Newsletter October
Spring is here! |
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The sun is shining and Sia has been running around the office jumping for joy because of equinox! The spring equinox is one of the four great solar festivals of the year. Day and night are equal, poised and balanced, but about to tip over on the side of light.
It’s time to get out and enjoy the weather, plant new seedlings in the garden and let’s not forget …. spring clean! Time to think about the things that are no longer
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Raw it up! |
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Science proves that cooking not only
destroys nutrition and enzymes, but chemically changes foods from the substances needed for health into free-radicals and poisons that destroy our health!
A Raw food diet is based on eating whole, live, uncooked and unprocessed foods as a large percentage of your diet. When you eat more cooked food than raw, the body can't eliminate all the toxins and they back up causing dis-ease.
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Heating food above 118 degrees F. is believed to destroy enzymes in food that can assist in digestion. Cooking is also known to diminish the nutritional value of food, and the heat actually causing chemical changes in the food creating many of the carcinogens, mutagens, free-radicals and other toxins that are associated with many of today's diseases, from diabetes and arthritis to heart disease and cancer. |
In this month’s issue:
- Raw it up! – The Benefits of Eating More Raw Food.
- Love Your Liver – Detoxing your liver is easier than you think.
- Do the Laghoo – Yoga postures to increase peristaltic action.
- Wheat Worry – Why more and more people are discovering they are intolerant to wheat and some scrumptious gluten free alternatives.
No need to throw out the pots and pans just yet, but here are 5 easy ways to incorporate more raw food into your diet this spring.
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Start the day with a smoothie. Add three parts fruit, one part green leafy vegetables and 2 parts water or ice to a blender …. Wiz it all up and you have an awesome smoothie jam-packed full of vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre.
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Keep chopped up veggies on hand for healthy snacking.
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Make your own dips. For a rocking pesto blend one cup of soaked cashew nuts, one bunch of basil, 4 cloves of garlic, a pinch of, a squeeze of lemon and a spash of olive oil.
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JUICE GLORIOUS JUICE!! - get your juicers out of the cupboards and onto your bench tops!! Juicing is a great way to up your servings of fruit and veg!
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Eat lightly at dinner. Remember our bodies aren’t designed to be digesting heavy meals at night time; it’s perfectly ok just to have a salad or a meal of fruit. Your body will love you for it. |
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Functions
The liver is the largest internal organ in the body and a primary cleanser. It filters more than 1.4 liters of blood every minute and contains Kuppfer cells that destroy bacteria in the blood. The liver also produces and secretes almost a liter of bile every day, which is necessary for the digestion and absorption of fats.
Signs
The liver can become overworked and exhausted from overeating, too many fat-rich, processed or unhealthy foods, toxins, medications and stress. According to Dr. Mark Percival, author of "Phytonutrients and Detoxification," signs that the liver is functioning sluggishly include acne, skin rashes, red or watery eyes, insomnia, muscle and neck pain, headaches, indigestion and stomach pain, bloating, fatigue and low energy.
Juice Detoxing
According to Dr. Sandra Cabot, physician and nutrition author, raw fruit and vegetable juices help to cleanse and re-energize your liver. The pectin in apple juice helps to remove excess cholesterol and heavy metals from the digestive tract, reducing the workload of the liver.
Peppermint, red clover, fennel, licorice, cleavers, dandelion, Oregon grape root, burdock root, butternut bark, chickweed, parsley root, and nettles are all great teas to help detox the liver.
Try a simple three-day detox by drinking a glass of freshly juiced apple and beet juice before every meal. Also try drinking a glass of water with one to three teaspoons of fresh lemon juice every morning before breakfast. This helps to flush and clear the liver.
Detox Foods
Foods rich in antioxidants help to stimulate and cleanse the liver and remove toxins from the body. Dr. Percival recommends adding high antioxidant foods such as beets, eggplant, carrots, red onion, artichokes, grapefruit and grapes to your diet. Other foods that promote liver health include cruciferous vegetables, onions and the spice turmeric. Also add more ginger, which increases blood circulation for better removal of toxins, and garlic, which is rich in the mineral selenium for liver health. According to a study published in "Digestive Diseases and Sciences," people with a selenium deficiency have greater risks of liver problems and disease.
Daily Detox
Regular detoxing helps to keep the liver healthy and decongested. Daily ways to improve liver health
recommended by Dr. Cabot include drinking plenty of water and getting fresh air, as well as regular exercise
that makes you sweat a little. She also suggests adding a cup of bath salts to a warm water bath to help draw
out toxins as you soak.
For more information about liver detox programs have a chat to our Sia, Michelle or Cindy after your next
colonic.
Do the Laghoo …
Laghoo Shankhaprakshalana (can you say that 3
times quickly?!) is a yogic cleansing ritual for the
colon. You don’t have to go through the entire ritual
though to get the benefits from the postures. Try the
following asana several times after a big glass of
water or before your next colonic.
Tadasana. Stand with arms raised overhead, fingers
interlinked and the palms to the ceiling raise and
lower the heels quickly. Acts on the stomach and
stretches the colon.
Tiryaka Tadasana. Stand with feet 18 inches apart,
arms raised overhead, fingers interlinked and the
palms to the ceiling. Bend to left and then to the
right. Acts on the small intestine and colon. |
Kati Chakrasana. Standing up straight, swing your arms
from side to side rotating at your waist. Massages the
small intestine.
Tiryaka Bhujangasana. In bhujangasana with legs 18
inches apart and toes tucked under. Twist to look over
the left shoulder at the right foot then return to centre
before twisting to look over the right shoulder at the left
foot. Squeezes and massages the caecum, sigmoid
colon and rectum, and also stimulates the
rectosphincteric reflex (urge to defecate).
Udarakar shanasana. Squat with the hands on the
knees. Drop the right knee to the floor and twist to the
left. Return to the centre and then drop the left knee to
the floor and twist to the right. Squeezes and massages
the caecum, sigmoid colon and rectum, and also
stimulates the rectosphincteric reflex (urge to defecate). |
Wheat Worry
Cereal grains contain gluten which is very hard to
digest and "puts an enormous strain on the whole digestive system. Eventually, the GI system breaks down and you end up with allergies, celiac disease, mental illness, chronic indigestion and Candida albicans overgrowth to name just a few. Symptoms of candidiasis and gluten intolerance overlap significantly because the undigested sugars promote overgrowth of Candida albicans. There is now even evidence of a link between gluten intolerance and multiple sclerosis."
Gluten intolerance is poorly understood, and rarely diagnosed by physicians. When you complain of symptoms that are actually gluten intolerance, you are most likely to be told you have reflux, irritable bowel or that you are depressed. These symptoms are overlooked because gluten intolerance is so poorly understood and the symptoms vary widely, affecting every part of your body. Some of these symptoms include: diarrhea, flatulence, bloating and generalized gastro-intestinal discomfort. Other symptoms often reported are headaches, mouth ulcers, weight gain or weight loss, a poor immune system, and chronic skin problems like dermatitis and eczema. Anemia is often also present.
 Morning tea
Yumi's Hommus Dip Gluten Free with veggie sticks
Lunch
Gluten-free pasta salad With Orgran Gluten Free Vegetable Rice Pasta – just add your favorite toppings!
The best way to test yourself is through an elimination
diet. You will have to be extremely conscientious because wheat/gluten is hidden in most processed foods, medications and even supplements.
Now it’s easier than you think to avoid gluten. Here are some of our favourite gluten free products.
 Breakfast
KAPAI PUKU is not only gluten free it’s one of the highest fibre breakfast cereals available. You have almost eight metres of intestinal tract – that's the length of two small cars! Dough, pastry, coffee, alcohol, and other indulgences can block your body leaving you feeling tired and run down. KAPAI PUKU can help exfoliate and clean your intestinal tract, increase your metabolic rate, and suppress your appetite. It's simple, unprocessed food – medicine the way Mother Nature intended.
Start your day with a bowl of Kapai Puku, fruit, and almond milk.
 Dinner
BBM Gluten Free Falafel Mix, with your favourite dip, salad and true foods gluten free wraps
Afternoon tea RAW REVOLUTION BARS (Organic, 90.6%Raw, Kosher (parve), Vegan, Free of preservatives, refined sweeteners, gluten, soy, wheat, peanuts and all animal products. Made in a gluten, peanut and animal product free facility. …. And TOATALY DELICIOUS!)
Special treat!
 Both available at Woolworths, Macro Gluten free and Dairy free Double Chocolate Biscuits and Vitarium Sugar Free (Dairy Free and Gluten Free) Hot Chocolate – absolutely NO Aspartame, NO Saccharin, No Sucralose.
Aqua Health 70a Chapel St ST KILDA VIC 3182 Telephone 1300 80 20 83 [email protected] www.aquahealth.com.au
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