Tag Archive for: healthy living

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Saimaa Miller is This Month’s Instagrammer

Meet Saimaa Miller, author of Aussie Body Diet, recently published in paperback. To honour the UK release of Aussie Body Diet, she is taking over our Instagram account for the next two weeks. Take a look at her photos visiting Nourish Books Instagram, and keep updated with her latest posts from Australia.

What is Aussie Body Diet?
The Aussie Body Diet is quite simply a fad-free approach to your health. It is about changing your relationship with food, thoughts and movement, with the understanding that it’s all about balance. The Aussie Body Diet is an entirely different approach. It’s designed to help you achieve optimal wellbeing, reach a happy weight and have you feeling the best you’ve ever felt. Readers will discover the seven secrets to optimum health, learn which type of detoxer they are, and be able to devise the program that is right for them. The book has an array of amazing tips that will help guide readers along the way. With case studies from celebrity clients that reveal their experiences and advice that are very encouraging.

Saimaa Miller

How does Aussie Body Diet differ from other diets?
The Aussie Body Diet is based on traditional naturopathic principles. I am an accredited naturopath, nutritionist, herbalist, health coach and detox specialist. I have been working in the health industry for twenty years, long before it became the delightful trend it is now. So this diet is different as it combines several areas of technique along with many years of hands on experience. It is a holistic program, which means treating not just the body, but also the mind.

What is the first step to start an Aussie Body Diet?
The art to a successful detox and first step to an Aussie Body Diet is planning. Preparing your mind by setting goals and clearing your calendars and much as possible. Preparing your body by clearing out the fridge and pantry and doing the shopping before you start and asking for support from your loved ones.

Aussie Body Diet

What is The Last Resort and can you tell about your experience as an health coach?
The last resort is an organic detox spa located in North Bondi. The Last Resort was created with the understanding that only when mind, body and spirit are in harmony, can true beauty and total wellbeing be achieved. We have a seamless team of health experts whose sincerest desire is to attend to individual needs, we offer you a range of healing therapies to balance the body, restore optimum health and allow clients to realise their true potential.

When I opened The Last Resort in January 2005, folks would question my spa business of organics, health and cleansing. Ten years on, and I am truly honoured to say I have worked with thousands of people from all walks of life, with nutritional and cleansing programs. When you are ready to take responsibility for your health, the results are simply life-changing, and always for the better.

Do you have a favorite recipe?
Moroccan fish skewers with millet salad found on page 86 of Aussie Body Diet & Detox Plan. Because it’s beautifully light and hearty.

What are 3 kitchens hacks for a Aussie Body diet?
Cold-pressed juicer. Great knives and a beautiful wooden chopping board. Vita-mix blender.

If you want to know more about Aussie Body Diet, you can visit Saimaa Website or our website.

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Supercharge Your Life with Christine Bailey’s Juices and Smoothies!

Supercharged juices and smoothies are a surprisingly easy and satisfying way to reboot your health. Juices are gentle on the digestive system and readily assimilated by the body. Ideal for a meal, a snack or a post-workout treat, they energize your body and fuel your day. To know more, you can read Christine Bailey‘s just released The Supercharged Green Juice & Smoothie Diet.

1 Grapefruit Greens & Morning Blend-A

Grapefruit Greens
Tart and tangy, with an underlying sweetness, this citrusy green juice makes a terrific morning drink. Blending in matcha green tea powder gives this juice a terrific antioxidant boost and makes it a useful weight-loss drink, because green tea has been shown to stimulate the metabolism.

Ingredients:
½ romaine or cos lettuce
1 pink grapefruit, peeled
1 apple
¼ tsp matcha green tea powder

Method:

  • Put all the ingredients, except the matcha, through an electric juicer. Transfer to a blender or food processor and add the matcha, then blend until smooth. Serve the juice immediately.

Morning Blend
Shop-bought processed orange juice is a poor substitute for the real thing. Instead, make up this zingy anti-inflammatory mix. If you can get fresh turmeric root, add this to the juicer as well, but if not, you can blend in turmeric powder at the end. Camu camu powder is a good way to boost the vitamin C level, making it ideal for improving your immunity.

Ingredients:
2 apples
2 oranges, peeled
1cm/½in piece of root ginger, peeled
5mm/¼in piece of turmeric root or a large pinch of ground turmeric
¼ tsp camu camu powder, or baobab
powder or acai berry powder

Method:

  • Put the apples, oranges, ginger and turmeric root (but not the ground turmeric) through an electric juicer. Transfer to a blender or food processor and add the ground turmeric, if using, and the camu camu powder, then blend until smooth. Serve the juice immediately.

SuperchargedGreen

 

Christine Bailey
The Supercharged Green Juice & Smoothie Diet
£10.99 | Available from Nourish Books

 

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Top Tips to Detoxify Your Body

The art of a successful detox is in the planning – from preparing your mind by setting goals and clearing your work and social calendars as much as possible, to preparing your body by doing the shopping before you start, and clearing your pantry and fridge of the things you might crave during the Detoxification Phase. For optimum results, the Detoxification Phase should be followed for seven days. Here Saimaa Miller shares her top tips to start detoxifying your body. If you want to know more, you can take a look at Aussie Body Diet, available from Nourish Books and in the best stores.

Saimaa Miller

 

      1. Wherever possible, try to source organic products to limit chemical residue entering our bodies and our Earth.
      2. Drink pure, high-quality water every day – this is vital for detoxification. Herbal tea does not count as part of your water intake. For increased alkalising effects, purchase a water ioniser.
      3. Brush your skin daily on rising to detoxify your skin, improve your circulation and increase lymph flow.
      4. Begin the day with an Apple Cider Vinegar Cayenne Shot (1 teaspoon raw apple cider vinegar, a pinch of cayenne pepper, 50–100 ml warm water, to taste) to kick-start digestion and circulation.
      5. Try to eat only if you are hungry. N.B. If weight loss is one of your goals and you’re not succeeding, really try to avoid snacking, as well as eating after dinner. Instead, try having a cup of herbal tea or a glass of water with chlorophyll (this takes away sweet cravings too!).
      6. When you will feel a little more tired and lacking energy, 20 to 30 minutes of gentle exercise each day is sufficient, and if you can do
        some yoga at home, then this will be extremely beneficial. Even more important is being mindful about your breathing – take time to meditate or practise deep breathing or mindfulness exercises.
      7. Keep a NET (nutrition, exercise, thought) diary. This keeps track of everything you eat and drink, and just as importantly, of your thoughts, feelings and emotions. This helps you keep account and is also a great way to monitor your progress. Choose three short-term goals (what you hope to achieve in the next two weeks); three medium-term goals (what you hope to achieve in the next three to six weeks); and three long-term goals (what you hope to achieve in the next three to six months). It is a very simple, powerful and affirming tool to revisit these goals on a daily basis.

 

Aussie Body Diet

Saimaa Miller
Aussie Body Diet
£14.99, Available from Nourish Books

 

 

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Enjoying a Gluten Free Christmas

by Christine Bailey

This article has been cross-posted from www.christinebailey.co.uk.

The festive season can be a tricky time if you suffer with allergies or coeliac disease If you are avoiding gluten for example you may feel that you’re missing out.  Whether its office buffets, parties, eating out or simply coping with food served on Christmas Day you need to be savvy about what you can and cannot eat. Thankfully more and more companies are providing a great range of gluten free options and many of the seasonal foods around Christmas time are of course naturally gluten free (think cranberries, nuts, Brussels sprouts etc). However you may need to check how they have been prepared and cooked.

Party Tips
If you’ve been invited to a party the best option is to take some allergy free goodies with you. We have a great selection of treats in our recipe pages or you can simply take healthy dips, crudities, nuts and salads with you. If you’re making your own mince pies remember to check the ingredients in shop bought mincemeat as some contain gluten.

Homemade blinis or crackers / breads are a delicious option as a canapé or starter or breakfast option and can be topped with a wide range of ingredients such as smoked salmon, prawns, avocado, roast beef and horseradish or Christmas chutney. Bags of nuts and seeds and dried fruit are easy healthy options that make ideal hassle free party snacks. Watch the crisps especially flavoured varieties as they often contain gluten. Bags of vegetable crisps and fruit crisps or freeze dried fruits and vegetables are typically gluten and dairy free.

Christmas Drinks
If you like your beer thankfully there are many gluten free varieties now available. Mulled wine is a popular party favourite or for a creamy option make up your own Egg Nog style drink using almond milk blended with nuts, banana and dates for a healthy dairy free option.  Have a look at our drinks pages for inspiration. Another great tip is to make a protein shake and drink before going out – the protein helps stabilise your blood sugar so you are not starving making it less likely you will over indulge.

Those Little Extras
Often its those little extras that can catch us out when going gluten free – gravy may be thickened with flour. Stuffing is often ladened with wheat flour and starch. Potatoes may be tossed in flour before roasting and some sausages contain wheat starch. You can make your own gravy by thickening with cornflour or arrowroot and for extra flavour add a spoonful of redcurrant jelly. Bread sauce is easily made with gluten free bread and almond milk or coconut cream if you want it to be dairy free as well.

For stuffing, simply follow your favourite recipe and substitute ground nuts or use quinoa or millet instead of bread.

Sweet Endings
Again there are many gluten free Christmas puddings available but you can also make your own by using gluten free flours, ground almonds and / or gluten free bread. You don’t need to use suet in puddings either – butter, coconut butter or a dairy free spread can be used instead.  Try my chocolate gingerbread cake recipe for a delicious alternative to Christmas cake or why not make up your own healthier truffles or chocolates.

Getting Prepared
If you’re new to cooking allergy free find a wealth of gluten free, raw, paleo recipes on my website which are all suitable for gluten free diets. Many of these can be made in advance and frozen or stored for a later time.  Seeded bread is a fabulous standby healthy protein rich bread option. Make up a batch of granola too – perfect for breakfast but also healthy snacking.

If you’re looking for new inspiration why not book yourself onto one of our cookery days. If you have children then get them cooking and enjoying healthy food with our hands on cookery day.

SuperchargedGreen

 

Christine Bailey
The Supercharged Green Juice & Smoothie Diet
Available in January 2016.
Preorder from Amazon now.

 

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Are you suffering with Leaky Gut?

This article has been cross-posted from www.christinebailey.co.uk .

Your gut really is the gateway to good health. When your gut is dysfunctional it can result in a wide range of health conditions. One topic which is widely discussed in gastroenterology research as well as the field of immunology is ‘leaky gut’ or ‘intestinal permeability’. But what exactly is it?

The lining of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is composed of small epithelial cells that lie side-by-side each other forming tight junctions. These tight junctions act as a barrier between the interior of the body (blood/circulatory system) and the exterior of the body (the lumen of the GI tract). Under healthy conditions, our gut permits the absorption of vital nutrients from the gut lumen while presenting a barrier against the passage of harmful substances into the body.

A leaky gut arises when there is an increase in permeability of the intestinal mucosa that in turn leads to the increased absorption of intestinally derived endotoxins, antigens and inflammatory mediators. Gluten for example is known to cause the gut cells to release zonulin, a protein that can break apart tight junctions in the intestinal lining. Other factors including infections, medications, toxins, stress and age can also cause these tight junctions to break apart. When the epithelial cells and junctions start to break down it allows the passage of toxins through and between the cells into the blood. These foreign molecules may include undigested food molecules, toxins or bacteria. As a result our immune system is activated to eliminate or destroy these unwelcome molecules. This activation of the immune system leads to an inflammatory response and can lead to a wide range of signs, symptoms and health conditions.

This can lead to long term health consequences. In fact increased gut permeability has been linked with symptoms far from the gut including autoimmune conditions, depression, arthritis, diabetes and other conditions in which a pro inflammatory state continues.

Healing a leaky gut is one of the most important things you can do to restore overall health and vitality and I discuss in detail how to do this in my new book: The Gut Health Diet Plan.

When the gut becomes damaged instead of being a source of nourishment it becomes the source and gateway of toxicity and inflammation. Research has shown that intestinal permeability is associated with a range of health conditions not just IBS type symptoms. For example systemic inflammation, allergic reactions such as eczema, asthma or hayfever and progression of autoimmune conditions. By restoring the health and function of the gut, you prevent potential invaders from passing into the bloodstream where they can evoke inflammation locally in your gut but also systemically throughout your body.

Signs of leaky gut include:

  • IBS symptoms: bloating, constipation, abdominal pain, diarrhoea
  • Asthma, eczema, seasonal allergies
  • Hormonal imbalances, PMS
  • Autoimmune conditions e.g coeliac disease, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, hashimotos
  • Chronic fatigue / Fibromyalgia
  • Mood disorders, depression
  • Candida overgrowth
  • Food allergies
  • Inflammation in the body
  • Skin conditions e.g acne, psoriasis

Damage to the gut lining may occur for a variety of reasons including gut infections, sensitivity to certain foods (particularly gluten and dairy), oxidative damage, medications, stress, alcohol, smoking, nutritional deficiencies and poor diet. Therefore identifying key food triggers is also an important step in supporting long term healing. However healing the gut requires more than simple removal of known allergenic foods. It needs nourishment with nutrient dense and specific healing foods – this is why I have written the Gut Health Book to provide you with delicious, nourishing recipes to restore gut health.

GutHealingDietPlan_final

Christine Bailey
The Gut Health Diet Plan
It will be published in 2016. Pre order your copy on Amazon.

 

 

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