Chews Food Wisely with Nicole Fennell, RD

Chews Food Wisely with Nicole Fennell, RD Nicole is devoted to empowering others to take control of their health destiny by promoting positive lifestyle changes through a real-food approach.

Chews Food Wisely Functional Nutrition offers individualized, and collaborative functional nutrition therapy to help individuals with chronic health issues and nagging symptoms like fatigue, thyroid issues, sluggish metabolism, and hormonal imbalances

Listen... as someone who previously has dealt with migraines for YEARS (at one point, getting them daily for a MONTH!) a...
08/01/2026

Listen... as someone who previously has dealt with migraines for YEARS (at one point, getting them daily for a MONTH!) and has lived with anxiety for... forever... LOL
.. I can tell you that nutrition is a big piece of the puzzle, but not the ONLY piece.

That said, for many people who are seeing the doctors, meeting with therapists, taking the medication and STILL trying to navigate life with migraine and/or panic episodes/anxiety/etc., nutrition can often be a missing link.

Did you know that way back in the day when scientists were studying migraine they would induce migraine in their subjects by withholding food from them? Not only did the lack of food dysregulate blood sugar, it withheld necessary micronutrients for proper cellular and nervous system signaling and created a rapid rise in stress hormones.

I didn't realize back then that my under-eating, over-exercising, over-stress, and lack of nutrient dense foods were stressing my body out physically and emotionally.

Food and proper nourishment is ONE way the body and brain feel a sense of safety, so if you're doing all.the.things and haven't really figured out the nutrition piece, it could be the missing one to your health puzzle.

Honestly, I don’t hate TSH like you’d expect someone like me to. Quite the contrary, in fact. I think TSH is SO helpful…...
07/31/2026

Honestly, I don’t hate TSH like you’d expect someone like me to. Quite the contrary, in fact. I think TSH is SO helpful…

… but it's not the only thyroid marker available.

And hopefully that’s good news for you to read. Because while it’s awesome to have a normal TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone), when you’re feeling like garbage and your pants don’t fit hearing “your labs look great” is the worst best news ever.

Getting a more comprehensive peek into your thyroid hormone status, utilization, and more with m labs such as Free T4, Free T3, TPO antibodies, and Thyroglobulin antibodies may provide helpful context and help paint a more complete picture of thyroid health.

Lab work should never be interpreted in isolation, which is why we love TSH alongside a full thyroid panel annnnnd alongside cellular metabolic markers to see how those hormones are behaving in your body!

Have you ever had a full thyroid panel checked, or just TSH?

Comment TSHBLOG for the link to our full explanation (Blog Title: Why TSH Doesn't Tell The Whole Story)!

Click the link to dive deeper (Why TSH Doesn't Tell The Whole Story)!: https://chewsfoodwisely.com/thyroid-school-issue-18-why-tsh-doesnt-tell-the-whole-story

Wait, so I don’t have to do all the things all the time for all the people perfectly and entirely every single time? Nop...
07/29/2026

Wait, so I don’t have to do all the things all the time for all the people perfectly and entirely every single time?

Nope. Never had to do that. Not sure why I thought so, but I definitely didn't need to do everything.perfectly.everyday.

I just needed to do a few things consistently.
Simplicity —> Sustainability —> Consistency —> Progress

So instead of chasing unrealistic expectations that I love(d?) to place on myself, I focus now on small daily habits I can realistically stick with for a good while— long enough to make a difference.

I chose 5 areas to fill each day. This post shares a few ideas of how I focused on filling these buckets each day.

🤩 SHARE BELOW: What F5s would you choose to focus on each day?

If you’re done feeling tired, bloated, or like your wonky hormones are running the show, you’re in the right place.Our t...
07/25/2026

If you’re done feeling tired, bloated, or like your wonky hormones are running the show, you’re in the right place.

Our team helps women feel like themselves again with
✨ 1:1 support that actually makes sense
🧪 Lab bundles to find out what’s really going on
💡 Science-backed strategies that don’t make your head spin

Not ready for 1:1 yet? Start small with our freebies!
🎧 Comment PODCAST – real talk about thyroid, hormones, and energy
❓ Comment QUIZ – find out what may be secretly sabotaging your health
📚 Comment FREECOURSE – to get our free thyroid-specific course to help you start feeling better
👓 Comment NEWSLETTER - to stay connected

No matter where you're starting, our goal is the same: to help you move forward with more clarity, confidence, and a plan that fits your life.

Okay, here’s what I want you to do…If you’ve mastered getting 20-30 grams of protein at meals, then start doing this too...
07/24/2026

Okay, here’s what I want you to do…

If you’ve mastered getting 20-30 grams of protein at meals, then start doing this too and report back:

Aim for 10 grams of fiber at each meal.

Do this for three meals a day for an entire month. Let me know what happens!

When you keep nutrition simple, it becomes sustainable. Sustainability leads to consistency and habit which leads to lasting change.

*educational purposes only. Please do not use this as professional advice.

Welcome to the "in-between" phase. The phase where you’ve listened to the podcasts, saved the Instagram posts, tried the...
07/24/2026

Welcome to the "in-between" phase.

The phase where you’ve listened to the podcasts, saved the Instagram posts, tried the supplements, and Googled your symptoms more times than you’d like to admit.

The phase where you’ve been told your labs look normal, but you don’t feel normal.

The phase where you’re tired of guessing.

At Chews Food Wisely, we specialize in helping women connect the dots between their symptoms, labs, lifestyle, and nutrition so they can finally understand what’s going on beneath the surface. Whether that’s thyroid concerns, hormone imbalances, blood sugar issues, digestive symptoms, stubborn weight changes, or exhaustion that sleep doesn’t seem to fix—we believe your symptoms deserve to be understood, not dismissed. 🩷

You don’t need another detox.
You don’t need another restrictive diet.
And you probably don’t need another late-night Google search.

You need clarity.

If the graphic sounds familiar, you’re in the right place.

By the time many clients find us, they’ve tried cutting foods, adding supplements, following wellness trends, and spendi...
07/22/2026

By the time many clients find us, they’ve tried cutting foods, adding supplements, following wellness trends, and spending hours researching their symptoms online.

Yet they’re still left wondering why they don’t feel better.

That’s because health is rarely about finding one “magic” food, supplement, or protocol.

More often, it’s about understanding the bigger picture.

How are your daily habits impacting your health?

What patterns are contributing to the symptoms you’re experiencing?

What changes will actually move you toward feeling your best?

At Chews Food Wisely, we believe the best plan is one that works in your real life, not just on paper, because lasting results come from consistency, not perfection.

That’s the foundation of everything we do!

😳 Who knew your eyebrows could be giving you clues about your thyroid?Hypothyroidism slows down your hair growth cycle,...
07/18/2026

😳 Who knew your eyebrows could be giving you clues about your thyroid?

Hypothyroidism slows down your hair growth cycle, causing eyebrow thinning—especially in the outer third, where hairs are already more fragile.

But that’s not the only weirdly specific thyroid symptom:

•UNEXPLAINED WEIGHT CHANGES
You gain (or lose) weight without changing your diet or exercise habits. Thyroid hormones directly impact your metabolism, so an imbalance can lead to sudden weight gain or loss without any lifestyle changes.

•PUFFY FACE, AND PUFFY EVERYTHING
A puffy face or eyelids can signal fluid retention from low thyroid function. Low thyroid hormones can increase capillary permeability which can lead to fluid leaking out and creating “fluid retention” and like your rings (and pants) are SO tight!

•SLUGGISH EVERYTHING
Hypothyroidism can slow digestion (causing constipation & sometimes rebound diarrhea) and cognitive function (AKA brain fog). If you feel like you’re living life wading through molasses, chances are your thyroid is off!

•ENERGY WHIPLASH
One moment you’re a couch potato, the next, a hyper bunny—thyroid hormones regulate energy production, so imbalances can cause odd fluctuations. Your thyroid hormones regulate energy production; imbalances can cause fatigue or bursts of energy at odd times.

•TEMPERATURE STRUGGLES
You’re freezing when everyone else is comfy—or the first to crank the AC when everyone’s sweating. You are either way too cold or way too hot. You’re like Goldilock’s nightmare.

•DRY, CRACKED HEELS
Dry, cracked heels that no amount of lotion can fix? Feel like you need to tip your pedicurist a bit extra? Low thyroid hormones reduce skin cell turnover, leaving your skin dry—even on the thick skin of your feet.

•VOICE CHANGES
A raspy voice or persistent throat clearing might point to thyroid swelling or a sluggish thyroid gland affecting nearby tissues.

👇 Which one surprised you the most?!

Your thyroid and your brain chemistry are tied to opposite ends of the same rope, in a slow, constant tug-of-war. It run...
07/01/2026

Your thyroid and your brain chemistry are tied to opposite ends of the same rope, in a slow, constant tug-of-war. It runs on signals: your brain sends TSH down to tell the thyroid to get to work, and thyroid hormone travels back up to keep your serotonin and dopamine steady. When that signal weakens and thyroid hormone drops, your brain chews through serotonin faster than it can replace it (think of a car left idling in the driveway, burning fuel while it goes nowhere), and dopamine sinks right along with it.

The cravings, the 3pm wall, the fog you’ve folded into your personality by now.

Thyroid hormone genuinely changes how your brain builds and burns serotonin, with research going back >20 years, plus more showing low thyroid drags dopamine off its rhythm too.

So much of this comes back to your plate. Not in a cut-everything-out, earn-your-food way, that’s the opposite of the point. Your body builds serotonin, dopamine, and thyroid hormone (and the very signals that carry them) out of the raw materials you hand it (the protein, the tyrosine, the iodine, the iron, all of it), and if the materials don’t show up, neither does the finished product. You can’t build the house without the bricks.

You’re not a “normal labs, must be fine” person. You’re someone whose signaling deserves a closer look than it’s gotten.

Read all of that nodding? You already know where to find me.

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2525 Robinhood Street
Houston, TX
77005

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 9am - 4pm
Thursday 9am - 4pm
Friday 9am - 1pm

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