Smoothie packed with B6 and Iron
This smoothie was inspired by two blogs I wrote. I have been discussing the most common nutrient deficiencies we have in America. I believe smoothie making is the easiest way to incorporate fresh, raw fruits and veggies in our diet. When we consume the fruits and veggies raw, we maximize their nutrient concentrations, which can help us prevent nutrient deficiencies. B6 is the most common deficiency for men and women and iron is the second most common deficiency for women.
In this smoothie: iron can be found in the spinach, parsley, strawberries and prune juice I used as the base. B6 is also found in the prune juice and spinach. I also added carrots and a half a frozen banana for more B6. I added prune juice to about a quarter of the way up, blueberries, and a handful of ice cubes. Enjoy!
This smoothie was inspired by two blogs I wrote. I have been discussing the most common nutrient deficiencies we have in…
Posted by Pivot Holistic Health on Monday, January 23, 2017
- Published in Public Blog, Smoothie Making Resources
Iron Deficencies
Iron is the pick this week. Iron levels are often low in women who are child bearing age. For these women, iron is the second most common deficiency, following behind B6. Children and adolescents are also prone to iron deficiency.
Iron helps transport oxygen in the blood and in the muscle. Iron is also vital for some important enzymes to function. Low iron levels, it is one of the most common reasons we suffer from low energy levels.
The problem is it can be dangerous to just grab a pill to fix low iron because iron can be hard to eliminate from the body if you take too much. This can cause iron overload. So we must be careful when using an iron pill supplement. Because iron can cause a toxicity, you should consult a doctor and have your blood work read to determine if an iron supplement is for right for you.
I have described in previous blog that when we consume nutrients from actual food sources we receive a symphony of nutrition. It turns out vitamin C helps us absorb iron. There are also different forms of iron and it is thought the type of iron found in meat is more easily absorbed than when found in plant sources.
To help insure I get iron, I add spinach in my eggs, kale and spirulina in my smoothies, bok choy in my stir-fry, and lentils in my soup.
Animal sources of iron: beef, pork, eggs, shrimp, oysters, and chicken
Plant sources of iron: spirulina, lentils, quinoa, sweet potato, beans, green beans, kale, spinach, whole wheat bread, dates, prunes, artichoke, peas, bok choy, parsley, strawberries, many dried fruits, nuts and seeds, cacao, tomato paste, and soy
A more complete list of iron sources:
http://www.redcrossblood.org/learn-about-blood/health-and-wellness/iron-rich-foods/
- Published in Public Blog, Smoothie Making
I'm excited to announce I have colaboratered with a private gym facility in Maitland, FL and I am currently accepting clients! Are you ready to make a shift towards living a healthful lifestyle? Do you want to learn how to opt for better food choices and become more active? Pivot is ready to help you to reach your fitness and wellness goals! LIVESTREAM and online fitness and healthy cooking classes coming soon! Please stay tuned!Pivotholistichealth.com
Posted by Pivot Holistic Health on Tuesday, January 10, 2017
New Gym Facility
I’m excited to announce I have collaborated with a private gym facility in Maitland, FL and I am currently accepting clients!
Are you ready to make a shift towards living a healthful lifestyle? Do you want to learn how to opt for better food choices and become more active? Pivot is ready to help you to reach your fitness and wellness goals!
LIVESTREAM and online fitness and healthy cooking classes coming soon! Please stay tuned!
- Published in Fitness, Public Blog
What are toxins?
Toxin is a buzz word that has been thrown around the natural health community for a while and has finally made it into traditional medicine. We are realizing we are constantly getting exposed to many chemicals, not only though our food but also from our environment. Whether it be from the plastic containers, exhaust fumes, preservatives, chemical laden clothing and body products, or artificial flavors or colors in our foods. Shockingly, many food items legal in the United States are illegal in other countries. Items such as yellow 5 and yellow 6- which are believed by some to cause allergies and behavioral problems in children.
Your body already produces toxins as a by-product of metabolic activity. These are natural but need to be released outside of the body. I have mentioned previously that drinking adequate water and getting sufficient exercise helps to flush out some of the toxins in your body. The body is designed to eliminate these naturally occurring toxins but with all the extra chemicals we are exposed to on a daily basis, it is increasing harder for the body to eliminate. There are so many new products have been invented in the last 100 years, we might not have a clear picture of risks associated to long term exposure to these products and compounds. Some think that excess toxin accumulation in the body is linked to fat gain, fatigue, skin problems, and allergies- among other health issues.
The bottom line is the less artificial chemicals in the body the better.
Our bodies are constantly doing all types of chemical reactions every second. When we introduce outside chemicals we risk these chemicals interacting with our body’s highly reactive body tissue and complex body processes. We know things like charbroiling, exposure to smoke, smog, and exhaust fumes can cause serious damage to our tissue.
So what’s the solution?!?
We know eating organic is better. There is a residue of pesticides or other chemicals that often remain on non-organic produce. Some say that soaking the produce in a 1 part vinegar to 4 parts water works to help cleanse some of the pesticides off. I use a bristle brush and scrub my produce. Also, avoid buying processed and preserved food. For example- things like canned, fried, and overly processed type of food are best to avoid. As mentioned in another blog, this process depletes some of the nutrition of the food and all there are added chemicals that help prevent the food from going bad after sitting on the shelf for a long time. Fresh is definitely the best for a lot of reasons!
Toxins are not only found in food….
It turns out a lot of household cleaners have a massive amount of caustic chemicals. I buy the green alternative options when available. These products are also better for the environment.
There are a lot of other ways to limit toxin exposure but this is good place to start. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have because this is a very broad topic.
Further reading:
http://pivotholistichealth.com/why-the-water-we-drink-is-vitally-important-part-i/
- Published in Eating for Health, Public Blog
Mindfulness- How it affects the quality of your life.
Have you every been spending time with someone and they seem so wrapped up in their own thoughts, as if they are physically here but mentally they are a million miles away. You know from experience that the quality of your time is not the same as if they were fully here and engaged with you and your interactions. This is an observable quality of someone who is not practicing mindfulness. Our society has so much input- TV, internet, phone, radio, work- there are millions of other places for our mind to be other than where we physically are. For someone raising children or trying to build a meaningful relationship with someone, this distracted mind may actually prevent us from connecting and bonding in the way we want to with the people that mean the most to us.
Often we are mainly unaware of our mind running wild, going wherever it wants to wander. Just like a child, they see something over there that looks interesting and off they go to explore. Many times where we allow our mind to wander is not a thought that is going to benefit us- it is not a constructive thought. There is a point where worry is beneficial, it helps us plan our future actions and explore options to outcomes. However, there is a point where we cross a threshold and we have started obsessing over something we just can not change, no matter how much we think about it. This increases our stress, our distraction and can prevent us from enjoying the things we should.
Mindfulness has been around for thousands of years, it is not new. It is relatively new to the United States however. We are just now realizing all the benefits of practicing mindfulness, I have included an article that highlights these many benefits below.
When we start to practice mindfulness, we become aware of our thoughts on a whole other level. For instance, if I said to you today: I want you to become aware of everything you came across today that is red. Make a list write it down and turn it in at the end of the day. You would probably see all kinds of things, many things that you see everyday that you may not have even noticed before. This is because we are bringing attention to it, when normally we don’t- this is exactly how mindfulness works.
We practice exercises that help lasso our mind and pull it back in when it gets distracted. Just by having the realization that you are having a thought that is not constructive, you can refocus your mind on something that is more constructive or even just be there in the moment. Being in the moment can be great when spending time with loved ones, or working on a project, or when you are on a hike or walk. We get to fully experience all that moment has to offer. Believe it or not even when we are experiencing something not so pleasant, such as an annoying co-worker, we can lessen the discomfort by becoming aware of it and using the tools we gained in mindfulness training to help us deal with these uncomfortable experiences. Even how we experience anger becomes transformed when we implement mindfulness.
You are in control, don’t forget that. When you get the tools through mindfulness training you open all kinds of doors to help you have the most constructive, fulfilling and enjoyable experiences possible throughout your normal day to day experiences.
Further reading:
http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/07-08/ce-corner.aspx
- Published in Mindfulness Training, Public Blog
Preventing Heart Disease with Excercise
We should all be taking heart health very seriously, it is the number one cause of death here in the United States. There are several reasons this disease has risen to such alarming rates. One is because we have increased our meat intake in the past decades. For more information about that please check out my previous blog covering this topic.
http://pivotholistichealth.com/americas-obsession-with-protein/
The next aspect of this deadly but preventable disease is inactivity. If your work and leisure activities are mainly sedentary you double your chance of dying from a cardiovascular disease. If your heart is in poor condition you are also more likely to suffer from a stroke.
These are very serious conditions that can not only can steal away years of your life but also severely decrease the quality of your life if you are able to survive a cardiovascular event. Shortness of breath and decrease blood pumping volumes can hold you back from experiencing all the great things life has to offer. With poor heart health it may be very difficult to complete your daily activities and even prevent you from sharing experiences with loved ones, such as playing with our children and grand children- they need us.
Now that we realize how serious it is that we keep our cardiovascular health in good working condition, lets explore how exercise helps our heart.
We know the heart consists of muscle. We know from experience, if we don’t use a muscle we lose it. Imagine the biceps, lets say we do bicep curls two times a week habitually. Eventually, the muscle builds with exercise and we will need to increase the weight we are curling. The heart is the same. Working it out makes the muscle stronger and it will be able to increase the amount of blood it pumps out with every beat, in turn the heart has to beat less times to move the same amount of blood. The cardiovascular system also becomes more efficient in many aspects with regular exercises. You can see this with people that work out regularly. They can do activities with ease that someone who is unconditioned struggles with.
Regular exercise also helps the blood vessels work better, helping with blood pressure levels. It also has been known to increase HDL which decreases cholesterol and decreases body fat percentage.
You can do this! It’s important and deserves your time. Stay tuned to this blog for sample workout protocols and activity suggestions!
- Published in Fitness, Public Blog
Nutritinal Deficiencies in the US- B6
I am going to be highlighting one nutrient every week. I thought it would make since to start with the most common deficiencies first. Through the years of studying nutrition, I have discovered that when our diet lacks certain required nutrients, the deficiencies can manifest outwardly in our bodies. Whether we feel tired, mentally and/or physically or our hair and nails don’t grow correctly or it is even possible for body systems to shut down if they lack the proper nutrients.
According to the CDC, B6 is number the one most prevalent deficiency. So what does this vitamin do for us…let’s find out!
According to the National Institutes for Health, vitamin B6 is needed for metabolism, which is important for energy production, it also helps with enzyme reactions, and assists your body making immune cells that you need to fight infections. You can think of it like this: If your body was a city the roles of B6 are required for your power company (making energy from food), the managers of your power company (co-enzymes assist with the reactions that make energy) and your military (guarding us from invaders). Vitamin B6 also helps with oxygen transportation in your body by helping make hemoglobin.
So now you can see this vitamin is vital to our bodies and it is pretty unnerving that many of us are walking around with less B6 than we require. So what can we do about it?! Many people might rush want to go to the pharmacy and head to the vitamin isle. The problem is that most of these vitamins are made from synthetic sources.
Why would we allow our vitamins to come from a lab when mother nature has made them perfectly presented in the foods we eat?! Perfectly presented- what exactly does that mean? Mother nature has done some pretty great things for us to help us with nutrition. When we eat a food it is often designed that we don’t overeat it. Imagine eating a bunch of bananas, eventually you will stop eating because you will get too full and your appetite will go away. Vitamins don’t have those safe guards built in. It is easy to intake amounts of supplements your body is not designed to ingest when you take them in an isolated pill form. Isolated, that word is also important. Often times we know that certain nutrients are best absorbed when consumed with other nutrients. Often these pill forms don’t provide those nutrient combinations. Even worse, some supplements are not presented correctly, the chemical structure of the synthetic supplement doesn’t resemble the structure of the naturally occurring nutrient. Often our bodies don’t know what to do with these synthetic supplements and may not even absorb them.
How much B6 do we need, according to the Mayo clinic:
“The recommended daily intake of vitamin B6 is as follows: 1.3 milligrams in men and women ages 19-50; 1.7 milligrams in men aged 51 and older; and 1.3 milligrams in women aged 51 and older. The maximum daily intake of vitamin B6 in adults and pregnant or breastfeeding women over age 18 is 100 milligrams.”
What foods should I eat to help me get the B6 I need?
Sources that can be added to smoothies: banana, carrots, avocado, spinach, prunes, and prune juice.
Sources you can eat: potatoes (regular and sweet), plantain, bran, tuna, salmon, grass feed beef, turkey and garlic.
The prune juice or carrot juice can be used as the liquid portion in your smoothie. Also, when you drink a smoothie you are taking in a symphony of nutrients that your body needs to function properly.
Let’s get blending! Look for a high a B6 content smoothie recipe in the smoothie resources area soon!
- Published in Public Blog, Smoothie Making
Spice It Up- Pico de Gallo
Fresh is Best!
Eat COLORFUL!
Recipe below.
One of my favorite items to make is pico de gallo! It tastes so fresh and the flavors really pop when you add it to dishes. Eating fruits and vegetables raw is the best method because it provides the most nutrition possible. Cooking and preserving food often decreases the nutritional content due to heat and chemical reactions.
Spicy foods, especially peppers, have been known to increase the metabolism. The amount the metabolism is raised may be a small amount but it might help suppress appetite. People also think peppers may be linked to decreased inflammation and that is important because many Americans are suffering from some type of inflammation. Researchers are also looking into the blood thinning and blood pressure lowering effects of peppers.
Nutrition content: Jalapenos have antioxidants which help fight cancer, it also has vitamin C, vitamin A, B6 and many minerals. The fresh lime is a great for vitamin C and might help you ward off the next cold being passed around the office. Onion provides fiber, vitamin C, folate, B6, and manganese, among other nutrients. Tomatoes are also high in vitamin A, C, and K. Cilantro is high in vitamin K, plus anything green has chlorophyll. Yep, the stuff plants use to make energy, chlorophyll- is really beneficial for humans to consume. It is thought to be high in antioxidants and helps eliminate waste in the blood. So eat up!
Recipe:
3 to 4 tomatoes
1/2 white onion
2 jalapenos
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 lime
1 bunch of cilantro (coriander)
salt and pepper
Preparation:
Either chop very small or put in a food processor the tomato, onion, jalapenos, garlic, onion and cilantro.
I like to keep all the ingredients separate as I chop and add everything into my tomatoes, then taste as I add the other veggies. Add in some jalapeno, onion, garlic, cilantro, salt and pepper, squeeze the lime over it, and mix it up well. Grab that chip and taste. Add more of what’s lacking or make the mix not too spicy, pull a portion out for those who don’t enjoy the spice then add more jalapenos for the fire eaters. Jalapenos are great for your health so I take my pico very hot.
Pico tips:
Use the fresh pico on nachos, tacos, quesadillas, even breakfast burritos!
If you don’t like a lot of juice in your pico, cut the tomatoes first and let them set while you cut the other veggies. Pour off the juice before adding the other veggies. Do you really want your pico free of juice? Place tomatoes in a strainer, press very gently, add other veggies and salt and pepper, press again, transfer into a bowl and then squeeze lime.
If you have left over onion or jalapeno, saute and add into eggs or a quesadilla.
Produce picking tips:
Limes- look for a thin skin
Jalapenos- brown or tan lines on the skin will be more hot than jalapenos with smooth green skin
- Published in Eating for Health Resources, Public Blog
America’s Obsession with Protein
One of the most common questions I get has to do with protein. There has been a lot of conflicting information and people remain extremely confused about how much protein to intake. One common thing we can agree upon is that in the last century we increased our meat intake in exponential quantities. We know meat is meant to be a side dish, although in America it has changed into a main dish. We also know that producing meat is very hard on the environment. The resources it takes to feed livestock is astounding. Think about all the feed it takes to get a cow to grow to adulthood. The grains in the feed cost time, money, land, and takes vast amounts of water to produce those grains.
For all purposes, I want you to think of all cheese, egg, and dairy as animal protein. Put it all in the same category as chicken, fish, pork or beef. There is one thing we do know, cholesterol is only produced in animal products. We also know that our body makes all the cholesterol it needs and increased cholesterol in the body can lead to heart disease. However, we also know our body needs protein for many, many body functions. Some of the reasons you need protein for is to make and repair cells, enzymes, and hormones. If we are weight training, exercising and building muscles we often need extra protein to rebuild our muscles. Knowing both of these things, about cholesterol and the bodies need for protein we can see that we must find a balance somehow.
We know that we need certain amino acids in our diets. It is said there are certain amino acids we must ingest because our body does not make them, these are called essential amino acids. We can get these aminos from meat but we are also discovering certain plant proteins also contain these essential amino acids. It is believed that some plants- quinoa, buckwheat, hemp seed, chia, soy, seitan, and spirulina, among others provide the essential amino acids our body requires we get through food.
We know eating too much animal products can be dangerous because it increases the cholesterol in the body but there may be other reasons to curb excessive animal product consumption. There is growing research that shows that animal protein, especially the protein casein, has been linked to proliferation of cancer. I was shocked when I heard this too. If you are like me you are probably very skeptical in accepting this information. I will provide some links at the bottom so you can look at the studies yourself. I do not choose to blindly believe any study, I know studies are often flawed and data can often be twisted. From the years of studying this topic, however, I have seemed to noticed the tendency of the evidence supports plant based diets and highlight many health problems from over-consuming animal products.
According to the book “The China Study”, in America we consume about 15% of our calories from protein, we should aim for 10%, which is about 50-60 grams of protein a day. I am a strong advocate for moderation. If you take away one thing from this article, I think it would be to shift meat to a side dish. Also, opt to skip the animal products more often. However, I do not recommend drastic changes. If we slowly cut down the animal protein, we can add in some of the plant proteins I mentioned, and still meet our protein requirements. Not only will this help our cholesterol levels but it will also help the ease the strain on our natural resources as well.
Studies to review:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4166373/
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/diet-high-in-meat-proteins-raises-cancer-risk-for-middle-aged-people/
- Published in Eating for Health, Public Blog
How to Make 2017 the Year of Health
This time of the year is as good as any to do a internal audit and discover what areas you have to improve upon in 2017.
The first thing and most easy thing to check on is how was your water intake? As I mentioned, water is not only vital for skin health but also your body needs water to eliminate wastes. Just drinking enough water can greatly improve your health. Although, the experts do not seem to agree on how much, it is generally recommended to shoot for consuming three liters a day. Aim higher if you are active or weigh more.
Next, assess your food. How did you do on that? For me, I consider a successful day of food intake is when I prepared all the food I ate or ate “whole” foods. Foods like apples and salads are what I consider whole foods- foods that are not processed and free of chemicals. We know that adding artificial chemicals and preservatives can take away from the nutrition of that food. I find often when people easily catch colds they have not been eating and/or sleeping well. Your nutrition is vital to insure your body is functioning properly. If you went through the fast food line, bought preserved or processed foods often in 2016, replacing these meals with whole foods should be one of your biggest priorities of 2017. Every healthy and balanced meal you consume is an accomplishment!
Exercise. If you are like me, the consistency of your workouts might vary throughout the year. What lead to consistency in your workout regime? Sometimes, finding a workout you really enjoy might encourage consistency. I really enjoy wakeboarding, for you maybe swimming, tennis or walking theme parks. Whatever, it is be sure to do it 3x a week at a minimum, many experts have said even 20 minutes a day of exercise will help your overall health. One of the biggest threats to your health is a sedentary lifestyle- so get moving!
The last part may take some time to fully assess but it is worth it because it is very important to your overall health. How fulfilled do you feel? It is very common here in the United States not get contentment from our jobs. Also, the way we have spread out from our support systems may be affecting our overall fulfillment. We are living in different cities from family and long time friends, this may leave gaps in our fulfillment. Additionally, many seem to think due to the technological age, our relationships we do have are less meaningful. This might be because we are so distracted by technology, some say we don’t build as strong interpersonal relationships now. I’m not sure if you are experiencing a disruption to your fulfillment, but if you are, I have some tips. Make time to visit friends or family that are not in close proximity. Plan a trip with someone special. Experiencing new things together is one of the best ways to bond with someone. Lastly, put that phone away when spending quality time together. When you give someone 100% of your attention, you make them a priority and they notice that. It also improves the quality of your time together.
For fulfillment, you could also try becoming a part of something bigger than yourself. I’m involved with a community that speaks out for the environment, I rescue wildlife and help rehabilitate them, and I also help to feed the local homeless in Orlando. All these things provide a deep fulfillment, even pride in oneself and an overall feeling like you are making a difference in the world. Volunteer work has helped me grow so much as a person.
I hope you found these tips useful. I would love to help facilitate your goals and aspirations for the new year in any way possible! Here’s to a happy and healthy 2017!
- Published in Public Blog