Eating for Respiratory Health

This is part 2 of a 4-part series about healthy eating as it relates to yogic principles, designed for Bend + Bloom Yoga's annual May Challenge. Click to read Part 1, Part 3, or Part 4.

You’ll be breathing a lot this week, so take good care of your lungs! Here’s how:

1. Take a deep breath before you eat: this shifts your nervous system into a parasympathetic state ("rest & digest"), crucial for optimal digestion. Yep, that's right: your lungs help you digest!
2. Pump some iron: Iron is essential for transferring oxygen in your blood from the lungs to the tissues and storing oxygen. Spinach is a great plant source of iron.
3. Stop the sneeze: Just like pollen, allergenic foods can have respiratory effects. The Big 8 allergens are wheat, dairy, corn, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, and soy. In addition, inflammation from eating foods like refined carbohydrates (flour, sugar) and alcohol can negatively impact lung health.
4. Add antioxidants: counter the oxidative effects of air pollution and smoke by consuming antioxidant-rich foods like fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds.

Support your lung health with this antioxidant-rich, hypoallergenic smoothie bowl.

Smoothie Bowl

It’s amazing what you can throw into a smoothie! I like to add whatever I have lying around that may not get used otherwise: carrots, ½ avocado, ½ apple, nut milk, nutritional yeast, seaweed flakes… the list goes on!
½ c. filtered water
½ banana or mango
½ c. frozen organic berries
Big handful organic spinach (baby spinach is OK too!)
Small handful nuts of your choice (omit if
1 T. chia seeds
Top with shredded coconut, toasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, or nut butter

Place water into blender. Add next 5 ingredients and puree to desired consistency, about 15-30 seconds. Pour into a bowl, add toppings, and enjoy!

Hungry for more? 

Join our mailing list 

or 

work with me!

Sources:
https://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/hemoglobin_and_functions_of_iron/
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=70

The Most Important Nutrients for Fertility

In Priming the Bump, my 14-day fertility prep program, meals are tailored to include nutrients that are known to improve fertility: Protein; Vitamins A, B, C, D, and E; Zinc & Selenium; carnitine & arginine; omega-3 fatty acids; probiotic foods, and antioxidants. 

Want to know exactly how these fertility super-nutrients support your reproductive system? Here is the rundown:

Vitamins

• Vitamin A: Necessary for the production of estrogen, progesterone & testosterone. Vitamin A also protects against environmental toxins & aids sperm production.
• B-vitamins (especially folate & B12): Folate is crucial upon conception and many women are deficient. B vitamins (especially folate & B12) are responsible for protecting the DNA within sperm.
• Choline: Choline is usually grouped with the B-complex vitamins. It is critical for brain & nervous system development.
• Vitamin C: Vitamin C improves all semen variables. Vitamin C deficiency has been linked to declines in sperm count, motility and vitality and to an upswing in abnormal sperm.
• Vitamin D: Balances Vitamin A, supports the production of estrogen in men & women, and can help correct PCOS. Infertility is associated w/ low levels of D.
• Vitamin E: A powerful tool to improve male & female fertility, Vitamin E also increases male potency, regulates menstrual flows, and may prevent miscarriage.

Antioxidants
Antioxidants are essential for everyone during this age of high free radical damage, but they're especially important for anyone struggling with fertility. They help protect your delicate reproductive cells and systems from oxidation and degeneration. In fact, high antioxidant intake is known to improve fertility. Antioxidant consumption is associated with an increase in pregnancy rates, and it may also aid fertility in older women.

Many nutrients have antioxidant capabilities, but some of the most potent antioxidants are Vitamins A, C, and E, Selenium and Zinc.

Minerals

• Selenium: Selenium is considered essential for male fertility because of its role in testosterone synthesis, normal sperm maturation, and sperm motility.
• Zinc: Another critical mineral for male sexual function, Zn is involved in virtually every aspect of male reproduction. But it's not just for men. Zinc is also required for estrogen, progesterone & sperm production. Impotence, infertility or sterility can occur from Zn deficiency, and deficiency during pregnancy can cause birth defects.
• Bone broth contains minerals like calcium. It also supplies nutrients that help build healthy cartilage, detoxify, and heal the digestive tract. It's an excellent tonic for immunity as well as development.

Brazil nuts are an excellent food source of Selenium, and oysters are the best dietary source of Zinc. It's no wonder oysters are considered an aphrodisiac!

Protein

• Clean protein: Reproductive hormones are made from proteins, some of which are only obtainable through diet (aka "essential"). Protein also provides a feeling of satiety that helps us stay on track and avoid a doughnut binge.
• Carnitine: Carnitine is an amino acid - one of protein's building blocks. Low carnitine levels may be indicative of infertility. Carnitine can help men improve their sperm count & motility. It also provides energy to testicles and sperm.
• Arginine: An amino acid that is essential for sperm formation. Arginine can strengthen sperm count & motility. It can also improve fertilization rates in women who had previously failed IVF.

Fat

• High-fat dairy products: Studies show that high-fat dairy reduces the risk of infertility due to lack of ovulation by more than 50% in contrast to low-fat dairy foods, which can actually reduce the risk of successful conception.
• Omega-3 fatty acids: Sperm motility directly correlates with omega-3 fatty acid levels, especially DHA. Too few omega-3 fatty acids in relation to omega-6 fatty acids can decrease sperm concentration, motility & morphology. Plus, omega-3s are crucial for baby's brain development.

Probiotics

• Probiotic foods: Changes in vaginal flora & subsequent genital & intrauterine infections have been linked to reproductive failure. Probiotic foods help restore bacterial balance. In addition, since probiotics help us digest & assimilate food, they help ensure that the body can use all the nutrients we eat. Probiotics can also detoxify & strengthen the immune system, which is especially important during the early stages of pregnancy.

Now that you know which nutrients are important for fertility (and why), you can begin to choose foods that supply these nutrients and begin boosting your fertility naturally.

Choosing Good Chocolate

Chocolate!

Hearts and roses aside, there is perhaps no better representation of Valentine’s Day than chocolate. The bittersweet confection has a rich history, artisanal tradition, and even enjoys superfood status. So whether you’re enjoying chocolate-covered strawberries with a sweetie or treating your single self to truffles, rest assured that an occasional indulgence offers a host of health benefits.

Romantic Origins
Cacao beans - the source of all chocolate - have long been a venerated crop. In parts of Central America, cacao beans were even used as currency as recently as the last century. 

But cacao has a sensual side, too. Chocolate became known as an aphrodisiac in the 17th century - a quality that today’s scientific research justifies. Two particular neurotransmitters found in chocolate are known to create euphoria and mimic THC in marijuana. Maybe that’s why it feels so good to bite into a bar!

Money, love - and a delicious flavor? It’s no wonder Americans love chocolate. In fact, we eat about 12 pounds of chocolate per person annually. This year, we’re projected to spend $1.6 billion on Valentine’s Day candy alone. Even US Army rations include chocolate bars, and US astronauts take it to space with their supplies.

Creating Chocolate
Surprisingly, chocolate is a fermented bean product at its core. White cacao beans are harvested, fermented and dried, turning brown in the process. Chocolatiers buy the dried beans and then clean, weigh, blend, roast and shell them using their own secret recipes. The shelled cacao nibs are ground, melting into chocolate liquor - the (non-alcoholic) liquid form of pure chocolate. Poured into molds and cooled, chocolate liquor hardens into unsweetened baking chocolate. To make cocoa from these blocks, cocoa butter is removed. For chocolate, cocoa butter is added, along with sugar and other ingredients.

Nutritional Highlights
Chocolate is rich in plant sterols and flavonoids, compounds that support healthy cardiovascular function. Chocolate, therefore, may help lower cholesterol, prevent blood clots, and protect against arterial damage. Flavonoids also have strong antioxidant capabilities that help fight allergy, inflammation, and even cancer.

Selecting Sweets
Despite appearances that may suggest otherwise, not all chocolate is created equal. When choosing your chocolate, label reading is a must. The purest, healthiest chocolates include ingredients such as cacao, unsweetened chocolate, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, sugar, vanilla, salt, or milk. 

Avoid chocolates with additives like corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) or flavoring. Sometimes, it’s not even real chocolate in those heart-shaped boxes: many pre-packaged confections are simply “chocolate-flavored candy.” Read the fine print and be picky! 

Also, the healthy nutrients in chocolate increase with its cocoa content, so select the darkest chocolate possible to take full advantage of its benefits.

A Final Reminder
While pure chocolate is one of the healthiest kinds of sweet treats, it still contains sugar, caffeine, and potent natural compounds that may be addictive. Moderation is always advisable.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Additional sources: 

Murray, M., Pizzorno, J., & Pizzorno, L. (2005). The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods. The Healing Power of Miscellaneous Foods. New York: Atria.

Weil, A. (2004). Natural Health, Natural Medicine. New York: Houghton Mifflin.