Eat the Seasons

Many of you, local to me, know we used to run “Brentwood Spice and Olive Oil” and of course as with many small businesses in 2010 we had to close our doors.  That being said I always spoke of knowing your foods, “fresh is best” and “eat the seasons” were words preached by me and still to this day!!

In this day and age, we have the luxury of heading to the local store to pick up, almost, whatever we want to eat.  Mother Nature knows best, remember this. 

Foods that are picked at the peak of ripeness provide us nutrients that fruits and veggies picked early do not have.  Studies have shown that produce picked when mature and consumed immediately or flash frozen at the time of harvest have greater levels of these vital nutrients than those we find at the grocery store.  Specifically, levels of vitamin C and antioxidants are especially sensitive to harvesting too early.  These studies are also showing that fresh vegetable can lose up to 51% of the vitamin C with in 48 hours.  Even when stored at the proper temperature vegetables can lose nearly half of the water-soluble antioxidants within a matter of days.

 

Mother Nature’s brilliance shines here.  She knew what she was doing when she created these beauties.  The benefits of in seasonal produce is that the aroma and taste are amazing.  As I stated earlier, the nutrients are much higher when fresh picked.  We need our liquids for hydration during the high heat but that’s not all.  We lose electrolytes, amino acids, and vitamins when we sweat.  Summer fruits have a higher water content than the fall produce.  Strawberries and watermelon have the highest fluid content at 92% seconded by grapefruit and cantaloupe, summer veggies that are high are summer cucumbers and zucchini at a whopping 96%.  Research suggests that refueling with summer fruits and veggie actually rehydrates you better after a workout better than drinking water or sports drinks.  For a winter example, we need more vitamin D due to the extended darkness and cold weather we experience, so a good source is portabella mushrooms which are best in the winter months.

So what does this mean, head out to the local farmer’s market or the actual farm, better yet, grow your own fruit and vegetables and set the most out of your food!!  Mother Nature is amazing – she knew what she was doing. J

Why should I put Essential Oils on My Feet!

I LOVE putting Essential Oils on My Feet!

I do it morning and night.  Sometimes I use a hand and body lotion, sometimes I use a little Deep Blue, and sometimes I use a body butter. 

This is a special time as it is very relaxing and since our hands, feet, and ears all have reflexology points for all parts of our bodies we can sooth our whole bodies with a little massaging.  This is also awesome as the 7200 super highway of nerves that run the length of our bodies begin with our feet. 

There are some misconceptions floating around on the world wide web (on Facebook, Blogs, and Pinterest and the like) about our feet.  First our feet have the thickest skin on our bodies this creates the conditions for slower absorption.  Another thing I have been seeing is that pores absorb; this is not true the dermis absorbs.  Sebaceous glands are glands that are associated mostly with hair follicles, however they are NOT found on our hands or feet among a few other parts of the human body.  For anything to be absorbed through the skin, it must pass through the epidermis, glands, or hair follicles. Sweat glands and hair follicles make up about 0.1 to 1.0 percent of the total skin surface. Though small amounts of oil may enter the body rapidly through the glands or hair follicles, they are primarily absorbed through the epidermis.  Whether or not the skin will absorb will depend on several factors, including the substance, skin health, exposure, temperatures, etc.  The skin is relatively permeable to fat soluble substances and relatively impermeable to water soluble substances. Essential oil molecules are so minute that when they are applied to the skin; they are able to pass through the strateum corneum (the outer layer of the epidermis). From here the oil molecule passes through dermis, into the capillaries and into the bloodstream, this process bypasses the kidney and liver.  So our feet and hands, since we are massaging our feet with our hands, are providing double duty in applications here, not only is the oil following the 7200 pathways from the feet it is following the pathways from the hands as well.  Also you will find that there is a lesser opportunity for reactions when applying to the feet.  Application of “hot” oils like oregano or cinnamon to the feet will be less likely to cause a reaction.  It is also a common place to apply phototoxic oils (i.e. citrus oils).  I find that massaging my feet while applying sets up another layer of relaxation.

Consider this: in 12 seconds essential oils are in our brains, 2 minutes in our blood stream and 20 minutes in every cell of our bodies.  Now, this is an example when inhaling the oils.  Yes our skin absorbs, it absorbs good and bad stuff.  If you are applying a chemical based lotion to your skin it too is absorbed and the chemicals are getting into your body.  So BEWARE of what you are putting onto your skin from every point of view and from head to toe.