Why Drinking Skim Milk Makes Us Fat

 I CONFESS I DRINK WHOLE MILK!!

What? Skim milk makes us fat? The big fad for a while was low fat everything. Doesn't fat makes us fat and cause high blood pressure and cholesterol and heart disease? NO! Not good fats! The American Obesity and Childhood Obesity and cholesterol and heart problem issues continue to rise. Sugar makes us fat not healthy fats. Healthy Fats, like the kind found in milk, actually decrease our cholesterol, our cravings for sugar, and help lower weight as well.  Ask your parents and grandparents and their grandparents what kind of milk they drank.  Heart disease and obesity has risen since the introduction of low fat products, that includes milk. The American Pediatric Association recommended whole milk, then skim milk, then whole milk. Why all the confusion?  The craze of low fat and the increase in obesity led to a lot of recent studies.  They have found that it causes an increase in weight. Here is why...

First of all skim milk would be blue if they didn't add something to it for the stuff they took away! Oh nasty.  Milk shouldn't be blue.To turn skim milk white, "some companies fortify their product with powdered skim," says Bob Roberts, a dairy scientist at Penn State. Powdered skim (which is also added to organic low-fat milks) is produced by spraying the liquid under heat and high pressure, a process that oxidizes the cholesterol. In animal studies, oxidized cholesterol triggers a host of biological changes, leading to plaque formation in the arteries and heart disease.  That's nice.

Another reason is that a decrease in fat content means your body needs something in it's place.  Your body starts to crave carbs and sugar to replace the fat that is missing in your diet.  If you read the label on skim milk verses whole milk..you will see that the sugar content stays the same or actually in some brands goes up per serving and the calories and fat are the only thing that go down in skim milk.  So what's that mean..that is where our bodies get confused and get the sugar content without the satisfying healthy fats.
If you drink milk the way it comes from the cow or goat, it will be healthier because God made it that way.  When you put food through processes to try to "improve" on His creations, it spells trouble for the human body. And so that is why I drink whole milk :) I have the info on a man from Va that will deliver unpasteurized milk to the state line.  I am going to get me some..straight from the cow!

Banana Oat Snack Bars..from the eat clean recipe book

Banana Oat Snack Bars

·         Oatmeal Banana Snack Bread

·         1 cup whole wheat flour

·         1 cup quick oats

·         1 tbsp baking powder

·         1 tsp sea salt

·         1 tbsp vanilla

·         Pinch ground cardamom

·         1 cup unsweetened applesauce

·         2 tbsp coconut butter (aka coconut oil)

·         3 egg whites + 1 whole egg

·         1 tbsp vanilla

·         1 cup Sucanat or rapadura sugar

·         2 very ripe bananas,

·         mashed 1 cup raw walnut pieces

·         Baking Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

·         Prepare a 9x13 inch baking pan by spraying with eat clean cooking spray

·          Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. Combine applesauce and butter/oil in a separate bowl with an electric mixer. Beat well. Add in eggs, vanilla, sugar and mashed bananas. Mix well. Slowly add flour mixture into the wet mixture. Add walnuts and mix well. Spoon batter into pan and cook for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from pan, let cool, then cut...and enjoy!

That's the official recipe.  So..I never follow the rules or do what I am supposed to.  That goes for just about everything including recipes.  I just dumped it all in a bowl, mixed it with a hand mixer and poured it in the pan and baked it.

Here are my ingredients

fresh ground flour..yummy

Oats

Salt and Baking powder

 This is what cardamom looks like..just a small pinch is enough flavor

This is where I broke the law and just dumped it all in one bowl
so the sucanat sugar just when in on the rest

and so did the applesauce and coconut oil..just went right on top of the whole thing ;)

One egg and 3 egg whites (they sell these in a carton but I had some in a bowl left over from something else)

This looks kinda weird, but I just put the bananas in on top and then started in on the whole bowl with a hand mixer.

Then I chopped the walnuts up very small and mixed them in

Mixing away

Poured into a pan

oops..I forgot to add vanilla and so I just poured it in, in the pan and mixed it in real quick

Yummy...finished baked banana oat bars

Baked Sweet Potato..Quick, Healthy, and Queen Style

This is my finished potato..topped with butter, truvia, and cinnamon



Baked Sweet Potato
Preheat oven to 425
Line the very bottom rack in the oven with aluminium foil to catch drippings
Place potatoes directly on the top rack
Bake for 1 hour

I top mine with a little organic butter, 2 tsps of truvia, and a few shakes of cinnamon.

I use organic potatoes because they are listed on the "dirty dozen"

Foil on the bottom rack, potatoes on top

Cut them lengthwise and add a little butter, truvia, and cinnamon

Enjoy a perfect big orange potatoe..Queen style..healthy and yummy!

Yoforia..please put one in Tn..oh please!

Yofaria inside..a little piece of heaven!!

If you noticed, I haven't posted in a few days because the girls of my family went on our annual Charlotte, NC shopping excursion. We love to go to yard sales and consignment stores there.  On this trip we found this new piece of heaven.  It's called Yoforia.   Yoforia is located in NC and Ga only.  Whahhh..They sell self serve frozen organic Stonyfield yogurt. You get to make it all yourself and take it to the register to weigh and pay. The sugarfree is sweetened with stevia instead of chemicals.  (Look here for the benefits of stevia.)  The flavors with sugar have the pure cane sugar and the grams are low. The topping bar looks like this and you do that yourself too. This is only one small portion of toppings.

My favorite thing was the dark chocolate sweetened with stevia. Hello, America, can you start making more of this healthy stuff readily available!! Oh please!

This is the dark chocolate with blackberries.

You can find out more or find a location at http://yoforia.com/
Oh, and of course I have emailed them and told them how wonderful it is and begged for an east Tn location :)

If You Do Nothing Else..at Least at These to Your Diet!

FLAXSEEDS

There is power in that seed.  Flaxsed is a superfood.  It can help just about all aspects of health. No joking! Some king, named Charlemagne in the Franks, once made a law requiring the public to daily eat it during the 18th century! Just adding 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed a day can lead to huge benefits.
Did you know that your bowel can hold up to 10 lbs of extra stool! Oh sick, I know..Anyway..just 2 Tbs of ground flaxseed will have a mild laxative effect and help to clean that all out :)  It also is very high in omega-3 fatty acids, alpha-linoelenic acid (ALA) and fiber.  It helps reduce the risk of heart disease and lowers blood pressure.
Flaxseed also has a cancer fighting agent.  Consuming more flaxseed and laying off the industrial fats in packaged and refined foods helps to restore a healthy balance in the body.  Industrial diets are heavy in omega 6 fatty acids and when consumed and not enough omega 3's are present in the body, the body responds by creating an inflammatory response..an environment ideal for cancer development. 
It also helps with WEIGHTLOSS!  How? It's full of fiber. It helps prolong the sensation of fullness after consumed.  It stays in our gut for an extended period of time. 
FLAXSEEDS ARE CHEAP!!  So buy some and reap the benefits now!

Important flaxseed tips:

Here is my flaxseeds all ground up

1. Use real flax seeds as opposed to flax seed oil..the full benefit is only in the seeds.
2. Flaxseed must be ground in order to release their health benefits or else they will pass through your system whole as fiber only.  I use a coffee grinder or food processor or buy it already ground..it's cheaper to grind your own and you get more benefits from the nutrients before they break down.  I grind about a weeks worth in a few seconds. If you buy it already ground, it's called "flaxseed meal"
3. Keep the meal in an air tight container in the fridge.  It keeps the flaxseed oil from going off and making the mill rancid.  Always make sure the meal doesn't smell bad before using it. 

It has so many uses..sprinkle it on cereal and on your oatmeal.  Add it to yogurt.  Use it in breads, muffins, and granola.  Spread it on bread with some peanut butter and banana. Yumo! Sprinkle over a salad to give it some texture.  Be creative!  Just 2 Tbsp a day will give you 140% of omega-3 fatty acids for your daily requirement and cost you about 5 cents!!!

Top 10 Foods for a Metabolism Boost!!!

1.  Drink Green Tea or Black Coffee -Drinking black coffee or green tea increases your metabolism, concentration, and improves heart health..the green tea has an added bonus..it's high in antioxidants and raises your metabolism higher than coffee. I like to mix a flavored green tea in the morning with a detox tea.

2.  Drink Water-Keep your water bottle with you at all times.  One study I saw says that 90 minutes after drinking cold water will boost your metabolism 24% over your average resting metabolic rate.  It also keeps the body lean by helping nutrients flow through it and wash away wastes.



3.  Fiber- Complex carbohydrates such as oatmeal, wheat germ, bran, and flax seed are great source of fiber energy.  They provide a steady, long-lasting energy throughout the day without the crashes that can accompany simple carbohydrates.  

These are my grains and flax seed from the bulk foods in Greenville.

4.  Spices- Spices that contain capsaicin, like jalapeno, habanero and cayenne peppers, have thermogenic properties that speed up your heart rate and heat in the body.  Your body has to burn calories to cool it down.  So spice it up!!

That's my tomato :) I'm growing Cherokee purples

5.  Tomatoes- Along with vitamin c, tomatoes contain citric, malic, and oxalic acids that accelerate your metabolism.  They are also rich in lycopene that is a cancer fighting agent that stimulates the metabolic rate by up to one third.  They are just as good cooked as raw. So spice up some sauce and get double boosts!

6.  Asparagus and Cabbage-

  Asparagus contains the chemical aspaignes it improves circulation and helps BREAKDOWN FAT!  Yee ha! I eat it grilled or broiled with some sea salt, soy sauce, and olive oil.  Yummy! Oh, and asparagus makes your pee smell weird. That is actually a good thing, I googled that.  During digestion, the vegetable's sulfurous amino acids break down into smelly chemical components in all people.

But only about one-quarter of the population appears to have the special gene that allows them to smell those compounds. So the issue isn't whether or not your pee is smelly; it's whether you're able to smell it. If you smell a funny fragrance in your urine after you eat asparagus, you're not only normal, you have a good nose. Nurses don't care to talk about urine, as you can see :)

Cabbage is a natural diuretic.  It contains sulfur and iodine which also helps cleanse the mucous membrane of your stomach and intestines.  Breaks up that fat in the area around our spare tire.

7.  Garlic and Onions- Garlic is a natural diuretic..get rid of that extra fluid!  It also contains mustard oil that acts like a  cleanser in the body.  It help muscle contractions that loosen fat and help wash it out.  Onions, like garlic, contain oils and minerals that naturally break down fatty deposits and help speed up the metabolism.

8. Kefir and Yogurt-  They contain pro-biotics that are vital for a healthy digestive tract.  They contain beneficial bacteria and yeasts that ploy a role in your metabolism. 

9.  Healthy Fats-  Sound nuts? Well those nuts help you burn fat :)  Added bonuses:Mono saturated fats ( found in olive oil, canola oil, cashews, hazelnuts, peanuts, and chicken) help reduce cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure.  Poly saturated-walnuts, flax seed, salmon, trout, high in omega 3 fatty acids, help against inflammation and tumor growth.  They all also improve immune function and protect against heart disease. 

10.  Lean Protein: Eating protein raises your metabolic rate. There is less chance that protein will be stored in your body as excess fat, so eat a lean protein with every meal!

See how good God is to provide his people with everything their body needs!

Peanut Butter Cup milkshake... kefir or just organic milk..both recipes

So, I have lots of kefir and I am making up new uses.  I found a recipe for kefir chocolate ice cream.  I started with that and made up my own thing.  Honestly this is designed after the downtown Pal's half peanut butter and half chocolate shake that I used to get.  You can make this with this Bluebell no added chocolate ice cream found at the bottom of the products page and regular organic milk if you don't have kefir.  The kefir just makes it full of probiotics so you get a bonus with your yummy shake. Scroll down to see recipes for both versions.
NOTE***the kid approved version is the one without the kefir..they love it when their daddy makes the bluebell milkshakes!*****

Kefir Version
4 scoops of chocolate kefir ice cream
1 Tablespoon of natural peanut butter
1/2 -1 cup kefir milk to make it smooth
1 packet of truvia
Place ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.Makes one milkshake. If you don't make the kefir ice cream,  but have some kefir, use the bluebell ice cream  and still use kefir milk.  If you don't have any kefir, scroll down below for instructions with organic milk below these photos.

Scoop kefir ice cream (about 4 scoops) into a blender..this is my off brand bullet makes one shake
Also is some of my kefir in a jar

Add one tablespoon a peanut butter into ice cream

I added about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of extra kefir to make it really smooth

Blend until smooth..I added a packet of truvia too cause it needed a tad more sweetness

MMM...Peanut butter cup milkshake with benefits

Blue Bell Version Peanut Buttercup milkshake
4 scoops of blue bell no added sugar chocolate ice cream
1 Tablespoon of all natural peanut butter
1/2-1 cup organic milk
Place ingredient into blender and blend until smooth.  Makes one milkshake.

Drop it down low!...if you want your kids to eat it..added bonus at the bottom..why should we care about our kids nutrition?

Drop it down low, I mean, put your healthy stuff in reach.  I know that sounds sorta dumb, but if  I put healthy stuff in their reach and don't say anything..they just eat it.  Kids want something quick, that they can grab and eat.
I put all my stuff I want them to have in reach and open the containers.  I take the granola bars and some things out of the packages and put them in a basket in the cabinet.

See how easy they can get to it and how healthy that cabinet is?!?!

I do the same thing in the fridge..take note....none of my berries are in reach. I like to get those out myself..your berries will get down low too, all over your floor when a 7 year old breaks them out!

See how I open all the containers..boys like to grab and go, they won't open a package..must be a man thing

Same thing, sort of , with our fruit basket.  It is full on the end of the cabinet.  I have a stool there so my littlest one can reach it without breaking the cabinet doors off by using them as a ladder..

This pic is crooked, but whatever, here is the fruit basket

So why does it matter that are kids eat healthy?? They are kids and they have lots of energy already and they run around and burn it all off... WRONG!! Our generation of children, has the highest population of obesity and diabetes than any other in history.  Our bodies are the same creation, they are just smaller.  They need the same proper nutrition and hydration as adults.  Not to add to the fact that they are still growing and developing, so actually, it's more important......

You may just see a tight waist band and a chubby tummy, but much more is happening on the inside.  Just 5lbs of being over weight causes a set of series of changes in the body.  That goes for children and adults.  Look how earlier our kids are blooming these days..it's due to the products pumped with hormones and preservatives which causes hormone changes with in our bodies.  It's not just about being over weight, either.  They are now checking cholesterol levels at the age of 5! Children now have high triglycerides.  The statistics show that one third of our child population has some form of diabetes!!  They have type 1 (which is usually hereditary) , Type 2 which is on the rise big time from the sugar eating( formerly known as adult onset), pre-diabeters or metabolic syndrome x. Click on it to find our more from the mayo clinic.  Oh, wow! Those are just a few problems our children are facing by eating a bunch of processed foods and sugar. 
So, if you think I'm a little health crazy..you are right.  I have seen these children myself in the ER..they come in, in DKA.  That is a crisis of the body when the pancreas can not produce of insulin and the blood sugar rises rapidly and causes the body to be in acidosis.  It shuts down the kidneys and can cause respiratory arrest.  It's very life threatening.  If we don't stop the trend now and teach are kids to eat healthy...that is where the future of this country is going to go..in a health crisis...
This book is great for kid tips and is cheap on amazon: