Herbs: The Everything Solution

Natural herbs are really the “Everything solution.” If something requires soothing, is infectious, soars, or anything that would require anything that needs to be clean. This mix of lavender, garlic and mint is my cure-all. Sage, Rosemary and many other herbs have so many healing properties in them, and they have been used for 1000s of years to treat all sorts of illnesses and wounds.

There is also a way to test what herbs can work for your specific body. By holding herbs in your hand and paying attention to the reaction from your body will let you know if that herb is optimized for you or not. This test is used by nutritionists, acupuncturists,  alternative healing professionals, etc.

Nutrition: Part 3

Eating healthier doesn’t mean that you can’t eat the things you want, but in general, eating out is not good for you. Eliminate eating out, and when you do, you will notice that there is a different kind of energy and attitude that gets into the food when you eat at a restaurant. When you eat food prepared from a cook that is being paid by the hour and hates his job, it tastes different than food being prepared by someone that cares about you, enjoys cooking and does it for free.

For the most part, all of the spices, herbs and seasoning are healthy for you. Growing your own herbs can change everything about your diet and your intentions with food. Herbs taste good in food and are important for healing the body.

Eating healthy is important for you, but it is also important for pets and animals you are responsible for. Not only eating healthy, but using natural herbs and roots to heal pets when they get sick or injured. Lavender, for example, can heal all sorts of things. A couple of years ago, my dog had a fox hair stuck in her rib cage. I took her to the vet, and he checked her out. At this point, it was swollen and infected. After an examination, the Vet decided they needed to put the dog to sleep with anesthesia, and require surgery to get it out. On top of that risky suggestion, it will cost $400. After shaking my head in surprise, I said, "I’ll think about."

After that, I went home, went out to my garden and picked some Lavender. I mixed it with some garlic in a teapot, and when boiled, Lavender can act as a healing pad. I put the pad on my dog’s stomach, 3x a day, for 3 days. By the end of the third day, the dog was completely healed. No pain whatsoever. And this is after a veterinarian told me that my dog had no choice but surgery. There was absolutely no way that her healing process would have been that easy with a surgery. They would have cut her open, she would have taken months to heal and adjust to the cuts, and that is assuming she would be able to get up from the surgery – there was a chance that she wouldn’t get up. 

Natural herbs are great for all of us – humans, dogs and pets of all kind.

Nutrition: Part 2

When thinking about nutrition, preparation and choice of ingredients is also important. That's a good reason to prepare your own food, doing so will give you control and clarity on what you put in your body. When I cook, I can modify ingredients to healthier ones, I can add herbs and spices that adds lots of flavor to the food and promote health in the body (will be discussed in future posts) and I can add the most important part, my love and intention to nourish my body and the bodies of my family and friends! You wont get that from your average line cook (no offense guys...). Everything that we eat was alive at one point, so for the most part, we should treat it with respect.

There are so many diets and schools of thought when thinking about nutrition. And all of them are right in their own ways. On top of that, there are so many ways to market food and types of diets – based on body type, based on eating habits, based on health goals, etc. Everything changes depending upon your specific body type and metabolism.

Regardless of what type of cleanse, diet or nutritional goals you are considering, being realistic about your body and its health is the most important part. Keeping track of how much you eat, what you eat, and how it makes you feel will help you determine what food works for you as an individual. Consider everything, and be open to successful strategies, but don’t get caught in ideas about “the right way to do it” LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!

Nutrition: Part 1

Keeping track of your food and having awareness to what we put in our body is essential for our health. Logging your food intake, even for 3-4 weeks, is one easy way to keep track of what you are feeding your body, and understand the motivations behind eating. You would be surprised at how many times you go to eat out of boredom, stress, emotional state or just habit. But are you really hungry?

We prioritize eating for so many things that are unnecessary – social events, celebrations, and more. There are so many habits around food, especially here in the United States – it’s such a cultural thing. When people talk about doing cleanses and prioritizing food, they also talk about up-coming holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, summer BBQs, etc. They have to schedule their nutritional efforts around pre-existing commitments.

Furthermore, the more natural and unprocessed the food is, the better. Everything that has been on this planet and not transformed into fried chips and put into a plastic bag – if your food has been handled, processed, bleached, painted, dehydrated, packed and bagged, you probably don’t want to eat too much of it. Generally, the closer the food is to its original form, the higher the nutritional value. And when things are natural, they are usually already in their natural serving sizes. We as Americans just like to Super Size our meals, and don’t think about proportions at all.