The Master Key of Maintaining Health is Alkalinity

 



The very definition of "diet" means to restrict oneself to small amounts or special kinds of food in order to lose weight. Many times we go on a "diet" with the intention of eventually going off of it to get back to normal eating. But in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, we have to change the mindset where eating well is only temporary.

After going through a 21 day juice fast of eating one healthy meal and juicing breakfast and dinner, I felt so fantastic that I realized most of my health ailments were food related. The culprits were gluten, dairy, caffeine, sugar, corn syrup, artificial flavors and colors, preservatives, and GMOs. The difference was like night and day. One slip up and the ailments were back. Then I found out about pH balance - acidosis vs. alkalinity - and this has become my key to maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

 

Some days when I feel off (because of cross contamination at a restaurant or from not having enough leafy greens), I test my pH balance with a litmus strip and find that my blood pH is pretty low.  Our bodies continually strive to be at a pH balance of 7.35; it knows we must remain there to survivie. But the Standard American Diet is far from alkaline with its emphasis on meat, bread, dairy and sugar, which are all acidic. How can we counter this acidity? For one thing, we must be aware of what we should be eating, and then be prepared ahead so we don't fall into the habit of "grabbing a bite". This can be overwhelming if you don't have a plan. Think of your plate as 70% alkaline foods and 30% acid foods, instead of the other way around.

 

For me, the key is alkalinity. If 70% of what I eat is alkaline, that pretty much dictates what kinds of things I can eat. In my old way of thinking I would plan meals around my protein and starch, and then throw in a little vegetable to round it out. Unfortunately, proteins and starches usually consist of the acidic foods, whereas the vegetables and fruits are the alkaline ones. This meant I had to re-think the way I planned my meals. Now I plan mostly vegetable meals and add in a little protein and starch. According to the USDA, a person of my age and gender only needs 50 grams of protein a day. I had it backwards. Now when I look at my "plate", I want to see 70% of it vegetable and a little fruit, 15% protein (meat, fish, beans, or nuts), and 15% starch (rice, potato, pasta). This took some getting used to; but since I love to cook, it's been a fun challenge. One difficulty has been changing my lunches to consist of something other than a sandwich. I think I've been eating a sandwich for lunch my whole life. That was a hard habit to break. It's just so convenient. Now I prepare an alkaline lunch enough for two or three days so it's all ready, otherwise I just want to "grab" whatever's convenient - and that's not usually alkaline. I have a chart posted in my kitchen to remind me of what to keep on hand. According to the Happy Herbalist these are some of the alkaline and acidic foods to keep in mind. http://www.happyherbalist.com/alkaline_acid_balance.htm

 

Highly Alkaline

Beans String, Banana speckled, Dandelion greens, Dates, Figs, Prune, Raisins, Swiss Chard.

High Alkaline

Almonds, Avocado, Banana-Yellow, Bean Fresh, Beet, Blackberries, Carrot, Chives, Cranberries, Endive, Grapes Sour, Kale, Peach dried (org), Persimmon, Pomegranate, Plum, Raspberries (org), Spinach.
Neutral Oils

Cold Pressed, Expeller Pressed, Almond, Avocado, Coconut, Linseed, Olive, Safflower, Sesame, Sunflower, Walnut.
Alkaline

Agar, Alfalfa (org), Apple & Fresh Apple Cider (org), Apricot fresh, Artichokes globe, Bamboo shoots, Bean snap, Beans sprouted, Berries most (org), Blueberries, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cantaloupe, Cauliflower, Celery, Cherries, Chestnuts, Chicory, Coconut Milk, Collards, Corn fresh and sweet (org), Cucumbers (org), Daikon, Eggplant, Escarole, Garlic, Ginger root, Gooseberry, Grapefruit, Guava, Horseradish fresh and raw, Kelp, Kohlrabi, Leek, Lemon and Peel, Lettuce, Lime, Loganberry, Mango, Melons, Milk raw, Acidophilus Yogurt, Whey.

Highly Acid

Alcohol, Artichoke root, Barley, Bread, Buckwheat, Caffeine, Coffee, Corn, Custards, Drugs, Flour-all, Ginger preserved, Honey, Lentil dry, Mate, Millet, Oatmeal, Peanuts, Rice-all, Rye Grain, Soy Bread, Soy noodles, Sorghum, grain, Spaghetti and other Pasta, Beet Sugar, Sugar Cane, raw beet, Tobacco, Walnut (English), Wheat grain.

Acid

Asparagus, Beans dried, Cashews, Coconut dried, Cranberry Juice and concentrate, Egg yolk, Filbert, Fruit Jellies (Jams Canned, Sulphured, Sugared, Dried), Grapes Sweet, Pasteurized Milk Products, Dry Peas, Pecans, Plums Damson, Tofu fries, Water-chestnuts.
Acid Fats

Butter, Cream, Margarine, Lard.
 

According to Webster's Dictionary, "Habits are routines of behavior that are repeated regularly and tend to occur subconsciously, without one being conscious about them".

During the 21 day juice fast I was able to establish some good habits and break some bad ones. Now when I get up in the morning and grab a lemon to squeeze into a glass of spring water, I realize I've formed a habit - one that I want to keep. Other habits I want to keep are to juice once a day, continue exercising, continue to plan out weekly meals, package juice ingredients, keep healthy snacks in my car so I don't have to use a "drive through", and spend a good part of one day prepping food - like making homemade stock, or cooking quinoa for the week.

But there are also habits I used to have which I want to break and lose for good. Things like drinking coffee every morning. I've substituted the "hands wrapped around a mug" with hot tea instead. Needing starch or bread at every meal is gone as well as a daily or weekly dessert. I've substituted the need for chips and a sandwich, with carrots and hummus and a collard wrap. The more I eliminate breads and sugary foods altogether, the easier they are to resist. I get my sweet fix now from fresh and dried fruit. While all these changes did not happen overnight, they are all helping to keep my blood pH alkaline. Now when I'm feeling "off" and I check my lipmus paper, I know exactly what foods to eat to get back on track.

A few foods to add to your weekly regime could be: quinoa with cooked broccoli and slivered almonds; quinoa with sauteed zucchini, onions and garlic; or apple waldorf salad over baby kale with a lemon, honey and oil dressing. Fresh fruit, almonds, and dates are great snacks, as well as celery with almond butter and raisins (ants on a log) or almond butter on apple slices.

For breakfast, try using almond milk instead of cow's milk - there's a wide range of different brands and flavors. Also, if you eat oatmeal, try mixing it in with quinoa and then add raisins, slivered almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, cinnamon and grated apple or pomegranate seeds.

The more alkaline you become, the better you'll feel and the more your body will be able to ward off disease, from the common cold to cancer. Why not go ahead and try it. You're worth it, you know.
 

Here's an alkaline recipe adapted from Bon Appetit to get you started:

Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large English cucumber, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
2/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
2 scallions, thinly sliced

Bring quinoa, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes. Let stand, uncovered, for 5 minutes to evaporate out all of the water. Spread out on a cookie sheet to cool.

Whisk lemon juice and garlic in a small bowl. Gradulaly whisk in olive oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

When quinoa is cool, transfer to a large bowl; mix in half of the dressing.

Add cucumber, tomatoes, herbs, and scallions to bowl with quinoa; toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle remaining dressing over and stir. Serve on a bed of fresh baby spinach.

Happy alkalizing.

Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/06/quinoa-tabbouleh#ixzz1ve9spZpO

 

My Yearly Detox Juice Fast

January is as good a time as any to clean out your system, mainly because it follows Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and many other holiday celebrations where food is invited in abundance. Last year I followed the 21-day detox according to the Clean book, by Dr. Alejandro Junger, and it changed my life. I got rid of toxins, pain, and weight. So here I am a year later and am ready for a follow up visit.

The first thing I've done is clean out the kitchen of holiday goodies. I'VE THROWN AWAY THE COOKIES. "What!!!" You say? That's right. The only other way to get rid of them is to eat them, so.... bye bye sugar.

The next thing is, I've found my Clean book and I'll be reviewing it to refresh my memory, but also to keep me in motivation mode. It's really important for me to get my head in gear so that once I start I'll have no excuses to turn back or "cheat". Perhaps I'll also re-watch one of my favorite food documentaries: "Hungry For Change", "Fat Sick and Nearly Dead", or "Forks Over Knives". We humans get ourselves excited and motivated but then it tends to trail off. So we need to refresh our memories - often.

The third important thing I'll do is find some "Clean" recipes that I can live with, at least 7 for starters, to get me through the first week of lunches. Throughout the past year I've had a keen eye out for "Clean" recipes, so I've got a few up my sleeve. There are also some in the book. Then I'll be making a shopping list. I've also collected a few juicing recipe books so I think I'll glance through those and pick out some favorites for my grocery list.

The fourth thing on my "to do" list is to eliminate the "no-no" foods from the house and from my brain. Over the past year some of these foods crept back into my diet, so I'll be eliminating them again for the 21-day detox. One of the purposes of eliminating these foods was to see if any of my health issues were, in fact, allergic reactions to food. It was a great surprise, and relief, to find that I was indeed allergic to gluten and dairy. My life changed dramatically for the better after permanently eliminating these.

YES INCLUDE THESE FOODS	NO EXCLUDE THESE FOODS
FRUITS: whole fruits, unsweetened, frozen or water-packed, diluted natural juices	Oranges, orange juice, grapefruit, strawberries, grapes, bananas
DAIRY SUBSTITUTES: rice, nut milks such as almond milk and coconut milk	Dairy and eggs, milk, cheese, cottage cheese, cream, yogurt, butter, ice cream, nondairy creamers, canned coconut milk
NON-GLUTEN GRAINS AND STARCH: brown rice, millet, quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat	Wheat, corn, barley, spelt, kamut, rye, couscous, oats
ANIMAL PROTEIN: cold water fish, wild game, lean lamb, duck, chicken, turkey	Raw fish, pork, beef, veal, sausage, cold cuts, canned meats, hot dogs, shellfish
VEGETABLE PROTEIN: split peas, lentils, legumes	Soybean products (soy sauce, soybean oil in processed foods, tempeh, tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, etc.)
NUTS AND SEEDS: sesame, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews, walnuts, nut and seed butters (organic)	Peanuts, peanut butter, pistachios, macadamia nuts
VEGETABLES: preferably fresh, raw, steamed, sautéed, juiced, roasted	Corn, creamed vegetables, tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers, sweet potatoes
OILS: cold pressed olive, flax, safflower, sesame, almond, sunflower, pumpkin, walnut, coconut	Butter, margarine, shortening, processed oils, salad dressings, mayonnaise, spreads
DRINKS: filtered water, green tea, herbal teas, seltzer or mineral water, yerba mate	Alcohol, coffee, caffeinated beverages, soda pop, soft drinks
SWEETENERS: organic brown rice syrup, organic agave nectar, stevia	Refined sugar, white or brown sugars, honey, maple syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, evaporated cane juice, Splenda, Equal, Sweet ‘N Low, etc.
CONDIMENTS: vinegar, all-spice, sea salt, dried pepper, basil, carob, cinnamon, cumin, dill, garlic, ginger, mustard, oregano, parsley, rosemary, turmeric, thyme, raw cacao, small amounts of miso, small amounts of wheat-free tamari	Chocolate, ketchup, relish, chutney, soy sauce barbecue sauce, teriyaki sauce, other similar condiments

And the last thing I'll do is indulge in my favorites - a glass of wine here, some peanut butter there - just one last time before a 21-day hiatus. Not everything on the "no-no" list is forever banned, but I do eliminate them just for the cleanse. Who knows, maybe I'll find that something else is wreaking havoc to my system and needs to be furrowed out. After all, my goal here is to be and feel as healthy as possible, so I WANT to find the culprits.

I'll be doing the elimination portion for the next week, and then start the actual 21-day detox on Friday, January 11, 2013. Please come and travel with me on my journey in search of better food for better health. I wish you all a happy and HEALTHY New Year.

A Gluten Free Dairy Free Vacation

The Enemy is a Robber of Joy, So With That Perspective in Mind, I Needed a Quick Re-Allignment

 

 

You've heard it say that the anticipation of vacation is half the fun. In vacations past, much of my anticipation was imagining delicious sweet and savory treats from around the world. My vacations were a culinary delight. Searching for wineries, cooking classes and great restaurants. Also, making sure I could get my hands on a kitchen in order to cook with regional foods have always been part of my anticipatory pleasure of planning.

 

A few months ago, however, my world turned upside down and my view of food has turned from "living to eat" to "eating to live". It definitely changes one's focus on vacation planning. Now, more than ever, I need to focus on food - but for different reasons.

 

This time the planning stage was pretty extensive. I figured the more I planned the less thinking I'd have to do while on vacation. So, I started with a personal travel guide. His name is "Mr. Google". All I had to do was let him know some magic words, and a plethora of culinary options were at my disposal. My first suggestion to Mr. Google was a B&B in the town where we planned to stay. The magic words were "gluten free B&B in Cape May, NJ" and "voila", The Mason Cottage Victorian B&B appeared.

Patti, the Innkeeper, had written a blog seemingly just for me. It was titled, "For All Our Vegetarian, Vegan and Gluten Free Guests". Well, that was the start of the "anticipation" of my topsy turvy vacation.

I have to admit, up to that point, I was not looking forward to any vacation. Simply because I was anticipating too much thought on where to find foods I could eat instead of simply finding delicious regional temptations to enjoy. But once I had at least breakfast taken care of, it gave me courage to investigate further.

 

The next thing I did was to do some mega cooking so at least one other meal could be gluten and dairy free. I spent the Saturday before we left planning, cooking and storing meals. I have to admit it was tiring, but I was happy during the week when I didn't have to use brain space for, "Now what am I going to eat".

Next, I asked my "travel guide, Mr. Google" to find gluten free restaurants in Cape May. There were a few that had gluten free menus, but one really caught my eye; it was called "Higher Grounds". It is an organic cafe which offers vegan, vegetarian and gluten free foods. YAY. It turned out to be a wonderful find. We were able to frequent it a few times and enjoyed lunch or organic coffee and cookies on their Garden Patio. We even enjoyed playing a game of chess while waiting for our food. An added blessing was the owners/servers were very amiable, knowledgeable, friendly and encouraging. We spent a couple pleasant afternoons there.

 

When we first arrived, we went to a restaurant that was supposedly gluten free friendly, but they simply took out ingredients that I couldn't have without replacing it with anything else. What I ended up with was expensive, plain tasting food. At this point I felt going on vacation was a mistake. My high anticipatory expectations came tumbling down and I had a good cry and spent a couple hours under the covers. This is when I realized that the enemy was trying to ruin  my vacation. The problem was, I was letting him.

 

 

So, I put on my Pollyanna face and forced myself to count my blessings. Come to find out there were many more happy things in my life that didn't need to be overshadowed by a couple of food allergies. I realized I needed to change my focus on enjoyments other than food (not easy when you're a foodie) - like chatting with some wonderful people who were also guests of the B&B, during tea time. Enjoying delicious specially made gluten free dairy free cookies that Patti, the Innkeeper, had made speciallly for me AND she gave me the recipe! (There I go again, getting excited about food - or maybe it was that it was baked with kindness. Yes, that must be it.)

 

Thumbprint Cookies

From Patti from The Mason Cottage, Cape May, NJ

Makes about 30 cookies

Fill these oat and nut cookies with your favorite fruit juice sweetened jam. Or just leave in a ball and roll in organic powdered sugar once they're cooled.

Ingredients

1 cup almonds or pecans
1 cup gluten free rolled oats
1 cup gluten free flour blend
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
Fruit juice sweetened organic jam OR 1/2 cup organic powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Put almonds and oats into a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Transfer to a large bowl and add flour, oil, syrup and salt. Stir to combine well. Roll walnut-sized balls of the dough in the palm of your hand to form each cookie, then arrange on 2 large baking sheets, spacing cookies 2 inches apart. Press your thumb gently down into the center of each cookie to make an indentation. Spoon a scant teaspoon of jam into each indentation. OR leave in a ball shape (when they're cool, roll in powdered sugar).

Bake cookies until golden brown and just firm around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack to let cool completely, then serve immediately or store between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container.

 

 Also, the weather a couple of days was gorgeous and my honey and I were able to explore the enchanting town of Cape May.

 

I'm not sure I've perfected the art of "eating to live" instead of "living to eat", especially during vacation; but I have learned that focusing on those who love me, on meeting new people, and enjoying the blessings God has placed in my path are where my focus needs to be in order to enjoy my future vacations - and well, life in general, yes?

 

 

 

 

Are You Kidding? Who Has Time To Cook Healthy?

 

Exasperated? Overwhelmed? Too busy? Frustrated? Dumbfounded? Tired?

 

Do these feelings flood over you on a daily basis? Put on the brakes. Grab a cup of tea and let's have a heart to heart. Did you know that a few minutes of planning can save you hours of time and brain space each day/week/month?

 

When I get overwhelmed with all I have to do, I grab my notebook and pencil and start writing it all down. Somehow the act of brain to paper unloads my heavy burden as I attempt to tame my day. Once the page is full I give each task an ETA (Estimated Time of Accomplishment) and then add up the minutes on the page. This tells me whether my duties outweigh the hours. Another words, can I actually get it all done? If not, I see if there's anything I can move to the next day. Then I give each duty a number of importance and a time frame.

 

30 min. - 7:00-7:30 - Lemon "tea", email and FB
45 min. - 7:30-8:15 - Work out
30 min. - 8:15-8:45 - Water garden
30 min. - 8:45-9:15 - Shower and dress
15 min. - 9:15-9:30 - Eat breakfast
30 min. - 9:30-10:00 - Meditation
30 min. - 10:00-10:30 - Clean kitchen
15 min. - 10:30-10:45 - Choose recipes
15 min. - 10:45-11:00 - Make ingredient list
90 min. - 11:00-12:30 - Grocery shop
60 min. - 12:30-1:30 - Make and eat lunch
60 min. - 1:30-2:30 - Put away groceries
10 min. - 2:30-2:40 - Make quinoa and rice
60 min. - 2:40-3:40 - Prep vegetables and put away

4:00 tea

10 min. - 3:40-3:50 - Prep carrot lemonade juice veggies
10 min. - 3:50-4:00 - Prep beet juice veggies
10 min. - 4:00-4:10 - Prep lemonade fruits for juice
10 min. - 4:10-4:20 - Prep Kale apple juice veggies
30 min. - 4:20-4:50 - Tea and snack time. Answer emails.
60 min. - 4:50-5:50 - Clean kitchen
55 min. - 5:50-6:45 - Plan gluten free recipes for cooking class
75 min. - 6:45-8:00 - Pizza with hubby
13 hours
 

Lately, this has been necessary since I now must make all my food from scratch. Being gluten and dairy intolerant means I can't rely on quick food fixes anymore. Priorities have shifted. So, I thought I would share "A day in the life of a gluten free, dairy free chef".

 

Today is grocery shopping day. The first thing on my list:

1. Choose 7 recipes (1 or 2 new; the rest from my Keeper binder)

 

I have 2 three-ring binders. One I fill with new recipes found online or in magazines or cookbooks that I would like to try. The other is filled with "Keepers" - those recipes which I've tried and which taste good (very important to taste good).

 

I finally have at least 14 recipes which both I and my husband like, so these have become a 14-day rotation. In a month's time we only  have to eat each recipe twice. Again, a time saver since I don't have to rethink "what's for dinner" every night.

 

Next, I make an ingredient list from my seven chosen recipes.

2. Make ingredient list

 

If you're crunched for time this step can be eliminated. Just take the 7 recipes with you to the grocery store and check ingredients as you shop. Not as efficient, but doable.

 



Left overs

Next, of course, is to get the groceries.

3. Grocery shopping

This usually takes me an hour in the store, plus travel time. It's better if my refrigerator is cleaned out (eat all leftovers the night before) to make room for new stuff; and if my counters are cleared.

 

Groceries bought and back home. Now it's time for efficiency.

 

I eat a lot of quinoa since it's gluten free, a complete protein by itself, and is an alkaline food. Since it will stay fresh cooked for the week, I check all recipes, see how much I need, and make it all at once.
 

4. Make quinoa for the week, cool, then refrigerate

 

I do the same with rice (brown or black, depending on the recipes chosen).
 

5. Make rice for the week


 

Another way to save time is to prepare all vegetables needed for your recipes at once: peel carrots, scrub potatoes, wash celery, chop onions, scrub beets, cut and wash Brussels sprouts and broccoli. Once you get going, you get on a roll. If time permits, you could also put vegetables away grouped according to the recipe.

 



5 pound bag of carrots scrubbed and ready to package

6. Prep vegetables and put away
 

 

Since I usually juice at least once a day, I also prepare juice ingredients and package them in ziploc bags per recipe.

 

7. Carrot lemonade: Wash 6 carrots, 1/2 small lemon, 1 apple, 1 stalk of celery - ziploc it. Make two.
 

8. Beet juice: Scrub 1 small beet, wash 1 large cucumber, cut a 2" piece of fresh peeled ginger, cut pineapple in quarters - ziploc it. Make 2

9. Pink lemonade: wash 2 apples, wash 1 small lemon, scrub 1/4 beet - ziploc it. Make 2

10. Kale apple juice: wash 10 kale leaves, wash 1 apple, wash 1 cucumber, 1/2 whole lemon - ziploc it.

 

Now all seven juices are ready for the week - no more thinking required.

 

Another time saving tip I've found is to make sure I make twice as much for dinner as we need from each recipe, then we have leftovers for lunch the next day. Double for your trouble.

 

Wow, lots of prepping done. As a reward, it's time to order pizza out. Yup, I can get a gluten free, no cheese, delicious, vegetable pizza down the street at Stone and Paddle where one of my sons works. Sometimes I get a quick visit with him if he's not too busy.

 

Every time I'm able to do this prep routine at the beginning of my week, it leaves lots of brain space left for the rest of daily living, like blogging, teaching cooking classes, and making new recipes.

Now let me hear from you. What timesavers have you found helpful to make your life less overwhelming?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From a "3-Letter Word" to a "5-Letter Word"

“They” say that as your body gets older it breaks down and falls apart; you should expect it. It’s the process of getting “OLD”. When I hear someone express that philosophy I think of my mother who hated that “3-Letter Word”. She truly believed that you were as young as you felt, and she always felt great. It was her mindset. She lived her life to the fullest, even to the last.

So as the chronological clock ticked on and years were added to years, my body seemed to “fall apart” with sinus issues, forgetfulness, achy joints, and bad knees – you know how it goes. I wondered if the inevitable "3-Letter Word" had come to pay a permanent visit.

 

The first thing I did was pray and ask my Heavenly Father to heal my body; then I went to the doctor. Doctors ask their typical questions to find where the pain is and then relieve symptoms with pills and surgery; and my doctor did not disappoint. After the question period, the poking, and the x-rays, he told me I had “chronic” tendonitis of which, of course, there was no cure; “chronic” being the operative word. Because you see, once something is dubbed chronic, the patient is at the doctor’s mercy since “there is no cure”. I was told I must learn to live with it. He actually used the dreaded “3-Letter Word”. He assured me, however, that there were things which he could prescribe which could ease the pain.

Really!!! For the rest of my life? I’m not sure at what age you label someone with the dreaded “3-Letter Word”; but I considered myself still pretty young. I wasn’t even a grandmother yet! At that moment in the doctor’s office I realized I did not want to spend the rest of my life fighting pain, limiting activity, and taking myriads of pills, with surgery the only thing to look forward to. So, I began one of my favorite hobbies – to educate myself.

A friend of mine introduced me to the book Clean, by Dr. Alejandro Junger. As I read his book I was intrigued by the philosophy that toxins caused us pain and weight gain. The weight gain was caused because toxins were stored in fat. Without getting rid of toxins, one couldn’t get rid of fat. Seemed simple enough; but what were the toxins? According to Junger, toxins came from four different areas: 1) the world at large; 2) the environment in which we live; 3) personal hygiene and home products; 4) and what we put into our mouths. In fact, he said certain foods could be toxic to us; things like high fructose corn syrup, white sugar, gluten and diary, even caffeine. He encouraged his readers to go on an “elimination/detox diet” eliminating many of these allergenic and toxic foods for 21 days. So, I decided to give it a try. After all what could it hurt, and maybe I would even lose a few pounds.

First, I needed to eliminate the “no-no” foods: things like gluten, dairy-including cheese and yogurt, caffeine, the night shades, anything pre-prepared, wheat products (pasta, bread, muffins, donuts) etc. Once I was cleaned out, I started the actual juicing part of the diet where you juice breakfast and dinner and have a sensible lunch with lots of greens. Amazingly after only 10 days or so, my joint pain vanished, I had no more mucus/sinus problems and I had an amazing amount of energy. At that point I realized that my health issues were, in fact, food related.

Once I finished the three weeks of juicing, I began to add back one food at a time to find out which ones were the culprit. The first one I added back was gluten. Sure enough my joint pain immediately resurfaced. I eliminated it again and waited a few days for the pain to subside; then I tried dairy. Again, the mucus and sinus pain returned. I continued with other foods, one at a time; but some foods I have permanently left out - besides the gluten and dairy - such as white sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and processed foods.

During those first few months I kept motivated by four factors. One was that I was losing a half a pound a day (total of 42 pounds). Even though pain was my main motivation, it’s amazing how finally being able to lose weight keeps you pressing forward. The second factor was how many other pains and discomforts also vanished from my body in such a short amount of time – I counted a total of 20. My energy level increased, the foggy brain disappeared as well as allergy symptoms, and I feel and look younger. Another factor which helped to keep me motivated was watching documentaries such as, "Hungry For Change", "Forks Over Knives", and "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead". These films helped to make me aware of the food industry - Big Pharma, Big Agriculture, The Dairy Industry, and Meat Industry and how much of the food industry works - not for our well being and health - but for their profit. Once you see the big picture, it helps to keep you going on the daily level when sometimes you want to revert back. But the most rewarding to me was watching those around me - my family, friends, and even acquaintances - see what had happened to me and want the change for themselves. After just a few months, I witnessed numerous others not only lose hundreds of pounds collectively, but drop unnecessary medications, and once again pursue active healthy lifestyles.

As I reflect back over my journey so far, I'm first of all amazed that my Heavenly Father did hear my cry and heal me. What I've learned from this is that He had already provided for the healing in creating an amazing body full of cells which knew just what to do to eliminate fat, toxins, and disease. It was me who had not allowed my body to do its job because of what I was feeding it. I am very thankful that He answered my prayer by opening the door of knowledge which allowed me to more fully understand how His system worked so I could then take back my health and allow my body to do the job it was designed to do. 

 

Now I have to get on with the job of living out my new favorite saying, "You're as YOUNG as you feel" - which, by the way, is a "5-letter word".