The Good Stuff!

Did you read the recent New York Times article by food writer, Mark Bitman?  Long story short, the Mediterranean diet really is all it’s cracked up to be.  Sounding rather un-American, this diet is low in red meat, low in sugar and processed carbs, low in junk food, and high in just about everything else: healthy fats, lots of vegetables, fruits, legumes and less-harmful proteins such as good fish and dairy (like feta and mozzarella cheese).

Bitman spoke to Dr. Walter Willet who was one the teachers at the Institute for Integratve Nutrition which I attended.  Dr. Willet said,”We have so many types of evidence that this kind of eating work”.

He goes on to report that “Most Americans eat so poorly that even a modest change in the direction of their diet is likely to benefit.”  I totally agree.

What I love about the Mediterranean diet is that it makes sense.  It is mostly whole foods, minimally processed, fresh and simply prepared. These fresh foods are packed with phytonutrients, anti-oxidants, good fats and fiber.   Meals are easy to prepare and relatively inexpensive.

The “Dirty Dozen”

The Incredible Edible Apple

These foods should be purchased organic whenever possible.  They are the most heavily pesticide laden fresh foods in our stores!

Apples

Celery

Strawberries

Peaches

Spinach

Nectarines

Grapes

Sweet bell peppers

Potatoes

Blueberries

Lettuce

Kale

New Year, New Start

The New Year

Have you considered making a “stop doing” list instead of your annual New Years resolutions?   A “stop doing” list can help you to discipline your thoughts and actions and allocate the most precious of all resources: time.

Last year I bought my first piano and proceeded to re-learn how to play it.  The most essential piece of that was making the time to practice of course.  That meant I had to find the time and space to do just that.

There are times in our lives when we are forced to prioritize, re-evaluate and most important, to make different choices.  A “stop doing” list can provide a framework for better decision making.

What if you approach your life as a creative work of art?

A great piece of music or art is composed not just of what is in the final piece, but equally important, what is not. It is the discipline to discard what does not fit — to cut out what might have already cost days or even years of effort — that distinguishes the truly exceptional artist and marks the ideal piece of work, be it a symphony, a novel, a painting, or most important of all, a life.

Consider making that “stop doing” list.

•  Focus on the essential, not the important:
• The essentials are emotional; the important is rational. The essentials go on a to-die-for list; the important you put on the to-do list.
• What are you passionate about?  Why not “Do it”? What is stopping you?
• Are you afraid of disappointing someone?
• What keeps you from making the necessary choices to change?

This year why not make time for your self and honor your deepest dreams.  The time is NOW.

If we are to realize our intentions, what we stop doing is just as important as what we start and continue to do. Stopping = the white space. Stopping = room to run free and create from the deepest place of being without restraint or compromise. Stopping = more time for what matters most.

I know how to make things happen… Stopping, I’ve learned is the real challenge

A few tips:

• Doing less is sometimes better than doing more
• Learn to say “No”
• Cut back or “stop” a behavior that doesn’t support health
• STOP PROCRASTINATING! (my favorite)

1. 

   Eat your Fruits by themselves!

   Eat a high fiber diet.  Fiber helps prevent constipation, diverticulitis, irritable bowel syndrome and other digestive issues.  It can help you achieve or maintain a healthy weight.  Insoluble fiber, also known as roughage, is just as important.  Good sources are: vegetables, oat bran, chia or flax seed, nuts and legumes.

2. Limit foods high in fat. Eat the good fats.  Pairing high fat foods with high-fiber foods helps with digestion.   Make your fat count!  Consume good quality oils such as olive, grapeseed cold pressed flax seed oil, or coconut oil in moderation.
3. If you eat meat, make it lean, organic and infrequent.  Think of consuming animal protein as a condiment…small amounts can go a long way.
4. Eat or take probiotics and digestive enzymes.  Eat these in “whole food” form when possible.  Probiotics are found in cultured foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, or plain Greek style yogurt.  Digestive enzymes are abundant in raw fruit and vegetables.  When you eat cooked food, digestive enzymes supplements can and should be taken.  Try to eat raw foods daily.
5. Stay hydrated!  Your body depends on it.  If you are taking any medication it is even more important. As we age we become more dehydrated.  Fatigue, confusion, constipation are just a few results of dehydration.  Try to drink clean, filtered water, instead of bottled.  Plastic contains estrogenic compounds that mimic estrogen (you don’t want this!).
6. Exercise regularly.  We have all heard this million time but our bodies were meant to move.  Lack of movement contributes to aging and disease.  Find something you enjoy…and do it!
7. Eat on schedule.  Many of us are hypoglycemic and eating small meals/snacks frequently, (every 2 to 3 hours), helps to maintain blood sugar levels.  Eat until 80% full, leaving 20% for digestion.  You will have more energy and metal clarity.  Stay away from the sugar and caffeine!
8. Eat real food, not too much, mostly plants.  Avoid processed foods when possible.  This includes of course hight gructose soda’s and “fitness.”  Whole, organic, fresh food contains the nutrients your digestive system needs.
9. Decrease or eliminate bad habits.  Do your best to let go of bad habits such as smoking, excessive drinking or alcohol or caffeine.  Clean house when it comes to your attitude and your thoughts.  Gratitude and positivity can go a long way!
10. Combine foods properly. ( this is a complex subject so I have listed just a few tips)  Try to drink your liquid before you eat.   The digestive enzymes in your mouth, stomach and intestines will work better.   The typical American meal wreaks havoc on our digestive system.

• Eat protein and not starchy vegies at same meal (no starch with protein)
• Eat melons alone.  All fruit should be eaten alone, unless combined with probiotic plain yogurt.
• Eat starchy foods and sugars separately.
• Forget the desserts.  Eaten on top of a meal they require no digestion and ferment.  Bacteria turn the into alcohols, acetic acid and viniger.

Why is Digestive Health so Important?

Healthy Digestive Systems: The Second Brain

The digestive system is where vitamins, nutrients and minerals are absorbed.Factors such as stress, lack of sleep, antibiotics, illness, aging and poor diet choices can often lead to an imbalance of the bacteria in your digestive tract.  Maintaining a a healthy digestive system any time of year can be quite challenging, especially during the holiday season with typical eating patterns.  Consuming an abundance of rich and indulgent foods compromises our digestive health by flooding our bodies with large amounts of fat and sugar.  High fat holiday foods not only stay in the digestive system longer, but also cause more stomach acid to be produced, which can lead to gastric reflux and other issues.

Processed holiday foods (ie.instant mashed potatoes, canned gravy and cranberry sauce, breads, cookies etc.) maybe challenging for your digestive system: avoid these and your stomach will thank you.  It is always helpful to include cruciferous vegetables when possible.  I often notice that green vegetables are either missing or are a minor part of most holiday meals.  So think outside the “American diet” box and use fresh green beans, fresh greens, anything green and fresh! (organic if possible.)

Healthy digestion cannot exist without water.  Adequate hydration provides the digestive  system with the appropriate amount of moisture needed for proper functioning.  Sometimes our body mistakes hunger for thirst, so stay hydrated to prevent unnecessary overeating, and drink at least 8 oz. before your meals.

• Probiotics and digestive enzymes are a healthy addition to any diet any time of year.
• Raw Honey
• Apple cider vinegar
• Dry curdcottage cheese ( contains more probiotics)
• Ocean-based plants such as spirulina, chlorella, and blue-green algae, seaweed (like Kombu)
• Kefer (Sour beverage made from fermented milk, originated from Turkey)
• Kim Chi (Spicy, pungent fermented cabbage, a typical and popular Korean dish)
• Sauerkraut (Finely shredded cabbage fermented in brine, buy no sodium benzoate)
• Tempeh (Indonesian food made from fermented whole soy beans)
• Yogurt (organic, no sugars)
• Probiotic food supplements in the form of pills, powders, capsules and drinks
• Unpasteurized pickles, fro example, pickled beets, carrots or other vegetables, pickles and olives(farmers market is good source)
• Miso (A fermented soybean paste or paste made from grains like rice, barley etc.) used as a sauce, soup base or spread: can be added to soups, gravy’s etc.)

Tips to help strengthen your digestion:
• Eat some raw and some cooked foods daily.
• Eat small meals often.
• Limit cold foods and cold drinks, and try to limit liquid during your meal (dilutes digestive enzymes.)
• Limit dairy and meat.
• Avoid eating proteins and grains and/or starchy vegetables in the
same meal.
• Avoid bread and pasta.
• Eat fermented foods and drink probiotic beverages.
• Use digestive enzymes.
• Use ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric.
I use and recommend Coconut water kefir, digestive enzymes,
and Vitality Green Food!  Please visit the Products tab on my
website and click on the Body Ecology banner to order.

I drink tulsi tea every morning. Tulsi tea is an ancient herb from India.  Some of the health benefits are:

• Helping boost your respiratory system
• Supporting your healthy vision
• Delivering you antioxidant protection against free radicals
• Helping you alleviate minor discomfort and irritation
• Providing you with a calming effect and stress relief
• Helping bolster your immune system
• Aiding you in enhancing your stamina
• Helping you promote a healthy metabolism
• Boosting your digestive system health
• Helping you maintain blood sugar levels in the normal range
• Providing you with skeletal and joint support
• Aiding you in supporting normal cholesterol levels

Order Today!

Restorative Yoga

Restorative classes are usually very relaxing and are a good complement to more active practices. The teacher will arrange for the necessary props to be available to you. The lights may be dimmed and if it is chilly, you may be covered with a blanket since you will not be warming up the body the way you would be in a regular class. After you are set up in a pose with all your props, you will hold the pose for an extended period, often ten to twenty minutes. Although you are supported, you will definitely still feel the stretch. It’s a relaxing style of practice that leaves you feeling open , relaxed and refreshed.

And here they are the following morning.  Refreshed and ready to go!

visit Texasyoga.com for more information.

Don’t suffer with a UTI!

Women are more prone to urinary tract infections than men, in part because of their shorter urethras. Adult men have another factor going for them—a bacterial growth inhibitor injected directly into their urinary system by their prostate glands.

Studies show that cranberry juice can help by promoting a healthy flora.  But drinking cranberry juice loaded with fructose potentially makes the problem worse!

But there is a great discovery that has come from the cranberry juice-urinary tract connection. The active ingredient in cranberry juice responsible for its benefit to your urinary system has been identified and isolated—and that is D-mannose.  It is not a drug.  It is a naturally occurring sugar, which does not raise your blood sugar levels.

D-mannose can be derived from berries, peaches, apples, and some other plants. Pure D-mannose is  10-50 times stronger than cranberry, non-toxic and completely safe, with NO adverse effects.  Amazing!

D-mannose can help cure more than 90 percent of all UTIs within 1 to 2 days!

But how can a natural sugar combat a UTI?

More than 90 percent of all UTI’s are caused by Escherichia coli (E. coli), which is normally found in your intestinal tract. Problems only arise when this ordinary bacterium is present in high numbers in places where it shouldn’t be—like your urinary system.  Bacteria attaches to the D-mannose and leaves the body as you urinate.  It usually takes 24 to 48 hours to work.  So if you find yourself with a UTI please consider using D-mannose instead of antibiotics.  I recommend that you get it in powdered form.  It is more effective.  For those of us in the Austin area you can get at People’s Pharmacy.

Hatch green chiles…more than good taste!

Chile peppers, despite in some cases, their fiery “hotness,” are a very popular spice known for medicinal and health benefiting properties. The chile is actually a fruit pod from the plant belonging to the nightshade family, like tomatoes or eggplant.

The chile plant is native to the Central American region where it was used as a spicy ingredient in Mexican cuisines for several thousand years. It was introduced to the rest of the world by Spanish and Portuguese explorers during 16th and 17th centuries and now grown widely in many parts of the world.

They range from the mild, fleshy, Mexican bell peppers to the tiny, fiery, finger-like chile peppers, commonly grown in the Indian subcontinent. The hotness of chile is measured in “Scoville heat units” (SHU). On the Scoville scale, a sweet bell pepper scores 0, a jalapeno around 2,500-4,000 and a Mexican habañeros 200,000 to 500,000…hot, hot, hot!

Health benefits of chile peppers

• Chile peppers contain an impressive list of plant derived chemical compounds that are known to have disease preventing and health promoting properties.
•  An alkaloid compound in them, capsaicin,  gives a strong spicy pungent character. Early laboratory studies on experimental mammals suggest that capsaicin has anti-bacterial, anti-carcinogenic, analgesic and anti-diabetic properties. It also found to reduce LDL cholesterol levels in obese individuals.
• Fresh chile peppers, red or green, are a rich source of vitamin-C, 100 g. fresh chiles provide about 143.7 mcg or about 240% of RDA. Vitamin C is a potent water-soluble antioxidant. It is required for the collagen synthesis in the body. Collagen is the main structural protein in the body required for maintaining the integrity of blood vessels, skin, organs, and bones. Regular consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps body protect from scurvy; develop resistance against infectious agents (boosts immunity) and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals from the body.
• Also high in antioxidants like vitamin A, and flavonoids like beta-carotene, alpha carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin, and cryptoxanthins.
• Chiles contain good amount of minerals like potassium, manganese, iron, and magnesium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase.
• High in B-complex group of vitamins such as niacin, pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), riboflavin and thiamin (vitamin B-1).

Amazingly high in vitamins and minerals. Just 100 g provides (in % of Recommended daily allowance)

240% of vitamin-C (Ascorbic acid),
39% of vitamin B-6 (Pyridoxine),
32% of vitamin A,
13% of iron,
14% of copper,
7% of potassium,
but no cholesterol.

Bacteria in your gut

Many of us have heard the term probiotic, but what does it mean?  Probiotics are small organisms that help maintain the natural balance of organisms (micro flora) in the intestines.  The normal human digestive tract contains about 400 types of probiotic bacteria that reduce the growth of harmful bacteria and promote a healthy digestive system. The largest group of probiotic bacteria in the intestine is lactic acid bacteria, of which Lactobacillus acidophilus, found in yogurt with live cultures, is the best known. Yeast is also a probiotic substance. Probiotics are also available as supplements.

It has been suggested that probiotics be used to treat problems in the stomach and intestines. But only certain types of bacteria or yeast (called strains) have been shown to work in the digestive tract. It still needs to be proved which probiotics (alone or in combination) work to treat diseases. The strains of probiotics that have been proved to work for a specific disease are not widely available.

What are probiotics used for?

Many people use probiotics to prevent diarrhea, gas, and cramping caused by antibiotics. Antibiotics kill “good” (beneficial) bacteria along with the bacteria that cause illness. A decrease in beneficial bacteria may lead to digestive problems. Taking probiotics may help replace the lost beneficial bacteria. This can help prevent diarrhea.

A decrease in beneficial bacteria may also lead to other infections, such as vaginal yeast and urinary tract infections and symptoms such as diarrhea from intestinal illnesses.

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