Craving Mashed Potatoes?

I'm in heaven right now. I was totally craving my mom's mashed potatoes today. Maybe it was the snow outside but instead of going out and buying potatoes I steamed a head a cauliflower (15 minutes) and then put it in the food processor with some sea salt and pepper, 2 garlic cloves and a touch of butter. Pureed until smooth and oh my it tastes like potatoes. Maybe I'll be able to fool Chris tonight :)

Beating Colds and Flus Naturally

We’ve all been there…waking up in the morning with a stuffy nose, sore throat, hacking cough and body aches. What would you normally do? Before reaching for your over-the-counter medication, why not try something different this time? Try something that is effective and NATURAL!

Join Naturopathic Doctor Tiffany Sahakian Heikkila and Registered Massage Therapist Erin Chaisson, both of Zawada Health clinic, as they discuss the best ways to boost your immune system and fight off colds and flus. Learn about specific supplements, herbal concoctions and even sinus and lymphatic massages to help get you through it.

Admission is free!!!

When: Saturday, January 14, 2012
Where: Mississauga Central Library
301 Burnhamthorpe Rd W
CL2, 2nd Floor
Time: 2 pm - 3:30 pm
To register: 905–615–3500 x 3589

Cleaning Out the Fridge Soup

This afternoon I truly became my mother in the kitchen! No recipes, random ingredients, no mixing, soup on the stove, beets in the oven, hummus in food processor on counter ..... I guess that is what cool fall days are for!

I had leftover pumpkin puree from a loaf I made last week and it was starting to annoy me everytime I opened the fridge. You know those ingredients that you buy for one dish but have no clue what to do with the rest of it?!?!

So I was making my typical hummus and decided to throw in 1/2 cup of the pumpkin puree to see what the flavour would be. Yum.... something different and good way to bump up the nutritional content of hummus. The orange colour was perfect for fall too :) So I still had 1 cup of the pumpkin AND I had half a jar of unsweetened applesauce left from the gluten-free brownies I just baked as well. I had one parsnip so I decided I'd make a soup (and try out my new dutch oven my parents got me for my birthday 2 weeks ago!) Apple and parsnip and pumpkin should go well together I thought....

A little olive oil, chopped onion, 2 celery ribs, 2 carrots, 1 parsnip and threw in some red chili flakes, and garlic. Then the pumpkin and applesauce went in with a bay leaf. I remembered I still had some chicken stock in the freezer so defrosted it and put it in and let it simmer for an hour. I had some strange looking oregano in the fridge that was on the verge of garbage so I put that in with some sea salt and pepper and ended up pureeing half of it.... So we'll have this tonight with a roast chicken that's in the oven and some leftover green beans. Random but healthy and delish!

Gluten-free Brownies...... Chickpea Flour!

Friday night Chris and I were going to friends for dinner so I decided to bake a couple of goodies for the crew. We got to dessert and I said a disclaimer that the treats were all gluten-free and I was using all 7 of them as guinea pigs. I love playing this game .... especially with non-gluten-free friends aka Chris' friends!

I had baked them for other friends last year but I wanted to change things around a bit as I don't love using xanthum gum in gluten-free baking. Xanthan gum derives its name from the strain of bacteria used during the fermentation process, Xanthomonas campestris. X. campestris is the same bacterium responsible for causing black rot to form on broccoli, cauliflower and other leafy vegetables. The bacteria form a slimy substance which acts as a natural stabilizer or thickener. So it's a fermented sugar with alcohol basically.....

Here's the recipe if you feel like something chocolately without gluten. If you don't do a lot of baking you can go to a bulk store and just get enough to keep the cost down.

1 cup chickpea flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup sugar (I've tried substituting with honey and maple syrup and it didn't work out!)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract (buy pure instead of artificial as it makes the chocolate really pop!)
1/2 cup hot water
1 cup chocolate chips (don't skip these as they really 'make' the brownie)

Preheat oven to 325. Mix dry ingredients in one bowl and wet in another and then combine until smooth. Scoop batter into greased (use a bit of coconut oil) muffin tins. Bake for 5 minutes then rotate and bake another 5 minutes. Let them sit for 10 minutes and then eat away!

Infrared Sauna Rejuvenated!

Ahhhhhhhh. One more patient this evening and I'm going to scoot into our infrared sauna. I hadn't been in the sauna for quite a few months because most evenings at 6:30 I just want to get home to make dinner and spend some time with my husband.

So last week with some free evenings and not having to rush out of here, I decided to re-aquaint myself with my soothing and relaxing infrared sauna. For those not familiar with an infrared sauna it is a dry sauna that uses the infrared wavelength to heat the body from inside out. A conventional sauna just heats the air around you and you can only really sit in it for 15 minutes.

The heat penetrates deeply so it hits the tiny blood vessels in the joints and muscles, and the fat cells where toxins may be stored. This is why people with arthritis, or fibromyalgia find it helpful in increasing range of motion and decreasing pain. It's also wonderful for weight loss because depending on the temperature and how long you sit in there it also burns calories (because you sweat like crazy!).

The skin is a major organ of detoxification and we release toxins when we sweat. An ND in Owen Sound, Sat Dharam Kaur, also recommends to prevent breast cancer because we can eliminate a good proportion of environmental toxins and hence reduce our risk. Her book 'A Call to Women' is a great resource as a naturopathic guide to preventing breast cancer and includes a chapter on the infrared sauna.

Can't wait to sit for an hour and finally have a chance to read my new Elle magazine!

Ayurvedic Nutrition

A patient recently told me about Ann Gentry, a chef out in California that has blended local and seasonal and vegetarian cooking. I checked out her website and stumbled upon dosha's or Ayurvedic types and what each type should eat. She also has a show on the channel "ONE" called Naturally Delicious.

I remember reading about Ayurvedic medicine in school but I haven't read much since. I took the dosha quiz again to confirm which type I am...With each type there is a certain diet and lifestyle that you should follow to support your body. I found it accurate with myself 10 years ago and still find it accurate and interesting. You can do the quiz here: http://www.veria.com/healthy-food-tips-recipes-for-dosha.html

Intravenous Nutrition Therapy for Athletes

Some of you know that my background is kinesiology. I loved doing my kin degree at McMaster and still to this day use that knowledge with helping my patients achieve their goals, especially weight loss goals.

Today I have another guest blogger, Claire Girgis. She is another Naturopathic Doctor here at Zawada Health and is certified to do IV therapy. Here's what Claire has to say about IV nutrition and athletes:

I recently gave a talk at Goodlife Fitness on the effects of exercise on hormones. We covered alot of material and one of the things we talked about briefly was the benefit of intravenous (IV) therapy to boost the benefits of exercise and to provide the nutrients that the body needs before, during and after exercise.
One of the benefits of IV therapy is that it delivers nutrients directly into the bloodstream so you get what you need more quickly and efficiently and can take the right doses of supplements without having some of the side effects that might come from taking those supplements orally (e.g. higher doses of magnesium will cause diarrhea if taken orally). This is particularly important in people who have issues with their digestive tract, including Crohn’s, ulcerative colitis, Celiac’s disease, etc.
One type of IV solution that’s often used is the Myer’s cocktail. This is a combination of B vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium, and calcium. This cocktail can be great for athletes and non-athletes alike. It’s a great way to support physical stamina and to promote endurance during training. It’s also great for boosting energy in general and providing a source of vitamins and minerals that are readily available to the body. Along with other IV formulas, it’s great for addressing conditions such as chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia.
Naturally, another topic that came up at the Goodlife talk was the importance of protein. We all know the importance of protein both for muscle building but also for so many of the processes that take place in the body. Some amino acids, the building blocks of protein, can actually play a very specific role in supporting hormone function. A few amino acids to note are Arginine, which stimulates growth hormone and testosterone, having an effect on muscle building and the management of body fat. Carnitine is another important amino acid; it plays a role in metabolizing fat and providing energy for muscle function. Valine, an amino acid that helps the body use B vitamins and glutamic acid, is also essential in boosting muscle mass.
These are just a few examples of how IV therapy can be used to treat some health conditions and to support optimal health. A tailored IV therapy protocol can be a great tool for providing the right combination and amounts of amino acids, vitamins and minerals to support the increased demand imposed by regular exercise and physical training. IV therapy can also be used to correct nutrient deficiencies and in the management of diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and other conditions.

For any other information on Claire or IV therapy call or email the clinic today!