Reducing Anxiety and more Shopping List Items to Transition to Health

 

Holistic Habits by Cheryl A. Mothes, Ph.D. Natural Health Nutrition Counselor

Content is a daily radio script from my KHIS radio spot - tune in at 6:15 (CST) every morning to Justin and Meredith’s morning show on 89.9 FM. 

Sarah Wilson has authored books on sugar addictions and recently authored a book about her own struggles with anxiety. People used to think that anxiety and depression were caused by a deficit of serotonin in the brain. Science now shows that 80 to 90 percent of the serotonin in our body is made in our digestive tract, so the health of our gut is critical. Chronic inflammation, linked to almost all chronic diseases, is also linked to depression, anxiety, and other mood disorders. That is why eating an anti-inflammatory diet improves our mood and overall mental health. Sugar is one of the biggest culprits when it comes to chronic inflammation as are unhealthy fats, preservatives, chemicals, and whey, which is found in milk. Reducing anxiety is another great reason to have a Meatless Monday with plant-based whole foods! 

We have been building your shopping list for the past few weeks and hanging out in the produce section for veggies and fruits is key! Then add hummus, unsweetened almond milk or oat milk, black beans, garbanzo beans, red beans, pinto beans, and lentils and if you buy canned rather than dry beans, try to get low-sodium ones. Buy brown rice, quinoa, oats, and barley - they are GREAT grains for our gut microbiome, and the only bread we recommend is sprouted bread such as Ezekiel bread, found in the freezer section. Remember to buy organic food whenever possible and have a terrific transition Tuesday everyone, transitioning to better health! 

We mentioned Monday that Sarah Wilson has authored books on sugar addictions and about her own struggles with anxiety. She shares that we are too often engaging in lifestyle practices that are emulating the anxious response in our brains. Constant time on our phones mimics the anxious response in our brains and gives us an artificial injection of it, triggering the anxious response. Maybe you are old enough to remember how we were "BC" – before cell phones. If we had a call, we would get up, go to the phone and many times walk over and grab a pen and paper to write something down. Now we sit and do it all on our phones with no space or time to process it. Getting up and down helped with getting more movement, but it also gave us time for our brains to think, respond, and ponder as we wrote it down. We hear it all the time – limit time on our phones, tablets, computers, and televisions. Instead of watching TV for four hours a night, reduce it to two and play cards, do puzzles, read books, or go for walks. Try it for one week and see how much less you are stressed!

Earlier, we talked about dealing with anxiety and pulling away from our devices. Additionally, most of us do not have a Sabbath anymore, or a day of rest to pause and reflect, and in the blue zones, where people live longest and best, they do. We used to go to church and then hang out all day together, doing things outside or just talking around the lunch table. We do have an incredible capacity to deal with stress, but we cannot cope with not truly connecting with ourselves and our community. Talk as a family to decide the time you can set aside for rest. Or pick a morning you can pull out of the office each week to do some deep reading. Join groups in the community that socialize and play games or walk. Research shows that you cannot walk and be anxious at the same time. Walking out in nature is even better—there are actual compounds in trees and in nature that dampen adrenaline. The more time we can recreate, especially outdoors and with others, the better!

 It is Fix-it Friday and WOW for Dilled Veggie Toasts!

 Ingredients 

2 cups fresh sweet corn kernels

2 cloves garlic very thinly sliced.

1 cup halved grape tomatoes.

1 medium zucchini quartered lengthwise and sliced.

3 Tbsp white wine vinegar

¼ cup chopped fresh dill

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 8-ounce carton of oil-free hummus

4 large slices of hearty whole grain bread, toasted.

 In an extra-large nonstick skillet cook corn over medium-high until just beginning to char, stirring frequently and adding water, 1 to 2 Tbsp at a time, as needed to prevent sticking. Stir in garlic and remove from heat. Stir in tomatoes, zucchini, and vinegar. Stir in dill and season with pepper. Spread hummus over toast slices then spoon vegetable mixture over each. If desired, garnish with additional fresh dill.

 From the Archives:

Yes, it is AUGUST, and did you know that August is Summer Sun Safety Month? It makes sense - but did you also know that plant-protective nutrients can function as internal sunscreens to help stop harmful UV rays? Yes, antioxidants are powerful in protecting us from sunburn, UV-induced skin damage, aging, and even skin cancer. The best foods to incorporate into our diet to provide the nutrients for that INTERNAL sun protection are avocados, carrots, dark chocolate, goji berries, grapes, green leafy vegetables, oranges, pomegranates, green tea, and watermelon. So, on this meatless Monday, load up on these great summer foods to protect your skin, but use an all-natural sunscreen too! Have a marvelous Monday!

Let us talk more about the power of plants:  a large, 30-year study showed that those eating a mostly plant-based diet were 32 percent less likely to die from a cardiovascular condition, and 25 percent less likely to die from any other cause. They also found that if you move to a fully plant-based diet and stay there for one to three months, virtually everyone switched their taste preference to love those vegetable, fruit, and grain dishes and stopped their cravings for meat and dairy products. So, hang in there for just a few weeks so you can live longer and live stronger, and have a terrific Tuesday!

 One of the best ways to make sure that we get the phytochemicals (that fight inflammation and boost our immune systems), vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants we need is to "eat the rainbow". That means deeply pigmented fruits and veggies in at least five different colors - it assures that we get ALL those great micronutrients and get them in the right combinations to work together. Remember that the magic of our health and immune systems begins in our gut, and our gut functions best when we eat a widely diverse array of foods - strive for 30 different nuts, seeds, beans, fruits, vegetables, and grains every week. And have a wonderful Wednesday everyone and improve your wealth of health by eating the rainbow!

 Yesterday we talked about the importance of "eating the rainbow" to make sure you get five dark-colored foods every day - and there are apps for it! It is called Eat the Rainbow Food Journal or Eat Five or VegHunter. They will help you get a larger variety of green, blue, purple, red, yellow, orange, and brown foods we need! We know that our gut health is critical to our immune systems and preventing disease - and it is exciting to know that shifting to healthier plant-based foods can cause a big shift in our gut in less than five days. Great enzymes, probiotics, and prebiotics can be added to our gut to boost health and wellness. So, get one of those apps and live longer and live stronger everyone!

 Let us talk more about eating the colors - meaning deeply pigmented foods to boost our health. Dark greens have cancer-blocking chemicals, and are high in folate and calcium for stronger bones, muscles, and heart regulation - think spinach, green tea, avocados, asparagus, and kiwi. Blue and purple foods literally wipe out free radicals, boost our brain health, reduce inflammation, and delay cellular aging. Add blueberries, blackberries, black grapes, and eggplant to your shopping list. Red foods like apples, beets, cherries, red peppers, and tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a potent scavenger of gene-damaging free radicals. Yellow and orange foods are high in vitamin C and beta-carotene, they inhibit tumors, detoxify our bodies, reduce inflammation, and boost our immune systems. Add apricots, cantaloupe, carrots, oranges, and mango to your day. Lastly, get lots of great nuts and beans to eat dark brown foods and gain healthy fat and protein, and lower cholesterol. Power up your plates on this fantastic Friday by eating the rainbow!

 References:  Natural Awakenings, July 2021, and Darin Olien.com