Ok, convinced as I am now that greens in the daily smoothie are critically important, I have been working on developing recipes that the kids like, and believe me, they are a tough crowd! They have become used to the regular berry smoothie and are resistant to trying new flavours.
I tried this one today, and am hoping it will be a hit... I sure liked it! I guess I'll find out when they get home from school and I try it on them! It is not green... it looks like a dark chocolate shake, or chocolate milk!
Chocolate Monkey's Lunch
1 handful of spinach
1 banana (frozen)
1.5 tsp cocoa or carob powder (I used a bit of both)
Stevia to desired sweetness
Almond milk (or any milk you want) to desired consistency.
Note:
If you want it really cold and your banana isn't frozen, you may want to add a few ice cubes at the beginning, then slowly add the milk until you like how it looks.
Voila!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
Finally graduated to a Vitamix... and taking the next step
Ok, it's only been 1 1/2 years since we started smoothies. I have tried adding several supplements at different times for different efforts, but usually end up back at the basic cal/mag/D liquid, omega 3, probiotic, vit B6 & E supplements, after using a variety of extra things for extra de-tox and/or healing now and then.
One thing I never considered adding was fresh greens. I had some negative experiences with powdered "greens" supplements over the years, ie gagging it down, and so hadn't tried fresh greens because I just assumed it would change the flavour and/or colour too much to get my kids to accept it.
Hee hee, it doesn't! After getting my fabulous Vitamix I started reading online about the amazing and critical benefit of pulverized fresh greens, and finally screwed up the courage to throw a handful of spinach into the smoothie. I thought the worst thing that could happen was the chickens would get a treat if everyone hated it. Well, nobody even knew that it was in there. In fact, when I told the kids I had thrown in spinach, they said "Ya right mom!" like they thought I was joking!
I have since tried Watermelon/blueberry/peach/kale/ginger (mmmmm!) and several others and even in a few days I notice an improvement in my sleep quality and energy. It could be my imagination, but I think my stomach looks a little trimmer too, even though the scale still says I am about 10 lbs overweight. The exciting thing is that it tastes great, so it makes it something you WANT to do, instead of something you MAKE yourself do because you know it is good for you. I am excited to try the next recipe and can't wait for the next time I get hungry!
One thing I never considered adding was fresh greens. I had some negative experiences with powdered "greens" supplements over the years, ie gagging it down, and so hadn't tried fresh greens because I just assumed it would change the flavour and/or colour too much to get my kids to accept it.
Hee hee, it doesn't! After getting my fabulous Vitamix I started reading online about the amazing and critical benefit of pulverized fresh greens, and finally screwed up the courage to throw a handful of spinach into the smoothie. I thought the worst thing that could happen was the chickens would get a treat if everyone hated it. Well, nobody even knew that it was in there. In fact, when I told the kids I had thrown in spinach, they said "Ya right mom!" like they thought I was joking!
I have since tried Watermelon/blueberry/peach/kale/ginger (mmmmm!) and several others and even in a few days I notice an improvement in my sleep quality and energy. It could be my imagination, but I think my stomach looks a little trimmer too, even though the scale still says I am about 10 lbs overweight. The exciting thing is that it tastes great, so it makes it something you WANT to do, instead of something you MAKE yourself do because you know it is good for you. I am excited to try the next recipe and can't wait for the next time I get hungry!
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Is brain allergy vs. PDD/NOS... a case of po-tay-to vs. po-tat-o?
I feel a need to re-iterate my "brain allergy" theory from an old post, which is not original to me. It is developed from researching online, along with what has worked and makes sense to me from following recommendations of our pediatric specialist in sensory issues, and talking to various alternative health providers.
Here it is in a nutshell: Allergies cause sensory issues. The foundation of all allergies is the body's inability to break down some kind(s) of protein, whether it be pollen, dander, peanuts, milk or gluten. That protein will then have a toxic effects on the system... either body, brain or both. The body is unable to de-toxify itself.
In the case of a brain allergy, some protein(s) acts as an opiate to the brain, causing anxiety and reasoning problems such as ADHD, PDD/NOS, Tourettes, OCD, tics, stuttering, etc.
In summary:
- The CAUSE is an allergy to some protein. ie casein (milk protein) in my son's case, and I think un-identified others.
- The SYMPTOMS are sensory issues (with whatever label manifests itself).
- The CURE is to identify and remove the allergen (it is a toxin to that person) AND equip the body in every way possible to deal with, and heal from, the stress of the previous exposure, and any on-going additional exposure you just don't know about.
Here's what we did.
- Elimination diet. For us it was dairy. After removing all dairy we knew in less than 24 hours that was the one our son was allergic to, because his reasoning and anxiety improved so dramatically. We literally called it a miracle. Especially bad are foods that could have 'modified milk ingredients' (ie. processed foods) and packaged milk
- Developed daily smoothie based on recommendations by a pediatric specialist in sensory issues (recipe in previous posts).
- Lots of vitamin C
- Weekly detoxifying clay bath
Recent additions to our smoothie due to recommendations by a live blood analyst:
- Added digestive enzyme supplement called "Aller-Free" to the smoothie to help break down protein
- Added an "Adrenal support" supplement to the smoothie to help deal with the stress and improves coping
- Added an "infla-heal supplement" to the smoothie to heal inflammation from systemic stress caused by the body's inability to naturally detoxify itself.
Here it is in a nutshell: Allergies cause sensory issues. The foundation of all allergies is the body's inability to break down some kind(s) of protein, whether it be pollen, dander, peanuts, milk or gluten. That protein will then have a toxic effects on the system... either body, brain or both. The body is unable to de-toxify itself.
In the case of a brain allergy, some protein(s) acts as an opiate to the brain, causing anxiety and reasoning problems such as ADHD, PDD/NOS, Tourettes, OCD, tics, stuttering, etc.
In summary:
- The CAUSE is an allergy to some protein. ie casein (milk protein) in my son's case, and I think un-identified others.
- The SYMPTOMS are sensory issues (with whatever label manifests itself).
- The CURE is to identify and remove the allergen (it is a toxin to that person) AND equip the body in every way possible to deal with, and heal from, the stress of the previous exposure, and any on-going additional exposure you just don't know about.
Here's what we did.
- Elimination diet. For us it was dairy. After removing all dairy we knew in less than 24 hours that was the one our son was allergic to, because his reasoning and anxiety improved so dramatically. We literally called it a miracle. Especially bad are foods that could have 'modified milk ingredients' (ie. processed foods) and packaged milk
- Developed daily smoothie based on recommendations by a pediatric specialist in sensory issues (recipe in previous posts).
- Lots of vitamin C
- Weekly detoxifying clay bath
Recent additions to our smoothie due to recommendations by a live blood analyst:
- Added digestive enzyme supplement called "Aller-Free" to the smoothie to help break down protein
- Added an "Adrenal support" supplement to the smoothie to help deal with the stress and improves coping
- Added an "infla-heal supplement" to the smoothie to heal inflammation from systemic stress caused by the body's inability to naturally detoxify itself.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Smoothie update from the smoothie evangelist
What a busy 6 months it has been, with many ups and downs!
I have tested over and over again the value of the smoothies... by failing to "go to the trouble". We then experience the not-so-joyous effects of the decline in the childrens coping, reasoning skills and mood (hence behaviour!). My PDD-NOS child's social and play skills vanish, and all he wants and asks for is "screen time".
It may be difficult to get a child to accept a smoothie at first. Surprisingly however, even at a young age, children will buy into things that make them feel better. My own kids have been "on and off the wagon" enough times to know and accept that smoothies are a necessity. "A necessity?" you might say, "Isn't that a little much?". All I can say is try it for awhile and decide for yourself. YOU WILL ARGUE LESS with your child!
A few more tips I have tried recently are:
- If bananas get too ripe, slice or puree it and put it in the freezer for use in smoothies
- Try different fruits or a few drops of an essence to vary the flavours
- Glutathione is a great liver support, particularly important when recovering from illness (1/2 capsule would be enough for a child)
- Adrenal support supplement will help coping and stress.
- Calcium supplements can be useless, make sure you get a high quality one.
- Nutrasea's green apple or lemon flavoured Omega Oil supplements are the bomb! Recently finished a bottle of the lemon, which added a nice tangy flavour to the smoothie, and thought we'd try the green apple this time... also wonderful... no fishy or oily flavour in your smoothie.
You can do alot of things for your health, but in my books, the smoothie is the foundation of it all!
I have tested over and over again the value of the smoothies... by failing to "go to the trouble". We then experience the not-so-joyous effects of the decline in the childrens coping, reasoning skills and mood (hence behaviour!). My PDD-NOS child's social and play skills vanish, and all he wants and asks for is "screen time".
It may be difficult to get a child to accept a smoothie at first. Surprisingly however, even at a young age, children will buy into things that make them feel better. My own kids have been "on and off the wagon" enough times to know and accept that smoothies are a necessity. "A necessity?" you might say, "Isn't that a little much?". All I can say is try it for awhile and decide for yourself. YOU WILL ARGUE LESS with your child!
A few more tips I have tried recently are:
- If bananas get too ripe, slice or puree it and put it in the freezer for use in smoothies
- Try different fruits or a few drops of an essence to vary the flavours
- Glutathione is a great liver support, particularly important when recovering from illness (1/2 capsule would be enough for a child)
- Adrenal support supplement will help coping and stress.
- Calcium supplements can be useless, make sure you get a high quality one.
- Nutrasea's green apple or lemon flavoured Omega Oil supplements are the bomb! Recently finished a bottle of the lemon, which added a nice tangy flavour to the smoothie, and thought we'd try the green apple this time... also wonderful... no fishy or oily flavour in your smoothie.
You can do alot of things for your health, but in my books, the smoothie is the foundation of it all!
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