Health Practices
Your body is a highly complex machine and health is your most precious gift.
Health can be improved by adding to your diet, health can be optimized by also reducing certain habits in your diet. Healthy, Tasty (crave worthy level), and Fast don’t have to be enemies.
Note: I refuse to use the word "super food". It's getting annoying.
Tea and mushroom extract collection
Matcha - Powdered green tea leaves increases absorption and is easy to put into everything.
Tea All Day every day
Consume as much green tea as possible followed by white and black teas
Camellia Sinensis (white to green to black): white rose, sencha, matcha, gemaicha, oolong, twig kukicha, bancha hojicha, puerh (all from the same plant and mostly differences in the preparation process regarding the amount of oxidation)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5824026/
Note: Consider buying Japanese grown tea. There are some reports of build up of heavy metals and other contaminants in Chinese grown green tea (from air and soil contamination)
Herbal teas: rooibos, echinacea (immune support), ginger (digestive), tulsi holy basil, lavender, chamomile & linden (for calm and sleep), stinging nettle (good for all genders, specifically for prostate cancer risk reduction), dandelion root, rose hips, moringa, lemon grass
Approved Brands (many are rated on the "Better World Shopping Guide")
https://www.choiceorganicteas.com/
https://www.traditionalmedicinals.com/
https://numitea.com/
https://www.fivemountainstea.com/
Add EXtra Herbs & Spices to Everything (not salt)
Tumeric (with black pepper)
Marjoram (in the oregano family)
Cayanne and other peppers
Garlic granules (non-irradiated, yes they do that to many spices!?!)
Rosemary, thyme, sage
Mushrooms - Extracts & fresh
Medicinal Mushrooms: Chaga, Reishi, Lions Mane, Cordyceps, Shitake, Blue Oyster, Turkey Tail. You can get extracts (important to find quality extracts) or mushrooms from the local farmers market. Blue Oyster are easy and fun to grow!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPqWstVnRjQ
Promising Studies
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2681140/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4946216/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1160565/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4032839/
Mushroom & Random Veggie Soups
Soups are my favorite to make - breaking down alot of vegetable material, lentils, beans, and spices. Water and oils absorb the nutritional value.
* Add tumeric (as usual)
crazy colored fruits & veggies
Dragon Fruit, Beets (Magenta)
I support eating anything this colorful. The magenta is shocking (and stains everything). You can find these at some grocery stores where other tropical fruit like mangoes hang out.
Black berries (Blues)
Black berries and blue berries have high amounts of the “blue” antioxidant anthocyanin. Berry intake is a leading indicator of health.
Superoxide Dismutase (Melons & a Veggie Heavy Diet)
Honeydew and cantaloupe melon contain high amounts of SOD. Mutations causing problems with superoxide dismutase (which prevents oxidative damage caused by the generation of energy from your mitochondria in each call) is thought to be major factor in certain neurological diseases.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4073155/
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/mitochondrial-theory-of-aging/
LEGUMES, LEGUMES, LEGUMES
Legume consumption is a major indicator of health and longevity across multiple cultures and geographies (found in all blue zone research). The following three legumes have the highest antioxidant capacity when compared to all other beans.
Lentils (I love black and french green)
Chickpeas
Black beans (eat anthocyanin!)
NUTS & Seeds
Nut consumption is linked to health in population studies - Walnuts, pecans, almonds. Seeds - flax, chia, hemp
Omega 3 to 6 ratio
Flaxseed is the best source of Omega 3. It needs to be ground for absorption. Add to cereal, toast, yogurt, baked goods, salad, black beans, everything!
tumeric (+black pepper) on all the things
Curcuminoids in tumeric (giving it a staining brilliant yellow) are antioxidants. Absorption is increased significantly in the presence of black pepper. I add turmeric (powder or fresh root) to every savory thing I cook (the flavor is very mild). You can lay it in soil and grow it easily (like ginger).
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5664031/
GREEN IS MY FAVORITE COLOR
I eat as many greens as possible, in as many forms as possible. Chlorophil, yes please.
Favorite Leafy Greens: arugula, kale, spinach, collards, mustard greens, dandelion greens
Favorite Veggies: brassicas family (broccoli, brussel, kale), artichoke, asparagus
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24630682
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/eating-green-to-prevent-cancer/
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-to-regenerate-coenzyme-q10-coq10-naturally/
85-90% Chocolate
Ensure that the only ingredients are organic cacao beans, organic cocoa butter (sometimes listed as liquor), organic raw cane sugar or agave etc
Raw Cacao
Cacao nibs, cacao powder, cacao beans (roasted)
CBD oil
Vitamin E & CoQ10
garlic
Some studies point to neuro-protective properties as well as other cardiovascular and cancer prevention benefits.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3074326/#CIT0004