Lots of us enjoy trying something fresh for the New Year.  And since many of you have been buzzing about going gluten-free, we thought we’d explore it further.  If you feel like you don’t understand all the fuss, you are not alone.  With so much media attention, going gluten-free is quickly becoming a fad diet that people are just latching onto.  Many people believe that if they just switched to gluten-free foods, they will lose weight.  While this is not entirely true, we do find a lot of our patients benefit from a gluten-free diet and some have a legitimate gluten sensitivity.  If you are sensitive to gluten (99% of gluten sensitive people are not aware of it), removing it from your diet will change your life!  If you are not gluten sensitive, replacing foods with gluten-free junk food may actually be adding to a weight problem, as many of these foods are highly processed and high in calories, carbs and fat.

Do you know what gluten is?

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut, and oats.  Gluten is not inherently bad, it is only when our body reacts negatively that it can cause problems.  And these problems can be completely unrelated to digestion.  That being said, digestive problems like irritable bowl disease, chronic constipation or loose stool, and inflammatory bowl diseases like ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease can all be associated with or exacerbated by food sensitivities.  The New England Journal of Medicine lists 55 other seemingly unrelated conditions associated with gluten sensitivity including: osteoporosis, anemia, rosacea, chronic fatigue, restless leg syndrome, canker sores, rheumatoid arthritis, hypothyroidism, eczema and psoriasis, multiple sclerosis (MS), and almost all other autoimmune diseases.  It can also be linked to depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, dementia, migraines, epilepsy, neuropathy, and autism.

Gluten sensitivity historically has been thought of in the medical world as Celiac Disease.  It was rarely diagnosed, and was often only considered in children who had chronic diarrhea.  But we are discovering symptoms appearing to be unrelated to a digestive imbalance can actually be cause by eating something as normal as a piece of bread.

Why this sudden increase in gluten intolerance?  It is likely due to the genetic modification of wheat and other grains recently introduced in our agriculture and diet.  Almost all wheat flour in America has been genetically modified to have a much higher gluten content than ever before, making our breads doughy and fluffy.  The down side of all this gooey dough is that many of us who may have a minor sensitivity to gluten are reacting much more intensely than before.

If you’ve been suffering from chronic fatigue, MS, depression or any of the above mentioned symptoms and haven’t been able to find relief, it might be worth it to try a gluten-free lifestyle.  There are many drugs and treatments available to treat the manifestations of gluten sensitivity, but the only way to truly cure yourself, if this is indeed your problem, is to completely avoid gluten.

The real problem with consuming gluten when your body is sensitive is that the reaction creates inflammation in the body.  Inflammation is at the root of all the major killers in our medical system including heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.  Recent studies have come out showing you don’t have to have full blown celiac to be at risk for complications associated with gluten sensitivity.  Even just having the antibodies circulating, without inflammation in the gut or testing positive for celiac, increases risk of death from cancer, heart disease, and other related inflammatory diseases by up to 35%.

Discovering whether or not you are sensitive to gluten can be done in several different ways.  The simplest and cheapest is to completely remove gluten from your diet for at least two (and up to six) weeks.  If after 2-6 weeks some of your symptoms have disappeared, or if you notice you feel more energized and clear headed, you may have a sensitivity to gluten.  You can test your theory by adding it back into your diet and seeing how you feel in the following days.  If you notice your symptoms returning, you are sensitive to gluten and would benefit from avoiding it most of the time.  If you are keeping track on your own, it is helpful to keep a food journal to record what you ate and how you felt afterward.  A doctor who is well acquainted with gluten sensitivities can also test your blood and/or saliva for antibodies related to gluten or for the genes associated with celiac.

Some tips to follow when adapting a gluten-free lifestyle:

• Avoid any product made with wheat, barley, rye, kamut or oats (bread, pasta, crackers, cereal, pastries, cookies, pretzels, flour tortillas, pie crusts, etc.)

• Hidden sources of gluten include the following: soy sauce, BBQ sauce, “meat-free” meat, couscous, beer, whiskey, envelope and stamp adhesive (!), some lipsticks, and soups thickened with flour.

• When in doubt at a restaurant, mention to your server that you are gluten sensitive and ask for guidance with the menu.

• Try products made with brown rice, corn, amaranth, millet, potato, tapioca starch, soy, garbanzo bean flour, and quinoa.

• Try wheat-free tamari sauce instead of soy sauce and thicken your soups with corn starch.

• Look for the “gluten-free” label, but keep in mind that just because it’s gluten-free, doesn’t make it calorie free.

With recent research suggesting a link between obesity and the overuse of antibiotics, we thought it might be a fitting time to discuss probiotics.  When we take antibiotics, we alter our community of healthy intestinal bacteria.  It may surprise you to learn that the bacteria in our bodies out number our human cells by a ratio of 10:1.  This may sound like a massive amount of microorganisms, but let’s explore the ways in which these unseen creatures help us out (in a very necessary and healthy way).

1. Healthy bacteria in the gut (also called Probiotics) help boost our immune system by taking up real estate and nutrients that would otherwise be vacant for invading bacteria (like Salmonella or E. coli).
2. Probiotics interact with our immune systems locally in our intestines, at other mucus membranes in the body, and even systemically to help our immunity stay or become strong.
3. They maintain and strengthen the intestinal barrier, making sure we only absorb nutrients and not other particles that may cause adverse reactions (a syndrome called “leaky gut”).
4. They help regulate bowel motility, blood flow to the colon, and also produce essential nutrients that nourish the colon tissue.
5. They help our bodies make Vitamin K and B Vitamins and help us absorb Calcium, Magnesium, and Zinc.
6. They play an important role in the detoxification process.
7. Some strains of these helpful microorganisms also produce enzymes that help us digest common allergens like gluten, dairy, and soy.

Many traditional diets have ample sources of these microorganisms…fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, yogurt, kefir, and miso to name a few.  We can also get them from just simply eating unprocessed organic fruits, veggies, and grains.  The typical modern diet however is very processed, pasteurized, irradiated, bleached, and medicated, so it is a good idea to add a quality probiotic to your daily routine, especially if you are struggling to eat whole organic unprocessed foods at every meal (which we of course suggest you strive to do).

In Chinese medicine having a healthy and strong digestive system is the best way to maintain a healthy weight.  When we are digesting and absorbing nutrients efficiently, we are creating qi from our food easily and feel energized, focused and satisfied.  When our digestion is weak, we feel sluggish, crave carbs, and often feel too tired to exercise.   Our immune systems might also be weak, slowing us down with every cold or flu that comes along.  Taking steps to improve the health of our digestive systems (as well as our dietary choices) will improve our quality of life on multiple levels.  Adding a probiotic is one way to improve your digestive health.

A good quality probiotic should:

• Be purchased from a reputable source (quality health food store, Naturopathic Physician, Chiropractor, Nutritionist, Acupuncturist, or other distributor of pharmaceutical grade supplements).

• Have delivery technology that protects it from digestive juices in the stomach, so the live cultures can get to your intestines.

• Be either freeze-dried or refrigerated.

• Be free of common allergens (dairy, gluten, corn, soy), preservatives, binders, and fillers.

• Contain inulin (food for the good bacteria; also called “prebiotics”) to support and maintain the growth of healthy bacteria in the gut.

• Have laboratory tested verification of purity, potency and stability.

Independent analysis of many brands of probiotics consistently reveals inactive strains.  While buying a cheap probiotic may seem like it is saving you money, it can actually be a waste as you may be purchasing capsules filled with dead bacteria.   Gross!

At the YinOva Center, we always look for ways for you to spend your health dollars wisely.  In order to help simplify your choice of a good quality probiotic, we have spent many hours researching brands and have chosen to carry one at our center that we trust.   Klaire Labs backs their products with rigorous testing to ensure efficacy, purity, potency, and stability.  They also offer a diverse array of products to meet specific needs.  We currently stock a very potent complete spectrum probiotic, a Women’s focused blend (targeted to prevent yeast infections and urinary bladder infections), a prebiotic blend, and a high potency digestive enzyme to assist our patients with known or suspected food allergies.

I love the rhythms of the country and the way the passage of time is marked by the fruits and vegetables we grow and the foods we eat. I look forward to each crop from the early summer peas and beans to the autumn pumpkins and squashes. However, nothing generates more excitement in our house than the apple harvest and recently Noah and I took advantage of a sunny fall day to pick enough apples and pears to last us through the winter.

In Chinese medicine both apples and pears are considered to be cooling and moistening and are used medicinally to treat inflammation and dryness. Modern scientific research seems to agree with the old adage that “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” because various studies have shown that apples can protect women from osteoporosis and breast cancer whilst also preventing asthma and lowering cholesterol. Pears meanwhile can treat a sore throat, reduce inflammation, boost the immune system and lower blood pressure.

We spent a happy afternoon picking the fruit and arrived home tired and in the mood for an apple crumble and some home-made pear juice. Suitably fortified, we set about preserving the rest of the fruit for later use. We canned the pears in spiced red wine  and the apples in syrup to be used as pie filling and talked about how happy we will be to open these jars during a freezing New York winter and briefly recapture the autumn sunshine.

Canning is daunting the first time you do it, but it’s actually very simple and it makes economic sense to use fruits when they are plentiful and cheap and preserve them to eat the rest of the year. Our grandmas did this because they had to and I’m happy to carry on the tradition and even pass it on to the next generation. My daughter Emma has inherited a passion for preserving and is an enthusiastic jam maker. You can read her favorite jam recipe here.

Apple or Pear Crumble

Ingredients:

Topping
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped nuts eg. walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds (or a mixture of all three)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar (or 1/3 cup of date sugar, if you are avoiding processed sugars)
1/3 cup whole-wheat flour (or gluten free bake mix, if you are avoiding gluten)

Filling
5 tablespoons canola oil
3 1/2 pounds ripe pears or apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
2 tablespoons cornflour
2 tablespoons lemon juice.

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 350°F.
• Prepare the topping by combining the oats, nuts, brown sugar and flour (or gluten free bake mix) in a medium bowl.
• Stir in the oil and mix until all the topping ingredients are moist.
• Prepare the filling by combining the pears, maple syrup, cardamom, raisins (or dried cranberries), cornflour and lemon juice into a large pie dish. Mix well.
• Sprinkle the topping over the pears.
• Bake the crumble for 45 minutes. The pears should be soft, the juices should be bubbling and the crumble topping should be golden and crisp.
• Take the crumble out of the oven. Ideally it should stand for about 10 minutes to allow the flavors to develop but this never happens in our household where everyone digs in the minute the crumble is ready.

When I go to a restaurant and look over a menu, I can be rather indecisive. One question that I never linger on though is “would you like that mild, medium or hot?” Hot peppers are a favorite seasoning in our house, and we grow them from seed in our garden. This year we had a bumper crop.

Whether it is the blazing heat of summer or the depth of winter, we often use peppers in our recipes. For thousands of years, people from South America to North Africa have created spectacular dishes, using hot peppers to bring on a little fire.

Peppers like these habaneros we are growing, also have medicinal qualities. They have been used in traditional herbal remedies for centuries and today there is an ever-growing selection of over-the-counter products that make use of their healing powers.

The active ingredient in peppers is called Capsaicin and it is the compound that gives them their heat. Chemically it hyper-stimulates sensory nerves which causes the burning sensation on your tongue and other sensitive tissues. In controlled amounts though it can be used topically to reduce the pain associated with arthritis, shingles and the neuropathy of diabetes. This analgesic ability comes from capsaicin’s effect on your body’s neuropeptide substance P, which is involved in the transmission of nerve pain. Also, as a local irritant, capsaicin in the right amounts can dilate capillaries and promote circulation.

Taken internally, the health benefits of capsaicin in peppers continues to be studied and has been shown to have many potential benefits. These include

• Thinning mucous secretions in some respiratory conditions

• Treatment of prostate and lung cancer

• Risk reduction of atherosclerosis

• Diminishing the pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia

• Reduce insulin resistance in type 1 diabetes

• Treatment of cluster headaches

In traditional Chinese medicine peppers that contain capsaicin are, predictably categorized as hot and spicy. Like ginger and cinnamon they are by nature therapeutically warming, promote circulation, and can help relieve pain, depending on how and in what amounts they are taken. Before taking a new herb it’s always a good idea to talk with a qualified practitioner. However there are lots of sensible ways to use the healing power of hot peppers on your own. Of course cooking with peppers is fun and once you find one that’s to your taste, they can add tremendous flavor –not just bite- to dishes. In my pozole recipe, there are 5 different kinds of pepper, balanced for taste.

Here is another recipe – for topical use ONLY. It is a safe, easy to make massage oil which is great for achy muscles & joints, especially for those of you who like to run outside in the cooler weather but benefit from warm applications (did someone say marathon?). A recent article at Well+Good NYC illustrates how the heat and the circulation this oil promotes can keep you on the road at times when cold therapy would only tighten muscles up.

This is an oil that can be used to massage along large muscles or any place that feels creaky. It’s great for joints that ache in cold damp weather. Of course, use common sense precautions: it should feel warm but not burn. If you think it’s irritating your skin, stop using it and wash with a gentle soap.

1 quart Olive Oil
1/2 oz cloves
3/4 oz Cayenne Peppers

• Chop and crush peppers and cloves.
• Add to oil.
• Bake in an oven on a low heat for 2 hours.
• After it has cooled add one capsule of vitamin E as a preservative.
• Strain and bottle.
• Use as a massage oil (external use only)

This is a quick one to make. It feels good and has a nice nutty smell. Make sure to have small bottles to decant into because there is enough here to give to friends.

I just love me some groceries…

“We are proud to have film maker and activist Penelope Jagesser Chaffer joining us on the blog today.”  – Jill

I’m so glad to be writing this post.  It’s probably the number one question I get asked: “How can you feed a family frugally if you are living an organic, non-toxic life?”  My lovely friends at Healthy Child recently ran this great post on how to live a non-toxic life without spending a fortune, so I know it’s something that we are all trying to work out.  I’ve conjured up some very creative ideas in my insistence that my family not be exposed to environmental toxins yet still lead a great life in a fabulous city.  If you have any tips to add, have any questions or just have a comment, please don’t hesitate to leave me a note below.  Enjoy! x

GROCERIES

These tips will work everywhere from the farmer’s market to a big chain like Whole Foods.

Helpful Tips:

Join an online savings club like livingsocial or Groupon.

Cut coupons from your regular grocery store.

Subscribe to your local organic store, or join their food club.

Best yet, join your local food co-op.  They require you to work in the store (usually only for an hour a month) and for that you get hugely discounted organic, fair trade food.  This could well be the place for the cheapest, yet best food anywhere.

Visit your local farmer’s market.

Check out the specials and base your week’s menu planning around these deals.  Suffice to say menu planning is critical if you are looking to rein in the costs.

Buy organic in bulk.  So much cheaper than buying branded, packaged goods. From rice to beans to nuts and dried fruit, you will not believe your eyes. One pound of organic rolled oats will cost less than $2.  Holy smorgasbord!

Buy whole organic whole grains, fruit, vegetables, condiments etc and make meals from scratch. Processed food is more expensive so embrace your inner domestic goddess and get jiggy in that kitchen!

Have a great repertoire of nutritious, delicious recipes on hand.  Unless you are very experienced in the kitchen, the family meal is not the time to play Iron Chef.  One of my favorite new books is Laurie David’s “Family Dinner”.  This just rocks the house down.

Make extras and freeze.  My freezer is my number 2 culinary weapon in my fight against expensive meals, right after my stove.

Rock a rolling pin and a hammer.  It might sound mad, but I can stretch a pack of organic chicken legs by taking a hammer and a big knife and reducing each leg to 4 or 5 pieces.  That way one leg can feed several kids.  Organic chicken breasts and thighs get walloped by the rolling pin (place beneath some wax paper else flying chicken meat will end up your nose) which instantly enlarges them to 3 times their previous size.  One piece can often be used in the recipe and the rest frozen. Priceless. I also get to work out my arms and any residual annoyance on those chicken breasts so I get peace of mind too!

I don’t grow my own produce but that’s because I’m navigating small windowsills in a Brooklyn apartment.  If you have access to a patch of land, go get those fingers dirty.  (Make sure to get your local city government to let you know if lead is an issue for soil in your area.)

Shop online.  Amazon and other online retailers often have great deals and I pay a little each year for free two-day delivery, which works out much cheaper than the cost of a subway ticket or parking space.

I always get my children to help prepare a meal.  Need to get those husks off your (organic) corn? Weighing beans on a scale?  There’s so much your child can actually do in the kitchen!  Stirring a pot (under your keen supervision) is amazingly empowering for any child-the proximity to the stove and doing something grown up impresses even the most nonchalant of kids.

Things to AVOID:

Buying any thing tinned.  The vast majority of tins sold around the world are lined with BPA (Eden Foods and Wild Planet have a selection BPA free cans.) NEVER BUY TINNED TOMATOES! They are acidic so they leach even more BPA than regular goods.  If you must buy processed tomatoes, you need to get them in a jar or carton (although there’s no guarantee that the tomatoes used here haven’t come from a tin in the first place.)  I buy my ‘matos organic fresh and make my tomato-based sauces and soups from scratch.

Buying anything processed that’s within a day of its sell-by date or buying fresh produce about to thrown out.  Those 12 peaches for a $1 might look like a great value until they spend an afternoon in a hot car/bus/subway train going home and start supporting the league of mold by the next day.

Buying conventional corn/soy/pineapple ANYTHING.  The vast majority (as in over 90% of these crops in the US are genetically modified.)  Don’t be fooled.

Buying conventional red meat or dairy.  Full of all sorts of nasties – this is a great area to use your coupons.

Buying conventional tomatoes or any of the dirty dozen mostly sprayed produce.  According to the book “Tomatoland”, (and you must read it) tomatoes are sprayed with over 100 pesticides and the tomato industry in Florida is linked to human slavery.  I kid you not.  Note that tomatoes do not turn up on the Dirty Dozen, so use this tool with care.

Lastly, avoid going shopping hungry.  Always have a pack of rice cakes or some other healthy snack in your bag.  If you are going with children, which I suggest you do (children should know where their food comes from), make sure you feed them before and have water and a healthy snack on hand.

Penelope:

Penelope Jagessar Chaffer is a BAFTA-nominated, award winning documentary filmmaker behind Toxic Baby™, a writer and a children’s environmental health advocate.  She is a Healthy Child Parent Ambassador and 2010 Mom on a Mission winner.   The scrumptious baby in the pictures is Oceana, Penelope’s beautiful baby girl.

Ever pick up a book or magazine because it claims to have the secrets for the “perfect” way to eat?  Are you constantly changing your diet based on what science or the media is telling you is healthy?  What is a “perfect diet” anyway?

In America, we tend to think there is this one right way to eat or live (and we are “discovering” it all the time).  We’re such perfectionists!  But what if that scientifically-proven healthy diet or way of life saps your energy and makes you feel unwell.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) theory, everyone has a unique combination of imbalances that manifest when we are exposed to stress.  Some of us get headaches or other pains, while others have trouble sleeping, problems with digestion, mood, bowel movements or our menstrual cycles.  Any symptom is an indication of an underlying imbalance…a way for our bodies to communicate the need for assistance.  Predictable patterns of symptoms often emerge accompanying these imbalances, so I guess even if we are all unique and different, at least we fall apart in a fairly predictable pattern…according to TCM.

With all the lovely unique people around, how is it we think there is one diet that is appropriate for everyone?  TCM practitioners often give dietary recommendations in addition to using acupuncture and Chinese herbs to encourage healing.  In other words, once you understand how your body tends to fall apart, you should adapt a lifestyle and diet that supports those weaknesses, especially during times of stress.  Essentially, we all need the diet that is supportive of our unique bodies, and it may change as we age and evolve.

The responsibility then falls on us to find our own “perfect” diet and lifestyle.  Thankfully there are many resources available to assist us in this process, but the best resource is actually you!  Start paying attention to how you feel with your current diet.  If you’ve tried several diets, you probably know a thing or two about what works and what doesn’t for your body.

Let’s stop relying so much on what we are told our bodies need and start listening to what they are telling us.  With your unique perfect diet you should feel energized all day and get appropriately tired as the night winds down.  You should fall asleep and stay asleep until it is time to start your day.  You should have at least one bowel movement a day (which should be formed, soft, and easy to pass), and feel energized (not bloated, gassy, or tired) after eating.  Occasionally, changing our diet is not enough to improve how we feel and it is necessary to incorporate other healing modalities like herbs, supplements, acupuncture, homeopathy or pharmaceuticals.

Where to start…I like Michael Pollan’s take on nutrition: “Eat food.  Not too much. Mostly Plants.”

Eat REAL foods that come from the ground or have a mother.

Eat CLEAN foods that have grown and been raised without pesticides, hormones, or antibiotics.

Eat BALANCED meals containing lots of organic fruits and vegetables, some meat or vegetable protein, whole grains, clean fish, and healthy plant fats (avocado, olive oil, coconut oil, walnuts, flax etc.).

Need specifics?  Consult a Nutritionist or your acupuncturist or check out books by Michael Pollan (we like Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual and In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto for a more in-depth guide) or Dr. Andrew Weil (Eating Well For Optimum Health: The Essential Guide to Bringing Health and Pleasure Back to Eating).

If you are having symptoms, especially digestive symptoms, eczema or psoriasis, headaches, fatigue, poor immunity, foggy headedness, or depression, you may want to consider experimenting with a dairy, gluten, sugar or soy free diet.  It may take more than reading a book or magazine, but once you figure out your “perfect” diet to support your unique body, it will change your life!

This is barely a recipe. In fact I almost didn’t share it with you because it’s so simple. However it tasted good, looked pretty and is cheap and nutritious. It’s also an ideal soup to make as the season changes because it’s light enough to evoke the taste of summer and warming enough to serve as the autumn weather sets in.

This is really a very adaptable recipe and I often make it to use up the contents of the vegetable drawer in my fridge. I called this version End of Summer Soup because I used some of the summer vegetables that are still growing in our garden and combined them with some of the winter root vegetables that we are just starting to harvest. I’m giving you a list of ingredients so you can see what I used this time but really it’s just a guideline so please adapt it to suit what you have on hand. I’ve also given amounts but don’t bother to measure anything because this is not the kind of soup that need precision.

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

Approx. 1 cup of anything in the allium family, chopped – (I used a combination of onions, leeks and garlic)

3 tbsp mixed fresh herbs, chopped or 3/4 tbsp of dried herbs (I used sage, thyme and tarragon)

4 sticks of celery, chopped

4 mushrooms, chopped

Approx. 2 cups of root vegetables, chopped (I used sweet potato, carrots and turnips)

Approx. 1 1/2 cups softer vegetables, chopped (I used summer squash and red pepper)

1 can of beans, drained and rinsed (I used garbanzo)

5 medium sized tomatoes, chopped

Vegetable broth to cover (about 8 cups)

Approx. 1/2 cup parsley and chives, chopped

Salt and pepper

Instructions

In a large soup pot saute the onions, leeks and garlic in the olive oil over a gentle heat for 5 – 8 minutes, until the onion is transparent. Then add the chopped herbs (except parsley and chives which go in at the end). Add the root vegetables and cover the pot. Sweat the vegetables over a low heat for 5 minutes to extract some of their juices. Then pour on the stock and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the soft vegetables and the beans and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer for a further three minutes (the idea is to use the tomatoes to give the soup some sweetness but cook them briefly so they don’t break up and make the broth taste too much of tomato). Add the parsley and chives, adjust the seasoning by adding salt and pepper if necessary and serve.

Serves 6

It’s that time of year again!

Our children are heading back to school. We Moms often have some mixed feelings around this. Most of our YinOva Moms tell me they feel a bit wistful that summer is over whilst at the same time breathing a giant sigh of relief as everyone gets back into routine. At this time of year patients usually tell me that they want to get off on the right foot and ask advice about putting some healthy habits in place. So here’s some back to school advice gleaned from our YinOva Moms (both staff and patients) as we wish you all a healthy transition into fall.

Get a healthy start

We’re all familiar with the morning rush but making time for a proper breakfast is an essential start to the day. It’ll help your children arrive at school alert and able to concentrate.

Unfortunately many quick and easy breakfasts are full of sugar and empty calories. As a general rule it’s best for children to start the day with some protein such as eggs, nut butter, milk or yogurt and some high fiber carbohydrates such as grains, wholegrain tortillas, whole wheat bread or healthy cereals. You can round this our with some fruit – bananas go particularly well with nut butter and whole wheat bread for example.

Check out this blog from our archive which has plenty of healthy and kid-friendly breakfast ideas.

Nutritious Packed Lunches

We’ve talked about packed lunches before on the YinOva Blog so for some good ideas and helpful advice check out this blog from our archive.

If you’re having trouble planning your child’s lunches ask them for some input. Sit down with your kids and talk to them about which foods are healthy and which foods won’t help their body as much. Get their agreement about which foods to eat regularly, which to only eat occasionally and which to avoid altogether. Then make a list of things they want to eat. Help them understand balance by getting them to pick proteins they like as well as grains and fruit and vegetables and get their ideas about how to combine these.

As important as what you put in a healthy lunchbox is what you leave out, so give the following a miss:-

• High fructose corn syrup
• Fruit juice from concentrate
• Artificial sweeteners
• Partially-hydrogenated oils
• Trans-fats
• Nitrites
• White or bleached flour products

Some ideas from our own YinOva acupuncturists include:-

• Leftover grains (eg Brown Rice) with leftover steamed veggies and low sodium tomato sauce
• Hummus or other bean dip with whole grain crackers and veggies to dip into it and a banana for desert.
• Greek yogurt with veggie chips to dip into it and a small bag of trail mix.
• A whole grain, rice, or corn pita, no nitrate lunch meat, lettuce, sliced tomato and hummus.
• Wholewheat pasta salad with tuna and veggies and some veganaise and apple sauce on the side.
• A whole grain, rice, or corn tortilla with mashed avocado, beans and rice.
• Rice crackers with nut butter and a bag of cut veggies and some seedless grapes.

We’d love to hear your own ideas for packed lunches so please share in the comments.

Exercise

When I was young we did PE every day but these days many schools have had to cut their PE programs and academic pressure means that children get less exercise than they used to. Children’s lives have also become more sedentary with TV and computer games replacing outdoor play. Staying fit is important for mental health and concentration as well as physical health and well being. Make sure your kids get some kind of exercise everyday, either by encouraging them to participate in organized sports or by letting them ride their bikes or run around in the park.

Herbs and Supplements

Being in a stuffy classroom with lots of other kids means that our children are particularly susceptible to colds and flu. Support their immune systems by adopting some of the healthy habits above and also by making sure that they take some useful supplements. This blog from our archive looks at how some of the supplements and herbs we stock here at the YinOva Center can be used to support your kids.

My own personal Mom trick is to give them a probiotic which will not only support good digestion by promoting beneficial intestinal flora but has been shown to boost the immune system and help them fight infectious diseases.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a great way to address many childhood ailments and disorders. Check out this blog article by a YinOva Mom who came to our center for acupuncture and Chinese herbs which successfully treated her child’s eczema.  We use acupuncture to treat kids for weak immunity, repeated ear infections, digestive problems, asthma and behavioral problems.

Mom’s who are new to acupuncture worry that their kids will be upset by the needles but this is rarely the case. This video shows me treating some of our YinOva kids and should reassure you that fer from being scary, acupuncture can be fun.

Few things are more comforting than a boiled egg with toast soldiers, a sandwich on crusty bread or a cake with afternoon tea. But for the millions of people who suffer from gluten intolerance these pleasures are denied.

At the YinOva Center we’re familiar with the territory. Quite a number of our patients are allergic to gluten and suffer from inflammation when they eat wheat. Some of these people have full blown Celiac Disease, which is a common autoimmune disorder that affects the small intestine, and some are just mildly gluten intolerant. These patients feel better if they avoid wheat, barley and rye which used to mean missing out on some favorite foods. These days, however, there are such great gluten-free alternatives that no one need feel deprived.

I made this gluten-free summer squash bread to use up an over-abundance of patty pan squash from our garden and make a tasty treat for a friend with a wheat allergy. Using Pamela’s Ultimate Baking and Pancake Mix I was able to accommodate my friend’s allergy without sacrificing taste and by using agave nectar I managed to avoid processed sugar too. The result was a moist loaf that wasn’t too sweet.

A word of warning about baking with agave nectar: When I first made this loaf I used 1 cup of sugar instead of 1/4 cup of agave nectar. This gave a a sweet loaf with a cake-like texture. For health reasons I wanted to make the cake less sweet, less high calorie and without processed sugar so chose I chose to substitute a small amount of agave nectar for the cup of sugar. This gave a loaf that was more moist and less sweet. More like a tea bread. We loved it but if you like a sweeter cake and don’t mind using sugar, feel free to use it instead. One more word of warning a loaf baked with agave nectar will seem rather too moist when it first comes out of the oven but does dry out as it cools.

Ingredients

2 cups Pamela’s Ultimate Baking & Pancake Mix
2 tbsp ground flax seed
1 1/2 tsp ground cardamon
3/4 tsp salt
pinch of ground nutmeg
2 cups grated summer squash
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp agave nectar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup slivered almonds

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F
• Grease a loaf pan
• Grate the summer squash and put it in a colander over the sink to drain off some of it’s moisture.
• In a large mixing bowl mix together the baking mix, ground flax seed, ground cardamon, ground nutmeg, lemon zest and salt
• In a separate bowl, mix together the oil, agave nectar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth.
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir together until combined
• Fold in the grated summer squash and almonds
• Bake for 50 – 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean

Enjoy!

“Do I really have to give up coffee now that I’m trying to get pregnant?” Patients ask me this question a lot and here’s how I usually answer it. If you’re trying to get your body healthy in order to conceive it makes sense to limit your coffee intake to one cup a day. However if getting pregnant is proving to be struggle or you are suffering from infertility it’s best to cut coffee out altogether.

I understand the allure of coffee. I love a cup of coffee myself and I’m similar to my patients in that I’m an over-scheduled New Yorker and I appreciate the energy lift coffee can give me. However even as I guiltily sip my latte, I know that this caffeine boost is false energy and no replacement for proper rest and good nutrition.

We all know that caffeine can increase stress and anxiety levels but for women trying to conceive, coffee has other consequences as well. Caffeine can decrease the flow of blood to the uterus, which can interfere with implantation. Too much caffeine can increase the risk of blood clotting and miscarriage.

Knowing that caffeine can cause fertility problems some of my patients switch to decaffeinated coffee in order to enhance their fertility. However, all coffee, be it regular or decaf, is acidic and can make the body and cervical mucus too acidic and so hamper conception. Several studies have shown that coffee (even decaffeinated coffee) can diminish fertility. One Dutch study showed that 4 cups of decaf or regular coffee a day lowered a woman’s chance of having a baby by 25%. Some studies have linked coffee to miscarriage and some have linked it to low sperm count.

So the message is clear. If you’re trying to conceive and nothing’s working, it may be time to ditch your daily cup of Joe.

Here’s the advice we give our YinOva patients who are trying to limit their coffee intake.

• If you are suffering physical symptoms due to coffee withdrawal, acupuncture can help. Caffeine constricts the blood vessels in the brain and decreases circulation. If you suddenly cut out coffee, the increase in circulation both to your brain and your digestive system can lead to headaches as well as constipation or loose stools. An acupuncture treatment can treat both these symptoms well and so help you navigate your first coffee-free week.

• Herbal tonics such a astragalus or ginseng can help give your body a boost as you adjust to living without caffeine.

• Try drinking black tea. Even though tea contains some caffeine it does not seem to have the same adverse effect on fertility as coffee. In fact some studies have shown that tea may even help fertility. Researchers at Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program of Northern California in Oakland found that women who drink tea, even caffeinated black tea, have increased fertility.  Black tea contains some caffeine so it can give you a bit of a boost, however the caffeine content is much less than coffee making it a great alternative.

• Go green. Not only does green tea contain even less caffeine (about 1/3 of the amount) but it also boasts numerous health benefits.

• Herbal teas are also worth considering. Experiment with different teas at different times of the day. A soothing cup of chamomile at night or a bright tasting mint tea first thing in the morning.

• Take a coffee-free break! Coffee drinkers enjoy the rituals around their regular cups of coffee as much as the coffee itself. So try to find a replacement for making a cup of coffee in the morning. Buy a pretty tea pot and sip tea from a china cup. If popping out to your favorite coffee shop is a wonderful break in your day, know that you don’t have to give this up along with the coffee. Give yourself permission to take a coffee-free break and go out and buy some tea or even a bottle of water.

Cucumbers thrive in warm sunny weather and in our garden we tend to have dozens that ripen at the same time. It makes me realize why, in days gone by, people invented dill pickles, because it’s hard to keep up with a cucumber harvest and a shame to waste them.

Cucumbers have been used medicinally in Chinese medicine since the 7th century and have been prized ever since for their heat clearing, detoxifying and diuretic properties.

So on a baking hot day here in New York State, I decided to stay cool as a cucumber and use our over-abundant harvest by making these easy recipes.

Thai Cucumber Lemonade

This recipe is based on one by Guy Fieri of the Food network. He uses vodka in his, whereas we settled for a virgin version with seltzer water instead. Our lemonade is also less sweet than the original and has more water added.

First make an infused simple syrup by combining the following in a small saucepan

• A handful of fresh cilantro, basil and mint
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Bring the water to the boil and simmer just long enough for the sugar to dissolve. Take off the heat and allow to cool with the herbs still in the syrup. When cool strain the liquid into a container. Discard the herbs and put the syrup in the fridge.

Next make the cucumber juice by blending the following in a food processor.

• 1 large cucumber, peeled
• 2 cups water

Strain the juice and store in the fridge.

Squeeze the juice of

• 4 lemons

Then in a large jug blend 1 cup of cucumber juice, the juice from 4 lemons, 3/4 cup of simple syrup and add seltzer water to taste. We used about

• 4 cups seltzer water

Cold Cucumber Soup

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 shallot or some green onion, finely chopped (about 2 tbsp)
• 2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp oat bran
• 1/2 tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup sour cream (low fat OK)
• Parsley
• Cucumber for garnish, finely diced

Swirl the olive oil in a deep pan and saute the shallot or onions over a low heat. Add the cucumbers, vinegar, broth and oat bran and bring to a boil. Add the tarragon, turn down the heat and simmer for 15 – 20 minutes until the cucumbers are soft. Carefully put the soup in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put the soup in the fridge to chill. When ready to serve whisk in the sour cream, ladle into individual bowls and garnish with parsley and chopped cucumber.

Summer is here and to celebrate Father’s Day I decided to cook a family favorite – “Beer Can Chicken.”

It’s a simple concept.  Make a tasty rub for your chicken and keeping it whole, prop it up on an open can of beer over the barbecue.  As the chicken cooks the beer simmers inside and the steam cooks the bird from the inside out.  This allows the flavor of the beer to gently permeate the meat, simultaneously keeping it succulent and tender.

Traditionally, this recipe involves a dry rub – a combination of spices common in barbecuing including paprika, garlic powder, mustard and plenty of cayenne.  Having just returned from Greece however, I’m still yearning for those Mediterranean flavors, so I decided to try a different approach and combine some common Greek seasoning with a good old Boston Lager.

Here’s what I used:

1 chicken (about 4 lbs)
Roughly ¼ cup each of fresh
Dill
Oregano
Thyme
Rosemary
2 Lemons
2 cloves of Garlic
Salt & Pepper to taste
A few glugs of Olive Oil
1 can of beer

It may seem strange to feature a barbecued chicken on a healthy blog but these seasonings are loaded with health benefits so this recipe packs more of a nutritional punch than you may expect. Bearing in mind the old adage that “food is medicine,” I went down to our garden to pick some homegrown herbs for this meal.

Here’s what I picked:

Oregano

Since the time of Hippocrates, oregano has been used medicinally.  Oregano has anti-inflammatory compounds that can help relieve achy joints and muscles and you can use its oil topically.  As a digestive aid, oregano helps with a variety of intestinal infections as well as many parasites including giardia.  Its antiseptic qualities make it an effective treatment for skin conditions including acne, cold sores and minor cuts.  Rounding up its benefits, oregano also contains antioxidant compounds that reduces free radical damage to our cells.

Rosemary

The delicious fragrance of rosemary is why I include it in many of my favorite dishes.  Its myriad of benefits are just icing on the cake!  As a general immune stimulant, it can benefit circulation, breathing and digestion.  Rosemary contains high levels of vitamin E, and many other antioxidants which make it effective in maintaining healthy cell structure.  It also helps the liver to combat and eliminate toxins from your body.  Topically, rosemary minimizes the effects of aging by strengthening blood flow, which is why it’s used in many cosmetics and skin treatments.

Dill

Have you ever wondered why dill is a garnish with so many meals?  It’s because it stimulates your digestive juices, improves movement of the intestine and is considered an appetizer in itself.  It also has anti-bacterial compounds to help maintain a healthy gut.  Chock full of calcium, dill can also help prevent bone loss.  And like the other leafy green herbs in this rub, dill fights free radicals and fights carcinogens including those in cigarette and charcoal grill smoke!

Thyme

Thyme is well known for it’s anti-septic and anti-fungal properties.  Packed with vitamins, minerals and phyto-nutrients, it has many immune and anti-oxidant enhancing actions as well.  Thyme is also great for respiratory concerns such as asthma and bronchitis.  In addition to reducing inflammation, it can aid in the elimination of mucous in the throat and bronchi.

I pulled all of these herbs from our garden upstate.  But, you don’t need a chunk of land to grow your own.  Check out my blog on urban gardening which has tips on keeping a countertop garden in your kitchen so you to can pick fresh flavor for many meals to come.  Or, you can always go to the green-market and purchase some fresh herbs someone else has already picked for you.

 

Prepping the Chicken

• Take the oregano, rosemary, thyme, dill and garlic and chop them up fine.  (I used a micro-planer for the garlic to get the most out of it.)
• In a bowl mix them with the olive oil and juice of one lemon
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Set aside for an hour or two in order to let the flavors meld
• During this time, rinse and pat dry the chicken

The rub at this point may taste very spicy but have faith that as it cooks, the flavor will mellow a great deal.

• Rub the seasoning into the chicken, making sure to get inside the cavity and under the skin where you can.
• Take the beer can and open it, pouring half into a glass (to drink) and then poke a couple of holes in the top.
• Place the chicken on top of the can and transfer it to the grill. (The coals should not be directly under the chicken but around it so it cooks indirectly.)

Balancing the chicken can be a little tricky.  I use one of my previous Father’s Day gifts which is a vertical chicken roaster designed just for this kind of cooking.

To make the meal complete, a Greek salad is perfect.  Now that our own veggies are growing though, we tossed a big salad with what was readily available in our garden.

We all have bad habits.  From twirling our hair to smoking, they range from harmless to harmful.

A bad habit I finally kicked was my addiction to Diet Soda.  I tried many times but failed when I couldn’t find fulfillment from any other drink – none had the fizzies, the taste, the mouth feel…. But I had to keep trying as it didn’t jibe with my otherwise healthy lifestyle.

Just take a look at the ingredients:

Carbonated Water, Caramel Color, Aspartame, Phosphoric Acid, Potassium Benzoate, Natural Flavors, Citric Acid, Caffeine.

See anything nutritious?

Let’s break it down:

Carbonated Water:  water made effervescent with pressurized carbon dioxide.

Caramel Color: a soluble food coloring.  Made in a lab by carefully using heat to treat carbohydrates, generally in the presence of acids, alkalis, or salts, in a process called caramelization.  It is more fully oxidized than caramel candy and has an odor of burnt sugar and a somewhat bitter taste. Its color ranges from pale yellow to amber to dark brown.

Aspartame: a highly controversial artificial sweetener that merits a whole other post.

Phosphoric Acid: is a cheap, mass-produced chemical used to acidify foods and beverages and provide a tangy or sour taste.  There is much controversy regarding its potentially damaging effects.  Also worth noting, phosphoric acid is commonly used for rust removal.  Plus, studies have shown phosphoric acid in sodas may lead to osteoporosis.

Potassium Benzoate: a food preservative that prevents the growth of mold, yeast and some bacteria.  In the EU, they recommend children avoid this preservative.  In combination with ascorbic acid (vitamin C), sodium and potassium benzoate may form benzene, a known carcinogen.  Also worth noting, potassium benzoate is used in fireworks.

Natural Flavors: the official definition of “natural flavor” under the Code of Federal Regulations is: “the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.”  In other words, very vague and hardly healthy.

Citric Acid: an organic acid found in citrus fruits; used a natural preservative and to add an sour taste to foods and drinks.

Caffeine: a stimulant found in varying quantities in the seeds, leaves, and fruit of some plants, where it acts as a natural pesticide that paralyzes and kills certain insects feeding on the plants.

So clearly not a virtuous drink.  Not only is diet soda not nutritious but it’s also potentially hazardous to your health.  It seems almost daily, new studies are released about soda’s various harmful effects on your body, from the less serious like eroding tooth enamel to the infinitely more sobering news like, how a daily diet soda habit will increase the risk of a heart attack and stroke by 61%.

If all of this is not convincing, perhaps appealing to the more superficial side in us all – Diet Coke will actually make you gain weight!

If you are on the bandwagon but you need help quitting, Dr. Oz has a 28-day plan for quitting soda.  Also, there are lots of alternative drinks to help ease your way into abstention, from club soda to, my favorite, Kombucha (both have the fizzies!)!  You can also make your own naturally tasty drinks – Whole Living’s website has some delicious recipes!

For those of you who don’t eat eggs, I thought I’d share my favorite vegan version of “egg” salad. This makes a great sandwich filling. I like it with salad leaves in an Ezekial Wholegrain Flourless Tortilla or between two slices of Ezekial Bread. It’s one of my favorite lunches.

Vegan Egg Salad

2 packs of tofu

1/4 cup of onion, very finely diced

1/4 cup of celery, very finely diced

1 cup Veganaise

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1/2 cup carrot, grated

Salt and pepper to taste.

Instructions

Using your hands break up the tofu. Add the other ingredients and mix well. Enjoy!

This will keep for about 5 days in the fridge.

This is a wonderful soup for people who are tired or convalescing because in Chinese medicine winter squash is a qi tonic.  Butternut squash is mostly eaten in the autumn when it is said to have absorbed the sun’s energy over the summer and packs a warming nutritional punch as the days get colder. However it’s a chilly spring day in upstate New York and my local market had some lovely squash on display, so I decided to pick one up along with a bunch of local kale and make this mildly spiced soup for lunch.

Butternut Squash and Kale Soup

1 onion, finely diced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 celery sticks, finely diced
1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped into 1/2 ” chunks
1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped into 1″ chunks
1/2 tbsp madras curry powder
1/2 tbsp garam masala
Salt and Pepper
4 -5 cups vegetable stock
4 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 bunch kale, stems removed and finely chopped
Yogurt to serve

Saute the onion in the olive oil over a low heat in a large soup pot. When the onion is translucent add the celery, carrot and squash and stir. Put the lid on the pot and allow the vegetables to release their juices over a low heat for about 10 minutes. Add the curry power, garam masala, salt and pepper as well as the vegetable stock. Add enough stock to cover the squash completely and bring to a boil. Simmer for 40 minutes. Check to make sure the squash is soft and if it is, puree the soup either in the pan with an immersion blender or by transferring it carefully in batches to a blender or food processor.

Return the soup to the stove and add the basil and kale. Simmer for 10 minutes and then serve with a 2 tablespoons of yogurt in each bowl.