Posts Tagged ‘vegetarian’

How many days of work have you called in sick? How many days have you just not felt that great? Do you know a coworker who is always sick? Stress taxes the body. Bad food, late nights, no sleep, overexertion, & different time zones regularly or even every day would wear out anyone.

A lot of people have weakened immune systems due to stress, poor diets, travel, overuse of antibiotics, lack of sleep, and overwork. This makes them prone to colds and the flu. Having a lower immunity can also make you prone to being really sick for longer periods, especially when compared to someone who is relatively healthy. That’s why travelers tend to get really sick. It’s rare that they just get a case of the sniffles.

Improving someone’s immune system so they don’t get sick is ideal. Taking care of yourself on a daily basis, along with acupuncture, taking Chinese herbs, massage, Reiki, supplements, and aromatherapy, along with dietary changes, have a great impact on one’s health.

Some of the signs that you’re overstressed

*Poor sleep, Anxiety, Brain fog,  Acne
* PMS, Low libido, Weight gain
* High blood pressure/cholesterol, Excessive evening hunger
* Hair loss, Exhaustion, Impaired immunity
* Slow healing, Salt/sugar cravings, Caffeine addiction

Once a person is sick, the sooner treatment is administered, the quicker the recovery. Similar treatment protocols are administered with someone who is sick or just starting to come down with something. The use of Chinese medicine gets rid of an infection without the side effects of antibiotics. Treating an infection naturally doesn’t suppress the contagion, so that it doesn’t just come right back.

Tips

These simple, easy to follow tips can help you and your loved ones stay healthy & recover quickly from colds and the flu.

1) Take at least 500 mg of vitamin C a day. Great sources include dark leafy greens, broccoli, bell pepper, lemon, and persimmon. C also aids in iron absorption.

2) Supplement with acidopopholus/probiotics to encourage healthy bacteria to grow in your digestive tract. Thus, boosting your immune system and improving your mood.
3) Eat garlic. Garlic is a natural antibiotic and tastes great.

4) Drink two tablespoons of raw apple cider vinegar daily to help with allergies, nausea, asthma, fat, migraines, cholesterol, blood pressure, fungus, flu, and acne.

5) Eat turmeric in soups, curries, and smoothies. It’s a natural antibiotic, reduces cough, detoxifies, reduces inflammation, improves skin, and aids in digestion.
6) Take a vitamin B complex for reducing stress and improving energy.
7) Ginger is a natural antiviral, reduces inflammation and pain, kills parasites, eliminates mucus, and aids. Digestion.

8) Eat your antioxidants to prevent illness of any kind.

Prunes      Kale       Raisins     Spinach
Berries     Brussels sprouts    Broccoli
Beets        Plums    Onion       Corn

9) Eat plant based Omega 3s for brain function and regulating hormones. Sources include walnuts, hemp, flax, kale, seaweed, chia seeds, and acai berries.

10) Essential oils for stress- Lavender, Neroli, Chamomile, Cypress, Frankincense, Basil, Jasmine, Valerian, Chamomile, Lemon, Rose

11) Drink water. Drink half your weight in ounces daily. More, if you are flying.

12.) Avoid dairy and sugar. They cause inflammation, fatigue, and weakened immunity.

13) Avoid caffeine because it exaggerates body’s response to stress.

14) Put Epsom salts in your bath for detoxification and muscle tension.

Following these easy to follow tips will lead to a much happier and healthier you. Stay calm, vibrant, and full of energy with out breaking the bank.

Live natural. Live well.

Heather

You might have heard that your liver is in charge of filtering out toxins. But did you know your liver is also in charge of filtering out anger and resentment? It’s true. In Chinese medicine, each organ has an emotion or emotions that affect it. If you don’t release or process what you’re feeling, it starts to cause internal imbalances. The liver is weakened or compromised by anger, resentment, frustration, and/or stress. Experience any of those lately? In the last week? In the last hour?

If you are stressed out or frustrated about your job, you might be experiencing some physical symptoms related to your mental health.

Symptoms that can manifest from suppressing your anger.

* High blood pressure, PMS, headaches

* Vertigo, hair loss, & blurry vision

* Muscle spasms & ringing in the ears

* Crave sour tasting foods, dizziness, & red eyes

Avoiding anger and stress is pretty much impossible unless you live in a cave. But you can do something about it. How you deal with it is key. One of those ways is through the foods you eat. Chinese nutrition gives very detailed guidelines on what to eat when needing emotional support.

Foods to Eat

* Beets, apple cider vinegar, & dill

* Broccoli, pine nuts, & mustard greens

* Romaine lettuce, alfalfa sprouts, & cauliflower

* Basil, mint, cabbage, peaches, strawberries, & quinoa

So instead of going through PMS hell, try the above foods instead. Find ways to simplify your life. Maybe take up yoga or meditation. A kickboxing class might be just the trick. Most importantly, acknowledge and accept your what you’re feeling. Don’t suppress or ignore it, even if it’s uncomfortable. You’ll not only feel your mood lift, but any physical ailments will start to disappear.

Live natural. Live well.

Heather

You want to know what I hear when I recommend buying organic?  “It’s so much more expensive!”  Patients of mine who don’t live in Southern California also say, “It’s impossible to find in winter.”

When it comes to produce, some non-organic options are safer than others.  Please use this list when doing your shopping.

The 12 Most Contaminated, AKA The Dirty Dozen

* Peaches

* Apples

* Bell Peppers

* Celery

* Nectarines

* Strawberries

* Cherries

* Pears

* Grapes

* Spinach

* Lettuce

* Potatoes

The 12 Least Contaminated

* Onions

* Avocado

* Sweet Corn

* Pineapples

* Mango

* Asparagus

* Sweet Peas

* Kiwi Fruit

* Bananas

* Cabbage

* Broccoli

* Papaya

Asking your grocer to carry more organic, local options will encourage them to supply the demand.  As the demand grows, more farmers will listen. So when you can’t find all your fruits and veggies or your budget is tight, please choose wisely. Most supermarkets now offer a wide variety of frozen organic options. Frozen would be the next best thing.  Do your best and stay healthy!

Live natural. Live Well.

Heather

It’s that time of year! Pumpkins everywhere. Not only are they are great decoration for Halloween, they’re great for you. One of my fondest childhood memories is carving up a pumpkin in anticipation of dressing up and all the sugar I was about to consume. Luckily, now I look forward to all the pumpkin I get to eat instead.

Health Benefits of Pumpkin

Pumpkin is naturally low in calories and rich in health-promoting nutrients, including:

Fiber

* reduces bad cholesterol levels, thus reducing the risk of heart disease
* controls blood sugar levels
* promotes healthy digestion
* encourages weight loss

Potassium

* Balances fluid levels
* promotes strong bones
* necessary for energy production
* maintains healthy blood pressure

Alpha-carotene & Beta-carotene

* improves vision & reduces risk of cataracts
* reverses sun damage to the skin & slows the aging process
* is an anti-inflammatory
* prevents tumor growth
* boosts the immune system
* protects against heart disease

Vitamins C

* boosts immunity
* reduces high blood pressure and heart disease
* regulates cholesterol levels

Vitamin E

* slows aging by protecting the skin from sun damage
* reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and certain cancers

Magnesium

* promotes a strong immune system
* strengthens the bones
* supports heart function

Pantothenic acid/vitamin B5

* balances hormone levels
* manages stress levels

My favorite pumpkin dish is a really simple soup- Just cook some vegetable broth, 4-6 cups of pumpkin, onion, garlic, a little curry powder and a potato or two on simmer for 20 minutes. Add coconut milk at the end. Puree in blender and serve. Delicious!

Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin seeds are high in vitamin E, iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, and are an excellent plant-based source of omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids. The seeds protect against prostate cancer and prevent osteoporosis.

One way I love to eat pumpkin seeds is to slightly toast them, put them in a blender with silken tofu, nutritional yeast, and Bragg’s amino acids. This makes a great dip any time of year.

So this year, make it a new tradition to use the whole pumpkin and make healthier choices during the holiday season.

Live natural. Live well.

Heather

Are you thinking of giving up meat?  Maybe you just want to cut back? Is it for environmental, health, or ethical reasons?  Worried about protein?  Or for those of you are already a vegetarian, are    sick of the question, “How do you get enough protein?” There is a myth in most Western countries, that you need to eat animal products regularly to get enough protein.  You’ll see from the list below, that this is not the case.  Cases of protein deficiencies almost exclusively exist in cases of overall malnourishment.   What I see more of in my clinic is an iron deficiency, but that occurs just as often in meat eaters as vegetarians and vegans.  (More on that in a future blog.)

Practically all vegetarian foods contain some protein, but soybeans are definitely one of the best sources. Soybeans contain all the essential amino acids and surpass all other plant foods in the amount of protein that they can deliver to humans. It is important to stay away from genetically modified soy products.  The product must be labeled organic and/or non-GMO to make sure.

All of you reading this should know, that I’m always encourage my patients to healthy, organic, locally grown foods.  Becoming a vegetarian is a very personal decision.  But if you want to give it a try and have adequate nutritional support, I’m here for you.

Some of the great vegetarian sources of protein

PROTEIN IN GRAINS: Barley, Brown rice, Buckwheat, Millet, Oatmeal, Quinoa, Rye, Wheat germ, Wheat, hard red, Wild rice

VEGETABLE PROTEIN: Artichokes, Beets, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Green peas, Green pepper, Kale, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Mustard green, Onions, Potatoes, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnip greens, Watercress, Yams, Zucchini

PROTEIN IN FRUITS: Apple, Banana, Cantaloupe, Grape, Grapefruit, Honeydew melon, Orange, Papaya, Peach, Pear, Pineapple, Strawberry, Tangerine, Watermelon

If you want to be absolutely certain that you are getting enough protein, you should eat food combinations which form a complete protein, such as:

* Legumes + seeds
* Legumes + nuts
* Legumes + grains

Chances are you already eat complete proteins without even trying.  See how easy it is? Here are some tasty and healthy complete protein combinations:

* Beans on whole grain toast
* Corn and beans
* Hummus and whole wheat pita bread
* Nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew, hemp, etc..)on whole grain bread
* Brown rice pasta with beans
* Rice and beans, peas, or lentils
* Split pea soup with whole grain or seeded crackers or bread
* Tortillas with refried beans
* Veggie burgers on whole grain bread

Live natural.  Live Well.

Heather

Hello and welcome to LiveNaturalLiveWell.com!  Come here every week to find all the latest info on health related topics as well as tips for how you can heal your body and the environment.  I am thrilled to be starting this blog. So to kick things off I thought I would tell you a little bit about myself and how I got started.  People are always asking me, “Heather, how did you get interested in Chinese medicine?”  It started when I was a teenager and I had two major health incidents.

The first was when I was 14 and I had a severe case of mono that flared up off and on for almost a year.  I missed over 2 months of school and had to give up swimming because I was so weak.  I was constantly seeing my doctor and he didn’t have any advice on how to heal from this very common illness.  He literally said, “There’s nothing you can do.”  After this illness took its course, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was any information out there besides what my doctor was telling me.

The second health event happened when I was just turning 15, and like many young people in America, I was a junk food junky.  But after learning about the conditions of the meat industry and animal treatment, I decided to become a vegetarian.  Like the good student I was, I went to my doctor to get any nutritional expertise I could find.  He had no idea what to do with me, besides saying “Make sure you get enough protein.”  I remember feeling so confused.  If doctors are supposed to help people, why doesn’t he have any specific guidance about my nutrition and wellbeing?  It seemed that if I wasn’t sick or injured, there wasn’t anything he could do for me.

Well, it turns out that I was sick. I was anemic for almost two years, and that was when I realized I would need to go beyond my doctors to find appropriate nutritional support.  This led me to start studying nutrition, herbs, and supplements on my own.  I loved reading anything health related, especially holistic medicine.  I found out better ways to eat vegetarian and that mono is treatable.  More profoundly I learned that there is never one answer to a solution, no quick fixes, and no magic pills.  As I studied nutrition more I was fascinated to learn that there are so many different ways in which our bodies can get out of balance and that this affects our wellbeing.  Over the years, I kept learning purely out of curiosity.  I had no idea that one day I would be doing this for a living!

I found out later that M.D.s have very little nutritional training, just a few hours in fact.  Also, many (but not all!) doctors will just say nothing can be done or nothing is wrong because tests results are normal.  I see this almost daily in my private practice.  Patients come in desperate, because their doctors didn’t have the tools to help them get better.

After college, I moved to Los Angeles.  That was when I realized I could do what I love for a career.  At this point, friends were regularly asking me for advice, and I didn’t always have the answers.  I don’t always have the answers now, but with my training and continued studies, I have the tools to do what I really want to do: help and empower others to be healthy and live a fuller life.

I would like to encourage those of you reading this to do research and see if the illness you’re dealing with can be treated naturally to eradicate it.  Then ask questions.  I’m so excited to create a dialogue with people all over the world.  I have a long list of ideas to get started, but I would love to get to know all of you reading this.  What are you curious about?  What do you find confusing?  What are you interested in?  I truly look forward to hearing from you.     Til then,

Get Natural.  Get well.
Heather