Iron & Omega 3 Myths

Most people are convinced that consuming fish is essential for healthy Omega 3 levels. WRONG! The gist of it is that our bodies have the ability to convert alpha linolenic Omega 3 fatty acid found in plants (especially green leafy veggies), into the longer chain EPA and DHA fatty acids, based on our needs. Watch the video below and you'll find out more about that, as well as my take on heme and non heme iron. Enjoy!

Is Bread Bad For You?

It's quite unbelievable how big of a part bread and processed wheat products play in our culture. People are more and more addicted to these high processed "food products". In the video below I mention a number of valid points on why we should take a closer look and make major changes in our diet to improve our own health, the quality of life and health of our planet and feel really good and empowered about it.
However, I did leave out an important point that I would like to talk about here. Other additives and ingredients in bread! These are the ingredients in one of the commercial brands of bread, especially marketed towards kids and younger people:

Whole wheat flour, water, wheat gluten, high fructose corn syrup, contains 2% of less of: soybean oil, salt, molasses, yeast, mono and diglycerides, exthoxylated mono and diglycerides, dough conditioners (sodium stearoyl lactylate, calcium iodate, calcium dioxide), datem, calcium sulfate, vinegar, yeast nutrient (ammonium sulfate), extracts of malted barley and corn, dicalcium phosphate, diammonium phosphate, calcium propionate (to retain freshness

Now if you're still wondering, "what's so bad about that?", I'll break it down for you...

High fructose corn syrup- is possibly one of the worst things that you could put into your body. The amount of processing that goes into production of high fructose corn syrup is a joke to even refer to it as a corn product. It plays one of the major roles in our obesity epidemic.

Mono and Diglycerides, Exthoxylated Mono and Diglycerides, Datem - are all animal fat byproducts. Animal fat is the worst kind of fat for us to consume. Besides the moral and ethical implications, from a nutrition standpoint, all the toxicity that an animal accumulates in it's lifespan, is stored in the fat cells.

Dough Conditioners (sodium stearoyl lactylate) - Milk product. Why are milk products bad? That's a whole different subject and a whole different post all together. Briefly, its morally and ethically wrong to consume milk products and support the milk industry. Milk also contains all the hormones, antibiotics, herbicides, pesticides and other chemicals the cows are fed daily; alongside all the blood and pus from the infected and swollen udders of factory farm cows. Mmmm sounds delicious. I'm surprised they haven't made milk glow in the dark yet, to target even more kids.

These are just a few things I wanted to mention. There is much much more to be said, so watch the video below, and go ahead!



Sprouting is too easy. Check out this video to see how I do it :)

Beet Stack Salad

It's crazy to think that a vegetable that was once grown solely for it's leafy goodness is now one of the most commonly used plants for production of sugar. Since this post is not about sugar, let's just forget about it. Who needs processed sugar anyway right? So let's celebrate the beet!

Beet leaves are just loaded with vitamins K, A, C and minerals like magnesium, potassium and manganese just to name a few. The beet root however, packs a great amount of folate and most of it's calories come from sugar. That being said, I generally avoid juicing beets, since that exposes the sugars a lot more and makes them too absorbable (not a good thing). The recipe below is perfect for a weekend meal when you feel like doing something nice for yourself or a loved one and have time to be creative with the presentation. It's fun to play with your food, so go on and impress your friends, family and of course yourself. Enjoy!

Creamy Spinach Salad

Spinach is one of my favorite greens. Besides it's abundance of vitamin K and folate, it contains Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids and it's 30% protein! According to the Nutrition Data website, spinach in it's raw state is also a great source of Niacin and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese. WoW! The only aspect of spinach that's not-so-great is it's oxalate contents. What that means, is that the iron found in spinach (non-heme iron) is much more difficult for your body to absorb. However, since levels of iron in spinach are higher than levels of oxalate, absorption can be improved by consuming foods that are rich in vitamin C! That being said, you can always add lemon to your salad dressings when eating spinach, much like I did in the video below, and you'll be fine :) Enjoy!