It seems you can’t stroll down the aisles of your local supermarket these days without stumbling across a super food (which is great news, don’t get me wrong!) Chances are good you’ve had an encounter or two with chia seeds but haven’t had a clue what they are or why you should throw them in your trolley.
I’m here to tell you that chucking a packet of two into your basket might not be a bad idea. There are a million and one (slight exaggeration but close) ways to integrate the humble chia seed into your diet and reap the rewards that this little powerhouse has to offer.
So why should you get on the seed train? For starters, chia is packed full of nutrients. Super high in fibre, Omega 3, antioxidants, calcium, iron, potassium and vitamin C, this gluten free seed is also incredibly high in protein. It’s not often that plant based forms of protein are given the ‘complete protein’ tick (meaning they contain 8 essential amino acids for healthy growth and development) but chia manages it.
A tablespoon a day is the recommended daily intake, though you may find you need a little more or less in some recipes.
Keen to start getting your chia on? Try one of these easy ways to effortlessly include it in your life.
– In a smoothie – Adding a tablespoon of chia to your smoothie will not only add all the aforementioned nutrients, it will also help thicken up the mixture, making it more thickshake than milkshake.
– On your cereal – If you’re a fan of muesli or porridge in the mornings, add a spoonful to the mix before adding your milk. The taste is mild enough not to […]
5 Easy Ways With Chia Seeds
A Beginners Guide To Gluten Free
When you embark on a detox program (like our Community Detox), it is likely that you will be told to avoid gluten. In fact, eating gluten free has become somewhat fashionable, with many people claiming to feel better when they avoid it. But what’s so bad about gluten anyway?
Gluten is a protein which is found in wheat, rye, barley, triticale, oats, and ancient wheat grains like spelt and kamut. This protein is difficult for some people to digest. In mild cases this can manifest as bloating or rumbling tummy, but in serious allergies it can cause immediate and intense symptoms.
What’s the difference between a gluten allergy and an intolerance?
With a food allergy, the body’s immune system gets involved and mistakenly identifies the food as being a foreign invader. The immune response can produce rashes, inflammation, digestive symptoms, and in severe cases, anaphylaxis. With food allergies the symptoms usually begin soon after eating the food. Coeliac disease falls under the banner of food allergies.
Food intolerances often start out as milder symptoms which become more serious over time. These symptoms occur due to the inability of the body to properly digest the food. If left untreated, even a mild gluten intolerance can take its toll on the body, causing damage to the digestive system.
What symptoms have been linked with gluten allergy/intolerance?
Symptoms include:
eczema, hives, rashes and acne
reflux, bloating and heavy feeling in the stomach after eating
irritable bowel, gas, diarrhea, constipation
asthma, runny nose, blocked ears, sinus troubles
joint pain and stiffness
foggy brain, headaches and fatigue
depression and anxiety
Isn’t a gluten free diet just for coeliacs?
No! Just because you’re not coeliac doesn’t mean that it’s all smooth sailing. Gluten intolerance is different to coeliac disease, and won’t show up on a […]
GalleryTechnology – help or hindrance?
On one side of this debate we have people screaming that technology has led to our uber sedentary lifestyles and that it is a prevalent reason for the current state of our youths’ health. According to livestrong.com obesity rates in children have tripled in the past 20 years and is believed to be due to high calorie consumption and limited activity/exercise. “Teens manipulate a joystick instead of a baseball bat. The television has become a constant companion, replacing outside play” (Livestrong.com).
It’s also been shown that children’s excessive use of video games and other sedentary activities are impacting on the sensory development of our youth. Putting on my speechie hat now, we have also seen a huge increase in the number of early intervention clients coming through the clinic as books are replaced with movies, play time replaced with apps and verbal interactions are fast being replaced with typed/visual interactions. But before we sharpen our pitchforks and declare an outright war on the Technology Industry, let’s have a look at the benefits it brings when utilised in a controlled environment.
I used to be on the ‘anti’ bandwagon. Thinking that my health was deteriorating because of the new fandango age I was growing up in and believing that the lure of sitting down at the computer with a cuppa, a muffin and a good facebook stalk was just too strong. Hold the phone…rather than focusing on technologies that may be detrimental to our health (ie. losing hours on facebook; sitting instead of moving etc). These are just SOME of the amazing ways that technology is revolutionizing the health and wellness community.
+ The blog world. Oh holy tolitoes. Healthy information, recipes, workouts and motivation are but a […]
GalleryHow To Treat Thrush Naturally & Successfully
I’m not going to sugar coat it; thrush is kind of unpleasant. And by ‘kind of’ I mean ‘very’ and by ‘unpleasant’ I mean ‘hideously gross.’ I don’t know about you, but personally, it’s one of the those things that makes me roll my eyes and get cranky with my body for allowing itself to fall out of balance and contract such a condition.
Unfortunately, getting cranky doesn’t really solve the problem and while shifting the blame to your body might make you feel better momentarily, it also causes us to conveniently forget the fact that perhaps it’s something we’re doing that’s causing the imbalance to occur (sometimes repeatedly).
An outbreak of thrush and subsequent trip to the pharmacy will usually see you leaving, laden down with pessary’s and creams, usually with names like Nilstat and Canesten. These products are designed to both soothe and treat the symptoms, therefore neutralizing the problem. Unfortunately, they don’t actively work to restore the good bacteria needed to prevent another outbreak occurring and they use some pretty intensive chemical compounds to achieve their goal.
After a recent outbreak of the dreaded ‘T’, I decided I wanted to try and do things a bit different this time. I was growing mighty tired of products that seemed to put a bandaid over the problem, without ever really eradicating it entirely.
A little bit of research pointed me in the right direction and I came up with my own treatment plan. And I’m happy to say that it worked extremely effectively. I’m certainly not a trained medical professional, so what worked for me may not work for you, but if you’re keen on trying something before hitting the chemist, give one of the below a […]
Introducing Another Hottie Contributor!
Another wonderful energy to join my team is Emily Meagher, a 24 year old Speech Pathologist and Health Junkie from WA. Emily’s blog, Bless This Mess, is a beautiful collection of delicious food inspiration and recipes with a refreshing taste of youthful exuberance. Her writing makes me smile and her enthusiasm is contagious. Emily will share with us her “buzz” words which will cover the latest Superfoods, exercise crazes and hot health topics. I will let her introduce herself.
Oh hello there lovely ones!
As you might start to see my face popping up occasionally on this blog, I thought I’d take the opportunity to introduce myself and give you a chance to get to know the woman behind the words.
I’m Emily, a 24 year old south west WA dwelling lady, who is passionate about all things health, wellness and happiness. By day I’m a full time speech pathologist and by night (or every other possible second I can spare) I am nose deep in a health book or pluggin’ away at posts for my blog. I’m a whole food eating, back bending yoga loving, sweat chasing and affirmation chanting wellness junkie. I adore spreading the wellness message and encouraging young women to live their fullest, healthiest and happiest lives possible. About 5 years ago a spark was lit and I became engrossed in all things health and wellness. Ever since I can remember, I have dreamed, wished, played, talked, worked and strived for becoming the very best version of myself.
I’m the perfect human example of a yin and yang symbol. I still have my slip ups, I still engage in not so healthy behaviours, I still order a wine or a gelato with my friends […]
Welcome to my New Team!
I am so excited to announce I now have a team of highly motivated and knowledgable women who will be writing fabulous articles for my website. After screening a sea of applications, I have chosen six gorgeous hotties who will cover everything health related. From an expert on PCOS, to a children’s health specialist and also a mummy blogger who moonlights as a freelance parenting writer, we have all your needs covered!
Each week they will be posting their wisdom and expertise and we would love to know if you have any topics we need to cover. Please shoot over to my Facebook page and shout your request out loud as we will address your needs!
Over the next two weeks I will be introducing the team and posting their informative articles. Drum roll please ladies!!!
The Team
Kelly Gibson – Naturopath who specialises in natural children’s healthcare
Lauren Edwards – PT turned health coach as well as nutritionist in the making, she knows a thing or two about weight loss!
Emily Meagher – our youthful chickie babe who will keep us in the loop of the latest buzzwords and fads
Naomi Cotterill – a fellow mummy who is also a talented journalist
Dr Rebecca Harwin – a very experienced Chiro who specialises in polycystic ovarian syndrome
Jules Galloway – a passionate naturopath who will guide us through the world of allergies & intolerances
Stay tuned for more wonderful information from these talented women, I know I will be eagerly awaiting their articles each week!
Earth Hour is Back!
This Saturday, March 23rd at 8.30pm its time to turn out the lights and join an international phenomenon called Earth Hour. This is the world’s largest mass participation event for the environment and was started from a one-city initiative in Sydney in 2007. Earth Hour now takes place in more than 6,950 cities and towns in 152 countries and territories around the world!
Australia is the highest greenhouse gas polluter, on a per capita basis, among the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This is because most of our electricity is currently produced by coal-fired power stations, making coal the number one source of carbon pollution in our country. (more…)
What does your body say about your Nutrition?
A few weeks ago I did a master class with Dr Ashleigh Berry, an integrative GP who has extensive experience working with chronically ill patients. He has studied with the guru of nutrition in Australia, Professor Melvyn Sydney-Smith (http://www.nutritionmedicine.org/index.php?id=8) who I have done a few workshops with.
Dr Berry showed us some clever ways to get an insight into clients’ nutritional status through physical examination. Here are my top 12 that I learnt. Please ensure that you refrain from self-prescribing and discuss your concerns with your practitioner!
If you have dark rings and puffiness around your eyes you have an allergy to something, most commonly a food.
Acne occurs due to too much sugar and not enough zinc and essential fatty acids. Skip the sweets and head for tahini and smoked salmon on rice cakes
Acne scarring shouldn’t happen and if it does, you are probably suffering from an undiagnosed food intolerance. Ask your practitioner for a comprehensive IgG intolerance test to reveal the culprits.
If your heels are cracked your vitamin E levels are far too low. Tender calves are also caused by a deficiency of vitamin E.
Excessive sweating can be embarrassing and usually due to a deficiency of the minerals calcium & magnesium or an accumulation of the toxic metal, mercury. Ask your practitioner for a comprehensive hair mineral test to determine your levels.
Want to know if you are eating enough protein? Turn your hand palm upward and gently press on your top finger pad. It should bounce back immediately and if even slightly delayed, means you need to eat more protein
If you have soft nails with white spots your zinc is too low.
If the muscles just under your eye twitch then your magnesium levels are deficient. […]
Prepare to be Astounded by Probiotics!
Last night I attended an invitation only dinner where a vast amount of research on probiotic therapy was presented. To say I was mind blown was an understatement – I had no idea that probiotics could be so incredibly beneficial!
I take probiotics every day and so does Sophia but the enormity of how beneficial these microscopic organisms can be is simply undeniable. From reducing pregnancy conditions such as pre-eclampsia to significantly decreasing childhood diseases, probiotic therapy may just pave the way for future health care.
Did you know that 90% of your immune system lines your digestive system? Probiotics keep the immune system in a state of tolerance or balance – not too underactive and susceptible to infection but also not too overactive and causing autoimmune conditions.
Research highlights
The uterine environment is not sterile, as previously thought. It contains many bacteria and they pass into the unborn babies digestive tract.
Mastitis can be more effectively treated with probiotics than antibiotics
In 1ml of breast milk there are between 10,000-100,000 bacteria
When babies are born their immune system is Th2 dominant, which means they are allergy prone. Probiotics can help the immune system mature more quickly and reduce the risk of conditions such as asthma, eczema and hayfever
Probiotics in pregnancy can reduce insulin resistance
Abdominal obesity can be reduced with certain probiotic strains
An imbalance of good: bad bacteria result in dysbiosis which increases insulin resistance
Stay in touch via my official FB page as I will be presenting all the research in bite sized, user friendly chunks over the next few weeks.
An Inspiring Individual – Dr David Hamilton
I came across Dr David Hamilton when I was researching the science behind how people heal themselves of disease with positive thought. He is a scientist who became fascinated with the placebo effect. The placebo effect is when people get positive outcomes because they believe they are receiving a drug. He went on to study the mind-body interaction and became so convinced about the power of the mind that he quit his pharmaceutical job.
Seven books later and he now travels the world talking about his passion. Here are his top 5 pieces of research that link attitude and happiness with health and even lifespan. Here they are:
1) A Positive Outlook is good for the heart
Optimists are less likely to get heart disease than pessimists. A study of 999 people over the age of 65 found that optimists had a 77% lower risk of heart disease than pessimists. Much of this is because of the way in which we mentally and emotionally process daily events in life. People with a more positive attitude generally get less irritated and stressed with the challenges of life. Due to the impact of stress on the cardiovascular and immune systems, learning to cultivate a sense of optimism can add years to a person’s life.
2) Happiness helps us get over the cold
People who are happy, lively and calm have better immune systems. One study saw nasal drops of the cold and flu virus given to 193 people between the ages of 21 and 55 and discovered that those who were happier and more positive (defined as a positive emotional style) got less sick and recovered faster. How we feel affects the immune system and therefore our ability to fight off a cold […]
