JUICE IS AWESOME!!! (and I'm not talking about poppers!)
Juicing has been a really significant and important part of our (myself and my girls) morning routine! Toddlers just love juice and when you get them to help you feed the fruit and veg into the juicer they think thats extra special! ....... and it gets them away from the TV... :)
Raw Juices can save your life
"I have seen it work miracles in some of my patients who were stuck in the merry-go-round of drug therapy. The juice from raw fruits and vegetables has powerful healing and rejuvenating properties that can help people with all sorts of health problems" Dr Sandra Cobot
I have spoken to other mama's and it seems a common occurance to have your young children screw their noses up, while pushing there dinner plate of yummy food away to the other side of the table. They just dont realise how much love, preparation and thought you have put in, not to mention the time. I find this a real disappoint to experience food rejection and feel a fraction hurt when my kids dont even want to try one spoon full... ("please just one, try it, you'll love it!" I plead)
My girls are usually fine with eating their dinner, however lately Zola has become very picky with what she puts in her mouth, as she would rather keep eating nutty snacks, olives, cheese, rice crackers and some form of savory chips! She has been knocking back beans, carrots and most green stuf (except broccoli!)
So I have been making more time for morning juicing.... and getting those vital vitamins and minerals into my girls little bodies with ease!
The juicer I use is called a Compact Juicer. I love it because it slowly squeezes the juice out allowing all of the vital living enzymes, minerals and vitamins to remain. These living enzymes assist with the digestive process, which means your gut, liver and pancreas do not have to work too hard to provide you with vital nutrients. Juicing can reduce acidity and toxicity in the body by stimulating the function of the bowels, liver and kidney, which increases the breakdown and elimination of toxic chemicals and waste products from the body. You can also use this type of juicer to make lots of other fresh things like nut butters, wheat grass juice, baby food, purees, fresh fruit sorbets (with no sugar added), pasta and noodles, mince, dips and salsa and it also grinds coffee beans! Very handy little machine.
One of our favourite concoctions:
(that Zola and Indie are making here)
4 or 5 Granny Smith Apples
1 Carrot
1 Cucumber
2 Sticks of Celery
Handful of Green Beans
1 Lemon/Lime, peeled
other additions:
For a sweeter juice add some yummy fresh pineapple - useful for arthritis, bronchitis, asthma (and assists in weight reduction which is always a good thing to know after having kidlets!)
Ruby Red Beetroots - liver cleanser and great for iron deficiency
Immune booster - garlic or ginger (both a natural antibiotic for the whole body!)
Oranges - natural antibiotic, anti inflammatory and cleanser
Cabbage - detoxing the liver, cleansing skin of acne, digestive and intestinal aid
Watermelon - helpful in depression
Tomatoes - helpful in high blod pressure and reducing cholesterol
CHEERS!
Healing Properties of certain fruits and vegetables:
Apples - High in soluble fibre pectin, which soothes the intestines and reduces constipation. Improves colonic flora, reduces unfriendly bacteria & parasites. Excellent for childhood diarrhoea.
Broccoli - Excellent for weight loss.
Helpful for high blood pressure, liver problems and constipation.
Carrots - Excellent for skin problems, reduces imflammation of the digestive and intestinal tract. Liver cleanser and tonic. Increases vitality and vigour. Contains an insulin-like compound, therefore can be used in juice mixtures for diabetics. Promotes high quality breast milk and healthy pregnancy, great for growing kids!
Celery - Reduces acidity, which is beneficial in cases like arthritis, toxicity and gout. Natural diuretic, which reduces fluid retention. Calms the nervous system. Excellent for weight reduction as it lessons a 'sweet tooth'. Helpful for insomnia, kidney/bladder problems and constipation.
Green Beans - are thought to strengthen the kidneys and liver, according to Oriental Medicine. Excellent source of protein. Help keep blood sugar levels stable, as their glucose content is released slowly. Great for diabetics.
Cucumber - Has excellent diuretic properties, reducing fluid retention. Anti - inflammatory, reduces hair loss, high potassium levels helpful for high blood pressure. Reduces acidity in cases of arthritis and reduces kidney stones.
Spinach - Heals the lining of the digestive tract. Reduces arthritic pain, fatigue, contipation and heavy menstral bleeding. Improves vision.
Music, food for the soul..................
As I write this with a huge smile on my face, I am excited, exhilarated and energised at 10pm at night listening to Triple J, Roots n All by Sarah Howells (who just happens to be the funkiest presenter ever) I have decided that thursday nights are my stay up late and research nights just so I can listen to this wonderful presenter. The music she plays is fresh, unique, folkie, indie, bluesy and just makes your heart sing...... la la la la la :)
'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' by Tiki Taane very beautful version......
Juzz (my husband) just came down to my office and asked if I had been smoking some happy herbs :) ha ha well, no I replied, "I feel fantastic! Who needs that, I'm writing about my passion, natural health, spreading the JOY and listening to terrific tunes...." oh and the girls are peacefully asleep which helps!
When I am cooking in the kitchen or cleaning (picking up after my fabulously creative, inquisitively messy gals), I love listening to Florence and the Machine, Jabaru, Camille, Mamas and Papas, Sia and Xavier Rudd just to name a few.......
What music do you love to listen to while sweeping away or wiping the benches?
"Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food" - Hippocrates
Thought I would mention two very common illnesses that I have come across many times in my Raindrop Practice;
These recipes are from Dr Sandra Cabot's book - Raw Juices can Save your Life!
ARTHRITIS
Some possible causes: Excess process foods, dehydration, trauma to joints from sports injuries, excess weight, lack of exercise...
Celery Balancer Juice:
This juice will reduce acidity and inflammation in the joints. Helpful for all types of arthritis.
4 stems of celery
1 medium carrot
2 medium apples
20g alfalfa sprouts
1/2 clove garlic
1 sprig parsley
THYROID DYSFUNCTION - Underactive Thyroid
Some possible causes: Deficiency of minerals such as iodine and selenium, auto-immune disease, viral infection of thyroid gland, genetic factors; family history.
Juice for the Thyroid Gland:
1cm fresh ginger root
1 red radish and leaf
2 carrots
1 medium beetroot and top
3 lettuce leaves
1 tsp kelp powder (stir thru juice at end)
*helpful natural supplements:
-Kelp and other seaweeds (wakame salad from Lawnton seafood house is delicious, stir through your salads) these are an excellent source of iodine and other trace minerals to support thyroid function.
-Young Living has lots of synthetic free natural supplements, one that the EODR
recommends is Sulfurzyme. These provide temporary relief from pain, containing three active ingredients, including MSM, NingXia wolfberry and Copaiba essential oil. (helpful for both Arthritis and Thyroid)
One more juice idea..... Beetroot, apple, lemon and celery with.... 30ml of NingXia Red! This is the power juice that will wake up your body with a nutrient infusion of epic proportions!!! The most potent antioxidant juice on the planet!!
More on NingXia Red Juice in my next blog....... stay tuned :)
Well, I hope I have inspired someone to open their pantry, get out their juicer, blow off the dust and head down to their local country markets. It gives you a sense of empowerment creating your own personal flavours and watching your little ones eat half of the chopped ingredients before stuffing it into the shoot.
Thank you for spending the time reading my blog in this crazy, busy, fast paced world.
Please take a moment and share with your friends....
Enjoy your JOYOUS juice,
Joyous Health and Harmony,
Love Amy***
www.naturallyjoyous.com
www.facebook.com/naturallyjoyous
References:
RAW JUICES can save your life; Dr Sandra Cabot, 2001
EODR; Essential Oil Desk Reference, 4th Ed, 2009
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