Here I am, still kickin’, after my busy week of travel & teaching and then the catch up of recorded school lectures including 2 tests this week, Phew!! Then teaching yesterday at Cook Culture, now I can enjoy the weekend with my family, but not before I share a quick recipe and some of the highlights of this whirlwind and what I learned in holistic nutrition school this week.
Firstly, I want to thank you for dropping in, without your support and presence I wouldn’t be nearly as passionate to share consistently every week-even though I’m a bit late–I’ve been thinking about You and figuring out how to sneak some time in to create a post for you. I appreciate your readership very much.
So…. St. Paul was an inspiring week, once I got there–US customs has a way of messing up people’s plans so I was delayed a night, but fixed the problem with a visit to the spa and a really great hotel whilst I was delayed! There’s no problem a spa visit won’t cure, right? Anyways, I met Mary Jane Butter’s of Mary Jane’s Farm and her lovely daughter, delightfully healthy gals that’s for sure! Also chatted at length with Terry Walter’s, Author of Clean Food which was also a pleasure, love her book! We were mesmerized by the keynote speakers, my dear friend, Holly Becker of Decor8 who was fabulous BTW and Christina Ferarra, of Oprah’s Network. Jo Packham, co-founder of this convention, The Creative Connection and editor of Where Women Cook, and her team created, a nurturing conference for creative types to inspire one another and be moved to create even more fulfilling lives thru their passions for craft and food. Inspiring my students was the highlight for me. If they only learned one thing about how to lean into a healthier lifestyle, then it was all worthwhile. Oh and I can’t forget to mention that it was sooo nice to meet an avid follower of this blog who picked me out of the crowd like Where’s Waldo! Ivy of Inspirations by Ivy is such a doll and we were instant kindred spirits, as mothers, bloggers and creative spirits. She nutures FOUR children!–I was some impressed that she was brave enough to take time for herself and leave her dedicated hubby to hold up the fort-right in the middle of potty training! You go girl!
As for my week back in school, after only attending 2 classes and then wisking off to St Paul, was a bit intense but I luuuved every second of it!! I studied my brains out all week and I think I did okay on my tests. The content is right up my alley and I am thrilled that you are interested in learning a bit each week as I work my way thru 10 months of class time.
But first the recipe…. to inspire some yumminess that you might just want to run to the kitchen and make cuz I got a unanimous thumbs up this morning when I made it for my class! Chia seeds are seriously action packed with amazing nutrients, and combined with avocado, blueberries and then topped with buckwheat, this pudding is a power house of energy for breakfast or a really great dessert, especially for those that would be shocked to know how good it is for you.
Chia, Blueberry, Avocado & Buckwheat Breakfast Pudding
Yield- 2 cups- double for a crowd
1/2 cup unsweetened organic almond milk
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp organic sulphite free raisins
1 dried organic date, pit removed, chopped
1/2 tsp alcohol free vanilla
generous sprinkle of organic cinnamon
dried stevia herb powder
1 cup frozen organic blueberries
1 organic avocado
2 tbsp more almond milk for blending
1 cup raw organic buckwheat groats, soaked w/ filtered water for 30-60 mins- rinse well and drain
juice of 1/2 organic lime
1/2 tsp grated fresh organic ginger
Method
Combine 1/2 c almond milk, chia, raisins, cinnamon, vanilla and let stand for 5-10 mins til thickens up. Meanwhile place avocado & blueberries in blender. Then add chia mixture and blend well adding almond milk for consistency. Test to see if chia seeds are smooth. A vitamix will make these disappear, other blenders may not. Pour into serving dishes. Combine buckwheat with lime and ginger and spoon on top of pudding, garnish with mint and enjoy!
Chia seeds have been enjoyed by the Aztecs 7 Mayans forever- they are chalk full of natures perfectly balanced omega 3-6-9’s, fiber and vitamins A,C, & minerals such as Calcium, Iron and Magnesium. They are also gluten free.
Raw Buck wheat seeds( also known as kasha or kashi) needs to be soaked to aid digestion. It is gluten free, is a seed not a grain, and is an excellent source of protein (with the 8 essential amino acids), very high in fiber, Vitamin B, phorphorus, iron, folate, zinc, copper & maganese.
Buckwheat, chia seeds and avocados are great sources of ALA –alpha linolenic acid– that strengthens cell membrane integrity, helps to repair cellular and tissue damage, helps with brain function, can improve heart and circulatory function and assist in producing supple, moist skin. Most of us do not get ample ALA in our diet so this is a great way to get a good dose, especially if you have this for a dessert in place of some other unhealthy choice that might end up on the table-and you can surprise your guests with the health facts, after they have enjoyed it and oooohed and aaaawed! Buck wheat also has a relaxing effect due to it’s high magnesium content. It lowers glucose levels with it’s fiber content, as well as blood pressure & cholesterol and has anti-tumor effects as well!
I’m feel honoured to be a student of Preet Marwaha, owner & founder of Organic Lives, one of my very favourite raw restaurants in Vancouver. He’s such an inspiration for me and I’d like to think of him as a mentor for how I would like to share and inspire others with the very important knowledge of why we need to think about our food choices and the effects of our choices on our health and our environment. Being surrounded by like minded individuals at this school is so incredibly inspiring for me. I feel like I belong.
In these first two weeks of school we’ve been discussing nutrition and the environment alongside learning about Ayurveda which is quite fascinating–I’ll share on this course next week. I have to be honest, I’ve been fairly awake with regard to diet and harmful substances in our food and environment for the last few years but I realize now that I really didn’t know the half of it. I plan to be as honest as I can with out being judgmental because this is a learning journey for all of us and a very difficult world to navigate when it comes to the industry of food.
Below are some facts that I’d like to share that might alarm you, lead you to choose not to follow my posts or inspire you to slowly make some changes that will remove a whole lot of risk of disease from your diet and your family’s. My honest intention is to create awareness that will lead to change in your choices and change in how our world operates, so here it goes!
GMO’s
The top five GM crops are rice, soy, canola, wheat & corn–96% of all corn is GMO and 92% of all soy is GMO, that is genetically modified to resist pests and also improve crop yields, but with disastrous damage to soil and future crops
Dangers of GM foods
-nutrient deficiencies as our body doesn’t recognize these modified crops as food yet one would think they are gaining nutrient value but don’t realize that it is vacant since GMO foods do not have to be labelled as such.
-genetically modified foods also provoke immune dysregulation associated with asthma, allergies and inflammation which is the root of most diseases.
-allergies are misguided since GMO foods incorporate cell structure from other foods that contribute to allergy reactions but are invisible as the genetic make up is disguised
-when sheep grazed on GM crops in India thousands died with severe irritation and black spots in both intestines due to toxicity.
–Worst of all, GM toxins remain inside of us. The GM soy gene is transferred into the DNA of the bacteria living inside our intestines and continues to function. This means that long after we stop eating GMO’s we have a factory of intestinal bacteria transforming to a pesticide factory inside our gut. This explains the huge increase in gastrointestinal problems among patients over the last decade as GM foods may be colonizing our gut flora! And GM soy is in so many things even if you are not a soy eater- soy lecithin and many soy derivatives are in practically most processed food and if not it’s GM corn that you will find. You can’t get away from it as 76% of grocery store items contain it and many are not labelled as such. Speaking with some farmers, believe it or not, many of them do not even know if their seed is GM or not!! It’s sooo well disguised by the money making, controlling conglomerates, who are spoiling our planet and our population.
Pesticides
Compared to 1984 we use 10x’s more pesticides yet we lose 2x’s more crops to pesticide damage. Currently, 2.2 million lbs of pesticides are used annually. And believe it or not, many of the banned pesticides like DDT are still showing up in 99% of the random blood samples from 54 different locations around the world. This is very alarming since these carcinogens are known to cause acute (headaches, nosebleeds, memory loss etc ) to chronic effects such as low birth weights, poor brain development, reproductive issues, liver damage, depression of the immune system, and paralysis of the parasympathetic nervous system to mention a few.
Dioxins that are serious pollutants & carcinogens are ending up in our air, soil, water and lodged in our bodies. Recycled chlorine that originates in pesticides and manufacturing processes concentrates as dioxins in the fatty tissues in humans and animals. When any animal fats including fresh water fish are consumed, especially cheese–a highly concentrated animal fat product, we are subject to these concentrated toxins that settle into our bodies and they do NOT leave. The only way women dismiss dioxin toxins from their body is thru childbirth via the placenta or thru breast feeding via the fatty milk particles but unfortunately the baby receives these toxin, thus resulting in cancer for young babies and children, which as you know is ever increasing.
The 10 most contaminated foods -in no order-are:
-strawberries
-bell peppers
-spinach
-cherries
-peaches
-cantaloupe
-celery
-apples
-blackberries
-green peas
Choose organic for theses crops or don’t choose them at all! Find other alternatives. Make your choices be noticed and heard in your grocery store.
Between the GM crops and the pesticides our soil is being ruined. “Our soil is the foundation of human health and the quality of the food we eat relies ultimately on the vitality of the soil in which it is raised.”
Now this is really scary! I’ve been so focused on how our diet and lifestyle affect our health but this is the whole other side of why we also become ill and die, untimely, painful deaths. But listen to this; Europe has enforced labeling of GM foods but here in Canada and the US we have no way of knowing we are ingesting them. In Belgium another positive movement is happening, as farmers are no longer allowed to grow Non-organic produce. Yay!! So change IS happening!
As students, we all sat in class quite astonished, listening to our instructor as he shared the deep, dark, doom and gloom of the food industry that most North Americans are completely unawares or oblivious to. What’s happened? Well to get a better understanding if you watch a few documentaries, especially one called The Future of Food, or Food Inc. you’ll get the picture. Choosing organic, in which the produce has 25% more measurable nutrients, compared to conventionally grown crops, is the way to avoid this mess and reduce your exposure but there is still obvious residue in our air, water and soil so you need to do what you can to eliminate that which you can control.
Go organic and eat a vegan diet! It’s the only safe way to avoid these toxins especially for small children or seniors. I know this sounds harsh but really, as clean as I eat I still feel exposed to all these nasty chemicals. They infiltrate our environment so the cleaner you eat the less build up you will have in your system.
Now don’t just take my word for it, do some due diligence yourself and see what you come up with. I haven’t covered a fraction of what we learned and why our governments continue to approve these lethal chemicals but I’ll continue to share and provide links for you to explore.
As I sit here thinking about my week I am reflecting on my intention, my purpose of my new journey and I feel a little teary eyed and ever so grateful to be following my passion as I realize that a) I am setting an inspiring example for my children who will witness their mother following her dream and b) the powerful changes that I am making and inspiring, that will keep my innocent children safe and mostly free of the chemical dangers that our world is becoming smothered in and c) that I can be a part of making a difference in many peoples lives by helping to bring about change and awareness for our health and our environment for the future of our children and their children and all those that follow. I hope that you too will be a part of this journey and help to heal our planet for the sake our our future generations. I believe there IS hope. We can save our precious loved ones and our planet. We just need to believe and then show that we care thru the choices that we make everyday and in every aspect of our lives.
So there you have it, an outline of what I learned in my first two weeks of Holistic Nutrition. Again my intention is to just simply share and create awareness that will lead to change. We all need to assess where we are with our choices and our level of awareness and decide for ourselves how we wish to proceed and at what pace. It’s a personal journey that requires education, exploration, growth and understanding that will lead to eventual change over time. If you have any questions, suggestions or ideas I’d love to hear from you.
See you next week:)
Julie
Alkaline Green Smoothie
Carrot, Jicama & Sweet Pepper Slaw
Roasted Root Wrap
{ 23 comments }
What a power-packed post! Thank you SO much for sharing. The recipe looks amazing and the extra info you give us always goes down a treat (even if hard to swallow!). Better the devil you know, I say! Oh, and I have bought The PH Miracle AND (as of last week) I am a Vitamix owner! Yay yay yay! Smoothies just got smoother and life just got greener!
Enjoy your course (very jealous!). You are as fortunate to be studying it as they are to have you as a pupil.
xLouise
Hi Julie!
I loved hearing what you learned in class–even though it’s horrifying. Are you eating vegan 100% now? If so, do you follow a meal plan or do you just eat what you want when you are hungry? I’ve been trying to eat a vegan diet, but find I eat far too many grains!
Food is so much more than just pleasure and fuel, and I love that you’re helping spread awareness about how our health is directly linked to what we eat (in a beautiful and stylish way!).
I recently morphed from vegetarian to mostly raw/vegan due to a breast cancer diagnosis – I feel amazing and, like you said, it’s the day-to-day choices that we make that are so important to our health. Thanks for your inspiration and lovely blog – can’t wait to read more.
I am so excited that you are getting the opportunity to follow your dream. Thanks for sharing what you learn. As I was reading I was taking mental notes what things I want to add to our garden to avoid those top 10 most contaminated things.
Wow, great post Alkaline Sisters- living a life of following passions is always a rewarding challenge, and thanks for sharing your purpose and intention with us. When I was pregnant 25 years ago, I felt determined to following my passion of health, fitness, and creativity as a rhythmic gymnastic coach, against many who questioned my lifestyle, and the time i would spend away from my young family. As our four kids enter adulthood, the impact of my decision has only strengthened their commitment to health and fitness, and seeing that a passionate heathly lifestyle will benefit every one.
Great post Julie! The recipe sounds amazing, I’m totally looking forward to making it!!
Also looking forward to the remaining classes (and a little sad that this class is almost over). Have a great afternoon and see you tomorrow!
Danielle 🙂
Danielle thanks kindly for stopping by:) It’s a delight to have you as a classmate and I look forward to opportunities to support each other as we learn and become holistic nutritionists together! I’ll be sad when this class is over too! I’m lovin’ it but I’m sure there will be many other captivating classes!
This post is so inspiring for me. I would absolutely love to go to school for hollistic nutrition. What caught my attention in this post is the subject on genetically modified soy. I used to consume soy isolated protein before becoming a raw vegan. When you say it stays in your body, do you think it is easily flushed away when you consume a mostly alkaline raw plant based diet?
HI Brooke, thank you kindly for your comment. GMO soy will certainly have chemicals in it as well as being unrecognized by the body as food. Genetically engineered food genes transferring to our own genes could lead to problems like leaky gut syndrome, and already allergies are on the rise especially with the introduction of GE soy in the UK; soy related allergies rose to 50%! This link has much more info if you like.
As for the Dioxins that don’t leave our bodies, read this: Dioxin is a term that describes hundreds of chemicals that are persistent in our environment and develop as an unintentional by product of chlorine such as waste incineration, chemical & pesticide manufacturing, pulp and paper bleaching. Dioxin is fat soluble, it bio-accumulates, and climbs up the food chain-ie in fish these toxins gather and are 100,000 times that of the surrounding environment. Dioxins are fat loving and water fearing thus they will rapidly accumulate in fish versus remain in the water, the same in other wild life. Once humans ingest the fish or the meat of animals exposed, (ie cattle are exposed to it via soil, water and air and it accumulates and concentrates in their fatty tissues) along with inevitable exposure to in in soil water and air you can’t dispense of it, you have to let it break down according to it’s half lives but it will be present. Due to the omnipresence of dioxins, all people have background exposure and a certain level of dioxins in the body, leading to the so-called body burden. Current normal exposure is not expected to affect human health on average-but what’s normal?? However, due to the high toxic potential of this class of compounds, efforts need to be undertaken to reduce current exposure especially since dioxin levels are on the rise and so are it’s affects that range from cancer, reproductive & developmental problems at levels that are 100x’s lower that those that can cause cancer. It is also linked to decreased fertility, birth defects, learning disabilities, immune suppression, lung problems skin disorders the list goes on and we are seeing ever increasing cases of all of the above so it really is serious! One needs to reduce their animal product intake to minimal consumption of only organic clean sources or go vegan as the blood dioxin levels of pure vegans was very low in comparison to the general population of non vegans. Many people are so attached to their diet and I understand that but with these alarming facts one has realize that if you wish optimal health you will need to make some changes, even if they are slowly introduced as we just can’t go on like this for much longer. Sorry to ramble on but I get so passionate about this. Thank you for stopping by and please…. if it’s appropriate, spread the word in a kind manner.
Dear Julie,
So glad I found your website “The Sister Alkaline”. Very inspiring. Before my husband diagnosis a cancer, I’m avid organic person and been aware of GMOs and pesticides for a long time (actually since 2006). Until we found out my husband has a cancer, naturally, we were shocked because people knew we ate mostly organic foods. Realizing, what I failed is my husband consumed acidic foods (yes, mostly are organic) which is possible lead him to get a cancer. We live in Texas. Texas has excellent Mexican & BBQ foods here. Great food and dangerous the same time!
Anyways, I’ve been extensive research to find what kind of food diet that will help my husband’s cancer that will make it go away naturally (like you mentioned “I believe there IS hope.”) or I should say reduce allow cancer cells growth by eating Alkaline (pH) Diet, Raw Food Diet, and a few more other diet. It leads me to find your blog. If it wasn’t for my husband has cancer, I would not find you. I thank you for your contribution your time, energy, and educate us.
Speaking of your last 2 paragraphs, this is exact how I feel right now. It is life changing after my husband has cancer. It affects me too greatly. Been working for architecture as Interior Designer and now I’m seriously considering change my career as Holistic Nutrition School. We have two young daughters and wanted to teach my girls to stay away from cruel foods (non-organic, GMOs, etc.), governments (FDA, etc.), health care (e.g., vaccine), and this is scary thought.
By the way, I will have to give myself a try your “Chia, Blueberry & Avocado Pudding” one day this week!
Regards,
Kathy
First off, THANK YOU for the mention above but more importantly the new friendship. A mutual inspiration… we are both so lucky!
Second: I almost feel paralyzed by the content of this post! I have read about the yucky contaminants and I always have them in the back of my mind when shopping/cooking but sadly convenience often wins out. You have reawakened the part of me that honestly cares about what goes in my body and my families body. I need to work harder on, as you put it, “do what you can to eliminate that which you can control”.
I think the pudding recipe ingredients will be in my grocery cart next trip!!! Sounds delish 🙂
I know how hard it is to manage time for each important thing in your life… and then to add a blog post with beautiful photos on top of it–YOU ARE AMAZING! Your life is so full right now. I appreciate you passing on your knowledge, spreading the word and sharing with us. Do what is best for you… your followers will wait patiently for the next post–you are too good to miss!
Cheers and Love~Ivy
Awe Ivy, you’re such a doll, thank you, thank you! I’m inspired by your motivation to look more closely at ingredients, it makes my studies and my sharing of my learnings so much more meaningful if I can spread the awareness. As for blog posts you hit the nail on the head, it’s going to be more difficult to fit time in for this but I am determined even if I just scale back to bi-weekly for a bit til I get a grip. Tonight I was madly testing and concocting a soup for my next post but I ate up the entire evening, with homework looming over my head and I’m not sure I’m done with the recipe-and I haven’t even shot it yet! I so appreciate my readers and don’t want to disappoint them that I go to the end of the earth sometimes, staying up too late but I do sincerely love it. Yet in the thick of it all I am trying to promote wellness and burning the candle at both ends isn’t exactly setting a good example, although it is behind the scenes, it will catch up on me especially right now. So thank you for your understanding and your forgiveness. I am going to settle into a healthy routine and figure out how to blog intermittently along the way with educational bonuses to make up for the difference, sound good? Hugs to you across the miles:)
Hi Jules, I nearly missed your comment! How are you? Yes to your question I have migrated over to the other side, and no longer can bring myself to consume animal products for health reasons and ethical reasons and for the sake of the planet. I know too much now! My meal plan is generated from what looks fresh,organic and the most local possible at the store and then I eat about 60% raw each day with my juicing and smoothie routine as part of this and then salad at lunch and dinner with either steamed veggies or baked root veg or occasional grains. I follow what my body asks for most of the time but having been a veg eater for a few years now it IS what I crave. I LOVE VEGGIES! It’s not to say I don’t feel like nice dark chocolate now and then or a yummy vegan cookie but I do enjoy my veg! If you can increase your daily intake with either really green smoothies- not much fruit- and salads I think you are fine to have some grains in moderation. But do follow your body if it is serving you, it knows what you need as well! Thanx for stopping by.
Hi there,
This was a great post and recipe!! I have made a really similar treat using acai. It is like healthy yummy ice cream or frozen yoghurt, and so good for you.
I love reading about what you are learning. I am really keen to study Holistic Nutrition so am very envious of you. I base my blog on Holistic Nutrition and balancing the body, mind and spirit.
Its great to see other people spreading the word about GM products and how scary they are and I love that you’re helping spread awareness about health in general.
Thank you for your inspiring posts!!
Hi Meagan, thank you kindly. Peeking at your blog, (which is lovely BTW) you would love studying Holistic Nutrition. It’s incredibly inspiring for me as I have never enjoyed studying something so much since I am surrounded by like minded individuals and I know that what I am gaining in knowledge can be used to help soooo many people who are ailing. It just feels so right. I hope you too get to follow your dream. Thanks for stopping in.
Hello,
I just found your website 10 minutes ago and am loving it so far! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions with us.
“But listen to this; Europe has enforced labeling of GM foods but here in Canada and the US we have no way of knowing we are ingesting them.”
-You mentioned that many foods do not and are not labelled as GM in grocery stores. I have learned that the tiny stickers placed on the fruit are the labels that tell you if they are genetically motified, organic or conventionally grown.
Conventionally grown produce always has 4 digits
GM produce stickers always have 5 digits and always begin with the number 8
Organic produce stickers always have 5 digits and always begin with the number 9
The stickers are called PLU – Price Look up. Type it in a search engine and you will find lots of information on it.
We have to educate ourselves on these things, because producers and suppliers don’t care if we are or not, they care about making money. So I thought I would share this with you, because I just recently learned this as well. 🙂
Alexa, funny you should mention this as I just learned it last month from a class mate but I didn’t know about the 8 for GMO! I must pay more attention to see if I can spot any similar markings here in Canada. Have you noticed it on any produce, if so what items?? Thanks sooo much for sharing and I so glad you found our site:)
Julie, thank you again for the inspiring blog and ideas provided here.
I have been thinking quite a lot about the issues of environment but unfortunately came to the conclusion that as long as short-term vision and money prevails there is a little hope on better and healthier future. Today I was preparing a material about artificial sweeteners like aspartame to put it in my blog and I was thinking… oh my God, how is this possible that substances like this are even allowed. Producers who add something like aspartame to the food should be brought to the court. The same with GMOs. The best we can do is to buy organic products for ourselves and our families and to warn people around us about the dangers of industrial foods and conventionally grown products.
Zelma, you are absolutely right…. one needs to make choices that support the healthy options and not support the detrimental options and hopefully the pendulum will swing. Not sure where you live but our country used to be so supportive of smokers and thank goodness the pendulum is in favour of us non-smokers. Maybe we’ll eventually see organic produce as the higher ratio in the grocery store and hopefully people will start refusing to buy diet pops and other foods with aspartame and other terrible substances. On a positive note people are waking up to nutrition. It’s wonderful to see but we have a long way to go. Thanks for stopping in to share your sentiments and keep up the good work spreading the word:)
How much buckwheat do you use? There’s no measurement in the recipe.
Ooops sorry Dee, 1 cup is suitable and should go far enough:) Thanks for pointing it out, I’ll edit it right away.
So glad I found your website after a google search. Things I read that I was so unaware of. I am 61 and in pretty good health (and want to stay that way or, actually get better). I have eaten meat all my life , but it is time for a change; especially since I am just getting over food poisoning from 3 days ago. That was the catalyst to get me going to a healthier lifestyle. I do have a question. How do I ensure that I eat enough protein? I use Whey protein powder now in my veggie shakes. Any suggestions?
Thank you and peace to you!
Hi Kevin, protein has been overrated and over recommended in my opinion. By consuming a diet high in plant based foods you will not be low in protein as each and every veggie contains some amount of protein and they add up to plenty each day to support a healthy body. If you feel the need for more based on a more active lifestyle I suggest a 20-30% balance of legumes, nuts and seeds especially hemp seeds and isolated hemp protein or organic sprouted brown rice protein. I am not a supporter of dairy products yet in a pinch I understand that New Zealand Whey is the cleanest source, free from hormones and antibiotics. All my best, keep my posted on your progress:) Alkalizing will help clear the poison by creating an internal environment that it won’t find cozy to hang around in.
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