Green & Healthy Living

April 2, 2012 In Green & Healthy Living, Holistic Health, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

I heart Traditional Chinese Medicine

One of the inside jokes we have as Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners is that TCM has two hearts and no brain. It may sound like it, but it’s really not a dig. In TCM we discuss function more than form. The two hearts are the physical heart and the emotional heart. The “no brain” is because we don’t discuss the physical form of the brain on its own. We discuss the brain as being encompassed by the marrow and that is most linked to the energy of the TCM Kidneys. Long-term memory is also more directed to the TCM Kidneys. Short-term...

March 28, 2012 In Food, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, Holistic Health, News, Spotlight, Uncategorized By Vancouver Health Coach

Eating Ayurvedic: A Diet for Balancing Kapha

The diet to balance kapha corresponds to the many of the low-fat, mostly vegetarian diets out there including that recommended by health and wellness guru Dr. Dean Ornish, as well as those who advocate for raw food veganism. This diet is proportionally rich in antioxidant and anti inflammatory nutrients, and typically low in protein and fat. In Ayurveda this diet is suitable for people that have a sluggish metabolism, that tend to gain weight easily on a rich, nourishing diet. This diet is also an excellent choice to promote detoxification, by shifting energy balance in the body towards elimination. As...

January 18, 2012 In Food, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Raw & Vegan Coconut Oil Recipes for Health: Energizing Coconut Peach Melba Smoothie

How can you easily incorporate coconut oil into your daily diet and enjoy its health benefits? Try this raw and vegan Coconut Peach Melba Smoothie. Coconut oil is nature’s richest source of healthy medium chain fatty acids, which help stimulate your body’s metabolism, aid in weight loss, improve cholesterol levels and protect us from disease due to the oil’s anti-microbial properties. To reap the numerous health benefits coconut oil has to offer, the recommended daily intake is 1-3 tablespoons. One of the easiest ways to consume 1 tablespoon per day is in a smoothie. This energizing vegan Coconut Peach Melba Smoothie...

December 14, 2011 In Editor's Picks: Must Haves for Staying Healthy, Green & Healthy Living, News, Product Reviews, Spotlight By Lisa Virtue

Release some tension with all natural Spoonk acupressure mats

History often repeats itself, especially when we’ve done good. In India, yogis have been privy to the healing effects of the ancient bed of nails for centuries. This practice is known as acupressure.  Finally the western world is catching on, and just when we need it! With modern day stress, we are in dire need of methods of relaxation. It seems paradoxical, that a bed of sharp nails may actually serve to relax us. But once you give it a good try, you will see for yourself how soothing it is. The modern day version of the yogis’ bed of nails, is...

December 5, 2011 In Eliminating Toxins, Food, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

The Wheat Belly: Diabetes and accelerated aging

I recently read an excerpt called “Wheat Belly” from the book “Wheat: The Unhealthy Whole Grain”, written by Dr William Davis, MD.  What I read in this book touched upon a new concept for me in relation to healthy eating for Type 2 Diabetics. Dr Davis explains how our current supply of genetically modified (GMO) wheat that is prolific within the North American diet actually acts differently within our body than the wheat that our ancestors ate.  While we tout eating whole grains rather than refined grains and starchy foods (potatoes, pasta, white rice, bleached white flour, etc), Dr Davis explains...

November 16, 2011 In Family Fitness, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Benefits of coconut oil for pregnant mothers

Coconut oil contains lauric acid, a powerful anti-microbial fatty acid that protects the immune system of the fetus and newborn. Pregnant and nursing mothers should eat coconut oil to increase the quality of the womb environment and breast milk. There has been a lot of research lately discussing how the environment of the womb can affect the long term health of the baby with respect to autism, allergies, asthma, food sensitivities and other chronic conditions. In past blogs we have talked about the health benefits of coconut oil but not specifically its protective properties for pregnant and nursing mothers. A healthy diet...

September 23, 2011 In Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Lisa Virtue

Colon cancer cold spot: Africa

Present day North America, unfortunately, is a hot spot for a variety of diseases - no need to depress you with names you know too well. Luckily, there are places in the world that can teach us how to reverse such sickly trends, as they are disease “cold spots.” Enter Africa: cold spot for colon cancer, with only 1 case in 100,000 (1). African Americans are affected at 60 in 100,000 (1), with Caucasian Americans not far behind at about 50 in 100,000 (2). This is a disease of the West, affecting all ethnicities, ironically though hitting the people of...

September 14, 2011 In Ask The Expert: Health & Fitness Advice, Fitness, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Elbow pain causes, symptoms and treatment

Ask The Expert is a health & fitness advice column. If you have a question for one of our Fitness Goop experts, please email [email protected].   Lately, I have had a few people ask about pain that has developed on either the inside or the outside of the elbow. Their symptoms were pretty common such as tenderness on the inside or outside of the elbow and pain during any grasping, pulling or pushing of objects such as the following: Shaking hands Writing Lifting objects Holding objects Steering a car etc. Depending on the location, those people were suffering from either Golfer’s Elbow or Tennis Elbow.  Golfer’s Elbow (also known...

August 24, 2011 In Fitness, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Lisa Virtue

Fruitarian athletes are thriving and breaking records

It’s a challenge keeping up with vegetarianism these days; there’s ovo-vegetarian, lacto-vegetarian, vegan and pesca-vegan. To add to these options, we also have fruitarianism. Like the title suggests, followers of this diet eat fruit. Some fruitarians eat a fruit only diet, while most also enjoy plenty of leafy greens, some vegetables and small quantities of nuts and seeds. Take note: tomato, peppers, cucumber, zucchini, avocado, okra and eggplant are all botanically fruits! It is also implied that the food be consumed raw. Thus the terms: fruitarian, raw foodist, and raw vegan are sometimes used interchangeably. To mainstream western society, this...

April 16, 2011 In Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Can Yogurt Help Alleviate Pain Associated with IBS?

April is Irritable Bowel Syndrome Awareness month, and nutritional and medical experts are working to raise the public's knowledge on how to diagnose and treat this digestive disorder, which affects approximately 45 million people. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a problem that affects the large intestine. While no medical cure for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) has been discovered, a diet that reduces pain from inflammation and bloating can be an important management technique for IBS sufferers. IBS is one of the most commonly diagnosed disorders, with as many as one in five Americans suffering from its symptoms, which include chronic abdominal pain,...