Like so many of us with food sensitivities or allergies, the necessity of creativity in the kitchen has now become a joy. That said, I do not relish hours of prep time in the kitchen. This new version of my old favorite gazpacho, has replaced the tomato I can no longer eat with cucumber! It is gluten, dairy, nightshade free, full of nutrients, yummy and so easy, done in 15 minutes in the blender.
Cucumber Gazpacho: serves 4 2 cucumbers (unwaxed/organic if possible to be able to use the peels; if waxed, peel first) 2 T shallots (or onion if you don’t have shallots) 2 small garlic cloves 1 cup cilantro leaves 4 T lime juice 2 cups coconut unsweetened yogurt ½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black or white ground pepper 2 t coriander ground 2 T olive oil
1 handful arugula or baby kale or baby spinach
For garnish consider: Lime zest (my favorite) Diced avocado Poached shrimp drizzled with lime, olive oil
Directions:
Put all ingredients in blender. Chill in fridge. Make sure it is REALLY cold so best to make ahead of time. Enjoy!
At Carolina Total Wellness we understand that our services and support are sometimes only part of the solution in optimizing our patients’ health. We have worked over the years with various medical providers in our community to establish a base of high-quality clinicians who are able to meet the various health needs of our patients. This is the first in a series of guest blogs from one of our community providers. Dr. Kari Smith, PT, DPT, describes one of her approaches to treating pain – dry needling.
What is dry needling? Dry Needling is a soft tissue manual therapy technique performed by a certified clinician with a professional degree in the medical field. The clinician safely guides a sterile monofilament needle into dysfunctional muscle tissue to aid in pain reduction and restoration of proper movement patterns. This technique involves identifying and treating a muscle trigger point (a collection of muscle fibers that lack healthy blood supply, have a higher resting electrical state and contain pain-generating chemicals). Left untreated, muscle trigger points can lead to altered joint movement, as well as increased stress on surrounding soft tissue.
A clinician may also use dry needling with electric stimulation to release overactive primary muscles, or to wake up dormant stabilizing muscles by improving their neural response. Primary muscle groups are comprised mostly of fast-twitch muscle fibers, so they fatigue quickly and require de-activation to recover. Stabilizing muscles contain more slow-twitch fibers and can withstand longer bouts of activation. Our bodies experience pain or movement dysfunction when the stabilizing muscles are inactive, and the larger muscle groups work over-time. Through dry needling with electric stimulation, the clinician activates these stabilizing muscles so that stress is taken off primary muscle groups, allowing these larger muscle groups to function optimally, but also have time for recovery.
Does it hurt? The needles are much smaller than ones used for an injection, so often patients do not feel the insertion of the needle in the skin. There is also nothing injected (as the needle is solid), so patients do not experience the burning sensation that is commonly felt when a fluid is injected into the body. The most common sensation is a light cramping when the needle activates a deep twitch response in the trigger point. This is an effective response that is documented in the literature that indicates that the trigger point has been released and immediate changes in muscle length are observed. Some patients feel soreness after the treatment, similar to muscle fatigue after a strenuous workout. Your therapist will be in constant communication with you throughout the procedure to alter or cease treatment as needed.
How will I know the treatment is effective? Your therapist will perform a series of pre-treatment tests to determine areas of pain, movement dysfunction, or loss in strength. Following treatment, these areas will be re-assessed for improvement, and often there are immediate results. Your therapist will then recommend corrective exercises to maintain the gains made during the manual therapy session.
If you are suffering from pain and feel that dry needling may be of benefit to you, feel free to discuss this with your functional medicine physician at Carolina Total Wellness or contact Dr. Smith at Prevail physical therapy.
In person supplement pick up includes a 10% discount on all supplements ordered. If you prefer shipping, we will continue to provide free direct shipping for online orders.
• Place your order for supplements through the “Online Store” on the home page of your patient portal. • At check out, use the promo code TAKEOUT, Click APPLY and then complete your payment • If you use the TAKEOUT promo code, we will NOT ship your supplements. We will ready them for office pick up. • Supplements must be ordered by 5 pm the day BEFORE you would like to pick up. The order will be ready by 9 am the next day and you may pick up anytime Monday -Thursday from 9 am to 5 pm or Friday from 9 am to 12 pm. • Please do NOT call the practice to place your order on the phone or request via messages. • When you come to the office to pick up your supplements, they will be ready for you by the front office door on our pick-up shelf.
Please contact our office for an appointment to further support and personalize your path to wellness.
There are many reasons exercise may fall to the wayside: injury, surgery, a major life event such as a divorce or death, demands of work or simply losing interest in an exercise routine can all disrupt your exercise schedule. Life is full of ups and downs and sometimes things gets in the way of consistent exercise and movement.
Here are five tips to help you get back on track:
Choose a Type of Movement You don’t have to stick with the same type of exercise you have done in the past. Perhaps it’s time to try something new – maybe something you’ve always wanted to try but haven’t. Think about your current lifestyle and what exercise would suit you best. There are so many different types of exercise. You may want to sample a few before you decide on an exercise plan.
Set Realistic Expectations Don’t attempt to go from the couch to exercising 7 days a week overnight. This will often end up in injury and put you BACK on the couch. Instead come up with a plan that eases you back into consistent movement such as walking 2-3 days a week for 15-20 minutes. This primes your muscles and joints more effectively. It also gives you a “win” because it is manageable and you will succeed. This is great for your mindset and will keep you moving forward with your goals.
Focus on Consistency One of the most important aspects of forming a new habit is to be consistent. So rather than working out once a week for 2 hours (and ending up sore and possibly injured) it is much better to exercise 5 days a week for 30 minutes. Make a commitment to yourself to exercise a specific number of days a week and keep that commitment.
Get Support from Family and Friends Let your family know what your new fitness goals are so they can support you. You may need others to take over some of the tasks around the house so you have time to exercise. Enlisting a friend to exercise with you can help keep you focused and can make exercise more fun.
Fuel Your Body with Nutritious Foods You’ll need to make sure you are fueling yourself well when adding exercise back into your routine. Depending on what type of exercise you are doing you may need more protein than you are currently eating. Focusing on whole foods with adequate protein, lots of veggies and healthy fats will give you the energy you need to get through your workouts. Exercise is hard sometimes but it should be fun! Find something you enjoy doing and see how good it makes you feel to move.
Those with food sensitivities are always on the lookout to avoid exposure to foods we know cause trouble for us. As someone with food sensitivities myself, I was horrified to discover that a migraine medication I was taking contained food proteins to which I knew I was sensitive. How could that be?
Medications, both over the counter (OTC) and prescription, need to have “fillers” to hold the tablets together. These often come from corn or potato starch, but can also have ingredients that contain gluten or soy as well.
Most prescription medications now are gluten free though not all are certified as such by the manufacturer. Several blood pressure medications contain gluten. Gluten containing OTC medications include Advil Liquid Gel and Advil Liquigel Migraine Caps. “Red flag” Ingredients in medications that can have gluten hidden within include:- modified starch, pregelatinized starch (can be derived from potato, corn, tapioca or wheat) -dextrate and dextrin (can be derived from potato, corn, tapioca, or wheat) – dextrimaltose (may be derived from barley malt) -Maltodextrin (may be derived from potato, corn, tapioca, or wheat) – sodium starch glycolate (usually derived from potato, but may come from corn, tapioca, or wheat) -caramel coloring (when barley malt is used). -All of above are suspect if the source is not specified
Now, let’s talk more about “inactive” ingredients. Ingredients such as corn starch or potato starch may be labelled as “inactive”, however, for some of us they can certainly trigger some very “active” immune responses.
Corn starch is a frequent filler in many OTC meds as well as prescription meds. These include multiple forms of Advil, blood pressure medications such as amlodipine, birth control pills, cholesterol medicines, such as atorvastatin, and common antibiotics such as azithromycin.
Other inactive ingredients may be important, causing immune reactions in some people. For this reason, I always advise choosing the cleanest version of a medication possible when needed. An example of this is the difference between NP Thyroid and Armour. Armour contains inactive ingredients which may be reactive for some, including sodium starch glycolate (gluten free), a food coloring, and microcrystalline cellulose. NP Thyroid contains maltodextrin (gluten free), mineral oil, calcium stearate, and dextrose monohydrate as inactive ingredients. These tend to provoke fewer immune reactions.
Often the “inactive” ingredients are not evident on the label. For over the counter medications you will need to peel back the label and look underneath. If there is no information on ingredient sources, call the 1-800 number on the label to be certain.
A most helpful resource is www.glutenfreedrugs.com On this website, kept up to date by a pharmacist, you can look up most drugs to find whether gluten, potato, corn, or soy are within. Another helpful resource is www.beyondceliac.org.
Your most valuable resource is your pharmacist. Speak to them personally to get them on your team, letting them know your particular food sensitivities. They will add this to your profile and double check any medication to make sure it is absent of your food triggers. They can also be helpful checking ingredients on any over the counter product you might consider using. Though they cannot do this on the spot, they can research the ingredients and get back to you. My pharmacist at Publix has been an immense help to me. I am so grateful to have her on my “team”.
You may be thinking that kids and mindfulness are not two things that naturally go together. But as anxiety continues to become an epidemic for our children and teens, we must find ways to help them make mindfulness a part of their lives.
So, what is mindfulness?
A great definition by Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction describes it well:
Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way:on purpose,in the present moment,and nonjudgmentally.
Stopping, paying attention, and noticing what’s happening around you, and everything you’re feeling, thinking and doing in that particular moment with honesty and without judgment is being mindful. Sounds easy enough, right?
Actually, this Harvard study found that we spend almost 50% of our time thinking about something else and NOT what we’re actually doing!
Here are just a few of the health benefits of mindfulness that have been researched: Increased focus and attention Improved memory and learning Less anxiety and depression Better emotional self-regulation Stronger immune system Reduced inflammation
Here are a couple of my favorite mindfulness exercises that you can do with your kids:
STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN
You and your kids can practice mindfulness anywhere and anytime. A great way for kids to learn how to be mindful is by using the STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN method. This involves, STOPPING what you are doing, LOOKING around you and using all 5 senses (what are you seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, and even tasting) and LISTENING (listen to your body and mind and how it feels in that moment).
THE FIVE SENSES EXERCISE
Another quick exercise that can be done anywhere is the 5 senses exercise. Notice 5 things you can see, 4 things you can feel, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste. This exercise can bring you to a mindful state quickly. These are just a couple of examples of how you can practice mindfulness with your kids.
Your Partner in Health! Caroline Wilson, M.Ed., FMHC
Functional Fertility: Basics and Beyond for Pre-conception
Whether trying to conceive naturally or going through advanced reproductive options, there are lifestyle, nutritional, nutraceutical and botanical interventions to support optimal fertility.
We need balanced hormone communication and low levels of inflammation for a woman’s body to create and nourish new life. There are major leverage points for understanding your body’s baseline of communication and inflammation. These include the Basics: checking in with your sleep quality and daily nutrient intake; and Beyond: testing for personalized understanding of your hormonal health, nutrient needs and inflammatory status.
Basics:
Some quality Zzzs… Good sleep hygiene is important for our general restoration, healing and detoxification. Our daily circadian rhythm should be an appropriate balance of our stress hormone cortisol, and our restorative hormone, melatonin. Related to healthy menstrual cycles, chronic low overnight melatonin impacts hormone signaling between the brain and ovaries. Hormones necessary for conception include luteinizing hormone (LH), estrogen and progesterone. Production of these hormones is decreased in chronic low melatonin levels.
Melatonin is an important antioxidant in the follicular fluid ovarian eggs are swimming in. It acts as a strong scavenger of free radicals, protecting egg cells from cellular damage. Melatonin is also anti-inflammatory, turning down cranky messengers like NF-KB and turning up calming ones like IL-4 and IL-10. Studies with IVF patients taking even 3mg of melatonin nightly days 5 until mid-cycle showed a 4-fold increase in follicular melatonin, which resulted in decreased oxidative damage of these eggs and higher pregnancy rates.
Regular sleep is key for fertility. Aim for 8 hours nightly and turn off screens at least one hour before bedtime. This is to address not only the blue light impact on wakefulness, but also to limit the cognitive and psychological stimulation from texting and scrolling through feeds, for example. Use the later hours in the day to turn your attention inward and cultivate, rather than demand, sleep. Consider breathing exercises, calming herbal teas including chamomile and lemon balm, gratitude journaling and yoga nidra.
Step away from the chicken fried biscuit…. When examining your nutrient intake, if you need a template to guide changes, I recommend the Mediterranean food plan. It has shown to improve markers of fertility for females and males. Its major principles include:
Emphasis on fruits and vegetables, providing great phytonutrient and antioxidant diversity
Higher content of omega 3 fatty acids, which are anti-inflammatory, support cell membranes and improve blood viscosity which ensures good blood flow to the uterus
Mediterranean foods are rich in B6 and folate – fertility boosting nutrients!
Dietary fiber from vegetables and grains – keeps bowels moving regularly to support healthy detox to mobilize toxins and hormone metabolites like high estrogen, high cortisol.
Beyond: How’s my thyroid doing? Low thyroid function affects fertility. Around 1/3 of women experiencing subfertility have thyroid disease. The ovaries and egg cells have receptors for thyroid hormone. Thyroid testing includes TSH, free T4, free T3. TSH levels <3 are associated with better ovarian reserve. It’s important to also consider antibodies to the thyroid. Even in a patient with normal thyroid levels, presence of thyroid antibodies is correlated to increased rates of miscarriage and pregnancy-related complications.
What’s my Vitamin D level? Vitamin D deficiency is linked to a number of reproductive issues, including gestational diabetes, endometriosis and PCOS. Vitamin D levels >30ng/mL are associated with greater rates of pregnancy. This is likely due to higher levels of anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) when vitamin D is sufficient. The more AMH, the more eggs in the ovarian reserve, the more changes for successful pregnancy. Vitamin D is also involved in helping create endometrial docking sites to help an embryo attach and hold on tight!
What’s my iron status? Iron deficiency is common in subfertility. Iron’s job is to deliver oxygen to tissues throughout the body, including the uterus and ovaries. Chronic oxygen deprivation can take a toll on egg quality and result in anovulation. Adequate iron levels build a nice, fluffy endometrium…a cozy place for an embryo to attach.
Am I inflamed, you ask? A balanced immune system is important in order to conceive and carry pregnancy to term. One’s general level of inflammation can be assessed with the blood test, hs-CRP. Contributors to systemic inflammation include gum disease, food sensitivities, insulin resistance and imbalances in gut microbiome. Nutrients and botanicals to help reduce inflammation include omega 3s (fish oil) and curcumin. Additional testing is available to further investigate these areas of potential inflammation if needed.
Help your cup “run-eth” over With all things, give yourself grace and start from a place of fullness. Know that you are enough! By integrating supports to reduce inflammation and balance communication, your internal supports will overflow to support the life of another. Fill your body with adequate sleep, nutrients, love, support and confidence!
“Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it.” — Plato
Being consistently active helps you to live longer, have a better quality of life, improve your mental health, and improve your self-image. Take charge of your mental and physical health in only a few minutes a day.
You can make big improvements to your health and energy levels by making small and deliberate healthy lifestyle choices that involve moving more every day. Many people feel daunted by the thought of changing their lives and starting a new routine to be more active, but there are only a few key tips to remember to be successful:
Emphasize Fun. What is something you love? Whether that’s music, birds, friends, trampolines, or books, you can shape your activity plan around the things you love. Walk to and from a spot where you can listen to the birds every day; explore local libraries from top to bottom; take the stairs when you visit friends; take a dance class that incorporates music you love. Make the things you love part of your activity plan.
Attach Activity To Habits. Taking a walk after dinner is a time-honored way to get moving. What is something you do regularly? Whether it’s going to work, cooking dinner, getting the mail, or brushing your teeth, any habit can be an opportunity to move. Try doing a one-minute wall-sit every time you brush your teeth; or practice dance steps while cooking dinner; or lift your bag over your head every time you go into your house. Any routine behavior can have a small activity bonus built in.
Involve Others. Chances are, your friends, family, and co-workers want to be more active, too. Set active living goals together, see if you can aim for incremental advancements and variety in your routines. You could walk an extra two miles a week—or three more flights of stairs. When you meet someone who shares your activity goals, keep moving. Swap sitting at the coffeeshop for walks, and go around the block while catching up.
Add Audio. Most phones can play music or podcasts, so challenge yourself to walk for at least one song, or one podcast. Having pleasant audio input can make exercise more fun and rewarding.
Be Inventive. Rather than thinking of movement as calisthenics or a workout, challenge yourself to be inventive with your active living. Do an extra lap around the grocery store. Stand while watching a television show, instead of sitting. At work, think about how you can add a few minutes of movement by parking further away, or getting off the bus early. Whenever you text someone, stretch one part of your body. When you open the door at home, do a little dance. When you talk on the phone, stand up for part of the call or go for a walk and cover some miles with company.
Be Forgiving. If you have a sedentary day, let it go. Don’t overwork the next day or punish yourself—just try to be active every day! Encourage yourself the way you would encourage your best friend. It is about progress, not perfection.
Track your progress. Consider using a pedometer app on your phone, or truly dialing in with that Fit Bit you wear. The Oura Ring is a valuable option. How many steps do you take on an average work day? How many do you take on the weekend? Striving for 10,000 steps a day is recommended. However, some is better than none. See how it goes.
Daily movement reduces the risk of many health conditions— protect your health! If you already have a condition, movement reduces the symptoms.
Research shows that movement helps with conditions across a broad range: Many forms of cancer Depression, stress, and anxiety Cardiometabolic diseases including prediabetes, diabetes, hypertension, stroke Musculoskeletal health, including osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
“Walking: the most ancient exercise and still the best modern exercise.”— Carrie Late
Your Partner In Health! Clarissa A. Kussin, ND, RYT-500
Meditate on your feelings to get calm, grounded, and healthy.Our emotions can hold us hostage when their stormy winds of intensity and disharmony blow through the body. For example, when you’re angry, your belly can tighten, your heart might pound, and agitating thoughts can plague you for minutes, hours, or even days. This is because emotions, be they angry, peaceful, anxious, sad, or happy, activate your nervous system to release chemicals into your bloodstream that can pull your focus and energy away from other matters. When emotions are that strong, we may be tempted to label them the “enemy.” But refusing to accept how you feel only postpones the inevitable; every emotion you deny will always return, trying to convey important information.
In a world full of stress and demands, rest is one of the most important factors for creating wellness. Restorative activities can include mental, physical, and/or emotional activities that help to promote resilience. Particularly if you are under chronic stress, restful activities can break the cycle of stress and assist you on the path to health.
Get Unstuck Knowing that the brain is not static, but instead has plasticity, underlines one of the key reasons to practice restful habits: you can learn to be healthier, happier, and more connected. Focusing on the process of restoration, rather than current complaints or states, allows you to take charge of your own health and wellness. You can become more resilient and healthier.
The Right Activities Many people turn to television, alcohol, or other semi-harmful activities to counteract stress. Replacing even a few minutes a day of those activities with ones that scientifically promote healing and restoration can trigger lasting improvements.
Restoration activities like meditation, guided imagery, breathing techniques, gratitude, and mindfulness are time-honored, science-backed ways to make a difference internally. They have calming effects not only on the state of mind, but also helping to balance hormonal and immune function.
Don’t let stress run the show. Select a restoration activity and see if it works for you—whether that’s finding something to feel grateful about every day or trying a new yoga pose.
Be intentional and open. Take back a few minutes a day of your life, balance your emotions, and your health and wellness will follow.
Restorative Activities Meditation Gratitude Journaling Deep breathing and breathing techniques Guided Imagery and/or Visualization Massage, Sauna, or Water Therapy Mindful Eating, Walking, or Body Scan Many others!
A wide variety of conditions are assisted by restoration therapies, including: Anxiety, depression, and mood disorders Cancer Chronic pain and fibromyalgia Gastrointestinal disorders Sleep disturbances and stress disorders Heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension Hot flashes Asthma
Emotions are messengers, here to deliver information about empowering actions you need to take in your life and relationships. Just as it takes time to strengthen muscles, it also takes time to strengthen your ability to welcome and respond to your emotions, rather than avoid them. Lean on them to find creative solutions and successfully navigate life.
Your Partner In Health! Clarissa A. Kussin, ND, RYT-500
It has never been easier to connect with someone on the other side of the world, yet it’s so easy to feel disconnected from the people closest to us. We have more tools than ever to simplify tasks and accomplish more things quickly, yet our to-do lists have never been longer. Life is short, and time flies, especially in today’s fast-paced world.
These exercises are meant to help you slow down, enjoy life, and focus on the most important parts of your day. Take the time to prioritize daily objectives. By focusing on the most important tasks to get done, we eliminate the hustle and stress of trying to accomplish everything at once. Cut personal Internet use by half. Technology has become a major element in most of our lives. Social networking, email, and web-surfing can occasionally cause our minds to lose focus and wander through hundreds of topics, thoughts and ideas. Try to use half your designated Internet time to explore new hobbies, exercise, or meditate.
Enjoy nature. When time permits – take a five to ten minute break to step outside and breathe in some fresh air. Disconnect from the rest of the world and concentrate on the beauty of nature.
Eat slower. A lot of us tend to speed through meals – missing the chance to appreciate different textures and flavors. Start to chew foods slower and distinguish new tastes, aromas, and consistencies. Connect and make time for yourself. Acknowledge and consciously thank yourself for taking care of YOU. When did you last spend valuable time with yourself? Take a night to find a new book, watch a favorite movie, try yoga, meditate, or cook a new recipe.
Give yourself more time. Some of us like to stick to a tight schedule and plan all our daily events. Next time you’re jotting down new tasks in your planner, try to factor in a few extra minutes when estimating how long things will take. This will help you not rush through daily tasks.
Take the scenic route. Next time you’re driving a somewhat long distance – try taking the scenic route. Driving through open fields, mountains, or viewing a city skyline can be very relaxing.
Sit for a moment with your eyes closed when you start your computer. Even just a few moments of meditation can set the tone for the rest of your day. Try to empty your mind and take deep breaths before jumping into your day’s tasks.
Remember your goals and aspirations. Each morning when you wake up, take a few moments to think about your life goals and aspirations. Try to recall the milestones you’ve already made in your life, and your drive to achieve new ones. Try doing this for about five minutes before getting out of bed to start your day.
Take the time and share this with someone you love that may need some support in slowing down…
Your Partner in Health! Clarissa Kussin, ND, RYT 500
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