Ashley Sweeney

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Anchorage, AK
Ashley Sweeney

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
AshleySweeneyRD.com

03/04/2026

Day 20! Living in Alaska, vitamin D comes up a lot this time of year. Long winters and very little sunlight mean a lot of people get told the same thing ❄️

Myth: If your vitamin D is low, you just need to take more vitamin D.

Truth: Sometimes the issue isn’t the dose. It’s whether your body can actually use it.

Through a functional lens we ask a few other questions first 🧐

-Are you absorbing it? Conditions like celiac, IBD, liver issues, pancreatic problems, or bariatric surgery can make fat-soluble vitamins harder to absorb.
-Is it getting stored in fat tissue? This can happen with obesity and make blood levels look lower.
-Are medications speeding up how quickly vitamin D breaks down?
-Are genetics affecting how well your vitamin D receptors respond?
-Is chronic inflammation interfering with how vitamin D is activated and used?

Then there are the nutrients that help vitamin D actually work!

✨Magnesium helps activate vitamin D
✨Vitamin K2 helps guide calcium to bones and teeth
✨Healthy fats improve absorption
✨Gut health affects how much you actually absorb

So sometimes the better question isn’t
“Should I take more vitamin D?”

It’s
“Why isn’t my body responding to the vitamin D I’m already taking?”

Also- very important that you get your levels tested before supplementing 👌

03/02/2026

Day 19 of Not Everything You’ve Heard About Nutrition is True

Myth: Avoid greens and plant based protein powders because of lead and heavy metals
Truth: They are present in plant based powders because heavy metals are in soil. So, a concentrated source of plants WILL have some heavy metals like lead.

There is a risk because many plant-based powders have more heavy metals than animal-based options.

But if you’re like me an like the convenience of using these from time to time, or have an allergy, or like what the supplement can provide that you can’t get in whole food forms, here is what you should know
- Aim for products where the maximum daily serving contributes no more than about 0.5–1 mcg lead/day (around the Prop 65 level or lower).

-Look for labels or certificates of analysis (COAs) that list lead in actual numbers per serving, not just “passes heavy metal testing.”

-Look for batch-specific COAs (matching the lot number on your tub) from accredited third-party labs.

✨ I recommend you use them as occasional or rotating supplements, not as an everyday, multiple-scoops-a-day staple. 👌

03/01/2026

Day 18 in my Not Everything You’ve Heard About Nutrition is True… what trends do you wish would go away?! 🙋‍♀️ Me, the carnivore and vegan diets.

Myth: Carnivore and vegan diets are healthy
Truth: Carnivore and vegan diets are trends I wish would go away

Carnivore diet: Sure, meat gives protein, iron, and B vitamins… but cutting out plants means missing fiber, prebiotics (the foods your gut microbes need to feed off), vitamin C, and phytonutrients that your gut and immune system love.

Vegan diet: Plants bring color and antioxidants, but skipping animal foods can leave you low on B12, iron, omega‑3s, and even complete proteins if you’re not planning carefully.

Meat is good. Plants are good. But ALL or NONE Is not the way to go for your metabolism, gut health, and long-term health.
Balance isn’t boring it’s how your body actually thrives. Variety > extremes 💪✨

Thanks for following along in this series! Check out some of the last videos if you missed them! 🫶

02/28/2026

Day 17
Myth: Creatine is it worth the hype?
Truth: Yep. For most people, it is.

I used to think creatine was a bros gym supplement, but there is actually more reasons to be taking it than that.
1. As a woman you should most definitely be doing strength training. Creatine increases phosphocreatine stores in muscle, which improves your ability to regenerate ATP during high-intensity exercise. That increased training capacity can lead to gains in lean muscle mass over time. When we have more muscle mass, our body burns calories at a higher rate. Win win.
2. Improved memory, information processing speed and executive function tasks, These benefits were seen in high dosing situations (20g/day for 5 days) and lower doing regimens.
3. Increased cognitive benefits under sleep deprivation. 😴 Hello , tired moms. 👋

Dosages of creatine monohydrate powder:�-The idea of loading seems to work for some people (20grams/day split into 4 dosages) for faster increase in muscle and benefits within a week. Then move to Maitenence.
-Low dosage of 3-5 grams/day, taken with a meal or with carbs/protein, can take 3-4 weeks to begin to see benefits.

Splitting dosages less than 5g appears to reduce risk of GI discomfort.

‼️Don’t take it expecting weight loss without strength training.
Creatine does not directly cause fat loss. I already explained how it works, but If you are not lifting or doing resistance work, you likely won’t see the body composition benefits people talk about. You may notice a small increase on the scale from water in the muscle.
You can still take it and experience cognitive benefits tho!

‼️Talk to your provider if you have kidney disease or significant kidney impairment.
Creatine is generally well studied and safe in healthy individuals, but it is not recommended for people with existing kidney disease unless supervised by a physician.

Questions? Want more on supplements? Let’s hear them!

02/27/2026

Day 16 of my series Not Everything You’ve Heard About Nutrition is True!
Myth: You need to work out more to see results 🏃‍♀️ �Truth: Women are tired and burned out. Working out more isn’t what you need.

Trying to burn more calories isn’t the answer for you.
Your body will not build muscle, balance hormones, or improve energy if it’s underfueled and undernourished. ❌

Before adding more workouts with clients i create a plan to
✨ Actually eat enough
✨Have consistent meals instead of chaos
✨Replenish deficiencies and imbalances to feel better to HAVE the energy and strength to get the most from your work outs.

02/26/2026

Myth: Biotin fixes hair loss
Truth: Biotin became the “hair vitamin,” but recent research over the last 5 to 10 years shows very limited benefit in healthy people.

🧐 Recent research reviews:
There is no strong evidence that biotin improves hair growth in otherwise healthy individuals.

Where biotin can help:
True biotin deficiency, a rare genetic enzyme defects, certain pediatric hair syndromes

‼️But most female hair loss I see is related to these things:
Stress
Thyroid
Blood sugar control issues
Iron status
Mineral imbalances as seen in testing I do with clients:
Low zinc
High copper relative to zinc
Low sodium and potassium from chronic stress
Low magnesium and calcium depletion

💇‍♀️ Our hair is a non-essential tissue.
When the body is stressed, under-fueled, or depleted… nutrients go to survival first, not hair

Before adding another supplement to your routine for your hair think:
Is this a deficiency… or is something deeper driving the symptom?

Starting with your minerals like I do with clients is a safe, easy, gentle place to start with usually quick wins in things like energy AND your hair!

02/20/2026

Day 10
Myth: take probiotics for gut health
Reality: specific strains are beneficial for certain reasons and you can start here with a few things first:�✨ Eating consistently and not skipping meals�✨Minerals to support digestion and motility�✨Chewing and slowing down at meals�✨Supporting stomach acid and enzyme function
✨Fiber and prebiotics
I have some specific PRObiotics to talk about later related to specific issues! 👌
Missed a myth in my series? look at day 1 and start there!

02/19/2026

Day 9!
Myth: anything is better than nothing.
Truth: read the slides to see why that’s not the case.
I work with women helping them personalize and tailor the supplements they need to their body. I usually help women stop taking unnecessary supps and prioritize what they need. And stop wasting money on things that don’t work!

02/18/2026

Day 8! Make sure to catch up if you missed any!
Myth: Your labs look normal but you don’t feel normal

Our blood tries and NEEDS to keep us in a state of homeostasis (everything running like clock work), so it may not reflect your symptoms. This HTMA test (from your hair, a tissue) will alert us earlier to changes we can make. ‼️
This example is 4️⃣ of the main minerals all very LOW. This mom is tired. She didn’t need a test to tell her that, but it’s validating and gives us a solid starting spot for improving her energy (and mineral are SO key to many functions, not just energy). ⚡️

02/16/2026

The way they put on helmets to go bobsledding together 🥹🤭🥰

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Anchorage, AK
99501–99524, 99529-99530, 99599

Website

http://www.AshleySweeneyRD.com/blog

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