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I just recently started reading A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle, and I’ve got to say it is an unbelievably good read. At one point, Eckhart makes a statement about Bulimia, and how sufferers often make themselves vomit so they may continue eating.
“Their mind is hungry, not their body.”
Now, not everyone suffers from bulimia, but if you or someone you know is struggling with a weight issue, you will know that there is a large body-mind connection to which you or they are not aware. Unless every effort is made to strengthen this connection, any effort to lose weight will be in vain.
It may take some time to become aware of your body’s true needs, but you can do it. The trick is simply to pay attention. There is a connection between the foods you eat and the way you feel. If you’ve ever had a hangover, you know what I’m talking about!
Once you start paying attention, you will notice subtle changes in the way you feel, expecially if you are eating foods to which your body is particularly sensitive. For most people, this will include dairy and wheat products as they comprise the top 2 allergens. You likely eat some form of dairy or wheat every single day, multiple times a day, without awareness. Try going 4 days without eating dairy or wheat products. On day 5, indulge in some ice cream or pancakes and note how you feel afterward.
I say 4 days because that is roughly the amount of time it takes the body to work through, process, and eliminate foods from the cells of your body. You may feel symptoms of ”withdrawal” after the first or second day, and it may not let up through the 4th day. In this case, I challenge you to keep on with this little experiment, perhaps going beyond the 4th day, because the fact that these symptoms exist is your body telling you that it is indeed sensitive to these foods, and it needs extra time to expel them from your body due to years of toxic build-up brought on by eating these foods every day.
The results may suprise you. It wasn’t until I did this exact experiment on myself that I realized my body had been telling me for years to stop eating dairy foods. Once I became aware of my body’s needs, I drastically cut down on my dairy intake, and I have never felt better! If you have eczema, psoriasis, acne, or any other dis-ease, I encourage your participation even more because your body is screaming and you are not paying attention.
Once you start paying attention to the messages your body relays, over time it will become easier and easier to tell when you are truly hungry and when you are not. You may become aware that you eat in social situations, whether you are hungry or not - just becasue others are eating. You may find the courage to say no to your eyes when they see ice cream, and listen to your body when it says ”I don’t like ice cream, it makes me feel sick.”
If you constantly feel tired, find it difficult to get out of bed in the morning, are overweight, or suffer from headaches, migraines, digestive upset or constipation, you are in desperate need of some cleansing action. It’s time to reduce the digestive load on your body and cleanse! Toxins are stored in fat, so if you’ve got a lot of it, you’ve got a lot of toxins just waiting to be released! The good news is that our dietary plans are designed to both cleanse and slim your body!
You don’t have to be overweight to be in need of a detoxification program either - some of the unhealthiest people I know are quite slim!
Whenever it has the energy to do so, your body will repair damaged cells and get rid of unwanted toxins. A toxin is anything that irritates and pollutes your body. Internal organs are strained because they have to work hard to process and get rid of these threatening particles. We have little control of some toxins, so we must take special care to deal with the ones we can reduce. If you live in a city, for example, you cannot control the quality of the air unless you wear a mask everywhere you go. Not many people are willing to go that far, so by making you aware of the toxins in your environment, I hope to help you make better choices in your daily life. Toxicity in your body is created by contact with irritants. This includes everything from the soap you use in the shower, toilet bowl cleaner, dish soap, fabric softener, and especially the food and drink you put inside your body. Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, and other toxic chemicals used in food production are making people sick. Farmers have been hospitalized due to using these chemicals on their farms for heaven’s sake! I don’t want these chemicals anywhere near my body!
Every night while you sleep, your body is hard at work putting nutrients where they belong and exiling anti-nutrients to areas where they can exit your body through urine and solid waste. When you get up in the morning and eat breakfast or drink coffee, you put an end to this detoxification process (and incur a lot more toxins for your body to sort through). Most people do not allow their bodies the time it needs to detoxify. They eat too much food too often and don’t drink enough water to flush out their systems. If you’re not hungry in the morning, don’t force yourself to eat, but be prepared for when hunger strikes by bringing food with you if you’re on the go.
Once you begin to decrease the digestive load on your body, you may feel worse before you feel better. This is a good thing! It means that your body is finally getting a chance to work through old toxins and get them out of your body. Symptoms of detoxification include dizziness, lack of appetite, fatigue, nausea, headaches, increased body odour, rashes, hives, skin outbreaks, increased allergic symptoms, and a general feeling of sickness. It is important to drink plenty of water in order to flush out any toxins you may stir up.
So, how do you detox exactly? Here are some steps you can take:
- Eat as Organic as Possible
- Eat Plenty of Fruits and Vegetables
- Drink Fresh Smoothies and Juices Daily in Place of Solid Food
- Limit Meat and Dairy Consumption During (AND After!) the Cleanse
- Exercise on a Daily Basis
- Eat Only When Hungry and Stop When You’re Full!
You can take it a step further and do a full detoxification protocol with a Registered Holistic Nutritionist to ensure that you detox safely and effectively. I know an amazing practitioner who will take great care of you - ME! You will learn how to support your liver and safely bind and remove toxins from your body. The best part about a one-on-one detox program is the individual care, attention, and coaching that ensures you are healthier than ever before! I guarantee your friends will give you compliments daily on your radiant skin!
Simply put - disease cannot exist in an alkaline environment. This alone can be great motivation to increase your body’s alkalinity by adding more alkaline foods to your diet while decreasing overall consumption of acidic foods. Try it for yourself - you can FEEL the difference.
Alkalizing your body can mean a dramatic increase in weight loss. This is because your body stores toxins in fat cells to keep them far away from your delicate organs. The more toxic you are, the more fat you will need to store the toxins and keep the rest of your body relatively “safe”. The more alkaline you become, the less need you have for fat, and the body will safely release its fat stores, given you are not eating an outrageous amount of calories.
Highly Acidic Foods
- Dairy
- Meat
- Sugar
- Refined Foods
- Processed drinks: Coffee, Soda, Beer, and Alcohol
- Bad Fats - Anything that is hydrogenated, partially hydrogenated, or heated.
- Drugs and Chemicals : pesticides, herbicides, aspirin, and tobacco.
Highly Alkaline Foods
- Green vegetables and fresh green juices.
- Fruit: including citrus fruits!
- Essential Fatty Acids: such as Omega 3 and 6.
- Filtered water: at least 2L a day!
- Exercise! Regular exercise promotes toxin removal through the lymphatic and digestive systems!
In my house, we live by 5 simple rules in addition to avoidance of the highly acidic foods above:
- Drink plenty of water.
- Sweat once a day.
- Drink 1 green juice per day.
- Eat 1 salad per day.
- Treat yourself! If you really want that slice of carrot cake, eat it and be thankful for it. Be happy and content with your decision to indulge ocassionally. Live in the moment and above all: never feel guilty. Guilt will only serve to stress you out, promote acidity, and keep you fat!
If you are searching for that illustrious glow, I encourage you to do your best to start eating more raw fruits and vegetables while, again, doing your best to remove some highly acidic foods. Start out slowly and work to incorporate the 5 rules above. It may be tough or it may be easy, but always remember where you started and have a clear vision of where you want to be.
You may be wondering what this post has to do with weight loss, but you may be surprised to find out that every single holistic recommendation will help heal your body, which will make it work more efficiently and naturally move toward its ideal, healthy weight.
I used to suffer from chronic sinusitis – but since going holistic 2 years ago, my sinus cavities are free and clear! There used to be pressure in my head so great I thought my head would explode, and if I bent over, it actually felt like it did! I had constant mucus production and severe bronchitis infections all year round. I was sick all summer, every summer. The lymph nodes in my head were swollen to the point of serious concern and put me in the emergency room 3 times in one month!
When the Head of Emergency Services at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto said that he had no idea what was wrong with me, I took matters into my own hands and became a Registered Holistic Nutritionist. No more sinus problems. So if you have problems with your sinuses then steer clear of the doctor. They’ll only give you prescription drugs that you don’t need and will end up doing more harm than good. I know because I’ve been down that route more times over the years than I care to remember.
Not only will you breathe better, but you’ll have so much energy that you’ll pop out of bed in the morning just by following these recommendations and get rid of sinus trouble once and for all!
•Remove dairy from your diet and other foods that trigger your sinusitis, and eat foods that soothe it.
•Reduce swelling and inflammation with nutritional and natural supplements.
•Practice good nasal hygiene. Get yourself a Neti Pot and learn how to use it! Intrigued?
•Clear the air you breathe of dust mites, mold, dampness, and other allergens - get an air purifier.
•Learn about prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications, and the not-so-great effects they have on your body. We want to treat the root cause of sinusitis, not just mask the symptoms!
•Exercise to increase the flow of your lymphatic system.
• Try yoga. Even better – try hot yoga…it will help clean out your system in no time!
I could write a book on how to improve sinus problems, but for now I would like to elaborate on my two favourite recommendations: the removal of dairy and the neti pot.
The thing that improved my problem the most was getting dairy products out of my diet for a few weeks. I eliminated it completely for 6 weeks and my sinusitis was loads better. It wasn’t completely gone but it was well on its way out of my body. Yay! And then I did an experiment. I went to a party and there just happened to be a massive cheese platter…so I ate a large chunk of brie, some cheddar, and some blue cheese for good measure. On the way home I felt sick. And then I threw up…tons. The next day I woke up with acute bronchitis and with it a full blown sinus infection! I am not kidding around. I have witnesses and they will testify if asked! This experience is why I encourage you to experiment with the removal of dairy from your diet.
Now it’s time for the explanation of Neti, my close personal friend. The Neti Pot cleanses and protects the nasal passages, which are in fact, one of the body’s first lines of defense against allergens and illness. Practitioners of Ayurveda and Yoga in India have been using it for thousands of years to alleviate sinus and allergy problems. There are a variety of solutions you can use to clear the sinus cavities that include herbal oils and herbs, but I use one of the most basic –a salt water solution in a concentration similar to the saltiness of your tears.
When you first get your Neti Pot, it may take you a few tries to get the angles right – but trust me, you’ll be glad you gave it a try. Fill your pot with warm, slightly salted water (¼ tsp of sea salt to 1 cup of warm water) and insert the spout of the pot into one nostril. Then position the head so that the water flows out of the other nostril. It’s not nearly as uncomfortable as it sounds, and once you’ve done it a few times you will look forward to the benefits each and every day. The benefits were quite noticeable the first time I used it, and it only takes a few minutes –just like brushing your teeth!
So, if you’re going to try even just a few things: eliminate dairy for a week to see if it helps and get yourself a Neti Pot! And even though I didn’t elaborate on it, try out a yoga class if you’ve never done it…yesterday I saw a man with mucus hanging out of his nose while in Downward Dog…so there’s some hearsay proof that it helps!
If you would like to learn more about any of the above recommendations to eradicate sinusitis (or help to eradicate any other dis-ease) from your body, be sure to give me a call or shoot me an email to set up a consultation. You can find my contact information at the side of this page. There is nothing I enjoy more than creating health in people just like you!
