All posts by Suzana Vukcevic

Natural Health Advocate. My wish is to make more people aware of unconventional, natural and less known ways to deal with the health challenges or simply live healthier.
Stress Handling, Well-Being Essentials

Well-Being and Stress Handling

Psychological factor, negative emotions and stress tend to be far more prevalent as disease triggers than all of the other physical ones.

Flower 1

Note that at least 80 percent of all diseases appear to be caused by negative thoughts and emotions.

The path you choose to manage stress levels is less important.

What is important is to break free from toxic emotions like hatred, bitterness, fear, jealousy, envy, angriness that all highly contribute to your stress levels and block the energy flows.

To develop ability to quieten the mind and achieve the sense of inner peace.

To increase the capacity to love unconditionally, enjoy the life and forgive.

I particularly like Eckhart Tolle’s take on modern spirituality.  His books The Power of Now and New Earth could be that little something that puts all things in perspective and give you the key to finding the inner piece and happiness.

For stress handling, Dr. Mercola for example recommends energetic approaches such as EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique). EFT is based on many years of knowledge accumulated by the Chinese.  It works by reestablishing full energetic flow of the body’s underlying energy (meridian system) by tapping (which can be seen as form of acupressure) and positive affirmations.

For those that are not into spiritual or Eastern wisdom and technics, there are other good “tools” like: stress reducing CDs, listening to relaxing music, dancing, playing an instrument, etc.

Herb Eleuthero (“Siberian ginseng”) contains anti-fatigue and anti-stress properties that help to support the adrenal glands thus improving our tolerance to stress. Siberian ginseng is used when level of cortisol is high.

We simply need to remember that laughing, loving, kissing and hugging are the greatest of all “stress-terminators”.

For example hugging is a wonderful “medicine” as it transfers energy and gives both persons an emotional lift.

Plus you usually can’t give a hug without getting one back – so smile at and hug that person that is next to you, no matter who he/she is 🙂

Breathe In, Love Out 🙂

Sleep, Well-Being Essentials

7 Sleep-Promoting Foods

7 Sleep-Promoting FoodsSleeping Beauty or Beauty Sleep?

Good-quality, restful sleep is indispensable.

I once read and always try to remember that chronic lack of sleep can’t be fully recuperated by sleeping more:  your body remembers.

During sleep our bodies rebuild, detoxify and recover from the day’s stress.

It is during the deep sleep when we re-connect to our inner being.

Sleeping in complete darkness stimulates melatonin, a hormone that promotes restful sleep.

How much sleep we need varies from person to person. While for some people seven hours of sleep may be perfectly fine, others may need nine or ten. If you are very active, most experts agree that you should aim for at least eight hours of sleep. The newest research in fact concludes that you can’t get too much sleep!  “After Stanford University basketball players spent five to seven weeks sleeping at least 10 hours a night (when they had been sleeping six to nine hours), their performance shot up like they’d doped”.

Don’t forget that it is necessary to stop eating two to three hours before sleep.

Taking a warm bath and drinking a cup of chamomile tea before going to bed especially after having had a stressful day are some of the techniques that work for me.  Do remember to switch off you phone completely and leave all electronic devices outside of your bedroom.

For those who have issues to get to sleep I found that listening to hypnotherapy CDs – I used to use Glenn Harrold’s – helps a lot.  

Otherwise you can try some the following sleep-promoting foods.

7 Sleep-Promoting Foods

1 Bananes-Sleep_Promoting FoodHerbal teas. Teas have many sleep-promoting properties. Besides chamomile tea which is my favorite, passionflower hops, lemon balm and mint teas are also good sleep inducers.

2 Honey. Honey reduces alertness so a glass of chamomile tea or milk with some honey will help you relax and prepare for sleep.

3 Cherries Sleep-Promoting FoodBananas. Bananas help promote sleep because they contain the natural muscle-relaxants.

4 Almonds. They contain contain tryptophan and magnesium which promote both sleep and muscle relaxation.

5 Cherries. A team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and University of Rochester found that cherries boosted the body’s supply of melatonin, this helping people with insomnia.

6 Miso Soup.  Miso contains some amino acids that boost the production of melatonin, so bowl of miso soup to end the day is another natural way to fight insomnia.

7 Yogurt/Dairy. Calcium helps with stress reduction and stabilization of nerve fibers, therefore foods rich in calcium may promote sleep. Some yogurt or raw warmed milk is another food that is good to be taken for dinner.

You can find around the web many tips on how to improve the sleep. Here is dr. Mercola’s take on it: Secrets To A Good Night Sleep.

 

Sources

The Effects of Sleep Extension on the Athletic Performance of Collegiate Basketball Players

You Can’t Get Too Much Sleep

 

Juicing for Longevity

Juicing = Longevity

Juicing For Thriving In a Toxic World

vegetable juice

We need around (6-8 servings!) of vegetables and fruit every day. Eating cooked vegetables doesn’t fully count as typically many nutrients are lost during the preparation and cooking process. Fruit in general contains high amount of fructose and we need to be careful and limit the intake.  This all means we need to consume a tons of vegetables, which may not be an easy task especially if you live a busy life or don’t particularly fancy eating them.

That’s why juicing tends to be the easiest way to reach our daily requirement.

Juicing also helps us better absorb the nutrients from the vegetables as well as using a wider variety of vegetables than we would typically eat.

When you drink freshly made green juice, it is almost like receiving an intravenous infusion of vitamins, minerals and enzymes because they go straight into your system without having to be broken down. When your body has an abundance of the nutrients it needs you will feel energized and your immune system will get a boost.

Green vegetable juicing ensures enough nutrients for optimal health, including about 300 mg of potassium per glass. By removing the fiber we are able to consume large volume of natural potassium.

  • For juicing beginners (those in good health) it is acceptable to include both fruits and vegetables otherwise it may become difficult to get used to green juicing. Juicing fruits is somewhat controversial due to high amounts of fructose that can be harmful especially if you are overweight, have high blood pressure etc.
  • Organic vegetables and fruits are free of pesticides and our best choice.
  • If you don’t have a juicer please consider getting one, it is one of the best investments for your health and if you are sick it may as well save your life!
  • You don’t need a fancy and super expensive one, but you do need a good quality and strong juicer (at last 700W) to be able to get the full benefit and also juice leafy vegetables, wheatgrass etc.  I have a Samson and pretty happy with its performance. Alternatively you can use blender, add some water and pass the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer.
  • If you are new to juicing, take it easy and mix it with some fruits at the beginning. Take couple of “lighter” taste  vegetables (e.g. cucumber (peel it), fennel, carrot or spinach) and add lemon, lime, apple or ginger to improve taste.  A great recipe for beginners is a “Miracle Drink” – juice from apples, beet root (with leaves) and carrots.  It’s a powerful detox, immune system booster, great for eyesight, low hemoglobin, anemia, leukemia and cancer.
  • Follow these links to find few good recipes for juicing beginners. Jamie Oliver Juicing Recipes  or Gwyneth Paltrow Juice Recipes
  • When you get used to juicing, shift slowly towards more vegetables and less sweet fruits. Lime and lemons will always stay a great addition even for “hard core nutrition connoisseurs” as they contain limited amount of fructose.

Juice In, Love Out  🙂