Thursday 17 May 2012

Easy Ways to Increase Your Veg Intake

Grow Your Own For Optimum Nutrition

I've been busy planting things to eat in my garden.  So far I've got two fruit trees (plums and apples), strawberries, peas, mint, chives, sage, nasturtiums (the flowers have a light peppery taste a bit like radish and they look really pretty in a salad), rosemary, thyme, peas, tomatoes (in hanging baskets), different types of lettuce and lots more to plant this weekend.  


I only have a tiny garden so am using pots, hanging baskets and am creating a raised bed to put in carrots, beans and more peas (none of them will ever make it to a plate, I love them straight out of the pod).


I have also planted sweetpeas and lots of lavender to give the bees something to visit and so I will have sweet scented cut flowers for the house and aromatic herbs to dry at the end of the season and use to keep my drawers smelling sweet and fresh.




Saving Money and Increasing Nutrients

As well as planting to provide myself with cheap nutritious food I have also gone mad on sprouting again.  It's easy, cheap and provides very nutritious, easy to digest, very fresh ingredients to add to salads, pitta pockets etc.

What Can You Sprout

Virtually any bean, seed or grain is easy to sprout.  The only things I have failed with in the past were pumpkin seeds, which were disgusting and tasted poisonous, and hemp seeds which failed to sprout.

Try the following:

Alfalfa
Broccolli Seeds
Fenugreek Seeds (gives a curry flavoured sprout)
Fennel
Sesame
Brown Rice
Chick Peas
Buckwheat Groats
Sunflower Seeds
Wheat
Barley
Beans: Aduki, Mung, Broad, Kidney, Black, Haricot, Black Eye  
Quinoa
Amaranth
Poppy Seeds
Peas


What You Need to Start

A Container:  You can buy multi tiered sprouters or special jars but any large, wide necked jar will do.  Catering sized jars of pickles are good if you are wanting to sprout a large amount at once but its best to just sprout small amounts all the time.

Something to cover the top:  A piece of muslin or a section cut from a pair of tights secured in place with a rubber band.

Soaking:   As a rule of thumb, the larger and harder the thing you are sprouting the longer you will need to sprout.  So soak beans, chick peas, rice etc over night and seeds such as alfalfa for about four hours.  Soak ideally in filtered water.  Beans will expand quite a bit so make sure you have them in a big enough container.

Growing:  Once your beans, grains or seeds have been soaked, rinse them well and put into your chosen growing container.  Put the muslin or tights over the top and secure in place.  Allow them to drain well.  Then place in a dark cupboard.  I always forget them if I put them in a cupboard so I cover mine in tin foil to exclude the light and then leave them by my kitchen sink.  They need to be rinsed well and thoroughly drained two to three times per day.  Once they have all started to sprout you can put them on a sunny windowsill.  They are ready to eat when most of the bean or seed has gone.  I like to leave mine until there is some green in the tiny "leaves" to maximise nutrient content but experiment by tasting.


Once they are well sprouted you can rinse and drain them and store them in the fridge.  Eat them as fresh as possible to get maximum nutrients.

http://www.sproutpeople.org is a great source of more information and for a wide variety of seeds, beans and grains to sprout, sprouting equipment and guidance.

Happy Sprouting!

Jane



Monday 16 April 2012

What is a Healthy Diet?

There is so much conflicting information about what constitutes a healthy diet it's no surpise people are confused.

Myth: We Need 5 Portions of Fruit and Vegetables Per Day

Our government informs us that we need to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables per day but that figure was chosen arbitrarily and bears no relation to our actual needs.  It's the lowest recommended daily intake in Europe.  The truth is we need 9 - 14 portions per day.  They made the decision to misinform owing to their nanny state thinking, deciding it was too much to ask people to do. But that means that many people get two to three portions (and many others less or even none) and have no idea that they are inviting bad health.

The Importance of Fruit and Vegetables in a Healthy Diet

Dietary Fibre

Fruit and vegetables supply us with important dietary fibre which helps to maintain steady blood sugar levels and facilitates efficient bowel movements by providing bulk.  Regular evacuation of your bowels removes toxic waste from your body reducing the likelihood of developing bowel cancer and taking the load off your liver (which for most people is already dreadfully overworked).

Vitmains and Minerals

In addition, fruit and vegetables provide us with essential vitamins and minerals.  Antioxidant vitamins such as C and E help to protect us from dangerous free radicals.

Free radicals are formed simply by living.  Breathing oxygen for example creates free radicals.  Free radicals are molecules that lack an electron making them very unstable. They career around the body seeking that missing electron.  Free radicals are neutralised by anti-oxidants (which provide them with that missing electron).  When a free radical encounters a cell in your body only one of three things can happen. The free radical can be neutralised by an anti-oxidant and removed from your body without causing damage, or, in the absence of sufficient anti-oxidants, the cell will either mutate or be destroyed (and I am sure you can imagine that neither eventuality is desirable). Free radical damage is thought to be the cause of most common diseases.

Our ancient ancestors lived a natural life and would have eaten whatever fruit and vegetables they were able to gather.  They would have eaten whatever was growing at the time so everything was wild, fresh and packed with anti-oxidants.  Whilst their bodies still produced free radicals they were adequately provided with anti-oxidants to netralise the effects: perfect harmony.

Our ancestors also did not have to contend with our modern environment.  The air they breathed was fresh and clean without pollution, chemicals and other contaminants.  They did not live in an enviroment packed with electro magnetic fields, microwaves and radiation from electrical appliances, no mobile phones, no pesticides on their food, no artifical fragrances or other chemicals to "clean" their skin, no chlorine in the water, no artificial stress (just survival), no manufactured food packed with chemicals and additives, no fizzy drinks, cigarettes, pharmaceuticals made from chemicals, petrol fumes etc etc.

All the contaminants we encounter mean that we generate far more free radicals which need to be neutralised in order to avoid the damage they cause (such as cancers).  But sadly our antioxidant intake is often (and maybe even always) woefully inadequate. 

Falling Nutrient Levels


The soil our fruit and vegetables grows in is short on nutrients and so is the produce grown.  Intensive farming methods have robbed the soil of goodness and growers now attempt to reintroduce nutrients in the form of chemical fertilisers polluting our food.

In 1935 scientists discovered that nutrient levels in fruit and vegetables was on the decline and that decline has accelerated dramatically.  For example beween 1985 and 2002 brocoli lost 73% of its calcium content and magnesium fell by 55%.  During the same period the vitamin B6 content of bananas fell by 95% and strawberries lost 87% of their vitamin C content: our food is a shadow of its former self.

So we have a much greater level of free radicals to neutralise but a greatly reduced quality of food comppounded by inadequate consumption.

Not Just Antioxidants

And its not just the antioxidant function of fruit and vegetables that are important.  Vitamins and minerals are essential if are bodies are to work properly.  Some nutrients our bodies can create but even so a poorly nourished body will not effectively produce anything much.  Our bones, skin, organs, brain, health and happiness (in fact every aspect of being alive) all depend on getting the right nutrients.  If you are not full of vim and vigour then its probably because  you are simply not geting enough vitamins and minerals.

Increasing Your Fruit and Veg Intake

Often, when I tell people they need 9-14 portions of fruit and veg a day they are shocked and feel its somethng they cannot achieve.  However most are consuming way more bread, pasta, rice and potatoes than they have any need for.  These foods are good for people who have a big energy requirement: someone who works hard in a field all day, or who has to walk miles to get water or gather fuel for cooking.  They are concentrated sources of energy but dont deliver a lot in term of vitamins and minerals.  In our society people are filling up on concenrated energy and not getting enough vitamins and minerals from fruit and vegetables.

To increase your fruit and vegetable intake add three pieces of fruit to your breakfast and eat them through the morning.  Fruit is the ultimate convenience food.  Take a big salad to work for lunch with a wide variety of colours and textures.  Or make your sandwich with wholemeal pitta bread so you have way more salad than bread.  You will easily manage three or more portions of veg.

Snack on a little dried fruit, vegetable batons and some houmus, celery sticks, cherry tomatoes, berries, nuts and seeds.

In the evening make your meals two-thirds vegetables.  Have a starter of fruit (it digests better on an empty stomach) such as half a grapefuit, melon or pineapple (which can improve digestion).  If you must eat pasta make it wholewheat or brown rice with a predominantly vegetable topping.  Adopt the French habit and have salad with every meal.  If you are having fish or meat then have it with three or four servings of vegetables (excluding potatoes).  If you want a super quick meal then how about a vegetable omlette.  I particularly like mushroom, peppers, tomato and asparagus but you can add just about anything.  And you can use small amounts of meat for flavour such as chopped bacon.

If you find vegetables bland then dress them with a knob of butter or drizzle with olive oil and a little balsamic vinegar.  Or try lightly sauteing them in a little butter, Rapeseed or olive oil,  I particularly like cabbage done this way: wash and slice it and put into a frying pan with a little melted butter then put the lid on and let it cook on a low heat whilst preparing the rest of your meal (don't overcook it though).

Add fresh herbs to significantly increase your nutrient intake.  In summer it is easy to grow your own and some you can keep going in the winter on a sunny windowsill.

To maximise your nutrient intake choose a wide variety of colours and don't eat the same things all the time.  Eat at least one third of your vegetables raw.

When you can, choose organic.  I think you can taste the difference but even if you can't they have a higher nutrient content.

Supplement

I used to think you could get enough nutrients from a good diet but in light of new information I think its unlikely. I have access to an anti-oxidant scanner which measures the level of anti-oxidants in your skin and is very accurate.  It takes a great many processes for the anti-oxidant to reach your skin so its a much more accurate measure than blood or urine.  If you would like to be scanned (if you live in the UK) then get in touch and I will be able to arange it for you.  If your score is low you can then take an optimal health supplement on a three month trial and then get rescanned.  If your scores do not improve you can get your money back.  It's the only supplement I know of that the results can acutally be measured.

That's all for now,

Regards

Jane

Sunday 8 April 2012

The Myth: Fat is Bad

Did you know that fat is absolutely essential to good health? That the people in the world who consume the greatest amount of fat (Eskimos and Inuit) generally have the lowest levels of heart disease?

For many years now we have been encouraged to eliminate fat from our diets. Food manufacturers have jumped on the bandwagon and produce huge amounts of low fat and fat free products.  But since people started pursuing a low fat diet the levels of obesity have risen exponentially.  Low fat products always have a high sugar content and its largely sugar that makes you fat rather than fat.

By reducing fat in your diet you are denying yourself at soluble nutrients such as A, E, D and K and are more likely to damage your health than improve it.

It is not my intention here to make you an expert on fat.  I just want to give you a broad overview so you are better placed to make useful choices when it comes to what fats to include and what to avoid in your diet.

The Importance of Fats (Lipids)

Lipids may well be a less familiar term to you than fats.  But it is a broader technical term that refers to both solid fats and liquid oils as well as more complex lipids such as cholesterol and phospholipids.

The function of lipids in your body are quite broad and include:

  • providing a source of energy
  • provide the building blocks for the outer layer of each cell in your body
  • regulating hormones and co-enzyme functions
Lipids are essential to restoring and maintaining youth, health and vitality, having healthy supple skin, healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels and so on.

Types of Lipids

Saturated Fats: 

Saturated fats are simple fatty acids.  They have been cast as the undisputed baddies of fats.  The fat molecules however are chemically stable under high heat which means they do not react with oxygen creating free radicals. Sources of saturated fat include most animal fats, lard, butter, coconut butter, and palm fat.  These are all traditional cooking fats owing to that stability under high heat.

Saturated fats can be created in the body as well as coming from foods.  They are important for cell membrane structures, production of bile salts, immune functions, cellular signalling and important for your lungs.

Monounsaturated Fats:

Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) are also simple fatty acids.  They are unsaturated but only in one place in their molecular structure.  Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature.  Butter is, for example, mostly saturated fatty acids and is solid at room temperature, olive oil on the other hand is mostly MUFAs and is liquid at room temperature.  MUFAs are less stable than saturated fats in high heat.  They are therefore suitable for  medium temperature cooking such as sauteing or baking.  Food sources include olives and olive oil, avocados, peanut and soybean oil.

Polyunsaturated Fats (PUFAs)

Again simple fatty acids, PUFAs  are less stable in heat.  The react easily with oxygen creating free radicals.  PUFAs are so unstable that they are not suitable for cooking at all.  Food sources include all seed oils such as sunflower oil, safflower oil, linseed (flax seed) oil, hemp oil, walnut oil, free-range egg yolks, cold water fatty fish such as mackerel, salmon, sardines and herring and cod liver oil.

PUFAs and Free Radical Damage

For many years now we have been told that PUFAs and good for us and we should eat more of them.  As a result people switched from butter to margarine and started using vegetable oil to cook instead of lard or butter.  But this advice may not be useful or accurate.

PUFAs can be very beneficial for our health.  Included in this category are the essential fatty acids (EFAs).  EFAs break down into two categories: omega 3 fatty acids and omega 6 fatty acids (more about these later).  Our bodies cannot make essential fatty acids, we have to get them from food.  EFAs are however very fragile.  When they are exposed to oxygen, light and heat they go from being health givers to producing damaging free radicals (more on free radicals in later posts - in brief free radicals are known to cause damage to blood vessels leading to hardening of the arteries).

So how do we get the health benefits without the free radical damage?  The answer is in the whole foods where they are always protected from light and oxygen and combined with antioxidants (such as vitamins C and E).  Vitamin E for example is present in nuts and seeds  which is where we get most of our PUFAs.  Antioxidants neutralise free radicals.  Industrial food production ignores the wisdom  of natures.  When foods are commercially processed the oils are damaged and the antioxidants are left behind.  Some manufacturers have however now started to produce cold pressed oils from seeds which causes minimal damage to the oil and removes the free radical menace.

Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs)

EFAs include Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids.  There are various forms of Omega 3 fatty acids such as Alpha-linolenic acid which comes from seeds such as linseed, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) from marine algae and fish oils and docosahexaneoic acid (DHA) which is also from fish oils.  Omega 6 fatty acids  also come in different forms.  Linoleic acid from nuts and seeds and arachidonioc acid from animal fats such as egg yolks, dairy fat and meat.

The functions of EFAs are very complex.  EFAs are essential to the production of chemicals in our bodies which govern:

  • vascular (vascular means in relation to blood vessels) dilation and constriction
  • blood clotting and thinning
  • inflammatory and anti-inflammatory response
  • respiration, mucous production
  • blood pressure control
  • water retention and water excretion
Generally speaking Omega 3 controls one side of the function and Omega 6 the other.  So it is important to have balance between the two.  Generally Omega 6 is inflammatory and blood clotting whilst Omega 3 is anti-inflammatory and blood thinning.  Both sides of the equation are equally important.

Many people's diets have become very unbalanced in terms of their EFA intake.  In general Omega 6 are more prevalent in most peoples diets and many people consume no Omega 3 at all.  Essential fatty acids are just that, essential so given the imbalance its no wonder so many people are suffering with poor health.

So Which Fats Do We Need and Which Should We Eliminate

Essential:  We all need essential fatty acids.  Omega 3 and Omega 6 must be in balance for optimal health.  We need more Omega 3 than Omega 6.  Nobody in our society is short of Omega 6 whilst almost everyone is short of Omega 3 which explains why our society is experiencing such a rise in degenerative conditions such as heart disease, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure etc.   Because they are unstable and easily damaged they are best consumed from whole food sources, cold pressed oil or high quality supplements (that are free of mercury contamination).

Healthy:  These fats have benefits for our health but are not essential.  Extra Virgin Coconut Oil is mostly saturated however it provides energy and is quickly and easily absorbed without the need for bile salts.  Good for people who have difficulty absorbing fats and oils.  Naturally anti-fungal (so great in the fight against candida and yeasty infections) and they help to stimulate the immune system.  Suitable for high temperature cooking and for people with a fatty liver.

Butter has a similar molecular structure and also provides vitamins A and E.  People who are sensitive to dairy can often tolerate butter, but more often ghee.

Monounsaturates like sesame oil and olive oil have long been associated with good health.  In addition olive oil contains phytonutrients that act as anti-oxidants.  Monunsaturated oils have long been associated with lowering the bad cholesterol. Suitable for medium temperature cooking.

Neutral:  Most other fats and oils even including lard, poultry skin and cream can be healthy in moderation. Lard and poultry skin contain vitamin D.  So as part of a diet including wholegrains, pulses, vegetables and fruit these fats will do you no harm in moderation (although I know it goes against what you have been told for years).

Fats That Will Harm Your Health:  The only fats that are really damaging to your health are those that are manufactured by chemical companies.  Synthesised or overly processed these fats give us nothing that we need.

Trans-fats are the result of hydrogenation (means to treat with hydrogen) of vegetable oils to make them solid at room temperature.  You will find trans-fats in margarine, vegetable shortening, biscuits, and virtually all packaged foods under the name hydrogenated vegetable oil.  Most fast foods are packed with them.  Avoid these fats completely. There are some schools of thought that believe that once these kinds of fats are deposited in your body they cannot be removed because your body does not recognise what they are and has no way to deal with them.  Likely to raise blood cholesterol levels, give you a fatty liver, raised blood pressure, make you fat, more prone to degenerative dieases, heart disease, age prematurely and rob you of your health. 

Rancid vegetable oil is another really harmful oil.  I recommend avoiding all "vegetable oil".  Usually packed in flimsy, clear plastic bottles and hanging around on the supermarket shelf for months (not to mention how long they may be in your kitchen) these fragile polyunsaturated oils from sunflower, safflower and corn are no match for the high-temperature, high pressure and solvents that are used to extract them.  The processing of these oils creates dangerous free radicals which can cause damage to our bodies and the other health issues listed for trans fats.  Only buy polyunsaturates if they are labelled "cold expeller pressed" are sold in dark glass bottles and preferably stored in a refrigerator (which you should do at home too).

Complex Lipids

Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a complex lipid.  It is similar to simple fatty acids in that it can be unstable at high heat and react with oxygen to form free radicals.  Naturally occurring cholesterol in egg yolks is health promoting (many studies have proved - and as early as 1972 - that there is no link between egg consumption and unhealthy levels of cholesterol in your body) whilst the cholesterol in powdered milk, powdered eggs and processed foods can be very damaging to your health.

Cholesterol is another fat that has been cast as a bad guy.  Cholesterol is made in the body as well as being found in foods such as eggs, meat and fish.  It is used in the body in cell membranes, bile salts and the myelin sheaths which protect nerves. Cholesterol is used to make vitamin D, the steroid hormones including oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone, cortisol, DHEA and aldosterone.  Cholesterol is vital for good health.  Many laboratory experiments which linked cholesterol with hardening of the arteries and heart disease used a very poor source of the lipid: powdered cholesterol.  Whole food sources of cholesterol do not affect the blood cholesterol levels of healthy individuals.  Cholesterol deprivation is much more harmful.  75% of people who have heart attacks do not have high cholesterol levels.

Phospholipids

Phosopholipids are complex lipids.  They are the main component of the membrane on the outside of each and every cell.  The cell membranes are semi permeable and create two interdependent but separate "oceans": one which exists inside the cell and the other outside.  One of the most important food sources of phospholipids is lecithin which can be found in egg yolks.  Phospholipids are also important for intercellular signalling, formation of bile salts, the formation of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and the myelin sheath of nerve cells.

Broad Overview

So I hope that has given you a little more information on fats and their importance in our diet.  Don't be afraid of fat.  I always tell clients my own personal rule of thum for deciding whats good for us and what's not:  if we have eaten something for the last 50,000 years or so that we know of then continue to eat it, if we have only been consuming it for the last 50 years or so then your health will be better if you give it a miss.  Butter and margarine are a great example of this rule. 

In my next post I am going to have a look at Essential Fatty Acid Supplements before we move on to looking at what constitutes a healthy diet.  Your feedback is welcomed.

With love

Jane

Wednesday 4 April 2012

How to Get Hydrated

When you first start drinking enough water you will wee for England.  It will seem as though the glass has barely left your lips before you have to go to the loo.  Although it may not seem like it this is a good thing.  I have supported people through this process many times and for most people the increased urination stage will last around two weeks.  It seems as though the body wants to flush itself through as quickly as possible, diluting urine for safer passage through the kidneys.  This is the first stage of detoxing your body but getting fully hydrated on a cellular level will take some time, maybe even as long as a year.  But how long the process takes does not really matter because you need to maintain your intake for the rest of your life and you will feel and see improvements gradually.

How Much Water is Enough

How much water you need to drink to maintain hydration depends on your weight.  You should drink 35ml of water per kilogram of body weight. So:

9 stones (57.15 kg) = 2 litres (4.23 pints)
11 stones (69.85 kg) = 2.5 litres (5.28 pints)
13 stones (82.55 kg) = 3 litres (6.34 pints)
15 stones (95.25 kg) = 3.5 litres (7.39 pints)

I however weigh 9st 10lbs and generally drink around six pints of water per day, more when I have a busy clinic and doing a lot of talking (it's very dehydrating).  And this does not include any water you drink whilst doing strenuous exercise, that's additional.

If you are not currently drinking enough water then no doubt you will have gasped and immediately proclaimed you could not possibly drink that much.  You will be surprised, you can, it's what your body needs.  Once you become accustomed to drinking enough water you will find it much easier as it is how much you will want.  Remember, thirst is an emergency signal pushing you to drink immediately.  Do not wait to be thirsty to drink.

Warning 

Chronically dehydrated people are always very quick to tell me that it can be dangerous to drink too much water. And that's perfectly right, it can be.  You should not drink huge amounts in one go. 

When I first started doing colonics I used to ask people to drink more water in the time between booking and coming for their first appointment.  One day a new client arrived and when I asked if she had drunk more water she informed me that she had not done so in the time leading up to the appointment but had drunk two litres  right before the appointment.  That is too much in one go especially for someone who is chronically dehydrated. In fact in some circumstances it's just enough to potentially cause fatal swelling to the brain.

Some people may well remember the ecstasy related deaths during the 1990s.  The victims were not killed by the drug but by their massive over consumption of water.

When to Drink

So don't drink huge amounts of water at once, spread your consumption throughout the day.  If you drink more earlier in the day then you won't have to be getting up to use the loo during the night.

Get yourself a pint glass because you will drink more if it's to hand and it will feel less than two smaller glasses.

Drink your first pint of water when you get out of bed in the morning.  Ideally drink it at body temperature or warmer and add a squeeze of lemon juice to give your liver a light cleanse.

Have your next pint of water when you get to work.  And then drink another pint of warm water to be finished half an hour before you have your lunch.  Don't drink when you are eating: it dilutes the acid in your stomach and impairs digestion. If you must have a drink then have no more than a small wine glass.  Once your hydration status improves you will not feel the need to drink when eating.  And then don't drink for at least an hour after your meal (more if it was a heavy meal).  Your weight will determine how many drinks you have to fit in between meals - just space them regularly.

Have another pint of warm water half an hour before your evening meal and one just before you go to bed.

If you feel the need for hot drinks then have hot water with lemon juice (fresh not from a bottle with all the additives) or herbal teas (but not fruit ones).  There are a wide variety of herbal teas to choose from now and they generally have more taste than they used to.  I particularly like the brands Pukka and Yogi.  Keep trying new ones until you find some you like.  You can count these drinks into your water consumption.

Which Kind of Water is Best

The water I prefer to drink is Kangen Water.  I have a Kangen Water Machine and it produces truly superior water at a fraction of the cost of buying branded bottled water.  I consider it to be the best investment I have made in my health.  I am Kangen Water Machine distributor but its not something I am actively engaged in - I had wanted a machine for years before they became available in the UK but get in touch if you would like to know more about getting your own machine or I am happy to supply you with the water if you live locally.

Used in hospitals in Japan, Kangen water is recommended by world famous gastric surgeon Hiromi Shinya.  Have a look at some footage of colons before and after making dietary changes and drinking Kangen Water - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=han3AfjevOc .

Kangen water has a sophisticated filter so contains no chemicals (such as chlorine), no heavy metals (such as lead).  It has a different molecular structure with micro clusters so absorbs 6 times more quickly, contains large amounts of antioxidants, is ionised so aids detoxification and alkaline so restores the body's natural ph.

Kangen Water is also very pleasant to drink and has much less volume so a whole pint can be drunk easily with no bloating or "glugging" in your stomach.

Bottled Water

Can be expensive and cheaper versions are no better than using a jug filter at home.  To be sure of purity choose water from a natural source such as Evian or Volvic.  Alternatively choose one which claims to be alkaline.  I have however tested several alkaline waters and they did not all pass the test. 

Filtered Tap Water

Unfortunately by removing chlorine many filters make the water more acidic which is not desirable.  Only the most sophisticated remove oestrogens, fluoride and heavy metals. I do however consider filtered water to be marginally more desirable than plain tap water.  You can buy alkalising beads on the internet and you can also buy alkalising jug filters.  I have never used either so am unable to vouch for how well they work.

Tap Water

It has to be said that we are unbelievably lucky to live in a country where the water is at least safe in that you are not going to get cholera, typhoid or a whole host of other life threatening conditions.  Nor is it contaminated with arsenic which is apparently common in the US.

The water treatment plants in the UK however largely date from the Victorian period and are ill equipped to remove modern contaminants.  In addition much of the water delivery system is also old and not that clean. 

Quality of tap water varies greatly throughout the UK but it all contains chlorine, some also has added fluoride and other contaminants that are not good for us.  Drinking tap water is however way better than being chronically dehydrated so if tap water is the best you can do then so be it.

Fats & Cellular Hydration

Once your body has been forced into survival mode by lack of water it needs some help to re-hydrate.

In order to survive when water is in short supply our body's have to take emergency action.  Your brain, control central,  has to have priority.  Second in line is your blood.  It can only reduce water content up to 8% before it would start to cause you serious problems.  So the rest of your body has to bear the brunt of the shortage.  Each cell in your body requires water to function but in an emergency the cells coat themselves in cholesterol to keep what water they have inside.  This is meant to be a short term measure.  However in long term chronic dehydration this sealing not only retains the water, it holds the metabolic waste of the cell inside too and prevents nutrients and other substances entering.

In order to break down this cholesterol coating it is essential to supplement your diet with essential fatty acids such as Antarctic Krill Oil (I will be talking more about the benefits of Krill Oil in later posts), other high quality fish oils (make sure you get one guaranteed free from mercury and other contaminants) or for vegetarians Udo's Oil.

In addition to supplementation you should ensure that your diet contains adequate healthy oils such as Cold Pressed Nut and Seed Oils (not for cooking, just dressings), Hemp Oil (again dressing salad or cooked vegetables), Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil (good for cooking as it has a high smoking temperature).

Essential fatty acids are just that essential (we will look at them in more detail in later posts) so you should supplement with them permanently.

Ensuring your intake of essential fatty acids is adequate will allow each and every cell to restore healthy function, taking in nutrients and eliminating waste.

It's a Process

Don't worry if you don't manage to drink your full quota straight away.  Just increase your water consumption gradually and keep going.  But bear in mind that the sooner you start drinking enough the sooner you will start feeling the benefits.  Remember that getting hydrated is the single most important thing you can do for your health: it's the first step to restoring the youthful health and vitality that is rightfully yours.

What's Next?

In my next post we will be taking a look at essential fatty acids and specifically Krill Oil in a little more detail.  We've covered the role of EFAs in re-hydrating but they are essential to every aspect of our health.

Wishing you health and happiness

Jane

The Importance of Being Well Hydrated

Most people are chronically dehydrated. In the USA its thought to be as high as 75% of the population and there is no reason to think that the figure would be any less for the UK. In my practice I would say the figure is more like 95%.  And the effects of dehydration on your overall health are devastating, way more far reaching that you probably think.

And This is Not Just My Opinion

In October 2004 a joint symposium between the Royal Institute for Public Health and Water UK explored the links between water and health.  Water UK Chief Executive Pamela Taylor outlined the challenges that are beginning to be understood by policy makers and health professionals in ensuring adequate hydration across our society:

"Certainly we recognise that there is a minimum level of water intake required for human need.  Indeed, for much of the developing world there is still a great deal to be done to provide reliable access to water to meet this basic need.  However, there is growing evidence that water has stronger links to health than we have previously understood - that adequate hydration has an important role to play in preventing illness.  If this is so, it begs the question 'How much?', what is the daily requirement to ensure good health?  Today the answer might be: 'A lot more than most people drink at present'."

So the message is getting through to the main stream but when did your doctor last ask you how much water your drink?

Why is Water So Important to Youth, Health and Vitality?

Water is one of the six basic nutrients along with complex carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, proteins and minerals.  Water should really be called the first nutrient since the body's important chemical reactions - such as the production of energy - take place in water.  Its most familiar roles are:

  • Transporting nutrients, oxygen and other substances around the body
  • Facilitating the removal of waste products via urine and sweat
  • Controlling body temperature via sweat production
  • Acting as a lubricant around joints and eyes
  • Promoting digestion through the production of saliva and other digestive juices
  • Maintaining skin health and hydration (dehydrated skin ages quickly)
When the body is not adequately hydrated, it responds by conserving its stocks and switching on the body's survival mechanisms.  Effectively it hangs onto the water that should be eliminated and your body becomes a dirty, stagnant puddle.  The thirst mechanism in most people is so weak that by the time they feel thirsty its actually one of the body's alarms going off to force you to give it what it needs immediately.

Dehydration and Serious Illness

According to independent researcher Hilary Forrester, the impact of longer term dehydration is now being connected to severe, life threatening conditions such as cancer and coronary heart disease.  With adequate hydration, breast cancer risk is believed to be reduced by 79% in post-menopausal women and 33% in pre-menopausal women; colon cancer  is reduced by 45% in women and 32% in men.  Bladder, kidney, prostate and testicular cancer have also been associated with inadequate fluid intake.

Conditions such as gallstones, kidney stones, urinary tract infections and bedsores have all been linked to dehydration. 

Dehydration Makes You Fat

Findings also suggest that dehydration may contribute to obesity  because it creates cravings for a diet that is high in fat, which produces a good source of metabolic water.

In addition, as I have already mentioned, most people's thirst mechanism is so weak it is often mistaken for hunger.  One glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs in almost 100% of dieters studied by the University of Washington.

Dehydration also slows metabolism and impairs digestion which in turns leads to malabsorbtion of nutrients which in turn pushes people to eat more in the hope they will provide their body with what it needs: nutrients.

Dehydration and the Elderly

How many older people do you know who drink any water at all?  Fear of incontinence is often a factor and leads to the restriction of fluid intake.  But the restriction only makes the problem worse.

A study conducted by the National Health Service established that when old people are admitted following falls they are always constipated.  And constipation is a clear indication of severe dehydration.  They don't fall be because they are old and frail, they fall because they are dehydrated which causes them to experience dizziness.

Dehydration also impairs the cognitive abilities of the elderly making them appear confused and impairing memory.  My mother was diagnosed as being in the early stages of dementia however her confusion was always completely eliminated very quickly (less than half an hour) by getting her to drink a glass of water.  She probably didn't have dementia she was just chronically dehydrated.

So Being Dehydrated Will

  • Reduce your mental and physical peformance by up to 25%
  • Impair digestion
  • Age your skin prematurely
  • Increase the likelihood of back and joint pain (8-10 glasses of water per day was found to ease the back and joint pain for 80% of sufferers)
  • Disrupt bowel function
  • Increase the likelihood of you developing serious, life threatening conditions
  • Raise your blood pressure
  • Make you tired and lethargic (dehydration is the number one cause of that mid-afternoon energy slump)
  • Make you fat and it much harder to lose weight
  • Rob you of youth, health and vitality
I could list way more downsides to dehydration but I think you get the picture.  The single most important thing you can do for your health is to get well hydrated.

Alternative versus The Traditional Approach

Alternative, complementary and naturopathic practitioners have long understood the importance of good hydration but it seems to have escaped the mainstream medical practitioner for some reason.  In Japan, the country who's citizens have the best health worldwide, hospitals treat patients with water before resorting to pharmaceuticals.  Their water of choice is Kangen Water but I will address this topic a little further on.

What Not to Drink

Before I address the issue of how much you need to drink lets first take a look at what not to drink and why.

Fruit Juice

Fruit juice is food and will not significantly add to your hydration status.  It has to be digested before it can be assimilated and uses up water in that process.  In addition, its simple sugars will increase the likelihood of you developing diabetes (and that's the case even if you juice your own).  Drink a small amount of fruit juice if you must but don't count it as part of your daily hydration requirements.

Fizzy Water

Fizzy water contributes significantly to bloating and excess gas, in fact in many cases it is the sole cause.  It also exerts pressure on your oesophageal sphincter (the muscle that keeps the contents of your stomach in its place) which over time can fail and allow the highly acidic contents of your stomach to enter your oesophagus causing reflux and in the long term can lead to Barrat's Oesophagus which is a pre-cancerous condition.

Coke, Diet Coke and Other "Pop"

Not a drink but then not a food either.  These drinks also allow acid from your stomach to leak out, increase the acidity of your body alarmingly, cause bloating and gas, impair digestion and are anti-nutrients (which means they don't give your body any nutrition but they take nutrients to be processed and eliminated by your body).  If you are already poorly nourished they will speed up the onset of malnutrition.  As caffeine is an ingredient of Coke, Red Bull and other popular drinks have a look at the link under the next heading.  In my local supermarket I regularly see young children buying these drinks at breakfast time.  I don't think they should be drinking them at any time.

Tea and Coffee

Again tea and coffee should be regarded as food not drink.  There are different opinions but generally they add little to your hydration status, make you think you have had a drink so prevent you from drinking the water you need and result in very concentrated urine (if they are the only thing you drink) which is very bad for your kidneys.  If you drink too much they can keep your body in a permanent state of stress which is devastating for your overall health. 

In 1948 a erman pharmacologist conducted tests on the effects of various drugs on the ability of spiders to spin webs.  In 1995 NASA repeated the tests.  They then photographed the webs the spiders created after having the drugs.  Take a look on Wikipaedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effect_of_psychoactive_drugs_on_animals.  The very worst web was created by the spider that had the caffeine.

Alcohol

Now I'm not suggesting that you don't drink any alcohol at all but alcohol dehydrates. Its why you get a banging headache and feel fuzzy the day after drinking too much.  The best cure for a hangover is to get hydrated.  Having a beer when you are thirsty is not giving your body what it needs.  If you are thirsty have a glass of water first then have your beer.

Milk

Again a food not a drink.  And its meant for calves, lambs and kids not adult human beings.

To Be Continued

In my next post I will explain how much you need to drink, the advantages of various kinds of water (they are not all equal), the importance of healthy oils in facilitating hydration and what to expect when you first start to drink enough.


Getting well hydrated is the first step to restoring and maintaining your youth, health and vitality.

With love

Jane

Tuesday 3 April 2012

How to be Young, Healthy and Filled with Vitality

That may sound like a pretty big promise.  And for many people, seeing themselves as young, fit and healthy seems a long way off.  But good health is a choice and in my practice as a Digestive Health Specialist I meet people every day who are sleep walking their way into premature ageing, deteriorating health and seem both unwilling and unable to step up to the plate and take full responsibility for their own health and wellbeing. 

Willingness comes as you start to feel the benefits of the small changes you make initially (under par nutrition robs you of the will to make changes) and the process is enabled by having accurate information.  Unless you are particularly interested in health and nutrition you are unlikely to have the time to sift through the huge amounts of conflicting information nor are you likely to be be able to make an informed decision about what is useful and what is not.

My aim is to support you to make the choices that will support you to improve your health.  Be wiling to make changes gradually, trying to do everything at once is more likely to make you give up and return to the habits that do not serve you well.

An Epidemic of Malnutrition

We live in a country where we have access to every kind of food available and nobody needs to die of starvation in the UK.  There is however a hidden epidemic of micro malnutrition bubbling beneath the surface.  People have enough to eat, in many cases way too much, but they are starving their bodies of vital nutrients and in most cases its simply because they don't have the right information.  A poorly nourished body leads to getting old, biologically, much earlier.  I want to stay as youthful, fit and healthy for as long as possible and I want to help you do the same.

Misinformation

For the last thirty years or so we have been fed vast swathes of misinformation by people who seek to make huge amounts of money by providing for our need for "convenience".  But that "convenience" has a terrible cost: our health and wellbeing. 

Advertising continually perpetuates the idea that cooking is difficult, time consuming and expensive.  I saw an advert on TV recently that suggested cooking a meal with fresh fish and a sauce would take around three hours which is totally preposterous.  I can cook such a meal in twenty minutes and I am no Masterchef.

It is implied that we are simply too busy and don't have the time to cook for ourselves and that the "food" on offer gives us what we need in no time at all but it is simply not true.

Government Collusion

And our government aid the process by claiming that five portions of fruit and vegetables per day is sufficient which again is totally untrue.  Its not even a figure that bears any relation to anything at all.  The number was picked arbitrarily.  We actually need 9 - 14 portions per day: and that's what the inhabitants of all other European countries are told but our nanny state government believed it was too much to ask of us so instead perpetuated the misinformation that five portions was enough.  But don't be put off by thinking you could never eat that much: my intention is to show you that its not difficult and the benefits are definitely worth it.

What Does it Mean to be Healthy?

When people come to my practice I get them to complete a health questionnaire.  There are two questions which are very important.

1.  How would you describe your current state of health?
2.  Do you have any current symptoms?

Almost without exception people describe their current state of health as good.  But further questioning almost always reveals a whole host of symptoms that they consider to be almost normal: they didnt include them as symptoms.

My Version of Healthy

A truly healthy person has great digestion (so they never or very rarely have indigestion, reflux or heartburn), they don't get bloated, their bowels work perfectly (i.e. if they eat three meals a day they evacuate their bowels at least twice and ideally three times and the eliminations happen easily and quickly but are formed i.e. not sloppy, watery or bitty).  They don't suffer from abdominal pain unless they picked up a bug.  They are emotionally stable, don't suffer from anxiety or depression (except when that would be normal such as when faced with major hurdles in life or bereavement for example), sleep well, don't struggle to get out of bed in the  morning, are generally happy (although this is not a constant state and being unhappy or sad sometimes is perfectly normal) and they have sufficient energy to sail through their working day and enjoy leisure activities without being exhausted.  They generally look younger than their years and have good skin and clear eyes and are neither too thin nor overweight. They don't need to use stimulants (such as caffeine or sugary snacks) to get them going in the morning or ward off a mid-afternoon slump.  

Myth Busting

My aim in this blog is to dispell some of the myths, to help you make the choice to be youthful and healthy and avoid the choices that will have you joining the sleepwalkers.  And I am not suggesting you adopt the life of a monk to achieve this aim: balance is the secret.

Taking It Back to Basics

And we will be starting at the beginning.  It's a process.  Do as much as you can.  As you start to make changes you will find further changes easier to make.  Its better to take small steps and get to the destination rather than setting off at full tilt and falling at the first hurdle.  I hope you enjoy the journey.  Remember, a journey of a thousand miles begins with just one step.

We'll start with getting hydrated.  Why it's so important.  What are the consequences of being dehydrated and so on.

Hope to see you tomorrow.

Be willing to step into the light.

Jane