Wow – this is such a health and political hot potato. There is a LOT of information about raw milk, both for and against. Anyhow,  I took delivery of raw milk for the first time this week and have made some scrumptious yogurt with it  -I will tell you how at the bottom (super-easy). However, not nearly so easy is getting hold of raw milk. Raw milk can only be sold legally directly from the farm where it was produced. No retail outlet is allowed to sell it.

The big difference between raw milk and what you buy in the supermarket, or even from a farmers market / farm shop, is that all non-raw milk has been pasteurized. This means it has been blasted with super-high heat to kill off all bacteria, rendering it safe in the eyes of the health laws of this country.

However, there are enzymes, bacteria and certain proteins that get killed off by heat that are extremely beneficial to health. In fact, through my research I found testimonials from many people who are lactose-intolerant i.e. they don’t produce the digestive enzyme lactase that digests the sugar, lactose, in milk, but are perfectly able to digest raw milk. This is because raw milk already has the digestive enzyme lactase in it but this is killed off through pasteurization. In fact, there are 60 beneficial enzymes in raw milk all of which support healthy digestion.

There are also really good amounts of beneficial bacteria in raw milk including lactobacillus. This is the ‘gut-friendly’ bacterial so heavily promoted in live yogurt and those little ‘healthy digestion’ drinks, which are all killed off in commercial milk.

The good bacteria are so prolific in raw milk that they overwhelm any nasty bacteria that may be present. Also, raw milk is a whole food, far better balanced than semi and skimmed milk. The fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E, abundant in whole milk, will not get absorbed in to your system if fat is not present and raw milk has the perfect balance of minerals to allow the calcium it contains to be absorbed, and more importantly, transported in to our bones.

Raw milk also contains a type of protein called immunoglobulins, also known as antibodies. These little power-houses provide protection from many viruses and bacteria. PLUS, raw milk has high levels of conjugated linoleic acid (see previous post). This special type of omega 6 is known to boost metabolism, burn fat (esp. abdominal fat), boost muscle growth, increase insulin sensitivity and it strengthens the immune system.

So, I am really excited about getting raw milk delivered every week. To further increase its benefits, I am using it to make yogurt. As you’ll know if you follow my blog, I have tried many milk-alternatives to replace my once loved but now scorned soy milk. I am happy to stick to coconut milk on my oats, as it has many benefits, but anything in a carton is going to be lacking in live enzymes and good bacteria, so adding to my breakfast a good dollop of homemade raw milk yogurt, filled with the health-promoting lactic acid, makes my breakfast pretty tip top!

To make raw yogurt you don’t want to heat it to the high temperature normally used in yogurt making as it will destroy all of its benefits. I gently heated 2 pints to 43?C. Take off the heat and gently whisk in 2 tablespoons of good quality live yogurt. Put in to sterile jars or thermos flask. I did both. I put my jar in a cool bag with a hot water bottle which I reheated after about 10 hours. I left it in a warm place overnight along with the flask and in the morning I had AMAZING yogurt- thick and glorious!

My next post will be on the different types of sugar – which are good, which are bad etc. Coming soon….

It doesn’t require much time for great results. Doing resistance & weight bearing exercise 2 – 3 times a week for about 2o minutes each time will make a BIG difference to your body shape, tone and your metabolic rate.

You can achieve this by using your own body weight to resist against;  free weights or exercise machines to work all your muscle groups. They latest thinking is to work all the body’s  muscle groups (rather than working certain body parts at one time) and working each muscle group to the point of failure i.e. having a heavy enough weight that you simply cannot possibly do one more after 12 – 15 slow, steady  repetitions.

In doing this you will trigger your body to produce the wonder that is human growth hormone (HGH).  HGH is produced at night as your body recovers from your workout. A workout where you have really worked your muscles hard will have caused tiny tears in your muscle fibres. The HGH is required to heal and strengthen the muscles. The magic is that HGH  requires a lot of energy to be produce, hence triggering body fat metabolism for its very production. Also, as the HGH  increases your muscle tissue, so your metabolism will increase as muscles, even when not being used, are metabolically demanding, requiring fuel even when you are asleep. So,  this is a double whammy when it comes to getting rid of stubborn fat reserves.

It’s a good idea to get some help from a personal fitness trainer or a member of staff at your gym to help you put a resistance training programme together for you as good technique is essential to avoid injury and to get the best results.

However, there is absolutely no need to go to a gym or to buy fancy training equipment in order to get a good workout. A couple of resistance bands and a few dumbbells are all you need as many resistance exercises can be done using your own body weight as resistance.

I really hope I can persuade you to ignore all the hype and not be seduced by the hype. To be fair, dramatically restricting your calories will result in weight loss – absolutely! The various programmes that offer meal replacement bars and drinks, giving you between 500 – 800 calories a day will work – but for how long?

I see SO MANY clients who have been on these programmes, often many times over,  only to  put the weight back on, and often end up weighing more than before they started the miserable process of being hungry and bored on one of these plans.

There are a number of problems with low-calorie regimes that make long-term success highly unlikely:

There’s the psychological issue of deprivation and boredom: once you’ve committed to a low calorie diet, it won’t take long before you’re craving and obsessing about the foods you enjoy but can’t have. Soon you’ll be cheating, then beating yourself up about cheating and invariably this leads to feeling useless, hopeless and depressed.

Then there’s the inevitable problem of your body’s response to being deprived of energy – it will very quickly adapt to the reduced calorie intake and manage to do exactly what you demand of it i.e. your typical daily activities, on less. Your metabolic rate drops to accommodate your energy output in comparison to your energy input. End result, your metabolic rate will be more efficient i.e. slower than when you started. The less you eat, the less you will need to eat – simple!

Finally, my biggest issue with these diets is that they prevent you from learning how to feed yourself well and manage your weight using fresh, natural foods. The artificially flavoured meal replacements  may be packed full of added vitamins and minerals, but you will not be getting the goodness, the enzymes, fibres and flavours that will satisfy you; the diet will not nourish you properly on a physical or psychological level and it will suppress, not stimulate your internal furnace.

These diets can never be long-term because they are so restrictive. Once you resume your ‘normal’ eating, the pounds will pile back on.

Learn to eat well and you will never have to think about a diet again – really!

Well, rewind, forget all of the must nots, must do more ofs, must eat less ofs and simplify and healthify by keeping it really simple. Here are a few basics which, if you keep in mind, most of the time, you’ll do your body and your mood a serious favour:

•  Keep it fresh – aim to have some fresh fruit or veg with every meal (don’t rely too much on fruit if you’re hoping to lose weight as it is sugar-packed. I recommend 2 pieces of non-tropical fruit per day). Opt for variety, locally grown and a wide range of highly coloured veggies where possible.

• Watch those coffees   – if you do have a coffee make sure you have it once you’ve eaten something. That way the caffeine won’t play havoc with your blood sugar and adrenaline levels. Ideally opt for green, white and herby teas.

• Notice what you’re eating – unconscious eating can result in bloating, poor absorption of nutrients and major over-eating, so don’t eat while distracted or on the run. Sit down, chew well and focus on what you’re eating.

• Try and have some good quality protein like free-range eggs meat, fish, nuts or pulses with wholegrains with every meal.

• Make sure you are getting the essential fats you need. Omega 3 – soooooooooo important (refer back to previous blogs). Take a high quality, high potency fish oil or get eating LOTS of oily fish.

• Try not to eat too late; try and avoid refined sugars and grains; definitely avoid trans fats and don’t deny yourself all of your favourites, just have them on occasion, in moderation and when you do – really enjoy them.

More on easy, healthy tips to come

Depression can take many forms. Clinical depression is a serious mental illness that usually requires long-term medication to maintain a healthy balance of brain chemicals to keep the levels of depression under control. Other, less severe forms of depression can sometimes respond well and be managed by using some nutritional interventions.

Mild to moderate depression can be triggered by a difficult life event; by prolonged high levels of stress or anxiety; a poor diet lacking in certain essential nutrients; an excess of alcohol and/or recreational drugs or a genetic predisposition. Symptoms include episodes of sleeplessness, low sex drive, loss of appetite, or a craving for high-carbohydrate foods, low mood, obviously, poor concentration, and a real lack of motivation and self-belief.

What many people do not realise is how food can affect brain chemical balance. In just the same way as any other organ in the body requires specific nutrients for optimum function, so too healthy brain function can be maintained through healthy food and lifestyle practices.

With this is mind, I was at a Christmas party last night and when asked about my work I explained what nutritional therapy is and gave the example of how eating certain foods can help with certain cases of mental illness. The woman I was speaking with found this utterly remarkable and was keen to hear more.  I gave the example of depression. She failed to understand why people didn’t just go the gym to get a hit of endorphins, the way she does. I explained that once depression takes hold it can be extremely hard to find the energy and motivation to do anything very much, never mind going to the gym.

It struck me as interesting though, as this woman had clearly found her own strategy for coping with her stress and anxiety levels by thrashing it out at the gym. I am well aware that depression is far more fickle and pervasive than feeling a little stressed out, wound up or jaded, but I wanted to run through some healthy guidelines for helping to keep your brain chemicals in good order:

Omega 3: yes, yet again, this essential oil, woefully lacking in most Westerners diet, is utterly critical for healthy brain function including ensuring the feel good chemicals and well balanced.

Vitamin D: another nutrient severely lacking in many people, especially during the winter. Low vitamin D levels are strongly correlated to low mood depression.

-Tryptophan: this an amino acid, found in certain proteins and is the precursor to the manufacture of serotonin, one of the main ‘feel-good’ chemicals in the brain. Interestingly, there are high levels of tryptophan in white meat, especially turkey, so it makes sense to feast on turkey during holiday times when tensions can be high with all those visitors and demands on your time.

Whole grains: especially brown rice and whole oats. These foods contain good levels of various B vitamins essential for supporting adrenal function (helping with feelings of stress and anxiety) and good for supporting the nervous system and getting a good nights sleep.

Organic, free-range eggs: containing great levels of protein and, if organic and free range, will also contain lots of omega 3 and vitamin D.

Stable blood sugar: ensure regular, well-balanced meals with good levels of protein, whole grains and fresh veg. This will help maintain steady blood sugar levels. Low blood sugar can trigger low mood, energy slumps and feelings of anxiety.

Stay off the refined carbs: sugar, white bread, processed snacks, cakes, biscuits etc. play havoc with blood sugar levels and can negatively affect brain chemical balance.

Manage your stress: easier said than done, but high levels of stress over a prolonged period can result in serious levels of depression due to the stress hormone cortisol -  a well studied depressant.

Get outside! A good brisk walk can significantly lift a low mood. Even if you don’t feel like it, force yourself to get outside. It doesn’t matter if the sun isn’t shining, you’re brain chemicals will still benefit from revving up your body and being out in the daylight.

I appreciate that this is a somewhat simplistic approach to depression and I in no way wish to trivialize what is often a very debilitating, misunderstood and under diagnosed problem. Equally, please do no underestimate the power of healthy eating on certain mental health issues.

There are some specific supplements that can significantly boost serotonin, dopamine and melatonin levels, all involved in mood regulation, stress management and sleep. If you feel you need some help with managing your depression naturally, please get in touch.

•  Give you a great energy boost first thing in the morning due to its great hydrating and oxygenating effects. Have it as soon as you get up, before eating anything, to get the best results.

• Improve your mental clarity as the body loses a lot of moisture throughout the night so you will be in need of good hydration first thing in the morning. As I’ve posted before, even a tiny amount of dehydration leads to sluggishness in body and mind.

• Many people rely on caffeinated drinks to get them going in the morning, but this over-stimulates the adrenal glands, resulting in a downer shortly afterwards, and caffeine is a diuretic causing more dehydration and the loss of minerals like potassium, magnesium, calcium and sodium. Lemon juice not only rehydrates, it is high in vitamin C, magnesium, and potassium.

• Lemon water will stimulate your hydrochloric acid and digestive enzyme production, preparing your body for food, so you digest and absorb the goodness from your breakfast much better.

• Fresh lemon has been shown to stimulate liver function, specifically the production of many of the liver enzymes that help the body to detoxify.

• Citric acid, found in high levels in lemon juice, helps to prevent excess calcium building up on artery walls and as kidney stones.

• Lemon water taken regularly has been shown to reduce blood pressure and dilutes uric acid in the body – a build up of which can cause the potentially excruciating conditions gout and arthritis.

• and, it helps with excess acidity in the body. I appreciate this is counter-intuitive as citrus fruits are acidic, but due to the process of digestion, it becomes buffered and actually helps keep the digestive system at a healthy pH balance.

Go on, try it. Once you start you’ll wonder how you ever got going without it. oh, by the way, if you have weak / thin tooth enamel, it’s best to drink your lemon water with a straw so you bypass your teeth and protect your enamel from the weakening effect of the lemon juice.

These incredible healthy-giving powers are mainly attributed to the active ingredient allicin, a sulphur compound. The allinanse enzyme gets activated once the cell walls of the garlic clove have been damaged. Therefore, in order to get the most out of your garlic, chop or crush it well before you heat it or add other ingredients. I find the best way to do this is to prep your garlic before you do any other preparation for the dish you are making. Allow it to sit and add to your cooking as late as possible to retain as much of the healthy active ingredietns as possible.

Microwaving garlic pretty much renders its health properties inactive (I think this is probably true for many nutrients in food) and eating it raw, having let it sit once crushed for a least 10 minutes, provides the optimum levels but if you have a delicate digestive system, you may find raw garlic causes a burning sensation and, of course, you’ll be a bit stinky. Chewing parsley can help with garlicky breath and will also provide you with a wealth of vitamins and anti-oxidants, so it’s a win win!