Happy 2013

Hi! I am back after a looong hiatus. I didn’t intend to not write for so long, but I was studying anatomy and physiology for most of November and December, so any free time I had was spent reviewing. Also, there was something else that got in the way…the holidays. I don’t know about you but I always feel that Christmas day is still around the corner even after it’s passed. It seems to come so fast and go by so fast, that I’m left feeling like it never happened.

The last post I wrote about Candida and how I was diagnosed with high levels of this bacteria in my gut, along with leaky gut syndrome. If you are at all familiar with the Candida Protocol you will know its a strict diet which is basically not fun at all. You need to starve the candida first, which entails not consuming any sugar or starches…so no bread, no honey, no pasta, no beans, rice is OK but in small quantities, no fruit! or at least limit to 1-2 apples a day (I say apples because they are low in sugar vs. tropical fruit). So I have been trying my hardest to follow this diet but it is hard, I will admit. I love eating, I love restaurants, I love food…so this kind of protocol is very hard to follow. Anyway, I have been trying, and have cut out a lot of stuff. I definitely do not eat anything “white” any more, and haven’t for a long time, even before the protocol. As you know, anything “white” is highly processed, energy dense but nutrient poor so basically useless for your body. I am trying hard to incorporate more vegetables into my diet. This isn’t easy. As a budding nutritionist I should be eating mostly veggies because I know first hand how good they are for you. But it’s kind of like a doctor who smokes…they know it’s really bad, but they just can’t help it! It’s the same with me and veggies, although I am definitely making an effort. I get organic vegetables delivered every other week, and each delivery is different which forces me to try new things. I bought a whole foods cookbook the other day and can’t wait to try the recipes – I didn’t even notice that the entire cookbook was vegan! Everything sounded so yummy and uses whole, clean ingredients (not MARGARINE!!! Margarine is NOT A [HEALTHY] FOOD). Sorry. But it’s not. I am also ensuring that I am at least taking my supplements every day – B complex, Fish Oil, Vitamin C, Vitamin D since it’s winter and probiotics. If I ate more veg and fruits I wouldn’t need the Vitamin C. But the Fish Oil and probiotics are necessary to supplement, and B vitamins are hard to get unless you eat whole grains (not whole wheat bread, but whole grain). And since I am off grains right now, I am not getting what I need.

Since I started this protocol I have definitely noticed a reduction in my symptoms. I no longer feel hung-over for no reason (candida bacteria produces alcohol in the body, hence the hung-over feeling), I get less headaches, I am no longer constantly bloated,  (I remember when I lived in England and my friends and I would go for a curry. Lots of white rice, and a creamy chicken curry equalled bellies so swollen we looked pregnant). I feel less tired and brain fogged and my moods have improved. We have a large amount of neurotransmitters in our gut, so when we experience low moods, guaranteed it’s food / gut related.

The more I learn about nutrition, the more obvious it seems to me that eating right is the only answer we need. We keep hearing about how people in X country have no chronic illnesses because they don’t eat Y and Z…there are so many reports it’s almost getting to the point that I’m sure people don’t hear it any more. But it’s true. I have never really followed the SAD diet (Standard American Diet = pop, fried foods, chips, packaged foods etc), but my diet definitely didn’t have enough of the good stuff in it, and even I notice a difference. It amazes me every time I do a bit of research online about stuff I find people who have completely cured themselves of one thing or another by just eating better. (I said better, not butter, although eating butter is perfectly fine in moderation.)

This has turned into a rambly post with no real point or direction, but I promise that will come in later posts. I mostly wanted to reconnect and get back into the habit again of writing to an unknown audience.

I do hope at least someone out there enjoys what I write about, and I hope that as the months go by I can help to educate folks on the importance of eating well.

To your health

Coconutlime

First Post

So I have decided to start trying out this thing called blogging as a way to get all the thoughts that bounce around in my head out to the unsuspecting public. I have started a journey of learning about natural nutrition and it’s opened my eyes to the myriad of healthy alternatives for everything from what you eat, to what you put on your skin.

There is a lot of information out there, and it can be confusing and contradictory. I like to try to keep things simple, but I do tend to go into detailed explanations on the “how” or “why” so that people actually understand how or why they are doing something. For example, most people know they need to increase probiotics. But do they know “why”…like, the real why? Probiotics are essential in the gut tract to extract nutrients from food as it passes through the intestine, and deliver it to the blood stream via the liver. Without the proper amount of probiotics, you end up lacking the ability to absorb nutrients. Who knew!? I’d like to demystify the information that is out there, and while I am doing that, I am also learning more and more myself.

I am on a personal journey myself, I know more than some, but not as much as others. I feel I can help people, but only on the surface because my knowledge isn’t deep enough yet.

I plan on using this forum to write about my journey at school, and write about the new things I learn along the way. Eventually I envision this to become a website, then a clinic with actual real live clients! Then, who knows?

Part of my personal journey is overcoming my intense shyness and stage fright. A lot of people would not believe that I have this because I have masked it for many, many years. Instead, people who don’t know me might think I’m weird, or rude because of my facial expressions or random comments I made because I am very uncomfortable and nervous. This is one of my biggest challenges to overcome. Not sure where to start…it’s not like I have time for psychotherapy! But that may be what I need. Basically, when faced with speaking to a group – and I mean literally a small group of people, even people I know very well, my heart races, my mouth turns dry, and I lose the ability to think. I can’t process a comprehensive sentence, have nothing meaningful to add, and generally just want to run away and hide. I do prefer being alone, but love having lots of friends and family. I am confident, and intelligent, and do have a lot to contribute, but my fear of speaking to anyone who isn’t my best friend, husband, child or parents scares the shit out of me and I freeze. So if I am to be successful in the field of natural nutrition, I need to overcome this debilitating quirk.

This is a long post because it’s the first and I want to include most of the threads I will be randomly following going forward. So fear of public speaking is one journey, and part-time learning at Canadian School of Natural Nutrition is another. I started in September and have covered Fundamentals of Nutrition – so the basics  and am currently studying Anatomy and Physiology. I am completely fascinated at how complex the human body is. Most people know that we are basically made up of cells, but when you start looking deep into one single cell, you come across an entire ecosystem, or a city, like New York, doing all of this work. It’s mind boggling how complex we are, and these thoughts started to occur to me when I was pregnant. I had 4 terrible months of “morning” sickness where I would literally puke 4-5 times a day. Yuck. Anyway, I kept reminding myself that I was creating a human being. And humans are exceptionally complex. So kudos to women everywhere who have babies. It’s not an easy feat, and no wonder some people call it a miracle. So the study of anatomy and physiology has so far been very interesting to me, and to understand how nutrition impacts us on a cellular level. “How” you ask…? Well, all of the essential amino acids (from complete proteins) are required to make the protein inside the nucleus of a cell. Protein has many functions inside just one cell. And fat – or lipids, another essential macro nutrient  is required for healthy cellular membrane (where nutrients and substances pass in and out of the cell, nourishing it or helping it do what it’s supposed to do). And water…cells are 60-70% water. If you don’t replenish enough, your cells are losing water and won’t function as they should. And this is why people get sick. Fascinating, right?

Anyway, I think this is sufficient for my first blog. I do hope you visit often and I welcome your comments and questions, but please be nice! I am not an industry expert so if I have gotten something wrong, please constructively criticize.

Pour votre sante.

Coconutlime