Edible Flowers You Can Find In Your Garden

edible flowers

When we think about foods for
Spring, we often just think about the root, leaf, or stalk of the food. But
there’s a lot of nutritional and medicinal value being overlooked in many
varieties of edible flowers. Some flowers can be eaten, others can be mixed
in with the herb they are attached to, and then there are others that work
better as a tea or tonic.

This expands the argument for organic gardening. When you raise
your garden using GMO free, heritage, or heirloom seeds, and free from
chemical pesticides, you open up a whole new benefit from your typical flower
garden. Not only can you enjoy looking at your garden, but you can enjoy
eating and getting some nutrition form your flowers as well. Here is a list
of some edible flowers that you may not be aware are perfectly safe to eat,
along with some of their nutritional qualities.

Nutritious Edible
Flowers Sitting Right Under Your Nose

Nasturtium

Where I live in Southern California, nasturtiums grow wild and
sometimes occupy entire hillsides. Although foraging for wild edible flowers
can seem exciting, it’s best to only forage from private yards or remote
areas where you know for sure the flowers haven’t been contaminated by
pesticides, car Read More


5 Delicious, Bioavailable Uses for Turmeric

bioavailable-uses-for-turmeric

Turmeric is one of the latest
whole food “wonder-ingredients” trending in the media. You have
probably read or heard about medicinal and therapeutic uses for turmeric. If
you do a little research you will find a plethora of articles and videos
touting turmeric’s health benefits. According to this blog
article
written by Dr. Josh Axe, turmeric can provide many health
benefits, and based on research, might even outperform some common medical
procedures and medications.

You can do some easy research to decide if turmeric  is
something you would like to add to your personal wellness protocol.
If you do, you will need to figure out how to get it into your
daily, or at least weekly routine. The easiest way would be to find a high
quality turmeric supplement. But incorporating dried turmeric root and even
fresh turmeric root into your diet can be not only easy but a fun culinary
adventure. I put together 5 delicious and practical culinary uses for
turmeric that you can start incorporating into your healthy
lifestyle.

Before you start using turmeric in your kitchen, there is a
caveat. You want to make sure you take Read More


Vegan Protein Sources To Eat By

vegan-protein-sources

Vegan diets are becoming more and more popular lately. People are learning, understanding, and choosing to
eat less animal based foods, both for the health of their bodies, and the
planet. But there are common questions and concerns that a vegan diet may not
provide enough complete protein. Those who work out regularly may be
concerned about getting enough vegan protein sources to keep up with the muscle building
and recovery that comes with rigorous exercise. And, many of us are just
stuck in the mindset that we must consume meat and dairy in order to get
enough protein. The fact is that animal products aren’t the only source of quality protein. Read More



Winter Foods that Boost Your Immune System

winter-foods-that-boost-your-immune-system

This has been a rough winter for
wellness and immunity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has
been reporting
some troubling statistics
about this year’s flu season. And the
information doesn’t always provide a clear strategy for what you can do to
protect yourself. Even if you’ve survived this flu season so far without
getting sick, we are not out of the weeds yet. And taking steps to provide
your body with optimal nutrition can only help. Here are some commonly known
winter foods that boost your immune system. And they’re in season right now!
So head on out to the Farmers Market and take this list along with
you.

5
Winter Foods that Boost Your Immune
System

1) Dark Leafy Greens

Eating a variety of dark leafy greens is not only a good idea for their
nutrient density-per-calorie in general, but getting a good dose of greens
and spinach in particular will provide your body with a big dose of
antioxidants from vitamin C, and folate. Folate helps your body make new
cells and repair DNA. In Read More


Nutrition Trends to Watch For in 2018

My email inbox is constantly
exploding with nutrition information. Some of it is more focused on product
marketing, while other emails are from doctors, researchers, and experts
devoted to advancing the cause of clinical nutrition, holistic health, and
other preventative forms of wellness. There are usually some common
denominators in this information that allows us to connect the dots and those
connections usually show up as new emerging nutrition trends.

Here are some of the top nutrition trends I see taking front stage
this year:

5
Nutrition Trends Coming This Year in
2018

Read More


Gluten Free Pasta Alternatives to Try Today!

gluten-free-pasta

Guess what? Not all gluten free
pasta is created equal. And, just because something says, “gluten
free” does not mean it’s necessarily any good for you. Pasta can be made
from a variety of foods free of gluten: beans, grains, vegetables, and more,
and each one offers something unique in providing your DV of needed
nutrients. In fact, the most popular go-to gluten free pasta made of quinoa
and-or brown rice is just a fraction more nutritious than the traditional
pastas made with semolina or wheat flour.

What happens with most gluten free diets is that people run to the
first substitute they can find that looks and tastes as close to the real
gluten filled product as possible. Take gluten free bread for example. How
many gluten free breads are really that great tasting? Not many, from my
experience. But, when you forget about the old product altogether, and give
yourself a chance to explore an entirely new context of enjoying pasta and
other gluten free alternatives, that is when a whole new world of superior
nutrition and great flavor comes to life. So, here are some of my favorite
pastas Read More


Vegan Protein Shake Hacks Without the Powder

vegan-protein-shakes

Vegan protein shake formulas
are becoming very popular in the marketplace. Every time I look, I see
companies, who formerly stood firmly on their whey protein claims, quickly
introducing vegan protein products into their product line. This article is
not to sway you from using a protein powder, especially if you have one that
you love. Plant based protein powders are known for their nutrition
efficiency and digestibility. In my opinion it is a great way to get
convenient protein.

But what if you don’t have a good vegan protein shake mix on
hand? Or what if you are on a strict budget, or you simply aren’t ready
to dive into a month’s supply of supplement purchases? Or what if you are
just overwhelmed with all the information and options, and want to make sure
you are getting the right product for you? Well, that’s cool, because you can
still find plenty of high quality plant based protein in everyday food
ingredients, that can add a meal’s worth or more of complete, efficient
protein Read More


High Alkaline Foods For Everyday Diets

high-alkaline-foods-for-everyday-diets

Alkalizing has become a well
known word in the nutrition world. If you do a little research, you will
soon discover that there are many different versions of theories as to why a
person might want to add more high alkaline foods to their diet. So what’s
the deal with alkalizing? Is it just another fad, or is there some good
science behind it?

If you want the simplified answer, here it is: Yes the
general consensus is that putting more high alkaline foods into your diet is
a good idea, if for no other reason than the fact that most high alkaline
foods are very nutritious and efficient for your body to digest and to use,
and generally free from any controversy of being allergenic, hard to digest,
or cause for any major health concerns.

But there is more to alkalizing than that. Having balanced
pH, a pH reading of 7.365, is essential Read More


Health Benefits of Alcohol, A “Healthy” Perspective

health-benefits-of-alcohol

The health benefits of
alcohol
is a popular subject. News features, blogs, and
social media posts touting alcohol’s benefits are ubiquitous. Every time
I see a friend on Facebook sharing an article about how good red wine is for
you, it is all I can do to resist being the contrarian know-it-all and making
a comment.

In her groundbreaking book on alcohol addiction, This
Naked Mind
, author Annie Grace explains how writers need
readership. So they write about popular subjects. People want to read that
alcohol is good for them, so they read articles about that. That makes sense.
But if you look at the stats, something interesting is revealed. There are
only a handful of scholarly studies on the health benefits of alcohol, yet
there are many, many people reading articles on those studies. On the other
hand, there are many, many scholarly studies on the health risks of alcohol,
multiple times more than those on the benefits, but only a handful of people
want to read articles on those studies.

So I thought I would try something fun that everyone can read and
relate to. I found some common health claims in favor of alcohol consumption.
I am going to list them here. Read More