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Month: July 2017 - Organic Lifestyle Magazine Month: July 2017 - Organic Lifestyle Magazine

10 Items You Can Stop Buying and Start Making for Better Health

Every condiment or body care product can be replaced with a homemade alternative.

Okay, so it takes a little effort to make these products. You may have to combine a few things and find jars or bottles to hold your finished products. But in the end, anything you whip up will be a healthier choice than any product you are likely to find on a store shelf.

If you need a little inspiration to get motivated, just read the labels on your current store bought items or check out their price tags! Why not see if you can make a better, cheaper alternative?

Related: How to Read Food Labels and Avoid Toxic Ingredients

For many of us, the idea of getting back to the basics and only eating real food seems relatively easy. We can toss out packaged muffin mixes, frozen dinners, and canned goods in favor of real, fresh produce, but what about condiments? If you want real, healthy food, the only solution is to make our own.

1. Ketchup

Heinz ketchup has the following ingredients: tomato concentrate from red ripe tomatoes, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, salt, spice, onion powder, natural flavoring. Corn syrup is bad for you even if it doesn’t come from genetically modified corn. And what is natural flavoring? The FDA defines natural flavoring as follows:

The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional. Natural flavors, include the natural essence or extractives obtained from plants listed in subpart A of part 582 of this chapter, and the substances listed in 172.510 of this chapter.”

That’s real clear, isn’t it? A quick search of the web shows many recipes for ketchup, both slow cooker recipes, and the instant variety. Here is one of our sugar-free favorite ketchup recipes.

Homemade Ketchup by Cupcakes and Kale

Ingredients:

  • 6 ounce can tomato paste
  • 1/4-1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (see Note*)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon mustard powder

See Homemade Ketchup for easy instructions

2. Mayonnaise

Hellman’s brags about their product on their website, saying, “America’s #1 Mayonnaise is made with real*, simple ingredients: eggs, oil, and vinegar.” That statement leads one to believe those are the only ingredients. However, the ingredients list also includes salt, sugar, Calcium Disodium EDTA (a preservative), and natural flavors, (see above).

Healthy Homemade Mayonnaise by Wellness Mama

Ingredients

  • 4 egg yolks at room temperature
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
  • 1 Tsp regular or Dijon mustard (or ½ Tsp dried mustard)
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2/3 cup olive oil
  • 2/3 cup coconut oil (warm) or other healthy oil (macadamia works well)

See Healthy Mayonaise for instructions

3. Salsa

It’s always nice to see a recipe on the Allrecipes site made with fresh vegetables without bad ingredients!

The Best Fresh Tomato Salsa by Allrecipes

Ingredients

  • 3 cups chopped tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper 1 cup onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 4 teaspoons chopped fresh jalapeno pepper (including seeds)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

See Best Fresh Tomato Salsa for Instructions

  • Stir the tomatoes, green bell pepper, onion, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, cumin, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
  • Serve.

4. Salad Dressing

My favorite salad dressing is a recipe created by Michael Edwards, Editor-in Chief of Organic Lifestyle Magazine, aptly named, My Balsamic Salad Dressing Recipe. Don’t make a weak excuse for a salad with 2 to 5 ingredients. Go all the way and include 15-20 veggies and make the most of a daily salad habit.

I make salads with spinach, arugula, collard greens, rainbow chard, beet greens, spring mix and cilantro as the base greens. I also add leeks, red onions, red cabbage, cucumbers, and red bell pepper.  Next, we add what we call “the shreds” – though I prefer to spiralize mine – grated beet root, grated carrots, grated zucchini, and grated daikon radish. Then I add more toppings: pomegranate seeds, raisins, sesame seeds, ground papaya seeds, avocado, and fresh chopped garlic. You can add eggs (soft or hard boiled), feta cheese (preferably raw, preferably sheep), extra turmeric, or olives, if so inclined. I also add various other seeds such as flax seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, etc. (Walnuts go particularly well with feta cheese.)

Balsamic Salad Dressing Recipe – Organic Lifestyle Magazine

To make my salad dressing, I start with equal parts oil and vinegar (keep in mind that both olive oil and balsamic vinegar have a lot of imitators).

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup of flax seed oil
  • 1/4 cup of coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar
  • 6 tablespoons turmeric
  • 1 table spoon basil
  • Two teaspoons unrefined sea salt
  • Two teaspoons fresh ground pepper
  • Two tablespoons Dijon mustard

Instructions

Mix well in bowl or blender. Keep in the refrigerator. Check out our salad recipe.

5. Cranberry Lemonade

By now we all know that sodas are either full of sugar or full of toxic artificial sweeteners. What is a healthy alternative? We recommend cranberry lemonade.

Sugar-Free Cranberry Lemonade

Ingredients

  • Safe, clean, spring water or distilled water
  • 1 cup of unsweetened, organic cranberry juice, not from concentrate
  • 3 fresh, organic lemons
  • Liquid stevia
  • Liquid cayenne

Instructions

If possible, use a glass gallon jar.

  • Fill the jar to about 85% capacity with spring water (or distilled water).
  • Squeeze the lemons and pour the juice into the water.
  • Add cranberry juice.
  • Add stevia and add cayenne to taste.

The amount of cayenne used is up to you, but the more the better.

6. Nutrition Powder

Once again, you can buy nutrition powder from many sources with a wide range of quality and price. Did you know you could make your own? Doc Shillington shares his recipes, including his recipe for Total Nutrition Powder. (Click on the link to get more information about the ingredients.) I like to buy from Rose Mountain Herbs to get the best organic ingredients. I’ve learned from experience to mix this up outside in a big deep pan. If you don’t, your kitchen may end up covered in a layer of fine dust. And you may want to use a dust mask as well. If you don’t want to make your own, you can also purchase Doc’s Total Nutrition Powder through Green Lifestyle Market.

Total Nutrition Formula Recipe

With this recipe, a “part” means a measurement by volume and not weight. What volume you use is up to you. All ingredients should be organic or wildcrafted.

Ingredients

  • 1 part Alfalfa Grass Powder
  • 1 part Barley Grass Powder
  • 1 part Wheat Grass Powder
  • 1 part Norwegian Purple Dulse Seaweed Powder
  • 1 part Beet Root Powder
  • 1 part Spinach Leaf Powder
  • 1 part Rosehips Powder
  • 1 part Orange Peel Powder
  • 1 part Lemon Peel Powder
  • 1 part Astragalus Powder
  • 1.5 parts Spirulina Green Algae
  • 1.5 parts Chlorella Broken Cell Algae
  • 5 parts Yeast Flakes
  • 5 parts Yeast Powder

Instructions

  • Combine all ingredients.
  • Mix thoroughly.
  • Store in glass jars away from heat and light.

Yeast (both the flakes and the powder) must be non-active saccharomyces cerevisiae nutritional yeast fortified with B12, which is safe for people with Candida albicans.

Body Care

Sure, we know that anything we ingest or inhale is taken into the body. But many people do not realize that whatever touches the skin is absorbed into our body as well.  Personal care products – lotions, salves, deodorants, shampoos, soaps, and perfumes as well as toothpaste should be organic. Instead, too many of us are blindly trusting the FDA to protect us while we cover our bodies in toxic solutions known to cause cancer and endocrine disruption. Once again, we should make our own organic, toxin-free products.

7. Toothpaste

Remember what we used to do when we ran out of toothpaste? Yes, baking soda and salt is a great alternative to toxic toothpaste! Just make sure the baking soda is aluminum free and organic.

Here’s a simple basic recipe that can be altered in many ways.

Simple Natural Toothpaste Recipe

Ingredients:

  • Equal parts of coconut oil and baking soda
  • Add essential oil to taste
  • Add stevia (if desired) to taste
  • Add a pinch of sea salt

Instructions

Conbine ingredients, mix well, dab on the to the bristles and brush your teeth.

If you have some oral health issues that need addressing, we’ve got more recipes and infromation for you, see “related.”

If you’re looking for a great place to buy ingredients, check out Mountain Rose Herbs.

Related:

8. Deodorant

All Natural Deodorant Recipe DIY

Ingredients:

  • 5 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil
  • 5 tablespoons pure cocoa butter (no additives)
  • 3 tablespoons of aloe vera juice
  • ½ cup baking soda and/or arrowroot
  • ¼ cup witch hazel extract
  • 4 drops tea tree oil
  • 5 drops of lavender essential oil

9. Lotion

The following is only one of the lotion recipes for Wellness Mama. Check out the link below for more alternatives.

Aloe Lotion – Wellness Mama

Ingredients

  • 1 cup aloe vera gel
  • 1 teaspoons + 1 Tablespoon beeswax pastilles
  • 1/2 cup Almond oil or Jojoba oil (or any other liquid oil)
  • 1 teaspoon Vitamin E oil (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon Shea Butter (optional)
  • Essential oils of choice – I like 10 drops of Geranium and 5 drops of lime

Instructions

  • Melt the beeswax, almond oil (or other liquid oil), and shea butter (if using) in a double boiler or glass bowl over a pan of water.
  • Remove from heat and pour into a blender or mason jar (if using an immersion blender).
  • Let cool to room temperature. You want it to be room temperature and just barely starting to harden around the edges. This will help make sure that the lotion emulsifies correctly.
  • Add the vitamin E (if using) and any essential oils.
  • Start blending on low using a blender or immersion blender. Very slowly, start adding the aloe vera gel until incorporated. Use a spatula to wipe down the sides and re-blend a few times until fully incorporated.
  • Store in a glass jar in the fridge for up to six weeks.

More Aloe Lotion from Wellness Mama

10. Shampoo

You can stop using shampoo altogether. If necessary, you can rinse (wash) your hair with baking soda followed by vinegar. Or you can make many shampoos yourself.  Try this one for dry, damaged hair. See the link below for more recipes.

Organic Shea Butter Shampoo Recipe

Ingredients

  • Liquid castile soap – 200 ml. (about 7 ounces)
  • Organic shea butter – 15 ml. ( ½ ounce)
  • Lavender essential oil – 8 to 10 drops
  • Sodium bicarbonate – 1(1/2) teaspoons
  • Distilled water – 50 ml. (about 2 ounces)

Instructions

  • Melt solid shea butter by placing it over boiling water. Let it cool to room temperature.
  • Mix water with sodium bicarbonate to make a solution.
  • Pour this solution into liquid castile soap. Stir for a few seconds. Avoid forming too much foam.
  • Add melted shea butter.
  • Add lavender essential oil to the bowl.
  • Blend everything together.

Check out our shampoo article for addition shampoo recipes.

When you try out these recipes, please leave a comment and tell us what you think. And don’t hesitate to share your own recipes!

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Sleep Apnea and Why It’s Keeping You From Getting a Good Night’s Sleep

For many people, sleep is one of the first things to go when their schedule becomes overwhelming. But that starts a damaging cycle where too little sleep leads to sleep conditions, weight gain, and heart disease, among other issues. One of these issues is sleep apnea, a condition where the sleeper stops breathing or only takes shallow breaths while asleep. Someone who wakes up between 5 to 15 times an hour has a mild case of sleep apnea, and someone with severe sleep apnea wakes up more than 30 times.

Sleep apnea can cause serious health problems, but as many as 90% of people with it don’t even know they have it. So what is sleep apnea? How do you detect it? Most importantly, how do you treat it?

The What

There are two types of sleep apnea.

The most common type is known as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and it happens when something blocks airflow while you sleep. The archetypal OSA candidate is overweight, male, drinks, and smokes. Enlarged tonsils or tongue, sinus problems, gastroesophageal reflux, and allergies are other OSA risk factors.

Central sleep apnea (CSA) is much less common and affects less than 1% of people. CSA occurs because the brain stops sending the body signals to breathe while sleeping. It’s more likely to occur in men over 65 who are already suffering from heart problems.

It is possible to suffer from both types of sleep apnea at the same time. Both types increase the likelihood of stroke, diabetes, heart disease, falling asleep while driving, and obesity. In addition, people with sleep apnea already have high blood pressure.

How Do You Know You’ve Got It?

Signs of sleep apnea can include snoring, gasping noises, grinding teeth, brain fog, sleepiness, impotence, depression, and high blood pressure. Dry mouth or drooling may be another sign of sleep apnea, as conditions that cause mouth breathing like sinus infections, colds, or deviated septums also block the airway.

Many of the symptoms of sleep apnea are also treated conditions in their own right, like depression or impotence. This can lead to professionals suggesting treatment for other things before considering sleep apnea. Often family or friends are more likely to notice the snoring or gasping episodes, and a diagnosis usually occurs after a sleep study.

Treatments

For sleep apnea treatment, we can divide them into two different types: medical interventions and lifestyle changes.

Sleep Apnea and Medical Interventions

Surgery is the most invasive of the three options, and frequently performed surgeries include tonsillectomies (to create more space in the throat), rhinoplasties (fixing deviated septums), and maxillomandibular advancement (moving the upper and lower jaw forward).

For most moderate or serious cases, the most common treatment option is a continuous positive airway pressure device (CPAP) or automatic positive airway pressure (APAP) device. These are usually a plastic facial mask attached to a tube and a device that reinforces the airway with pressurized air. While the positive airway pressure treatment methods have been shown to reduce many of the health risks that come with sleep apnea, it’s also uncomfortable and can cause dry mouth, chest discomfort, and nosebleeds. The CPAP device may keep the airway open during sleep, but most people stop using it due to the discomfort. Studies are finding that positive airway pressure therapy doesn’t notably reduce the cardiovascular risk associated with sleep apnea.

Related: Insomnia – A Comprehensive Look with Natural Remedies

Sleep Apnea and Lifestyle Changes

When treating sleep apnea through lifestyle changes, many of the usual suspects apply. Sleep on your side. Stop smoking. Quit drinking. Lose weight.

These are all excellent ideas. It’s important to eliminate inflammation. Soft tissue like the tonsils, tongue, or airway relaxes when you’re asleep. If it becomes inflamed, swollen, or enlarged, it can obstruct the airway.

To deal with inflammation, stop eating processed foods and refined sugars as they trigger the body’s immune response. Make sure to get some sunshine and stay on top of your b vitamin levels, as vitamin D and B deficiencies can also cause inflammation. Easily obtained anti-inflammatory foods include turmeric, ginger, blueberries, chia seeds, broccoli, and red peppers among others.

Must Read: What Causes Chronic Inflammation, and How To Stop It For Good

Another factoring in managing sleep apnea involves clearing out the sinus passages. The buildup of mucus makes it difficult to breathe clearly during the day and results in shallow, fitful sleep at night. If you’re seeing other symptoms of sleep apnea, it’s time to clear out the sinuses. Gargle with apple cider vinegar or a fire cider. Avoid dairy, sugar, processed foods, and other foods likely to cause phlegm and mucus. Hot and cold hydrotherapy can also help things drain out the sinuses.

Many of the steps that deal with inflammation, sinus infections, and sleep apnea in a sustainable way overlap. Everything in the body is connected. Eating a healthy diet that’s 80% fresh, raw organic veggies without processed food will result in less inflammation, better quality sleep, and make it easier to clear out the sinus passages. A diet bereft of vegetables and dependent on processed foods guarantees that any health issues will continue and eventually worsen.

The Importance of Sleep

Inadequate quality sleep is a factor in developing a multitude of health issues, from heart disease to Alzheimer’s to weight gain. Sleep apnea is a stealthy thief, as people suffering from it often don’t realize they’re waking themselves up. If you find yourself waking up in the morning feeling as though you haven’t slept at all, you owe it to yourself to find out if it could serious and reclaim a good night’s rest.

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Is Millet Gluten Free, Healthy, and Environmentally Sustainable?

Millet is not sexy. A staple grain in India and the semi-arid regions of Africa, Americans are more likely to associate it with bird seed than delicious dinners. Millet refers to a family of small-seeded grasses. The most commonly available one in the U.S. is called Proso millet, and it resembles a small yellow bead. Other kinds of millet include Pearl millet (popularly grown in India), Foxtail or German millet, Finger millet, and fonio. The grain is also used to feed livestock and brew alcoholic beverages.

Millet doesn’t have a very distinctive flavor and can be difficult to find in your average grocery store. There are also several articles warning you not to consume millet. So why bother with millet? A healthy diet has variety, and millet has something to offer the environmentally friendly eater, the gluten-free eater, and the eater on a budget. Let’s dive in!

Good Millet

Sustainable food is a big deal these days, as climates are more unstable than ever before. A crop like millet plays into what will potentially be the new growing sweet spot – tolerant of drought, high temperatures, and poor soil. Millet also grows quite quickly.

Millet popularity is on the rise in the U.S., in large part due to the demand for gluten-free grains from health-conscious eaters and people with celiacs. In addition to being gluten-free, millet is especially mineral heavy. Like other ancient grains (quinoa, amaranth, and spelt), it contains high levels of magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, calcium, and iron. It’s also a great source of amino acids, protein, antioxidants, and fiber.

Related: Is Wheat Poison? What’s Behind the Rise of Celiac Disease and Gluten Intolerance

With its many nutrients, millet has been shown to support the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and respiratory systems. It has the potential to protect against diabetes and cancer. Millet can also slow the development of cataracts. Scientists have been slow to research millet, so it’s possible that there are even more reasons to add millet to your diet.

Bad Millet

At this point millet probably sounds like a dream come true. The ancient grain-ness of quinoa. The versatility of rice. All without the environmental difficulties, sustainability issues, and arsenic. There has to be a catch…and there is.

Millet (especially cooked millet) contains goitrogens, substances interfere with iodine uptake in the thyroid. This interference triggers the pituitary gland, releasing thyroid stimulating hormones, prompting thyroid tissue growth, and ultimately resulting in a goiter. Goiters are still prevalent in regions with a history of regular millet consumption like India, China, and Central Africa.

Related Hypothyroidism – Natural Remedies, Causes, and How To Heal the Thyroid

This thyroid issue is a more extreme version of the issues people have with eating too much kale and other cruciferous vegetables. Leaky gut seems to be a possible cause or at least exacerbates the symptoms. For someone with these issues or other thyroid conditions, millet may not be the best gluten-free grain option to eat regularly. It can be argued that millet is much more effective as a way to increase the diversity of your diet rather than as a pantry staple.

Related: Gluten, Candida, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and Autoimmune Diseases

Available Millet

So you want to give millet a try. Good news… it’s cheap! Pre-prepared millet most often takes the form of bread, but the real savings are in purchasing millet in bulk and preparing it yourself. Your best bets for finding millet are the bulk/bean and grain sections at the grocery store or online. Even though whole millet with the hull retains more nutrition, the majority of the millet for sale is already hulled.

Despite the loss of nutrients, hulled millet is much easier to cook, and roasting it seems to retain the most protein overall. It makes an easy substitute for rice or quinoa in salads, Buddha bowls, wraps, stuffed peppers, soups and anything else you would use a small grain for.

Diversity is Worth It

Millet has some great things to recommend it from both a health and sustainability perspective. It’s also hard on the thyroid, an organ already experiencing a range of difficulties due to the modern diet and environment. When those two factors cancel each other out, it’s important to remember one thing – everything starts in the gut. A more varied diet leads to a greater variety of gut microbes which in turn improves the overall health of the body. Adding in a side of millet every couple of weeks allows you to increase your culinary repertoire while also inviting some new nutrients and microbes into your life. Don’t you think it’s about time to join the millet party?

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How C. Diff Infections Decrease with Fewer Antibiotics

The percentage of new Clostridium difficile infections reported in healthcare facilities has dropped for the first time since 2000, says the CDC’s Emerging Infections Program. A sneak peek at the information on C. diff infections from 2011-2014 provided by shows a decrease in the rates of infections in healthcare settings. According to Dr. Alice Guh, a medical officer at the Centers for Disease Control, “Preliminary analyses suggest a 9 to 15 percent decrease in health care [C. diff] incidence nationally.”

But wait! The actual number of C. diff infections is on the rise. In 2011, deaths from C. diff infections reached almost 30,000 people and an additional 500,000 cases of illness were reported. So what does it mean when infections are on the decline in healthcare settings where they are most commonly contracted, yet on the rise elsewhere? Science does not yet have an answer, but current positive results indicate that cleanliness, not antibiotics, is the future.

A Brief Primer

Many of the people who have C. diff in their intestine never develop an infection, because our “beneficial” bacteria in the gut are able to keep pathogens in check, like with candida. If the beneficial bacteria are not able to counteract the c. diff, infections can cause diarrhea, painful stomach cramping, kidney infections, fever, and dehydration in varying degrees. C. diff is also an incredibly resilient bacteria. Spores can last for months outside of the body and can only be killed with bleach, UV cleaning, and other similar methods.

The treatment for C. diff is usually antibiotics, stronger antibiotics, and the antibiotics of last resort. For anyone who is at all familiar with how the gut functions, this is a recipe for disaster. The antibiotics set the gut up for failure by killing the beneficial bacteria that balance gut flora and keep the C. diff in check. Studies have shown that even occupying the same hospital room as someone who has taken antibiotics increases the likelihood of a C. diff infection developing.

“C”-ing a Difference

So what has changed in the last ten years that has yielded the notable decrease of C. diff infection rates in healthcare facilities?

In unsurprising news, the answer is not antibiotics. Healthcare practitioners deliberately limited the amount of unnecessary antibiotics prescribed and instead focused on cleaning and implementing new infection protocols aimed at controlling the spread of C. diff. These changes are also beneficial in lowering rates of other antibiotic-resistant infections and the number of diarrheal deaths in the U.S. overall.

Yet C. Diff Remains a Major Health Concern

Despite that, death rates from infections caused by this particular bacteria are still reaching dangerous and expensive levels. The number of deaths from C. diff infections rose from 3,000 to 14,000 in a period of 7 years, and. As repeated antibiotic use has left us with the hardiest specimens of an already hardy bacteria, the need for personal responsibility in managing C. diff is greater than ever.

Following the example of the healthcare system and restricting unnecessary (or all, if possible) antibiotics while applying best hygiene practices, but these new hospital cleanliness procedures are only a piece of the puzzle in dealing with C. diff and other bacterial infections effectively (spoiler alert: more produce helps!). They are also a piece of the puzzle that will be difficult for the average person to replicate. But there are other ways to reduce the chance of infection developing due to rampant C. diff.

The Strong Survive

It’s simplistic to reduce the fascinating and intricate workings of the gut microbiome to good guys and bad guys, but it’s useful in helping to focus on what matters the most: balance. In nursing homes, as many as half of the residents may have C. diff colonized in their gut. Since not all of those with the C. diff (bad guy) experience infection, something is halting the microbe’s progress.

Enter the good guys – your beneficial microbes. Many of the people, even people living in the same facilities, house the C. diff bacteria with no infection. A resilient, opportunistic bacteria like C. diff is looking for a host it can take advantage of, and a body dealing with a toxic overload with depleted beneficial bacteria is an easy target. Cultivating those microbes by consuming fresh, raw, organic produce and eliminating processed, artificially produced food are the best and most necessary ways to build your body’s natural defenses.

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7 Unhealthy Synthetic Dyes and Food Colorings to Avoid and Why

Food dye in some form or another has been in use since the ancient Egyptians to make food look more appetizing. The first synthetic food color was obtained from bituminous coal and introduced in 1856. Today’s food coloring may be more sophisticated, but big food companies like Kraft, General Mills, Campbell’s Soup Taco Bell, and Chipotle are among the businesses announcing that they will be removing synthetic food dyes from many if not all of their offerings. It’s a move in keeping with the increasing demand for less processed, healthier food options while eating out or at the grocery store.

We’ve been eating them forever, and we’re fine…right? Not so much.

Dyes and colors are controversial, and they have been linked to cancer, allergic reactions, and other health issues. Eating something for a long period of time does not automatically equal healthy or safe. Consumers are turning away from processed foods for health reasons, and labels are the best way to see what’s in your food. Here’s what you should be on the lookout to avoid.

Red 3

Red 3, also known as Erythrosine, is one of the most commonly used food colorings. Its signature cherry-pink is found in maraschino cherries, various candies, baked goods, and sausage casings. Derived from coal tar and flourone and sourcing some of its trademark red from cochineal beetles, red 3 has been linked to hyperactivity in children, thyroid tumors, breast cancer, and can damage liver DNA. Since its introduction as one of the 7 approved synthetic colors listed in the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, there have been numerous attempts to ban Red 3 from food due to its health risks. Although erythrosine has been banned in cosmetics and topical drugs in the United States since 1990, industry pressure has succeeded in keeping it as an option for coloring food.

Recommended: How Candida Leads to Depression, Anxiety, ADHD, and Other Disorders

Red 40

Touted as an alternative to Red 3, Red 40 is also known as Allura Red or Food Red 17. It is a dark red powder made from petroleum and can contain aluminum, other heavy metals, and cochineal beetles (a common ingredient in red dyes). The most commonly used synthetic food coloring in the United States, it can be found in fruit cocktail, candy, salad dressing, chocolate cake, cereal, beverages, pastries, maraschino cherries, fruit snacks, and many over the counter pharmaceuticals. Products containing the dye are treated differently in Europe, with a required label warning that Allura Red “may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.” Children experiencing drastic behavioral changes is one of the biggest health concerns associated with Red 40. Other reported side effects include migraines, jitteriness, inability to concentrate, and upset stomach.

Yellow 5

One of the most controversial of the synthetic food dyes, Yellow 5 or Tartrazine is the low cost, coal tar derived food dye version of beta-carotene. It has been linked to multiple health conditions like hyperactivity in children, severe allergic reactions and rashes, nausea, headaches, and asthma, among others. This connection has led to Yellow 5 being banned in Norway and Austria, while the U.K. government asked companies to voluntarily remove it from their products. This has not stopped the dye from being added to a wide range of consumables in the U.S., like cereals, puddings, frozen desserts, bread and cake mixes, condiments, beverages, chips, snacks, medications, and pet foods.

Yellow 6

Though it is primarily labeled as Yellow 6 in the U.S., this dye actually provides an orange color. Some of its other names include Sunset Yellow, Monoazo, and Orange Yellow S. This dye is banned in Norway, Finland, and Sweden and required to be labeled in the E.U. It’s been linked to adrenal and kidney cancer, diarrhea, vomiting, swelling of the skin, migraines, and worsening of asthma symptoms. The signature yellow-orange of the dye has found its way into foods like boxed macaroni and cheese, chips, bakery goods, cereals, beverages, dessert powders, candies, gelatin desserts, sausage, and some pharmaceuticals drugs. For those who normally avoid foods that come in boxes and bags, Yellow 6 can also be found in preserved fruits, so check labels carefully.

Blue 1

Blue 1, or Brilliant Blue, is the more commonly used of the two blue food dyes approved for use in the U.S. and frequently partners with Tartrazine (Yellow 5) for artificially colored green items. Like many of the other synthetic dyes, Blue 1 was originally derived from coal tar, although now it’s oil based. Brilliant blue foodstuffs like candies, ice cream, liquors, and others are easily spotted, although canned peas, soup packets, and mouthwashes also contain the color. Blue 1 is not as controversial as some of the other synthetic food dyes, but it has been suggested that it causes kidney tumors in mice and hypersensitivity reactions.

Blue 2

Blue 2 is also known as Indigotine, Indigotin, or Indigo Carmine. Most of those names reference Blue 2’s origins as a synthetic version of actual, plant-based textile dye (and color of the rainbow), indigo. The synthetic form of indigo is derived from coal tar or petroleum. In addition to coloring blue jeans, the twenty thousand tons of Blue 2 produced every year can be found in colored beverages, candies, pet food, and pharmaceuticals. It’s linked to brain tumors in male rats, asthma, skin rashes, and mild to severe allergic reactions. Blue 2 is also used to highlight issues in the urinary tract, coloring urine blue and making leaks apparent. This practice has seen dangerous blood pressure increases in some people. Indigo Carmine has been banned as a food dye in Norway, Belgium, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, France, Germany and Great Britain.

Caramel Coloring

Caramel coloring is not a synthetic food dye in the strictest sense but seeing it listed as an ingredient should still give you pause. Most of the caramel coloring found in select sodas, baked goods, chocolate items, candies, and protein bars is made by treating sugar with ammonia. Needless to say, this can have a carcinogenic effect on those who consume it. Caramel coloring is linked to cancer in animals, and the state of California requires cancer warning labels on products with more than 30 micrograms of caramel coloring in a day. In addition to that, caramel coloring is can be sourced from lactose, barley, or wheat. North American and European caramel coloring are derived from wheat or corn and highly-processed, but that coloring is thought to be “gluten-free”.

Alternatives Abound

We have become accustomed to food designed to delight the senses, and many companies provide that with the cheapest means possible. The recent push to eliminate artificial colors has shown that most food colors can be achieved through other means, like turmeric, beets, blueberry juice, or spirulina. As more people understand that what we eat determines our health will phase out completely. Until then, labels are your friend.

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How to Improve Blood Sugar Levels and Reverse Diabetes For Good

Every 23 seconds another person is diagnosed with diabetes — one the leading causes of death in the United States.

But these people don’t have to suffer. Diabetes is preventable, manageable, and reversible.

What is Diabetes? — A Quick Overview

There are two types of diabetes — type 1 and type 2.

This is an over-simplified chart, but it gives you a good visual of the differences and similarities between the two. Now, let’s dig a little deeper into each type of diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by high blood sugar levels and insulin resistance. Insulin resistance happens when blood sugar levels are so consistently high that the cells don’t respond to insulin (a hormone that helps lower blood sugar) like they used to.  When the cell aren’t as sensitive to insulin, blood sugar levels raise even more. As a result, insulin levels raise and the cells become more insulin resistant. This vicious cycle is commonly caused by eating too much sugar, not moving enough, and stressing too much.

Conversely, type 1 diabetes is when the body lacks the ability to produce insulin. In some cases, this is happens because the immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. Despite the lack of insulin, type 1 diabetics can still manage their blood sugar levels by taking exogenous insulin.

Although type 1 and type 2 diabetes are caused in completely different ways, they both lead to higher blood sugar levels that will destroy cells throughout the body and cause chronic inflammation. If we can improve blood sugar levels then we can manage and reverse diabetes — regardless of which type of diabetes it is.

The Best Treatment for Diabetes — Diet

Studies continuously show that eating less sugar and more whole foods is an effective way to manage blood sugar levels. For example, ketogenic diets — the lowest of low carbohydrate diets — were found in one study to help type 2 diabetics get off their medications completely.

The right diet may even transfer over to type 1 diabetics as well. One case study that put a type 1 diabetic on a paleolithic ketogenic diet found that it was effective in managing blood sugar levels and may even halt or reverse the disease process.

Even specific vegetables, fruits, herbs, and spices can help reverse type 1 and type 2 diabetes. For example, consuming curcumin (from turmeric) and fenugreek seeds together can be an effective way to lower blood sugar levels and improve the health of the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin.

Must Read: Top Ten Blood Sugar Lowering Foods  
Related: How to Optimize Curcumin Absorption

There is one important caveat. Food isn’t the only thing the impacts blood sugar levels. Even if you eat a plant-based, low-carbohydrate diet, your blood sugar levels can still be an issue.

Stress and Blood Sugar — The Missing Link

Right before we wake up in the morning, a stress hormone called cortisol is released. Cortisol raises blood sugar levels to provide you with the energy you need to wake up and get your morning started. To keep insulin from decreasing your blood sugar levels, cortisol also tells the cells to resist the seduction of insulin.

This brief period of insulin resistance is necessary for your body to maintain its blood sugar levels until you have your first meal. This is a great idea. Good job, body!

However, this same process occurs whenever you are stressed as well. Whether you are being chased by a lion or you are mad at a family member, cortisol is released so that you have enough energy to deal with that situation. The only problem is that most modern day stressors don’t require extra energy. They require logical thinking and empathy — two processes in the brain that cortisol shuts down.

When every day is filled with stress, your cortisol levels will be consistently high. And you know what leads to — higher blood sugar levels, insulin resistance, and poor decision making.

This can happen regardless if you eat the healthiest food or not (although healthy food will help a lot). Reversing diabetes does not rely only what you eat, It relies on what you do as well.

Related: Natural Remedies for Chronic Stress

The Cheapest & Most Natural Ways to Reverse Diabetes

Whether you start with food or with stress, it is still important to address both. However, if you are struggling to make ends meet, you don’t have to wait to improve your health. You can help yourself right now — for free.

Drink More Water

Hydration is important. Although there are no studies that examine the direct effect that water consumption has on blood sugar levels, one observational study found that people with the highest blood sugar levels tended to drink the least amount of water.

This correlation can be explained by the fact that the systems that control both blood sugar and body fluid levels are linked. In other words, drinking more water can indirectly improve your blood sugar levels.

Related: What’s the Best Water for Detoxifying and For Drinking?

Exercise

The fastest way to lower your blood sugar levels is by exercising. But before you lace up your running shoes, it is important to consider the type of exercise.

Low-intensity exercises like walking and cycling have a minimal effect on blood sugar levels unless they last for longer than an hour. Studies suggest that the optimal exercise strategy is high-intensity interval training.

Many different variations of high-intensity interval training can lower blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity (the opposite of insulin resistance).

One of the high-intensity workouts used in many studies went like this — thirty seconds of maximal cycling efforts 4 to 6 times separated by 4 minutes of rest. That’s all you need to do to lower your blood sugar levels. And if you don’t have access to a bicycle or stationary bike, all you have to do is sprint.

Here is an example sprinting workout from one of the studies:

5-10 near-maximal sprints for 30 seconds each with 3-minute rest between.

By doing this, you can lower your blood sugar in less than 20 minutes (for free).

Meditate

One of the best ways to mitigate stress and reduce cortisol levels is with meditation. In one study, researchers decided to see if meditation helped lower blood sugar levels in diabetics. After one month of meditation, the eleven patients that completed the intervention had lower blood pressure and A1C levels (more about this later in the article) and less anxiety and depression.

Sleep

Sleep for at least 7 hours a night, and you can maintain healthy blood sugar levels. But if you sleep for only 4 to 5 hours a night, your fasting blood sugar levels will increase significantly.

Continue to sleep like this, and your cells become resistant to insulin. As this vicious cycle continues, your blood sugar levels continue to rise regardless of how little sugar you eat. This sounds eerily familiar to what stress does to the body because it is.

Sleeping less is a form of stress that leads to more cortisol release than normal. The cortisol raises blood sugar levels and tells the cells to become more resistant to insulin. Keep this from happening by making sleep a priority.

Putting it all Together — The Anti-Diabetes Lifestyle

Here’s is a simple weekly checklist you can follow to improve your health dramatically:

1. Drink a gallon of purified water a day.

We suggest drinking a gallon of cranberry lemonade every day to provide you with a healthy and tasty detox drink while you hydrate yourself.

2. Eat only whole foods.

Make sure you get all of your food from high-quality sources as well. Look for bio-dynamic, organic. and non-GMO produce, and source all of your animal products from animals that lived a healthy life.

3. Do 3 to 4 high-intensity exercise sessions a week.

Here’s a simple workout you can try:

5-10 near-maximal sprints for 30 seconds each with 3-minute rest between.

Combining high-intensity training and resistance training is an even better idea.

4. Meditate for 15 to 30 minutes a day.

You can use an app like Headspace to guide you or check out Sam Harris’s guided meditation:

5. Sleep for at least 7 hours a night.

To improve your sleep quality, turn off all electronics and lights at least 30 minutes before you want to fall asleep and meditate laying down.

Related: Is Diabetes Caused by Sugar or Bad Genetics?

How to Know if You Are Really Reversing Diabetes

To know if your blood sugar levels are chronically high, many doctors will check your A1C levels. A1C stands for glycated hemoglobin, which is formed when blood sugar attaches to hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells).

A1C tests measure the percentage of your hemoglobin that has blood sugar attached to it. If blood sugar levels have been high for the past 3 months, then more hemoglobin will be glycated. Thus, A1C testing provides an accurate measurement of how high your blood sugar has been over the past two to three months.

An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on two separate tests indicates that you have diabetes. An A1C between 5.7 and 6.4 percent indicates pre-diabetes. Below 5.7 is considered normal.

But Dr. Chris Masterjohn suggests that you shouldn’t only look at A1C levels. This is because high A1C levels do not directly cause diabetes, and people with diabetes can have low A1C levels (if they have faster blood cell turnover than the average person). In other words, A1C testing provides an indirect measurement of blood sugar levels so it isn’t always a reliable indicator for diabetes.

For example, if you are obese and your fasting blood sugar is consistently above 100 mg/dl (pre-diabetic), but your A1C levels are low, then you should still be considered as a pre-diabetic that needs to implement dietary and lifestyle changes to lower your blood sugar.

This is why it is important to consider fasting blood glucose levels, blood sugar levels after a meal, and other measurements like weight and waist circumference to develop a clearer picture of what is going on inside of the body.

While you are implementing the steps to the anti-diabetes lifestyle, it is important to pay attention to multiple measurements. Fat loss, lower blood sugar levels, lower A1C levels, and decreased waist size are all indicators that you are on the right track.

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Top 10 Blood Sugar Lowering Foods

Eat less sugar, and you’ll be healthier.

This fact has been demonstrated over and over again in studies that compare different whole-food-based diets (like the ketogenic diet, vegan diet, and low glycemic index diet) to the conventional American diet.

If you eat more whole foods, you will consume less sugar. Less sugar consumption leads to healthier blood sugar levels. And healthier blood sugar levels lead to less diabetes, heart disease, and inflammation. It’s that simple.

The Only Issue With Reversing Diseases Like Diabetes

Improving your blood sugar is not easy. It may take a couple months with a whole-food plant-based diet before blood sugar levels normalize. During those months, it will be difficult for you and your body to adjust.

This rapid shift from processed foods to whole plant foods can be a shock to the system. Your body adapts to a change in diet in dramatically different ways.

In response to processed foods, your cells become more resistant to insulin — the hormone that shuttles sugar into the cells to be used as energy. As you keep eating processed foods, you keep feeding a vicious cycle of insulin resistance that leads to higher blood sugar levels and more insulin resistance. This leads to chronic inflammation, fat accumulation, vision loss, kidney disease, and nerve damage.

Must Read: Optimize Your Candida Cleanse & Minimize the Symptoms of Die

But Isn’t Sugar Natural?

Chronic inflammation, fat gain, kidney issues, vision loss, and nerve damage? Sounds like a silly way for the body to handle something that is natural.

How natural something is doesn’t matter as much as what it does in the body. Sugar, for example, is toxic to the body.

When sugar is consumed regularly without the fibers, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants found in whole plant foods, it overwhelms the cells. Cellular toxins will then begin to accumulate until the cell dies. If your cells never became resistant to insulin then your cells would continue to be overwhelmed by sugar, and you would have a much shorter life. However, if you’re eating whole plant foods your cells won’t have to become insulin resistant to save your life.

Related: Gluten, Candida, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and Autoimmune Diseases

For example, let’s compare an apple to apple juice. Eat a whole organic apple, and it will lead to a gentle increase in blood sugar levels that nourishes the cells. This is because the fiber slows sugar absorption, and the antioxidants, enzymes, vitamins, and minerals from the apple help the cells utilize the sugar effectively (before it can become toxic).

But what happens if you drink apple juice instead? Blood sugar will increase much more because most of the fiber, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and antioxidants were taken out during processing.

This means that the best strategy to improve health is to eat more whole plant foods rather than processed foods like fruit juice and cookies. However, if your goal is to improve blood sugar levels right away, it is best to consume these ten foods.

Related: Healthy Alternative Sugars and More

The Top Ten Foods That Lower Blood Sugar

Patience is a virtue, but sometimes it is better to be impatient when it comes to your health. Eat these ten foods if you don’t want to be a patient with diabetes.

1. Red Cabbage

Red Cabbage is packed with anthocyanins — the pigment that gives this vegetable its dark red color. Many studies have found that anthocyanins can prevent or reverse obesity and type 2 diabetes by reducing inflammation, lowering blood sugar, and improving insulin resistance (the driving factor that leads to type 2 diabetes).

If you are not a fan of red cabbage, you can still get the benefits of blood sugar lowering anthocyanins by eating other dark red, purple, or blue plant foods like blueberries.

2. Blueberries

Blueberries contain a type of anthocyanin that is an active blood sugar lowering agent. Studies have found that the flavonoids in blueberries (and other berries) may provide us with cardiovascular benefits, cancer prevention, and cognitive improvement.

3. Turmeric

Turmeric contains a bright yellow chemical called curcumin. Curcumin has been studied extensively as a potential treatment for diabetes — and the results are promising.

Not only does curcumin lower blood sugar like red cabbage and blueberries, it also promotes the function of the beta cells in the islets of Langerhans of the pancreas (the cells that produce insulin). This means that curcumin can lower your blood sugar in the short-term and improve your ability to use carbohydrates in the long-term.

One concern about curcumin is that it is poorly absorbed. If you want to ensure that you will get the benefits of curcumin, it is best to have it in a supplement called Meriva or a supplement that combines Bioperine with curcumin. Both curcumin preparations increase the absorption of curcumin much more than just having curcumin alone.

Related: How to Optimize Curcumin Absorption – With Golden Milk Tea Recipe

4. Cinnamon

Whether it is Ceylon or Cassia cinnamon, it will reduce fasting blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity (the opposite of insulin resistance). But there is one caveat — Cassia cinnamon contains a toxic compound called coumarin that can cause kidney, liver, and lung damage. Just 1-2 teaspoons a day of Cassia cinnamon has enough coumarin to cause toxic effects, so it is best to stick with Ceylon cinnamon to lower blood sugar levels.

Related: Cinnamon – Ceylon Vs Cassia, Health Benefits, and Other Interesting Facts

5. Lemons

There are thousands of different flavonoids that can be found in plant foods, and lemons have two that can improve fat and glucose metabolism. These flavonoids are called hesperidin and naringin, and they help lower blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.

Put lemon juice in your water or meals to provide you with health-boosting, blood-sugar-lowering flavonoids whenever you want. If you are looking to detox and lower your blood sugar levels at the same time, try our inexpensive, easy detox – The One Gallon Challenge.

6. Fenugreek Seeds

This flavorful seed provides us with a quick and easy way to improve blood sugar levels while fasting and after a meal. The effects of fenugreek seeds are so powerful that they can help lower blood sugar levels in people with type 1 diabetes. This means that fenugreek seeds are effective with and without the help of insulin.

You can consume fenugreek seeds in the form of a tea or add fenugreek seed powder to dressings, sauces, or curries. It is commonly used in Indian foods to give them a slightly sweet, nutty flavor that is often described as a cross between celery and maple.

7. Dark Chocolate

This guilty pleasure may be as pleasureful for you as it is for your body. The cacao in dark chocolate contains many flavanols (a type of flavonoid) that decrease blood pressure and insulin resistance. This decrease in insulin resistance helps the cells use up excess blood sugar, which lowers blood sugar naturally.

However, make sure you are consuming dark chocolate that contains no refined sugar at all. You can avoid this by making your own dark chocolate at home.

Simply melt a half cup of coconut oil in a pan, add in a half cup of raw organic cacao powder (because it has the highest flavanol content) with a tablespoon of a healthy, alternative sweetener. Stir until it is completely mixed, transfer it to a container, and put it in the refrigerator. After a couple hours, you will have your own blood-sugar-lowering dark chocolate without any dubious ingredients.

8. Broccoli Sprouts

Dozens of studies on broccoli sprouts have surfaced over the past decade. They have been found to have anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties, but do these sprouts also help lower blood sugar?

In one randomized double-blind clinical trial, researchers found that 10 grams of broccoli sprouts per day significantly decreased insulin levels. This suggests that broccoli sprouts may improve insulin sensitivity, leading to lower blood sugar levels.

These medicinal sprouts can easily be grown indoors in less than a week (for cheap). Once they are finished growing, you can have them as a snack or with meals.

Related: You Need Sulforaphane — How and Why to Grow Broccoli Sprouts

9. Onions

Onion bulb extract was found to strongly lower blood glucose in diabetic rats. Although onion’s effect on the blood sugar levels of humans is uncertain, this vegetable still has many potential health benefits.

These health benefits are partly caused by quercetin, a flavonoid antioxidant that is found in many vegetables including onions. Quercetin has been found to lower blood sugar before and after meals in many different animals with diabetes. This is a promising finding for those who want to lower their blood sugar.

However, onions aren’t the best vegetable if you want to maximize your quercetin consumption.

Related: Your Guide to Root Vegetables – Health Benefits, Recipes, and More

10. Capers

Capers have the highest quercetin content of all the foods that have been studied. These edible flower buds are picked just before they ripen and pickled before they hit your taste buds with their tangy, briny, and slightly lemony flavor.

Studies on capers have found that they have so much antioxidant activity that just a small amount prevents fat from oxidizing and causing cell damage. This makes capers the perfect addition to any meal that has meat and fat in it.

The Ultimate Blood-Sugar-Lowering Meal

Eating these ten foods on a daily basis will help you lower your blood sugar levels fast. But how do you fit these foods into your day?

By putting them all into one meal.

Imagine this — A bowl filled with salad greens of your choice and:

  • shredded red cabbage
  • capers
  • chopped onions
  • broccoli sprouts
  • a handful of blueberries

Toss all of that together with a homemade dressing made of lemon, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, and fenugreek powder. Delicious!

And for dessert — homemade chocolate with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Finish it off with a curcumin supplement, and you’ve just combined all ten blood sugar lowering foods into one delicious meal.

However, you don’t have to rely on these foods to lower your blood sugar. In fact, check out the quickest and easiest way to improve your blood sugar levels.

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