Sue Hardman

Nourish + Rejuvenate

Liver

Coconut Oil – Is It Good For You?

By

Coconut Oil and Why It’s a Healthy Choice

South Pacific Islanders and Polynesian communities whose diets are high in fully saturated coconut oil,  were found to be healthy and trim, while heart disease was virtually non-existent. Obviously, coconut oil was benefiting the health of these islanders.

I sure you know by now that saturated fats are bad for your health and can lead to a host of negative consequences – like high cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease. But not all saturated fats are the same!

Why Coconut Oil You May Ask? 

It improves heart health, balances your thyroid, boosts your metabolism, increases lean body mass and supports the immune system. It’s very beneficial for the skin coconut-oil-benefitsand has been found to have anti-aging and regenerative effects.

How does Coconut Oil Work in Your Body?

This is of a type oil rarely found in nature called lauric acid, a “miracle” compound because of its unique health promoting properties and it’s also nature’s richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs). These MCFA’s are small, easily digested and are immediately burned by your liver for energy – like carbohydrates, but without the blood sugar spike.


MCFA’s in coconut oil also boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner.

Coconut oil has actually been shown to help optimise body weight, it boosts your metabolic rate to improve your energy, accelerates healing and improves your overall immune function and just to top it all – it’s incredibly good for your heart.

The truth is this: it is unsaturated fats that are primarily involved in heart disease and too much sugar and processed foods, not the naturally occurring saturated fats, as you have been led to believe.

How to use Coconut Oil in Your Kitchen
Personally, I mostly use only two oils in my food preparation.

The first, extra-virgin olive oil is the best monounsaturated fat and works best as a salad dressing. However, olive oil and other common vegetable oils such as corn, soy, safflower, sunflower and canola, are absolutely the worst oils to cook with because they oxidise with heat and form trans-fats, that are not good for your at all.

So when it comes to cooking, frying etc., I use mostly coconut oil because it’s the ONLY oil stable enough to withstand the heat of cooking.

So, do yourself a favor and cook with coconut oil.

You can substitute it in most recipes calling for oil; put it in your smoothie or protein powder drink.

A Healthy & Delicious Dessert Using Coconut Oil – even kids would eat

Heat the following together:-

1 TBSP of coconut oil,
1 TBSP coconut milk,coconut banana dessert
1 TBSP cacao or raw chocolate
1 TBSP half teaspoon of honey and

Pour the mixture and coat a frozen banana.

You can roll it in coconut flakes and ground macadamia then freeze for another 30 minutes. It makes a delicious frozen dessert!

Energy Boosting COCONUT POWER BALLS – perfect for when you’re on the go

 

Grain-free protein coconut snack

1/2 cup sunflower or nut butter
2 tablespoons raw honeyor stevia
2 tablespoons cocoa nibs
2 tablespoons shredded coconut
3/4 cup natural, unsweetened hemp/pea protein powder
1 teaspoon organic, alcohol-free vanilla
2 tablespoons hemp seeds

 

 

Mix sunflower seed or nut butter, protein powder, honey, and vanilla until smooth
Then add remainder of ingredients.

Form into 1-inch balls and place in an airtight container . Store in the fridge.

 

If you’re struggling with any kind of hormone imbalance, tiredness, low energy or wanting to lose your excess weight. I’ve  put together a FREE guide for you, so you can start to learn how and why specific foods, and drinks, can help you have more energy and lose weight naturally. 

You’ll find it is easy to add these ingredients into your diet on a daily basis – get your downloadable guide here

In fact, at the end, I’m going to share one simple recipe you can make in under five minutes that incorporates all of these foods.

5foods-loss-weight

Get your copy of the FREE guide:
5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally.

 

HERE

Toxins – 5 Ways To Reduce Them In Your Home

By

So you’ve heard about detoxing your body to eliminate internal toxins but what about your home?

The common household and body-care products we use are increasingly being found to have negative health effects on the nervous, immune, reproductive systems, endocrine, cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

The average home contains 500-1,000 chemicals, many of which we are unable to see, smell or taste. Making your home healthier and greener doesn’t have to be expensive, or overwhelming.

Just a few changes can improve the health of your home and everyone in it.

Taking more care to reduce our exposure to external toxins, by detoxing our living space allows the body’s own detoxification to function more efficiently.

Strengthening your body’s resilience to the daily onslaught of toxins impacts your health.

Here are a few ways you can you cut down your exposure to these chemicals and other potential household risks.

Mistake ♯ 1. Plastic bottles, containers and wrap. Plastic releases chemicals that are hormone disruptors, according to many studies.

What to do instead: If you use a lot of bottled water consider this, they’re no good for the environment and bad for your health. Try replacing your plastic for glassware or heavy duty plastic water bottles which are designed to be safely used, again and again. Avoid putting hot or acidic food in plastic, and never microwave them.

Mistake ♯ 2. Even if you live in a place where drinking water is considered good the following contaminants are not usually removed – chlorine, E. coli, pesticides.

What to do instead: Filtered tap water is a better choice than tap water. Simply filtering your tap water can remove lots of these pollutants. A simple jug water filter system may be all you need for drinkable water. There are also filters that attach to a tap or to the plumbing system.

It’s a ‘better safe than sorry’ approach.” You’ll also cut down on waste in landfills by not buying – and then tossing – plastic bottles.

Mistake ♯ 3. Skip antibacterial soap, new research has also shown that triclosan, the main ingredient in antibacterial soap, has the potential to affect sex hormones and interfere with the nervous system.

Antibacterial products contain harsh chemicals like triclosan, which has been linked to liver toxicity and ends up in water sources.

What to do instead: Studies show washing your hands with plain soap is just as effective or try making your own antibacterial spray using tea tree and lavender essential oils they have powerful antibacterial and antiviral properties.

Some researchers believe that the quest for hyper-cleanliness may have led to weakened immune systems, and possibly to more cases of asthma and allergies.

Mistake ♯ 4. Indoor air quality can be worse than outdoors, let your home “breathe.” Open your windows as often as you can, open your curtains and let in the sunlight, a natural antibacterial agent.

Plants that remove toxins in your homeWhat to do instead: Use natures air purifiers – plants.

While most plants take away oxygen at night, the snake plant (or Mother-In-Laws Tongue) gives off oxygen at night, it is extremely low maintenance, tolerant of irregular watering and less lighting, and has the potential to absorb airborne chemicals.

Mistake ♯ 5. Wearing outdoor shoes around your home, particularly relevant if you have a lot of carpets or small children crawling on the floor.

What to do instead: Leave your shoes at the door so that you’re not spreading outdoor pollutants and additional toxins throughout the house. Go barefoot or wear slippers. Place floor mats vertically by your entryways to wipe your shoes. This way more dirt and residue from your shoes stays on the mat. This is the easiest thing you can do, and costs you nothing.

Something else to consider: Is your body trying to tell you something? Do you often look & feel tired, have dark circles under your eyes, or wake up feeling sluggish?

Because Toxins are unavoidable, maybe your body needs a cleanse. So every once in a while it’s a good idea remove them with the structure and support of a fresh food detox!

 

If you’re struggling with any kind of hormone imbalance, tiredness, low energy or wanting to lose your excess weight. I’ve  put together a FREE guide for you, so you can start to learn how and why specific foods, and drinks, can help you have more energy and lose weight naturally. 

You’ll find it is easy to add these ingredients into your diet on a daily basis – get your downloadable guide here

In fact, at the end, I’m going to share one simple recipe you can make in under five minutes that incorporates all of these foods.

5foods-loss-weight

Get your copy of the FREE guide:
5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally.

HERE

This Love Your Body Detox Program will take you step-by-step through a simple detox that will make a huge difference in how you feel and look – in just 14 days!

Find out more HERE

 

 

Stress, Cortisol & Weight Gain

By

Do You Need To Flip Off The Cortisol – Stress Switch?

Over the last 40 years rates of depression, anxiety, stress and insomnia have soared and the World Health Organisation is saying that these problems are the biggest threat to our health.

Stress releases cortisol in your body, and of course cortisol has both a positive and negative effect on your body.  We wouldn’t survive if it wasn’t for the positive effect of cortisol.Reduce stress

Cortisol is the main stress hormone that is made in your adrenal glands and it’s designed to get you out of danger, you feel the positive vibe of cortisol and adrenalin– releasing extra energy, getting you focused, it raises blood sugar (to feed muscles fight or flight), raises blood pressure, and modulates your immune function.

Unfortunately many of us live with chronic daily stresses and so live with constantly high cortisol levels and your body ceases to experience the positive aspects of cortisol and if these high levels are sustained this is when the problems start occurring.

Stress is triggered by a huge range of psychological factors and external events. We can become stressed by relationships, by work, by finances, and by our thoughts of what we think may or may not have happened.

Daily stress of any sort sends your bodies into the “fight or flight” mode, releasing adrenaline and cortisol.

Cortisol releases extra energy for us to deal efficiently with the physical effort involved in fighting or fleeing, but when that effort doesn’t come, the extra energy (in the form of glucose and fat) just gets re-deposited as fat – around the middle.

Why there?  It’s close to the liver where it can quickly be converted back into energy when needed.

A lean man or woman of normal weight can even have to much fat around the centre of their bodies as a result of the stress hormone – cortisol.

Fat cells in the belly have four times more cortisol receptors compared to fat cells elsewhere.

A study done by Nuffield Health found that women with thicker waists are at higher risk of various cancers as well as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

If you have a high level of stress then you will be particularly at risk of the dreaded muffin top and stress keeps feeding the muffin top as your cortisol stays high.How-To-Get-Rid-Of-Muffin-Top-In-2-Weeks

Increased abdominal fat, is associated with more health problems than fat deposited in other areas of the body.

There’s another hormone that is released due to stress. High levels of blood sugar released by cortisol, trigger the pancreas to release the hormone insulin.

This tells your body to store fat and triggers a craving for something sweet and fatty like chocolate.  So rest assured that it is
not just weakness that draws you towards the fridge – it’s physical urge.

Abdominal fat cells have many receptors for cortisol, if you’re very stressed and have high levels of cortisol, your abdominal fat cells will be calling out for it, encouraging your body to store more fat there, which explains why fat accumulates so readily in that part of the body.

For a start you can control your blood sugar roller coaster and this will help reduce the amount of stress hormones that are being released and helping you feel calmer in yourself.

High or Excessive cortisol levels can create a broad range of undesirable side effects:

Physical Signs

Emotional 
Signs

Additional

Signs

-Muscle weakness

-Chronic fatigue

-Obesity

–Digestive problems

-Excess belly fat

 – Nervousness
– Anxiety
– Depression
– Irritability
– Craving carbs
– Insomnia
– Difficulty falling asleep

= Emotional over-eaters

– Illness after completing a project
– Sick on vacation
– Mental preoccupation with a  stressful event

6 things you can do straight away to support yourself and balance your cortisol levels

Stress relieving food
1) Eat fresh, healthy food as close as possible to the original source. Loads of veggies. Avoid refined carbs and sugar.

2) Find out which supplements can support you –

Certain nutrients such as the B vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium and essential fatty acids can be extremely helpful if stress is a problem as they will help boost the functioning of your adrenal glands.

You should be getting these nutrients from your healthy diet but if you are under stress you might want to add in more B vitamins, found in nuts and whole grains, essential fats found in oily fish, nuts and seeds, and plenty of vitamin C found in vimages-15eggies & fruit.

When you’re stressed you use more vitamin C and magnesium than at any other time, and it is vital for keeping your immune system strong.  Women who are deficient in the antioxidant mineral selenium, also experience feelings of depression and anxiety.  Selenium if found in fish and shellfish, whole grains, avocados.

3) Use natures’ own plant medicine –  nervine and adaptogen herbs like Scuttelaria, Passiflora, Ginseng or Rhodiola.

4) Get your cortisol levels tested. Know your levels and measure – where are they to high or to low? These can easily be addressed with the proper support.

5) Exercise –  is good and changes the levels of hormones in the blood and it can elevate the mood, affecting brain chemicals. Find time to do simple exercise daily.

6) Deep, long  and restful sleep is essential for recharging your energy levels. A proper sleep relaxes both your body and the mind. It will improve your mood and give you the ability to deal with daily stress.

7) Spending time in fun, positive environments to boost your ‘feel good’ hormones – with your family and friends, spend some time close to nature.

8) You need to get out of the sympathetic mode (fight or flight and stress) and as often as you can into the parasympathetic mode (rest and digest i.e. calm, relaxed). Try breathing exercises, meditation, pilates, walking in nature, yoga and prayer. There are several scientific studies that provide solid information about the physical and psychological health benefits of meditation and prayer.

Stress and relaxation

Dr. Herbert Benson, a cardiovascular specialist at Harvard Medical School and a pioneer in the field of mind/ body medicine discovered what he calls “the relaxation response,” which occurs during periods of prayer and meditation. At such times, the body’s metabolism decreases, the heart rate slows, blood pressure goes down, and our breath becomes calmer and more regular.

The body responds with slower brain waves, and feelings of control, tranquil alertness and peace of mind. This is significant because Benson estimates that over half of all doctor visits in the U.S. are prompted by illnesses, like depression, high blood pressure, ulcers and migraine headaches, that are caused at least in part by elevated levels of stress and anxiety.

If you are still scratching your head, don’t let it discourage you!!! It can take time to learn and get in the swing of things.

 

If you’re struggling with any kind of hormone imbalance, tiredness, low energy or wanting to lose your excess weight. I’ve  put together a FREE guide for you, so you can start to learn how and why specific foods, and drinks, can help you have more energy and lose weight naturally. 

You’ll find it is easy to add these ingredients into your diet on a daily basis – get your downloadable guide here

In fact, at the end, I’m going to share one simple recipe you can make in under five minutes that incorporates all of these foods.

5foods-loss-weight

Get your copy of the FREE guide:
5 Foods that will help boost Your Energy Levels and Lose Weight Naturally.

HERE

The Amazing Benefits of Turmeric

By

You may already use turmeric root powder in your cooking, particularly if you like Indian-inspired dishes. It’s the key ingredient in your curry powder. Turmeric has been a staple of Indian food traditions for millennia and has a long history of healing use (over 4000 years) in Ayurvedic and Traditional Chinese medicinal traditions.

What is turmeric and what’s it’s secret?

Turmeric has a mellow flavor and is a bright yellow colour.

Turmeric may be the most effective natural supplement you could find as few others possess such a wide spectrum of qualities and medicinal uses.

Many recently published research studies are showing that it has major benefits for your body and brain.

Science has started to back up what ancient health traditions like Ayurveda & TCM have known for a long time, that it really does contain compounds with medicinal properties.

Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric.

The latest research on Turmeric & Curcumin

  • A new study from universities in China confirmed the antidepressant effects.
  • Scientists have demonstrated that turmeric may be helpful in decreasing blood sugar levels associated insulin resistance.
  • Oxidative damage one of the mechanisms behind ageing and many diseases. Curcumin has powerful antioxidant effects.
  • Now researchers from The University of Nottingham and Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich have found that curcumin may help reduce inflammation associated with tendinitis.
  • Chronic inflammation is a contributor to many common diseases. Curcumin can inhibit many molecules known to play major roles in inflammation.
  • Both turmeric and curcumin have shown potential to prevent DNA damage and help DNA repair. That is good news for preventing disease and slowing the aging process.

What Ayurveda have known for 1000’s of years about turmeric

  • It is strengthening and warming to your whole body it will promote proper metabolism correcting both excesses and deficiencies.
  • Improves your digestion – balances gut flora, will cleanse and strengthen your liver.
  • You can use it topically in the prevention and treatment of skin diseases.
  • Relieves arthritis, swelling is applied to sprains, burns, cuts, bruises, insect bites and itches.
  • Is considered a blood purifier and and is antimicrobial.

What are the Incredible Health Benefits of Curcumin?

✓Reduces your response to inflammation
✓Boosts your joint flexibility and comfort
✓Supports a healthy heart
✓Helps keep your mood balanced
✓Increases your memory retention and clarity
✓Supports good liver health
✓Encourages optimum immune
✓Helps you maintain a healthy digestion

How to take your Turmeric or Curcumin

It’s great for infections or inflammation like achey joints.

It’s probably best to avoid the heat of a curry, when you have inflammation, and take the powder with water – 1/4 teaspoon 3-4 x per day depending on the severity. If the taste is unbearable get some capsules.

It also turns out that the piperine in black pepper enhances the bioavailability of the curcumin in turmeric by 2000% (Shoba et al. 1998), when you cook with turmeric be sure to add a little black pepper.

Whether by incorporating it into cooking or taking it as a powder or one of several herbs in a tea, turmeric is at the heart of many different remedies and continues to prove its value after thousands of years of use.

 If you want to get yourself some Turmeric – try this product made by Pukka

  • Wholistic Turmeric is a concentration of the finest parts of whole turmeric root gathered from fertile organic soils.
  • This broad-spectrum formula contains the highest organic grade, sustainably cultivated herbs, carefully selected to bring you the full potential of nature’s goodness.

 

Golden Fusion™

Highly Bioavailable Curcumin and Grass-Fed† Collagen Peptides
Golden Fusion™ is a modern take on a centuries old golden milk recipe that is both great tasting and convenient. Golden Fusion features CurQfen®, a highly bioavailable form of curcumin with fenugreek along with grass-fed† collagen peptides. Organic herbs turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, pepper, Indian cardamom, and moringa in an organic coconut milk powder base round out this innovative formula.