The food you choose to eat is one of the major determinants of how you will age.
The type of food you put in your body differs in nutritional quality and the metabolic processes it will create. Live living foods will support the body’s biochemical processes and provide vitality and life force. However processed and denatured food will drain the body of energy and create a toxic load on the system as it tries to process the nutrient poor food.

Some food rules to assist you in ageing well:

1. Limit your intake – research has shown that the less you eat the longer you live. This is because as food intake decreases, metabolic action decreases and free radicals formed by this metabolic process are decreased. Less free radicals means less cellular damage.
2. Balanced sugar levels – High blood sugar causes damage to your tissues, organs and skin. Reduce your consumption of all refined sugars.
3. Eat colourful foods – Colourful fruit and vegetables derive from pigments. These are high in antioxidants which decrease free radical damage. Include raspberries, blueberries,  carrots, beetroots
4. Cook at Low temperatures – High heat cooking generally produces harmful substances.  Both foods high in fat and carbohydrates are known to produce carcinogenic substances. Cooking at low vegetables or steaming is a better way to preserve nutritional content, however eating more raw live foods will provide you with the most nutritional content and life force.
5. Eat organic -  Organic foods have shown to have more nutritional value than non-organic foods.  Organic food is virtually free of contaminants such as herbicides and pesticides which place fewer demands on your body’s detoxification processes.
6. Eat Superfoods – these foods are high in nutritional value and easy to assimilate placing less load on the body. These include acai, maca, goji and cocoa
7. Juice daily – concentrated form of high nutrients, antioxidants and enzymes which are easily absorbed and assimilated in the body.
8. Drink purified water – Your body is 70-80% made up of water. It regulates your metabolism and facilitates millions of biochemical processes within the body. Drink between 2-3 litres a day as drying is dying.  Drink water and stay hydrated!

Coconut water is the clear liquid from young coconuts and is one of  nature’s most refreshing drinks consumed worldwide for its nutritious and health benefiting properties.  It contains electrolytes, calcium, potassium, magnesium, enzymes, zinc, selenium, Vit C and amino acids. It is low in fat and carbohydrates and has a similar chemical profile to our blood plasma.

Many studies have shown that coconut water has antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities and may help with a number of minor to severe health conditions.

This nutrient rich drink has been used to regulate blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels, and it has been found to boost energy levels and increase metabolism in the human body. Other conditions that it has been found to be effective at treating include stomach flu, dysentery, indigestion, constipation, intestinal worms, cholera, urinary abnormalities, urethral stone, malfunctioning kidneys, dry and itchy skin, age spots, and wrinkles.

Research on these health benefits:

• The cytokinins and lauric acid help regulate the cell growth and their divisions and can minimize the aging of skin cells, balance PH levels, and keep the connective tissues strong and hydrated.

• The high potassium levels and lauric acid can help regulate blood pressure and can help increase HDL (good) cholesterol, which makes it a wonderful natural treatment for maintaining good cardiovascular health.

• The high potassium levels and minerals helps to regulate our internal fluids and replenish and rehydrate the body so great after exercise, in warm climates and after dysentery.

• The natural electrolytes help increase the body’s metabolism and may benefit people who are struggling with weight issues.

• Lauric acid in coconut water is converted into monolaurin which has great antiviral, antiprotozoal and antibacterial activity which helps fight against intestinal worms, parasites, lipid-coated viruses and other gastrointestinal tract infections in children and adults.

Coconut oil has shown to protect heart function and cardiac tissue and is protective against cardiovascular disease. It is a medium-chain fatty acid helping with energy production, speeding up the rate at which the body burns fat and supporting healthy fat metabolism. It is also a great oil to cook with as it does not become a trans fatty acid and can be heated up to 120C. It is so versatile that it can also be used on the body as a natural moisturizer, as remember anything you put on your body you should be able to eat too!

It is such a versatile plant providing us with food, medicine and fuel. Incorporate this amazing plant in to your life and allow your health to benefit.

Probiotics are beneficial organisms that live in our gut, that help with digestion and help strengthen our immune system.
You have more bacteria living in your gut than you have cells in your body. There is more than 500 different species of bacteria in the digestive system and probiotics assist in keeping a healthy balance of beneficial bacteria.

Benefits of Probiotics

• promote a healthy and strong immune system
• maintain healthy colon cells
• attack toxins for elimination
• assist with detoxification
• promote regularity
• help manufacture vitamin B and K
• help manufacture some digestive enzymes to assist with the digestion of  food
• create an unfriendly environment for potentially harmful bacteria and yeast

The following foods are high in good bacteria and encourage healthy populations. These include yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kim chi, kombucha and miso. Soluble fibre is the food and fuel source for beneficial bacteria encouraging them to multiply. You can also support your bacterial balance by taking a high potency probiotic.

When it comes to probiotics start with small amounts and increase gradually to allow your digestion to adjust to the changing balance of bacteria.

Keeping your bacteria in balance is essential in maintaining your overall health.

Why choose organic?

1. Organic food has higher levels of nutrients. There is now plentiful research findings that show organic food is far superior in vitamin, mineral and nutrient content. They are especially higher in antioxidants, vitamin C, iron, magnesium, calcium, and phosphorus. Organic foods have higher levels (up to six times) of salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is produced naturally in plants as a protective compound against stress and disease. Salicylic acid acts as an anti-inflammatory and helps combat hardening of the arteries.

Researchers at John Hopkins University looked at the results of 41 studies over a 50-year period and concluded that on average organic food contained 30 per cent more vitamin C, over 20 per cent more iron, 30 per cent more magnesium and 14 per cent more phosphorus than conventionally grown foods, as well as 15 per cent fewer harmful nitrates.

1. Organic food production helps protect future generations. The average child receives approximately four times more exposure than an adult, to at least eight widely used cancer-causing pesticides in food. Food choices made for our children now determine their future health.
2. Organic farming helps protect water quality. Pesticides and other chemicals widely used in conventional farming contaminate ground water and rivers and pollute primary sources of drinking water.
3. Organic food is free of artificial additives. Organic food doesn’t contain food additives which can cause health problems such as heart disease, osteoporosis, migraines and hyperactivity. The use of antibiotics, anti-microbials, hormones and other growth promotants are prohibited in organic production. In the case that animals are treated with veterinary drugs or chemicals, they are prohibited from being sold as organic. The use of synthetic chemicals as preservatives, colourings, antioxidants etc are also prohibited in the processing of organic foods.
4. Support for small farmers. When we purchase organic food we support traditional farming systems. Most organic farms are small, independently owned family farms of less than 50 hectares. Many family farms have been sold-up during the last couple of decades because of economies of scale – they are not profitable under conventional farming systems. Organic farming could be one of the ways family farms can survive.
5. Organic food production uses less energy than conventional food production. Modern conventional farming uses more petroleum than any other industry. More energy is now used to produce synthetic fertilisers than to till, cultivate and harvest crops. Organic farming is still based on labour intensive practices such as hand weeding, green manure, and cover crops instead of chemicals.
6. Chemical residues are missing or at very low levels in organically produced food. Many studies show that most conventionally farmed foods have pesticide and other chemical residues. Over 400 chemical pesticides are routinely used in conventional farming and residues are often present in non-organic food. Research has shown that 30 percent of insecticides, 60 percent of herbicides and 90 percent of fungicides are known to cause cancer. These chemicals can also lead to nervous and endocrine problems.
7. Organic food tastes better
8. Organic food is not irradiated

You cant go Organic?

If you cannot afford to buy all organic or it is not available, at the very least avoid the fruits and vegetables with the biggest toxin load when they are grown conventionally.

The non- organic fruit and vegetables to avoid are strawberries, apples, cherries, apricots, blackberries, pears, raspberries, peaches, imported grapes, spinach, peppers, celery and potatoes.

As these fruits and vegetable  are treated with more harmful chemicals than others:

- Non-organic strawberries are covered in captan, a fungicide that has been linked to cancer, damage to the immune, nervous and reproductive systems, and birth defects.

- Non-organic apples contain diphenylamine, which some experts believe causes brain and nervous system damage, and thiabendazole, which may damage the reproductive system.

- Non-organic celery contains permethrin, chlorothalonil and acephate, all linked to cancer.

- Non-organic spinach will often have up to 40 harmful pesticides on its leaves.

Do the best you can for your own health and environment and GO ORGANIC when you can!

Here at Byron Bay Detox Retreats our detox health retreat  uses all organic produce providing you with optimum nutrition on your journey to renewed health and wellbeing.

www.organicfooddirectory.com.au

It is important to keep the body alkalised in order to sustain optimum health.  Your blood is to be maintained between 7.35 to 7.45  PH which is slightly alkaline. All of the organs and systems in your body will sacrifice their own health in order to maintain this critical PH level. If you are eating too many acidic forming foods such as sugar, bread, soft drinks, red meat, cheese, cereal, processed foods and alcohol, your liver, lymphatic system and kidneys will be over burdened and their job to detoxify and excrete acid wastes will be decreased. Also as your body becomes more acidic , alkaline minerals are are pulled out of your body in order to compensate for the excess acid. Calcium will be leached from the bones and magnesium and potassium levels will be used up resulting in fatigue, muscle soreness, toxicity and the contribution to further health problems.

It is therefore essential to  include many alkalised foods in your diet in order for your body to detoxify effectively and to assist with the removal of heavy metals from the body. Your cells, the chemical reactions inside them, your beneficial bacteria and your immune system all work better in a slightly alkaline environment.  Alkalising foods consist of fresh fruits and vegetables especially green and their juices, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, tofu, tempeh, organic eggs, chicken, yoghurt, seaweed, olive oil, fish oils, spirulina, nuts and seeds and chlorophyll. The recommendation is 80% alkaline foods and 20% acidic foods  for optimum health.

Liquid nutrition consisting of organic cold pressed vegetable juices is a rapid way to alkalise the system and promote detoxification. Come join us on one of our Byron Bay Detox Health Retreats where you can begin to alkalise your system and begin the journey of optimum health and renewed vitality.