Tag: health

Coconut Oil Toothpaste

Hulda Clark tested commercially available brands of toothpaste and found every single one of them tainted with toxic chemicals.

For instance, Colgate’s list of ingredients begins with fluoride, a much-debated chemical added to most water systems in the United States. What’s crazy about this debate is that it’s really like comparing apples to oranges. Let me explain. All published research regarding the benefits of fluoride used naturally occurring calcium fluoride in their studies. What is actually used in water treatment and toothpaste manufacture is hydrofluorosilicic acid, a waste product of the phosphate-fertilizer industry, and known to contain carcinogenic chemicals such as arsenic, beryllium, lead, cadmium, mercury, silicon, and radioactive polonium. You like that glowing smile? It’s radioactive! (Source)

Next on the list are abrasives: calcium carbonate occurs naturally in aragonite and calcite. Silica gel is a form of silicon dioxide made synthetically from sodium silicate. You’ve seen an iteration of this in little white packets marked “desiccant” and “do not eat.” Aluminum oxide has been found to kill blood vessel cells in the human brain. (Source)

Sweeteners: Saccharin was found to cause bladder cancer in rats. Sorbitol has a laxative effect in large quantities.

Sodium lauryl sulfate is added for foaming effect but has been found to cause skin irritation and cell toxicity. (Source)

Colgate Total and Crest also contains triclosan, an antibacterial agent that has been implicated in the creation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, hormone disruption, and cancer. (Source)

Hulda Clark published simple recipes for tooth care in her books. She recommended food-grade hydrogen peroxide as an effective antibacterial that also whitens teeth, but should only be used if you have no metal dentistry. I have no problems there, but my daughter is currently wearing braces.

I did a lot of research online for homemade toothpaste recipes, and found that they mostly had extra virgin organic coconut oil and baking soda in common. Those two ingredients alone is your basic toothpaste. Coconut oil has excellent antibacterial and tooth whitening properties, while baking soda acts as an abrasive.

Oregano oil is a powerful antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal, making it effective against periodontal disease. Peppermint oil is effective against bacteria that can cause gum disease.

Do those ingredients look good to you? All the benefits of toothpaste without the side-effects. Here’s my recipe.

Coconut Oil Toothpaste

Ingredients:
5 teaspoons extra virgin organic coconut oil
2 teaspoons baking soda
5 drops peppermint oil
5 drops oregano oil

Mix all the ingredients together until well incorporated. You only need a pea-size glob to brush your teeth with.

Happy brushing!

May 16, 2016
Aloo Gobi

Aloo Gobi is one of those dishes I’ve enjoyed in lunch buffets at Indian Restaurants, but don’t usually order as an entree for dinner. It’s unassuming and understated, not as much star power as the tandooris or the tikka masalas.

When it comes to home cooking, though, Aloo Gobi wins because I can make it in under an hour. Also, a quick glance down the list of ingredients reveals at least five ingredients that are known to be cancer-fighting immune boosting superfoods.

Extra Virgin Coconut Oil is blowing up all over the internet with lists upon lists of the many benefits and uses for it, from nutrition to personal care to first aid to household uses.

Garlic has been shown to lower risks for certain cancers, as well as supports the immune system. We turn to our recipe for Honey Lemon Garlic Tea every time we feel under the weather and need a boost.

Ginger fights cancer, relieves motion sickness and nausea, aids digestion, promotes healthy circulation, and many more. It is a major ingredient in Hulda Clark’s recipe for Kidney Cleanse.

Turmeric contains curcumin, which is more effective than many pharmaceuticals against several chronic and debilitating diseases including cancer, and has no side effects.

Cauliflower and other Cruciferous Vegetables contain sulforaphane, one of the ten best cancer-killing phytonutrients.

So here it is, my version of Aloo Gobi, the cancer-fighting, immune boosting superfood that can be made under an hour. I started out with this recipe and modified as I went along.

Aloo Gobi

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon extra virgin coconut oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 onion, sliced
2 medium diced potatoes
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons coconut milk
1 head of cauliflower
Salt to taste
Rice
Cilantro

Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Saute cumin, garlic and ginger until the spices are infused in the oil. Spread onions across the skillet but do not stir. Let the edges of the onion caramelize. Stir in potatoes and cover to steam. Season with turmeric, paprika, and garam masala. Stir in yogurt, water and coconut milk. Cover and let it cook for about ten minutes.

While the potatoes are cooking, cut up the cauliflower into florets and stir into the stew. Cover and let it simmer for half an hour. Salt to taste. Serve on top of rice and garnish with cilantro.

October 13, 2015
Fiddleheads

I’ve never met this vegetable before: fiddleheads.

It’s the curled ends of a young ostrich fern, harvested in early spring. It is rich in vitamin A and vitamin C.

There are so many recipes and ideas for cooking fiddleheads online, but here is the simplest way to serve it:

Steam the fiddleheads for about 20 minutes. Melt butter on warm fiddleheads. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with quinoa on the side.

May 31, 2014
Coconut Muffins

Coconuts made quite an impression on my husband and daughter when we visited the Philippines. My home has coconut trees growing right on our front yard. One Sunday morning a boy climbed one of the trees with a machete and carefully lowered bunches of coconuts down to our driveway.

We drank fresh coconut juice and ate fresh coconut “meat” that day.

Coconuts are nutritious and can be eaten in so many different ways: juice, “meat,” oil, milk. Here’s a healthy breakfast recipe that uses various coconut products:

Coconut Muffins

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil, melted into liquid
6 organic eggs
1/2 cup organic coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup organic coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
6 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Grease a 12-muffin pan with coconut oil or use paper muffin cups.

Beat eggs, coconut oil, coconut milk and salt. Add coconut flour and baking powder. Whisk until smooth. Pour batter halfway into muffin cups. Sprinkle with shredded coconut.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins. Serve with raw honey for sweetening.

This is based on a recipe found in The Candida Free Cookbook by Shasta Press. I skipped the Stevia for sweetening. Stevia is the sweetener of choice for people who are on a candida-free diet. Since my family and I are not, I took the liberty of topping the unsweetened coconut muffins with raw honey to taste.

May 19, 2014
My Daughter’s Homemade Lipbalm

I tend to skip the lipbalm. Instead of putting on lipbalm when my lips are dry I just drink more water and eat more hydrating fruits. Most lipbalm is made of petroleum, which is a burden on the immune system and obviously wouldn’t be helping me in the long run.

Until I tried my daughter’s super awesome lipbalm.

My daughter made this fantastic lipbalm out of healthy kitchen ingredients:

2 teaspoons organic virgin coconut oil
1 teaspoon raw honey
a few drops vanilla or peppermint extract (optional)

Mix them all up and store in a little plastic container. She made one by recycling a used HDPE juice bottle. Another time she upcycled plastic Easter eggs. My kid is amazing!

If the weather is warm, keep your lipbalm refrigerated when you’re not using it to prevent the coconut oil from liquifying.

I love my daughter’s lipbalm. I use it all the time. My lips stay soft and moist from the healing powers of coconut oil and raw honey.

May 13, 2014
Honey Lemon Ginger Tea

It’s a lifesaver. Ginger is known to alleviate headaches, stomach aches, nausea and many other pains. In addition, raw honey is an antibacterial elixir and lemon is rich in vitamin C, which boosts the immune system.

Here’s the recipe for Honey Lemon Ginger Tea (or Ginger Lemonade, if you like it cold):

sliced organic ginger
juice of 1 organic lemon
raw honey to taste

Heat 1 quart of water to just before boiling point. Add ginger slices and let it steep for 20 minutes. Add lemon juice and sweeten with raw honey.

Serve warm right away. Store the rest refrigerated in a quart jar.

I like to keep the ginger slices in so it steeps even longer and brings it a stronger ginger flavor day after day.

If reheating for tea, take it off the burner just before it boils. It’s also delicious served cold.

April 25, 2014
Organic Easter Eggs

For weeks now I’ve been walking past grocery aisles seeing brightly colored plastic Easter eggs that pop open to contain candy. We’ve been saving our set year after year, and called it the eco-friendly way because they’re reusable. But a basketful of candy is hardly the celebration of spring I would like to encourage as a healthy family tradition.

At one point we also brought home an Easter Egg dye kit from the local convenience store. It came with little tablets of dye and a bunch of stickers for decorating hardboiled eggs. Although the package states it’s non-toxic, the list of ingredients contains synthetic chemical dyes that have been found to cause allergies and behavioral problems in children.

So this weekend we are starting a new old tradition of making Easter eggs out of vegetables that are naturally staining.

Like beets!

And red cabbage!

And turmeric!

The recipe is easy.

You need:
1 tablespoon of distilled white vineger for each cup of water
white organic eggs

So if you need 3 cups of water in a saucepan to cover your eggs, then you will need to add 3 tablespoons of vinegar.

Then chop up and add your staining vegetable of choice. Put them in the vinegar/water combination with the eggs. Bring to a boil, turn off the stove, then cover and let sit for 15 minutes. Transfer the whole soup into a quart mason jar or any quart-sized recycled plastic container you don’t mind getting stained. Some people strain the vegetables out but I decided to keep my vegetables in the soak, in hopes there would be some patterns stamped against the eggs. Let it sit overnight.

Get the eggs out and let it dry on paper towels or old newspapers. This is how my eggs looked just out of their color soup. Turmeric made yellow, red cabbage made blue, and beets made red.

After they dried, more patterns emerged.

Transfer the dried Easter eggs back into the egg cartons they came in originally. Refrigerate until Easter morning.

Here are other ways to do this:
Recipe from Full Circle
Go Eco when Dyeing Eggs

Have a great week and an egg-cellent Easter!

April 13, 2014
Take a walk

Spring is just around the corner. The snow and ice is melting. The sun is shining brighter. This past weekend we took a 2-mile walk to the village and back. It was great to get some exercise, fresh air, sun and sightseeing at Camden Village. Come along with us.

March 10, 2014
Guacamole & Salsa

I make the easiest and most delicious Guacamole & Salsa east of the Mission. Or so I think. Give it a try and see if I’m right.

Guacamole & Salsa, when made fresh with organic ingredients, are a super healthy combination. Avocado has more than two times the potassium found in a banana, and is rich in the B vitamins, folic acid and vitamin E. Tomatoes contain lycopene, a powerful anti-cancer nutrient. Cilantro is excellent for removing toxic metals such as mercury from the body. Red Bell Peppers are rich in antioxidants, vitamins A, B, C and E, and a number of beneficial minerals.

Guacamole

Ingredients:
2 organic avocadoes
1 organic tomato, chopped
a bunch of organic cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Mash the avocadoes with a fork. Add chopped tomato and cilantro. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix together.

Salsa

Ingredients:
2 organic tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup organic bell peppers, chopped (I used red in this recipe, but any color will do)
a bunch of organic cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together. Squeeze a little lemon juice.

Serve either or both Guacamole & Salsa with organic and/or non-GMO chips, such as Garden of Eatin’ Blue Corn chips, as seen in the photo above. Enjoy the fiesta!

February 26, 2014
Wash Your Hands

It’s only about 3 more months before my husband turns 50 in May. Just late last summer we started a video series called Countdown to 50, in which Jay shares lifestyle tips on good health and longevity. This past month we made a video about a couple of the most overlooked habits that make such a big difference in one’s health. Have a look!

See also Vodka Sanitizer and 5 Ways to Fight Off Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria.

February 20, 2014