Nutritional Tips..

Being a Doctor of Chiropractic, I incorporate nutrition into my philosophy of wellness it's not about a certain diet, but about a lifestyle.  Here are a few of the items that can help you along the way.

 

Healthy Oils

 

Healthy Oils

There are many healthy oils, such as olive oil, sesame seed oil, flaxseed oil, grape seed oil and canola oil. To maximize their health benefits good oils need to be used properly. Keep it in a dark bottle or in your refrigerator—that's how to keep it healthy so it doesn't go rancid. Healthy oils are delicate, you have to treat them delicately.

Overheating good oils during cooking can damage them. Don't cook the oil, cook the food, which means put a tiny bit of oil in the pan, put the food in the oil and then put the food with the oil on it in the pan—that way the oil is preserved. It doesn't heat up and it doesn't get damaged by the heat.

 

Garlic

 

Garlic is great for our bodies. It actually helps the bacteria in your intestines and it also relaxes the arteries and it has a benefit with cancer. It's a great thing to add to your diet. It's present in a lot of cultures—we've forgotten it in America.
Salad dressing made with fresh garlic, lemon and olive oil is one of Oprah's favorites. It's a perfect dressing, It's the best way to have olive oil because you haven't heated it and you haven't damaged it.

 

Tomato Sauce

 

Eating 10 tablespoons of tomato sauce per week. Inside the tomato is a chemical called lycopene. This chemical has a wonderful effect—it's an antioxidant.
There are added benefits from eating tomato sauce or paste as opposed to plain tomatoes. A raw tomato is fine, too, but if you get a little fat with it—either with some nuts or a little olive oil and dressing—then it's perfect. It helps you absorb it better into your intestinal system.

 

Spinach

 

Jam-packed with nutrients, spinach is out-of-sight. This is the best thing for your eyes, It's better than carrots, and a lot of macular degeneration—which is a tragic ailment that affects vision—can actually be avoided by eating these kinds of foods that are rich in carotenoids and also have folic acids and a lot of other benefits. Sauté spinach with a little garlic and olive oil for a perfect side dish.

 

Raw Nuts

 

To maximize the benefits of the healthy oils found in nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts or walnuts they should be eaten raw and stored in the refrigerator. When you roast a nut, the healthy oils that are in there become damaged. The oils aren't supposed to be heated and damaged—they're supposed to be taken in their natural form.

 

Pomegranates (there perfect time of year to enjoy them)

Research on the health benefits of pomegranates has shown promising results. We've done studies on them showing how they actually can change the way your arteries age—it's a very potent antioxidant, It also probably affects cancer rates, especially prostate cancer, but those studies haven't been finished yet.
Not only do pomegranates have extraordinary health benefits—they taste good, too. It's a little sweet for me so I mix it with water, but pomegranates or their juice are worth trying out.

What is Wellness?

The main difference between wellness care and standard medical care is that wellness care seeks to turn on the natural healing ability. Wellness care does not add something to the system, instead it  removes anything that might interfere with normal function. Wellness care trusts that the body would know what to do if nothing were interfering with it. Standard medical care, on the other hand, seeks to treat a symptom by adding something from the outside – a medication, a surgery or procedure.  

Inside Out vs. Outside In

If a patient has high blood pressure, a standard medical approach would be to choose a drug that lowers blood pressure, and ask the patient to take the drug. This may serve to lower the blood pressure, but ignores the underlying cause that is making the blood pressure high, and runs the risk of side effects complicating the person’s recovery. Whether it’s a nutritional issue, faulty control by the nerve system or a manifestation of stress, the medication could decrease the blood pressure, leaving the problem causing the symptom of high blood pressure unaddressed.

The Wellness Approach

Wellness is a state of optimal conditions for normal function… and then some. The wellness approach is to look for underlying causes of any disturbance or disruption (which may or may not be causing symptoms at the time) and make whatever interventions and lifestyle adjustments would optimize the conditions for normal function. That environment encourages natural healing, and minimizes the need for invasive treatment, which should be administered only when absolutely necessary. When the body is working properly, it tends to heal effectively, no matter what the condition. When the body heals well and maintains itself well, then there is another level of health that goes beyond “asymptomatic” or “pain-free” which reveals an open-ended opportunity for vitality, vibrant health, and an enhanced experience of life.This is true for mental and emotional health as well as physical health. While some people may suffer psychological disorders, creating an atmosphere of mental and emotional wellness will address all but the most serious problems.