Tag: health

Iridology – reading the eyes.

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Scott suggested that he contribute to the blog, so he has written todays post.

I recently attended a workshop that was really interesting so I thought it was time I wrote a post for the blog.

Irises, eyes

Learning about my eyes

One of my lecturers from college held an Iridology workshop in her home and I was lucky enough to be invited. Iridology is the study of the eyes to help determine health, although I have discovered it is so much more. I have had photos of my eyes taken by a student naturopath at the Endeavour College Clinic. The lecturer was able to read my eyes from them. What she was able to discern from my eyes just blew me away. This is a person who only knows me as a face in a classroom, but she spoke about me like she had known me all my life.

What I learned

You see Iridology looks not just at your physical health but your personality too. I don’t mean that it is some kind of psychic thing but rather a way of reading your eyes. Then using this knowledge as a way to make better decisions regarding health. For example it was determined that I have a strong constitution, these are graded from 1 to 5, I am a 1. It may seem on face value that is very desirable but it also means that I can tend to push myself to hard sometimes. Compared to a person who is a 4 or 5 who is better at knowing when to stop and take a rest to avoid injury.

Also identified are 4 basic personality types, these are Jewel, Stream, Shaker and Flower; I am a Stream. I won’t go in to all the traits of this type but the description fits my personality. There are many Iridology charts that explain all sorts of things that are indicated in the eyes. As a beginner I plan on sticking to the basics until I learn more.

Many people tend to think of Iridology as some kind of voodoo, however there are some aspects that medical science agrees with. Take the cholesterol ring, this is a kind of smoky ring around the outside of the iris that indicates, you guessed it high cholesterol.

How does it work?

It is not yet fully understood how Iridology works, but the theory is that the iris contains nerve fibres that are connected to various parts of the body through a nerve pathway in the brain. As we experience different things a small marker is left in these nerve fibresHowever it happens, I am a convert and I plan to keep learning as much as I can about this fascinating subject during my studies, so I can use it in my own practice in the future.

Till the next post,

Live clean n prosper

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A Seeded Banana Bread recipe

Seeded Banana bread

I have been looking for ideas for morning or afternoon tea. Sometimes a low sugar, low or gluten free cake is an acquired taste. I wanted something that would also appeal to our young nieces and nephew when they visit. So over the past couple of weeks I have been experimenting with different recipes.

The 2 best ones so far, have been Carrot Cake cupcakes and Seeded Banana Bread. The Banana Bread was the stand out winner. It was fairly easy to make, was moist and flavoursome. This recipe is great as there is very little sugar and the seeds add some extra health benefits.

This adapted recipe is from a book called ‘ A Modern Way To Eat’ by Anna Jones.

I did make some small changes to the recipe and it turned out really good. The next time I make it, I will add some more spices and that is how I will share the recipe with you today.

Banana Bread Ingredients

125 g plain flour (I used Kamut, an ancient wheat flour)

100 g Almond meal

25 g Coconut flour

100 g dextrose (or light brown sugar)

30 g Maple syrup

100 g seeds (I used 50 g Sesame & 50 g Golden Flaxseed)

a pinch of salt

1 teasp baking power

2 teasp Cinnamon

1 teasp Nutmeg

3 medium sized ripe bananas

grated zest & juice of 1 lemon

2 tablesp Olive oil

2 tablesp Coconut yoghurt (or natural yoghurt)

2 eggs

½ teasp Vanilla essence/paste

Method

Preheat oven to 200’ C and prepare a 450 g loaf tin.

Put all the dry ingredients (plain flour, Almond meal, Coconut flour, dextrose, salt, baking powder, Cinnamon & nutmeg) into a large bowl and mix well.

Put the bananas into a food processor with the lemon juice and zest, Olive oil, Coconut yoghurt, eggs, Maple syrup and Vanilla.

Give it a quick blitz so the bananas are broken down, and then slowly add the dry ingredients. Don’t over mix; just do enough to ensure it is all well combined.

Pour the mix into your tin and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.

We found it’s delicious on it’s own and goes really well with a cup of tea or coffee.

However I like a thick slice, warmed in the toaster and then spread with a little butter.

I hope you enjoy this Banana Bread as well.

Till the next post,

Live Clean n Prosper.

Sleep and how it impacts our Health

Last week I wrote about sleep and while doing my research I came across so much information.

So today I thought I would continue with this topic and share some articles from the Heart Institute I found interesting.

New research from Australia’s Sleep Health Foundation reveals that 33 to 45% of Australian adults suffer from inadequate sleep.

What impact does this have on our health and wellbeing? And does inadequate sleep affect our ability to exercise and improve fitness?

The Sleep Health Foundation says sleep is a fundamental biological requirement for human health. A variety of health problems and chronic diseases including coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes have been linked to specific sleep disorders.

It seems that getting some good quality zzzzzz’s should be high on our evening agenda.

Does sleep affect your ability to workout and improve your fitness?

The short answer is yes. Movement and wellness specialist Priscilla Flynn of In2great Fitness says she can tell when a client hasn’t been sleeping well.

“We train with heart rate monitors which gives us the ability to check in with how well our clients are coping with the stress of the workout,” she says.

”On days with poor sleep, heart rate efficiency will be compromised. Clients will tend to struggle to increase heart rate intensity, or their intensity stays high and they can’t recover.”

If we don’t sleep well we are more prone to weight gain, cravings, mood disorders, overeating, pain, and a general lack of wellness.

Sleep or exercise – what’s more important?

You can’t really have one without the other. It’s important to consider a person’s metabolic reserve – basically how much gas is in the tank.

“Good sleep quality will increase a person’s metabolic reserve, making them more resilient to stress of any kind. Having a good sleep means you can train longer, or more intensely, before you get depleted,” Priscilla says.

“A lack of sleep decreases metabolic reserve which means the person has a reduced capacity to cope with additional stress. This means they have a reduced capacity to train optimally, and therefore a reduced ability to get the results they seek”.

“If you’re really exhausted, it’s better to modify your workout and listen to your body.”

Too little sleep?

Research also suggests that getting too little sleep can be bad for your heart.

It has been established that getting too little sleep can lead to increased risk of diabetes. This new research shows it can also increase the chances of certain types of cardiovascular disease, especially in women and the elderly.

The study found those getting less than four hours of sleep can increase the likelihood of death by some types of heart disease, like heart attacks and angina.

So there you have it from the experts, the perfect reason to get a good night sleep. The Heart Institute also emphasises that the study suggests that too much sleep can also have a negative effect. It is recommended that you do not have more than 10 hours on a regular basis. (Source – The Heart Institute)

As with most things heart related (and health in general), moderation seems to be key.

 

Till the next post,

 

Live Clean n Prosper.