Prescription for Health

Recently I was making up some handouts to give to a client regarding the do’s and don’ts to help with elevated blood sugar and cholesterol. As I was doing so, I was thinking that really, nearly every common condition that doctors are medicating people for, whether it be high blood pressure, overweight, cardiovascular conditions, allergies, and often depression, really come back to what we put in our bodies and to our lifestyle.

What we eat, how much alcohol we drink, how often (if at all!) we exercise, how successfully we manage stress in our lives, our exposure to toxins – these all have an effect on our waistline, energy, mood, hormones and ultimately, our long term health.

Generally, conditions like insulin resistance, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, elevated blood sugar, etc take many years to manifest so it’s easy to carry on mistreating our bodies, not realising the damage we are doing. It might take 30 years of nutrient deficiency or incorrect lifestyle before a serious condition becomes apparent. Then, once it does, often there is no going back.

It makes sense to change your lifestyle before your health deteriorates and you are prescribed drugs that you may then have to take for the rest of your life.

Of course it is much easier to take a pill than to change your diet and lifestyle, but the problem with taking a pill is that nearly every prescribed drug has side effects. Of course there will be a pill to deal with the side effects as well, but how many pills do you want to be taking and the bottom line is that the pills aren’t actually curing the original problem, they are just suppressing the symptoms.

So, what are my recommendations for a healthy diet and lifestyle?

• Drink a good amount of water every day. Ideally have the juice of a lemon in warm water first thing in the morning to help cleanse your liver and alkalise your body.
• Exercise most days for at least 30 minutes. This helps regulate your blood sugar and insulin which is essential for fat loss. Exercise helps reduce stress and it makes you feel good!
• Have regular bowel movements. If you are constipated you are more likely to re-absorb toxins from the waste in your colon back into your bloodstream. These then go back to your liver for processing. If you have trouble with constipation, feel free to discuss it with me.
• Manage stress levels in your life. Exercise is very helpful for this and there are also some very good natural supplements which can help. Chronic, ongoing stress is damaging to every organ in your body, leading to many health issues.
• Eat protein regularly during the day. There are many reasons for this, but two of the most important I think are:
• a) When you combine protein with a carbohydrate food it helps prevent the spike in blood sugar that comes from eating carbohydrate on its own. Blood sugar spikes mean insulin spikes and insulin spikes mean fat gets stored rather than burnt as fuel. Who needs that?
• b) Protein is made up of amino acids. Amino acids are essential for the formation of hormones, for your immune system and they are responsible for all the growth, maintenance and repair jobs in your body. We need to eat protein regularly to give our body a constant supply of amino acids.
• Eat a high fibre diet. Yes I know I bang on about eating lots of fibrous vegetables, but they are a great source of fibre. Fibre has many benefits, from gut health, to, as with protein, it helps prevent blood sugar spikes when carbohydrate is digested.
  There are two types of fibre, soluble and insoluble and we need both. Soluble fibre (like that found in oats, grains and some veggies) helps move food through our gut as it absorbs moisture and forms a gel like substance. Insoluble fibre (like bran, seeds, nuts and some other veggies) doesn’t dissolve and it adds bulk to the content of our guts. Our good bowel bacteria feed on insoluble fibre. Both types of fibre help relieve constipation, along with plenty of fluid.
• Eat real food! That means unprocessed food in its natural state. Food without additives, preservatives and chemicals. Real, fresh food doesn’t need added colours, stabilisers, emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners.
• Drink alcohol in moderation only. Have at least two alcohol free days per week and on the other days, 2 standard drinks is the limit for women and 4 for men. Studies have consistently shown that alcohol is a contributing factor in breast cancer, bowel cancer and stomach and other cancers. Too much makes you fat. Alcohol is loaded with additives and preservatives. What else do I need to say? Drink in moderation for a healthy life.
• Eat at least two meals of fatty fish like fresh salmon or tuna per week or take essential fatty acids in supplement form daily. Essential fatty acids are just that–essential-and our bodies can’t manufacture them, unlike ordinary fat. The two main ‘ingredients’ in EFA’s are DHA and EPA. DHA is very important for brain health and EPA helps quell inflammation in the body. Canned fish is not as high a source of EFA as fresh fatty fish is.
• Have your Vitamin D level checked. Most New Zealanders are low in Vitamin D and correct levels are important to help prevent certain diseases and conditions, including depression.
• Have regular dental checkups. Bacteria in the mouth can travel via the bloodstream to your heart, with serious consequences.
• Get enough quality sleep.
• Reduce sugar, salt and white flour items.
• Drink green tea, at least 3 cups a day.
• Supplement where necessary.
• Lastly, make some ‘ME’ time. Whether it be for a walk, time to read a good book, a yoga class, time spent relaxing with good friends, or a soak in the bath with the door locked.

That list is by no means exhaustive, but if you apply most of those principles, most of the time, you are doing a lot to help yourself head off disease later in life.

November is 5+ a day month. Only 41% of adult New Zealanders meet the recommended daily intake according to a 2010 poll by Colmar Brunton. If you have a serving of fruit with your breakfast, 2 cups of veggies with your lunch and another two with your dinner, plus another piece of fruit during the day, that equates to 10 servings of fruit and veggies a day. That amount has been shown to reduce the rate of cancer, strokes and other diseases so load up your fridge today!

Asparagus contains fibre and this is the time of year to enjoy it. Try cooking some very lightly (very lightly) and then plunging it into cold water to cool it quickly. It retains its green colour and its crunch and is perfect for topping off salads. I also like lightly cooked, hot asparagus with a blob of plain low fat yoghurt on top.

As I mentioned, fresh salmon is a great source of essential fatty acids, but because it is high in fat, it is also higher in energy (calories), so a smaller serve is appropriate. The same applies to smoked salmon; it is high in energy so a small amount is sufficient and best kept as a treat. A really nice platter idea is to serve rounds of cucumber topped with light cream cheese and a very small piece of smoked salmon.

One of the most common ‘comments’ I get is “I’m sick of salads”. But you know what, eating salads works great for fat loss. The key is to keep them interesting with different textures and colours. Don’t just throw a lettuce leaf, a tomato and a chunk of cucumber into your lunchbox that IS boring. Make the effort to put together a great salad, it only takes 5 minutes and if you do it when you are making dinner the night before, it’s all done for the morning.

Here are some suggestions: Assorted greens (lettuce, baby spinach, rocket, herbs), cucumber, capsicum (red are the sweetest), cherry or vine tomatoes, red onion finely sliced or diced, grated carrot, raw baby mushrooms, lightly cooked asparagus, chickpea sprouts, sango sprouts and other sprouts. Mix it up and keep it interesting.

If you always have protein on hand you can then make your lunch or dinner in less than 10 minutes. Easy protein choices could be ham, hard boiled eggs, a can of salmon or tuna, or lite cottage cheese. If you are late home or can’t be bothered cooking, all you need to do is throw together a salad and grab a protein item. It is much easier and quicker than driving to a takeaway joint. And, you will feel a lot better afterwards.

Bits and Pieces

Xmas Shopping

Kristin School on the Old Albany Highway have opened their annual gift store. It is open from 28 October until 2 December and it has loads of wonderful gift ideas in store. Festive foods including preserves, oils, dressings, naughty treats (allowed at Xmas!), as well as homeware and tableware. They can even arrange gift baskets for you. On Wednesdays they have high tea from 1.30pm to 3pm at a cost of $35.00 per person. http://www.kristin.school.nz

Interior Designer

If you are looking for help with interior design, from choosing paint colours, furniture, kitchens, bathrooms, etc to fabulous ideas for smartening up your home without breaking the bank, then I can highly recommend Wendy Goode of Goode Interiors. Wendy can help with just about anything to do with your home and I was blown away with her suggestions. www.goodeinteriors.co.nz

Free 15 minute appointments for your friends and family

If you know someone who has been considering seeing me, but hasn’t quite decided, they are welcome to take advantage of my offer of a 15 minute appointment to see if they think I can help them. Just ask them to call or email me.

6 Week Drop a Dress Size Challenge and go into the draw to win a dress for Christmas!

If you or a friend are interested in this, check it out here:

http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e53sn8mb07c3237d

If both you and a friend enter, then you both receive free nutrition and exercise sessions in the New Year to get you back on track.

Recipes

New recipes on my website this month are:

• Smoked Salmon, crispy potato slices, eggs and asparagus dish
• Creamy chicken
• Satay chicken
• Chicken + cashew stir fry
• Honey marinated beef skewers

Remember, if you are invited to a BBQ, check out my Entertaining Platter recipe on the website. Follow this link to the recipes:

http://www.nutritionforlife.co.nz/recipe-index/

That’s about it for now. I’d love to know how you get on with putting in place my principles for a healthy life. Remember, you don’t have to be perfect, but if you adopt most of the principles, most of the time, you will reap the rewards of fat loss, increased energy, better mood and long term, a healthier life.

If you have any questions about the items in my newsletter, feel free to bring them up next time you are in.

With just 55 sleeps until Christmas the weeks are flying by. Remember that the keys to managing a healthy lifestyle are organisation and planning. The old saying of ‘failure to plan is planning to fail’ is so true.

Kind regards

Lynda