This weekend I have been battling the common cold that just doesn't seem to ever go away in winter. Boring I know! You know the feeling achy body, dry itchy throat that makes you cough all night long. A few years back I would be straight down to the quack to get loaded up on antibiotics but these days I prefer to eat my way back to good health. Here are my top tips to keep your immune system ship shape get you through the stormy weather without nasty antibiotics:
LEMONS: Lemons are fantastic for alkalising your body. Bacteria and viruses thrive in acid environments that can occur from poor diet high in animal products, sugar and alcohol. Acidity can weaken your immune system and provide the type of environment that the nasties love. Lemon juice and other alkalisers such as Kombucha Tea can restore the body's natural PH levels and support healthy bacteria rather than the viruses or harmful bacterias. Juice of one lemon in some room temperature pure water, half an hour before food is great first thing in the morning to wake up the liver and alkalise the body. Lemon ginger honey tea is nice soothing hot drink at night before bed. Manuka honey is also a natural antibiotic and ginger is known to be a great anti- inflammatory.
PUMPKIN SEEDS - High in Zinc the most critical nutrient to boost your immune system. I "sun-fry" my pumpkin seeds by just cleaning seeds from organic pumpkins and adding a little himilayan crystal salt and dry them out in my kitchen window from the natural power of the sun.
BRAZIL NUTS: Brazil nuts are the number one source of selenium, an antioxidant that helps the immune system rejuvinate and kill off germs and protect cells from free radical change. Try making some Brazil nut mylk - it's delicious!
BEANS, KIDNEY, CHICKPEAS, WHITE BEANS: You need about 100g of protein twice a day to get the nutrients essential for a strong immune system.
GARLIC: Especially raw is great cure all an edible antibiotic that fights virus - excellent to add finely grated and raw to comforting soups.
KALE: A powerful detoxer and antioxidant, high in fibre packed with nutrients and helps fight fat!
Try this great flu fighter soup.
KALE AND WHITE BEAN SOUP
2 TBL Rice Bran Oil
1/2 Brown Onion Chopped
1 cup peeled and chopped carrots
2 stalks celery chopped
1/2 cup cubed potatoes
2 tbl tomato paste
6 cups water
2 tbl white miso
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp himalayan crystal salt
2 cups chopped kale stalks removed
400g can white organic beans drained
1/4 tsp thyme
2 tblsp fresh chopped basil
2 cloves finely grated raw garlic
1.Heat Oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2.Add onion and saute until golden brown (4 minutes).
3.Add carrots, celery, potatoes and tomato paste and saute until well combined.
4.Add water, miso, cumin, coriander and saltand bring to boil.
5.Lower heat and simmer for 30 mins.
6.Add kale, white beans and thyme and simmer another half hour.
7.Add raw garlic before serving
8.Garnish with fresh basil and ground black pepper
My Dad had to spend time in hospital this week so I spent two days looking after my Mum Dottie. She is very cute and naughty like a little girl and requires constant supervision. Dottie has Multiple Sclerosis and this has effected her intellectual capabilities. She's a great artist and likes to paint, here's a photo of us at the MS Art Exhibition at Northcote Town Hall where she sold her painting for $300 - $400 a pop!
It was kinda cool being back in my childhood home and all sorts of memories came flooding back about the way we grew up - especially when I opened the fridge door and gasped with horror - it got me thinking a lot about food and how it has had a huge effect on my life. My Mum wasn't the greatest cook in the world and I was always a fat kid.
Here is a list of what was in my parents fridge which was exactly what was there when I was growing up: White bread, milk, plastic wrapper cheese, butter, eggs, apple juice, orange juice, flavoured milk, lamingtons and other commercial cakes, chocolate biscuits, strass deli meat, flavoured yoghurt, apples and mandarins. In the Freezer frozen meat chops and sausages, frozen vegetables and frozen apple pie desserts and icecream. Not a green leafy vegetable insight!
It took me back to my school days when my everyday lunch was a sandwich with white bread, butter, strass and tomato sauce, a cake or biscuit and a piece of fruit which usually ended up in the bin.
So it comes as no suprise to me that my dear old Dad was admitted to hospital with suspected heart problems, only to discover he had extremely low levels of Iron and VitB12 which was further complicated by his severe Diabetes. After some research on the Internet I was relieved to discover that Dad's symptoms of lethargy and heart palpatations could be helped with some small changes in his diet, such as green leafy vegetables, pumpkin seeds and a good herbal liquid iron tonic such as Floridix.
Family crisis was reduced somewhat by the findings, however my frustrations with Dad had just begun, He is still convinced he has heart issues and cannot seem to comprehend that some simple changes to his diet can help him feel better. To make matters worse the hospital prescribed him with Iron Tablets which will probably make him constipated!!! Grrrrrr I made up a little gift basket for him with some floridix, pumpkin seeds and some gorgeous fresh silverbeet I picked out of his garden and wrote him a little note asking him to please throw out the Iron tablets and just try to have these things each day.
Don't know if he will but at least I know I did my best for the ones I love. I recalled what David Wolfe says in his book Sunfood Diet Success System. Every individual is fully and wholly responsible for their own happiness and health - if we are not happy with our wellbeing or state of health it is up to us to change it! Nobody else can do it for you.
Meanwhile back at home I was so happy that I had been organised enough to take all my own food to Mum's house and I didn't tell her that the meals I was serving her were all gluten free, organic, vegan and mostly raw! She gobbled up everything I gave her. I am sure Dotti appeared to be in a happier mood, more youthful and spritely with every mouthful I gave her! It really put a smile on my face. So funny when we settled down for the evening she said she normally had flavoured milk and chocolate biscuits before bed but didn't really feel like it tonight! Yay - my good eating had stopped her craving her junkie sugar hits.
Here is what Mum and I ate while Dad was in hospital:
Breakfast: My Raw Granola - I affectionately call "Cacoa Pops" made with Sprouted buckwheat, raw cacao and other goodies, dehydrated. Tastes just like coco pops only healthy, served with almond mylk. (recipe below)
Morning Tea: Green smoothie made with coconut water greens and some yummy organic orange slices
Lunch: Fresh Pea and coconut soup with chia seed crackers and salad with miso sesame dressing
Afternoon Tea: Guacamole with chia seed crackers and vegie sticks
Dinner: Gluten free pasta with vegies and white wine sauce
So the next day after more of my healthy Coco Pops with almond mylk for breakfast, Mum was off to her Art Class at The MS Centre, I asked her what she wanted for her packed lunch and she said - Oh the usual, a strass and sauce sandwich and a lamington will do. I said are you sure you don't want me to make you up some food like we had yesterday? She gave me a huge grin and said Yes please your food is so yummy. Yay! I felt so proud and happy that I could share some good food with my Mum and know that she would feel better for it.
Here is my recipe for Coco Pops - a deliciously decadent healthy breakfast or snack - perfect for busy people on the go - you can put some in a container and take it anywhere - great for plane or long car travel too!
Jo Jo's Cacao Pops
1 Cup Sprouted Organic Buckwheat
1/4 Cup Activated Organic Almonds
1/4 Cup Activated Organic Pecans
1/4 Cup Activated Organic Cashews
* To sprout the buckwheat and Activate the nuts simply soak in pure water for 24 hours rinse thoroughly and they are ready to use
3 Tbl Organic Chia Seeds
1/2 Cup Organic Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
1/2 Cup Dark Agave Syrup
I Vanilla Pod
3 Tbl Organic Coconut Oil
1/4 Cup Organic Raw Cacao Powder
1/4 Cup Organic Dried Cherries or Gogi Berries
Mix all ingredients together and dehydrate for 24 hours - eat on it's own or serve with Almond Mylk. Keeps in an airtight container for up to four weeks.
If you don't have a dehydrator, put on a tray lined with baking paper in oven on lowest possible setting with oven door ajar - use an oven thermometer to ensure temperature does not go over 40c to ensure all the goodness and life force is intact.
Hope you enjoy this recipe and it gives you amazing "Raw Power" that makes you jump around like Iggy! :) x
Hi to anybody who cares to read my first blog, I'm Jo Jo and I am here because I am obsessed with food.
I have been on an amazing journey of self discovery over the past four years that has led me to become a gluten free, vegan with approx 80% raw food diet. To most people that probably sounds crazy and believe me if anyone said I would be here only a few years ago I would have thought they were insane too! Along this path I have taken I have found with every small step and change I make in my living habits the better I feel in mind, body and spirit, I'm no angel and I have my faults but I'm doing this for myself to have a happier healthier life while I'm here.
I have decided to write this blog not to preach or judge but to document my excitement in my discoveries and share with anybody who is willing to make small or larger steps towards feeling good!
It all started when my rock n roll lifestyle caught up with me and I was a miserable, bloated, rapidly aging unhappy girl about to turn 40 and suffering from bouts of anxiety and depression. A suicide attempt that almost succeeded shocked me into making some decisions to change my life, after all life is supposed to begin at 40 not end at 40!
I had just quit my corporate day job, Yay!!! (told you life begins at 40) and I had bought my own business a bar and live music venue! Rockin! Things were fun and exciting along with a high level of stress that comes from starting your own business and not to mention the long hours of partying, music, booze and ciggies and a poor irregular diet. All of this was fuel for Bi Polar and despite being on heavy doses of anti - depressants. I had always suffered from bouts of anxiety and depression since my teens but this time round I was heading for a full blown blow up - tick tick tick KABOOM!!! The problem was people and friends all thought I had the best life but little did they know I was a self destructing timebomb. I was completely out of control and living dangerously.
I desperately had to sort my life out and decided to take a good look at my health. I accidently discovered the most amazing thing that changed my life - "swimming"! I joined the gym and immediately pulled my calf muscle, I was so pissed off eager to start my new life of fitness and a fab body I was already injured and discouraged. The gym instructor was so lovely and suggested I should try swimming instead while I waited for my injury to recover. I vaguely remember swimming lessons maybe in Primary School?, but didn't have a clue how to swim and it was the middle of winter and the pool was outdoors - oh excuses, excuses there were so many reasons not to try it but I just had to adopt a new positive attitude and without a change nothing would change!
Wow!!!! How lucky was I that the gym I joined had a beautiful heated outdoor pool! In the middle of winter the water was so warm with steam coming off and the sun shining. My first few goes were so funny I would run out of breath and stop halfway but before I knew it I had taught myself how to swim and I made some crazy dolphin like squeaky noises of excitement when I could swim from one end of the pool to another. At first I didn't put my face in the water and had my head lifted my head to breath every stroke but gradually I took a breath every second stroke, this felt a bit one sided so eventually I managed to breath deeply enough for every third stroke. Every session I added an extra two laps and in a few short weeks I was swimming 20 laps non stop and literally saved my life! My reward at the end of each swim wasn't a cigarette, glass of wine or a chocolate bar it was a nice hot steamy spa overlooking the gorgeous Fitzroy pool on cold Melbourne winter mornings. The benefits of swimming are endless but I have a few friends who have struggled with depression and alochol/drug issues who discovered swimming too and you just can't go wrong here's some of the reasons why:
No excuses, cold or hot weather - in winter the water is warm and inviting, in summer the water is cool and refreshing
The daily dose of sunlight provides valuable Vitamin D fighting off the blues
You cannot help but breathe deeply and evenly when swimming which has an effect similar to mediatation, this has a great effect on your on calming your mind and fights anxiety and depression.
You can't injure yourself and you can be of any age and level of fitness
Resolves back and neck soreness or tensions from stress
Keeps your heart rate up but takes some of the impact stress off your body
Builds endurance, muscle strength and cardiovascular fitness
Helps maintain a healthy weight, healthy heart and lungs
Tones muscles and builds strength
Provides an all-over body workout, as nearly all of your muscles are used during swimming.
It's so quiet and peaceful underwater the effect of earplugs and goggles and being submerged in a soothing effect has had many great effects on my emotional state. Sometimes I will make whale and dolphin noises while I am breathing out and I imagine all the other people swimming are other fish, seals, jellyfish and seahorse ha ha. Sometimes I would let out emotions and literally cry underwater and when I finished my swim the pool was full of my tears and I would leave all my problems behind, sometimes I got so relaxed I would literally swim in auto pilot and feel like I just had the best sleep - it never feels like exercise - although it does feel like a great workout.
Swimming is a great way to start my day, take time for myself first before the rest of the world starts demanding and put my thoughts into a positive, calm, happy frame of mind ready to tackle anything.
Swimming makes me want to smoke less, eat less and drink less I have never regretted going for a swim sometimes it's difficult to get there, life gets in the way but everytime I go back to the pool I love it!!!!!!
Dori's philosophy on life.....just keep swimming........just keep swimming........
I will get to my obsession with food soon I promise
