Olwen Anderson's Blog

Inflammation isn’t a bad thing; it’s actually a healthy response designed to fix problems and enable healing. When you cut yourself, or some tissue is damaged, immune cells rush to the scene. Blood vessels in the area enlarge and become ‘leaky’ enabling your body’s repair team to get to the area. When they arrive, they attack any invading bacteria or viruses, and alert the rest of your immune system. The area becomes a battlefield, and all the activity irritates nerve endings, causing pain.

Eventually the mess is cleared away, and your body begins the healing process. In some disorders, what you eat can affect the amount of pain you’ll feel, and how fast the condition clears. This is particularly the case in arthritis, clogged arteries, auto-immune conditions,  skin problems, and even period pain.

For example, in rheumatoid joints, chronic inflammation is the order of the day. If you develop this condition, your immune system is attacking healthy tissue and creating inflammation as if the joint tissue was an invader. This produces a lot of debris from dead cells, and waste products that don’t just irritate nerve endings, but causes extreme pain. Because circulation in joint areas is slower, the debris from inflammation doesn’t get cleared away fast enough. In the morning, after several hours of sleep, joints feel stiff and painful until you get moving.

Some foods are classified as pro-inflammatory and others anti-inflammatory, depending on the degree to which they can affect this biochemical reactions. You can look up the inflammatory factor number of a specific food at www.nutritiondata.self.com . In general, the foods that are most pro-inflammatory are those with a high proportion of saturated fat: For example, butter, and coconut oil.  (Although milk and fresh coconut aren’t anywhere near as inflammatory.). Foods with a high proportion of saturated fat, like puff pastry, are also strongly inflammatory.

Foods high in unsaturated fat, like olive oil and oily fish are strongly anti-inflammatory (that’s why fish oil capsules are often used to treat inflammatory conditions like arthritis).

Whole foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and meat hover around ‘neutral’.

As with all aspects of a nutritious diet, balance is essential. You can’t completely avoid foods that are pro-inflammatory; the solution is to eat more of the anti-inflammatory foods, and less of the pro-inflammatory foods. In a nutshell, this means including lots of fresh vegetables and seafood in your diet, as well as fruits, some grains, nuts seeds and meat.  And, to eat foods in their natural state as much as possible.

If you are suffering from a chronic inflammatory condition, here’s a positive way you can influence your recovery.

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Want softer skin, a better mood, and less painful joints? Just include oily fish in your meal plan for each week. Fish like salmon, tuna, sardines, anchovies, herring and just about every fish from cold deep waters contain plenty of omega-3 oils. Scientific research has confirmed that these oils have a very beneficial effect on lots of health problems; including depression, anxiety, arthritis, high cholesterol and dry skin.

The omega-3 oils are so good for us because of their molecular structure: They’re fluid and flexible. Since our cell membranes are just really oil floating on fluid, a diet high in omega-3 oils promotes more flexible cell membranes. This means materials move in and out of your cells more readily, including neurotransmitters in your brain. Omega-3 oils also have a regulating effect on your immune system, helping dampen down over-reactivity that can occur in auto-immune disorders.

Oily fish, and seafood in general, used to play a much larger part in our diet than they do today. In the stone age, before humans began to settle in groups and farm animals, our diet was quite different from a modern western diet. We ate a lot more greens, seafood, seeds and nuts, with just a little wild game meat when we could run fast enough to catch it.  

These days our diet is dominated by omega-6 oils, which, due to their different molecular structure, are pro-inflammatory. Grains, full fat dairy and farmed grain-fed animals are our main sources of fats. This gross imbalance between omega-3 and omega-6 oil intake is a major contributor to disease in modern western civilisations.

You can help correct this imbalance by including oily fish regularly in your diet. Naturally, these fish taste rich and, well, oily, due to their high oil content. Some of them, like anchovies and sardines, are really only palatable in small quantities. Others, less rich in oils, like tuna and salmon (wild) can be enjoyed in larger portions as they have a milder flavour.

An 84g serve of sardines contains 496mg of EPA and 613mg of DHA – as much omega-3 as two high strength fish oil capsules.  Eating the oily fish will supply vitamins and minerals too: more fun than taking supplements.

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Sardines have a strong flavour, so you need strong flavours to go with them. This can make a nice breakfast or a quick snack.

Ingredients for one

-          One tin of plain sardines in spring water

-          One spring onion, finely chopped

-          Red wine vinegar, about one teaspoon

-          One tablespoon tomato paste

-          Fresh herbs (e.g parsley, thyme, oregano)

-          One thick slice robust sourdough rye bread

While you toast the bread, drain the sardines and mash with the spring onion, vinegar, and tomato paste.

Spread the toast with the sardine mix.

Sprinkle with fresh herbs and serve

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This is actually a nice foil for a piece of steamed fish, or a plate of green leafy veg. 

Really quick to put together, but if you can, prepare a few hours before serving. The flavours will develop nicely.

Ingredients:

1 small clove garlic

pinch chilli flakes, or fresh chilli to taste

30mls lime juice

30mls fish sauce

30g grated palm sugar

1/4 cup water

one large carrot, grated coarsley.

Method: Mix all together and its done. Easy!

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This is a creamy dessert that can be enjoyed on its own, or served with some tangy fresh fruit.

Ingredients (for 4-6 people)

¾ cup sago (tapioca)

2 cups coconut milk

1 tablespoon raw sugar (optional)

Method

Soak the sago in the coconut milk and one cup of water for 30 minutes.

Heat the mixture slowly to boiling over medium heat, then turn to low simmer for 10-15 mins. Stir frequently to prevent sticking; it will thicken as it cooks.

Stir in the sugar, and allow to cool. You can serve it warm, or refrigerate for later (it will set as it cools)

Serving suggestion:

Cook pudding without sugar, and transfer to martini glasses to cool and set.

Place the pulp of three passionfruit with one square of palm sugar (about 10g) in a saucepan. Heat slowly and stir often until it thickens. Cool slightly, and pour over the pudding. 

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They’re easily overlooked, but they’re so important. Minerals are the vital players in a multitude of processes in your body, including building immunity, digesting food, and creating neurotransmitters for a happy, calm mood. Our modern diets are often deficient in minerals; partly from our food choices, and partly from demineralised soil.

The smooth running of your body’s biochemical processes relies heavily on the right materials being present in at the right time in the right quantities. Without all the vital ingredients, processes like the creation of enzymes can occur too slowly, in smaller quantities than needed, or not happen at all. This can have negative effects: poor digestion, reduced immunity, a tendency to gain weight, and mood disorders like anxiety and depression.

How did our modern diet become deficient in minerals? There are several contributing factors:

1. Eating low value foods made from white flour and white sugar. It may fill you up, but won’t give you much value in return.
2. Some food is grown in poor soil, creating poor value plants
3. Some farmed animals are fed on this poor value food, creating low value meat.

There are lots of minerals that your body needs; some obscure, some well-known. Here are the major mineral deficiencies I see in the clinic:

Iodine: The mineral from the sea that will help create hormones, regulate the speed of your metabolism, and shunt energy storage to muscle production rather than fat. For infants, iodine is essential for brain development.

Magnesium: The muscle relaxer. Your muscles use calcium to contract, and magnesium to relax. People low in magnesium often have chronically tight muscles.

Zinc: It takes part in a multitude of body processes; but most importantly in immunity, digestion and mood.

It seems easy to take a supplement if you think you’re low in minerals, but there’s a catch. Some minerals compete for absorption, so dosing up on one can create a deficiency in another. For example, calcium competes with magnesium for absorption; Iron and Zinc compete, as do Fluoride and iodine.  Professional advice can help here. In the meantime, you can give your body a mineral boost, naturally and easily, by choosing mineral-rich foods:

-          A useful rule of thumb for food shopping: The darker the colour, the more rich in minerals that food is.

-          Organically grown food may be more mineral-rich, as the soil it is grown in is richer (although the scientific community is yet to agree on this.)

-          Game meat (like kangaroo) and wild seafood are naturally higher in minerals than farmed meat and farmed seafood.

-          Using celtic (also known as ‘grey’ or ‘macrobiotic’) salt will provide a wide spectrum of trace minerals. Kelp (a sea vegetable) is valuable too.

-          Nuts and seeds are naturally rich in minerals, as they contain the materials needed to create a new plant.

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As the holiday season draws to a close, you may be feeling more relaxed; but your liver may be struggling from indulgences. This amazing but often abused organ spends all its time processing food chemicals, helping ensure your bloodstream’s sugar and fat balance is correct, and breaking down worn out blood cells.

There are many physical signs of a struggling liver. Take a look at your tongue: A yellowy creamy coat, or a ‘scalloping’ pattern around the edges can be signs of a struggling liver. Feeling ‘seedy’, dark circles under your eyes and dull skin can also be signs your liver needs some TLC.

There are two phases in your liver processing: The small, aggressive molecules of caffeine and alcohol push their way to the front of the queue, demanding immediate attention. If your liver has the right amount of processing enzymes on hand, these can be sorted out quickly. If not (if you’ve been over-indulging), the molecules are despatched for another trip around your body, in the hope that by the time they return, your liver has caught up and is ready for them. It’s this processing backlog that gives you a ‘liverish’ feeling.

In phase II all the processing is completed. Toxins are dissolved in bile for disposal with your next meal. There can be another backlog here, if there is a shortage of enzymes. Your liver can produce as many enzymes as it needs, providing the raw materials (vitamins & minerals) are on hand. But if your diet is low in fresh foods, you’re probably low on vitamins and minerals.

If your relationship with your liver has become less than ideal, you can help mend it.  Here’s how:

-          The bile, with all those toxins included, is soaked up by soluble fibre for removal in faeces. If there isn’t enough fibre in your diet, the bile and toxins are simply re-absorbed and returned to your liver for another round of processing. This increases the load on your liver, and you can begin to feel like you’re, well, ‘toxic’.

-          High nutrient foods like fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, legumes, nuts and high quality protein contain the vitamins and minerals your liver needs to process food. Another reason to make a large raw salad part of your day.

-          Fresh vegetable juice can provide a vitamin & mineral ‘boost’, ideal for those who have been over-indulging.

-          A ‘detox’ can easily be achieved through a week without coffee, alcohol, or any food additives, and plenty of fibre. That means a diet of fresh food, high quality protein, and lots of water. Minimise your intake of grains, dairy and sugar.

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Recipe: Fancy fish & chips: Fish & chips doesn’t have to be an unhealthy, deep fried meal. Here’s a home cooked alternative that will taste even better, especially with a salad.

Ingredients:

100g potato per person

100g firm white-fleshed fish per person (e.g snapper or coral trout)

1-2 eggs, beaten

1-2 tablespoons flour with a pinch salt stirred through

1 sheet seaweed cut into small pieces and mixed with the flour (seaweed is a fabulous source of iodine, and will give your fancy fish a flavour boost.

Method:

For the chips: Cut potato into wedges, spray with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake for 40 minutes at 200°C, turning them half way through.

For the fish. Coat the bottom of a frying pan in olive oil. Cut the fish into smaller pieces, dip in the egg and then roll in the flour mix. Cook in the frypan, draining on paper towels before serving.

Serve with a crisp salad.

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We have all the information at our fingertips. We have access to good quality food, and  fitness training opportunities abound: From fun dancing classes, to social sporting groups, to gyms filled with modern toy-like equipment. And yet, collectively, the modern world seems to find it almost impossible to lose weight and keep it off. What’s going wrong?

Weight tends to creep on gradually, a kilo here and a kilo there, almost imperceptibly, until, shockingly, you have to buy larger clothes. You know that a crash diet may work, but those kilos will bounce back on when you return to ‘normal’ eating. Here are some reasons you may have gained weight:

• You became malnourished in the vitamins and minerals that help your body create muscle rather than fat. Your body’s ability to build muscle relies on the presence of protein and important minerals that are often lacking in a modern diet full of processed food. Without these substances, your body creates fat instead of muscle.
• You stopped moving: Perhaps you gave up that regular team sport because of an injury, but never got back to it, or didn’t replace it with another sport. Regular exercise boosts your metabolic rate and promotes the formation of muscle (which will burn energy 24 hours a day).  Your muscle turned to fat, which expends no energy at all to be stored. Goodbye toned shape. Hello flab.
• Your portion sizes increased: Perhaps you purchased a new dinner set with larger plates, and your  dinner enlarged as well.
• You began eating mindlessly, because you’re busier. Eating on the run while driving, watching TV, checking emails? It’s hard to hear your stomach shouting “enough - I’m full” when your mind is occupied elsewhere. 
• You stopped planning ahead for meals, because you’re tired. So you opt for the ‘quick & easy’ instant or take-away meal instead of a home cooked meal. Preparing healthy food does take time. Somehow, the easy meals appear on the table more often, and your waistline is showing the effects of all that extra fat and sugar.
• You embarked on several crash diets without extra exercise, then returned to ‘normal’ eating, and the kilos returned. With each round of dieting it seems to be harder to lose the weight. It is. You’ve lost a little more muscle with each diet (without exercise, you will lose muscle rather than fat when you withhold calories), and your metabolism is now in ‘starvation’ mode, rigorously sparing every possible calorie in case you ‘starve’ again. Increase your exercise first, then reduce your food intake.
• You’ve aged, or you’re stressed, so your endocrine system needs support to create metabolism-boosting hormones. Stress and aging seem to promote fat deposits particularly on the abdomen. You may need professional help to address this.

Recognise yourself in any of these? If so, try ‘undoing’ what has been done for more effective, long term weight management.

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We all make new years resolutions about our health. Any  resolutions you make will be even more effective if they’re specific (a vague goal like ‘get healthy’ is likely to produce only vague results.) To get you on the right track, here are 12 healthy changes you can make to your diet and lifestyle this year. 

1. Eat a protein-based breakfast that contains fibre too. It takes longer to digest, giving you sustainable energy. Eggs are ideal. A vegetable omelette, poached eggs on baked beans, or savoury mince on toast.
2. Make legumes part of your life. They’re high in fibre, contain complex carbohydrates and some protein too. As phytoestrogens, they will help balance your hormones. You don’t have to eat heroic quantities: Half a cup of cooked legumes every day is enough. Try some chick peas with your lunchtime salad.
3. Drink two litres of pure water every day. Just water. You’ll see the change in your skin.
4. Make fitness training part of your daily routine. Start slow; get help if you need to; but start. Today.
5. Stop and smell the roses for 30 minutes each day. Activities like meditation ‘switch off’ your stress response, helping you become more resilient to the pressures of modern life.
6. Enjoy seafood almost every day, especially oily fish like tuna and salmon.  Omega-3 oils are potent anti-inflammatory agents.
7. Use celtic salt (also known as ‘grey’ or ‘macrobiotic’ salt. ). Its evaporated sea water, full of trace minerals that are routinely removed from table salt.
8. Stop skipping meals, your metabolism may slow down in response. Especially important for weight loss.
9. Save cheese for special occasions. This is a high fat, high density food that was originally developed to save people from starvation over snow-bound winters.  We’re not subject to these conditions any longer, so too much cheese will just get deposited on your hips and in your arteries.
10. Go to bed a little earlier, so you get a full eight hours sleep. Yes, you might need to wrench yourself from the internet, but you’ll be more fun to be around the next day.
11. Play. Fun and laughter is really good for your wellbeing!
12. Switch to game meat: Kangaroo, now widely available, has almost no saturated fat, and is high in zinc and iron.

Take on one new health habit each month, and look forward to feeling and looking much healthier by December this year.

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