Your Naturopathic Health

Have you ever looked at the amount of plastic waste you or your family produce in a day? Can you imagine where that ends up, how much of it will not decompose? What do you think you can do to change this?

Wednesdays are our crazy after school activity day where I have separate activities for the kids in different places. Clothes changes, snacks and homework are done sitting in car parks then once their activities are over, my daughter sleeps at my dads which means an extra change of clothes. I refer to my car the next day as being hit by the Wednesday wardrobe. It was on one of these Thursday mornings that I realised how much plastic we had been using. I thought I was pretty good – the kids use glass drink bottles for school and we use fabric shopping bags (no I don’t remember them every time!) or have our groceries delivered in a cardboard box but still I had load of plastic water bottles, a couple of take away coffee cups and the odd plastic lunch bag for the kids snacks. All that waste just for one day! What was I doing?? Since that time I made a more conscious effort to eliminate our households use of plastic.

So what changes can you make? A few simple tips –

Buy in bulk – less packaging

Avoid prepackaged fruit and vegetables in the supermarket

Wash up instead of using plastic plates, knives and forks

Keep cups for take away coffee or tea

Swap buying water bottle to glass or steel portable water bottles

No more plastic lunch wraps or glad wrap – swap for lunch containers or paper bags

Avoid pre packaged foods

No plastic bags – use fabric bags

Make your own snacks – less waste.

Swap plastic containers for glass jars and reuse.

Less plastic toys for kids (especially ones with batteries that are alos detrimental to our environment)

This is for the asian island travellers – do not release those beautiful plastic lights into the night sky. They have to come down eventually

It’s really time to get serious about it. Our environment is suffering, it has been for a while now. The more our population grows the more we have the responsibility to be conscious of the waste we are producing and what we can do to reduce it. We are lucky enough to live in a country where we are not extremely over crowded and most of our waste is conveniently taken away on a weekly basis. Out of sight shouldn’t mean out of mind. If you visit countries that are over populated and waste management isn’t controlled, you only need to go to a local water way or beach to see the overwhelming impact that plastic has.

Dont’ you want in the future to show your grand kids photos of our beautiful world, with our beautiful oceans and marine life and say this is an image of what it is…not what it was.

Image sourced: www.grist.org

Imaged sourced: www.plasticfreejuly.org 

Check out 

http://www.plasticfreejuly.org

Proud mummy moment last week –

My 6 year olds weekly public speaking topic – Should lollies be sold at school? 

Miss 6 said yes they should – I said ok write your speech and tell me why you think lollies should be sold at school. One minute last she came back and said “Mum, even though I like them, I can’t think of a single reason why lollies should be sold at school but I can think of lots of reasons why lollies shouldn’t…so I have to change my answer.

Thats my girl! 🙂
In case you missed it last night – here is the 60 Minutes Australia episode discussing the hidden sugar in our food. Its one thing to know that soft drink, lollies or chocolate contain sugar and should not be consumed regularly but it is also important to know the hidden sugars contained in sometimes perceived ‘healthy’ food.

http://www.9jumpin.com.au/show/60minutes/stories/2015/june/secret-sugar/

10 Simple tips for a successful detox 

February seems to be the new January of New Year’s resolutions – well since I’ve become a parent of school age children anyway. January wasn’t the time to focus on myself, it was all about the kids. Now that they are back to school and I have some time on my hands it was time to get back on track.

My energy levels had been really low, I was craving sugar and clothes were a little tighter after the Christmas holidays so I (am my husband) decided to try the 3 day food matters detox. I ’m not going to lie – even though my normal diet is fairly healthy – I still struggled on this detox. Its not that the program is too extreme, it was just that I struggled because I didn’t follow the advice I would give to someone else starting the detox. I was unprepared and I just dove straight in! 

So in case you are considering a detox here are my tips to learn from my mistakes –

 1 – Early to bed the night before

First few days of a detox generally leave you feeling lethargic. (I needed a nanna nap the first 2 days). Getting to bed early the night before will give you the best possible start for your detox.

2 – Reduce caffeine before you start

Trust me those around you will appreciate you for this. Caffeine withdrawal in itself can cause headaches, moods swings and fatigue. Going from being a big coffee drinker to zero in one day is often too much for you (and those in your path) to bear so try cutting down to one a day leading up to a detox.

 3 – Skip any vigorous training

I actually made the mistake of going to run club the first day of my detox even though I knew better – BIG mistake. I was extra hungry, tired and felt really unwell. Swap vigorous training for a walk, yoga or a swim. These activities will also keep your mind off the foods and drinks you are missing.

4 – Rest

You will be tired, unbelievably tired. My diet is generally pretty healthy but it was still tough for me to go without protein. First day was the toughest (mainly because I trained in the morning) and then it became easier and easier. Rest is just as important part of the process as eating healthy food and drinking lots of water.

5 – Variety

Variety in textures and flavours will keep you motivated and interested.

6 – Out with the bad and in with the good.

Stock your fridge with all the ingredients you need for the first 3 days. Like any dietary change having the right ingredients on hand makes life easier and stops you reaching for temptation.

7 – First day is the worst – it does get easier.

Its only one day – what’s one day in the scheme of things (or that’s what we kept telling our selves)! The second day was much easier than the first and the third easier than the second. Trust me.

 8 – Drink lots of water

This will help to curb your appetite and increase the elimination of toxins.

9 – If it gets too much don’t give up

Ideally follow the detox 100% but if you can’t try a healthy source of fats or protein (small piece of fish or an organic egg) and avoid the guilt. Detox is not just about the process but a reset in eating habits. 

10 – Pre-warn people around you (this tip is from my husband who is not a fan of going with out caffeine and suffers from “hangry-“ ness when deprived of food)

I might not have put it quite like that but it is good to tell family and friends of your plans before you start. This will give them a heads up for when you are grumpy/ tired, also makes you accountable to stick to your plan.

As difficult as it was, I definitely feel much better after it all. My husband now only has one coffee a day (he was having 3-4 double shots before our detox), he lost 3 kg and has completely turned his eating habits around. For me, my sugar cravings have gone and my energy levels are great. I am going to aim to do this detox every quarter. Whether you are doing a detox for the first time, once a month or a few times a year, these tips will hopefully help make the process a little easier. I know next time round I will be much more prepared!

Healthy meals when camping with kids

Camping has changed a lot since I was a kid. Boiling hot tents, soggy food from melted esky ice, early bed times due to unpowered sites are a thing of the past (bring back memories?).

On our very first camping trip as a family (with 2 very young kids in tow) I insisted (much to my husbands objections) on keeping every thing basic — all we needed was a tent, a single burner gas cooker, a couple of sleeping bags, air mattresses on an unpowered site and we were set-right? Well, upon arrival I saw that camping had now become glamping…. gone were the single burner gas cookers that you juggled your dinner pans on, fridges now replaced eskis as most sites have power and most campsites resembled a home away from home…and you know what — why not! Don’t get me wrong, I still do love roughing it but sometimes if a 2 week camping trip is your big annual holiday why not do it in style.

So having said all of that, the main reason for this article is how to keep meal times healthy while away. With all this glamping you don’t have an excuse not to. Even if you still like to rough it, there are some easy ways to prepare healthy meals for you and the family while you are away (all able to be made if you only have a single burner and just an esky).

All you need to do is plan ahead and bring a long a few staples.

Breakfast

Pre make your own muesli or banana bread (can store in a cool container for 5-7 days)

Scrambled eggs, Omelettes with mixed veg, Mexican eggs (recipe on my website), bacon and eggs all provide a good source of protein to start your active day

Snacks

You can pre prepare some bliss balls – great source of protein, healthy fats and antioxidants

Whole grain crackers with your choice of hummus, cheese, avocado (lovely topped with lemon or tamari), or nut butter

Boiled egg

Fresh fruit

Nut spread with apple

Nuts, seeds and fruit trail mix (can be made in advance)

Coconut water

Nori

Lunch

Simple salads with left over bbq meat or canned fish

Wraps-left over meat, chicken or tinned salmon or mackerel with salad of choice

Pizza – use a flat bread and add toping of choice, cover pan with foil and

Dinner ideas

BBQ (of course!) – The obvious choice but use marinades for variety. See table below

Meat/fish or chicken can be served with a salad of choice (options are endless)

Sweet potatoes (wrapped in foil and baked on BBQ).

Stuffed mushrooms – my favourite is goats cheese, pine nuts and basil (wrap in foil and cook on BBQ for 10 mins)

Stir fries – meat and vegetables of choice and flavour with garlic, ginger, soy, chicken stock, lime

San choi bow (recipe on web site)

Prawn ‘pasta’ using zucchini noodles.

Those ideas should cover you for a while. Many of the recipes are listed on my website

http://www.yournaturopathichealth.com.au/category/recipes/