I attended a webinar recently presented by Denise SanFilippo, a Gluten-Free Chef & Industry Consultant who supports the SHAPE organization. (Supporting Health as Partners in Education).  During the call someone suggested that Wheat Belly was a great book.  I mentioned that I have what I like to call a “Cliff Note” version of the book and wanted to share with my subscribers.

A local professor in town Dr. William Davis had one of his students write a review of the book.  This 2 page overview really gives the hightlights of the book and how wheat has been found to be a culprit in many of the health issues that we face as a society today.  If you haven’t already heard the details, you will be surprised to find that the wheat grown in our country is NOT the same wheat that our grandparents were fed.

The book gives loads of examples and stories of people who have come forth and said that their ailments were cured after removing wheat from their diets.  People with diabetes, MS, neurological issues, heart disease, acne, and many others.  If you need to see more facts for yourself, I suggest reading the entire book, but if you are just intrigued by learning a bit more about the buzz around this book check out this book review.  If you are seriously thinking about reducing or eliminating wheat from you diet, and are looking for some additional advice or support, feel free to reach out.  I have been focusing on reducing and eliminating wheat from my diet for the past couple of years.

When most people think about the nutrients our bodies need they immediately think fats, carbohydrates, proteins and some key vitamins or minerals. There are many other nutrients that our bodies need and they all have a specific purpose in the proper functioning of our body. We may or many not have learned some these things in science class many years ago. I fully admit, until I started down the path of learning more about nutrition, I didn’t really pay attention to all the nutrients in the foods that I ate.

We have all heard the importance of eating 5 – 7 fruits and veggies a day, eating the colors of the rainbow and to switch up and rotate some of our food choices. In reality, how many of us actually eat our recommended 5 – 7 fruits and veggies a day. Do we realize the real health benefits these foods have in nourishing our bodies? It’s not just the vitamins and minerals in these foods that our bodies need, there are so many other benefits. The one key nutrient I want to highlight today are Antioxidants.

Antioxidants offer a number of health benefits and research suggests that antioxidants can indeed be effective in preventing a number of age-related diseases, ranging from cancer to Alzheimer’s.

Antioxidants slow down or even prevent the oxidation of other molecules. When molecules in the body oxidize, they can create free-radicals. It is normal to have these free-radicals in the body, but in excess, they can ruin our cellular structures.

Free radicals create a destructive process in our cells, causing the molecules within the cells to become unstable and then try to attack other healthy cells. In layman’s terms, free-radicals are bullies that start pushing everybody around, and encourage nice cells to become bullies as well. If our cells are weak, it is natural that our organs, tissues and skin of the body will likewise become weakened.

Antioxidants help to STOP this cellular chain reaction of oxidation by neutralizing the free radicals. They act like a shield that protects the cells from becoming damaged.

What is the secret to consuming more antioxidants? Eat more organic fresh fruits, vegetables and nuts. You will not get antioxidants from dairy, meat, or grains. One helpful tip, if you eat chocolate and berries together it triples the amount of antioxidants your body is able to absorb!

This is just one example of some of the information and tips we will talk about in my upcoming Nutrition Renewed program. If you are interested in learning more, checkout my website http://onepowerfulstep.com/events/with the details to my program beginning in October or contact me at jen@onepowerfulstep.com

With all the recent hype about Hostess foods coming back on the market, I thought it was interesting to compare some of our foods that we might think are healthier choices for us, but have just as much if not MORE sugar than a twinkie.  I am NOT advocating choosing the twinkie, but in today’s environment, it is important for us mom’s to understand how too much sugar can really impact the overall health of our children.

Yogurt: Most commercial yogurt is loaded with sugar – as in, over 30 grams for 6 ounces! If you purchase plain with no flavor added, you can find lower amounts of sugar, but I have seen up to 44 grams in one small container (which is 11 teaspoons of sugar). Way more than the recommended daily allowance. In addition, commercial yogurt is pasteurized and many contain artificial colors and flavors. And if you look for a fat free option, check that it is not sweetened with artificial sweeteners that are just as harmful for you. When I heard that I should watch my son’s sugar intake to 10g or less per meal, I cried when I went through the store. I looked at all of the yogurts and couldn’t find any under 10 grams.

Tomato Sauce:A cup of tomato sauce can add up to over 20 grams of sugar. Most people eat tomato sauce on top of pasta (another carb source), so together, these could send you into sugar overload. You can easily make your own homemade sauce at home with out the added sugars. My husband used to be a big Prego fan and then I refused to buy it anymore and told him from now on, I was going to make homemade sauce. I have tried a variety of different recipes, and I think I finally found one that he actually enjoys. Last time he told me, don’t do anything different to that sauce you made last time. Sometimes I like to try adding hidden veggies, so I need to be careful about which items I sneak in without him knowing. =)

Granola Bars: Sugar is often one of the top ingredients in granola bars. The granola is actually another form of “hidden sugar” as these dietary carbohydrates break down into sugars in the digestion process. If you like granola as an option, rather than buying the pre-made ones, try making your own homemade granola. It’s not complicated and you can put in different ingredients that you know your kids would like.

Fat-Free Salad Dressing: When manufacturers take the fat out of a food, sugar is often added back in as a replacement. Fat-free French or Thousand Island dressings can contain over 40 grams of sugar as a result, turning a would-be healthy salad into something more resembling a dessert. Don’t be fooled by the “fat-free” label.

Muffins: The high amount of carbs in most muffins will profoundly interfere with your leptin and insulin levels, and that is true even if it’s a “healthy” muffin, like a bran muffin. Of course, in order to make a bran muffin palatable, it probably contains quite a bit of added sugar, on top of the grains it’s made with. Many muffins are also jumbo-sized, easily packing over 30 grams of sugar, or more.

Canned Fruit: Fruit is good for you, but can be problematic if eaten in excess, as it’s a source of naturally occurring fructose. Fruit when eaten as a whole food has fiber in it which helps with the digestion process. But many canned fruits don’t have the fiber and are also packed in sugary syrup, loaded with high fructose corn syrup. Just one cup of canned peaches or pears can contain over 30 grams of sugar. You’re far better off with a fresh piece of fruit instead, but use moderation.

We all know home cooked meals are the best options, but when you are on the run and have to eat out, do you realize what are truly good vs. bad options? The Center for Science and Public Interest has been doing research to help us identify some of the worst foods in America and today they have announced their findings for the Worst Restaurant Meal. Check out the link below, you just might be surprised in their findings.

They have identified Long John Silver’s Big Catch Meal with Onion Rings, the worst Meal in America. While I am not a big fan of fried foods, I do find it interesting that people might think fish is a better choice, than other fast food options, knowing all of the benefits of eating fish. We read in so many articles on the benefits of Omega 3’s and how fish is one of the best sources. So when choosing options out, why not go eat a fish sandwich, it’s going to provide me with good nutrients right?! WRONG! One of the things that makes this meal so bad is the use of partially hydrogenated oils to fry their foods.

The American Heart Association recommends that people limit themselves to about 2g of trans fat per day. This meal has 33 g of trans fat and another 19 g of saturated fat, which both promote heart disesase and nearly 3,700 mg of sodium, which promotes high blood pressure and stroke.

Read their just published article below with facts and research around their findings. I will admit, I have one son who likes their food and sometimes I would let him eat there. After reading this article, I don’t think I will be going through their drive thru again.

http://www.cspinet.org/new/201307011.html

Whether you get a headache once a year, once a week or daily, they are no fun. Some headaches can really wipe you out and the usual remedy is to take some type of over the counter medication to relieve the pain. For some people their headaches are so bad that over the counter remedies don’t work and they need to spend additional money on prescriptions to get rid of the pain.

What if I told you, that there are natural way to get rid of a headache. Annemarie Colbin, Ph.D, shared in one of my courses that headaches are a way that our body is telling us that we are off-balance. She explained that headaches are really about an energy imbalance. All foods have energy, but if we have too much of one thing or another, we create an energy imbalance. The way our body tells us our energy is out of balance is by getting a headache. Listed below are the 5 basic different types of headaches and the natural remedies for them.

1) Expansive – This type of headache usually occurs from too much fruit, ice cream, sugar, dessert, alcohol. The Remedy is to eat salty food like olives, umeboshi plums, anchovies – even salty potato chips.

2) Contractive – This type of headache (sometimes referred to as a tension headache) usually occur from too much protein, salt, not enough food, not enough water, too much heat, too much stress, work, tension. The Remedy is two glasses of juice, (any kind, apple juice works well), apple sauce, italian lemon ice, seltzer with lemon.

3) Liver – This migrany headache comes from eating too much fatty or oily food on an empty stomach. (i.e. fast food, a whole bag of chips (which can be 70% oil), or other oily food.) If the food drops into the empty stomach and does not get diluted, when it hits the gallbladder 3-4 hours later the headache begins. The Remedy is lots of lemon. See the Lemon tea recipe below.

4) Caffeine – This is the headache you get when you stop drinking caffeine. If your body is used to getting this drug on a regular basis and you were so busy you didn’t get a chance to have your coffee or soda, oh boy, you get a headache and go into withdrawl. Caffeine is so addictive and the quickest way to get rid of a caffeine headache is to have some amount of caffeine. This is the reason it is hard for so many people to give up soda or coffee. As a reminder, there is caffeine in tea, black tea, green tea, decaf tea or coffee, chocolate, and so on. Lots of over-the-counter drugs used as headache remedies also have caffeine in them as well. It is the most popular drug in the US and many people are addicted to it.

If you have a caffeine withdrawal headache, drink lots of water, and wait till it goes away. If you clear the caffeine from your system – which could take 2,3 weeks – you will feel calmer and steadier. Depending on how much caffeine you drink per day, don’t go cold turkey, it could be very painful. Go really slow.

5) Structural – If you have tried all of the above and none apply, you may have had some type of head trauma. In this case, it is beneficial to see a chiropractor, massage or cranial therapy.

So this blog was timely for me, as I usually don’t get headaches, but yesterday I had a headache start in the afternoon and just couldn’t get rid of it. I remembered this lesson from my classwork and decided to try one of the natural remedies. When I looked at the descriptions, I realized that it could have been a combination of too much heat and not enough food (a contractive headache, so I needed to eat something sweet) So I went into my freezer and found some italian ice. No kidding, I had a bowl and my headache was gone in minutes.

So the next time you get a headache, before you go to grab any kind of pill, see if one of these simple remedies might work for you. If you understand the model, you should be able to heal any headache you get within minutes.

Lemon Tea recipe. It is based on an Argentine folk recipe called “el te de la Madre Celestina.” Enjoy!

LEMON TEA
½ organic lemon
1 cup water

1. Juice the ½ lemon and pour juice into a cup. Take the juiced-out peel, cut into several pieces, and place in a pot with the cup of water.
2. Simmer the lemon peel in the water for 10 minutes. Strain water into the cup with the juice. Discard the peel. Drink hot. Makes 1 serving. Enjoy!

So, it’s that time of year when baseball season begins and coaches create the infamous snack schedule. Oh yes, those of you with kids in sports know it all too well. And having 4 boys in sports, we have multiple snack schedules to manage. While I totally understand that kids might want a snack and/or a drink after the game, it has become routine that kids (and their siblings) expect to get treats after a game. The usual choice is some kind of “junk food” including Gatorade or Capri Sun and a bag of cookies or chips. Let’s face it, these usual snacks provide no nutritional value but do provide additional sugars, fats and carbs.

One year my son’s coach decided there were going to be no treats. One kid was so distraught and complained to his mom that he had to have snacks after the game, and the mom created her own snack schedule for the season. Now dont’ get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with buying snacks for the team, or having a snack every once in a while, but I also want to set a good example for my kids and their teammates. If we as parents continue to allow the snack schedule to rule, then we are in essence telling our kids that it is expected and okay to eat these “junk foods”.

There are many parents that are just not aware of the dangers that these foods are having on our kids. Some of us are aware and try our best to encourage kids to make healthier choices, but when other parents bring snacks that we are trying to avoid, it makes it difficult to tell your child no in front of all those other kids, that you are not allowed to have that snack. And the cycle continues.

I challenge you that the next time you are on point to bring snacks to a game, make the healthier choice. See what happens if you bring bananas or apples as a snack. For a drink, bring bottles of water. The kids might not think your treat is their favorite, but I will tell you that the mom’s will be extremely happy that you did.

There were a couple mom’s last year that brought pirates booty, fruit and bottled water to the game. Most of the mom’s were saying how nice it was to have a healthy snack for their kids as opposed to the junk that they normally get, but they were afraid to be the one parent to bring the “healthy food”. We all know it takes a village to raise a child and if we as parents take a stand on the snack schedule, we will be one step closer to educating additional families who might not be aware of the dangers of these junks foods and setting good examples for our kids on the importance of making healthier choices.

In our country we have the right to freedom of speech and we also have the right to know what ingredients are being put into our foods so that we can make the right choices for our families. There is more evidence and research that points many of our health issues in kids and adults back to the foods that we are eating. Food being grown and made today, is not like it was made years ago because companies like Monsanto are changing the DNA of our seeds.

Back in November I wrote a blog on the Prop 37 bill that was being proposed in the state of California to make companies Label GMO’s While the bill did not pass (with a 47.6% to 52.4% at the polls), it has created increased awareness on the topic. More and more people are standing up for our basic legal rights to know what is it our foods.

Unfortunately, I am saddened to see that Congress passed the Monsanto Protection Act a couple weeks ago. Here is a link to a video which highlights President Obama’s promise during his first election to label GMO’s. Now he has just signed an act that hands Monsanto the power to nullify the decisions of federal courts. If the courts decide that a genetically engineered crop is dangerous to the public or the environment, it can no longer order Monsanto (or any other company) to stop planting the crops. Instead, the law mandates the Secretary of Agriculture to issue permits and deregulation orders that allow the “continued cultivation, commercialization and other specifically enumerated activities” even if a crop is deemed to be causing a plague or unleashing dangerous genetic pollution. learn more

I will admit, before I started my passion to learn more about health and nutrition, I didn’t know this was happening in our country and I am sure alot more people out there are unaware as well. Please forward this message on to others so that we can continue to create awareness to what our country is doing to our foods. It’s hard to know who to trust when the government says its ok to modify our foods, when we have seen research showing how GMO’s are creating health issues in our country.

Click here to learn how your voice can be heard to stop the sale of GMO seeds. Please like this blog or comment so that we can continue to create more awareness on this topic and continue our grass roots efforts in educating people so they can make better more informed decisions regarding the health and well being of their families.

Add fresh lemon to your water and you will be amazed at the health benefits it will provide.

Hydration: Lemon has phytochemicals (nutrition) that our body craves, as you begin drinking it you will find your body begins to crave it. Unlike other citrus fruits, lemon and lime do NOT contain sugar, so while lemons are pre-digestively acidic, they are post digestively alkaline, which will help with your pH balance. It also appears to soften the some of “the gunk” that builds up in your organs and allows it to flush through.

Most of our American diets are TOO acidic and we need to bring our PH balance back to normal by adding alkaline foods. (I’ll explain acid vs. alkaline diets in a future blog)

A few other interesting facts…

• We are supposed to receive minerals from our food and our water. Today our water is so degraded there has been a decline in the nutrition of water.
• When we drink water our body should hold onto the water, break down the molecular structure as it absorbs the nutrition. If our body is too acidic or not performing as it should water will go straight through, meaning we drink it and less than an hour goes by and we urinate.
• When we add lemon or lime to our water, our body has phytochemical nutrition. During the process of holding onto the water to absorb this nutrition, our body has MORE TIME to break down the molecular structure and hydrate our cells
• We have 20 different cell sizes, if we don’t breakdown our water small enough, our cells cannot hydrate, thus urination right after drinking.
• Dehydration is one of the major reasons of overacidification. (Deficits in hydration, nutrition, and too much incoming acid.)

As a kid my parents always used to order water with lemon when we went out to restaurants. Part of it was a healthier choice, but the other reason was because it was much cheaper than buying a drink. As a result, I got into the habit at an early age of drinking water with lemon, not because of its health benefits, but rather I liked it. I have gone on and off with cutting up a fresh lemon and adding it to my water but after having learned of the health benefits, I have personally made more of an effort to ensure I have enough fresh lemons in the house and add them to our drinks daily. The kids actually like to add it to their water as well.

If you are one of those people who are trying to cut the regular or diet soda habit, try switching out one of your normal daily drinks with a glass of water with real lemon. You might just find out how much your body thrives on the nutrition it will be receiving.