Sorry, long time no see! It's not that I haven't been online. I have been, but I'm trying to figure out what direction I am heading in, blogwise. Real food is a high priority, but so is dealing with thyroid and other endocrine issues (particularly mine!). I just attended a seminar by Dr. Jack Tips on the Neuroendocrine Solution, where I received a fantastic lesson on the absolute importance of the proper functionality of the endocrine system, with all of its glands and subsequently created hormones. He mentioned how our bodies are confused because of all of the toxic environment we live in, including electromagnetic pollution, chemicals, and junk food. He discussed supplemental protocols for dealing with endocrine issues, but did not discuss the importance of real food! Inconceivable!!
OK, maybe there isn't a particular food that specifically supports the pituitary gland. But, does one think that frankencrap food would? I think not!
This is a topic I definitely need to explore further. More to come as ideas are being formulated!
Showing posts with label real food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label real food. Show all posts
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
What is Real Food for YOU??
My definition of real food is changing. Hopefully, from good to great!
For the past few years, I was eating a mostly paleo/primal diet: food hunter-gathers ate waaaay back when. That would include meats, poultry, fish, nuts, berries, and greens. Somewhere mid-way, I started focusing on organic, grassfed animal protein and fat sources (to avoid the estrogenic effects of pesticides and herbicides in the conventional animal feed plus antibiotics routinely given to "healthy," conventionally-grown animals), coconut oil (antibacterial, antimicrobial, antifungal goodness in a jar!), and organic vegetables. You can say my diet is pretty extreme so far, right? At least compared to the average SAD (Standard American Diet) eater, it is!
Well, I found out recently that I may not be eating right... for me. I believe healing foods are customized to the person. What works for me may not work for you. This is that little lovely concept called Biochemical Individuality (one of my upcoming courses for my masters!). What I have been trying to do for some time is follow what works for alot of other people. And unfortunately, it may not be working so well for me. With my fairly clean diet, I found out that I have some serious dietary changes to make.
I took a special 24-hour urine test last week. I hate doing these kinds of tests, especially since you get locked down at home! But, I did it anyways because 1) I was curious to see what was involved in the process and 2) I wanted to understand why I was so tired all the time (4 or 5 hour naps is not normal!). I found this test through Lita Lee - a wonderful human being AND enzyme therapist/chemist. When a health practitioner tells you to visualize good health and use the Law of Attraction, you have to believe in that person! She and I are in sync!
The results are in, and my body is really out of balance (no duh). On Monday, I found out that I am deficient in electrolytes, my body fights for every little bit of calcium that I eat, and my thyroid is seriously underactive (among other things). And, an underactive thyroid explains ALOT of my health issues. And, this is all with my gluten-free, mostly casein-free, soy-free, and mostly sugar-free diet.
So, for the next two months, I will be eating a pro-thyroid diet, which will take me away from my low-carb hunter-gatherer diet. Some foods that I thought were healing apparently are not healing for me. I will go over the details of my diet in the next few blog entries. I plan on getting retested at the end of a month or two, after being placed on some enzymes and eating my healing foods. So, this is a great experiment for me!
My questions to you are:
1) Are you eating real food? If not, why not?
2) Are you eating foods that help you maintain fantastic health? If "no", can you figure out what foods are healing and what foods aren't?
Sometimes all it takes is a food log where you write down what you eat and how you react. Sometimes, like in my case, it takes a little help from someone else to figure it out.
My belief is that eating real food does heal the body. And, if you aren't healed (like me), you may not be eating the right foods!
For the past few years, I was eating a mostly paleo/primal diet: food hunter-gathers ate waaaay back when. That would include meats, poultry, fish, nuts, berries, and greens. Somewhere mid-way, I started focusing on organic, grassfed animal protein and fat sources (to avoid the estrogenic effects of pesticides and herbicides in the conventional animal feed plus antibiotics routinely given to "healthy," conventionally-grown animals), coconut oil (antibacterial, antimicrobial, antifungal goodness in a jar!), and organic vegetables. You can say my diet is pretty extreme so far, right? At least compared to the average SAD (Standard American Diet) eater, it is!
Well, I found out recently that I may not be eating right... for me. I believe healing foods are customized to the person. What works for me may not work for you. This is that little lovely concept called Biochemical Individuality (one of my upcoming courses for my masters!). What I have been trying to do for some time is follow what works for alot of other people. And unfortunately, it may not be working so well for me. With my fairly clean diet, I found out that I have some serious dietary changes to make.
I took a special 24-hour urine test last week. I hate doing these kinds of tests, especially since you get locked down at home! But, I did it anyways because 1) I was curious to see what was involved in the process and 2) I wanted to understand why I was so tired all the time (4 or 5 hour naps is not normal!). I found this test through Lita Lee - a wonderful human being AND enzyme therapist/chemist. When a health practitioner tells you to visualize good health and use the Law of Attraction, you have to believe in that person! She and I are in sync!
The results are in, and my body is really out of balance (no duh). On Monday, I found out that I am deficient in electrolytes, my body fights for every little bit of calcium that I eat, and my thyroid is seriously underactive (among other things). And, an underactive thyroid explains ALOT of my health issues. And, this is all with my gluten-free, mostly casein-free, soy-free, and mostly sugar-free diet.
So, for the next two months, I will be eating a pro-thyroid diet, which will take me away from my low-carb hunter-gatherer diet. Some foods that I thought were healing apparently are not healing for me. I will go over the details of my diet in the next few blog entries. I plan on getting retested at the end of a month or two, after being placed on some enzymes and eating my healing foods. So, this is a great experiment for me!
My questions to you are:
1) Are you eating real food? If not, why not?
2) Are you eating foods that help you maintain fantastic health? If "no", can you figure out what foods are healing and what foods aren't?
Sometimes all it takes is a food log where you write down what you eat and how you react. Sometimes, like in my case, it takes a little help from someone else to figure it out.
My belief is that eating real food does heal the body. And, if you aren't healed (like me), you may not be eating the right foods!
Sunday, March 15, 2009
You Plan to Fail If You Fail to Plan... Meal Plans!
Many people are tightening their belts in this current economy, but that's not a bad thing when it comes to eating! How many countless times have you opened the fridge at the end of the week and there's a bunch of stuff in there -- you don't know how old all the unlabeled containers are and you have vegetables growing mold? Well, one way to solve that problem, help reduce waste (mother Earth will thank you!) and be frugal is to plan your meals.
Even if you're the best of cooks and you can make a "leftovers" soup or salad (which are both great ideas by the way!), you will probably benefit from meal planning. You can have a sense for how much protein sources to buy (vegetarian or animal) as well as different fruits, veggies, and grains (if you eat them). Since I go to my farmers market every weekend (and soon will be participating in my new CSA program!), I have a general idea of the different types of produce available. And, as you can see by my list below, I do try to keep my menu fairly simple, except for items on the weekend when I have more time to roast or do more time-consuming, labor-intensive cooking. I usually do a quick stirfry of my veggies with appropriate herbs, seasonings, and olive/coconut oil, or I will steam them and top them with grassfed butter. (Psst - alot of the nutrients in your veggies are more easily assimilated into the body with fat! And why would you want to eat your veggies plain anyway? =)
Erica's Menu for this week
Today/Sunday:
Dehydrate soaked walnuts
B - green smoothie with avocado, cucumber, and lemon
L - eat out with a friend
D - honey mustard lamb with broccoli garlic stirfry
Monday:
B- leftover lunch
L- leftover fish and veggies plus maybe some kale chips
D- eat out with sister-in-law
Tuesday:
B- bitter melon soup with eggs
L- leftover lamb and veggies
D- natural corned beef with braised green beans
Wednesday:
B- leftover bitter melon soup
L - leftover corned beef and veggies
D-beef veggie soup with crockpot roast, leeks, tomatoes, onions, fresh carrots, etc.
Thursday:
B- green smoothie
L- leftover soup
D- natural sausage veggie stirfy with broccoli, onion, carrots, cauliflower
Friday:
B- fried eggs
L-leftover stirfry
D- baked cumin chicken legs with whatever veggies I have left
Saturday:
Plan again!
Note- I don't include dessert because I usually do not eat dessert. My body does not react well to grains, dairy (as I have sadly found out recently even though it was raw or fermented grassfed dairy), sugar, or fruits, so I do not incorporate them into my meal plan much. Please follow your own plan and listen to your body! Your body will let you know what foods are best for it.
Thanks again to Jenna @ My Joyful Haven for being brave enough to post her meal plans!
Even if you're the best of cooks and you can make a "leftovers" soup or salad (which are both great ideas by the way!), you will probably benefit from meal planning. You can have a sense for how much protein sources to buy (vegetarian or animal) as well as different fruits, veggies, and grains (if you eat them). Since I go to my farmers market every weekend (and soon will be participating in my new CSA program!), I have a general idea of the different types of produce available. And, as you can see by my list below, I do try to keep my menu fairly simple, except for items on the weekend when I have more time to roast or do more time-consuming, labor-intensive cooking. I usually do a quick stirfry of my veggies with appropriate herbs, seasonings, and olive/coconut oil, or I will steam them and top them with grassfed butter. (Psst - alot of the nutrients in your veggies are more easily assimilated into the body with fat! And why would you want to eat your veggies plain anyway? =)
Erica's Menu for this week
Today/Sunday:
Dehydrate soaked walnuts
B - green smoothie with avocado, cucumber, and lemon
L - eat out with a friend
D - honey mustard lamb with broccoli garlic stirfry
Monday:
B- leftover lunch
L- leftover fish and veggies plus maybe some kale chips
D- eat out with sister-in-law
Tuesday:
B- bitter melon soup with eggs
L- leftover lamb and veggies
D- natural corned beef with braised green beans
Wednesday:
B- leftover bitter melon soup
L - leftover corned beef and veggies
D-beef veggie soup with crockpot roast, leeks, tomatoes, onions, fresh carrots, etc.
Thursday:
B- green smoothie
L- leftover soup
D- natural sausage veggie stirfy with broccoli, onion, carrots, cauliflower
Friday:
B- fried eggs
L-leftover stirfry
D- baked cumin chicken legs with whatever veggies I have left
Saturday:
Plan again!
Note- I don't include dessert because I usually do not eat dessert. My body does not react well to grains, dairy (as I have sadly found out recently even though it was raw or fermented grassfed dairy), sugar, or fruits, so I do not incorporate them into my meal plan much. Please follow your own plan and listen to your body! Your body will let you know what foods are best for it.
Thanks again to Jenna @ My Joyful Haven for being brave enough to post her meal plans!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
My Top 10 Must-Have Ingredients
Thanks to Jenna at www.myjoyfulhaven.com for offering the idea to discuss this topic! Here is the list of my top 10 ingredients that I always enjoy on a weekly basis and cannot live without. They are in no particular order -- all good eats!
1. Garlic - in bulb form or peeled whole (refrigerated).
2. Coconut oil - cold-pressed, virgin, organic. I use this in my tea in between meals, on top of steamed veggies, the list goes on and on!
3. Eggs (the perfect food!) - I'm looking for no-soy eggs right now... tough to find but I will keep looking!
4. Wild salmon - canned or fresh. I can eat this stuff for breakfast!
5. Good Celtic or Himalayan salt or RealSalt - regular salt can have dextrose (from corn!) added to it!
Photo courtesy of djprybyl
6. Kale - I love this green raw in a salad or baked like a chip!
7. Butter - preferably organic & grassfed... I'm going to try raw grassfed organic butter as soon as my current supply of Kerry Gold unsalted butter dwindles. I love it on top of steamed cauliflower & other veggies, eggs, etc.
8. A probiotic foods of some sorts: kimchi, kefir (my first attempt to make @ home today!), yogurt, etc.
9. Kombucha - yes, the weird, fizzy, slightly vinegary- and sweet-tasting drink. I'm gearing up to make this at home soon. It deserves its own category.. I'm so addicted to it!
10. Bones - for making homemade bone broth. Good for digestion, multiple uses, easy to make.
That's all, folks! What's on your favorite 10 list??? Please share!
1. Garlic - in bulb form or peeled whole (refrigerated).
2. Coconut oil - cold-pressed, virgin, organic. I use this in my tea in between meals, on top of steamed veggies, the list goes on and on!
3. Eggs (the perfect food!) - I'm looking for no-soy eggs right now... tough to find but I will keep looking!
4. Wild salmon - canned or fresh. I can eat this stuff for breakfast!
5. Good Celtic or Himalayan salt or RealSalt - regular salt can have dextrose (from corn!) added to it!
Photo courtesy of djprybyl7. Butter - preferably organic & grassfed... I'm going to try raw grassfed organic butter as soon as my current supply of Kerry Gold unsalted butter dwindles. I love it on top of steamed cauliflower & other veggies, eggs, etc.
8. A probiotic foods of some sorts: kimchi, kefir (my first attempt to make @ home today!), yogurt, etc.
9. Kombucha - yes, the weird, fizzy, slightly vinegary- and sweet-tasting drink. I'm gearing up to make this at home soon. It deserves its own category.. I'm so addicted to it!
10. Bones - for making homemade bone broth. Good for digestion, multiple uses, easy to make.
That's all, folks! What's on your favorite 10 list??? Please share!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
My Real Food Testimonial
Thanks to the wonderful Real Food Media Blog Network for inspiring me to write this blog entry for Real Food Wednesday!
I really have to thank all the wonderful food I've been eating! In January of 2006, my wonderful naturopath told me I needed to cut soy, wheat, dairy, and corn out of my diet. Needless to say, I had to redefine what food was for me, and I learned the beginnings of cooking and eating healthier. Within three weeks, I was able to stop taking medication for high blood pressure and diabetes -- something that I did not think was possible, given that I have been taking medication since I graduated high school (too many years to count! LOL). Eating real foods gave me hope.
This hope led me to studying holistic nutrition, which then led me to Nourishing Traditions and the Weston A. Price Foundation, all within the past 6 months. I am amazed at all the various things I've learned about bad, bad soy (I ate soy before I was born!), enzymes and enzyme inhibitors, pasteurization, pesticides, food additives, etc. It is scary to think about what we as a society have learned is acceptable as food.
Real foods have helped DH and me eliminate leaky gut syndrome and upset GI tract symptoms. They have also helped me to reduce the effects of candida (with probiotics and cutting sugar out completely). Real food tastes better, plus there is a huge LOVE factor that goes into real food that you won't find in mechanically processed foods. I feel this is an extremely important intangible factor that we are missing if we aren't eating real food.
Today, I still struggle to get my blood sugars to a "normal" range, but I am learning to trust myself. I realize now that I am my best healer. I do not want to get back onto medication! Working with my OMD, I am taking herbs and botanicals and eating fermented, probiotic, and homecooked foods to nourish and strengthen all my body systems. I am still in the process of eliminating foods that don't work for me. And I still make mistakes in eating "bad" food every once in a while (especially when forced to eat out). It's a slow but good learning process. And I'm not willing to turn back on all that I've learned!
I really have to thank all the wonderful food I've been eating! In January of 2006, my wonderful naturopath told me I needed to cut soy, wheat, dairy, and corn out of my diet. Needless to say, I had to redefine what food was for me, and I learned the beginnings of cooking and eating healthier. Within three weeks, I was able to stop taking medication for high blood pressure and diabetes -- something that I did not think was possible, given that I have been taking medication since I graduated high school (too many years to count! LOL). Eating real foods gave me hope.
This hope led me to studying holistic nutrition, which then led me to Nourishing Traditions and the Weston A. Price Foundation, all within the past 6 months. I am amazed at all the various things I've learned about bad, bad soy (I ate soy before I was born!), enzymes and enzyme inhibitors, pasteurization, pesticides, food additives, etc. It is scary to think about what we as a society have learned is acceptable as food.
Real foods have helped DH and me eliminate leaky gut syndrome and upset GI tract symptoms. They have also helped me to reduce the effects of candida (with probiotics and cutting sugar out completely). Real food tastes better, plus there is a huge LOVE factor that goes into real food that you won't find in mechanically processed foods. I feel this is an extremely important intangible factor that we are missing if we aren't eating real food.
Today, I still struggle to get my blood sugars to a "normal" range, but I am learning to trust myself. I realize now that I am my best healer. I do not want to get back onto medication! Working with my OMD, I am taking herbs and botanicals and eating fermented, probiotic, and homecooked foods to nourish and strengthen all my body systems. I am still in the process of eliminating foods that don't work for me. And I still make mistakes in eating "bad" food every once in a while (especially when forced to eat out). It's a slow but good learning process. And I'm not willing to turn back on all that I've learned!
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