Home » Newsletter » Healthy Cooking
Category Archives: Healthy Cooking
Recipe: Healthy Marshmallow Peeps
Oh, the empty easter basket… It can strike fear into the hearts of moms who try so hard to keep kids away from sugar and other toxic junk.
So what do we tell the Easter Bunny to bring if we want to stay on the healthy food path?
Thanks to Kimi Harris at the Nourishing Gourmet, with very little effort you can ditch the corn syrup, artificial dyes and other yuckiness found in those little marshmallow peeps, and instead make this healthy gelatin-based version.
Kimi’s recipe is quite easy. And Gelatin — in addition to NOT being corn syrup — has wonderful health benefits. According to the Weston A. Price foundation, among gelatins benefits are:
– Support for skin, hair and nail growth
– Good for joints and helps joint recovery
– Can help tighten loose skin (like the kind you get after having babies…)
– Can improve digestion since it naturally binds to water and helps food move more easily though the digestive track
– Rumored to help improve cellulite
– Is a great source of dietary collagen (collagen is too large to be absorbed by the skin, so those skin creams are pretty useless… get it internally and use coconut oil for lotion!)
– Is a source of protein (though not a spectacular one) but its specific amino acids can help build muscle.
Gelatin is largely composed of the amino acids glycine and proline, which many people don’t consume in adequate amounts since they are found in the bones, fibrous tissues and organs of animals. As a population, we don’t consume these parts as much anymore. These amino acids are needed not only for proper skin, hair and nail growth, but for optimal immune function and weight regulation.
You can order your gelatin online here, and enjoy your yummy gelatin peeps!
Namaste.
Dangerous Dairy vs Healthy Dairy: Do You Know the Difference?
It’s been years since I’ve jumped into the milk vat. After suffering chronic joint and gallbladder pain in my 30s, I decided it wasn’t worth it. So I chucked it.
I have felt a lot better since I did. But in the past year, I have switched to raw milk and I now can enjoy dairy again with zero gallbladder pain, zero joint pain and very little mucous response. And I’m thinner than I’ve ever been!
Here’s what I’ve learned: raw milk has all the healthy enzymes needed to digest it. It also has all the healthy fats that are important for brain function. Raw goat’s milk is closer to human milk than cow milk. But raw cow milk, especially in the summer months when the cows are all grazing on the yummy green grass, is otherworldly delicious.
Commercialized dairy, which is processed by pasteurization and homogenization, is trash. The processing strips the milk of its naturally occurring enzymes which makes the milk impossible to digest. Which means it’s stored as fat. Which means the body floods its intestinal walls with mucous to try to prevent your body from absorbing it, because it’s so broken down it cannot go any lower. The body knows, which is why you will notice mucous in your throat after you eat processed dairy products. Two percent and one percent milk are even worse. We are poisoning ourselves when we consume it.
And that’s not even mentioning the recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) that is added to the commercial milk. Without a label. Amongst other junk…
So find a local supplier of raw milk and jump in. You will be amazed at how positive the experience can be. And do the same with your cheeses and your butter. BTW if you live near a Trader Joe’s you can get raw milk cheese all the time. It’s eye opening once you experience the difference.
Namaste.
11 Health Foods That Can Kill You
I came across this post on HoneyColony and couldn’t agree more — check out these 11 “Health Foods” That Can Kill You. I agree with almost all of them, except that since in my house we’ve been eating more raw vegan our bodies are able to process sugars like agave and honey more easily. Eating raw foods will do that, as the raw content inspires your spleen, gall bladder, pancreas and liver to function more efficiently by producing more naturally occurring digestive enzymes which helps you break down the food and sugars more easily and effectively.
On the whole, this is a good list — check it twice to see how it compares to your daily routine.
Namaste.
By Kris Gunnars, Popular Science
Nutrition is full of nonsense.
You will find bold health claims for all kinds of foods, most often based on zero evidence.
Here are the top 11 “health foods” that are actually very harmful.
1. Fruit Juices
The fruit juices you find at the supermarket aren’t always what they seem. They may have small amounts of real fruit in them, but often they are little more than water, artificial flavor and sugar. But even if you’re drinking real fruit juice, it is still a bad idea.
Fruit juice is like fruit with most of the good stuff removed. All that is left is the sugar and a few vitamins. Orange juice, for example, contains the same amount of sugar as Coca-Cola. There’s no fiber in it, no chewing resistance and nothing to stop you from downing massive amounts of sugar in a short amount of time.
Eating too much sugar is associated with all sorts of diseases. These include obesity, type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many others (1, 2, 3). It is much better to avoid fruit juices and eat real fruits instead.
Bottom Line: Most fruit juices contain the same amount of easily digestible sugar as sugar-sweetened soft drinks. It is best to eat whole fruits instead.
2. Whole Wheat
It is true that whole wheat is healthier than refined wheat. But this does not mean that whole wheat is healthy. It’s kind of like saying that because filtered cigarettes are healthier than unfiltered cigarettes, everyone should be smoking filtered cigarettes. It’s flawed logic.
There are plenty of good reasons to avoid wheat, both the refined and the whole variety. For example, wheat is the main source of gluten in the diet and a large part of the population may be gluten sensitive (4, 5, 7, 8, 9).
One study shows that wheat fiber can make you vitamin D deficient, making you burn through your stores of this important vitamin much faster (10). Another study shows that whole wheat raises small, dense LDL (the truly “bad” cholesterol) by a whopping 60 percent (11).
Bottom Line: Whole wheat is rich in gluten and can cause digestive problems and various symptoms. It may also cause vitamin D deficiency and elevated small, dense LDL cholesterol.
3. Agave Nectar
In the health food aisle at the supermarket, you will definitely find some “sugar-free” products that are sweetened with agave. This sweetener is touted as a healthy alternative to sugar because it is natural and has a low glycemic index.
But the harmful effects of sugar have little to do with its glycemic index; it is harmful primarily because it is loaded with unnatural amounts of fructose. Too much fructose in the diet can cause all sorts of problems, especially in people who don’t exercise much.
All fructose is metabolized by the liver. If the liver is full of glycogen the fructose will be turned into fat (11, 12). This can cause non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and all kinds of metabolic problems like resistance to the hormones insulin and leptin, which will ultimately lead to obesity and diabetes (13, 14, 15, 16).
While regular sugar is 50 percent fructose, the fructose content of agave is as high as 90 percent. If anything, agave is even worse than sugar!
Bottom Line: Agave nectar is loaded with fructose and therefore causes all the same problems as regular sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.
4. Sports Drinks
Sports drinks were designed for athletes who have just finished an intense training session with massive sweating and glycogen depletion.
For this reason, sports drinks contain:
- Water: to replenish lost fluid.
- Electrolytes: to replenish electrolytes like sodium that were lost via sweat.
- Sugar: because athletes need energy after an intense workout.
You don’t need any additional electrolytes unless you’ve been doing a very intense workout, and most people are already eating too much sugar. One bottle of Gatorade contains over 30 grams of sugar.
You’re better off sticking to plain water, which you should certainly drink plenty of, especially around workouts.
Bottom Line: If you’re not doing super intense workouts, then you should avoid sports drinks. They are not needed and contain sugar.
5. ‘Heart-Healthy’ Vegetable Oils
As the fear of saturated fat took hold of the world, consumption of all kinds of nasty ingredients increased. Prime examples are industrial seed- and vegetable oils like soybean, corn, and cottonseed oil.
These oils are extracted from seeds using very harsh processing methods and include high heat, bleaching, and the toxic solvent hexane. These oils contain very large amounts of omega-6 fatty acids, way more than humans ever consumed throughout evolution.
We need small amounts of these fatty acids in the diet, such as the amounts found in meat and nuts. However, if we eat way too much like is the case with Western populations, this causes problems (17). Eating too much of these fats can lead to inflammation, which is a leading cause of many chronic diseases (18). These oils get incorporated into our body fat stores and cellular membranes, where they are highly sensitive to oxidation and damage.
To top it all off, the industrial vegetable oils that you find in the supermarket contain 0.56 to 4.2 percent of their fatty acid as trans fats, which are highly toxic (19). (This does not apply to olive oil, which is good for you!)
Bottom Line: Vegetable oils are unhealthy and lead to inflammation. They are potential key players in the epidemic of Western diseases.
6. Low-Fat or Fat-Free Foods
It ain’t the fat, people! Despite the last decades of propaganda against saturated fats, they have now been proven to be harmless (20, 21).
When the anti-fat message first came out, food manufacturers started producing “healthy” products that were low-fat or fat-free. The only problem is that foods that have had the fat removed taste like crap.
The food manufacturers then loaded their products with chemicals, artificial sweeteners and massive amounts of sugar. What they basically did was remove the good stuff (fat) and replace it with bad stuff (sugar). This is how they managed to turn perfectly healthy foods like yogurt into very harmful products filled with unhealthy ingredients.
Bottom Line: Avoid everything labelled “low-fat” or “fat-free.” These are highly processed products loaded with sugar and other harmful substances.
7. Gluten-Free Foods
Many people have started to avoid gluten, a protein found in wheat, spelt, rye, and barley (and a few other grains). Almost a third of the U.S. population currently wants to cut back on gluten or go gluten-free.
Food manufacturers have caught up on the trend and have started offering all sorts of gluten-free “health foods.” The problem with these foods is that they’re usually not healthy at all.
Instead of a gluten grain, they’re made with other starches like potato starch, tapioca starch or some others. These starches are usually highly refined, void of nutrients and spike blood sugar fast, just like wheat. But these products are often also loaded with sugar and other harmful or artificial chemicals.
This does not apply to foods that are naturally gluten free, like meats or vegetables. If a product says “gluten-free” on the package, then it’s probably bad for you.
Bottom Line: Gluten-free foods are highly processed foods that are not much healthier than their gluten-containing counterparts. It’s best to avoid them.
8. Margarine And Fake Butters
“I wish butter tasted more like margarine, said nobody ever.” – Danny J. Albers
Another side effect of the anti-fat hysteria is a plethora of so-called “healthy” butter alternatives. The most notable example of these is margarine. It used to be loaded with trans fats; now it tends to contain processed vegetable oils instead. Butter consumption went down, margarine consumption went up.
The problem with this is that butter is healthy. Margarine is not.
Grass-fed butter, in particular, is an excellent source of the fatty acid butyrate and vitamin K2, both of which can have powerful positive effects on health (22, 23). Margarine is a processed food with harmful ingredients that can make you sick. In one large study, replacing butter with margarine lead to a drastically increased risk of death from heart attacks (24).
This is one great example of where blindly following the mainstream advice can put you in an early grave.
Bottom Line: Margarine is a processed food that contains unhealthy, artificial ingredients. Avoid it, use real grass-fed butter instead.
9. Energy Bars
Energy bars are in the same boat as sports drinks – most people don’t need them. If you’re an elite athlete who desperately needs to keep protein intake high and eat every two to three hours, then these bars can definitely be convenient.
However, most people don’t need to eat that often, and these bars don’t contain anything that you can’t get from real foods. Energy bars and protein bars are often highly processed products. Even though they may be higher in protein than chocolate bars, they often still contain the same unhealthy ingredients. Sugar, white flour, artificial flavor; you name it, they’ve got it.
Of course, there are some healthier brands available, but if you want to avoid the crap then you must read labels! If you’re starving and far away from home, then healthier types of energy bars can certainly be better than a burger and a Coke, but your money is still better spent on real foods.
Bottom Line: Energy and protein bars are often highly processed products. Most people don’t need them and they tend to contain sugar and other nasty ingredients.
10. Low-Carb Junk Foods
As people have changed their mind on fat being the root of all evil, some people have started cutting back on carbs instead. Again, food manufacturers have caught notice and brought all sorts of low-carb junk foods to the market.
Even though something is low in carbs and sugar, it can still be very unhealthy. Great examples are the low-carb Atkins bars. These are nasty, highly processed products that nobody should be eating. Just check out the ingredients list for this Atkins Advantage bar. This isn’t food.
If you’re going to do a low-carb diet, stick to real, unprocessed foods.
Bottom Line: There are some low-carb processed foods on the market that are extremely unhealthy and loaded with artificial ingredients.
11. ‘Healthy’ Breakfast Cereals
Most highly processed breakfast cereals are not healthy. In fact, they are among the worst foods you can eat. They’re often loaded with sugar and refined carbohydrates. Then the manufacturers fortify them with some synthetic vitamins and put tiny amounts of whole grains in the mix, then market their products as healthy.
Don’t be fooled by the labels: low-fat, fat-free, whole grain, etc. Just check the ingredients list on these products. They’re usually loaded with sugar.
Starting the day with a high-sugar cereal will set you up for a blood sugar crash later in the day, followed by hunger, cravings, and another high-carb meal.
12. Anything Else?
If the packaging of a food tells you that it is healthy, then it probably isn’t.
Feel free to add to the list in the comments!
This article was written by Kris Gunnars and published in Popular Science on April 30, 2013. Photo by Angus Clyne/Flickr.
Healthy & Easy Raw Vegan Condiments
One of my biggest challenges relative to eating healthy is avoiding soy. It’s everywhere, because it’s used as an emulsifier in everything from mayonnaise to salad dressings. Sugar also is a culprit, because it’s in everything from ketchup to well, just about everything. If I’m having sugar, I want chocolate cake.
But thanks to Laura-Jane at The Rawtarian, I’ve found a way around soy in my mayo and sugar in my ketchup — without sacrificing taste. Her recipes for both are super simple, and are raw vegan to boot.
Check out all her stuff. They are INSANELY DELISH!! We’re eating raw vegan more and more these days, and her recipes make it super easy, healthy and most of all so yummy.
Namaste.
RETHINKING FOOD III: Exploring Raw Veganism
Years ago I attempted raw vegan cooking. I always feel great when I eat it and I find I have more calm and focus, although I still believe in combining my families’ diets with a combination of raw vegan and carnivorous dishes in the Weston Price tradition.
Well light years have passed since I made my first raw vegan attempt, and recipes have become simpler, easier to prepare and more delicious. All you really need is a Vita Mix and a decent food dehydrator, some nuts and veggies, a good recipe and a sense of adventure.
Here’s one of my latest favs, raw vegan broccoli soup, courtesy of The Present Moment Cookbook. Another great website if you want free delicious recipes is http://www.therawtarian.com.
Namaste.
Broccoli Cheddar – yields 1 quart
Base:
3 cups filtered water
2 cups cashews, soaked 1-2 hrs. & rinsed
1 seeded red bell pepper
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp tamari (or Bragg’s Aminos)
1 tbsp agave
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tbsp onion powder
vegetables:
11/2 cups broccoli florets cut into small pieces
Drain and rinse cashews well. In a vita mix, blend base ingredients to smooth consistency. Pour into bowls, add broccoli (and fresh chopped tomatoes if desired) into bowls. Serve.
Veggie Tourism and How to Change the World
Lettuce Growing in San Francisco
They’re doing it in Paris, they’re doing it in San Francisco, and you can do it in your town and change the world.
Check out this amazing TED talk by Pam Warhurst on Veggie Tourism.
Namaste.
RETHINKING FOOD II: The Real Dairy
It’s crazy how good life is now that I’ve discovered The Real Dairy.
You see, for years I suffered from chronic symptoms: gall bladder attacks, infertility, eczema, acne, bloat and gas. And I had no idea it was my ridiculous diet. In fact, it was all the result of eating commercialized wheat and dairy.
I had no idea the wise women like our grandmothers and great grandmothers were on to something when they would do things like soak beans, culture milk and cheeses from raw milk, make sourdough starter for delicious nutritious real bread.
We’ve commercialized the hell out of all this stuff, and in the process we’ve shown all the nutrients and probiotics the door.
So if you want to feel really good about what you’re eating, order yourself some kiefer grains, follow the simple instructions and make yourself some healthy cultured dairy products. Kiefer is the king culture and has all the probiotics you will need for a healthy gut so don’t bother with the others. Find a local source for some grass-fed, organic raw milk and get yourself started on culturing. I used to think man was not meant to drink the milk of another animal. What I now know is man is not meant to drink MAN’S commercialized fake version of dairy, we are meant to drink REAL dairy that is cultured with all the good stuff and does NOT have all the enzymes stripped out of it. Don’t be scared: kiefer is nutritious and delicious and can be used in place of milk. You can also make the most sumptuous cheeses by adding your kiefer culture to heavy cream. Your tummies will be so happy and so will your taste buds! So wake up people. Don’t eat commercialized dairy any more (skim milk is the worst, btw). Your body needs the healthy fats in milk, and culturing raw whole milk with good probiotics will blow your mind.
Contact me if you have any questions.
Namaste.
RETHINKING FOOD I: Raw & Heavenly
If you love food but hate how some of it makes you feel, check out these two new recipes. It’s the first in a series of new approaches to eating well called Rethinking Food.
For the next few months I will be sharing with you some delectable yummy and healthy food options. If you are like me and want commercial wheat out of your diet, these two amazing concoctions will make it even easier to say ‘buh-bye’ to that gluten addiction.
Rethink your food — don’t let yourself get into a rut! Find ways to make food satisfying, healthy and delicious, and let me know what you come up with.
Namaste.
Zucchini Pasta
Six Small Zucchinis
Marinara or Spaghetti Sauce of Your Choice
Spiral six zucchinis in a turning slicer, place in bowls and ladle with warm marinara or spaghetti sauce.Serves 4-6 adults.
The picture above is tasty, easy and healthy.
All you need is a special gadget called a turning slicer (www.paderno.it, item #49827-99, cost is $40).
Once you have the turning slicer, it takes all of ten minutes to make. It’s delicious and healthy — raw zucchini is rich in vitamin A and other nutrients — my five-year-old ate THREE bowls full and loved it. Not only are you NOT eating wheat in the form of pasta, but you are also getting raw veggies instead, which ups your production of naturally occurring enzymes. We are supposed to eat 80% raw in our diets…
Heavenly Bite Cookies
Two Egg Whites A dash of almond and vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped dates
1/4 cup pecans
1/4 cup cashews
1/2 cup shredded coconut
Dollop of Honey
Sesame Seeds & Currants to garnish
Coconut Oil
Whip egg whites and extracts until soft peaks form, set aside. Add the rest of the ingredients (except sesame seeds and currants) to a food processor and blend until crumbled or balled. Fold mixture with a spatula into the egg whites, being mindful not to mix too much to flatten egg whites. Scoop with a teaspoon onto a cookie sheet greased with coconut oil. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top, place a currant or two in the center. Cookies will be small mountains. Bake at 300 for 10-12 minutes.
I delivered a plate of these cookies to my parents and, well, let’s just say the plate was almost empty before they closed the door behind them #notkidding. The entire batch was devoured, I had to make another batch just to keep everyone from fighting over the crumbs. It’s super easy to make. Enjoy!
Four Easy Immune Building Recipes for Fall
There is no question in the world about it: Chicken soup is good for the soul, because it builds your immune system.
Jewish penicillin, for sure, chicken soup is the fastest and best way to cure what ills you. It’s also a great way to prevent illness. I make it once a week for my family, even in the summer months, and we are proud to say we rarely get sick. I am sure my home made chicken soup is one of the reasons why.
Here’s my easy recipe:
Cook a roasted chicken earlier in the week. After you have eaten most of it, place the carcass — with meat left on it — in a pressure cooker. Add the following ingredients:
a whole onion cut in chunks, five carrots, peeled and cut, five sticks of celery in chunks, four cloves of garlic, five peppercorns, a bay leaf, two to four chicken feet, nails cut off.
The chicken feet are available online if you cannot source them locally. Many Whole Foods markets will stock them in their meat section.
Add all the ingredients to the pressure cooker, cover with filtered water until about two inches from the top. Seal and lock the pressure cooker and turn it on high. Watch it checking every five minutes until the seal closes, then let it cook for 20 minutes. Be careful, as they can explode if left unmonitored.
Once it has been cooking 20 minutes, remove from heat. Let cool, possibly overnight, then drain broth and discard the rest.
Pour the broth in a large stock pot, add chicken tenders (one to two packages, organic and hormone and steroid free), add the same vegetables as above without the garlic, simmer for 45 minutes or longer. Salt and pepper to taste, serve over soaked whole grain cooked brown rice and squeeze fresh lemon juice on top.
Beets are practically a super food, and are a great sweet root veggie for the fall. Kids will usually eat them no problem! Cut off stems, peel the beet and cut it into chunks. Simmer on medium heat for 30-40 minutes in a bit of water, monitoring to make sure you have enough water in the pan so the beets will get tender but not burn. Serve when cooled. Do the same with carrots, as another root veggie, only add ghee and mustard seeds to the carrots — you will love the taste!
Sweet potatoes are another root vegetable — peel, cut into long strips, toss with light olive oil and salt and pepper, and place on a cookie sheet. Cook on 350 degrees in the oven for 15 minutes. Kids eat em up!
Namaste.
4 Ways to Kick High Blood Pressure
What is High Blood Pressure? Check it:
– in the U.S. alone, 95% of all reported high blood pressure cases are classified as “undetermined.” This is called essential hypertension.
– Ninety five percent is a big number at which to be shrugging our shoulders — this is a condition that the Centers for Disease Control claims affects 1 in 3, or 68 million Americans.1
High Blood Pressure is often a precursor to the #1 and #3 leading causes of death in the United States, heart disease and stroke. Technically, it’s the measure of the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries. When your blood pressure rises, it means the heart is has to work harder. It also contributes to hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis) and causes heart failure.
Western medicine attributes: smoking, obesity, lack of physical exercise, too much processed salt, more than 1-2 cocktails a day, stress, old age, genetics, chronic kidney disease and adrenal and thyroid disorders.
It also attributes it to genetics (high blood pressure runs in families) to gender (it’s more likely to affect men than women), to race (it afflicts twice as many African-Americans as Caucasian Americans, although the gap begins to narrow around age 44. After age 65, black women have the highest incidence of high blood pressure).
Here’s the key: it’s not the behavior that causes the problems, it’s whatever is driving us to choose the behavior that will unlock the key to change. What is that drives behavior?
Emotions. It’s how we process (“deal”or “don’t deal” with them), which can be both learned and genetic in families. In Ayurveda, unprocessed emotions can lead to:
- smoking (many holistic practitioners feel smoking is an attempt to inhale words we are too afraid to say).
- overeating and obesity (often a sign of an unresolved, wounded childhood).
- depression, which can lead to malaise (lack of exercise); over drinking, stress, premature aging, cancer, etc.
You get the picture.
Break the Cycle
In Ayurveda, there is no predetermined outcome because of demographics or genetic code. The mind controls the body always. Which means, “Everything is reversible but death.”
Here are four ways to get started eliminating high blood pressure naturally — important because side effects of blood pressure medication are numerous and range from sexual dysfunction to depression, poor circulation to skin rash, insomnia, headaches, constipation, dizziness … the list goes on. There are also a zillion different classifications of high blood pressure medication as western medicine tries manipulating the body from a variety of angles in an effort to control the symptoms.
Get to the root and control the cause.
If you need more information or a consult, contact me through comments.
Namasté.
Four Ways to Naturally Lower High Blood Pressure
1. Change your Salt.
Get rid of table salt. It’s evil, and lacks the full spectrum of minerals and other nutrients that protect and enhance your health. It is a highly refined, processed white substance that in addition to hypertension can cause gastrointestinal problems, kidney stones, fluid retention and calcium depletion (this is very bad). For the body to metabolize table salt, it must waste tremendous amounts of energy to keep the body at optimum fluid balance. This creates a burden on the elimination systems in the body. Water is removed from other cells in attempt to neutralize the unnatural sodium chloride. Studies show that for each gram of table salt your system cannot process, your body will use over twenty times the amount of cellular water to neutralize the sodium chloride in chemically treated salt. This can lead to cellulite, rheumatism, arthritis, gout, as well as kidney and gallbladder stones. The average American consumes 5,000 mg of sodium chloride a day, the issue is serious and needs to be addressed.
Switch to Himalayan Pink Crystal Salt which contains 84 minerals and trace minerals.
Choosing to use Himalayan Sea Salt as an alternative can have a big impact on your total health and well-being. And remember, restaurants are the biggest culprit when using table salt.
2. Do a daily inversion.
Hubby Demonstrates Modified Shoulder Stand
Make a point to spend 1-3 minutes a day in a mini-inversion. Start off slow. Doing this even 2-3 times a week will not only reduce your blood pressure immediately, but by having the heart higher than the head you also give your heart a break. It’s very rejuvenative for the body and is an incredible pose for restoring balance to the mind, body & spirit.
This modified version is super easy to do:
– Take two yoga blankets if you have them, (the best ones are available at The Blanket Connection, and are about $13 each). If not, use thick towels.
– Fold one into thirds to support the spine, and fold the other in half and place it at the head of the first blanket, making a “T.”
– Grab the legs of a folding chair at the bottom of the T. Place the feet on the edge of the seat, and push the pelvis up. Keep the knees pulling towards each other, and if this is too hard to do, get a yoga strap to hold them in place.
– MAKE SURE NOT TO LET GO OF THE CHAIR or it will go flying across the room. Hold the pose for 2-3 minutes, being mindful to breathe, pushing the belly out with each in hale and pulling the belly in toward the spine as you exhale.
You are revitalizing the pads in between the vertebrae, giving the kidneys a fresh flush of blood, giving the adrenal glands on top of the kidneys a fresh flush of blood, refreshing the pineal and pituitary glands at the base of the skull, giving the face a fresh facial with fresh blood, AND you are also keeping the blood vessels in the BRAIN open — an important way to stave off memory loss and senile dementia.
Did you know there have been autopsies done on yogi’s in their 90s in India, and their brain tissue was like that of a 12-year-old because they did daily inversions?
Oh yeah, and it reduces hypertension.
Where can you get all of that from a 3-minute pose?
3. Take Carditone.
I LOVE Ayush herbal products because they are clean and organic. And Carditone is an Ayurvedic herb that for years has helped people reduce high blood pressure. If you have already been diagnosed with high blood pressure, start taking Carditone as well as the other three things on this list. Then, under the supervision of your doctor, start weaning yourself from your hypertension medications. If your doctor won’t work with you to do this, find a doctor that will work on your terms.
4. Eat more Fruits and Veggies, fresh fish and meats, and whole grains.
Duh. Get rid of the McDonald’s and the Burger King, and keep processed foods as a rare treat. You will find you won’t enjoy it nearly as much as you used to.
References
- CDC. Vital signs: prevalence, treatment, and control of hypertension–United States, 1999-2002 and 2005-2008. MMWR. 2011;60(4):103-8.
Five Ways to Prevent Diabetes
Ailments don’t just happen overnight, they happen over time.
That’s why today’s post is about Diabetes and how to minimize your risk of getting it.
Diabetes currently affects 25.8 million people of all ages in the United States (8 percent of the U.S. population). It is especially debilitating because it forces a radical alteration of lifestyles and often includes manual injections with insulin to keep stabilized.
So this post is to help you be more aware of how to minimize your risk now so you never have to experience this dis-ease.
Namasté.
Five Ways to Prevent Diabetes
1. Avoid hidden sugars by reading labels. Be especially mindful of condiments and processed foods which almost always contain sugar.
2. Moderately consume foods that turn to sugar: bread and pasta; milk & cheese; beer, wine and other alcohol; balsamic vinegar.
3. Moderately consume sweets. If you have an aggressive sweet craving, do a parasite and liver cleanse and take a probiotic to rebalance.
4. Do an annual cleanse to rid your gut of undigested food bits and parasites, and to jump-start your enzymatic action (spleen, pancreas, gall bladder and liver).
5. Eliminate coffee — it starts your day off acidic and makes your pancreas work harder to process other foods.
Tomatoes of the Angels
When you discover something refined and delicious, it’s like you’re experiencing it for the first time.
I have long had a love affair with tomatoes and tomato-ish creations. But the more I maintain a clean palate, the more I despise canned foods of any kind.
Tomatoes are especially offensive, as their high level of acidity causes a metallic taste in your mouth that — once you notice it — you can never again ignore.
That’s why when I stumbled upon these organic whole peeled tomatoes in a jar, I got giddy with anticipation.
Well joy of joys, these little delights delivered.
Not only were they mild and smooth, they devilishly retained their bright, sweet tomato flavor. Keep in mind I once had 19 tomato plants growing in my garden… To me, the idea of a tomato out of anything other than a basket is somewhat criminal. But as we are currently garden-less, growing and ‘canning’ tomatoes in jars is not an option.
After tasting these organic tomatoes my only regret was purchasing one jar instead of three. To complicate the situation further, I found them at one of those big-box clearance stores — the least likely place to discover such a treasure.
However, I did pull the information from the label so track them down if you share the same love affair for tomatoes as I. After all, their health benefits are numerous.
The company is Antica Enotria, and their website is exquisite. And as the tomatoes are grown in Italy, you can find the closest retail outlet through San Francisco import house Lettiere & Co.
Namasté.
7 Tips for Permanent Weight Loss
Rarely do I find a western doctor with whom I agree. And weight loss is one of those hot topics to which I generally steer clear. I prefer instead to maintain a clean system, focus on eating a balanced, whole-foods diet and the weight generally takes care of itself.
But in Ayurveda I love that we recognize each individual as a unique, like a snowflake. And for some of us, weight loss is a long-term game that can be riddled with trials and tribulations.
That’s why when I stumbled upon Dr. Melina Jampolis’ 7 Tips for Permanent Weight Loss this week in the Huffington Post, I had to share. Not only is Dr. Jampolis well credentialed, her 7 Tips actually are in alignment with a lot of what I recommend to my Ayurvedic clients.
Have to say though, I don’t fully condone her program (which you can read more about on her website). Suggestions like microwaving strawberries with sugar sprinkled on top, as she suggests, sends me the heebie jeebies. But, in the interest of not throwing the baby out with the bath water (a principle I live by as you may recall from an earlier post I did this year), I am reposting Dr. Melina’s 7 Tips here for those of you trying to lose weight.
Namasté.
7 Tips for Permanent Weight Loss
As an actual diet doctor, I’ve spent the past decade helping people lose weight, and I’ve learned a lot in the process. Many of my patients were successful, many regained weight, and some didn’t lose much weight at all. In the process, I learned a lot about successful long-term weight loss in the real world — not TV weight loss; not celebrity weight loss, which usually includes private chefs, trainers and nannies, but rather weight loss for real (often stressed out and overworked) people trying to lose weight while living their lives. This kind of weight loss includes monthly challenges like holidays, vacations, loss of motivation, and even changes in the weather that affect exercise. In addition, working as a part-time writer, diet and nutrition media expert, and TV host that evaluates almost every diet out there, I’ve also realized that there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to dieting — most diets will work for some people some of the time. So rather than tell you what to eat, I thought I would share what I believe are seven of the best tips for losing weight, and keeping the weight off, no matter what diet you choose to follow.
Pump up the volume of meals.
We eat approximately the same volume of food every day,[1] so including foods with lower calorie density (calories per gram) is essential unless you eat very small portions (like the French). Foods that have lower calorie densities are high in water (fruits, vegetables, soup, low-fat or fat-free dairy), high in fiber (whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables) and lower in fat. Foods that do not contain water, like dry salty snacks, crackers, and dense baked goods have a higher calorie density even if they are fat-free, and portions need to be carefully controlled. By permanently modifying meals and recipes to include more low-calorie-density ingredients, you don’t have to cut portions to lose weight and keep it off, and eating well is much more live-able.
Limit liquid calories.
Our body simply doesn’t register liquid calories like calories from solid food, so it is very easy to consume too many calories each day drinking extra-large lattes (even if they are fat-free), sugar-sweetened beverages (including sweetened tea, sports drinks, and even juice, which has naturally occurring sugar but is still loaded with calories), and alcoholic beverages. Downsize your morning latte, limit intake of sugar-sweetened beverages as much as possible, drink juice out of old-fashioned juice glasses (which used to be 6 or 8 ounces), and if you drink alcohol, avoid sugary mixers and cut calories from elsewhere in your meal if possible.
Make mindless eating work for you.
Numerous studies have looked at the relationship between a person’s eating environment and food intake. By building a better eating environment, you can mindlessly control calories for good, no matter how stressed you are at work or how much your motivation levels drop. How? Start with dishware. Eat off smaller plates, out of smaller bowls, and drink out of tall, thin glasses. In your pantry, fridge and freezer, keep more tempting foods out of sight as much as possible by putting them on higher shelves or transferring them to opaque storage containers. At the dinner table, leave serving dishes containing higher-calorie foods in the kitchen and keep lower-calorie vegetable dishes on the table within easy reach for seconds. Entertaining? Limit variety of less healthy foods (this is also important when stocking your pantry), as research shows that increased variety equals increased caloric intake.
Think outside the gym when it comes to exercise.
Yes, getting at least 30 minutes per day of cardiovascular exercise five times a week and twice-a-week sessions of strength training is critical, but you can actually burn far more calories over time by increasing lifestyle-based activity like standing while talking on the phone, getting off the train or bus a stop early and walking the rest of the way to work, or engaging in more active hobbies like bowling instead of going to the movies, or taking dance lessons instead of photography lessons. Research shows that basic things like dishwashers, cars, elevators, and washing machines cause us to burn fewer calories per day, so you have to find a way to burn these extra calories despite advances in technology. Adding in as much non-exercise activity can really add up in terms of calories burned over the long run, and is much easier to permanently incorporate into your life, no matter how motivated you are.
Ditch the all-or-nothing mentality.
I can’t tell you how many times patients come in and tell me they “took the weekend off” from their diet (or worse, a week or more if they are on vacation). I don’t expect anyone to be perfect all the time. In fact, I encourage my patients to indulge early on in their weight loss program to help them build confidence, learn to handle controlled indulgences, and bounce back from less healthful choices quickly. Don’t act as if there is a switch in your brain that determines whether you are on or off a diet — instead, make better choices most, not all, of the time, and you will be less tempted to go “off your diet,” gain back some or all of the weight you have worked so hard to lose, and perhaps even stay “off your diet” for good.
Think ahead.
I personally don’t do well at planning out my meals for the week, but many of my patients are much more successful when they do. I tend to eat, and buy, many of the same things each week, so less of a plan is required. I do insist that patients always have somewhat of plan for eating away from home — whether it is making sure you have three or four restaurants around the office that have healthful choices, looking at the restaurant menu ahead of time if you are eating out (especially at ethnic restaurants) to figure out better choices, or deciding ahead of time what you are going to indulge in at a party or dinner out (wine, bread, dessert, or pasta). By mentally committing ahead of time, you limit the mindless eating and drinking that often occur at social eating occasions. If you are attending a party or dinner, offer to bring a healthful dish so you have a safe option to fill up on, or eat a little snack before heading out the door (lean protein and vegetables work best to prevent overeating — and include a little healthy fat if you plan on drinking, as fat delays the absorption of alcohol).
Always have a plan B for eating and exercise.
This is essential, especially for the majority of Americans who are busy juggling work, family, and home and don’t always have time to get to the gym, prepare the best food, or find the healthiest restaurant. If you can’t make it to the 7 a.m. spin class, don’t skip your workout altogether — try to squeeze in even a 10-minute walk at lunch or after work, or do the first 20 minutes of an exercise DVD at home or 10 minutes of push-ups and sit-ups if you don’t have time for more. Consistent, smaller changes really do add up over time. And always stock your freezer with a few healthful frozen meal options, including entrees and frozen vegetables, for those nights when you don’t have time to cook and are tempted to order pizza or Chinese food. Finally, always try to keep an emergency healthful snack pack on hand to take the edge off hunger and give you time to make the best eating choice possible if you haven’t eaten for hours. Smart and easy snacks include fresh fruit, portion-controlled bags of nuts, and lower-sugar, higher-fiber protein or energy bars.
In addition to the seven tips above, try to eat fewer foods out of a box (highly processed foods, especially snack foods, often encourage overconsumption), weigh yourself regularly (but not so often that you drive yourself crazy or get depressed chasing the number on the scale), and focus on both quality and quantity when it comes to what you eat. Nutrient-dense foods like whole grains, beans, fruits and vegetables (especially when they are in season), lean protein, low-fat or fat-free dairy, and healthy fats (nuts, seeds, avocado, and olive oil) should be the foundation of any diet plan.
Dr. Melina Jampolis, M.D. is a board-certified physician nutrition specialist specializing in weight loss and disease prevention and the author of The Calendar Diet: A Month-by-Month Guide to Losing Weight While Living Your Life.
For more by Dr. Melina Jampolis, click here.
For more on weight loss, click here.
References:
[1] Wansink, Brian. Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think. New York: Bantam Dell, 2006.
How to Never Get Cancer (And Get Rid of it if You Already Have it)
I received this email from a client who sent it to me saying “I know this is like asking Jesus to read the new testament, but thought you might like to see this.”
While the sentiment cracked me up, clearly I cannot take credit for ‘inventing’ the information. Although I’ve been preaching it for years, I started learning from my teachers almost 20 years ago.
Well now the rest of the world is finally catching on. Below is a copy of the email, which is recommendations taken directly from the Johns Hopkins Newsletter on how to avoid/treat cancer.
This is significant because for years western medicine has by default recommended chemo and radiation. And while some people have benefited from these treatments, we have at the same time build huge multi-billion dollar treatment centers that are making lots of money treating cancer patients in this manner. To have an institution like Johns Hopkins now acknowledge that a lot of our behavior can be contributing to the cause of cancer is huge.
I’ve added a few things in red, but other than that the words are unchanged. Pass it to those you love.
Namasté.
A
FTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY
TO ELIMINATE CANCER (‘TRY’, BEING THE KEY WORD), JOHNS HOPKINS IS
FINALLY STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY .
Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins:
1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer
cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have
multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients
that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after
treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the
cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable
size.
2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a
person’s lifetime.
3. When the person’s immune system is strong the cancer
cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and
forming tumors.
4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has
nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic,
but also to environmental, food and lifestyle factors. (Depression can also be a sign of nutritional deficiency.)
5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing
diet to eat more adequately and healthy, 4-5 times/day
and by including supplements will strengthen the immune system.
6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing
cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells
in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can
cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.
7. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars
and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.
8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often
reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of
chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor
destruction.
9. When the body has too much toxic burden from
chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either
compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb
to various kinds of infections and complications.
10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to
mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy.
Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other
sites.
11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer
cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.
CANCER CELLS FEED ON:
a. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc are made
with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute
would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small
amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in
color Better alternative is Bragg’s aminos or sea salt.
b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the
gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting
off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk cancer
cells are being starved. (I recommend almond milk, see below for my recipe.)
c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based
diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little other meat,
like chicken. Meat also contains livestock
antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all
harmful, especially to people with cancer.
d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole
grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into
an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked
food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live
enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to
cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance
growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building
healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most
vegetables including be an sprouts) and eat some raw
vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at
temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C)..
e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high
caffeine Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer
fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or
filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap
water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it. (Hot water and lemon first thing in the morning is the best way to make the body alkaline.)
f. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of
digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the
intestines becomes putrefied and leads to more toxic
buildup. (Adding digestive enzymes into your routine will help you digest meat more efficiently.)
g. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By
refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes
to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the
body’s killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.
h. Some supplements build up the immune system
(IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals,
EFAs etc.) to enable the bodies own killer cells to destroy
cancer cells.. Other supplements like vitamin E are known
to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body’s
normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or
unneeded cells.
i. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit.
A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior
be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness put
the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to
have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy
life. (We must start by forgiving ourselves on a daily basis if we are ever to be free.)
j. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated
environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to
get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen
therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer
cells.
k. No plastic containers in micro. (I go one step further and say no microwaves. Ever.)
l. No water bottles in freezer. (I say no plastic water bottles at all, only glass or stainless.)
m. No plastic wrap in microwave. (See k above.)
Johns Hopkins recently sent this out in its newsletters. This
information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as
well. Dioxin chemicals cause cancer, especially breast cancer. Dioxins
are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don’t freeze your
plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the
plastic. Recently, Dr Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at
Castle Hospital , was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He
talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should
not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers. This
especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said the
combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the
food and ultimately into the cells of the body. (THIS INCLUDES PUTTING PLASTIC IN YOUR DISHWASHER, and using plastic to store salad dressing which contains fats in the form of oil. Do yourself a favor and throw out ALL your plastic and switch to glass.)
Instead, he recommends
using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for
heating food. You get the same results, only without the dioxin. So such
things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed
from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn’t bad but you
don’t know what is in the paper. It’s just safer to use tempered glass,
Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food
restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin
problem is one of the reasons.
Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as
dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the
food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt
out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food. Cover food with a paper
towel instead.
This is an article that should be sent to anyone important in your life.
LORI’S ALMOND MILK RECIPE
Homemade YUMMY Almond Milk
This recipe is for a creamy batch, makes little over a half a gallon.
1/3 cup raw, organic almond butter (about $15/jar at your local health food store, yields about 4 gallons total per jar)
5 organic dates, pitted (about $9 for a bag of 25)
1 can Thai Kitchen Organic coconut milk (minimize your use of canned products as studies are showing evidence of BPA in canned goods)
3 quarts of clean water
Place all ingredients in a Vita-mix or a high-speed blender. Store in the fridge in a glass jar. Good luck keeping it in the house, it will be gone before you know it!!
Pan-Tastic!
After much deliberating, (one year, 11 months and six days), I finally pulled the trigger on my new, modern healthy non-stick cookware. And I couldn’t be happier about my choice.
The winner? Chantal Copper Fusion! And, unfortunately, I am not paid to tell you this. Which is too bad, because the price tag on these little gems is hefty. However, when you cook three meals a day as I sometimes do (part of the deal when your husband works at home), pots and pans are an important part of your tool kit.
Because this is such a big purchase, I took my time researching all the options. The reason I chose Chantal is:
– Ceramic glaze means they are non-stick without the yucky silicon coating that always ends up scratching off. Even my expensive Williams Sonoma non-stick pans eventually give way to scratching. Chantal allows you to use any cooking tool on its surface without concern for scratch or damage (which means they are husband friendly : ).
– At the core, Chantal Copper Fusion is, well, copper. Not aluminum, which is concern for health risks especially if your family has a history of Alzheimer’s. Plus copper heats evenly which means your food cooks across the whole pan at the same rate.
– Clean-up is easy as long as you remember it’s better to cook slow and low. Cook time will be faster because of the copper core.
– The split handle means you don’t burn your hand when grasping the pan on the stove. It stays cool while cooking (how civilized). It also features a handy little thumb rest on top of the handle, as if someone actually thoroughly thought out its use while designing it (*sigh*).
The only potential downside is that the pans are on the heavier side so be prepared (I view it as a way to work my triceps while in the kitchen). But I swear our food tastes cleaner, better. And of course it’s so much healthier for my family.
I started with a large and small sauce pan (they come with lids), and a 10″ skillet (i had a glass lid from an old Calphalon pan that fits just fine). Those three pieces are a great start. Price tag: I paid $500 for the three just before Christmas. The nine-piece set now goes for about $699 on Amazon, I had free shipping because we have Amazon Prime so be sure to check shipping first since the weight of these pans may kick up the shipping cost.
Enjoy!
Namasté.
Back To School: Feeding Your Kids Healthy Foods on the Go
It’s that time of year again: back to school!
Watch as Lori Martin Gregory shows you how to feed your kids healthy foods in this edition of “Healthy Living:”
You Want Grandchildren? Then Listen Up
If you have children, and you want to see your grandchildren someday, then this post is for you.
Why?
Because if you don’t take seriously the importance of avoiding hormones, steroids and antibiotics in your food then you may be leveraging yours and your children’s futures.
More and more we are hearing stories about little girls entering puberty in grade school. Grade school. As in, second grade. And boys are also at risk because sperm counts are declining rapidly. Unlike girls, this can go undetected until he attempts to start a family. Sometimes, we see the effects of steroids and hormones when little boys start to get ‘man boobs.’ This is a direct result of consuming foods laced with hormones and steroids and should be viewed as such.
Whatever is in the food you eat goes into you. If a chicken was treated with antibiotics because it is produced in overcrowded facilities that are prone to infection, then you will ingest traces of these antibiotics when you eat the food. If a cow was treated with steroids to increase its yield at slaughter, then you will ingest traces of these steroids. Multiply this by the number of times you eat, and at very early ages children will start to be affected by these additives.
One of the reasons I love Trader Joe’s grocery store (besides their reasonable prices for organic foods), is that recently I had a conversation with the dairy manager. We talked at length about the importance of consuming dairy products that are processed from zero hormone-added livestock. He was very aware of the chronic onset of early puberty in this country and reiterated to me how senior management at Trader Joe’s is also aware and is dedicated to only providing hormone-free dairy products to its customers. I love this! Because we can’t all always shop at Whole Foods.
Trouble is, we all can’t shop at Trader Joe’s either, as it is not nationwide. That means there are folks in middle America who are challenged by sourcing food that is hormone, steroid and antibiotic free. Some of us are actually consuming government-issued dairy products that contain lots of hormonal additives, not to mention towns and cities across our nation that only offer hormone-laced dairy products.
That’s another reason we are seeing such an increase in antibiotic-resistant infections: if you consume meat from an animal that has been injected or fed antibiotics, you will also ingest the residue of these antibiotics and they will slowly chip away at your immune system.
So what’s the best choice?
Well, even if you live in rural areas, here are ways you can avoid meat and dairy products that have hormone/antibiotic/steroid additives:
1. Seek out local farmers. You can do this by visiting farmer’s markets that offer locally grown foods, many of which are organic and/or hormone free. Remember: organic doesn’t mean hormone free, although they do tend to go hand in hand. If you don’t have a local farmer’s market, then look into starting one. More and more our communities are getting back to basics, and if you search you may just be surprised to find out who’s cultivating healthy food alternatives right in your own back yard!
2. Shop online. Nowadays, for not much more than a few hundred bucks, you can get a freezer for your garage that will allow you to store food and produce you can buy in bulk off the internet. Wild Alaskan salmon is a great example of this — you can get fresh, flash-frozen salmon from several suppliers online at a much cheaper price than some of the high-end grocery stores. Farmed salmon is notorious for containing high levels of antibiotics, since farmed fish are more prone to infection. Most holistic practitioners will recommend you NOT consume more than one serving of farmed salmon a month.
3. Switch to Grass-fed, organic beef. Grass-fed meat has tremendous benefits for the body, namely that it actually contributes to the healthy cultivation of good bacteria in the gut!! We CANNOT overemphasize the importance of a healthy gut loaded with beneficial bacteria. Grain-fed beef will actually cultivate e-coli and other destructive bacteria that will weaken the immune system. Remember: Cows are omnivores, which means they are meant to eat one thing and one thing only: grass. Loading them up with grain is cheaper. But that means you’re getting a product that will do you more harm than good.
Recently, I had a client that would experience blood in his stool every time he ate beef. My suggestion of course was not to eat beef. But being a carnivore, and in excellent health otherwise, this was difficult for him to do. As soon as he switched to grass-fed beef, the blood in the stool disappeared.
4. Start using healthy cultured foods in your home that build immunity not tear it down. My dear sister in health, Jenny, has this MOST amazing website, http://www.nourishedkitchen.com. Not only is she a resource for places like Cultures for Health, but she will also teach you in the tradition of Weston Price how to create your own delicious and healthy food. She also has the YUMMIEST recipes on her site, as well as resources for all of the above. I’ve been making piima cream for years, it is a DELICIOUS and HEALTHY treat — you can put a dollop of it in soups and stews, on desserts and in drinks. I also just started making labneh — yogurt cheese — serve some of that on these yummy Raincoast Crisps and you’ll just be blown away at how nourishing and delicious it all is.
It’s not as hard as you think, eliminating hormones, steroids and antibiotics from your food source. All it takes is a little wising up: don’t sit back and say, ‘Oh, the government would never let us buy something in our food that was unhealthy.’ This is a victim mentality that will get you in trouble in lots of areas of your life. Take responsibility and ownership for you and your family. And don’t be the mom who has to have the puberty talk with a little girl who’s 8. Or the mom who has to console her son when he and his wife can’t buy a house because they have to spend their down payment for fertility treatments.
Remember, when a little girl matures too early it also inhibits bone growth and other development.
It’s not too late, just make the changes now.
Namasté.
THE MOM STREET JOURNAL 
