Gluten-Free Girl.

Hello all!

Once again I have to start off this post by apologising for not writing for a while - summer travels distracted me from my blog, but (un)luckily the sun and warmth are no longer around to tempt me away from my computer...

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have been following a gluten-free diet now for quite a while, as I have heard from multiple sources that it can help with rheumatoid arthritis, and just generally make you feel better. In this post, I thought that I'd cover some of the foods I've been eating and what I think of them!

Cereals
There really isn't a great selection of gluten-free cereals out there, and many of those that I have found are very bland and tasteless. I did, however, go to Whole Foods Market in Piccadilly Circus (http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/piccadilly) and found Rude Health Puffed Oats with Honey, which were surprisingly delicious. Despite the fairly meagre selection available, starting my day gluten-free really makes me feel a lot less full and bloated than I used to after a bowl of cereal, which is definitely a plus.

Pasta 
There is a fantastic and ever-growing range of gluten and wheat free pasta available - just look in the free-from section in your local supermarket. I tell you that once you try a bowl of gluten-free pasta you will feel so much lighter than you normally would after a carb-filled meal. There is no difference in taste to normal pasta, but a massive difference in how I feel within myself, and I really think that I had an intolerance to wheat or gluten because my stomach and digestive system feel a lot happier now!

My favourite pasta is Rizopia brown rice pasta, which is gluten, egg, dairy and wheat free, and still manages to taste good. It's very light and easy to digest, and overall an absolute winner.

Rice & Grains
Rice and grains such as oats, millet and quinoa are gluten-free and a great source of fibre and vitamins. Obviously, being a health blogger, I'm talking about brown rice here - it contains B vitamins, vitamin K and is low in fat, so it's a great thing to incorporate into a gluten-free diet. Quinoa is also one of my favourite grains, and I'll sometimes have it instead of rice, or mixed into a salad.

Bread
I have tried a huge array of gluten and wheat-free breads, with varying degrees of success. Paleo bread, which I tried in California, was absolutely disgusting. It was wheat, dairy, gluten, grain and taste-free, and was horrifically crumbly and clawing when you ate it. Along with that, even when it was toasted it has slightly damp and moist texture which was simply a little disturbing.

Soya bread is rather good - it tastes very wholesome, but again can be slightly clawing in the mouth unless you put some sort of spread on top of it, then it's absolutely fine.

In general I now eat the brown gluten and wheat free sliced bread you can find in your supermarket's free-from section. It tastes pretty much like normal bread, but falls apart rather easily so I try and eat it fairly quickly, or toast it when I eat it. There are so many different types of gluten-free breads, and it all comes down to personal taste, so go and explore your supermarkets and local health stores and find one that suits your tastebuds!

Baking
Baking gluten-free can be a bit tricky, but I now use rice flour instead of regular flour, which is fantastic and better for you. There are also a huge number of websites which are dedicated to gluten-free recipes, and which will help you to enjoy any type of food you want, and still stay gluten-free!

So that's just a quick guide to going gluten-free, and some of the options out there to help you feel like you're not missing out on anything! I hope it's been helpful and I'll be back soon!

Nati xXx

The Healthy Other Half.

As promised, here are numbers 6 through 10 of my top health foods of the moment - Enjoy!

6) Shrimp
- Contains vitamin B12, which aids bone density and can help prevent osteoporosis
- Contains vitamin D, which is important for healthy skin and bones
- High in protein and low in fat

How do I include it in my diet? Add shrimp to stir-fries, salads and wraps


7) Raspberries
- Contain anthocyanins, which help to lower blood sugar levels and increase insulin production, making them great for those suffering with diabetes
- High in antioxidants
- Contain anti-inflammatory phytonutrients

How do I include them in my diet? Great with cauliflower (strange but true), or add to salads and sprinkle on your cereal

8) Flaxseed
- Contains ALA (alpha-linoleic acid), a healthy fat that improves the function of the cerebral cortex
- Can help to reduce cholesterol
- Contains omega 3 and fibre

How do I include it in my diet? Sprinkle it on salads, cereals or mix it into smoothies


9) Curly kale
- High in calcium
- Contains vitamins A and C
- High in antioxidants

How do I include it in my diet? Add it to salads, bake it to make kale chips or eat instead of spinach

10) Grapefruit
- Contains naringin, which can lower the level of cancer-causing enzymes in your body
- Contains vitamins A and C
- Can help to lower cholesterol

How do I include it in my diet? Eat it at breakfast, make into a juice or add to salads

More to come soon!

Nati xXx

The First Fab Five.

Time to bring you the first five of my ten big health-hitters of the moment. These all have great health benefits, and if you can incorporate at least some of them into your diet, you'll definitely be doing your body a favour! Foods that have been paired together contain the same/similar health benefits so have been added to give you a choice of foods to try. Here we go....

1) Walnuts/Almonds
- Packed full of heart-healthy omega 3s
- Anti-inflammatory
- Great source of protein

How do I include it in my diet? Sprinkle on salads or simply eat as a snack

2) Quinoa
- Both contain soluble fibre, great for digestive health
- Great source of protein
- Provides your body with slow-release energy

How do I include it in my diet? Incorporate oats into your breakfast, and cook quinoa and add it to salads. Quinoa can also be used to make porridge.

3) Blueberries
- Packed full of antioxidants
- Great source of fibre
- Contain vitamins A and C

How do I include it in my diet? Add it to your cereal or eat as a healthy snack

4) Sweet potato/Carrots
- Contain carotenoids, which are cancer-fighting compounds
- Anti-inflammatory
- Low calorie

How do I include it in my diet? Make soups/salads, or bake sweet potatos and turn them into delicious wedges!

5) Spinach
- Full of omega 3s
- Contains folate, which has been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease and osteoporosis
- Contains lutein, which helps to prevent muscular degeneration

How do I include it in my diet? Use it in salads and soups.

Hope that was helpful and the next 5 will be coming shortly!
Nati xXx

Goodbye Gluten & Hello California.

Hello all!

I'm back and once again coming to you from California! Sorry for the delay in writing this holiday post - the novelty of actually having sunshine in my life again took me away from the computer, but I'm ready to update you on my health notes!

As you know, back home in England I was first following the Paleo diet, to see if it would help my rheumatoid arthritis, and then simply a gluten-free/low-carb diet. I did have a feeling that it was mildly improving my symptoms, but I didn't know if that was my second set of meds finally kicking in, or my diet. I can now say with utter certainty that it was the latter.

                                          The enemy - carbs!

Here in California I have my aunt cooking for me, and have also been staying with my friends, so I've been unable to eat gluten-free, or to cut down on my carb intake. I've been here for 2 weeks and the effects are just kicking in now - I'm more bloated, my knees ache and swell more, and I'm just feeling generally more lethargic. Although this might get me down, I'm looking at it in a positive way - this month in California will be a good experiment to see the effects of carbs and gluten/wheat on my arthritis, and will give me extra ammo to follow a strict diet when I go back home. It's also good to know that in the future I may not have to rely so heavily on medication, and can instead look to altering my diet to help me.

 
           My knees, quite swollen - not attractive, but just so you get an idea of what I'm describing!

Anyway, this was just a quick update on the effects of being off my gluten-free diet, and I will continue to keep you updated on my eating habits while on holiday, and any other health facts I come across!

Back soon! xXx

Paleo & Pain.

Hello all!

Sorry for the delay - exams and all the celebrating that came after dragged me away from blogging, but I'm back!

As some of you who follow me on Twitter might know, I suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, and despite the steroids and hydrocholorquine I've been put on to ease the pain, nothing is really working. I'm beginning to get to the end of my tether, so decided that the only logical next step was to examine my diet. In general I eat very healthily - lots of fruit, veg, only wholegrain and wholewheat carbs, and no dairy. As I begun to do some research, however, I read many testimonials about how the 'Paleolithic' diet had greatly helped a lot of arthritis sufferers. The idea behind the Paleo diet is to eat as our caveman ancestors would have - only meat, fish, fruit, veg and nuts & seeds. The idea is that our digestive systems cannot handle a lot of the grains, carbs and dairy that we eat nowadays. This inability to properly digest these foods can illicit an inflammatory reaction in the body as our immune and digestive systems struggle to digest these items. Or at least that is the basic version that I understood and am trying to convey to you (you can google the real science behind it).

I decided that it was worth a shot, and for the past 2 weeks I have been living a virtuous paleo lifestyle. And you know something? After such a short time I think it's already working. My knees have definitely ached a lot less, and the swelling has been significantly reduced. This supports the view of certain health experts who claim that a lot of us have mild lactose and gluten intolerances, which causes myriad health problems, but we ignore it as it doesn't make us 'sick' as such, instead looking for another cause of our ailments. I'm not saying that following this diet has been easy - I missed carbs a ridiculous amount, and I realised just how much I ate on a daily basis! To give you an idea, here's an example of the changes that occurred to my diet:

Before Paleo 
Breakfast - Apple, kiwi, bowl of cereal
Lunch - Sandwich and salad
Afternoon snack - Rye cracker and yoghurt
Dinner - Brown rice/pasta with meat and veg

During Paleo 
Breakfast - Apple, kiwi, scrambled eggs and smoked salmon
Lunch - Salad and grilled chicken
Afternoon snack - Yoghurt with fruit and nuts
Dinner - Meat and veg

As you can see, before paleo all my meals contained carbs of some kind, whereas during the diet it was mainly fruit, veg and protein. It's now week 3, and having already got bored of so much veg and fruit (typical 20-something-year-old), I'm trying a different tactic - eating gluten and wheat-free carbs. They are a lot lighter and easy to digest, and I've even found wheat, gluten, egg and dairy free pasta, which is amazing! I know that I should have enough willpower to stick to the paleo diet if it's helping, but if even gluten and wheat-free carbs affect my joints then I will certainly go back onto it. I'm going back to California in 2 weeks for a month and I don't think I'll be able to stick to my paleo diet out there, so it will be interesting to see how going back to carbs will affect my arthritis. It will be good to have the two experiences to compare - paleo and post-paleo! It would be a massive lifestyle change to decide to be forever without carbs, but if it truly turns out to work, it's much better than relying on medication for the rest of my life when I'm still only in my 20s.

I hope you found this interesting, and if you're suffering from arthritis, or are simply interested in the Paleo diet, I urge you to do some research and there is a ton of information out there for you to read and consider. I will of course keep you informed on how my various eating plans are going, and if they're helping me at all! Expect a blog entry from California too, of course :)

Nati xXx

Health Hits: April 2012

Hello! Back again, with a round-up of some health tips and facts that I've gained over the past few weeks and want to share!


1) Metabolism Makers.
- Here's a few quick tips for speeding up your metabolism: firstly, sprinkle cinnamon on anything you can. It changes the way our bodies use fat and sugar, helping us to burn them, rather than storing them as fat! Secondly, drink a glass of water first thing in the morning. This helps to kick-start your metabolism and gets your body going. Cold water is even better, as the body works to warm it up so it is more easily absorbed. 

2) Post-Gym Eating.
- Almonds, soya products and lean protein are great after a work-out, as they will help your body regain energy and repair muscles. However, don't be afraid of some wholegrain carbs! This is the optimal time to eat carbs, as your body needs energy so will burn them rather than storing them as fat - Winning!

3) Glorious and Green.
- Increasing the amount of leafy greens in your diet will do you wonders. They are full of vitamin K, which protects bones and prevents blod clots, B vitamins which help metabolism and protect the health of skin and hair, and phytonutrients which protect our cells from damage. Consider including spinach, kale and swiss chard in your diet!


4) Chia Seeds
- I have recently heard about these seeds, which come from the salvia hispanica plant, and they are apparently an incredible source of omega 3 fatty acids, so could be a great alternative to traditional supplements. I will give them a go and let you know how I get on!


So there are a few quick tips and some health info for you! I will keep you posted on any new discoveries! Back soon!


Nati xXx

Raging Against Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Hello again! Sorry for the absence from the blogosphere, university has been taking up a fair amount of my time. I'm now on break, however, so I'm ready to write some new posts for you all!

A few months ago I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in my knees, and it's really affected my life. I used to go to the gym 3 times a week but now it's a push to even do 5 minutes on an exercise bike. I can't walk or stand for long amounts of time, and I live with some pain and swelling in my knees. My consultant has put me on a low dose of steroids, but knowing the potential long-term side effects of this, I've decided to do a little research on how diet and exercise can help to improve the condition, and I thought that I would share it with you!

Diet

1)Fish Oils

There has been some research to show that these can have an anti-inflammatory effect on the joints (as well as being great for skin, hair and nails), and are overall great supplements for joint health.

2) Fruit and vegetables

This may sound obvious, but a diet rich in colourful fruit and veg (colour denotes a high level of antioxidants) can help to prevent, and ease, rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Antioxidants help to aid our immune-system and possibly reduce the inflammatory reaction in our joints, provoked by RA.

3)Calcium

Necessary for overall joint health. If you are lactose-intolerant, or just not a big fan of milk like myself, then make sure that any dairy-replacement you take contains added calcium. I eat and drink soya products, and always make sure to check this.

Exercise

Care should be taken to avoid activities that will put stress and pressure on your joints - for example, running on a concrete pavement. Instead, consider low-impact exercise that will slowly allow you to gain strength in your joints, and keep active. Try swimming, cycling and perhaps yoga. There is research being carried out to assess if yoga and pilates, if practised over a long period of time, can help to alleviate the symptoms of RA.

So there is a very quick introduction to RA and some ways in which the condition may be improved. Unfortunately I will have this for the rest of my life, but I do hope that by introducing some of the above habits now, over time I will see an improvement in my condition. Fingers crossed!

Nati xXx

P.S A big shout-out to my friend Grace, who recently discovered my blog and enjoying all my posts!!

California: Take 3

Seeing as I've been to California three times in the last 6 months, and am basically living a semi-Transatlantic life, I thought I'd do a little blog on food shopping and the practicalities of living healthily over here.

The US is seen by the outside world as the home and hub of fast food, and I wouldn't disagree. Even in California, where most people are beachbody-conscious and want to keep in shape, there is a fast food joint on every corner. During this trip I was staying at the University of Santa Barbara, in an apartment with 3 boys, so I knew I had to be in charge of my own food while I was there amongst the nacho, guac, and OJ-filled guys.

What is food shopping like in the US compared to the UK?

First of all, everything is bigger - the supermarkets, the tubs and jars of food/spreads and I actually think the prices are higher as well. I was impressed with the freshness and vibrancy of the fruit and vegetables though, and the selection of wholewheat breads was fantastic! I guess with size comes variety.

How did you try and stay healthy? Did you even eat healthily living in a student setting?

The first thing I did was make sure that I had enough fruit and vegetables for the week and healthy snacks to keep me going. I ate a lot of lean meats (turkey and chicken) and cooked from scratch twice, just to give the boys some proper nutrition! When I did go for take-out, say for example a burrito, I tried to make it a little less of a guilty pleasure by having a wholewheat wrap, no cheese, no sour cream and easy on the rice.

As any of my Twitter followers will know, I'm a big coffee drinker, and in the US most coffee places are so obliging that they will customise your drink however you like. So, if I went to get a vanilla latte, I would get it soy, one pump only of syrup only. Or a cappuccino - soy, with natural sweetener, easy on the foam. If you're pro-active, it's not that difficult to stay healthy!

Are the portions in restaurants really as big as people make out?

Yes, or at least to me they are. When we went out to an Italian restaurant my bowl of spaghetti could have easily fed two, and I'm a big eater. What I tend to do when confronted with these big plates of food is divide them in half. I'll eat that much, and if i'm still a little peckish I'll go for a few forkfuls more. That's how I know I'm not eating too much.

Any interesting food discoveries?

I ate pretty similarly to when I'm at home, but I did fall in love with this gluten-free avocado dip, that was garlic-y and just simply delicious. The range of lean cooked chicken and turkey meat to put in sandwiches was great too, especially the Mesquite flavour! Other than that I was busy enjoying the sun rather than trawling around supermarkets.

Yet again, I am in love with California. The US gets a lot of bad rep about its food and portion sizes, and while I can understand why, I think that with some self-discipline the tools are all here to live healthily. Personally, just the sunshine and warmth, and the fact that I'm more active because of it, means I eat better and even a little less. I'm sure I'll be back in the very near future, so until then, this is my California catch-up over and out :)

Nati xXx

Healthy & Hearty Bolognese

Spaghetti Bolognese is a British fave, so I thought I'd share my healthier version! It's quick and easy to make, and very open to your own interpretation in terms of what you want to add to the basic recipe - here I've gone for mushrooms and olives.

Why is it healthier? I use wholewheat pasta and lean turkey mince, thus cutting down on the saturated fat in beef mince, and the empty calories of white carbs!

Apologies for the inexact quantities for some ingredients, as I wasn't measuring as I was cooking! The rough amounts here will make enough for around 3 people. Enjoy! :

Ingredients

- 250g wholewheat spaghetti

- 1 pack of turkey mince meat

- 1 jar of bolognese sauce (you can, of course, make it from scratch but I'm too lazy)

- 1 clove of garlic

- Handful of button mushrooms, sliced

- Handful of black olives, sliced

- A dash of salt and pepper

How t0

1) Begin by frying off your mushrooms on a medium heat in soya butter, or low-cal vegetable oil spray until cooked. Drain off the excess oil/butter and set aside.

2) In a different pan, drizzle a little bit of vegetable oil and gently fry off one crushed clove of garlic. Then add in your turkey meat, and fry until cooked through (no pink bits).

3) Once cooked, add in your bolognese sauce, and perhaps a teaspoon of tomato puree for added flavour, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Add half a cup of water to loosen the sauce, then add your olives and mushrooms. Leave to simmer gently for 10 minutes.

4) Whilst the sauce is cooking, fill a pan with water, sprinkle in some salt and bring to the boil. Once boiling, add in your spaghetti and cook for roughly 10minutes until soft but not completely limp. The key term here is 'al dente', or 'with bite'.

5) Drain off the spaghetti and return it to the pan. Drizzle over a little bit of olive oil so it doesn't not stick together - et voila! Your spaghetti and bolognese is now ready to munched!!

Back soon! Nati xXx

Is fruit the frenemy?

Continuing on with my theme of 'New Year, New You', I thought I'd approach the topic of our 5-a-day. We all know that we should be eating at least 5 different types of fruit and vegetables a day, and in general I manage that, but the problem is that intake for me comes mainly in the form of fruit. I had never considered this to be a problem until I began to read articles suggesting that our 5-a-day should come mainly in the form of vegetables, as fruit can be very acidic and sugar-filled. Of course, I am talking about natural sugar, but it is claimed that too much fruit can be harmful to our teeth and, if you believe in the theory of the alkaline diet, potentially harmful to the natural pH of our bodies.

Do not, for one second, think that this blogpost is demonising fruit or saying it is bad for you - it isn't! Fruit is packed full of vitamins and crucial in our diets - I am simply examining claims that fruit can cause acid erosion to our teeth, and that a larger variety of vegetables in our diet is more important that a variety of fruit. Whilst I think that we should eat an equal amount of colourful fruit and vegetables (colour denotes lots of vitamins and nutrients), I do agree with the dental adverts that are cautioning us to drink fruit juice in moderation. Although some juices are completely natural, be sure to always check to nutritional information on the back of the carton as some can be full of sugar! The emphasis here is on getting your 5-a-day from fresh, natural sources and not in a packet/packaging.

This may be a very quick blogpost while I take a break from work, but my point here is to consider including more vegetables in your diet, rather than just eating 3 apples and thinking that you've had your 5-a-day. As I mentioned above, most of my 5-a-day come from fruit, and I'm slowly trying to change that, but I thought I would show you how I manage to fit in roughly 5 fruit and veg a day. These aren't my full meals, just when I eat the fruit or veg:

Breakfast - 1 Kiwi

1 apple

Mid-morning snack - Banana

Lunch - 1 salad (with my sandwich or as my main meal)

Tea-time - More banana on my Ryvita

Dinner - 2 different types of vegetable, e.g broccoli and spinach

Now, you may be thinking 'Oh look at her all high and mighty on her throne of fruit and vegetables!', but of course there are days when I don't manage this. The main goal is to have a generally healthy diet, and if this blog has taught you just one thing through my posts, I hope it's that you can allow yourself to have treats without it being the end of the world! So keep trying to include fruit and veg whenever you can in your daily diet, and I promise you will start to feel the health benefits - clearer skin, fewer colds...and just generally a happier body!

Until next time,

Nati xXx

So Long, Sugar!

We all know we should cut down (and ideally cut out) sugar from our diets, especially the white, refined stuff, so here's a few quick sugar replacements that I've tried and what I think of them - consider giving one a go!

1) Stevia

Literally just tried this in my coffee. Made from the stevia plant which is native to South America, it is said to be 200 times sweeter than sugar and carbohydrate-free. It comes in tiny little pellets, with one meant to be equivalent to one teaspoon of sugar. I had to have two because I didn't taste any sweetness with just one, but in general I'm rather impressed - it did taste a little unusual when I got to the end of my mug, but nothing too bad!

2) Agave nectar

Anyone who follows me on Twitter will know that I absolutely LOVE this! Completely natural, and made from the agave plant, you can either get the light & mild syrup (my preferred type) or the darker one (seen in the picture below). It comes as a syrup and is very sweet, so you really only need a small squeeze to sweeten tea or coffee. I also use it in baking and it works just like regular sugar, so it really is a wonderful, multi-purpose sugar replacement!

3) Sweet Freedom Natural Sweetener

This is made from fruit, and although very sweet it is my least favourite of the three, as I found it made my coffee taste a bit funny, and it didn't really work well in cakes and other baking. Everyone has different tastes though, and this is low G.I, so perhaps try it out and see if you like it!

Nati xXx

New Year, New You?

Every January, when a new year rolls around, most of us make the same resolutions - eat healthily, lose weight, go on a diet - and with that comes the endless array of programmes dedicating to fat-fighting, and diets that claim to do the same. This year, I thought I'd take a look a look at some of these diets, and cheekily give my own personal opinion on them! Here we go...

The Alkaline Diet

This is based on the theory that in our Western diets we eat too many acidic or acid-producing foods, which cause a whole array of health problems, such as low energy and poor digestion. The idea is that a slightly alkaline diet keeps us healthy, and so we should include more green veg and fruits such as bananas in our diets, instead of acid-producing dairy and wheat products. Full-blown participants of this diet use test strips daily to test the pH of their bodies in order to stay on track.

The Paleolithic Diet

Also known as the caveman diet, this is based on the theory that our bodies cannot handle or digest processed foods that we eat nowadays very well, and that we should eat like our ancient ancestors. The basis of the diet is game meat, fish, veg, fruits, nuts and eggs.

The Dukan Diet

A very famous diet already, based also on the principal of eating like cavemen, and reducing our diet to protein and veg. This diet involves 4 phases :

1- An attack phase, where you only eat protein

2 - A cruise phase, where you eat protein and veg

3 - A consolidation phase, where other foods are slowly re-introduced

4 - A stabilization phase

My opinion: Despite all having a different spin on being a 'diet', and the Dukan being quite specific, in their entirety (and behind the weird names and spiel) what each of them advocates is eating lean protein, fruit and veg - which is basically common sense when it comes to a healthy diet!

Whilst I'm in no way saying that diets aren't helpful and useful tools for weight loss when continued healthy eating and exercise haven't worked, I do want make the point that if you simply what to fulfill your New Year's resolution of being healthier and perhaps losing a few pounds, then consider making a few simple changes to your daily diet instead of following the latest 'diet' craze. Balance is key, so take a look at what you normally eat and see if you could make it a little healthier - perhaps by switching to brown bread, fitting your 5-a-day in, or eating less dairy. Some people think that eating healthily is all about restricting what you eat, but don't think of it like that! Think of it as eating good foods, in good quantities, and feeling good about yourself!

Let this be the year that you make the most important resolution: to look after yourself!

Nati xXx