Dr. Jockers Functional Nutrition

How Taylor Dukes Overcame Brain Cancer with Faith, Nutrition and Integrative Therapies

66 min
Feb 24, 20263 months ago
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Summary

Taylor Dukes, a functional medicine nurse practitioner, shares her journey overcoming a grade 3 brain tumor (oligodendroglioma) diagnosed in 2022 through integrative therapies, nutrition, and faith. The episode explores root causes of cancer including infections like Lyme disease and parasites, gut health foundations, and practical strategies for raising healthy children in a toxic food environment.

Insights
  • Cancer development is multifactorial and preventable through immune system optimization; Taylor's tumor likely grew over 8-10 years due to accumulated stressors (infections, parasites, heavy metals, stress) that exhausted her immune system's ability to manage circulating tumor cells
  • Dental infections from improperly extracted wisdom teeth and cavitations can harbor spirochetes and endotoxins that chronically drain immune function; proper extraction technique and CBCT imaging are critical for identifying hidden infections
  • Breast implants and other foreign bodies create chronic immune stress even without obvious symptoms; removing them can improve natural killer cell counts and overall immune resilience
  • Foundational health practices (sleep, stress management, real food, sunshine) outperform expensive biohacking tools; most health issues resolve through basics before advanced protocols are needed
  • Parental education and positive framing of healthy eating (empowerment vs. restriction) creates lifelong health habits; children adopt nutritional values through understanding benefits rather than fear-based rules
Trends
Integrative oncology gaining mainstream acceptance as complement to conventional cancer treatment; patients increasingly seek multi-modal approaches combining conventional surgery with nutritional and immune-supporting therapiesPreventative full-body imaging (MRI screening) identifying asymptomatic tumors earlier, enabling less invasive treatment and better outcomes; early detection through screening becoming standard for health-conscious populationsLyme disease and co-infections recognized as significant immune suppressors linked to cancer development; functional medicine practitioners increasingly testing for chronic infections as cancer risk factorsBiological dentistry and cavitation detection gaining traction; CBCT imaging and proper extraction protocols becoming differentiators in holistic dental practiceBreast implant illness awareness expanding; removal becoming elective procedure for immune-compromised individuals despite lack of obvious symptomsFunctional medicine practitioners developing branded supplement lines targeting specific health outcomes; direct-to-consumer product lines becoming revenue diversification strategyHomeschooling combined with health-conscious parenting creating niche market for clean food products and educational content; family wellness becoming lifestyle brand opportunityNervous system regulation and trauma healing recognized as essential cancer prevention and recovery components; mind-body medicine gaining clinical legitimacy in oncologyMetabolic ketosis and hyperbaric oxygen therapy becoming standard integrative cancer protocols; blood-brain barrier penetration challenges driving demand for alternative delivery methodsParasitic infections (toxoplasma gondii) linked to gliomas in peer-reviewed research; parasite testing becoming routine in functional medicine cancer assessments
Topics
Brain tumor diagnosis and integrative oncology treatment protocolsLyme disease and co-infections as immune suppressors and cancer risk factorsDental cavitations and root canal infections as chronic immune stressorsBreast implants and foreign body immune reactionsGut health testing (stool analysis, SIBO breath testing) and dysbiosis treatmentMetabolic ketosis for brain tumor managementHyperbaric oxygen therapy and IV vitamin C for cancer treatmentNervous system regulation and trauma healing in cancer recoveryParasitic infections (toxoplasma gondii) and cancer correlationElimination diets and food sensitivity identificationPediatric nutrition and food dye avoidanceHomeschooling and family wellness integrationPreventative full-body MRI screening (Prenuvo)Biological dentistry and CBCT imagingClean electrolyte and supplement formulation for children
Companies
Hope for Cancer
Integrative cancer treatment center in Mexico where Taylor received hyperbaric, ozone, and vitamin C therapies during...
Cancer Center for Healing
California-based integrative oncology facility where Taylor consulted with Dr. Canaley for second opinion and treatme...
Prenuvo
Full-body preventative MRI screening service that detected Taylor's asymptomatic brain tumor in 2022
Paleo Valley
Grass-fed meat stick company providing clean protein snacks; Dr. Jockers endorses their products as sugar-free altern...
Fatty 15
C15 longevity supplement company offering cellular anti-aging benefits through pure bioavailable C15 nutrient
Bondcharge
Red light therapy face mask manufacturer offering professional-grade skin rejuvenation device for home use
Chef's Foundry
Non-toxic ceramic cookware manufacturer offering PFOA and plastic-free cooking alternatives to prevent microplastic c...
Branch Basics
Non-toxic cleaning product company founded by Taylor's friend; mentioned as example of clean household products
Simple Mills
Clean baking mix brand used by Taylor's family as healthier alternative to conventional flour-based products
Taylor Dukes Wellness
Taylor's functional medicine practice and product line offering supplements, electrolytes, and health coaching services
GI-MAP
Stool testing laboratory used since 2014 by Taylor as gold standard for gut microbiome and digestive health assessment
Dr. Jockers
Host's functional nutrition practice offering health coaching, articles, and infographics on major health topics
People
Taylor Dukes
Guest sharing personal brain cancer recovery journey and integrative health expertise for raising healthy children
Dr. David Jockers
Podcast host interviewing Taylor about cancer recovery, gut health, and pediatric nutrition strategies
Dr. Tony Himmines
Runs integrative cancer treatment facility in Mexico where Dr. Jockers and Taylor both received wellness therapies
Dr. Amy Myers
Taylor worked as nurse for years; influenced her entry into functional medicine and personalized testing protocols
Dr. Canaley
Provided second opinion and integrative oncology consultation for Taylor's brain tumor treatment planning
Dr. Stewart Nunnery
Identified and surgically removed Dr. Jockers' wife's dental cavitations causing chronic sinus infections
Dr. Scott Chandler
Provided CBCT consultation and cavitation diagnosis for Taylor's dental infections
Dr. Palma
Referred Taylor's daughter-in-law to investigate cavitations as potential Lyme disease factor
Dr. Cowden
Formulated neurometics and Lyme-specific herbal protocols that Taylor uses for post-surgery recovery
Josh Axe
Mentioned as friend with podcast covering hormones, gut health, and ancient biblical health practices
Quotes
"By God's grace, I did that scan and they found a brain tumor, which is crazy because I had no symptoms. None. So I'm really grateful I did that scan and who knows what things would have looked like otherwise."
Taylor DukesEarly in episode
"I didn't like make a decision in fear. I didn't rush into surgery. I didn't rush into anything. I really, and I think for me, most people find out because I'm in the emergency room, you know, it's a much more chaotic situation."
Taylor DukesMid-episode
"Cancer doesn't just happen. It's not like it's not necessarily just bad luck or bad genes. It's really, there's root cause factors."
Dr. David JockersMid-episode discussion
"I also have to live my life like I'm healed. And my body will follow that. So I feel like we're in a good place."
Taylor DukesRecovery discussion
"Start with the basics don't pour your money into a bunch of gadgets and biohacking tools get the foundations in place because those are really the things that set the pace and tone for your life and your body."
Taylor DukesFinal advice segment
Full Transcript
By God's grace, I did that scan and they found a brain tumor, which is crazy because I had no symptoms. None. So I'm really grateful I did that scan and who knows what things would have looked like otherwise, but that's really how we found the cancer. Well, welcome back to the podcast. Great episode for you guys today. I am interviewing Taylor Dukes. We're going to talk about her personal story, overcoming brain cancer with nutrition and integrative therapies. She's also a mom. So we're going to talk about some of the different things she does for her family to raise healthy kids in a toxic world, how to clean up your home, good food, daily routines, how to live without fear in general. And so we're going to talk all about that. Her personal story, overcoming brain cancer, really great story. We're going to talk about some different aspects of cancer, like cancer's linked to parasites and immune health. We're going to talk about how she used mindset, nervous system regulation and trauma healing and how those are essential components of cancer prevention and recovery. And we're going to talk about gut health, of course, right? The foundation of health got a look first to the gut like apocardies, the father of modern medicine said. So we're going to talk all about that guys. You can check out Taylor at Taylor dukes wellness.com and a little bit about her. She is a board certified family nurse practitioner and functional medicine expert known for her wellness practice, Taylor dukes wellness, where she helps people with root cause health solutions, focusing on gut health detox and nutrition and inspired by her own journey overcoming personal health struggles, including a brain tumor diagnosis that we're going to talk about. And so guys, check out Taylor dukes wellness.com. She's got a lot of great products and resources there. Be sure to check that out. And of course, if you need anything else from a natural health perspective, drjockers.com is a one stop shop best articles and infographics on every major health topic. I was just talking to somebody online that was dealing with silent reflux, acid reflux. And I sent them the best article from drjockers.com on silent reflux. Somebody else that was asking for help with how to navigate their lifestyle without a gallbladder. And I sent them the best article and infographics on the entire internet on what to do if you don't have a gallbladder. So everything I would tell you in, you know, a 30 minute podcast episode right there in narrative as well as infographics, great infographics that you can grasp these concepts with. So be sure to check out drjockers.com. You also offer health coaching. So if you're looking for a great health coach to help navigate you through your health journey and help you out, accomplish your health goals, check out drjockers.com or you can email us at info at drjockers.com and put in the subject line health coaching. And we'll be sure to connect to you with one of our our top health coaches who can work with you all over the world virtually and look at your health history, labs and customize a great protocol for you to achieve your health goals. So just reach out if you need anything info at drjockers.com is a place to reach us. And of course drjockers.com. And leave us a five star review on this podcast. If you're, if you're getting value out of these episodes, take a moment, leave us a review and share it with somebody that you know and that you care about. Thank you so much for being a part of our podcast community. And God bless all of you guys. And let's go into this episode here with Taylor dukes. This podcast is sponsored by our friends over at paleo valley. And if you have not tried their grass fed meat sticks, what are you waiting for? These meat sticks are amazing. You know, if you go out and you look for beef jerky or something like that, even if you can find it grass fed, it's always loaded with sugar, additives, preservatives. And that's why I'm so excited about grass fed meat sticks from paleo valley. They are an amazing snack. They can even be a meal replacement. There's no sugar, additives or preservatives in them. They're kid friendly, high in protein and healthy fats that stabilize your blood sugar helps you get rid of cravings, support muscle development. It helps you burn fat. And they taste amazing. They're from grass fed cows. So they have the proper omega six to three fatty acid ratio, which helps bring down inflammation. And they're loaded with powerful animal-based nutrients that support your immune function, your energy and your skin health. And my kids love these. So they're kid friendly. My children snack on these on a regular basis. I really enjoy them. We keep a lot on stock. They're kind of our emergency food or a quick, kind of a quick grab if we need something, you know, in a hurry. I love the grass fed meat sticks from paleo valley. They've got some great flavors. They've got not only beef, but also turkey if you don't eat red meat. I think the beef tastes the best. I love the original. They've got a summer sausage, garlic summer sausage. They've got a number of different flavors that are amazing. A teriyaki, that's really good as well. So guys, check them out. Go to paleo valley.com forward slash jokers. And that will actually give you 15% off your order. And you can get other, you can check out other paleo valley products as well. Just go to paleo valley.com forward slash jokers. Check out the grass fed meat sticks as well as our other great products today. All right. Well, here I am with my friend Taylor dukes from Taylor dukes wellness.com. So check out her website. And Taylor and I actually ran into each other. First time I met Taylor was three years ago. It was at Hope for Cancer down in Mexico. And my wife and I are friends with Dr. Tony Himmines out there that that runs Hope for Cancer. We've sent lots of different people out there. And we go out there for wellness and for just kind of vacation purposes. You know, we go for young kids. And so it's nice to be able to go for a long weekend and enjoy the beach and also get some natural wellness therapies. But when we were there at the resort, I ran into Taylor dukes. And that was my first introduction to her. And she was there because she was getting brain cancer treatment and Taylor, I want you to, I want to know all about your story and just kind of everything that led up to it. But of course, you know, that interaction, I mean, it was really memorable because you just have this amazing personality, right? And you know, God's really blessed you with this incredible personality. And you really made an impact on my wife and I. And you know, we've stayed in touch ever since then. And it's been great to see how you've obviously grown with with everything you're doing in natural health and natural health world as well. That was such a Godwink of a little encounter because you were one of the first articles that I had stumbled upon when I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. And I didn't know, you know, I'm medical, so I'm a nurse practitioner. So, you know, you don't do like a neurosurgery course. You do very brief high level overview, different parts of the brain. And I remember like being like, so where is this? What would it affect? What kind of glioma? And your article was one of the first that I stumbled upon. And that's what I was able to share with you guys. I was like, you'll never believe this. And that's sweet and kind of you to say that I had a good personality because I was like maybe 10 to 12 days post brain surgery and I look back and I was like, oh, man, I guess I was kind of myself. The whole thing's been miraculous. Everyone's like, you're still the same tailor even though I'm missing a huge chunk of my brain. But yeah, I'm happy to share kind of just high level overview. And I know we'll probably get into more. But I was actually in the healthcare world. I most people I always say you're either sick or you're smart. When you get into this, you're smart. You're ahead of the curve. You're blazing the trail and health and wellness or you're sick and you have a story. And my story is I was sick. So I went to TCU in Fort Worth for nursing school and I had the opportunity to use the medical missions abroad. And I was kind of in a journal in junkie. I just wanted to be an trauma ICU nurse, emergency medicine. But God gave me the opportunity to do some medical mission work. And I did that both in Africa and Ecuador. And it was an amazing experience. And the Lord totally met me there. But I got really, really sick and had to get flown back to the States. And I had just a myriad of health issues. And so my hair was falling out. I had joint pain. Tons of gut issues, fatigue. And I was a healthy kid growing up. So it was really confusing. You know, I was like, what is going on? My body just felt broken. So this is back in 2012. And that's when I actually got into functional medicine because it changed my life. I was actually really resistant and hesitant because I thought it was woo-woo. But I was also so desperate because I was going all these specialists and they're doing procedures and putting me on medication. And my mom was really into natural medicine growing up. And so she was like, hey, I really want you to see this functional integrative doctor. And I was like, reluctantly, okay, whatever. Anyway, that changed my life. This was like health journey 1.0. I have a 2.0 that we'll get into. And so that changed the trajectory of my career. I was all in. I was obsessed, you know, and then Dr. Amy Myers, I think we had talked about that when we met. I was her nurse for years. And so that's really how I got into the functional medicine world, well, first in protocols and testing and personalized medicine. And then I went on to become a nurse practitioner, started my own private practice, founded a wellness center here in Texas. And so fast forward to 2.0 version of my journey and the cancer is in 2022, I was gifted a full body preventative scan. And it was really just because of, you know, the online education and work that I was doing. They just said, hey, it was the Perneuvo full body MRI. Yeah, yeah. So they said, hey, we'd love to gift this to you in exchange for you to share about it. And of course, be able to share with patients. And I was like, okay, sure, you know, I have no concerns, no health issues. That was, you know, 10 years ago, I field. And by God's grace, I did that scan and they found a brain tumor, which is crazy because I had no symptoms. None. So I'm really grateful I did that scan and who knows what things would have looked like otherwise. But that's really how we found the cancer. And it was a glioblastoma. It was a grade three all ago. I always have to like, yeah, it was an all ago dendroglyoma. So it was grade three, which, you know, glioblastoma is a grade four a bit more aggressive. But on the stage one to four scale, you know, three is more aggressive. And it was cancer. So that set me on quite a healing journey. And I was diagnosed, yeah, that was September of 2022. Wow. And so and that is a fast growing cancer too. And so a lot of times with these brain tumors, you don't know, you don't, you don't have symptoms until it gets really bad. Like and they grow pretty quickly. And once it, you know, obviously compresses certain areas, that's a lot of times when people do have the symptoms. And so you got this diagnosis. And then obviously that's a big moment in your life. And then what what kind of decisions did you make from there? Yeah. So that's a great question. You know, I think most people when they hear cancer and we didn't know it's cancer at the time. All I knew is that, you know, you get differential diagnosis, all the things that it could be. So I followed up with a local neurosurgeon to get a better look at the brain. And I was in disbelief. I'm like, what the heck? I am a young mom. I'm breastfeeding my 10 month old baby. I have no symptoms, you know, and I'm going through the checklist of seizures and personality and memory and physical. Like, I don't feel weak. I don't have any vision balance. So I was really in disbelief. But after further testing, it did confirm that there was a huge mass in my right frontal lobe. And, you know, God totally met me. I didn't like make a decision in fear. I didn't rush into surgery. I didn't rush into anything. I really, and I think for me, most people find out because I'm in the emergency room, you know, it's a much more chaotic situation. And for me, it was like, okay, I'm going to slow down. I'm going to pray. I'm going to ask the Lord, what am I supposed to do? Just like I do with all big decisions in life. And I'm not going to make a decision out of fear. And so I really slow down and evaluate it everything. And I also, I knew nothing about integrative oncology at this point. So I knew a lot about integrative medicine, which a lot of the things I did, you know, it quarterly. It's like with gut health and detox and nervous system. It's all very important from an oncology standpoint. But I just didn't know anything about oncology specifically. So I had always heard about hope for cancer, just because, you know, I was like, if I ever got diagnosed or a friend or family member, but never thought that would be my story. And so I, in my mind, I was like, okay, if this happened in my body, I believe my body can heal. I believe that, you know, this is here for a reason. I'd not hear for a reason. Yes, it is. Everything is purposeful. But it's here because something's in balance to my body is what I guess I'm trying to say. And so let's figure out what those imbalances are and what those interferences are. And so yeah, I went to, and in my neurosurgeon said, look, this is not emergency. We don't have to do surgery tomorrow, but get your affairs in order. Execute a living will, you know, I had to get my husband access to all my business stuff, my private practice, because you just don't account for things like this. And, uh, yeah, so it was a lot of life planning and then also a lot of just medical. So I went to California to the cancer center for healing to meet with Dr. Canaley. I went to hope for cancer for two weeks and did, you know, it's like health boot camp. You know what it is. Hyperbaric, cytos vitamin C, ozone, all the things. I got into metabolic ketosis, which is really great for the brain. And yeah, I spent five months just going full-send healing and preparing my body and also going to the Lord of like, what are God's promises? And what does this mean for me in my life here? You know, I've always trusted in the Lord. Well, since I came to know him, but relying on him in a different way and remembering what his promises are in the midst of the hardest, scariest thing of my life was really important. And in those five months between when I got diagnosed and when I did elect to have brain surgery, you know, I was able to get second opinions. Thankfully, the brain tumor actually shrunk in half, which is an absolute miracle because the blood brain barrier, I mean, it's really hard. Brain tumors are really difficult to treat in general. So it did shrink in half. And then I did have brain surgery on February 1st, 2023 to remove the remainder of the tumor. And meanwhile, you're a young mom too, right? Like you had two young boys at the time. Yeah, they were three and then 11 months when I got diagnosed. So they were very young and I'm very hands-on mom. So that was really hard trying to be mom, trying to heal. You know, I obviously took a leave of absence and stepped away from my private practice in the wellness center because healing felt like a full-time job. You know, I was doing my hydrogen therapy and my red light helmet and hyperbaric and it was it really did for a period of time felt like a full-time job, which I'm so grateful I was able to dedicate the time and the resources to that because not only did it help shrink the brain tumor, but also it helped prepare my body for a major surgery. And I had a really incredible outcome. I mean, the whole story I just tell people I'm like, don't compare your brain brain surgery journey to me. It's not normal truly. It's God's grace, but also I had five months to prepare. You know, I was I had surgery. It was a long invasive surgery. I was in ICU and I was discharged 24 hours later. I mean, I was walking six hours after brain surgery. It's the whole thing was not normal. It was truly miraculous. Yeah, no doubt about it. And then how long did it take you kind of to recover from that brain surgery? What was that like? So it definitely took time and I look back. No one could have prepared you for it. You know, you get your staples out two weeks later. The neurosurgeons like great. We'll do a follow up MRI in three months. And it really depends on the part of the brain affected. For me, it was the executive function of the brain, which was funny because I was the CEO, you know, I'm like, right. And I'm asking my employees, do you all notice anything? Is anything off? And they're like, no, if anything, we're like trying to get to your speed. And so that was really interesting. And I will say looking back neuroplasticity is real. The brain's ability to rewire because I'm doing great three years later. But I did struggle. And some of it was the brain surgery, but some of it was that I had a long history of Lyme and co infections. And I didn't realize it at the time, but I was having a huge Lyme flare, which is neurological. So like I had a lot of light sensitivity, sound sensitivity. I had to wear headphones. A lot of places. I would get very easily overstimulated. I had a hard time proofreading, which was hard because I was always, I'm very much about education and blog content. And I would proofread and newsletters. And I remember it would take me like an hour. And I was like, this is not like me. I've been doing this for years. So I did struggle. But you know, I was like so fortunate. I never had to go to rehab for any major therapies. But looking back, I'm like, yeah, that was hard. And I had some short-term memory. It was weird because I was aware of it. It'd be like, I added something to my Amazon cart, but I'd never hit check out. And then a week later, I'm like, where's the paper towels? And yes, I buy paper towels on Amazon sometimes. But you know, that was like, oh, I thought I'd ordered that or I thought I booked that plane ticket. There definitely was some, some things. But I think I was also, you know, I still had businesses and I was mom and things like that. So I have to get myself grace. But I blamed a lot of my over stimulation and insomnia. I never had insomnia in my life on brain surgery. But the reality is when I started doing a personalized line protocol with some count and supplements and some infusions, that got better in like six weeks. And so I think I realized, oh, some of this was brain surgery related. But some of it just when you cut into the brain, the central nervous system, you're just triggering a huge line flare. So thankfully, I was able to focus on that and I got a lot better. Yeah. Now, did you know that you had a history of Lyman Co-infections? Like, did you know that kind of going in or was that something you found out after the brain surgery? It was after, well, okay. So and I love for people to hear this part of my story because so many people here like, oh, Taylor, this health and wellness practitioner had a brain tumor. I can't imagine what I would find in a story. And I just, I don't want fear from my story to creep in and get ahold of people. What people have to remember is that I was really sick 10 years prior or eight to 10 years prior to this diagnosis. And that's when my immune system went rogue and when the tumor circulating tumor cells grew. So I just, I like for people to hear that. And so even like my neuro oncologist and the neurosurgeon said, the tumor's been growing likely eight to 10 years. Who knows if it stopped growing? Who knows how fast it was growing? We'll never know because I wasn't symptomatic. But I like to remind people of that. And so I did have the health journey, you know, and that's how I got into this integrative world. I actually think that I was, I was hospitalized. And I think that's when I had a really bad tick bite situation. They of course didn't know that at the time. But my body was able to keep up with it. I was fine. My immune system kept it at bay. But it was when I went through a lot of trauma and stress and being abroad. I had parasite issues. I was given a bunch of shots to go abroad. It was the perfect storm in my body couldn't keep up. And so I actually never knew that I had Lyme. I just never tested. I was like, oh, and I'm not this like debilitated patient. I got better, you know. But when I got diagnosed, I cast the net. You know, I ordered every test you could imagine. And that's when I got the Lyme test back. And there were a lot of IgG and IgM, which means it's like a current infection. And so that's when I, before brain surgery, I was like, oh, wow. This makes sense why my immune system is so suppressed because I've been trying to fight off these pathogens for so long. But I didn't do a lot of treatment. I mean, I did do treatment because I did high dose vitamin C and ozone and hyperbaric, which probably helped the Lyme. I just never really had the true Lyme symptoms until after brain surgery. If that makes sense. Yeah, for sure. Because a lot of people use hyperbaric and IV vitamin C as examples, hyperthermia to help bring down Lyme. And so, so you're doing that for, you know, for the cancer ozone as well. You're right. And so obviously you're going to get some improvement there. But let's talk about that relationship between these kind of infections, right, whether it's Beryllia or the different co-infections that are associated with Lyme, parasites. How does that impact the immune system and potentially increase the risk of developing cancer later in life? Yeah. So it suppresses the immune system. You know, when the body, the immune system, you think of it as like an army, you know, it's fighting off all the bad guys. And when it's trying to fight off a lot of bad guys, whether it's viral pathogens, parasitic pathogens, Lyme, spirocate bacteria, heavy metals, mold, whatever it may be, the army gets tired. And that's when you can't fight off the bad guys. And so at any given point in time, we all have circulating tumor cells. But the way God designed an immune system is that we are able to take care of those with a properly functioning immune system. Now when you're stressed and your immune system has been fighting in the army's tired, that's my little analogy, I guess. That's when you can't take care of these circulating tumor cells or these cancer cells. And then that's when a tumor forms. And it takes time. And so I think looking back, my body was just under so much stress trying to fight off all these pathogens for so long. And you know, in functional medicine, we always give the drop in the bucket analogy. And my bucket was just overflowing. You know, I had a bunch of heavy metal issues. I had parasites from living abroad. I, in fact, this is interesting. I had, you know, people are like, oh, the parasites really? And I'm like, yes, you know, we don't need to live in fear of parasites. We moved to land. We live on a farm. We're touching the cows. We're outside every day. We don't live in fear. But they definitely are an issue. And it's not just third world countries, you know, sushi and contaminated water and food. It's a thing. But when I did testing, I had a blood parasite called toxoplasma Gandhi. Toxoplasmos as people are familiar with. And the International Journal of Cancer and American Cancer Society both link that tumor or that parasite to gliomas and middle-aged people, which is interesting because that was my story to a T. So I'm positive for this parasite and my blood. And then I also have a glioma. And so there's lots of actual research and evidence, you know, you can go to pub bed and see this stuff. This isn't just like woo-woo. But yeah, I just had, it was the perfect storm. My bucket was overflowing and drops in the bucket and stras and just, you know, it was the perfect storm. I just want to take a moment to interrupt this podcast to tell you about one of my favorite podcasts I listened to. It's called The Doctor Josh Axe. Show hosted by my good friend, Dr. Josh Axe. Every week he shares how to balance your hormones, restore your gut, boost your energy and slow aging without relying on harsh medications or quick fixes. He shares both ancient biblical practices and the latest breakthroughs in nutrition, herbal remedies and lifestyle medicine. And he sits down with world-renowned experts to have a real unfiltered conversations. He won't hear anywhere else. So if you're ready to take control of your health, renew your energy and transform your mind, body and spirit, tune into the Dr. Josh Axe show every Monday and Thursday wherever you get your podcasts. Yeah, it's important for people to know that cancer doesn't just happen. It's not like it's not necessarily just bad luck or bad genes. It's really, there's root cause factors. And so when the body's dealing with a high level of toxicity, high level of infectious load, when we have deficiencies, nutrient deficiencies, when we have a higher amount of stress, then we're able to adapt to and less recovery, like less quality sleep, for example. We have this accumulation. It's almost like an equation over time. Something's going to give out. And for many of us, it can lead to cancer diagnosis. That's what was happening here with you. Even though you were living a healthy lifestyle at the time, obviously you had two young kids, which every mom knows, that's stressor. You're trying to run a business at the same time. A lot of stress there and your bucket overflowed. So you're building that bucket up and it was overflowing at that period of time. And fortunately, you're able to get that preventative scan, the Pernuvo scan, which I've talked about on this podcast before. And so you were able to do that and discover it. Obviously get the treatment models that you needed through hope for cancer, get the surgery, get that removed, and then recover from it. And ultimately, now it's been basically three years since then. And how do you feel now? I feel great. I feel amazing. It's been definitely a journey. And then also, you guys were really encouraging to me. And I know you've shared this journey. But when I got diagnosed, it was like, wow, I am healthy. How much healthier could I be? And of course, I kicked things into high gear doing metabolic ketosis and all the things. I'm still very much on a healing protocol, but it's less intense. And but when I met you guys, like I had breast implants and I had capitations in my mouth. So I've since got rid of any interferences that I know that could be affecting my immune system. And I knew implants weren't good. I got them long before I was in a health world. But it was just one of those like, do I really want to do that? And I feel good and I don't have BII symptoms, the breast implant illness. But I was like, I'm getting rid of any and everything that could be interfering with my immune system. So I had that done in 2024. And then I just recently in October, I had some cavitations from leftover, you know, wisdom teeth, you know, that healing that went wrong and removal that went wrong. So I just had cavitation surgery. So it's been a journey. I'm like, 2026 is my year of most surgeries. But I'm just, yeah, I'm grateful to be on the other side. God's taught me a lot through it. You know, it's really humbling. I've met a lot of people in this journey that haven't made it. And that's been really hard. But I think just perspective and mindset and believing my body can heal. That's so important. I've always been a positive person. Just naturally, I'm a glass half full, but really believing that my body can heal. And when, even when doctors are scans that otherwise, I just was like, thank you for that information. But I, my God is bigger. You are not my God. And this diagnosis does not define me. And it is not my identity. And so I've learned a lot about my identity through the Lord and believing that he can heal left side of heaven. You know, like we do live in a fallen and broken world. So I've learned a lot through that. Physically, I'm feeling good. Obviously, cancer-free. And as far as protocols go, you know, I'm still super healthy. And I've been doing some Lyme specific treatments, some herbs, neutrometics from Dr. Cowden. That's really helps me. I've gotten on low-dose nautric zone. I've done some peptides. So I'm still on healing things, if you will. But it's not as consuming as it was. Like there was a time and place where it felt like a full-time job. But I also think from a mindset standpoint, I don't want my body constantly thinking I'm sick. And I have to chase every protocol. You know, I, I also have to live life like I'm healed. And that looks like traveling. And, and, you know, we're so healthy. And when we travel, we're always eating the healthy things. You know, I eat my breakfast with poached eggs to avoid seed oil. And, but not everything's going to be perfect. And that's okay. You know, I, I also have to live my life like I'm healed. And my body will follow that. So I feel like we're in a good place. We actually just booked a vacation in Mexico last night for our whole family in two weeks. And we're like, we're crazy. But it's also like I'm healed. And we get to do this. And God's given us the opportunity for more time together as a family. And so we're living. We're, we're making the most of it all. And I really believe I'm going to live a long life. Like I feel good. I'm doing great markers or improving. But yeah, it's been a journey. Well, praise God. And I'm grateful for your faith as well. It reminds me of Romans 828. God works all things out for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose. And so a lot of times it doesn't look good in the moment. And we have to cling to that. That God can use whatever challenging situation we're in for good. You know, and, and that's what it looks like. He's doing with you, Taylor. He's, he's really working out for good. You've been an inspiration of many people. So praise God for that. And I'm glad that you're doing so much better in general. You brought up a couple, couple, couple key things. Breast implants, right? My wife also had them. That was something that she was having some chronic symptoms. So we removed those several years ago. It was something that we knew we needed to get done. We had four kids. And it was like, you know, between having children and nursing, right? Couldn't do it. And then finally, we were able to get those taken out, which, you know, so many women are, you know, they feel the pressure to get breast implants, especially with our social media culture today. But these things are toxic. And so can you, can you talk about that a little bit? And then I also want to go into the root canals. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. So, you know, when I had shared, and I honestly debated publicly sharing that because I've been so vulnerable in this whole cancer journey, very much a real person, what you see again, like my pastor follows me, my father-in-law, like this feels really uncomfortable. But ultimately, I was like, okay, God, everything that I've shared is to help others. And this is no different. And so I did choose to share that journey. And people were like, wait, what the heck? You have breast implants? And I was like, guys, look, I didn't grow up coming out of the womb, caring about health. You know, we, we just, we make decisions with what we have at the time and help was not a priority when I did that. And yeah, I can stress the immune system. It's a foreign object in the body. And especially for anyone with an autoimmune history or a suppressed immune system, it's just not good. And I'll never forget. So there's a blood marker called CD57. And that's an immune marker to show your natural killer cells. And mine is, you know, it's supposed to be above 60 and most lab value ranges. Mine is like 12, which shows that I have no natural killer cells circulating and taking care of abnormal things. And so my immune system is suppressed. And so I'll never forget getting on the console with the surgeon who I ended up getting the breast implants removed from. And, you know, I said, yeah, I had a history of cancer. He goes, if you ever had your natural killer cells drawn. And I was like, yep, they're in the toilet. He's like, yep, this is definitely affecting you. Even though I didn't have a bunch of inflammation, I would say, or a bunch of breast implant like brain fog. I felt good, honestly, but I knew that I wanted to do it just because it was a foreign object in my body and can be a stressor to the immune system. But I know plenty of people that literally felt a difference 24 hours after getting their implants out. I do remember being able to breathe better. I was in post-op and I was like, and I wouldn't say that breathing was an issue, but I could take a deep breath. And, you know, I did it more of like not because I felt bad, but because I knew it was going to be helpful for my immune system and my body to get rid of it. And a lot of people blindly make decisions and we're not really given informed consent about how it kind of fact things long-term. And so, yeah, I'm grateful I got it out. And I know a lot of people that have benefited as well. Yeah, for sure. You know, my wife was having chronic neck upper back pain, right? And, she noticed a big change in that after getting the implants. Now, big issue she was having was, she was having these recurring sinus infections, right? And I'm a natural health doctor. So, I'm giving her, you know, I'm having her nebulizing, I'm doing all this different stuff, nasal sprays, red infrared, nasal, nasal red, and infrared, all this kind of stuff. And yet, she's having these terrible sinus infections that would get so bad to wear one time her eardrum ruptured. And, yeah. And so she basically got PTSD to where it was like any time she felt any pressure in her sinus, she'd be like, I need antibiotics, I need antibiotics. And I remember one, one, we took a vacation to Florida with the kids and it was like half the vacation she was just inner bed, right? And just scared to do anything because, you know, she felt like she was going to develop a really, really bad sinus infection. And so we took out the implants and still having those issues, right? And so we had a holistic dentist and he had done, you know, 3D x-rays, looked at where her wisdom teeth were taken out, said, you know, everything looks good there. I don't see anything there. We got a second opinion, same thing the person said, you know what? I'm not seeing anything. When she continued to have these sinus infections, I'm like, you know what? I need to find like whoever is the best, right? And so we found Dr. Stewart Nunnery out in Marble Falls, Texas. And yeah, and sent them over to him, right? And he said, well, there's definitely three infections and I think four, but I won't know until I get in there. And so we made the, we decided, okay, we've got to figure this out. So we flew out there and he went in, did the surgery. And that's the thing about these root canals or wisdom teeth taken out is that they're not taking them out properly. And there's a little bit of dental ligament left in there. And it's like a breeding ground for bacteria. And they're releasing endotoxins into the system, draining the immune system. And he found that the upper right side, like her wisdom tooth, wisdom tooth that was taken out on her upper right jaw, that that infection was actually budding up into the sinuses. And that was the area where her eardrum had ruptured as well. So ever since that surgery, which was in the summer of 2024, so year and a half later, she has not had one sinus infection since then. Wow, praise the Lord. I did not know that she went through this. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Wow. Yeah, you guys leave no stone uncovered either, whether it's cancer, sinus infections, I think people just, they don't realize the correlation of some of these things. And wow, I did not know that. Dr. Nenely, you know, I've been in Texas forever. And when I was Dr. Amy Myers-Nurse in Austin, that's who we would refer everyone to go see. And people fly in from all over the world, not just the US. They're amazing. Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. She had the cocaine stand done. Is that cheated? Yeah, yeah, yeah. The 3D combing, exactly. Yeah. But the thing about it was we have biological, you know, we have holistic dentists out here. Not everybody is trained on how to read these 3D X-rays for specifically for the hidden cavitations. Yeah, I found that feature as well. I found that to be true as well. And I even had a biological dentist here. And I went, I was a patient at Dr. Nenely's when I was way back in the day, you know, and I didn't have any issues. I just didn't have dental insurance. I was like, if I'm going to pay cash, I'm going to go to someone that's not using fluoride and it's going to take a better approach. But I got to be honest, I never thought dental was my issue. And I knew I didn't know as much about cavitations. I knew more about root canals and amalgams because that every patient I would work with, but there's a huge dental section. Root canal cancer connection is significant. But I just kind of was like, you know, okay, I did have my little built-in retainer taken out because it can affect the meridians. But I just never really thought, you know, I was going to my biological dentist when I was diagnosed. And do you know Dr. Palma? Yeah. Yeah. Okay, I'm bringing his daughter in law and she was like, Taylor, your story reminds me so much of my lime journey. Have you looked at cavitations? And I was like, I really haven't. I just kind of thought mouth was not my thing. And I was blessed in that regard. And she was like, you really need to advocate for a combi and scam and then have a consult with I had a consult with Dr. Scott Chandler in Utah in Park City. That's another great option for people. But and he was like, yeah, three out of four. And so I just had that done in October and I'm so grateful. And we actually sent blood samples from the cavitations to pathology. It was like an add-on for lime and spirochets. And it was off the charts. I mean, they said it was one of the worst they've ever seen. And I'm like, well, that's great. I'm glad I got it taken care of. So anyway, I'm really grateful that we, you know, the mouth is so big and people don't realize even with SIBO and gut issues, you know, with bad gut bacteria in the mouth and sinuses and cancer and immune system dysfunction. So not that people need to live in fear, but you do have to advocate. And I think, especially me as a mom with my children, I'm like, okay, now I know I'm informed and equipped to advocate for them. There are times and places for wisdom teeth to be removed, but you want to have it done properly. What if you knew there was a way to strengthen yourselves in reverse aging at the cellular level so you could stay healthier longer. Well, meet C15 from fatty 15, your crucial healthy aging nutrient that scientists have called the longevity nutrient. You see, pure C15 is unlike anything else on the market. 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I try to spend as much time on the low-hanging fruit, changing your diet, your lifestyle, which we want to talk about here too. And that's the stuff that you can start doing immediately. But if you're not getting results after you're doing a lot of these things, you've got to go upstream working with somebody like Taylor, you and your team, my team, working with people that are going to do lab testing, look at your health history and figure out which of these major issues, major root cause factors could be the root cause of your issues. And so I think that's so important. Yeah. Yeah. And so let's transition now into talking about, really, a hypocrite said was the foundation of health, which is the gut. And how important the gut is when it comes to our immune system, when it comes to our overall health. And the things you like to do to support your gut, your kids, and the patients that you're working with. Yeah, the gut really is the gateway to health. And I didn't learn that because the professor told me I learned that because that was my story. When I was really sick, when I had referenced in 2012, I was having a lot of gut issues. I was having bloating and only going to the bathroom twice a week. And so much pain. I remember being like 22 and I would have to leave weddings. I would have to leave social events and I was doubled over in pain and I looked pregnant and I was not married or pregnant. And it was really like my gut was the main issue. I was going to GI doctor. I was getting scopes. They couldn't find anything. My skin was a wreck. I'd never had bad skin in my entire life. Like not even preteen acne. My immune system was a wreck. My hair was falling out because I wasn't absorbing nutrients. And so I learned the hard way the gut really is the gateway to health. And I think when you talk about low hanging fruit, there's really simple tangible things people can do. Eat a real Whole Foods diet. If you're having gut issues, consider an elimination diet to see if there's anything triggering it. But I don't think people should be on elimination diet forever. I would know I'm very healthy. So there are a lot of things that I avoid. But you should be able to have a strong and healthy gut to where you're not sensitive and reactive to everything. But perhaps you have a leaky gut and you have a history of antibiotics and fungal overgrowth or overgrown bad bacteria. And that's where I'm a huge fan of like eating real food, eating gut healing foods. But if you're having a lot of issues, you know, you can try digestive enzymes, you can try some probiotics, some gut healing powders. But if you're still not getting anywhere, I'm a big fan of test don't guess and do a stool test and figure out exactly what's going on. Do you have dysbiosis and balanced bacteria? Do you have SIBO, which is more of a breath test? The gold standard for that is H. Kailori an issue. Are you deficient in stomach acid or digestive enzymes or is there inflammation? And so got testing, he'll change my life and getting on a personalized protocol. But as far as enough magnesium rich foods or supplementing with magnesium, so many people are deficient. And just by adding magnesium alone, they're going to have more regular bowel movements. And stress, that's another thing. We tense up and stress is so important, not just for the gut, but so many different things and sleep. But yeah, I think if someone has chronic gut issues and they can't figure it out, especially if they've already gone to a GI doctor and ruled out some of the more serious stuff, that's where gut testing is really helpful. And when I say gut testing, I mean stool testing. Yeah, do you like to use GI map tests? Which is your favorite? I've used them. Yeah. You know, I've especially working for Amy like we did everything, Dr. Stade, Genova, and I like different lab test companies for different things. But GI map is my gold standard that I've used since 2014 and always come back to, you know, other companies have been like, we'd love to gift you this to see if you and I'm just, I always go back to GI map. I find it's the most awesome, clinically relevant, significant, and that's just, yeah, that's my favorite. Yeah, I agree. I like that one as well. And a lot of times, you know, like you were talking about elimination diets, even like a low-fod map diet for a period of time I've seen, you know, a lot of people get good improvement from there, right? Yes. So there's a lot of different things that you can do. I know I've got some blogs on kind of taking those low hanging fruit steps, right? Strategies. I know you've got some good work on your website as far as that goes to. I love your articles. Oh, thank you. Yeah, thank you. Appreciate that. But I think one thing that people need to be reminded of, gut healing can take a long time. So don't do like a whole 30. I mean, a lot of people have got, you know, improved eating a paleo diet or low-fod map for SIBO type stuff. But I think people think it's automatic quick fix and the gut can take a long time. And I admittedly, like it probably took a year to heal my gut to stop reacting to everything and for my skin to improve. And so I would just say be patient in the process and just know it can heal, but you do need to be patient and be committed. And there are times in places for nutritional and healing protocols, even if it feels restrictive, like you can heal, and it's worth it. Just stay the course. Yeah, for sure. And you may have flare ups, like you, you know, may continue to have flare ups, but the key is, are we seeing like longer periods of time between those flare ups? I think that's also a big factor you want to look at as well as you're going through the healing process. Now, let's talk about Taylor, the mom, like you've got two young boys, four and six. So what do you do to help raise healthy children? You know, what sad is that I feel like we have to do a lot of things different. Like we have to be countercultural in eye order to not get standard American results for our kids. But if you look at the statistics, kids are getting so sick, dependent on so many medications. I mean, it is really, really sad. And so we are healthy. We we live our lives too, but like we eat real food, you know, the majority of our meals are at home. Our kids, they can't read, well, my six year old is starting to read, but like he doesn't know how to read food labels, but they're able to recognize like, oh, that's a healthy brand. That's not we one thing that we've been really strict on and now people are coming around and they're like, oh, maybe there's something to do this. We've we don't budge on food dyes. Not that I think it's going to kill my kid, but the way that it affects children and their brains and development, we've just never done them. Like we never budge mainly because of confusion. Like we don't want to be like, oh, we're here at the birthday party. You can have it here, but you can't have it at your grandparents house. And so that's just and our kids are great. Like they my four year old when he was three playing baseball, he'd be like, oh, that's gay to rate. No, thank you. I don't do food dyes. You know, I'm like, oh, gosh, you can like receive it. We can give it to someone maybe, but we started them at a young age and it's less about restriction. It's more about educating them and empowering them. If you want to be strong and healthy, this is why we eat this way. There are so many benefits to using red light therapy, especially when it comes to your skin. And that's why I'm so excited to tell you about bond charges red light face mask. It's the ultimate skincare solution for a younger, clear looking complexion. You see, red light therapy is a game changer for your skin. 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So they love feeling strong and you know, I have a product line and we've developed, you know, electrolytes that are made with real food ingredients and only colored with, you can't color everything, but like our strawberry lemonade is with organic free-striped strawberry powder and so that's pink and red and they love that and that's kind of their pre-game ritual and you know, we have had to instill in our kids like we are the Duke's family, we are going to do things different and we don't take pride in that but you know and we don't judge other people. This is our decision, our family, but they will sit in the dugout and be like mom, everyone's having gatorade and I'm like yeah, we're the Duke's family and we do things different, but they they feel empowered in that and they love going to the grocery store and finding healthier options. Like mom, look, this is the good brand of this and especially at the airport, you know, they see a lot of healthy choices and so I would say from a nutrition standpoint, you know, we are not doing fast food, we're not doing Chick-fil-A, we're not doing the convenient things, we are eating real food and it's not just about the food, it's time together around the family table and we homeschool so we have breakfast together almost every morning and it's just it's such a gift to be together as a family and then you know, of course we prioritize sleep for our kids, we're not on original sleep schedule but we do make sure that we provide the opportunity for, we're not like seven o'clock lights out every night, that's not us. But we do prioritize sleep and calming things like Epsom Salt Bass, that's a great way to get in their magnesium and time outside and nature and so we yeah, it's we don't do a lot of screen time, we do watch shows, we do watch movies and have family movie night but our default mode is not here's a tablet, they don't have tablets, you know, and so there are a lot of things that like my kids are like you know there's times and places, hey I get it, I'm not judging, if you're on a long airplane ride you gotta do what you gotta do, give your kids some headphones, plug into the American Airlines, blewie or whatever. But it's we're we're doing things differently but we're starting to see the fruit of how we do things differently and it's paying off and just empowering our kids and not letting them feel restricted and it's been really I'm encouraged, me and my husband are like wow we're seeing this like come around, you know, and the teachers like they do a co-op twice a week and she's like those boys are so cooperative and they listen and they don't fidget and I'm like it makes me sad because I feel like a lot of kids especially boys get a bad rap in school, well I think they're boys they've a lot of energy, they're not meant to sit eight hours a day right and sit in this box but I also think think about what they're being fed for breakfast, they're not being set up for success and their blood sugar is tanking and they're they have brain fog you know kids don't know how to communicate that but what we feed our kids and especially having protein first thing in the morning and throughout the day or before sugar or carbs I think it's really important and setting our kids up for success. Yeah 100 per say you're right on with that my kids are a little bit older some of my kids are a little bit older than yours we've got twin 10-year-olds we've got a almost eight-year-old daughter and a almost five-year-old daughter and so so anyways yeah I'm always teaching them right so they can teach literally they can teach like a nutrition class because I'll teach them about each food and I take them grocery shopping on Saturday mornings a lot of times I let my wife just sleep in and just take them out and yeah yeah and just get them all out right and so you know I always think of grocery shopping it's like a it's like a weather controlled walk you know what I mean and and it's an educational walk right so we're in there and I'm teaching about each of the foods is I'm putting them in so and they know you know we got to get your protein things like that and so all of my kids have like a certain pretty high level of like nutritional knowledge just based on that and what was interesting was last weekend so my my sons are really good athletes and and at half time of his game they they do these contests where it's a church league and like if you hit a half-court shot you get like a free gift from the concession stand so he actually hit a half-court shot and so he got the free gift and he's like can I but they didn't all they have was junk food unfortunately and so he's like can I can I get something and I'm like all right we'll talk about it so at the end of the game we went over there and there was nothing healthy right but I was like all right I was like I got them a Snickers bar because you know again we're not it's very rare they ever get anything like this but I split it between all four of the kids right and they all and as they were enjoying it I was like I was like so what you're noticing are the chemicals those chemicals there that are making you feel so good as it's in your mouth they're designed to get you addicted to this right I'm teaching them yeah exactly so I'm making it not not to where they they crave that in a sense they're like I want to have that experience again but instead they're realizing this is what the food industry is doing and you're experiencing it right now right as we're doing this and what's interesting is my son's like hey if I hit if I hit one next week can I get another one I'm like I'm like you're gonna have to court shots but I'll take you on a separate date we'll go get some ice cream yeah exactly exactly right so but anyways we don't yeah we we do the same thing like like 90 95 percent I'm I'm more of the the strict one like for me I really don't crave processed foods my wife is more the fun one right so she wants to the kids have all the different experiences but you know 90 95 percent of their diet is real foods and then we make some room for you know some of the other stuff we try to get the healthier alternatives right and things like that like the healthier types of candy for parties you know if we do a pinata party or something like that yeah and then just try to teach them right because I mean so much of this stuff is is designed to get get kids and adults addicted right and that's where the the major problem occurs and you don't want your kids to be sheltered where they go to a friend's house and it's like oh my gosh little Johnny got sick because he just went ham on the candy jar you know and that's what I try to tell people our kids we do family homemade pizza nights or if we're going to buy and we'll just do a simple mills you know are not as simple as what's the couple of us so our kids had we were in um Tulsa Oklahoma two weeks ago and they have a place that has sourdough gluten-free dairy free um no refined sugar it's coconut sugar no food dies they have sprinkles on donuts and we drove out of our way 25 minutes to go to the shop because I'm like I want my kids to have a Saturday morning donut experience you know and so we try to give them those opportunities or you know for baseball snacks I mean it's horrid what they do I don't know if you all do baseball snacks after every game we're in the little leaks yeah and it's Capri-sign Oreos gushers you know I'm like oh man I did this growing up and did we all turn out fine but we I have a deal with my kids and thankfully there are a lot of moms and a lot of moms that are in our community that are healthy and mindful of those things but I tell my kids before I don't want there to be a battle in the moment I think hey you know what we have a swap jar and in fact I started bringing it to the games in my car of like if you trade it in for me you could have whatever one of these treats you want and they are there is some candy and things like that because I don't want them to feel left out and my kids have been able to recognize oh mom they're not the healthy snacks can I have something from the swap jar and I'm like totally dude you know but you know even my three-year-old day keys on the team he's he's a great little athlete people like why is your three-year-old playing I'm like because he used to cry at his older brothers games and the coach said just put him in and now he doesn't need a T and he just he's our little baller but he was even able to recognize and it's just it's not a battle and it's not a struggle and they're educated and they really do feel empowered but and it's really helpful you know some kids especially that have a lot of neuro inflammation and have ADHD and stuff it's really important that parents are putting them on a nutritional protocol and again it's not about restriction our kids have and enjoy a lot of different things that we're thankfully able to find a lot of the healthier versions and swaps of things while I just want to interrupt this podcast for a very important public service announcement one of the most dangerous things you may be doing for your health is cooking a healthy meal at home I know that sounds crazy but here's what the science says most of us are unknowingly swallowing thousands of shreds of microplastic with every stir fry eggs scrambler veggie saute now where's it coming from your non-stick pan in fact one two thousand twenty four study found that just a single scratch on a teflon coated surface can release over nine thousand plastic particles into your food and those plastic particles don't just pass through your body they build up in your arteries in your brain and they disrupt your hormones along the way one study found that people with plastic lodged in their arteries were four and a half times more likely to suffer a heart attack or a stroke another found plastic particles the size of a crantip inside actual brain tissue and others now like microplastics to hormonal imbalances and fertility issues so just like cigarette smoke in the 1950s or let it gasoline in the 70s microplastics are today's invisible toxin they're creeping into our bodies daily while the science scrambles to catch up and it's not just old pans even brand new non-stick cookware can start shredding particles from the very first use that's why I switched to the p600 ceramic cookware it's a hundred percent free from teflon pfa's and plastic coatings it's made with Swiss engineered ceramic and it's truly non toxic it cooks beautifully cleans easily and most importantly it doesn't poison your food if you're serious about reducing your toxic load this is one upgrade I highly recommend right now the p600 cookware is 50% off and for a limited time you can take an extra 20% off with the code safe 20 at checkout just head to chef's foundry.com forward slash jokers to claim your discount now but stock is limited and this bonus discount could end at any time so use the code safe 20s a f e 20 at chefs foundry all one word ch ef s foundry.com forward slash jokers before this offer disappears your body will thank you but so will your family you know my mom was a was was into natural health growing up and I was not like everybody in our family we we wanted to to reject it and and just go our own way right and rebel against it but my mom actually started teaching me and that was what actually got me into it because I was an athlete growing up and so she would say well you need to eat you know back in the 90s when I was growing up it was like the macrobiotic diet so she would be like you need to eat your steamed kale and your you know your your tofu and your beans because that's going to help you feel strong right it's going to help you have more energy and be strong and things like that and when she would say stuff like that I was like well if this is going to help me have more energy and help me be stronger all you does much all you does much steamed kale as I possibly can because I want to be strong right and so the powering and motivating exactly exactly and so I think that's really the key is you got to have that education with it and try to speak into things that they're interested in like for girls oftentimes it's going to be acne it's going to be appearance right and for boys oftentimes it's going to be being feeling strong right absolutely that's all I know is boys right now yeah so but it is it is motivating and and they do have athletes that I love and I'm like guess what they fuel their body and then sometimes they'll be like I see the post game press conference and there's gatorade and I'm like that gatorade sits on that podium if you notice it's a marketing thing they aren't drinking it but it is it's you know it's empowering to educate them and I feel like that's something that will stay with them of course but they rebel maybe you know I don't know what it's going to be like when they're teenagers but at least we're setting them up with this foundation especially why they're developing developing you know their bodies are growing and their immune systems are forming and their gut cells are forming that's I feel like a very formative time in their life and we can't control it forever but I do think it's important that we give them a really good shot when they're young yeah for it's so important you know my dad was never into health my mom was really into health and ultimately my mom won out she went out in our house because she was persistent with it and she went out with her kids all of all I'm actually one of six kids and all of us are health conscious right of course I'm a doctor right so yeah and she went out because she she really chose to educate right and and you know what's great is like the food she was trying to give us had no flavor to it it was the macrobiotic diet like no salt no oil and somehow like she doesn't teach that now right um yeah she teaches what I teach right and what you teach which is healthy fats high protein grass fed meats things like that the food now tastes so much better and there's so many more so much more options than there were back in the 1990s when I was growing up but you know it really comes down to just persistency right persistency in a loving way a loving persistence from not exactly and and it will ultimately I think it will win out if I can't get to my roots on my mom I was the same way I went to college and was eating water burger and doing the college and I didn't feel good but then ultimately I came back to and you know I would joke I'd be like mom you're serving rabbit food and she's like tell you this is real food but I grew up on home cooked meals and it was good and nourishing you know but then I went off and did my own thing and I got sick and I didn't feel good it wasn't just the food but that was for sure contributing factor and now I'm like mom you were right you were right so we go back to our roots. Thanks absolutely absolutely and and and final thing what would uh what kind of supplements do you recommend like what do you use with your kids I know you've got some that you've you've personally made that people can find on Taylor Taylor dukes wellness.com so what are some of your favorites supplements to use with your children as well. You know we keep it simple my kids don't have a lot of health issues my son did have some eczema and so we did more targeted gut supplements we did some gut healing powders with allo and marshmallow extract and zinc carnacine and some immunoglobulins so that was specific to and it was really dairy that was causing his eczema and so we did some gut healing for that but we honestly are hydrated we do electrolytes it's like they're fun travel drinks or if they want juice you know or playing sports you know I made those organic fruit based electrolytes with no natural flavors no sugar. You know you can make popsicles with those too. Yes oh my god. I love those. It's so fun and they feel like they're having a little summer treat we do the same thing and it's so easy but we I would say you know kenton have you heard of kenton the little we do those minerals clad liver oil which covers vitamin A vitamin D of course during like sick and flu season will up things a little bit more for traveling but we do keep it pretty simple omegas for their developing brain you know the clad liver is really great that's really important but my boys are really healthy and so we really don't do 10 million supplements you know but like they're full of flu season I will say we up things a little bit and then you should see my natural medicine cabinet if they come down with something these kids are resilient you know but we do try to shorten the severity and duration of symptoms and so we'll do you know more immune supportive things and herbs and detox baths and we do epsom salt baths I would say two to three times a week that's a great way for them to one calm down looks at their nervous system but two to get magnesium which is really important as they're active and it's calming and so yeah we do we do that and we do do a little multivitamin like a food based multivitamin but we're not they're not on a 10 step routine and really they're getting a lot of their food from diets my son wanted me to film a video last night to send it I call it we call it his aunt she owns branch basics I don't know if you know what that is it's a non toxic cleaning company but she's one of my best friends and she got him hooked on sardines so he was teaching her how to do a sardine tortillas sandwich with a seaweed wrap you know and I'm like food is medicine in these kids when they're eating healthy diets they are getting good nutrients now of course our food is not as nutrient-dense as it used to be so that's where it is helpful to supplement but yeah and you know again like with the exema and the skin thing we did do more targeted supplements and I did stool testing to figure out is this fungal is this you know what's going on and so I feel like times and places for more targeted things based off of the kid and then another thing I don't know if y'all have gotten into this but airway health is really important and so my son has a really high narrow palette and so that is something that we're focusing on right now with a dentist and doing proper expansion just for airway and oxygenation and so you know just setting them up for success in different ways like that and then making sure they're getting sunshine and fresh air and getting their energy out that is so important for children and you know I know it's not realistic and people are in really cold climates but I'm like just getting sunshine and your eyes is so important and getting them away from a screen and giving them that childhood that they need and so that we view that as health as well yeah that's so good getting them outside and your homeschooling so that's that makes it helpful as well last question how are you doing it all how are you running this great business oh my gosh oh my gosh you hear with me and then also homeschooling at the same time well okay here's the thing we do have help it is not all me and my health and I will say I have one thing that cancer taught me I have a great team a great team running the show but one thing that cancer taught me is what is most important and that is time with my children making memories we love travel and adventures I don't like shopping I spend all my money on health stuff and adventures and so after cancer it was like how do we prioritize this more and so we they do go to a homeschool co-op twice a week and then today they're in museum school so on the days where I have meetings or podcasts interviews if it works on Thursday great if not my husband and I just figure it out but yeah we do have to outsource some stuff in the home so that I can be present with my kids and I can run this company I joke with people I'm a wannabe stay at home mom but God has this calling on my life right now and and honestly I don't see I you know I close on my private practice we have a private online community and I have practitioners where people can do lab tests and things like that but I don't see patients anymore and I did walk away from the wellness center so I had to make sacrifices in my career and at first I was like man I work so hard to become a nurse practitioner become board certified I could prescribe and diagnose but I just had a surrender that and that's where I got into making and formulating our own products and protein and electrolytes and honestly a lot of things that I love for my kids to have like organic hot chocolate organic lemonade in the summer like country time and swishness but clean and so that's really I get a lot more freedom to formulate those and do those I'm less restricted to an hourly appointment schedule and then my husband actually is the CEO now and so he came on board and he's able to run a bunch of stuff and then ping me we needed so I definitely don't do it all I'm definitely not super mom but I just tried to be really present and prioritize what matters most and it's you know God's kind of orchestrated all the details of how that looks and every work day is different there's no structured work day and don't get me wrong some days I'm like it would be easier to send my kids off to school but I don't want easy I want time with them and even if that means sacrificing in other areas I'm willing to do it. Are you doing a great job Taylor? I'm doing so good I mean my my wife's like that to most home school moms it's like one day they're like homeschooling the best the next day they're like okay I'm getting my kids in school right I'm getting them out of it. What was I thinking? Yeah exactly so absolutely what you're doing a great job it's been a wonderful chance to just catch up and and see what you're up to and you know I just want to want to encourage you you know you're doing an amazing job you're an inspiration to so many and so just just continue on the journey that God has for you and I know he's going to continue to bless your life and bless your family and so any last words here of inspiration for audience? Yeah I think what I would say is you know it's easy to hear a story like mine or listen all these health podcasts and get really overwhelmed and feel like you have to buy a red light panel and get access to hyperbaric and I would say some people make health unattainable but like you said the low hanging fruits start somewhere start with the basics don't pour your money into a bunch of gadgets and biohacking tools get the foundations in place because those are really the things that set the pace and tone for your life and your body so like practically speaking get sleep you know that's I it's the free medicine stuff that people are like oh yeah so hard just tell me what supplement to buy but getting sleep managing stress getting sunshine getting fresh air you know for me like one way I relieve stress is getting outside on our back porch and having my quiet time with the Lord and that is so foundational to every day now do I get it in every morning no you know some days the kids get up early and I don't have the opportunity but just find ways to healthily relieve stress reset your nervous system eat real food sleep don't over complicate it and then when you have those foundations in place then that's time to kind of up level it if you're still having issues but so many people forget about the basics and they're wanting to just buy a million supplements or do a bunch of therapies and it's like hey if you were just sleeping and eating real food that could resolve a lot of your issues mm-hmm yeah no doubt well this has been great tailor guys check her out at tailor dukes wellness dot com you can check out all her great supplements and she's got a whole bunch of great free resources as well that you can check out as well tailor dukes wellness tailor thanks so much again for your time and you and your family be blessed well that's all for this show and I want to thank you again for spending your valuable time with and if there was something you heard in this interview that you have questions on or you want to dive in a deeper then doctor jokers dot com is the best place to go if you enjoyed this episode please consider taking just a quick moment and giving us a great review your reviews help us influence more people and transform more lives and if you took something valuable away from this episode then please share it with someone in your life you know it can help we'll see you soon on a future podcast be blessed everybody