What we eat helps us to stay healthy and function better and be more balanced. Here are some tips on foods that will give us the omega 3 and omega 6 which are so beneficial to our health.  Omega 3 and 6 have a healthy effect on our cardiac and circulatory systems, and our immune and our nervous systems - no small matters!

IMPORTANT SOURCES OF OMEGA 3.

Flaxseed: 2 tablespoons daily. Or flaxseed oil: 1 tablespoon daily.

Olive oil (not heated) and or canola oil. (Canola oil has even more omega 3's.)

Avoid all other oils, especially for baking. They can negatively affect your arteries.

Nuts: 1.6 ounces per day - especially walnuts.

For an all-organic, locally Californian olive oil, view here.  

Warmly, Pieternel.

For more suggestions, keep reading.

ROOIBOS TEA

Rooibos tea is an excellent tea that is loaded with natural antioxidants, and has no caffeine or teaine. Harvested from a bush native to South Africa, it seems to relieve depression, stress, colic and constipation. It is beneficial for hypertension, diabetes, liver diseases, allergies, rash, arteriosclerosis, heartburn, ulcers and cataracts.

Here follows a detailed list of ingredients in Rooibos Tea

I just love this tea... its taste, its aroma, and it's suitability for children.

Enjoy. If you have difficulties finding rooibos tea, send me an email at pieternel@pieternel.com.

STEVIA REBAUDIANA

Stevia rebaudiana is an herb from Paraguay that consists of inconspicuous green leaves with a very sweet taste. It is rich in Magnesium, Niacin, Potassium, Vitamin C, and more. In various forms, stevia is used throughout the world as a no-calorie sweetener. As an excellent sugar substitute, it also has the medicinal properties of mildly reducing hypertension and acting as a  disinfectant. It regulates your blood sugars and besides discouraging tooth decay, is actually healthy for the teeth (imagine that: a sweetener that's good for your teeth!).

Here's how you can make your own infusion: Put 1 teaspoon of leaves in one cup of water. Boil it down to 1/2 of its original volume. Two drops equals one teaspoon of sugar in sweetness. This infusion is more potent then the refined white version you can buy in stores. You will have to keep it refrigerated; it stays

good for about two weeks.

FLAXSEED

Two tablespoons a day keeps the doctor away. FLAXSEED: Flaxseed is extraordinarily rich in two substances that favorably affect the immune system: omega-3 fatty acids and lignans. Flaxseeds are packed with a plant form of omega-3 fatty acids. As with fish oil, the omega-3's in flaxseed may have beneficial effects on high blood pressure, cholesterol levels, angina and other risk factors for stroke and heart attack. They also improve immune function, and have an anti-inflammatory effect in the blood vessels. Other research suggests a possible link with omega-3's with an easing of symptoms for arthritis, psoriasis and eczema.

A second component of flaxseed are lignans, a class of phytochemicals (plant chemicals). Lignans are believed to lower the risk of cancer by blocking some effects of the estrogen your body naturally produces. The shell of the flaxseed has a higher concentration of lignans than any other food. Finally, ground flaxseed is also a good source of soluble fiber, which we all know lowers blood cholesterol.

Are you coldish? Maybe your thyroid is off balance if your estrogen is too high.

There is nothing like the present.

Anonymous radio announcer.

You can soak it overnight ( in yoghurt, cooked cereal or juice) and chew it very well in the morning. Grinding your flaxsed in a coffee grinder is probably better - but a little too much work for me personally!

CHILDREN 'S HEALTH

Having children is a joy and a challenge. We see our self in them and we are so grateful when they are healthy. This pamphlet is for you as a parent to help you keep your children healthy.

Except for keeping your environment safe, for example putting your children in a car seats, there are additional ways and I am going to write them out for you here. Of course this should not replace doctor's visits and with any problems consult your doctor.

Babies; Colic's and bad sleeping pattern: Rooibos tea. (See

Cough, nasal congestion, and flue: Slice an onion and put it in the bed close to the head of the baby....  10 inches away.

Rinse nose with salt water. (One pinch on a cup of salt water. needs to be as salty as your tears.) Put it in a droplet. One or two drops in morning and evening and as needed.

Give your children and yourself plenty of fresh air. Ventilate your house and have plants in your house for fresh oxygen supply.

Fever: Temperature higher then 104 rectal: Use lukewarm water to sponge of your baby. (Never cold water). Fevers lower then 104: Take two pair of socks. One cotton, wet with lukewarm water and rinse. Put this on the baby's feet and one dry preferable wool  (but cotton will do too) pair on top. Be sure to give enough fluids. (But avoid juices with 30 -40 gr of sugar per serving= equal to 6 or 8 teaspoons of sugar. Sugar will prevent the white blood cells to do their job of killing germs. )

A baby should have at least 5 wet diapers a day. As a result it will have enough fluid intake.

 Good quality multivitamins: I have found it very beneficial to add multivitamins to children's diets. Especially when children are in a growth spurt or when they go trough stressful periods and with the change of seasons. To cut the doses in half and spread them over the day has a better change of absorption then a one daily doses.

Test you multivitamin: Put one in a cup of warm water and see if it dissolves in 1/2 hour. If not, the absorption in your body is probably not adequate.  

This information is not intended in any way to replace a visit to a doctor. When symptoms become worse call your physician.