About Amy
I’m a clinical nutritionist and researcher specializing in personalized, evidenced-based nutrition, nutritional biochemistry, and nutritional genomics.
My clinical practice focuses on nutritional therapy for autoimmune and chronic inflammatory conditions, and nutrigenetics for health optimizers. I also serve as an advisor to organizations that are bringing nutrition science to the market, and enjoy collaborating with other researchers in the field. I earned my Master’s of Science in Human Nutrition (summa cum laude) from the University of Bridgeport and my J.D. from Yale Law School.
How did I go from Yale trained lawyer to nutrition professional? Read my story.
Qualifications
Master’s of Science in Human Nutrition (summa cum laude) from the University of Bridgeport (one of the top functional nutrition programs in the world)
J.D. from Yale Law School
Member of the American Nutrition Association
Member of the Hong Kong Nutrition Association
Institute for Functional Medicine--Applying Functional Medicine in Clinical Practice (IFM AFMCP)
Cogence Functional Immunology training
Methylation and Clinical Nutrigenomics with Dr. Ben Lynch
DUTCH (hormone testing) certified
Contact me for my full CV.
An International Perspective
I’ve lived on three different continents: North America, Europe, and Asia.
I’m American by birth, but left the U.S. when I was 28 years old, and have lived in Hong Kong most of my adult life.
I grew up in a Scandinavian-American community, and touring Norway with my dance troupe was my first trip abroad.
I attended school and worked in the United Kingdom for several years, and have fond ties to the region.
My husband is half-French, half-Swedish, so we have a very international, cross-cultural life.
I have three kids and understand the life of busy Moms!
I believe connecting with nature is fundamental to health, and love hiking and ocean swimming.
I used personalized, evidenced based nutrition to restore my health, and went on to complete my full master’s of science in nutrition so I could help others do the same.
The first step is to see yourself well.
My Journey from Patient to Practitioner
“First signs of hypothyroidism (goiter), which disappeared on its own, and there was no medical follow up.”
“Ongoing signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism, including low energy, dry hair and skin, brain fog, various GI symptoms, but still managed to get through university and law school.”
“Working in the legal profession was the first straw that broke the camel’s back, with long hours indoors, poor nutrition, and high stress levels.”
“Took time off to have my first two children, which was also a huge stress on my body.”
“Finally diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis after the birth of my second child; given medication (hormone supplementation) for my condition, but no root cause treatment.”
“Began educating myself on thyroid conditions and autoimmune disease.”
“Discovered the work of Loren Cordain, and began implementing a more ancestral diet.”
“Discovered nutrigenetics and completely reversed my thyroid antibodies.”
“Completed advanced coursework in DNA methylation and clinical nutrigenomics.”
“Met one of the father’s of functional medicine, Dr. Sid Baker, who advised me to formalize my education by enrolling in a full Master’s of Science program (eventually graduating summa cum laude).”
“Completed advanced coursework with the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM AFMCP) and Cogence Functional Immunology Training.”
My story
The summer after my Freshman year of college, I moved to Stowe, Vermont to take a summer job. Little did I know it at the time, but that summer my life would change.
I was 18, and while I had had many part-time jobs growing up, this was my first time living and working relatively far away from home. I’m not sure I realized it at the time, but I started to gain weight over the course of that summer. This was despite eating relatively well, and working a job that was extremely active. In my free time, I would also do hours of biking and play as much tennis as possible. I was non-stop on the go, but I was gaining weight--more weight than ever before in my life. And then, one morning I woke up and my neck was completely swollen.
I remember that day well because it was July 4th, a public holiday, and very difficult to get in to see a doctor. When I finally did see a doctor, no extensive history was taken, no tests were run. Had the doctor done a proper history, he would have learned that both my father and my aunt had Crohn’s disease and my great-grandmother had had colitis. The genetic predisposition towards autoimmunity was strong. However, I was basically told that everything would be fine, and that I should follow up with my university medical center when I returned home. I was out of state and did not have health insurance that would cover me in Vermont.
So, I did what I was told; I didn’t worry about it, continued on with my summer, and when I returned to university, I went for a check up.
I remember it being serious enough that my parents drove down to attend the doctor’s visit with me, but that visit yielded no further information. The swelling in my neck had subsided--I was told I was fine. Of course, at the time I did not understand this (and no one ever tried to explain it to me), but the swelling in my neck was a goiter--an inflammation and swelling of the thyroid gland, and the related hypothyroidism that I would be officially diagnosed with at age 36 (18 years later), was responsible for my rapid weight gain over the course of that summer.
That was the beginning of various “sign posts” along my journey warning me that things were not right. I had started down the slippery slope from vibrant health to dis-ease.
Several years passed, and being still very young, I managed to graduate at the top of my university class, and was offered a full scholarship for a one-year study abroad program at the University of Bristol in England. That year abroad was the first time that the impact of my undiagnosed autoimmune condition began to really take its toll. This may have been due to the lack of sunlight in the UK, Vitamin D being a powerful regulator of the immune system. My energy levels were not what they used to be, and I often found myself unable to get out of bed in the morning, not understanding why. On weekends when most students were out partying or having fun, I would sometimes pass the entire day in bed. I just could not function.
In many ways I was incredibly fortunate. Before I left for England, I had applied to law school, and was thrilled to learn that I had been accepted at my first choice -Yale Law School. My years at Yale were in some ways magical - I’ve always been a learner first and foremost, and it was truly a joy to be surrounded by like-minded individuals, but I was always struggling to find the energy to do the things I needed. I managed to graduate and secure a good job (for many a dream job) at a top New York law firm. Unfortunately, this meant living an indoor life - putting in 12+ hour days, going to work before the sun rose and coming home after dark, eating take away food for most meals, and very high levels of stress. Things really began to go downhill.
The irony is, that despite the many warning signs my body was giving me, at no point along this journey did it dawn on me that maybe I needed to focus on my health.
In fact--I thought I was healthy because I exercised A LOT, with every hour of my free time spent on a treadmill or rollerblading around Central Park. My chronic, inflammatory state was my “normal.” Never once along the way did it cross my mind that I should see a healthcare practitioner. I thought everyone must have the same low energy levels that I did. And quite frankly, I just didn’t have the time to even worry about it. I was working on multi-million dollar deals -this was “success,” and I would do whatever it took to keep up the facade.
After several years working in New York and then London, I met an amazing man, got married, and we moved to Hong Kong for his new job. I’ve always been enticed by travel and adventure, and after living in England for over 5 years, I was ready for a new chapter in Asia. But within months of our arrival, the SARs epidemic hit. In many ways, this was a blessing in disguise - for the first time in my life there were no jobs to be found. People weren’t even leaving their homes, and as SARs was relatively contained in Asia, I left to study French in the south of France, and then I got pregnant with my first child. In some ways, this was the break I needed from the relentless work schedule that I had had. But having two children, 18 months apart, really was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. And, at age 36, I finally decided I needed help.
A diagnosis
I was incredibly fortunate to find a GP who also happened to have a master’s degree in endocrinology, and she decided to test my thyroid function.
So, 18 years after my initial goiter, I was diagnosed with the autoimmune form of hypothyroidism called “Hashimoto’s disease.” While the hypothyroid part made sense to me, I was less clear on what it meant to have an autoimmune condition. I decided it made sense to see a “specialist” endocrinologist.
While the endocrinologist took measurements of my thyroid gland, and put me on thyroid hormone replacement, there was no attempt to educate me about my condition, and there was certainly no discussion of nutrition or other lifestyle factors that may be impacting my health. For many, this diagnosis is the end of the line. The standard of care is to give thyroid replacement hormone, but little (if anything) is done to stop the underlying autoimmune process from further destroying the thyroid gland. For me, this was in many ways my new beginning.
Being academically minded by nature, I dove into the research to start to understand what this diagnosis meant for me, and to find a way to recover my health.
It certainly didn’t happen overnight, but it was empowering to be doing something positive for my health, and I started to feel better. I started reading books about hypothyroidism and autoimmune disease, then graduated to reading academic research, then graduated to academic coursework, discovered genetics and nutrigenetics. And as I learned, I began to change my nutrition and modify my lifestyle. I began to have more energy, and feel better. And, with time (less time than you would think), I had a complete reversal of my thyroid antibodies.
A meeting with one of the father’s of functional medicine, Dr. Sid Baker, crystalized my path forward.
I had already started studying nutritional genomics at the time, but this great mind of the functional medicine world told me that if I really wanted to make a difference I needed to understand epigenetics (not genetics), and that I should get my master’s of science in nutrition. Nutrition, this great doctor suggested, was the future of medicine. And within days of meeting one of the greatest clinicians of all time, I was enrolled in a functional, evidenced based, master’s of science program.
Today, my goal is to use my experience and education to help others restore optimal health through nutrition and lifestyle changes, so that they can enjoy life and continue to achieve in their chosen professions. I also devote half my time to nutrition science research in order to contribute to our developing understanding of how nutrition science is key to creating health.
