Ten Good Reasons for Bean Sprouts

Hungry For Change has posted a great article by Michelle Cook on the value of eating bean, nut, seed and grain sprouts. Here is an economical way that we can use organic, local produce regularly in our meals whilst also keeping shopping bills down. For clients who are working to support gut ecology, sprouts can be a good source of nutrition, but it is important that they are rinsed thoroughly each day to prevent the seeds going mouldy. More about this in my next post when I will bring comments on how to grown your own sprouts.

10 REASONS TO EAT MORE SPROUTS:

1. Experts estimate that there can be up to 100 times more enzymes in sprouts than uncooked fruits and vegetables.  Enzymes are special types of proteins that act as catalysts for all your body’s functions. Extracting more vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and essential fatty acids from the foods you eat ensures that your body has the nutritional building blocks of life to ensure every process works more effectively.

2. The quality of the protein in the beans, nuts, seeds, or grains improves when it is sprouted.  Proteins change during the soaking and sprouting process, improving its nutritional value.  The amino acid lysine, for example, which is needed to prevent cold sores and to maintain a healthy immune system increases significantly during the sprouting process.

3. The fiber content of the beans, nuts, seeds, or grains increases substantially.  Fiber is critical to weight loss.  It not only binds to fats and toxins in our body to escort them out, it ensures that any fat our body breaks down is moved quickly out of the body before it can resorb through the walls of the intestines (which is the main place for nutrient absorption into the blood).

4. Vitamin content increases dramatically.  This is especially true of vitamins A, B-complex, C, and E.  The vitamin content of some seeds, grains, beans, or nuts increases by up to 20 times the original value within only a few days of sprouting.  Research shows that during the sprouting process mung beansprouts (or just beansprouts, as they are often called) increase in vitamin B1 by up to 285 percent, vitamin B2 by up to 515 percent, and niacin by up to 256 percent.

5. Essential fatty acid content increases during the sprouting process. Most of us are deficient in these fat-burning essential fats because they are not common in our diet.  Eating more sprouts is an excellent way to get more of these important nutrients.

6. During sprouting, minerals bind to protein in the seed, grain, nut, or bean, making them more useable in the body.  This is true of alkaline minerals like calcium, magnesium, and others than help us to balance our body chemistry for weight loss and better health.

7. Sprouts are the ultimate locally-grown food. When you grow them yourself you are helping the environment and ensuring that you are not getting unwanted pesticides, food additives, and other harmful fat-bolstering chemicals that thwart your weight loss efforts.

8. The energy contained in the seed, grain, nut, or legume is ignited through soaking and sprouting.

9. Sprouts are alkalizing to your body.  Many illnesses including cancer have been linked to excess acidity in the body.

10. Sprouts are inexpensive. People frequently use the cost of healthy foods as an excuse for not eating healthy.  But, with sprouts being so cheap, there really is no excuse for not eating healthier.

Keep warm with Soups.

As we in the UK find ourselves in the middle of a very cold spell of weather,  don’t forget that soups can be particularly warming and filling. If made with herbs and mild spices rather than yeasted stock-cubes, soups are are great addition to the Nutritionhelp yeast-free diet. Erica White’s Beat Candida Cookbook has a section with recipe ideas for soups, and these are a good way of keeping up your intake of vegetables.

 

However, sometimes we find we are running low on vegetables, and with the current snow it isn’t always easy to get to the shops, so below is a nutritious, store-cupboard Tomato and Basil soup, that is suitable for those following the Nutritionhelp Yeast -Free diet recommendations. Tomato puree is a good source of lycopene, an antioxidant which some studies have shown to lower the risk of cancer.

Remember, a vegetable soup on its own is not a complete meal. It is important to serve some protein alongside, and many people will also need additional carbohydrates. Serving a chunk of whole meal soda bread (recipe in Erica’s Beat Candida Book) together with some hummus, seed butter or cooked fish will introduce additional nutrients. Sprinkling the soup with a selection of seeds (sunflower, sesame and pumpkin), will add further protein and beneficial oils.

Tomato and Basil Soup – serves 6 small bowls

2 medium onions
1 tablespoon extra virgin coconut oil
1 300g jar organic tomato puree
1 1/4 litres filtered water
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried onion powder
Freshly ground black pepper

Chop the onions and gently fry in the coconut oil until beginning to soften. Stir in the tomato puree and add 1/2 litre of water. Mix together and then place in a blender and whizz until smooth. Return to the pan and add the remaining water and the basil (adding more or less according to taste), the onion powder and the black pepper. Heat through and serve.

This soup can be frozen, and because it is a smooth soup it is also suitable for putting in a vacuum flask if you want to take some to work.

 

Enjoy Avocado.

Avocado is a great food to enjoy if you are on the Nutritionhelp yeast-free programme, so this article by Dr Mercola is of particular interest.

A summary on the benefits of avocado:

• A small pilot study found that eating one-half of a fresh medium Hass avocado with a hamburger significantly inhibited the production of the inflammatory compound Interleukin-6 (IL-6), compared to eating a burger without fresh avocado. (I don’t advocate that you regularly include hamburgers/beefburgers in your diet!)
• Avocados, which are actually classified as a fruit, are rich in monounsaturated fat that is easily burned for energy. They also provide close to 20 essential health-boosting nutrients, including potassium, vitamin E, B-vitamins, and folic acid
• Previous research has found avocado can help reduce cholesterol levels within as little as one week; contains compounds that appear to inhibit and destroy oral cancer cells, and those that protect against liver damage
• The greatest concentration of beneficial carotenoids is in the dark green fruit of the avocado, closest to the peel, so use the “nick and peel” method to maximize the benefits from your avocado
• You can increase your avocado consumption by using it as a fat replacement in baking; add it to soups, dessert whips and countless other recipes; and use as a baby’s first food in lieu of processed baby food

Read the whole article here

Broccoli and spinach help prevent fractures and osteoporosis

What Doctors Don’t Tell You reports on supporting bone health

Scientists have finally figured out why brittle bones and fractures happen—common in postmenopausal women who have an increased risk of osteoporosis—and they think that eating plenty of broccoli and spinach could be an effective way to prevent the problem.
It’s all to do with the protein osteocalcin, which keeps our bones strong. But when we slip or fall, the protein is disturbed, and can’t do its usual protective work. Any fall will weaken the bone—because of the impact on osteocalcin levels—and a further slip can break the bone.
Vitamin K, found in green leafy vegetables as well as in supplements, helps feed the protein, and may help it withstand a fall or slip, say researchers from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
(Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2012; 109: 19178-83).

This is great, simple diet advice that may help support bone health.  If you are on Warfarin or another blood thinning medication, you may need to be careful about consuming too much spinach and green leafy vegetables, but for most of us these are nutrient-packed foods that should be included regularly with meals. A Nutritionhelp tailor-made supplement programme will also include vitamin K and calcium and magnesium to encourage good bone health.

Healthier Foods Linked to Healthier Brain

Time for Wellness reports on some new research linking brain health to the food we eat.

A processed food diet is related poor memory and cognitive function while a whole food diet may help protect against age related cognitive decline.

In a study investigating association between diet and age related cognitive health in a sample of 249 people aged 65–90 years with mild cognitive impairment it was found that a processed food pattern (rich in desserts, biscuits, potatoes, refined grains, fried foods, high fat dairy, snacks, high fat takeaway, chocolate and sweets, processed meat and fish, sugar beverages and red meat) foods was associated with reduced memory and impaired higher cognitive function.

This type of study cannot prove processed foods increase mental decline with age, but it adds to a growing body of research suggesting that healthy foods are linked to a healthier brain. “The Mediterranean diet, characterised by a diet high in fish, fruits and vegetables rich in antioxidants,” for example “has been associated with a reduction in the risk of Alzheimer disease in an older population” point out the study investigators.

As Christmas approaches, the tendency to consume highly processed foods increases. Over the next couple of weeks I will give some tips and ideas on how to stick to a Nutritionhelp yeast and sugar-free diet plan over the holiday season, including a basic gravy recipe, and ideas for stuffing.

Toxins and Children’s Health

What doctors Don’t Tell You e-news has published some research showing how toxins in common foods may be negatively affecting the health of young children.

Toxins and pesticides are at dangerous levels in many of the foods we eat, and could be responsible for cancer and learning problems in the very young, a new study has found.

Many of the food samples tested by researchers had levels of cancer-causing toxins that were way above safe levels.  Although pesticides were one obvious source, carcinogenic toxins were created in some of the foods during the cooking and processing stages.

The toxins are staying in the body, say researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, after they tested 364 children, 207 of whom were of pre-school age.  All the children had such high levels of arsenic, dieldrin, DDe and dioxins in their bodies that each could cause cancer.  And 95 per cent of the children had high levels of acrylamide, a cooking by-product found in processed foods such as potato and tortilla chips and crisps.
And researchers found that pesticide levels were especially high in foods such as tomatoes, peaches, apples, peppers, grapes, lettuce, broccoli and strawberries.

(Source: Environmental Health, 2012; 11: 83).

 Nutritionhelp recommendations for clients will automatically reduce a number of toxins in the diet, so this is another reason why getting the whole family onto a nutritious eating plan may be helpful. Where possible do swap to organic foods, especially for those listed at the end of the article. I have previously listed broccoli as being in the ‘Clean Fifteen’ , therefore not highly affected by pesticide residue, but the information here may indicate that it is worth using organic broccoli when available.

When organic vegetables are not an option, make sure you thoroughly wash them using a home-made cleaning liquid. Mix 1 part white vinegar to 3 parts water in a spray bottle and squirt onto fruit and vegetables over the kitchen sink. Wash the produce thoroughly in cold water, using a scrubbing brush on tougher fruit and vegetables. Don’t forget to wash your organic produce too, to remove bacteria and dirt.

Acrylamidefacts.org lists some helpful Acrylamide Reduction Advice

As a general rule, acrylamide forms mainly in high starch foods that are heated to produce a fairly dry and brown or yellow surface. Acrylamide can be found in many common foods prepared by frying, baking, grilling, toasting or roasting, including:

The potential for acrylamide formation in food is related to how much amino acid – namely asparagine – and reducing sugars are naturally present in the food. These levels may vary significantly between different plant varieties and their conditions during growth.

Frying: This causes the highest acrylamide formation. In order to reduce acrylamide when frying, fry at lower temperatures and avoid heavy crisping or burning

Grilling: Consumers are advised to frequently turn food during grilling in order to avoid charring.  If charring does occur, remove charred portions before eating.

Boiling/microwaving: Potatoes that have been boiled or microwaved whole potatoes with the skin on (“microwaved baked potatoes”) do not contain high levels of acrylamide.

Generally, more acrylamide accumulates when cooking is done for longer periods or at higher temperatures.

Toasting bread to a light brown colour, rather than a dark brown colour, lowers the amount of acrylamide. Very brown areas should be avoided, since they typically contain the most acrylamide.

Cooking cut potato products, such as frozen french fries or potato slices, to a golden yellow colour rather than a brown colour helps reduce acrylamide formation. Brown areas tend to contain more acrylamide.

Carbohydrates and Gut Ecology

In my last post we noted that there are two main sets of foods that fall within the carbohydrate category – simple and complex, and these can be further assessed by looking at the glycaemic load of a specific food. So how does this relate to using carbohydrate foods while on a diet to encourage gut ecology – minimising yeast growth and encouraging friendly bacteria growth?

If you have ever made bread you will have first had to activate the yeast. To do this, in addition to warmth and moisture, the main ingredient to encourage yeast activity is sugar. And so it is within our guts.The high level of sugar within the Western diet is a main factor behind the large number of people who have symptoms related to excess gut yeast. The pathogenic yeasts within the gut should be kept in check by the presence of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and  friendly bacteria in the small and large intestine, but much of our diet does not include nutrients to encourage stomach acid production, while antibiotics, steroid and hormone treatments (e.g. HRT and the Pill) and stress all have a negative impact on the levels of friendly bacteria.

So in addressing gut ecology, we need to starve the yeasts and pathogens by depriving them of the sugar they need to feed on, and to encourage friendly bacteria by ensuring they have a plentiful source of nutrition.

It is in the area of how to starve the yeasts that nutritional therapists may slightly differ. Some say that all carbohydrates should be avoided, others say just added sugar should be avoided, but fructose in fruit is fine. It is no wonder that many clients come to Nutritionhelp very confused about the way forward. What advice should they listen to?

The approach at Nutritionhelp has been tried and tested with thousands of clients, starting with Erica White herself, as she devised a programme to restore her own health after years of illness due to the overgrowth of the gut yeast Candida albicans. What approach did she use in supporting her own gut ecology, and what approach do we continue to use with our clients? Erica found that it was vital for all simple carbohydrates (sugars) to be completely avoided, including fructose in fruit, in order to properly starve the yeast. She also found that as long as any other carbohydrates included in the diet were whole grain, this was acceptable and did not hamper bringing yeast under control. These are digested slowly, therefore not flooding the blood-stream with glucose, and therefore not providing food for yeast, either in the gut or in colonies around the body. Whole grain rice, whole grain wheat, buckwheat, quinoa, rye, oats and amaranth can all be included in the diet for the majority of people, and they will still see encouragement in gut ecology. What about the sweeter, more carbohydrate dense vegetables? Again, these vegetables, such as carrots, parsnips, sweet potato and butternut squash, can all be used by most clients. Potatoes we recommend should be eaten when they are still slightly ‘glassy’ and only  just cooked, as when fluffy they will have a readiness to turn to glucose.

Sometimes a client may find that yeast has damaged the integrity of their gut wall, making digestion difficult and leading to food sensitivities  Frequently, avoiding the gluten grains – wheat, rye, barley and oats makes a big difference, and this is an area where specific support from me may be beneficial.

And what about encouraging friendly bacteria? Unrefined grains and vegetables contain two sorts of fibre – insoluble and soluble – both of which are a food source for the beneficial bacteria in our guts. Murray and Pizzorno write of insoluble fibre in The Encycopaedia of Natural Foods:

“The best example of insoluble fibre is wheat bran. wheat bran is rich in cellulose. Although it is relatively insoluble in water, it has the ability to bind water. This ability accounts for its affect of increasing faecal size and weight, this promoting regular bowel movements. Although cellulose cannot be digested by humans, it is partially digested by beneficial microflora in the gut, for which it is the primary food source. The natural fermentation process, which occurs in the colon, results in the degradation of about 50% of the cellulose, and is an important source of the short-chain fatty acids that nourish our intestinal cells”

Soluble fibre is found in the majority of plant cell walls and can be subdivided into a number of groups. Murray and Pizzorno write, “Bacteria in the gut digest soluble fibre, increasing the number of beneficial bacteria in the gut and creating short-chain fatty acids which the colon cells use as fuel and which decrease cholesterol… A diet high in dietary fibre promotes the synthesis of short chain fatty acids, which reduce the colon pH, creating a friendly environment for the growth of acid-loving (friendly) bacteria”.

So the careful use of carbohydrates as whole, unrefined grains and vegetables can be included as a vital part of Erica White’s Four-Point-Plan in addressing gut ecology, while also providing an array of nutrients, fibre and an important energy source. For the majority of clients, they find this protocol a very ‘workable’ approach, enabling them to adapt family meals, and gain the calories and nutrients they need for day to day energy.

Autumn Vegetables

To complete these posts on how to increase vegetable intake, I’ll add here a few recipes that make good use of some the autumn vegetables that are available in the shops.

Butternut Squash Soup

Gently steam-fry with a lid 1 large onion and 2 crushed cloves of garlic in 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of water, or 1 tablespoon of unsalted organic butter. When onion is soft add 1 medium butternut squash and 1 potato, peeled and chopped into cubes. Add 1 litre of vegetable stock or water and simmer for about 30 minutes until vegetables are soft. Use a blender or food processor to blend the vegetables until smooth. Add a little more water if soup is too thick.  Return to the pan and season with black pepper, a little ‘Lo-salt’ and some dried chives. Swirl a spoonful of natural yoghurt into each bowl before serving if you are able to tolerate dairy.

Carrot and Ginger Soup

Steam fry 1 finely chopped onion over a gentle heat for 5 minutes with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon of water. Add 750g of organic carrots, scrubbed and chopped and 3-4 cm of root ginger, peeled and finely chopped, and stir over the heat for a few minutes before adding 1 litre of vegetable stock or water.  Simmer for about 10 minutes, until the carrots are soft. Liquidise the vegetables in a blender or food processor until smooth. Season if necessary.

Roast Vegetables

Roast vegetables really are such an easy way to get a wonderful variety of veg into a meal with the minimum of effort and fuss. Nearly any veg can be roasted, so it is a matter of getting to know what combinations you like. I will often cook a one-pot meal, using organic chicken portions or salmon, and throwing around it any vegetables that are in the fridge, chopping them into 2cm chunks. Great basics are red onion, red pepper, carrot, butternut squash, and beetroot. As I put a lid on this pot I can also add broccoli and green beans, which would burn if roasted uncovered. Use galic and chopped ginger root, sprigs of thyme or rosemary according to taste. Add a tablespoon of virgin coconut oil.

Roasted vegetables on their own, or with salmon, will cook in about 40 minutes in a medium oven.  If you are cooking it with chicken it will need about an hour or more, and check it is thoroughly cooked.  Remove lid for the last 5-10 minutes.

Ten Servings A Day Continued

An important mind-set in eating for health is to focus on the abundance and array of foods that are supportive of health, and to add these plentifully to the diet.  The more you eat of an assortment of vegetables, the less you will be wanting to fill up on biscuits and sweets. Vegetables are a source of beneficial fibre, and packed with nutrients, so they should form a real back-bone to a Nutritionhelp diet.  I continue here Murray and Pizzorno’s list of ‘Easy Tips for Reaching The Ten-Servings-A -Day Goal‘, from their book, The Encyclopaedia of Healing foods. The points are slightly adapted to ensure that they will work for those on a Nutritionhelp protocol

• Keep a fruit bowl on your kitchen counter, table, or desk at work with avocados and baby tomatoes.
• Pack some cut up vegetables in your briefcase or backpack, and carry wetwipes for easy clean-up. (Don’t forget that many supermarkets now sell vegetables ready cut as crudités)
• Add vegetables to lunch by having them in soup, in salad, or cut up raw.

• Increase portions when you serve vegetables. One easy way of doing so is adding fresh greens, such as Swiss chard, collards and greens to stir-fries.
• Add extra varieties of vegetables when you prepare soups, sauces and casseroles. For example, add grated carrot and courgette to spaghetti sauce.
• Take advantage of salad bars, which offer ready to eat raw vegetables, as well as prepared salads.
• Use vegetable-based sauces and juices such as tomato juice and mixed vegetable juice.

My own last point is ‘Be Adventurous!’ Add as many colours and varieties of vegetable to your shopping basket each week, and don’t just stop with the ones you know. Try a new vegetable each week.  If you are not sure what to do with it check out some online recipes or email me at info@nutritionhelp.com for ideas. Next I will post a couple of autumn vegetable recipes.

Ten Servings A Day

In the coming days I want to highlight the importance of maintaining a good cross section of foods from all main food groups while on a Nutritionhelp protocol. There are certain foods that it is important to avoid in order to encourage healthy gut ecology, but there are an abundance of foods that can be enjoyed freely. Top of this list comes vegetables! Drs. Murray and Pizzorno, in their book, ‘The Encyclopaedia of Healing Foods’, recommend that rather than staying with the government’s guidelines of ‘5-a-day’, we should be aiming for 10 portions of fresh produce a day. I  will post some of their ideas today and next week from  their list of ‘Easy Tips For Reaching The Ten-Servings-A-Day Goal’, which I have slightly adapted  to be more suitable for Nutritionhelp clients.

• Buy many kinds of vegetables when you shop, so you have plenty of choices in the house
• Stock up on frozen vegetables for easy cooking so that you can have a vegetable dish with every dinner.  You can easily steam frozen vegetables
• Use the vegetables that go bad quickly, such as asparagus, first. Save hardier varieties, such as butternut squash, and frozen goods, for later use if you do not shop frequently in a week.
• Keep vegetables where you can see them. the more often you see them, the more often you are to eat them.
• Keep a bowl of cut-up vegetable at eye level in the refrigerator.  Choose carrot sticks, celery sticks, topped and tailed mange-tout or sugar-snap peas, slices of red pepper etc. to snack on when hungry.
• Make a big tossed salad with several kinds of greens, cherry tomatoes, cut-up carrots,red pepper, broccoli, spring onion and been sprouts. Refrigerate in a large glass bowl with an airtight lid, so a delicious mixed salad will be ready to enjoy for several days. Do not add a dressing as this will prevent the salad from keeping so well.

I will continue the list from Murray and Pizzorno next week, but here I will add some helpful salad and vegetable dressings that are suitable for those on a Nutritionhelp programme, and can make a big difference to the enjoyment of meals.

Home-Made Mayonnaise

Break an egg into a blender with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, some black pepper and ½ tsp of mixed herbs. Whiz the blender on low, very slowly adding 1 cup of Rice Bran Oil (extra cold filtered by Alfa One, available in most supermarkets). This should result in a soft mayonnaise, however, all blenders are different so it will be a matter of getting to know how to get best results with your own machine – e.g. it may be best to add the oils slowly, but then finish on a fast whiz. Alter flavour according to taste, using different herbs or garlic granules etc. Keep refrigerated.

 Olive Oil Dressing

Shake together in a jar 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 3 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add fresh or dried herbs to taste.  If you find the olive oil taste too strong, replace 1 tablespoon with Rice Bran oil. Add more or less lemon juice according to taste. Keep refrigerated.

 Yoghurt Dip

Stir 1-2 teaspoons of chives and 1 teaspoon of onion powder and some black pepper into 1 cup of natural yoghurt. Keep refrigerated.