In various posts I’ve referred to the power and potency of liver, the benefits of raw milk, and the importance of saturated fat – which is NOT associated with heart disease, despite a multi-decade smear campaign!
Why am I into these seemingly disjointed set of foods? The Weston A. Price Foundation. They’re a non-profit dedicated to reintroducing traditional, nutrient-dense foods to the mainstream diet. I’m the volunteer Chapter Leader for Boulder, CO.
So who is this Weston A. Price? I begin many of my talks by describing his work, and always enjoy watching as the audience leans forward, beginning to nod with understanding. He was a dentist practicing in Cleveland at the beginning of last century. Noticing that many of his patients were presenting with massive dental decay, he decided to embark on a world tour to identify the links between nutrition and physical degeneration. In fact, that’s what his subsequent tome is entitled. It’s worth a purchase if only for the graphic and telltale photos of grinning jaw after grinning jaw.
Price explored eleven cultures spread across six different continents. Remarkably, at the time of his expedition, he was able to study the same gene pool in two different habitats, eating two different diets. He traveled to isolated villages where the inhabitants were still eating the same traditional foods they’d been eating for thousands of years. High in protein and fat, organic and local because…well…that’s how it was. Prepared using methods like sprouting, soaking, and fermenting, which made the nutrients more bioavailable and easily digested. Price observed that the individuals eating in this fashion tended to have a very low incidence of dental decay. Their teeth were marvelously strong. Covered with a green slime, certainly, as they did not brush. But strong. They also had round, beautifully formed faces and long, hardy bones, expressing true skeletal health. Their societies appeared rather peacable. And their immune systems functioned superbly.
Price compared these fine specimens with their neighbors down the road, in industrialized settings. Gone were the lovely cod’s heads stuffed with oats and mashed liver. In their place? Marmalade on toast. The city dwellers consumed what he termed “foods of commerce”: sugar and refined grains. Among these urbanites he found a high incidence of tooth decay, as well as rampant tuberculosis. Their immune systems were compromised, and the primary difference was diet. In generations born to the toast-and-marmalade crowd, Price observed crowded, crooked teeth and narrowed faces. Violence, theft, and other destructive behaviors were more prevalent, making a strong case for the connection between emotional and physical health.
It makes sense, right? Your ancestors lived closer to the Earth and had a better sense of what would nourish them. There was no food industry driven by profit. There was only what you grew in your garden, hunted in the woods, or raised in your fields – and the ancient methods of preparing these foods to maximize their nutrients and digestability. We no longer practice many of these techniques on a regular basis – and look at how it’s impacted our population. Maybe it’s time to start reintroducing them, bit by bit.
It’s fun getting people gifts when you’re inspired. But if you feel obligated to spend $40 on an ugly scarf for CeeCee just because you happen to sit next to her at work…don’t. The holidays are a perfect time to present coworkers and family members with delicious and nutritious homemade treats. Sugar abounds at this time of year, and we all know how toxic that stuff is (check out Nancy Appleton’s 146 Reasons Why Sugar is Ruining Your Health). How about trying some naturally sweetened alternatives? You can introduce your community to the concept of healthy indulging. Even better, include a recipe with the gift so that they can try it on their own.
I recently stumbled upon this site and felt super inspired by the abundance of easy desserts. Try:
RAW VEGAN ALMOND BUTTER COOKIES
And of course, a few stevia recipes:
WHITE CHOCOLATE CHIP CHERRY COOKIES
STEVIA CHEESECAKE, BROWNIES, AND MORE
Don’t forget to let me know what you think!
photo credit: Robbert van der Steeg
What do Olympic planning committees know about exercise that we don’t? That success is all about the timing, which is why they hire circadian rhythm experts to help schedule Olympic events. Taking a cue from them, we can increase the effectiveness of both exercise and dieting by setting them to a clock. In diet world, routine is the name of the game.
First things first–knowing whether you are a night owl or an early bird can really help you watch out for certain pitfalls and structure your day around what works for you. Night owls tend to suffer more from a lack of schedule, which makes them more vulnerable to overeating at lunch (because they skip breakfast more than early birds) and nibble the midnight snacks (because they are up). By focusing on getting a good breakfast and making sure that they have healthy snacks on hand if tempted to eat late, night owls can significantly reduce calories. Early birds, on the other hand, can get out of whack by eating too close to bedtime, with work and activities pushing dinner back. They benefit from eating a bigger lunch and a light dinner or snack in the evening.
Regardless, researchers believe that eating at consistent times, day after day, helps the body to regulate metabolism and run smoothly.
While you might think that early birds benefit from early morning exercise, think again. Researchers have found that everyone benefits more from exercise in the late afternoon and early evening. This is when your body temperature is highest, you are most limber and your heart and lungs are performing at their best. Early birds benefit from exercise between 1-3:30 in the afternoon while night owls get the most out of a later workout, between 5:30 and 7:30 in the evening. On the other hand, researchers have shown that those who make morning exercise a habit tend to stick with it. Just realize that it might take your body longer to wake up in the morning and treat it accordingly!
While we have been told the alarming amount of weight gain in the last couple decades is the direct correlation of eating too much and exercising too little, scientists are discovering that not everthing is what it seems. Pollution, they have discovered, may be one dirty culprit sabotaging our waistlines. Certain industrial chemicals act as endocrine disruptors, screwing around with the hormones that regulate metabolism and appetite control. These chemicals, largely found in pesticides, flame retardants, and phthalates–used to plasticize a wide range of everyday products, from water bottles to makeup—also are thought to cause cancer and developmental defects as well as obesity.
Different studies have found that different chemicals effect the body and its fat cells in different ways. At Laval University in Quebec, scientists discovered that pesticides such as DDT and organochlorines such as dioxin are stored in our fat cells. As we lose weight, those chemicals are released back into our bloodstream in alarming rates, disrupting our thyroid gland’s ability to regulate our metabolism. Basically, the scientists found, these chemicals shut down our ability to burn fat.
Other chemicals, called organotins, are stabilizers used in products almost universally, from clothing to pesticides to plastics. Some findings show these chemicals to increase the amount of mature fat cells in the body, making it almost impossible to keep fat off and lose weight. Other researches hypothesize that these chemicals cause allergic reactions in our bodies, increasing inflammation which leads to obesity, heart disease, and cancer.
Of course, we still do tend to eat too much and exercise too little, but if we are committed to not just weight loss, but to health, here are some tips to avoid these pollutants:
Eat organic–It’s not just more nutritious, it helps you avoid those pesticides that can disrupt the hormones in your body. They do cost more, but look at the big picture-the health problems caused by pesticides cost much more in the long run. To cut down on the costs-try to go local. Often, small organic farms near you are cheaper than what you find in grocery stores. Make a fun trip out of going and picking your own produce or sign up for a CSA (community supported agriculture) and have your produce delivered to you. Better yet, grow your own! A small veggie garden is a wonderful project for children and adults alike.
Store in Glass or Metal–Ditch those plastic water bottles, especially the disposable ones. These have been shown to break down in heat (such as the backseat of a car on a summer day) releasing chemicals into water whose origin is already iffy at best. Ditto plastic food storage containers. Glass is the way to go. If, like me, you can’t necessarily afford to go out and buy a whole set of glassware to store leftovers, try reusing pasta sauce, salsa, and other glass jars. Many have lids wide enough to store just about anything. For water bottles, metal is the best choice. If you must use plastic, don’t use hot water, microwave it, or leave it in the sun.
Go Natural–Many of these chemicals are found in everyday items that we never equate with dangerous pesticides or plastics–from clothing to cosmetics. Going all natural is the best way to be sure. Organic cotton and wool clothing is now widely available, and all natural cosmetics are beginning to become mainstream. While many products may seem to be chemical free, the only way to really know is to check your products out on a website such as the Cosmetic Database or the Household Products database.
Detox and Support–It’s important to flush those chemicals out of your body when losing weight as well as supporting your thyroid with seaweeds–in the form of salad, sushi wraps, or supplements. Detoxing your body with food and increased water can help clean the chemicals.
Finally, a thought on what this all means to me–everywhere I look it seems that our current culture is too complex, to pollutant, to wasteful. We are polluting our environment, our bodies, our minds and our souls. While we can make little changes to ensure that we stop poisoning ourselves, it seems like a paradigm shift may be in order–starting to think locally, sustainably, and simply–getting back to what it means to live a healthy and joyful life. Let’s take back control of our bodies, our food, the products we use in our everyday life–and demand that the corporations that create these products become accountable to the health of their consumers.
photo credit: leoniewise
What do these people have in common: J.K. Rowling, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Winston Churchill, Michael Jordan, Walt Disney, and Henry Ford? Besides being household names, these are only a handful of extremely successful people who credit FAILURE with making them achieve greatness. Yep, failure.
So what, you may ask, does this have to do with health and weight loss? Simply this: The theories and practice of accepting failure can actually contain the seeds of success when it comes to transforming your health and body. This is because failure, scientists are learning, seems to be hardwired in the brain to equal learning–the more wrong we are, the quicker we learn. By utilizing this understanding, we can actually temper ourselves to setbacks and get the most out of them. Here are a few things that failure teaches us:
- Resiliency: Simply put, the more we fail, the more we understand that we are always a work in progress and nothing about our lives is fixed in stone–this includes our bodies, the way we eat, and the way we look. This gives us incredible freedom to change. Instead of beating ourselves up every time we slip up with our diet or because we didn’t know something about what makes us healthy, we see it as a learning opportunity. And the more we learn about ourselves, the more we know in the future what will and won’t work for us. For our brains, failure is all about making our thinking more efficient. So you will learn that eating every three hours doesn’t work for you and move on, each time getting closer to the real changes that will transform your health.
- Opportunity: Successful people are people who have put themselves out there and tried whatever they could get there hands on. They are not more talented, or smarter, or luckier than anybody else–they have simply tried more and different things until something worked. They aren’t afraid of failure, of falling down. They know how to get back up. Apply this to your own life–what would you try if you were not afraid of failing? Just take the example of exercise. We know that it is one of the most important lifestyle choices in being healthy, but it isn’t always easy to find the perfect sport or activity. For those of us who aren’t afraid of failing, trying everything is seen as an opportunity–so get out there and try it–run, bicycle, do aerobics, swim, yoga, rock climb and find what you are passionate about. It’s out there just waiting to transform your life.
- Perspective: Finally, becoming fearless in the face of failure gives us perspective, that is, where we are now is tempered by where we have been and that has the amazing ability of putting our fears, our cravings, and our emotions in their proper place. Perspective soothes our anxieties; it calms us. And when we are calm our emotions cease to rule us. We know that if we slip up and eat junk food we are not bad people, we are simply having an off day and we can recommit ourselves the next day. If we go two weeks without exercising we don’t throw in the towel, we shrug, love ourselves, and get out there at the next opportunity. Perspective allows us to understand that our lives are made up of a million small moments, that we will always fall down, and that it is the getting up that is important, the constant getting back up that makes the difference between an average life and one that is extraordinary.
photo credit: genome4hire
When embracing your own ability and need to fail, think about how children learn. Take running, for example. We are not born with the ability to run, we learn it slowly. First we learn to roll over, then we learn to push ourselves up, then crawl, then stand, then walk, and finally run. Throughout this whole process, we fall down over and over again and over and over again we stand back up and we keep falling now and again throughout our whole lives. So let’s keep the perseverence and innocence of children in everything we do and be willing to put ourselves out there because that is how we learn, always.
photo credit: Vanessa Roanhorse
By now it’s obvious that we believe whole, unprocessed foods to be an integral part of a healthy diet, but here’s another reason to ditch the packaged foods–even those that claim to be ‘diet’ or ‘healthy’ or ‘low in fat’: it seems that additives and food enhancers so common in these products actually are making us fat, not to mention causing a wide range of health problems. Yep, it’s true. And many of these additives, because they can be manufactured from natural products, slip right under the radar and into many ‘health’ foods that claim ‘all natural’ status. So make a list of the following names and scan the ingredients of your favorite foods for likely offenders–or better yet, skip buying anything with an ingredient list that you can’t pronounce. When it comes to food, simpler is most often better!
MSG: Ah, this one has been on the offenders list for years, primarily for giving people headaches, but this flavor enhancer, the most popular in the world, is now suspected to cause weight gain, according to scientists. Mono Sodium Glutamate has been shown to cause obesity in lab rats by damaging the appetite regulation center located in the hypothalamus area of the brain, thus causing resistance to Leptin, the hormone that tells us how much to eat. It’s a pretty good bet that if something has MSG in it, it probably is not very good for you, as MSG is typically used to make unpalatable foods more appealing–it does this by releasing more dopamine into the brain, tricking you into a sense of well-being. Besides weight gain, MSG is also thought to cause a rash of other problems including liver inflammation. Since MSG is a natural substance, it can be snuck into many foods you wouldn’t think would have it and this practice is condoned by the FDA–it pays to read the labels. Other names MSG goes by in food products– hydrolyzed vegetable protein, autolyzed vegetable protein, textured vegetable protein, hydrolyzed yeast extract, autolyzed yeast extract, plant protein extract, sodium caseinate, calcium caseinate, yeast extract, textured whey protein, and textured soy protein, spice, and yes, even the words natural flavor.
Aspartame: This is one sugar substitute that is surprisingly still found in everything from chewing gum to diet sodas. Like MSG, Aspartame is an excitotoxin, meaning that it causes the brain’s neurons to be overexcited, causing early cellular death. It is suspected of causing weight gain by destabilizing blood sugar, making us crave sweets, and making us retain water and look bloated. Of course, that’s not all– the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a list of 61 reported adverse reactions including: chest pains,depression asthma, arthritis, migraine headaches, insomnia, seizures, tremors, and dizziness. Time to ditch the diet soda along with the full sugar versions.
Pesticides: Along with chemicals in our detergents and plastics, the pesticide residue on our fruits and vegetables–as well as on the corn used in many packaged products and in high fructose corn syrup–is now being studied and tested with the preliminary theory that it is causing the rapid weight gain seen in the last twenty years. Many pesticides end up in our liver, disrupting the function of our metabolism and endocrine system, especially our thyroids and many mimic hormones that cause the body to gain weight and/or increase appetite. While eating organic is more expensive, the health benefits are numerous–organic food contains more vitamins and minerals than conventional food.
For many of us, eating well is a process with a big learning curve. We aren’t taught what is truly healthy for us and sometimes it takes a while to wean ourselves off packaged and processed food. The benefits, however, of making a slow transistion to eating whole and healthy foods are numerous–including the fact that we are taking the time to find out what foods taste good to us and organically including them in our lives as opposed to the more common crash dieting and sudden extreme food changes that are part and parcel of our culture’s dysfunction around food and health. With this in mind, the act of substituting food that we love but that isn’t so good for us with healthy alternatives is a great way to start this process–Here are five easy changes to make in your diet that can improve your health and waistline:
photo credit: thebittenword.com
Yogurt: One great superfood, plain yogurt has such balanced amounts of carbs, fat, and protein that it can satiate you while keeping blood sugar levels stable for hours. In a study from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, subjects on a low-calorie diet that included yogurt lost 61 percent more fat overall and 81 percent more belly fat than people on a similar plan but without yogurt. The key here is to stick with plain, organic yogurt as sweetened yogurt can have more sugar than ice cream. Good substitutions:
- Yogurt makes a great substitue for sour cream and mayo in dips and as a topping for potatoes, soups, and mexican food.
- Craving something sweet? I like to take plain yogurt, add some berries and a small amount of honey, maple syrup, or stevia and mix it all up. A great substitute for ice cream.
Almond Butter: This is a no brainer, if you can’t keep your hands away from the peanut butter. Almond butter tastes just as rich and tasty but is much better for you. Studies have shown that eating bread with almond butter lowers the glycemic index of the bread, even white bread, so that it keeps blood sugar levels from spiking. Almonds are also a great source of protein, amino acids, and vitamins. They are great for digestion and help keep the body from becoming too acidic. Good substitutions:
- On bread and crackers instead of peanut butter
- Add to oatmeal for protein
- Make a sauce for stir fried veggies and serve with brown rice.
photo credit: mynameisharsha
Quinoa: This Peruvian superfood is high in both fiber (2.5 grams in 1/2 a cup) and protein as well as a nearly complete source of amino acids. It keeps you full longer than pasta or rice, is versatile, and a pot will stay fresh all week. Substitutions to try:
- Instead of rice with stirfry, fish, or meat.
- Added to salads
- Eaten often in Peru as a morning cereal with a bit of milk and honey or chopped fruit and nuts.
Sardines: With levels of mercury rocketing sky high in tuna and many wild fish and pollution concerns with farmed fish, sardines are a natural and super healthy answer. Packed full of omega 3 fatty acids and extremely high in calcium, sardines are also low on the food and mercury chain. Many people shy away from sardines because they taste ‘fishy’ but this can be solved by soaking them in milk for an hour or so. Substitutions:
- Instead of anchovies in dressings, in ceasar salads, and on pizza.
- Use chopped sardines in place of tuna in cold and hot sandwiches.
photo credit: rvacapinta
Berries: Most especially, blueberries and goji berries are the best fruits to be eating right now. Blueberries are high in antioxidants and fiber, while goji berries contain 18 amino acids, making them a great source of protein and more beta carotene than carrots. No fail substitutions:
- Instead of bananas in your cereal or oatmeal, try blueberries. Unlike bananas which can spike blood sugar, blueberries help keep insulin levels stable while providing a wide range of nutrients.
- Add dried goji berries to a mixture of nuts for stamina boosting trail mix or add them to green tea for tartness, eating them after you have finished the tea.
The nervous system, made up of cells, tissues, and organs that regulates the body’s response to internal and external stimuli, is extremely important for the high-maintenance functioning of the body. In humans it consists of the brain, spinal cord, nerves, ganglia and receptors on/of certain organs. For years now, scientists have shown that the nervous system plays a role in weight gain, one that may be genetically predisposed, but may also be tweaked by following certain habits. The neurotransmitter seratonin, familiar to most people because of the role it (or a lack of it) plays in clinical depression, also has something to do with the way fat is metabolized in the body and the way our bodies interpret hunger. The more seratonin in the body, the less appetite we have and the quicker fat is metabolized. The nervous system is also responsible for the creation of other hormones that affect our weight–such as adrenaline and cortisol. Some ways to soothe and support your nervous system:
Sleep. Getting a full night of sleep (7-9hours) is actually considered by many experts to be the number one change you can make to improve your health. Sleep removes waste products from your nervous system, particularly excess hormones that lead to weight gain. A chronic lack of sleep has been proven to lead to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
If you have trouble sleeping, the herb valerian is your best bet–potent and gentle at the same time, it works wonders for fighting insomnia. If you are just too busy, try taking cat naps throughout the day–fifteen minutes to a half an hour really can add up. Whatever you do, however, don’t try to make up for sleep deprivation by sleeping all day on the weekends. This can actually make insomnia worse since it disrupts your sleep-wake cycle.
Chill out, man. Meditation is a proven nervous system soother. It increases the levels of alpha brain waves, proven to relax the entire nervous system. It is also thought that meditation can help increase the seratonin in your brain, decreasing depression and weight gain. Meditation can take many forms–from simple Zazen sitting meditation, to walking meditation, running, or listening to soothing music.
Eat your Oats and Stuff. Including nerve friendly food and herbs in our diet is another tried and true way of relaxing our nervous system and supporting it at the same time. Oats–in the form of oatmeal or oatstraw tea is considered a tremendous nervine tonic. In addition, the fiber in oatmeal is a great weight loss aid and helps lower cholesterol and lessens the risk for heart disease.
To increase seratonin in the brain try taking a supplement of St. John’s Wort, Siberian Ginseng, and/or licorice–all are proven natural anti-depressents that help with nervous system support and healthy eating and metabolic patterns.
Medicinal mushrooms have been all the rage in Asia for, oh, the last 2,000 years and it seems like we here in the West are finally catching up to the idea. Taken in food and capsule form, mushrooms have been used for everything from treating cancer and digestive ailments, curing asthma, reducing blood sugar and blood pressure, and improving immunity. The word mushroom is a sort of umbrella term for many of the gilled and fruiting bodies of various fungi and it is their antioxidant properties, in the form of beta glutans and polysacharrides that are being so fervently studied by western scientists today. These medicinal mushrooms look, taste, and act nothing like the anemic white button mushrooms that we are so familiar with, however, and are well worth exploring for all their various benefits. The top of the list?
Reishi:
The oldest known mushroom to have been used as medicine, it was typically reserved for royalty. Composed mostly of complex carbohydrates, cheifly water soluble polysacharrides, proteins and amino acids, Reishi has been found to have anti-tumor properties, immune boosting ability, and also lowers blood pressure. The ganoderic acids in reishi have also been found to aid liver ailments, reduce allergies by inhibiting histimine release, and improve oxygen utilization in the lungs. As an adaptogenic herb, reishi is considered a gentle, everyday tonic that works on the areas of the body in which it is most necessary. Reishi can be taken dried and made into a wonderful tea or in capsule form.
photo credit: Nathan (Mushroom
Shiitaki: Long thought of as a gourmet mushroom in fancy restaurants, shitaki have amazing health benefits as well, with the added bonus of being delicious and versatile–the dried variety enlivens soup and gives a meaty taste to stir fry and casseroles. Shiitaki are energizing, restorative and good for the skin and nails, along with being thought of as another cancer preventor. They are rich in B vitamins, trace elements, and minerals they improve the functioning of the nervous and digestive systems.
photo credit: Simon Blackley
Cordyceps: Okay, this one is wild. Cordyceps is a type of fungus that is parasitic, that is it grows on an insect. In this instance, the insect is a catepillar. Cordyceps has long been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine as an aphrodisiac (with a success rate in many studies of up to 64% among men!). However, in the recent past, it has been used as an energy enhancer, a cellular regenerative tonic, and to lower cholesterol. It appears to increase blood circulation and is a great lung tonic (it has been used in the high Himalayas for hundreds of years to breathe better at altitude). It increases stamina and is wonderful for the immune system as well. Don’t let this little fungi’s humble beginnings gross you out!
photo credit: pellaea
Maitake: This last mushroom is a wonder, whose japanese name means the dancing mushroom, some say because of the shape–which traditionally is supposed to look like a dancing nymph, or because it is so rare in the wild that those who find it dance for joy. Another great tasting mushroom, studies have shown a typical immune boosting response when taking or eating maitake. It has also been shown to stabilize blood sugar and insulin production as well as increase metabolism and lower cholesterol levels. Find this great mushroom fresh at asian grocery stores, dried or in capsules on the web.
photo credit: Laurel Fan
Introducing any of these mushrooms into your diet is a great start to increasing the health of your diet and your body. If you want to go further, many can be easily grown at home on special logs. This makes a fun project for goods or just a good way to grow some fungi on your own. One caution with mushrooms–if you have issues with yeast or fungus it is a good idea to clear it up as even these wonderful medicinal aids can aggravate certain yeast conditions in the body.
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography
This week, we again look to the natural world to help us with weight loss. Looking at the body holistically, we can pinpoint three areas in which herbs and food can help us balance our bodies and lose weight–by increasing our metabolism, stimulating our digestion, and regulating our elimination.
The big three for metabolism: Ginseng, Cayenne, and Seaweed.
There are so many energy busters in our culture, from lack of sleep, to a reliance on caffeine and sugar to stress and environmental toxins. Often, by the time we get around to exercising or thinking about making a healthy, veggie filled meal we are wiped out. Ginseng is a great addition to your daily diet. It is an adaptogen, which means that it goes where it is needed in your body to increase energy, and reduce stress–whether that is physical, mental or both. The result is increased stamina in daily life. Ginseng is safe for most people but it can interfere with certain drugs since it stimulates the central nervous system, so always clear its use with your doctor first.
Another, fairly mild metabolism stimulant is cayenne. It works by raising your internal temperature and helping the body burn calories. Creating a diet that uses cayenne every day–by adding a pinch to soups, dips, eggs, beans, and most dishes can add a boost that is noticeable. Taking cayenne in pill form can also be effective. Along with increasing metabolism, cayenne is great for stimulating elimination and cleansing the intestines.
The third factor to look at in terms of metabolism is the function of the thyroid. When it is sluggish it tends to slow metabolism and it is often a bit sluggish in many people due to stressed adrenals and environmental and food toxins. Adding seaweed to your diet, in the form of supplements or added in soups, made into sushi rolls, or eaten as salads can increase thyroid function. It also is soothing to the endocrine system, high in trace minerals, soothing to the digestive system, and good for hair, skin and nails. It is high in fiber and filling as well.
Digestive Stimulants: Your ability to digest food well is paramount for regulating eating. The inability to digest well leads to malabsorption of vital nutrients-leaving your body craving vitamins and minerals, craving food even if you don’t need the calories. Think of your body as an oven that needs to be stoked in order to burn–what stokes that fire? Bitter herbs such as gentian, dandelion, wormwood, white aspen bark, and mugwort all stimulate the digestion by increasing perastalsis and increasing the production of bile in the gallbladder. To regulate digestion, using alfalfa juice or aloe vera juice is wonderful. Both are very toning and contain digestive enzymes. Taking a supplement of pancreatic enzymes also helps alkalinize your digestive system.
Getting Rid of It All: Proper elimination is the third key to weight loss. Most of us don’t eat enough fiber and so our food sits in our intestines and colon for much longer than it should, leaching toxins back into our body. Increasing the fiber in our bodies also helps us feel more full. Raw or lightly cooked veggies, whole grains, and legumes to your diet is an immediate way to increase fiber. Avoiding juice and drinking water helps. Using bran in baked goods and whole wheat flour and added psyllium husks can really act like sandpaper to your intestines, sweeping out the old and cleaning the pipes. Remember to stay away from artificial laxatives or even very powerful natural ones like senna because they can become habit forming. The key is to get your body moving on its own and supporting it in this process.
If you want to lose weight, you have to keep your blood sugar stable. You do this by avoiding sugar. Any sweetener, in fact, aside from stevia, which makes a frequent appearance in these Low GI Treat recipes. (Oh, and don’t go there with artificial sweeteners: those cancer and obesity-causing powders of Beelzebub.) Incidentally, stevia’s also the only natural sweetener that doesn’t aggravate candida.
If you’re a frequent reader of these recipes, though, you might be a little sick of hearing about stevia, so we’re going to discuss fruit today. Now, fruit is really not a crucial food. It’s nice and it’s tasty, but veggies contain everything fruit contains, and more. Didyou know, for example, cauliflower and asparagus happen to be very high in Vitamin C? But for some of us cutting out fruit is unrealistic, so let’s explore which fruits will create the lowest blood sugar spike.
There’s no rhyme or reason when guessing which fruits are the most sugary. Dried apricots happen to be very low at 31, while watermelon has a GI of 72! On the whole, it’s best to stick to citrus such as grapefruit and oranges, and berries such as blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, gooseberries, huckleberries, etc. Interestingly, most berries, aside from strawberries, contain so few carbs that it’s difficult to actually test their GI. They are estimated by various sources as ranging from 32 to 40. The fact that they are that low carb means their GI will be very low as well, so feel free to enjoy them. Other good choices include cherries at 22, plums at 25, and apples at 38.
photo credit: Steven Fernandez
A word about fruit juices. It’s unfortunate that their marketing as a healthful addition to one’s diet has been so successful. “Oh, I’m sick! I’ll get orange juice!” “Oh, I had a serving of apple juice this morning; that’s one of my five dailies of fruit/veg!” Please remember that fruit juice will spike your blood sugar more than if you consume the whole fruit at once. This is because the fiber present in the whole fruit slows the digestive process, thereby mellowing out the blood sugar. Also, vitamins begin to oxidize (break down) the moment they hit the air, so if you are drinking a bottled or canned juice you purchased at the grocery store, you are not getting many nutrients. If you want to prepare some fresh juice specifically for vitamin and mineral purposes, go right ahead, but not the best choice for weight loss.
Sea Vegetables: Also known as seaweed, a really lousy hit for such a great array of foods! Sea vegetables are truly medicine for modern people. A sustainable and abundant, nutrient dense food supply that grows around the world.
Why you want to eat more sea vegetables
There are a dozen commonly eaten sea vegetables that can be not only palatable, but quite tasty. When adding sea vegetables to the diet, remember that they vary greatly in nutrients. Here are just a few of the most noteworthy benefits:
· More minerals that any other food. Every known mineral that we need, sea vegetables can provide. With commercial food, minerals are in poor supply. Balance this with sea vegetables.
· Weight Management ~ The thyroid gland is under attack in modern life. More and more people have thyroid issues and sea vegetables are a tonic food for thyroid function. Increasing thyroid function can be beneficial for weight loss.
· Beautiful Skin ~ With internal moisturizing, improved detoxification, high concentration of skin friendly nutrients, sea vegetables are HOT in the natural beauty industry.
· Detox Radioactive Compounds ~ woah! Brown sea weed binds and expels radioactive isotopes from the thyroid gland. Detoxification is essential in the post-industrial age.
· Detox Heavy Metals ~ our bodies never had to deal with cadmium, mercury and lead in the way it does now. Sea Vegetables help the body efficiently detox these industrial waste products. (Wakame, Arame, Hijiki, Kombu)
· Optimal Health ~ “If you want higher health, you need sea vegetables,†Scott Olgren ~ author of The 28 Day Cleansing Program
Tips on sea vegetables:
- More is not necessarily better. You only need a tablespoon or so each day to get the benefits of this food. Too much and you might even tip the scales on the iodine levels
- Try adding in one new sea vegetable each season. In a few years, you will have a great reference point for how to consume them!
- Macrobiotic foods companies, like Eden Foods, are great sources of quality sea vegetables, as is Maine Sea Coast company.
- Rinsing sea vegetables mellows the flavor.
What to watch out for:
- A lot of sea vegetable products are imported from China. As with Goji berries or other Chinese herb and food products, make sure you buy from reputable distribution channels.
- Lots of sea vegetable salads in deli cases are died to be bright green. It is normal for sea vegetables to look brown though.
Where can I get them?
I order directly from Maine Coast Sea Vegetables and from Eden Foods. I love the Maine Coast Applewood Smoked Dulse, yum!
photo credit: chatirygirl
We may be moving into spring, but here in Boulder it was 34 degrees this morning, and there’s snow in the forecast for the Mid-West, mid-week. So cocoa is still appropriate.
Dairy’s one of the most common allergens. Most of us can’t actually digest it. We may experience immediate symptoms such as stomach ache or bloating, or longer term effects such as a compromised immune system, increased susceptibility to colds, and excessive mucus production. It’s really only a traditional food for people of Western European heritage, and even many of them lose the ability to process it as they age.
Milk in its raw form is a beautiful, nutrient-rich food that, prior to pasteurization, humans were consuming for thousands of years without significant side effects. This process, which supposedly “kills the bacteria”, also destroys the milk’s lactase – the enzyme used to help the digestion of lactose. This means that unless your body produces a lot of lactase inherently, which most bodies don’t, you are out of luck when it comes to milk.
If you think you might have difficulty with cow’s milk you can always try sheep’s or goat’s milk, which are more easily digested. It’s also worth seeing if you have a farm in your area that might supply you with raw milk. If you can’t do any animal milk, there are a wide array of nut and grain milks that are easily substituted. Almond milk, hazelnut milk, rice milk, and hemp milk are just a few that can be found at your local health food store. Please check the labels because many brands unnecessarily add sugar or the euphemism “cane juice”. I do NOT recommend soy milk for reasons enumerated in this post.
Which brings me to today’s recipe. Cocoa is traditionally prepared using cow’s milk. Do I want to post a recipe to which most of my readers will be allergic? I think not. This one will be even better because it is made with the tropical flavor of coconut milk. I combine it with almond milk to cut the richness, but you don’t have to. A few spices add some Mexican style flavor. You won’t miss the marshmallows, trust me.
Coconut milk
Almond milk
Cacao
Stevia
Cayenne
Cinnamon
Mix 2/3 cup coconut milk and 1/3 cup almond milk in a saucepan on the stove.
Bring to a simmer over low heat.
Add 1-2 heaping spoonfuls of cacao, 4-6 drops stevia, and a dash of each spice.
Stir and simmer for a few minutes.
Pour into your favorite mug and drink. Caution, the beverage you’re about to enjoy is extremely hot.
photo credit: orangeacid
The very first signs of spring are upon us here in Colorado. The crocuses are coming up in my front yard, the green shoots are just appearing on my bushes and trees and Daylight Savings Time is only twelve days away–hello 7:00 o’clock sunsets! Oh, and I am eyeballing the closets in my house, getting ready for the total Spring Cleaning. With my mind already on cleaning, I read a statistic in an article by Mark Haymand M.D. that really hit home for me– he writes, “A recent study of umbilical cord blood found 287 toxic chemicals, 217 of which are toxic to the brain and nervous system. And that is what infants are exposed to even before they take their first breath. These toxins include mercury, lead, PCBs, BPA, phthalates, plasticizers, flame retardants and more.” This reminded me that Spring is a great time to clean, not only our houses, but the homes that are our bodies, allowing us to lead healthier and lengthier lives and pass on that purity to our children.
Some great ways of cleansing your body of toxins this year:
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography
Eat Organic: It might be a bit more expensive, but committing to eating only foods that haven’t been sprayed with pesticides is an immediate way to cut your exposure to toxins. On average those of us who eat conventional fruits and vegetables consume over a gallon of neurotoxins per year due to pesticide use. Some fruits and veggies are worse than others–one conventionally grown strawberry exceeds the FDA limit of pesticides for an adult person for the whole year while cantalope and watermelon are less toxic. Another great benefit of organic produce (especially if locally grown)–its packed full of more nutrients than its chemically showered alternative.
Know your Fish: Mercury poisoning is a serious issue. Almost fifteen percent of adult American women have toxic levels of mercury in their bodies. We all know that fish is a healthy alternative to red meat, but staying away from highly toxic big fish such as swordfish and albacore tuna and sticking with wild caught salmon or sardines can really make a difference. A good rule of thumb–the bigger the fish, the more mercury–as mercury accumulates in fatty tissue and all those big fish have eaten littler fish that have eaten little fish…etc.
photo credit: ellievanhoutte
I know it’s not Tuesday but I’m switching things up and doing recession cuisine today because I’m that inspired.
Over the weekend I prepared pate using elk liver from High Wire Ranch. The animals are fed a diet entirely of grass and hay, with no antibiotics and no hormones. Talk about old school and the way things should be. For some of Saturday’s diners, including a vegan recently fallen from grace, it was their first experience feasting on this delicious and nutritious organ.
Now, if you are new to liver as well, you are probably recoiling in disgust and imagining a nasty, floppy, sloppy thing. Well, IÂ am happy to say this pate wasn’t one of the more “livery” ones I’ve produced. The seasoning, onion, and olive oil merged to offer a creamy, tender, spicy flavor. The former vegan had an interesting experience watching me cook. Initially repulsed by the blood, which I told her was a cranberry marinade, she then completely switched gears and decided to sample a bite of liver raw, as she had watched Sundancers do. It had the consistency of a crisp melon.
Every native culture has sacred foods that are fed to children and pregnant women. This food is chosen for its superior nutritional value – people who are growing, and people who are growing other people, require a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals in order to perpetuate a strong, vibrant, healthy species. Well, guess what. Very often the sacred food is liver. It’s fallen out of fashion, but even as recently as 50 years ago liver was a weekly staple in many homes. It’s sad that we now focus on the animal’s muscle as our protein source – it’s not anywhere near as nutritious as the organs. But it’s certainly good for those of us who still choose to nourish our bodies with this potent substance: a pound of organic livers will often cost you less than $4. Talk about getting a ton of bang for your buck…if we are trying to maximize nutrition and taste while minimizing dollars, look no further.
Liver is nature’s most concentrated source of Vitamin A and contains all the B vitamins in abundance. Many of us tend to be deficient in both. It’s also one of our best sources of folic acid, iron and copper. And on Sunday we experienced another of liver’s legendary benefits: the anti-fatigue factor. We were all shocked by the fact that despite drinking to excess and sleeping 4 hours the night before we were all actually able to function relatively well.
“But doesn’t the liver store the toxins?” you might ask. The liver neutralizes toxins; it does not store them. Toxins are more likely to be lodged in the fatty tissues and nervous system. But the liver DOES store a host of vitamins and minerals, all of which you are able to access by eating it. As always, please select liver with as many adjectives as possible (grass finished, free range, antibiotic free, organic…). It’s best to pass on the conventional. And because liver is so powerful, a 4oz serving once or twice per week is sufficient.
I credit my friend and colleague Lisa Lawson for introducing me to the joys of pate with this simple recipe.
When fitting exercise into a weight loss regimen, one of the biggest pitfalls is usually soreness or injury from doing too much too fast. This leads many of us to fall off the fitness bandwagon right when we are beginning to solidify real life changes into our routines. To ease soreness and heal injury without reaching for the ibubrofin try these natural cures:
A Kiwi Tuatara becomes a father at age 111. No Viagra involved: this reptile had surgery to remove a tumor from his genital area, and became much more frolicsome thereafter.
Perhaps the best quote from the story:
“A male Tuatara takes 70 years to fully mature but reaches sexual maturity about age 20.”
Sound like anyone you might know?
photo credit: mauren veras
“Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down…in the most delightful way.” –Mary Poppins
Do you have childhood memories of crying over some fourth grade trauma, then taking refuge in the gooey, glossy cupcakes from the local bakery?
Do you remember being rewarded for good behavior at the bank with a lollipop, or reveling in the scent of freshly baked brownies as you walked in the door from school?
What about digging through a pint of cookie dough ice cream to locate the best chunks? Lemonade on hot summer days? Cotton candy at fairs? Milk Duds at the movies, candy hearts on Valentine’s Day, cake at birthday parties, pancakes at sleepover breakfasts…
And now that I’ve got you drooling, allow me to introduce John Yudkin MD, Ph.D., F.R.C.P., F.R.S.C., F.I. Biol., Prof of Nutrition at London University:
“If only a small fraction of what is already known about the effects of sugar were to be revealed in relation to any other material used as a food additive, that material would promptly be banned.”
I evoke these youthful reminiscences to illustrate how interwoven childhood is with sugar. From the get go, we’re assaulted with one of the most noxious substances that has ever been introduced into our food supply. We’re taught to associate it with comfort, appreciation, joy…but it’s actually rotting our insides.
Have you ever considered the fact that almost all of the degenerative diseases that plague us today were practically nonexistent just 200 years ago? Without a doubt, the biggest change in our diets has been our sugar consumption. Yes, sugar, also known as sucrose, brown sugar, corn sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, glucose, lactose and maltose. The average American eats 152 pounds of sugar per year!
Sugar is a refined food. It contains no nutrients; it’s pure starch. Its digestion takes such a toll on the body that in order to neutralize its effect, calcium, potassium, and magnesium are leached from the bones and sent out into the bloodstream. This results in a brittle, weak skeletal system. Osteoperosis, anyone?
The valiant liver, purifier of blood, stores sugar as a toxin to prevent it from reaching other areas of the body. Eventually, though, it gets overloaded. A daily intake of sugar has been known to cause the liver to expand like a balloon. At this point the overflow sugar begins to float throughout the bloodstream and is stored in the body as fat. It’s also absorbed by other organs such as the heart and kidneys, and it predictably slows them down, clogging them with fat. Eventually the entire body is affected and the immune system is drastically compromised. Multiple studies and unfortunate events have actually demonstrated that subsisting on sugar and water is actually worse than subsisting on water alone, and will probably kill you.
Sorry to be so gloom and doom. But it’s true, and many people just aren’t aware of it. There have been countless studies documenting the impact of sugar on an individual’s health. You’ve probably heard sugar causes dental decay, gum disease and obesity. Did you also know it causes hyperactivity, depression, anxiety, dizziness and migranes…weakened eyesight, premature aging, cataracts, emphysema, autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular disease….ok, I’ll stop for now and just link you to a list of ways sugar can impact your health.
“I give you bitter pills in sugar coating. The pills are harmless: the poison is in the sugar.” –Stanislaw Jerzy Lec
Unfortunately, various villanous industries seeking to capitalize upon sugar’s weight-gaining effects have released a flood of artificial sweeteners into the market. But beware! These are just as toxic. Here’s a quick rundown on a few of our most notorious figures of the shadowy saccharin underworld:
ASPARTAME given to animals in low doses results in lymphomas, leukemia, and brain tumors. When metabolized by the body, its by-products include methyl alcohol, aspartic acid, and formaldehyde. Methyl alcohol is knoown to cause blindness; formaldehyde, used as a wood preservative and to preserve laboratory specimens, is lethal in large doses; aspartic acid excites brain cells and disrupts neural function – contributing to hyperactivity, emotional stress, behavior changes and loss of focus. Check out this youtube video documenting the fascinating link between the some-say-toxic Donald Rumsfeld and Aspartame….
SUCRALOSE, AKA SPLENDA is made from normal sugar which has been chlorinated, producing a host of chlorine byproducts that contribute to the pollution of our waterways. These chemicals work their way up the food chain and into our bodies – and they stay there, lodged in fat cells. Dioxins contribute to cancers, hormone imbalance, birth defects, and infertility, and they suppress the immune system. Research on sucralose in animal studies has shown effects including: shrinking of the thymus gland, enlarged liver and kidneys, reduced growth rate, decreased red blood cell count (anemia), extension of pregnancy period, birth defects and atrophy of lymph follicles.
SACCHARIN, AKA SWEET’N'LOW appeared on the US FDA’s carcinogen list from 1998 to 2000. Like the others, it’s synthetically made. It appears in only one place in nature – as a component in coal tar.
photo credit: kevindooley
Great. I’ve knocked out all your options for decadent desserts. Or have I? Tomorrow, we’ll address the emotional aspects of sugar addiction, and explore some natural alternatives that are just as sweet as the artificials – and much better for you.
There’s a lot of hubbub about soy these days. The food once touted along with granola and hemp as the provenance of health-loving hippies is now being called into question. And with good reason.
First of all, think about it. Even people for whom soy is a native food – East Asians – eat only a very small amount, perhaps 2 tbsp per day. We Americans have taken things to extremes as usual with our 8 oz glasses of soy chocolate milk, soy ice cream sundaes, and soy cheese so the vegans and lactose-intolerant can indulge with everyone else.
Second, soy has only been used in East Asia for maybe 2000 years. On the evolutionary scale that’s a blink of an eye. And even that soy was fermented into forms such as natto and tamari. The fermentation dramatically improves digestability and bioavailability as well as neutralizing toxins. We don’t do that. Which brings me to…
Third. So much of our soy is GMO.
photo credit: Tina Keller
Enough said. Oh, no, wait, there’s a little more. These days most soy products are processed in a way that denatures proteins and increases carcinogens.
Fourth, soy isn’t the easy animal protein replacement it’s supposed to be. It lacks a couple of the amino acids present in animal-based protein. Which isn’t so bad if you’re eating a diet rich in other proteins, but if it’s your only protein source you’re going to be deficient in many things, including Vitamin B-12…yep, soy actually INCREASES the body’s requirement for B-12. Excess of soy can also cause deficiencies in calcium and Vitamin D.
So everything in moderation, right? If you’re going for soy, be conservative. Some soy sauce with your sushi isn’t going to kill you, but an organic and fermented product is your best bet. For more information about soy, read up here.
Want to avoid getting sick this winter? The answer might lie in meditation. Researchers have found that people with an active meditation practice have been found to have higher amounts of antibodies in their bodies, leading to improved immune response and giving them the edge when it comes to fighting off seasonal colds and flu. Along with ramping up the immune system, meditation has been found to balance mood, lose weight, increase the ability to handle pain, and even protect the brain against ageing. Here is a quick introduction to different kinds of meditation:
Zen Meditation: Also known as Zazen, or sitting meditation, is perhaps the most well known of all meditations and is practiced by Zen monks. It involves sitting in a cross–legged position with the hands in a mudra, or prayer gesture and a very straight spine. You breathe deeply from the belly and focus on the the breathing. When thoughts arise you acknowledge them but don’t fixate on them. Let them go and return to the breath. If you wander off into your thoughts come back to the breath. Sometimes it is helpful to have a mantra or special word to repeat or count numbers to keep from thinking. This is one of the simplest kinds of meditation and can be done anywhere.
Walking Meditation: Easier for many people than sitting meditation, walking meditation is just as simple and has the added benefit of exercise. It can be done outdoors or inside. It can involve walking in a pattern–a square or circle, walking a labrynth shape (which is found in many churches and meditation centers), or just free walking outside. It involves keeping the eyes open, focusing on the breath and the body, feeling the ground beneath your feet, and releasing thoughts instead of grabbing them.
Kundalini Yoga: Kundalini Yoga is a physical and meditative discipline, comprising a set of techniques that use the mind, senses and body to create a communication between “mind” and “body”. Kundalini yoga focuses on psycho-spiritual growth and the body’s potential for maturation, giving special consideration to the role of the spine and the endocrine system. It consists of kriyas, which are sets of exercises that help to balance the body and the mind, and different meditations that involve music, mantras, mudras, and visualization. These meditations range from ‘Meditation for Prosperity’ to ‘Meditations for Peace’. They can last anywhere from between 5 minutes to several hours and some have even been adopted by psychotherapists, after rigorous clinical trials, into the treatments of obsessive-compulsive disorder and chemical addictions. Here is a list of popular kriyas and meditations, though finding kundalini classes in your community is highly recommended.
Although these are tried and true ways of engaging in a healthy meditation program, don’t overlook other forms of meditation–running, singing, dancing, driving, even chopping vegetables–almost anything can be turned into a meditation practice if it involves attention, mindfullness, and paying attention to the breath and to disengaging our selves from our thoughts.
photo credit: geishaboy500
subscribe ( 
