Expert Spotlight: with Doris Jedkowiak
In our expert spotlight, we bring people from our network into the limelight who are at home in their field of expertise. We ask them about the very topic that has accompanied them for years and focus the light entirely on their knowledge and experience. This way, we want to offer you insights that go beyond the everyday and give you the opportunity to learn from real professionals.
For our first expert spotlight, we spoke with naturopath Doris Jedkowiak. About losing weight and the weight loss injection, about exhaustion and yo-yo effects, about the temptation of quick fixes – and about what plant compounds, bitter herbs, and mindful nutrition can contribute as support.
Ms. Jedkowiak, the so-called weight loss injection is currently on everyone's lips, from medical practices to social media. What do you observe in your daily practice: How do people deal with the topic of losing weight, and what brings patients to you?
"What I experience daily in my practice: people are exhausted. Exhausted from the yo-yo effect, from guilt, from diets that work short-term but harm long-term. Many come to me after trying everything – and yet repeatedly failing. Not due to lack of discipline, but because the real cause was never truly sought.
The weight loss injection is the latest chapter in a long history of quick fixes. Meanwhile, we increasingly forget the incredible power of nature – in plant compounds, in bitter herbs, in the right nutrition for this metabolism. Nature has given us tools that we use far too rarely. This is exactly where I have been focusing for over 22 years."
Weight loss injections promise quick results, but what do you see as a naturopath regarding risks and side effects that are often underestimated?
"What many don’t know: medications like semaglutide deeply affect the hormonal and metabolic system. The often underestimated risks affect not only the gastrointestinal tract but also muscle loss – those who lose weight quickly lose valuable muscle mass and thus permanently lower their basal metabolic rate.
Additionally, there are nutrient deficiencies, changes in the microbiome, and the sobering reality: when the injection is stopped, the weight usually returns. The body was not changed – only temporarily slowed down. Meanwhile, nature has long had answers: bitter plants regulate blood sugar, support the liver, promote digestion – without these risks. We reach too quickly for the pharmaceutical toolbox before we have truly exhausted nature’s potential."
You have been supporting people for many years with holistic therapy concepts and individual root cause analysis. In your experience, what is the decisive difference: why is an approach that individually considers metabolism, hormonal balance, and nutrition the healthier long-term path?
"The decisive difference lies in viewing the person as a whole – and in trusting what nature has long provided us. In 22 years of practice, I have learned: our body is not an enemy that we must control with 'reducers' and 'boosters' from the pharmaceutical box. It is a highly intelligent system seeking support – not overcontrol.
When we individually consider metabolism, hormonal balance, and nutrition while using the diversity of nature – plant compounds, micronutrients, bitter substances, naturopathic therapies – something fundamental changes. People stop fighting and start working with their bodies. That should always be the first path. The pharmaceutical box can come at the end – but never at the beginning."
About Doris Jedkowiak
Doris Jedkowiak is a naturopath and owner of the Naturheilzentrum Bergedorf. For many years, she has been supporting people with holistic therapy concepts, modern diagnostics, and a special focus on individual root cause analysis.
