Health and Wellness Tips | NutriLicious Recovery

Tea Time

by dnshah | Mar 27, 2017 | Diet and Weight Loss, Health and Wellness Tips

If you ask this India-native, when is the best time to have a cup of tea – the answer will be ANYTIME! Tea is a comfort drink that soothes you, refreshes you, and heals you, according to a number of studies. But what tea is the best? It depends on a number of factors and preferences. In this article I will bring you information on 5 super healing teas categorized in 3 ways.

First, what is the most potent and most antioxidant tea in the world? White tea is the answer, and it is also the least processed tea – sun dried and contains 3 times the polyphenols as green tea, which is hailed as a healthy tea. It is high in caffeine, but not compared to coffee. According to Nutrition and Metabolism journal, white tea boosts lipolysis (fat breakdown) AND blocks adipogenesis (fat cell creation) so it multi-tasks fat loss, making it an ideal choice for slimming. A recommended brand is Twinings White.

Second, which teas boost metabolism for energy and weight loss? Green tea and Oolong tea answer this. Green tea has gotten fame for being healthy because of a compound called catechins which trigger the release of fat from adipose tissue, particularly in the belly region. Green tea is high in caffeine compared to other teas, however not compared to coffee. Oolong tea is light and floral and has less caffeine, but still holds great metabolic boosting power. According to the Chinese Journal of Integrative Medicine, regular oolongers lost more weight over 6 weeks that non-oolongers. Recommended brands are Yogi Green, and Bigelow Oolong.

Third, which tea can curb my hunger and satisfy my cravings? Mint tea and Roobios tea answer this. Neither tea is high in caffeine, so they can be enjoyed at the end of the day/evening if desired. They also satisfy a craving for something slightly sweet-ish and can delay hunger, while also reducing stress hormones. Roobios tea is especially useful for hypertension, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes. Recommended brands are Tazo Mint and Celestial Seasonings Roobios.

Early to bed…helps with weight loss

by dnshah | Jan 10, 2017 | Health and Wellness Tips

According to Webmd, getting too little sleep hampers your metabolism and contributes to weight gain. Striving for 7-8 hours of sleep/night can improve the success of your weight loss goals. Here are some pleasant strategies for staying disciplined with a consistent bedtime:

Establish a bedtime that gives you 7 hours of rest, and follow a consistent routine:

3 hours before

Stop eating /drinking to allow adequate digestion processing time, and to minimize waking for the bathroom.
Turn off electronic devices – the brain needs to process the day’s activities along with emotions. Nightly use of these devices distracts us from normal brain operations & also prevents proper production of melatonin required for deep sound sleep.

1 hour before

Journal – Writing down the day’s events brings surprising revelations of what our brain is still processing & buried emotions. The more buried emotions, the more we want to eat to comfort us. Journaling provides an avenue to release some emotions, and put our situation into a perspective that our brains can assess and work on resolving.
Weekly Night Soak – soaking in a fragrant bath weekly provides a treat that doesn’t involve a sugar-coated dessert. It stabilizes a stressed out nervous system which also helps to satisfy our souls without food.

A health Buzz about Moringa

by dnshah | Jan 10, 2017 | Age Defying, Diet and Weight Loss, Health and Wellness Tips

I’ve eaten parts of moringa all my life as I was born in India and it is a delicious ingredient common in Southern regions of India. It is regarded as a “miracle tree” there. I also know that the benefits of moringa are so great, it is now offered as a supplement.

Moringa health benefits may include:

Anti-inflammatory – which could help with chronic illness
Immune boost – which could help fight against infections, skin ailments, and allergies
Nutrient-dense food – which could help with nutritious menu planning
Blood-Sugar Balancer – which could help better manage menu planning for all, especially diabetics

These collective benefits may help minimize symptoms of so many disorders and diseases while providing essential vitamins and minerals to nourish your physical body. It sounds great, but here’s the catch.

It is a bit messy to eat, so many people shy away from indulging. When there is a food that is so good for you…it’s practically a superfood, you have to get your hands a little dirty! I use it in a hearty stew as it lends a savory texture and flavor. It will not fit on a spoon well, so I pick it up and put it in my mouth. While still holding an edge, I close my mouth and sandwich it between my teeth (top & bottom). Then I gently pull it out while my teeth scrape the contents of this fibrous vegetable. Your fingers are left with the fibrous stem that is not eaten, while your mouth is enjoying the creamy flesh and pods which have absorbed the taste of your stew.

It is available at ethnic Asian markets throughout the US in the freezer section under the name “drumsticks”, and it is a very easy ingredient to work with in stews and dals.

The FAST Proven Fountain of Youth

by Darshi Shah | Oct 20, 2016 | Age Defying, Diet and Weight Loss, Health and Wellness Tips

What I know for sure is that your body can either burn fat for fuel or burn carbohydrates for fuel – but not both. Which is better? Most health professionals I’ve discussed it with concede that the best mode for energy and weight loss is to burn fat for fuel. Of course it comes with a big challenge… HOW? My amazing and proven answer – is fasting! And by the way, fasting comes with big lifelong benefits too!

“Fasting” may seem to be the new health fad of today to reset your metabolism to efficiently burn fat versus carbohydrates; BUT in actuality it continues to be a practice used throughout Asia for longevity. Perhaps it is the ancient secret of the fictional “Fountain of Youth” that many covet. Let me explain…

What does it mean?

Fasting simply means that you cease your consumption of food (& sometimes drink) for at least 12 hours. Many of us do this at least once a year for our annual physical labs, so it isn’t that difficult to achieve. It allows enough time for your body to undergo the changes needed to burn fat for the energy needed to live. Many health professionals today are discussing the best strategies to achieve “ketogenesis” – a process to break down fats to best nourish your organs.

How does it feel?

Being of both Eastern and Western influences, I got into the Eastern practice of fasting one day per week when I was a teenager. Even today I still try to fast most Mondays each week (no food); and what I’ve noticed is I have more physical energy and more focused mental energy on Mondays despite feeling hungry. I have learned over time to control those hunger pangs by letting myself know that I can eat tomorrow, thereby converting those cravings into delayed gratification for an amazing Tuesday meal.

How does it preserve one’s youth?

What I have learned through Western science is that by fasting at least 12 hours, I am lengthening my telomeres. Telomeres are the protective caps on the ends of chromosomes, and it is believed their size can predict how quickly cells age and die. These telomeres shorten with time, and the shorter telomeres are generally associated with illness, cancer, and other disease. So it is not surprising that scientists all over the world are obsessed with trying to determine what can lengthen these telomeres.

Since January, 2015 Stanford University School of Medicine researchers began exploring treatments to artificially “lengthen” telomeres. These treatments, if successful, have potential for benefits with anti-aging, anti-disease, anti-cancer, and general health for those elite that can pay for it in the future.

But what about the rest of us? What options do we have to lengthen our telomeres today?

REGULAR FASTING can help you preserve your age by lengthening your telomeres. It doesn’t have to be a whole day – it simply has to be at least 12 hours. An easy way to implement this is to stop eating at 7pm each day, and don’t eat again until after 7am the next morning. This means early dinners and probably means early to sleep too! But when the next morning greets a lighter version of you with more energy and real hunger, you’ll know this is a winning way to detoxify, preserve your age, and metabolize your foods.

What are the other proven ways to preserve one’s youth?

In addition to fasting, the other telomere lengthening / Fountain of Youth revealing methods are as follows:

MEDITATION is widely known to yogis and yoginis that deep meditation naturally increases the length of our telomeres. Daily meditation is the free option which everyone has access to… you only need a small piece of ground to sit on and to still your mind while shifting focus internally. One only needs at least 10 minutes/day to start reaping benefits, and there are numerous apps that provided free guided meditations.
EXERCISE is now believed that vigorous exercise (studies cite running 50 miles/week) may also increase these telomeres. Another school of thought is that exercise doesn’t increase the length of the telomeres; however it increases the amount of telomerase, a cellular enzyme that might help lengthen and protect telomeres. In either event REGULAR physical activity seems to help with telomerase production.
A clean plant-based DIET, specifically one which is high in (G.B.O.M.B.S.) greens, beans, onions, mushrooms, berries, and seeds is generally accepted in the health coaching industry to be anti-aging, anti-disease, and immune-boosting. Eating a clean diet requires access to pure whole foods (non-GMO, organic) which isn’t always easy. In our rushed pace of life, fast-food is taking over our nourishment; and this is not the best we can do. That is one reason health coaches are in demand – to empower even the busiest individual to create more quick, clean, and tasty meals at home with ease.

I believe all three of these lifestyle options impact the length your telomeres (directly or indirectly). As we chronologically age however, I don’t advocate starting vigorous exercise in our later years for the safety of our bones, and joints. If athletes have been running 50 miles/week since their younger years and they want to continue, that is great. I would say it may be the most important activity they are doing for their longevity. However for the rest of us, there may be other more important activities / options for our longevity like fasting, meditation & diet.

How do I get started?

A little support from your local health coach on tweaking your diet, or getting started on fasting, or even meditation and pranayam to lengthen your telomeres may actually lengthen your life and improve your overall quality of life… so what are you waiting for? Send me an email and let’s get started with finding your best path to health and the fountain of youth!

Let’s Take-Two to Mango

by Darshi Shah | Oct 20, 2016 | Health and Wellness Tips, Stress Management

Fighting Chronic Inflammation? Let’s Take-two to Mango! Mangoes have been around for thousands of years, and you’ve probably tasted them before. But recent research suggests that they are full of serious health benefits – so it’s time to take-two on these luscious sweet things!

What I know for sure is that they are full of vitamins (including B6 & C) and other antioxidants which help protect our cells from damage prematurely creating inflammation, and they boost our immune systems to support our health. Mangos also are a good source of folate and iron, which is needed to support healthy cardiovascular function.

Recently at OSU, scientists discovered that mango-fed mice were able to reduce body fat, blood glucose, and cholesterol; This could possibly suggest a delicious way to sooth metabolic disorders and drop some weight. This delicious fruit also has minerals (including magnesium and potassium) and fiber to improve overall digestion and nutrition. Any volunteers for human trials?