Get stronger bones without Cow's milk

Hello friends,

Get stronger bones without cow's milk.

My now favorite bok choy!

I hope this helps,

Your perfect Smoothie Recipe

Hello friends,

The perfect Smoothie Recipe!

Source

I hope this helps,

Flour & Starch Substitute

Hello friends,

Looking for flour or starch substitute when baking. This chart may help.

source: Greatist

Plant-based protein sources

Hello friends,

Over the past few months, I have been incorporating more plant-based protein sources into my diet and decreasing my meat intake. I came across this info-graphic, which has been very helpful.

source: pinterest

I hope you find this helpful!

Creamy White Peach Mango Smoothie

Hello friends,

I love smoothies! I'm always looking to create my own recipes. Now that its hot outside, I find myself drinking more and more smoothies throughout the day. Smoothies are so easy to make and taste great.

My first smoothie recipe was delicious, but there were too many ingredients. My advice for anyone who wants to incorporate more smoothies in their diet is to start with the fruits that you enjpy and don't feel the need to add a bunch of ingredients. All you need is your base (liquid), your choice of greens, fruit, and healthy fats (such as coconut oil, flax seeds, chia seeds). 5-6 ingredients at the most!!

This smoothie recipe is my all time favorite. It is creamy and the ripeness of the white white added the right amount of sweetness.

Creamy White Peach Mango Smoothie Recipe

2 ripe white peaches

kale leaves

1 cup of fozen mango

1.5 cups of coconut water

2 tbsps of ground flax seed

Enjoy!

I hope this helps,

Using Liquid Nutrition to Combat Health Disparities

Hello friends,

                          Using Liquid Nutrition to Combat Health Disparities

I’m sure you’ve heard all about green smoothies and/or green juices. Green smoothies and juices are quick and easy to make. Most importantly, they are delicious and highly nutritious, because they flood our bodies with much needed fiber, nutrients, antioxidants, enzymes, and chlorophyll. I think they are an excellent way for us to engage in healthier behaviors, give our bodies the nutrients it needs, and do our part to eliminate heath disparities in our communities. 

www.liliashealthbook.blogspot.com

Minorities have the worse health conditions in the United States, with African Americans leading the pack. For example, obesity is one of the fastest growing epidemics in the United States, but even more so for Black women. For example, according to the Office of Minority Health, African American women are 70% more likely to be obese than Non-Hispanic White women. I think, we as Black women can reverse or even eliminate these statistics by incorporating more fruit and vegetable juices and smoothies in our diets. Here are two reasons why I think so.  

1.  Juicing has shown excellent promise in weight loss. How? Well vegetables and fruits are naturally low in calories and fat. So, replacing as many foods as you can that are higher in calories with fruits and vegetables in the form of a juice or smoothie would be wise to do for anyone who’s trying to lose weight. Moreover, fruits and vegetable juices and smoothies provide our bodies with large amounts of nutrients that are quickly absorbed by the body to help in the elimination of any nutritional deficiencies.

2.  Green smoothies are full of fiber, which is very important in the elimination of waste. Personally, I’ve noticed significantly more bowel movements (i.e. daily movements) since incorporating daily green smoothies. Fiber helps you feel full quicker and keeps you full longer. This is definitely ideal in anyone who’s looking to lose weight and to help build and maintain a healthy lifestyle. 

The health statistics for Black women are appalling and I for one did not want poor health to become my reality. I began incorporating green juices and smoothies in my diet as a way to increase my intake of more fruits and vegetables, because we all know that fruits and vegetables are good for us.

More information on green smoothies and juices can be found on the links below:

http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-new-love-green-smoothie.html
http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/06/berry-infused-coconut-smoothie.html
http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/10/green-smoothie-recipe-3-celery-kale.html
http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/02/green-smoothie-recipe-2-kale-spinach.html 
http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/03/tips-on-eating-healthier.html
http://liliashealthbook.blogspot.com/2012/02/eating-healthy-is-sexy-fruit-vegetable.html

I hope this helps,

 

Detoxification 101: The Lymphatic System (Part 4)

 Hello friends,

Today, let's discuss the lymphatic system  as part of our detoxification series. Refer to the links to join in the conversation for the other posts in this series on the Skin and the Liver.

What is the Lymphatic System? 
-The lymphatic system is a major part of the body's immune system. The lymphatic system aids the immune system in removing and destroying waste, toxins, pathogens, dead blood cells, and cancer cells from the body.  In addition, the lymphatic system removes excess fluid and waste from the interstitial spaces between cells.
Basically, it acts as a filtration system.

The lymphatic system does not have a pump! (like the circulatory system). Therefore, it is highly dependent on movement ( such as exercise, dancing, jumping, physical activity, massage etc.) to help it do its job efficiently. I think another great reason to exercise!

It is important to note that if the other elimination organs of the skin, liver, intestines, and kidneys are working at top capacity, then the lymphatic system is able to to do its job even better.
A poor working lymphatic system can cause swelling, joint pain, skin puffiness, nausea etc.

So what makes us the Lymphatic System?
Lymph nodes, bone marrow, the spleen, tonsils, and the thymus gland all make up the Lymphatic system.

Ways to encourage the Lymphatic System to do its jobs:

1. Exercise. "Nuff said...
2. Massage...such as the Lymphatic Massage
3. Dry Skin Brushing - stimulates the lymphatic system to drain and remove from the entire body
4. A healthy-balanced diet-mostly plants; little processed foods
5. Sweat - Don't be afraid to sweat. Sweating is a great overall health. Sweating eliminates waste and toxins and helps support a healthy Lymphatic system. 

Well, my friends, I hope this helps. If you have any questions or comments, please do so in the comment section below.

Take Care,

Detoxification 101: The Skin (Part 3)

Hello friends,

I promised to write a post on the skin being one of the largest elimination organs, so here it is! Please refer to my detoxification post and the liver detox post for more details on detoxification. 

The skin is the largest organ. Yes, the biggest!

Its function is to protect everything else that’s underneath; which means that we need to show our skin constant love and care. The skin also helps to control our body temperature.

Source

The skin is made up of 3 layers:

                The top layer - epidermis (what you see)

                Middle Layer –  the dermis, houses nerve endings, blood vessels, oil glands, sweat glands, collagen and elastin

                Third layer – this is where you can find the subcutaneous tissue (fat).

So now that we’ve quickly gone over the layers, let’s talk about how we can keep our skin healthy via detoxing. 

The epidermis is what we can see, but what we cannot see is the formation of new skin cells. As new skin cells push their way to the epidermis, old skin or dead skin cells slough off.

Did you know that a typical skin cell has a life cycle of about 2 weeks? In fact, we lose about 30,000-40,000 skin cells per minute, every day.

So what does the skin have to do with detoxification?

The process of detoxifying :: removing toxins:: removing impurities::cleansing.

Again, the skin is the largest organ. It is a major detoxifying organ, because it excretes waste via sweat. Also, the skin acts as a respiratory organ- it is porous; it breathes.  For instance, one of the side effects of going through any detox often involves skin blemishes. This is a sign of the detoxification process-toxins being expelled through our pores. Our bodies are constantly cleansing and removing waste, but there are many things that we can do to help that process run more smoothly.

 

Important note: The skin is a reflection of our insides. In other words, the skin reflects the health of our large intestines and other organs. (this is why daily bowel movements are so important for me). There is  definitely a connection between the large intestines and the skin. When the body has a difficult time removing waste through the colon (i.e. bowel movements), the body finds other avenues to get rid of that waste. And that pathway is usually the skin (gross right!). Pimples, blemishes, acne, cysts all surface as the body tries to get rid of waste. Some people can eat whatever and still have perfect skin, that is not the case for me. My skin is not perfect at all, but it has definitely improved.

It is of utmost importance that we keep our intestines clean. Make a conscious effort to get as much water, veggies and fruits as you can will definitely help to do just that. If you’re being with me for a little while, then you know I do this via my delicious green smoothies. (link ) In summary, a clean large intestine reflects healthier looking skin, but this is just 1 way of keeping the skin clear. There are many other ways:

1.  Skin Brushing – I’ve never tried this yet, but I hope to do so in the near future. Dry skin brushing is easy to do and the health benefits are amazing. Dry skin brushing improves blood circulation to the skin encouraging the lymphatic system to release toxins and to drain any trapped metabolic waste, thereby, keeping the blood and other tissues clean. Also dry skin brushing reduces cellulite and puffiness. Most visibly, dry skin brushing sloughs away dry, dead skin to help reveal new skin cells. 
2. Sweating- a great way to detox the body and release toxins and waste. Sweating is good; this is why I’m against deodorants that prevent sweating under the arms for long periods of time. Infrared saunas are especially great for this method of skin detoxing. They encourage sweating and claim to improve circulation and to eliminate heavy metals in the body.   
3. Exercising- is not only great for the skin, but for overall health. I love cardio workouts for this reason. I get to sweat and my heart gets a great workout.
4. Baths- not just any bath- A detox bath will definitely assist the body in the elimination of waste and toxins. Ingredients like Epsom salt, baking soda, bentonite clay, essential oils, like lavender, tea tree oil etc. are key to most detox bath recipes.

** These are just some ways to encourage your body to detox via the skin. Please share any other skin detoxification tips. We can all learn from each other. 

I hope this helps,