- Alkalise
- Remove and replace refined sugars and flours
- Breathing exercises
- Continue to pray the Lectio Divina
- All those nasty fats are gone and replaced, right?
- Take your vitamins
- Drink, Drink, Drink!
Now that Christmastide is winding down and we’ve eaten our annual allotment of inappropriate treats, we’re going to reduce our acid levels and increase our alkalinity. Hey, it works for the Energizer Bunny, doesn’t it?
High acid levels in our bodies contribute to irritability, inflammation, and provide a favourable environment for intestinal parasites. Yes, you have them. Everyone does. In fact the average adult has between 7 and 10 lbs. of them in their guts. Awful, isn’t it? My daughter Cate did some research recently that said that we also carry up to 18lb. of waste in our intestines. We will be working on fasting and cleansing in the next two weeks, but this week, we are going to concentrate on getting our bodies into alkaline balance. I feel that it will make the fasting and cleansing process a little easier if we are not already feeling cranky and swollen.
We talked last week about how refined sugars and white flour can turn rapidly into sugars, increasing the level of acidity in our bodies. If you have a health food store nearby, ask the customer service desk to help you find PH strips. They often carry them. This will allow you to check your progress. You want to maintain a healthy balance, not too alkaline either. The test strips will have indicators on the package to compare your strip to. I recommend strips that test a wide range up to 9.0 in .25 increments. These are better for salivary testing. You can get them here at a reasonable price. Your strip should indicate between 7.25 and 7.50 optimally.
Test your saliva the first day you get your strips and keep a journal for the next few weeks. This will help you to mark your progress. You can also order a pack of 30 food journal sheets from the shop for $6.00, including shipping. These are included as reproducibles in the Home Management Book as well.
Below is a link to lists of acid producing foods (to reduce), and alkaline foods (to increase). Remember to track what you are eating and how you are feeling. If you choose to use PH strips, then record your results daily as well.
One of my favourite ways to alkalise is with ginger tea. I grate 1 tablespoon of fresh ginger root into a teapot or Pyrex ™ pitcher. Pour 1 qt. of boiling water over the top and let steep for 5-15 minutes, depending upon strength desired. I like mine very strong. You may find that you need to re-heat the tea before drinking. Strain out the ginger and sweeten with honey. I take this tea for whatever ails me and it always makes me feel better. Do not be surprised to find little parasites in your stool. These can look like very tiny white grains. They will be dead, so fear not. This is a good thing - they’re better out than in. They don’t like the more alkaline environment.
You can find an excellent table of alkaline/acid foods on this site. I recommend that you print it off and keep it handy - perhaps on the fridge. Remember, you are only going to reduce the acid-producing foods, not eliminate them. We are aiming at a proper balance.
Why don’t we do a progress report mid-week to see how you’re feeling? I do hope that this program is helping you to make significant changes in your life. Remember to pray for perseverence and wisdom as your progress. Your practice of Lectio Divina will certainly lead you to make some changes, whether they are health related or not. The ability to confidently make decisions and changes in your life, knowing that they are God’s will, will improve your health as well.
I keep you all in my prayers. I want for you to be truly healthy and to experience the wonder of God’s creation in YOU! You really are fearfully and wonderfully made, capable of healing yourself through proper care of your body. Our souls are made in His image, and have a very important job to do. Each of us was given only ONE vehicle to transport that soul around. We need to maintain it as best we can.
Not only is our body a vehicle for our soul, it is its home, and everytime we receive Him in the Holy Eucharist, our bodies become a tabernacle. Let us strive to make the tabernacle its best and most beautiful, inside and out.
Have a blessed week!
- Remove and replace refined sugars and flours
- Breathing exercises
- Continue to pray the Lectio Divina
- All those nasty fats are gone and replaced, right?
- Take your vitamins
- Drink, Drink, Drink!
Want to make God laugh? Tell Him your plans… I apologize, I’m late again. All the Christmastide revelry (such as it is in a houseful of children!) has put my schedule off a bit.
This week, we have another elimination challenge. We’re going to go through the cupboards and remove refined grain products and sweeteners. This is a very difficult challenge for many of us. We grew up learning how to cook, and bake, with these products. It takes lots and lots of practice to learn to prepare recipes without them. So let’s just say that we’re going to drastically reduce the amounts we have in our homes. You can phase in replacement flours and sweeteners more slowly.
As far as our bodies are concerned, there is almost no difference between refined flours and refined sweeteners. The average American consumes just about a half-pound of sugar a day. You read that right - a half-pound! These sugars come from the sugar we put into our tea or coffee, breads in our sandwiches, breakfast cereals, and snacks. They also come from soft drinks and fruit juices. Some of these products should be banned from our diet, others moderated, and whatever of these products we eat should be substituted for truly nutritious options.
How can you tell if you have too much sugar in your diet?
1. You need a morning cup of coffee to jump start your day.
2. You crash midmorning and feel overwhelmed, irritable, or anxious. You may have dizzy spells or headaches.
3. You crash again mid-afternoon, and go for another cup or two of coffee to wake yourself up.
4. You have difficulty sleeping, despite feeling exhausted.
5. You suffer chronic constipation
Your body needs a consistent level of fuel to function properly. Allowing your blood sugar to drop, and skipping meals will actually DROP your metabolic rate. Your body goes into starvation mode and slows the metabolism to conserve energy. When our blood sugar drops, or when we are hungry, we gravitate toward those things we know will produce a quick lift. Carbohydrates break down into sugar in the blood very quickly. Unfortuantely, the sources of most carbohydrates are entirely bereft of nutrition.
Refined sugars come from a variety of sources - sugar cane, beets, corn. Refined sugars have been described as poison by Dr. William Coda martin because of their ability to strip nutrients from our bodies. Sugars increase the acid levels in our bodies, which leads to significant inflamation. Inflamation or _itis_ causes the body to scar and break down faster. Not to mention that it causes a lot of pain and discomfort. These properties of sugars can lead to a host of health other problems that include:
Suppression of the immune system, leading to viral and bacterial infections.
Rise in adrenaline levels causing hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, and concentration difficulties.
Interference with liver function, causing problems with cholesterol and inflamed liver - even toxemia in pregnancy
Interferece with absorption of calcium and magnesium, leading to joint problems and osteoporosis.
Tooth decay.
Decrease in insulin sensitivity, leading to diabetes
Depression.
Increase the body’s fluid retention.
Increases bacterial fermentation in the colon.
Natural sweeteners are excellent replacements for refined sugar, keeping in mind that we still must reduce the total amount of sugar of any kind. Raw honey contains anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-oxidant properties. It has been shown to reduce blood sugar levels in Type 2 diabetics, decrease LDL cholesterol, heal wounds and burns, and destroy free radicals. The same can not be said of refined honey - there is a significant difference. Maple syrup and molasses are also better choices since they are closer to the source. Molasses has long been used by naturopathic practioners and wise mothers for generations. Molasses contains high mineral levels (iron, calcium, manganese, copper, potassium, B6, and selenium). In fact, it is what has been stripped from refined sugar - that’s where all the goodness went! But use these sweeteners with moderation — they still are not significant sources of nutrients in your diet - but are worlds away better than refined sugars that can steal away nutrients from the body.
A word about artificial sweeteners. I understand that artificial sweeteners are recommended for people with diabetes. I would recommend visiting an ND to get another opinion. Artificial sweeteners are dangerous to dieters. They are derived from a variety of chemical compounds, including substances likened to pool cleaner. Sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin are carcinogenic and neurotoxic according to some sources. They also seem to have the rather undesired affect of slowing or shutting down metabolism. How’s that for counter-productive? The rule of thumb in our house applies: if God didn’t make it, I don’t want to eat it. Put another way, “if I don’t recognize the first generation source of this thing as something God made, I don’t want to eat it.”
Now on to flours:
Whole wheat is very rich in nutrients such as Vitamin E, calcium, zinc, copper, manganese, potassium, and B Vitamins. It is also an excellent source of fibre. In the process of turning whole wheat in to commercial white flour, all of these nutrients are completely stripped away, sometimes being bleached to avoid intereference with a desired color. What we are left with is a “dead, lifeless powder” (cite. Lori Lipinksi), which no longer breaks down and makes an ideal binder for additives, preservatives, artificial colors, flavors, cheap fats and refined sweeteners. In an effort to make their products seem “healthy”, manufacturers have “fortified” them with synthetic nutrients.
Synthetic B vitamins are derived from coal tar - a brown or black sticky liquid which is a by-product of the coal industry. It is sometimes used as fuel, has been used in shampoos and skin preparations for psoriasis (as me how I know!) because it is cheap. Coal tar is highly flammable (obviously), and is carcinogenic. Interestingly, the artificial sweetener saccharin is also derived from coal tar. It’s easy to see that B vitamins derived from this source could cause serious imbalances in the body. This is just one example of the importance of *food derived* nutrients and supplements.
Not only are refined sugars and flours entirely lacking in nutrition, but they actually strip enzymes, vitamins, and minerals from our bodies. Isn’t it strange that the American Dietetic Association (the US’s largest organization of nutrition professionals) recommends 8 to 11 servings of these products each day?
We must learn to reduce and replace. As I said, this can be a big challenge for most of us, but the following steps should help.
1. Limit white flour foods to 3 each week.
2. Replace white pasta with a whole grain pasta (try Eden Pasta)
3. Replace white bread with homemade whole grain breads, or try Ezekiel Bread.
4. Grind your own flour from whole grains - wheatberries, whole oats, barley, rye…
5. Buy whole grain organic flours instead of white - remember to refrigerate them as they still contain their natural oils, which can go rancid.
6. Buy old style crackers such as Wasa Crackers instead of saltines
7. Replace white flour bagels and flatbreads with sprouted grain ones from Food for Life or Alvarado Street Bakery
8. Replace cereals with steel-cut oats, and other whole grain cereals (barley, rice, wheat).
9. Replace white rice with good, organic brown rices and other whole grains. **I have found that generic, or “big man” brown rice is highly unpalatable. Choose a good brand like Bob’s Red Mill.
10. Reduce sweet drinks to one or two a day (this would include your morning cup of coffee and juice). You are already drinking up to a half-gallon of water a day, so you are getting plenty of hydration. Try herbal tea with raw honey if you need something a little sweet.
11. Limit sweet treats to 3 per week, and not on a high-carb meal day (like pasta or rice).
12. Eat protein rich meals (legumes, eggs, fish, poultry, meat) for morning and mid-day.
13. Don’t skip meals. This will help you to avoid reaching for an unsuitable snack.
14. Replace white sugar with natural sweeteners like raw honey, maple syrup, molassas, dehydrated cane juice (Rapadura). Read the labels in your local organic market, you can sometimes find treats made with these sweeteners.
15. Limit natural sweets to 3 per week.
You see that making a menu plan is very important to helping you maintain your health. It will help you to create a shopping list of only those things you need for your menu, and ensure that you balance your meals properly. If you follow these guidelines, you should begin to notice that your energy levels are more constant, that you feel less anxious, and that you are sleeping better. Headaches will begin to disappear and your digestion will improve.
A word about constipation. Most people do not realize that they are constipated. You should move your bowels 30-40 minutes after each time you eat. Have you noticed that little babies do? Our American diet leads to chronic constipation due to the refined sugars and flours in our foods. If you add water to flour, what do you get? Paste. You’ve made recipes with flour before. It is used as a binding agent for all sorts of ingredients. That is precisely what you’ve got in your digestive tract. Paste. Paste gives rotting food a place to stick and makes a lovely home for parasites. We need the bulk that comes from whole grains to scrub out the colon. Constipation can lead to headaches, fatigue and even acne (which is caused by the body trying to eliminate excess toxins through the skin). Parasitic colonies are very dangerous to our health when they overpopulate- and everyone has them. And they can add 7-10 lbs to your body weight - or more! But that’s a topic for another day.
I wish you a blessed week. I’ll be praying for you all as you clear out the cupboards. I know it’s difficult, but you really can do it. And if it takes you two or three weeks to get these things out and replaced, that’s perfectly fine. Be gentle to yourself.
Fit in 40:: Week 4
- Breathing exercises
- Pray the Lectio Divina this week
- Make sure all those nasty fats are gone and replaced!
- Take your vitamins
- Drink, Drink, Drink!
Late, late, late this week. So really we’ll have two tasks for the coming week. The first task is assigned today, the next task will, God willing, be ready for you on Saturday morn, as usual.
This week (week 4) we’re going to learn to breathe and to practice a very special form of prayer - the Lectio Divina.
Yes, I know you know how to breathe. Most of us have been doing that without any help since birth. However, most adults are not doing it properly. If you have ever watched a child breathe, you will notice that they breathe deeply and slowly. Their little tummies rise and fall with each breath. This is proper breathing. Most adults, especially in industrialised nations where stress is rampant, take very shallow breaths. Many of us even hold our breath without even realising it.
Shallow breathing causes a lack of CO2 in our bloodstream, which constricts the blood vessels. This in turn results in less blood being oxygenated and pushed through the arteries to our organs. A lack of oxygen weakens our immune system, inhibits metabolism, and prevents proper disposal of toxins in the body. This then can cause us to be susceptible to viral illnesses, sets up inflammation in the body, circulatory problems, cell damage and premature ageing. Interestingly, shallow breathing can also cause tension, irritability, brain fog, and anxiety - this is what creates the viscious cycle.
So how can we learn to breathe properly? It is a process and won’t neccessarily happen overnight. The first thing to do is to perform a breathing exercise first thing in the morning, and again throughout the day as you think of it. We have been practicing this technique with our children and noticed a dramatic difference in the level of hyperactivity. It is perfectly safe for both children and expecting Mamas.
Either stand or sit, keeping your back quite straight to allow for the greatest possible expansion of lungs and diaphragm.
1. Inhale for a count of four
2. Hold for a count of sixteen
3. Exhale for a count of eight
4. Take a deep, cleansing breathe ( you ladies may remember this from Lamaze!)
5. Repeat twice more.
You can increase the counts as your lungs regain capacity. Just be sure that your numbers are multiples of 1, 4, and 2 respectively. This is a superb exercise for people with breathing problems, it really does strengthen the lungs. And do not be surprised if you need to use the bathroom afterward. When we say cleansing, we mean it. 
This breathing exercise will prepare you very well before practicing the Lectio Divina. St. Benedict, our family’s patron, made the “sacred reading” a cornerstone of monastic life. As a Benedictine family, it must also be a cornerstone of our family life. Lectio can be practiced alone or in a group (perhaps with older children who are able to sit) This is a wonderful tool to give them. It will help them to discern God’s call in their own lives and free them from stress and wordly pressures.
Lectio Divina:
I am deeply indebted to Father Kevin for teaching me how to practice this prayer correctly. It has enriched my spiritual life, my connection with God’s will for me, and my confidence that I am hearing His instruction for my life.
Prayer is an essential part of following this programme. We are seeking to be all that he wants us to be. We want our bodies to fulfill His will for us, but we must also know His will for us - including His will for our bodies, which He created. The more you practice Lectio, the more you will desire to do it. You will feel God’s call in your own life, and thus begin to feel free from wordly pressures. Sounds amazing, but it’s true. And that is what He wants. He wants us to focus on Him. He wants to teach us His will for our lives. He wants us to know Him, love Him, and serve Him in this life so that we can one day be happy with Him forever in Heaven.
There are three steps in Lectio Divina, and you should set aside at least one hour for its practice. You can pray the Lectio daily, but I recommend starting out weekly so that you don’t feel fatigued by it. When you are more comfortable with it, and more practiced, increase the frequency, if you wish. Start by making yourself comfortable, but not in danger of falling asleep. 
And ask God to open “the ears of your heart” ,as St. Benedict liked to say, so that you may, through this prayer time, truly hear His will for you. Next, choose a passage to pray. It is helpful to use a reading from the Liturgy of the Hours for the day on which you pray the Lectio. If you don’t have a copy, you can print a copy of the readings the day before. Alternatively, ask God to help you choose a passage, and open your Bible to any page, letting your eyes fall on a passage. He’ll guide you to the one He wants you to read.
Introductory Step - Lectio - the Reading
This step is done as part of each of the following steps. Sacred reading is done very differently than what we are generally accustomed to. We should approach this reading with deep reverence and desire to hear His will through the passage. If you are reading alone, do so very slowly. Allow the words to become clear, soft, and resonant. If you are praying a group Lectio, the reader should speak slowly and softly so that the rest of the group must attune themselves to the quiet and gentleness, so that they may ponder the reading in their hearts. Once the passage is read through, sit quietly for about 15 minutes. You may feel that a particular word or phrase has prominence for you with this the reading. Make note of it, while focusing on the passage.
Step 1 - Meditatio - Meditation
Read the passage. See if the passage creates a picture in your mind’s eye. Can you feel yourself in the passage? Do you hear a word or phrase that makes itself more obvious to you? Ponder that word or phrase as you sit quietly for 15 minutes, repeating the passage in your mind, or simply allowing those particular words swirl around in in your heart. Those outside thoughts that creep in are the ones that need to be offered up to Him. Let them come while meditating on your word or phrase. Allow God to speak those words from the passage to you this time.
Step 2 - Oratio - Prayer
Read the passage, as before, slowly and reverently. During the silence, take all your cares, worries, and experiences before God and ask Him to speak to you through the word or phrase you have been given. Empty your heart and soul before him. Softly repeat the word or phrase. Pray it during this time, it is a blessing for you. If you are quiet in your heart and mind, you will hear what He wants you to know.
Step 3 - Contemplatio - Contemplation
Read the passage one last time. Sit in silence, and be filled by and surrounded by His love. “Be still and know that I am God”. Just bask in His love and care during this last step. Understand that you have made His will your will and that He will care for you tenderly. He will never leave you comfortless. This last step is very much like an embrace. When we embrace someone we love, there is no fear, no mistrust. There is a dying to oneself in order to give all of ourselves to the other person in an act of love. When we hold an infant child, the love is palpable. We are completely absorbed in him or her. Words are seldom necessary. You have opened your heart and He can read it. Sit quietly and enjoy this time with your Heavenly Father.
If you have practiced a group Lectio, you may wish to share your experiences. This is especially true if you are helping children to understand the practice. Remember, however, it is not for us to assign meaning. We must rely on God and His listener to do that.
***Note: You may find it helpful to cover your head in a veil, or to wear a monastic robe, poncho or cape. Even a warm wrap or blanket can help to keep you comfortable and focused during your prayer time. It is a long time to sit still!
I hope that these tools will be helpful to you throughout the programme and especially during Christmastide when outside pressures can be so great. May God truly bless you and your family on your journey to physical and spiritual fitness.
Fit in 40:: Week 3
- Clear out those fats
- Take your Vitamin
- Drink, Drink, Drink your water!
We’ve had it pretty easy up to now with getting into the habit of drinking lots and lots of water and changing to food-based vitamin capsules. This is about the point that I really begin feeling good. The headaches are gone, and my brain is all plumped up with being properly hydrated. I’m digesting nicely and I’ve mapped out the quickest route to the… er… facilities… from any point in the house. My skin starts to settle and the vitamins are doing their job.
This week is going to require a little more work. Get your family to help you and it will be lots more fun. We’re going to be going through the cupboards this week and getting rid of some of the “nasties”.
First to go - shortening. Shortening is horrifying. Partially hydrogenated and hydrogenated oils cause a whole host of health problems including:
- Elevated cholesterol
- Heart attack
- Hormonal imbalance - inhibiting the body’s ability to heal
- Depression
- Cancer
In one interview I saw with Dr. Saxion, she said that TFAs can also adhere to your organs and are almost impossible to get rid of once they are there. Think of little bits of plastic floating through your bloodstream and sticking to your arteries, the insides of your lungs, liver, heart, kidneys, brain. That picture alone is what sent us straight to the kitchen next morning to start throwing out anything containing such toxins.
You can find these oils lurking in cookies, cakes, crackers, chips, salad dressings, and spreads (including margarine). Read your labels carefully. Also, Dr. Weil recommends getting rid of and avoiding anything made with cottonseed oil as the saturation is too high and studies show that this oil contains naturally occuring toxins. Cottonseed oil is used in blends with other oils and labeled “Vegetable Oil”. Cottonseed has the insidious ability to block the hormones needed by all organs to do their jobs, breaks down blood proteins preventing proper assimilation of nutrients in the gut, trips the immune system modifying the body’s disease susceptibility, and enhances the toxicity of other fats.
Now that you’ve got those into the bin, Go through your cupboards and toss out all the liquid oils. They are probably rancid and you won’t even know it. Oils MUST be kept refrigerated. If you walk into a really good natural foods store, you wil notice that the oils are in a refrigerated case. Rancid oils are oxydized and are a leading source of free-radicals in our diet. Free radicals are the nasty little fellows that have been blamed for cancer, Alzheimers, diabetes, and liver disease. Unfortunately, smell is not a good indication of an oil’s freshness, nor is taste. Play it safe and toss it out.
Now that your cupboards are bare, you’ll need to get to the shop and pick up new fats for your cooking. In place of margarine and shortening, use organic butter (from organically raised, preferably grass-fed cows or goats), coconut oil, or palm oil. I don’t recommend lard at all since pork in general can be very harmful to the body. I’ll go into that more as we progress. Palm oil is naturally full of antioxidants and high in Vitamin E, which plays a role in immune function, DNA repair, and metabolism. Coconut oil has been linked with increased metabolism (a friend of mine went off of thyroid replacement as a result of 1 tsp. per day of coconut oil), improvements in diabetes, anti-viral, anti-microbial properties, and one study from Nigeria indicated that coconut oil can reduce colonies of Candida.
In place of your liquid fats, get olive oil and canola oil. Make certain you are getting your oils at a health food store that refrigerates the oils. Avoid corn and soy oils. Corn oil is high in polyunsaturates and becomes toxic at high temperatures (cite: Stephen Acuff). Soybean oil can interfere with hormones, especially those of fertility and thyroid function (Dr. Mercola). In and of themselves, they may not be too horrible in small amounts, but our American diet has been inundated by both oils (and othe rproducts from these two plants) since WWII because they are cheap and easy to grow. Combine that with the sharp rise in chemicals used to produce both crops in the same time period and you begin to see that at least two generations of Americans have a toxic build-up and don’t even know it. Many naturopathic health professionals, and now many ‘conventional’ health professionals, are looking harder at these factors to determine what their roles may be in the rise of all sorts of diseases and disorders from cancers to ADHD and more.
So pull out the bins and fill them up with those nasty old fats! Get to the store and enjoy looking around at all the beautiful organic veggies and fruits on offer while you pick out your new fats for cooking. Check out the recipe card rack and see if you can’t find something delicious to try tonight. And don’t forget to put those lovely new fats into the fridge when you get home!
NOTE:: Once you’ve started eating fresh fats and more wholesome choices, you’ll be able to taste products containing hydrogenated and rancid oils. The taste difference becomes dramatic after a few weeks of change.
How is your water drinking coming along? I know, it’s difficult. Did you know that it takes at least two weeks of devoted practice to form a lasting habit? That’s why this program is a nice long 40 weeks. We want the habits we form to stick - you know, like those brownies tend to do to our hips!
And while I’m at it, I want to emphasize that this is not a weight loss program. Our goal is to cleanse and strengthen our bodies so that they can do everything they were meant to do. We want to think clearly, move more gracefully, look vital, heal ourselves, and get on with God’s plan for us! Those of us who need to lose, probably will. Those of us who need to gain probably will. If we are not where we should be for any reason (weight or other illness), we should begin to come back to where we should be.
Most of us are mothers (hello to the several dads out there!). That means that our bodies have had to change to transmit life and nourish our children. Studies have shown that even adoptive moms’ bodies change as a result of motherhood hormones. Isn’t THAT being wonderfully and fearfully made? Wow! So don’t expect to become a lithe young willow. Those days were for the fetching of a husband. We have to love our present station in life. Love the way God has created us for the job we are doing today.
So today we’re going to talk about taking vitamins. I know, you’ve heard it all before. However, most of the vitamins we take are derived synthetically and are difficult for our bodies to properly digest and absorb. It is important to take a vitamin that is food derived and in a capsule form if at all possible. The gelatine capsule will quickly dissolve and the powdered vitamin/mineral mix will digest very quickly. Whereas the tablets are a bit like cement. They take an awfully long time to digest. The key is to find a food-derived vitamin. You can find these at many health-food stores, organic groceries, or online. Dr. Saxion has formulations for adults and for children, available right here in the shop.
So why do we need vitamins if we’re going to be eating an organic, whole foods diet? A good question! Since the 1940s, we have been adding chemicals to our crops to boost production, and supposedly reduce pests. We’ve given medications and non-food feeds to our animals, and we have spent two generations eating products that are not fit for human consumption. While we are making great strides, we still have far to go before the land is restored. And many organic producers are falling into the “enough to get by” trap. Those are mainly larger producers who are “going organic” for the sake of commanding higher prices for their products. It’s important to seek out an organic farmer near you and buy a share in his or her CSA. If you do so now, before spring planting, you may get your share for a bit of a discount. Check out LocalHarvest and put in your zip code to see if there is a CSA farm near you.
While you wait for those gorgeous veggies, raw milk products, and grass fed meats and eggs, take your multivitamin every day. And keep right on taking it after the bounty arrives! You will notice that the food-derived gelatin capsule vitamins have a distinctive… well… aroma. We call them “diaper pills” here. :”> You may also notice that your urine becomes flourescent. Don’t be alarmed. It’s just the vitamins. That’s how you’ll know it’s been through your system.
This week:: Keep on drinking! Drink, drink, drink. And see if that doesn’t stave off some of those nasty viruses… AND Add a good food-based multivitamin to your daily routine. Check in on the blog and let us know how you’re doing. Ask any questions you have along the way, get some support.
