What makes a food a SUPERFOOD?

Hi all, I've been gone for awhile because of work and projects I've been doing lately.

 I have a new articles I want to write regarding my journey and what I've learned since the last blog, so let's get started.

I get asked a lot; what a superfood is and why do you talk like it's important.

At its lowest level it means that the food is really healthy for you. I want to offer more than a simple phrase, mainly because a lot of foods can be healthy but not a superfood. The best way I can explain it is by separating out healthy foods from superfoods. It is food that is nutrient density is at the top of the charts. What? It means that the more nutrients a food has the more it is a superfood! It's not about how much of this or how of that, but rather it's a diverse collection of nutrients. It contains many nutrients our bodies can use. Think of superfoods as a superstore with a huge variety of nutrients lining the shelves waiting to be eaten and used. My idea of a superfood is that you are getting as much nutrients as possible from that one food, which also means you are getting a food that has a huge nutrient diversity.

Phytonutrients are the numerous compounds that exist in plants. They are not considered essential, because your body doesn’t need them to survive, however, they do have great health benefits. There are literally thousands of phytonutrients in plants and any superfood has these phytonutrients!

Superfoods also lack toxins! Let me repeat that, they lack toxins. My goal of eating superfoods is to consume foods that that load my body with nutrients, but there is something else.  I believe that superfoods shouldn’t take away from my body.  The presence of toxins does just that. When you eat processed foods you are eating toxins at some level. If the food has been modified you potentially are eating toxins. WHY would we want to do that to ourselves?  For this reason I believe that a superfood must not contain any pesticides, herbicides, fungicides or any other man-made chemicals.  The easiest way to do that is to buy food that is USDA Certified Organic. Look for the label. The label indicates it is controlled by the government, making it an expensive and time consuming task to become certified. You really want to know that the food you are eating doesn’t have harmful chemicals that will build up inside. I realize a label may not mean anything, it is the surest way we have today.

I’ve discussed superfoods in past blogs here, you can look up what I consider a superfood right here. Today I was trying to define what a superfood is. It is a nutrient dense based food that has lots of nutrients for our bodies to use. It’s really that easy. Are you eating superfoods or just plain old food? Begin to switch over; you will feel the difference after one meal.

To your health,

Bill

Receipes to some of our fav foods

Let’s eat!

In this post I wanted to bring you some great recipes that I have tried and love. I know once you begin to see how cool the food is you will want to at least, try one for yourself. Eating is simple and not very hard. It doesn’t have to take all your time planning and cooking, although that can happen too, if you are really into it.  Let’s begin…

 Basic humus that I have on hand every day, Dr. Fuhrman refers to it as Spicy Bean Dip but it way better as our basic humus (Kathy doesn’t like spicy anything).

Basic Humus:

1 can of garbanzo beans

2-3 tsp salsa

Any other kind of spice you want to throw in (no salt though)

Blend in a high speed blender until smooth or the texture you prefer. You can add a little of the juice from the beans if need be to loosen up the mixture. 

Kathy and I love this on pita bread and we use it as a spread over baked potatoes (instead of butter). We also put over raw carrots, celery and other veggies. I usually add hot peppers to mine to make the humus hot! Experiment and see what you like.

For breakfast we make an Apple Baked pie:

We made this up ourselves and have tweaked it a few times to where we really like this recipe.

Apple Baked Pie for breakfast:

Peel and slice an apple of your choice into thin slices. Arrange them in a shallow baking dish. While you are layering the slices, add some cinnamon to each layer. Next add raisins over the whole dish. We then take some oatmeal and soak it a soymilk or a nut mylk and lay that over the top as a crust. Baked at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until apples are soft. HINT: we make this a day or two ahead when we have the oven on and then it’s ready for a breakfast meal. I put in the microwave for a 1 minute and we are eating, one apple per person is a great meal. The cinnamon adds the best taste!

Another breakfast treat that we love is Banana freeze. It’s another easy to make recipe for a quick and easy breakfast but has a great punch.

Banana Fluff:

1 frozen banana

¼ cup soymilk or a nut mylk

A drop or two of vanilla extract

Blend until smooth. Tastes fantastic! We freeze bananas as they begin to go bad. I simply peel and break in half put in a baggie and they are ready when we want a frozen treat. This tastes great as a substitute ice cream, plus you are eating healthy.

Something we enjoy is Raisin Coleslaw, which is a raw dish that adds lots of micronutrients and is a creative way of getting veggies in your day. It’s pretty easy too.

Raisin Coleslaw:

½ cup raisins

½ cup apple juice

½ baked potato

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp lemon juice

 3-4 cups shredded cabbage (I like the purple ones, they add a great color to the dish).

1-2 cups shredded carrots

1-2 cu[s peeled and shredded apples

¼ cup finely chopped onion

Blend the first 4 ingredients and pour over the cabbage, carrots and apples. Mix thoroughly. 

What I've Learned (Part II)

In this post I want to focus on food and getting healthier to the point where you feel better in very little time. Eating right is not a hard concept or even something that is “out there” somewhere, it’s a matter of deciding you are tired of being tired and you want something new for yourself and you want to live a life medication free and as long as possible with great health in your older years.

Kathy and I went to see Dr. Fuhrman and we came away with a renewed respect for healthy eating and putting micronutrients into our bodies at every meal! Micronutrients have little to no calories but they do have phytochemicals which fuel the body vs. macronutrients that have lots of calories that are made up of fat, carbs and protein.  More than you need and therefore you gain weight and keep it on. Macronutrients speeds the aging process, causes inflammation, breaks down our cell walls and simply causes havoc inside our bodies. It’s what I was saying about bagels and chicken and how they are the same. Protein loads drives cancer in our blood cells and promotes prostate cancer in men. We, as American, have to stop medicating ourselves. Does it make sense to you that staying on meds is what God intended? Is he a God who cannot make our bodies work perfectly? Eating to live can make a huge difference in your life and quickly. Our bodies are amazing and wonderfully created. If we do right by it will: repair itself, reverse diseases, stop cancer, and prevent heart attacks. So why don’t we do something if it is that easy? Great question! I ask that too! Kathy and I decided we want to eat foods that promote health, growth and slows the aging process to nil. We committed to eating a mostly raw diet and little animal product.  Here’s a brief sampling of where we are now.

As many of you know, I have been on this journey for close to 4 years now and Kathy has been joining me but never fully committing to the Eat To Live program until now. We began eating exactly according to the 6 week plan, me supporting her and she supporting me as we go through the journey. Both of us had to detox again, which is hard for a few days as your body gets use to the micronutrient load we are giving it. Both of us have lost weight (again) and both experienced withdrawal of macronutrient foods. I didn’t think I would have too much trouble. I haven’t been eating garbage foods but guess what, I was off just enough to have to go through the process again. Dr. Fuhrman spoke about this at the Immersion day and in his book. We knew it was coming. So what does hunger feel like and what does withdrawal feel like?

Withdrawal feels like many of us know as hunger, but guess what? Your body is trying to repair itself from the garbage food we fed it and now as it begins to repair it feels like discomfort and we want to feed it so the withdrawal stops. I was eating when I was bored, emotionally upset and stressed out. I had to make changes so when those triggers arise I can avoid making the old mistake of “oh, I’m hunger” feeling. Today, I think, I’m repairing and cleaning from the inside out.

Hunger is something that I feel in my throat. It’s weird, I know but true! I find myself salivating in my throat and then my heads begins to the taste sensation to the throat feeling and I know it’s been around 5-6 hours since I last ate. For many, that may be way too long between meals but, waiting longer periods between meals is actually very healthy for your body as it repairs and recovers from the last meal.  The experts have different opinions on this but I believe Dr. Fuhrman has it right since science is on his side. Our organs need to rest between meals and they need to recover before we feed them again. This is God’s plan, not modern man’s plan. The Anabolic phase is when your body is converting food into fuel and digesting; you really don’t want to be at this phase through out the day, it’s not good for your body to always be digesting food. The phase you want to spend a good deal of your day in, not the Catabolic phase when your body is done digesting the food and begins to rest the organs. This may be a hard lesson to learn to understand but it’s important to know what is happening after eating.

Okay, what should eat? It’s simple and it’s what God intended. Beans, fruits, nuts and seeds, lots of green lefty veggies along with mushrooms and onions should be eaten everyday.  There’s a cool acronym for this called G.O.M.B.B.S which translates to Greens, Onions, Mushrooms, Beans Berries and Seeds. If you live by this simple acronym you will be doing a great service to your body and will see results very quickly. If you want to lose weight I am going to provide some cool recipes that Kathy and I have tried and love! If you want to reverse diabetes or blocked arteries this diet will do that too, what if you are healthy? This will be your thing and something for you to get excited about. Remember that eating whole foods are better than the same food that has been processed. For example, sunflower seeds are great for you, but the sunflower oil not so much. When we modify foods into something different they turn into BAD fat instead of healthy fat your body can use as fuel and not store as sugar. A good way to understand this is to remember: Bad fat allows the storing of fat within 3-5 minutes of eating it, so it’s minutes from the lips to the hips! Is that what you want? If you are overweight, it’s the last thing you want so stop using modified foods and stick with the whole food. Raw foods, scares people, I think, raw sounds bad and too crunchy, guess what, God wanted us to eat whole foods raw, because they are still alive and will be turn into great fuel in our bodies! It really does make sense if you understand how we were meant to be. Think of this; a palmful of nuts and/or seeds prevents overeating because they will fill you up and won’t go to your hips. Beans are the same way, beans are a perfect food, and they do so much for us every time we eat them. Beans everyday will help your weight control and keep you from feeling empty.

Next post will be recipes and more from what Kathy and I learned from our journey. We want to be a support for you and a guide into a new world of health. I encourage you to read Dr. Fuhrman’s book Eat To Live and get committed to your future. I’ll see you again with recipes and more next time.

To your health,

Bill

What did I learn?

Two weeks ago my wife and I went to Fort Wayne, IN. to be in a one day Health Immersion with Dr. Fuhrman. Emily Boller, the person in charge of making the day happen inviting me to be apart and share my weight lost success.  I was excited for more than one reason, I wanted to meet Dr. Fuhrman and Emily, but also I wanted to be renewed within. The day was excellent and brain overload, even for someone who has been on this journey for over 3 years now. Actually I started losing weight 4 years ago but discovered Dr. Fuhrman through a colleague, Gary Thomas. So what did I learn at this health immersion?

The Standard American Diet is S.A.D., how true and how fitting. That health care is actually self-care. We rely on others to keep us healthy, what’s wrong with that statement? Since when does someone else get up with you and cloth you or bathe you? So staying healthy is the medical field’s problem? That’s America. In fact, by the time most people are 30, they are on some kind of medication. And they stay on meds for the rest of their lives and think, “this is normal.” Seriously? We eat too much protein in the way of animal protein and not nearly enough of whole natural protein. Animal protein promotes cancer in our bodies and we have to wake up to the data, the science, the studies that say it over and over, we were not meant to eat this way! God did not intend for us to live by eating animals and processed foods as our daily diet. God intended for us to eat plants, seeds and nuts, so what happened? Whatever happened, did so many years before us and mostly in the later 50’s and early 60’s with processed foods (an easier way of life, the good ‘ol TV dinner!)

Medicine doesn’t motivate us to get and stay healthy. Medicine allows us to be overweight, live with diabetes instead of lose weight and lose the diabetes. We live with sore joints instead of losing weight and helping our joints. It all shortens our life. It really does! We don’t eat foods that promote healthy tissues, healthy blood pressure, healthy weight; we just drop a pill for those. For example, what’s the difference between a bagel and a piece of chicken? NOTHING. They are same type of food, very little micronutrient per calorie. Their nutrient load is the same, they offer very little to our health and our digestive system. At what point will you decide to fuel your body with nutrients instead of whatever tastes good but offers little fuel to the body? This diet ages us, causes inflammation of our organs and joints, and doesn’t allow the repair of our blood cells which damages our DNA. We live with toxins and free radicals, which become cancer, heart attacks and death.

We live with funny ideas, diet pop over the real thing, skim milk over whole milk. Actual diet drinks are dangerous to our health because our brains think it’s going to take some nutrition and it doesn’t but the brain already sent out its messages and whole body wonders what just happened. The same with skim milk, it has more fat and sugars than whole milk. How can that be? Look at the research, skim milk is processed and in an effort to make it taste good they have screwed it up even more so than whole milk! We think we are eating right when we are causing more damage to our internal organs.

The really sad news is we are addicted to feeling good and if we feel any sort of discomfort we want to eat to lose that feeling. I have experienced that myself. It’s self-medicating; I bet you do this every week. Did you know that hunger feeling is not hunger at all? It is withdrawal. Hunger comes from our throat and head. This is science, not me making things up, please go do the research and prove it yourself. Withdrawal feels like hunger but it is a nutrient deficiencies and our body building up toxins and we feel discomfort. YOU’RE NOT HUNGRY.  This is something you might need time to think about and learn on before we move to another phase of digesting and resting. In my next blog, I’ll talk about foods, how to break addiction, learn to live a longer life and stay healthy as you age. I wish you only the best!  So, I am including Dr. Fuhrman’s website for you to visit and learn for yourself:    http://www.drfuhrman.com/library/foodpyramid.aspx

To your health,

Bill

Keeping your produce fresh 101

How to extend the life of your food by keeping produce fresher is my concern today. I hope you are well and happy, enjoying these spring days. The promises of warmer weather, longer days, more sunshine, lifts my spirit. I hope it blesses yours as well. First thing is to buy when produce is in season promotes bigger savings, just picked fruit and veggies that pact more nutrients. Our problem is the overbuying and the spoilage. ‘ve learned a few tips over time and maybe you can save too.

Knowing how your produce wants to be stored and how it will react to other foods is key! Watermelon, for example, will ripen on your countertop in about a week, which will nearly double its nutrients, Place in the fridge overnight for cold juicy watermelon. Beware, don’t store it next to other fruits, watermelon doesn’t like the ethylene gas released by fruits. This will speed up its deterioration.

Grapes and most all berries are a great  to eat most year round. Store them in their original container but removed the bruised one and I like to wrap mine in a paper towel to absorb the excess moisture given off, because it keeps the mold growth down. Don’t wash the fruit until you are ready to eat them, water encourages mold growth. No one wants that!

Herbs need to be wrap in a paper towel to absorb their moisture too and then place in a plastic bag. Don’t  place basil in the fridge though, the cold tends to kill it off quicker. I keep mine by the window so it can get some sun each day. Tomatoes need to be stored in their container as well in the fridge. If they need ripening, leave them on the counter for more flavor and a nutrient boost. Once they are ripened, place in the fridge. Consider cooking the tomatoes in a microwave, they will give a nutrient boost that raw tomatoes cannot provide. Tomatoes don’t like being around other fruits because of the gases either.

Leafy greens, I always have a fridge full it seems and I’ve lost lots of greens by not providing for their needs. Greens need to be dry while being stored. Moisture promotes decay rather quickly. I wrap mine in paper towels to keep the moisture off and I keep them away from fruits while in the fridge. 

Using some smart savvy in the storing process will keep your foods fresher and they will taste better, look better and give you the nutrients you desire. I love eating raw foods daily and I have become picky about the freshness and nutrient punch in each food I eat. It’s frustrating to find decayed foods and have to dispose of them before you’re ready to eat them. I also shop at least twice to three times a week buying only what I will eat in the next 1-3 days. It may take more planning on your part and time to shop but when this is your food, it’s important to me to have fresh and healthy food in the fridge or on the counter. I have a smart phone and found an app that I can create shopping lists, as I need something, I add it to the app so when I'm ready, my list is ready with me. In our house, we eat somewhere around 9-11 pounds of leafy greens each week and trust me, I only buy for a few days at a time. This way I can get variety in the greens and I know I’m eating the best product. We eat 12-15 pounds of fruit each week and again, I buy enough but I’m always buying fruit every time I shop. If you need to snack, fruit is a great choice. This may seem like a lot of food but when you are raw foodists it’s not that abnormal, as many of you will attest. Keep it healthy and keep it raw! Eat for nutrients and not just to fill up. Think about eating as your way of fueling the body, so give it premium gas every time.

To your health,

Bill

Eating from the Sea

I've had a great but very busy week (weekend) and I hope you are off to a great week too. I have a  lot on my plate (pun intended), but I am always looking for new foods and dishes I can make at home to control the qulaity and maintain the nutritional impact of my foods. Something I have been eating these for years in different formats and I'm excited to tell you about sea veggies, that's right, vegeatables from the ocean. Don't lose it here, hold on,  just keep reading and I know you will want to try some for yourself after reading how good they are for you. It is my hope you will give them a try and if you already enjoy them, let me know you how you eat them and maybe we can put an article about your sea veggie experiences/recipes!

Sea vegetables are some of the highest in nutrients and yet, many of us don’t eat them and think they are gross because they lived in the sea! They are rich in anti-allergy and anti-inflammatory algae that also boost our immunity. You might not know that even in prehistoric times it was a staple for our ancestors. Sushi is what comes to mind for most when they think of seaweed (nori sheet) but sea vegetables are far from our mainstream diet.

In a study from the journal Nutrition Reviews, sea vegetables are high in essential vitamins, minerals that if consumed regularly would be more than enough for anyone. In fact the micronutrients levels in marine plants are higher many land based foods like brown rice, lentils, many fruits and vegetables.  The calcium levels are higher as well as, iron and copper than in meat and spinach! These plants from the sea also provide potassium, magnesium, iodine and high levels of protein.  These same veggies have omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins A, B, C and E. Plus the fiber they offer is close to 12.5% of the daily recommended amount. That is amazing what these plants offer and yet we are skittish to eat them, why? Because they are from the sea and our mothers didn’t teach us to like them because she didn’t know. You can change that right now!

Another amazing fact is these sea veggies are low in calories and fat! That’s why these plants have been found to fight off viruses and cancers. Some studies indicate these plants can lower cholesterol and blood pressure as well as being a super immunity food, which is why we should eat them regularly if not daily. We have close to 10,000 species of marine plants that offer up their own unique nutritional advantages. Let me go over a few of the more common ones you can find in health food store and in local markets:

Arame, this is kelp that has a thin texture with a nutty taste that is rich in calcium, iron and iodine. It’s a good addition to beans, grains, noodles, stews and casseroles.

Dulse, is a red leaf veggie that has a smoky flavor and is easy to eat right out of the bag and has the most iron of all the sea veggies. Kacie Loparto fries it up like bacon. It can be a good addition to any salad but if it is cooked too long it deteriorate because it is a delicate plant.

Nori, is used to make sushi rolls and is the most common in the U.S., which also has the highest levels of protein. The flavor is sweet and meaty. I use it for soups and as a snack.

Wakame, is one of my favorite green veggie because of its mild flavor and I love seaweed salad. I will provide a recipe at the end for you to try on your own. This kelp needs soaking or a little heat if you prefer to reconstitute it but be aware it expands once soaked and you have more on your hands than just a little. I have found that many of these sea veggies are dehydrated for longer shelf life and to keep them fresher for us.

If you are bored with the same ol, same ol, then this is a good alternative to spinach, broccoli and the same old lettuce mixture you might be used to. I love to use it in salads for a flavor that is so different that I can’t believe I didn’t try it long before I did. The benefits are fantastic and it is versatile enough to use in many forms and I suggest you experiment. Anyone who knows me knows I like to experiment and to see what combinations I can find to make a new dish. For me, this is part of the journey, to explore new areas and find new things to eat. This past weekend I found nori sheets made with wasabi as a snack and I was addicted after the first bite! The wasabi burn along with the crunch of the nori sheet was incredible. 

Bill’s seaweed salad:

• I use 2-3 wakame pieces (about ¾ oz.) soaked and/or slightly heated up. Put on a paper towel to drain the moisture away. I usually let them set for 5-10 minutes. While that is drying I mix together:
• 3 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. ground toasted sesame seeds (white are more pure)

• Hot chili flakes to taste, but don’t be afraid to add them for that additional spice.

Next, put the dried seaweed into a bowl or mixing container and add the mixture from above, stir thoroughly for a rich flavored salad that tastes as good as what you might expect in the restaurant.  Sometimes I add in cut cucumbers or chopped onions, mushrooms, tofu, you can add what you like and the flavor just keeps getting better. My mouth is beginning to water thinking about this.

Analysis per ¾ cup serving: 73 calories, 6g proteins, 2 g fat (none is saturated), 1g fiber, 8g carbs, 620mg sodium.

You can do this! Tastes great and is even better for you. Try this as a way to spice up your meals and what you eat through out the week. There are many marine plants that we can enjoy and I like variety so I look around at what foods I can get my hands on for a new treat. This will be your new go-to food.

To your health,

Bill

Raw Sushi (in the making)

Sushi going/gone raw.

The word maki means “roll” and if you put the nori and maki together you get rolls made with fried seaweeds. I thought some of you might be interested in how I make raw sushi at home and enjoy a great tasting snack or dinner. Sea vegetables are the best at providing mineral, calcium, B vitamins and lignans, all of which are antioxidants that protect us from disease and cancers. I’ve experimented over the last year on to make totally raw sushi and I’ve come up with some seriously good eats.

My ingredients are pretty much the same as that of a regular sushi rolls except mine are without meat and totally raw. I use avocado, carrots, sprouts and cucumbers.  No rice is used in my rolls because I have found two really great ways to make rolls without the rice, which is white rice and has little to no nutrient value. I wanted my rolls to be healthier and more nutritious than what one could buy out in a sushi restaurant.

Rice mixture#1:

1 ½ cups of peeled and dice turnips

½ cup pine nuts

2 teaspoons of rice vinegar (or substitute your own)

Process the ingredients together in a food blender until everything is a small uniform rice size mix. Add more vinegar if the mixture is too dry.

This is mock rice but works really well and most people wouldn’t know the difference. I have used other foods such as squash and jicama for the rice mixture. Experiment and have fun with different foods.

Rice mixture #2:

Couple handfuls of sprouts mixed with avocado to make a sticky mess. Combine to the two together so the avocado is thoroughly mixed with the sprouts. This is a tasty and very effective way to make mock rice.

Making to roll:

 On a dry surface, using a sushi mat or just your hands, spread a layer of your mock rice evenly over the seaweed sheet. Arrange some cucumbers (cut long and into thin strips), add in some carrots (cut the same way, long and in very thin strips0, and some avocado, cut into strips.

To make the actual roll, start at the edge closet to you. Lift the nori (seaweed sheet) up and begin to roll very tightly away from you. Repeat with the remaining sheets and mixtures. After you have made several and they have set, cut into 1 inch to 1 ½ inch pieces and enjoy with Braggs instead of soy sauce which will have less sodium than soy.

I eat them as fast I make them and love the process. Making my own is a fun thing I do for myself and I get pleasure from experimenting and finding what works and what doesn’t. The cool thing I’ve learned is that when I fail, I eat the evidence and no one knows. Pretty sweet failures!

To your health,

Bill