Potent Potable Potions and Wicked Halloween Brews

Potent Potable Potions and Wicked Halloween Brews:

Before I give you a few recipes to concoct a magical witches brew for your Halloween bash, lets delve into the history of witchcraft and it's association with Halloween.

First, the word "witch" originates from the old English word "Wicca" (meaning healer). A witch was once considered a wise-woman, skilled in the use of herbs and they were considered valuable local healers. They used cauldrons (pots) to mix magical potions and to scry (look into the future on the water's surface). These powers to heal and read the future gave them a supernatural mystical aura that grew into the many legends and tales we still hear about today and associate with All Hallows Eve...

Images: all from VictorianHolidayImages.com

Food Allergies and You

About one in four people think that they are allergic to certain foods. In fact, only about 4 percent of persons age 5 and older actually have a food allergy.

In a true food allergy, your body's defense system, called the immune system, reacts to a certain food or food component as if it were a harmful substance. Symptoms of an allergic reaction to a food usually develop within a few minutes to an hour after eating the food.

• If you are allergic to a particular food, you may first feel itching in your mouth as you start to eat the food.
• Your nose could become stuffy or itchy.
• You might start sneezing.
• Your eyes could itch and develop tears.
• You may get swelling of the lips, face, tongue, throat, or other parts of your body.
• After the food reaches your stomach, you may have symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, or stomach cramps.
• Your skin could become red, itchy, or develop a rash.

Anaphylaxis

For some people, an allergic reaction to a food is uncomfortable but not serious. For others, an allergic food reaction can lead to death. A life-threatening reaction caused by allergy is called anaphylaxis (an-uh-fuh-LAK-suhss). Symptoms of anaphylaxis include:

• Hoarseness, throat tightness, or a lump in your throat
• Wheezing, chest tightness, or having a hard time breathing
• Rapid heart rate
• Dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting
• Tingling in the hands, feet, lips, or scalp
• Cold, clammy grayish or bluish skin

If you or someone you know is having these symptoms after eating something, call 9-1-1 right away. Anaphylaxis needs emergency treatment with a medicine called epinephrine (ep-uh-NEF-rin).

Problem foods

In adults, the foods that most often cause allergic reactions include:

• Shellfish, such as scallops, oysters, shrimp, crayfish, lobster, and crab
• Peanuts
• Tree nuts, such as walnuts, cashews, and pecans
• Fish
• Eggs

Diagnosis and treatment

If you have food allergy symptoms shortly after eating, see a doctor or allergist. If possible, see your doctor when the allergic reaction is occurring. This will help your doctor diagnose your problem.
The best treatment for a food allergy is to avoid eating the foods that cause your symptoms. This may require reading the ingredients on food labels to make sure that the foods don't contain anything that might cause you to have symptoms.
If you have anaphylactic reactions to certain foods, your doctor may give you a prescription for injectable epinephrine. You need to carry this medicine with you at all times so that you or someone you're with can give you an emergency injection if needed.

Source: Womenshealth.gov

Tips to help you eat whole grains

At Meals:


•To eat more whole grains, substitute a whole-grain product for a refined product – such as eating whole-wheat bread instead of white bread or brown rice instead of white rice. It’s important to substitute the whole-grain product for the refined one, rather than adding the whole-grain product.

•For a change, try brown rice or whole-wheat pasta. Try brown rice stuffing in baked green peppers or tomatoes and whole-wheat macaroni in macaroni and cheese.

•Use whole grains in mixed dishes, such as barley in vegetable soup or stews and bulgur wheat in casserole or stir-fries.

•Create a whole grain pilaf with a mixture of barley, wild rice, brown rice, broth and spices. For a special touch, stir in toasted nuts or chopped dried fruit.

•Experiment by substituting whole wheat or oat flour for up to half of the flour in pancake, waffle, muffin or other flour-based recipes. They may need a bit more leavening.

•Use whole-grain bread or cracker crumbs in meatloaf.

•Try rolled oats or a crushed, unsweetened whole grain cereal as breading for baked chicken, fish, veal cutlets, or eggplant parmesan.

•Try an unsweetened, whole grain ready-to-eat cereal as croutons in salad or in place of crackers with soup.

•Freeze leftover cooked brown rice, bulgur, or barley. Heat and serve it later as a quick side dish.

As Snacks:

•Snack on ready-to-eat, whole grain cereals such as toasted oat cereal.

•Add whole-grain flour or oatmeal when making cookies or other baked treats.

•Try a whole-grain snack chip, such as baked tortilla chips.

•Popcorn, a whole grain, can be a healthy snack with little or no added salt and butter.

What to Look for on the Food Label:

•Choose foods that name one of the following whole-grain ingredients first on the label’s ingredient list:



“brown rice”

“bulgur”

“graham flour”

“oatmeal”

“whole-grain corn”

“whole oats”

“whole rye”

“whole wheat”

“wild rice”



•Foods labeled with the words “multi-grain,” “stone-ground,” “100% wheat,” “cracked wheat,” “seven-grain,” or “bran” are usually not whole-grain products.

•Color is not an indication of a whole grain. Bread can be brown because of molasses or other added ingredients. Read the ingredient list to see if it is a whole grain.

•Use the Nutrition Facts label and choose products with a higher % Daily Value (%DV) for fiber – the %DV for fiber is a good clue to the amount of whole grain in the product.

•Read the food label’s ingredient list. Look for terms that indicate added sugars (sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, and molasses) and oils (partially hydrogenated vegetable oils) that add extra calories. Choose foods with fewer added sugars, fats, or oils.

•Most sodium in the food supply comes from packaged foods. Similar packaged foods can vary widely in sodium content, including breads. Use the Nutrition Facts label to choose foods with a lower % DV for sodium. Foods with less than 140 mg sodium per serving can be labeled as low sodium foods. Claims such as “low in sodium” or “very low in sodium” on the front of the food label can help you identify foods that contain less salt (or sodium).

Whole Grain Tips for Children

•Set a good example for children by eating whole grains with meals or as snacks.

•Let children select and help prepare a whole grain side dish.

•Teach older children to read the ingredient list on cereals or snack food packages and choose those with whole grains at the top of the list.

Source: mypyramid.gov

Adding Fruits and Vegetables to Your Kids’ Diet

Fruits and vegetables are full of vitamins, minerals and fiber, which are essential to keeping your child healthy. Most kids need about 2 to 4 cups fruits and vegetables every day. The older they are, the more they need!


Getting kids to eat their veggies and fruits can be challenging. Below are some easy ways to get your kids to increase their fruit and vegetable intake.

1. Keep it colorful Challenge your younger children to try fruits and vegetables of different colors. Make it a red/green/orange day (apple, lettuce, carrot). You and your kids can also pick one color and see how many fruits and veggies of that color you can find.

2. Add it on Add fruit and vegetables to food kids already love. Try adding frozen peas to mac’n’cheese, veggies on top of pizza, and slices of fruit on top of breakfast cereals or low-fat ice-cream.

3. Try Smoothies Smoothies are a fabulous way to increase the amount of fruit your child eats and are really easy to make. A basic smoothie is just frozen fruit, some low-fat or fat-free milk and/or yoghurt, and 100% fruit juice all processed together in a blender until smooth. Let your children experiment with different fruit to find out what they really like.

4. Camouflage them Hide fruits and veggies in your children’s’ meal. Camouflage produce in other foods by chopping up and mixing vegetables in pasta sauces, lasagna, casseroles, soup, chili, and omelets. Folding fresh or frozen berries into pancakes, waffles or muffins is another great trick!

5. Fruit Pops Put 100% fruit juice in an ice tray and freeze it overnight. Kids can eat the fruit cubes as mini-popsicles or put them in other juices. Frozen seedless grapes make natural mini-popsicles and are a great summer treat.

6. Vegetable Dippers Chop raw vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Try bell peppers, carrots, cucumber, broccoli, cauliflower and celery and let kids dip their favorites into low-fat or fat-free dressings. Dip tip: read the food label of sauces and dressings to make sure they are not overloaded with saturated fat and salt.

7. Let them choose Involve your kids in the fruit and vegetable shopping decisions at the supermarket and let them help you in preparing dinner. Kids will want to taste what they helped create.

8. Roast away Try roasting vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, onions, carrots, tomatoes, or eggplant. Long exposure to high heat will cause the vegetables to caramelize, which both enhances their natural sweetness and reduces bitterness.

9. Track it Try the Alliance’s “Stick with it Chart” that can be downloaded at www.HealthierGenearion.org (in the ‘For Parents’ section) to track the fruits and veggies your child eats. Kids’ love to set a goal that they can strive for and the sticker chart is a fun way to track progress.

10. Take the family fruit & veggie challenge! Use this alphabetical list of fruits and vegetables to see how many different types you can try! Kids can check items off the list as you’ve tried them.



Fruit: Apples, Apricots, Avocados, Bananas, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cherries, Cranberries, Figs, Grapefruit, Grapes, Kiwifruit, Lemons, Limes, Melons (Cantaloupe, Casaba, Crenshaw, Honey Ball, Honey Dew, Persian), Pineapple, Nectarines, Oranges, Passion Fruit, Peaches, Pears, Pineapples, Plums and Prunes, Raspberries, Strawberries, Tangerines, Tomatoes, Watermelon…

Vegetables: Alfalfa sprouts, Asparagus, Arugula, Artichoke, Peas, Bamboo Shoots, Beets, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Celeriac, Chard, Chicory (Endives), Cauliflower, Collards, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplants, Kale, Lettuce, Iceberg lettuce, Butter-head lettuce, Romaine lettuce, Leaf lettuce, Mushrooms, Mustard Greens, Okra, Onions, Leeks, Parsnips, Peppers (green, red, and yellow), Potatoes, Radishes, Rhubarb, Rutabagas, Spinach, Squash (Acorn, Butternut, Spaghetti), Sweet Corn, Sweet Potatoes, Turnips, Watercress, Yams, Zucchini…

Source: http://www.healthiergeneration.com/

April is IBS Awareness Month

If you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), you are not alone – IBS is common with worldwide prevalence estimated at 9% to 23%. Yet many people remain undiagnosed and unaware that their symptoms indicate a medically recognized disorder.

In 1997, IFFGD designated April as IBS Awareness Month. During this time, it is important to focus attention on important health messages about IBS diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life issues.

IBS Diet

Diet, food and eating can affect symptoms in IBS. Many people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) notice that their symptoms appear to get worse following a meal. They may wonder if they have a dietary allergy or intolerance. More confusing, they may notice that a food seems to upset them on one day but not another.

Among the most common questions IBS patients have is what food to avoid. This can drive a person to go looking for a diet or a test that might help sort all this out. A bewildering amount of often conflicting advice is available, especially on the Internet. Much of it is associated with a considerable cost.

Diet, eating, and IBS symptoms

There are a variety of factors that affect IBS, and diet is just one of these. If other factors, such as stressors or hormonal changes, are more active on a particular day, then diet is more likely to push your symptoms "over the edge."

There is no evidence that digestion of food is different in those with IBS compared to those without IBS. Diet, food and eating do not cause IBS. However, muscles and nerves are over-reactive in IBS. This can cause the bowel to over-respond to stimuli. Even a normal event such as the act of eating itself, and not a particular food, may aggravate symptoms at times. Eating releases hormones that stimulate the gut.

Cramping and diarrhea

Certain foods are known to stimulate gut reactions in general. In those with IBS eating too much of these might bring about or worsen symptoms. For example symptoms of abdominal cramps and diarrhea might be brought on by...

• Meals that are too large or high in fat
• Fried foods
• Coffee
• Caffeine
• Alcohol 

Eating too much of some types of sugar that are poorly absorbed by the bowel can also cause cramping or diarrhea. Examples include…

• Sorbitol – commonly used as a sweetener in many dietetic foods, candies, and gums
• Fructose – also used as a sweetener and found naturally in honey as well as some fruits

Gas and bloating

Some foods are gas producing. Eating too much may cause increased gaseousness. This is especially true since IBS can be associated with retention of gas and bloating. Examples include…

• Beans
• Cabbage
• Legumes (like peas, peanuts, soybeans)
• Cauliflower
• Broccoli
• Lentils
• Brussels sprouts
• Raisins
• Onions
• Bagels

Fiber

If fiber seems to be a problem, it is usually insoluble fiber (mainly found in cereals or whole grains) that is the offender. Soluble fiber, mainly found in fruits and vegetables, is less likely to be a problem. When adding fiber to the diet, it is best to do so slowly over a period of weeks. This helps avoid discomfort. If gas or distention occur, try reducing the amount of fiber and reducing consumption of gas-producing foods.

What to do about diet

The influence of diet is unique to each person. There is no generalized dietary advice that will work for everyone. A physician can take a brief dietary history and help identify dietary and/or other factors that may impact symptoms. Keeping a diary for 2–3 weeks of dietary intake, symptoms, and any associated factors (like daily obligations, stressors, poor sleep, medications) can help with this. For those with IBS who benefit from simple dietary modifications, it makes sense to adjust the diet and reduce intake of the offending food. It does not make sense to adopt unnecessarily limited diets. This can lead to reduced quality of life or even malnutrition.

Doctors and patients need to talk about diet. Guidance needs to be provided by a knowledgeable health care professional (like a physician or registered dietician). They can assess individual circumstances affecting IBS, while helping make sure that nutritional needs are being met through a balanced diet, and healthy eating habits.

Material Reprinted from The International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders http://www.aboutibs.org/

Caffeine Cravings

Caffeine containing beverages and plants have been used medicinally for thousands of years, beginning with the Aztecs. The six most widely used caffeine-containing plants in the world are: cacao, coffee, guarana, kola, mate and tea.

Use: The most common uses are used to treat headaches and migraines, increase mental alertness, treat asthma and enhance athletic performance. It is often used in combination with ephedrine (ephedra or Ma Huang) or other stimulants and diuretics (water pills) to promote weight loss.

Dosage: The dosage recommended for athletic performance is 6-13 milligrams per kilogram of body weight taken 30-60 minutes prior to exercise. A typical dose to treat headache or increase mental alertness is up to 250 milligrams per day.

Potential Side Effects: Caffeine can cause insomnia, nervousness, restlessness, gastric(digestive system) irritation, nausea and vomiting, tachycardia (excessively rapid increase in heart rate), increased respiration, tremors (involuntary shaking), delirium (acute mental disorder characterized by disordered thinking and rambling speech), convulsions and diuresis (increased excretion of urine).

Large doses can produce headache, anxiety, agitation, ringing in the ears and abnormal heartbeat.

Long-term use of caffeine, especially in large amounts, can sometimes produce tolerance, dependency and psychological dependence. Discontinuing use of caffeine can sometimes result in physical withdrawal symptoms, including headaches, irritation, nervousness, anxiety and dizziness. Side effects of caffeine use are often increased by the use of other caffeine-containing herbs/ supplements such as guarana and mate. Use of caffeine-containing beverages - coffee, cola and black teas - along with oral caffeine can greatly increase the side effects. Delirium can occur with intake over 1,000 milligrams per day and death can occur with intake over 18,000 milligrams per day.

Interactions: The following list of drugs when used with caffeine can increase the risk of caffeine-related side effects:
1)   alcohol
2)   disulfiram (Antabuse)
3)   estrogen (Estrace)
4)   terbinafine (lamisil)
5)   fluvoxamine (Luvox)
6)   mexiletine (Mexitil)
7)   oral contraceptives (birth control pills)
8)   quinolones (Cipro, Penetrex, Tequin, Levaquin, Floxin, etc.)
9)   riluzole (Rilutek)
10) cimetidine (Tagamet)
11) verapamil (Calan, Isoptin, Verelan)

Caffeine can increase the side effects of:
1)   albuterol (Proventil, Ventolin)
2)   metaproterenol (Alupent)
3)   ephedrine (Ephedra, Ma Huang)
4)   phenylpropanolamine (Dexatrim, Propagest)
5)   lithium (Eskalith, Lithobid)
6)   MAO inhibitors (Nardil, Parnate and others)
7)   methylphenidate (Ritalin)
8)   theophylline (Theo-dur)
9)   riluzole (Rilutek)

Caffeine may decrease the effectiveness of:
1)   clozapine (Clozaril)
2)   clorazepate (Tranxene)
3)   oxazepam (Serax)
4)   diazepam (Valium)

Contraindication to Use: Heart disease, depression or anxiety disorders, diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney disease, peptic ulcer disease, and pregnancy (further guidance concerning pregnancy recommendations can be obtained at www.acog.org). It is not recommended for children.

Research Data on Safety and Efficacy: Caffeine is a safe product when used in moderation. Research shows that it may improve performance in prolonged exercise at moderate intensity. However, there is no benefit for routine, high dose caffeine users (i.e., 5-6 cups of coffee per day). It is FDA-approved and is used in several over-the-counter and prescription products. The International Olympic Committee bans use of caffeine in excess of 7 milligrams per kilogram body weight.

References:
1. Tyler’s Honest Herbal, 4th Edition. Steven Foster, and Varro E. Tyler, PhD. 1999.
2. The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database, 4th Edition. Jeff M. Jellin, Pharm D, Therapeutic Research Facility, 2002.

Bottom Line: Caffeine is safe when used in moderate, reasonable amounts. Consult a health care provider, registered dietitian or pharmacist when considering using caffeine-containing products in combination with prescription medications or herbal supplements.