How do you show yourself some love? Do you curl up in front of the TV with some of your favourite chocolate or chips? Do you head to the shops for a takeaway meal? Splurge on your fav choc bickies ‘cause they were on sale- 2 for 1, how could you not!
“Is this real ‘love’, Is this just fantasy?” (Sorry, Queen lovers). Honestly? You know the answer. We’re totally loving up our taste buds but our poor old gut is the one who is there for us 24/7 doing the hard yards, showing us love through acts of service while our taste buds reap the benefits. The sugar is lighting up the pleasure section of our brains just like cocaine and we keep coming back for more of the same self-destructive love! We’re totally addicted to a really bad lover! How can doing something so bad feel so good?
Love is more than making someone feel good for a moment. It’s a feeling that lights us up from the inside and leaves us feeling satisfied long into the future. Love provides safety and security no matter what. It doesn’t leave us feeling guilty and craving the next packet…let’s explore this!
Foods that love you as much as you love them. These are not unicorns. They exist here amongst us in the everyday.
Fruit: seasonal fruit! The tablelands are absolutely loaded with the most delicious fruits all through the year. We get mangoes, lychees, pawpaw, pineapple, sapote as well as apples (yes, we do) and berries of all sorts. That’s the short list!
Fruit provides us with fibre, essential vitamins and some fantastic anti-oxidants that make our skin glow and our gut flip flop for joy.
Garlic, onion and tumeric: Garlic is natures gift to our gut. It’s antibacterial, antiparasitic and, also a prebiotic (Prebiotics feed the good bacteria in our gut). Onion is also antibacterial and a great prebiotic. Tumeric is already a well-known anti-inflammatory. The perfect antidote to your last bad lover. So, tuck in and feel the love.
Fermented foods: These are the absolute love bomb for your gut as you get a whopping hit of pro and prebiotics. These taste great too and make an awesome accompaniment to all kinds of dishes. If you don’t want to make your own, you can now find this delicious stuff in many health food stores. There are a few FNQ manufacturers too so ask around!
Good fats: give your insides a great big oily massage with extra virgin olive oil, avocados, nuts and seeds and oily fish. Use a little coconut oil and your gut will swoon with this show of love.
These babies are anti-inflammatory and have been shown to have a positive effect on the gut microbiome as well as being awesome for your skin. Essential for the body to function as a well-oiled machine.
Colourful veg: These are excellent lovers! Lots of fibre, anti-oxidants, pre-biotics, vitamins, minerals and awesome to support the liver as it deals with the fall out of previous bad lovers. Need I say more?
So, get on out there and find these amazing lovers! I promise they won’t dessert you at the last bite.  
References
Henry Osieki, The Nutrient Bible, 9th edition
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2235907/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5751248/
 
 
 
 
 
 

What a fabulous green growing season it’s been! The kale, lettuce rocket and spinach have been pumping. And the stores are gratefully bulging with fresh broccoli and cabbage (our cruciferous friends) because I can’t seem to get those happening up here!  The green thumbs are truly glowing with the extra time we’ve been gifted at home. A huge theme right now for the clinic seems to be ‘eat more greens’ for a billion reasons so I thought I’d share just a few here! Are you ready? Here we go!
Antioxidants- greens of all sorts are busting with natural antioxidants. Food is the single best way to get them into you on a daily basis.  Antioxidants are like a mop up crew in the body for things that could potentially damage our cells. Antioxidants also prevent premature aging. Who doesn’t want a bit of that?
Liver support- the liver is filtering 2L of blood a minute so give it some love. It’s busy detoxing and metabolising environmental and ingested toxins, hormones and toxic fumes. It’s creating bile and cholesterol as well as dealing with caffeine, alcohol and sugar. It even stores energy bless its lobes! I’ve really glossed over its roles but it’s a ridiculously important organ! Greens contain lots of the nutrients the liver needs to function at its best. Eat a huge variety including the cruciferous family of broccoli, cabbage and Brussel sprouts to truly treat your liver.
High in fibre- those toxins gotta leave the body somehow! Keeping regular bowel movements keeps the toxins moving out! It also feeds all those little goody two shoes bacteria to keep us healthy and well both physically and mentally.
Rich in iron, calcium, potassium and magnesium- just to name a few. We need as many varied sources of nutrients as we can get to ensure good absorption. Greens contain lots of micronutrients the body depends on to sustain life. These nutrients aren’t limited to single food groups. Eating a broad variety of foods gives you the best chance of getting all the nutrients you need.
Folate rich- so important in pregnancy to prevent neural tube defect e.g. spina bifida but did you know it’s also needed to synthesise some neurotransmitters? Serotonin and dopamine both need it and so does adrenaline. Mental health is a topic close to my heart both personally and professionally. Yes, eating more greens is a part of the puzzle but often it has 1000 pieces so seek out help if you are feeling down, overwhelmed or anxious. I promise you are not alone!
While you enjoy a spinach pie with a side of garden greens tonight think of all the lovely ways you are nurturing your strong and resilient body! Go the green thumbs!