The IKKIVI Podcast: Exploring Fashion, Culture and Values · Nivi Murthy

S3E4: Cooking for Balance: Exploring PCOS and Plant-Based Living | Priyasha Saluja

·51 min·3 clips

Priyasha Saluja learns the “healthy” shelf can still be full of emulsifiers, preservatives, and additives.

Priyasha begins with awareness. She looks back at a previous generation living with hormonal problems that were real, but often unnamed or undiagnosed. Family expectations sit close to the health story, and the episode does not soften that part: a woman's body could be judged through whether she could have children. Priyasha says that is changing. More women now have the language, diagnoses, and permission to act for themselves. Her work fits into that shift. As a plant-based chef, entrepreneur, hormonal health coach, and founder of The Cinnamon Kitchen, she talks about food as care, not punishment. The host gives her room to wander a little, which suits the conversation. When diet comes up, Priyasha talks through quality sources and conscious choices without turning it into a rulebook. She does not push absolutes. If someone does not share an ethical concern, reducing consumption can still be more sustainable than forcing a hard stop. Food quality is the thread she keeps tugging. Some animal foods may carry unwanted hormones or contaminants, she says, so the question becomes simple enough: is this helping the body or making it work harder? After changing what she ate, her bloating reduced, weight loss became easier, and her body felt less inflamed. That mattered because the gym had already worn her down. She remembers three months of intense one-hour morning workouts with no change on the scale. Movement eventually got gentler. A steadier routine, plus training in a sport, helped her enjoy exercise and feel the benefits. By the end, the health changes sound less like a program and more like daily life: regular periods, less bloating, less stress on the body, and better decisions. The business advice lands the same way. Priyasha talks about workshops and patient research as ways to make informed choices, with care rather than panic.

As heard by us

PCOS, food, and self-knowledge come together in a grounded conversation.

Priyasha Saluja's conversation connects PCOS, food choices, and the ordinary work of feeling better. It moves from older assumptions about women's health and the lack of awareness or diagnosis to her path into plant-based cooking, quality ingredients, and Cinnamon Kitchen, with…

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For when you want food, hormones, and founder talk in one honest conversation.

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