Salmon with Cranberry-Orange Salsa

In a scene straight out of the TV show, “Chopped” I was looking to make something tasty for dinner in a hurry. I had an orange, fresh cranberries, salmon and…

 


In a scene straight out of the TV cooking show series, “Chopped” I was looking to make something tasty for dinner and being in a hurry, I decided to just use what I could find in the fridge.

Hmm…an orange, cilantro, some fresh cranberries, and a piece of frozen salmon.

What to make?

Well, I decided to make salsa out of the cranberries and serve it with the salmon. I was delighted with how good it was! You will be too, when you try this recipe.

The tart taste of the fresh cranberries mixes with the sweetness of the orange and picks up the flavor of the salmon in a fresh new way. Your taste buds will be absolutely delighted!

 

Cranberries are one of the few foods totally native to North America.

Native American Indians ate cranberries cooked and sweetened with honey or maple syrup. Cranberries were also used as a medicine and a poultice for wounds. The tannins in them help to contract tissue to stop bleeding, and we now know that compounds in cranberries have powerful antibiotic effects as well.

 

While cranberries are best known for helping urinary health, recent studies now suggest that this little red super berry is beneficial for the gastrointestinal tract, prevents cavities, helps prevent kidney stones and gallstones, aids in recovery from strokes, prevents cancer, lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol, and raises HDL (good) cholesterol. Not bad for one little berry, huh?

 

These phytochemical powerhouses are packed with five times the antioxidant content of broccoli, and rank higher in antioxidants than most fruits and vegetables!

 

Several newly discovered compounds in cranberries have also been found to be toxic to cancer cells including lung, cervical, prostate, breast and leukemia cancer cells. So you see, there is no reason to NOT eat cranberries!

 

Ingredients

2-4 wild caught salmon fillets (sockeye salmon is great with this-it has a firmer texture and sweeter taste)

Jerk seasoning (I used a pre-made powdered rub)

1 cup (or so) fresh cranberries, chopped, or lightly processed in food processor

½ small red onion

1 orange or blood orange, sectioned and cut

Juice of half a lime

Hot pepper flakes, to taste

2-4 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

1 tsp honey

Sea salt

 

Directions

Chop cranberries, and mix with orange, onion, lime, cilantro and hot pepper flakes. Season the salmon with jerk seasoning, and grill or broil till tender and flaky.  Serve topped with cranberry mixture. Enjoy!  Serves 2-4.

 

Eat well, be satisfied, burn fat and improve your health with the Fat Burning Kitchen Superfood Recipe book!

 

Till next time, stay healthy and lean!

 

Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.   

Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

Antioxidants Don’t Work Unless You Eat THIS

An ESSENTIAL food to eat to absorb nutrients

veggies

People are still so polarized about fats.

While some people are still adamantly anti-fat, there is a ton research out there that shows that avoiding fat is not only very unhealthy, but it doesn’t help with weight loss or better cholesterol levels either.

IF you stay up to date with the latest nutrition news, you probably already know that certain fats are not only healthy for you, but they are absolutely ESSENTIAL for your  good health!

We already know that saturated fats are extremely beneficial to our health—especially the saturated fat from coconut oil, fatty fish, grass-fed meats, whole milk, egg yolks, lard, and grass fed butter, right?

And, we know that monounsaturated fats like the fat in extra virgin olive oil is full of healthy and powerful antioxidants, along with the healthy fats from avocados and nuts.

Healthy fats, including saturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, monounsaturated fats, Omega 3’s and (to a lesser extent) Omega 6 and 9 fats, are essential for many important body and brain functions.

Here’s a few ways contribute to your good health:

  • Fats, especially cholesterol, make up our cell walls, which helps the immune system, brain function, healing, rebuilding, cell respiration, energy production, and more.
  • Saturated fats are necessary for lining the lungs which is necessary for ease of breathing.
  • Fats are a necessary component of myelin, the fatty material that covers nerve cells and brain cells, and enables them to signal properly.
  • The brain is made up of primarily fat. Omega 3 fats and saturated fats are actually necessary for proper function and repair of brain cells.
  • Cholesterol is necessary for production of hormones testosterone, estrogen, progesterone, and other essential hormones in the body.
  • Fat is important to help us feel satiated and helps maintain a stable blood sugar.
  • Omega 3 fats and saturated fats are necessary to utilize calcium properly.
  • Fat is converted to fuel, which is burned as an energy source, as long as you are not eating a diet high in sugar or starch.
  • People who eat diets rich in natural fats like lard, butter and coconut oil, and omega 3 fats will smoother, younger looking skin than people who eat a diet high in vegetable oils.

Over the last several years, there’s been tons of research on the healing powers of individual nutritional compounds in foods, such as lycopene, vitamin D and essential fatty acids.

But, it has been found that certain nutrients work better together to create a bigger nutritional bang than when eaten alone. This is what we call, “food synergy”, and it’s one of the reasons why eating a wide variety of healthy foods can create far better health than eating a narrow selection of the same foods. Food synergy can help the prevention of many serious, chronic diseases including heart disease, cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer’s, to name just a few.

Food synergy is very important when it comes to absorbing vitamins and antioxidants.

Including a healthy form of fat with your meals is absolutely necessary to absorb the valuable nutrients from certain vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that dietary fat is absolutely necessary for the proper absorption of nutrients from fruits and vegetables. In this particular scientific study, one group ate a salad consisting of spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, and carrots with fat-free dressing and another group ate the salad with a dressing that contained fat. Those who ate the salad with fat absorbed far more of the beneficial phytonutrients from the vegetables in the salad.

Similar studies from Ohio State University and Iowa State University also found the same results:  Adding healthy fats like nuts, extra-virgin olive oil, whole eggs, organic cheese, or avocado to your salad bowl can increase the amount and absorption of beneficial antioxidants, such as the lutein in the leafy greens, lycopene in tomatoes and red peppers, and beta-carotene in carrots — your body absorbs.

And, in fact, a 2008 Journal of Nutrition study reported that those who ate more alpha- and beta-carotenes, the compounds in bright yellow, orange or red colored fruits and vegetables, had about a 20% lower risk of dying from heart disease over a 15-year period.

Many of these antioxidants and vitamins, require fat to be absorbed and put to use in the body. This is especially true for the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K2, as well as the antioxidants lutein, lycopene and beta-carotene.

How does this work? When fats are eaten, the body responds by squirting bile (a digestive enzyme made in the liver), into the small intestine. Bile breaks up the fat into tiny globules called micelles that transfer their contents to the intestinal wall, where the nutrients are absorbed and sent into the bloodstream.

NO FAT ==> no bile secretion ==> no carotenoid absorption.

Many fats themselves are rich sources of nutrients. For example, one of the best sources of vitamin E, a potent antioxidant, is red palm oil. Choline from egg yolks is an important nutrient for liver function. Cod liver oil is a great source for both vitamins A and D. And whole milk and butter from grass fed cows is rich in vitamin K2, necessary to prevent osteoporosis.

Many of the super powered, antioxidant spices  also require healthy fats to maximize their super powerful nutrients as well. Turmeric, cinnamon and ginger are some of those super powered spices that work best with some fat. For example, in order for the curcumin from turmeric to appear in the blood in large enough amounts to have beneficial effects on your health, it must be combined with a fat like olive oil, coconut oil,  butter,  whole milk, or cheese for optimum effect.

Here’s a really good example of what happens to some of vital nutrients if not eaten with some fat so they are absorbed properly. This actually happened to a good friend of mine a few years ago.

A while back when the low-fat craze was all the rage, my good friend, who was into bodybuilding and also a vegetarian, got too carried away with eating a low fat diet. She started avoiding ALL fats thinking they would make her gain too much body fat. Well, obviously she was not able to absorb a lot of necessary nutrients since she wasn’t eating any fat, but it was especially noticeable with vitamin A. She was constantsly craving and eating a lot of fruits and vegetables that contained beta-carotene, which is converted to vitamin A in our bodies—as long as it’s eaten with some fat.

Well, of course she wasn’t eating any fat, so the beta-carotene had nowhere to go and her body couldn’t use it. She ate so much of these beta-carotene rich foods, that her skin actually started turning very orange!

In the absence of fat in her diet, her body could not do a thing with all that beta-carotene except to store it in her tissues. Needless to say, she became extremely deficient in a lot of vital nutrients that required fat, and she started having serious health issues because of this.

Once she finally went back to eating healthy fats, her body was able to absorb and uiltize the nutrients she was eating and her health came back, and her skin went back to being a normal color instead of orange.

Guess what the first thing she ate was? Organic, grass fed beef liver! Liver just so happens to one of the most potent sources of vitamin A, and it is also full of healthy cholesterol that is necessary to properly utilize the vitamin A.  So, you see, my friend was in dire need of vitamin A, (and cholesterol too) which she could not absorb with her fat-free diet!

While fat is necessary for good nutrition, the type of fat you eat matters. A lot.

When consuming dietary fat to improve your health, there are some important rules to follow:

  • Avoid unhealthy fats, especially trans fats and hydrogenated fats. Plant fats are fine but stick to unprocessed fats like avocado, coconut, nuts and seeds—NOT vegetable oils, that are highly processed and inflammatory.
  • You don’t need to overdo it — you only need a small amount of fat to facilitate vitamin absorption.

One of the best fats to help you utilize nutrients best is coconut oil.

A brand new study recently compared the effects of coconut oil to safflower oil on the absorption of carotenoids from tomatoes. The coconut oil actually enhanced the uptake of the tomato carotenoids to a much greater degree than the safflower oil. This may be because of the fact that coconut oil is made of medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs) and is a saturated fat.

In short, most every meal or snack that you consume should contain some healthy fats, even if only in small portions. I even put coconut oil or grass-fed butter in my organic coffee in the morning, along with a touch of cinnamon—which, I’m certain, helps me absorb some of the healthy phytochemicials and antioxidant properties of the coffee and cinnamon. Yes, organic coffee has antioxidants in it too!

So, include a little coconut oil in your smoothie, add some grass fed butter to your cooked veggies, throw in some sliced avocado and a drizzle of olive oil on your salad. Drink whole milk instead of skim (better yet, drink whole, RAW, unpasteurized milk). Dip your apple slices or banana in some natural peanut butter; grab a handful of nuts to munch with your blueberries, and AVOID all those ‘low fat’ versions of foods you see that are advertised to be more healthy!

Ok, I’m off to enjoy my grain-free, Paleo, organic pumpkin pancakes (high in beta-carotene) slathered in grass-fed butter and a little maple syrup. Mmmm. Can’t wait!

References:

Brown, et al, “Carotenoid bioavailability is higher from salads ingested with full-fat than with fat-reduced salad dressings as measured with electrochemical detection,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2004.80(2):396-403

Kadey, Matthew, “Better Together”, Experiencelife.com, May 2010.

Mercola, Joseph. “Which Oil Will Help You Absorb Nutrients Better?”, Mercola.com, August 20, 2012.

Ribaya-Mercado JD. Influence of dietary fat on beta-carotene absorption and bioconversion into vitamin A. Nutr Rev. 2002 Apr;60(4):104-10.

Traber MG. The bioavailability bugaboo. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 May;71(5):1029-30.

Tyssandier V, Reboul E, Dumas JF, Bouteloup-Demange C, Armand M, Marcand J, Sallas M, Borel P. Processing of vegetable-borne carotenoids in the human stomach and duodenum. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol. 2003 Jun;284(6):G913-23.

van Het Hof KH, West CE, Weststrate JA, Hautvast JG. Dietary factors that affect the bioavailability of carotenoids. J Nutr. 2000 Mar;130(3):503-6.

Preorder your copy of the The Flat Belly Kitchen  book on Amazon!

Books will be available December 2 Order yours now!

CAT cropped headCatherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.

               Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.

       Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 Great Tomato Recipes

Oh joy! It’s midsummer and tomatoes are in season. Real, juicy, red, luscious, sweet tomatoes that burst with flavor in your mouth–not those mushy, pallid ones from a hothouse. What to do with this bounty of nature?

Oh joy! It’s midsummer and tomatoes are in season.

Real, juicy, red, luscious, sweet tomatoes that burst with flavor in your mouth–not those mushy, pallid ones from a hothouse.

If you are lucky, you may be able to pick your own fresh tomatoes red and ripe, from your backyard, or have a friend or neighbor supplying you with those warm, juicy red globes. If not, head to your local farmer’s market or look for “locally grown” in your favorite supermarket.

Tomatoes ripen in the sun, but if picked a bit early, they will continue to ripen if you leave them out on your counter top or windowsill. Refrigerating tomatoes not only stops their ripening process, but it also lessens their sweet and tangy flavor.

What to do with this bounty of nature? If you’re tiring of just sliced tomatoes with a drizzle of olive oil, fresh basil, sea salt and pepper, here are some other delicious ways to enjoy these antioxidant rich, cancer fighting, heart health enriching phytonutrients.

Tomatoes are full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, especially potassium. And they contain powerful bioflavinoids, which counteract inflammation, allergic reactions, fight cancer and protect your heart. Eating tomatoes will substantially reduce your risk of:

  • ovarian cancer
  • digestive tract cancers (mouth, throat, esophagus, pancreas, colon and rectum)
  • heart disease
  • asthma and COPD
  • prostate cancer

American men who ate tomatoes (in one study),  had a 40 percent reduction in the risk of prostate cancer. Studies of men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer found that increasing consumption of tomato products was associated with a marked decrease in cancer progression.

And it isn’t just the red color that makes tomatoes so healthy for you. Tomatoes of any color: red, green, orange, yellow or purple are all spectacular for your health.

Easy Baked Tomatoes Parmesan

Ingredients

  • 4 medium sized tomatoes, cut in half
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano, basil or thyme in any combination
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • Freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 450° F.
Place tomatoes cut-side up on a baking sheet. Top with Parmesan, oregano, salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil and bake until the tomatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.

 

Tomato and Watermelon Salad

Ingredients

  • 3 or 4 small to medium tomatoes, in assorted colors, cored and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
  • 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
  • 2 cups 3/4-inch-cubed yellow or red seedless watermelon flesh
  • 1 tablespoon chopped mixed fresh herbs, in any combination: basil, tarragon, chives, and cilantro
  • 1/4 teaspoon coriander seed
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a bowl, combine the tomatoes, cucumber, watermelon, and herbs.
In a spice grinder, grind the coriander seeds to a fine powder. Add the ground coriander to the tomato mixture and toss gently. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Combine dressing with vegetable/watermelon mixture and refrigerate, allowing flavors to mix for an hour or so.

My Favorite Tomato Salsa

Ingredients

  • 4-6 fresh, ripe tomatoes, depending on size, chopped in small pieces
  • ½ red onion, minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 or more jalapeño pepper, ribs and seeds removed, and minced finely
  • 1 organic or locally grown green or red bell pepper, chopped in small pieces
  • 2-4 tomatillos, chopped
  • 1 big bunch of cilantro, finely chopped
  • Juice of one lemon or lime
  • Sea salt
  • Teaspoon of sugar

Directions

There are two ways to make this salsa. One method is the chunky version. Just chop all the ingredients by hand with a sharp knife, and mix together with lemon or lime juice and sea salt. You can make it extra chunky or use a finer chop.

For a smoother, more pureed version, coarsely chop the veggies and place in a food processor to mix. Process just enough so mixture is smooth, with no large chunks and serve. This will produce a slightly juicier version, so drain off some of the excess juice with a colander. Add lemon, lime and salt after draining liquid.

Either way, you will enjoy it immensely!  Serve with chicken, fish, chips, tacos or on your scrambled eggs. Serves 4 or more.

Enjoy tomatoes while you can, because soon enough tomato season will be over.

Now, what to do with all that zucchini? Stay tuned… 🙂

Till next time,

Stay Healthy and Lean!

cat e1335982521218 Stop Muscle Cramps With This Common Ingredient

DSC 6815 e1335982388100 Stop Muscle Cramps With This Common IngredientCatherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.

Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.

Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

A Superfood That Improves Athletic Performance and Recovery, Burns Fat, and Helps Your Love Life Too!

 

 

I tend to think of most superfoods as being dark green, bright red, orange or yellow, but this particular superfood is actually comes in a dull white, tan or brown color.

Mushrooms deserve “Superfood” status for lots of reasons—many scientists are just in the beginning stages of discovering some of the many amazing things they can do.

 

While particular varieties have abilities unique to their own type, mushrooms in general contain over twenty vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, along with some potent fat burning, immune-enhancing and cancer-fighting phyto-chemicals.

 

In Asia, the Chinese and Japanese have been using different types of mushrooms as powerful medicine for the last 3,000 years. And mushrooms were used by the Pharaohs in Egypt, the Greek warriors, the Romans, the Aztecs and the Mayans.

 

The two most common mushrooms that we use, the white ‘button’ mushroom and the ‘Crimini’ or brown mushroom contain a particular chemical that inhibits excess estrogen production.

 

In women, excess estrogen is responsible for easy weight gain (esp in hips, thighs and stomach), loss of interest in sex, and can lead to a susceptibility to certain estrogen related cancers like breast and ovarian cancer.

 

In men, excess estrogen causes weight gain, loss of sex drive and ambition, and the dreaded “manboobs”, along with certain cancers.

 

Excess estrogen is very dangerous to health, and a major factor not only in weight gain, but also in cancer and tumor development.

 

The “aromatase inhibitors” in mushrooms also help men reverse age-related decline in testosterone, and help them convert free testosterone into the more potent androgenic hormone, DHT, which aids in building lean muscle and fat burning.

 

This also benefits women in a similar fashion, in that it helps build lean, muscular bodies. (No ladies, do not worry, you will NOT grow hair on your chest and turn into big burly men.)You will just get leaner, svelte, and firm.

 

Testosterone is definitely boosts libido for both men AND women.


Other more exotic mushrooms, including the maitake, shiitake, enokitake and oyster mushrooms, contain powerful medicine-like qualities that stimulate the immune system to effectively help it fight off bacteria, viruses, and even cancer.

 

You can easily build up your immune system simply by eating a variety of mushrooms.

Mushrooms also help those with allergies and calm allergic reactions as well.

 

Mushrooms are highly effective athletic performance booster as well as helping with muscle growth and recovery post workout.

 

In studies done on thoroughbred race horses, Cordyceps mushrooms boosted  running speed, and also acted as a calming agent, increasing alert focus and attention. These benefits translate to human athletes as well, helping both speed and concentration.

 

While you can get some of the benefits of mushrooms by taking an expensive supplement, it’s more beneficial to eat them as a whole food.

 

Sauté some along with some chopped, fresh garlic in grass fed butter, seasoned with sea salt and black pepper. Or throw them in whenever you are cooking eggs, vegetables, soup or stews. The subtle, earthy flavor enhances the flavor of many recipes.

 

Mushrooms also provide copper–an important mineral for energy metabolism–B vitamins, and selenium.

 

If you like to eat your mushrooms raw, make sure they are organically grown, since they absorb toxins from the air and soil.

 

And unless you are an expert I don’t recommend going out in the woods and hunting for them yourself. There are too many varieties of mushrooms that are highly toxic or deadly. Your local farmers’ market is a good source of mushrooms in the spring and fall.

 

Till next time, Stay Healthy and Lean!

DSC 6815 Never Eat These Fruits and Vegetables! Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.  

Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

 

 

 

 

 

Charles Bankhead, Mushrooms Play a Role in Breast Cancer Prevention and Treatment, WebMD Medical News, December, 1999

 

Joseph Mercola, The “Antioxidant Superstar” Chinese People Eat Daily, November 2011. Mercola.com

 

Charles Mateljon, Crimini Mushrooms, World’s Healthiest Foods, WHfoods.org.

How to Survive Cancer

 

 
Getting a diagnosis of cancer can certainly cause one to totally re-evaluate lifestyle choices and diet.

While diet and lifestyle have a direct effect on whether someone will eventually get cancer, what about diet and lifestyle changes after a cancer diagnosis?

Is it too late? No, according to the research.

Studying survival both before and after a cancer diagnosis can tell a lot.

Does a person’s diet after a diagnosis of cancer affect survival?

Absolutely.

Oddly enough, there have not been that many studies that show how diet affects cancer survival, after diagnosis, even though this is one of the lifestyle changes that can have the most dramatic effect on whether one lives or dies.

One extensive study examined diet after a breast cancer diagnosis and survival of women enrolled in the Nurses Health Study. In this study, almost 2,000 women who had developed breast cancer were followed for an average of 13 years.

A little more than half (1,200) of these women had breast cancer that had not metastasized (spread to other organs or the lymph nodes). Women in this group who ate the largest amounts of poultry, total protein, and omega-3 fatty acids (from oils found in grass fed meats and fish) had a significantly  lower risk of death than women who ate the least amounts of these foods and nutrients. Women who ate more fiber, fish, and vegetables also had a lower risk of death than women who ate less of these food and nutrients.

And another important finding: the type of fats these women ate made a big difference. Those who ate hydrogenated oils had a higher rate of death.

For the 745 women whose cancer had metastasized, those who ate more protein and calcium had a lower rate of death.

Most importantly, in a study of 3,500 patients with breast cancer or ovarian cancer, the results show that a diet high in sugars and carbohydrates contributed to tumor growth and matastases, while a diet of healthy protein, animal products, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and fiber had lower rates of cancer.

One’s diet after a cancer diagnosis is an area that is begging for more research.


Unfortunately, this is an area that major cancer drug companies are not interested in pursuing, so the money for this type of research is just not there. 

Some foods and nutrients have been tied to as much as a 50% decrease in the risk of death from cancer.


Why then, would you ignore something that can have such an incredibly important effect on your health?

While cancer rates climb, traditional medical science looks at more expensive, high tech treatments such as gene therapy, and more advanced cancer-killing drugs. But there is no magic cure.

Although it is far easier to prevent cancer than get rid of it, it can be reversed with diet, nutrition and lifestyle changes.

Think about this: Conventional cancer treatments kill cells, damage the immune system, and don’t go after the underlying cause.


On the other hand, diet and lifestyle changes work on strengthening the body and immune system, and promote healing; while addressing underlying causes and nutritional deficiencies.

Diet alone can make or break cancer treatment and is the most important of all therapies.


Look at it this way–what you put in your body will either help it and strengthen it, or make things worse.

Having a knowledge of which foods feed cancer cells and which foods kill or starve cancer cells is absolutely vital to the healing process.

First and most importantly, any form of sugar, or food that raises the blood level of glucose, will feed cancer cells and should be the very first dietary change you make.

This includes any high glycemic foods that contain sucrose (regular cane or beet sugar), fructose (high fructose corn syrup, agave, honey, and naturally occurring sugars in fruits and fruit juice), or glucose (starchy foods such as potatoes, grain products like bread, crackers, pasta, cookies, granola bars, etc., and corn, popcorn).

Cancer cells feed on glucose in the body, and a low-glycemic diet will virtually starve out cancer cells. This is vital!

Sugar substitutes such as Splenda, Nutrasweet and Equal, refined flours, and trans fatty acids also wreak havoc on the body, and numerous studies have linked them to cancers. Even natural sweeteners such as honey and maple syrup (also sugars) should also be restricted while cancer remains active.

However, the herb stevia is a safe and natural sweetener, and it does not raise blood glucose levels or stimulate an insulin response. Stevia can usually be found in the supplement aisle of health food stores.

Avoid all processed foods and packaged foods—even if it came from the natural foods aisle. These foods contain artificial ingredients, preservatives, and other substances that strengthen cancer cells and interfere with the healing process.

Pasteurized dairy products should also be avoided, as they can contribute to allergies and asthma, and actually decrease immune function in the process. Many of these also contain sugar or high fructose corn syrup, and even if they don't, dairy products contain lactose, a type of sugar in milk. And unless they are 100% grass fed or organic, there are often hormones and additives in the milk or dairy products that speed up tumor growth.

The body’s ability to fight cancer is a function of the immune system, so anything that strengthens the immune system helps it kill cancer cells.

Some cancer-preventative diets recommend avoiding meat (mostly due to the hormones, toxins and antibiotics in conventional meat), but in most cases, the best choice is to eat good quality organic and grass fed meats, organic free range chicken, and wild-caught fish.

These meats are not only high in essential body-building proteins, B vitamins, iron, and zinc, but they also contain larger amounts of healing, cancer-fighting omega 3 fats , as well as Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), a powerful cancer-fighting, immune-strengthening fatty acid.

One of the big concerns with a cancer diagnosis is metastasis when cancer cells spread to other parts of the body or lymph system. Metastasis is increased by a diet high in omega-6 fatty acids (canola oil, corn, soybean, sunflower, safflower or other vegetable oils).

However, omega 3 fatty acids, like those found in grass fed meats, wild caught fatty fish, flax seeds and walnuts actually slow down and inhibit cancer growth.

Omega 3 fatty acids also increase the body’s positive response to chemotherapy and help protect against chemotherapy’s toxic effects.

Healthy fats are essential.

CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) is such a potent cancer-fighting fat that studies even small amounts of CLA in the diet can reduce tumors by over 50 percent.

Studies show that even small amounts of CLA can block all three stages of cancer: 1) initiation, 2) growth, and 3) metastasis.

Where do you get CLA? The best source of natural CLA is from meat and dairy products of grass fed animals. Meat or milk from grass fed cattle contains 5 times more CLA than animals raised on grain in a feedlot. Simply switching from grain fed to grass fed products will increase your intake of vital CLA significantly, and eliminate the toxins and additives from conventionally raised meats as well.

Virtually all plant foods contain powerful nutrients and antioxidants that fight cancer, aid in the healing process, and help eliminate toxins from the body.

However, it is important to eat organic fresh fruits and vegetables if at all possible. Pesticides and toxins in commercially grown vegetables are not only toxic to the body, but can encourage the growth of cancer cells.

Certain vegetables have very potent anti-cancer properties including dark green lettuces like arugula, organic spinach, mache, and romaine lettuce, as well as parsley and watercress.

Cruciferous vegetables, a famiy of vegetables that includes broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, bok choy, kale, kohlrabi, brussels sprouts, horseradish, mustard, capers, cress, rutabaga, arugula, and turnips, are extremely high in proven cancer-fighting phytochemicals.

Other healing and cancer-fighting plant foods include: edible seaweeds, berries, including: acai, goji berries, blueberries, raspberries, cherries, and red or purple grapes, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and green tea, among many others.

A New York based physician, Dr. Gonzalez, who has had incredible results treating so-called “untreatable cancers” with an alternative approach, and a specialized dietary regimen, recommends pancreatic enzymes in cancer treatment.

In a nutshell, his theory is that pancreatic enzymes are the body's main defense against cancer and are extremely useful as a cancer treatment.

Pancreatic enzymes have some amazing tumor-dissolving abilities.

Dr. Gonzalez, who is trained in immunology, uses special diets, aggressive supplementation with nutrients and enzymes, and detoxification methods to successfully fight cancer.

Effective healing not only requires a healthy, clean diet but also getting rid of accumulated toxins and metabolic wastes.


It's also beneficial to begin any healing regimen with a cleanse of the kidneys, liver and colon to remove stored toxins. There are many effective cleansing formulas and procedures that can be found at health food stores, the internet, or through a holistic healer.

Other lifestyle factors that have a significant impact on successfully preventing and battling cancer include:

  • Get out in the sun. Vitamin D from sunlight strengthens the immune system and is a powerful weapon in the cancer battle. Adequate exposure during the midday hours is the best way to obtain the restorative benefits of sunlight.
  • Get some exercise. Regular exercise speeds up the elimination of toxins and is necessary to circulate oxygen in the body and to improve lymph function and drainage, while building immunity. You can achieve these therapeutic benefits with moderate exercise at 3-4 times a week.
  • Keep a positive attitude! It reduces psychological stress and profoundly aids the healing process. Studies in cell biology show that a positive attitude actually affects cell function!  Spend time with friends and loved ones and enjoy life as much as you can. We all have the power to control our own thoughts and attitudes and create our own reality. A positive outlook can interpret a cancer diagnosis as a life-changing event with an opportunity to transform one's life for the better. Laugh, live, enjoy.
  • Don’t neglect your spiritual side. It doesn’t mean you have to become suddenly religious, but to make peace with yourself, your life and your loved ones. Consider resolving unresolved conflicts, forgiving and asking forgiveness, and letting go of toxic emotions such as anger, bitterness, hatred, resentment, regret, and fear, while embracing your capacity for love, compassion and joy. You can do all of this through meditation, affirmations, visualization and/or prayer.
Preventing or healing from cancer may involve a total lifestyle turnaround.

While this can seem to be a daunting task, you may not only save your life, but make a complete change for the better in many ways. You can defeat cancer.


You are worth it, just ask the ones who love you.


Till next time, stay healthy and lean! 


 

Heal your body with superfoods in the Fat Burning Kitchen Superfood Recipe Book. Coming soon!




Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled "The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation" that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health. 

Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

 

 

References:
1. http://www.grasslandbeef.com

2.. Plant, Ph.D., J.: The No-Dairy Breast Cancer Prevention Program. NY, NY: St. Martin's Press, 84-113, 2000

3. Liu, M.D., McManus, M.S., R.D., and Carlino, J.: Healing Gourmet, Eat to Fight Cancer. New York, NY, McGraw-Hill, 53-147, 2006

4. McCabe, Ed: Flood Your Body With Oxygen: Therapy For Our Polluted World. 6th Edition. Energy Publications, 68-9, 2003

5. Gerson, C. and Walker, M.: The Gerson Therapy. NY, NY: Kensington Publishing Corp., 154-77; 190-2, 2001

6. Brooks, Linda: Rebounding and Your Immune System. Urbana, OH: Vitally Yours Press, 13-46, 2003

7. Yance, Donald: Herbal Medicine, Healing and Cancer. NY, NY: McGraw-Hill, 268-70; 242-4, 1999

8. Laredo, Mary: marylaredoblogspot.com, 2007

9. http://www.eatwild.com/cla.html

What about Coffee?

 

 

Caffeine was once thought to be bad for us.

But as we can see with the prevalence of coffee shops on virtually every corner, coffee is everywhere. And tea is gaining in popularity too.  

 

According to recent coffee statistics, coffee is the most popular beverage worldwide with over 400 billion cups consumed each year.

And, the United States alone imports around $4 billion worth of coffee per year.  Americans drink about 400 million cups of java a day, and companies like Starbucks would certainly like that number to grow.

 

Coffee, tea and other beverages containing caffeine have a great many health benefits.

And apparently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Surgeon General, the National Academy of Science, the American Medical Association, the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control, the American Cancer Society, the Framingham Heart Study and many other scientific studies now agree on this fact.

 

Coffee increases the body’s metabolism, your heart rate, breathing, and helps to warm up the body.

It elevates the mood and can actually reduce depression as well, by increasing energy and stimulating the brain, making you more mentally alert.

 

Beyond the obvious stimulating factors that we all enjoy coffee for, there are some other fairly significant health contributions coffee makes. Lets take a look at some of these redeeming virtues of coffee:

 

·    Coffee Lowers Your Risk of Type 2 DiabetesTwo separate studies, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that drinking three to four cups of coffee a day decreased risk of type 2 diabetes by 27%. It is thought that this is due to the fact that coffee contains antioxidants and minerals like magnesium, that are beneficial for blood sugar metabolism and insulin sensitivity. Coffee may also help with weight reduction, which lessens the tendency to get diabetes as well.

 

·    Coffee Prevents Parkinson’s diseaseSix studies have shown that people who drink coffee daily are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s. And some of the newer Parkinson’s drugs actually contain a caffeine derivative.

 

Lowers Your Chances of Alzheimer’s Disease–Drinking five medium-sized cups of coffee a day could lower your chances of Alzheimer’s. One study followed mice that were bred to develop Alzheimer’s. After two months of drinking water with caffeine, the mice performed much better on memory and thinking tests compared to mice that were given only water. Plus, the mice had a 50% reduction of beta amyloid, a protein often found in Alzheimer’s patients’ brains.

 

·    Coffee Reduces Colon Cancer Risk—While colorectal cancer is the second highest cause of cancer related deaths in the US, a recent study from the European Journal of Cancer Prevention showed that colorectal cancer was 24% lower among those who drank 4 or more cups of coffee per day than the non-coffee drinkers.

 

·    Coffee Reduces Gall Stones–Researchers from Harvard University found that those drinking one cup a day had a 13% risk reduction of gallstone disease. Those drinking two to three cups a day had a 21% risk reduction and those drinking four or more cups a day had a 33% risk reduction of gallstone disease.

 

·    Coffee Helps Asthmatics—Caffeine and the chemical theophyline in coffee act as natural bronchodilators. Three or more cups of coffee per day help can relieve the symptoms of asthma.

 

·    Coffee Alleviates Headaches and Manages Migraines—Because caffeine is a natural vasoconstrictor, the caffeine in coffee helps to reduce headache pain in many people. Caffeine additives not only help headache medications to work more effectively, it also helps the body absorb headache drugs quicker.

 

·    Coffee Burns Fat—Because caffeine speeds up your metabolism, you have more energy and burn more calories. Caffeine also breaks down fat and frees up fatty acids in the body for immediate fat burning. In fact, conversion from fat to energy is about 30% more effective with caffeine. And because fat is being burned for energy, blood glucose levels don’t get low, and amino acids are preserved and you don’t get hungry as quickly.

 

·    Coffee’s High Number of Antioxidants Fights Free Radicals–Recent studies have shown that coffee is one of the richest sources of antioxidants in the average person’s diet. But little is known about how these antioxidants, including caffeine, work against free radicals.

 

·    Coffee is an Athletic Performance Enhancer—Numerous tests have been conducted on caffeine and its effects on athletic performance and endurance. And the results–caffeine works. About 330 mg (or 5 mg per kilogram of body weight) 30 minutes to an hour before workouts results in better endurance, faster times, less exertion, less fatigue, and more rapid recovery — up to 30% better. 

 

So what about the downside of coffee: What about the jitteriness that it causes? What about other health risks? Can you have too much of a good thing?

 

Coffee can raise cholesterol, spike insulin, be dangerous to those with heart disease, cause irregular heartbeat, raise blood pressure, cause insomnia and anxiety if overdone.

People with panic or anxiety disorders may find that they are especially sensitive to caffeine and usually find that even a little bit of coffee will make anxiety and panic much much worse.

 

Coffee also interferes with your body’s ability to use folate (a B vitamin, especially important for pregnant women), and vitamins B12 and B6. These nutrients are necessary to keep homocysteine levels low. Elevated homocysteine levels are associated with heart attacks and heart disease.

 

Coffee makes the acid/base balance of the blood turn acidic, causing calcium to be used as a buffering agent in the body.

 

Coffee also stimulates your adrenals — the hormones that activate your fight or flight response. If your adrenal hormones are stimulated too often, which is bound to happen if you are a daily coffee drinker, your adrenal glands may eventually burn out.

 

In premenopausal women, the body will substitute progesterone for adrenal hormones.

Progesterone has its own important job to do, and serves as a balance for estrogen. If progesterone is used up, you become estrogen dominant. Estrogen dominance can lead to osteoporosis.

 

Coffee tends to be a heavily sprayed crop so drinking non-organic coffee will expose you to a hefty dose of pesticides with each cup.

 

If you’re pregnant or planning to be, you should avoid coffee altogether. Over 300 mg of caffeine a day, which is the equivalent of two to three eight ounce cups of coffee, can increase your risk of miscarriage, low birth weight baby, and cleft palate, as well as SIDS. It is also transferred through breast milk, and stays in your body and your baby’s body  longer than most people.

 

Caffeine and coffee can also be pretty strong diuretics, so if you are drinking large quantities of it, be sure to drink water to replace the lost fluids.

 

So am I going ditch the ‘Joe’?

No way! I love a nice strong cup in the morning to get me going, mentally and physically. It’s sometimes the only thing that gets me out of bed. I’m not a morning person, without caffeine.

 

If you want to drink coffee, keep this in mind, and you’ll be fine:

 

·    Opt for organic, drink it fresh and grind it every day. Coffee is one of the products that you just should not ingest any other way, so pay a few extra bucks and get the organic kind. This maximizes the antioxidants in the coffee—and it just tastes better. And while you’re at it, avoid drinking coffee out of those nasty Styrofoam containers. Coffee can leach out some bad chemicals from that stuff.

 

·    Drink it black. Leave out the sugar, the cream, the fake non dairy chemical ‘cream’, and the artificial sweeteners. If you MUST have something in your coffee, try a little coconut milk and stevia.

 

·    Avoid drinking caffeinated coffee in the evening. Since coffee has a half life of 6 hours, it can take quite a bit of time to clear out all the caffeine. Instead get a good night’s sleep and sleep soundly, without caffeine.

 

And whatever you do, don’t get your caffeine fix from those fluffy, fattening, sugary, macchiato, mochaccino, cappucino, frappuccino drinks from the coffee shops. That’s not going to do you or your wallet any good.

 

A small amount of caffeine can be very helpful in many instances. A long boring drive when you’re feeling sleepy, crying babies who keep you up half the night, traveling through timezones, and getting up early to be productive in the pre-dawn hours of the morning. Sure, it’s good to be health conscious, but a little bit of caffeine to get us up in the morning, through the day, and over the hump is OK, too. And sometimes, a hot cuppa ‘joe’ just really tastes good.

Till next time, stay healthy, lean and energetic!

Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.   

Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fitwise.com

 

Mercola, If you drink coffee make sure it’s organic, Jan 2010.

 

Hartley Jack, Caffeine and Sports Performance, http://www.vanderbilt.edu/ans/psychology/health_psychology/caffeine_sports.htm

 

Warner Jennifer, New Clues on Caffeine’s Health Benefits

Study Suggests Antioxidants in Caffeine Play a Role in Coffee’s Impact on Health, WebMD Health News.

 

What’s For Breakfast? Primarily Paleo, Gluten and Dairy Free Ideas

Breakfast is truly an important meal.It actually jumpstarts your metabolism, fires up your brain and gives you fuel to start your day full of energy. Don’t miss this opportunity to supercharge your day with some essential nutrients. And, eating a healthy breakfast reduces hunger all day.

 

Breakfast is truly an important meal.

Breakfast actually jump starts your metabolism, fires up your brain and gives you fuel to start your day full of energy. Don’t miss this opportunity to supercharge your day with some essential nutrients.

Studies show that in comparing breakfast eaters with breakfast skippers, the breakfast eaters lost weight, lost body fat and were less likely to eat high calorie lunches.
And, a University of Missouri study found that eating a healthy breakfast, especially one high in protein, increases satiety and reduces hunger throughout the day.

In one study done comparing a higher protein/fat breakfast with a high carb breakfast, the higher protein/fat breakfast won big time!

Study subjects lost more weight (with the same calorie intake) eating the higher protein/fat breakfast than the ones eating the high carb breakfast.
The protein/fat breakfast eaters had a healthier metabolic profile than the carb eaters as well, and burned more body fat.

What to have for breakfast if you want to eliminate wheat and dairy? What about a Paleo style breakfast? If your sleepy head wants to reach for that easy bowl of cereal, you may have to reprogram your thinking just a little. But truly, it’s not that hard.

If you are thinking of doing an elimination diet, or if you want to go Paleo, breakfast sometimes creates a dilemma, since the mainstay of many people’s breakfast is wheat and dairy. If you are left scratching your head looking for a  tasty breakfast, here are some great, tasty, alternative ideas:

For those who just want to be gluten free, the easiest route is to purchase some gluten free bread. Now there are lots of gluten free breads out there taking up shelf space in the grocery store, but many of those GF breads are just as bad as processed wheat flour.


Look for ‘whole grain’ gluten free breads or at least bread made from brown rice flour.

My favorite gluten free bread (that won’t break your foot if you happen to drop it) is a brand called ‘Udi’s’. They offer a whole grain version that is quite good—not heavy or chewy, not too starchy—and it tastes great toasted or untoasted.
Gluten free toast and a pan-fried egg make a great egg sandwich on the run.

 

I like to add a couple slices of natural bacon (no nitrates/nitrites) on it for a bacon and egg sandwich.

Or try gluten free toast with peanut butter, almond butter or other nut butter and berries, banana, apple or raisins. This is one of my favorite quick and easy, take-it-with-you breakfasts.

Another easy, light breakfast is a bowl of berries, a handful of nuts and maybe a couple slices of cheese. Antioxidants, protein, healthy fat and fiber all in one healthy meal.

Want to make something a little more elaborate? Try gluten free French toast!

Or grab some brown rice flour (Bob’s Red Mill) and whip up some pancakes with a cup or so of brown rice flour, an egg, a teaspoon of baking powder, pinch of sea salt, and just enough milk to make a thick batter. Pour into a pan or waffle iron, add some REAL butter and real maple syrup (not the kind with corn syrup in it), and Viola! A yummy GF version that will start your day off right.

Ok, so what about ‘Primarily Paleo’ people?

Great Paleo breakfasts are truly not that hard, either.

How about a yummy fresh berry smoothie?

Now that strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries are in season, throw in a generous cupful of these into a blender; add a banana, a few ice cubes, a cup or so of either hemp milk, coconut milk, almond milk or OJ, an organic or pasture raised clean raw egg (don’t use the regular commercially raised eggs, they are more likely to contain salmonella); and blend.

I like to add any or all of these optional ingredients to supercharge my smoothies:

Cold processed grass fed whey protein, a big spoonful of virgin coconut oil, unsweetened coconut flakes, flax or chia seeds, a handful of raw nuts, or half an avocado.

You can even throw in a couple leaves of kale, swiss chard, parsley, or other dark green leafy vegetable to really up the nutritional punch. (Don’t worry, you can’t really taste the green stuff, it just blends in.)

Make this yummy, high protein breakfast the night before and you will have a delicious breakfast that is full of protein, stays with you, and is a quick and easy way to take your breakfast on the run. Makes a great high protein snack too!

Egg quiche cups

6 eggs, beaten

1 small pkg of frozen spinach, drained or 1 big handful of fresh spinach

¼ cup minced onion

1-2 slices of diced natural ham or crumbled nitrate/nitrite free bacon

dash of Tabasco or hot pepper flakes

Sea salt

Preheat oven to 350, spray muffin pan or foil muffin cups with cooking spray. Thaw and drain spinach if using frozen. (You can just squeeze it with your hand to get rid of most of the excess liquid.

Mix all ingredients in with beaten eggs, and pour into muffin pan or foil muffin cups. Bake for 20 minues. Cool and serve.

You can refrigerate and re-warm these in a pan over low heat with a lid if you would like. Try with some fresh salsa and avocados!
And check out this awesome site I found for more great Paleo and gluten free breakfast ideas:

http://wheatfreedairyfreebreakfastrecipes.blogspot.com/

There are some particularly good recipes here for sure!

Gotta go, I am starving and it’s time for breakfast!

 

Till next time, stay healthy, energetic and lean!

Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN,is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.

                     Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.
           Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.


 

Heal and Prevent Sports Injuries

Jim rugby

Injuries, both minor and major, are one of the hardest and most frustrating thing an athlete has to deal with.

Injuries usually seem like they occur  just as you are beginning to ramp up your training for big events. And now that the weather is warming up, amateur and professional athletes are starting to pick up their training for another competitive season in their favorite sport.

Injuries can often be your body’s way of telling you are pushing it too hard, too quickly, or overtraining, and not getting enough rest and recovery in between demanding workouts.

Is there any way to prevent injuries?

Of course–you probably already know some of the things you can include in your training to prevent injury, like rest days, warming up slowly, easing into your training, and stretching.

But, did you know, your diet will also make a HUGE difference in whether you get injured and how quickly you recover?

Think of it this way: your body is a machine. Just as you work out hard to become stronger, feeding and fueling your body well will help to strengthen and maintain the muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bone in the best and strongest condition possible.

In contrast, a diet high in refined sugars, starches, and poor quality protein will result in weaker muscles, increased inflammation and a higher likelihood of injury.

So, what’s the best diet for a serious athlete or weekend warrior?

First of all, high quality protein is absolutely essential. Good protein sources are VITAL to grow and repair muscle, strengthen bones and tendons, and allow for proper function of cells.

Most training protocols tell you to eat protein right after exercise in order to help rebuild muscles; however, the best time of all may be shortly before a workout as well. It’s been found, that to limit the loss of muscle fiber associated with overuse injuries, eating protein shortly before exercising, and then immediately afterwards is best.

An active teen or adult needs to have at least 1.0 to 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight a day.

To figure this out, one pound of body weight is roughly equivalent to about .45 kilograms. So dividing your weight in half will give you a rough estimate of your weight in kilograms.

For example, an 150 lb male would weight about 70 kilograms and will need 70-100 GRAMS of protein a day, which comes out to about 30 grams per meal, or a decent sized serving of meat, chicken, fish or eggs at every meal.

The very best, most usable protein is grass fed meat, with 5 times the muscle-building Conjugated Linoleic Acid as regular grain fed meat, healthy omega 3 fats, and important muscle-building minerals–zinc and iron.

Other great sources of protein are wild caught fatty fish, free-range poultry, and organic eggs. All of these are higher in the healthy omega 3 fats, and lower in omega 6 (inflammatory) fats, as well as being free of pesticides, antibiotics and hormones.

Many athletes rely heavily on protein bars, shakes and powders, which is a big mistake.

The protein in these processed foods is very poor. This protein usually comes from heat-processed whey or soy protein isolate. Both of these protein sources are denatured, weak versions of protein and virtually unusable by the body.

Whey protein can be an excellent protein source, but it must be cool-processed (which keeps the protein intact) and should be from grass fed dairy cows as well, for the maximum amount of CLA and healthy fats.

Healthy fats are absolutely necessary.

Fats also help to lubricate the body, muscles, tendons, ligaments, organs and skin, and increase feelings of vitality and energy.

Athletes who switch to a higher fat diet see the results with more energy, less injuries and better recovery times. Be sure to include these fats:

•    Omega 3 fats–Provide plenty of fuel for energy, and anti-inflammatory properties to heal and protect the damage that hard training wreaks on the body. Omega 3 fats are found primarily in wild caught fatty fish, grass fed meat, organic eggs and grass fed butter. Walnuts, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, and flax seeds also contain healthy doses of omega 3 fats.

•    Conjugated Linoleic Acid–Helps to provide the fuel the body needs to power through a demanding practice. CLA builds muscle, burns fat, raises the metabolism, and helps prevent cancer, heart disease and high cholesterol.

•    Saturated fats and cholesterol--The good saturated fats (like the kind that come from grass fed meat, organic egg yolks, and butter) actually help to strengthen and repair muscle fibers, strengthen the immune system, aid in the proper functioning of the heart, lungs and brain, and boost metabolism. So don’t shy away from these important fats. However, you do want to avoid the grain fed versions of this fat as it is high in inflammatory omega 6 fats.

•    Monosaturated fats like coconut, nuts and olive oil are extremely effective at reducing inflammation and increasing energy, so be sure to include these healthy fats as well. Coconut oil is quickly and easily metabolized for energy as well as being an excellent healing agent, so be sure to include this in your diet.

Antioxidants are extremely important to athletes as well. Intense exercise creates tons of free radicals which can lead to damage and breakdown of tissue–including muscle–within the body.

Be sure to include LOTS of brightly colored fresh, organic vegetables and fruit to supply the body with the necessary antioxidants. The brighter and more colorful, the more antioxidants! Raw organic veggies and fruit contain the highest amounts of vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals; they also contain massive amounts of enzymes because they are raw.

Enzymes are proven healers of damaged tissue.

To prevent and heal injuries try to eat at least 50% or more of these raw.

Vitamin C is one of the most powerful antioxidants and is also very important for the repair of the collagen, connective tissue, and cartilage; it is helpful add extra to your diet when injured.

Aim for five or more sources of foods that are high in vitamin C such as red peppers, papaya, cantaloupe, kale, oranges and broccoli.

And don’t forget about Vitamin A for its rebuilding properties.

Higher amounts of vitamin A also aid in repairing micro-tears that occur after a hard workout, so it is a valuable addition for any runner, cyclist or weight lifter. Best food sources of vitamin A are: grass-fed dairy products such as raw cheese, grass-fed butter, and grass-fed (commercially raised beef liver contains lots of toxins) liver; bright orange or red vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, mangoes, papaya, winter squash, red peppers, apricots and spinach.

Digestive enzymes also aid in the recovery process.

Look for ones that contain plenty of bromelain and protease, and take with meals. Bromelain is an enzyme found in pineapple, and is effective as an anti-inflammatory. Protease is an enzyme that digests  proteins and will travel to the injured sites to dissolve the byproducts of the injury. Other enzymes have similar healing effects.

One of the most important building and repairing nutrients for injuries is zinc.

Zinc works alongside protein and other nutrients in the body synergistically. Zinc is also an immune enhancer which is powerful in the whole healing process. To ensure you are getting enough, include grass-fed beef, liver, oysters and other shellfish, seeds, nuts, chicken and egg yolks in your diet.

So now you know what foods to be sure to include in  your diet, but there are definitely some foods that must be avoided as well.

These foods not only fatigue the body, run down the immune system, and interfere with the processing of important nutrients, but they also contribute to inflammation in the body.

A tough and demanding training plan adds enough inflammation, so why add to that burden?

Inflammatory foods include the obvious junk foods–cookies, candy, excess alcohol, processed foods, and artificial foods with chemicals and preservatives.

Sneaky food additives (even in so-called health foods)  such as transfats, omega 6 oils such as corn oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, grains of all kinds including wheat, rice, oats, corn, and soy ( a legume) and sugars are also highly inflammatory as well.

Many athletes are switching to a gluten free training diet, even if they do not have gluten issues.

Gluten is a protein in wheat, rye and barley. It has been found that gluten is an inflammatory agent in many people (even those who seemingly do not have issues with gluten sensitivity) to some degree.

Athletes who have adopted a gluten free training diet report that they feel more energetic, less sluggish, lose a little weight, sleep better, have better digestion and generally feel better overall.

Sugar in all forms is highly inflammatory and actually stimulates an inflammatory response, so avoid it at all costs.

Pasteurized, processed dairy foods,  (as opposed to raw dairy) also tend to add to inflammation.

Dairy contains a lot of histamines, which will add to the inflammation already present in the body.

And last of all, be sure to be getting enough water.

Water helps to carry away toxins and keep your metabolism and healing processes working efficiently. There is no excuse not to stay well hydrated as the benefits are really endless.

You will feel better, have better energy and heal quicker!

Eat well, work hard and you will most definitely reap the benefits of a stronger, faster body!

 

Till next time, stay healthy, lean and active!

 

 

Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.

               Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

       Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.


 

 

References:

Michelle Schoffro Cook, DNM, DAc, CNC, CITP, The 12 Step Program to Healing Sport Injuries http://hubpages.com/profile/Shannon+Clark Horwitz,

Dr. Steven, Omega 3 Fatty Acids and Inflammation, Prevent Sports Injuries, Jan 21, 2011. http://preventsportsinjuries.blogspot.com    

 

The Amazing Power of Herbs and Spices

In many recipes, herbs and spices are optional, but I would recommend that you add as many as you can! Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are supercharging your food without adding a single calorie!


I don’t know about you, but I like to add lots of spices and herbs to my recipes.
While many people just don’t want to bother, there are a few really good reasons to add generous amounts of herbs and spices to your favorite dishes.
In many recipes, herbs and spices are optional, but I would recommend that you add as many as you can! Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are supercharging your food without adding a single calorie!
You can change something ordinary and bland into something
truly extraordinary, by adding herbs and spices.

Did you know that herbs and spices contain some of the most potent antioxidants that you can find?

In fact, many herbs rank way higher in antioxidant activity than fruits and vegetables, which are obviously high in antioxidants too.

Herbs and spices add tons of extra flavor, and when combined with other nutrition-packed superfoods, it actually boost the their natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory power.

In fact, the combination of certain herbs and spices with specific foods magnifies the antioxidant and nutrient value exponentially!

These spices have the highest amount of antioxidants and super-nutrients, so add them liberally to your foods:

Allspice

Basil

Cayenne or hot pepper flakes

Cloves

Cinnamon or its cousin Cassia (which is what we in the United States use)

Nutmeg

Oregano

Ginger

Marjoram

Sage

Thyme

Besides antioxidants, here are some of the other ways herbs and spices are a valuable addition to your diet:
  • Fat Burning – Herbs and spices are thermogenic, which means they naturally increase your metabolism and fat burning power, partly because they are so nutrient-dense.
  • Regulating blood sugar and controlling insulin – When your blood sugar is well controlled, you are more likely to burn fat and store fewer calories as excess weight.
  • Medicinal value – Scientific studies show that herbs and spices can actually work as well or better than some medications for certain health issues. (But check with your physician–before you quit any medications you may be on.)
  • Lowering blood sugar – cinnamon significantly reduces blood sugar levels. It also improves cholesterol and triglyceride levels. One study of people with type 2 diabetes showed that as little as two teaspoons of cinnamon reduced blood sugar similar to blood sugar medication.
  • Researchers found that the active ingredient in turmeric (curcumin) is more effective in slowing down the progression of Alzheimer’s than some medications for this condition.

Herbs and spices can also increase your feelings of satisfaction and fullness after a meal, so you eat less.

An interesting research study showed that when a person consumes an appetizer with just half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes before each meal, they eat 15% less food.
Wow!
Red pepper and all hot peppers actually speed up your metabolism and help your body burn fat as well.
Here are more health benefits of some popular herbs and spices:

Rosemary and basil are anti-inflammatory.

Cumin, turmeric and sage fight dementia.

Cayenne, coriander and cinnamon burn fat and help regulate insulin.

Lemon grass, nutmeg, bay leaves and saffron have a calming effect.

Turmeric is cancer fighting and helps prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

Oregano is antifungal and antibacterial.

Garlic, mustard seed and chicory are excellent for the heart.

Basil and thyme help your skin become soft and smooth.

Turmeric, basil, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, garlic and ginger boost the immune system.

Coriander, rosemary, cayenne, allspice and black pepper help banish depression.

So next time you cook, be sure to spice it up and enjoy the fat burning antioxidants of herbs and spices!

Till next time, stay healthy and lean, and Spice it up!
Catherine (Cat) Ebeling RN BSN, is a back to basics diet and nutrition specialist. In addition to her advanced degree in nursing from a major medical school, she has spent the last 30 years intensely studying diet, health and nutrition. She also has a book titled “The Fat Burning Kitchen, Your 24 Hour Diet Transformation” that has sold over 60,000 copies worldwide, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives, lose weight and improve their health.

               Her mission is to help others prevent disease and live their best life ever.    

       Nutrition made Easy. Simple.Smart.Nutrition.

Effective Strategies to Battle a Cold or the Flu

It’s cold and flu season once again. How are you doing this winter? Are you fighting off the ‘crud’? Don’t have time to be sick? I mean really who does?

Here are a few things I have found that help that you can do to help avoid colds and flu this winter.

Because colds are caused by a virus, generally you do not need to run to a doctor for medication when you come down with a cold—or even the flu. You are better off letting it run its course and taking good care of yourself so your body can fight it off with its own defenses. However there are a few things you can do to beef up your body’s defenses to help it fight better.

Most colds last about 8-10 days or so, but some may last even longer. The speed at which your body is able to fight off a cold has a lot to do with the state of your health and your immune system.

While many people turn to over the counter remedies to ease the symptoms, did you know that if you take aspirin or Tylenol, these medications actually suppress the body’s antibodies and so prolong the cold or flu? And Tylenol is in many OTC cold preparations. In addition, OTC medications can have a lot of other unpleasant and unhealthy side effects, so it’s best to avoid them if at all possible.  Even though they may ease the symptoms you may be stuck with the cold or flu even longer.

You should be able to easily fight off a cold or flu if your immune system is operating at its peak. In fact, just being around someone with a cold or flu does not mean you will come down with it yourself–as long as your immune system is functioning well. The following are a few suggestions to keep the immune system operating at its best. (And these suggestions work too, if you have already gotten sick, since they help you fight off the virus quicker.)

  • Be sure you are eating a healthy diet-Avoiding sugar and grains will help keep your immune system strong. And if you feel that you are coming down with something, stay away from all sugar and processed grains. We know that sugar and grain turn to glucose in the body. However, this increased level of sugar in the body actually weakens the immune system drastically. So to keep viruses away, avoid sugar and processed foods. 

  • Add in some extra vitamin C—Vitamin C is a potent antioxidant and works well as an immune enhancer, and you can take up to several grams per hour. While that seems like a lot, vitamin C is water-soluble so any extra will wash out of the body. The only side effect to large doses of vitamin C is loose stools, so just beware. And, as an added note, vitamin C has been shown to be very helpful with depression, so if you are dealing with the winter ‘blahs’, vitamin C will help that too.
  • Eat foods that are rich in antioxidants, including lots of raw fruits and vegetables, and high omega 3 foods like grass fed beef and wild caught salmon. Besides antioxidants, these foods are packed with vitamins and minerals and phytochemicals that are great for the immune system.
  • Be sure to get your vitamin D—Several research studies have shown that catching a cold or flu is actually a symptom of a vitamin D deficiency. Low levels of vitamin D make you much more susceptible to contracting colds, flu and other infections. If you can’t get outside in the sunshine (and that’s hard in the winter when we are all covered up), then go for a good supplement of vitamin D3, which is the must usable source of D.
  • Add lots of spices to your foods—many herbs or spices are extremely high in antioxidants and will help the immune system fight off invaders. The best ones are turmeric (the yellow spice in curry), oregano, cinnamon and cloves. Just add liberally to foods.
  • While it may be difficult to do, avoid stress—Many of us may be stuck in stressful life conditions, but if you cannot avoid stress, then find a way to deal with it. Get exercise, or follow a healthy outlet to relieve stress. Excessive stress will wear you down until your body cannot fight off any invaders.
  • Get enough sleep—Do your best to get a good 7-8 hours sleep if at all possible. If you are having trouble sleeping, be sure not to exercise too late in the evening, avoid caffeine after noon every day, and take a magnesium supplement and a melatonin supplement before bed. Both of the supplements will allow you to relax and enjoy a deeper sleep.
  • Get exercise—Exercise triggers a rise in immune natural killer cells that attack any potential invaders. Plus exercise reduces stress, which in turn is good for the immune system as well. But if you are already sick, exercise can help you fight off any virus, as long as you take it easy and try not to get in a super intense session when you are under the weather.

So what if you end up sick after all?

These are some of the things I have tried that seem to work to either help get rid of it or at least help the symptoms.

  • Green tea or other herb teas-Teas are warm and soothing and green tea is full of antioxidants and these help fight off the free radicals in the body. Other herb teas containing echinacea, goldenseal, ginger, elderflower, peppermint or ginger are also highly effective. Ginger is an immune stimulant, and I like to make my own tea from sliced fresh ginger, steeped in water that has been brought to a boil. Add in honey and a slice of fresh lemon if you desire. Enjoy its spicy kick.
  • Hydrogen Peroxide–This remedy may sound far fetched, but I have tried it and practically swear by it. It has actually stopped a cold in its tracks for me several times, but the key is to get it at the first sign of a cold or flu. While lying on one side or with the head on a table, add a couple of drops of hydrogen peroxide to one ear. You will hear it bubbling around inside and possibly feel a slight stinging sensation. After about 5-10 minutes, drain the ear onto a tissue and repeat with the other ear. You can repeat this procedure every 2-4 hours until the symptoms subside. You may be absolutely amazed!
  • Olive leaf extract--Ancient Egyptians and Mediterranean cultures used it for a variety of health-promoting uses and it is widely known as a natural, non-toxic immune system builder.
  • Also make sure to drink plenty of fresh, pure water. Water is essential for the optimal function of every system in your body and will help loosen secretions. Drink enough water to turn your urine a light, pale yellow.
  • Honey makes a great gargle for sore throats and is antibacterial and antiviral as well.
  • A natural nasal saline irrigates your nose and helps clear thick mucus and relieve pressure from your sinuses. Just use a neti pot and a mixture of sea salt and luke warm water.
  • White and Cider Vinegar—I’m not sure of the science behind this, but wearing a pair of cotton socks soaked in white vinegar is an old, natural remedy that is still used today to reduce a fever—if nothing else, it won’t hurt, other than making your feet smell funny!
  • Don’t forget the chicken soup! Chicken noodle soup has been medically proven to help cure a cold or fever. It is most effective if the soup is made with actual chicken bones in the broth.
  • Garlic—One of my favorite solutions for a cold or flu is to chop up raw garlic and eat it, swallow it, or add it to some olive oil and top your salad with it. Raw garlic is a potent antiviral and is full of powerful antioxidants and other phytochemicals that help your immune system battle viruses. It really seems to work! Of course no one may want to get too close for a while, but you will feel better!

So take care of yourself, don’t overdo, avoid stress if you can or find effective ways to handle it, sleep well and most of all, eat a healthy diet. Hopefully you will escape the creeping ‘crud’ this year!

Best Wrinkle Fighters are Omega 3 Fatty Acids and Saturated Fats

When I was a teenager, my summer’s goal was to get as tan as possible, so needless to say, my friends and I spent a good portion of our summertime sun bathing as much as we could.

And to make matters worse, no sunscreen for us, no sir, we used baby oil to bake our skin.

Sunscreen was for sissies.

I still remember the lectures (that went unheeded) from my dad about too much sun exposure.

That I would get wrinkly, leathery-looking skin when I was older, that I could get skin cancer if I didn’t stay out of the sun, and that I needed to be slathering myself with chemical-laden sunscreens.

Well, eventually the super summer bronze glow became a thing of the past, as free time was replaced with college, full-time jobs, and families.

As a fair-skinned blonde, I worried about my skin.

Would I become wrinkly and leathery-looking by the time I was 30?

I watched and waited, and it never happened.

Never a fan of expensive creams, lotions, potions and cosmetic medical procedures, I just used soap and water and hoped for the best.

What I did not realize at the time was that the diet I was eating was helping my skin tremendously.

I actually reversed the sun damage with my healthy diet.

Today at 51, my skin is smooth, soft and relatively wrinkle-free—far from the leathery, wrinkly face my father predicted.

I’m now experiencing another phenomenon—as a competitive cyclist, I spend long hours out in the sun riding my bike. Since most conventional sunscreens are full of chemicals that are far worse than the sun exposure and cause more damage with their poisonous chemicals than the sun itself, I am not a big fan of sunscreens.

But, surprisingly enough, I rarely get burned out in the sun, just lightly tanned most of the time.

What is going on?

Turns out, my diet has come to the rescue, again.

A recent study shows omega 3 fatty acids actually protect the skin from the inflammatory response (sunburn) after too much sun exposure and that these super nutrients also reduce the risk of some skin cancers.

The study’s findings also show that omega 3 fatty acids play an important role in preventing and reducing the damaging effects of sun. In humans, omega 3 fatty acids also increase the time it takes to become sunburned, the review concluded, very similar to what sunscreens do.

In experimental animal studies, the reviewers noted, there is direct evidence that dietary omega 3 fatty acids inhibited the cancerous changes that occur after ultraviolet radiation, including decreasing tumor growth and reducing the cancer cell’s ability to multiply.

However, equivalent levels of omega 6 fatty acids actually increase the cancerous changes that occur after exposure to ultraviolet radiation. In mice and in human skin exposed to ultraviolet B radiation, dietary omega 3 fatty acids dramatically reduce levels of prostaglandin E synthase type 2 (PGE(2)), an inflammatory messenger chemical that suppresses immune response to pre-cancerous cell changes. Dietary omega 6 fatty acids increase levels of PGE(2).

So the “Standard American Diet” that most Americans consume containing the skewed higher ratio of omega 6 fatty acids to omega 3’s not only contributes to a worse sunburn, but it also contributes to the aging effect of sun on the skin.

It is a known fact that people who regularly eat a diet higher in saturated fats and omega 3 fats have much smoother, softer skin.

In contrast, a diet high in trans fats and omega 6 fats ages skin and those that consume that type of diet have older-looking skin and wrinkles.

So obviously, the best way to avoid damaging your skin and minimizing the effects of sun damage start on the inside, not the outside.

Lets look at ways to best protect our skin from the inside out:

One of the best ways to prevent sun damage, while absorbing healthy vitamin D, and protect your skin, is with diet. Your body can actually create its own natural sunscreen with the right dietary components:

  • Omega 3 fatty acids–Research studies show that eicosapentaenoic acid (also called EPA), a kind of omega 3 fatty acid, helps prolong the time that it takes skin to get burnt during sun exposure, and also helps reduce the risk of skin cancer. The best omega 3 fatty acids containing EPA and DHA, are found in animal products such as grass-fed meat, cold-water, wild caught, fish like salmon, sardines, and mackerel, and free range chickens/eggs.
  • An optimal balance of omega 3’s to omega 6’s (3:1, or better) is critical for many, many health factors, including heart health and skin health. According to another study published in the American Health Foundation Journal:

“Epidemiological, experimental, and mechanistic data implicate omega 6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) as stimulator’s and long-chain omega 3 PUFAs as inhibitors of development and progression of a range of human cancers, including melanoma”.

  • Eliminate vegetable oils in favor of grass fed butter, lard or tallow, and healthy fats like virgin olive oil and coconut oil. Plastic surgeons even note that those people who eat a diet purely made up of vegetable oils tend to have much more wrinkly, aged looking skin than people of the same age who eat a diet rich in saturated fats. And unfortunately, vegans tend to age more quickly than omnivores, since they are missing out on collagen, protein, and saturated fats that all contribute to more skin elasticity, better skin cell membranes, and more collagen to add structure under the skin.
  • Eat Carotenoids. Carotenoids are nutrients that protect plants and animals from excess sunshine. When we ingest carotenoids, they are deposited into the skin to prevent sunburn and oxidative stress, which can lead to wrinkles and skin cancer. Best sources of carotenoids are free-range organic eggs, dark-green leafy vegetables (kale, collards, baby greens and organic spinach), and yellow-orange fruits and vegetables (mangoes, cantaloupe, carrots, sweet potatoes, and squash).

  • The most potent carotenoid is the red pigment found in salmon, trout, shrimp, and lobsters. It is known as astaxanthin. Once ingested, astaxanthin is 1,000 times more effective at protecting skin from UV damage than other carotenoids. A research study by Köpcke & Krutmann concluded that beta-carotene is effective in protecting against sunburn and that time is important: the longer the duration of supplementation, the stronger the effect. A minimum of 10 weeks was needed to see results, and the protective effect increased with each additional month of supplementation.
  • Include lycopene in your diet. It’s pretty easy to get lycopene in the summer, since it is found in red fruits such as tomatoes, red bell pepper and watermelon. Lycopene’s potency is actually increased with cooking, so tomato sauce and tomato paste have more concentrated amounts of lycopene than fresh tomatoes.

In studies with lycopene, it was shown that people who consumed 55 grams (5 tablespoons) a day of lycopene in tomato paste had 33% more protection against sunburn compared to a control group after 12 weeks. It also boosted the level of procollagen in the skin, which suggests potential reversal of the skin aging process.

  • Drink 3-4 cups of green tea a day for its antioxidant and skin-protecting benefits. (It’s delicious iced and sweetened with stevia.) Green tea contains antioxidants called polyphenols that boost the ability of skin to protect itself from the sun. The polyphenols in green tea actually reduce the damage caused by ultraviolet rays and protect it from photo aging, both when applied externally as a topical cream or a lotion, and when consumed internally as food.
  • Snack on vitamin and flavanol-rich fruit this summer instead starchy carbohydrates and sugary snacks. Summer months bring us delicious, antioxidant-heavy berries and other fruit such as mangoes, kiwis, peaches and plums. These fruits are also rich in vitamin C, known for its role in building collagen, and preventing wrinkles and photo damage through its anti-inflammatory action. Toss some berries into your yogurt, make a smoothie out of different summer fruits, add some fruit to a lunch salad; the possibilities are endless.

Bottom line–if you must spend a long amount of time out in the summer sun, you will probably need to protect your skin with a sunscreen too.

Most sunscreens contain inherent dangers as well, so choose carefully. While there is still some risk in spending long periods of time in the summer sun without sunscreen (even with a skin-healthy diet), the sunscreen itself can pose a bigger health risk.

The chemicals in sunscreen are very harsh and are rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream, and have been proven to cause several types of cancers. “Octyl-methacinnamate”, “phenylbenzimidazole sulfonic acid”, “octyl-dimethyl-PABA”, and “oxybenzone”, are all standard sunscreen ingredients. Numerous studies have raised concerns about these chemicals safety:

  • Octyl-methacinnamate has been shown to damage skin cells, and many people are highly sensitive or allergic to this ingredient.
  • Bensopenone-3 (BP3), homosalate (HMS), 4-methyl-benzylidene camphor (4-MBC), octyl-methoxycinnamate (OMC), and octyl-dimethyl-PABA (OD-PABA) were all found to have estrogenic effects in the body, which can lead to certain cancers, including breast cancer.
  • Oxybenzone has been shown to decrease sperm count and lengthen the estrous cycle in mice; again a possible carcinogen in humans.

The best and most natural sunscreens are sunscreen products with zinc oxide and titanium dioxide as their active ingredients. Both block UVA and UVB rays, are natural, safe products for your skin and have raised no health concerns.

So this summer, protect your skin inside and outside with a healthy diet and natural sunscreen when needed. You will not only soak up the vitamin D with all its health benefits, but have soft smooth skin as well.Sources: Mercola, “If You Use Sunscreen, This is Urgent Information You Must Have”, May 13, 2010, Mercola.com. Shane Ellison, “Chemist Forces Children to Eat Sunscreen” www.thepeopleschemist.com 2008. Arathi, “How to Eat For Internal Sun Protection”, eHow.com, accessed May 7, 2010. Jennifer Barrett, “On the Bright Side”, Experience Life Magazine, July/August 2009, Lifetime Fitness. Black HS, Rhodes LE. The potential of omega-3 fatty acids in the prevention of non-melanoma skin cancer. Cancer Detect Prev. 2006;30(3):224-32.