30 Days to Healthy Living
Prep Week - Foods to Avoid
One of the goals of the 30-Day is to reduce inflammation. We do this by simply eliminating
foods that are inflammatory, acidic or allergenic. Inflammation is the root of disease.
Gluten
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and spelt. This protein is the gooey “glue” substance that binds it together. That idea of “my grandma ate this way and lived until 90” doesn’t really work anymore because of how we engineer and farm our food, the lack of nutrients in our topsoil, the decline in our gut health, and the decline in our immune health. So now, we have the benefit of evaluating these things, studying gut health more than ever before, and moving forward to becoming a healthier version of you. Thankfully, Arbonne makes this easier too.
GLUTEN RESPONSES:
The official worst-case scenario and autoimmune response to gluten is Celiac Disease. Next up, an estimated 50% of the population have a gluten intolerance - not an allergy but gluten can still trigger a variety of negative responses in the body. And then some people, well they just feel better not eating gluten.
GLUTEN SYMPTOMS:
Some of the more obvious gluten intolerant symptoms can be having diarrhea to having bloating or rancid gas to skin breakouts. While those are more blatant symptoms, less noticeable is that the immune system can also be suppressed from the inflammation gluten triggers. Remember your food can be fuel or poison, it can add health, or it can take it away. Furthermore, food sensitivities and allergies don’t just affect the gut, but any other system in your body too. And gluten triggers an inflammatory response in your body which creates stress which creates more issues - issues we tend to accept as “our normal” when it doesn’t have to be.
Now besides the gut issues, including bloating or stomach discomfort, where else can gluten intolerance/sensitivity show up? Well anywhere in the body really. Including brain fog, acne, depression, anxiety, eczema, joint pain, ADD/ADHD, weight gain, infertility, and more…
WHAT TO DO:
The recommendation becomes leaving gluten behind for at least a solid 30 days and seeing how you feel. And that is what we are doing on this challenge. Keeping gluten-free and freeing our body to have the opportunity to heal and reset. Now just so you know, boxed gluten-free food is still processed food, and we are reaching for whole foods as often as possible!
A final note to appreciate: every single product in Arbonne - from nutrition to skincare to cosmetics and hair care - is certified gluten-free!
Dairy
"I scream, you scream..." wait…should you scream for ice cream?
Does milk really do your body good?!? Are there really
illnesses and diseases linked to dairy?
Learn more about dairy here:
www.mindbodygreen.com
Sugar
Processed sugar has many destructive effects on the human body, including but not limited to damaging, altering, and disrupting the proper function of the nervous system, endocrine system, metabolic system, cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal system, and immune system as well as primary organs like the liver, kidneys, colon, and pancreas.
The list of health problems associated with processed sugar is enormous and too large to go into in its entirety in just one post,
but some of the most common include: depression, mood swings, irritability, depletion of mineral levels, hyperactivity, anxiety or panic attacks, chromium deficiency, depletion of the adrenal glands, type 2 diabetes, hypoglycemia, obesity, Candida overgrowth, high cholesterol, anti-social behavior such as that found in crime and delinquency, anger control issues, insomnia, decreased immune function, aggression, neurotransmitter deficiencies, high blood pressure, heart disease, asthma, alcoholism, acne, PMS, OCD, fibromyalgia, attention deficit, cancer, binging, obesity, chronic fatigue, addiction, and hormone imbalance.
If you needed more reason to ditch these drinks...check out the amount of processed sugar in them! And remember, sugar leaves your body in an acidic state and leads to inflammation which leads to sickness and disease. And to all you 'diet' drinkers that think you’re ‘ok’, I’m going to sock it to YOU tomorrow, because artificial sweeteners are even WORSE! For all of you having headaches, if you normally drank any of these things, that's why!
Artificial Sweeteners
This can change your life.
If you could make just ONE change towards health, it would be to ditch ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS.
Artificial means FAKE. Your body was not designed to process and has NO clue how to process ‘fake’. These sweeteners become instant gut toxins and neuro (brain) toxins. Please step away!! Sucralose is often hidden in protein powders, and unfortunately, aspartame is in many processed foods too!
And check out all the symptoms and diseases they are connected to nausea, headaches/migraines, altered taste buds, dizziness, hypothyroidism, breathing problems, diarrhea, toxic liver/kidneys, bloating, nerve damage, eczema, and cancer.
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Alcohol
Hey - we get it!! It's Friday night and you want to unwind with a couple of drinks. No worries BUT, taking a 30-day break from alcohol can be a HUGE blessing for your body. Here are just a few of the ways that alcohol can be sabotaging your health.
Alcohol can cause stress on the stomach and the intestines. This leads to decreased digestive secretions and movement of food through the tract. Digestive secretions are an essential element of healthy digestion. They break down food into the basic macro-and micronutrients that are absorbed and used by the body.
The primary role of your liver is to act as the “filter” for any foreign substances that enter your body, such as drugs and alcohol. The liver also plays a role in the metabolism of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins.
Excess alcohol consumption can lead to what is known as alcoholic fatty liver This condition can damage your liver, affecting the way your body metabolizes and stores carbohydrates and fats. Changes in the way your body stores energy from food can make it very difficult to lose weight
For more information - check out this link:
https://www.healthline.com/health/alcohol-and-weight-loss...
Coffee, Tea, Soda
Don’t worry! We have a substitute for all of you caffeine lovers out there!
The reason that we replace coffee, tea, or soda with
EnergyFizz Ginseng Fizz Sticks is that the form of caffeine in coffee, tea, and soda is water-soluble caffeine vs fat-soluble caffeine found in the fizz.
Water-soluble means that the body will have to work to process it - it will have to burn calories. Therefore, it is actually fuel for the body vs just an “empty” pick me up. Additionally, the fizz has vitamins B6 and B12 plus chromium and green tea. AND, no artificial sweeteners!!