Here are some articles I wrote to help improve your health and give you a better understanding of how our bodies work!
The Importance of Good Digestion to Prevent Allergies
~Hippocrates (Father of Natural Medicine)
Have you ever wondered why it seems like you can’t eat anything without getting bloated, gassy, irritable, sleepy, cramps, dizzy, itchy, rash, etc?
When your intestinal strength is compromised, toxins, undigested proteins and bad bacteria are able to seep through the gut lining and enter the bloodstream causing inflammation responses throughout the body. Antibodies are released to attack the foreign substances in the blood causing itching, redness, runny nose, coughing, sore throat, shortness of breath and many other symptoms! When the same foods are eaten over and over again, the antibodies remember the antigen and trigger an immune response IMMEDIATELY creating an allergic reaction which can range from mood swings and psychotic episodes to cramping, headaches, diarrhea or constipation, skin conditions, brain fog and much more. Fatigue is the NUMBER ONE allergic sign followed by headaches.
Allergens do not necessarily cause their major symptoms at the place where they first come into contact with the body. When you have leaky gut, the allergen gets carried to other parts of the body through the blood and affect the CNS which causes mood swings, the mucous membranes (nose) which causes skin reactions, the lungs which cause bronchoconstriction (asthma) etc.
When an allergic reaction occurs in the GI tract, histamine is released and causes inflammation in the mucosa, which causes it to become more permeable. When an allergic reaction occurs in the stomach, histamine is released which triggers a large acid outpouring that can cause ulcers. The colon, gall bladder, pancreas, blood vessels, heart, musculoskeletal system, joints, adrenals, etc can all be affected by antibody responses to antigens.
Although the immune system initially responds with a heightened reaction when an allergen is contacted, the white blood cell population then becomes depressed and remains lower than normal for as long as the exposure continues. This can cause chronic suppression of the immune system if the allergen is contacted on a daily basis. This causes people to get sick all the time, develop autoimmune conditions and is the BIGGEST reason why people don’t think they have food allergies. They don’t get crazy reactions when eating allergenic foods because their immune system is suppressed, and they then discard the thoughts about food allergies.
People often say to me, “I got tested for food allergies by my doctor said I don’t have any.” The problem is that doctors test for allergies using the IgE and skin tests, which only test for immediate allergic responses. However, over 90% of food allergies are of the delayed-onset type, meaning they don’t appear to cause problems until a few days after consumption. IgE antibody responses appear in those that can die from the smell peanuts, a taste of milk, or a bee sting. Most people do not have these reactions when consuming things like gluten, dairy, sugar, eggs, etc.
I also get people telling me that they are definitely not allergic to gluten or sugar because when they eat these foods, they feel better instantly. What they don’t know, is that that almost definitely means they are allergic to that food and their food addiction is covering up their allergic symptoms. Your favourite foods are usually the ones you are allergic to and addicted to. Addiction causes chronic symptoms often hours or days after the food is eaten such as fatigue, weakness, headaches, irritability, and depression. When the addictive food is eaten again, the symptoms disappear temporarily and the person can keep himself in a symptom-free state by eating the addictive food frequently, thereby postponing symptoms of withdrawal. The result is chronic stress to the body, eventually leading to chronic and degenerative disease such as psoriasis for one example.
When the addictive food is removed from the diet, withdrawal reactions can last up to 4 or 5 days. Eating the food after withholding it from the diet will cause an increased allergic reaction. This is where you can use the elimination diet to determine your allergy triggers.
So what is the secret to preventing food allergies and eat the foods we love again? GOOD DIGESTION! When food is completely digested, that is, broken down to the smallest particle that it was designed to break down to, it is basically rendered non-allergic. This is because when food is fully digested and enters the bloodstream in that state, the immune system recognizes it as a familiar particle of food.
Avoidance of a certain food is not the answer for elimination food allergies long-term because if you do have a food allergy, you probably will not be allergic to it for life, unless you developed an IgE antibody response to that food. Most foods trigger an IgG response, which means if you avoid that food for 3 to 6 weeks, your body will forget its an allergen and you will be able to eat it again. Food allergy especially tends to rotate into new foods. This is because desensitization does nothing to help heal the digestive tract. The most important thing to do is heal the gut (rid, repair, replace), increase HCL production in the stomach, increase enzyme production and consumption and only eliminate the trigger foods for a certain period of time. Gluten and cane sugar are the exceptions. I always recommend one eliminates gluten or at least only consumes ancient sprouted wheat and avoids refined cane sugar and consumes raw honey or maple syrup instead.
The first common condition leading to allergies is yeasts and molds, the second is parasites and the third is digestive difficulties such as lack of enzymes, low HCL, hiatal hernia, etc.
So how do we improve digestion, protect the gut, and ensure allergy prevention? DIGESTIVE ENZYMES!
In the human body, absolutely every activity requires enzymes: eating, breathing, sleeping, working, and even thinking. Metabolism is involved in all these activities and enzymes are what keeps the metabolism working. Every activity of the body is dependent upon enzymes. Enzymes digest food, activate the immune system and build minerals into bone.
Enzyme deficiency is characterized by producing insidious, chronic degenerative and chronic inflammatory changes. Redness, swelling, pain, abnormal motion, disturbed digestion and chronic illness are frequent signs of enzyme deficiency.
Three categories of enzymes are of particular importance to health:
- Digestive enzymes that digest food
- Metabolic enzymes that run the body
- Food enzymes that are found in raw food
Enzymes are KEY to eliminating allergy. If you chew your food WELL, 90% of all your food allergies could be eliminated. When food is chewed well, it mixes with enzymes in the saliva and starts to digest in the mouth. The cells of fruits and veggies have an indigestible cellulose layer which must be broken down by chewing before the fruit or vegetable can be digested. If you get bloated after eating a salad, it means you did not chew it well enough to break it down!
It is important to note that vitamin B6 is a precursor to at least 50 enzymes and is needed for the metabolism of all amino acids. Trace minerals must also be present for enzyme production. Magnesium being the mineral in highest demand.
Pancreatic enzymes have a very specific pH range (7 to 9) in which they work. They require alkalinity to activate and therefore require the release of bicarbonate to activate and begin digesting food. Plant enzymes however have a broad pH range (3 to 9) and are the only enzymes that are capable of working throughout the entire digestive tract. They work in both acid and alkaline environments, ensuring more complete digestion of foods even when the digestive tract is incompetent. Because the pancreas works on demand, food that is more completely digested when it reaches the small intestine will require less enzymes from the pancreas, taking stress off that organ.
In summary, it is important to protect our digestive system by completely chewing our food, taking digestive enzymes and eating smaller meals. It is important to protect our digestive system by consuming plenty of gut healing foods, avoiding high sugary foods and processed foods and taking probiotics and prebiotics. If the gut is already destroyed, it is important to do a candida and parasite cleanse to rid the gut of toxins and bad bacteria, then consume plenty of Lglutamine, bone broths and aloe vera gels to repair the gut lining, and finally consume plenty of fermented foods and probiotics to replace and repopulate with good bacteria. Following these steps will help eliminate food allergies and will help avoid food allergies in the future!
Contact me to schedule an appointment so I can help create a program designed for YOU to help improve your digestion and eliminate your food allergies!
*Text cited from 'Allergies - Disease in Disguise' by Carolee Bateson-Koch DC ND.*
How To Stay Healthy During the Holidays
Is it just me, or does it seem like as soon as November hits, we start to gain weight, get colds and flus, fatigue, headaches, mood swings etc? We are so accustomed to go-go-go during the months preceding the holidays that our self-care and health go right out the door. The Holidays are naturally a time of higher sugar consumption, unhealthy foods we wouldn't normally eat otherwise, alcohol (for some people) and a lot of stress, so this is the MOST critical time where we should be focusing on our HEALTH and boosting our immune system to handle the holiday stressors rather than neglecting our health.
Below are a few tips and recipes I like to include in my daily routine during the months preceding the holidays and well into the New Year to ensure proper immune function, maintain weight during the holidays, reduce stress and ENJOY the time with our family and friends without thinking about all the work we have to do to prepare and without feeling too tired to enjoy the holiday season when it arrives.
1. Start off your morning and end your evening with 2 cups of hot water mixed with the juice of half an organic lemon. This will help to detox your body of toxins produced from stress, sugar, and chemicals! It will also improve digestion and give our body plenty of enzymes to digest the food we will be eating later that day. It gives our immune system a good dose of vitamin C to help fight off the cold and flu and it hydrates our body as well! I find we tend to forget to drink fluids when we are in a rush and we also tend to drink sodas, juice, coffee, and alcohol instead of water during the Holiday season which leaves our body in an acidic state and we become very dehydrated very quickly. Below is my FAVOURITE detox recipe that I like to make every morning to start my day off on a good note!
2. Drink at least 1 green smoothie/juice per day to help alkalize the body and reduce inflammation and counteract the acidifying effects of stress and unhealthy foods. You can go wild with vegetables and a small amount of fruits to make it taste the way you like! Juices/smoothies are the PERFECT way to flood your body with natural raw plant enzymes plenty of vitamins and minerals to nourish and alkalize the body. I don’t own a juicer, so I actually blend all the veggies and fruits together which also gives you plenty of fiber to help detox the colon! But if you like juicing, go wild and create any combo you like! Aim for in-season fruits and vegetables if possible! Below is my recipe for the ultimate Green juice!
3. Take soil-based probiotics (25-50 billion) daily during this time to support your immune system, support digestion and help to fight off colds and flu, and also protect us germs we may encounter while touching shopping mall doors, public restrooms, etc! I love a combo of Bacillus coagulens, Bacillus clausii, Sacchromyces Boulardii, lactobacillus acidophillus, and Bifidiobacterum strains. Aim for a probiotic that has multiple strains, minimum 25 billion CFU potency, enteric coating to ensure survivability and preferably one that contains non-hydrolyzed prebiotics!
4. Take Pancreatic digestive enzymes with all meals to break down the food we eat and aid digestion when we are stressed/rushed and eating in a hurry. Pancreatic enzymes will help to support our liver, pancreas, and gallbladder to break down the carbs and fats we eat (which tend to be higher during the holidays!). I always advise to try and slow down and avoid eating while driving, when upset, or when rushed, since that hinders digestion and strains our liver and pancreas to secrete more enzymes for partially digested food. Supplying our body with extra enzymes will go a long way toward supporting our digestive system and reducing the holiday bloat!
5. If you plan on eating a larger and maybe not-so-healthy meal later in the day, try to Intermittent fast (so long as you don't have hypoglycemia or diabetes) which will help your body burn your fat as fuel. This will help to maintain weight during the holidays and also ensure you don't over consume calories for that day! Intermittent fasting tends to suppress your appetite so you don't overeat and also helps to give your digestive system a chance to "clean house" and detoxify/repair. An example of a time frame for fasting would be to stop eating at 7 pm the night before and resume eating the next day between 9 and 11 AM. This will give your body 14-16 hours free from digesting food. When your body needs energy, it will look to your fat stores for fuel which helps lead to weight-loss. Of course, talk to your doctor before trying this out!
6. Try shopping online for gifts or decorations, table settings, etc to avoid the large crowds, heavy traffic, searching for hours for a parking spot and long checkout line. This is a big stress trigger for most people and it is so easy to avoid in this day and age with our easy access to next day shipping thanks to Amazon prime! You can stay in the comfort of your own home, or in your office and have everything delivered to your door. Who doesn't want that!
7. Last but not least, ENJOY the holidays! Try to not stress about the "unhealthy foods" you're going to eat, all the people you have to shop for, all the cleaning you need to do in your house, all the food you have to cook, etc. If you are going to eat unhealthy food, enjoy it and don't feel guilty! If your house isn't PERFECTLY clean, don't worry, no one will notice. If you are overwhelmed with all the people you need to buy presents for, try cutting back the list and shopping for only the most important, or suggest secret Santa instead! And remember what the holidays are really about – Thanksgiving, family, love, and laughter!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Instagram: @marlashealthylife
There are many autoimmune conditions with more being studied daily! A few of the most common are psoriasis, fibromyalgia, Lupus, Hashimotos, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Chrons, Ulcerative colitis, Type I Diabetes, and many more!
People often say that Autoimmunity means our immune system is OVERACTIVE… but that is not very accurate! A better way to describe it would be to say that our immune system is DYSFUNCTIONAL (aka… exhausted).
Autoimmunity develops when your immune system gets overworked (protecting us from invaders) and becomes exhausted and dysfunctional. It can no longer differentiate between invader and self (our bodies). When you ingest foods, toxins, get stressed, get sick etc, your immune system triggers an inflammatory response and creates antibodies against certain foods and substances, usually the ones you eat and come in contact with most often. Leaky gut is often the first trigger for autoimmune since it allows undigested foods particles to enter the blood stream. Your immune system does not recognize these foreign particles and triggers an immune response. As you eat the food again and again a stronger response is triggered leading to chronic inflammation. If you get a cold, or a cut or injury, further inflammation is created by your immune system and it slowly starts to become fatigued.
Along with leaky gut is usually dysbiosis (candida and parasitic overgrowth) as well as heavy metal toxicity (makeup products, aluminum pans, smoking, etc) and mold in the body (damp homes, refrigerated food, etc). All these “invaders” cause our immune system to constantly “put out fires” in our body. This leaves our immune system completely exhausted and it starts to be unable to differentiate between all the invaders, toxins and our own body tissues. When heavy metals, parasites and undigested food proteins travel through the blood and hang out near our organs, our immune system attacks the invader and destroys our own tissues in the process, as is seen with type I diabetes (pancreas), psoriasis (skin), Hashimotos (thyroid), etc.
SO, how do we reduce inflammation and prevent our immune system from attacking our own tissues? CHANGE OUR DIETS! Of course we need to detox heavy metals, mold, parasites and drain our emunctories as well as heal our guts… but none of these can happen without changing our diet FIRST!
Below is my list for the tops foods to avoid if you have ANY type of autoimmune condition and would like to reverse it. The goal is to eat as anti-inflammatory as possible which means eating a whole foods, REAL, organic, clean, low sugar diet.
The foods listed above NEED to be avoided (probably not for life) until our guts are healed and can handle the foods again. The foods listed are high histamine, inflammatory and will trigger strong immune responses… which we DON’T want. I do want to say that the list given is not a comprehensive list and there may be more foods which you need to avoid that you personally have a sensitivity to.
So what can we eat after eliminating all those foods!? LOTS! Our world is full of nutritious and colourful foods which we can learn to enjoy and incorporate into our daily meals! Below are some examples, however there are PLENTY more that you can incorporate and I encourage you to get creative and try to eat as much variety and colours as you can!
As mentioned above, here are just SOME of the foods you can and should eat when you have an autoimmune disease. You can delicious gluten free desserts, amazing dinners and lunches, sushi rolls, etc! The idea is to eat WHOLE foods that have not been processed and to really limit sugar consumption. Following these guidelines will go a long way to reducing inflammation
Once your diet is in check, you can begin a detoxification protocol for your elimination organs and then move onto a candida, parasite, and heavy metal cleanse. Contact me if you’d like me to create a protocol for you, or if you would like a meal plan!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Candida overgrowth is one of the most common conditions I see in my clients and also people around me, especially those suffering with autoimmune disease, Lyme disease and digestive issues. Systemic Candida overgrowth (which is usually accompanied by parasitic overgrowth) can trigger a host of symptoms; the main ones being fatigue, brain fog, skin issues such as acne or eczema, itchy skin, gas and bloating, constipation, mood swings, recurring fungal infections (including vaginal yeast infections), and many more!
When I work with clients to improve their dysbiosis HUGE improvements in their health (and the symptoms mentioned above) are seen and many times, even a complete reversal in their conditions!
So what is Candida? It is a fungus (yeast) that normally, in healthy individuals, lives in our mouths and digestive tracts to help aid in digestion and absorption of nutrients. However, when antibiotics are taken, bad food is eaten, chronic stress is experienced, etc, our healthy microflora is altered, and candida is allowed to overgrow and multiply. When this happens, it changes to its parasitic form (grows long roots called 'rhizoids' that puncture the intestinal lining) and actually burrows into our intestinal lining (literally tearing it apart) creating the condition known as intestinal permeability (aka leaky gut). When this happens, candida is able to enter our bloodstream and travel throughout our body releasing toxic byproducts that can pass the blood-brain barrier causing mood swings, depression, anxiety, etc. candida, quite literally, can change our personality and the way we react to situations when it is given the proper environment (cold, damp, sugar laden body).
Candida is an opportunistic yeast and can change shape in order to protect itself from harsh environments. It responds to a shift in temperature or acidity levels by transforming from a rounded yeast cell into an elongated hyphal cell. Once candida penetrates the gut lining (as mentioned above) it is able to invade other tissues. So what does this mean for you? It means that Candida can quickly transition from a minor gut or digestive issues to a full-body issue as it colonizes the skin, mouth, ears, thyroid, genitals etc. Because candida can travel to any part of the body, symptoms can be seen anywhere as well and are therefore wide-ranging and may present as the following:
What is the connection between Candida and Autoimmune? LEAKY GUT! Once candida destroys the gut lining, undigested food particles, toxins, bacteria, and parasites, are able to enter bloodstream and trigger and immune response as an attempt to fight off these foreign “invaders”. Overtime, as foods, bacteria and toxins enter the bloodstream, your immune system keeps triggering stronger reactions (inflammations) and attacks against these invaders to protect you. This causes your immune system to become exhausted, weakened, stressed and confused and it becomes dysfunctional and begins to attack “invaders” less accurately. It starts to attack your body’s own tissues as it tries to protect you against invaders and eventually leads to an autoimmune disorder.
How do you test for candida overgrowth? My favourite way is to go by your symptoms since your body doesn’t lie! If you have 1 or more of the symptoms described above, you are most likely dealing with candida overgrowth and should begin a cleanse. If you want confirmation of overgrowth, you can get your doctor to order a comprehensive stool analysis test that checks for candida in the small and large intestines. I rarely recommend blood tests as a measure since often they can come out negative, while stool analysis come out positive. You can ask your doctor to test your total IgG, IgA and IgM levels along with the Candida antibodies. Usually low antibody levels can cause a false negative response to the Candida antibodies, which means you have candida, but your immune system is to weakened to produce a response to its presence in the blood which leads your blood test to come back negative. Many of my clients have suppressed immune systems which is why I recommend stool analysis testing or symptom testing!
How do we treat Candida and correct dysbiosis?
Following the steps above will ensure you clear candida from your body and rebalance your microflora! If you have autoimmune disease or major candida overgrowth, I recommend cleansing with the guidance and supervision of a trained practitioner to ensure cleansing is done safely and efficiently.
If you’d like to book a consultation today to get started on gut protocol, contact me through the contact page to get started! I have helped dozens of clients beat their candida overgrowth and regain their health, energy, and most importantly, their lives!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Do you suffer with IBD, SIBO, chronic constipation, gas and bloating, autoimmune disease, yeast overgrowth, ulcerative colitis, chrons, etc? Leaky gut is most likely one of the triggers for these conditions and many others!
The term “leaky gut” gets thrown around often, but what does it really mean? Intestinal permeability (leaky gut) is a VERY common issue among those living in our modern world and unfortunately is one of the most overlooked syndromes in the allopathic medical field.
So what exactly is it? Leaky gut occurs when the tight gap junctions in our intestines remain open and allow undigested food particles, yeast and parasites and toxins into the blood stream.
How does it remain open? There are tight gap junctions that normally only allow vitamins, minerals and amino acids from the foods we eat to enter the blood stream from the digestive tract. However, when we have chronic inflammation in our digestive tracts, these tight gap junctions remain partly open and allow undigested foodstuffs and other toxins and bad bacteria to enter our blood and travel to any part of the body via the bloodstream. Some of these toxins can even pass the blood-brain barrier and affect our brain and nervous system!
How do you develop leaky gut? Leaky gut can develop from MANY different factors. The main being a poor diet full of refined foods and carbs which destroys our microvilli, stress from our fast paced lifestyles, NSAIDS and antibiotics which destroy the beneficial bacteria in our gut and allow yeast to overgrow and cause inflammation, not chewing our food enough, and much more!
Now that you know a bit about leaky gut, what can you do to fix it? There is a 3-step approach I like to take to bring our guts back to the way they should be! RID, REPAIR, REPLACE!
Step 1: RID the gut of bad bacteria, yeast and parasites. When we take antibiotics, eat bad foods often and are stressed, yeast and other opportunistic microorganisms are able to overgrow in our guts causing inflammation and chronic illness. It is CRUCIAL to address the dysbiosis before trying to reseal the gut and rebuild the lining and microvilli.
Before starting any supplement and diet regime, please consult your doctor or healthcare practitioner to make sure you are doing it safely!
The best way to eliminate the bad bacteria and parasites is to eat a low carb diet full of fresh vegetables, small amounts of fresh fruit, some whole grains, nuts, seeds and healthy fats. Antifungals and other supplements should be taken alongside the low-carb, whole-foods diet. I recommend digestive enzymes, Black walnut and wormwood to help expel parasites, caprylic acid to help fight off candida overgrowth, amino NAC or echinacea for an anti-viral,activated charcoal or bentonite clay to soak up toxins and prevent die-off, and a greens powder to alkalize the body and remove toxins from the blood and colon. With this regime I also recommend a potent, high quality, multi-strain probiotic to replenish the good bacteria that was lost. It is 100% necessary and important to do a liver/kidney, gallbladder and lymphatic drainage protocol BEFORE starting (and during) a candida cleanse to make sure your body is ready and able to handle the toxin that will be created as candida dies-off. Herxing and die-0ff are NOT positive signs and should not happen if the cleanse is done correctly and every area of the body is supported to eliminate and detoxify toxins effectively. A candida/parasite cleanse should last 90 days (or longer for certain individuals) to make sure you get the full Lifecyle of the parasites and that the toughest yeast and bad bacteria are killed off. Once candida is cleansed and your dysbiosis has significantly improved, you can move onto the next phase!
Step 2: REPAIRing the gut lining is the next step to fixing our guts! Once candida is gone, it leaves you with a clean slate to attempt to repair the microvilli and gut lining.
The key is to make sure you keep inflammation in the digestive tract as LOW as possible but eating a grain-free (temporarily), whole foods, low sugar and easy to digest diet. I recommend the GAPS diet or a diet that is full of warming bone broth soups, vegetable and fruit smoothies, fiber, healthy fats, wild caught fish and organic lean proteins, organic greens and squash. I suggest avoiding grains, fatty meats, sweeteners (small amounts of manuka honey is ok), rough foods like nuts and seeds (unless pureed) and sugary fruits like banana. New supplementation should be taken to help rebuild the gut lining alongside the anti-inflammatory diet. Aloe vera gel, L-glutamine, bone broth, gelatin, digestive enzymes, marshmallow root, slippery elm, multi-strain probiotics, herbal teas (peppermint, dandelion, licorice root), liquid chlorophyll, cod liver oil and emulsified vitamin D. These supplements will help to detox the colon, soothe the digestive tract and rebuild the gut lining and microvilli.
Follow dosages on the bottles to ensure correct supplementation.
This step of the protocol can take anywhere from 2 to 6 months. It’s important to not rush this phase and the time it will take really depends on the degree of damage that is present. Take your time, give yourself more time than you feel you need and you will do great! After several months of this phase, it is time to move onto the last phase of the protocol, REPLACE!
Step 3: REPLACE! This phase is pretty self-explanatory, but it is all about REPLACING the good bacteria in your gut! The most important part is diet. Make sure you’re consuming organic, whole foods, LOTS of fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, Kvass, kefir, etc. You may also want to consider adding in POTENT Human strain probiotics (500 billion) to flood your system with good bacteria! This protocol should last 30 days (possibly longer) and minimal sweetener should be consumed along with grains.
After these 3 phases are over, you should be able to consume foods that once triggered you and you should be able to eat “normal” again, so long as you ensure you avoid bad foods as much as possible. It takes effort to rebuild the gut lining, so don’t undo all your hard work by consuming burgers, greasy pizzas, high fructose corn syrup, food colorings etc regularly. I recommend avoiding toxic substances forever! As you go through this protocol, try to turn it into a lifestyle rather than just a fix.
You my want to consider doing a new IgG and IgA food sensitivity text along with a leaky gut test to determine how well you did on this protocol!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Liver Cleansing Beet and Kale Salad
Nothing is better than a big fresh salad packed full of flavour and nutrients to get you through the day!
I love using kale as a base for my salad because it is high in fiber and packed with essential vitamins and minerals. It is also very alkalizing to the body thanks to the chorophyll!
Beets are also a great addition to any salad because they are naturally sweet and rich antioxidants thanks to their vibrant colour. They are GREAT for building the blood and liver because they contain an important nutrient called betaine.
Chickpeas are a great vegan source of protein and are also high in fiber which is great for detoxing the colon. Chickpeas are naturally high in lectins, so it is essential to make sure you soak the beans overnight before cooking. A cool trick you can do is to cook the beans with iodine (I like using seaweed sheets) to help pull out some of the lectins which makes them easier to digest!
Goat feta adds such a delicious savoury flavour to the salad and it is high in minerals like calcium and phosphorous but can definitely be left out to make this salad fully vegan!
Olive oil is my GO-TO oil because it is great for helping too reduce LDL cholesterol and increase HDL (the good) cholesterol!
Apple cider vinegar is the ONLY vinegar we use in our home because it is AMAZING for detoxifying the body and it creates the optimal pH in our bodies for good bacteria to thrive.
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do ! It can also be meal-prepped if you leave the dressing on the side to have quick lunches throughout the week. You could add chicken or organic sprouted tempeh to this if you want a heartier lunch.
Ingredients:
Mix dressing ingredients together and pour over preppared salad. Enjoy!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Children are increasingly developing digestive issues that were once very rare and usually only seen adults. Conditions like bloating, gas, constipation, loose stools, and even eczema, ADHD, and Autism! The state of our health is determined the moment children begin to eat (it actually begins in utero). What we feed them and how they eat is CRUCIAL for determining how their health will be as they grow in adults. It’s SO important to give them a good foundation while they are still young, to ensure they can handle the toxins and stressors that our modern world brings.
It is heartbreaking that the average child in North America consumes copious amounts of deep fried, high carb, high sugar, low quality foods, way too much conventional meats and very little vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds. This leaves their little bodies so depleted but more importantly, it leaves their digestive tracts inflamed, damaged and in poor health.
One of the beautiful things about children is that they will eat whatever you feed them if you start with the right foods right away. They won’t hate vegetables if that is all they have been offered from the start. They will LOVE fruit and wholesome ingredients if that is what has been given initially. If a child is fed juice, candy, cookies, doughnuts, high-sugar cereals, chicken fingers, etc, they will HATE anything that is whole and nourishing such as green leafy vegetables because they don’t taste sweet, salty and fatty. The good part is that while it may be difficult to change a child who is already used to bad foods, it CAN be done and there are definitely things you can start to incorporate NOW that can immediately improve their health while you begin the journey of changing their tastes buds and their preference for unhealthy foods.
Lets get Started!
Tip 1) Give them digestive enzymes ! I love giving my children digestive enzymes if I feel that they have poor digestion. If your child’s diet is lacking in fresh, raw foods, they will have a deficiency in enzymes which are needed to breakdown and digest their foods. If your child is used to consuming a lot of liquid with their meal or are fast eaters, those are even more reason to make sure you add enzymes to their routine, at least until digestion improves. I love Bio Enzymes from Genestra as they taste great for kids, but work great as well !
Tip 2) Try to get your child to have 1 pureed meal/day! No matter what age your child is, a smoothie for breakfast or soup for lunch are the PERFECT way to get nutrients in their body that are “pre-chewed” and therefore soothing to the digestive tract. If your child is very picky, a smoothie will be your best bet! You can add spinach to a chocolate banana smoothie or frozen cauliflower or zucchini to a strawberry banana smoothie without them tasting it! My favourite smoothie combo for kids is:
Tip 3) Soluble fiber! Kids do NOT get enough fiber in their diets and as a result, food gets stuck in their colon and causes indigestion, gas/bloating, foul smelling stools and gas and abdominal pain. Fiber is needed to bind to toxins and eliminate old food stuffs left behind. These foods sit around in the GI tract and putrefy releasing lots of toxins and become a fuel source for bad bacteria. Get that stuff out with 1 tbs of chia seeds or ground flax seeds daily! You can add it to their smoothies baked goods (oatmeal raisin cookies), etc.
Tip 4) Liquid Chlorophyll ! Another nutrient children do not get enough of is chlorophyll from green vegetables. This stuff is powerful for binding to toxins in the colon and the blood and for detoxing the liver. I like giving mint flavoured chlorophyll to my kids first thing in the morning with some water. It tastes delicious and is SO nourishing and GREAT for improving their digestion. Your kids might think drinking “green” water is fun and won’t notice the taste because it tastes slightly minty and that’s it !
Tip 5) L-glutamine is a GREAT amino acid to give to your children. L-glutamine is the main protein used by the cells in our gut to rebuild themselves. It is SO soothing and reduces inflammation in the gut. This is great to rebuild their gut lining and reduce inflammation that occurs from them eating too quick, not chewing well or eating the wrong foods. I give my kids 5g per day! You can add it to a smoothie or some water or even coconut water. It’s flavourless !
Tip 6) My last tip but certainly not least is Probiotics Probiotics Probiotics ! Kids (and adults) do not get enough good bacteria in their guts because they don’t consume fermented foods enough, and they also aren’t playing outdoors as much as they should, thanks to TV and video games! Supplementing with a wide variety of strains at a young age is SO important for ensuring strong gut integrity as they grow. I give my young toddlers the Genestra infant probiotic which gives strains they should get from mothers breastmilk. I give my older son (5 year old) a multi strain from Genestra that contains 16 different strains. Protect and strengthen their guts now, so that they can live a healthy and happy life in the future !
Remember, your children’s health lies in your hands and you’re doing an amazing job! Keep up the great work and take it 1 step at a time! Small changes will go a LONG way!
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Do you seem to bloat every time you eat? Do you get gassy, cramping, etc? Do you have IBS, SIBO, Chrons or some other digestive issue? If so, you should be practicing food combining for better digestion!
Our guts get damaged over time from all the poor-quality foods we eat and the medications and antibiotics we take along with our crazy amounts of stress we undergo daily. Once our digestion gets hindered and our guts become leaky, our liver now has a HUGE toxic load to handle and as a result, it is not able to produce enough bile and enzymes to digest our food. Our pancreas becomes strained as well and this is when we start to notice awful digestion, bloating, fatigue after a meal, etc.
Food combining is a great way to reduce the stress on our guts and organs and it ensures proper digestion and assimilation of food and nutrients!
What is the purpose behind it? The idea is that you only eat foods with roughly the same digestion time together. Protein takes approximately 6-8 hours to digest whereas fruit takes 30 minutes to an hour. If you are to combine those 2 foods in the same meal, the fruit would digest very quickly while the protein takes much longer. This leaves the digested fruit in the gut or stomach to ferment and putrefy causing gas and bloating while it is waiting for the protein to digest. Fats take anywhere from 4-6 hours to digest and carbs take anywhere from 2-3 hours. These are all approximations, but the point is that you want to combine foods that have similar digestion times.
Before I get into the combining rules, I do want to say that you would greatly benefit from adding in pancreatic digestive enzymes before all your meals to assist your pancreas and liver until they are able to function at their peak again. It is also beneficial to steam all vegetables and blend tougher fruits during this time to further reduce stress on the gut.
So…. What are the 3 main food combining rules!?
Excellent combinations
1. Starch with non-starch – Ex: Sweet potatoes on with green beans
2. High protein with non-starch – Ex: Chicken and steamed broccoli
3. Health fat with non-starch – Ex: Avocado and Salmon or Avocado and cucumber
Good combinations
1. High protein with high fat – Ex: Chicken and avocado
2. High fat with High Starch – Ex: Quinoa and avocado (choose complex carbs with fat since they take longer to digest)
3. Starch and Starch – Ex: Sweet potato and quinoa bowl (add fiber or healthy fat like flax seeds to slow digestion and prevent cortisol spike)
Poor Combinations
1. Protein with Sugar (Fruit) – Ex: Chicken followed by dessert or chicken and pineapple. Fruit or dessert should ALWAYS be eaten 3 hours or more after a meal.
Those are the main rules but can be altered and changed based on your health condition. Fruit should always be eaten alone, HOWEVER, if you are diabetic, it should ALWAYS be eaten with healthy fats and/or fiber. For example, Strawberries with coconut flakes or coconut yogurt topped with mango and hemp hearts or chia seeds.
Remember that everyone is different and what works for one, may not necessarily work for the other ! Feel free to contact your doctor or a health practitioner for guidance as you begin to incorporate these rules into your diet.
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
Have you heard of TH1 and Th2 immune cells? probably not! They are extremely important and play a huge role in how our immune system reacts to substances that enter our body. Before we get into what these immune cells are, I do want to say that this article may seem a little heavy or scientific to a lot of people, but try to digest it as best you can. As you go through the article, it should become easier to understand and hopefully you can take away the important points easily enough !
What are they?
TH1 and TH2 are elements of the immune system that should be balanced in order to prevent disease. The immune system is highly specialized and determines when something is friend (nutrients) or foe (virus/toxins). White blood cells (lymphocytes) are designed to attack the bad invaders like viruses, bad bacteria, etc. They start off as unspecialized TH0 cells. Then they become specialized and go to the TH1 or TH2 side of the immune system based on where they are needed. T-helper cells 1 and 2 need to stay in balance in order for the immune system to function optimally and not become dysfunctional.
TH1 cells enhance immunity to respond to viruses, bacteria inside the cells, as well as yeast, fungi and parasites. TH1 also monitor and control the activity of TH2 cells.
TH2 cells respond to allergic or antibody reactions. They help increase antibody production and when out of balance, can cause destruction of “self” (autoimmune). An excess amount of TH2 can decrease cytotoxic T-cell activity and you will not be able to detoxify. TH2 release Interleukin 6 (IL-6) which is a cytokine involved in the inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis. IL-6 leads to increase osteoclastic activity which leads to increased calcium release from bone into the blood leading to osteoporosis.
How do these immune cells become out of balance?
TH1 can drop due to high stress levels (HELLO MODERN WORLD!) and too much cortisol. As a result, TH2 increases, which leads to an increased incidence in cancer, allergies and autoimmune disorders. We live in a FAST-PACED world where everyone is ALWAYS rushing trying to meet deadlines, or working two jobs to feed their families in this over-inflated world. We get road rage because we are rushing, we feel overwhelmed because our to-do lists have more tasks than we can handle and as a result, our stress levels never come down and neither does cortisol. TH1 cells decrease and TH2 increase leading to a imbalance.
TH1 assists in the activation of suppressor T-cells. Suppressor T-cells are meant to slow down B-cells and cytotoxic T-cells. If the suppressor T-cells are malfunctioning or deficient due to a decrease in TH1, the cytotoxic T-cells may take over and start killing healthy cells (autoimmune). This leads to increased immune stimulation, followed by a crash and potential for autoimmune disorders. This is why a lot of people find themselves with an autoimmune condition after a traumatic event or stressful event (e.g. a parent or sibling passing away). They get stressed, TH1 decreases which leads to TH2 dominance.
If you have chronic infection, one tends to dominate the other and then your body can’t attack the foreign invaders properly. There is also TH3 and TH17 but that is for another article because it is quite complex and I don’t want to overwhelm you.
How can you tell which one is dominating? We can go about it a couple ways!
1. Blood tests can be done however they cost money which many of us don’t have
2. Self diagnosis is a great and FREE way to determine if you have an imbalance and which way it is leaning. If you take a supplement that supports TH1, it will push you even more to the TH1 dominant side and you will start to feel worse. If you take a TH2-pusher supplement and you feel better, then it means you’re TH1 dominant. If you feel worse, it means you’re TH2 dominant. If you take glutathione with these supplements, it will help to give you quicker results because it pushes toxins out of the cells.
How Prevalent is this imbalance?
From what I’ve seen, TH2 polarization is far more common than TH1 polarization. This can be due to several factors: Systemic overgrowth of problematic yeast in the body (Candida albicans)
-Abundance of viruses (Everyone has them!)
-The never ending amounts of stress which lowers TH1 and therefor favours TH2 polarization
-The over-use of steroids (creams, injections, etc) in the North America favors TH2 polarization
-The lack or probiotics in our diets
-The lack of nutrients in our diet that influence immunity (Zinc, Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin K)
-The prevalence of Intestinal Permeability (leaky gut syndrome) and dysbiosis, which not only creates inflammation but uses up all of your glutathione (which is needed for TH1 immunity).
Symptoms and Diseases of TH2 Polarization:
Here are some symptoms and diseases that are associated with TH2 polarization that can help with self-diagnosis. Remember, TH2 cells command the allergic and anti-parasite side of the immune system so when trying to parasite cleanse, don’t lower TH2 too much!
-Eczema (Atopic Dermatitis)
-Asthma
-Allergies (both airborne and anaphylactic)
-Histamine intolerance
-IBS & IBD
-Frequent ear and sinus infections
-Chronic viral infection(s) - Examples: Epstein Barr Virus (EBV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Herpes Simplex 1, 2, and 6, HIV, etc
Mucous in stool *Note: Mucous in stool often means you have a parasite which ends up pushing you into TH2 polarization. In this scenario, suppressing TH2 is not recommended.*
Symptoms and Diseases of TH1 Polarization:
-Sudden, extreme autoimmune flares that seem to come out of nowhere. Often they will involve a lot of joint of muscle inflammation and pain. TH1 polarization is quite rare especially with autoimmune clients. However, if you’re autoimmune has been in remission and overnight you wake up to a 100% complete flare, it could be due to TH1 polarization.
-However, MOST of my clients with autoimmune disorders who got tested were TH2 dominant, not TH1.
Here is a list of TH1 stimulating compounds:
-Astragalus
-Echinacea (often people take this and wake up in a huge flare, and that is because it overstimulates the immune system and should ALWAYS be avoided if you have autoimmune disease)
-Glutathione
-Medicinal Mushrooms (Maitake and Beta-Glucans are common)
-Melissa Oficinalis (Lemon balm)
-Panax Ginseng
-Chlorella
-Grape Seed Extract
Here is a list of TH2 stimulating compounds:
-Caffeine
-Green Tea Extract
-Pine Bark Extract
-Lycopene (found in tomatoes and other red fruits excluding strawberries and cherries and should always be avoided if you have autoimmune disease)
-Resveratrol (found in grape skin, sprouted peanuts, and cocoa)
-Curcumin (found in turmeric)
-Genistin (found in soybeans)
-Quercetin (a flavanoid found in many fruits and vegetables, such as onions, berries and kale and has great anti-histamine effects)
At the end of the day, if you have autoimmune disease, you wan to focus more on TH1 stimulators (except Echinacea) and try to avoid several of the TH2 stimulators like caffeine, nightshades, etc. Of course there are nutrients in both categories that you SHOULD intake daily such as, Quercetin, curcumin, chlorella, Medicianl Mushrooms, glutathione, etc. My intention with this article was for you to understand the importance of BALANCE in the body and the critical effects that stress has on our bodies. Deep breath (50 times/day), eat nourishing and alkalizing foods and take some TH1 supporting nutrients and you will do great !
Written by: Marla Pietruszko BSc RHN
“The Doctor of the Future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease”
- Thomas Edison