Detoxing After The Holidays

   
The new year is upon us and it’s a great time to detox your body for a new beginning.
New beginnings are a great way to start over, have a clean slate and basically give yourself a chance to do things differently. It’s also a way to have a spiritual slant on things and go into cleansing and healing mode. Detoxing not only strengthens your physical body, but also cleanses your mind. After indulging during the holidays with rich, heavy foods, sweet desserts and an overabundance of carbs—January is the perfect time to start a cleanse. Detoxing is also wonderful for when you have overindulged in alcohol, cocktails at parties, and tobacco. There are some wonderful and simple things you can do to simply purify your body. Avoiding foods such as sugar, corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, dairy products, wheat, and coffee is crucial to cleanse your system. You should eat healthy foods such as fruits, veggies and raw foods. This is a good time to eat plenty of salads, colorful antioxidant rich foods and juicing is a wonderful thing to do during
a detox. The duration of a detox depends on how much you have indulged, but it shouldn’t be too long. The idea is to basically pull toxins from your system and replace with healing nutrients and also engage in some natural healing—then resume with healthier behaviors.

One simple method in detoxifying your body is with a tea that is high in antioxidants and specifically formulated to help strengthen your system.  Neal’s Yard Remedies has wonderful products that are natural, eco-friendly, sustainable, cruelty-free and support a wonderfully healthy lifestyle. You can try their Organic Detox Tea with Burdock & Nettle. It’s a cleansing brew to help purify the body that has purifying burdock, nettle and dandelion, with soothing plantain and cleansing red clover to encourage detoxification, improve skin health and boost vitality.

Another great product from Neal’s Yard Remedies is their New Organic Greens Complex which is a Superfood—with purifying chlorella, which helps detoxify and boosts well being. This easy to use organic blend of essential nutrients, vitamins and trace elements is supercharged with goodness to support the gut, brain and building of muscles. Enjoy sprinkled over food, as a tasty smoothie, a nutritious juice booster, or even as a shot. It contains key ingredients such as Spirulina Powder—an antioxidant and promotes vitality. Spinach Powder – Rich in chlorophyll to help maintain a healthy alkaline balance. Parsley Powder – Supports healthy function of the kidneys . Chlorella Powder – Purifying and supports immunity. Seagreens Wild Wrack – Helps support healthy digestion. Barley Grass Powder, Wheat Grass Powder – Raw food source of essential nutrients. Green Tea Powder Extract – Promotes breakdown of fats and also Acerola Cherry Powder Extract
– an excellent source of vitamin C. and Oat Grass Powder – which beneficially promotes the body’s detoxification

A wonderful way to also detox along with food and tea is with a calming bath. There are a few different types of baths you can take to help in detoxifying. A salt bath can help to pull toxins out of the body, as well as provide extra benefits to your skin. You can also try a bath with ginger. You can try grating fresh ginger and put it into the bath or sprinkle in some ginger powder. Ginger increases sweating and helps to pull toxins out, similar to taking a sauna or sitting in a steam room. This in turn causes increased energy, gives you a feeling of warmth and helps with symptoms of an oncoming cold. Another fabulous bath is a Seaweed Detox Bath. Neal’s Yard Remedies makes an amazing detox product called Seaweed & Arnica Foaming Bath, which is restorative when you are overtired. It contains infusions of mineral-rich seaweed, comfrey and arnica with pure essential oils of lemon, pine, juniper and lavender to ease tired muscles.

You can also toss some Epsom salts into the bath to help detox—these help to pull toxins out of your system. The benefits of a detox bath are a more purified and healthy body. You can expect most detox baths to cause you to sweat excessively to pull toxins out, while some use aromatherapy to help relax the mind and detox you by helping to release and let go of worry and stress. Remember to drink plenty of water after a hot bath.

Massage is another rejuvenating and relaxing way to detox and release tension from tired, sore and tense muscles. There are many different types of massage, including Swedish, aromatherapy and deep tissue. However a detox massage is especially good at helping your body to eliminate toxins. It’s an excellent way to help your body get rid of the toxins and pollutants that build up during every day and can help restore your sense of well-being. A detox massage is a type of gentle manipulation that focuses mainly on the lymphatic system of the body. Neal’s Yard Remedies has an excellent product called Detox Toning Oil—great to use when getting a massage— which helps to tone and detoxify the body. It contains essential oils that are used for lymphatic drainage.
Remember to drink lots of water after such a treatment, to help your body flush out the toxins as soon as possible. One important thing to remember is that detoxing to is to help detox your liver and keep it unclogged so it works at its optimum.

A new year is approaching and a healthier you is easily achievable with these simple steps in detoxing your body. The great news is most of these are inexpensive ways to help your body purify itself, while indulging in healthy and natural healing for a better feeling you.

Please log onto this website for a list of products and prices. You can order these through the site and enjoy the benefits of natural and wonderfully aromatic items that you will absolutely love.  

 

Homemade Cough Lollipops

from .freebiefindingmom.com

INGREDIENTS FOR HOMEMADE COUGH LOLLIPOPS
1 C. honey, regular or organic
1 package of Wilton candy sticks
Parchment paper
Large baking sheet
Candy thermometer
Non-stick cooking spray
Ice cubes
Water

DIRECTIONS FOR HOMEMADE COUGH LOLLIPOPS

1. Lay your parchment paper down on the large baking sheet and evenly coat with non-stick cooking spray. This will keep the lollipops from sticking while hardening.

2. Lay the candy sticks down next to each other a few inches a part across the parchment paper.

3. Add a few ice cubes to a small glass and fill with water and set aside.

4. Add the honey into a small saucepan and heat through. Bring to a boil, stirring continuously until the temperature of the honey reaches 300 degrees. You can test this by adding the candy thermometer to the cooking honey.

5. Once the honey has reached 300 degrees you can test the honey by putting a few drops into the ice water. If the honey hardens immediately upon touching the surface of the water you are good to go.

6. Slowly pour the heated honey onto the top portion of the Wilton candy sticks. Use a large spoon if needed.

7. Repeat until all the honey is used.

8. Let the lollipops harden for several hours and then store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Note: I did not set mine in the fridge and they became very sticky overnight.

read more at  http://www.freebiefindingmom.com/honey-flavored-homemade-cough-lollipops/#_a5y_p=2628103

Be Healthy at 100

Most of us would like to live to be 100 or older, provided we could maintain a highly functional body and mind. Of course, being functional is the important thing.

The thought of being confined to a wheelchair, with tubes from an oxygen tank stuck up our nose, or experiencing repeated bouts of angina while recovering from a stroke, or having little or no memory of who we are or where we are, is not exactly the kind of functional living most of us are hoping for.

Research has now shown that we can live to a ripe old age and live it in good health, provided we follow a few simple steps each day. Of course we need to watch our diets, do as much regular exercise as possible, reduce stress at every possible turn, but, we also need to take a few essential supplements that we can’t get from food alone.

Living to a healthy 100+ is truly possible if we try to achieve the following 5 vital health objectives:

1. Keep our arteries open and blood flowing
2. Maintain strength in our bones and muscles
3. Protect DNA from mutations that can lead to cancer
4. Maintain brain chemicals that preserve memory and thinking
5. Keep our hearts pumping with maximum force

1. Keep Our Arteries Open and Blood Flowing

Forty percent of all adults die from heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. In most cases individuals have clogged up their arteries with a fatty-waxy plaque that blocks the flow of blood and deprives vital tissues of the oxygen they need to function.

Once deprived of oxygen, the heart muscle stops pumping (a heart attack), the affected section of the brain stops working (a stroke), gangrene sets into your fingers or toes, and our kidneys can no longer filter blood (and now we need dialysis for the rest of our lives).

How do we keep arteries open and blood flowing?

Most important of all, we need to stop eating foods that clog those arteries in the first place – there is no substitute for this advice!

Reduce or eliminate the intake of:

• Red meat
• Pork
• All milk or yogurt above 1% milk fat
• All cheese above 3% milk fat
• Lard, butter, sour cream, cream, ice cream
• Regular chocolate products
• Egg yolks
• Hydrogenated oils
• Palm or coconut oil

I know that this is very difficult to do for most of us, but start by cutting back on some of these foods and gradually you may be able to cut them out completely.

We should also try to get our total cholesterol level below 3.9 mmol/L (150 mg/dL). If it’s higher than this, then it’s simply too high and we will likely die before our time from clogged arteries or related problems.

One good way to help keep cholesterol levels down and help reduce high cholesterol is to take a supplement containing Gum Guggul andArtichoke Leaf Extract, two ingredients that have been used for thousands of years in Asia.

Clinical studies show that these natural agents clear cholesterol from the bloodstream and flush cholesterol out of the body, without any significant side effects. These supplements can be used in conjunction with cholesterol-lowering drugs if necessary.

To further reduce cholesterol levels, we can add 2 heaping tablespoons of ground flaxseed and/or 2 teaspoons of psyllium husk fiber to our daily fare. Higher consumption of beans, peas and oat bran can also help.

2. Maintain Strength In Our Bones and Muscles

If you’re going to go the distance in life, you must prevent osteoporosis and muscle decay, which gets tricky after 45. As we age there is a decline in the hormones that caused our body to grow, mature, and develop during the years of puberty.

The production of estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, growth hormone, and other hormones all decline significantly after 45 years of age. This allows calcium to leak out of our bones and become excreted in the urine, which leads to bones that are weak and fracture-prone. Additionally, muscle tissue breaks down, causing us to become weak and frail as we grow older.

Note that one in four women and one in eight men over 50 develop osteoporosis in our society, which has life threatening and serious quality of life consequences. All of these problems are preventable. Don’t let this happen to you.

Finding a good supplement with the right blend of bone support nutrients, preferably one that contains calcium, vitamin D, silicon, ipriflavone, and magnesium can help maintain strong bones as we age. Studies have proven that you can prevent osteoporosis using a prudent supplement strategy.

Muscle mass and overall strength can also be maintained into our old age if we stay active, do some resistive exercise, and ingest lean protein each day - at least one gram per day for every kilogram you weigh.

3. Protect DNA From Mutations That Can Lead To Cancer

The National Cancer Institute has stated that 70-90% of all cancers are caused by faulty nutrition and lifestyle behaviors. While genetics are important, lifestyle has much more of an effect on our ultimate outcome in life.

Cancers develop when mutations arise in our DNA. In order to prevent this from happening we need to put practices in place that discourage these mutations from occurring.

There are a number of things we can do to prevent cancerous mutations from occurring:

• Reduce our exposure to free radicals that cause mutations – which means not smoking, limiting alcohol to one drink per day, limiting sun exposure (and tanning beds), reducing intake of foods containing nitrates/nitrites (such as processed meats), charred foods, smoked foods and limiting the number of X-rays and CT-scans.
• Boost our antioxidant intake - antioxidants help neutralize free radicals before they can damage our DNA. A good source of antioxidants comes from fruits and vegetables. To get an adequate amount, we need to eat 5-7 fruit and vegetable servings per day. This alone will lower the incidence of cancer by 50%!
• Another good source of antioxidants can be found in a high potencymultivitamin supplement that contains boosted levels of antioxidants. We just don’t get enough from food alone for optimal protection.
• For general health optimization a good supplement should contain: Vit C - 1,000 mg; Vitamin E Succinate - 400 IU; Selenium - 100-200 mcg; Beta-carotene - 10,000 IU, Vit A - 2,500 IU, Lycopene Powder - 6 mg; Lutein Powder - 6 mg, Bioflavonoids - 50 mg.
• Slow down the rate of cell division – when cells divide too fast they make more genetic mistakes which increases cancer risk.

We can slow down cell division by:

• adhering to a low fat diet
• taking Vitamin D, Vitamin A, Beta-carotene, Lycopene – found in a high potency multivitamin
• minimizing your alcohol intake
• consuming fish twice a week
• taking an essential fatty acid supplement containing borage seed oil, flaxseed oil and fish oil. Essential fats from these sources are converted by the body into unique hormones that slow the rate of cell division and provide other important health benefits.

4. Maintain Brain Chemicals That Preserve Memory

As we age the brain loses its capacity to make certain chemicals required for memory and thinking in general. The brain requires specific B-vitamins to make these important compounds and requires optimal antioxidant protection against free radicals in order to maintain brain health.

Over our lifetime, free radicals cause corrosive effects on the brain that promote a decline in memory and mental performance. So, the first step is to take a high potency multiple vitamin supplement each day that contains a B-50 complex.

People with more optimal B-vitamin and antioxidant status throughout life have been shown to be less prone to mental decline as they age.

However, around the age of 55, the brain’s memory chemical known as acetylcholine begins to decline in production and memory can begin to deteriorate. In order to boost acetycholine levels and maintain nerve transmission function, I suggest taking a brain support supplement that contains some of the natural ingredients that have shown to help.

Nutrients such as CDP choline, Phosphatidylserine, Bacopa Monnieri, and Huperzine “A” have been shown in clinical studies to support memory and cognitive function in older individuals – without any side effects.

5. Keep Our Hearts Pumping With Maximum Force

As we age our heart muscle tends to weaken, which sets the stage for congestive heart failure and other important circulatory problems. We can keep our heart strong by performing endurance exercise - walking, jogging, cycling, etc. - for a minimum of 30 minutes per day, preferably 4 - 5 times per week.

After the age of 45, we would be well advised to take a supplement containing coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and hawthorn as well.

The heart muscle requires CoQ10 to convert food into energy to support the demands of the beating heart - which never gets a break. As we age our bodies make less and less CoQ10, which slowly creates a power shortage in the heart muscle, making the heart weaker and weaker with each year that passes.

Studies show that supplementation with CoQ10 and hawthorn can maintain heart muscle strength. Like CoQ10, hawthorn contains unique flavonoids that help convert food into energy and also improves blood flow within the coronary arteries themselves.

 LINK to healthy meschinohealth

Natural Healthy Aging | Women 55+ | Important Facts | Expert Advice

Dr.James Meschino
Dr. James Meschino, nutritional health expert, provides successful healthy aging strategies for women 55+
Prevention and treat of age related conditions

10 Plant Foods That Could Save Your Life!

by Dr. James Meschino,

A large number of fruits, vegetables, and beans contain certain biological agents that have been shown to help the body reduce risk of cancer, heart disease and other ailments, but, most people just don’t get enough of them.

Some of these foods contain agents that help the body detoxify cancer–causing agents before they can do their damage, or contain unique antioxidants and other natural agents that ward of disease and promote health. Here are a several plant-based foods that should be main staples in your daily diet:

Cruciferous Vegetables

These include broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, bok choy, and turnips. Individuals with high intakes of these vegetables throughout their lifetime show a significant reduction in the risk of colon cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer.

These vegetables contain indole-3-carbinol, which enhances the ability of our detoxification enzymes to neutralize and remove cancer-causing agents from our bodies. Indole-3-carbinol also promotes the conversion of estrone (one of the body’s estrogen hormones) into 2-hydroxy-estrone, which is associated with a reduction in risk of breast cancer, instead of 16-hydroxy-estrone which is associated with an increase in breast cancer.

Studies show that higher levels of 16-hydroxy-estrone tend to increase breast cancer risk by over-stimulating breast cells, whereas 2-hydoxy-estrone is a weaker-acting estrogen which does not over stimulate breast cells and therefore less likely to cause cancer.

Indole-3-carbinol may also block the synthesis of estrone hormone in fat cells, which in turn is associated with a reduction in the risk of breast and prostate cancer.

For all these reasons I believe that cruciferous vegetables are one of the most important foods that you can eat to guard against cancer and to help maintain overall health.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are a rich source of the antioxidant known as lycopene. Higher intakes of lycopene are associated with a significant reduction in prostate cancer and cervical cancer. Lycopene is a sister compound to beta-carotene and is one of many carotenoids found in fruits and vegetables.

Lycopene is the carotenoid that gives tomatoes their red color (also found in pink grapefruit and other red-pink fruits and vegetables). Two very large human studies, The Health Professionals Follow-Up Study and The Physician’s Health Study, showed that higher intakes of lycopene, mostly from tomatoes and tomato products (pasta sauces) and/or higher blood levels of lycopene were associated with lower risk of prostate cancer.

Lycopene has been shown to concentrate in the male prostate gland, where it provides antioxidant protection against free radicals and exhibits other anti-cancer effects. Anti-cancer effects of lycopene have also been shown to be important in the prevention of cervical cancer in women.

Lycopene is a fat-soluble nutrient and therefore, it must be consumed with a bit of fat in order for it to be absorbed from the intestinal tract into the bloodstream. This is why lycopene is best absorbed from pasta sauces (which often contain olive oil) or from salads that are dressed with olive oil-based dressings.

Drinking tomato juice on an empty stomach or consuming tomatoes without fat consumption, results in no lycopene being absorbed from the intestinal tract into the bloodstream. I highly recommend consuming tomatoes or tomato-based products every day, as part of your carbohydrate intake.

Spinach, Asparagus and Other Dark Green Leafy Vegetables

These vegetables contain lutein and zeazanthin, which are two carotenoids that help prevent macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in individuals over the age of 55 in the United States and Canada.

Lutein and zeazanthin concentrate in the back of the eye near the optic nerve (which enables vision to occur). In this role, lutein and zeazanthin quench free radicals induced by sunlight that can otherwise damage the optic nerve, leading to the development of macular degeneration.

Studies show that a higher lifetime intake of lutein and zeazanthin is associated with a lower risk of macular degeneration and cataracts and that lutein and zeazanthin supplementation can help slow the progression of macular degeneration problems, especially when taken along with other antioxidant supplements (Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Selenium, Zinc).

Many dark green vegetables also contain beta-carotene and folic acid. Beta-carotene is an important antioxidant that may help reduce cancer risk, and folic acid is required for normal DNA synthesis in every cell in the body.

Many individuals in North America, who do not take a multivitamin and mineral each day, have been shown to have a marginal deficiency in folic acid, which makes them more prone to certain cancers such as colon and breast and in women of child bearing age, increases the risk of giving birth to a child with a spinal birth defect, such as spina bifida.

Needless to say, consuming these dark green leafy vegetables (not iceberg lettuce) that are nutrient dense should also be part of your daily carbohydrate intake strategy.

Beans, Peas and Lentils

These legumes contain lignans and plant-based sterols, which provide many disease-prevention benefits to the body. Lignans help block the over production of estrone hormone in fat cells, which in turn, is associated with a reduction in breast and prostate cancer.

Plant-based sterols, such as beta-sitosterol, are known to block the conversion of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone and therefore help reduce prostate enlargement which is associated with prostate cancer.

Plant sterols have also been shown to block the replication of certain breast cancer cells, improve immune function, and help keep blood cholesterol in a safe range by blocking the absorption of cholesterol and bile acids from the intestinal tract into the bloodstream.

Beans, peas and lentils also contain the kind of fiber that improves bowel function and keeps it clean, which is thought to reduce risk of colon cancer. This kind of fiber also lowers overall blood cholesterol, which helps prevent heart attack and stroke.

Soybeans and related soy products (tofu, miso soup, soy nuts etc.) contain isoflavones, which are strongly associated with a reduced risk of breast and prostate cancer. 

Onions and garlic are considered allium-containing vegetables, which contain a specialized group of disulfide compounds that demonstrate potent anti-cancer, anti-heart disease, and immune-stimulating properties. As such, higher intake of these vegetables is also associated with reduced risk of many degenerative diseases.

As you can see, nature provides us with these magnificent foods to help our body remain healthy and disease-free. Unfortunately, most people eat too little of these foods to gain the benefits of their protective effects. This fact, combined with eating too much highly processed food, animal fat, transfats and refined sugars, set the stage for many health problems. I suggest that you eat at least one food from each of the above categories each day in order to support your body’s natural defenses against disease.