You may know of vitamin D as the “sunshine vitamin”, and for good reason. When we are exposed to the suns (UV) ultraviolet rays, our skin creates its own vitamin D, which then travels to the liver and then to your kidneys to be turned into active vitamin D.
While Vitamin D is also naturally found in some foods such as fatty fish (salmon, sardines, tuna, herring, cod liver oil), eggs yolks, mushrooms and some fortified foods (cow’s milk, soy milk, orange juice, cereals), the sun remains to be the best and most efficient source of this vitamin.
Even though it can be quite easy to get your daily Vitamin D intake from sunlight (especially here in sunny Queensland, Australia), figures from Osteoporosis Australia state that over 30% of Australian adults have a mild, moderate or severe Vitamin D deficiency, which is about 1 in 4!
There are a number of factors that can contribute to a deficiency in Vitamin D, including those who are housebound, the elderly, darker skinned people, medical conditions that can affect your ability to absorb/process vitamin D, and the issue of being able to be sun smart while also getting enough daily sunshine on exposed skin. Many of us have also been in isolation for the past few months, which has made it even more difficult to get our daily sunshine vitamin.
A brand new systematic review by Blumfield et al., has found that eating just five UV exposed mushrooms can give you your daily required dose of vitamin D.
According to the review, in order to boost the vitamin D levels in your mushrooms, you need to have them sitting in direct sunlight for 15-60 minutes. After exposing them to sunlight, you can store them in the refrigerator where they will remain vitamin D boosted for up to 8 days. Blumfield et al., states that “UVB-exposed mushrooms increase and maintain serum 25(OH)D levels to a similar degree as vitamin D supplements.” This was tested on individuals with and without a vitamin D deficiency.
The study also highlights the other health benefits of mushrooms, including the ability to improve markers of metabolic syndrome, improve gastrointestinal health, and reduce risk of ovarian and prostate cancers.
Now with the potential to provide us with our daily dose of vitamin D, there’s just so many reasons to love mushrooms! They are so nutritionally unique and can make such a powerful addition to your diet. Grill them, roast them, stuff them, add them to pizzas or risottos, soups or pastas. Get creative with them on #MeatlessMondays by using grilled portabella mushrooms on burgers, or making grilled shiitake skewers. There are so many ways to spice up your cooking with mushrooms! How do you like to eat mushrooms?
Reference: Blumfield et al. (2020). Examining the health effects and bioactive components in Agarius bisporus mushrooms: a scoping review. The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, 84.
Too busy to hit the gym or schedule a structured workout into your day? Don’t sweat, because there’s lots of easy things you can do during the day to boost your movement and activity levels, without even realising it!
GO FOR A WALK WITH A FRIEND. Instead of meeting at a coffee shop to sit down and catch up, get your coffees to go and hit the local neighbourhood for a walk. If you have a beach nearby, taking a walk with a friend along the beach boardwalk is a nice thing to do as well.
WEEKEND FAMILY BIKE RIDE. Dust off the bikes, lace up your shoes and head outside for a weekend bike ride with the family! You’ll be getting active, getting some sunshine and keeping your family connected all at the same time.
RUN UP THE STAIRS INSTEAD OF WALK. Running up a flight of stairs is an awesome way to burn calories (ever seen those stair climbing machines at the gym?).
JUMP ON THE TRAMPOLINE WITH YOUR KIDS. You may not believe it, but trampoline jumping actually works out your entire body. A 2019 study on the effectiveness of a mini-trampoline jumping program for people with osteopenia (low bone density) found that trampoline jumping helps to improve balance, strength and functional mobility. Jumping is for everyone!
HAVE A DANCE PARTY. Make exercising fun again! Make sure to include moves that get you down low, jumping up high and moving your arms.
PARK IN THE FURTHEST PARKING LOT AWAY FROM THE SHOPS. Okay, so this might not be the most fun idea to do all the time, but have you ever tried to steer a full shopping trolley full of groceries around the parking lot, while attempting not to smash your trolley into someone or get yourself run over? It requires a lot of muscle strength and body movements!
GIVE YOUR KIDS PIGGY BACK RIDES. If your kids are young, they most likely love to get piggy back rides. If you start thinking about it as a way to get some more exercise into your day, you might enjoy it and want to do it a lot more!
LET YOUR DOG MOTIVATE YOU. Grab the leash and your dog and head outside. Your body and your pooch will thank you later!
BE CREATIVE ABOUT ADDING MOVEMENT INTO YOUR DAILY ACTIVITIES. For example, you could do hand and wrist stretches while waiting at stop lights, squats while you watch your kiddies bath, or even star jumps while you wait for the microwave to ding.
Getting movement into your day doesn’t have to involve intense HIIT sessions or specific “scheduled” workout time. Remember that every step counts!
Author: Lisa Cutforth B.Sc Nutrition with Psychology (Dual Degree) Consulting Clinical Nutritionist to The Banyans Wellness Retreat Owner and Managing Director of Wholesomeness and Wholesomeness-on-Roma
When it comes to making decisions about what’s best for your health, and for your lifestyle, it can be a little overwhelming. That’s why we created our gourmet home delivered meals, because we know (from firsthand experience!) that people are busier than ever, often juggling multiple balls at once.
Sometimes there’s just not enough time in the day to plan healthy meals, go out to buy the ingredients (and not forget anything!), then spend the time cooking and doing the dishes each night. Perhaps you are doing all of the above, and are feeling a little rundown. Well we’re here to let you know exactly why our meals are better for you, for your health and for your lifestyle…
SUPERFOOD PACKED MEALS DESIGNED BY CHEF’S & NUTRITIONISTS
We know that food tastes better when it’s cooked from scratch, that’s why all of our dishes are cooked on site in our small kitchen in Brisbane. Our team of chef’s and nutritionists personally plan each meal (ensuring that it’s nutritionally dense and calorie controlled), shop locally for fresh quality produce, and cook each meal with extreme love, care and attention. Our nutritionist is onsite to ensure that every single meal is packed with superfood benefits, looks beautiful and tastes just as good as it looks!
OUR FOOD IS FRESHER THAN FRESH
Did you know that food starts to deteriorate right after it has been cooked? That’s why we use the benchmark method of blast-chilling and freezing which basically snap freezes the meals before they have any chance of spoilage or growth of microorganisms. Freezing also helps to maintain top nutritional quality of the food, by retaining the vitamins and minerals present in the food. In some ways, frozen food is actually nutritionally better than fresh, because fresh food loses micronutrients over time (that’s why we say fresher than fresh!).
GREAT VALUE FOR MONEY
Fact: 2.5 million tonnes of edible food is thrown out by Australian households every year (that’s 300kgs per person!).
At some point, we’ve all opened our fridge to find soggy lettuce that we just didn’t get around to using that week. If you find yourself throwing out lots of unused produce each week, we can help. Our meals are only around $13-14 each, including delivery. With this price comes lots of time saving (no long grocery shops, meal planning, cooking, cleaning up), plus no wasted ingredients and no wasted money spent on those ingredients! We full support the idea that healthy eating doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive.
WE SUPPORT YOU
We’re here to answer any question you might have, and to support you on your health journey. Whether you want to free up time, lose weight or simply just start eating healthier, as soon as you join us you become a part of the friendly and supporting community that is Wholesomeness!
Click here to check out our nutritious, healthy, delivered meals.
Author:
Lisa Cutforth B.Sc Nutrition with Psychology (Dual Degree) Consulting Clinical Nutritionist to The Banyans Wellness Retreat Owner and Managing Director of Wholesomeness and Wholesomeness-on-Roma
Are you coming home from work totally exhausted? Waking up more exhausted than the day before? We have all had that feeling where we think it is impossible to keep going; knowing that we need to go home, cook dinner, clean, get the kids ready for bed, oh and somewhere in-between have a life!
Is it just the way life is? Busy days, little sleep and no time for ourselves to relax? No! There needs to be balance and you truly can make a huge difference with good nutrition and easy tricks to get you there.
(Beyond Good Health Clinics) [image] of chronic fatigue
What are signs and symptoms of fatigue?
Constant feeling of tiredness
Shortness of breath or muscle weakness
Lack of motivation
Concentration and memory recall difficulties
(Wedro, 2015)
Why does your body feel so depleted?
Our bodies can be feeling exhausted for many various reasons, you may have a serious or chronic current health issue, a newborn baby or going through a really stressful time at the moment. Whatever it may be, good nutrition will always optimize health by nourishing and supporting the fundamental biochemical pathways that lead us to be the marvelous walking, talking, living, breathing organism we are!
These pathways require sufficient nutrient intake to ensure synthesis and balance of enzymes, proteins, hormones, neurons, cells, EVERYTHING! Without adequate intakes, you can be tipping over a domino and starting a destructive cascade of physiological events inside your body without even realizing. Every single thingin your body will be rebuilt by what you eat.
If you’re eating unhealthy foods, not getting enough exercise, sleep or relaxation your health will eventually mentally and physically suffer, acutely or chronically - period.
We have over 100 trillion cells working fiercely to keep us going, even more amazing you can times that number by 10 and you get the amount of live bacteria in the human body (Rettener, 2016) – pretty amazing right? You have to give them nourishment to thrive and do their jobs effectively – they will do everything in their power to make sure you, the host, can survive.
Watch this amazing video on immune cells in action –
(Healing, 2014)
Potential causes of fatigue:
Prolonged sympathetic nervous system stimulation (stress and anxiety) subsequently causing insufficient absorption and digestion of food increasing malnutrition
Excessive amounts of high carb and sugar foods
Damage to GIT and dysbiosis of the microbiome
Nutritional deficiencies including insufficient water intake
Toxic build-up in your body (see article here on how to detoxify naturally)
Insufficient sleep (recommended 6 – 8 hours)
Side effects from medications
Here’s the exciting part! You can change your life for the better! Don’t let this overwhelm you, let it inspire you; let it take your breath away at just how wonderful, intricate and purely amazing your body is. Believe in yourself enough that you deserve to be healthy; you deserve to love your body and nourish it and feel good again!
Top 10 Ways To Boost Your Energy!
I really am a huge advocate of this – try your best to cut out the processed foods. Anything that comes in a packet, stay clear. Aim to fill your fridge with a rainbow of local fresh fruit, veg, nuts and meats. Nature has us covered, every whole-food contains an array of nourishing vitamins and minerals that you need to thrive on, aiming to help all of those beautiful pathways work at optimum levels. Don’t have time to cook? Check out our AMAZING healthy meals here.
Aim to eat foods high in your B-Vitamins; they all play an integral part in energy synthesis and metabolism. Great food sources include eggs, salmon, nuts, seeds, dark-leafy greens and organic well-sourced animal liver. (Whitney, 2014) If you are really struggling it might be beneficial to opt for a well-sourced B-vitamin complex.
Increase your magnesium (Mg+) intake; most of us are deficient in Mg+. (Here’s a tester-poke out your tongue in a mirror, if it is shaking chances are you may be Mg+ deficient). Mg+ is Crucial for energy, heart, lung, and immune functionality along with being essential for synthesizing glucose, proteins, fats and structures. It is also vital for neural communication. High in seeds, grains and green-leafy veg.
Antioxidants help detoxify harmful substances, repair and nourish your cells along with promoting damaged cell apoptosis (cell death). Great sources of antioxidants: fresh berries, green tea, turmeric, raw organic cacao and nuts. (Mercola, 2016)
Choose complex carbohydrates and lower your sugars, this includes overindulging in fruits – aim for no more than 2 – 3 serves per day max. Complex carbs are sourced from whole fruits, whole grains, green and starchy vegetables e.g. sweet potato, pumpkin and beetroot. Eat them with a bit of protein and good fats to increase satiety and avoid a high spike in blood glucose.
Cut back on stimulants; caffeine, alcohol, black teas and cigarettes. Over-stimulation of the nervous system can eventually cause our body to burn out. Try an alternative dandelion root coffee, mix it up with herbal teas and if you’re a huge coffee and chocolate person aim for a new goal each week to slowly reduce your intake.
Ensure you are getting enough iron (Fe+) in your diet. Fe+ is essential for transporting oxygen around your body through your blood and absolutely vital for many catalyst enzymatic reactions. Nuts, green-leafy vegetables and red meat are all high in Fe+.
Try our amazing PondWater Mix – I am officially in LOVE with this mix! It has all organic ingredients; chlorella, spirulina, wheat grass, aloe vera and spelt grass. Perfect for alkalizing the body, high in glutathione for repairing gut endothelial lining, rich in nutrients and a great 3 o’clock pick me up.
Probiotic rich foods: Once you have started to take a more clean eating approach it’s time to look into probiotic-rich foods or even a supplement. These gut microbes play an integral role in our body and the immune system, it is absolutely essential we have the right bacteria. Try adding sauerkraut, kimchi, miso or low sugar Kombucha into your diet once daily.
Sleep, rest and relaxation: yes, you know this one – we all do, just DO IT! Find a way to take 10 – 20 minutes each day to just be, ground yourself and appreciate your life. What’s the point of working so hard for it to ruin you? There’s no point. I love deep breathing in the car, shower or right now while I am typing. You are just too important to let stress control you. P.S. if you haven’t already, give meditation a go – it’s a win.
Coconut turmeric chicken with vegetable stir-fry – check it out here
References
Asif, M. (2014, February 21). The prevention and control the type-2 diabetes by changing lifestyle and dietary pattern. PubMed. doi:10.4103/2277-9531.127541
Beyond Good Health Clinics. (n.d.). [image] of chronic fatigue. Retrieved August 03, 2016, from https://www.google.com.au/search?q=fatigue&biw=1366&bih=667&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjCl4Cv8aTOAhUJFZQKHaAxCKAQ_AUICCgB#imgrc=eHYfnUSvUhJwVM%3A
Food Standards, Australian and New Zealand. (2010). Retrieved from NUTTAB: http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/science/monitoringnutrients/nutrientables/nuttab/Pages/default.aspx
Healing, S. C. (Director). (2014). Your Immune System under a microscope. [Motion Picture]. Retrieved August 03, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPIzIznmAO0
Mercola, D. (2016). The Ultimate Guide to Antioxidants. Retrieved August 3, 2016, from http://articles.mercola.com/antioxidants.aspx
Rettener, R. (2016, March 10). The Human Body: Anatomy, Facts & Functions. Live Science. Retrieved July 27, 2016, from http://www.livescience.com/37009-human-body.html
Wedro, B. M. (2015, March 02). Fatigue. Retrieved July 27, 2016, from http://www.medicinenet.com/fatigue/article.htm
Whitney, E. R.-S. (2014). Understanding Nutrition, Australian and New Zealand, 2nd Edition. South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3205: CENGAGE Learning.
Ok, so we have all heard about detoxification and how great it is, but why is it so important? Does it really help our bodies or is it just another master scheme to get us to spend money? The answer is, yes, detoxification is a crucial component to achieving optimum health and should be done on a regular or quarterly basis. (1)
Why should we detoxify?
What goes in – must come out and our liver is working around the clock to remove that morning coffee, last night's’ wine and that delicious little muffin you just ate. Everything goes through the liver. Detoxification is compiled of many intricate and wondrous biochemical reactions to help rid your body of nasty toxin build up. Did you know that we are consistently detoxifying? Every bit of air we breathe, food we drink, meals we eat must be digested, put to good use or detoxified.
What our liver detoxifies each day:
Metabolic end-waste
Perfume and personal care products
Washing detergents
Food Pesticides and added hormones
Pollutants and heavy metals
Alcohol and Medications
Food preservatives
Paints and cleaning products
Who would have thought – we’re surrounded! These nasty substances can build up and guess where they are stored – your fat cells! Yikes!
Signs & Symptoms of Toxicity:
Dry skin, eczema or acne
Sinus congestion, irritated eyes or a runny nose
Headaches, neck pain, joint or back pain
Constipation, bloating or flatulence
Inability to lose weight
Insomnia, fatigue, depression, and irritability
Frequent infections or allergic reactions
Bad breath or body odour
How does it work?
Put simply, the liver has a 2 phase protocol:
Phase 1: Our body stimulates a variety of biochemical reactions to reduce the toxic compound into a less harmful and more soluble molecule. Free radicals are synthesised during these processes and must be excreted to avoid further damage in the body, which is why phase 2 is crucial.
Phase 2: The toxic chemicals bind with another substance allowing excretion to occur.
Top 10 Ways To Detoxify The Body:
Eliminate all processed foods
Eat all the colours of the rainbow with fresh organic fruit, vegetables and meats (this is why we are so passionate about nourishing food, so much goodness!
Drink plenty of filtered water or herbal teas (I recommend something containing green tea, dandelion root and St. Mary’s thistle)
Antioxidant rich foods such as berries and green leafy vegetables – I am in love with our GoodMix PondWater, which has amazing detoxification benefits (seriously!)
Avoid caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, sugar and other non-essential drugs
Avoid inflammatory compounds in foods such as dairy, wheat, legumes and soy
Endeavour to obtain 7 – 8 hours of sleep each night, without sufficient sleep the body reduces repair and detox time
Reduce stress, implement at least 10 - 20 minutes of meditation, affirmations or relaxation techniques daily
Exercise! Yep, we all know this one – so find something you love! Without sufficient exercise in our lives, we are depriving ourselves of sweating out toxins, circulating the blood, building/ repair/maintenance of bones and muscle, the release of natural endorphins along with optimising our energy levels.
$100 FREE gift card to use with Brisbane Natural Health
FREE personal training session with Training Spot
1 whole week FREE classes with Training Spot
FREE support guru to help you through your detox
14 or 30 days of prepared meals and snacks
Eating only organic, pastured meats and fresh locally sourced vegetables
Elimination of sugar, grains, dairy, legumes and preservatives
Delivered 3 times per week fresh to your door – Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
Choose Pickup or delivery to Brisbane
Two Free Days if you book 30 Days
Please note: It is important that if you are pregnant and elderly detoxification is a big no-no, if you are suffering from a current health situation, discuss a program with your health professional prior to any detoxification implementations.
