Coledale, New South Wales | Naturopath

Claire Luckman Naturopath

Locality: Coledale, New South Wales

Address: Suite 5, 741 Lawrence Hargrave Drive 2515 Coledale, NSW, Australia

Website: http://claireluckman.com.au/

Likes: 213

Add/Update information

Reviews

Tags

• Medical and health
• Alternative & holistic health service
• Naturopath

25.01.2022 Always trying to find ways to get my kids to eat tahini- these cookies are a winner! So quick to make, only 5 ingredients and kids love them! 1 cup of tahini per batch too Thanks for a great recipe @ournourishingtable

24.01.2022 No-bake choc muesli bars for snacks this week (or for 2x days at least!) @brownpapernutrition recipe on her lovely website, I just left out the sesame seeds so it’s preschool-friendly. All ingredients into food processor, flatten into dish and set in the fridge, then slice into small squares or bars. Quick bit of Sunday food prep

24.01.2022 Vitamin D, calcium and PMS - there are so many beneficial nutrients and herbs that work really well to support premenstrual symptoms, but don’t forget vitamin D and calcium. Research shows a direct relationship between women with low vitamin D and calcium levels in the second half of their cycle, and increased incidence of PMS including low mood, heightened anxiety and irritability as well as fatigue. Vitamin D is crucial for the absorption of calcium through the diet, and so... many Australian women have low or suboptimal vitamin D levels. I also see many women in clinic with low calcium intake, especially if they do avoid dairy but don’t know where else to get calcium from. We need approx 1000mg calcium per day, which can be harder to get than you may think. What’s more, women in repro age group should be really focusing on getting calcium in to support bone mineralisation, to prevent risk of bone fracture and osteoporosis in later life. Pregnant and breastfeeding women need to be conscious of calcium and vitamin D to an even greater extent- If you don’t get sufficient calcium via diet or supplements in preg/breastfeeding, your body takes it from your bones to support the baby’s needs So, have your vitamin D levels checked annually, know your calcium sources and if you don’t get enough in your diet, consider a good quality supplement that contains both calcium, vit D and magnesium See more

24.01.2022 Mum lunches - I have lots of clients who are mums of little people, and like myself, they often feel like full time chefs with all the snacks, meals, lunchboxes, snacks again, more snacks.. that they make on the daily for the little people. It’s hard to not neglect feeding yourself properly, especially at lunch time. I’m making more of an effort to have things in the fridge that are ready to be thrown together in a salad or gf wrap so I’m not eating my kids leftovers for my l...unch, and ending up super hangry at about 4pm! Buckwheat is a great salad filler- it adds some plant-based protein to salad or leftover roast veggies, and also works well in a wrap with leftover chicken, baby spinach, avo, organic mayo etc. I’m cooking up 2 cups of it to keep in the fridge for the next few days. Rinse it well before cooking, and use the ratio of 1 part buckwheat to 3 parts water. See more

22.01.2022 My amazing colleague Carmen Cooper at my Leichhardt clinic Darling Health shared some invaluable information on postnatal depletion on a Facebook Live last night - listen to the recording here <3 Yours Naturally Darling Health

21.01.2022 A quick and easy breakfast to make the night before so you can grab it and go! I often make this for a mid-morning or afternoon snack on busy work days too; add some frozen berries in the morning for extra flavour and vitamin C <3 https://claireluckman.com.au/overnight-chia-oats/

20.01.2022 Trying to get kids (and adults!) to eat more veggies, and a wider variety of veggies is a common theme in clinic. I always grate the same old veggies into beef ragu or spag bol (carrot, zucchini, baby spinach chopped suuuuuper finely!) but my husband made his own passata the other night and in doing so, got veggies into the kid’s dinner that they’d usually decline on their own, or if they could see them in tiny minuscule trace amounts . So I’m doing it again tonight with our spag bol, featuring yellow capsicum (one kid won’t eat on its own) and celery (other kid won’t eat on its own). Blitz in food processor, add some baby spinach, then add vine ripened fresh tomatoes and cook with some chicken stock with your mince. Voila! None the wiser

20.01.2022 Afternoon tea for the kids and me - we call this fruit dip and I have been doing it with either vanilla @coyo_organic yoghurt like today or other days I do celery sticks, apple and banana slices with nut butter in the middle. Kids love to be involved and creative with food so changing the way you present meals and snacks keeps it interesting and engaging for them. Works for big kids too

20.01.2022 My kindy girl has come home the last 2 days with a half eaten lunchbox and morning tea box, which is unlike her in the past- at preschool they sit to have meals for an extended period of time, with all the teachers and kids together. So now that she’s left to her own devices in the school playground, she says she’s too busy to eat (sounds familiar... pretty sure that’s #mumlife!) And boy is she hangry when she gets home at 3:30. So this morning she had baked beans and gf pa...leo toast with avocado for breakfast (great bread that’s high in protein, I get the Venerdi brand from IGA/Harris Farm) and then an hour later before we walked to school I made us a smoothie to share- full of good fats (nut butter, hemp seeds, chia seeds), protein (collagen powder and a little hemp protein) and a frozen banana and dash of vanilla to taste. So if she doesn’t eat all her lunch today, here’s hoping she hasn’t got the tired ‘tude when she gets home thanks to the big breakfast! See more

20.01.2022 We’ve found the best homemade gf bread- dm me if you’d like the recipe!

19.01.2022 Where I’d rather be today Shout out to the sleep-deprived mums!! Unfortunately for us, research shows that when we have less sleep, 2x things happen: our hunger-control hormone ghrelin increases, and our brain is looking for more quick fuel to keep you going - cue glucose. So we feel like eating more, and make it carbs/sugar please. And this isn’t going to be terrible when it’s one-off, but is it only ever one-off in mum life?! My top ways to get through these days are- ta...ke more magnesium; take that B complex supplement sitting in the back of your cupboard that you always forget (today’s the day to remember it!); pick protein, especially at breakfast - eggs, baked beans, paleo toast, smoked salmon etc. Sugary breakfasts won’t get you far for long; try to avoid excessive caffeine- it’ll make tonight’s sleep worse, especially if the kids decide to sleep through and now you’re wired from all the caffeine! And lastly, make your treat/snack/sweet go alongside some protein and good fat e.g a bliss ball that has dates but also nuts and collagen powder, or a piece of dark choc with a couple of almonds and blueberries too. That helps to avoid the blood sugar spike and drop, and actually give you some fuel. Here’s to all the sleep-deprived mums! Don’t forget to feed yourself!! See more

18.01.2022 Saturday afternoon baking - our current favourite cookies that have 1 cup tahini per batch, a good way to sneak in some plant-based calcium! Recipe via @ournourishingtable - super quick to make and you only need coconut flour, maple syrup, tahini, vanilla extract and some dark choc!

16.01.2022 Tahini salad dressing - easy way to get some calcium-rich tahini into your diet. This one is hulled tahini, lemon juice, 1 clove crushed garlic, salt and pepper and a little water to get the consistency right. Easy and so good on top of a roughly chopped Greek style salad

15.01.2022 Oats for breakfast ~ I have to jam-pack porridge with good fats and protein otherwise it doesn’t fill me (or the kids) up for very long, and I can really feel my blood sugar drop not long after eating. So I cook the oats with collagen powder, nut milk, nut butter (hazelnut is yum) and chia and hemp seeds, then serve it with LSA and more nut butter, plus frozen berries and a drizzle of honey. Still going after 2 hours today

14.01.2022 And that’s a wrap! Had a beautiful and busy last day in clinic @darlinghealth_sydney for the year, and grateful to have worked another year alongside such amazing, talented and beautiful women. I’ve been a part of the Darling Health clinic for 9 years now, and am grateful to be surrounded by such thorough, intelligent and talented clinicians- always pushing me to be top of my naturopathic game and to keep up with such high standards when it comes to health care and complementary medicine. And to all my wonderful clients who have given me the opportunity to support them with their health this year, I love seeing the positive changes that come from our journey together and I’m grateful to do the job I do! Wishing everyone a beautiful Christmas despite the COVID grinch, and an even better start to the new year

13.01.2022 In Australia between weeks 36 and 37 of pregnancy, women are advised to do the Group B Strep vaginal swab, to detect if the bacteria is currently in the vagina. Why? GBS is a normal, common bacteria found in the body, and during pregnancy can be found in the vagina or rectum of about 10-40% of women. During a vaginal birth, GBS can infect some babies, causing serious illness- in Australia the stats are roughly between 1 and 4 out of every 1000 newborns contract GBS from their... mothers during birth. The bacteria is very transient- you could test positive for it one day, then retest and come back negative the next. The protocol in Australian hospitals and birth centres is that if you come back with a positive result from the vaginal swab, they advice intravenous antibiotics during labour for the mother, so that the risk of passing on GBS to the baby is minimised. It’s important to note that even if you do come back positive to GBS, your baby will not necessarily be infected or develop serious illness, and there are certain risk factors during pregnancy that can increase your chances of passing GBS on to your newborn - a UTI with GBS detected in the urine; labour earlier than 37 weeks; high temp during labour; breaking or leaking of the amniotic sac earlier than 37 weeks or the amniotic sac being broken for 18+ hours before birth with an increase in mums temperature. So what can you do to help minimise the chances of coming back positive to GBS? You want to keep your vaginal flora healthy and avoid infection with thrush (Candida albicans) and BV, as colonisation of GBS is increased in women who have these common vaginal infections. So using strain-specific probiotics orally and vaginally during pregnancy and especially during the lead up to doing the swab is important (L.reuteri, L, rhamnosus, L.acidophilus). Keep your diet low in processed foods and added sugar, as sugar encourages the growth of yeast infections. Fermented foods rich in probiotics are also great to eat daily, and you can also do a very diluted vinegar wash in the area if you have any symptoms of BV or yeast overgrowth towards the time of the swab. Extra notes in the comments for pregnant mums See more

13.01.2022 I offer 30 minute Kid’s Health Consults face to face in both my Leichhardt and Caringbah clinics, or via phone/Skype for those out of area ( or so we can chat during nap time! ) These consults are very popular and I have vast experience in supporting babies, infants and children with a range of health conditions incl. food intolerance, allergies, asthma, eczema, lowered immunity, fussy eating, gut problems as well as mood and behaviour support (including ADHD, ASD, sensory processing disorder, pyrrole disorder and more). Feel free to send me an email if you’d like some introductory information to find out how I work and how I can support you with your child’s health and well-being [email protected]

11.01.2022 As soon as the weather clears, you’ll find us here #littleausti

09.01.2022 How thoroughly has your thyroid function been investigated? It’s been one of those weeks in clinic where I have had an influx of women who present with classic, textbook symptoms associated with slow thyroid function, and yet their TSH, T3 and T4 (thyroid hormones) have been tested by their GP, and they look normal (note, it’s usually not in optimal range though!) So it’s left at that, and they have come to see me because they can’t shift their fatigue/constipation/low moo...d/long cycles/weight gain and often elevated cholesterol (LDL especially, despite a good diet (and no they’re not eating their weight in coconut products!)). And first thing I do is send them back to the pathology lab to test their thyroid antibodies, which typically isn’t tested by a GP unless their TSH is out of range (the range is big, and based on population average, not optimal thyroid function!) And then we get the answer- they come back with high thyroid peroxidase and/or thyroglobulin antibodies, which indicates autoimmunity - their immune system is in overdrive and is attacking and damaging their thyroid gland and reducing the thyroid’s ability to make adequate hormones. The good news is that dietary changes and the correct nutritional and herbal treatment can pull thyroid antibodies right down to normal level, and all the signs and symptoms these women presented with in the first place will disappear. Herbal and nutritional treatment for thyroid health needs to be tailored to each individual, and please don’t start taking a cleverly marketed natural thyroid supporting formula without having your thyroid function thoroughly investigated first, and with the guidance of a practitioner. (most importantly- iodine is not always necessary/safe- it can make Hashimotos worse when used incorrectly). If you have symptoms that you suspect are due to poor thyroid function but you don’t feel you’ve been thoroughly checked, keep persisting until you get the full picture- the symptoms aren’t worth just putting up with! See more

09.01.2022 Made my favourite pear cake last night with @coyo_organic vanilla yoghurt instead of cows yoghurt and chia seed replacement instead of the two eggs, and it turned out I only had 1 measly looking pear to use so used tinned pears instead and put them through the cake mixture, and arranged the fresh pear slices on top and it was even better than usual. Let me know if you want recipe and I’ll post it in the comments! Gluten free and with the mentioned alternatives, dairy and egg free options too, so a great cake for those with intolerances that doesn’t taste like cardboard I promise

07.01.2022 Belly-flopping through Sunday #sunsout

07.01.2022 Ovulation pain ~ Mittelschmerz is the German word for mid-cycle pain associated with ovulation, and although not experienced by every woman, in clinic I find more women seem to experience this after pregnancy and birth, once their menstrual cycle returns. It can also occur for women when their own natural cycles begin again after they stop taking the pill or other hormonal contraception, which they may have been taking without a break for many years. The pain can be dull, c...ramp-like (similar to period pain), or it can be sharp and very sudden, and for some women quite debilitating. So what causes it? Experts aren’t exactly sure, but they think it may occur due to 2 possible reasons- 1. normal follicle growth right before ovulation which stretches the outside of the ovary, causing discomfort (especially when the ovaries have been on hiatus for months during pregnancy, or years for some in the case of birth control); or 2. when a follicle naturally ruptures and releases an egg during ovulation, blood and fluid are also released and may irritate surrounding abdominal tissues and cause pain and discomfort. Have you ever experienced ovulation pain? I personally did for a number of months after my cycle returned when I had my first child, and the pain was excruciating- much worse than any period pain I’d ever had! After checking in with my GP, I began supporting ovulation and ovarian health with herbal medicine and amino acids such as inositol and NAC, nutrients such as magnesium, B6 and zinc as well as using potent natural anti inflammatories incl omega 3 essential fatty acids, curcuma and a dairy-free diet to lower inflammation. Within 2 months of doing this the pain was gone, and I’ve used similar supporting treatment plans for clients who have suffered with ovulation pain and again had great results. Our hormonal health goes through a dramatic shift after pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding and can feel a little like getting to know your body all over again! Don’t settle for discomfort or pain though, at any time of the month. There’s so much you can do to support your hormones naturally and have pain and symptom free menstrual cycles See more

06.01.2022 The most frequently baked treat in our house ~ choc chip tahini cookies. My son licks tahini from the spoon but my daughter won’t go near it on its own, so cookies are the perfect way to get this calcium-rich food into the kids. If your children are dairy free you need to really consider where they are getting calcium from each day, as they need lots for growing bones, teeth and their nervous system. Calcium and magnesium work together to support nervous system function, and I often nickname the combo as the tantrum buster - if your little person is having frequent meltdowns, you might need to check that they are getting enough daily calcium and magnesium through their daily diet!

02.01.2022 A momentary glimpse of the sun this afternoon meant homemade ice creams! These went down a treat - we blended 1 small ripe avocado, 1 very ripe banana, 1 tbsp cacao powder, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tbsp honey and 1 cup coconut milk. Blend to a thick consistency and spoon into ice cream moulds, freeze for a few hours and An ice cream that contains a veggie that my 2 year old still won’t eat on its own, despite being offered almost every day of his life so far!! Since he helped make these and spooned the avocado in himself, I’m taking that as a win !

02.01.2022 Homemade hazelnut choc cups to take to Christmas lunch tomorrow