T is for Thanksgiving Real Food Recipes

ABCs for healthy living are quick takes on simple strategies for creating a healthier life.

Thanksgiving is next week. I created strategies for healthy living that helped me recover from fibromyalgia and keep me healthy every day. They include eliminating most processed food because it contains harmful additives and eating real food full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients.The holiday season that stretches from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day has the potential to wreck healthy living strategies. I'm not worried about counting calories or carbs. I'm concerned about counting chemicals and avoiding as many as possible, even during food-centered celebrations.

Dealing with my personal food needs is not the only obstacle I face in planning our Thanksgiving dinner. I'm looking forward to having four generations of my extended family gathered around my table.There will be smiles, hugs, long talks, games, and laughter. But there will also be enough of us in the dining room that have food allergies that we could do group Public Service Announcements for the National Allergy Board. One or more people in my family has a food allergy or food intolerance to dairy products, gluten, beef, nuts, corn, bananas,shellfish, pork, citrus fruits, kiwi, avocados, chocolate, tomatoes, soy, and peanuts. It's a good thing I relish a challenge.

If I can prepare a delicious real food Thanksgiving meal for my food allergy bunch, I know that anyone can. If you are cooking for a crowd that has food sensitivities, have one entree that everyone can eat and plenty of side dishes so that everyone can choose at least two additional foods. If I tried to make every single dish something that every single person could eat, we would have nothing but a lonely turkey on our table.

To keep your holiday meal free of processed food that contains harmful chemicals and toxic additives, plan simple recipes that use real food instead of food that comes out of a box or package. Real food is always a healthy and delicious choice.

Real Food Thanksgiving Menu

Roasted Turkey. I fill the cavity with apple slices, onion, garlic and spices and baste with olive oil and everyone can eat it. You can also add slices of oranges, lemons and limes to ramp up the zesty flavor.

Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese. The lactose intolerant folks have to pass on this one but all of my grandchildren adore it. Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

Portuguese Country Bread. My mother got this recipe on a trip to Portugal. Portuguese Country Bread Recipe

Baked Sweet Potatoes. I serve them plain with a choice of toppings that include butter, soy- free dairy-free butter substitute, brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and ginger.  

Roasted Vegetables can be made with just about any vegetables you like. Simply place cut up vegetables on a large rimmed cookie sheet, brush with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and your favorite spices. Roast in the oven at 400 degrees for about an hour or until vegetables start to brown around the edges.

Fruit Plate with enough choices that everyone can eat at least one of the fruits.If you are feeling artistic, check out this cute turkey made from fruit that I found on Pinterest. My grandchildren had a great time helping me create a Festive Turkey Fruit Platter
 
Salad Greens with kale, carrots, mushrooms, tomatoes, and homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing. I put the greens in a large bowl and arrange the other ingredients on a tray so that everyone can make their own.

Apple Pear Crisp Apple Pear Crisp Recipe

Chocolate Almond Pie that is dairy free, soy free, and gluten free. Chocolate Almond Pie Recipe

And there you have it: a real food Thanksgiving feast for the allergy crowd. Oh, and by the way, my family will be here from Wednesday until Sunday so I have to round up food choices for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for five days. And that's a chore I"m grateful to have. Because spending time with people I love is a gift. And Thanksgiving is the perfect time of year to smile and count my blessings.

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A is for Avocado

ABCs for healthy living are quick takes on simple strategies to create a healthier life.

Eat Avocados

Avocados are packed with healthy nutrients including 14 vitamins and 10 minerals like Vitamin B 12, Vitamin D, folate, calcium, and potassium.
To peel an avocado, slice it in half with a paring knife being careful to slice around the hard pit in the center. Start at the top of the avocado and run your knife all the way around making two halves. Twist the halves apart. Remove the seedlike pit. Slice into wedges and then pull away the prickly skin with your fingers. Want more peeling and slicing tips? Check out this YouTube video:

How to cut an avocado

Eat slices as a side dish, chop and sprinkle on top of chicken stew or chili, or make guacamole by mashing the avocado and adding salt and lime juice to taste. The guacamole can be spiced up with a wide variety of flavorful ingredients. Try adding one or more of the following: finely chopped garlic, cilantro, cumin, cayenne pepper, hot sauce, turmeric, chopped tomatoes, or a little chopped onion.

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Is Invisible Fat Making You Sick?

Hiking to walk off the visible fat. Eating real food to get rid of the visceral fat.

Researchers are unsure what causes fibromyalgia. Check out the post from Jan. 18 for a discussion of three possible triggers. Although the disease may be set off in different people by a different convergence of events, one thing that all fibromyalgia patients have in common is increased inflammation throughout the body. And one thing known to cause widespread inflammation is visceral fat.

Visceral fat is fat that you cannot see. You don't have to appear obese to have it. Many thin people have a significant amount of visceral fat. This type of fat wraps itself around your internal organs, especially organs in the digestive tract including the stomach, liver, and spleen. Visceral fat causes chronic inflammation on a cellular level that leads to a host of diseases including autoimmune diseases like fibromyalgia. It also contributes to aging, heart disease, diabetes, depression, sleep apnea, some types of cancer, and many other illnesses. 

I am working to get rid of my visible fat and increase my overall stamina by walking, using a fitness tracker, light weight lifting, doing Tai Chi, and stretching. To recover from fibromyalgia, it was important for me to understand the harm that invisible visceral fat causes and find ways to increase my overall well-being by getting rid of it.

One of the main causes for developing visceral fat and the subsequent inflammation it creates is eating too much processed food full of corn syrup, artificial dyes, trans fats, preservatives, and other potentially harmful chemical additives. Researchers studying the link between visceral fat and inflammation say that we should never eat anything that comes out of a box, bottle, can, or package. They recommend eating real whole foods with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients.My personal goal is to eat real food at least 90% of the time. I heard one physician say that if he could get his patients with autoimmune diseases like fibromyalgia to eat real food for at least 80% of their diet they always showed significant improvement.

People who eat processed food, drink soft drinks, and consume other packaged products have high levels of visceral fat even if they are not visibly overweight. I had been eating processed food mindlessly for decades when I developed fibromyalgia. When I changed my diet to include mainly whole real foods and eliminated as many chemicals as possible from my daily routine, my symptoms completely resolved.

• I stopped eating processed food with harmful additives.
• I stopped drinking all soda. 
• I eat a wide variety of fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains.
• I eat foods that have a lot of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients.

The trade off of giving up certain foods for the blessing of feeling better is certainly worth it. Nothing that I have eliminated from my diet tastes as good as it feels to be well. I would love to get your feedback in the comments section. What do you think might keep someone from eating real food? Why would the processed food industry not want people to understand how harmful many of their products are? What else would you like to know about fibromyalgia recovery?


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Painting the House and I'm Still Alive

My husband and I are painting the inside of our house and I am having such fun. I know that sounds a little bit, well maybe a lot, crazy. After all painting involves taping, drop cloths, strenuous manual labor, ladders, brushes, rollers, time, moving furniture, and living in general chaos until the job is done.

But I'm elated nonetheless. Here's why. The last time the inside of our house was painted (ages and ages ago), we had a contractor complete the task. The smell of the paint fumes made me so sick I had to move out and stay with family and friends until the smell was gone. It was almost six weeks before I was able to move back into my home.This time around things are entirely different. Not only am I able to stay in the house while it is being painted, I am able to wield a brush and roller to help paint it.

A lot has happened between our two painting adventures. I had Meniere's disease the first go around. Since then I have developed Fuch's dystrophy of the cornea, multiple chemical and food allergies, and fibromyalgia. All of these diseases are related to malfunctioning of the immune system. I was in so much pain with fibromyalgia that I was desperate to find a way to feel better. I learned that exposure to toxic chemicals contributes to all kinds of autoimmune diseases including fibro. So I got chemicals out of my home, stopped eating processed food that is full of harmful chemicals, and started eating real food rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients. I haven't had any fibromyalgia symptoms in over nineteen months. And as a bonus, my immune system in general has improved. My allergies are a lot better. I haven't had a Meniere's episode in two years. My vision is stable. I feel great.

So I was worried when we started planning to paint the house. We are retired now and have plenty of time to do the work ourselves. But I didn't want to rock the boat by risking exposure to paint. Fortunately, paint manufacturers have developed paint that is free of VOCs - Volatile Organic Chemicals. VOCs in paint, cleaning products, scented products, cosmetics and a host of other things people use in daily life are a huge contributor to all kinds of health problems. We bought three gallons of VOC free paint in different colors and painted three different test walls. I had no reaction at all. We have finished painting three entire rooms and I am zipping right along as healthy as can be. 

Here are some quick tips that can make painting the inside of your home a little easier.

Buy paint that contains no VOCs. There are some paint products that say low VOC so make sure to verify that the paint you choose has absolutely no VOCs.

Gather all supplies before you start. Our list included: regular painter's tape, painter's tape with a four foot pull out drop cloth to use on the baseboards, an extension ladder, a step ladder, a step stool, three sizes of good quality brushes, disposable paint rollers, an extension roller pole, roller pans, drop cloths for the floor, and drop cloths to cover the furniture.

Painter's tape with a drop cloth attached works great on baseboards.

An extension ladder helps with the high spots.

Decide on a color scheme. Most companies offer brochures and online resources to help you pick out colors. We used a color palette sheet that shows a range of colors that work well together, got large paint chip swatches of the colors we thought we wanted to use, and painted test patches before buying all of the paint. The color palette sheet also has been useful for picking out accessories to go with our new look.

Prepare the room. Move the furniture away from the walls and cover with drop cloths. Put painter's tape around all baseboards, door frames, and windows. Take pictures off the walls and use spackle to fill in all nail holes. Wash the walls with a damp microfiber cloth. Bring your paint, brushes, and rollers to the room. Go!

For me painting my home has been a special blessing. Nineteen months ago I was too sick and in too much pain from fibromyalgia to even think about doing something as strenuous as painting our whole house. I am so thankful for health and energy and paint that is free from VOCs. I could share more but I've got to run. There are more rooms waiting to magically change color and I hear a paintbrush calling my name.