Bev vs Aging

Staying young the fun way: through health & happiness

21 May 2013
3 Comments

Coconut Oil for Weight Loss

Pop quiz.

What helps you lose weight, is good for digestion, provides immunity to a whole bunch of stuff, is used in cosmetics, speeds up healing and your metabolism, helps maintain cholesterol levels and stave off osteoporosis, is effective against infections and can be deliciously added to endless healthy dishes?

You already know we’re talking about coconut oil.

Coconut tree from Kerala

Coconut tree from Kerala (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As we age, our digestive system and metabolism become more sluggish as our body struggles to rid us of toxins and other sludges. That’s one of the reasons we start to put on weight.

Weight loss solution? Organic coconut oil.

Athletes and body builders have known this for ages. Coconut oil has been part of their diet because it contains fewer calories than other oils. The fat content is also more easily converted into usable energy and so provides athletes with extra energy and endurance. The fat is used up and not left hanging around our stomachs, hearts and arteries.

Don’t be afraid to use it, especially for frying foods. In fact, it’s the only oil that is stable enough to withstand seriously high heat during cooking.

This wonder oil contains lauric acid. You body converts lauric acid to something called monolaurin which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties – an immune system bonanza! So ditch the spray and use the real stuff.

And your tummy will thank you. It can better digest the food with a dollop of coconut oil ‘cause it improves the absorption of vitamins and minerals from the food you eat. For those of us who may be middle-aged, coconut oil can help stave off osteoporosis since it helps your body absorb calcium and magnesium.

There’s one more unusual property. It’s solid at room temperature and only melts when the temperature rises. So don’t be worried if you see a bottle of solid coconut oil and then magically find it has liquefied. It’s fine. Go ahead and use it.

But remember: moderation is always the key.

A+ on that pop quiz.

-

Channa Masala/ Spiced Chickpea Curry Recipe

Ingredients

1 can of chickpeas rinsed

1 Tbsp coconut oil

½ tsp cumin seeds

½ tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp garam masala

¼ tsp chilli powder

1 small onion chopped

1 inch slice of ginger chopped

Coriander leaves

Directions

1. Heat coconut oil in skillet.

2. Add cumin seeds and wait for them to start popping.

3. Add onion and ginger and fry.

4. Combine the spices (this is called a masala) with water to make a paste.

5. Add paste to onion mixture, stirring. If the mixture gets too dry, add a little water.

6. Add chickpeas and simmer for a couple of minutes. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

For other ideas of what to do with this amazing oil, check out why our friends at lululemon are also cuckoo for coconut oil.

For more information http://www.tujawellness.com/articles/learn/the-age-old-war/the-age-old-war-coconut-oil.html

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08 May 2013
2 Comments

Lemon Your Way to Good Health

This image shows a whole and a cut lemon.

This image shows a whole and a cut lemon. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Bet you think of lemons as acidic. Well, you’re right and wrong. How’s that for confusion? Time to make sense of non-sense.

Lemon juice is actually a very weak acid, with a low sugar content. But its mineral contents are alkaline. This trumps the acid and helps to lower the acidity in our bodies. Alkaline bodies = good. Acidic bodies = bad.

Here’s a secret to faking your age: every morning when you wake up drink 4-6 oz. of warm water with two teaspoons of fresh lemon juice squeezed in. Then go about your business. Shower, shave etc. etc. before sitting down to a well-deserved breakfast.

Why the wait between the lemon juice and breakfast? It gives the lemon juice a chance to meander on to your liver where it helps to purify and stimulate this vital organ. Lemon juice does other lovely stuff like reducing phlegm, liquefying bile, facilitating your digestion and priming your bowels to do what they do best. Who can complain about that.

And there’s more. The high levels of potassium in lemon juice ensure that the electricity in your brain and nervous system can keep buzzing around in good shape. Brain fog and forgetfulness will also improve with that jolt of potassium.

Lemon juice also helps to dilute the uric acid which builds up and contributes to arthritic pain. So anyone who has arthritis should drink up (but lemon juice water only) for less pain.

The humble little lemon has even more goodies hidden within its juices. It’s chockfull of vitamin C and contains a horde of B-complex vitamins. This is a real boon since our bodies can’t create these B-complex vitamins. They must be acquired through food or supplements.

Best of all lemons are cheap, have very few calories, no fat and are rich in fibre. Smear some of the juice on your face to clear your complexion and fade dark age spots.

Lemons, anyone?

Fresh Lemon Juice

√ Two lemons
√ Old-fashioned citrus juicer
√ Small glass dish with cover

Slice the lemons in half and juice. Store the juice in a covered glass dish. Can be kept in refrigerator for up to one week.

For more information

Bet you think of lemons as acidic. Well, you’re right and wrong. How’s that for confusion? Time to make sense of non-sense.

Lemon juice is actually a very weak acid, with a low sugar content. But its mineral contents are alkaline. This trumps the acid and helps to lower the acidity in our bodies. Alkaline bodies = good. Acidic bodies = bad.

Here’s a secret to faking your age: every morning when you wake up drink 4-6 oz. of warm water with two teaspoons of fresh lemon juice squeezed in. Then go about your business. Shower, shave etc. etc. before sitting down to a well-deserved breakfast.

Why the wait between the lemon juice and breakfast? It gives the lemon juice a chance to meander on to your liver where it helps to purify and stimulate this vital organ. Lemon juice does other lovely stuff like reducing phlegm, liquefying bile, facilitating your digestion and priming your bowels to do what they do best. Who can complain about that.

And there’s more. The high levels of potassium in lemon juice ensure that the electricity in your brain and nervous system can keep buzzing around in good shape. Brain fog and forgetfulness will also improve with that jolt of potassium.

Lemon juice also helps to dilute the uric acid which builds up and contributes to arthritic pain. So anyone who has arthritis should drink up (but lemon juice water only) for less pain.

The humble little lemon has even more goodies hidden within its juices. It’s chockfull of vitamin C and contains a horde of B-complex vitamins. This is a real boon since our bodies can’t create these B-complex vitamins. They must be acquired through food or supplements.

Best of all lemons are cheap, have very few calories, no fat and are rich in fibre. Smear some of the juice on your face to clear your complexion and fade dark age spots.

Lemons, anyone?

Fresh Lemon Juice

√ Two lemons
√ Old-fashioned citrus juicer
√ Small glass dish with cover

Slice the lemons in half and juice. Store the juice in a covered glass dish. Can be kept in refrigerator for up to one week.

Posted in Anti-Aging, Baby Boomers, Beauty, General Health, Health & Wellness, Health News, Life, Menopause, Moms, Professionals, Retirees, Women and tagged ,
23 Apr 2013
1 Comment

Turmeric-An Anti-Inflammatory Weapon

English: Turmeric powder Deutsch: Kurkuma-Pulver

English: Turmeric powder Deutsch: Kurkuma-Pulver (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the war against aging, a soldier’s got to do what a soldier’s got to do.

With that thought in mind, I stab a curcurmin capsule with a pin. Out pours a stream of torrid yellow powder followed by an intense aroma of turmeric. Point proven: curcurmin is the active ingredient in turmeric.

There’s no doubt this is a potent spice. In fact it’s so powerful I can’t wash the yellow stain off my fingers.

All kidding aside, turmeric is a powerhouse defender against aging. It’s fun and easy to use but beware – it is messy and can stain your fingers and countertops, so take care when using.

Turmeric targets chronic and persistent inflammation in your body, the stimulus that is thought to contribute to aging. This is different from the type of swelling that occurs when you have a knee or muscle injury. Here, your body is protecting the bruised part, which is good. Not so for chronic inflammation.

Chronic or systemic inflammation is concealed within your body and is believed to cause or affect almost every age-related disease from rheumatoid arthritis to cancer to dementia. It can be revealed by a simple medical test called a C-reactive protein test which you can ask your doctor for, if you wish.

Why so much inflammation in the body? It’s simple.

Our modern world is awash with pollutants and contaminants. Synthetic compounds, herbicides, insecticides, pesticides and other chemicals have entered our water and food chain and can even be found in our body cells. Most of our foods are so far removed from their natural and organic state that our bodies can actually rebel against them. When this happens, our defense mechanism or autoimmune system literally runs amok trying to cope with the situation and systemic inflammation results. That’s when chronic and aging diseases slink in**.

Using turmeric in your everyday diet is a delicious and healthy way to keep this internal irritation in check and potentially clear your body of it. You can also use curcurmin capsules, which are widely available at all health food stores. But really, what’s the fun in that?

So, here’s the scoop. Control and eradicate systemic inflammation through a daily dose of curcurmin: up to 400 mcg is advised or as much turmeric as you care for each day. In addition, ditch the refined and processed foods, exercise, eat healthy fats, drink enough H20 and try, try, try to relax.

No white flags here in the war against aging. Only orange-stained capes.

Check out http://www.tujawellness.com/ for more healthy living articles

-

Here’s an easy recipe for summertime cooking with turmeric:

Grilled Eggplant with Turmeric

1. Slice one large eggplant into ¼ inch slices.

2. Make an X in the middle of each slice.

3. In a small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of coconut oil with 1 tablespoon of turmeric powder.

4. Brush the mixture onto both sides of the eggplant slices.

5. Grill 3-4 minutes per side.

** Dr. Mark Hyman, medical editor of the Huffington Post, advisor to the Dr. Oz Show, and one who calls himself a “pioneer of functional medicine”, says that a study of generally “healthy” elderly people found that those with the highest levels of C-reactive protein and interleukin 6 (two markers of systemic inflammation) were 260 percent more likely to die during the following 4 years. The increase in deaths was due to cardiovascular and other causes.  That’s one definite good reason to keep inflammation under control.

Next up? Cloves.

–

Bev Bell is chief cook and bottle washer and she wouldn’t have it any other way! She loves exclamation marks and her dog and her children and her husband – not necessarily in that order. Oh – she’s also a Reiki Master Teacher in her spare time. Visit Bev’s site @ www.sagewriting.com.

Posted in Anti-Aging, Baby Boomers, Beauty, General Health, Health & Wellness, Health News, Life, Menopause, Moms, Professionals, Retirees, women's health news and tagged , , ,
12 Oct 2012
1 Comment

Sign Your Way to Good Health

Use your brain or lose it. That, unfortunately, is the truth. Aging brains need to be constantly tweaked and worked out to keep those little gray cells healthy and happy.

The American manual alphabet in photographs

The American manual alphabet in photographs (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One fun way to do this is to learn American Sign Language.

Learn American Sign Language (ASL)

This is not as daunting as it sounds. I was 50 when I learned American Sign Language. I was the youngest in the classroom but so what – we were all in the same boat. Most of us didn’t even know the alphabet in sign language. Within one year I had passed the course and even taught the basic elements of ASL to a handful of seniors the next year. Do I use my newfound skill? Not very often but there is the thrill of learning an extremely interesting and fun language, of being able to converse with someone in something other than a verbal manner and just the joy of absorbing something new and fresh.

Check out your local college to see if they offer sign language courses.

Perhaps you don’t feel like facing a classroom of students. Don’t despair. The internet, as always, is an incredible resource. There are numerous sign language dictionaries online which can teach you everything from individual signs such as the alphabet to numbers to phrases.

Will you become a proficient signer? Probably not. But that is not the point of this exercise. Those people who choose to become interpreters for the Deaf (yes, that’s right. Deaf (with a capital D) is the way Deaf people choose to be referred to. They are not hearing-challenged or hearing-impaired. Deaf people take pride in their ability to sign.

ASL is actually a very beautiful language complete with poetry and art that must be visualized in a totally different way. It takes a while for a ‘hearing’ person to truly appreciate the beauty of sign language.

The purpose of learning sign language is to give your brain a boost in a fun and challenging manner. So turn on that computer and start signing. You’ll be glad you did.

 

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Posted in Anti-Aging, Baby Boomers, General Health, Health & Wellness, Health News, Life, Menopause, Professionals, Retirees, Women, women's health news and tagged , , , , ,
12 Oct 2012
2 Comments

Empower Yourself With Reiki

Reiki written in Shinjitai Japanese.

Reiki written in Shinjitai Japanese. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Chronic aches and pains, feeling perpetually under the weather, no appetite, lack of sleep. Recognize any of these ailments as one of your best friends? Here’s what you need to do: 

Take a Reiki Course

Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It’s now used by many nurses and volunteers in over 600 hospitals in the U.S. and in Canada. That’s because so many healthcare practitioners have discovered that Reiki is a wonderful tool to help their patients with pain management. Community-based centres like Wellspring that offer support programs for cancer patients and their families also provide Reiki ongoing basis… because they know it works.

Reiki has been effective in helping virtually every known illness and always generates a beneficial result. This includes minor ailments such as head or stomach aches, colds, coughs, tension and anxiety as well as serious illness such as heart disease and cancer.

And the wonderful thing about Reiki is that it is so simple and easy to learn and practise.  In fact, it is not even learned. The ability to use Reiki is transmitted to you through a Reiki Master/Teacher in a procedure called an attunement. Very simple and so rewarding. In the first level you learn how to use this wonderful gift on yourself and others. Reiki is a hands-on modality so your teacher will demonstrate different ways to place your hands so that Reiki flows easily through your hands.

It does sound like hocus pocus but once you experience it you’ll become a believer. Why should you learn Reiki? It will help you to help yourself and others and provides you with a feeling of empowerment. When you are achy and miserable or coming down with a cough or cold, giving yourself a dose of Reiki can be the difference between spending a week hacking in bed or going about enjoying your life.

Level 1 is inexpensive, accessible and once you have been attuned, you have it for life.

Reiki On.

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06 Oct 2012

Reblogged from Canadian Hiking Photography:

Posted in Anti-Aging | Leave a Comment
06 Oct 2012
1 Comment

L-arginine for muscle mass instead of Testosterone replacement with a warning for those with Herpes

Reblogged from Kim Crawford, M.D.-Anti-Aging doctor-Florida:

Click to visit the original post

We’ve often discussed the fact that many men THINK they need testosterone replacement but have normal levels; meaning they do NOT. One of the main amino acids we use to increase muscle mass is L-arginine but here’s something you should know about natural arginine in foods and l-arginine supplementation and it affects many people so feel free to pass this information along.

Read more… 317 more words

Posted in Anti-Aging
26 Sep 2012
5 Comments

Digest This – With Your GI Tract

A Healthy GI Tract

Trouble with your tummy. No trouble – just pop an antacid, down some pinky milk of magnesia or quaff down a handful of other such medications.

That’s what our world has been reduced to. Try for a quick fix. But here’s the problem: quick fixes don’t work. You need to get to the root of the problem to remedy the situation. Once you learn how your gastrointestinal tract works you will be able to take good and loving care of it and in the process have it work well for you, saving you the pain of heartburn – oops, it’s called acid reflux these days, indigestion and all those inglorious reactions like bloating, gas, constipation or conversely ‘the runs’. 

How Your GastroIntestinal Tract (GI) Works

Our GI tract begins in our mouths and ends at the anus. Tasting, chewing, mashing, grinding up – that’s what our teeth, tongue and taste buds are for. We need to use them well. When your food is well-chewed you are halfway to a good and healthy gut. Let me show you why.

Let’s take a mouthful of steak. Your teeth grind this morsel of meat until it becomes mush. Saliva, with its various enzymes, start to break the beef down until it is swallowed down the esophaghus. This 10-inch long tube secretes mucus to coat the chewed-up morsel and sends it to the stomach through something called peristalsis which are muscular contractions.

Once in the stomach your mushy food is dowsed with

  • mucus
  • hydrochloric acid (HCL)
  • pepsin which is a digesting enzyme
  • gastrin which is a  hormone that regulates the amount of acid produced
  • lipase which helps to digest fats.

Food then leaves the stomach through the duodenum.

Danger of not chewing your food

If you are one of those who swallows rather than chews their food, those large pieces find it very difficult to squeeze through the duodenum. They can cause the food to back up and forces your stomach and duodenum to work extra hard.

Out of the duodenum and on to the pancreas. This vital organ  secretes insulin to regulate your sugar levels, among a few other things and then hurries the food on to the liver. Here bile is added to the chyme (what the partially-digested food is now called) so that the stomach acids are neutralized.

On to the small intestine where 90% of the nutrients from that morsel of steak is squeezed out and absorbed. Once again, enzymes digest, proteins morph into amino acids, fats change into fatty acids and carbs are converted into simple sugars.

Into the large intestine or colon goes what’s left of that bite of meat. If you had not chewed this morsel thoroughly it would now be sitting in this tube fermenting and putrefying and causing you gas and pain. Ugh!

Finally, that particle of food moves through the colon where moisture is extracted from it and it gets ready to leave your body as fecal matter.

There, in a nutshell, is what happens to your bite of steak.

Chew well and think of what your food is going through while in your gastrointestinal tract.

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25 Sep 2012

Who’s Afraid of Iodine Deficiency?

Iodine Deficiency.

It’s not something that’s on the top of our list of worrisome subjects. There’s way too much else on that list: obesity, breast cancer, cancer in any form, eating nutritiously and what the heck our are kids up to.

But it’s time that people started realizing that not getting an adequate amount of iodine can lead to all sorts of trouble. In the past, people who lived far inland had the greatest trouble with iodine. It often manifested itself as a great, big goiter. Very unsightly to look at and extremely unpleasant to have. A goiter is actually an enlargement of the thyroid gland. It is this gland that needs the iodine. Without enough iodine children’s brains do not develop properly. Mental retardation can often be prevented by adding iodine to the diet. There are a whole host of other problems that result from a lack of iodine such as obesity and cancer, among others.

Where Does Iodine Come From?

Good question. Iodine is found in plentiful supply in the sea but is pretty rare in soil so land-locked countries have it in short supply. It is found in seaweeds and people like the Japanese, who eat a lot of seaweed, consume adequate to high amounts of iodine. In the 1920s, the powers-that-be recognized the problem of insufficient iodine and this vital trace element was added to table salt.

The problem now is threefold:

  • People are consuming less salt and when they do they tend to use kosher or sea salt which is less processed. Good normally, but not not so good from the point of iodine deficiency.
  • The second problem is that table salt manufacturers have become slack. The US FDA has found that many table salt manufacturers are not adding sufficient amounts of iodine to their product. Not good for the consumer.
  • Finally, there is a toxin called perchlorate that pervades our environment and decreases our body’s  ability from using the iodine properly.

Natural and Biologically Available Sources of Iodine

  1. Seaweed ex: kelp, bladderwrack, kombu, and wakame Seaweed Underwater
  2. Cranberries
  3. Beans, particularly navy beans
  4. Himalayan salt
  5. Table salt

So keep your thyroid in good working condition by enjoying these foods and giving your bodies the tools to keep you in great health.

Posted in Anti-Aging, Baby Boomers, Health & Wellness, Hormones, Life, Women, women's health news and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment
25 Sep 2012

2 Age-Defying Women and Their Secrets

 There are multiple ways of defying age. You can cheat age through diet and exercise as well as through bioidentical hormone therapy. Here are 2 women who have done just that.

In their own way, they have mastered the art of defying their age.

1. 50+ Tosca Reno

Who knew you could change from fat and frumpy to fit and fabulous at age 40.  Tosca did it. Once she decided to quit her unhappy marriage and her going-nowhere lifestyle her life itself changed. She joined her local gym, met trainer and husband  the late Robert Kennedy (also publisher of Oxygen and other magazines) and took control of herself.  No one who knew her back then would recognize the woman she has become. Not just for her tight and muscled body but for her other achievements. She is well-known for her Eat Clean diet books and for her inspirational column in Oxygen, a well-known fitness magazine.

2. 60+ Suzanne Somers

Those of us old enough to remember “Three’s Company” will fondly remember ‘Chrissie’ the very flaky blonde in the early years of that 70-80s sitcom. What many people have come to realize is that Suzanne is more than just a comedic actress. She has become an expert on bioidentical hormone replacement therapy which she feels has given herself a new hold on life; stem cell therapy and other alternative medical treatments. She’s also a best-selling author who has written 18 books and challenges people to live a natural drug-free life with organic food and plenty of exercise.

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Posted in Anti-Aging, Baby Boomers, Health & Wellness, Women, women's health news and tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment

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