How many of these nutrient dense foods have you incorporated into your diet?
Seaweed
Vegetables that are found in the sea contain essential omega 3 fatty acids, which can be great for your body. From combatting heart disease to strengthening your bones, the calcium, zinc and iron packed into seaweed will boost your day-to-day fitness – as well as keep your body healthy over longer periods of time. Seaweed is commonly used as an addition to sushi but, if you’re looking for other ways to get it into your diet, there are plenty of exciting recipes to try out – including some delicious snacks!
Recipe Idea: Seaweed Crisps
Ingredients
12 nori seaweed sheets
¼ cup of water
2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp. sesame oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 275°F/140°C. Place nori seaweed sheets on a baking tray and sprinkle with water, adding another layer of nori each time. Use scissors to cut the sheets into your preferred shapes and sizes. Mix the garlic and sesame oil together in a bowl – adding salt and pepper to taste. Gently rub the mixture across the seaweed crisps and bake for around 20 minutes for a delicious snack you can enjoy any time of the day.
Coconut Oil
Many people are put off from incorporating coconut oil into their diets because they’re concerned about the calories it contains, but not all calories are created equal. By restricting your intake, you could be depriving your body of essential nutrients found in more calorific foods. Coconut oil can be used for just about anything. From adding it to a stir-fry to give your noodles an extra kick to injecting some flavour into your chicken satay, the options are limitless.
Recipe Idea: Protein Pancakes
Ingredients
1/2 banana
Handful of blueberries
30g oats
1 tbsp. coconut oil
2 tbsp. flaxseed
1 tsp peanut butter
1 tbsp of water
Instructions
Chop up the banana and add the flaxseeds, peanut butter, water and oats to a mixer and blend until creamy. Set your frying pan to medium heat and add the coconut oil. Pour in the mixture and cook for one minute on each side. Serve with blueberries for a quick, easy and protein-packed breakfast.
Chia Seeds
Noted as being one of the most healthy foods around, chia seeds are packed with fibre, fat, and protein – among many other healthy nutrients. Like blueberries, chia seeds contain antioxidants, which help to fight off diseases. If you’re looking for healthier after-dinner options, try baking some flapjacks and adding pumpkin and chia seeds for a delicious dessert alternative.
Recipe Idea: No Cook Peanut Butter Dip
Ingredients
1 pot Greek yoghurt
2-3 tbsps. peanut butter
2 tbsps. chia seeds
2-3 tbsps. honey
Instructions
Pour Greek yoghurt into a bowl and mix in peanut butter and honey, adding chia seeds as you go. Serve with fruit and use as a dip for a tasty after-dinner treat.
Açai Berries
When it comes to antioxidants, berries are among the best foods around. Açai berries are packed with fibre that’s proven to aid digestion. These berries also contain oleic acid, which is a healthy fat thought to combat heart disease. Açai berries are highly perishable – but you can mix them with other fruits to make tasty juices or shakes, which you can refrigerate.
Recipe Idea: No Cook Açai Berry Truffles
Ingredients
½ cup dried açai powder
1 tbsp. almond butter
2 tbsp. cacao powder
2 tbsp. palm sugar
1 ½ tbsp. coconut oil
8 dates
1 small plate of desiccated coconut
Instructions
Add all of the ingredients to a blender and mix until you’re left with a doughy texture. Roll individual balls to a size of your choice and refrigerate. Once chilled, roll in a plate of desiccated coconut to dust and serve as a decadent dessert.
Avocados
Loaded with nutritional values, the avocado has a number of proven health benefits. Avocados are packed with vitamins K, C, and E – among others – and are extremely low in saturated fat. Avocados are an acquired taste – but try mashing up a ripe avocado and mixing in lemon juice and black pepper to make a tasty dip for your snacks.
Recipe Idea: Avocado Baked Eggs
Ingredients
1 avocado
2 eggs
1 tbsp. chives
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat the oven to.425°F/220°C. Half the avocado and remove the pit. Place both halves into oven-proof bowls and crack an egg into each half. Bake for around 15 minutes. Finely chop the chives and sprinkle on top, adding salt and pepper to taste, for a healthy, hearty breakfast.
Staying healthy doesn’t have to be about implementing strict diets or spending all of your time in the gym. By mixing some superfoods into your daily diet, you can put your body on the path to a healthier 2016.
If you’re making nut milks for better health, there are a few rules you’ll want to adhere to. First and foremost, kudos for making your own. Homemade is always better when done right. But to do it right, skip the soy milk. It’s no good. When buying almonds, make sure they are not pasteurized. Buy raw nuts. Cashews aren’t really raw, so they’re not the healthiest choice, but I do use them sometimes.
Before you milk your nuts, it is best to soak them. There’s a lot of conflicting information about soak times for nuts but I personally soak nuts for 24 hours and then dehydrate them at 112°F in our dehydrator or at room temperature if the air is dry enough.
I soak raw nuts to remove enzyme inhibitors and activate enzymes. I don’t soak seeds, but some do. I don’t soak cashews because I think that nut is already dead, but as you can see from the infographics on the left, there is some disagreement.
How to Make Nut Milk with a Blender
This recipe yields 5 cups or just over a liter and takes less than ten minutes. I’ve used almonds, hazelnuts, brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, cashews, pecans, and walnuts for this standard nut milk recipe.
Ingredients
3-4 cups water (some nuts and some circumstances require a little more or less)
1 cup of raw, soaked nuts
1-3 pitted dates or use stevia, raw honey, or maple syrup to taste (all sweeteners are optional; you may prefer unsweetened nut milk to drink or for use in recipes)
Instructions
Place ingredients in a blender and secure lid.
Turn blender on high, but not too fast or for too long if you want raw milk. (Too fast or too long will cook the enzymes!)
Blend for about 45 seconds or until desired consistency is reached.
If you like thinner milk (most do, but I usually keep the fiber), strain it with cheesecloth, pantyhose (unworn would be a good idea here), or muslin cloth and a fine mesh strainer, but many prefer to use a reinforced nut milk bag.
Store milk in refrigerator.
Shake well before using.
Notes:
The less strained a nut milk is, the higher its fiber content.
I don’t recommend straining cashew milk.
If you use raw honey, do not use the milk for baking, cooking, coffee, hot tea, etc. if you want to retain the benefits of raw honey.
I blend with 3 cups first, and then decide if I want some of the fourth cup.
The following are a few other nut milk and non-dairy recipes with videos. These videos are not our videos, so the recipes don’t always exactly match, but as you’ll see reading on, making nut, seed, rice, and other non-dairy milks is really just about blending together water with something fatty (like almonds) to flavor the water. The trick is how to have a finished product with the right consistency and taste balance. Play around and find your own nut milk style and groove.
Making Almond Milk with a Blender
Making Almond Milk with a Slow Juicer
Masticating verticle juicers such as the Omega VRT 350 or 400 and horizontal twin gear juicers can be used to make nut milks. In my experience, the single gear juicers like mine don’t do so well (see the video below).
The video indicates the 8004 (single gear) left behind a delicious nut cream. I tried it, and it worked well. I put the weak nut milk in a blender and added more almonds, lightly strained and had great milk.
Other Non-dairy Milk Recipes
Nut milks are rich and creamy, but there are many more to choose from, and mixing milks to find your own favorite formula is fun. I really like 40% flax, 50% almond, and 10% cashew with some cinnamon, cardamom, and a touch of nutmeg. I don’t like things very sweet, so if you do, you may prefer more dates than I do, or another sweetener entirely or no sweetener at all.
Speaking of flavor, sweeteners are not necessary (it’s up to you), and should always be done by taste. For more on sweeteners, be sure to check out Healthy Alternative Sugars. I recommend the following, in order based on both health consciousness and what I like to taste in these recipes.
Sweeteners and Spices For Non-Dairy Milks
Stevia
Dates
Raw honey (only if it will not be heated)
Blackstrap molasses
Sugar cane juice
Granny smith apple juice
Maple syrup
I also like using stevia to sweeten and then just a little maple syrup or another sweetener to mask the stevia. Stevia is great for essentially amplifying the sweetness of another sweetener.
Spices for Non-Dairy Nut Milks
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Allspice
Ginger
Cloves
Cardamom
Just a pinch! Depending on what you are using the milk for, use very little of these spices. The taste gets stronger after the milk sets a while. This is especially true with nutmeg. You can ruin any dish with just a little too much nutmeg.
Also, the fineness of your strainer will have a tremendous impact on the taste and consistency of your milk. The less you strain, the more potential for a chalky or slimy texture (depending on the nut, the humidity, and some other factors). On the other hand, with some nuts and seeds, or with some recipes, less of a fine strain may be in order. Plus, there are health benefits in the pulp, so the more of it you get, the better, (unless there are digestive issues to consider).
Healthy & Heavenly Flax Milk Recipe
Flaxseed doesn’t have the most diverse set of benefits, but it is heavy in beneficial omega 3 fats and contains between 75 and 800 times more lignans than other plant foods.
There’s no need to soak or sprout flax seeds.
I like the taste of dates, maple syrup, cane juice, and honey in my homemade flax milk, but I tend to just use honey because I never heat flax milk, and I often heat other milks such as almond or hazelnut for oatmeal and other treats. Heating raw honey or flax does not make for a healthy meal. I’m also careful to keep the blender from cooking the flax as well.
Ingredients
1/3 cup flax seeds
3 cups water (plus 1-1.5 more cups)
Straining cloth or milk nut bag
1 tbsp raw honey
Vanilla to taste (a tiny bit! I do about 1/4 tsp)
Instructions
Combine flax seeds and 3 cups water in blender
Blend until thick and creamy on high heat, but not too hot as to cook the flax
Strain
Blend 1-1.5 more cups water plus honey to desired consistency
Can be used right away or chilled for later
Notes
Brown or golden flax will work fine. I used brown, but I’ve read that golden flax results in a milder flavor.
Homemade Honey Hemp Milk
Hemp milk, like flax, is a quick and easy to make since hemp doesn’t need to be soaked overnight. Hemp seeds (hulled hemp nuts) are for omega-3 fatty acids and gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), an essential omega-6 fatty acid found in borage oil and egg yolks that is known to naturally balance hormones. Hemp also has all 10 essential amino acids, making hemp a complete source of protein on its own. Calcium, potassium, phosphorous, vitamin A, and magnesium are also prevalent in hemp and homemade hemp milk.
Ingredients
1 cup hemp hearts (also called seeds or shelled hemp nuts)
3 to 4 cups filtered or spring water (3 cups for thicker milk, and up to 4 cups for thinner)
1 Tbsp of coconut oil (optional)
2 Tbsp of raw honey and a drop of stevia (pick another sweetener if you’re gonna heat this milk)
Vanilla to taste
A pinch of Himalayan pink salt (or other unprocessed sea salt)
Instructions
In a high-speed blender, add hemp and water
Blend on high for about two minutes, until fully liquefied
Strain, put back into blender (rinse the blender first)
Add coconut oil (if using), honey and stevia, vanilla powder and salt. Blend briefly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGlx_ch-gvs
How to Make Your Own Coconut Milk
I find coconut milk to be an easy recipe, but if you’re picky about the texture, coconut can be a little more labor intensive. What I love about coconut milk is that I find it to be the most versatile, the most robust, and the most beneficial of all the nut milks.
Coconut milk can be cooked at moderate temperatures without affecting the health benefits, the fat is incredibly good for you.
1 cup dried coconut chips -or- between 2-3 whole, mature coconuts
2 cups water
Instructions
If you’re using whole coconut, extract the meat. You can also use coconut water to substitute for water.
Blend. Blend for a while; take your time. You can blend at high speeds as well since coconut is not very susceptible to heat damage. When the coconut meat is as liquefied as possible, transfer the contents of your blender to the cheesecloth or other strainer.
Some people repeat the process, blending more and then straining again. Other recipes call for hot water to further emulsify the coconut meat into the water.
Making Brown Rice Milk at Home
It isn’t good for you at all if you use refined rice. Always use brown rice. Brown rice is a good source of fiber, manganese, and selenium. It also has some decent levels of iron, copper, niacin, and folate.
Ingredients
3/4 cup cooked rice
3 cups filtered water
Instructions
Measure rice into a blender, add the water, and blend until smooth (approximately 1 minute). You may want to blend again for ultra smooth consistency.
Conclusion
Most nut milks are best fresh though I find the sweeter, seasoned varieties I make are better 6-10 hours later. I admit, this could just be my imagination. Homemade nut and seed milks generally last between 5 to 10 days when properly refrigerated. The smell and taste is pretty obvious when they turn, so check the 5-day-old milk before you risk ruining a bowl of cereal. With all of these milks (just like unpasteurized milk), shake before using.
As mentioned, the sweeteners are optional. I recommend as little refined sugar as possible in a diet, and I rarely make sweet nut milks for myself. When I do, I almost always use stevia to amplify another sweetener like raw honey or maple syrup. I don’t generally do a lot of cashews or almonds because they’re expensive to buy unpasteurized (cashews are cooked during the difficult opening process, and truly raw cashews are hard to find and very expensive).
If you suffer from digestive problems or any health issues, see this article. And remember, it is imperative that you soak nuts that need to be soaked. Enzyme inhibitors age us rapidly, so get rid of them.
If you’ve got any tricks or techniques for making alternative, non-dairy milks, be sure to leave us a comment below.
How to Use Vinegar and Baking Soda to Clean Your Home
When it comes to cleaning your home, how do you choose products? Marketing companies try to convince us that scrubbing bubbles or a bald genie will do all the work. These advertisements may entice much of the population to purchase these products, but chances are most of us choose cleaning products by habit. Many of us probably use buy the same household cleaners our parents used.
The problem is, these conventional cleaners are made with chemicals. They pollute our water, they pollute our homes, and they pollute our bodies. We come in contact with these toxic chemicals through our skin and we breathe in the fumes, long after we have finished using them.
In this toxic world, we are exposed to so many chemicals, why would we want to go to the store, buy more chemical solutions, and expose ourselves to a daily dose for the sake of cleaning? Is a toxic home a clean home? No! Of course not!
It’s time we skip a generation or two and learn how to clean from our grandparents or great grandparents. Two of their best-kept secrets were vinegar and baking soda.
Use Vinegar to Clean
Vinegar, plain white vinegar, is a great non-toxic cleaner. It removes odors and is great for lifting dirt. And don’t worry, the smell of vinegar does not last.
Add a cup of vinegar to a bucket of warm water to clean wood, linoleum, and tile floors. (Do NOT use on stone floors.)
Mix equal parts of vinegar to water in a spray bottle to clean mirrors, windows, countertops, refrigerators, walls, and more. (Do not use on granite or marble counters or tables.)
Mix with an equal amount of olive oil to use as a furniture polish and to remove glass rings from wooden furniture.
Freeze vinegar in an ice cube tray – use to clean disposals.
Use full strength to disinfect cutting boards.
Use full strength to clean mildew in showers or on patio furniture.
Add one cup of vinegar to final laundry rinse for soft soap-residue free laundry. (Use with Dr. Bronners liquid soap to wash your clothes. Works great!)
Soak rusted tools or nut and bolts in full strength vinegar for several days. Takes dried paint out of paintbrushes, too.
Remove glued on tags and stickers with full strength vinegar.
Add 1-2 cups to the bottom of the dishwasher to make dishes and glasses shine. (Use in a regular cycle along with your soap).
A mixture of 1 part vinegar, 1 part lemon juice, and 2 parts water was able to eliminate 99.9% of E.coli, Listeria and Staphylococcus bacteria from surfaces. The acidic nature of vinegar makes it a good disinfectant that is also effective against mold.
Equal parts salt, vinegar, and borax makes a great stain remover for carpets and fabrics.
Use Baking Soda to Clean and Remove Odors
Baking soda is also an excellent cleaner and odor remover.
Sprinkle baking soda on countertops, stovetops, or inside refrigerators. Scrub with a damp rag. Rinse with a clean wet rag.
Make a paste with water to clean ovens. Leave on overnight. Wipe out with clean wet rag the next day. You can also make a paste with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda for really stubborn caked on food.
Sprinkle baking soda in pans with burned on food. Add hot water and soak overnight.
Add to wash load – you can even replace half of your laundry soap with baking soda.
Make a paste with water to clean the bathroom sink, tub, tile, and toilet.
Sprinkle baking soda in trashcans before and after adding trash bags.
Sprinkle baking soda on the dog and brush.
Soak diapers in a solution of baking soda before washing to remove odors. (Great addition to diaper pails).
Sprinkle baking soda on carpets, let stand for 15-20 minutes and vacuum to remove odors.
Leave an open box of baking soda in the refrigerator.
Add to kitty litter to control odors.
Combine Baking Soda and Vinegar
It seems to be all the rage to combine these two wonderful cleaning products together, but basic chemistry puts a damper on this. One is an acid and one is a base, and the result when you mix the two is essentially water; they cancel each other out.
Have you used vinegar or baking soda in other ways to clean? If you have, please let us know.
Lip Balm Addiction? Here’s What You Should Know, Recipe Included
It’s chapped lip season, and many people are pulling out their trusty tube of lip balm more frequently than usual. All lip balms appear to protect your lips while moisturizing. In reality, a large number of them are actually drying out your lips. This creates a vicious cycle where you pay twice: once for the actual lip balm and once with the actual health of your lips.
When temperatures drop, vulnerable skin is prone to cracks and bleeding. What options do you have to protect your skin without ending up dependent on a product that damages your lips in the long run? Here are some strategies that can help you boost the health of your lips while they’re at their most vulnerable, including what to eat, what to look for in a lip balm, and what to avoid.
Why Use Lip Balm?
Lip balm is designed to combat dry skin in a few ways. It can provide a barrier to protect the lips from the elements. It can help fill in the gaps between skin cells. And it can help your lips absorb water by pulling moisture from other areas in the body.
Dry skin allows moisture to escape while speeding up skin production to the point that many of the skin cells being produced are not yet fully mature. Lips are a particularly problematic area, as they contain very few of the oil and sweat glands that protect other areas of the epidermis. A good lip balm can be used for a few days to help your lips recover and heal themselves, but it’s important to know what’s in the product you’re using and how it specifically affects you. The lips have a different outer layer of skin than the rest of the body, but despite that and the lack of oil and sweat glands, there are still ways you can increase their health and reduce the instances of cracked, dry, and uncomfortable lips that winter brings.
A good lip balm can be used for a few days to help your lips recover and heal themselves, but it’s important to know what’s in the product you’re using and how it specifically affects you. The lips have a different outer layer of skin than the rest of the body, but despite that and the lack of oil and sweat glands, there are still ways you can increase their health and reduce the instances of cracked, dry, and uncomfortable lips that winter brings.
How Diet Can Play a Difference
As tempting as it is to throw up your hands and declare moisturized lips in winter without a lip balm a lost cause, diet can make a difference in whether you spend the next few months with a plastic tube permanently affixed to your mitten. Upping your intake of healthy Omega-3 fats from foods like flax seed or oily cold water fish is a great idea, as they can help prevent dryness. Vitamins A, B, C, and E are also great nutrients to focus on when targeting dry skin. Vitamin A improves overall skin health. Vitamin B, most specifically niacin (B-3), is a good mood booster found in protein-rich foods that
Vitamins A, B, C, and E are also great nutrients to focus on when targeting dry skin. Vitamin A improves overall skin health. Vitamin B, most specifically niacin (B-3), is a good mood booster found in protein-rich foods that have been shown in studies to protect against some skin disorders associated with skin cracking. Skin benefits from vitamin E and, of course, vitamin C. Possibly the most recommended vitamin for staying healthy in winter, vitamin C also promotes collagen production for smoother skin.
Overall hydration plays a big part in how dry your skin gets and how quickly it recovers. Food and drinks that cause inflammation and leave you dehydrated can be swapped out for water and the hydrating powers of produce!
Also, smoking anything will rapidly dehydrate your lips.
A Good Lip Balm Looks Like….
Even the healthiest of skin still takes a hit every now and then, and having a quality lip balm can give your skin cells the quick break they need to rebuild and return to top form. But what does that lip balm look like? To begin with, fewer ingredients in the lip balm increases the likelihood of quality. All lip balms start with an oil base. Raw, organic, unprocessed plant oils and butters like jojoba, almond, shea, coconut, olive, avocado, castor oil, and cacao are some of the best options out there. The more closely the oil base mimics your natural body oils, the better it protects your lips.
Other beneficial ingredients in lip balms include herbal infusions, essential oils, and waxes. Herbal infusions can give lip balms an extra dose of skin-friendly ingredients. Some good ones to look for are calendula, yarrow, chamomile, and comfrey. Look for products that get their scent from pure essential oils. Preference obviously plays a big part in what you look for, but mint and its many varieties are the most popular options commercially available. Waxes in lip balm help your balm maintain its shape, and they create a protective barrier on the skin. Popular waxes like beeswax can also have some anti-inflammatory properties. Look for real ingredients
Look for real ingredients like cucumber, aloe vera, rose, or honey that are organic or sustainably sourced. If you have no idea what an item is or it’s called something along the lines of methyl-ethyl-para-oxide-whatchamagidget, it’s probably not going to have any real benefits for your lips.
Break Out The Red Tape!
Since the likelihood of ingesting your lip balm is extremely high, it makes sense to avoid balms with toxic ingredients and ingredients that cause more harm than good. Parabens are preservatives commonly used in beauty products that have been linked to estrogen disruption, and they have been found in malignant breast cancer tumors. Ingredients like menthol, camphor, and phenol create a cooling sensation on the lips that gives the impression the lip balm is working, but they can also dry out your lips, and in some cases, they increase lip redness and induce swelling. Artificial fragrances and colors, as well as some natural ingredients like aloe or vitamin E, can cause irritation, so it’s important to pay attention to what works for your lips.
Ingredients like menthol, camphor, and phenol create a cooling sensation on the lips that gives the impression the lip balm is working, but these ingredients can also dry out your lips, and in some cases, they increase lip redness and induce swelling. Artificial fragrances and colors, as well as some natural ingredients like aloe or vitamin E, can cause irritation, so it’s important to pay attention to what works for your lips.
And then there’s petroleum jelly. Petroleum jelly is frequently contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and the FDA restricts the use of petroleum in food products due to these contaminants that are linked to cancer. Petroleum jelly can also interfere with the function of skin pores and trap in toxins. The FDA hasn’t, however, banned petroleum jelly from personal care products, and there is no rule that requires companies to refine the petroleum jelly they use. In contrast, the E.U. and Canada have banned the use of petroleum jelly in personal care products. Options that have the same function include beeswax, shea butter, and unrefined coconut oil, among others.
Healthy, Simple, Homemade Lip Blam Recipe
This recipe makes just under a cup of lip balm that you can put into small tins or a lip balm container.
Ingredients
¼ cup beeswax
¼ cup shea butter
¼ cup almond oil (contains vitamin E)
10+ drops essential oil (any essential oil you want for the scent, I like peppermint)
Teaspoon of raw honey
Instructions
Melt beeswax and shea butter in a double boiler. Alternatively, you can use a or small glass bowl over a small pot of boiling water. Stir continuously until melted.
Turn off stove (remove pan from heat if electric), but keep stirring; keep it warm and melted.
Add essential oils. And add honey last.
It’s ready! Use the pipette or a dropper to fill the tubes if you are using them. This must be done quickly since the mixture will tend to harden as soon as it is removed from the heat.
Let tubes sit at room temperature for several hours until cooled and completely hardened before capping them.
Notes:
Use an extra teaspoon or two of beeswax if you prefer a thicker and longer-lasting lip balm or slightly less if you prefer a smoother and softer lip balm. This makes 12-14 tubes.
Winter Lips Can Be Lovely
Winter weather is practically designed to exacerbate skin woes, and chapped, cracked lips are no exception. You can increase your chances of making it through winter unscathed by managing and maintaining your skin by increasing the nutrition you provide it through your diet and by using quality skin care products that do not contain problematic ingredients. Protect your skin and set it up for success.
How to Get Rid of Muscle Cramps, Charley Horses, Muscle Spasms
You’re sound asleep or floating in that delicious half dreaming, half aware state of limbo. Suddenly you are jolted awake as a white-hot, searing pain rips through your calf. You scream. You cry. You try to stretch out your leg or you force yourself to stand up and limp around in circles until the pain subsides. Sanity returns as the muscle relaxes and you collapse back into bed. But what caused that muscle to twist itself into a knot?
To relieve a cramp right now, stretch the muscle. The muscle cramping needs to be elongated. A bit of unrefined sea salt under the tongue followed by eating a banana can keep them from coming back for the time being, but if you get muscle cramps regularly it’s time to put a stop to them with a holistic approach that addresses the cause.
Causes of Muscle Cramps
Dehydration, mineral deficiency, or muscle strain are common causes of a muscle spasm also known as a charley horse. Poor circulation, nerve compression, or an adverse reaction to a prescription medication may also be to blame.
How To Avoid Muscle Cramps
Too often we look at one symptom and try to resolve it with medications instead of looking at the body from a holistic viewpoint. If you move away from the conventional medical model and realize that there is one disease – cellular dysfunction with its many symptoms, you will change your approach to health. You can heal the individual cells through detox, exercise, and nutrition. In other words, give the body what it needs, remove the interfering toxins, and it will heal itself.
Dehydration
Your body needs plenty of pure, clean water each day. The rule of thumb is ½ ounce to 1 ounce per pound. If you weigh 150 lbs., that’s 75 to 150 ounces of water per day, roughly half a gallon to a gallon a day. If you weigh 200 lbs, that’s 12 .5 to 25 cups of water or ¾ gallon to a 1 ½ gallons a day. Hotter weather and more exercise puts you on the high end of the range, whereas cooler weather and a more sedentary lifestyle lowers your requirements.
1 cup of unsweetened, organic cranberry juice, not from concentrate
3 organic fresh lemons
A citrus juicer
Liquid stevia
Liquid cayenne
Fill the jar to about 85% capacity with spring water (or distilled water). Squeeze the lemons and pour the juice into the water. Add cranberry juice. Add stevia to taste and then add cayenne to taste. The amount of cayenne used is up to you, but the more the better.
Nutrition
You can easily increase nutrition through raw fruits and vegetables. Muscle spasms can be caused by low levels of magnesium, potassium, calcium, and sodium. If you eat a truly healthy diet consisting of 80% fresh, raw, organic produce, you will increase your overall health.
Foods rich in magnesium include pumpkin seeds, spinach, Swiss chard, sesame seeds, quinoa, cashews, black beans, cashews, sunflower seeds, and navy beans.
Foods rich in potassium include beet greens, Lima beans, Swiss chard, bok choy, sweet potato, potatoes, spinach, avocado, pinto beans, and lentils. Of course, bananas are a good source as well, but compare their 422.44 mg of potassium per serving to beet greens at 1,308.96 mg per serving. Greens really pack in nutrients.
Greens alkalinize the body and keep calcium levels up in the body as well. Collared greens, spinach, turnip greens, mustard greens, beet greens, and bok choy are all excellent sources of calcium. Try to eat a large salad every day with lots of greens, plenty of other colors, garlic, cilantro, ginger, and more.
It’s not an exact recipe; the point is to eat a very diverse (and incredibly tasty) salad every day. Personally, I like some balsamic vinegar for my dressing, but there’s a dressing recipe in the 80% Raw Food Diet article.
Exercise
The body needs exercise to maintain muscle strength and limberness, bone density, lymphatic movement, and blood flow. All are vital for health. In order for the body to dispose of waste and toxins, blood and lymph must move through the tissues. Exercise and massage aid in circulation of blood and lymph.
Chiropractic and Massage
If muscle spasms are a regular occurrence, especially if you maintain a healthy diet and get good exercise, it’s a good idea to check in with your chiropractor, your masseuse, or both, to relieve any impinged nerves that may be contributing to the problem.
Stretch Properly
Lightly stretch after your muscles are warm, and take care not to injure yourself as you build up flexibility. Incorporate Dynamic stretching with your workouts. Dynamic stretching means your body is still continuously moving while you elongate, or stretch, the muscles, like with stiff-legged deadlifts and high kicks. Use static, slow-and-hold stretching to grow and maintain your flexibility after your workout when your muscles are hot, not before when the muscles are cold. Doing static stretches at the end of a workout will help reduce muscle soreness the next day and allow your muscles to heal faster due to the increase in blood flow to the muscles.
Supplementation
Shillington’s Total Nutrition Formula and Sunwarrior’s Liquid Light are excellent for daily supplementation. It’s best not to take potassium or magnesium by themselves unless recommended by a doctor who has verified a deficiency. There are many good liquid multi-mineral formulas on the market (and a lot of bad ones), but not many great whole-food supplements like Shillington’s formula (you can also get the recipe here).
Conclusion
When you embrace a healthy lifestyle and reject processed foods, replacing them with whole healthy foods and an alkaline diet (which is very easy to do with whole foods), and you drink plenty of clean water, exercise, and get good rest, healing begins. Muscle spasms, along with other aches and pains or symptoms attributed to age or other circumstance, simply disappear. If you get cramps in your feet, look into hypothyroidism.
You have probably heard that carbs are bad for both your health and your figure. Most weight loss diets advocate reducing carb intake, but since carbohydrates are important for seamless functioning of the human body, their role as a primary energy source should not be overlooked even if you have a good few extra waistline inches. That is why knowing the difference between good carbs and bad carbs is essential for good health – and a sexy shape as well. Here are some major differences between the two types of carbohydrates to help you structure your diet in order to maximize the health benefits of every single bite.
Structure of Simple vs. Complex Carbs
The main difference between good and bad carbs is found in their chemical makeup. Bad carbs are also known as simple sugars, and the name itself points to their less complex molecular structure and therefore, easier and faster digestion. Unlike simple carbs, good carbohydrates consist of longer chains of sugar molecules that take more time for the human organism to digest.
Sources of Good vs. Bad Carbs
Simple carbs are usually found in processed food such as refined sugar, sodas, artificial syrups, candies, pastries, white bread, white rice, pies, cookies, cakes and other additionally sweetened foods. Complex carbs, on the other hand, have a lower glycemic load, which points to their lower but more consistent energy release. They are normally found in natural, fiber-packed food such as brown rice, whole grain bread, oatmeal, peas, beans, lentils, fruit, seeds and nuts, soybeans, skimmed milk, and low-fat yoghurt.
Effects of Intake of Simple vs. Complex Carbs
Due to their faster molecular breakdown, simple carbs lead to quick energy boosts and improved focus, but these positive effects are short-lived and wear off within an hour or so. Not so with complex carbs. Due to their slower digestion, good carbs may not produce an instant energy spike, but they do provide lasting energy and keep you full for longer periods of time.
Vitamin and Mineral Content Makes a Difference
Unlike complex carbs, simple sugars have low or no nutritive value because they do not contain vitamins, minerals or phytochemicals necessary for normal bodily functioning. That is why simple sugars are often termed “empty calories” – they have nothing except fast energy that your body could use. Complex carbs normally go hand in hand with fiber, vitamins, minerals and other vital nutrients, so their effect is twofold: they provide energy and other aspects of nourishment that living cells need to function.
Simple Carbs Can Contribute To Development of Health Problems
Since simple sugars contain few or no nutrients other than instantly available energy, a diet high in simple carbs can play a significant role in the development of various health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, weight gain, and obesity. On the other hand, complex carbs contain both energy and beneficial nutrients, which is why diets focusing on complex carbs accompanied by high fiber, minerals and vitamins are considered healthier than those that rely on refined sugar and products with added sugar.
Simple Sugars Can Be Good in Some Circumstances
Although most nutritionists swear by complex carbs, there are certain times when simple sugars can be extremely useful. For instance, foods high in simple carbs can be a great post-workout meal for professional athletes as the muscles require extra energy for repair and recovery after periods of intense physical activity. Most runners and other endurance athletes use industrial-made snacks during matches and marathons. The body needs more easily digestible fuel to function during intervals of added physical strain, so an energy bar with high quantities of simple sugar will produce positive effects on overall performance.
Desserts Can Contain Complex Carbs, Too
Do not write off all desserts as bad for your health just because they have a sugary taste. In fact, various homemade sweets can pack good carbohydrates, too. For example, protein gingersnaps, baked oatmeal cups, and chocolate-coated desserts packed with fiber and fresh fruit are a healthier alternative to donuts, regular ice cream, and cheese cake. To maximize health benefits of your sweet snacks, prepare desserts with sweet, fiber-packed natural ingredients such as fruit, pumpkin, squash, or potato, without the use of processed sugar. Carbohydrates are a necessary part of the human diet and the body uses them to generate energy, repair, grow, and recover from periods of strain.
A diet low in carbohydrates can result in fatigue, weakness, and susceptibility to infections and viruses as well as prolonged healing and recuperation. That is why you should not write off all carbs as an enemy, rather, restrict intake of simple sugars, make sure your energy comes from raw or at least natural and not industrial sources, and enrich your diet with ingredients that pack complex carbs, fiber, vitamins, and minerals instead of monosaccharides, and you will stay healthy, slim, happy and well-nourished in the long run.
Renewable Energy May Be Hot, but Waste Managers Are My Heroes
If you’re not involved in the trash or recycling industry, chances are good that innovations in collecting and processing our garbage are off your radar. When characters get nosy about Tony Soprano’s line of business, “waste management” is the wise-guy throwaway punchline. But today’s advanced trash operations are far from the old dump and cover or incineration solutions. Many disposal operations are building bridges to a zero waste future. Image courtesy of Diversified Recycling
Our company contracts with parks and dog daycares in Metro Denver to compost dog waste, so I subscribe to Waste360. This online media and events network provides information to solid waste, recycling, organics, and sustainable communities via daily emails with the latest industry buzz.
Sometimes my mind wanders into climate change doldrums. Will the big-time doers follow through on their promises to slow down global warming? Do eco-conscious consumers have the will to shift behavior and demand meaningful policies? And by the way, my tiny household recycling space is a frozen tundra. Will taking our food scraps out to the curb with the trash be one more downer?
On days like these, the Waste 360 newsfeed can be as bracing as a fresh breeze. Amid the nuts and bolts posts about lawsuits, mergers, and acquisitions, you’ll see occasional updates on environmental advances. And, no lie! There are so many industry pros out there making real progress that I wonder why only local and business news outlets cover the stories. Here are the latest bytes:
A Louisiana solid waste district’s facility fuels trash trucks with biogas emitted from its landfill, and it shares compressed biogas with vehicles at an additional remote station.
The New York City Department of Sanitation is expanding its e-cycleNYC to provide residential pick-up services to more than 500,000 households.
New York’s Lewis County will be hauling its mixed recyclables miles away to a recycling center with sorting capability to offer its customers the convenience of single-stream collections.
These are just a few examples of how progressive waste managers all over the country are going beyond business-as-usual to foster sustainability. Whether they work for private companies or public authorities, they take their environmental stewardship seriously. These professionals are aware that a landfill is a no-win answer. They’re trying to divert as many recyclables from their plastic-lined tombs as possible. They’re trying to incorporate waste-to-energy programs into their operations. Like most of us, their options are limited. But many of them are working hard to expand our disposal options.
The for-profit waste managers need to make business cases for each step toward near zero waste. County and municipal operators have to justify the expense of environmental projects to taxpayers. Many waste companies and jurisdictions proactively pursue government grants and creative arrangements with outside recycling innovators to reach their goals.
Given their limitations, waste managers are tireless unsung heroes on the front lines of sustainability. The industry suffers from a long history of low status, drudgery and invisibility. Facilities grab attention only when they produce nuisance odors. We want the trash we produce to be “out of sight, out of mind, out of range.” But doesn’t waste management’s humble efforts to save the planet deserve as much recognition and resources as its sexier renewable energy cousins?
Back in the day, Dad always gave our dedicated trash hauler a bottle of good Scotch for Christmas. What can we do today to show our waste management eco partners that we appreciate what they are doing?
