4 Roots of Optimum Wellness

There are four essential parts to being healthy: Diet, Exercise, Sleep & Attitude.

Vitae Elixxir Healing Herbs

A proprietary combination of ten disease-fighting herbs used for more than 40 years and helping thousands of people with serious health issues.

Books by Author & Health Coach Chris Pedersen

In a world of adventure and imagination, kids’ books in print and digital that encourage a healthy lifestyle.

6 Tips to Lose Weight

Don’t count calories—take a serious look at the food you want to eat, then ask, ”Is this something that will give my body good health?”

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Wisdom Wednesday

There are 14 million new cancer cases each year with an expected 70% increase in the next 20 years. But did you know that 90% of cancers are preventable?

Natural cancer treatment and prevention is possible.

In the post Health Sites You Should Subscribe To, I identified six websites you should sign-up to receive email updates. Here's another to add to that list: Cancer Tutor. The “Cancer Tutor” website is a product of the natural medicine cancer researchers of the Independent Cancer Research Foundation, Inc. (ICRF). Every one of the 350+ articles and chapters was written by a natural medicine cancer researcher.

If you are in the throes of dealing with cancer, discover your natural cancer treatment on Cancer Tutor. As background, check out 14 Questions and Answers About Cancer that could save your life.

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Vegetable Mélange with Tamari Ginger Dressing

When you were a kid did you not like mixing your food? I'll bet some of you didn't like different foods to even touch on the plate? Or were you the type that mixed it all up when you ate? My father used to say, "It all goes to the same place..." so it doesn't matter that you don't mix the food, it gets mixed up eventually.

Here's a recipe that you can mix or not. Those with "do to touch" requirements... well... you can get a bigger plate.

Vegetable Mélange with Tamari Ginger Dressing

from Inspired by Food Matters
yield 6-8 servings

category Salad
cuisine Vegan

ingredients
1 C farro, soaked for 6 hours & rinsed
1-2 C filtered water
1/4 red cabbage shredded
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
juice of 1/2 lime
1 C cooked garbanzo beans
1 avocado, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, grated or spiralized
1 large zucchini, graetd or spiralized
Dressing:
2 Tbsp tamari
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
2 Tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp garlic sesame seeds, aka Gomasio

directions
1. Boil 1 cup of water and add soaked and rinsed farro. Turn off heat and let sit for 4-5 minutes.
2. Add shredded cabbage to small bowl with apple cider vinegar and lime juice, stir and set aside.
3. Drain farro and let cool.
4. For dressing, combine tamari, sesame oil, ginger and sesame seeds in a small bowl and whisk well.
5. Divide cooked farro, cabbage, sugar snap peas, avocado, carrot and zucchini between bowls and drizzle with tamari dressing.
6. Enjoy!

notes: • If you did not soak the farro overnight, boil the farro 2 cups of water for 10-12 mintues. Draine and let cool. FYI, soaking overnight makes the grain more digestible.

I hope you are getting plenty of exercise, sleep, and eating lots of plant-based, clean foods. And of course, staying positive and hopeful, which can be getting harder these days.

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Sunday, July 3, 2016

Making Smoothies with Seasonal Fruit


Recently I changed my juicing/smoothie routine to maximize the nutrition I get. Seasonal fruit boosts the nutrition of your smoothies with added fiber and antioxidants.

First, I juice veggies (kale, chard, mixed baby lettuce, carrots, celery, cilantro, beets, ginger, etc). Then I transfer the juice to my blender and add a piece or two of fruit (apple, cantaloupe, mango, pears, fresh berries, etc) and blend for one minute.

What this combination accomplishes is a highly nutritious drink with concentrated nutrients from the veggies and blended fruit with all the benefits of eating whole fruit.

Adding a variety of fruits to your diet has great benefits. They provide essential nutrients and vitamins including potassium, Vitamin C, and folate. Fruits also provide necessary fiber, which helps moderate the effect their sugar has on insulin, thus reducing diabetes and heart disease. In addition, fruit adds such beautiful color to any meal!

Best to get fruit from a local source and in season, which assures the fruit has optimum nutrition. Check out this seasonal fruit chart created by Shari's Berries showing over 50 fruits by peak season.

Keep in mind that seasonal fruits can vary from year to year depending on the weather. An area with extreme cold or heat could have a shorter availability and growing season. Best to check with the grocer to learn which fruits are in season. You are especially likely to get fruit in season at your local farmer's market.

Happy 4th of July!