Sharon is the Founder and CEO of Bonafide Provisions, makers of the number one selling frozen bone broth in America. We will learn all about the amazing amino acids present in bone broth that support gut health, deliver a collagen boost for healthy skin and nails, and help rebuild broken down connective tissue. Sharon will detail how to make bone broth at home in the correct manner, how to discern what is quality and what is crap at the store, and how bone broth helped her child go from sickly and ADHD-diagnosed to a life of robust health.
Prior to starting Bonafide Provisions, Sharon was a certified nutritionist specializing in a whole foods approach to health. She describes mechanisms in the digestive process whereby the presence of an agent on our tongue sets off an efficient chain-reaction of nutrient assimilation. She asserts that the best way to obtain the nutritional benefits of any agent (vitamin C, etc.) is through real food. In her practice, Sharon implemented the cutting-edge GAPS protocol to patients with great success, most notably with her own son.
GAPS stands for Gut and Psychology Syndrome, and emphasizes the importance of the gut-brain connection in holistic healing. The gut and brain communicate via the enteric nervous system. Interestingly, in fetuses the gut and brain originate from the same matter before they split off and progress into a fully formed brain and intestinal tract at birth. GAPS has been shown to be highly effective in addressing assorted mental health conditions that are typically addressed with medication, including depression, anxiety, ADHD and conditions associated with the autism spectrum. The rationale here acknowledges that dopamine and serotonin are largely produced in the intestinal tract, not the brain! What’s more, stress often manifests in the gut, such as the butterflies associated with nervousness. When you suffer from the common malady of leaky gut syndrome, it has a profound adverse impact on your mental health. This is the absolute cutting edge of medicine today, and Sharon weaves the story into the discussion around bone broth because bone broth helps heal leaky gut!
Some key beneficial agents:
- Glycine: helps with protein digestion and fat absorption
- Glutamine: a potent amino acid that gut cells use to produce beneficial mucus for a strong gut lining. Bone broth battles leaky gut!
- Proline: An essential component of collagen to promote cell repair, healthy skin and joints. Bone broth is the best source of collagen — straight from the animal’s joints!
- Glycosaminoglycans: Often touted by Dr. Cate Shanahan, when you ingest these agents, they head to the areas of your body where they are needed most, where you have weakened or insufficient joints and connective tissue.
Interesting historical tidbit: Bone broth was a staple of the human diet in recent generations, but the massive cultural shift to processed food that occurred around 1950 led us to disgracefully neglect bone broth. After life returned to normal after World War II, marketing forces pushed women out of the kitchen, enticing families with the convenience of TV dinners and later the explosion of fast food restaurants across America, as detailed in the iconic book, Fast Food Nation, written by Eric Schlosser. Dr. Cate Shanahan specifies the year 1950 as a cutoff for being reared with a decent diet prior, or a shit diet after that. Indeed, elderly folks today can harken back to their younger days when meals were home cooked and prepared from scratch, and sweets, treats, and sodas were celebratory indulgences instead of dietary centerpieces they are today.
How to make your own bone broth: Find joints or knuckles—the more joint material, the better! Chicken feet are particularly rich in collagen. Make sure you get organic/grass-fed/pasture-raised bones for the same reason we want naturally raised meat. Bone broth is keto friendly being high protein, moderate fat and low or no carb. If you add other ingredients such as veggies or sauces, you will alter the macros obviously
Cook animal bones 18-48 hours on low heat. Sharon says the Instant Pot shortcut is not a great idea here, so use your Instant Pot low heat function or a Crock-Pot or best yet a giant saucepan. Ideally, you want a 10-to-1 ratio of water (make sure it’s filtered) to bones. Use a few tablespoons of a chelating agent like apple cider vinegar, which will help extract nutrients from the bone matter. If your broth is gelatinous when it’s cooled, you have succeeded!
How to shop for quality products: Commercial “broth” products are devoid of the quality nutrients and basically a watered-down version of the actual bone broth. You should actually call this stuff “stock,” fodder for a liquid base of soup. Read labels! Bones should be on the ingredient list. You should see a prolonged cooking time specified on label or on website, and certified organic designation as well. This entails organic products all the way through the factory.
Bone broth is stored in the fridge or freezer and will last a week in the fridge.
As detailed in Dr. Cate Shanahan’s book, Deep Nutrition, bone broth is one of the ultimate ancestral foods, and it has been widely neglected (or watered down in the case of “broth-like” consumer products.) It’s time to get on the bone broth bandwagon and make it a centerpiece of your diet. Enjoy the show and learn more about Sharon at bonafideprovisions.com.
TIMESTAMPS:
Far from being a fad, bone broth has evolved over time [5:50].
How to figure out the proper amount of bones to use [10:40].
The benefits of using sun-dried sea salt [11:50].
Why homemade food went out of fashion [15:30].
What ingredients to look for when you buy bone broth from the store [21:05].
The true meaning of “certified organic” and the ideal cooking time [27:00].
How Sharon counteracts the issues that plague recovering vegans/vegetarians [32:40].
The reason why food is so effective as a healing modality for the body [40:55].
Processed food items with “gluten-free” or “grain-free” labels are still junk food [45:20].
The effects of having gut dysbiosis and the gut-brain connection [50:05].
Using a Crockpot to make broth is not terrible, but it isn’t ideal [57:00].
The bones that make the best broth [59:19].
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