Featured Food: Sea Vegetables

Sticking with the water theme, let's look to the water: sea vegetables. Sea vegetables are neither plant nor animal, they are classified as algae. Pound for pound they are the most nutrient dense food there is. They provide all 56 minerals that the body needs for optimal function. They're a great source for : vitamin K, iodine, B-vitamin folate, magnesium, iron, calcium, B-vitamins riboflavin and pantothenic acid. It is one of the only non-meat sources of B12 (July 1). One factor, lignans are important for cancer. They inhibit blood cell growth (process by which tumors gain nourishment and sends cancer cells out into the bloodstream to create more tumors). The iodine found in sea vegetables (especially in kelp) is a key component for thyroid hormones, essential to human life. They also are great for the heart! The magnesium reduces blood pressure and helps prevent heart attacks. Also, the folic acid (also important in preventing birth defects like spina bifida) breaks down homocysteine that damages blood vessel walls and increases risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke.  Sea vegetables provide funcans, that reduce inflammatory responses. They are affordable and delicious as well. You can find a variety: kelp, wakame, kombu, arame, alaria, and of course nori (which is what most people have heard of- sushi)  are just some that you can find. They come in a variety of ways (roasted and dried probably the most common ways).  They are great to add to soups or salads. Replace your salt shaker with kelp flakes. Better yet improvise and make some sushi! Load up on omega-3 by grabbing some wild salmon fill with veggies or try cauliflower rice (June 15 recipe), roll and enjoy sea vegetables and all their mineral goodness.

Added Bonus; Coconut Water

I was inspired by my research on electrolytes, to write about coconut water. I've been doing a lot of research on coconuts (in fact check July 5), but I haven't covered coconut water itself. Coconut water has been getting a lot of publicity lately, with celebrities like Madonna raving about it. So what's so great? One of the major benefits of coconut water is what we've already discussed; it is naturally high in electrolytes. What else can we gain from drinking coconut water and what is it? Most get confused about coconut water and coconut milk. Coconut water is the clear liquid in the middle of a coconut before they have matured, which is why it's better to harvest them while they're still green (the flavor then is light and sweet). Drinking when freshly cracked is best too, because once they're exposed to air then it's organoleptic and nutritional characteristics start to fermit. In addition to supplying electrolytes, it is a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamins, and proteins. Benefits include: hydration, cools body temperature, maintains immune system, ease urinary tract diseases and dysentery (because of it's saline and albumen content), and used as an antiseptic. Something I found interesting is that it can be used in blood transfusions (as a matter of fact it was used for blood transfusions during the Pacific War 1941-1945). Great news for those wanting to lose weight is that is helps raise metabolism and promote weight loss. Also if you indulge in a drink occasionally, it's been shown to alleviate nausea, therefore making it a natural cure for a hangover. Altogether I think it's an interesting drink. It's loaded with benefits and electrolytes, and is low in calories!

Electrolytes

Today I intended to write solely about electrolytes, but I'm going to branch out and write a separate article on coconut water. Since Thursday's are dedicated to chemicals and such, I decided to cover electrolytes. I've been getting Smart Water (since it's water week), which is labeled as being enhanced with electrolytes. What are electrolytes? Most of us probably have heard of them, or at least know a common product who markets electrolytes. Ever heard of Gatorade? Before I trash Gatorade let's look at what electrolytes are. Basically they are salts (ions if you want to get detailed).  Ions are electrically charged particles which move toward a negative or positive electrode. The major electrolytes to humans are: sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, phosphate, and sulfate. These ions are used by cells (especially in muscle, nerves, and the heart) to maintain voltages across the cell membrane and to carry electrical impulses (such as muscle contraction) to other cells. The kidneys work to maintain electrolyte levels.  These levels have to be restored to prevent dehydration and seizures. When you exercise heavily and sweat, electrolytes are released and need to be restored. Bring into play Gatorade, which contains electrolytes. Bad part is that Gatorade is also full of sugar (one of the three poisons), so what most think is helping is really making things worse. Gatorade contains high fructose sugar and drinking one a day can add 13 pounds in a year! What other options do you have? I found Smart Water, which is a vapor-distilled, electrolyte enhanced water. How perfect, a product that's not artificially sweetened (it's water, duh)! I'm not suggesting that everyone go out and stock up on Smart Water, but if you're working out strenuously and sweating it's not a bad idea to drink one and restore those electrolyte levels. I think this picture is a good reflection of life style, would you rather look like the Gatorade chugging cop or the water drinking Jennifer Aniston? (Next up is coconut water, which naturally contains electrolytes).

The Kettlebell, The Sun, And My Day At The Pool!

Ok so today's blog is simple and fun. It's scorching outside right? And you can't exercise out there because you'll dehydrate, right? Well this is a fun little video showing you how to be outside, cool off, and still exercise. Have a pool? Take your kettlebells to the pool and do some swinging for variety and to spice things up. It'll be refreshing. This video is fun (but ignore the stretching in the video), so take your workout outside and head to the pool!

Cold Water Therapy

I find this topic quite interesting after I read about it on Primal Blueprint's blog. It stated that cold water therapy could introduce the body to natural stresses, which could have health benefits. Most of us are a little turned off by the idea of a cold shower, right? We look forward to those long hot showers, and hate it when we have to shower last, when all the hot water is gone. Is it bad to endure a cold shower once in awhile though? What are the benefits to a nice cold shower? First we'll look at it from an exercise point of view and the positive effects of taking a cold shower after a tough workout. Firstly, it constricts blood vessels and flushes out waste (like lactic acid, which is what's causing you to be sore after a workout). It can also slow down the physiological processes and reduce the swelling and tissue breakdown. The rewarming after a cold shower increases circulation, which improves healing after a workout. Other benefits: cleans the circulatory system, flushes organs out and provides a new blood supply, reduces blood pressure of internal organs, contracts muscles to eliminate toxins, strengthens the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, strengthens mucous membranes, and reduces pain by releases endorphins. Not only does it have all of these physical benefits, but emotionally as well! Cold water can be emotionally uplifting and prepare you for new experiences. One source I read said that cold water wipes away negative energy, which I found interesting (if you believe in that kind of thing). This correlated to ocean swimming which is said to do the same, which is why beach cultures tend to be considered more laid back (just an interesting side note that I enjoyed). Studies on cold water therapy has shown promise for chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic heart failure, and some cancers. What should you do to get benefits? There was no conclusive evidence of which works best, but it appears that habituation seems to be effective. Basically incorporate some cold showers into your routine. Start with shorter ones or work with feet first and then full body. Spice things up every once in awhile by adding full immersion in cold water, like jumping in a cold spring or something. Just have fun, start out slowly or just jump in!

Water Week

I like themes, so this weeks theme is going to water; benefits of water, products of water, anything is possible. Today, however, we are fist going to examine the benefits of drinking water. As most should know by now I believe in drinking water in it's purest form (no longer do I drink anything else, no coffee, pop, or anything sweetened artificially). Most people know that they should drink it (drink 8 glasses of water a day, I'm not going to give a number but am just going to start with Drink It!), but prefer to suck down various sources of unhealthy or nutrition less beverages. "I don't like the taste of water," seriously there really isn't a taste to water, that's just another lame excuse. Why drink water? First let's look at water and then we'll get into the benefits. Over half of your body is comprised of water (55-78% depending on body size). Let's break this down further into the organ percentages comprised of water: brain 90%, muscle 75%, bone 22%, and blood 83%. Water works in the body to transport nutrients and oxygen to cells, helps metabolism,, protects vital organs, helps absorb nutrients,  moisturizes air in the lungs, detoxifies, protects and moisturizes joints, and regulates body temperature. Lacking water (dehydration) can cause tiredness, migraines, constipation, muscle cramps, kidney problems, and dry skin. Let's look at the benefits of drinking water now:

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  Weight Lose: flushes by-products of fat breakdown down. In addition it provides satiety and reduces hunger. Plus it's a guarantee zero calorie drink
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  Natural headache remedy: often times headaches can be caused by dehydration, so keeping hydrated can prevent them.
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  Healthier skin (younger looking): water increases skin elasticity, replenishes skin tissue, and moisturizes skin.
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  Better productivity at work: because the brain is mostly water, then drinking water can help you think and concentrate better, in addition to being more alert.
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  Better exercise: helps fuel muscles.
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  Helps digestion and constipation: raises metabolism.
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  Less cramps and sprains: helps to keep joints and muscles lubricated.
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  Less likely to get sick.
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  Relieves fatigue: flushes out toxins and waste products, other wise organs (like the heart) have to work harder and you and your organs become exhausted.
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  Reduce risk of cancer: studies show reduced risk of bladder and colon.

Pretty simple blog today and it's an easy step you can take to improving your health, so drink up!

Book Review

Ok so this was supposed to be yesterday's post, but I finished the book yesterday. The book is called Lights Out, I found it to be quite fascinating. It explains (with science and studies) that availability of light (artificial light) 24/7 has transformed human health. We have manipulated our environment so that we are constantly in a summer day (heat during the winter prevents true-winter). Humans originally loaded up on carbohydrates and added a few pounds during the summer because in the winter they went into a hibernative/dormant state when carbohydrates were scarce. Now it is continuously summer and we crave carbs all year long. We aren't overeating veggies and fruits though. We've been told that high carb low fat is the way to go which. Which is the opposite of what need. We constantly spike our insulin levels until we become resistant to it and get diseases like diabetes. The author links all illness (diabetes, heart disease, and cancer to our ready supply of light). Basically overeating carbs and insulin resistance are causing all of our problems. We crave carbs because it's summer, but also because we don't get enough sleep to restore prolactin, which controls appetite. This is the general idea of the idea, although it goes into much further detail, but I'm going to end with some of the notes I took while reading it, but like I said I found it very fascinating (and it supports my beliefs of eliminating grains and sugars to control insulin levels).
• Steadily decreasing our consumption of fat and cholesterol and yet increasing our incidence of obesity, disease and death.
• Long hours of artificial light= summer in your head. Winter signifies famine to your internal controls. Famine on horizon signifies instinctive carbohydrate craving to store fat for hibernation and scarcity.
• Incidence Type II diabetes dropped sharply during WWI and WWII when sugar was rationed.
• We are as addicted to a low-fat, high sugar diet as alcoholics are to alcohol, because high insulin levels creates the same brain state as alcohol does.
• Preventative medicine is thought of as alternative medicine in this country.
• The truth about research is that research isn’t about discovering the truth, it’s about making money (research in US predominately paid for by drug companies and government).
• Definition of life is the ability to learn and change in response to experience.
• Hours light exposure control growth symbiotic bacteria (keys life & death & dress size)
• Circadian rhythmicity (night-day cycles) along with carbs control insulin production.
• Get up with the sun, sleep with the moon, eat only your share and be fruitful and multiply
• Life, without all we do to kill time, is only sleeping, eating, and sex
• Unnatural world endless summer and sugar leptin receptors burned out, and there is no longer a curb on appetite for sugar (leptin resistance- cause fat to get fatter- because fat people are always hungry people); prolactin pushed into daytime by short nights suppressed leptin and left appetite for carbohydrate turned on (summer)
• You should wake up hungry with low insulin and cortisol rising to deal with stress during the day.
• Less sleep at night (therefore less melatonin and less leptin) makes you eat more, day and night.
• Without incoming carbohydrates you will drop 10 or so pounds of retained fluid, dropping your blood pressure and burning your fat base, a process that throws off ketones and reduces your serotonin too, so you’re not as depressed or paranoid.
• Running, jumping=being chased=stress response=cortisol release=blood sugar mobilization=blood sugar up=insulin up= insulin resistance=fat storage and hypertension
• Endothelial cells (line heart) control clotting, over-growth, fat metabolism and blood pressure. You can kill them 4 ways: chronic high cortisol; high levels endotoxin LPS (no sleep); high homocysteine (too much light); shear stress (seasonal high blood pressure- along with “water weight” and serotonin and insulin resistance-that never ends)
• When you eat to much carbohydrate for too many months of the year, never empty your storage sugar, or burn fat to imitate famine, insulin produced by your pancreas day and night in response to all of the sugar, causes rebound addictions and substance abuse through the production of serotonin and dopamine, bipolar behavior (ultimately) and maybe even schizophrenia
• Obesity is simply a different symptom of the same syndrome that causes everything else that plagues modern man
• There are no bread trees or pasta bushes. Breads and pasta do not occur in nature.
• Nine and a half hours of solid sleep at least 7 months out of the year is the minimum required to beat cancer, diabetes, heart disease and depression
• Many “food products” that are labeled “sugar free” contain other sweeteners that will raise your blood sugar and spike your insulin just as real sugar would
• Green vegetables: fibrous content slows down digestive process, which lowers the glycemic index of your entire meal.
• Eat real fats; fats become useless when they are accompanied by sugar or when their chemical structure is changed.