Juicing for Health

Written by Denise; · Leave a Comment

In today’s health conscious environment, more and more people are turning to improving their nutritional intake by consuming more fruits and vegetables. A great way to ensure you are getting the most out of these nourishing foods is to add juicing into your regime. Juicing is a way of packing in precious vitamins and minerals from a variety of fresh, organic vegetables and fruits into a single glass.

It is easy for one to include 10 or more varieties of fruits and vegetables in a single beverage made in a juicer. This is twice the recommended daily allowance. Freshly pressed juices are nothing short of health in a glass.

With chronic disease running rampant in our society, the incidences of serious illness is on the rise. We have our unhealthy food choices and sedentary lifestyles to blame. Heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are striking more and more of us at younger and younger ages. A generation ago, cancer was a rare occurrence that only seemed to infiltrate the lives of strangers. Today, our children think of cancer as a common illness. Everyone is touched by cancer in one way or another. A close friend, colleague, relative or you yourself may be affected by this life threatening disease. Strides have been made in medicine, but more and more evidence points to lifestyle choices as a cause for cancer and other disease.

Those interested in taking care of their health look to nutrition and exercise as a foundation to longevity. Juicing can help. This site will help you to research the best juicers by offering juicer reviews of many of the most popular brands.

Some may be concerned about the price of a quality juicer. You may be surprised to learn that a good juicer does not have to cost a fortune. There are many affordable juicers on the market that will produce delicious, nutritious freshly pressed juices.

It is vital to use organic produce when making juice. Eating (in this case drinking) organic will spare you harmful pesticides that are present in fruits and vegetables that are grown conventionally. Locally grown produce is always a great option as well. If your fruits and veggies don’t have to travel across the country, or in some cases the globe, it will reach your table in less time and therefore precious nutrients will be preserved. The longer the time from picking to eating, the more nutrients will be lost.

Juicer Recipe Books
What you will also find on this site are books that are filled with recipes for a myriad of different juices. Keep in mind that when it comes to fruits and vegetables, deep vibrant colors offer the most in the way of nutrients. The more greens you include in your juice, the more nutritious it will be.

Here is a simple juice recipe that will produce two 16 ounce glasses of juice – one for you, and one to share with your loved one.

Powerhouse Juice

Ingredients:
2 stalks of organic green kale
2 stalks of organic collard greens
4 stalks of organic celery (leaves and all!)
1 whole organic lemon
1 inch piece of organic ginger root (peel and all!)
1 green apple – chunked but not cored
1 generous handful of organic parsley
1 whole organic cucumber
2 large stalks of organic green swiss chard
3 whole organic carrots (unpeeled)

Method:
Clean all of the produce well before running through the juicer. Do not peel, core or trim any of the produce. The entire fruit or vegetable should be run through the juicer. You may need to cut some items to size so that they fit through the tube of the vegetable juicer. Some juicers come with a wide mouth tube that is large enough to fit a whole apple. This is another consideration when looking for the perfect juicer.

Drink the juice immediately. The juice will begin to oxidize and lose nutrient value over time. It should be enjoyed as soon after pressing as possible.

Citrus Juicer Reviews
Not only will you find vegetable juicer reviews on this site, but you will also find citrus juicer reviews. Citrus juices are very nutritious as well. What is better than pressing fresh oranges and grapefruits and gulping down the juice as a morning elixir.

There are several different types of citrus juicers available and you will find many of them reviewed on this site! A fruit juicer is a great gift for someone you care about.

Whether you are in the market for a vegetable juicer or a citrus juicer, you will find valuable advice for purchasing the perfect power juicer on this site. An electric juicer can change your life and improve your health. Bon Appetit!

How to Overcome Negative Forces in Your Life

Written by Denise; · Leave a Comment

I was brought up in a very negative environment. My parents dragged my siblings and I through a bitter divorce that lasted over 9 years (you heard right!) At the time, it was in the history books of our county for being the longest lasting custody battle in history.

Despite my rocky start, I feel that I am not a negative person. I believe that I try and find the positive in situations that have worked their way into my life. However, a close family member always seeks opportunities to imbue his negative opinions relating to my lifestyle and choices. I am not alone. He does this to everyone and always seems to know the “right” thing to do. He is the expert on all topics and is always at the ready to unleash his so-called pearls of wisdom on anyone who will listen.

My husband and I have both suffered through the reality of cancer. We have dealt with my diagnosis and treatment choices and then had to go through the same when my husband was diagnosed with kidney cancer six months later. We have come through the financial hardship of it all and are now rebuilding our lives. After 4 years, we have finally managed to get caught up with our bills, in part because we had to short sale on our home of 11 years.  No one can possibly know how difficult our lives were during these difficult times without having lived through a similar situation.

Our most important life choices, however, come from nutrition and keeping our immune systems strong. There is nothing more annoying and frustrating than someone who feels they should step in and question or denigrate our much thought out decisions. We have taken on a new philosophy about how we eat and the supplements we have worked with our holistic doctors to incorporate into our regimes. We now believe that quality in the long run outweighs quantity. While, yes we spend more on food and quality supplements, we feel that in the end we will benefit with improved health and lower healthcare costs.

However, this family member calls himself a child of the depression and is quick to point out how little he pays for things. He always wants to know what we pay for things that we buy so he can quickly point out how much less he pays. While this does not have an impact on what I buy and the decisions I make, it does frustrate me and make me angry.

My husband and I have been healthy and cancer free in our lives since our initial diagnoses. We believe in our lifestyle and don’t appreciate the comments that are ill-informed nor are they helpful. We don’t feel it is our place to tell others how to live their lives, why do some feel like it is their place to muscle their opinions in on our lifestyle? Is it a type of jealousy because we have become much more disciplined and rigorous about our choices for the good of our health? I believe this is part of it because this person is overweight and seems obsessed with our ability to maintain a healthy weight and don’t hit the cookie jar nightly.

The point here is to not let negative forces interrupt your desire to live a better life. Don’t let ignorance outweigh sensible, well-informed choices. And most importantly, make choices that make you happy. It is your life, your way. If you have a negative force in your life, I would love to hear about it. Let me know how you handle the situation. Do you let it go, like we do, for the purpose of keeping the peace?

How to Make a Gluten Free Pizza Crust

Written by Denise; · Leave a Comment

As someone with many food allergies, I am always looking for new twists on old favorites. I have found that my life improved when I left dairy and gluten behind. I feel better and don’t get the daily migraines I used to get. However, my actions were not without consequence. I always loved a good slice of pizza and felt terribly deprived when I could no longer indulge. Over the years, I have tried several alternatives. I have to say, there were a couple of recipes that I did and do enjoy and still make from time to time.

Even with food sensitivities you can enjoy pizzza!

Even with food sensitivities you can enjoy pizzza!

It wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago when I found a recipe using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Flour blend. The crust was as close to my old favorite as I have gotten yet. It is easy to prepare and can be made completely vegan as well, just substitute the egg with the flax egg version.

As for the cheesy topping, try Daiya cheese shreds. It melts and tastes better than any other cheese substitute I have tried. And, I have tried many. Daiya most closely captures the gooey-ness and flavor and works perfect on pizza.

Here is the recipe for the pizza crust courtesy of the Bob’s Red Mill website. The sauce and toppings are up to you and the sky is the limit. Bob’s also makes a Pizza Crust mix that is a little bit simplier to put together. I haven’t tried that yet, but this recipe is great.

TIP FOR ROLLING OUT A PERFECT CRUST:

This dough is very sticky. I d0 the following to make the crust more evenly rolled out and easier to handle on the pizza pan:

Use treated parchment paper to roll out the perfect crust.

Use treated parchment paper to roll out the perfect crust.

1. Use a paper towel to grease the pizza stone or pizza pan that you are using to make the pizza. Pour a small amount of olive oil on the pan and use the paper towel to spread it around, evenly coating the pan.

2. Place dough ball on the pizza pan or stone.

2. Using a piece of parchment paper (make sure it is large enough to cover the pizza pan you are using), take the piece of paper towel you just used to spread the olive oil and wipe it over the piece of parchment paper, evenly coating it.

3. With the olive oil treated side down, place the parchment paper over the dough. Then you can roll out the dough using a rolling pin. Be sure not to actually touch the rolling pin to the dough because it will stick to the rolling pin! Having the olive oil treated parchment between the rolling pin and dough make it possible to spread the dough evenly on the pan. Roll out the dough to fit the pan as much as possible.

4. Using wet hands, peel the parchment paper off the dough and finish spreading it evenly on the pan with your wet hands.

Don’t try adding more flour to make it less sticky, this will make the dough very heavy and tough. Follow this tip and you will have a terrific crust and delicious alternative to everyone’s favorite pizza!  Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
  • 1 tsp Sugar
  • 3/4 cup Warm Water
  • 1 Egg* (see note below for vegan option)
  • 1 Tb Olive Oil
  • 1-1/2 cups GF All Purpose Baking Flour
  • 2 tsp Xanthan Gum
  • 1/2 tsp Sea Salt

Directions

Topped with diced portobello mushrooms!

Topped with diced portobello mushrooms!

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Combine yeast, sugar and water in a large bowl and let stand about 5 minutes.

Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl. Add egg and oil to wet ingredients, then add dry ingredients. Mix with a hand mixer for a minute, adding a teaspoon of water if dough moves up beaters.

Scoop onto greased pizza sheet. Wet your hands with water and spread dough over sheet and smooth. For a thicker crust, let rise for 10 – 5 minutes. Otherwise, continue with the baking directions below.

Cover with favorite sauce and toppings.

Bake at 425°F for 15-20 minutes.

Notes:  *Eggless option: Combine 2 Tb Flaxseed Meal + 6 Tb Water; let stand one minute. Add to recipe as you would the eggs.

Piping hot right out of the oven.

Piping hot right out of the oven.

How to Encourage Natural Detoxification

Written by Denise; · Leave a Comment
Eating clean food will help your body with natural detoxification

Eating clean food will help your body with natural detoxification

It has long been established that toxins and contaminants build up in our bodies, which if left unaddressed, will eventually lead to many of the illnesses that plague our society today. For this reason, a range of remedies have been established with the purpose of cleansing the body. Some examples of this are fasting, steam baths, to name a few.

The allopathic community, however, has largely ignored these long-used techniques, even though of late systematic studies have proven that long-drawn-out contact to detrimental chemicals and toxins can in fact lead to a lot of the persistent illness that is evident nowadays. The significance of detoxifying the body is being renowned as fundamentally essential for maintaining good health.

Provided that the human body is nourished with nutritious food, ample amounts of fiber as well as clean, pure water, it has the capacity to cleanse itself. This natural detoxification of the body generally saves us from harmful toxins with which we come in contact on a daily basis, and as a result assists us to keep our bodies healthy. Even though the human body makes an effort nobly to do away with all these detrimental rudiments throughout the skin, kidneys, bowels and lungs, they make their way into the bloodstream which enables them to infiltrate a variety of tissues like fat tissue and joints. After a while, these toxic wastes will build up, leading to a range of health troubles.

Natural detoxification is a method of purification which makes certain that the pollutants in the body are abridged to levels that the body system finds controllable. More often than not, natural detox treatment entails an incorporation of a diet that consists of natural food  that is unprocessed and as close to its natural state as possible. The fewer toxins you load into your system, the less the burden to cleanse them out. Herbal teas, like green tea have also been found effective body cleansers.

In order to encourage natural detoxification keep away from products containing additives and synthetic preservatives. Natural detox diets which incorporate organic foods loaded with vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants are fundamentally essential for detoxification. The detoxification diet must also consist of fiber and pure water in ample amounts as these are essential components for getting rid of toxins throughout the stool and urine.

A natural detox diet also consists of all kinds of fruit, vegetables, seeds, and wild caught, low-mercury fish (such as Pacific Salmon). Unsalted, raw nuts and seeds are great sources of protein and should be consumed. Keep away from sugar filled drinks and juices. Instead opt for freshly pressed vegetable and fruit juices that can be found at some health food stores that have juice bars. You can also make these juices at home with a juicer. Making them at home allows you to make your own blend. Use plenty of organic leafy greens that you can sweeten by throwing in an apple or a pear.

Another way to encourage natural detoxification is to keep meal time separate from other daily activity. Maintain a time that you can set aside for your mealtime, as well as settle down and then focus on what you are eating. Studies have shown that people are healthier when they approach mealtime as a time to gather with family and friends and enjoy a leisurely meal. Of course in America, it is difficult to find time with all of the hustle and bustle in our lives, but it is important to make a point of enjoying a leisurely meal when possible. At the very least, slow down to enjoy your meal and chew the foods you consume adequately. Give yourself a sufficient amount time to chew food completely prior to swallowing.

A number of the other natural detox techniques are exercise, fasting, hydrotherapy and breathing techniques. Keeping stress at bay and watching your diet will go a long way in helping you to encourge natural detoxification. A bit of effort for your health goes a long way!

How to Make Your Skin Glow Naturally

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Vitamin E is a wonderful skin moisturizer.

Vitamin E is a wonderful skin moisturizer.

Our skin is our body’s largest organ. It protects our organs and  is our first line of defense against dirt, bacteria and disease. It covers our bodies from top to bottom. Therefore, it makes sense that keeping our skin healthy can affect the overall health of our bodies.

Skin is also an important part of our overall appearance. If we have unhealthy looking skin, it affects the perception others may have of us. It does not take much time or effort to take good care of our skin.

Here are some basic tips that will help you to keep your skin younger and healthier looking.

1. Use mild cleansers on your skin. Avoid harsh soaps that contain additives and preservatives. These can damage your skin and dry it out.

2. Start now to keep your skin healthy and cleansed. The younger you are when you start to care for your skin, the more youthful you will look as you age.

3. When washing your face, use warm water. Water that is too hot can be dehydrating to your skin and can cause damage. On the other hand, if water is too cold it can also dry the skin.

4. Treat your skin with care. Be gentle when you are cleansing your skin. To rid it of debris that accumulates in the pores, use a gentle cleanser that is non-abrasive. It is alright to use an exfoliator as this will remove dead skin cells. However, practice care when using one so as not to damage your skin.

5. A skin toner can help your skin. It can maintain clear, firm skin. Look for products containing ingredients that are not harmful to your skin or pores. For overall health, you want to avoid chemical products that can be damaging. Avoid toners that include alcohol as it is harsh on your skin.

6. Stay moisturized. Keeping the skin moisturized will help it to maintain a youthful appearance. Aloe Vera and vitamin E are great for moisturizing the skin. Coconut oil is a great moisturizer as well. These are all pure, natural elements that are great for keeping skin healthy. You can find vitamin E in capsule or liquid form. The capsules can be broken open and applied directly to the skin. A small amount goes a long way. By spreading a small amount on the face prior to going to bed, you will benefit greatly, especially if you do this practice daily when you are younger and your skin has not yet started to wrinkle.

Coconut oil is found in any health food store. It has a multitude of uses from cooking to skin health. Spread it over the body to moisturize. Use a small amount. While it may go on a bit oily, it soaks into the skin quickly.

Aloe vera is a gel that can be taken directly from the plant or purchased in a health food store. Use liberally on the skin. Aloe dissolves quickly and can be used as needed. It is especially good for scrapes, sunburn or other minor skin injuries.

Healthy cleansing of the skin should be practiced on a daily basis. Taking good care of your skin will not only improve your appearance, but it will benefit your overall health.

How to Avoid Gluten in Your Diet

Written by Denise; · Leave a Comment
Quinoa is an important grain and good for those who are intolerant to gluten.

Quinoa is an important grain and good for those who are intolerant to gluten.

What is gluten?

Gluten is a type of protein present in wheat, rye and barley. It is a protein compound that makes foods hard to chew and gives them elastic grain. Specifically, secalin is the protein that appears in rye; gliadin in wheat; and hordein in barley. As a group these proteins are identified as prolamins. Promalins cause problems for individuals who are intolerant to gluten. Having a gluten free diet will eliminate damage that could be caused to the small intestine as a result of an intolerance. It will also avoid help you to avoid the problems associated with gluten intolerance and celiac disease.

Who needs a gluten free diet?

People affected by celiac disease otherwise known as a severe gluten intolerance need to stay away from foods that contain gluten in order to remain healthy.  Some people, like myself are moderately intolerant to gluten and while the severity of the symptoms is not as intense, I avoid gluten in my diet because of unpleasant side effects such as digestive discomfort, bloating and headaches.

Gluten free food can include a lot of healthy substitutes to wheat based goods.  A strict gluten free diet will treat an associated condition referred to as Dermatitis Herpetiformis, which is an irritated skin condition.  Aside from that, this type of diet is also suggested for people with ADHD (attention deficit disorder), fibromyalgia and autism.

What are gluten free foods?

Here is a general listing of foods that do not contain gluten. Of course, if you avoid animal products, as I do, you will want to avoid these foods as well.

Meat and Beans

Eat no less than two servings of protein from this group every day. These gluten-free foods are fresh as well as natural chicken, beef, turkey, fish, pork, and seafood. In addition gluten-free options are seeds, peas, beans, nuts, and free-range eggs.

Fruits

All fresh fruits are naturally gluten free. Consume a minimum of two servings of fruit on a daily basis.

Vegetables

Every fresh vegetable is naturally gluten free. Consume no less than three servings of vegetables on a daily basis.

Grains

Consume a minimum of six servings of food from this group every day. Wild rice, brown rice along with plain white rice are all gluten free. Corn meal is as well a naturally gluten-free food that can be used to make hot cereal.

According to the Celiac Sprue Association, gluten-free snacks that fall under this group are potato-based chips and tortillas, pure cornmeal chips, rice wafers as well as popcorn.

Fats, Oils and Sweets

In moderation make use of naturally gluten-free items from this food group. These are butter, olive oil, pure mayonnaise, margarine, canola oil plus peanut butter. In addition, ice cream and natural gelatin are gluten free.

Milk, Yogurt and Cheese Group

Drink or eat no less than two servings from this food group on a daily basis. Organic, natural, and unprocessed yogurt, milk, as well as cheese do not have gluten.