Sprout Your Own

Sprout Your Own

by | Jul 17, 2012 | Cooking Tips

Did you know that you can sprout any seed, legume or whole grain that you have sitting in your pantry? It only takes an easy three steps and you will be able to reap nutritional benefits and great taste.  (more…)

Sprout Your Own

Craving Control

by | Jul 11, 2012 | Natural Weight Loss, Weight Loss

Got chocolate cake cravings? Don’t give in! Instead try these tricks…

  1. Go for a walk.
    University of Exeter found that employees who took a brisk 15 minute walk ate half as much chocolate afterward as those who rested at their desks. You get a natural energy and emotional boost from physical activity that can help ward off food cravings.
  2. Choose a protein-rich snack instead.
    Protein keeps you satiated and a study published in the journal Neuron, found that protein helps keep you awake and alert more than other nutrients. So you can get over that mid-afternoon slump without the candy bar.
  3. Drink some water.
    Oftentimes people experience food cravings simply because they are dehydrated.
  4. If you must have something chocolatey, indulge in a treat you won’t feel guilty about.
    Whip up a smoothie with chocolate protein powder or indulge in a small square of dark chocolate or maybe some chocolate covered nuts.
    For some great smoothie ideas check out The Healthy Diaries blog; I love this Chocolate Peppermint Smoothie, though I prefer almond extract to the peppermint.
Ditch the Dairy

Ditch the Dairy

by | Jul 10, 2012 | Eating Naturally, Naturopathic Health, Nutrition

There is much debate over human consumption of dairy products. Many people avoid milk because it contains saturated fat, cholesterol, allergenic proteins, lactose sugar, and frequent traces of contamination, or simply because they don’t feel well after consuming dairy products. Milk is also linked to type 1 diabetes, prostate cancer and other serious conditions. Once more, the inability to digest milk is extremely common – it is estimated that almost 25% of the US population has trouble digesting dairy and that 70% of African-Americans are lactose intolerant—which can cause intense gastrointestinal distress. Finally, unless they’re organic, dairy products can contain the same toxins commercially raised meat does–hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, and industrial pollutants.

(more…)

Sprout Your Own

Concert on the Square August Potluck

by | Jul 6, 2012 | Potluck

Hi everyone!

I hope you are all staying well hydrated and cool on this insane streak of triple digit temperature days. We are hoping it will be much cooler for the August concert on the square because we are planning on holding our monthly potluck there!

The theme for this potluck will be no-cook meals or drinks. So just in case it is hot again, you won’t have to get all hot standing over the stove, oven or grill. No-cook meals also make great dishes to pass because you don’t have to worry about keeping them warm and you should be able to throw them together in a flash. So, make whatever kind of dish or drink you’d like — appetizer, entree, dessert etc — anything goes, you just can’t cook it.

We look forward to seeing you and your coolers on Wednesday, August 1st at Concert on the Square! The concert starts at 7pm, we will be there by 6:30. We will be sending out details of how to find our group once the date gets closer.

We really hope you will come bearing food, but if you don’t have time to make something to share or if you’re completely stumped on what to make, you can still come; we just ask that you make a $5 donation to enjoy all the delicious food. All of the donations received will be given to St. Vincent De Paul or the Second Harvest Food Bank.

Here are the rules we do have:

  • Please try to make your dish as allergen-free as possible. Ideally we would like everyone to be able to try every dish. We ask that you try to eliminate these seven foods from your dishes: dairy, wheat, soy, corn, eggs, peanuts and sugar. In place of sugar, try substituting alternative sweeteners, such as agave nectar, stevia, honey or maple syrup. No artificial sweeteners, please!
  • You must sign up by email with your recipe and how many people are attending; is it just you or if you are bringing your family? We would like the sign-ups submitted by the Friday before the potluck. In this case, that would be Friday, July 27th.
  • Please bring serving utensils! We will supply silverware and dishes.
  • If your dish does contain an allergen, make sure everyone at the potluck knows it! Label your dish with the allergen it contains.

We will compile all of the recipes and email them out to everyone who attends. We are very excited to see all of you and eat some great food! We hope you will join us!

The basics:

  • Wednesday, August 1st at 6:30 PM (concert starts at 7)
  • RSVP to customercare@naturalpathhealthcenter.com with recipe and number of people attending by Friday, June 1st