Ahh! What can beat a good night’s sleep? Not much, actually. It’s no wonder that getting 7-9 hrs of uninterrupted sleep is best for most adults. Children & teens need even more. 😴
Check out the many benefits below:
• Sleep Keeps Your Heart Healthy • Sleep May Help Prevent Cancer • Sleep Reduces Stress • Sleep Reduces Inflammation • Sleep Makes You More Alert • Sleep Improves Your Memory • Sleep May Help You Lose Weight • Napping Makes You Smarter • Sleep May Reduce Risk of Depression • Sleep Helps the Body Repair Itself
Fatty foods have a bad reputation and yet healthy fats are found in some of the most nutrient dense whole foods available to us. Here are some of the best fats to incorporate into your diet:
💛Avocado 💛Grass Fed Butter or Ghee 💛Extra Virgin Olive Oil 💛Coconut Oil 💛Omega-3s from fatty fish 💛Nuts and Seeds 💛Free Range Eggs 💛Grass Fed Beef 💛Full Fat Dairy, especially raw 💛MCT Oil 💛Dark Chocolate
From Dr Axe – “Fats are an important part of the diet, but not all fats have the same effects on health. While good fats can actually lower cholesterol levels, boost brain function and support satiety, filling up on unhealthy fats can contribute to chronic disease and weight gain.
A good rule of thumb is to steer clear of highly-processed fats that are pumped full of additives and unhealthy ingredients. Refined vegetable oils, processed meats and snack foods like chips, crackers and baked goods are generally high in disease-causing, artery-clogging trans fats that should be avoided at all costs.” https://draxe.com/nutrition/healthy-fats/
A fantastic resource on healthy whole foods and nutrient dense, full fat dietary choices is the Weston Price Foundation. I love checking their site for recipes and information. Here are details on fats from their website. https://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats/
The term ‘whole food’ is normally applied to vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains that have gone through minimal processing, but it can apply to animal foods too.
It’s not as simple as neatly dividing foods into two groups – either whole foods or processed foods. Most foods we eat have undergone some degree of processing, whether it’s washing, chopping, drying, freezing or canning, and that’s not always a bad thing. For example, freezing and canning food gives us access to a variety of foods all year round.
Not all processing is a problem. However, there’s a big difference between ‘ultra-processed’ and ‘minimally processed’ healthy foods that are close to their natural state. Whole grains, beans, fruits and vegetables are all close to the state they were in when harvested and come loaded with vitamins, minerals, fibre and other essential nutrients. But as the degree of processing and refining increases, the food’s nutritional value decreases.
With more processing, the likelihood that less-beneficial ingredients like fat, salt and sugar are added goes up and the likelihood of vitamins and minerals being present goes down. The US-led National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that 90% of the added sugar in our Western diet comes from ultra-processed foods. 😱
Nutritional research consistently shows that a balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes brings health benefits. A 2014 analysis by Yale University researchers found that the claims of health benefits for many popular diets such as low glycaemic, Paleo and vegan were exaggerated. The one consistent finding was that “a diet of minimally processed foods close to nature, predominantly plants, is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention”.
The benefits of a whole food or a minimally processed diet include lower rates of heart disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. Another advantage of eating mostly whole foods comes from the vast array of nutrients acting together.
Whole foods such as fruits and vegetables are packed full of phytochemicals and, according to a study by the Institute of Nutrition Sciences, Germany, these natural compounds can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular and other diseases. Fruits and veg also contain nutrients and fibre, and the best way to make sure you’re getting these beneficial elements is to eat them in their natural form.
Another benefit is that when you eat a diet made up mostly of whole foods, it’s easier to eat less of the unhealthy fats – such as trans fats and saturated fats – often added to ultra-processed foods and fast food. At the same time, you’ll be boosting the amount of healthier fats such as omega-3 oils from fish, nuts like walnuts, and plants like linseed and chia; and monounsaturated fat from plant sources such as avocado, and nuts such as almonds, cashews and peanuts.
Nutritional information can sometimes be confusing. But there’s no need to try the latest food fad, as eating healthily boils down to having a balanced diet of foods in their natural state, or as close to it as possible. This way you are getting foods in the package of nutrients that nature intended.
This year, rather than relying on OTC medications if your family gets sick, consider using herbs. They’re inexpensive, fairly easy to obtain, and have few to no side effects — we can’t say the same about OTC or prescription drugs!
But, if you’re new to herbal medicine, you may not know where to begin. Try these 10 herbs to help your family stay healthy this winter.
🌿 Ginger is one of our favorite herbs. You can buy it in any grocery store (seriously, Walmart carries it) and it’s really inexpensive. Even the organic is only $5/lb. and a large piece might cost $2 (that will last weeks). Ginger is anti-inflammatory, it helps colds and sinus infections, general pain, stomach upset, and more. It’s also safe for kids of all ages (even babies), and pregnant and nursing women. It’s an all-round awesome remedy.
🌿 Mullein is often a go-to remedy for us. It’s been said to help with diarrhea, asthma, bronchitis, whooping cough, colds, flu, and lots more. For any respiratory infection, use a tea or a tincture made with mullein It can also help with insomnia. It’s fairly safe, including for pregnant/nursing women and children.
🌿 Elderberry is a very popular flu remedy, and for good reason: studies show it can reduce the duration of the flu from 6 – 7 days to only 2 – 3. It’s strongly anti-viral and fights many infections. Many people find it both effective and palatable. It’s safe for kids from around 8 – 12 months
🌿 Peppermint or spearmint are known tummy-soothers. They can also help with headaches, and peppermint may soothe sore throats (peppermint has a high menthol content that can cool the throat, but spearmint doesn’t). It’s also very safe for most. Pregnant or nursing women should be cautious because large doses can present a problem in sensitive women (cause contractions or reduce milk supply), but most women will not have an issue.
🌿 Catnip is one of our favorite herbs. It can help soothe a nervous child — it’s a mild sedative. It can also treat stomach upset, and may be helpful with coughs. It’s recently been shown to be an excellent insect repellent. We use it to help teething babies with great success, and it’s also great for general insomnia.
🌿 This plant is where marshmallow, the candy, originally came from! Today, the candy is made from gelatin and corn syrup, but the marshmallow plant remains in use for humans. The plant is very high in mucilage, which means that it helps to coat the digestive system. This means it is effective for coughs, bronchitis, whooping cough, diarrhea, and more. It also may be used topically, because it is anti-inflammatory, and it may help cuts, scrapes, and infections.
🌿 Turmeric root has gained popularity lately as a strong anti-inflammatory. It’s been shown to fight colds, infections, and even cancer. It’s also been shown to help liver disease, Alzheimer’s, and other chronic illnesses.
🌿 Acerola berries are extremely high in vitamin C. For this reason, it may be beneficial against colds, flu, whooping cough, and other common winter ailments. They’re also strongly anti-inflammatory.
🌿 For years, people have recommended Echinacea as a cold remedy — because it helps. It’s beneficial against colds, flu, bronchitis, UTIs, ear infections, candida, and more. People have used it for almost any infection. It can cause allergic reactions in some, so be careful if your family has allergies to plants/pollen.
🌿 Goldenseal root is a very expensive, rarer herb. It’s bright gold colored, and usually used topically. It’s good for cord care in a newborn baby. It can be used directly on diaper rash as a powder, including yeast or bacterial rashes. It helps get rid of both bacterial and viral infections (topically and internally) and soothes sore throats. Be warned that it’s very powerful, and it makes other herbs more powerful when taken in conjunction. https://modernalternativemama.com/2013/10/18/10-herbs-to-keep-your-family-healthy-this-winter/
Some people are not fans of the smell of vinegar but did you know it is actually really good for you?
I personally like to use it as a salad dressing or in my water with a little lemon juice.
Apple cider vinegar has various healthful properties, including antimicrobial and antioxidant effects. What’s more, evidence suggests it may offer health benefits, such as aiding weight loss, reducing cholesterol, lowering blood sugar levels, and improving the symptoms of diabetes.
Apple cider vinegar has shown great promise in improving insulin sensitivity and helping lower blood sugar responses after meals.
Vinegar can also help kill pathogens, including bacteria. People have traditionally used vinegar for cleaning and disinfecting, treating nail fungus, lice, warts, and ear infections.
Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, used vinegar to clean wounds more than 2,000 years ago.
Vinegar is also a food preservative, and studies show that it inhibits bacteria like E. coli from growing in and spoiling food.
There’s a dirty little secret the fragrance industry would rather you not know about, however, which is the extreme toxicity of many of these products. Hidden behind their pleasant scents are typically chemicals linked to hormone disruption, reproductive problems, and even cancer.
Many perfumes sold at department stores, big-box retailers, and virtually everywhere else can aptly be described as poison – and this means that you could very well be sacrificing your health by wearing them…
I caution against using any synthetic perfume or cologne, or any other synthetically fragranced personal care product, as they’re almost always loaded with synthetic chemicals that have been linked to cancer, reproductive toxicity, allergies, and more.
And although the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) actually has direct authority to regulate harmful ingredients in cosmetics and personal care products, it doesn’t exercise it… The Environmental Working Group (EWG) explains:
“When you see ‘fragrance’ on a personal care product’s label, read it as ‘hidden chemicals.’ A major loophole in FDA’s federal law lets manufacturers of products like shampoo, lotion, and body wash include nearly any ingredient in their products under the name ‘fragrance’ without actually listing the chemical.
Companies that manufacture personal care products are required by law to list the ingredients they use, but fragrances and trade-secret formulas are exempt.”
What does this mean for a health-conscious person like yourself? When you purchase a fragrance, it could contain any number of the 3,100 or so stock chemical ingredients used by the fragrance industry. What blend is in most products you buy, exactly, is virtually impossible to ascertain, aside from testing it in a lab – and this is actually what the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics did…
Laboratory tests commissioned by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, and analyzed by EWG, found a total of 38 chemicals not listed on the labels in 17 name-brand fragrances (such as Chanel, Giorgio Armani, Bath & Body Works, Old Spice, Calvin Klein, and more).2
The average fragrance product contained 14 chemicals that were not disclosed on the label (along with another 15 that were listed!). The report noted:
“Among them are chemicals associated with hormone disruption and allergic reactions, and many substances that have not been assessed for safety in personal care products.
You may already know one of the benefits of exercise includes optimizing your body to fight disease. Now, we have very robust, specific evidence showing that a solid prescription of physical activity can drastically lower your risk of 13 different types of cancers! I can’t stress this enough — this is empowering news that we all need to embrace.
The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, looked at information from 1.4 million people ages 19 to 98 collected over the course of about 11 years. Researchers from the National Institutes of Health, Harvard University and other leading global research organizations gleaned data on people’s exercise during leisure time (things like brisk walking, swimming and running) and at what intensity.
People who were most active enjoyed a reduced risk of 13 different types of cancers compared to those who exercised the least and lived sedentary lifestyles. Exercise appeared to be most protective against esophageal cancer (42 percent lower risk), followed by liver cancer (27 percent lower risk) and lung cancer (26 percent lower risk).
Those who exercised the most enjoyed a 23 percent lower risk of kidney cancer, a 22 lower risk of gastric cardia (a type of stomach cancer), a 21 percent lower risk of endometrial cancers, a 20 percent lower risk of myeloid leukemia, a 17 percent lower risk of myeloma, a 16 percent lower risk of colon cancer, a 15 percent lower risk head and neck cancer, a 13 percent lower risk of both rectal and bladder cancers and a 10 percent reduced risk of breast cancer. (The study did find exercise slightly increased the risk of melanoma and a type of slow-growing prostate cancer.)
The researchers note that this was an observational study so the link between exercise and cancer reduction is “proven,” but we do know that exercise changes hormone levels, the degree of disease-causing inflammation, digestion and overall energy balance in a way that could likely contribute to the lower risk.
When you take a second to think about deodorants – antiperspirants in particular – the problem seems rather simple and self-explanatory. We apply deodorant to our armpits to block smells. But why does our body sweat in the first place? Sweating occurs as one of the body’s prime efforts to detox. So, if we’re preventing the detox, where are we sending the toxins that our bodies are trying so hard to flush out? The answer is the lymph system, which is the bodies defense against infection. Cancer is also frequently spread throughout the body when cancerous cells break off from a tumor and travel to another location in the body through the lymph system. Basically, the lymph systems works by trapping the bad stuff and flushing it out frequently via our pits. When the glands in our armpits are blocked, our breasts are right there to take in the toxins. Antiperspirants have been linked to breast cancer.
The biggest concern in antiperspirants is the active ingredient that works to plug sweat glands temporarily, an aluminum-based compound. They are specifically related to breast cancer because the upper corner of the breasts, near the armpits, is usually the site of developing cancerous cells and tumors. This is where the cancer cells travel to first.
A good deodorant is hard to find and it shouldn’t be but between toxic aluminum and baking soda rashes mothers often find themselves wasting a ton of time and money only to end up with their pits looking rashy and sore.
That is where I love my Earthley deodorant, offering something unique, affordable and healthy. 💁♀️
I think that most of us know that smoking cigarettes’ are harmful but did you know that doctors used to promote them? People trust their doctors to give them safe, reliable information, and for years Physician’s told them that smoking was perfectly safe. They are very much responsible for a mass amount of deaths and injury due to these recommendations.
The human microbiota is made up of trillions of cells, including bacteria, viruses, and funguses. The largest populations of microbes reside in our gut: the gut microbiota. The microorganisms living inside the gastrointestinal tract are also known as gut flora.
Microflora in the gastrointestinal tracts of healthy individuals differs from those found in diseased individuals. The beneficial microflora in the gastrointestinal tract are called probiotics, which means “for life.”
Our bodies are constantly trying to achieve a state of equilibrium in gut flora. There is an immense body of research showing the benefits of balanced gut bacteria in many areas of health.
There are many factors in our modern lifestyle that can shift the gut flora balance to bad gut bacteria. These include the consumption of commercially processed foods, antibiotics, stress, and chlorine and fluoride in drinking water. This results in poor gut health, sickness, and obesity.
Probiotics have proven health-promoting benefits. One of these benefits is the reduced risk of cancer. There are many ways that probiotics reduce the risk of cancer, including aiding with detoxification, improving apoptosis (death of cancer cells), inhibiting tumor growth, and stimulating the immune system.
Fermented foods are excellent sources of these healthy probiotics. Fermented foods are filled with concentrated nutrients, probiotics, and good bacteria.
This article will explain what fermented foods are, sources of fermented foods, and 5 ways that fermented foods may reduce the risk of cancer.
Natural families and lifestyle 