Magnesium helps to relief stress

Follow my blog with BloglovinMagnesium helps to relief stress. Magnesium is a mineral where we need a lot off and get too little of. The foods that are grown today contain far less Magnesium then they used to and our stressful lives increase the loss of Magnesium from our bodies. So nowadays lots of people are deficient of this mineral.

Well what are the symptoms of deficiency?

• Cramped muscles
• Tension
• Nervousness
• Headache / migraine
• Depression
• Stiffened, hardened and cramped muscles
• Strained nerves
• Fatigue
• Menstruation complaints
• Problems with sleeping
• Hyperactivity
• Exhaustion
• Vibrant eye
• Agitation
• Irritability
• Chilliness
• Poor blood circulation
• Dizziness 

What can I do to complement my deficiency fast?

Take regular Epsom salt baths. This a safe and effective way to normalize your Magnesium levels. Take about 4 cups of Epsom salt per bath and do this 2 to 3 times a week until you feel better I know, not everybody has a bathtub anymore. What you can do is make yourself Magnesium oil (it feels oily, but is not an oil) by mixing Epsom salt with a little bit of water and put in a spray bottle. Spray this on the thin parts of your skin e.g. the inside of your arms or legs or your belly.
This is also a perfect way to regenerate from sport. Athletes do this for quick recovery of their muscles.

What food can I eat to improve my Magnesium levels?

• Nuts, pumpkin seeds, cashew nuts, brasil nuts, almonds
• Beans, white beans, black beans, kidney beans, green beens, actually all beans
• Grains, brown rice, buckwheat
• Berries and bananas
• Chocolate (70% or more cacao)
• Kelp and other seaweeds
• Molasses 

What can I do to help my body absorb Magnesium? 

• Eat Fermented dairy like yoghurt or cheese 
• Foods with protein enhance the absorption of magnesium and calcium 
• Eating foods high in insoluble fiber, or taking supplemental dietary fiber, is likely to hinder magnesium absorption
• Foods high in oxalates, such as spinach, leafy greens, nuts, tea, coffee and cacao also reduce magnesium absorption. Cooking reduces oxalic acid, so cooking spinach and other greens is better than eating them raw (in terms of magnesium absorption). Fermentation helps too which is the case with chocolate, coffee and tea. 

When do you have a high risk of magnesium deficiency?

• Being overweight
• Daily alcohol intake
• Smoking
• Drinking a lot of coffee
• Using drugs, contraceptive pill included
• A stressful life
• Drinking a lot of soda (because of phosphates)
• Breastfeeding or pregnant 

The downward spiral of stress

When you suffer from stress and are having a longer period of extreme stress, you have a good chance of having a magnesium deficiency. And as you have read about the symptoms of this deficiency earlier in this article, you will also see that these symptoms can create stress.
So stress causes a magnesium deficiency and a magnesium deficiency causes stress. Bingo! So before you start to manage your stress with biofeedback or other solutions, take care of your magnesium deficiency first.

Recognize stress and measure it with biofeedback

Recognizing stress is the first step in lessening its impact. Many of us spend so much time in a stressed state, we have forgotten what it feels like to be fully relaxed and alert. When being stressed out is getting the normal state for you, it is time to take action and start learning to relief your stress.

What does it feel like to be calm and stress-free?

Inner balance is seen in the smile of a happy baby, an all natural relaxed, free of tension state.

In adulthood, being balanced means maintaining a calm state of energy, alertness, and focus. Calmness is more than just feeling relaxed; being alert is an equally important aspect of finding the balance needed to withstand stress. If you don’t feel calm, alert, productive, and focused most of the time in your daily life, then too much stress may be a problem for you.

Do you recognize the following symptoms of stress?

• Physical stress symptoms:
• headache
• backache
• stiff neck, shoulders
• digestive disorders
• stomach ache
• palpitations
• excessive sweating
• fatigue
• sleeping problems
• dizziness
• constant worrying
• Behavioral stress symptoms:
• unsettled by concerns
• excessive alcohol or drug use
• excessive smoking
• snarling, speaking irritated
• gnash
• tics
• difficulty concentrating
• cantankerous
• struggling to think clearly
• forgetful
• concentration problems
• difficulties with deciding
• uncreative
• Emotional stress symptoms:
• feeling emotional unstable
• irritable
• quick to anger
• nervous
• impotence
• feeling empty

If you are recognizing some symptoms, you could consider downloading the following App:
Stress Check  from Azumio. With this App, you can check your stress level. You can do this several times throughout the day to get an idea how high or low your stresslevel is.
The App picks up your heart beat with the camera from your phone. It is based on measuring your Heart Rate Variability:this is the time lapse between your heartbeats. The pattern of these time leaps indicate the balance of the parasympathicus and sympathicus of your automatic nervous system.

Well, and what if my stress level is too high?

Fortunately, you can easily change something about your stresslevels. Meditation and yoga are good methods for stress relief, but practicing with biofeedback is a method that can bring fast, effective stress relief and can integrate with a normal (mostly busy) life.
In my practice for stress management I saw some amazing results in very short periods of time with most of my clients. I just finished writing a book about it:

Stress relief with biofeedback: With a biofeedback stand-alone device or IPhone/IPad app.
In this book you can read all about the method for stress relief with biofeedback. And the good news is that once you know the right technique for you (it is different for every person), you can implement it in your life and benefit the advantages for the rest of your life.

Magic beet root juice

Scientists from the United Kingdom and the USA have done some interesting experiments the last few years, which show remarkable health benefits from drinking red beet juice. Beet root juice:

• Improves stamina 
• Lowers high blood pressure 
• Increases blood flow to the brains 

Recently is discovered that the high nitrate content of beetroot juice is responsible for most benefits. It is becoming a very popular drink among many different kinds of athletes because research shows such convincing evidence of improved sportive results. It has more effect than most doping chemicals and is a natural food.

During the Tour de France of 2011 a new study on a test with cyclists appeared. The riders had a trial of 2 x 4km and 16 km away. 2 1/2 hours for the rides they drank half a liter of beetroot juice and other times that do not contain nitrate at one time. The performance after drinking the normal, nitrate-rich, red beet juice were better than after the juice where the nitrate was taken out. Average, the difference was 11 seconds on the 4km time trial and 45 seconds on the 16 km time trial. This was because at the same oxygen consumption they could produce more energy. A blood vessel dilating action of the nitrate and the lower oxygen demand of the muscle are responsible for this. The authors emphasize that, apart from the nitrate, the polyphenols in red beets and betacyanine may also have a beneficial effect on the health and performance.

Nitrate and nitrite are not in all circumstances beneficial nutrients They are also often added to foods such as meats as a preservative. Nitrites in the stomach can be converted by a chemical reaction into the carcinogenic nitrosamines. There are indications that vitamin C prevents this but it depends on the amount of fatty acids that are present in the stomach. According to the researchers, this may explain the disappointing in practice anti-cancer effects of vitamin C. Fat remains a relatively long time in the stomach. The combination of nitrate rich foods + vitamin C is good but nitrate rich foods high in fat + + much vitamin C is not. So, on an empty stomach with some vitamin C seems the best option for fresh juice.

While fresh and raw often is the better option with most vegetables, this time there might be an exception. I stumbled upan an abstract about "Effect of the fermentation process on levels of nitrates and nitrites in selected vegetables" written by Heród-Leszczyńska T. and Miedzobrodzka A., two polish researchers. They discovered that "In the red beets after the process of fermentation a decrease in the level of nitrates by ca. 91.6% was noted. An undefined portion of the studied compounds passed into the liquid. The "beet acid" contained 595.9 mg/dm1 of nitrates and 3.26 mg/dm3 of nitrites."

So, the nitrates get passed over to the liquid and as fermentation is a kind of digestion and the lactic acid bacteria eat sugar and make the beet juice even healthier. It turns the juice into a probiotic super drink with a lower glycemic index than non-fermented beet juice. Especially for non-athletes a drink with a lower glycemic index is overall healthier.

You can ferment beets yourself. A nice recepy is found here: http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Fermented-Beets-With-Orange-and-Ginger or buy fermented juice at Amazon. The price is for 6 bottles, by the way...

The benefits of shiitake mushrooms are still increasing

Shiitake mushrooms are originally cultivated mostly in Japan, but China is taking over and other Asian countries, Brasilia and the USA are cultivating Shiitakes more and more. A part from the abundant health benefit of this mushrooms, it also is a delicious healthy food.

Health Benefits of shiitake mushrooms

Shiitake is a "medicinal mushrooms" due to the long history of medical use, particularly in Asian medicine, but is increasingly eaten for the good taste and nutritional values.

Health benefits are:

Shiitakes support our immune system.

There are numerous research studies that show that these mushrooms appear to be able to enhance immune function in giving it a boost when needed, and cutting back on its activity when needed. This is not a major influence but just minor, but when we eat Shiitakes regularly, this could benefit our health.

Shiitake mushrooms are able to help macrophage cells, these cells help clearing potentially cancerous cells. Researchers refer to this result as an "anti-cancer immunity" that is enhanced by shiitake mushroom intake.

The most famous immune-supportive components in shiitake mushrooms are its polysaccharides. These essential sugars in Shiitake laboratory have been shown to lessen problems in animals under a wide variety of circumstances, including exercise stress, exposure to inflammation-producing toxins, radiation exposure, and immunodeficiency. There is also some evidence that shiitake mushrooms' polysaccharides can help lower total cholesterol levels.

Cardiovascular Benefits

Shiitake mushrooms have repeatedly been shown to help lower total blood cholesterol. Recent studies have shown that shiitake mushrooms can help protect us against cardiovascular diseases (including atherosclerosis) by decreasing the adhesion molecule production. The last cardiovascular benefits is the antioxidant key, it contains the antioxidant minerals: manganese, selenium, and zinc who help neutralize chronic oxidative stress in our cardiovascular system which is a critical factor in the development of clogged arteries and other blood vessel problems. They also contain some unusual phytonutrient antioxidants. One of the best studied is ergothioneine. Researchers believe that ergothioneine may be one of the key nutrients from shiitake mushrooms that provide us with cardiovascular support.

Anti-Cancer Benefits

Most of the research on shiitake mushrooms and cancer has been conducted on laboratory animals or on individual cells in a laboratory setting and has involved mushroom extracts rather than whole mushrooms in food form, this research show anti-cancer benefits, especially with respect to prevention of prostate cancer, breast cancer, and colon cancer.

Other benefits

The special combination of antioxidants found in shiitake mushrooms together with their highly flexible support for immune system function are beneficial for many diseases as our immune system is involved in practically every illness.

As most research has been done on medicinal shiitakes, and not as food, we don't know yet what the combination of shiitakes with other food can bring us. 

There is also research that shows that combining different kinds of anti-cancerous foods multiplies the effect of the separate foods, so it could be very interesting to combine this super mushroom with other healthy food such as onions, garlic and/or miso. And this is not only increasing the health benefits but also very important for food, this improves the taste of this lovely food.

Imagine sautéed Shiitakes with onions and garlic, mixed with some cream, parsley and Parmesan cheese. Together with a mix of spaghetti and zucchini this makes a delicious meal. This idea is inspired by this recipe. 

Fresh Shiitake taste milder than the dried version. These have a stronger taste.

There are also good sugars!

Several different mushrooms, seaweed and raw dairy products are important sources of essential sugars.

Fruits and vegetables contain sugars (glyconutrients). They develop naturally in fruit in the last days of ripening due to the sun. But as fruit to be shipped is picked too early (immature) nowadays, it does not contain the eight essential sugars needed for a good immune system anymore. Essential means that our body cannot produce these sugars sufficiently by itself and that we need to supplement this as food.

We used to think that sugars were only important for energy metabolism in our bodies, but research is showing that there are certain sugars that play a very important role in cell communication and therefore in our immune system.

It was found that eight essential individual sugars are necessary for the health of many body functions and systems. This view has led to a new science called glycobiology.

These functions include:

Shiitake from dutch grower http://www.shiitake.nl/

• Cellular communication: important for so many cell functions, for example the communication with T-cells that are a crucial part of our immune system
• Structural integrity: for example the consistency in connective tissues
• Physical protection: cell is better protected against for example toxines
• Cell-cell adhesion: for example to help certain beneficial bacteria to stay connected to the gut wall

Various foods have natural glyconutrients. Good sources are: sugar beet, Aloe vera, mushrooms (for example Shiitake, Maitake and Reishi), arabinogalactans (e.g. in maize, flour, leeks, carrots, radishes, pears, red wine, coconut, tomato, curcuma and Echinacea and larch tree), pectine from apples and citrus (specially grapefruit), bran (e.g. oatmeal, brown rice, barley, wheat), curcuma (turmeric), mistletoe and Echinacea and seaweed.

1. Glucose (simple sugar)

Properties: Fast energy source. Too much or too little can be problematic. Glucose metabolic disturbances are associated with depression, manic behavior, anorexia, and bulimia.

Food sources: Almost all types of fruit, vegetables and bee products such as bee pollen contain glucose. Also all natural sweeteners like agave, honey etc. contain glucose.

2. Fucose (simple sugar)

Properties: Anti-viral. Supports long-term memory. Guards against lung diseases. Fights allergies. The abnormal metabolism of this saccharide is associated with cystic fibrosis, diabetes, cancer, and herpes — more fucose helps to alleviate these conditions.
Food and Herb Sources of Fucose: Fucose is found in breast milk, kelp, seaweed (this is known as wakame), Japanese brown algae, mushrooms, medicinal mushrooms (Reishi, Shiitake, Maitake, Coriolus Vesicolor) and seeds. Kelp contains several essential sugars: Fucose, Xylose, Mannose and Galactose.

3. Galactose (simple sugar)

Properties: Improves the speedy healing of injuries. Improves memory. Improves the absorption of good calcium.

Food and Herb Sources of galactose: Milk (sugar), beans (especially the black-eye), tomato and hazelnut contain many galactose. Black currant (black current seeds, Ribes nigrum L.) contain, in addition galactose and arabinose also galactan. Fenugreek seeds also contain galactose and mannose. Galactose is also found in breast milk in which it arises from the disaccharide lactose.

Most fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, and raw dairy products: apples, apricots, bananas, blackberries, cherries, cranberries, currants, dates, grapes, kiwi, mangos, oranges, nectarines, peaches, pears, pineapples, plums, prunes, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, passionfruit, echinacea, boswellia, fenugreek, chestnuts, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, avocado, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes, leeks, asparagus, lettuce, green beans, mushrooms (not button mushrooms), beets, onions, parsnips, green peas, pumpkins, spinach.

4. Xylose (simple sugar)

Properties: Anti-bacterial, anti-fungal. Helps prevent cancer of the digestive system.

Food and Herb Sources of Xylose: Kelp, berries (blackberries, loganberries, raspberries), aloe vera, okra, birch sap, seeds, some common vegetables. Includes: guava, pears, echinacea, boswellia, psyllium, broccoli, spinach, eggplant, peas, green beans, okra, cabbage, and corn.

5. N-Acetylgalactosamine (polysaccharide)

Properties: Inhibits the spread of tumors. Heart disease causes a low-level of this saccharide.
Food and Herb Sources of N-Acetylgalactosamine: N-acetyl galactosamine is found in natural sources: bovine products (such as bone broth), a specific type of red algae (such as nori seaweed) and shiitake mushrooms. Agar is also rich in galactosamine and sialic acid.

6. N-Acetylglucosamine (polysaccharide)

Properties: Immune system modulator. Anti-viral. Anti-inflammatory. Repairs cartilage. Repairs the mucosal-lining that is damaged by Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and interstitial cystitis. Enhances learning.
Food and Herb Sources of N-Acetylglucosamine: N-Acetyl Glucosamine is found in chitin, this solid jacket of insects, worms, shrimp and fungi. Shiitake mushrooms and shark cartilage are also rich in this essential sugar. Chitin was part of the diet of prehistoric man who ate insects.

7. N-Acetylneurominic Acid (polysaccharide)

Properties: Anti-bacterial, anti-viral. Enhances learning and brain development. Abundantly found in breast milk. N-acetyl-neuraminic acid is also known as sialic acid. 

Food and Herb Sources of N-Acetylneurominic Acid: This sugar is essential for example in breast milk, chicken eggs and whey proteins (not the powder). Also in raw dairy products.

8. Mannose (polysaccharide)

Properties: Anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral. Reduces inflammation.

Food and Herb Sources of Mannose: Aloe vera, kelp, shiitake mushroom, fenugreek, carob gum, guar gum, black currants, red currants, cranberries, gooseberries, peaches, apples, oranges, green beans, cayenne pepper, cabbage, broccoli, eggplant, tomatoes, turnip. 

Benefits

When your nutrition contains sufficient essential sugars:

• It helps your cells to function properly which can help to prevent and cure severe illnesses, even cancer.
• It can help to maintain a good gut health with helpful bacteria if the rest of your nutrition contains enough fibers and other healthy food.
• Support your immune system

Natural healing of dental problems

Dr Weston A. Price

Most people are convinced that it is impossible to cure caries. This is what we have always learned: when your teeth are damaged, this can not be reversed. I used to believe this as well, until I read about dr. Weston Price. Dr. Weston A. Price (1870 – 1948) was a dentist that travelled around the world to investigate why some people were immune for caries and the causes if caries and other oral problems. He wrote a book about his discoveries: "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration: A Comparison of Primitive and Modern Diets and Their Effects". The book is very interesting on the field of dentistry but it certainly has become a "must read" for nutritionists and people who are interested in food and healthy living.

Dr Weston A. Price researched the nutrition of the people with the best oral health and discover that the common factor between these persons with perfect teeth was nutrition. The combination of healthy fats, especially with vitamine A and D in combination with fat from pasture fed mammals. More research has been done by others and they learned more about this fat from pasture fed mammals and discovered that vitamine K2 plays a dominant role.

What is a good source for vitamine A and D?

Cod liver oil is a good source of vitamine A and D and especially the fermented cod liver oil seems to work positive. Fermented cod liver oil has even more elements that have a positive effect on our health and is not heat treated. 

Unfortunately it doesn't really have a nice taste. You can swallow a teaspoon and take a large sip of orange juice right after it. I find this acceptable, but my husband still dislikes it a lot. He prefers the capsules, but they are less economic.

What is a good source of vitamine K2?

It is important to combine this cod liver oil with vitamin K2 which is found in butter oil or cheese made from raw milk (when the cows or goats ate mostly grass). You can also buy butter oil on Amazon but you can also try to find a local source for butter oil or cheese. They both taste delicious, so enjoy this wonderful food!

Butter oil is also a very healthy fat to use for frying in the kitchen. It stays stabil when heated to high temperatures and meat fried in it tastes delicious.

What other nutrition is important for oral health?

Dr Weston A. Price advices to eat bone broths regularly to strengthen your teeth, bones and health in general.

Research has been done with the combination of the above nutrition advice (cod liver oil, butter oil and bone broth) with children who had caries. And even thought they didn't change their diet further there were significant results. 

Have an open mind and give it a try. I don't know if it works for everybody, but it certainly worked for me.

http://www.westonaprice.org/fat-soluble-activators/x-factor-is-vitamin-k2#60

http://www.nature.com/bdj/journal/v213/n6/full/sj.bdj.2012.856.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21801378
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20170379

Oil pulling with coconut oil

Do you have any of these problems?

1. Gum problems
2. Tooth pain
3. Bad breath
4. Sensitive teeth

These problems can be decreased or solved with this simple and cheap method.

Did you ever hear of Oil pulling? This ancient ayurvedic detoxing method is originally done with sunflower or other plant based oils. The procedure is as follows:

1. First thing in the morning on an empty stomach and before drinking any liquids (including water), pour exactly one tablespoon of oil into your mouth. 
2. Swish the oil around in your mouth for 20 minutes without swallowing it. Move it around in your mouth and through your teeth, as if it was mouthwash. You'll find that the oil will start to get watery as your saliva mixes with it. Keep swishing the oil through your mouth.
3. Spit out the oil in a waste bin. Do not spit it out in the sink as the oil can clog the sink.

Enzymes in the mouth are generated by saliva and by swishing oil through your mouth mix the enzymes with the oil. Nobody knows exactly how it works but it appears that this fluid clean toxics and bad bacteria from our mouth.

20 Minutes with oil in your mouth...I hear you thinking. But when you have oral problems, you should really try this. It gives instant relief and in a view days a huge improvement. 

We are used to freshness in our mouth from toothpastes with strong minty tastes that produce foam in our mouth and this method is quit the opposite...oily texture and swishing this liquid in your mouth for twenty minutes is rather long. But it is cheap and really helps, and in my opinion that's what counts.

And apart from the detoxifying effect of the mixture from oil and saliva, the coconut oil has a antibacterial effect and also remineralizes your teeth.

Coconut oilScientists from Ireland have shown that digested coconut oil can neutralize the negative effects of some bacteria that cause caries.

A research team from the Athlone Institute of Technology tested the antibacterial action of coconut oil in its natural state and coconut oil that had been treated with enzymes, in a process similar to digestion. The oils were tested against strains of Streptococcus bacteria. They found that enzyme-modified coconut oil strongly inhibited the growth of most strains of Streptococcus bacteria including Streptococcus mutans – a major cause of caries.

Dr Damien Brady, the lead researcher, remarked: 'Incorporating enzyme-modified coconut oil into dental hygiene products would be an attractive alternative to chemical additives, particularly as it works at relatively low concentrations.'

When you combine this interesting information with the ancient knowledge of oil pulling, you create a very powerful cleansing method which can increase your oral health tremendously.