Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
For the love of... cinnamon!
Many of you know about my love affair with cinnamon. I'll add it to anything, and maintain my status as its Number One Fan, forever and ever!
Cinnamon is pretty much a Superhero Spice (visual: grinning cartoon cinnamon stick, standing akimbo with 'C'-emblazoned cape billowing in the wind...), with some ridiculously awesome health benefits:
But wait! Word of warning: In North America, most stores and supermarkets actually sell 'cassia' as cinnamon... it's close, but it contains high levels of coumarin, a natural flavouring found in plants. When used medicinally in higher concentrations, this additive can actually cause liver damage (they say it's not permanent, but still... eek). There have been steps taken to ban the use of coumarin in medicine, but there has not yet been a huge movement to regulate the amount found in cassia, as it occurs naturally there.
As a consumer, you therefore want to be sure you are buying ceylon cinnamon, which contains barely any coumarin and is safe for consumption. It's sweeter than cassia, too! Natural food stores or markets usually stock this kind, and if you have the time, buying and grinding cinnamon sticks (you'll know they are ceylon if the roll of bark is made up of many thin layers, and not one big thick one) is the best way to get the maximum health benefits of this wonder-spice.
And now, back to the good stuff! Things to which you can easily add cinnamon:
N.
Cinnamon is pretty much a Superhero Spice (visual: grinning cartoon cinnamon stick, standing akimbo with 'C'-emblazoned cape billowing in the wind...), with some ridiculously awesome health benefits:
- Even a small amount of it provides a huge amount of iron, fibre, calcium and manganese (a trace element that we need to help our body use vitamins C & B1, make certain female hormones and prevent diabetes)
- It regulates blood sugar, so it definitely makes a great addition to your diet if you are pre-diabetic or have been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes
- Studies have found it reduces the spread of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells
- Just half a teaspoon per day can lower LDL cholesterol (yes, that's the bad kind!), and blood pressure
- Traditionally, it has been used to treat symptoms of indigestion and other stomach issues (think of the Peptobismol ad... it works for all of the ailments in that list!)
- Taking a nice, deep whiff of cinnamon can immediately boost cognitive functioning, including memory and alertness.
But wait! Word of warning: In North America, most stores and supermarkets actually sell 'cassia' as cinnamon... it's close, but it contains high levels of coumarin, a natural flavouring found in plants. When used medicinally in higher concentrations, this additive can actually cause liver damage (they say it's not permanent, but still... eek). There have been steps taken to ban the use of coumarin in medicine, but there has not yet been a huge movement to regulate the amount found in cassia, as it occurs naturally there.
As a consumer, you therefore want to be sure you are buying ceylon cinnamon, which contains barely any coumarin and is safe for consumption. It's sweeter than cassia, too! Natural food stores or markets usually stock this kind, and if you have the time, buying and grinding cinnamon sticks (you'll know they are ceylon if the roll of bark is made up of many thin layers, and not one big thick one) is the best way to get the maximum health benefits of this wonder-spice.
And now, back to the good stuff! Things to which you can easily add cinnamon:
- Spaghetti sauce - even shaking some over the canned kind adds a nice little oomph of flavour
- Salad dressings - especially over salads with fruit (think summer strawberries in a spinach salad mmmm)
Cereal - my favourite way to start the day is by stirring a huge spoonful of cinnamon into a bowl of oatmeal, cooked with sunflower seeds and dried cranberries- Marinades or rubs for meat - add it to barbeque sauce or steak rubs
- Smoothies - try an apple, banana, almond and cinnamon one
- Baking - muffins, vanilla cake, cookies, pies...
- On fruit or nuts - dip almonds and sliced apples into a bowl of honey and cinnamon for a healthy snack
- And for those of you who want a little indulgent treat, check out this super-easy recipe for homemade cinnamon cherry schnapps: http://www.grouprecipes.com/92433/homemade-cherry-cinnamon-schnapps.html. I can't wait to try this one out in the fall!
N.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
"If you’re going to doubt something, doubt your own limits." ~Don Ward.
Found on http://tinybuddha.com/, a few minutes after publishing the previous post. Love it.
Found on http://tinybuddha.com/, a few minutes after publishing the previous post. Love it.
Just doing it
January 2011: In the name of New Year's Resolutions and being inspired, I had the idea to start this blog about wellness. So I did. And by started, I mean I set up the title, the design, the colours... fantastic! I then spent the next seven months intermittently hemming and hawing about what to write. Ah, the pressure of the first post. Should I start with a quote that would inconspicuously touch the life of my current followers (all one of them)? Or perhaps a recipe that would cleanse, energise AND nutrify you, all in one bowl of colourfully arranged vegetables? Better yet, perhaps a little personal anecdote about how hanging out in downward dog one morning suddenly brought me to self-realisation in a very Eat, Pray, Love-esque fashion (yes, the obvious connundrum here was that this certainly hasn't happened ever... yet...).
Then today I woke up and had an actual mini-moment of very logical realisation. My favourite piece of advice to give to others is 'just do it'. If you want to start eating more healthily, then just start. If you want to change your career, then figure out what you need to succeed at that idea, save your money, take your courses, and make the change. It is not that I religiously follow the teachings of primetime Nike commercials, or like to portray an attitude of flippant lack of care towards my friends by spouting off a cliched 3-word catch-phrase. I just believe that if you want to do something badly enough that you feel the need to talk about it, think about it and, sometimes, whine about it... then just get started, and do it.
Therefore, taking heed of the trickle of hypocrisy I was allowing to creep into my life, I just did it. Started it off. It may not be great, or even good, but it is here. The first post. And for some unknown reason, because this has been weighing on my shoulders for so long now, I feel like my creativity with this can now begin. All those tidbits of information I've been packing away in my wellness file, to later be doled out in an intelligent, motivating fashion through these pages, are now leaping up and down, excited to now have a chance to get out and be seen.
Before I get to those, however, I just want to go back to the idea of 'just do it'. You may say, 'but I can't! I don't have the < insert money/knowledge/time/connections reference here >!'. But this is where trust comes in. You need to trust that you actually do have the innate ability to gain access to those things - you have a brain, you have a heart, you have willpower, and yes, you have the courage. Take a little time, talk to someone you trust, weigh your options, then start. With baby steps. 'Just doing it' does not mean leaping into it, head-first, with no prior thought or consideration of consequences. Perhaps you even need to spend a month, or a year, reflecting or meditating on your decision. But, ultimately, it does mean taking action. And perhaps your plan does not go perfectly at first, but that is part of the beauty of this concept - the learning. Trust yourself, take a (well-planned) leap, and figure out what worked and what didn't. It's active self-improvement.
Some time this week, try it, even if it is for something small - tune in to your instincts and goals, and take that first step towards them. Talk to the potential romantic interest you see every day while buying your morning coffee. Open a savings account to collect funds for that Europe vacation you have always wanted to take. Spend five minutes researching your dream job, and make a list of the steps you will take to get it.
Make it happen for yourself. You deserve it.
Wishing you wellness,
N.
Then today I woke up and had an actual mini-moment of very logical realisation. My favourite piece of advice to give to others is 'just do it'. If you want to start eating more healthily, then just start. If you want to change your career, then figure out what you need to succeed at that idea, save your money, take your courses, and make the change. It is not that I religiously follow the teachings of primetime Nike commercials, or like to portray an attitude of flippant lack of care towards my friends by spouting off a cliched 3-word catch-phrase. I just believe that if you want to do something badly enough that you feel the need to talk about it, think about it and, sometimes, whine about it... then just get started, and do it.
Therefore, taking heed of the trickle of hypocrisy I was allowing to creep into my life, I just did it. Started it off. It may not be great, or even good, but it is here. The first post. And for some unknown reason, because this has been weighing on my shoulders for so long now, I feel like my creativity with this can now begin. All those tidbits of information I've been packing away in my wellness file, to later be doled out in an intelligent, motivating fashion through these pages, are now leaping up and down, excited to now have a chance to get out and be seen.
Before I get to those, however, I just want to go back to the idea of 'just do it'. You may say, 'but I can't! I don't have the < insert money/knowledge/time/connections reference here >!'. But this is where trust comes in. You need to trust that you actually do have the innate ability to gain access to those things - you have a brain, you have a heart, you have willpower, and yes, you have the courage. Take a little time, talk to someone you trust, weigh your options, then start. With baby steps. 'Just doing it' does not mean leaping into it, head-first, with no prior thought or consideration of consequences. Perhaps you even need to spend a month, or a year, reflecting or meditating on your decision. But, ultimately, it does mean taking action. And perhaps your plan does not go perfectly at first, but that is part of the beauty of this concept - the learning. Trust yourself, take a (well-planned) leap, and figure out what worked and what didn't. It's active self-improvement.
Some time this week, try it, even if it is for something small - tune in to your instincts and goals, and take that first step towards them. Talk to the potential romantic interest you see every day while buying your morning coffee. Open a savings account to collect funds for that Europe vacation you have always wanted to take. Spend five minutes researching your dream job, and make a list of the steps you will take to get it.
Make it happen for yourself. You deserve it.
Wishing you wellness,
N.
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