Rhubarb is not only very easy to come by, but it's jam packed with vitamins, fibre and antioxidants, making it a powerhouse of nutrients. It is one of my fave sources of calcium -- but don't eat too much or you'll be a pooping machine! What I do have for you is this selection of seasonal rhubarb favourites.
We love to rationalize our own behaviour as being OK in moderation. Eating well 80 per cent of the time doesn't balance out with getting that Big Mac at the drive through to reward yourself for eating organic salad all week. It's no longer about 80/20 and moderation. It becomes about making decisions that honour ourselves, our family, our community and our environment.
There are certain things that are welcomed to enjoy in moderation. More fall more into the 'never ever' category. Fast food, diet sodas, and anything comprised of GMO and/or chemistry experiments is part of that. I asked my own UnDiet community of leading nutritionists, health experts, doctors, best selling authors what they would choose as their go-to fast food options.
Passover is a Jewish holiday that extends for eight days, requiring observers to avoid leavened bread. That's the basic rule. No problem. I don't remember the last time I ate leavened bread. Beyond this -- the rules get a little fuzzy. You could join 10 different families for Passover on the same street and have 10 different experiences of what Passover is.
Sustainable vacationing is about choosing a way to have a holiday that will fully support the local community, the environment and the health of both the staff and the guests. These are things we rarely think about when we book that all inclusive package to lay at the beach for a week sipping on daiquiris.
I was both delighted and surprised when I was contacted by a casting agency for a President's Choice TV campaign around their healthier choices Blue Menu products. But "healthier" is not the same as "healthy." I was not the only nutritionist called in for an interview. I was also not the only nutritionist who wasn't willing to put their name or professional reputation behind these products.
Following a night of over indulgence the key to resetting and feeling great as quickly as possible is in hydrating and alkalizing the body. Both sugar, alcohol and most other treats along with a lack of our ideal amount of sleep, will strip the body of vital nutrients and water. Repair from a night of indulgence with a one day re-set cleanse.
Egg nog is gross. Really gross. It is made of cream, sugar, spices and traditionally, raw eggs. For many of you, this might still sound like an amazing holiday treat. For me, it sounds like the makings of a massive hork-worthy-throat-phlegm-wad. Now, my recipe uses Irish Moss (also known as Sea Moss), to give it that creamyness and this super sea veggie actually has the absolute opposite effect.
Family events can be tough and you don't have to be a vegetarian or a vegan to recognize that the typical Thanksgiving meal is heavy. My best advice, therefore, is to stick with the side dishes. Choose carefully and load up on the lighter options, taking small portions of the heavier, more decadent delights. Here are some of my favourite Thanksgiving Feast creations -- season appropriate, taste-bud delighting and wonderfully health promoting.
Going into a health food store is daunting -- even for me. There is just so much stuff, so many labels, so many claims. Multiply that by a hundred and that is what the annual Canadian Health Food Association's Trade Show is like. Out of the loads of products I taste tested, reps that I chatted with, and packaging I scrutinized, a few products stood out.
Every single year we know that this is cold and flu season and instead of doing what we need to do, we just sit and wait for it plough us over. It's the germ that gets us but our own terrain that sets the stage to welcome in the germ. There are some crazy simple things we can start doing now to help ward off the autumn cold so that instead of calling in sick, we can call in healthy and go out and play.
"Orthorexia nervosa - obsessed with eating to improve your health" defined "orthorexia" as "a new type of eating disorder [...] where people are becoming obsessed with eating to improve their health." Uh... where does that leave you and I? I have often said that we could only be so lucky to be named "the healthy one" by those around us.
I am all for people making the decisions that best suit their needs, but what happens when they start imposing their decisions, ones that may not be in the name of health and optimal brain functioning, on their children? Like giving them a Coke a day. Kids don't need a sugar caffeine cocktail. Neither do adults.