Top 5 ways to make water more exciting!!

I want to talk about how the ways we can incorporate more water in our daily routine because most are not a huge fan of water because of its lack of taste. Now there are some who went their childhood without drinking water, so to try and tell someone who's an adult, that we need a certain amount of water a day can seem like torture. We have to remember that we are made up of about 70% water, so we need to make sure our bodies are getting enough water and the best way to do that for newbies is try to make water more exciting!

Now depending on the person's weight will determine the amount of water someone will need, but you can average about 6-8 glasses a day. I know I use to be guilty of not evening getting through one glass a day, and this could contribute to so many things a few examples are headaches, dry skin, your body's ability to detoxify, constipation and so on. Like everything the better something taste the more often you want it and that goes for food and drinks. The most important motivator to make a change is to how essential water is for our bodies and our overall health.

1. Using fruit in water or frozen fruit as ice cubes can give it a sweet flavor, instead of getting those flavoured waters that have artificial sweeteners.

2. Teas are a great option they can add flavor and give you a range of different tastes when adding honey or lemon. You could also switch from hot to cold tea depending on your mood.

3. You could get a app or set a reminder to keep track of your water intake for the day.

4. BPA free water bottles can help you always have your water reminder by their side and glass or stainless steal are the best options to keep in mind. This can also help you keep track of how much you have drank in a day.

5. Reward yourself when you hit your goal for the day, now this can play into our inner child which will always be with us. Whether you have a hobby or activities you love, treating yourself with these can increase your motivation for sticking with your water goal.

These tips should help new and old comers to really make a change in their water intake and watch and see how your overall health is impacted in a positive way!

Why protein is so important in the diet!

I think we as a society don't realize how important protein actually is and how much of it we need on a daily basis. I also know that many people get their protein from different foods and everyone has their opinions on what is best for their body. The key distinction is "their body" and everyone is different in what balances them. I hate when someone shames others when they say what protein they feel works best for their body.

Now the different types of protein are animal and plant sources:

Animal protein, which has the highest and best portions of essential amino acids, are found in eggs, fish, shellfish, meat, and dairy. The obvious choice for these are organic, grass fed, and free range. Plant protein do not contain all the essential amino acids in one food, but you can always incorporate what you don't get with other products. They just naturally contain less levels of protein so are just incomplete protein.

Now protein is essential for our bodies because it is the structure of our body and provides collagen and keratin in the skin, connective tissues, and muscles. It also regulates body function and helps with our hormones as well, and if you get good quality protein it can keep you satisfied much longer. The protein absorption that is happening in our bodies is sometimes not being metabolized the way it can benefit us when eating only certain proteins. In order for the body to make a particular protein, all of the amino acids need to be present and if some are missing then the protein can't be made. They are then converted to fats or carbohydrates, or used for energy.

The meat and poultry that are grass-fed have more omega-3 fats than the grain fed ones. What should always be avoided are the very processed meats like deli meats and pre-packaged meats which have a lot of additives and preservatives. Fish that are wild caught also have omega-3's and should be eaten over the farm-raised fish because they're not eating the aquatic plants in the ocean and instead are eating soy pellets or corn. They also are injected with antibiotics and fed synthetic dyes. Dairy products can be medicine or poison depending on the person. Dairy is known to be inflammatory to some and because of that I usually suggest my clients to hold off until we can get their food sensitivity test back. Everyone should do their best to avoid processed and pasteurized milk and cheese. If someone is reactive to gluten, because the milk proteins commonly cross react to gluten, then they are most likely reactive to dairy as well. If in the process of healing your gut, it may be best to stop dairy. Eggs are a great source of protein as well as lutein, zeaxanthin, choline, selenium, phosphorous, vitamin A, D, and B. Eggs can sometimes be inflammatory for some especially the whites. If you're dealing with an autoimmune disease or leaky gut it may be in your best interest to just avoid them all together or until you take a food sensitivity test. Sadly, I am one of those who I cannot have egg whites because that was my favorite breakfast. But for the most part it's a great source of protein and has many benefits to them. Now soybeans do contain protein, but they also have high levels of phytoestrogens which disrupt your endocrine system. If your going to eat them they are best eaten fermented like miso, natto, tempeh, but this doesn't strip the phytoestrogens.

So as we now know there all many sources of proteins and you have to push through all the noise to establish what proteins you should incorporate into your diet. Be your own health advocate and find what works for you everyone is different and I know first hand what works for me doesn't work for my husband.

If you’re ready to become you’re own health advocate and would like to have more support on getting control of your diet or what is going to work for your specific body. Make a consultation to start your journey now. https://calendly.com/inflammationalleviation/free-discovery-call

The top eight functional foods I recommend to my clients!

There are so many thing foods that we eat on daily basis that have become normalized but are not doing our bodies any good and are not benefiting us in any way. They are as we say empty carbs and whole lot of processed foods that are filled with sodium, sugar, and refined oils and this can all cause inflammation in the body. On top of that most of us don't know how to manage stress, don't exercise and are dealing with all sorts of toxins within the body. Now a lot of the clients I help are people who are already dealing with inflammatory issues, but since we are no longer in a toxic free environment and the food we ingest on a daily basis is not what it use to be, this is why I suggest most of these foods for most of my clients. Unless you eat supper clean and have mastered all of the above issues we're all dealing with, then most of us will have inflammation in the body at one point in our lives acutely or chronically. Now this obviously would change if when we do a food sensitivity (MRT) test, there are specific things we need to stay away from. But this is just a broad recommendation and will change per each individual.

1. Berries-high in antioxidants and they reduce existing inflammation and they help train our bodies to respond better for inflammation in the future. This is a smart choice to incorporate regularly in your diet.

2. Leafy greens-such as spinach and kale, these are have antioxidants and are alkalizing to your body and they have folate, vitamin a, c, k, fiber, and minerals. They can reduce the bodies overall inflammation. They will nourish our cells to prevent cognitive decline and help our microbiome stay in intact.

3. Omega-3 such as salmon, sardines, anchovies, mackrel, and Omega-3 is something we have to get from our diet we do not make this in our body. This can help our brain health and studies have shown this to be linked to lower rates of depression and anxiety from eating omega-3.

4. Avocados are filled with mono and unsaturated fats, which this can help reduce your inflammation in joints, and cholesterol.

5. Cruciferous vegetables also has antioxidants and phytochemicals. Broccoli itself has potassium, fiber, magnesium and vitamin K and C, sulforaphane in this compound has the effects of fighting cancer and can help detoxify harmful chemicals that are in the environment. Ingesting these can prevent inflammation from triggering within the body.

6. Chia Seeds also helps reduce inflammation in the body from being packed with antioxidants that fight free radicals and has fiber to balance your gut health.

7. Ginger can by medicinal for a lots of purposes such as for increasing motility in the intestines, reduce pain, motion sickness, and it has a substance known as gingerols that will reduce inflammation in the body.

8. Garlic which is my all-time favorite! This can boost your immune system and has cancer preventative properties and is also anti-inflammatory.

These are just a few that are my go to for all my clients to try to incorporate in their daily diet, and doing this can start them on the right path on their healing journey! If you feel like you may have inflammation within your body or you already know you're dealing with this, then start today to make a change for the better! If you need support or want to confirm the inflammation with functional lab testing please set up a appointment to make a consultation with me! If you're tired of playing the guessing game and are now more motivated than ever to become your own health advocate then connect with me.

https://calendly.com/inflammationalleviation/free-discovery-call

4 Pillars Of A Nourishing Diet

Now, I think we all know that the word diet has been around longer than any of us can even remember. I also know that we have all figured out that not every diet works for everyone. Why is that you say? Well it comes back to the person being the variable! For generations different people in different parts of the world have eaten different diets, and for generations they have eaten a well balanced diet for the climate and geography that they were in. The diet that's going to work for you is going to be based on your genetics. William Wolcott wrote a book called metabolic typing diet. He states "It is these differing genetically based requirements that explain why a certain nutrition can cause one person to feel good, have no effect on another, and a third person to feel worse." Your diet will be based on your genetics.

This test is groundbreaking for anyone who hasn't found a diet that has been working for them, still feeling sluggish, or hasn't been able to achieve your ideal weight. This is a test that I offer in my health coaching business to my clients. I do not like to guess on what should be your preferred diet and this is something that will work on everyone.

Now I'm going to talk about the four pillars of a nourishing diet:

1. Nutrient density

You may have heard of this being said more times than you can count, but the difference is finding the right diet based on your genetics. You need the right kind of proteins, the right kind of carbohydrates, and the right kind of fats (macronutrients). Also different balances of vitamins, minerals, trace elements, and vital nutrients (micro nutrients ). Doing this will help the body detox, immune system, mood and energy, hormones, skin, health, and brain health work efficiently. Once you know the diet and ratios that's going to work for your body, here are some ways to focus on that: eating more vegetables, high-quality animal protein, preferably over processed plant products if possible.

2. Blood sugar Balance

Now you're probably thinking I'm young, resilient, or, my favorite, I'm not a diabetic, so why should this one matter to me? Well, let's go over a few symptoms and see if any of them correlate with your day of life. Have you ever relied on coffee, had cravings in the night, crashed hard in the afternoon with no energy, or my favorite one do you get Hangry? If you said yes, to any of these, then you my friend have a blood sugar balance issue. Blood sugar imbalance causes metabolic issues, and even Alzheimer, which can be known as type three diabetes which is insane. 92% of Americans today are metabolically unhealthy (theiahealth). Everyone's body is different as I mentioned above, so what spikes your blood sugar might be different than your spouses or your families or your friends. You need to know how food is regulating your metabolism. One of the things I always suggest to my clients is getting a continuous glucose monitor. To evaluate in real time what is affecting your blood sugar on a daily basis. Then you can figure out the steps that are needed. Here's a link for anyone who wants to make a change in their health.

https://theiahealth.ai/c/inflammationalleviationcoaching

3. Balanced Microbiome

I'm going to be talking about our mucosal barrier. Now we have this and every opening of our body to protect the internal environment from the external environment. I'm going to be emphasizing our small intestines, because that is where we absorb nutrients, digest our food, and where we make our melatonin which affects our sleep and inflammation in our body. Now if the mucosal barrier is not functioning correctly it allows toxins and pathogens to come across, and effect how our body responds to food. This will eventually lead to food sensitivities, leaky gut, and gut dybiosis. Now in order to evaluate if this is happening, I always suggest my clients to do specific functional testing that will evaluate: how many food sensitivities you are dealing with that could be contributing to your brain fog, low energy, skin issues, stomach pains, or mood. Also, a test that evaluates if you're having a hard time, digesting food and having histamine issues. Another test I love helps evaluate if you're having detoxification issues (liver congestion), DNA damage, and inflammation issues.

4. Anti-Inflammatory

Now, has anyone broken a bone, sprained an ankle, or messed themselves up pretty bad? Has anyone noticed that what comes after that is inflammation in your body that causes you pain? Well inflammation was created so that we heal. Now we live in such a toxic environment that inflammation in our body is very common, but we were never meant to live in a state of chronic inflammation our body is trying to do the best to heal itself but never accomplishing that task. Again you think "I'm young and have no inflammation issues. Everything works great," well I'm here to tell you that most of us deal with inflammation but maybe not on the way that we think it does. From acne that turns into cystic acne, to pelvic pain to diarrhea I could go on with all the things that are actually triggered by inflammation in our body. Acute inflammation comes when something in your body feels in danger but it doesn't last forever. It's just a defense mechanism. However, chronic inflammation is something that can end up developing into a chronic diseases such as arthritis, bowel diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and type 2 diabetes. Now there are foods that will help in making sure your body is able to fight this. There are healthy fats, eating lots of colorful vegetables and antioxidants and reducing all refined oils. However, the test that I love to use on my clients to get to the root cause of all inflammation are as such: stress and hormone panel, G.I. map test, MRT food sensitivity test, mucosal barrier assessment, and metabolic wellness panel.

Eating the wrong diet will eventually cascade into metabolic chaos. Don't let food be your poison. Let the right food heal your body!

Fulfill your genetically based nutritional requirements, because this will give you a leg up on optimal function, stress, resolution, regeneration, optimal, health, biochemical, balance, metabolic efficiency, and adaption.