How to stay clean in a toxic world

 

SUBJECT: Are you surviving or thriving in today’s toxic world?

Environmental toxins can be found in what you eat, drink, breathe, feel and think. You may not be aware of toxins, but if you want to be healthy, being educated on the latest in toxins is a must! Chronic conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity, may be associated with environmental toxins in your body.

The pearls of wisdom from expert speakers at The Detox Summit are essential to your health. Join us online for free from August 4-11.

This Detox Summit will provide you with the information you need to:

• Learn about environmental toxins in food, air and water
• Understand internally-generated toxins, like thoughts, emotions and behaviors
• Recognize toxins of all types and eliminate them
• Focus on breakthrough solutions to gain more energy and vitality

Navigate your way through today’s toxic terrain when you register for the free, online Detox Summit today:

Link to The Detox Summit

 
“Detox” is a multi-faceted term that means many things to people, from drug and alcohol detoxification to nutritional detoxification, or cleanses using food, smoothies and juices. Deanna Minich, PhD, has selected 30 experts in various areas of medicine, nutrition and personal growth to offer a well-rounded, credible approach to the issues of environmental toxins and holistic health.

Here are a few of the incredible presenters:

Jeffrey Bland, PhD, Father of Functional Medicine

The Science of Nutritional Detoxification

Mark Hyman, MD, Functional Medicine Expert

Toxins and Chronic Disease: Why Detox is a Necessity for Good Health

Jeffrey Smith, Leading Spokesperson on GMOs

Genetically Modified Foods as Toxins in Everyday Eating

David Wolfe, Superfoods Guru

Foods to Enhance Vitality and Detox

Rainbeau Mars, Fitness Model and Actress

A Full Spectrum, Superstar Approach to Everyday Detox

With 30 presenters sharing their wealth of knowledge, this invaluable (and FREE) resource is intended for people everywhere!

Better yet, if you register today you’ll have access to the following FREE eBooks as soon as you register!

• Food & Spirit Nourish Your Whole Self™ Report, by Deanna Minich, PhD

• Detox Your Medicine Cabinet: 26 Herbs and Supplements that Treat Common Symptoms, by Aviva Romm, MD

• Top 7 Therapeutic Foods, by Kelly Brogan, MD

• 10 Tips for Helping Your Loved One with Autism, by Martha Herbert, MD, PhD

• Benefits of Vitamin D, by Soram Khalsa, MD

Come listen to The Detox Summit ONLINE for FREE from August 4-11, and learn to survive your toxic world!

 
I’ll see you at the Summit!

 The Detox Summit

Free Online Event: The Thyroid Summit

The Thyroid Summit is going to be more educational and more informative than any health event in the past decade. It’s fun, it’s life-changing and better yet, it’s ONLINE and FREE from June 2-9, 2014.

America’s Pharmacist Suzy Cohen and Dr. David Brownstein created The Thyroid Summit because they both had personal experiences with undiagnosed thyroid illness. The frustration of chronic illness and the lack of proper testing and treatment leaves people sick and tired for many years. They want to stop the madness and help people, so they’re on this mission to spread the word of good health!

Register for FREE now at the following link:

<www.thethyroidsummit.com>

WHY ATTEND?

The Thyroid Summit brings together more than 30 of the world’s leading authorities on thyroid wellness. You don’t have to fly anywhere. You don’t have to wait in long lines. You don’t have to watch from the back of a room. You don’t have to spend another dime to hear what the experts have to say. It’s all free!

• Why conventional medicine has failed most thyroid patients
• What are the best lab tests to order
• Which blood test you don’t need
• Why you’re always the coldest one in the room
• What are the best ranges for certain blood tests (because your lab “normals” are not ideal)

It doesn’t stop there! You’ll get the most up-to-date information about:

• Which natural remedies work for Graves’ disease, Hashimoto’s, hypothyroidism, and cancer
• The connection between thyroid hormones and pregnancy, PMS and post-partum depression
• How to finally lose those last few pounds or more!
• What supplements can make your hair and nails grow faster
• How to relieve anxiety, depression and other emotional problems related to low thyroid
• And much more!

Sounds amazing, right?

Here are a few of the incredible presenters:

David Brownstein, MD
Holistic Options for Thyroid Disease and Cancer

Suzy Cohen, RPh
Thyroid Healthy: Lose Weight, Look Beautiful and Live the Life You Imagine

Jacob Teitelbaum, MD
Shine Program: 5 Simple Steps to Overcome Fatigue and Thyroid Disorders

Kent Holtorf, MD
Don’t Fall Through the Cracks: Safely and Effectively Treat Your Thyroid Condition

Hyla Cass, MD
A Holistic Psychiatrist’s Approach to Thyroid Disorders

Jean Dodds, DVM
Our Pets: Could Your Dog or Cat Have Thyroid Disease?

Greg Emerson, MD
Stress, Anxiety, Anger and the Relationship to Thyroid Hormone

Jonathan Wright, MD
How to Optimize Thyroid Function

Ben Lynch, ND
Folic Acid, Methylation and the Connection to Low Thyroid

Aristo Vojdani, PhD, MSc, MT
The Most Important Lab Tests You Should Take and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

With over 30 additional presenters sharing their wealth of knowledge. This invaluable (and FREE) resource is intended for men and women everywhere!

Better yet, if you register today, you’ll have access to the following FREE GIFT as soon as you register!
Mike Adams, Health Ranger from NaturalNews.com, is bold enough to tell the world the truth about “Everyday Pollutants that Poison Your Thyroid,” and what you can do to protect yourself.

• The impact of radiation from Fukushima on your thyroid
• Strange fibers and fragments in your food that make you sick
• The dangers of vaccinating your child and the flu vaccine
• How fluoride is hidden in your medicine, food, water and thyroid gland

Come listen to The Thyroid Summit ONLINE for FREE and be inspired from June 2-9, 2014

Register for FREE at the following link today:

<www.thethyroidsummit.com>

I’ll see you at the Summit!

Green and low GI vegetable cleanse

Many of you are doing a cleanse as the start of your Anti – Candida therapy plan. With my clients I know eating such a vegetable rich diet is often a new thing. So what does it look like?

I decided to share a few pictures of the meals that are perfect for this, over the next week or so.

Here is an example of a lunch. This is a green leafy salad, with rocket (arugula/rucola), kale and mixed leaves of lettuce. There are a few carrot shavings and cucumber slices mixed in. It is topped with asparagus, pan fried in a little coconut oil and has grilled broccoli on the side. The pretty red jewels are diced red peppers and it is topped with thinly sliced celery for crunch and borage flowers for beauty. Fresh coconut slithers decorate the top and it is dressed in a delicious mix of olive oil, fresh lemon juice and a touch of crushed garlic and chilli. You could top it with a soft boiled egg or half an avocado.

Now this is what I want you to have for lunch – delicious!!

My 2014 Intentions – and the power of the fork!

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• I managed to do many kilometers of glorious beach walking in December and thought long and hard about the new year around the corner. 2014 is going to be the year of supreme commitment to health for me, so here are my intentions to support this.

  Perhaps they will inspire you to new heights for your own health.

  • To sit at every mealtime and practise mindful eating
  • To only drink clean, filtered water – and at least 2 

  liters per day.

• To eat organic, pesticide-free, non GMO fruits and vegetables. I shall look hard at the dirty dozen and clean 15 (http://food.yourway.net/the-2013-dirty-dozen-clean-fifteen-printable-cheat-sheet/) so I reduce all toxins in my diet.
• To eat local and seasonal – I have been inspired to cut emissions and make a difference. They say your most powerful tool is your fork and what you choose to put on it – so here goes!
• To do my gratitudes daily before anything else
• I love walking, swimming, pilates, yoga and gym – these will be done as part of my early morning routine
• To consciously do something kind and nurturing for myself, every day
• To be aware of breathing deeply and not hold my breath with apprehension when I am waiting for something
• To learn how to meditate and incorporate it into my daily practise – Ahh such bliss. Now I will place this list on my phone and keep on track

What foods promote a more alkali body?

Are you feeling bloated, over full and windy? It could be that your everyday food choices are highly acid forming and contributing to these feelings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you follow an alkalizing diet, many of these symptoms will disappear quite quickly. To begin, start to include one more alkaline food at every mealtime, so that the overall meal is more alkaline. 

Alkaline foods:

Vegetables-

Alfalfa sprouts, Artichokes, Asparagus, Green beans, Bamboo shoots, Beetroot (can include the leaves), Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrot, Cauliflower, Celery, Coconut (fresh coconut water and flesh), Corn, Cucumber, Garlic, Horseradish, Kale, Kelp, Leek, Lettuce – all types, Mushroom, Okra, Onion, Fresh peas, Radish, Spinach, Squash, Turnip, all vegetable juices, Watercress, Wheatgrass.

Note: All vegetables, especially raw vegetables balance the acidity and alkali levels in the blood.

Fats, oils and essential fats

Almonds, Coconut oil, Olive oil, Sesame seeds,

Fruits

Apples, Apricots, avocado, firm bananas, berry (all), cherry, date, fig, grapefruit, grape, guava, kiwi fruit, lemon, lime, mango, melon, nectarine, olives, orange, papaya, peach, pear, pineapple, plum, papaya, pineapples, plums, raisin, rhubarb, sultana, raw tomato, Daikon radish, umeboshi plum.

Starchy grains and vegetables

Amaranth, Barley, millet, lima beans, soya beans (edamame, fresh or dried), soya lecithin

Drinks and condiments

Almond milk, coconut water (fresh), goat’s milk raw, lemon water, soya milk, distilled water, apple cider vinegar, cayenne pepper, chilli pepper, fennel, ground cumin, all fresh herbs, ginger, raw honey, lemongrass, lime leaves, mustard seeds and paste, sea salt, sea vegetables (including chlorella, kelp, spirulina, wakame) tamari sauce, turmeric.

Agar agar, tempeh, tofu.

These lists are not 100% complete, but are the main foods. Alkali foods also have various degrees of alkalising power, and I will do something on that later.

NB: Check the pH of your urine or saliva daily using litmus paper. The ideal pH range for the human body is between 6.0 and 6.8. For the body, values below 6.3 are considered on the acidic side, while those above 6.8 are on the alkali side.

Remember to do the test before eating – or at least one hour after eating!

I wanted to share this and hope you find the list useful. I have printed mine and have it in my purse so that when I go shopping, I buy these alkali promoting foods in the main!

• References:
• Honestly Healthy, Eat with your body in mind, the alkaline way -by Natasha Corrett and Vicki Edgson
• Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Phyllis A. Balch, CNC

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” Mary Oliver

I came across this quote this week and it really made me sit back and think –

• what is the state of my bucket list?
• What travels do I still want to do? and with whom?
• What do I still want to achieve in my work and am I on track?
• How well have I been looking after my dreams and visions for my life?
• Am I looking after me to the very best of my ability?

I know the person we have the most power over in our lifetime, is surprisingly, our future self!

Reflect for a moment – be still and think about your future self and what you want that person to be, in all dimensions.

The picture is of the wildebeest crossing the Mara River during the migrations in Kenya and Tanzania. I have seen it before, but want to share it with my children, who like me, have a passion for those precious and increasingly rare wild places, where en masse- the animals roam free. We stayed at the main Governors Camp last time, (www.governorscamp.com) and just loved it.

Mashatu in Botswana

What do you need for rest and relaxation? It’s guaranteed to be different for everyone and also changes depending on your mood or stage of life. I love being in the African bush in general, and at Mashatu in Botswana in particular. This raw piece of heaven is far away from the maddening crowds and the only sounds you hear are those of birds or animals.

Baby elephants giving chase in unusually green Mashatu

 

The hyenas eerie calls, elephants trumpeting, lions blood-chilling roars, if you are lucky and the many distinctive bird calls. This is a place that you have to be present and in the now. There is no day dreaming or thinking of work here as it is wild and has many dangers. If you do not generally meditate, find a place that forces you into the NOW. The benefits of having to be focused on everything around you is that worry in other areas of your life just melt away. There is infrequent cell phone network coverage and no WIFI here. So there you are, in the moment, with those sharing your landrover and your campfire and your dinner. Conversations enjoyed here are amongst my favourite and a few glorious days of this and you are ready to return to it all with your batteries charged and your mind and body rested and rejuvenated.

I wanted to share these beautiful pictures of Mashatu – so have a look  http://howieswildlifeimages.wordpress.com/  Mashatu Vistas

And, find that place that rejuvenates you and make a plan to get there with your friends and family…. regularly as possible.

Benefits of juicing

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Boqueria Market in Barcelona
Traveling Spain, one of the real joys is visiting the fresh fruit and vegetable markets. They are an inspiration and a visual blast. The riotously colourful piles of deliciousness make your mouth water and all I wanted was to try a different juice every morning.
Let me share some of the wonderful benefits of juicing with you.
Freshly presssed juices are full of easily absorbable vitamins, minerals, enzymes and amino acids and these give your energy a lift and put a smile on your face.
They nourish your cells and feed your skin, hair, bones, teeth and digestive system. But don’t let me run on – try a simple green juice and feel the benefits for yourself.
Basic green juice: One green apple, 1 stick celery and leaves, handful of dark leafy greens (spinach, watercress, kale) half an english cucumber, small piece (less than half a teaspoon size) of fresh ginger all juiced together. Serve with fresh mint and a few ice cubes. Delicious!!
Leafy greens can also be added to any juice and you hardly taste them. It does take a while to get used to the idea and the eye appeal of a green juice is not the same as a pink or orange one. But persevere and prepare to be delighted with a happy digestive tract and radiant, healthy skin.
As always remember vegetables and fruit for juicing should be fresh, clean and preferably ORGANIC.

Recommended reads: I just loved this cheeky, fresh look at juicing – http://www.theholykale.com/2013/01/is-green-juice-the-new-coffee/

Ultrawellness

Dr Mark Hyman calls it Ultrawellness, (http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/04/28/an-introduction-to-ultrawellness/) and it is all about a new and wonderful trend in medicine that is determined to get to grips with the real factors involved in chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes, heart disease and arthritis. Through early detection the trajectory to chronic disease is modified, often with enormous all round benefits. As Patrick Holford says in his book, “The 10 secrets of Health Ageing” ‘ The best way to live a long and happy life is to avoid preventable disease’ and looking after your joints and inflammation, metabolism, your personal sugar/ insulin story and ensuring correct nutrition, exercise, supplementation and stress management- you are on the best path you can be on. There is a secret though. You have to choose this and commit to doing all you can to be as healthy as you can be. When you find out WHY you want to be healthy, what it means in your life now and in the future, you’ll have the key to a better you.

To locate a practitioner of functional medicine in your area see the “Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner” link at the Institute of Functional Medicine’s website

Contact me at http://www.healthletsdoit.com if you want to find out more about having a Health Coach

Tips for weight loss

I will lose weight this year! – Is this a New Year’s Resolution you have made for the past few years? How did it work out for you? Were you successful?

Finding your motivation – your why being slimmer is important to you, will really help you make concrete plans to reach your goals.

My best tips are

1. Find your motivation and find support, be it a friend to exercise and compare menus with or a Health Coach to share the journey with you.

2. Drink more fresh water. Too often we drink our calories in sodas, alcohol and coffee. Adding more water ensures you are well hydrated and if you substitute water for high calorie drinks, it will reduce your daily calorie intake.

3. Get moving and increase your exercise. Vary the types of exercise you do to include strength training, flexibility enhancing exercises like Pilates and Yoga, walking, swimming and oh yes – choose exercises you enjoy.

4. Learn what low GI or low GL foods are and include them into your daily meals. There are many benefits to adding more leafy green vegetables and colourful fruits to your diet.

5. Eat breakfast – it’s not called “The meal of champions” for nothing. People who eat breakfast are more successful at keeping weight off.

6. Plan for snacks during the day so you don’t binge like crazy if you are struggling with blood glucose levels. Have a fresh apple OR a pear on the ready.

7. Sleep – so often lack of sleep comes up in discussions when talking about loosing weight. There is growing evidence that not getting enough sleep may increase your appetite.

8. Choose to eat fresh, whole foods and be aware of your portion size. We are in a supersize society where bigger is better.

9. Choose to work on your relationships – within your family, with friends and in your social and work circles.

10. Give thanks and do your gratitudes. Daily and in writing in best, but however you can manage it is best for you.

Good luck!