We are fast approaching the Summer vacation period and I am sure there will be a lot of people thinking about that spare tyre they have around the middle or the bloating that has plagued them all winter but was covered up with layers of clothing.

How would you like to banish the Winter/Spring excess and feel trim, no bloating and improve your skin tone and texture too ?

Here are 8 simple steps you can do easily to help you get that “to die for” beach body.

Step 1

Cut out sugar, that which you add and the sugar in its various forms in cakes, biscuits, chocolate, sweets, puddings, ice cream, dried fruit and so on….

Step 2

Cut out yeast, that which is in bread, rolls, pizza, gravy powders/stock

Do you know that by cutting out those two products from your diet it will cause you to be naturally cutting out convenience foods, takeaways, any junk food sweet or savoury because those two products are in just about everything you eat, every day !

Step 3

Eat plenty of salad and herb leaves, fresh vegetables, whole grains, sprouted lentils and beans, fresh fruit – everything in season and as local as possible and drink lots of spring water

Step 4

Do not add salt, use herbs and spices and seaweeds for flavour – (this will help to reduce water retention)

Step 5

Chew your food- this encourages the release of enzymes in the mouth which help to breakdown foods (starches) before entering the stomach, it also gives your jaw and teeth some exercise and causes you not to eat quite so much.

Step 6

Choose a good quality pro-biotic to encourage the formation of good bacteria in the gut, chances are that your bacteria is overpopulated with the bad guys which will cause bloating.

Step 7

Get out there ! exercise try walking, skipping, running, go to an exercise class, dance class, yoga class – anything that will get the heart rate up which will in turn help with the blood flow through the body systems and organs and it will encourage the release of happy hormones (endorphins) too – a sure winner !

Step 8

Give your skin a good brushing or scrub with a loofah or a good body scrub with some sea salt and oil – this will get rid of any dead cells and allow your skin to breath and renew.

For a full health and vitality  programme to follow all year get my book Healthy Tart for the ladies or Healthy Dude for the guys call me on 01647 440440

Have a great Summer

As a nutritionist I believe that all disease begins in the “gut”.   So much is affected in the rest of the body if the digestive system does not work efficiently.  Poor diet and stress are the main contributors.

By understanding a little of how the digestive system actually digests the food you eat is important.  You will be told that body digests food, this is NOT so… it is the micro-organisms contained within the body that do the job, the good bacteria and some of the bad guys, along with our own body chemicals too.

The body is an environmental package for bacteria to proliferate. The food we consume will determine the kind of bacteria that will grow or be destroyed. A balance of the correct food, water and heat will keep the acid and alkaline situation balanced so that the digestive system works efficiently without giving its host any problems. The good and bad guys are aided by the body’s own chemicals, fat disolvers and digestive enzymes.

These microforms are called the friendly bacteria, they multiply through digestion of nutrients. These guys help, along with our enzymes, to breakdown the foods we eat into vitamins, minerals, amino acids (proteins), carbohydrates, fatty acids and so on.

But what about the bad guys, the unfriendly bacteria, they like the same environment as the good guys but when these unfriendly bacteria breed they cause fermentation or putrefaction which gives off a different chemical composition causing toxins to be present, this is the bi-product of the bad guys.  You get a bloated abdomen and other symptoms such as foggy thinking, spacey heads, headaches, nausea and so on, which will lead on to disease in its many forms.

There should be a massive 80% of good bacteria to a 20% of bad for the digestive system to work efficiently. Most people have spent a long time eating the foods which love to increase the bad guys ending up with the balance the other way round, ill health will ensue.

Which foods cause us to increase the good bacteria ? fresh raw vegetables, fruits in the correct combination, if you refer to my books you will see the “hunter/gatherer idea and how our complex digestive system was designed to work with these foods.

Foods that are high in what is termed as simple sugars or fast release carbohydrates which means taken up in the body very quickly i.e. white sugar, honey maltose, lactose etc will encourage fermentation, even some fruits such as melon and bananas and dried fruits will cause fermentation, particularly where there is already a problem with too many of the bad guys (bacteria) The high protein foods such as meat will encourage putrefacation. The organisation of food types, if kept simple will assist digestion, the more complex food combining (I mean junk type food) will lead to a massive fight inside the body causing in-digestion.  Certain chemical/enzymatic changes take place in the process of digestion, under normal circumstances. Each part of the digestive tract has a job to do for delivery of the correct nutrients in their broken down state to be delivered to the necessary systems, if this does not happen you end up with a toxic system due to the bi-products of the waste/purtrefication.

So…. To ensure you have a healthy gut eat plenty of raw vegetables and fruits, if you already have a problem with your gut then start taking a good quality, organic probiotic as this will help the spread of good bacteria as well as changing your diet.

So – what other reasons could there be for you not losing weight – here are some tips

1. Could be you are eating too much, particularly of the wrong foods, so how will you know ?
2. Do a food diary for seven days, you may be surprised at how much you are actually eating and drinking of course, particularly alcohol and fizzy drinks and large your portions are – but more often it is eating and drinking the wrong products that causes the problem
3. Take a look and see how much saturated fat you have eaten, those are in meat, cheese, cream and other dairy products and don’t forget all that hidden fat in crisps, chocolate, biscuits, cakes etc. and all those takeaways, ready meals.
4. Then see how much sugar, that which you have added and that which is contained in biscuits, chocolates, sweets, fizzy drinks, alcohol, puddings, cakes, even all those low sugar products and again, don’t forget what is hidden in takeaway food, ready meals.
5. Check out how many meals you are eating per day and how many snacks and nibbles be honest with yourself!
6. If all is reasonable maybe you are not using up those calories, try three workouts per week to shift those unwanted lb’s, walk everywhere you can, run up stairs, or do any exercise that you like, but get moving !
7. You may also need a health check to ensure that there is nothing holding you back, could be sluggish metabolism, a hormonal problem or something else that may need investigating.

If you are really struggling, thinking that you are doing everything you can then I would recommend a health screening with me at the Trisha Stewart Clinic which would identify what is holding you back and we can then provide you with a tailored plan to follow together with full support throughout the programme.

Alternatively check out one of my books, there are full programmes to follow that are guaranteed to get that weight off if done correctly.

We are here to help and support you in any of your health and fitness challenges as our mission is to give people back their health and freedom.

Your health matters to us, does it matter to you ?

SAD, Seasonal Affective Disorder

This disorder affects many people, particularly during the winter months or when there is not enough daylight.  People who do not normally sufferer with any mental ill health can, particularly during December and January, suddenly feel very low and somewhat depressed.  For those people who already have mental health issues, the winter months can sometimes cause a deepening of their symptoms.

What causes one to feel SAD ?

A lack of natural, full spectrum light, which reduces the amount of Melatonin secreted by the Pineal Gland.

The Pineal gland (part of the endocrine (hormonal) system) is a small cone shaped organ which sits in the centre of the brain (mystics call this the third eye).  It converts incoming nerve impulses received as bio-electrical messages about the outside environment (full spectrum light) into outgoing hormones in the blood stream (vascular system).

During daylight the Pineal Gland , which is highly responsive to the amount of light to which we are exposed, releases very little melatonin but at night melatonin secretion triples to help regulate our circadium rhythms (internal clock, sleeping and waking cycles).

As melatonin rises and is secreted you begin to experience a hypnotic-like state which helps to bring sleep on.  In the morning when daylight returns melatonin decreases again.

When you get lots of bright sunlight during the day Melatonin is secreted in the hours of darkness.  When not enough full spectrum light is available during the day there will not be enough melatonin to be secreted.  This will cause SAD and/or chronic depression.

There is always more to SAD than the above as one must take into consideration the whole of the person, their lifestyle, medical history, family history, childhood, career, stress and most importantly diet.

I would work on the principle that the person who has SAD will have some form of depression, linked to a hormonal issue and/or any of the above.  More women than men suffer with this problem, or so we think, as men do not often admit to having any problems and this can sometimes be linked to Mothers who spend a lot of time indoors with their children during winter.

A good diet is essential, using wholefoods, preferably organic or better still biodynamic.  These foods should be of the season so typically wintertime roots, leaves, stems, nuts, seeds.

Anyone, particularly with depression or SAD will require regular mealtimes and snacks to keep the blood sugar levels balanced and therefore energy at its peak.

The following is a list of vitamins and minerals specifically required and which foods they are available from.

B Vitamins found in the following foods listed in order of importance in my opinion, preferring more of the first 7 points as these are less taxing on the digestive system and unless the others are organic they can add to the load of not just digestion but the liver and immunity.

• Pulses (beans) lentils, chick peas
• Wholegrains (rice, quinoa, millet, buckwheat etc), Wheatgerm
• Vegetables such as dark green leaves, mushrooms, cauliflower, tomatoes, avocado, squash, celery
• Spirulina and other sea vegetables (*see note below for vegan’s)
• Nuts and seeds
• Soya products
• Strawberries, bananas, dried fruits
• Fish
• Eggs
• Dairy products
• Meat and poultry
• Organ meats

A note on B12 for Vegans

 

Vegans using adequate amounts of fortified foods or B12 supplements are much less likely to suffer from B12 deficiency than the typical meat eater. The Institute of Medicine, in setting the US recommended intakes for B12 makes this very clear. “Because 10 to 30 percent of older people may be unable to absorb naturally occurring vitamin B12, it is advisable for those older than 50 years to meet their RDA mainly by consuming foods fortified with vitamin B12 or a vitamin B12-containing supplement.” Vegans should take this advice about 50 years younger, to the benefit of both themselves and the animals. B12 need never be a problem for well-informed vegans.

*Spirulina – The vegetarian Society says this:

The only reliable unfortified sources of vitamin B12 are meat, dairy products and eggs. There has been considerable research into possible plant food sources of B12. Fermented soya products, seaweeds and algae have all been proposed as possible sources of B12. However, analysis of fermented soya products, including tempeh, miso, shoyu and tamari, found no significant B12.

Spirulina, an algae available as a dietary supplement in tablet form, and nori, a seaweed, have both appeared to contain significant amounts of B12 after analysis. However, it is thought that this is due to the presence of compounds structurally similar to B12, known as B12 analogues. These cannot be utilised to satisfy dietary needs. Assay methods used to detect B12 are unable to differentiate between B12 and it’s analogues, Analysis of possible B12 sources may give false positive results due to the presence of these analogues.

All these tests are, as yet, inconclusive, as are many tests for many reasons but it is worth being as sure as you possibly can and maybe it woulod be a good idea to have a blood test although it is said that a blood B12 level measurement is unreliable test for vegans, particularly vegans using any form of algae such as spirulina and some other plant foods containing B12-analogues (false B12) that can imitate true B12 in blood tests while actually interfering with B12 metabolism. Blood counts are also unreliable as high folate intakes suppress the anaemia symptoms of B12 deficiency that can be detected by blood counts. Blood homocysteine testing is more reliable, with levels less than 10 mmol/litre being desirable.  The most specific test for B12 status is methylmalonic acid (MMA) testing.  If this is in the normal range in blood (<370 nmol/L) or urine (less than 4 mg /mg creatinine) then your body has enough B12. Many doctors still rely on blood B12 levels and blood counts. These are not adequate, especially in vegans.

Other minerals

Magnesium

• From the food groups listed above

Chromium

• As above but particularly including root vegetables and green peppers

On top of this a good all round range of foods which are in season, ripened naturally, locally grown will enhance mood as will the colour of foods we see influence what we eat, this will be affected by the hormone system which is inextricably linked to SAD.

There are many reasons that people find they have this disorder.  If you feel you have SAD, but are unsure, complete the online profile so that I can detect anything else that may be causing your symptoms and then offer a solution.

Allergies and Intolerances what is the difference ?

I hear and see people all the time who say “ I can’t eat this or that as I have an allergy”, when in point of fact 99% of the time it is an intolerance due to a compromised digestive system.  They ask me for a food intolerance test, most times I will refuse because I know from experience there will be more to it than one or two particular foods causing a problem.  When the gut becomes compromised, due to poor diet, candida, parasites, molds, it will become sensitive, the enzymes to break down certain foods will be inefficient if they exist at all.  This means, a full investigation into what is causing the body to react in this way.

A true food allergy will cause an immunologic reaction.  The Immune system is over-stimulated by a certain food or allergen and attacks the body.  The body will manufacture immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies which will react to the food or allergen and cause the immune system to release histamines and other chemicals causing an “allergic” response.  Symptoms can be as little as bloating, diarrhea, constipation, to skin rashes, swelling of the throat, face tongue to loss of consciousness and in fact death.

Food intolerance is a condition where adverse effects occur after eating a particular food, combination of foods or an ingredient in a food.  These could be headaches, nausea, bloating, diarrhea, skin irritation, blocked sinuses, tiredness etc. and can occur at anytime from eating to 72 hours so it is really hard to detect which particular food or combination of foods that has been eaten that has caused the symptom.

This is not necessarily an immune response it is due to a compromised digestive system, often associated with candida and parasites and too much of one particular food which will cause the system to become compromised.

The most common food intolerances, in order of frequency are milk, eggs, nuts, fish/shellfish, wheat/flour, chocolate, artificial colours, pork/bacon, chicken, tomato, soft fruit, cheese and yeast.  This is why it is so important to follow my 30 day plan as this cleanses you of all these foods so that we can get a great foundation for future health.

Some food substances can act like drugs, particularly if taken in large quantities. The most familiar of these substances is caffeine, found in tea, coffee, chocolate and cola drinks. A large intake of caffeine can cause tremor, migraine and palpitations. Other pharmacologically active substances found in food include histamine, tyramine, tryptamine and serotonin, which may be consumed in foods such as red wine, cheese, yeast extract, avocados and bananas. In susceptible people, these foods can trigger urticaria, facial flushing and headaches.

If you read the article on molds, you will also see there are many factors surrounding the food you are potentially eating and this will compromise the gut and the immune system.

Coeliac disease is a gut intolerance to a protein found in wheat, called gluten, it would not be considered an allergy. The symptoms of coeliac disease are controlled by following a gluten-free diet (see article on gluten intolerance). It is unknown exactly why or how gluten harms the gut, although it is now thought to be an abnormal immunological response rather than an enzyme deficiency. It is still not considered to be a food allergy in the true sense of the definition, although it causes great discomfort for the sufferer.

Many other digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, headaches, migraine, menopausal symptoms and pre menstrual tension can all be directly linked to foods.

Depending on severity of condition, length of time suffered, a change of diet, supplementation and healing remedies are all that is needed to restore good health and vitality.

Follow my 30 day plan and you will be feeling better than you have in years, or for more help please contact me on 01647 440440 or trisha@trishastewart.com

What to do about the excesses of Christmas

Do you know that Christmas Day will see many people packing in around 7,000 calories and 90gms of that is going to be fat ! – especially if they are following some of the celebrity chef’s recipes which include so much extra fat, salt and sugar it is incredible and of course Christmas Day goes into Boxing Day, consuming even more calories and so it goes on till New Year when people will be groaning with tight waistbands and very uncomfortable digestive systems.

Am I to late to save anyone from digestive disaster – I guess so !  because all we have now is one day, as I am sure it will all begin tomorrow xmas eve -  all I can do now is give some great tips on what to do to start putting your health first so I have only 4 tips, there is no need for any more right now as these 4 tips will be guaranteed to make a massive impact on your health -  start with any day between now and new year to try these tips, with a promise to yourselves to start the New Year working on great health.

Forget dieting – it only makes you fat – instead follow these four tips, yes only four as this is really simple.

Tip 1   Drink at least two litres of water daily – starting the day with a very large glass of hot water  sliced lemons and limes, this will kick the digestive system into action, particularly that poor gallbladder which is working so hard to emulsify all that fat !  and during the day have several of those combined with herbal  teas of your choice as this will help to flush the kidneys and of course re-hydrate the body too

Tip 2   Cut out all sugar from your diet, that which you are adding by the spoonful to hot drinks and cereal but also hidden sugar in all those biscuits, cakes, chocolate, puddings and fizzy drinks.  Sugar is so addictive and can raise the glucose in the blood very quickly but also drop it to a level that will give you that heady, spacey feeling and that combined with a high fat diet will certainly contribute to the onset of type 11 diabetes  Stop any chemical sweetners too.  Eat fresh fruit and raw carrots plenty of natural sugar in those, make up a combination so that you can snack when necessary

Tip 3   Cut out salt, this means that anything you buy in a packet, tin or ready meal and takeaway will likely to contain added salt as well as other non essential food.  If you are cooking from scratch you can add a little pure sea salt.          Too much salt can cause high blood pressure, kidney stones even.  What can you do ! Use fresh herbs and spices to flavor food and have lots of fresh raw vegetables and salads as these contain only naturally balanced minerals

Tip 4   Cut out yeast – so that means bread and rolls, pizza and some gravy powders – why, because         yeast causes bloating due to an organism called candida, this is a big subject so I cannot cover it here, more on my website.  But believe me it makes a massive difference, cutting out bread means less butter, cheese, mayo and all those other high fat products people make sandwiches with.

During Christmas Day to New Years Day try to follow these tips wherever possible and if you get a day when there is nothing going on, just have fresh vegetable soups, fresh fruit and raw vegetables, give the digestive system a rest and reduce calories too.

We are now well on the way to a cracking good New Year, make the most of your health, do you know, many people spend their health getting wealthy and their wealth getting healthy – stop now and think how precious you are………….