5 Foods That Help Fight Chronic Inflammation

The function of inflammation is to rid our bodies of pathogens and to repair damaged tissue. There are 2 types of inflammation that can occur within our body: acute inflammation and chronic inflammation.

Acute inflammation is our body’s natural response to a pathogen or to a physical injury.  Characteristics of an acute inflammatory response include pain, swelling, redness, heat and perhaps loss of function.  This type of inflammatory response is quick and generally short lived.

Chronic inflammation on the other hand is a long term response that can last for months or even years.  The possible causes of chronic inflammation include:

  • poor diet
  • ongoing stress
  • lack of sleep
  • disease

So why is it so important to address this type of inflammation?  The reason is this: if our body is on high alert all of the time, this ‘always on guard’ state of being may contribute to diseases such as:

  • heart disease
  • cancer
  • diabetes
  • stroke
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • kidney disease
  • chronic lower respiratory disease

One of the best, if not the best, ways to address and begin to dampen the flames of inflammation is through diet.  The big picture is to eat a diet of whole foods and to eliminate processed foods.  But I want to drill down for you and offer up 5 of my top foods to fight chronic inflammation.

Turmeric

Anti-Inflammatory foods

This once obscure plant, which is a member of the ginger family, is now mainstream.  Curcumin is the principal curcuminoid of turmeric and has powerful anti-inflammatory properties.  Use it in your dishes, smoothies, as a tea or my favourite, Golden Milk.

Bok Choy

Anti-Inflammatory foods

Bok Choy, or Chinese cabbage, is chalk full of antioxidants as well as vitamins and minerals.  It’s a mild vegetable that is easily incorporated in to many dishes or as a tasty side dish.

Blueberries

Anti-Inflammatory foods

Blueberries contain powerful flavonoids including quercetin and anthocyanins that are powerful antioxidants and anti-inflammatories.

Kefir

cancer and gut health

Dysbiosis is an unhealthy balance of our microbiota that can lead to inflammation. Kefir is a fermented drink loaded with friendly bacteria that supports gut health leading to a more balanced microbiota and reduced inflammation.

Wild Caught Salmon

Anti-Inflammatory foods

Several studies have shown Omega 3 fatty acids to have a variety of anti-inflammatory effects that may help to lower risk of chronic disease. Wild Caught Salmon is rich in Omega 3’s and a powerful anti-inflammatory food.

What you eat does matter and arming your kitchen with these functional foods is a powerful weapon in the fight against chronic inflammation and disease prevention.

healthy hair

Key Nutrients to Incorporate in to Your Diet to Promote Healthy Hair Growth

A good diet is key for promoting healthy hair growth.

The structure of your hair has two distinct parts:

  1. The follicle which resides in the skin
  2. The shaft, which is what is visible above the scalp.

On average we have 150,000 hair follicles. Hair grows at a rate of about a ½ inch per month. Whether or not this rate can be increased is debatable but there are definite strategies that will initiate the growth of strong healthy hair.

Proper nutrition is a key aspect of healthy hair growth. This requires you to eat a well-balanced whole foods diet supplying your body with nutrients that are essential for optimal functioning.

The following are key nutrients to incorporate in to your daily diet to encourage healthy hair regrowth:

Protein

Protein is a key building block for keratin, the main structural protein in hair. On average the recommended daily protein intake is 56 grams per day for the average sedentary man and 46 grams per day for the average sedentary woman. To put this in to perspective:

  • 1 large egg is about 6 grams of protein
  • 1/4 cup of almonds is about 8 grams of protein
  • 3.5 oz. of chicken breast is about 30 grams protein

Non-meat foods high in protein include lentils, spinach, kale, quinoa, beans, hemp, nuts and sea vegetables

B-Complex Vitamins

The B-Complex vitamins are water-soluble. They help the body to convert carbohydrates into glucose leading to the energy production that is essential for all body processes. They help the body to metabolize fats and proteins that are essential for healthy hair. Thus they are essential for ensuring the metabolic requirements of the hair follicle.

Within this complex there are 3 B-vitamins that are especially important for hair growth:

  • Niacin (B3)
  • Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B5)
  • Biotin (B7)

Niacin dilates blood capillaries. This creates better circulation of blood resulting in improved circulation of nutrients to your scalp and hair follicles. Foods high in niacin include liver, mushrooms, salmon, chicken, barley, almonds, lentils

Pantothenic acid (B5) increases blood flow to the scalp. Food sources include mushrooms, avocado, eggs, chicken, sunflower seeds, sweet potato, lentils, broccoli, salmon and Greek yogurt

Biotin (B7) promotes overall scalp health as well as encouraging hair growth. Foods high in biotin include chicken, mushrooms, eggs, liver, salmon, strawberries, raspberries, Swiss chard, almonds, walnuts, kidney beans and brown rice

Collagen

Collagen is the main structural protein found in our connective tissues. A sheath of it surrounds each bulb of hair on your head connecting to micro-vessels that deliver necessary nutrients for healthy hair. When collagen is cooked it becomes gelatin.  Gelatin is primarily composed of the amino acids glycine and proline and is important for hair growth. A good source of gelatin comes from home made bone broth.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A helps to keep collagen levels high. Foods rich in carotenoids, which are converted by the body to Vitamin A include carrots, cantaloupe, sea vegetables and sweet potatoes

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is necessary for collagen production and it also helps with iron absorption, promoting hair growth. The body cannot manufacture Vitamin C. It must be obtained from foods such as peppers, dark leafy green vegetables, kiwi, broccoli, strawberries, citrus fruits and papaya

Vitamin E

Vitamin E helps to maintain the integrity of the cell membranes of hair follicles and it is an antioxidant. Vitamin E is found in foods such as almonds, sunflower seeds, spinach and red pepper

Essential fatty acids

Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) encourage blood circulation and cell growth; both important for your hair follicles. Your body can’t make these healthy fats so you have to get them from food or supplements. Foods containing EFAs include salmon, sardines, mackerel, seaweed, dark leafy green vegetables, hemp, flax and chia seeds

Silica

Silica is a trace mineral found predominantly in our connective tissues. It supports collagen production and is found in foods such as bananas, raisin, brown rice, green beans, carrots and oats

Iron

Iron carries oxygen and nutrients to our hair roots. Iron-rich foods include egg yolks, lentils, spinach and chicken

Zinc

Zinc is important to the cells that build hair. Zinc increases the bioavailability of Biotin and is found in food such as oysters, spinach, pumpkin seeds, lentils, dark chocolate and chickpeas

Water

6-8 glasses a day of good quality water is important. Proper hydration promotes cell growth and reproduction.

Your healthy hair begins in the kitchen. Feed it well!

 

 

5 Tips To Help You Get A Good Night’s Sleep

Consistently getting a good night’s sleep is essential for your good health on so many levels.  For instance sleep is essential for:

  • Healing and repairing your heart, blood vessels, cells and tissues
  • Detoxification
  • Weight management
  • Blood sugar management
  • Immune strengthing
  • Brain health and memory function

But what exactly is a good night’s sleep?  Well, it’s a combination of adequate duration coupled with experiencing the 4 phases of quality sleep.  According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, sleep is experienced in 4 phases ending with Rapid Eye Movement (REM) and the stages repeat in order every 90-110 minutes as follows:

Stages 1 and 2 are a progression from light sleep through to a gradual slowing of brain waves. In Stage 3 we enter a deeper sleep. If we are awakened during this phase we may feel quite disoriented. Stage 4 is the REM phase. In this final stage our breathing quickens and our eyes move beneath our eyelids. This is our deepest stage of sleep where we can get our most powerful dreams.

So knowing the importance and the characteristics of a good night’s sleep, the question becomes how do we go about achieving it?  As they say there are many ways to skin a cat but here are my top 5 recommendations:

  1. Create a bedtime routine.  This will send a signal to your body that rest is coming and then those lovely sleepy time hormones will kick in.  For example, turn the lights down, brush your teeth and get in to your jammies at the same time each night.
  2. Turn all electronics off 1/2 hour before bedtime and keep them out of the bedroom.  This will allow your brain to settle down for the night.
  3. Sleep in a cool, dark room.
  4. Do not eat right before bedtime.  You want your body to be in repair mode not digestion mode.
  5. Once you are in bed do some deep breathing to slow everything down.  I always recommend Dr. Weil’s 4-7-8 technique.  Breathe in for 4.  Hold for 7.  Breathe out for 8. Repeat this a few times.

Start working these tips in to your nightly routine and let your good sleep get to work!

 

 

 

The Holidays Are Over. It’s Detox Season!

January truly starts the season of the detox. Health food stores stock their shelves with programs in a bottle and nutrition advocates like myself offer up food-based initiatives.

This week a group of go-getters jumped on board for my Detox Challenge. We have a Facebook page dedicated for all participants to share their creations and to ask their questions. And I must say that I am amazed, proud and impressed with both their dedication to the program and their creativity with the recipes.

But as these programs take centre stage in health and wellness circles, those not in favour of them raise the question as to why detoxing is necessary. In broad sweeps their argument is that the body has all the necessary pathways needed to detox all by itself. These pathways include our skin, liver, kidneys, lungs, lymphatic system and intestines.

In a perfect world these systems would very likely function adequately to remove the waste that accumulates in our body from both the external environment and from our own metabolic processes. But our world is not perfect. Our environment is rife with pollutants and toxins continuously bombarding our system and poor diet, alcohol and medications that are often more the norm than an anomaly. These usual suspects can accumulate and overburden our system and it is for this reason that I believe it is important to aid our waste elimination pathways with a proper detoxification program.

For me the basis of a good detoxification program is a well structured whole foods diet that is devoid of processed foods.  Its focus is not to take over the role of detoxification. Rather it is to provide the necessary nutrients for its proper functioning and to eliminate dietary surpluses that are not. And proper detox programs should not have weight loss as an objective although it could very well be a side effect.

There are health benefits to be had in a proper detox program including reduced inflammation, increased energy and improved skin.  But do your research and find one that works best for you.

 

My FREE 21 Day Detox Challenge Starts Tomorrow!

You still have a few hours left to join my free detox challenge!

My 21 Day Free Detox Challenge begins

tomorrow January 16, 2017.  

Sign up today by clicking on the picture below!

21 Day Detox
https://cathybiase.leadpages.co/21-day-detox-challenge/

Don’t worry about the excesses of the holidays because starting on January 16, 2017  we are getting back on track!

This challenge is for you if:

√ The holidays meant good fun, good cheer and WAY to much good food  

√ The holidays meant good fun, good cheer and WAY to many good drinks 

√ I really just want to jump on the healthy highway with a bunch of others driving with me

√ None of the above.  I have my own darn reasons and want some great tasting and easy to prepare recipes

Do any of these reasons apply to you?

Let me tell you a bit more about my program.

This is a Whole Foods, 3 week challenge complete with all of the recipes that you need, your shopping lists and an invitation to my private Facebook page entitled Detoxing & Discussing where members of the Detox Challenge can share successes and challenges in a positive and supportive environment.

The recipes are tried and true and offer options and notes to help you to make each meal your own.

The menu plans incorporate leftover meals so you aren’t cooking 24/7 and allow days for you to put your growing knowledge of healthy meal planning and cooking to work.

When you sign up your first week will be sent directly to you to download.  We will begin January 16, 2017 so you have one week to get everything you need to begin!

I will email you weeks 2 & 3 directly during the week prior to each start.

If you are ready to take the challenge click right here!

Good luck and we will meet up again on the Detoxing & Discussing Facebook page.