Proactive Health and Entrepreneurship with Nadine Artemis

One of the things that I'm seeing is a lot of people like, autoimmune is huge, and it comes in all shapes and sizes. One thing, because it's come up to with my research in oral health is really looking at oxalates. And you really want that mental clarity. What's more fun than that? Then you can really live your life. And then again, there's health span, lifespan. It's not like the years are necessarily the goal, but having that health span.

Okay, so I am super excited to welcome in a good friend of mine, Nadine, who is the founder and an entrepreneur who's founded an incredible company, which maybe I'll get you to introduce in a second, Nadine. But first, before I even jump into anything, I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to work with incredible entrepreneurs like Nadine. And I'm going to have her share her story in a second. But to continue to watch people make positive influence and change in the world, to constantly be on the bubble of what innovation and medicine and the new advancements that are coming out, but also just being a wonderful human being. So, Nadine, welcome. I would love for you to share maybe a little bit about your entrepreneurial journey and how you got started. Sure.

Well, it's really. I'm really happy to be here with you and to have this moment, which is a bit of a different context because normally we're meeting monthly to talk about accounting. So this is fun. I feel like I had a little bit of an entrepreneurial spirit kind of my whole life. I did. I had a lot of little projects when I was little, including like catching crayfish at the cottage and then walking them through the forest to the bait store to sell them and different things like that. And then. But in my. It was a grade nine. We had a science fair project and I was definitely like, my bathroom as a teenager was just covered in bottles of everything. And I get the hand me downs from the family. And I would mix perfumes and I'd mix like things that didn't even make sense together. But I was always concocting, especially as, as a little girl, I would pick things out of the forest. But then I found a book for a science fair project and it was all about making cosmetics. So sort of grounding in some more reality there. But I loved it because they talked about the history of perfumery. And back in the 80s, it just seemed like perfumes just appeared in bottles. There was no connection because there literally wasn't a connection because they were just synthetic. But it just Talked about the history and the distillation of essential oils in Egypt, that kind of thing. And that you could, you know, that they're distilled from plants and roses and that you could find these substances in a health food store and they would be called essential oils. So that was sort of that first moment. And my mom, you know, drove us to Toronto and we went to the health food store and that's where I got my first whiff of like orange ylang jasmine, like these smells that at the moment they smelt different. It's not like I knew that they were like, not synthetic. You know, I didn't know that whole thing, but they totally spoke to me in a different way. And I created the perfume. I recreated Nina Ricci's Laird A Tongue with essential oils at the time. And that was super fun then, you know, just having my normal teenage life. And it was like at 18, I'm off at university, bored by the school offering that day, skipping school, and I'm watching like Lisa Bonet talk about, you know, food and how it's connected, you know, pesticides and all these things. This is like 1990. So it was not. We didn't talk about that kind of stuff a lot. And also on my way home, I would pass by this little health food store called Grains and Beans and things in this little house. And I was getting like every book in there and I came across this one about reading, you know, how to dissect a label at the supermarket. And that was like revolutionary because you're like, holy, like what we're eating. And then it just like it was so easy for me to then see what I was putting on my body. And what were those words on the back of the, you know, labels that you just sort of read your whole life but didn't really know what they meant. And then realizing that what I thought was sort of green beauty at the time was just like, you know, bs. The fuzzy peach bath oil had never been impeached. The cucumber face to owner, never saw a cucumber. And so that was actually a really cool moment because it was like, it kind of gave me an excuse to get back to my concocting roots and to kind of give it purpose. And then I just started like making all kinds of things, you know, things for varicose veins, eczema, lip balm, perfumes. And so I was doing all that while I was going to school. And then, right. Like when I graduated, graduated in like April as it, you know, that, you know, you get out early in university. And then by October, I had my store up and running, which was North America's first full concept aromatherapy store on Queen Street, 1992. And it was awesome. We had this blending bar. We had like, over 100 essential oils. We do custom custom perfumes on the spot and that kind of thing. So that was super cool. Then the Internet. I can't believe I'm talking about before the Internet. But then the Internet came and we had this little inhale by mail catalog. But then, you know, got to hook that up to the Internet, which is very basic, not e commerce then. Or maybe it existed, but it was really expensive or something. Yeah, so I ran that for a bit, but also just seeing that I really wanted to move to the country, you know, get out of the city, and really seeing that retail, like, as it stood, was sort of probably having its like, you know what I mean, that there was other things and other ways to exist. So, yeah, then, I mean, obviously, I'm making long story short, you know, I meet Ron, and, like, I'd been really thinking about the country and the move and the hows and, you know, reading books from, like, the 1930s on how people got their land and integrating that all. And then Ron and I, we really envisioned for a few years and, you know, just brought things to a new level together. And then we found our place, which is right here, which we've been here now for 17 years. And yeah, that was the beginning of the Libations version. My store was called Osmosis. Then when Ron and I came together, it became the Living Libations year, and here we are, you know, and then just having the space allowed us to even, like, get more inventory and think more and expand more. 2013, we had an epic fire that just. We lost. Lost it all. Except, like, you also realize what you don't lose, which is, like, the business isn't just material. We had all our clients, we had that passion for what we made, which really helped us to. To go on and. But we had, like, no material left of anything. Like, we had, like, frankincense, like, liter gallons of rosado, like the most precious substances just, like, gone. So, yeah, we just obviously pulled together from that moment. And we were about to build our headquarters anyway, because we needed to. It's just gonna, like, we had just started to dig the ground on that. We made the architectural plans, but luckily that savings, because we've been saving for years to build, really helped us pull through, because it's also in those moments when you find the strength of your insurance and.

And your financing partners and everything like that. Yeah.

And then also we realize, oh, we don't want to build on that part of our land. We got. You know, we wanted to build another part because the access for, like, all the truck drivers would have been better and everything. So then we got to the new spot. We built that. That was really epic. And that's when I met you in those years. And here we are.

Yeah. So in your words, what does it look like with. Here we are. What have you built today?

Yeah, so we had that original. Our original headquarters was going to be, like, 10,000 square feet. But then luckily, that time in between, luckily, we found a place that was about 5,000 square feet that we could immediately go into. And it was. It's strange. Like, we had no business materials, but nobody missed a day of work. We just got. Literally, it's happened on a Saturday, Sunday, the fire. And then by Monday, just. The team was just like, okay, you know, let's roll up our sleeves and. And move forward. So that was really great because that was. That's, like, such a crazy time. Like, you have no. You don't have a passport, you don't have clothing, you don't have your libations. Like, we had to go to, like, somebody had to pick up libations for us in Toronto. So that was kind of funny. Or people were, like, giving me their bottles. So we had that place, which was so great. And then it was good because it also gave us sort of in real life, like, here we are in a bigger space immediately, and this is what we need, and this is what the systems need, which helped us come up with, you know, and even another plan to build the headquarters, you know, saved up again, got that rolling. And then I think we were. Yeah, we were digging the hole or whatever that's called, so to speak, getting the driveway in, like, 2016, and now we're finished, like 2018. Then it takes about a year to kind of settle in. And of course, now we're the time when we're, like, adding little additions. But we are so thankful to have, like, the. It was so fun to finally, after all these years of formulating and having a business, to really design the space that would contain us and how we flow and how we want to make things. And so we just had, like, you know, our own home. And the building's amazing. It won environment awards because there's, like, some really cool things we did with the structure. And so glad that we had that before the pandemic so that we, you know, we had the space and the freshness and. And we weren't in the middle of a construction project.

Yeah, exactly. More chaos that you could have avoided, right? Yeah. No, that's amazing. And so maybe share a little bit about, we've learned about how you started your formulation of different products, but maybe share a little bit about the products and the solutions that you guys have and, you know, what sort of platforms you've grown into using so that the most amount of people can get access to these.

Yeah, it's interesting too, because in the 90s, you know, it was a good, we had, it was a good PR story. We had a lot of, you know, it was like on breakfast television and like Deanie Petty and, and those things and there would be like articles in the Globe and Mail or whatever, and it was great. But it's so interesting to see how marketing and media changes because then, you know, early 2000s, I'm doing like, like little webinar calls or, you know, just like speaking to other people's little niches, little tribes. So maybe I'm on a call with like a hundred people or, you know, doing these different things. And then the impact was so much greater than like an article in the Globe of Mail that the whole nation would see because you're just dialing right in. So of course that like, you know, grew in so many ways since the early 2000s, including social media, which again, you have to be on top of. But it's like you don't want to have all your eggs in those baskets too. Like have everything driven by that because again, you know, those are owned by, you know, that sort of big tech and they've got their own agenda. So you want to have sort of the strength of the connection to your own people. And I like doing newsletters. When I had the store, we do it like twice a year. We put the stamps on things. You know, it'd be like $2,000 to get like, to send out the news to our mailing list. And it's incredible how, you know now like just the email newsletter is such a great tool. And then also, yeah, podcasts, like here we are right now, became a huge phenomenon. And I love that because that's sort of this, that deep style interview, the deep format where you can really get into things and, and do the sort of like long form education, which I think a lot of stuff needs, so you have that deeper conversation.

Yeah, absolutely. And then so some of the products that you have that kind of have evolved so what, what does libations offer the world?

Yes, well, libations, like we, it's living libations and libations, the definition is an outpouring of a nectar in honor of a deity. So we see that as sort of like, we're all kind of like libations. And it's sort of this outpouring, whether it's from the plant, you know, offering its outpouring so that we can then, you know, beautify our bodies. And it's in honor of the planet, in honor of our bodies. And some of my formulas are the same that I made from when I was like 20 years old.

Amazing.

And of course new things have evolved or, you know, if I would go through something, then I think of a product like in my 20s, when you're out on your own dental plan, not with your parents anymore, you might have a different relationship to the dentist. So I was just sort of figuring that out and I saw this hygienist and she was like, look, you know, like you can heal a cavity. And I was like, that was like new. Because we thought they were just like bones and they're set. And she's like, yeah, go home, work with those things that you do and come back in six months and we'll X ray. And that's when I, that's what is now our happy gumdrops, which is this dental serum for gums and oral care. And then I wrote a whole book on dental care called Holistic Dental Care because there was just so much that we need to know on a daily basis. So they're not just like leaving it to every six months and then just like, you know, going to the dentist, not sure what to expect. And so that we can understand how our bodies operate more and how on a daily level we can do things that are really simple to just, you know, have a better dental appointment. For example, or when I was at university, I mean, you know, made products for varicose veins. I made a product called Waitress Legs because it helped with spider veins. And it was really cool because like these things worked. You know, we, we had little headache remedies. So we have like things that can help solve those, those easy issues in the body that can sometimes bring us down and then, yeah, just really caring for the skin where we really have been a bit revolutionary in helping people see that oil cleansing, which is really like an ancient practice for caring and cleaning the skin. It's sort of cross cultural, trans historical way. Whether it's from the Turkish Bass, where they would Oil the body and then use this sort of like a knife, a very gentle, like, almost like a butter knife to scrape the skin. Or other countries would use, like, a horn that's, like, kind of made into, like, a blade. Or the ancient Chinese would use a gua sha, which is like crystal. And how. Using oil and these tools to just help cleanse the body, rather than our modern story of surfactants. All these things that suds. And then they ruin the lipid layer, they ruin the natural microbiome of the skin. And then in modern times, we're just sort of in this catch 22 of dryness or acne rosacea, and we can't seem to get a grip on it because, like, we're kind of assaulting the microbiome every day. So making skincare that's really compatible with the body. I.

You know what? Every time Nady and I talk to you, I learned something new. I had no idea about the gumdrops.

Yeah. We've got a whole dental line.

That's amazing. And I did not know that cavities could essentially be healed. I did not know that.

Yeah. Because it's coming from. Well, that. It's a whole other. It's a lot. It's a whole thing. But, yeah, it's really like, you know, taking care of the teeth topically and then nutrient. Like, there's just some essential things that we need, like vitamin D for bones, that kind of thing.

Yeah. And so. And all of your products, let's talk about how they're. They're manufactured. Like, these are all natural products, right?

Yeah. Like, every raw material is real. And, you know, it's. The. The processing of it to get out of the plant is. Is simple. It's not like a hundred steps and then deodorizing, winterizing, you know, adding chemicals. Like what? You know, we use jojoba, but so does l'. Oreal. But they're doing a whole bunch of stuff to the jojoba that we would never do. You know, they don't want it. It's a beautiful golden yellow. Well, they don't want that color. You know, it needs to be, like, clear, odorless, just weird. So we don't do any of that stuff. We make everything here in our beautiful headquarters. And that's really important, you know, that, like, now and in the future, we will always. We won't be, like, farming that out anywhere, you know, which is. I think a lot of companies grow. You gotta manage that growth. Yeah. Otherwise you could be compromising and making decisions that maybe you don't want to do.

Absolutely. And I want to ask you a question. This is something that, you know, you said to me when we first met within the first, you know, few months of working together, and you told me, you know, your initial sort of foundational why. Of why you were trying to create living libations and what it was to build something for maybe a specific group of people to empower them. Do you want to share a little bit about that?

I don't totally remember what I was saying there.

Well, that's what I was wondering. I'm like, I'm trying to lead it in. Well, you go, you go. And let's see where we head with it.

I think if we're in the same conversation, I mean, one thing I was like, in my early times, it was obviously just me, and I'm in my kitchen and I'm whipping things up for people and, like, making. So I felt like it was about, you know, the client, so to speak, and what was making was the product. You know, then Ron came along, and then it was us making the product and the client. But then what I saw is when we started to really build a team was like, oh, my God. Like, it's also. We're making this for the. For a team and for people, because people started working for us and then they liked it. You're like. Or you're kind of like, oh, wow. Like, you know, probably we could just work together, you know, forever until, you know, the person's retiring or whatever. And we saw that just with a lot of people and starts 5, 10, 15, 20. And then all of a sudden you got a little group, and so just really seeing, like, that sort of another. Like, it was sort of this triangle before of us, the client and the product. And then it just sort of expanded and became like, there's a lot of purpose here also for people that want to work on the team. And that was just like. I know. It just brought, like, a whole new thing to the past decade.

Yeah. And what I found inspirational was that, you know, you've got this beautiful headquartered office that's in the middle of nowhere, but the middle of heaven, you know, heaven on earth. And I remember you telling me, you know, one of your goals and objectives of creating this business that it's grown into was that you wanted to create really incredible jobs for. And specifically for women leaders as well. And I thought, you know, incredible. One, that you're in the middle of nowhere, which is paradise, but two, that you're creating these really great paying Jobs in a wonderful organization for an incredible group of people. And that was something, to me that stuck with me where I was like, you know, I want to do the exact same thing.

And you are. Because we are a little bit. Right. We're not in a city. And for men. Well, for. Yeah, people out here, it can be a bit restrictive of where. Where to work. Right. Like, a lot of men go into construction and. And then women are like cashiers, and there's, like, a whole lot more, you know, and it's amazing. It's amazing how the people came out of the woodwork, so to speak, because, you know, at first we didn't. We're kind of pioneering here, and we didn't know anybody. So it's also like finding people. And then, you know, now, of course, there's remote team, which we just had this great retreat where the whole team flew in, so everybody was together for the first time, and it was really special.

That's amazing. Yeah, we do the same thing. We do it. So our team is. We're. We're 93 only, because I knew that from. From the other day, but it sounds like we're about 45 in person, and the remainder are remote, so we do it annually as well. And it's. You know, I remember the first time everybody got together. Some of these people, because they joined us from other organizations had worked together, and the moment they came together for the first time, it was like this magical experience. So I can just imagine you felt the same way.

It was amazing. And, you know, it. It was like that two, three weeks ago when the weather was like 30 degrees in October and it was, like, peak, like autumn, so it was, like, amazing. We got to do a lot of our stuff outside, and it was great.

Yeah, amazing. Well, you know what? It's. It's one of those things, too, where, you know, I've had the privilege to, you know, partner with you to a certain extent and watch from the sidelines as you continue to build this wonderful organization built on so much purpose and meaning. And, you know, I don't know, it's one of those moments where I'm like, I'm super proud to be even part of this journey to some extent. And, you know, I know what you're building is incredible, and I definitely want the world to know what you guys are up to because, you know, you're making a huge impact. Want to maybe just move into, you know, what our relationship looks like a little bit again. I know we had the opportunity. I don't know. It's been six or seven years now, Nadine, which is. Seems like yesterday, but. But time is. Is flying by. One of the. One of the opportunities we had was as you guys continued to. To grow and expand was to help support with, you know, a financial oversight perspective, to say, okay, you guys keep building all of the beautiful, visionary items and keep producing, and we'll just make sure that it ends up making financial sense. Do you want to speak to maybe what that relationship means to you guys?

Yeah, well, it's. I mean, obviously there comes a time in most businesses when you need the accountant pretty much from the beginning. Really? Yeah. And I gotta say, you're my favorite accountant from.

Well, yeah, I'm the only one right now.

Well, yeah, but I meant, like, you know, because I've been doing this since 22, so gone through a few. And you definitely make it more. You make it make sense and more exciting. And like, there's, you know, the numbers come off the page new ways. So that's really good. And you got. Yeah, you want to make sure the guardrails are in there and that there is that oversight again. You do all the oversight you think of, but it's just having that real knowledgeable, wise wisdom, making sure that you're making those right decisions. Or like, hey, this is easier. Or how about this? You know, just different thoughts. That. Because we don't have that training that, you know, you'd be into just making sure things are okay. Are your margins okay? You're, you know, whoa, what's that expense? So that's really good to have that oversight and to know that the accountant knows those details, not just the bookkeeping and that you can see and spot it. And then hopefully we're seeing things before they happen. And then. Yeah, really. Also with the government oversight, which is so dry, but necessary.

Yes, totally. Yeah.

Don't want to do anything wrong there. Of course. And so that's important. So. So, yeah, I think that working with your team has made what can be semi daunting sometimes for entrepreneurs because sometimes their skills are in different areas of making it, like, more friendly and more just real. Real to the feel, you know, So I think that's been fun.

Yeah. No, and always one of the. My favorite times of the month is getting together with you and Wanda and just making sure, you know, I. I've had a few people in the past that they don't have any of that oversight, and they do it annually. And all of a sudden it's a big surprise at the end of the year when they are, you know, sort of reactive to what's happened versus, you know, reacting to what's happening so that we can get ahead of it. Right. And I think I have a relationship with a few businesses like yours and it's a lot of fun to be part of it and just identify certain nuances where it's like, no, if we just make this shift, it'll continue to get better. So I'm super grateful for, for you and this relationship and the opportunity to be part of this organization because you guys really are doing such incredible things now. One of the pieces that I get most excited about when we connect every month is I almost look at you, Nadine, and go, okay, so what do I need to know what's happening in the medical world right now that I have no idea what, what proactive health care solutions can we introduce in our lives? And I know I've changed my lifestyle supplements. You know, the way that I've approached proactive health care so much in the last couple of years because of your inspiration and your wisdom. So, you know, looking at this and saying, here's an open opportunity to share the top things that people should know and maybe the best way that they can get themselves in their best health.

Yeah, that's a good. And a huge question. Of course.

I know, I know open ended to say, yeah, just you should share with what you want to share.

Of course there's always like, you know, another supplement or another, whatever and that exists and, and that's good. But I like to take it back a bit further and really the general sort of thesis of my book Renegade Beauty is, is like, you know, stepping back and connecting. Sounds big, but, you know, connecting with the elements of the cosmos. So that's sort of like as a foundation because it's not really another bottle of anything or another piece of food that's actually gonna kind of, you know, be the whole thing. So, you know, it's like the sun, you know, engaging with the sun, not being afraid of it. You know, I have a whole chapter on how to interact wisely with the sun, how to, you know, get those, the sun beams on your skin without the wrinkles and water. So like, you know, hopefully you can jump in a lake or an ocean sometimes, but just, you know, using hot and cold for bathing, maybe you need a shower filter. Maybe you want to add some Epsom salts or magnesium, magnesium salts to your bath. So engaging with water in that way and then air. You know, there was a president, I forget who, Jefferson, maybe he would just like open the windows and sit and naked in chair and air bathe and, and like you can do, you know, we have to kind of do that in Ontario because it gets cold in the winter, but we still need to, you know, engage our whole being with, with the elements because, you know, we live very sheltered lives and that's not going to change. But now we don't have to fight the elements. Like we're not out surviving them so we can at least think about engaging with them again and bringing them back in. So like air, like walking, you know, having a forest walk, getting all that beautiful, you know, micro essential oils essentially from the trees, having a moment to stand on the earth. We even have a patch in the winter that's like free of snow. That. Because sometimes, I don't know, I get that way in winter. Like, oh my God, I just want to touch the earth, you know, I'm not that good with the cold so, you know, I'm not rolling around the snow or anything, but got have that moment and then, so water, air, the sun, oh, the earth. I was like, there's some other element which is like, yeah, standing on the earth or, or like eating from the beautiful. All the things we get to eat. And of course, like anointing ourselves in sort of the bounty of what the earth makes is just like, kind of like a priori way to think about the elements and know that that's like really communicating with our beings and should be communicating with our beings even though we're kind of living these more sheltered lives. So that's key. So what does that look like? You know, we, we have suggested some SAM examples, but that's like, you know, maybe if you can get up or if you're seeing this, if you are up at sunrise, like go have a look at it, you know, just. And in the first half hour you can look right at the sun. And there are cones in our eyes that have nothing to do with vision. And their whole job is to get light information from the sun and drive that into the mitochondria. Because all of our cells are really on a circadian rhythm. So our cells are still working with the, with the circadian rhythms of the universe, you know, so we've got a super chasm nucleus, super chiasmatic nucleus in the center of our brain that is fully activated by light turns on our brain. And so we want to get that going because we don't. There's not enough stuff inside, like, you know, get that going. There's not enough supplements to get that going or there's never. There's no blue light in nature at night. The moon doesn't have blue light. So at night we only have red light bulbs if the lights are on. So it's all like just red light. And, you know, and then we use like, blue blockers if we're looking at our phone or whatever. So like, that can really help stress levels and circadian rhythms. Or even if you wake up in the middle of night to go to the bathroom, like, have red nightlights if you need to check your phone, like, there's a way you can kind of make this red screen. You can just look it up online or literally put your blue blockers on to check the time, because that one second will zap like 30 to 7, 70% of your melatonin. And that's what we need at night. And the other cool thing about getting in tune with the rhythms is morning light. So again, you can look at the sunrise. But just being out walking your dog, it's not like, about sunbathing, is it? Literally being outside, that's when the red light, the infrared is strong. And there's studies that show that, that, you know, helps with your health, your immune system. And this is before the vitamin D comes in. And what's also cool is that it. So we got the melatonin secreted from the pineal gland at night, but if you get that morning light or you can use a red light device, there's a lot, lot of those. One of my favorites is this Biolite, which is a matte because you don't want to do those panels and stand in front of them. That's just boring and it's no fun. But there's a mat, so you can, like, use it like a blanket. You could do yoga on it. And anyway, so if you get red light from outside or literally red light, then that creates an intracellular melatonin. It creates melatonin inside the mitochondria, which is actually a big, the bigger melatonin story in your body. And that we use that all day long to convert when, when energy is converted into mitochondrial energy, that melatonin in the cell is there to act like a cooling fluid. And it's so essential for health. And just by. We're literally cutting that off by not engaging with red light in the morning and then by blue lighting it, you know, for many hours at night. So that's something so simple that's pretty accessible for people.

That's amazing. So, so the red light. So is that where like an infrared sauna Would that also be helpful in the morning?

That's going to get you the infrared but not the light part. So I would look more. I mean there's so many kinds of devices now and there are the panels. I'm just like, they seem a bit like 10 years ago. There's some other options and there's literally just like the sun. But of course there are day and even being outside in a cloudy day, will there is still the information is out there. So you don't have to be discouraged by that. But obviously it's way more exciting when the sun is shining and you're feeling that whole thing. And then also because like when I was a kid, I love feeling the sun. Sure I got burnt, I did things, I wore baby oil, whatever. But I always was like, even though there was all these people saying like no or whatever, I was like, but it feels good, it feels right and it is uplifting. So then I just in my 20s just set out to explore like I'm sure it's right. And of course our skin is literally designed to engage with the sun's rays. We literally create vitamin D and it's. You can take it and we definitely need to in Canada in the winter because I'm gonna, you know, I store, I get it in my body all summer. I have an app called DMinder and it tells you you're running total of vitamin D because it is, it's a living molecule that will go up and down. So you can't just take a bunch and be done. And I definitely run out by it's. We've got till the 31st, then the vitamin D leaves for three months and then I'm depleted usually by December. That's when I'll start supplementing. But the engagement of the sun on your skin is creating a water soluble form of vitamin D that creates a healthy cholesterol sulfate. You're creating antimicrobial peptides. It is so essential for our health and for our bone health, for our teeth, for our skin, for, for our whole immune system. So it is, it is important to engage with the sun. You know, you just want to do it wisely and at the right time of day and that kind of stuff.

Yeah. And we, you and I talked about this a couple months ago too. I knew I take vitamin D supplements as well. And I said to you, Nadine, it's really weird. Ever since I've been taking these vitamin D supplements, I go out in the sun in the summertime and I never burned. I'm like Instant tanned. And why is that?

When we do have more sufficient D, we are better in the sun that that relationship. Also, side note, melatonin. When we have ample melatonin, we don't burn in the sun. So you can even take it before you suntan. I know people take it at night, but I've been exploring this whole daytime because we do produce it in the day. And you literally won't burn if you take it. It's like a sun protection thing. It's so cool.

Yeah. Way better than sunscreen.

Yes. And the thing with sunscreen is a. There's a whole bunch of chemicals. Generally speaking, we do make a zinc one that. So zinc works as it reflects the rays. So they kind of bounce off your body, but it's not. But you don't get anything right. That's like a block. It's a block. And then there's that whole SPF world of sunscreens and all that, which is only a thing that can be categorized with chemicals anyway. And like oxybenzene, one of the main ingredients, isn't carcinogenic until it's exposed to light. There's all that stuff. So that aside, what sunscreen also does is it you're receiving the rays separated, so it separates UVB from uva. And then you don't get any uvb, which is the vitamin D generating ray. And these kind of ultraviolet partners, they need to kind of be together because when we just receive UVA on its own, that is damaging to the skin. So you're putting on the sunscreen, you're getting the chemicals. You're just getting uva, which on its own can create skin damage. And you're not getting any vitamin D. So does it make sense?

Damn, I hate that. Another question related to this. You know, a lot of people who are following this show and. And are part of my universe, a lot of high performers. And, you know, aside from that sun vitamin D component of getting energy in the body, what are some thoughts for you on how we can continue to have high energy levels?

Yeah, great question. Everybody's looking for more energy. Side note, the ancient Greece, the ancient Olympians, they had all their gymnasiums outside because they knew if they worked out in the sun, they would have more muscle tone. So it's a side note. Energetically. Well, the red light and sunlight will create more energy. And then, you know, water is pretty key. Like, you can't just be drinking municipal tap water, you know, and then everybody's different with diet. But I think one of the things that I'm seeing is a lot of people, like, autoimmune is huge, you know, and it comes in all shapes and sizes. One thing, because it's come up to with my research in oral health is really looking at oxalates. And I say that because, like, as the past 30 years, we've been eating more healthy, quote, unquote, we're getting a lot of foods that we're eating way more rather than just like how we used to eat them or we eat some things in the summer. And then we need seasonality or you know what I mean? So you wouldn't get it all winter. And so oxalates are kind of in everything. And we're eating, you know, green smoothies with, like spinach and almond milk and that literally oxalates are an anti nutrient. And so they're like shards of glass in the body. So, for example, 85% of people over 50 have tons of oxalate shards in their thyroid. And maybe it's manifesting as kidney stones or arthritis or eczema, psoriasis, general aches and pains or all that kind of stuff. And so the main issue with oxalate is that robbing the bones of its key nutrients, and that's a huge thing. As people age, there's this loss of bone density and I, you know, more. And so as we've changed our diets and so it's really key to go to a low oxalate and then bring in those alkalizing minerals like potassium, magnesium, calcium in the citrate form to kind of rectify that, because it does take a few years to shed the oxalates from the body. And that I'm just finding is huge. So in the oral care, like, you know, when you eat spinach and then your teeth feel all fuzzy, that's the oxalates taking the calcium out of your teeth and then creating tartar, which is harder to remove than plaque. You know, so that's going on in the joints and different things. So I think what I've seen a lot of shift for people when they free up their diets of some of that, you know, simplify things a bit. And then a lot of energy is coming back because digestion works. It's, you know, because those oxalates will perforate the intestines, creating like gut dysbiosis, which is pretty key. Like, you've got to have the guts in order. I, you know, that's just such a main thing because it's getting hit multiple times a day. And so you want to have that in balance. You know, I think if the guts are off, that's like a key thing to kind of get into balance right away. And then things kind of help because we've got our gut microbiome, which is.

Pretty key, and it's a huge focus of attention in the health industry right now, is gut health as well.

Yeah. And then I think. But if you don't know about the oxalates, you might be keep trying to sort of repair a leaky gut, but, like, keep eating that spinach. So don't eat your vegetables.

Yeah, mom always told me. Yeah, eat your vegetables. Yeah. There was another area that you and I have talked about in the past, too, that I also found very fascinating, and that was talking about aging gracefully or essentially reverse aging. I found it just mind blowing that there's things that we can do to essentially, you know, stop the aging process to a certain extent or reverse it in some instances. Can you share any insights on that?

Yeah, Well, I think a good place to start is we've been doing this test called True Diagnostic. My friend Ryan Smith over there, and it. And it's pro. It's gotten even more advanced, but essentially it's testing 900,000 DNA methylation sites in the body. So you can really even see, like, has the smoking you did as a teenager left your body yet? And, like, they can get pretty in depth. But you can also get a really good general overview. You can find out your biological age, your immune system age, your cellular age, the rate of aging, and how, like, your telomere length, because that's like a whole thing that they've realized, like, your telomeres, which are kind of like the end caps on a shoelace, that piece of plastic that can just get shorter and shorter, and then, you know, there isn't one. Or, like, treads on a tire that just move away. So there's lots that they're studying now to, like, not let those telomeres get shorter in length. So we had that test to just sort of track, like, our experiments and see what's going on. And since we've been doing it, we're seeing, like, stability in areas or reversing. So that's kind of cool. Now we're doing a lot of things, but one of the things that we found really helpful is a peptide. There's. Well, there's a whole bunch of peptides, but there's a peptide bioregulator from the pineal gland, which has been around since the 80s and actually has huge studies. One of the Biggest clinical trials ever. And it really helped to reverse aging or stabilize it. And some of the people they followed 30 years later, you know, and they were like more alive than their cohorts. You know, it's, it's really, really neat studies out of that and that we're seeing show up in those studies. But that's like, I could talk about all the things to help with that. Like, that could be like five hours.

Give me, give me two, two more ideas for people on like the reverse aging and what they can do.

Yeah. What do you. Yeah. So diet is key. The light engagement is key. Melatonin is actually anti aging. It's not just something that you have to take like two little things at night. Also, a lot of people find it like I, I never liked it at night because, like, I wouldn't sleep. I'd have. I felt like I kind of skimmed over sleep. Wake up at three in the morning and I'm like, what is this thing? But then that's so a. You can take it earlier, like at 4 or 5 or 6, like not right before bed or during the day because it's very anti aging. So there's whatever signaling. Puberty, like those hormones is kind of like some people feel that's a clock that's also gonna kind of your death clock. Like what's progressing you like, okay, now puberty, now, blah, blah, blah. So in midlife, whatever that is. But there is those hormones start to kick into high gear, maybe signaling, you know, the time, the other clock. And so the melatonin acts like a, like a douse, douses those hormones. And so it's very like, you know, good for. It's very anti aging. It's very antiviral. So that's just because I mentioned. I thought may as well say it again because it's literally part of an anti aging protocol, I feel, you know, eating right, whatever that is for you, like, again, because it can get really confusing out there. But we know we do need to make sure we're getting proper fat and protein, and we need more protein as we age. And we're also really learning a lot about the sort of the muscle, muscle skeletal situation. So your muscles and bones very interconnected. And the muscles are very interconnected to the endocrine system, which is our hormone system. Which of course for men and women, there's a lot of shifts. Things start to fade. But if you can keep the muscles going, that keeps the endocrine system going. And of course, things like checking your grip strength. You know, these are Things of very simple tests that you can see how you're doing because you've got. We got to keep our bones and muscles going. You know, there's like a statistic, something like if you're over 60, if you're a woman over 60 and you fall, like, kind of one in five chance of dying, because the bones in that fall, right. That's like your hip. Hip replacement. But then that can lead. Now, you're not going to die right away, but that, like, could just be kind of right. Then you've lost your independence, your mobility, and, you know, kind of a slippery slope from there. So. And we just found out, so to speak, that muscles are an organ. So, you know, science is still learning a lot or whatever. But we do know we gotta keep. He gotta keep strong and whatever that means for you as an individual.

Yeah. And it's so powerful. And I remember you and I started talking about the reverse aging maybe a year ago. And I remember, you know, that night I had some dinner with some friends, and I was like, you know, I had the most fascinating conversation today about reverse aging. And all of these men in their 40s all looked at me and they're like, so, what do we do? You know, what. What do we do? And I was like, well, I'll let you know more as I continue to learn about this. But, yeah, you know, continuing to make sure that we have the nourishment, our bodies need for bone strength is huge. And continue to be strong.

And that's why oxalates. I do feel like I'm, you know, speaking not on behalf of the vegetables, but because, like, we kind of need to know that because we've gotten so many of those foods now in our diet, and we really think they're awesome, like, you know, almonds and almond milk and of course, the whole spinach and kale thing. So that's why I do mention that. And of course, you know, it's. I mean, I'm not even mentioning, like, obviously we don't want to be like, having Coca Cola and smoking vapes. You know, hopefully we're already past that stage.

Yeah, well, hopefully. But I, you know, it's amazing that I still see, especially when I go down to travel in the U.S. how many American people crack a Coke or a Pepsi in the morning. And I'm going, wow, is this. This is just a really bad habit. You might as well have it. Have a cigarette with it. You know, it's. At that point, it's. It's pretty interesting. And just to see you know, different cultures and whatnot, but and. And different areas of the world and what they consume and what they don't consume. But yeah, for the most part, it sounds like, you know, if we continue to keep our bodies nourished with the right sort of dietary, maybe supplements, getting access to sunlight, continuing to, you know, nourish our bodies with things that keep our bones strong, keep our physical being strong, and then continue to try and keep our energy high. Like, it sounds like, you know, this is sort of the. The formula for success. Because if, you know, the way I think of it, and I've spent a lot of time on this and you probably have probed me to go way deeper on it than I ever thought I would have. But the idea that, you know, we need to prepare ourselves for our day, for our challenge, like, you know, entrepreneurship for me and my ability to work with so many people who are in it. It takes a lot to perform at a high level, you know, emotionally, mentally, physically. Sometimes there's long hours. Hopefully we can continue to move away from that as much as possible, but we really need to prepare ourselves to be able to show up for those moments and reverse aging, dietary, making sure that our body is getting good things in us being strong. These are all things that are essential to be a high performer.

And you really want that mental clarity. Like, mental clarity. What's more fun than that? You know, then you can really live your life. And then again, you know, it's like there's health span, lifespan, and, you know, it's not like, it's not like the years are necessarily the goal, but having that health span, I like to sort of like look ahead like 50 years and then kind of reverse engineer it. So I feel like when I got to 50, I was like, okay, like, what are we looking at, like, 100? How am I moving around the land or home? And then like, you know, I don't want to lose any mobility. So then like just starting to reverse engineer that image or like that, you know, because I want to be able to do it all, of course.

Yeah. And, you know, it's interesting and my grandfather is one of my favorite people in the world, and he's 94 and sharp as attack mentally, but gave up his mobility probably 20 years ago. Now it's kind of funny, sort of, that he drives around a scooter in Bob Cajun now and goes through the Tim Hortons drive through. He's found his space to be able to be mobile without the use of his legs. But, you know, it is Unfortunate for him that he let that physical component go because he's such a strong man. And, you know, you just lose a little bit of your freedom when you're unable to move around.

I think in today's age, it's so easy, you know, like, I did definitely think about how I want to move and like, what's the good ROI on a movement? Because, like, for time and we can just literally get, you know, just be at our computers especially, or an entrepreneur. You could be like, servicing so many other areas except for yourself. And. And yeah, and again, we like. I mean, the amount of movement we must have had like 10,000 years ago. So, like, you know, we can't even imagine, like, what, you know, to be in that kind of, like, I think we'd have to kind of retire and be like fitness instructors or something to really get that movement we need. So it's like looking at the ways to like, bring movement in. And that's like looking at also like cellular movement. Right? So it's not always about, like moving, jogging, but how are those cells moving? And that's where, you know, I think sometimes with the biohacking, like something I haven't mentioned, like the pemf, which is the pulsed electromagnetic frequencies, which are so many varying devices out there from small to large, but that really is moving. The cells, the mitochondria and the bones are piezoelectric. So they. You can literally, if you have a strong enough machine, you can feel the bone density change, which is pretty cool.

You know, I just met a wonderful lady. She's got a company in the US And I know you and I have a connection to Tony Robbins because one, I worked with him, and two, I think you're fascinated because he always seems to have the next level device and testing it. And her device is an electromagnetic chair. And I know, I know that, that Tony has used her chair to the point where she was telling me in Austin, Texas, a few months ago, you know, the chair broke and Tony was starting to panic because this is his go to for energy. They had to fly it in with a helicopter, which is pretty made to one of his events. So, yes, I agree. You know, there's something magical there as well, which from my understanding, Nadine, and you can correct me because I'm a numbers person, not a science person, but the way that I understand it, it's that, you know, the lightning continues to provide the earth with energy and the energy that comes from the Earth because we don't spend enough time on the Earth, we're not getting as much energy as we need. And this is a device that kind of helps elevate that up. Is that. Am I doing a decent job with that?

Totally. Yeah, you totally are. And that kind of brings back to, like, that where I was saying we've got to engage with the elements because most of the biohacking devices, or, you know, whether it's. You can do oxygen, hydrogen. So there's the air. You've got, like, the pulse electromagnetic frequencies. The lights, like, all like. So the lights concentrating, kind of like the sunlight thing, but. Exactly. So the PEMF is giving you that Earth energy, like, you know, exponentially. You know, still got to get your feet on the ground sometimes, but it can give you that. And we're surrounded in the emf, so then your body gets this, like, break where it can just be in the PMF PEMF zone. And it. You know, it really does feel incredible because you're charging yourselves and we. I. The first time I tried it, I felt like I got my cell charger, like, you know, like your cell phone, and I was like, oh. Like, I feel like I finally got, like, plugged in and that I could. I could restore or nourish myself beyond my own efforts.

It's. It is fascinating. And thank you, Nadine. I know we're getting close on time here, but, one, I just want to thank you again, you know, not just for doing this podcast, but one, for creating an incredible organization that I think has so much meaning and passion behind it to the. The products that you create that are transforming people's lives. And three, for sharing your wisdom about health and science that people wouldn't normally get access to. So I appreciate you so much. I know you mentioned your book Renegade Beauty. How would our audience get their hands on Renegade Beauty?

We have that and the holistic dental care book on our website. It's also, like, on Amazon and all those places, the dental books actually in five languages and both of them are on audible, so you can also just listen to.

Amazing. Did you. Did you read it?

I didn't.

Oh, yeah, it's tough.

The Renegade runs, like, 500 pages, so it'd also be, like, time. Like, that would be a week, I think. Right.

Like, I know I started. I got about a third of the way through, and then I stopped because I started to lose my voice. And, yeah, I wasn't great. So I will. I.

It's like a professional job.

It is. It totally is, and I will get through it at one point, but it's not a priority for me. Do you want to drop just the company website in there as well?

Sure. It's living libations.com and of course we're on the social, you know like IG and stuff. You can find us there.

All the socials and what I'll do, I'll make sure that my team makes sure that everybody has access to all of your channels, your website, access to your book and everything attached to this. But thank you again. It's always a pleasure connecting with you. And for all of you who are listening, thank you so much for joining in today. This has been the Wealthy Entrepreneur podcast. My special guest Nadine has shared so many incredible, I feel, life changing aspects of how we can proactively support our health and our wellness to become that high performer. If you like this episode, make sure you give it a like drop a comment in below, share this out and make sure that people like us get access to knowledge from people like Nadine that they wouldn't otherwise do. Thank you so much for following. Look forward to seeing you again next week.