Food Matters

I recently finished reading Real Food by Nina Planck, it's a great book that focuses on the history of the authors' diet. Throughout Planck discusses the roles that fats, oils, fish, meat, and produce play in our diet and gives some contextual history on how each of theses was incorporated into the human diet.

Lately, I've been finding myself examining my own eating history as well. Growing up, I had a fairly average American diet. Every night my mom made a home cooked meal which involved lots of canned vegetables and fruits, as well as potatoes and meat. (Pretty exciting right?)

After I moved out on my own, I became a vegetarian and immersed myself entirely in the lifestyle. I spent hundreds of dollars on new cookbooks, subscribed to Vegetarian Times, and tried all of the recipes I could get my hands on. I had some successes, but most of my meals turned into some inedible cauliflower surprise that always found itself in the trash before the end of the meal. Besides the awful food, the most worst part of being a vegetarian were the awful reactions I received for being a vegetarian. I would get the typical but patronizing "good for you," "why?" and one of my personal favorites "I'm sorry." Even my then husband's father, who was ironically enough a lifetime farmer said to me in the driest sarcascim he could muster "what would the world do without vegetables for people like you to eat?"

These days I take a more balanced approach to eating. As an acupuncturist I've learned to view food energetically. The Chinese believe that eating foods that grow naturally, and abundantly during a given season supports the body with the necessary nutrients it needs. For example, raw foods like vegetable salads, and fruit are great to eat during the summer. There is fire energy in these produce. During the Fall eating food that's more white in color like potatoes, pears, and parsnips are recommended. The Winter is a good time for soups, and stews. Think of black or dark colored foods like beef, black beans, and beets during this time. Finally Spring is the time of movement, so things which are green and alive like asparagus, chives, green onions are great!

Most importantly however, I've learned to enjoy the gift of food; the preparation, the taste, the texture and the people with whom I share my meals. That is the true gift of food.

Vitamins for Our Four Legged Friends

I, like so many of you am a pet owner. And because I (like I know you do too) love my two sweet kitties like my children, I do everything I can to keep them healthy. I buy them the best cat food, lavish them with toys, and spoil them from time to time with a little cat nip. More recently however, I tried something that even I was a little wary of at first but it has really improved the health of my two little fluff balls, a daily multi-vitamin, and organic supplement!

Before I get to far ahead of myself, let me back up. One afternoon, as I was cleaning the bathroom, and I noticed my cat Dusty licking a bag of epsom salts sitting next to the bathroom. After my initial disgust with him wore off, I realized that one of the reasons he might be doing this is because he's not getting enough minerals in his diet.

After reading several reference books on animal health, including Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats which deals with a variety of issues concerning pet health including diet and has a particularly thorough section on pet illnesses with a variety of ways to treat them using supplements, herbs and homeopathy I decided what vitamins would best suit my sweet hearts.

So now every morning as I'm taking my cocktail of multi-vitamins, minerals, and essential oils, I make sure to give Dusty and Lily (the kitties) a multi-vitamin of their own called Feline Formula, and a supplement called Hairball Formula both pf which are made by Actipet, and they have never been healthier. Plus they love it! They always know when I'm getting their supplements ready for them, and come running to the kitchen.

Napping, It's OK

Have you ever experienced that tired, drowsy feeling, almost like someone pulled out your plug? For me, I'm not ashamed to admit that this happens almost every afternoon. As we expend energy during the day doing whatever we're doing our qi or energy is slowly being drained. Fortunately, I have a solution that's easy and free. . . TAKE A NAP!

In this country there seems to be a certain guilt associated with taking a nap. Maybe it's because we've been inundated to believe that any time not spent working is time wasted. (I know I used to feel this way.) Lately however, I've found that at the end of the day when I'm dragging, I'm more productive if I stop what I'm doing, and take an hour or so to nap. Afterwards, I always have the energy and focus to re-attack my work, instead of wallowing away for three, four, or five hours stuck in the same place because my fatigued brain simply can't get going.

If you can't already tell, I love my afternoon nap. It's my mini vacation from my busy and stressful day. Not only do I always wake up feeling refreshed, mentally alert, and able to perform the rest of my day feeling energetic, but it's a nice chance for me to be alone with my thoughts, to relax, and reflect on all that's happened during the day. The National Sleep Foundation, has noted that following naps many individuals notice an increase in mental alertness, work performance, and a reduction in mistakes and accidents.

So get over yourself already, stop feeling ashamed, and take a dang nap! It's a great, simple and easy way to take care of yourself. Plus it's free!

Carpal Tunnel

Carpal Tunnel is becoming a more and more common affliction among everyday people. The repetitive motion and overuse caused by such activities as typing, data entry, and twisting of the wrist can cause a feeling of pain and a tightness in the forearm, wrist, and hand. My remedy of choice of course, is a combination of wonderful herbal supplements and acupuncture.

With acupuncture the treatment is relatively simple and relaxing. The patient rests in a reclining chair while thin acupuncture needles(no bigger then a shaft of a hair) are inserted into the shoulders and hand of the affected area. These needles stimulate the qi (the blocked energy in the arms and shoulders causing the pain and tightness, to unblock.) Once the needles are inserted, treatments last about an hour with the person reclining in a zero gravity chair, listening to music, and in some patient's case even sleeping!

For the quickest recovery, I recommend performing these treatments twice a week for 2-4 weeks depending upon the severity of the condition, and how quickly the individual's body responds.