An Ode to Coffee (I Love You Despite Your Flaws)

Aah, coffee.  How I love the smell of you.  I know there are people who scatter satchels of potpourri around their houses.  I would love satchels of coffee beans so I can be surrounded by coffee aroma at all times.  One of my last waking thoughts at night is often of excitement over the next morning’s freshly brewed cup of coffee.

Seriously, I am jealous as all hell at those who could be happy with a cup of tea.  I think of tea drinkers as refined, peaceful and earthy.  Nothing at all like us hyped up, overly excited coffee drinkers.  I aspire to be like those happy tea drinkers.  Alas, I crave coffee and you don’t always get to choose who you love.

My desire goes way beyond the jittery buzz.  I like the taste of coffee that is raw and unembellished.  It is just the gritty black stuff for me.  I used to favor flavored creamers and even further back in the day I would add packets of Equal.  This was before realizing artificial sweetener was probably going to bite my health in the butt.  These days, I will crave something like a caramel macchiato every once in a while.  In the end though, sitting outside sipping a black ice coffee on a summer day tastes perfect to me.

My heart breaks at the next point I’m going to make.  Unfortunately, there are health consequences from drinking too much coffee.  Currently I need to vigilantly avoid the java as even decaf will aggravate my overly taxed adrenals.  We live in a time when almost everyone is stressed, sleep deprived and exposed to too many toxins.  Since caffeine further aggravates this adrenal stress, I must say sayonara to my beloved.

It is also a pretty well know fact that coffee is super dehydrating.  You basically need to drink two cups of water to replace the water lost from drinking one cup of coffee!  And who has time to drink all that water when you are busy sucking down coffee?

Some additional sad trivia about coffee.  Coffee is very acidic, meaning it can throw off the acid/alkaline balance of your body.  If you drink a bunch of coffee, and don’t compensate by, lets say, eating a bunch of cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts), your body will become acidic.  An acidic body leaches nutrients from its bones and organs so it can return to its natural alkaline stasis.  There is much talk of how being acidic increases your odds for diseases like cancer.  This is due to the imbalances created from being acidic.  The ideal ph of the human body is slightly alkaline at about 7.2.  Wondering if your body is acidic?  There are tests you can buy where you can test your morning pee on litmus paper to see where you fall on the scale.

Another sad coffee fact.  Coffee will aggravate the gut.  Drink too much coffee and your gut could become permeable (a.k.a. leaky gut) which will lead to inflammation, weight gain and an increased chance of disease.  Leaky gut could contribute to you developing a sensitivity to some of your favorite foods.  Oh java, why do you have to be that way?

On the bright side, there are some ways to make better choices with coffee.  First of all, purchase organic.  Ack, another thing to buy organic!  Yes, but here is why.  Coffee beans come from different countries with various regulations about pesticides.  There are many pesticides that are banned in the US as toxic but are liberally used elsewhere.  Coffee beans are a crop that is heavily sprayed.  Down cup after cup of this pesticide laden crop and it is going to be a toxin party in your stomach.

Feeling jittery?  Well, there is always decaf.  Unfortunately, even decaf can be problematic.  Decaf gives you additional chemical exposure from the chemicals used to eliminate the caffeine.  You’re trading caffeine for even more inflammation-causing toxins.  Look for decaf coffee that is labeled decaffeinated via Swiss water process.  This is much gentler to your system.  There is a decaf coffee by Groundworks (based in Los Angeles, but can be purchased online-groundworkscoffee.com) called Angel City which I love.  It is organic, Swiss water processed and 99.7% caffeine free.  If you want decaf coffee, this is the way to go. 

Ok, and finally, there is a product I tried recently that is a perfect compromise between coffee and tea.  I’m not saying it will make you want to give up coffee altogether, but it could be a nice drink for the afternoon when you know you’ve really reached your caffeine limit.  It is a coffee substitute called Teeccino (www.teeccino.com) and it is made of organic healthy grains and nuts like barley, chicory and almonds.  It can be brewed in a teabag in just a few minutes and it has a smooth coffee-like flavor without the added caffeine, acid and toxins!  Quite frankly I am in love with this stuff since I’m living in a no-coffee zone.

So coffee, please don’t be mad that I pointed out your flaws.  I love you despite the fact that we’ve needed to “see other people”.  I know that sometimes you are bad for me, but I was told I have a penchant for loving the heartbreakers. 

If you are a tea drinker, then you probably don’t have much use for my ode to coffee.  If you are a bean lover like me, then hopefully you relate.  Coffee may but a lovable but unhealthy crutch.  The good news is that there are ways to be a healthier coffee drinker.  Coffee, you may be the “bad boy” of the beverage world (though certainly not as mischievous as your step-brother whisky), but I know you have a good heart.  We may be star crossed lovers currently but we will be together (in moderation) soon.  

A Healthier Way to Live in an "On The Go", Takeout World

Ok, you know you want to eat healthy.   You would just prefer to be able to do so without actually having to cook.   With all the nonsense that fills your week, who has the time?  It is takeout or frozen dinners because you don’t have the energy for anything more.   Think you are doomed to clot your arteries?  Well, while it is preferable to have healthy and fresh home-cooked meals, there is a way to clean up your diet significantly while eating your meals from a restaurant barstool.  Don’t believe me? Well here I am in my tights, cape and super-power goggles to help you navigate restaurants for a healthier lifestyle. (Ok, I’m wearing shorts and a t-shirt, but whose counting?)

I’m going to start with an old standard.  A salad can often be a very good option, but it all depends on the type of salad you choose.  Avoid the fillers like croutons, wontons and tortilla strips.  Those just provide empty calories.  Minimize the deli slices, bacon bits and the cheeses as they are heavily processed and salted.  Also, it probably goes without saying but filling your salad with deep fried foods is probably not the best option.  Grilled or broiled meat with a colorful array of veggies, maybe some beans all tossed together would be a much better option.  Now here’s the clincher.  The dressing is the make or break item of the salad.  It isn’t enough to just choose a low fat salad dressing.  Low fat dressings usually compensate with sugar which can be worse for your heart and waist line than the added fat.  I often try to make my own dressing right there in the restaurant.  Ask for oil and balsamic vinegar and a little side of Dijon mustard.  Mix the oil and vinegar and put in a smidge of mustard to taste.  Add a dash of salt and you have a no-sugar added, heart healthy salad dressing on the fly!

Of course, if you spend your life eating out, you eventually have to venture beyond just roughage.  This is a good time to talk to the waiter.  Are you in an Irish pub with everything smothered in cream sauce?  Ask if they can just serve you a simple piece of chicken covered in basic spices that is grilled or baked.  Most restaurants would have the ingredients to do that.  Or are you just dying for an occasional burger?  Ask for it to be served on a green salad instead of a bun.  Or ask for it on type of brown rice if you are missing your carbohydrates.  Removing the bun isn't about limiting carbohydrates.  It is about removing the sugar filled (yes, bread is usually made with sugar) refined carbohydrates that quickly turn to sugar in your body.  Oh, and on the topic of sugar, avoid the most common condiments.  Ketchup has tons of sugar and mayo is made out of oils that easily go rancid.  Better options are mustard and Worcestershire sauce that usually have less sugar and bad fats.  They are still often high in sodium so don’t go overboard!

Another great place to look for nourishing restaurant options is ethnic food.  Now I’m not talking about the “American” version of certain ethnic foods that you will see at Panda Express or Del Taco.  I’m talking about the small family run restaurant where everything is made from scratch from whole food ingredients.  Foods that you will find at most Indian and Ethiopian restaurants tend to be unprocessed other than the breads and flavored with spices as opposed to sugar.  Sushi is also a good option as it is often made of just basic, whole ingredients.  That isn’t to say that you can’t get into trouble at these restaurants.  If you go to Sushi and order just the fried tempura or the Philly roll stuffed with cream cheese, you will be missing out on much of the nutrient potential that sushi has to offer.  So let’s talk about the popular Chinese food.  Is that a good option?  “American” style Chinese food sauces are often filled with sugar, salt and much of the food is friend.   A better way to order Chinese food is to order it steamed. The vegetables will be crisper, offering more nutrient potential.  You can add a little soy sauce for taste (high in sodium but no sugar) or enjoy a little bit of the sauce on the side if feeling deprived. 

So that brings me to the final stop in our healthy bites restaurant tour.  What about eating at fast food restaurants?  While fast food will never be the best choice, sometimes you are driving cross country or you’ve got a small child in your backseat or you are just in a rush with limited options.  In general, even the “healthier options” at burger joints aren’t the best.  For instance, the granola/yogurt cup advertised as a “healthy option” is often filled with so much sugar filled cereal that you might as well be eating candy.  So what should you choose?

Rotisserie or grilled chicken places can make better options.  The best option is to remove the skin which will remove a not so heart healthy form of fat but will also remove a lot of the salt filled sauce.  Part of the charm in many of these places is that you can load up on more nutritious sides like steamed vegetables or a salad.  Then again, load up on the extra butter mashed potatoes and you’ve now turned your meal into much more of a blood pressure hazard.

Something like Chipotle can be a better option (though load up on the sour cream, cheese and tortillas and your meal is now an artery clogging nightmare).  Choose as many whole food ingredients as possible to make the healthiest creation.  Maybe today you may be in the mood for vegetarian.  If you choose lettuce, black beans, brown rice and maybe the sautéed peppers, your meal will be lower sodium, low sugar and filled with foods that have nutritional value.  Skip the salsa and use the hot sauce on the side to further reduce your sugar intake.

Finally, what about Subway?  After all, they advertise themselves as being diet-friendly.  I prefer people choose the salads over the sandwiches to avoid so much refined carbohydrate.  Subway advertises there sandwiches as heart healthy if they are low calorie and fat.  I prefer to look at the total nutrient content. A big roll that will be quickly metabolized into sugar can lead to a blood sugar imbalance and weight gain.  Again, the best option will be a salad without the packaged salad dressing.  Flavor your salad with oil, vinegar and maybe some hot or sweet peppers.

Now let’s get real.  You aren’t going to deprive yourself of ever eating a double burger with fries, or an ice cream sundae ever again.  Eventually you are going to go to a restaurant as a treat because they serve your favorite foods.  This guide isn’t for the occasional restaurant dweller in good health.  When you find yourself frequenting restaurants as a larger part of your diet, it is important to understand how to get more nourishing options.  Restaurant food ideally will not replace home cooked sustenance.  Yet when it does, this guide is the best bet to lead you to a healthy, well balanced, nourished life!

The Best Ways to Eat Your Way to a Chill Summer

Is anyone else feeling the heat out there?  Summer is in full swing, and as much as I enjoy getting to wear shorts, sundresses and sandals, it is getting mighty toasty inside.  In my fantasies, my apartment is regulated by central air at a perfect 70 degrees.  In reality, my 2^nd floor apartment is just a few degrees cooler than hell by about 4pm everyday, and stays that temperature well into the night. I ran my little wall AC last night, and according to the temperature gauge, it took four hours for my apartment to re-enter the high 70s.  As I imagine I am not the only one feeling the heat, it seems this was a great time to pull out some of my favorite ways to stay cool! 

The thing I love about summer is all the juicy fruits and vegetables that are in season.  Some of the sweetest, juiciest fruits are in season this time of year like blueberries, cherries, plums, apricots and watermelon.  It is also a great time of year for water filled veggies like green beans, cucumbers and corn.  Nice to know that Mother Nature is working with us to keep us cool!

This is a perfect time to institute having a light meal for supper.  Who wants to turn on the stove a cook a four course meal?  You could make a fulfilling salad with greens, corn, black beans, berries, cucumber, string beans and maybe some goat cheese for fun.  Make it a complete meal by cooking your meat in the morning on Sunday when it is cooler in your home so you can add it to your salad on Monday or Tuesday night.  Want something healthier for your family than bottled vinaigrette?  There is a link for lots of homemade vinaigrette recipes at the bottom of this page.  They are easy to make and most of them don’t require a stove.

As a special note, this is a great time of year to whip out the jalapeños and the cayenne pepper.  Eating spicy foods will help cool you from the inside.  When you eat spicy, it triggers your body to glisten. (That’s woman talk for sweat!)  This is your body’s natural mechanism to cool yourself down.  Eat something spicy while going into the full heat of the day and your body will help regulate your temperature before you get the chance to heat up!

What about when you want something quick to help cool you down?   I personally love to just take a frozen berry and let it defrost in my mouth.  It is a burst of sweetness that is portable and sweetened by nature.  It also takes no preparation time.  It is just pop and go.  If you want something fancier, I have a super easy recipe for homemade Italian ice.

Erica Mesirov Food Coach

Take one heaping cup of berries and ½ cup water.  Blend them together, pour into a ramekin or small bowl and freeze.  Viola!  You have a super easy and healthy dessert.  If the natural sweetness isn’t enough for you, add a touch of stevia or agave.  Personally, I find the natural sweetness perfect but you decide for yourself!

Here is another recipe to cool you down.  I call it:

Chilled gazpacho that’ll make you sweat.

It will cool you in two ways: 1) from the chilled vegetables and 2) from the spiciness of the jalapeños.  

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Ready in: 1 ½ hours 

This should yield about 2 large bowls or 4 smaller bowls of gazpacho. 

3 medium tomatoes

½ or 1 whole jalapeño (omit or reduce if don’t like spice.  If you include a whole jalapeño it will be “stick a fire hydrant in your mouth” spicy!)

1 cup cucumber

½ cup red pepper

1 medium onion

1 tablespoon cilantro

1 cup water

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon Trader Joe’s 21 Season Salute (or mixed herbs you have available)

¼ cup olive oil

1 cup water

salt/pepper to taste

First, I sliced the tomatoes and the onions and grilled them (on my Foreman Grill – yes, I live in an apartment!)  I grilled them until charred to give them a smokier flavor, removed from heat and chilled them for 1 hour.  If you are short on time or prefer raw, go ahead and skip this step.

While the tomatoes and onions were cooling, I diced the cucumber, red pepper, jalapeño (again, warning: will be very spicy with a whole jalapeño) and cilantro and set them aside in a bowl.  I added the 21 Season Salute (if you don’t have that, add some extra herbs or spices like basil, thyme, etc) and the salt and pepper.    

Once the tomatoes and onion were chilled I removed the charred areas, peeled the onion and chopped them into small pieces, removing as many of the tomato seeds as possible.  I added this whole mixture to the rest of the prepared ingredients I had just set aside.

I then took this mixture and poured it into my blender.  I added the water, balsamic vinegar and olive oil and blended for 60 seconds.  The consistency should be slightly lumpy.  Since gazpacho is served cold, it was ready to eat!  Easy peasy, totally tasty and super cooling!

Given that, at least where I live, this heat is only going to get worse through about October, finding ways to keep cool can be a life saver.  Even if you are luckier than me with your central air, setting the thermostat a few degree higher will ease your tears when your electricity bill arrives.  These are some of my favorite icy options.  Surely you have a few favorites up your sleeve as well.  Feel free to share my recipes and share your ideas so we may all keep just a little bit cooler.

*Homemade Vinaigrette Recipes: http://www.food.com/recipe/basic-vinaigrette-dressing-with-8-variations-213989

Body Brushing for Detoxification– Is it part of your daily routine?

Erica Mesirov Food Coach   http://www.ericamesirov.com

So I’ve heard of people going to extremes to detoxify, which can be great with doctor supervision.  Yet, there’s something that I absolutely love that I use daily to improve my detoxification.  Its call body brushing and I wanted to talk about it because I’m not sure who else out there in the “non-hippie” masses is engaging in this easy and wonderful, health promoting activity.  So if you don’t do it, you might want to consider including it in your routine.

What is body brushing?  Well, as you might imagine, it is something done with a big brush to brush the skin while it is dry.  The skin is one of the largest organs in our body and it needs to be taken care of like the rest of us.  Eating well and exercising helps the skin, but sometimes your skin craves some TLC of its own.  On a very basic level, body brushing helps remove dead skin cells and exfoliate the skin.  I’ve also heard that it can help better distribute the fat deposits under the skin.   That’s pretty good, but the benefits go deeper than that.  It also helps get things moving under the skin, getting both the blood and lymph (part of the immune system) moving.  Now, your blood can depend on your heart to pump it through your arteries.  Your lymph system doesn’t have a pump and its main job is to detoxify your body and kill germs.  If the lymph doesn’t move, the body stays congested and immunity is compromised.  This is why the movement gained from body brushing is so valuable!

How does it feel?  Put yourself in your dog’s shoes for a second.  My poodle gets constant knots which turn into Bob Marley wannabe dreds if I don’t work them out.  She hates getting her knots pulled, but she puts up with it for one reason; it feels good on the rest of her body to be brushed. One of the best times to brush is in the morning before showering.  Doing so stimulates the body and an added plus is that it will leave you feeling invigorated going into your day (A much better bargain than those $5 lattes).  For that reason, it makes sense not to do this right before bed as it could contribute to insomnia.  A shower afterwards helps wash away dead skin cells and toxins.

Here is what a body brush looks like.

It is good to have one with a handle so you can reach the back another tough to reach spots.

The brushing technique is quite important.  The brush should go in small circles and should always be going in the direction of your heart.  That means that if you are brushing your legs, you should be brushing upwards.  If you are brushing your lower back, you should still be brushing upwards.  If you brush your upper back, you should be brushing downwards because your upper back is above your heart.  Make sense?

This only takes a minute or two a day, so it is not a bad time investment.  While you probably won’t see a dramatic, immediate result body brushing, the long term benefits are worth it.  In a world where we are exposed to more toxins than people ever were before in history, it is worth taking a couple of minutes to strengthen our immunity.  This is also a great opportunity to do something on the outside that will make the inside stronger.  It is way cheaper than a cold pressed juice, vitamins or organic produce.  It will help make you healthier.

Not a bad investment of a couple minutes of your time.  So is body brushing part of your daily routine?