Heidi's Whole Health Blog

8/11/19

Word for the Day: Healthier Desserts

Tis the season of my favorite fruit—blueberries and peaches. What a wonderful way to get our daily dose of antioxidants.

The Mayo Clinic explains the importance of getting antioxidants in our diet. “They [antioxidants] help minimize the impact of free radicals, which are an unstable byproduct of natural cell metabolism. Free radicals also are found in the environment, in exposure to sunlight, air pollution and cigarette smoke. Free radicals trigger cell and tissue damage through a process called oxidation. This damage may play a part in the development of many different diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and some eye diseases.” https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/a-grocery-bag-of-beneficial-antioxidants/

If you are lucky enough to live in a rural area and can go buy a bushel of local peaches or have wonderful family that picks blueberries for you, you may be wondering what to do with all of your fruit if you do not can or freeze them. I make some old fashioned sauces that I can keep in the refrigerator for weeks. They are perfect toppings for ice cream, yogurt or homemade shortcake.

Here are my versions of some old fashioned fruit sauce recipes.

Heidi’s Peach Sauce:

4 ripe peaches

½ cup water

¼ cup sugar

1 tablespoon corn starch

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Cut up peaches into cubes. Mix sugar, cornstarch and water in a pan. Bring to boil. Add the peaches and stir for a couple more minutes. Add vanilla extract, cinnamon. Stir well and then remove from heat.

Heidi’s blueberry sauce:

3 cups blueberries

1/4 c sugar

3 tsp cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup water

4 teaspoons lemon juice

2 tsp grated lemon peel

a handful of chia seeds

Combine sugar, starch, salt. Stir in water until smooth. Add blueberries, lemon juice, lemon peel. Bring to boil stirring constantly.

Buen provecho! Smakelijk eten! Bon apetit! Guten Appetit!

8/10/19

Word for the Day: probiotics

I don’t keep track of the latest food fads. But even if probiotics aren’t still trending, there seem to be good reasons to make sure you include them in your diet.

Dr. Andrew Weil states, “These {probiotics} are used to increase the number of beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract. Probiotics can help to keep the digestive system in balance and functioning optimally, restore normal flora, and may support immune system functions especially when a person is taking antibiotics, which can wipe out intestinal bacteria indiscriminately, including those that help keep the intestinal tract healthy.”

I don’t personally feel the need to take a probiotic supplement since probiotics are found in foods that I happen to like. The most common source is yogurt with active cultures. They can also be found in other dairy products like kefir and pickled foods as well as sauerkraut.

In today’s blog I am sharing some of my simple probiotic-rich recipes that I use as quick go-to meals when I don’t have much time to prepare a big meal.

Heidi’s meatless Reuben:

Butter two slices of sourdough bread and put the buttered sides down on the fry pan. Use only Emmentaler or Gruyere cheese. Add slices of cheese to bread. Next add generous portions of sauerkraut. Lastly, add a bit of dill pickle relish. Optional: Add thousand island dressing for extra flavor. Make into a sandwich. Fry each side until nicely browned.

Heidi’s blueberry kefir smoothie (Nutra Bullet or Ninja needed if you add the roots and seeds)

Add one banana

One cup of frozen blueberries

One cup of plain whole fat kefir

A handful of pumpkin seeds

¼ inch of fresh turmeric root

½ inch of fresh ginger root

One cup of frozen kale

Two cups of orange juice

½ teaspoon spirulina powder

Bon appetit!

8/9/19

Word for the Day: Supplements

“I always ask my patients to bring all their supplements with them to their appointments, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that many arrive with a bagful of bottles. They frequently share that they’re not sure whether the supplements are working for them, or how much they should be taking. I’m sympathetic. Contrary information is everywhere. We’re drowning in data, while starving for information. How can the average person be expected to make sense of it all?” Dr. Tieraona Low Dog

Supplements ranging from ashwagandha root to calcium flood the market. How do we decide what supplement might be good for us and our particular nutritional and health needs? Not all of us have access to physicians like Dr. Low Dog who practices integrative/complementary medicine.

If you are like me, the best I can do is to follow the blogs/websites of doctors who are leaders in this field and then cross reference their ideas on supplements with my own osteopathic physician.

My two go-to sites are:

Dr. Andrew Weil’s https://www.drweil.com/

Dr. Tieraona Low Dog’s https://drlowdog.com:

Once I have figured out what supplement to take, the next question is always where should I purchase it? Well another very cool resource that I recently stumbled onto is the following site:

https://naturalmedicines.therapeuticresearch.com/

It is a large database that offers research-based information on dietary supplements, natural medicines, and complementary, alternative and integrative therapies.

It does require a subscription to utilize this site. A personal subscription is a little steep, but check with your local library, your doctor’s office or your place of employment if you are in the health care industry. They may have access.

I used the site to find out if my particular brand of calcium and vitamin D were effective and reliable. Luckily for me, they scored an 8 out of 10. I also use the site to look up herbs or supplements recommended by Dr. Weil or Dr. Low Dog. In addition to rating a particular manufacturer’s product, this site also provides research on an herb or supplement’s effectiveness, interactions with other medications, adverse reactions and so much more.

Disclaimer: I am not a physician, herbalist or scientist. I am simply a health consumer sharing what resources and processes I personally use to make decisions in my own life for taking supplements.

Questions to Ask yourself: What are my own personal views on supplements? Where do I get my information on supplements from? Do I talk to my physician before I start a supplement? Am I making lifestyle choices that promote whole health instead of relying solely on a supplement?

As Dr. Weil reminds us, “It’s up to you to protect and maintain your body’s innate capacity for health and healing by making the right choices in how you live.”

8/5/19

Word for the day: Food Rut

Sometimes I get in food ruts. I tend to cook whole foods that can be pretty bland because they are fast and simple. However, this week I need to add a little more flavor and spice to my diet. One of the best ways for me to do that is to follow Ayurvedic principles.

Deepak Chopra’s book Perfect Health references “six tastes.” The six tastes with examples from his book are listed below.

Sweet: rice, milk, butter, bread

Salt: salty foods

Sour: lemons, yogurt, cheese, tomatoes, plums, vinegar

Bitter: spinach, cucumbers, turmeric, fenugreek, romaine lettuce

Pungent: cayenne, chili peppers, onions, garlic, ginger

Astringent: beans, lentils, apples, cabbage, broccoli, potatoes

One way to help us achieve balance in our diet is by noticing if we are eating foods from the various “six tastes.” I think most of us have experienced what happens when we eat too many sweets. But many of us have not even heard of the last two categories—pungent and astringent foods. This past week I did manage to have all but pungent and bitter foods in my diet. So this week I want to add both turmeric and ginger to the mix.

Where I live, I am lucky to have access to a food cooperative that sells beautiful, fresh ginger and turmeric root. If you do not have access to either root, the dry spices will do. I have been integrating fresh ginger and turmeric root into my drinks. I grind the roots in my coffee grinder. Then I add a little to my coffee grinds and pour hot water over it. I also make smoothies in my Ninja. I add fresh root to these as well.

In a food rut? Try adding one of the “six tastes” as described above.