Andrea Dalton

12/04/2026

Like we haven’t been saying it for years!

A hidden danger could be lurking inside every glass of water. Link below.

10/04/2026

Most people who take CoQ10 think of it as an antioxidant. It is one. But that is not the most important thing it does.

CoQ10 is the only mobile electron carrier in the inner mitochondrial membrane. The electron transport chain has four protein complexes fixed in the membrane. Complex I accepts electrons from NADH. Complex II accepts them from FADH2. But neither can pass those electrons directly to Complex III. They hand them to CoQ10, which physically shuttles across the lipid bilayer to deliver them. Complex III passes them to Complex IV, which reduces oxygen to water and drives the proton gradient that ATP synthase uses to produce ATP.

Without CoQ10, the chain breaks between Complex I/II and Complex III. Electrons have nowhere to go. The proton gradient collapses. ATP production stalls. This is not an antioxidant function. This is the core mechanism of aerobic energy production.

CoQ10 is predominantly synthesized endogenously through the mevalonate pathway, the same pathway that produces cholesterol. HMG-CoA reductase is the rate-limiting enzyme. Statins inhibit HMG-CoA reductase. That is how they lower cholesterol. It is also how they lower CoQ10.

An updated meta-analysis by Qu et al. (2018) pooled 12 RCTs with 1,776 participants and found statins significantly reduced circulating CoQ10. The reduction was independent of statin type, intensity, or treatment duration. Both lipophilic and hydrophilic statins produced the same effect. This is consistent with what the biochemistry predicts: the pathway is shared.

On top of statin-induced depletion, CoQ10 in human heart tissue declines naturally with age. Kalén et al. (1989) measured CoQ10 concentrations in myocardial tissue and found levels peak around age 20, decline by more than 30% by age 40, and drop approximately 50% by age 80. The organ with the highest energy demand loses half its electron carrier over a lifetime.

A 2025 meta-analysis by Kovacic et al. (Journal of Nutritional Science, 7 RCTs, 389 patients) found CoQ10 supplementation significantly reduced statin-associated muscle symptoms measured by pain intensity. This is the most current pooled data on clinical outcomes.

One important nuance: while plasma CoQ10 depletion from statins is well established, whether intramuscular CoQ10 drops proportionally is inconsistent. Some studies found no change or even increases in muscle tissue CoQ10 during statin treatment. The plasma reduction may partly reflect reduced LDL particles, which are the primary carriers of CoQ10 in blood. The clinical significance of depletion beyond muscle symptoms remains debated.

Roughly 200 million people worldwide take statins. The mevalonate pathway that produces their target also produces the electron carrier their mitochondria depend on. The mechanism is not controversial. The clinical implications are still being defined.

Kalén et al., Lipids, 1989.

Qu et al., Eur J Med Res, 2018.

Kovacic et al., J Nutr Sci, 2025.

06/04/2026

Passing a bowel motion once a week is not normal! If you are eating every day, you need to be passing a bowel motion every day. People who eat more plant based foods will pass more bowel motions.

The most common gut issue I see in clinic is constipation, and the most common dysbiosis (imbalance) I see is Methane overgrowth in the microbiome. This gas will contribute to constipation and requires specific treatment and microbiome change to get change.

I often say to women with constipation, it can be as ‘easy’ as increasing fibre and water or it’s not and it takes active change to change the microbiome to get regular bowel motions back. It takes work. But I encourage you to do it because constipation is not just about slow bowels, it’s about clearance of toxins and hormones and how well your body is going to function to support energy, mood and if you have hormonal issues. Constipation will worsen all of these things.

Time to talk seriously about your poo 💩 ladies

27/03/2026

Metabolic health is how efficient your body is at converting food into energy, whilst keeping regulated blood sugar levels. As you can understand this makes what you eat imperative to your metabolic health, but not just what you eat but how your body uses these foods, if it stores it as fat, how it is detoxifying, how much homeostasis (balance) there is to support, energy, mood, weight AND impacts your ability to conceive.

25/03/2026

Struggling to conceive is not the only reasons to prepare for conception months if not years before trying. Addressing health issues that feel like small annoyances can drastically impact your health for a healthy conception, pregnancy AND postpartum.

Women often express to me when pregnant that they wish they were told:

Your v@ginal microbiome will impact your ability to conceive, certain pathogens can contribute to miscarriages and you don’t always experience symptoms until you experience loss. Addressing the niggles of thrush, BV or discharge can actually increase chances of conception and support healthy pregnancies.

Women go through extreme change in pregnancy and postpartum and the nutrient requirements for the body are many times higher than what our standard diet is providing. Ensuring adequate nutrient levels before trying to conceive can support energy during pregnancy and postpartum, supporting breastfeeding and healing. Not to mention a healthy baby.

Did you know the health of a males s***m can impact conception, holding a foetus & symptoms in pregnancy?

There are so many factors to health that support conception, gut health, nervous system, partner health. Comment ‘REBUILD’ if you want to know how to get an individualised approach to health before conception.

22/03/2026

When people tell me they still notice discomfort when talking about menstrual cycles. That men don’t want to know about their mood and why it changes. I feel even more grateful that there are men like mine.

Women’s heath is our futures health. Let’s celebrate the men that make it safe for us, that care for us, that lead 💙

21/03/2026

You’re a woman who knows you want to conceive one day, maybe not yet, but you often wonder “Will I be able too?” “Will my gut issues/V@ginal issues, stress, impact my ability to conceive?” “How will I know where to start on preconception care?”

The research shows us that gut health, vaginal microbiome health, stress, nutrient status, body composition are all incredibly important for conception, pregnancy and babies health.

If you are looking for confidence in your ability to conceive. If you want to resolve those gut issues before trying to conceive. If you want to understand your cycle and get a personalised plan for 3, 6, 12 months before trying to conceive. DM me ‘REBUILD’ to find out how.

19/03/2026

I’ve been thinking a lot about the ache of invisible illness lately.

The search for a label, a diagnosis, so you can define what people think is in your head.

The desperation for the results, bloods, scans, tests, to show something so bad that it validates your pain.

The constant internal criticisms of ‘maybe it’s not that bad’ ‘maybe it is in my head’ ‘maybe this is normal’.

The desire to know if saying yes to something in a months time will mean cancelling last minute because you never know when the pain will take over.

The realisation that your friend’s group is so small because you’ve given up telling anyone why you cconstantly cancel, so you are no longer invited to anything.

The labels you and others have placed on yourself, ‘lazy’ ‘antisocial’ ‘snob’ ‘shy’.

The wondering if one day the desire to create life will be impacted by the pain.

I know why your labels help you, but I also see when they start to inhibit your healing ❤️‍🩹 The search for validation means nothing without the validation you can give yourself. Your life was not meant to be lived for anyone else. So the pain is a reminder to look after you, to stop living someone else’s values. The journey will mean more then any diagnosis, any magic pill, and because of it, you will set the foundations for growing life better then most.

💙

19/03/2026

Hormones, hormones, hormones. Good. Bad. Imbalanced. Not an issue. So many takes.
Hormones are how our systems communicate. An input - a messenger - a response (very oversimplified). But this is important because so many people are describing hormone imbalances as if it’s the problem we need to rage war on (sorry my perimenopause friends). But it has to start somewhere and it doesn’t start with your hormones. Yes, feedback systems stop working such as in the case with diabetes and the hormone insulin. And cortisol and stress. But these aren’t reasons to attack (for lack of a better word) the hormones. This is where we check ourselves and the environment we are creating for these messengers.

Could you have a hormone issue? Sure. But it didn’t start with your hormones.

What’s your take? 👇

18/03/2026

Your bleed is not the star of the menstrual cycle show 💫 It is ovulation ✨ But just because you have a regular bleed, does not mean you are ovulating. Remember this if you are taking the OCP because that bleed is not true menstruation.

Ovulation being the star of the show leads to the rise in progesterone, which is pro-gestation, preparation for a healthy pregnancy, but if pregnancy is not your goal, progesterone is also known as a calming hormone, supporting mood in the luteal phase. So if not present or low, estrogen becomes relatively high, estrogen builds up the endometrial lining, which in excess can cause heavy bleeds, sore breasts, water retention and mood changes. So what I’m trying to say is, ovulation is important, and even if you aren’t trying to conceive, which is why I don’t believe contraceptives are the answer to your symptoms.

If you want to understand what your body actually needs before trying to conceive comment ‘REBUILD’

22/11/2025

Endometriosis is finally getting more research and air time, and it’s so great to see as a women’s health naturopath. But being a part of endo support groups and women’s health groups I still see so much information that is really doing such a great disservice to women with this condition.

This is a complex condition with multiple causes and contributions. But this does not mean hopeless, it means that if you truly want to find relief and support you will need an individualised approach by a practitioner that takes into consideration all areas of YOUR health. AND for the appropriate time it takes to support a complex, multi factorial condition. Why? Because eating a ‘healthy’ diet is not enough. All the pictured systems (and more) need to be taken into consideration to YOUR case, because you are an individual and will have drivers that are individual to you. So when reaching out to a support group to tell you if a hysterectomy is the only option, please know there are people who specialise in this space to teach you how and what to do for YOU to find the right support and relief. Maybe that is a hysterectomy but I truly hope it’s not the first and only option for you.

Yes I’m extremely passionate about this as a women’s health naturopath.