This guide will give you simple and practical ways in which you can easily and effortlessly incorporate more greens into your diet, making your meals more nutritious and tasty at the very same time.

Start with Simple Swaps

One of the easiest ways that you can include more greens in your meal is by making simple swaps. Think about the place of refined grains with green alternatives. Instead of white rice, try using cauliflower rice or leafy greens like spinach. The simple swaps up the count of vegetables on your plate and also add variety to the meal.

Another good swap is the replacement of a bread base with leafy greens in sandwich preparation. A lettuce wrap-in chicken caesar salad sandwich recipe has all of your favorite proteins and veggies and adds up to a huge volume without much content. This not only throws in some greens but also decreases calories and carbs in the process.

Use Greens as a Base for Salads

Salads are what they are, hence a very natural resultant way of having more greens in your diet. Nevertheless, you can always make chicken caesar salad sandwich recipe more thrilling by diversifying the types of greens used. Mix different leafy greens such as arugula, spinach, and romaine for a deliciously flavorful and packed-with-nutrient salad base.

Fill your chicken salad sandwiches with multi-colored vegetables, fruits, and proteins. Ingredients such as cherry tomatoes, avocado, nuts, and grilled chicken in any caesar salad sandwich will elevate an ordinary salad. This transforms it into a highly satisfying, nutrient-dense meal.

Add Greens to Smoothies

Step up your greens game with smoothies. Play with adding a handful of spinach or kale to your favorite smoothie recipe. Oftentimes, you’ll find the taste of greens is masked when using fruits like bananas or berries, so you’re easily getting all those great nutrients down with little to no vegetable taste.

You can take it a step further by adding other greens, such as Swiss chard or collard greens, for more nutrients. The greens can also be added to sauces, soups, and stir-fries while cooking, with a liquid base.

Incorporate Greens into Sauces and Soups

Add greens to your tomato sauce or pesto. You can add as much spinach or kale as you like without significantly affecting the flavor or appearance of the sauce. This is especially useful with pasta or on top of pizza.

Add greens such as chopped spinach, kale, or Swiss chard toward the end of the cooking time for soups. This gives them a chance to wilt and blend with the rest of the soup, without giving them so much time that they turn to over-processed mush. The result will be very flavorful and richly nutritious, complementing your other ingredients nicely.

Add Greens to Breakfast

Greens are a great addition to breakfast. Throw them into omelets or scrambled eggs; they also work great in frittatas for a shot of nutrition first thing in the morning. Both spinach and kale really work well in these and both can be combined with other vegetables and cheeses for added flavor.

Other options include adding greens to breakfast smoothies or yogurt parfaits. Blended chopped greens layering Greek Yogurt, fruit, and granola constructs an excitingly healthy morning breakfast by the concept of “pillowing vegetables.”

Sneak Greens into Baked Goods

An innovative way to incorporate more greens in baked items is by slipping them in. You can finely chop spinach or kale and add them to muffins, bread, or brownies. You can blend the greens into the batter or fold them in as a mix-in. This not only increases your intake of greens but also introduces a fun twist to your baking.

Prepare Green Sauces and Dressings

Green sauces and dressings are just delicious ways to add more greens to your meals. Pesto, chimichurri, and green goddess dressing are all made with fresh herbs and leafy greens. Use these as marinades, dipping sauces, or dressings for chicken salad sandwiches, and your dishes will be packed with flavor and color.

You can make a simple, fresh, homemade pesto by blending basil, parsley, spinach, garlic, and olive oil—all ingredients that help you develop a versatile sauce to drizzle onto pasta, sandwiches, or on top of your grilled vegetable servings.

Create Green Smoothie Bowls

The trendy, nutritious way to eat more greens. These are the thick smoothies, generally containing spinach or kale, serving as a base for a bowl of deliciousness and then covered in endless fruits, nuts, and seeds. Their thickness allows for a pretty result of a meal to be achieved.

Top your green smoothie bowl with sliced bananas, chia seeds, granola, and berries for added texture and flavor. This way, it will help not only in increasing the intake of greens but also in making a beautiful and tasty breakfast or snack.

Experiment with Green Vegetable Recipes

Another good way to consume more greens is to experiment with recipes that consist mainly of green vegetables. Try stir-frying some greens with garlic, making green curry with vegetables, or a vegetable stir-fry with bok choy and snap peas.

Green vegetable recipes can be adapted according to your taste and diet requirements. Each new way of cooking with a variety of green vegetables allows you to be more adventurous with taste, flavor, and appetite satisfaction, along with meeting the required nutritional value of your meal.

How to Ensure a Variety of Greens in Your Diet

Conclusion

It doesn’t have to be a difficult process to add more greens to your meals. Simple substitutions and adding them to your favorite recipes, you can get in so many vegetables quickly and easily. Find out how to do it by jacking up your smoothies, creating some fabulous chicken salad sandwiches, or getting those greens into your slightly naughty baked goods.

FAQs

1. What are some simple ways to add greens to breakfast?

Add spinach or kale to your smoothie, mix chopped greens into scrambled eggs, or top your avocado toast with arugula.

1. Can I use greens in snacks?

Yes, try making kale chips, adding spinach to a dip, or using leafy greens in a wrap or sandwich., l

1. How can I include more greens in lunch?

Add a variety of greens to salads, mix spinach or kale into soups and stews, or use lettuce leaves as a base for your sandwich.

The post Easy Ways to Incorporate More Greens into Your Meals appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

Today the powerful effects of raw cacao are becoming well known and many people are enjoying the sacred ritual around cacao through ceremony. Theobroma Cacao has a great history dating back as far as 15,000 years. The Aztecs even used the beans as currency, which continued in Mexico until 1887. The cacao beans are the seeds of the fruit, which grows mainly in Africa and South America and it is from these beans that all chocolate is made. 

Throughout its history, cacao has been revered as a sacred plant medicine often used in ancient rituals and ceremonies to reach higher states of awareness. Today, cacao is making a comeback as a highly nutritious superfood and as a plant medicine that we can safely use to raise our own energy vibration beginning with an energetic opening of the heart centre. 

The ritualistic element is so important as it takes us into the space in between ordinary time, sometimes referred to as the dreamtime. In this transcendent space we are able to open our hearts on an energetic level and connect to each other, to ourselves and to the earth on a much deeper and extraordinary level.

There is a state of awareness that I experience that takes me into my own inner world when I eat raw cacao and when making my own raw chocolate.

It’s a bit like a meditative state but instead of a meditation with my eyes closed and being in stillness, the ritual of raw chocolate making is a meditative state that grounds me. As I move through the deliberate motions, weighing out all the ingredients and beginning the slow and deliberate process of crafting the raw chocolate, this alchemy becomes a sacred ritual. 

Even though raw chocolate has gained popularity in recent years, there are still many people who are unaware of its existence and unsure of what it is exactly. The taste of raw chocolate differs from brand to brand, but generally, the flavour of the cacao in raw chocolate is stronger than ordinary chocolate.

Dandy’s Raw Choc is made up of a combination of superfoods that alchemise its unique flavour, providing natural sweetness without refined sugar and, due to its gentle heating process, it maintains all its nutritional value, making it a nutrient-dense food that satisfies both the taste buds and a healthy lifestyle. Each bar is wrapped in home compostable packaging and demonstrates a way of giving back to Mother Earth what we have taken to make the chocolate bars.

The seven flavours of Dandy’s Raw Choc are also associated with the seven energy centres of the (LEF), Luminous Energy Field. This is to encourage an awareness of how we are all connected to the earth, and through the sacred ritual of making raw chocolate or eating it, we can aspire to remember this as part of our daily lifestyle.

Words: Dandy Christofi

For more information about raw cacao and Dandy’s raw chocolate, please visit dandysrawchoc.com

The post The Sacred Ritual of Making Raw Chocolate appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

We are truly at an unprecedented tipping point for humanity, but not for the planet. The Earth has seen mass extinction many times before and recovered.

Mankind, that incudes you and me and every other living soul on this planet, has to take the initiative and the responsibility to make changes in our lives to save the only place we have to live. We all have the Response-Ability, let’s use it.

Most of the suggestions to fix the planet are long-term and require massive new investment in new technology or unacceptable demands on individuals that politicians dare not make if they are to stay in power.

We don’t have that sort of timescale to stop the rot, we need action now or at least over the next year or two. 

I did promote a month by month action plan two years ago entitled, “You Can Save The Planet!” that we could all follow to some degree to suit our individual lives.

However not much has changed over the two years besides having to deal with the COVID pandemic, that is a part of the big problem, living in harmony with nature. There is a more serious discussion taking place now we are getting nearer to the critical tipping point, but that is what it is, more serious “Blah, blah, blah” as Greta Thunberg would say!

So what are you and I going to do to change this inaction?

If all mankind lived and ate like we in the West, especially as in the USA, we would need nine planet Earths. So effectively it will mean an even larger proportion of mankind will need to starve for the rest to live their lives unchanged.

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a way to live that made a huge contribution to solving the Global Warming Problem, the Environmental Destruction problem, the Increasing Fresh Water Shortage, the devastating loss of animal, insect and bird species, loss of forest, that also decreased the possibility of serious risk from developing diabetes, heart disease, strokes, obesity and other chronic diseases, that would save us thousands of pounds on our food and extend our healthy active lives? 

Would we all be willing and happy to make such a change in our lives, I wonder?

So, the good news is there is a way to achieve all that but the bad news is that many would not be willing to make the change in their lives for it to work.

How it would work is to simply eliminate one of the most loved yet most damaging foods from our diets. A food that accounts for as much Greenhouse Gas Production as all the International Aviation and/or Transport Systems, that is the major cause of deforestation, ocean and river pollution and depletion of fresh water supplies. This is meat production on the scale that is now a factory industry. 

By eliminating or drastically reducing the consumption of meat we would be reducing Greenhouse Gas Production by over 10 metric tons per year per household and creating all the above additional benefits as well as saving ourselves thousands of pounds every year on our food bills by replacing the lost calories and nutrients with whole plant foods, fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds. Learn more about this concept HERE

As someone once said when told this “That would be an extreme change to make!’ The answer a doctor gave was “Not as extreme as cutting open the chest to access the heart to insert a bypass stent!” Now, that would be extreme, as would our failure to stop the destruction of our beautiful planet, mankind’s only home.

Michael Lingard BSc DO WFNut.Cert.

Further information:

“You Can Save The Planet!”

“Diet and Climate Change – Cooking Up a Storm”

The post How are you and I going to contribute to COP-26 to help save our planet? appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

• Protein – what is it, how much do you need, and how to calculate your individual needs
• Vitamin D deficiency – what are the symptoms and what foods do we need to eat
• Probiotics – what foods contain them, and the science behind the fads
• Prebiotics – what foods contain them, and the science behind the fads
• Fibre – why it’s so important, and how much do you need
• Essential Fatty Acids – where to find them in the diet, and deficiency symptoms
• Sugar – tips on sugar cravings
• Polyphenols – how to eat the rainbow

The post Kate’s (Healthy) Kitchen appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

Coronacoaster 

noun: The ups and downs of a pandemic - one day you're loving your bubble, going for long walks, baking cakes and pottering in the garden, the next you're crying, drinking gin for breakfast, eating party rings and missing people you don't even like!

I hope that made you smile! From my experiences talking to everyone ten weeks on this is pretty much where we are. Whether you are employed, furloughed, self-employed, homeschooling or any other scenario we are all coping the best we can. That’s why it’s really hard to start suggesting to people that they need to look after themselves. Everyone has enough on their plate just getting through the day without the dreaded subject of health creeping in to our daily routines. At the moment it’s early days to establish whether being in lockdown has made us as a country healthier or not, and if those that have taken up the mantle will continue when things go back to a sort of normal.

To be honest I’ve found the Thursday hand-clapping slightly odd. Don’t get me wrong the shared sense of community is amazing and if the doctors and nurses can hear it I’m sure they do appreciate the gesture. However the doctors and nurses I’m speaking to, some of them dear friends, have said the opposite. So here’s the next share and it’s an “ouchy” one:

“If we really want to support the NHS, we need to start taking responsibility for our health”.

Now I firmly believe this is true, but if we wait for the right messages from on high it will never happen, so sadly we have to plough our own furrow with this, and that can be hard.  But, and here’s the good news, it can be done and I’m so very proud of the 27 people that have been with me through lockdown following their Six-Week Challenges. All of them have passed with flying colours in terms of reversing disease. Most had high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and ten had pre-diabetes and now don’t – how amazing is that!

What can we learn from outcomes of the Covid crisis?

Essentially what we knew before. If you are obese, diabetic, have a poor gut microbiome and vitamin status you may not fare so well. But Corona aside (and yes wouldn’t that be lovely if we can put this to one side), these are issues anyway that will drive other health conditions. As those of you know who follow me, most of the Western Diseases find their roots into our bodies through inflammation and this has never been clearer during this pandemic. You might have noticed reading in the papers about cytokine storms? This is where the inflammatory response in the body is out of control.

However (and more good news) there is so much we can do before we get to this state. Many people are understandably scared and it takes a lot of courage to put up your hand and say, ok I need help. I think that’s the hardest part. When you realise you don’t have to be sick and there is much that can be done – well, that’s the easier part!

A new start for your health with Lifestyle Medicine

If you feel you’d like to make that first step and want a chat with me, I’m offering a free 10 minutes on the phone, Zoom, Skype or WhatsApp. It’s a good chance to have a chat and find out exactly what you need and what your goals are. I offer consultations for all sorts of conditions and price ranges. Some of the issues assessed can include:

• Vitamin Status
• The Gut Microbiome
• Trauma
• Sleep
• Stress
• Exercise
• and tailor making a diet that works for you for life

If you’d like to get in contact please call me on 01323 737814 or 310532. For more details please visit my website

The post A new start for your health with Lifestyle Medicine appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

It was customary to prepare the Vincoto in the autumn, when the ingredients were picked in season by expert hands. During a laborious process they were then transformed into a sweet smelling spread, filling the kitchen with a festive fragrance.

Introducing “Venice Purple”

It is with great joy that I’d like to introduce you to my “Venice Purple” – a one hundred percent natural Artisan Fruit & Vegetable Spread.

Around five years ago, when I was contemplating a change in career, I came up with this unique idea, so that not only my family could enjoy Vincoto year round though I could also widen the horizon to share with friends and colleagues. However I don’t share the recipe, I only tell the ingredients!

The idea of “Venice Purple” was developed because of the absence of any similar products on the market, and its simplicity is because it is made only with only five natural fruits and vegetables, with no added sugar or preservatives, so it can’t get any more natural than this.

My version of Vincoto has gone through different preparation processes and “Venice Purple” is the final result. It also covers a niche of old or forgotten recipes, a revival of how we used to prepare food at home, when the time available for that was generous. It is a product I can say with confidence that reminds me of the one my grandmother used to make!

“Venice Purple” is vegan and gluten free. It has a very low sugar content, and the absence of salt mades it something which can be enjoyed daily – spreading it on bakery products and using it as a cake filling. It is versatile enough to be added to flavour yoghurt, used as an ice cream topping, and in hot cereal. It even perfectly complements a cheese platter, therefore “Venice Purple” can be present as part of any meal.

Because of the lengthy and quite laborious preparation, I have perfected my routine so it is freshly homemade in small batches of about 4 kilos. It has been officially tested by the food laboratory for nutritional content and meets food safety standards. “Venice Purple” has a shelf life of two years so there is nothing wasted.

I really hope you enjoy my “Venice Purple”. It is something to enjoy on every occasion, because the genuineness of the product allows you to do so daily.

Where can you find “Venice Purple”?

“Venice Purple” is made at home, so it is best to contact me directly to place an order. It is available in a choice of 100g and 200g jars. There should be no waiting time, as I have a good quantity in stock, which is replenished regularly. If the requirement is for a larger order, there might be a few days wait.

“Venice Purple” can be sent safely and directly to you through the post.

Words: Pasquale Cazzaro

Pasquale was born and raised in Noale, a small medieval town, rich in historic landmarks, in Venice province. 

If you would like to know more about “Venice Purple”and / or to place an order, please contact Pasquale by email at boxus.co@gmail.com

Please mention Wellbeing Magazine.

Nutritional information

The post What is Vincoto? appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

Winter seems to have gone on forever which makes it so hard to make any long term health changes. However, as we’ve seen with the sunny days of the last week or so, spring is inching its way here and even one blue-sky day can make us feel so much more motivated.

Simple swaps

I’ve been talking to patients and clients about the simple swaps we have implemented over the last year and what has worked in terms of lifestyle change. They all told me that even with the best intentions they find themselves “off the wagon” very quickly and they don’t know why. Making any alterations in our stressful 24/7 lives is really challenging and we often feel set up to fail. We all want those long term results but often fall short of our goals, and oddly it’s not all about willpower.

There is some strong science around the issues of implementing daily changes and how best to achieve lifelong healthy goals. Here are the top five steps to help you on your way to change your behaviour patterns:

1. Start small. If we want behaviours to become habits they need to take minimal physical or mental effort so you don’t need huge amounts of motivation.
2. Bolt a change onto a habit you already do on a daily basis. That could be putting the kettle on, cleaning your teeth, showering, sitting at your desk or armchair, for instance. These daily tasks and rituals are often done on automatic pilot, so it’s a really good idea to add a change to something you already do without really thinking, for example, doing squats when cleaning your teeth, doing a mindfulness technique in the shower, doing ankle raises and rotations when sitting.
3. Respect your personality. You might be an owl or a lark, better at night or in the morning, and both is fine but that means behaviour changes can take place when, where and at the time of your choosing. Just because your friends are up exercising at 5am, this doesn’t necessarily mean that would suit you! I am an owl and do my weights, yoga and stretching between 4pm and 7pm.
4. Make sure your environment is helping you. I leave two 2kg dumbbells lying around and often finding myself doing some arm lifts whilst watching the television. For a better sleep environment get rid of LED lights, put a blue filter on your phone, invest in blackout blinds, an eye mask or earplugs if you are having sleep issues. I also suggest clearing the kitchen and freezer of processed food. Draw a line in the sand and start again, making sure you have lots of protein type snacks to hand; nuts or hummus for example.
5. Give yourself a pat on the back with each behaviour change. It’s very natural to reward ourselves with sugar or alcohol, but try a different approach by using an app, keeping a wall chart or buy some flowers instead of chocolate. Many of my clients are using wall charts for motivation just as they would do for their children!

It’s all very well telling you what the science says, though what about the realities of daily life? Here are what my clients and patients are doing one year on:

• Swapping milk chocolate for dark chocolate
• Doing a few squats while brushing their teeth
• Stretching before bed or first in the morning
• For every glass of alcohol, drinking a glass of water
• Spending one hour a day off social media and phones
• Swapping white rice for brown rice
• Instead of binge-watching a series – taking 20 mins to read a book, walk or meditate
• Eating before food shopping
• Asking ‘am I hungry?’ before reaching for a sugar fix, or ‘am I actually stressed/angry/overwhelmed?’ in which case I need to combat those issues
• Find one thing to be grateful for each day
• Swapping the mobile phone alarm with an old fashioned alarm clock
• Keeping the fridge stocked with protein snacks
• For ‘yes’ people, try saying ‘no’ every now and then to see how it feels

Is it time for an MOT?

These behaviour changes are one of the subjects discussed in my MOT Consultation. I’ve been doing these now for ten years and they are the most successful consultations in terms of patient response. This is mainly due to the time allowed which gives you loads of space to discuss all your health issues in one go. Some of the points covered:

• NUTRITION – what is the right way to eat for you?
• THE GUT – how the gut microbiome impacts your entire body
• STRESS – we talk through your triggers and work-life balance
• SLEEP – how to get a better nights sleep?
• BEHAVIOUR CHANGES – learn some small lifestyle changes that can change your life
• EXERCISE – personalised suggestions for your health issues
• BLOOD TESTS – a full MOT if needed to assess any underlying symptoms
• HOMEWORK – suggested reading material/food diaries and self-monitoring

I am offering consultations via Skype, Facetime, Zoom, and Messenger. If you would like to ask any questions about the consultation or book please call me on 01323 310532 / 737814.

Offer

For April only we have a Spring offer if you quote SPRING20 (15% off normal consultation price of £199 = £170). *consultations need to be booked and paid for the period of 1st to 30th April 2020 inclusive.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Kate Arnold, BA (Hons), PG Cert Personalised Nutrition, Dip ION

KateArnoldNutrition

The post How to Change Behaviour Patterns appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

Have you recently been diagnosed with one of the following health conditions, and feel overwhelmed?

• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Anxiety
• Headaches
• Fatigue

If so, and you’re nervous about taking medication or don’t know where to start, join Kate’s Six Week Challenge. For six weeks Kate will address one of the health issues above and work with you to relieve symptoms and get you the results you need. Before starting it’s important to get the approval of your GP and Kate will work closely with them if necessary.

The Six Week Challenge will take place over six half-hourly sessions to give you all the nutrition and lifestyle advice you need to meet your goals.

If you’d like to set yourself a 2020 challenge, do get in touch on 01323 310532 or 737814.

“My cholesterol was 7.8 but I was determined to try a diet and lifestyle approach before going down the drug route. To my absolute delight, weeks later my cholesterol was down to 4.4. I cannot tell you how amazed I and my GP are. I feel a whole new lease of life”, John, Brighton

Kate Arnold, Nutrition Consultant
BA (Hons), PG Cert, Dip ION, BANT, CNHC
katearnoldnutrition.co.uk
Facebook: Kate Arnold Nutrition
Instagram: Kate Arnold Nutrition
Twitter:#KANutrition
Tel: 01323 310532 / 737814

The post Overwhelmed with health conditions? appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

This fascinating ecosystem that we are a part of is involved in just about every process of the body and is vital to our health and wellbeing. These microbes help digest our food, absorb nutrients, regulate our immune system, produce vitamins and release polyphenols (a group of beneficial chemicals) from our food after they have digested them. They also influence the production of hormones (such as serotonin, of which up to 90% is made in the gut). Serotonin not only helps us feel good though also positively impacts our sleep, and acts as the gatekeeper to pain.

Finally, these good bacteria also protect us against other bacteria that produce endotoxins causing disease and inflammation. We used to think that our ‘genes’ were our destiny, but we now know through epigenetics that although our genes may load the gun it is our bacteria that decide whether to pull the trigger, and what effects our bacteria is our diet and lifestyle!

Systems that our microbiome are known to influence
Through this emerging science it is now thought that conditions such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, bowel disorders, fibromyalgia and obesity, to name just a few, plus some cases of low mood, anxiety and depression may all have a similar root cause – an imbalance in our microbiome.

Our brain has 100 billion neurones but there are also 200-400 million neurones in the gut. Both systems are influenced by our bacteria, and send signals around the body telling it how to work, behave and feel.

Given that this ecosystem plays such a huge part in our wellbeing it is not surprising that what we think is good for us is actually good for us because it is good for all our microorganisms!

So how can we boost our gut health?
We need to do two things. We need to increase the things that the good bacteria like, and decrease all the things that cause them harm. Eating a diet rich in gut-friendly foods is probably the first step.

Lectins can potentially cause digestive issues in some individuals. Lectins are a type of protein that are found in many plant foods, such as beans, legumes, grains, and certain vegetables. They serve various functions in plants, including defence against pests. In some cases, lectins can be difficult for humans to digest and may cause gastrointestinal discomfort or other symptoms in sensitive individuals.

If you suspect that lectins are causing digestive issues for you, there are a few strategies you can consider. The first is taking supplements such as Lectin Shield which can help your body eliminate lectin proteins, while the second is ensuring that the majority of your diet is made up of low-lectin foods. A combination of these approaches can ensure that lectins cease to cause you further problems. 

Think of your gut as a garden!
Firstly we need the seeds, the probiotics, which are the good bacteria themselves. These can be found in ‘live food’ such as live bio-natural yogurt, some blue cheeses, kefir, raw organic apple cider vinegar and fermented foods like sauerkraut and pickles. Do be wary though of some of the recent ‘foods’ that are marketed as being beneficial but are still laden with sugar.

Then our gut garden needs fertiliser, the prebiotics, which contain unique non-plant fibres such as inulin. These fibres are non-digestible to humans but are the food source for our micro bacteria. Good sources of such fibre include garlic, beans, onions, chicory root, asparagus, artichokes, green leafy vegetables, apples and bananas.

Happily it is thought that the good bacteria also like small amounts of good quality; dark chocolate, coffee and red wine!

By making small tweaks to our diet, such as adding in more vegetables or increasing the variety of the vegetables we eat (our microbes love variety) and adding more whole unprocessed foods like brown rice, quinoa etc we can begin to easily crowd out the refined foods such as sugar, sweeteners, processed food, white rice and pasta, all of which feed the unhealthy gut bacteria and cause poor gut health and inflammation.

As we adjust our diets the ‘bad’ bacteria are starved off, and our gut garden becomes clear of those ‘weeds’.

However if we want to ensure that our good gut bacteria can really flourish we also need to be wary of what harms them. Over sanitising ourselves with things like anti-bacterial handwashes has become a twenty first century trend. As a society we are becoming increasingly obsessed with cleanliness. Many of our household cleaning products, our shampoos, soaps and skin creams are getting harsher and hasher, killing all bacteria, good and bad alike. To find out more about microbiome friendly alternatives please see my blogs on natural home cleaning and skin products: Clean your house… naturally and More natural ways to look after your skin.

Medications such as the pill can also cause an imbalance and antibiotics, although sometimes necessary, are like napalm to our bacterial village. After any course of antibiotics it is a good idea to take some clinically proven probiotic supplements to help re-populate the gut. Nor is it really any great surprise that too much alcohol and stress, which like sugar are acidic, support the growth of the ‘bad’ bacteria rather than the good ones.

Our micro-organisms also have a circadian rhythm so need to rest, which is one of the reasons why it is thought that fasting overnight for at least 12 hours and having proper gaps of not eating between meals can be so beneficial. Research has shown that they also like us to take moderate exercise. So even if you don’t feel like getting a good night’s sleep and regularly exercising you can at least know that your micro-bacteria do, and that they will be thanking you, and supporting you to feel the best you can.

Finally good bacteria are also found in the fresh air we breathe, and in the soil. So let’s open our windows, get outside and let’s get grubby. Let’s ‘eat clean’ and ‘get dirty’.

Should you want to kick start this process of improving your microbiome then Synergy’s Purify kit, a 21 day programme, has been specifically designed to help cleanse and detoxify the body whilst rebalancing the microbiome. The programme has caused much interest in the medical world too, and following clinical trials some of the products are being patented. The programme is also soon to be featured on a Channel 4 TV Documentary “The Truth About Your Gut” which is looking at 5 ‘Solutions’ to Gut Health.

Please click here for more information.

Words: Helen Prosper

Helen is an accredited:

• Integrative Nutritional Health Coach
• Systemic counsellor
• NLP practitioner
• Massage therapist and instructor
• Therapeutic play specialist
• Reiki master
• Health and Wellbeing Cognitive Behavioural Coach
• Human Givens Trainee HG Dip.P trainee

If you would like to find out more about the modalities she offers please visit https://livewellandprosper.uk/about/

The post The link between our gut, our health, and our happiness appeared first on Wellbeing Magazine.

As a health coach, it is no surprise that in January I often see people who have gained yet more pounds and come to me believing they have an ‘overeating’ problem. Only they don’t! They have an ‘awareness’ problem which, as you will find out from this article, is in itself a problem.

Why eat slowly?

It turns out that how we eat is as important as what we eat. Studies show that if we become masters of how we eat and if we eat with awareness, our metabolism is more efficient, digestion improves, and those unwanted extra pounds have far less chance of ever actually materialising.

Given that prevention is always better than cure I thought I would cover this topic now, so that we can get into practice before we get deluged with Christmas ‘treats’!

Most of us know that to digest food properly we must eat food slowly and chew well, however for optimum digestive efficiency and to minimise weight gain, we also need to

• notice and register what we are about to eat
• be mentally present and relaxed whilst eating
• take pleasure during the whole process of eating

This involvement of all our senses is called the cephalic phase of digestion, or the ‘head’ phase of digestion. Research suggests that 30-40% of the total digestive response to any meal is dependent on our full awareness. A lack of such awareness is a cause of poor digestion and weight gain.

It has been found that the brain must experience taste, pleasure, aroma and satisfaction if it is to accurately assess a meal and catalyse our most efficient digestive force. Digestion literally begins in the head as chemical and mechanical receptors on the tongue, and the oral and the nasal cavities are stimulated by smelling food, tasting it, chewing it and noticing it. This hearty awareness then initiates the secretion of saliva, gastric acid and enzymes, gut associated neuropeptides and the production of the full range of pancreatic enzymes. In addition, it causes blood to rush to the digestive organs, the stomach and intestines to rhythmically contract, and electrolyte concentrations throughout the digestive tract to shift in preparation for incoming food.

Studies show that when we simply eat with no real attention or pleasure we absorb far less nutrients and end up eating more!

In one fascinating study test subjects were given a mineral drink, and the absorption of two minerals – sodium and chloride – were measured in their small intestines. When the subjects drank the drink with relaxed awareness 100% of these minerals were assimilated within the hour. However when the subjects were given a headset and asked to drink whilst listening to different sounds in their right and left ears there was 0% absorption of these minerals! The simple act of attending to two stimuli at once dramatically altered their metabolism.

Likewise if we eat with our attention on something else such as watching TV, reading or driving, the brain simply says, ‘I don’t remember anything, I didn’t get any satisfaction, I am hungry’.

The less awareness we bring to the table, the more we eat and the more weight we will gain!

The final important element in maximising our digestion and minimising our desire to overeat is ensuring that we eat in as relaxed a state as possible with maximum enjoyment. When we are relaxed our saliva production increases, digestive enzymes are released, and food is appropriately digested.

Conversely if we eat when feeling stressed, our ability to digest and metabolise food is impacted. When stressed our metabolism slows down and we produce cortisol and insulin which send signals to our body to put on weight. Sugar is released into the blood stream (in preparation for fight or flight) and over time this too can cause insulin resistance and weight gain.

I recently heard Dr. Rangan Chatterjee speaking about the correlation between IBS and stress, and how some of his patients’ IBS symptoms dramatically reduced just by them taking in a couple of lovely deep breaths before eating. How we breathe is information to the brain – long slow outbreaths tell the brain we are safe and so turn on the parasympathetic/relaxation response.

Given that we all eat at least once a day, and that most of us are in dire need of more ‘downtime’, eating can be the perfect ‘habit’ around which to create more downtime.

How to eat slowly and mindfully

Below are some easy ‘eating habits’ which help maximise digestion and minimise weight gain. Pick one or two to try and when these have become an easy ‘habit’ add in another from the list:

• Add in ‘Vitamin T’ – Take Time to eat and gradually extend your meal times
• Only eat when sitting down – Sitting helps your body relax and so gets it into rest and digest mode
• Turn off or put away any other distractions – Make mealtimes technology free and use mealtimes as a time to let go of all worries and work
• Notice the food on your plate – Pause, really see it and smell it
• Take a moment to give a little gratitude – Give appreciation for the fact that 
you have this food to eat. Where did it come from? What has been involved in getting it to your plate?
• Take a couple of diaphragmatic breaths before eating – Breathe into your belly for the count of 5-7 and out for the count of 8-11. Breathing into the belly increases its oxygen uptake and helps increase the gut’s responsiveness to food. Breathe in more oxygen and you burn more food!
• If eating with other people name the food out loud and have a conversation about it – Let your conversation be uplifting and free of negativity and gossip
• Put your cutlery down between mouthfuls
• Enjoy your food, guilt free, really savour the delicious flavours and 
textures

Remember, the more you relax and enjoy your food the better able your body will be to digest and gain nourishment from it, and the more your brain will register pleasure and leave you with a feeling of satisfaction.

Words: Helen Prosper

If you would like to find out more, please contact Helen on 07545 227272 or visit: livewellandprosper

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