Tag Archive for: pH health

What is an Alkaline Diet? Know your pH Health

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An alkaline diet is a diet that is naturally high in fruits and vegetables to help ensure a healthy alkaline pH in your blood. Why do you need to be alkaline for good health? Because dis-ease, viruses and bad bacteria all grow in an oxygen-poor and acid-rich environment. If you get frequent colds, coughs or flu, have poor digestion (irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, constipation, acid reflux) or suffer from aches and pains in the joints, you are more than likely too acidic. Other signs of acidosis include body odor, bad breath and frequent skin eruptions (acne, eczema, dermatitis). By maintaining an alkaline pH, you’re naturally changing your internal terrain to a healthy environment where disease cannot thrive. Alkaline foods help to keep your immune system strong, your digestion working properly, and your joints in good health.

All information in this article is for educational purposes only.
It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.

Juice Detox

What is pH health?

The most important thing to understand with pH health is how your body digests food. Alkaline foods are foods that require almost no extra acid from the stomach for digestion. Even though a lemon is acidic on the table, for example, it’s 100% alkaline-forming to the body and is therefore an alkaline food. On the other hand, meat takes a whole lot of stomach acid to digest and so it’s an acid-forming food.

Ideally, the pH of your blood should be slightly alkaline, in the range of 7.385, in order for your hormonal system and immune system to work its best. To achieve that, you should strive for a diet of 80% alkaline-forming foods + 20% acid-forming foods. (In reality, most people are doing the exact opposite, eating 20% alkaline-forming foods + 80% acid-forming foods. Is it any wonder why the rates of disease are so high?) The best anti-cancer diet is an 80% alkaline diet.

If you don’t eat the right combination of alkaline vs. acid foods, your body will try to force itself into an alkaline pH. The way it knows how to do that is to leech calcium directly from your bones. Calcium is the best natural buffer there is! Long-term, if you eat an acid-forming diet for many years, you’re setting yourself up for loss of bone density, more likelihood of hip, knee and joint problems and even osteoarthritis in addition to higher risk for disease.

What are alkaline foods?

80% of your daily diet should consist of: fresh vegetables, chlorophyll, fresh fruits, raw apple cider vinegar, cold-pressed oils and legumes.

What are acidic foods?

20% of your daily diet can consist of: nuts, seeds and grains. Also on the acidic side are coffee, alcohol, bread (wheat), refined sugar, dairy, meat, fried foods, processed foods, jams, jelly, cookies and chocolate. Artificial sweeteners are the most acid-forming food there is (and yes, that includes sugar-free chewing gum!). Note: I’m not saying that all of these foods are good because they’re not. You need to pick and choose what will be in your 20% from this list every day. Personally, I choose organic nuts, seeds and grains.

How to get more alkaline: Think alkaline thoughts!

The most important factor in determining your pH health comes from your diet and also your mental and emotional health. Did you ever hear someone say that they are “sick with anger”? Yep, that’s an acid-forming emotion, along with fear, jealousy, greed and hate. Conversely, love, joy, acceptance, laughter and forgiveness are all alkaline-forming energies. Keeping your focus on positive thoughts and emotions helps to maintain an alkaline pH, and hopefully that’s a practice you can keep for life.

Does drinking alkaline water help?

Alkaline water filters are extremely expensive and they are also quite wasteful with water. If you’ve ever seen one running, you will have noticed that 1/2 the water goes back down the drain and only 1/2 of the “alkaline water” stays. As an environmental engineer, I can’t help but see that as a completely wasteful system of a very valuable and important resource: clean water.

I don’t think you can fix a bad diet by drinking alkaline water. But, if you’re already suffering from acid reflux, digestive issues or skin problems, you can try a combination of eating more alkaline-forming foods AND drinking alkaline water in an effort to get faster results. In that case, you may want to try something cheaper than an alkaline water filter. I recommend adding 1 Tbsp. of freshly squeezed lemon juice or 1 Tbsp. of raw apple cider vinegar to 3 glasses of water daily. Of course, you need to drink it too! Not only is this a great naturally alkalizing drink, but it helps to gently detox your liver, kidneys and skin too.

>>>>>>> What is you favorite ALKALINE FOOD or ALKALINE lifestyle tip? <<<<<<<<

More on Detox and pH Health:

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What is an Alkaline Diet? Know your pH Health

by

An alkaline diet is a diet that is naturally high in fruits and vegetables to help ensure a healthy alkaline pH in your blood. Why do you need to be alkaline for good health? Because dis-ease, viruses and bad bacteria all grow in an oxygen-poor and acid-rich environment. If you get frequent colds, coughs or flu, have poor digestion (irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, constipation, acid reflux) or suffer from aches and pains in the joints, you are more than likely too acidic. Other signs of acidosis include body odor, bad breath and frequent skin eruptions (acne, eczema, dermatitis). By maintaining an alkaline pH, you’re naturally changing your internal terrain to a healthy environment where disease cannot thrive. Alkaline foods help to keep your immune system strong, your digestion working properly, and your joints in good health.

All information in this article is for educational purposes only.
It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.

Juice Detox

What is pH health?

The most important thing to understand with pH health is how your body digests food. Alkaline foods are foods that require almost no extra acid from the stomach for digestion. Even though a lemon is acidic on the table, for example, it’s 100% alkaline-forming to the body and is therefore an alkaline food. On the other hand, meat takes a whole lot of stomach acid to digest and so it’s an acid-forming food.

Ideally, the pH of your blood should be slightly alkaline, in the range of 7.385, in order for your hormonal system and immune system to work its best. To achieve that, you should strive for a diet of 80% alkaline-forming foods + 20% acid-forming foods. (In reality, most people are doing the exact opposite, eating 20% alkaline-forming foods + 80% acid-forming foods. Is it any wonder why the rates of disease are so high?) The best anti-cancer diet is an 80% alkaline diet.

If you don’t eat the right combination of alkaline vs. acid foods, your body will try to force itself into an alkaline pH. The way it knows how to do that is to leech calcium directly from your bones. Calcium is the best natural buffer there is! Long-term, if you eat an acid-forming diet for many years, you’re setting yourself up for loss of bone density, more likelihood of hip, knee and joint problems and even osteoarthritis in addition to higher risk for disease.

What are alkaline foods?

80% of your daily diet should consist of: fresh vegetables, chlorophyll, fresh fruits, raw apple cider vinegar, cold-pressed oils and legumes.

What are acidic foods?

20% of your daily diet can consist of: nuts, seeds and grains. Also on the acidic side are coffee, alcohol, bread (wheat), refined sugar, dairy, meat, fried foods, processed foods, jams, jelly, cookies and chocolate. Artificial sweeteners are the most acid-forming food there is (and yes, that includes sugar-free chewing gum!). Note: I’m not saying that all of these foods are good because they’re not. You need to pick and choose what will be in your 20% from this list every day. Personally, I choose organic nuts, seeds and grains.

How to get more alkaline: Think alkaline thoughts!

The most important factor in determining your pH health comes from your diet and also your mental and emotional health. Did you ever hear someone say that they are “sick with anger”? Yep, that’s an acid-forming emotion, along with fear, jealousy, greed and hate. Conversely, love, joy, acceptance, laughter and forgiveness are all alkaline-forming energies. Keeping your focus on positive thoughts and emotions helps to maintain an alkaline pH, and hopefully that’s a practice you can keep for life.

Does drinking alkaline water help?

Alkaline water filters are extremely expensive and they are also quite wasteful with water. If you’ve ever seen one running, you will have noticed that 1/2 the water goes back down the drain and only 1/2 of the “alkaline water” stays. As an environmental engineer, I can’t help but see that as a completely wasteful system of a very valuable and important resource: clean water.

I don’t think you can fix a bad diet by drinking alkaline water. But, if you’re already suffering from acid reflux, digestive issues or skin problems, you can try a combination of eating more alkaline-forming foods AND drinking alkaline water in an effort to get faster results. In that case, you may want to try something cheaper than an alkaline water filter. I recommend adding 1 Tbsp. of freshly squeezed lemon juice or 1 Tbsp. of raw apple cider vinegar to 3 glasses of water daily. Of course, you need to drink it too! Not only is this a great naturally alkalizing drink, but it helps to gently detox your liver, kidneys and skin too.

>>>>>>> What is you favorite ALKALINE FOOD or ALKALINE lifestyle tip? <<<<<<<<

More on Detox and pH Health:

More on Juicing and Smoothies:

How to Quit Smoking Naturally

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When you decide to quit smoking, you need to support your body nutritionally through the transition, withdrawal and detox process. If you do everything correctly, you’ll have a much better chance of long-term success. Years of smoking cigarettes make the body more toxic and acidic and the first step in detoxification is to eat an alkaline diet.

All information in this article is for educational purposes only.
It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.


Repair Free Radical Damage

A daily Green Smoothie is the perfect alkaline food to bring your body back to a healthy pH. The fiber in the smoothie helps to sweep out toxins through the bowel, naturally. Greens are high in chlorophyll and the chlorophyll helps to repair free radical damage caused by the toxins in the cigarettes. Greens also help to stabilize blood sugar levels and that will be much needed as the body rebalances its adrenals.

Green Smoothie: A Daily Detox & High Nutrient Boost

Green Smoothie: A Daily Detox & High Nutrient Boost

Support the body through Nicotine Withdrawal

One of the main minerals that become deficient through smoking cigarettes is magnesium. Magnesium is used to relax the muscles but it is also used in the body’s natural heavy metal detox process, and when you take in heavy metal toxins from habitual use of cigarettes, you can imagine that any excess magnesium reserve gets burned out very quickly (no pun intended!). As a non-smoker, you will need to rebuild your magnesium levels, and especially if you want to feel relaxed naturally (Magnesium is called ‘The Relaxing Mineral’). Guess what one of the foods highest in magnesium is? Greens! Any dark, leafy green that you add to a Green Smoothie will be naturally high in magnesium. Especially for anyone who is trying to quit smoking, I recommend an additional supplement of 1 Tbsp. kelp powder or 1 Tbsp. Magnesium Citrate powder in your daily Green Smoothie for an added magnesium boost. Kelp is the highest food in magnesium, weighing in at 760 milligrams of Magnesium per 3 ½ ounces or 100 g serving.

Clean up Free-Radical Damage

Smoking creates a lot of free radical damage, or internal rust, from the toxins directly ingested with every puff. The added magnesium increases antioxidants which are then used to break down the free-radical buildup, all part of the detoxification process. Vitamin C is another natural antioxidant. If you add fresh pineapple, mango, orange or lemon to your daily Green Smoothie, you’re getting plenty of Vitamin C. Dark, leafy green vegetables are also a high source of Vitamin C. Add a handful of fresh parsley or watercress to your Green Smoothie to get your natural boost of daily Vitamin C.

Balance Mood Swings with Tryptophan and Tyrosine

In additional to adding more magnesium to your diet, I also recommend taking 500 mg of L-Tryptophan at night before bed and 500 mg of L-Tyrosine in the morning before breakfast for anyone who just quit smoking and is going through the transition off of nicotine. Tryptophan and Tyrosine are both amino acids that help with mood elevation and balancing. Tryptophan stimulates the brain to make its own serotonin, and that in turn helps you relax and improves sleep. Tyrosine triggers the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and dopamine, the ‘alertness chemicals,’ and those help to stimulate focused brain thought and improved concentration. All of this will help with any feelings of depression that may arise during the transition and withdrawal process. If you’ve been smoking for a long time, I recommend taking both of these supplements for 6 months at a minimum.

Think Detox & Alkaline Diet!

The combination of supplements – Tryptophan and Tyrosine – plus a daily Green Smoothie naturally high in magnesium, chlorophyll, minerals, fiber and alkalinity will give you the best recipe and natural cure for how to stop smoking, once and for all. When you give the body the minerals it needs and support the brain with amino acids, you minimize feelings and symptoms of withdrawal. When you support the body through natural detoxification, you feel better faster. Green Smoothies are the key to your success!

Drink Green Smoothies

Green Smoothie for DummiesCheck out my NEW book Green Smoothies for Dummies – I’ve got loads of recipes using dark leafy greens so you get easily get you daily dose of Magnesium, naturally.

Did you know that lack of Magnesium can lead to massive sugar cravings, mood swings, muscle cramps, irritability, trouble sleeping, constipation and fatigue? Your body really works as a whole. A deficiency in one area can lead to other problems somewhere else.

When you take care of your whole body, you get whole body health. When you let your food be your medicine, you are always moving towards better health.

Find the book Green Smoothies for Dummies on iTunes or amazon.com!

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The last time I got sick was…

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Wait, really?! Is it actually possible to still get sick when you are eating high organic raw food and doing regular detox? If you thought that was Mission Impossible, then I welcome you to the land of being human! 🙂

All information in this article is for educational purposes only.
It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.

Truth be told, I almost never get sick. In fact, I am seriously amazed to hear how often our “normal” meat, processed and/or fast-food eating friends or family members get side-lined with fevers, colds, coughs, and flus. (Those are the same people who make fun of my “extreme” diet and (wheat)grass-eating habits by the way.)

Without a doubt, eating an alkaline plant-based diet is a natural way to boost your immune system and the best way to prevent illness. But, it doesn’t mean that you will never, ever, ever get sick again.

The last time I got sick was…

A few months ago. We had just had several days of winter rain in Tel Aviv, and my boyfriend caught a cold from a co-worker at the office. He managed to keep it at the status of a cold for a few days, but then it turned to a high-mucous flu-like illness with fever. I felt so bad for him! I gave him Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE) and made fresh orange juice with organic turmeric and green smoothies with lots of fresh fruits to high-boost his Vitamin C. We slept in separate bedrooms so he could rest and I would lower my chance of getting sick. By the 6th day, he was back to normal and I remember saying, “Wow, I am amazed that I didn’t catch it!” That night, we slept together again and he kissed me goodnight for the first time in 6 days.

The next day, I woke up sick!! It happened that fast. I felt stuffy, exhausted and slightly feverish and I thought….man, I can’t even remember the last time I had the flu! In my case, it lasted only 3 days. I basically just surrendered myself and rested. I took GSE and drank lots of fresh ginger tea. I envisioned my immune system getting stronger by the day. 3 days later, I was up and running again.

Are you a failure if you get sick?

Is doing all this detox, immune boosting and healthy eating a waste of time if you’re just going to get sick like everybody else? First, I would say…don’t throw all sickness into one basket. There’s a big difference between someone who gets sick every 3-5 YEARS (or more) and someone who get sick 3-5 times PER YEAR.

And most definitely, there is no such thing as a failure in my book. In fact, every illness can be a gift…a chance to slow down, rest and let your immune system get stronger. It’s also an opportunity to truly appreciate your health. You also may actually need an occasional cold, cough or flu to upgrade your gut health and immune-boosting capabilities.

Your body is a community!

What did I do wrong?

I guess I could say that kissing my boyfriend while he was still sick was a mistake…but in reality, I think the real cause of me getting sick was simply being run-down after months of a lot of deadlines and excess work. Stress alone can make your entire body acidic, even when eating an alkaline diet! I’m definitely a believer in the power of positive thinking and how important that is for your physical health! In that time, I also stopped making fermented foods such as kombucha and raw sauerkraut, which I feel are even more important for boosting your immune system than anything else!

Within 1 week of feeling better, I was back to making batches of kombucha and raw sauerkraut at home. I also drank more lemon and/or raw apple cider vinegar in water, at least twice daily. I started taking 1.5 days off a week and made more effort to stay offline for that time, giving my body and mind time to rest. De-stressing is very important for me (and for you too!).

Combining that with my normal routine of green smoothies, green juice, fresh wheatgrass shots for chlorophyll and minerals and lots of variety in my organic fruits and veggies and I now feel like a superstar again 🙂 Seriously though, I have high energy: I feel balanced; and I like who I see in the mirror every day!

When I look to my body for healing, I understand that I need to strengthen and heal my body as a whole.

How to Boost Your Immune System

Here are some foods/supplements that can help your immune system stay strong:

1. Manuka Honey (great to have on-hand in winter months, note this is not vegan)

2. Echinacea and Goldenseal (a powerful combo for breaking up stagnant lymph, i.e. mucous)

3. Grapefruit Seed Extract (my go-to remedy with the first sign of cold, cough or flu)

4. Pomegranate (can add to a green smoothie in powder form)

5. Raw apple cider vinegar (a healing food since the time of Hippocrates)

Looking to buy an immune-boosting bundle? You can find all of the above items on iherb.com, and yes they ship internationally!

Whole Body Healing

 

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Raw Detox Salad Recipe

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Eating raw organic food can be so much fun! Check out this gorgeous salad that took only a few minutes to prepare…and it’s full of detox foods to make it a mini-cleansing meal!

Use the healing power of raw foods to create a fantastic detox salad

For the salad add: Chopped rocket leaves, grated carrot, chopped cucumber, fresh mint, parsley, sunflower seeds and top with homemade raw sauerkraut. If you can’t find rocket leaves, then just use fresh chopped spinach or romaine lettuce.

Make the dressing with: Chopped garlic, crushed papaya seeds, extra virgin olive oil, raw organic honey (optional), fresh lemon, a dash of cayenne pepper and Himalayan salt to taste. The papaya seeds should be fresh, from a ripe papaya. I usually set aside some papaya seeds after eating the papaya. Store the seeds in a small jar in the fridge for up to one week. Use a few seeds each time you make this recipe.

What makes this a DETOX salad?

  • Fresh parsley: Kidney cleanse
  • Cayenne, olive oil & lemon: Liver cleanse
  • Garlic & papaya seeds: Anti-parasitic foods (kills germs)
  • Sauerkraut: Natural probiotic (good bacteria)
  • Rocket & cucumber: Skin cleanse
  • Sunflower seeds: Good for glandular system
  • Raw honey: Immune booster
  • Fiber: Colon cleanse

Let Your Food be Your Medicine…..Wow, it’s really true!

Click here to learn how to make fermented cabbage and raw sauerkraut. In a temperate climate, it takes as little as 4 days!

What is DETOX?

The highly refined foods that you eat every day, including sugar and white flour, make you susceptible to intestinal problems, and possible diseases. The average diet today is heavily loaded with chemical additives, flavorings, coloring agents, toxic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and other toxic chemicals which overburden our bodies. Add to that work and family-related stress, indigestion, illnesses, constipation and sedentary lifestyles, and you have a recipe for an unhealthy colon and an overweight and tired body. Many health conditions are caused by the combination of processed foods, low fiber diets and poor evacuation of waste.

Periods of abstinence from solid food – a ritual performed since ancient times – can allow the body to “cleanse and purify” or “detox”, that is, to remove toxins, excess fat and even parasites caused by years of ingesting processed food, excess food, refined sugar and wheat and even fast food that eventually impairs the normal functioning and our body’s elimination.

During fasting, large amounts of these accumulated metabolic wastes and poisons are eliminated through the cleansing ability of all the organs of elimination – the colon, liver, kidneys, lungs and skin.

Eating more detox foods in your regular diet is a way to have a “mini-cleanse” on a regular basis and that helps the elimination organs keep us with their daily housework. Eat a detox salad for lunch instead of pizza or Chinese food and you will have better digestion, less headaches or insomnia, improve your skin and increase energy levels, simply by choosing better fuel for your body. A raw food diet is a detox on its own. You can continue for 1, 3 or 7 days on a 100% low fat raw food diet as a way to really give the body a good natural cleanse from the inside-out.

For more on how to start a raw food diet, how to do a detox at home or what minerals you may specifically be deficient in, book a private health consult with me via Skype.

How to Book Your Health Coaching Session:

1. Take photos of your eyes with a digital camera.
2. Email the photos to me for approval.
3. We schedule a time to meet!

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