💪 The Hairy Chin Newsletter #10

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Hello and Happy Monday to everyone!

Welcome back to The Hairy Chin, where we talk, share, and educate about all things women’s health and wellness - yes, including those wiry chin hairs that pop up at the most unwelcome times. 🤷‍♀️

Today, I want to give a big shoutout to the Know Your Lemons Foundation - where I’m proudly certified as a Breast Health Educator! 🍋 💛

They just won a Webby Award (the Oscars of mobile apps!) for their free Know Your Lemons Mobile App, which was named Best Health and Fitness App - beating out even Apple Fitness! 🤯 💪 💛 (You can see founder Corrine Ellsworth-Beaumont accepting the award here!)

This is incredible and well-deserved recognition for a foundation that’s truly changing lives by educating people about breast cancer prevention across the globe. 💪

If you haven’t already, download their app here - I truly can’t recommend it enough!

And you can also listen to my interview with founder Corrine on EP 02 of The Hairy Chin Podcast where she talks about her story and the foundation. 🍋

Alright, here’s a quick rundown of this week’s entry:

• Your Advocacy Toolkit: How To Research Without Losing Your Mind

• Body Talk 101: Why Checking Your Poo Matters

• Health Truths: Young Women, Liver Disease & Alcohol

• Told By Her: Olympian Colleen Quigley, Her Tongue & Pelvic Floor

• On The Podcast: Metal Allergens In Make-Up Products

Let’s learn together! 💪

Spencer Moore
Founder, The Hairy Chin
(Listen to The Hairy Chin Podcast)
(Subscribe to The Hairy Chin Newsletter)
(Follow us on Instagram)

We’ve all been there: one strange symptom and suddenly we’re doom scrolling on Google with all the worst-cast scenarios. The internet can be helpful, but it can also become a black hole that sends you into a spiral.

Here’s the thing: You can take researching your health seriously without taking on the entire internet. 

In past toolkits, we’ve talked about using AI and getting second opinions. This week, we’re focusing on how to do your own research without losing your mind.

Here are some tips to stay informed without the spiral:

• Ditch the doom scroll: Midnight Googling rarely leads anywhere good. Instead of asking “What’s the worst this could be?”, ask: “What do I need to understand this better?” 

• Curate your expert team: Pick 3–5 trusted voices - educators, advocates, professionals who offer grounded, balanced info. Avoid relying on just one source, echo chambers are rarely helpful. Look for people who cite credible data and leave you feeling informed, not panicked.

• Set a timer: Give yourself 30 minutes to dig in, then walk away. Let your brain breathe. Over-researching is a recipe for burnout - your nervous system deserves boundaries, too.

• Use what you learn to ask better questions: You don’t need all the answers, you just need to know what to ask to learn what’s best for your body.

The bottom line: Curiosity empowers, catastrophizing doesn’t. And if all else fails, put the electronic device down and go for a walk! 💛 

If there’s one thing I’ve learned after years of chronic illness, it’s this: poop matters.
It’s one of the clearest indicators of what’s going on inside your body, and while we all do it, we rarely talk about it. So… let’s talk about poop! 💩

Dame Deborah James campaigned tirelessly for people to “Check Your Poo” while battling bowel cancer. Her legacy lives on through the Bowelbabe Fund for Bowel Cancer Research. And with bowel cancer on the rise in younger people, staying alert is critical - you can read more about this rise in cases here.

But beyond cancer awareness, your poo is full of clues about your hormones, gut health, and nervous system. Especially for women.

So, here are some ‘poo’ basics from a great BBC article called, “How Often Should You Poo:”

• What Does Healthy Poop Look Like?: Say hello to your poo’s new BFF: the Bristol Stool Chart. (Image Source: NHS) It categorizes poop into 7 type. Spoiler: Types 3 and 4 are the goal (smooth and sausage-like). If yours are more hard, pellet-like or super loose - your gut might be trying to tell you something.

• How Often Should You Go?: “The NHS considers 3x/day to 3x/week normal. But frequency matters. People who pooed 4 soft stools per week were 1.78x more likely to die within 5 years than those who had 7 normal stools. Infrequent defecators had 2.42x greater cancer risk and 2.27x greater cardiovascular risk.” (Source: BBC 2025). Once a day seems to be the sweet spot.

• Women Poop Differently: Only 33% of younger women report daily bowel movements. Thanks to hormones, stress, pelvic floor tension, and the very female tendency to ignore the urge, we’re more prone to constipation. Ovulation and periods can also throw things off.

• The “Call to Stool” Is Real - Answer It: And speaking of that urge to go. It’s biologically real, and it’s called the Call to Stool. Ignore it, and your body reabsorbs water from the stool - making it harder to pass. Hello constipation.

Tips On How to Get Things Moving (Literally)

• Drink more water

• Eat more fiber

• Move daily

• Use a Squatty Potty!

• Don’t strain or clench your pelvic floor

• Answer the call!

• Bonus tip: Eat 2 kiwis a day - research shows it can help with constipation (PMID: 36537785)

Your poop is a report card from your body, and ignoring it means missing crucial information. As women, our gut and intestinal health is influenced by hormones, trauma, stress, and pelvic health. So if things start to feel off? Check your poo! 💩 

Your body’s always talking. Keep listening. 💪 

For years, research has come to light about the negative affects of alcohol in the body, but new research is painting a much more dangerous picture than many realized, especially for women.

A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that alcohol-related liver disease is rising sharply in people under 40, and young women are being hit the hardest. Women now face a 50% higher risk of developing cirrhosis than men, and liver-related deaths are climbing.

Part of this is biological: women metabolize alcohol differently, making us more vulnerable to liver damage, even at lower amounts. But part of it is systemic.

According to a Wall Street Journal investigation, the alcohol industry makes most of its profits from heavy drinkers, and they know it. Instead of addressing the risk, the industry doubles down on marketing, blurring the line between empowerment and escapism, between self-care and self-harm.

Ever heard the phrase, “If you’re not paying for the product, you are the product?”
In this case, it rings uncomfortably true: women are being sold a lifestyle that quietly profits off their long-term health problems.

You don’t need to quit completely to ask better questions about how drinking fits into your life. You just need to know that the risks are real and you deserve honest information to help you make choices that actually serve your long-term health.

This might blow your mind: an Olympic athlete went viral for how she warms up her pelvic floor before a workout, and she does it with her tongue. Yes, you read that right. Her tongue!

Olympic steeplechaser Colleen Quigley shared her unconventional warm-up on Instagram, where she’s seen stretching her tongue in all directions to release tension in her pelvic floor. She credits the technique to chiropractor Dr. Noah Moos, and while it might sound bizarre, there’s real science behind it.

(And if you don’t know what a steeplechaser is, I didn’t either! It’s a track and field event where runners leap over barriers and water jumps. So, pelvic floor strength - pretty important for that!)

The tongue, jaw, and pelvic floor are all connected through the body’s fascial system - a network of connective tissue that runs from head to toe. Tension in one area (like your jaw) can create tension elsewhere (like your pelvis). Releasing one can help release the other.

This approach aligns with what Myofunctional Therapist Perrin White shared on The Hairy Chin Podcast episode - about how oral posture and tongue positioning can impact everything from pelvic floor health to full-body alignment. You can check out our really interesting episode here! 

And if you want to see it Colleen’s viral warm-up for yourself, check it out here! 💛

In this week’s Chin Chats episode of The Hairy Chin Podcast, I’m diving into a topic most people (and doctors) overlook: metal allergies & make-up products.

From nickel and cobalt to mica and more, there are common ingredients in everyday makeup and skincare that could be triggering your eczema, acne, or dermatitis - and you might not even know it.

If you’ve ever struggled with unexplained skin issues, or just want to understand what’s really in your products, this episode is for you!

🎙️ Catch the episode this Wednesday at 9 AM EST on all major podcast platforms - including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart and YouTube.

(And please don’t forget to hit subscribe wherever you watch or listen to the podcast - it helps more than you know! Many thanks 💛 )

Ok my amigas, that’s a wrap.

Self-advocacy has never been easier - from To-Do to TA-DA - just like that! 💪

Bravo for being here,
Spencer Moore

_{DISCLAIMER: The information shared here, which can include affiliate links, is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and should not be treated as such. Always consult with a qualified provider before making any medical decisions, changing your health routine, or starting a new treatment. This content is meant to help you learn about yourself and advocate for your well-being. What you do with this information is entirely up to you.} 💛

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