Functional Fueling Nutrition

Functional Fueling Nutrition Functional Nutrition Solutions for Thyroid and Hormone Imbalances.

We are a team of registered dietitian nutritionists that specialize in personalized, evidence-based nutrition solutions for hypothyroidism, hashimotos, PCOS, and other hormonal imbalances. Functional Fueling Nutrition is a Los Angeles and virtual based nutrition practice specializing in functional medicine and hormones. Our Registered Dietitian, Lauren, helps women ages 25-55 restore hormone imbalances using advanced lab testing and functional nutrition to get to the root cause and achieve optimal healing.

Most people think Hashimoto’s starts when TSH rises or thyroid hormones drop… but the first shifts begin 8–10 YEARS earl...
11/26/2025

Most people think Hashimoto’s starts when TSH rises or thyroid hormones drop… but the first shifts begin 8–10 YEARS earlier — inside the immune system.

That’s why healing Hashimoto’s isn’t about chasing TSH levels, it’s about repairing the immune terrain that drives the thyroid attack in the first place.

Your body develops “energy leaks” long before thyroid antibodies (TPO and TG) show up:
• Chronic viral load (EBV, CMV, HSV, etc.)
• Mold + environmental toxins
• Gut infections + leaky gut
• Long-term stress + hormonal transitions
• Micronutrient depletion

It’s not one infection or immune stressor — it’s the overall viral/microbial burden that overwhelms immune tolerance. Hashimoto’s develops when the dominos align: genetics, hormone shifts, nutrient gaps, stress, and toxic load.

The good news is when you support the immune system, the thyroid can finally heal✨

Inside our approach, we focus on:
✓ Rebalancing minerals + micronutrients
✓ Restoring immune tolerance
✓ Addressing “energy leaks”
✓ Reducing oxidative stress
✓ Healing the gut + rebuilding digestive resilience

If you want to understand this connection further…COMMENT “HASHIS” AND ILL SEND YOU A LINK TO LEARN MORE!

Most people think Hashimoto’s starts when TSH rises or thyroid hormones drop… but the first shifts begin 8–10 YEARS earl...
11/26/2025

Most people think Hashimoto’s starts when TSH rises or thyroid hormones drop… but the first shifts begin 8–10 YEARS earlier — inside the immune system.

That’s why healing with Hashimoto’s isn’t about chasing TSH… it’s about repairing the immune terrain that drives the thyroid attack in the first place.

Your body develops “energy leaks” long before antibodies show up:
• Chronic viral load (EBV, CMV, HSV, etc.)
• Mold + environmental toxins
• Gut infections + leaky gut
• Long-term stress + hormonal transitions
• Micronutrient depletion

It’s not one immune stressor — it’s the overall viral/microbial burden that overwhelms immune tolerance. Hashimoto’s develops when the dominos align: genetics, hormone shifts, nutrient gaps, stress, and toxic load.

The good news:
When you support the immune system, the thyroid can finally heal. ❤️‍🩹

Inside our approach, we focus on:
✓ Rebalancing minerals + micronutrients
✓ Restoring immune tolerance
✓ Addressing “energy leaks”
✓ Reducing oxidative stress
✓ Healing the gut + rebuilding digestion resilience

Comment “hashis” and I’ll send you the blog post to learn more!

11/23/2025

When you fast until your Holiday brunch, your cortisol rises, insulin sensitivity drops, and your hunger hormones push you toward overeating — not because of “willpower,” but physiology.

In this episode with , we break down how to structure your morning so your body is supported, steady, and primed for better digestion and energy all day long. 🤍

👇🏼 Comment “thanksgiving” for the full episode link.

11/23/2025

🌙 Do you regularly wake up around 2am?

In this week’s podcast episode, Dr. David Allen and I break down why 2 am wake-ups really happen.

We also dive deeper into:

• How the liver and kidneys relate to fertility, aging and motivation
• Why detox protocols backfire when your system is depleted
• The simple breath-and-pause technique that stops a stress or anger spiral and improves your stress tolerance
• How digestion + absorption weaken with age
• How reconnecting the mind + body accelerates true healing

If you’re waking around 2am, your body is talking to you — and this episode explains exactly what it’s trying to say.

Comment “124” and I’ll send you the link to listen to the full conversation

11/17/2025

🎄 OUR HOLIDAY GUIDES ARE HERE! 🎁
The holidays are full of joyful moments… and a few stressors, too.

To help you stay grounded and energized this season, we created two brand-new resources👇

1. The Functional Holiday Recipe Guide (FREE for everyone!)
Real-life holiday moments ➜ paired with quick, Functional Fueling®–approved festive recipes.
Inside you’ll get:
• A Hormone Insight (what’s happening in your body)
• An Action Step (what to do in the moment)
• A Festive Functional Recipe (that supports hormones + energy)
PLUS an exclusive FFN supplement discount code 🎁

✨Comment “holidays25” to grab your free copy!

2. The Ultimate FFN Holiday Hormone Health Guide
FREE with any $50+ supplement purchase
46 pages of:
✔️ Bloating + travel tools (plus 3 travel workouts)
✔️ Airport & road trip nutrition guidance
✔️ Healthy holiday food + tradition swaps
✔️ My Holiday Health Gift Guide w/ exclusive discounts
✔️ A 7-Day Holiday Hormone Reset Meal Plan — perfect between events to re-energize, de-bloat, and keep metabolism + cycles humming

✨Comment “shop” to shop our formulas

——
Take advantage of BOTH guides for the ultimate holiday support.

Think of these as your functional nutrition toolkit for holiday resilience.

11/05/2025

Insulin Resistant despite exercise, eating healthy and all the blood sugar hacks? Here’s the top causes we see clinically in practice!

1️⃣ Undereating or chronic low blood sugar → Whether intentional or not. This may be because your metabolism has adapted over the years or because of chronic GI issues limiting your food options. When you chronically undereat or get into low blood sugar situations, your body raises cortisol to keep blood sugar stable, which overtime makes cells less responsive (resistant) to the hormone insulin.

2️⃣ Low T3 or low thyroid → T3 your active thyroid hormone is essential for blood sugar control and glucose metabolism. T3 isn’t routinely tested so many women don’t even know this is an issue for them until we do testing. Check out my free quiz if you suspect this may be you!

3️⃣ Oxidative stress from overtraining + under-recovering → Intense workouts without enough key antioxidants and minerals in the diet or poor structuring of training that drains your central nervous system taxes your mitochondria and affects insulin signaling.

4️⃣ Nervous system stuck in fight-or-flight → That overachieving in work, family, workouts (all the things) keeps cortisol chronically elevated throughout the day, blocking insulin sensitivity.

✨ It’s generally not about eating less or training harder — it’s about intentionally structuring your nutrition, exercise and recovery.

I break all of this down in my latest podcast episode: Your Guide to Reversing Insulin Resistance.

👇 Comment “123” and I’ll send you the link to listen on Apple or Spotify!

Are sugar substitutes really safe for your hormones? 🍭One common concern is the research suggesting stevia might act as ...
10/30/2025

Are sugar substitutes really safe for your hormones? 🍭

One common concern is the research suggesting stevia might act as an oral contraceptive. I too was concerned when I first heard this years ago — but here’s what the research actually shows: the fertility effects were only seen with high-dose stevia extracts teas, at levels 10-60x higher than what’s normally used in food. And this has only been shown in animals.

The same goes for many other sweeteners — in typical amounts, they’re not likely to impact fertility or hormones.

That said, there are other factors to consider, like how sweeteners may affect dopamine reward pathways, which can influence cravings and eating behavior.

We break down all the research on commonly used sweeteners and answer your top questions!

➡️ Swipe for a quick breakdown
Comment “sweeteners” and I’ll send you the full blog article to dive deeper!

10/28/2025

How to build a Functional Thyroid Meal at the salad bar 🥗

✨I teach you all the functional foods and pairings of them to support thyroid function inside my program; Functional Thyroid Foundations. Plus you’ll get tons of meal ideas just like this that can be implemented wherever, whenever! Comment “FTF” and I’ll send you a link to learn more 🤎

🥬 leafy greens- antioxidants to protect thyroid cells from oxidative stress
🍗 protein- key for metabolism and hunger hormones but also tyrosine, an amino acid needed for making thyroid hormones
🧅 onions- rich in sulfur for making glutathione our body’s most abundant antioxidant
🥦 broccoli sprouts- packed in sulfurophane for liver detoxification, where t4 to t3 conversion happens
🥕 raw carrots- contain carotene that support bile flow that aids in t3 production
🫜 beets- contain nitrate that helps with thyroid hormone delivery throughout the body to target areas like the ovaries, hair, gut, etc!
🎃 pumpkin seeds- rich in zinc, a mineral needed for active thyroid hormone production
💩 prebiotics to support enzymes in the gut that convert thyroid hormones to their active form, t3

Top it with your own olive oil and acv for extra antioxidants and digestive juice support!

Comment “FTF” and I’ll send you a link to learn more!

Address

San Diego, CA

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+16193792416

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Functional Fueling Nutrition posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Functional Fueling Nutrition:

Shortcuts

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Category

Our Story

Functional Fueling Nutrition is a nutrition private practice owned by Lauren Papanos, MS, RD, CSSD. Lauren specializes in a root-cause, personalized approach to nutrition. Lauren is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, a board certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics and is trained in functional nutrition. She holds both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Nutritional Sciences. She has worked as a Division I Power 5 Performance Dietitian as well as in outpatient functional medicine clinics. She has been featured on websites like Women’sHealthMag.com, Active.com, Insider.com and published research in several medical journals.

Her specialties include:


  • thyroid and metabolism

  • women’s hormones