Meghan Markle is sharing new details about health measures she took during her pregnancies. She sought out a specialist while pregnant with Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 3, – and although what she tried might sound “hippie dippie” to some people, she described the approach as “seeing food as medicine.”
Meghan relied on Ayurveda during her pregnancies.
Ayurveda is a holistic, natural medical system that has existed for thousands of years that originated in India, per Johns Hopkins Medicine. It’s rooted in the idea of interconnectedness and prioritizes preventive strategies, such as lifestyle changes and natural remedies, according to Cleveland Clinic and BBC.
“During my pregnancies, I had an Ayurvedic doctor, and so much of it was about seeing food as medicine,” she explained on her podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder. On the episode, she spoke with Hannah Mendoza, who is the founder of Clevr Blends, which sells adaptogenic drinks.
She also spoke about the benefits of adaptogens.
When talking about her approach to health, Meghan admitted that some people might be skeptical. She suggested, however, that the negative assumptions that might come to mind are largely unwarranted. She believes some natural “items and ingredients,” such as mushrooms, are misunderstood.
“There are these items and ingredients that have been part of our natural ecosystem and dietary system for a long time, whether acknowledged or not, that somehow you say ‘mushrooms,’ and now people have a connotation attached to it,” Meghan said on the podcast.
Per Cleveland Clinic, “Adaptogens are active ingredients in certain plants and mushrooms that may impact how your body deals with stress, anxiety and fatigue.”
To some, it sounds ‘woo woo,’ she said.
Although a certain image might come to mind when people hear the word “mushrooms,” Meghan believes certain foods and ingredients can help people “feel differently, in a really safe way.”
“I think a lot of people, when they hear mushrooms, they go, “Okay, she’s talking about being hippie dippie and grounded in all these things,'” Meghan admitted. “And if you aren’t familiar with adaptogens, you can go to this place of, ‘Oh, it’s feeling a little psychedelic and super woo woo.'”
Speaking to Hannah, Meghan said that adaptogens are really just a “food trend” and noted that Hannah was “far ahead” of others when it comes to embracing them.
“It’s really just a food trend that I believe you were far ahead of in terms of saying, ‘Hold on, these have properties that can in some way make you feel differently in a really safe way,'” Meghan said on the podcast.
Meghan tried Hannah’s drinks while pregnant.
It started when one of her friends gave her a Clevr turmeric latte packet. “He just said, ‘You know, I know that you are attuned to, like, Ayurvedic things,'” Meghan said. “I know that you’re pregnant, and these things might be helpful during this stage of pregnancy.’ And one of the things within this big basket was this product.”
Meghan recalled trying the drink and immediately wanting to support the person behind it.
Prince Harry previously used psychedelics to cope with grief.
Meghan’s conversation about mushrooms reminded some people of her husband’s history with psychedelics. The Duke of Sussex previously told Anderson Cooper that in some circumstances, psychedelics can act like medicine, per CBS News. In his book Spare, he described using psychedelics such as Ayahuasca and psilocybin mushrooms (also known as magic mushrooms).
However, Harry told Anderson that he “would never recommend people to do this recreationally.” At the same time, he thought they were effective in helping him deal with his grief. “If you are suffering from a huge amount of loss, grief or trauma, then these things have a way of working as a medicine,” he told Anderson.
Check out our Meghan Markle page for all the latest news about Meghan, Prince Harry, and their growing family.
