Play With Your Food!

There is not one diet or nutritional program that is right for everyone.  Some people have great success following a set of specific guidelines while others won’t have the same experience.  The many things that we are told about eating right and nutrition can be overwhelming and complicated.

 I am using different kinds of (grain-free) flours and nut meals I am not accustom to cooking or baking with to make meals and deserts I thought could never be healthy!

I would encourage you to research different food facts and experiment with different foods to see what works for you. The guideline I started with was to eat as clean as possible and let my body slowly detox itself and I still follow that guideline today.  Currently, I am experimenting with a few ideas, eating a grain-free diet, food combining, and eating as simple as possible.  Sometimes the food combining isn’t exact, but that’s because I am playing with my food! Drawing many recipes and lifestyle tips from the Paleo diet, I am eating cleaner foods and I am using different kinds of (grain-free) flours and nut meals I am not accustom to cooking or baking with to make meals and deserts I thought could never be healthy!   I am simply making sure that what I eat has solid nutritional value and this has transformed me in a matter of weeks.  I am no longer craving sugar and highly processed foods and as an added bonus I have lost 18lbs.  My focus is on health so I have completely cut out processed foods (with the exception of some salad dressing, but I have made most of that myself also) with no regards to the scale, but as the scale goes down, I can’t help but be excited!

There are many specific nutritional recommendations in TCM that make logical sense and follow the seasons, but here are a few natural tips to keep your food choices on track.

1.  Use common sense, eat what makes you feel good and what is in season!  Steer away from artificial sweeteners and fillers; natural, simple foods are everywhere!

2.  Look for foods with high antioxidants and dense nutrition!  Keep to the outskirts of the grocery store and keep out of the middle of the store where many unhealthy foods are stocked.

3.  Simple recipes are best.  Try to stick to 5 or less ingredients, lean protein and plenty of vegetables!

If you have more complicated or unhealthy recipes, challenge yourself to find healthier alternatives and still make a great meal with less ingredients!
4.  Be weary of plans and diets that have guarantees and claims you will never need any other program.  Hog-wash!  Back to the common sense part, how can there be only one right way to eat when our bodies are all so different?!

5.  Do not overeat.  Even healthy foods become less nutritious in portions too large.  You can take a short walk after meals to help with digestion.

Don’t complicate the heck out of getting healthier.  Start small, baby steps.  Stop using one highly-processed staple in your house and let it snowball from there!

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What does this season have in store for you?

Hello my dear blog subscribers! It’s been since midsummer, please excuse my absence. Against the advice of my spectacular business coach, I haven’t blogged in a while. Here I am now though, blogging my little heart out. I am going to re-introduce my blog with the season in mind. An ode to my favorite time of year….

This time of year, in Chinese Medicine, marks the late summer. This is a time of transitioning from summer into fall and fall into winter (for you TCM junkies, it is the yin coming into yang). It is described as a time for harmony, centeredness, and for preparing the body. It can be a useful time for a short, gentle fast and for eating foods that are golden or yellowish in color, slightly sweet, and foods that are round. This time of year and these types of food are represented by the Earth Element in Chinese Medicine. We are at a very unique time for optimizing our digestion (governed by the Earth Element) because “the Earth Element heavily influences the 7 ½ days before and the 7 ½ days after each of the two equinoxes (and solstices).” (Healing With Whole Foods, Pitchford, 340) The Autumn Equinox was on September 23, making this prime time for your digestion, we should be preparing for winter, just like all of nature.

This time of year can also bring up physical and emotional shifts within your body. We left a time of activity, joy and happiness (summer, the fire element), we are currently in a time of centeredness and transition (late summer, the earth element), moving into a time of gathering, preparing, and grief (autumn, the metal element). This is not to be thought of negatively, but rather, just a natural cycle. You see, we are not designed to go 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, maybe that’s why this time of year is marked by anxiety and depression, people are fighting this natural shift instead of embracing it. Embrace it, friends! Nurture your body and support its natural cycles; it’s not too late to start enjoying the season!

A couple more days remain in the optimal time, but you have plenty of time to still reap the benefits of this time of preparation. Foods that are beneficial this time of year are: “millet, corn, carrots, cabbage, garbanzo beans, soybeans, squash, potatoes, sweet rice, rice, amaranth, peas, chestnuts, filberts, apricots, and cantaloupe.” (Healing With Whole Foods, Pitchford, 340) *Please do not indulge in foods to which you have allergies.*

Live well and prosper!

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NEW WEBSITE!! EXPERIENCE ACUPUNCTURE DENVER STYLE…

Rocky Mountain Roots Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine, LLC is proud to announce the launch of our new and improved website!  www.rockymountainroots.com Enjoy the peaceful feel of looking out your window at the beauty of Colorful Colorado (the background picture is of Monument Lake, for those familiar with Colorado). 

Learn about Traditional Chinese Medicine, find links and other resources for your health, business, local connections, and Veteran welfare.  Our new site is completely interactive!  Simply click on any topic you’d like to know more about.  Our incredibly talented web designer brought life to our site and ease to your perusing style.  You can contact us, follow us on Facebook, find our blog, see current treatment specials, and schedule appointments online!  Yes, even same day appointments! 

You might notice we have a new Massage Therapist!  We welcome Nicole to our healing family.  She is an amazing Massage Therapist, and is caring and compassionate.  Rocky Mountain Roots is dedicated to being a one-stop wellness center.  We will be adding more practitioners and offering more services in the near future! 

Take special note of our Veteran Health Clinic beginning June 3, 2010.  We will be expanding and adding more days as we grow this vital service.  If you are a Veteran or have a friend or family member who is, please forward our information onto them!  Scheduling for a treatment can be done via phone or email.  We are also looking for Licensed Acupuncturists and anyone who would like to give of their time for a great cause to volunteer.  Please contact Sheila directly if would like more information about volunteering.

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Talk of the town – What kind of Herbal Medicine?

I wasn’t sure whether or not to write on this subject since there is so much in the debate arena still, but I HAD to.  I can’t take it anymore…okay, it’s not that bad.  The phone calls and requests to purchase medicinal marijuana, that is.  At least a few times a week someone will call or stop by to “see what we have.”  Once I explain that we do not sell medicinal marijuana, they politely apologize and go about their day.  Some are a little more dense than others.  When I explained to one man that “we practice acupuncture and traditional Chinese herbal medicine,”  his ears perked up and he said, “Cool, I’d like to see some Chinese strains!”  I think he hit the pipe one too many times.   

I just want to set the record straight…Herbal medicine does not mean “marijuana dispensary.” 

When my partner and I chose to use the words “Herbal Medicine” in our business name, we had no idea the ramifications of doing so.  Apparently, “herbal medicine” is code for “marijuana dispensary” now in Denver.  Really, people?  No matter what else is with the “herbal medicine,”  even?  Ah, the entertaining things we have to consider now that we are business owners in a whole new Denver.  I just want to set the record straight; not only for us but for all who practice any kind of non-marijuana herbal medicine.  Herbal medicine does not mean “marijuana dispensary.”  Here are a couple of questions to ask yourself when determining where to buy your marijuana.

1.  If the business is not listed in the back 10 pages of the Westword, you can be 99% sure they do not sell medicinal marijuana.

2.  Is there a big green cross or marijuana leaf on the front of the business you are attempting to purchase medicinal marijuana from?  If the answer is no, again, you can be 99% sure they do not sell medicinal marijuana.

Now, for those of you who do not have licenses or do not partake, you might not find the humor in this week’s post.    I am going to attempt to shed a different light on the marijuana debate.  Here is a little food for thought, to open our eyes to the political side of the medical community.  Not the politics of medicinal marijuana, but the politics of natural medicine and its role thus far in our modern medical care. 

Eons ago, one would get care from a medical doctor and they used diet, natural cures and herbal medicine to treat people (they also used to barter with chickens-hahaha).  Until now, the modern medical community has had no interest in herbal medicine; yet a medical doctor is the only one who can prescribe medicinal marijuana without a special license.  For centuries, the medical community, for the most part, has had such disdain for herbal medicine and natural remedies.  The FDA won’t even approve herbal medicine claims or backed research, and the AMA is trying to limit our scope of practice.  In case you’re wondering, Traditional Chinese Medicine uses the marijuana seed, Huo Ma Ren, for constipation issues and digestive upset.  I can prescribe the seed, but not the plant.  I have to pay the state for a “caregivers license,”  then I can prescribe.  I am not saying I want to prescribe marijuana, however, let’s not lose sight of the double standard… Marijuana is a HERB, a PLANT, NATURAL MEDICINE.  Why would a doctor with no herbal training be allowed to prescribe it?  My guess is the same reason all these people started opening dispensaries.  I mean let’s face it, if prescribing it is legal, why shouldn’t the AMA get their cut?  What’s next, pharmaceutical companies jumping on the bandwagon?  I wish people were more aware of the world around them.  The public is not as dumb as our politicians and world leading corporations think we are.  We see what you do and who you are.   This isn’t the only double-standard when it comes to practicing modern and natural medicine, but that’s a different post. 

Don’t fault the kid who just wants to be sure he isn’t going to jail for smoking a joint, fault the doctor who wants his money and a system that supports his greed. 

Let’s take a brief look at the “abuse” going on in Colorado of the medical marijuana laws.  Is it really the patient or the dispensary abusing the law?  How does a person get a license to use marijuana?  Would the dispensaries be making all that money if people couldn’t get licensed?  Again, let’s not take our eyes off the prize here, the fault lies with those doctors abusing their privileges as health care providers.   Who cares that the average age of people getting licenses has dropped almost 20 years since the law passed.  Is it the patients fault?  No.  It’s that doctor who prescribes medicinal marijuana to a 22-year-old with “chronic pain.”  Has a 22-year-old really even been alive long enough to have “chronic pain?”  (again, my sick sense of humor)  Don’t fault the kid who just wants to be sure he isn’t going to jail for smoking a joint, fault the doctor who wants his money and a system that supports his greed. 

Now, I know that this is just a small piece of the debate, but next time you take a harsh stance on Amendment 20, consider what else is really driving this law besides those who want to partake.  The bottom line is, marijuana is BIG business now, so big in fact,  that we will probably continue to entertain these fine folks coming in to look at our “Chinese strains” for sometime to come.  Who knows, maybe someone will want to try acupuncture for their ailment one day!

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REJUVENATE, RENEW, REFRESH!

 

Spring has arrived in the Rocky Mountains!  The Western slope is buzzing and on the Eastern slope, well, it’s sunshine and budding trees all along the foothills!   We will cross our fingers that it doesn’t snow again below 6,000 feet!  Colorado has such a great season change, nature is alive and for those who practice TCM, we see the signs of Spring in our patients as well.  

People are coming out of Winter hibernation, becoming more active, shedding the toxins of being cooped-up all Winter.  According to TCM and following natural laws, now is a great time, if not the best time, to rejuvenate, renew and refresh your body and mind.  Everything in nature is anew and buzzing with life, why should we be apart or different from our surroundings?  

 

now is a great time, if not the best time, to rejuvenate, renew and refresh your body and mind

In TCM, Spring is represented by the color green, the wood element, and the organs related to Spring are the Liver and Gallbladder.  The Liver is the main detoxifier for the body and the Gallbladder aids in digestion.  Detoxifying and superior digestion are essential to health and vitality.  These organs and the processes they control can be optimized during this time of year.  You can see the correlation between the seasons and the body; nature can teach us a lot about ourselves.  

In addition to your health, these ideas can be applied to your life as well.  Renew your mind and your outlook.  See the beauty in nature; see the beauty in yourself.  “Digest” things mentally in a new way, see the postive and good in all situations and people.  How can you “detoxify” your life?  What do you need to get rid of?  Things, feelings, people?  Do what makes you feel good and is of your authentic self.  Start something new, explore yourself and your world-get active!

See the beauty in nature; see the beauty in yourself

 

Take advantage of this time of year!  Detoxify your body and improve your digestion!  Get allergy relief, stop smoking, lose weight, increase engery, improve digestion, de-stress, get healthier!   Contact us today to get started rejuvenating, renewing and refreshing your body and mind.

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How does acupuncture work?

What is the mechanism of acupuncture, that is, how does acupuncture work?  The origins of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), despite its complex diagnostic systems and meridian pathways, are based on fairly simple concepts.  Nature is all around us and is fairly obvious and applicable to the body.  Let me explain.  Do you ever have DRY skin, a HEAT rash, or EXPLOSIVE diarrhea?!?  Since the ancient people had no diagnostic machines for considering the right course of treatment, they used nature and saw how these bodily manifestations were also present in nature.  Okay, okay, I know what you are thinking; explosive diarrhea doesn’t happen in nature!   And, though you are right, natural explosions happen in volcanoes, geysers, etc., these things are all caused by HEAT.  Thus, if you have explosive diarrhea you have heat.  Never mind what that means for your treatment, that’s my job. 

For those of you that are still reading after my example above, here is where it gets hairy in the 21^st century.  This, TCM, doesn’t make sense in our Western minds.  Qi, meridians, nature and the body, acupuncture points stimulated by tiny needles, voodoo you say!  There is no solid evidence of meridians or of the acupuncture points even really existing (by the way, that does depend on who you ask), but I am speaking to the skeptic.  This is where the Western mind just can’t let go, but what I am about to say might ease the grip.  Despite the meridians and points being used having no physical evidence, they have proven necessary to treatment.  The truth of the matter is that there is now scientific evidence, thanks to modern invention, that acupuncture creates measurable biological effects in the body.  It stimulates the release of endorphins, indigenous opioids and neurotransmitters, all natural and present in the body; all natural mechanisms of surviving and striving in life.   The body is amazing and so intelligent; it is unconsciously, knowing what to do to feel better.  Acupuncture simply assists your body’s natural healing instincts.  If you’d like to read more about this research in particular, follow this link to a great article:  http://www.medicinenet.com/acupuncture/page3.htm.  Or go to the National Institutes of Health website. 

This is where the Western mind just can’t let go, but what I am about to say might ease the grip.

In addition to, but along the same lines of the research done showing biological changes in the body, acupuncture is proven by the World Health Organization (WHO) to also be a bidirectional medicine.  This means that acupuncture will create the effect that is needed in the body.  One example is raising blood pressure in a hypotensive patient and lowering blood pressure in hypertensive patients.  Some acupuncture points treat both, thus labeling the effects bidirectional.   Again, scientific research shows, this is done through the chemical (biological) changes taking place inside the body. 

Is it so farfetched to think we are just an extension of our natural surroundings? 

It really makes me wonder, the ancient Chinese knew nothing of these bodily processes and ways of internal communication, yet the medicine was and still is effective.   We are a part of nature, natural beings, surviving in our environments in these amazing bodies.  We have built-in defenses and an incredible feedback system to maintain our vital bodily functions.  Is it so farfetched to think we are just an extension of our natural surroundings?  Perhaps this is why TCM is still effective today; in these days of growing Merck Manuals and Pathology books, one thing remains relatively the same:  the human body and its processes.

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GIVE HOPE WINGS- ROCK OUT OVARIAN CANCER BENEFIT

FANTASITC MUSIC, RAFFLE PRIZES, SILENT AUCTION, AWESOME FOOD, ONE WONDERFUL CAUSE! 

Please join us in donating to help a local woman win her battle with ovarian cancer.  Sherri Rossi-Farris was diagnosed on 11/4/2009.  On February 21, 2010, 3:00 PM at Herman’s Hideaway, 1578 S. Broadway, there will be a benefit to help her and her family cope with the financial strains associated with cancer treatment.  

The music line up is as follows (in no particular order):  Hazel Miller, Erica Brown, Ellie Mae’s Round Up, Buckwild, EBWA, Vagiant, Judgement Roughneck, Wanker, Buckner Funken Jazz, and more!  You can find out more about the line up by visiting the venue website: www.hermanshideaway.com

Donations for this day of rockin’ fun will be taken at the door.  There will be raffle prizes and a silent auction full of great services and things to bid on!  Rocky Mountain Roots along with other local business owners have donated to this auction.  If you are unable to make the benefit at Herman’s Hideaway, you can still donate at any Bank of the West location.  The account is under Sherri Rossi-Farris. 

Please help us ‘Give Hope Wings’ and support Sherri and her family.  You can find out more about Sherri or how you can help by following Sherri’s blog at www.lovinsherrirossi.blogspot.com.

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