All posts by Robin Walsh, ND

Chick Pea Salad

Nutrition, Recipes, , , , ,

I am a huge advocate of adding beans and legumes to a salad, as they help stabilize your blood sugars and allow you to feel more full and satisfied from a meal.

I usually encourage people to purchase these, but also wanted to give people another option of making them at home. This recipe is really easy, and takes about 2-3 minutes to put together. In addition to being less expensive, it also allows you to make sure that there are no additives in your food. Experiment with this and Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

  1. 2 cans of chickpeas (there are organic chickpeas in the health food section, or you can soak then yourself as well)
  2. 3 tbsp of olive oil
  3. 3 tbsp of lemon juice
  4. 1 cucumber thinly cubed
  5. 1 pepper thinly sliced
  6. ½ red onion thinly sliced (optional)
  7. Carrots (optinal)
  8. Sea salt to taste


Mix the ingredients, and place into a glass container to store
Enjoy!!

How to Read Food Labels

Nutrition, Weight Loss, , , ,

There is a lot of confusion around labels, and what is actually good for you. We went through a whole low fat craze, which actually in turn made people more fat!! Now we see many labels making claims…like high fibre, low sodium. The problem is, we need to be label savvy as a lot of this is great marketing. They replace one bad thing with another and trick us into thinking the product is good for us.

So, here is what to look for…

Serving Size

On the nutritional facts, there will be a serving size listed. For cereal or grains it might say 1/2cup, for bars it might say 1. This is important to note, as most of the higher calorie items are 2 cookies, or 10chips.  This isn’t a lot of food for this many calories, which is why these foods must be limited. They are called empty calories, meaning they hold very little nutrition for their caloric punch

Fats

Fats are a very confusing topic for most people. I still get many people in my office that are afraid to eat things like nuts or avocado for fear of getting fat.

These good fats actually help your body to burn weight…not put it on.

The inflammatory or toxic fats are the ones we want to reduce, but we need to increase our consumption of the good fats.

Fats to Avoid – Many processed foods, will also contain processed fats. These are fats that help to add flavour and stabilize the shelf life of the food.  We want to avoid the following fats as much as possible – hydrogenated fats, partially hydrogenated fats. We want to greatly limit things like vegetable oil, corn oil or soybean oil as most of the time they are highly processed. So, if you see a product that claims to be high in fibre, but also has these fats in it…this is not something that you should be eating every day

Fats to include – things like nuts and seeds (except peanuts), avocado, olive oil, hemp seeds/oil, flax seeds/oil, olives, fish. These products contain the good fats, that will help us with cardiovascular function, weight loss and management, skin health, brain health and much more.

Sugar

Many of the processed foods will replace fats for sugar, or they add sugar to compensate for the increase in fibre (to still allow the product to taste great). White sugar is very inflammatory in the body and in increased quantities contributes to lowered immune system, weight gain and insulin resistance. When looking at a product it is important to make sure to look at the amount of sugar per serving as well as the type of sugar used.  Healthy products will use less than 9g of sugar per serving.

Healthy sugars to look for are things like brown rice syrup, agave nectar, honey, maple syrup, dates, dried fruit, organic cane sugar.

Sometimes when you look at some of the natural bars you will see that they have more sugar in them than 9g/serving.  If they are more, but they contain the natural sugars as oppose to white sugar, they are okay to consume. Lara bars are a good example of this

Sodium

Don’t be fooled…even some of the soups in the health food section of the grocery store contain more sodium than they should. Sodium in excess quantities can cause problems with water retention and blood pressure. It is advised to keep your daily sodium intake to 2400mg, with an individual product being around 200mg. Most of the convenience food like frozen dinners and packaged soups can contain up to 700-900mg of sodium per serving.  Therefore it is best to cook your own food, or make sure that what you are eating on a consistent basis is not too high in sodium.  Celtic sea salt is not processed, and the trace minerals are not stripped like in regular table salt. Therefore it does not have the same effect of blood pressure and water retention. If you are going to use salt, you can use sea salt sparingly, but also try to find other ways to spice your food like lemon juice or herbs.

Having the ability to be able to understand labels, will help keep you and your family healthy.

The Straight Facts on Sunscreen

Sunscreen, , , , , ,

Here we are again, the time of year most of us wait for…those hot, hazy days of summer.  While summer brings us so much joy, it also comes with one of the most controversial topics….Sunscreen.

The incidence of skin cancer, and sun related skin damage is very real and also very preventable. It is important to understand what to look for as it will become apparent that all sunscreens are not created equal.  In this article, I hope to clear up some of the confusion around sunscreen and give you tools to help protect you and your family.

SPF (Sun Protection Factor)

SPF is a measure of a sunscreen’s ability to prevent UVB from damaging the skin.

As a general rule, if it takes you 20minutes for your unprotected skin to turn pink, then you take 20min and times by SPF 15, which gives you about 5 hours of protection.

Here is another way to look at it:

  • SPF 15 blocks approximately 93 percent of all incoming UVB rays.
  • SPF 30 blocks 97 percent; and
  • SPF 50 blocks 98 percent.

They may seem like negligible differences, but if you are light-sensitive, or have a history of skin cancer, those extra percentages will make a difference. And as you can see, no sunscreen can block all UV rays. (skin cancer foundation website, 2009)

Problems With This Model

  1. Because of stability issues, no sunscreen should be expected to work for more than 2 hours without reapplication
  2. Reddening indicates the damage from UVB rays, but doesn’t tell you about the damaging effects of the deeper penetrating UVA rays. Plenty of damage can be done to the skin without it ever turning pink or red

It is important that you use at least SPF 15, and preferably SPF 30.  Many sunscreens are now coming out with SPF 55-100 however most of these block just 1-2% more sunburn (UVB) radiation than an SPF 30 sunscreen and aren’t required to block UVA. Compared to an SPF 30 sunscreen, they also require 2-3 times more active ingredients, many of which absorb into the body.

Many all-day moisturizers advertise SPF protection, but 1 in 5 offer little protection from harmful UVA rays.  A surprising new government report attributes an increasing incidence of malignant melanoma among people who work indoors from UVA rays shining through windows onto unprotected skin (Godar 2009).

UVA/UVB Rays

UVB is the chief culprit behind sunburn. UVA rays penetrate the skin more deeply and are associated with wrinkling, leathering, sagging, and other effects of photo aging.  They also exacerbate the carcinogenic effects of UVB rays, and a growing number of studies are showing that they are being seen as a cause of skin cancer on their own.

Most sunscreens protect from UVB sunburn radiation, and far fewer brands protect against UVA rays. Currently, there are no FDA regulations for UVA protection in suncreens.  The good news is that in the last couple of years, the number of manufacturers adding UVA protection to their sunscreen has increased.

Here are the current UVA filters approved by the FDA:

  • Avobenzone
  • Mexoryl
  • Titanium Dioxide
  • Zinc

It is important to make sure that in addition to a higher SPF (which will protect from UVB radiation) that your sunscreen is also protecting you from these harmful UVA rays.

Most active ingredients in sunscreen work by absorbing the suns energy, breaking it apart and releasing that energy to react with other chemicals in the sunscreen or kicking off free radicals. Some active ingredients are more stable than others, but nearly all break down to some extent in the sun.  In fact, it has been shown that many ingredients break down in the sun in a matter of minutes or hours causing UV radiation to be exposed to skin. Many products on the market contain ingredients that may be unstable alone, or in combination with other ingredients in the product.

Instead of absorbing the suns energy, the zinc oxide and titanium dioxide actually reflect or scatter the sunlight making it a more stable choice.  Because they are white earth minerals, the sunscreens tend to be more opaque and white in appearance instead of clear.  Little to no amounts of zinc or titanium dioxide are absorbed into the skin making them safer choices than some of the other UVA filters.

Environmental Working Group “found that consumers using sunscreens without zinc and titanium would be exposed to an average of 20% more UVA radiation — with increased risks for UVA-induced skin damage, premature aging, wrinkling, and UV-induced immune system damage — than consumers using zinc- and titanium-based products. Sunscreens without zinc or titanium contain an average of 4 times as many high hazard ingredients known or strongly suspected to cause cancer or birth defects, to disrupt human reproduction or damage the growing brain of a child. They also contain more toxins on average in every major category of health harm considered: cancer (10% more), birth defects and reproductive harm (40% more), neurotoxins (20% more), endocrine system disruptors (70% more), and chemicals that can damage the immune system (70% more)” (EWG 2007).

Toxic Ingredients

Sunscreen is known to contain active metabolites that are readily absorbed by the body and are known to cause many toxic side effects in the system.

Here are a few of the most common toxic ingredients in the most common and popular sunscreens on the market:

Oxybenzone – This is now the most common active ingredient in sunscreen since PABA was discontinued.

It is known to cause:

  • high absorption through skin
  • high rates of allergic reactions
  • growing concerns about hormone disruption

Octinoxate (octyl methyoxycinnamate)

It is known to cause:

  • sensitize skin
  • Estrogenic effects are noted in laboratory animals
  • disruption of thyroid hormone and brain signaling.

Paba ester/octyl dimethyl paba – A derivative of the once popular PABA.

It is known to cause:

  • this chemical releases free radicals
  • damages DNA
  • estrogenic activity
  • allergic reactions in some people.

What to Look for in a Sunscreen

  1. SPF 30 to 45
  2. Doesn’t contain the toxic ingredients
  3. The sunscreen has been tested for stability of ingredients
  4. Contains UVA protectants like zinc oxide or titanium dioxide

What Is the Best

After much research on this, I believe that Badger Sunscreen is the best and meets all of these requirements. Because of the zinc and titanium dioxide which are natural inert white compounds, this sunscreen tends to go on very thick and often white. While badger still does this, I find it goes on better than most.

Even many of the natural sunscreens on the market contain these toxic active ingredients, which is why for your convenience we are selling Badger in our clinic this summer.

To see how your sunscreen matches up, please visit

www.ewg.org

www.cosmeticsdatabase.com

Sun Safety

In addition to wearing sunscreen, please also follow these important guidelines:

  1. Avoid sun during peak times of 11-3pm
  2. Wear a hat and UVA/UVB protective eye wear
  3. Take extra care of children
  4. Wear sunscreen at all times even in the shade as up to 40% of the UV radiation can reach the earth on a completely cloudy day
  5. Apply sunscreen 30min before going into the sun and then every 2 hours after that (regardless of SPF)

Much of the information in the article was from www.ewg.org. Please visit this site for more information.

The Epidemic of Vitamin D Deficiency?

Nutrition,

People are very confused about vitamin D, with good reason! For years it was thought of to be a very toxic vitamin that you shouldn’t to too much of. The recommended daily allowance was set at 400IU per day which was the amount necessary to prevent rickets (a brittle bone disease). Research is now showing that supplementation should be somewhere between 2000-4000IU/day depending on the health conditions and current vitamin D status.

It is my recommendation that everyone get their vitamin D levels checked. You can request this from your MD, and if they will not run it then ask us at your next appointment and we can order the test. While the test is not cheap ($75.00), it will provide invaluable information to preventing multiple chronic diseases including cancer and heart disease.

We all know that we require the sunlight to produce vitamin D in the body, and that while food supplies minute amounts of vitamin D it is really the sun that we need to reach optimal vitamin D levels.  So here is the dilemma, we know that sun exposure can increase our risk factor for skin cancer so we avoid the sun but we also know that low vitamin D levels will contribute to chronic disease. In fact, research has shown that people with skin cancer have the lowest rate of all other types of cancers. So what are we saying, you should get skin cancer…NO! We are saying that you need optimal levels of vitamin D!!

Dispelling the Myths

1)      We can get enough Vitamin D from the sun to provide us protection for the whole year

FALSE – Depending on when your vitamin D levels are taken will depend on what your status is. However, you need a constant level of vitamin D to be protective.  The amount of sun and the strength of the sun are equally important.  The equator is getting direct sun and all other latitudes are getting a less direct amount of sun. It has been found that the 35th latitude (around California) is the latitude that is required to have enough strength from the sun to convert vitamin D all year round.  For everyone else, the sun is not strong enough to cause a vitamin D conversion.  In fact, it has been found that people in Florida in the winter are vitamin D deficient.  In fact, the journal of experimental dermalotogy in 2007 stated that the recommendations regarding sun exposure need to be reevaluated in lue of the new research on vitamin D.

2)      Sunscreen does not block Vitamin D conversion

FALSE – it has been found that even SPF 8 will reduce vitamin D conversion by 92.5% and SPF 15 by up to 95%

3)      I drink fortified milk, so I am getting enough vitamin D

FALSE – Vitamin D is present in foods such as mushrooms, eggs, salmon, cod liver oil and milk. However the amount of vitamin D is a serving of milk is somewhere between 50-100IU and eggs 40IU and salmon 500IU. You can see that you have to eat a whole lot of these to get the required amount per day.  It has been shown that mushrooms contain a great amount of vitamin D, but you need to eat 5.9lbs of mushrooms per day to get enough to be protective.

30min of sun exposure will give you 10,000-20,000IU of Vitamin D (Williams & Wilkins, 2002)

4)      Vitamin D is Very TOXIC

FALSE – there are very few actual studies on the toxic effects of vitamin D. One of the most common studies was done from 11 people that were fed a meal that was made from vitamin D laced peanut oil (by mistake) and ended up taking in over 5,000,000IU of Vitamin D. Yes this wasn’t a typo…it was 5MILLION. So, 2000IU per day is completely safe.

In fact, studies have shown that the upper limit of vitamin D should be changed to 10,000IU (Am J Clin Nut, 1991)

5)      All Vitamin D Supplements are Equal

FALSE – First of all you need to take D3. Most pharmaceutical companies are producing D2 because it is cheaper, however it is less stable and can’t raise the vitamin D levels like the D3 version

Second, many companies will have things like lactose, gluten, magnesium stearate (coating that some people find hard to break down), sodium benzoate. You want to make sure that the company that you are using uses clean raw ingredients to produce their vitamin D.  The companies that we recommend are Thorne Research and Metagenics who have tight regulations and control on their products – both are distributed through health professionals.

6)      Vitamin D supplements are well absorbed

For the most part they are, however if you have been taking adequate levels of vitamin D and are deficient on bloodwork it may have something to do with absorption.  If you fall into this category, talk to us about checking your ability to absorb crucial vitamins and minerals.

What Protective Effects does Vitamin D have?

1)      Osteoporosis

One of the most widely known and well researched uses for vitamin D is in its protective effects against osteoporosis and fracture risk.  It was found that people that were deficient in vitamin D will only absorb about 10-15% of the calcium from the gut, whereas people that had optimal vitamin D levels were absorbing between 30-80%.  (NEJM 2007; 357-266-81)

2)      Myocardial Infarction

It has been found that men with suboptimal levels of vitamin D are 2.4X more likely to have a myocardial infarction than men with optimal levels. (Arch Int Med, 2008, 168 (11): 1174-1180)

3)      Inflammation

The inflammatory response seems to be very linked with Vitamin D status. Vitamin D levels were checked on people with chronic low back pain, and the majority of them were found to be deficient.  When supplemented for three months, 95% of people in the study reported they were pain free.

4)      Immune System

Antimicrobial peptides function in the human body to keep bacteria, viruses, and fungi in check. These peptides also act as immunomodulators, mediate inflammatory responses, bind bacterial endotoxins, and regulate adhesion molecule expression, and are regulated by probiotics, amino acids, and vitamin D.  Studies have shown that people that supplement with 2000IU of vitamin D through the winter have a 80-90% reduction in influenza compaired to people that don’t supplement at all (Alt Med Review, 2008)

5)      Cancer

  • 77% risk reduction of ALL cancer risk in postmenopausal woman that were supplemented with calcium and vitamin D (Am J Clin Nut)
  • 50% of colon cancer could be prevented by maintaining vitamin D blood levels of >34ng/ml (Nutrition Review, 2007)
  • Reduction by up to 50% of breast cancer risk for people who maintain a vitamin D level of >52ng/ml (Nutrition Reviews, 2007)
  • Reduction by up to 50% of type 1 diabetes in people who maintain a vitamin D level of >34ng/ml (Nutrition Reviews, 2007)
  • Reduction of 20% of ovarian cancer of people that maintain a vitamin D level of >40ng/ml (Nutrition Reviews, 2007)

**the amount to prevent rickets is 6ng/ml…clearly not enough to prevent these major diseases

Take Home Message

1)      We all need to have our vitamin D levels checked by either your MD or ND

Vitamin D Council is suggesting that everyone in Canada should have a vitamin D status of 50ng/ml (125nmol/ml)

2)      Everyone in North America should be supplementing with Vitamin D

  • Birth- 11years – 1000IU
  • 12yrs-adult – 2000IU/year during winter months. If you are spending great amount of time outside without sunscreen then you can reduce your summer intake to 1000IU

3)      If you have had breast or colon cancer, osteoporosis, type 1 diabetes or have a strong history of these conditions please talk to us as recommended levels can increase to upwards of 3800-5000IU/day

The Truth on Energy Bars

Exercise, Nutrition, Recipes, ,

As many of you have already watched, I had the opportunity to do a segment on CTV news on energy and sports bars. Since the aired segment was short, I thought I would expand on what to look for and what to stay away from.

In preparing for this talk, one of the things that I found most interesting is where these bars are located. The bars that I consider “healthy” were found in the health food section of the grocery store…I knew where those were. However, I had to go on a hunt for the other sports bars. You will never guess where I found those…that’s right, the pharmacy aisles. To the average consumer this is very confusing, as how could things in the pharmacy section be THAT bad!

Here are the things that you want to keep in mind when eating these bars:

Sugar

All of these bars use sugar. It is just a matter of what type of sugar they are using. The purpose of most of these bars is to act as quick energy for athletics, so they use sugar such as maltodextrin, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup and glucose to provide a powerful punch to the body and give it instant energy. The problem is, these sugars set off a cascade reaction in the body that causes inflammation and insulin levels to spike. So, while you may be getting a “punch” of energy during your workout, the question is…are you really gaining health?

What are these ingredients doing to your body long term? The answer is…nothing good!

Outside of athletics, the average person is using these as a snack thinking that it is a better choice than a chocolate bar. The problem is, the sugars in these bars are broken down and absorbed rapidly making it hard for the body to use all of this energy all at once. Instead, it conserves it for a later date…and it does so as body fat!

It has been shown that foods that contain high fructose corn syrup set off yet another hormonal cascade in the body that actually causing leptin resistance. Big deal! Well leptin is the hormone that is produced by your fat cell to signal your brain when it is full. So, these bars will actually make you feel hungrier causing you to want to eat more and more.

Look for these sugars in products – the are less inflammatory, have a lower glycemic index and send good messages to the body:

  • Dates, figs, raisins
  • Agave nectar
  • Organic brown rice syrup
  • Evapourated cane juice
  • Organic cane sugar
  • Honey

Fats

Most people know that hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats are not good for you. Long term use of these toxic and inflammatory fats has been linked to things like cardiovascular disease, obesity and high cholesterol.

Manufacturers have now become smarter, and have started using things called modified fats. While these may be better than the hydrogenated/trans fats, they are not much better and have still been linked to chronic disease.

Avoid anything that says – hydrogenated, partially hydrogenated or modified fats. 

Look for good fats – hemp oil, flax oil.

Additives

The old rule applies here…if you can’t pronounce something, you probably shouldn’t be eating it. Common additives on labels of bars are things like sodium benzoate which can cause skin rashes and aggravate asthma, and sulphites which are known to cause rashes, headaches, trigger IBS and aggravate asthmatic conditions. The other things to watch out for are natural and artificial flavours which are like the “mystery meat” of the additive world.

Calories

A typical snack should be anywhere from 180-220 calories. Most commercial bars are anywhere from 200-300 – so a snack would be ½ bar (**this depends on activity level, and if you are trying to lose or maintain weight). Keep in mind the calories, and how many serving sizes are in a bar (most calories are per bar…but just double check this).

I am not against the use of these bars, I just think people need to be aware what they are eating. Eating the right bar can provide you with a nutritious convenient snack but just make sure that you are eating good quality bars.

Examples of Nutritious Bars:

Lara, Vega, Elev8me, Luna, Gen Soy, Think Organic, Dr Weil, Perfect 10, Organics, Clif

Homemade Nut and Honey Energy Bars

This recipe was already posted, but it provides a great example of a homemade energy bar that can be made at home.

  • 1 cup oatmeal 300
  • 1 cup granola 300
  • ¼ cup sesame seeds 50
  • ¼ cup flax seeds 50
  • ½ cup wheat germ 100
  • ½ cup bran 100
  • ½ cup protein powder 20
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ cup maple syrup 400
  • ½ cup honey 480
  • 1 cup peanut butter 760
  • ½ cup pecans 400 
  • Optional ¼-1/2 cup coconut, raisins, dried fruit

Instructions:

  1. Grease pan, mix dry ingredients.
  2. Mix peanut butter, maple syrup and honey in a saucepan and stir until very hot, but do not boil
  3. Pour mix over dry ingredients
  4. Press into pan, and let sit 24 hours in the fridge
  5. Cut into individual bars, and wrap or store in container in fridge or freezer and the Enjoy!

Healthy Pet Food

Nutrition,

parker

My husband and I have a 8 year old Old English Sheepdog named Parker. Since he was little, we have raised him on premium whole dog food. He typically consumes Wysong or Fromm, but also likes the new food that Ellen Degeneras produced called Halo. Yes that is right…all the food that you shutter at when you get the bill at the cash register. The way I see it, I can’t feed myself well without feeding our 4 legged friend well too!!

So, the other night we were out at a friend’s house and Parker was there and we didn’t bring any food for him. So he had what I like to call the “McDonalds of dog food” … Caeser! Now he can typically switch between different brands of quality food all of the time and have absolutely no problem. But for 4 days after he ate the Caeser he had diarrhea. His diarrhea was so bad that he was waking me up all night long for 4 nights in a row. I finally had to feed him rice for 2 days to get it to calm down…the poor guy.

This experience just reaffirms why I pay the big price for quality food. It is the old saying, pay me now or pay me later!! He has been an extremely healthy dog, with very few health concerns and just like people – he is what he eats!!

If that is not enough to turn you around…keep reading (taken from 100 Year Lie by Randall Fitzgerald)

Four of the largest US pet food companies are subsidiaries of multinational corporations that also produce processed foods for humans. Americans spend almost $11 billion annually on pet food that has been made from scraps, rejects and wastes known as the 4D meat (dead, diseased, dying, disabled). It has been found that these meats are mixed with restaurant refuse, euthanized animals from shelters, sawdust, cooking grease and then mixed with colourings, preservatives and fat stabilizers.

Wet foods contain preservatives such as ethoxyquin, which allows the food to last for an eternity but has also been linked with cancer.

BHA and BHT are the most common stabilizers added to foods to prevent rancidity. These chemicals are known to cause liver, brain, reproductive and kidney problems. What about the food colourings added to these foods, since when does the dog care what colour his kibble is? Food colourings have been linked to a multitude of problems in humans from allergies to hyperactivity. It has been found that with respect to these chemical sensitivities…humans and animals are very similar.

If processed foods, hydrogenated fats and chemical additives are creating health problems in humans they are also affecting the health of our pets. I agree that the food is more expensive…but so are vet bills. Let’s start looking at preventative medicine for the whole family!! Your pet is worth it!!

Check out these local stores that carry great quality food

Bark and Fitz – http://www.barkandfitz.com
Global Pet Food – http://www.globalpetfoods.ca/home/home.htm
Creature Comfort – http://www.acreaturecomfort.com

Grated Raw Beet Salad

Recipes

This is a recipe that I received from my local organic food box from Re-Root Organic Farm. The recipe taste fantastic, and is a great way to incorporate beets into your diet which are great for your liver.

Ingredients:

  • 4 medium beets, peeled
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp chopped shallots
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 small clove of garlic
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • 1-2 tbsp finely chopped dill

Instructions:

  1. Put the grated beets in a large salad bowl.
  2. Combine the olive oil, vinegar, shallot, mustard, and garlic in a large jar.
  3. Shake the jar until the olive oil and vinegar are thickened.
  4. Pour the dressing over the beets and toss until well coated.
  5. Season with salt and pepper and let marinate for an hour in the fridge.
  6. Add dill and serve over fresh greens.
  7. Enjoy!!

Psyllium Breakfast Pudding … a “regular” original

Recipes

This dish is hearty like porridge, but with a delicious lemon flavor. Set out 5 medium sized glass bowls or cups and add a couple scoops or slices of your favorite
fruits.

Blend well:

  • 1 cup water
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • ¼ cup of honey or dates
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • ½ cup almonds
  • ¼ lemon with peel, seeds removed

Add 4 tsp psyllium powder while blender is running. Quickly pour into the bowls onto fruit. You can make as many layers of psyllium and fruit as you desire. The pudding will solidify within minutes. Serves 5.

Hot Cocoa Dream

Recipes

We made this beverage for our winter Cleanse & Rejuvenation Retreat. It was a huge hit. It is so packed with nutrients, we actually had it as our dinner and everyone was satisfied!

  • 3 ripe avocados
  • 3 Tbsp raw cocao powder
  • 3 Tbsp carob powder
  • ¼ cup raw honey or raw agave
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 6 cups water

Blend together until creamy. If using a high speed blender, blend for 4 minutes to warm. Otherwise, transfer to a pot on the stove and warm on low heat, stirring for 10 minutes. Add more water or sweetness as desired.