Green cleaning. It's something I've always had an interest in, and had to learn about while I was pregnant. The smell of just about anything made me feel queasy for the first trimester, so I decided I couldn't keep cleaning with anything that had a smell, especially anything chemical. yuck!
If you google green cleaning,
bicarb soda comes up trumps for just about everything. I
had always used gumption (thanks Mumsie, which was, as I found out,
mostly made of bicarb) for the bathroom, and have never minded having to use a bit of elbow grease to scrub things down.
Then I started looking down the list and realised you can use bicarb in the washing up water to wash dishes, you can pop it into the bath to wash grubby kiddos (and their toys), you can use it as a face scrub, you can put it into smelly shoes to deodorise them, it even helps to remove stains off clothes!
We use it as a deodorant. Simply dab a couple of your fingers in water, (or lick them), and touch them into the bicarb box and rub under your arms. No smells, even after sweating!
We use it a lot on Max's modern cloth nappies, even the pooey ones. Just like magic, after a sprinkle of bicarb, and a bit of water & scrub, no smell, no poo stain.
You can say goodbye to toothpaste, if you use bicarb paste. Just wet the brush and dip it in the bicarb, and brush away! No chemicals, no nasties, just pearly whites :)
Make jewellery sparkle by making a paste with bicarb and water and gently rub with a clean soft cloth.
We don't have carpets, but you can sprinkle it onto carpet as a stain treatment and/or deodoriser (vacuum 15 minutes after adding bicarb).
If you make a paste, bicarb acts as anti-itch for a mozzie or ant bite.
Of course it's helpful in the kitchen as a rising agent in baking too. Use 2 teaspoons of bicarb to every cup of plain flour (or we use spelt).
Ever had indigestion or heartburn? Add a teaspoon of bicarb to half a glass of water, stir and drink immediately. Bicarb is really alkaline, so it helps to decrease stomach acidity. Please only use this remedy after or between meals, as having a good amount of stomach acid is necessary to properly digest your food.
Sometimes you might want your cleaning to leave a nice aroma. There are healthy ways to add fragrance to your cleaning, it is natural, and doesn't cost the earth.
Mould? Clove bud oil, tea tree oil, eucalyptus oil (about 5 drops of each) into a spray bottle with water. Spray onto the mould directly, and then scrub with a brush or toothbrush (dipped in bicarb) after 10 minutes. Then rinse with water.
Soap scum? Bicarb, then vinegar spray, then scrub.
Alternative to rinse aid in dishwasher? A handful of bicarb in the bottom of the dishwasher during the rinse cycle, and 5-10 drops of lemon or orange essential oil. Bliss!
Don't you just love it? I keep a box of bicarb on the kitchen window sill and another in the laundry. It costs about $3 a month to keep it stocked up, and as you can see from my list of uses, it gets used multiple times per day. Winner!
A warning about the not so nice guy cleaners...
The chlorine vapour from domestic mould cleaners has been linked to a large array of respiratory issues as it causes oxidative damage to the epithelial lining of the mouth, oesophagus and lungs. See this study to find out how toxic cleaners and swimming pools can be!
Remember to put bicarb on the shopping list this week, and throw out the chemicals. You might even feel as healthy and sparkly as your newly polished jewellery :)
Wednesday 27 March 2013
Friday 22 March 2013
Mainstream Health Myths. Part Two: Low-fat Diets
This is one part of mainstream society that really gets to me. People talk about needing to lose weight, therefore, consider cutting most, if not ALL fat out of their diet. Fat makes you fat right? WRONG!
Firstly, I'd like to say I have tried the low-fat eating fad when I was in my late teens, early 20's. I was mainstream, I believed what I saw on t.v and I was certain that we would be warned of health risks if there were any.
Then, I became a Naturopath. I researched foods, and learned about what the body requires to function efficiently. Wow, was I blown out of the water to find out that eating eggs in their whole form (no egg-white omelettes for me!) and choosing organic, full-fat dairy was so much healthier than any low-fat product that had been deceivingly marketed as 'healthy'.
About dairy- Yes, it is high in calcium, children need calcium for strong teeth and bones. We've heard this time and time again. But did you know that you require fat and fat soluble vitamins to absorb calcium efficiently? The skimming of the fat from the milk, and the processing (pasturisation and homogenisation) actually make phosphorus more bioavailable, and calcium less bioavailable. Calcium and phosphorus compete for absorption, and phosphorus wins. What are you left with? Brittle bones! Not to mention, the possibility of multiple fat soluble vitamin deficiencies (Vitamin D being the most common).
Fat naturally brings about feelings of satiety (fullness). Often, milk solids (a by-product of dairy processing) are added to low-fat dairy in order for it to have a certain fake creaminess. Milk solids are a highly processed additive that many people show allergy or intolerance symptoms to. Low-fat dairy also requires synthetic vitamins to be added back into the product whilst being manufactured, as they are lost in the skimming process (it is no longer a whole food).
This is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what they don't tell you about the processing of low-fat dairy products. I actually don't understand why they would take something so naturally beneficial and process it so much, it barely resembles the original food (nutritionally).
Saturated fats are necessary in your diet. There you go, I said it. If coupled with an antioxidant rich diet and exercise, they probably won't cause heart disease.
Saturated fats:
Avocado, Nuts and Seeds, Fish and Coconut, to name a few, are high in essential fatty acids, Omega 3,6 &9, along with antioxidants, fibre and many vitamins and minerals. They are considered health promoting, and assist your body to combat inflammation, digestive upset such as constipation, dry skin or hair & brittle nails. Fats are essential for proper nerve activity, vitamin absorption and immune system function.
If you are on a low-fat diet, these health promoting foods are crossed off the list (except maybe fish). I highly recommend you include these in your daily eating plan. They not only taste great, but they are easy to cook, and are so good for you!
In regards to portion sizes, each and every person is different, however, you could aim for:
Half an avocado a day
1-2 handfuls of soaked nuts per day (Soaking makes them easier to digest)
Deep sea oily fish (mackerel, cod, sardines, halibut) 3-4 times per week (150gm per person)
A teaspoon of coconut oil with each main meal is linked to increased satiety, increased liver metabolism of fats, better energy levels (the liver uses the medium chained fatty acids in coconut oil as a fuel source), and normalised cholesterol levels. Give it a try, it is delish!
No one needs to be on a strict low-fat (or no fat) diet to lose weight. Fats are a natural and necessary part of a healthy eating plan. You might be interested in some of the information written by Weston A Price. Read more HERE.
I read a great little quote one day "Whenever you see the words 'low fat', think 'chemical shit storm". Take a look at the ingredients on the packet. You'll know what I mean.
Firstly, I'd like to say I have tried the low-fat eating fad when I was in my late teens, early 20's. I was mainstream, I believed what I saw on t.v and I was certain that we would be warned of health risks if there were any.
Then, I became a Naturopath. I researched foods, and learned about what the body requires to function efficiently. Wow, was I blown out of the water to find out that eating eggs in their whole form (no egg-white omelettes for me!) and choosing organic, full-fat dairy was so much healthier than any low-fat product that had been deceivingly marketed as 'healthy'.
About dairy- Yes, it is high in calcium, children need calcium for strong teeth and bones. We've heard this time and time again. But did you know that you require fat and fat soluble vitamins to absorb calcium efficiently? The skimming of the fat from the milk, and the processing (pasturisation and homogenisation) actually make phosphorus more bioavailable, and calcium less bioavailable. Calcium and phosphorus compete for absorption, and phosphorus wins. What are you left with? Brittle bones! Not to mention, the possibility of multiple fat soluble vitamin deficiencies (Vitamin D being the most common).
Fat naturally brings about feelings of satiety (fullness). Often, milk solids (a by-product of dairy processing) are added to low-fat dairy in order for it to have a certain fake creaminess. Milk solids are a highly processed additive that many people show allergy or intolerance symptoms to. Low-fat dairy also requires synthetic vitamins to be added back into the product whilst being manufactured, as they are lost in the skimming process (it is no longer a whole food).
This is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what they don't tell you about the processing of low-fat dairy products. I actually don't understand why they would take something so naturally beneficial and process it so much, it barely resembles the original food (nutritionally).
Saturated fats are necessary in your diet. There you go, I said it. If coupled with an antioxidant rich diet and exercise, they probably won't cause heart disease.
Saturated fats:
- Form the necessary building blocks for cholesterol to make healthy hormones (as many of you know, hormones rule our lives!),
- Keep cells fluid-like so nutrients and wastes can pass easily in and out of the cell. If you lack fat in your diet, you might notice how fatigued you feel. This could be from cells in your body being over burdened with toxins, as they are not freely being excreted.
- Assist in padding around the organs as protection, and also serve as a storage place for excess wastes and hormones. One of the main reasons why it is important to take liver detox and weight loss slowly. (When the fat cells are released, so are the excess toxins, which can cause headaches, sluggishness and fatigue).
Avocado, Nuts and Seeds, Fish and Coconut, to name a few, are high in essential fatty acids, Omega 3,6 &9, along with antioxidants, fibre and many vitamins and minerals. They are considered health promoting, and assist your body to combat inflammation, digestive upset such as constipation, dry skin or hair & brittle nails. Fats are essential for proper nerve activity, vitamin absorption and immune system function.
If you are on a low-fat diet, these health promoting foods are crossed off the list (except maybe fish). I highly recommend you include these in your daily eating plan. They not only taste great, but they are easy to cook, and are so good for you!
In regards to portion sizes, each and every person is different, however, you could aim for:
Half an avocado a day
1-2 handfuls of soaked nuts per day (Soaking makes them easier to digest)
Deep sea oily fish (mackerel, cod, sardines, halibut) 3-4 times per week (150gm per person)
A teaspoon of coconut oil with each main meal is linked to increased satiety, increased liver metabolism of fats, better energy levels (the liver uses the medium chained fatty acids in coconut oil as a fuel source), and normalised cholesterol levels. Give it a try, it is delish!
No one needs to be on a strict low-fat (or no fat) diet to lose weight. Fats are a natural and necessary part of a healthy eating plan. You might be interested in some of the information written by Weston A Price. Read more HERE.
I read a great little quote one day "Whenever you see the words 'low fat', think 'chemical shit storm". Take a look at the ingredients on the packet. You'll know what I mean.
Wednesday 13 March 2013
Mainstream health myths. Part One: Cholesterol
I am constantly having to
stop reading articles and switch off advertisements that make claims
about health. I am not sure who began common health claims in society,
but somehow they have become what people automatically think are the
truth. I hope after reading this series of posts, at least a few
mainstream myths will be different in your eyes!
MYTH 1. CHOLESTEROL
'You must not eat any food containing cholesterol if you have high cholesterol' Heard this before?.
Let me inform you about cholesterol.
The liver naturally makes it in our bodies (about 90% of it in fact). It is a necessary building block for hormones and serves as an indicator of levels of inflammation in your body. If you have high cholesterol, your liver has been running on over drive producing lots of cholesterol to serve as a protector of your arteries.
It has been shown in autopsies of people who have died from heart disease, that their arteries were clogged with cholesterol. Not surprising. They had huge levels of inflammation in their bodies. It is not the cholesterol that caused the heart disease, it is the oxidation and degradation of the fats in their arteries, caused by lifestyle factors (smoking, excessive alcohol, trans fat intake, no exercise) and a lack of antioxidants in their diet that damaged the cholesterol and the arteries, leading to heart disease.
C-reactive Protein (CrP) is a much more accurate finding from a blood test that measures the risk of heart attack.
People claim they have no control, high cholesterol runs in their family, and take statin drugs as recommended by their Doctor. Statins are scientifically known as HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors. They bascially inhibit the enzyme necessary to produce cholesterol in the liver. Do they decrease cholesterol? Yes. Do they have side effects? YES.
Unfortunately, statins also block the production of CoQ10. One of our body's most powerful antioxidants. Ironically, low levels of CoQ10 have been linked to heart disease. All muscles in the body (including the heart) require CoQ10 for energy production. It essentially delivers oxygen to working muscles. Without CoQ10, you may feel particularly tired and achy on a physical level, and on a molecular level, your antioxidant status is decreasing over time. As I outlined above, oxidation leads to inflammation, & poor health status.
What can you do to normalise your cholesterol naturally?
Exercise.
You've probably heard of good cholesterol and bad cholesterol (HDL vs LDL). Exercise encourages your body to transport the LDL (bad) cholesterol back to the liver to form more HDL (good) cholesterol.
Eat more fibre.
Excess cholesterol tends to accumulate in the bowel and can recirculate into the body, causing an increase in total cholesterol. By eating more fibre, you can reduce cholesterol in two ways. 1) Fibre can bind the cholesterol, rendering it unavailable to recirculate; 2) Fibre regulates the bowels so you move your bowels more frequently, and eliminate the cholesterol. Try eating fibre from a variety of sources such as fresh fruits and vegetables, wholegrains, nuts and seeds. This way, you also benefit from increasing the nutrient value of your fibre filled meals.
Avoid trans fats.
These are the absolute bad guys when it comes to causing damage to your body. Trans fats are a product of unstable fats that have been heated, and/or hydrogenated to make a solid fat spreadable at room temperature or when refrigerated. There is no 'safe' daily amount of trans fats. The best thing to do is avoid them altogether!
Found in packaged biscuits, chips, pastries, margarine, unstable vegetable oil (canola, soy, sunflower, cottonseed, sesame, peanut), cakes, take-away foods.
Eat more 'good' fats.
Coconut products (oil, cream, milk, flesh) are all high in medium chained fatty acids. Your liver tends to prefer these fats and processes them quickly for energy. The liver becomes very efficient at metabolising fats (the opposite to low-fat diets) and studies on coconut oil have shown HDL (good cholesterol) to rise, total cholesterol to decrease, and LDL (bad cholesterol) to decrease. The great benefits of coconuts really do deserve their own post, so I will follow that one up later.
Avocadoes and deep sea oily fish such as cod, mackerel and sardines provide an array of healthy fats (omegas 3, 6 & 9) that the body requires several times per week.
Eat a variety of antioxidants- daily!
Rainbow coloured food, in it's whole form such as blueberries, acai, maqui, leafy greens, broccoli, spirulina, pineapple, ginger, tomatoes,strawberries, cherries, capsicum, carrots, oranges, sweet potato.
A little bit of each colour is the key. You can't overdose on natural antioxidants. They are nature's treatment to so many different ailments, and help to protect the body from oxidation (cellular ageing and degradation). Fresh is best, but if your favourite berry is out of season, you can keep some high quality supplements in the house to keep you boosted (see acai, maqui and spirulina).
There are many herbs and nutrients that are commonly prescribed by Naturopaths such as Turmeric, Globe Artichoke, Milk Thistle, Fenugreek, Gymnema, Activated Vitamin B3, Vitamin C, & high dose antioxidant supplements.
Please contact your Naturopath for correct dosage instructions, so you can gain the optimum treatment for your specific condition.
Much of the information posted here on cholesterol is from a book I read many moons ago. Click here to check it out for yourself!
MYTH 1. CHOLESTEROL
'You must not eat any food containing cholesterol if you have high cholesterol' Heard this before?.
Let me inform you about cholesterol.
The liver naturally makes it in our bodies (about 90% of it in fact). It is a necessary building block for hormones and serves as an indicator of levels of inflammation in your body. If you have high cholesterol, your liver has been running on over drive producing lots of cholesterol to serve as a protector of your arteries.
It has been shown in autopsies of people who have died from heart disease, that their arteries were clogged with cholesterol. Not surprising. They had huge levels of inflammation in their bodies. It is not the cholesterol that caused the heart disease, it is the oxidation and degradation of the fats in their arteries, caused by lifestyle factors (smoking, excessive alcohol, trans fat intake, no exercise) and a lack of antioxidants in their diet that damaged the cholesterol and the arteries, leading to heart disease.
C-reactive Protein (CrP) is a much more accurate finding from a blood test that measures the risk of heart attack.
People claim they have no control, high cholesterol runs in their family, and take statin drugs as recommended by their Doctor. Statins are scientifically known as HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors. They bascially inhibit the enzyme necessary to produce cholesterol in the liver. Do they decrease cholesterol? Yes. Do they have side effects? YES.
Unfortunately, statins also block the production of CoQ10. One of our body's most powerful antioxidants. Ironically, low levels of CoQ10 have been linked to heart disease. All muscles in the body (including the heart) require CoQ10 for energy production. It essentially delivers oxygen to working muscles. Without CoQ10, you may feel particularly tired and achy on a physical level, and on a molecular level, your antioxidant status is decreasing over time. As I outlined above, oxidation leads to inflammation, & poor health status.
What can you do to normalise your cholesterol naturally?
Exercise.
You've probably heard of good cholesterol and bad cholesterol (HDL vs LDL). Exercise encourages your body to transport the LDL (bad) cholesterol back to the liver to form more HDL (good) cholesterol.
Eat more fibre.
Excess cholesterol tends to accumulate in the bowel and can recirculate into the body, causing an increase in total cholesterol. By eating more fibre, you can reduce cholesterol in two ways. 1) Fibre can bind the cholesterol, rendering it unavailable to recirculate; 2) Fibre regulates the bowels so you move your bowels more frequently, and eliminate the cholesterol. Try eating fibre from a variety of sources such as fresh fruits and vegetables, wholegrains, nuts and seeds. This way, you also benefit from increasing the nutrient value of your fibre filled meals.
Avoid trans fats.
These are the absolute bad guys when it comes to causing damage to your body. Trans fats are a product of unstable fats that have been heated, and/or hydrogenated to make a solid fat spreadable at room temperature or when refrigerated. There is no 'safe' daily amount of trans fats. The best thing to do is avoid them altogether!
Found in packaged biscuits, chips, pastries, margarine, unstable vegetable oil (canola, soy, sunflower, cottonseed, sesame, peanut), cakes, take-away foods.
Eat more 'good' fats.
Coconut products (oil, cream, milk, flesh) are all high in medium chained fatty acids. Your liver tends to prefer these fats and processes them quickly for energy. The liver becomes very efficient at metabolising fats (the opposite to low-fat diets) and studies on coconut oil have shown HDL (good cholesterol) to rise, total cholesterol to decrease, and LDL (bad cholesterol) to decrease. The great benefits of coconuts really do deserve their own post, so I will follow that one up later.
Avocadoes and deep sea oily fish such as cod, mackerel and sardines provide an array of healthy fats (omegas 3, 6 & 9) that the body requires several times per week.
Eat a variety of antioxidants- daily!
Rainbow coloured food, in it's whole form such as blueberries, acai, maqui, leafy greens, broccoli, spirulina, pineapple, ginger, tomatoes,strawberries, cherries, capsicum, carrots, oranges, sweet potato.
A little bit of each colour is the key. You can't overdose on natural antioxidants. They are nature's treatment to so many different ailments, and help to protect the body from oxidation (cellular ageing and degradation). Fresh is best, but if your favourite berry is out of season, you can keep some high quality supplements in the house to keep you boosted (see acai, maqui and spirulina).
There are many herbs and nutrients that are commonly prescribed by Naturopaths such as Turmeric, Globe Artichoke, Milk Thistle, Fenugreek, Gymnema, Activated Vitamin B3, Vitamin C, & high dose antioxidant supplements.
Please contact your Naturopath for correct dosage instructions, so you can gain the optimum treatment for your specific condition.
Much of the information posted here on cholesterol is from a book I read many moons ago. Click here to check it out for yourself!
Tuesday 5 March 2013
HCG Diet. What's the hype about losing weight?
Weight loss is a hotly followed topic amongst the population worldwide.
Recently, I was speaking to my mum and she asked me about what I thought about the HCG diet. To be honest, I am not interested in calorie counting or encouraging people to starve themselves to be thin. I think most people look great if they are within a natural weight range for their body type and height.
When I looked into the details of the HCG diet, I was mortified to hear that people were eating 500 calories a day, weren't allowed to exercise, and took drops under their tongue of a hormone produced by the placenta during pregnancy to suppress their appetite. I'm not sure as to whether the hormone given is a synthetic 'mimic' of human chorionic hormone (HCG), or if they source it from actual placentas, but I cannot believe the lengths people are going to trying to lose weight! Apparently the HCG drops (or injections) induce the morning sickness feeling, less the nausea, so you don't feel hungry. The 500 calories is made up of mainly protein, and is very low carbohydrate.
So what does your body live off? Your fat stores, in a process called ketosis. A couple of problems could arise here. The brain requires glucose to function efficiently. Although the body can convert glucose to fat quite easily, the reverse conversion is a lot more difficult to perform. So your body might be burning fat, and you might be losing weight, but you can't remember what you did with that thing-a-me-jig. What was I saying again? Yep, you turn into an airhead, because your brain doesn't have enough fuel.
With such high rates of body dis-morphia (people who think they are fatter than they are) and eating disorders around, I spend my time encouraging people to have a better relationship with food. It is here to nourish us, make us healthy and live long, quality lives, not to make us fat. We need to bring the culture of food back to life and celebrate our love and joy for good quality, tasty meals, eaten in the company of good friends and family.
In our house, we eat local grown organic food (where possible) and cook everything at home from scratch using wholefoods. Wholefoods are those we eat as they are found in nature, with no, or very little processing (E.g. Fruits and vegetables). We eat a moderate amount of fat, complex carbohydrates, and quality sources of protein. We eat seasonally, and in touch with what our bodies need. E.g. Some days I need more protein than Matt. He feels like he's had enough meat for the week, or it might be a hot day, so we opt for a raw salad.
So rather than looking to get skinny, let's look at getting healthy.
Eat organic wholefoods that are local and in season.
Learn to cook from scratch (it takes a few trial and errors, but you'll get the hang of it)
And learn to accept & love the way you look.
Focus on what you DO like about yourself.
The better relationship you have with your food and yourself, the better relationship you'll have with life.
Recently, I was speaking to my mum and she asked me about what I thought about the HCG diet. To be honest, I am not interested in calorie counting or encouraging people to starve themselves to be thin. I think most people look great if they are within a natural weight range for their body type and height.
When I looked into the details of the HCG diet, I was mortified to hear that people were eating 500 calories a day, weren't allowed to exercise, and took drops under their tongue of a hormone produced by the placenta during pregnancy to suppress their appetite. I'm not sure as to whether the hormone given is a synthetic 'mimic' of human chorionic hormone (HCG), or if they source it from actual placentas, but I cannot believe the lengths people are going to trying to lose weight! Apparently the HCG drops (or injections) induce the morning sickness feeling, less the nausea, so you don't feel hungry. The 500 calories is made up of mainly protein, and is very low carbohydrate.
So what does your body live off? Your fat stores, in a process called ketosis. A couple of problems could arise here. The brain requires glucose to function efficiently. Although the body can convert glucose to fat quite easily, the reverse conversion is a lot more difficult to perform. So your body might be burning fat, and you might be losing weight, but you can't remember what you did with that thing-a-me-jig. What was I saying again? Yep, you turn into an airhead, because your brain doesn't have enough fuel.
With such high rates of body dis-morphia (people who think they are fatter than they are) and eating disorders around, I spend my time encouraging people to have a better relationship with food. It is here to nourish us, make us healthy and live long, quality lives, not to make us fat. We need to bring the culture of food back to life and celebrate our love and joy for good quality, tasty meals, eaten in the company of good friends and family.
In our house, we eat local grown organic food (where possible) and cook everything at home from scratch using wholefoods. Wholefoods are those we eat as they are found in nature, with no, or very little processing (E.g. Fruits and vegetables). We eat a moderate amount of fat, complex carbohydrates, and quality sources of protein. We eat seasonally, and in touch with what our bodies need. E.g. Some days I need more protein than Matt. He feels like he's had enough meat for the week, or it might be a hot day, so we opt for a raw salad.
So rather than looking to get skinny, let's look at getting healthy.
Eat organic wholefoods that are local and in season.
Learn to cook from scratch (it takes a few trial and errors, but you'll get the hang of it)
And learn to accept & love the way you look.
Focus on what you DO like about yourself.
The better relationship you have with your food and yourself, the better relationship you'll have with life.
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