A Beautiful Nutrient Boosting Breakfast

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Blogging on Good Food

The porridge has taken a back seat in this house as the warm sunshine streams through the window in the morning so I would like to share with you the wonderful breakfast I have been enjoying, which also happens to be vegan.

Low blood sugar equals low blood flow to the brain so eating breakfast is key to not only feeling good but also having a productive day.

I start with a huge dollop of soya natural yoghurt and sweeten it with date syrup.  Date syrup is yummy, a wonderful alternative sweetener that I had at a friend’s recently when she had used it to sweeten our dessert of strawberries and kiwi fruit.  Dates are high in iron, protein and minerals and have a laxative effect – a great thing in the morning especially if you suffer with constipation.  They are good for intestinal health encouraging the friendly bacteria.

Over the yoghurt I chop a banana and apple and add blueberries if I have them, I got loads cheaply at the end of the day in the market recently, and these fruits are all good fibre and full of vitamins and antioxidants.  Over this I add a tablespoon of oat bran which I learnt from a fellow reflexology student recently, swells to many times its volume in the stomach as it soaks up liquid there thus giving a feeling of satiety.  This is a highly nutritious food that has been overlooked in the past, being used for such things as stuffing mattresses.  It helps maintain a good blood sugar level so works as a preventative to diabetes and the fibres are rich in beta D- glucan which is beneficial to the intestinal tract, again helping constipation and preventing up to 10% of fat absorption so is used by some wanting to lose weight.

Next I add a tablespoon of organic ground flaxseed, ground because it is easier to digest and is another help to relieving constipation.  It is also high in fibre, helps to reduce bad blood cholesterol, so is good for the heart and is high in omega 3, necessary for a healthy circulatory system and brain function and well-oiled joints.  Ground flaxseed can also be added to biscuits, muffins and bread to boost their nutritional content.

Over the top of the mix I add a tablespoon of pumpkin and sunflower seeds.  They both contain tryptophan, an amino acid that helps produce serotonin, an important neurotransmitter that relieves tension and is an antidepressant.  Pumpkin seeds are high in zinc which protects against osteoporosis.  Sunflower seeds have a high level of vitamin E which has an anti-oxidising effect, helping prevent free radicals from oxidising cholesterol and sticking to blood vessels.  They are also high in selenium which is needed for protein metabolism, and copper which is vital for the function of enzymes which provide strength and flexibility for bones and joint elasticity.  I then finish off with ½ a teaspoon of cinnamon, an excellent anti-inflammatory that contains manganese, iron and calcium.

So this breakfast is great for blood sugar levels, digestion and maintaining a healthy heart and bone structure.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

Dietary Tips I am using so far this Year

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As part of my therapy sessions I often discuss lifestyle with my clients so I thought I would blog about some of the things I have found useful and have started doing regularly myself, this New Year of the Chinese Dragon!

First off is breakfast and I find I need warming up during the winter months, so out comes the bag of organic oats for porridge and what makes it scrumptious is a liberal dusting of ½ teaspoon of CINNAMON.  Now I already know that cinnamon is soothing for the digestive system, and is a known anti-inflammatory, helping to keep the arteries healthy, but what I didn’t realise is that Chinese herbalists recommend it for diarrhoea, fever and menstrual problems.  So off to a good start then!  Adding a chopped BANANA gives me a potassium boost which is essential for healthy nerve function and building of muscles and normal metabolic function.

For a long time a friend has been recommending a daily spoon of blackstrap MOLASSES because it contains silica and calcium flouride, which helps keep the blood vessels in our bodies flexible and supple.  In fact it contains: carbohydrate, protein, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, phosphorus, iron, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, copper, zinc, chromium, ash, silica and other trace minerals.  It is reportedly beneficial for arthritis, joint pain, skin disorders (dermatitis, psoriasis and eczema), indigestion, constipation, high and low blood pressure it also improves mental alertness and strengthens nails, teeth, bones and hair.  Well, I have been taking an overflowing teaspoonful a day. Remember to keep the jar in the fridge once opened.  One of the main reasons that molasses is such a bonus is and because it contains so many trace minerals and salts, is rich in B Vitamins, particularly Vitamin B6 and contains a germicide that kills harmful bacteria in the intestinal tract.  It has been proven that disease cannot flourish in alkaline conditions and molasses has an ‘alkalinising’ effect on the body.  Unfortunately, many diets are heavily acid so we need to redress this imbalance. Molasses is an incredibly nutrient rich food.

One to two teaspoons of molasses along with 1-2 teaspoons of lemon juice in boiled water provides a health giving drink with added vitamin C.

KALE is being billed as ‘the new beef’ because it has more iron than beef per calorie and more calcium per calorie than milk.  It is an anti-inflammatory food and inflammation causes arthritis, heart disease and a number of auto-immune diseases.  I like to wash my kale and stir fry it in a small amount of olive oil, it really is very tasty and so nutritious.

Now for some foods that I have been using that help boost mood, especially during these darker months.  I have been making small vine ripened TOMATOES almost a daily event in my diet and that is because the skins of tomatoes contain a fat soluble phytonutrient that protects brain fat called lycopene. Lycopene helps prevent the build-up of pro-inflammatory compounds that are linked to depression.  Apparently, drizzling olive oil over the tomatoes helps absorption.  Canned tomatoes are not so good because bisphenol A is a synthetic oestrogen, found in the resin lining of the cans and because tomatoes are quite acid, the bpa has been found to leak into the tomatoes and can cause hormonal disruption.

ASPARAGUS will be going in my shopping basket again this week.  It contains a high level of folate as well as tryptophan which help create serotonin, a compound needed to create mood regulating transmitters.  So a good food to help keep our mood up, especially when the sun is lower in the sky and people who suffer depression are generally found to have low levels of folate in their blood.

DARK CHOCOLATE, preferably organic and containing the highest percentage of cocoa, cocoa being very nutrient dense, contains antioxidant properties which protect and strengthen the circulatory system.  It benefits mood, having high levels of folate, which helps circulation of blood to the brain so is helpful in improving concentration too.  Milk chocolate contains butter fat as well as cocoa fat which allows it to pass through the digestion more quickly than the dark chocolate, whose slower digestion helps curb appetite because the body feels full for longer. I have been buying a bar of the darkest chocolate and having a few squares a day and this has meant I am not grazing on less healthy snacks.

Have fun trying these great foods in your diet, although I do advise trial and error as everyone’s digestion is different and you never know if you might be allergic or intolerant to something.