Healing Weeds: Crunchy & healthy snacks with wild leaves: Here is a very easy and delicious recipe that will convince everyone - even the kids! - to eat more wild greens. It is also a great way ...
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Sunday, 14 September 2014
Healing Weeds: Crunchy & healthy snacks with wild leaves
As a herbalist and lover of herbs and plants I discovered this wonderful blog about weeds via Julie Bell of Blissful Herbs in Warburton on her face book page. There are great photos, recipes and videos and more . So I really encourage you if you love herbs to take a look and a read.
Healing Weeds: Crunchy & healthy snacks with wild leaves: Here is a very easy and delicious recipe that will convince everyone - even the kids! - to eat more wild greens. It is also a great way ...
Healing Weeds: Crunchy & healthy snacks with wild leaves: Here is a very easy and delicious recipe that will convince everyone - even the kids! - to eat more wild greens. It is also a great way ...
Saturday, 9 August 2014
Clinic seminars and talks
My Upcoming Seminars
MAXX PERFORMANCE with REDUCED STRESS
Are you studying and want to perform at your best without getting exhausted and feeling too stressed out ? Then this seminar where I will give you healthy tips for "brain & memory " foods, herbs and essential oils is for you to help you in your preparation for exams.Practical tips on how to reduce your stress and more. This event is a fundraiser for a student Anna for her World Challenge trip to Central America in 2015. Cost is only $15 per person or $20 for a parent with a school student.
DATE-Saturday 13 September at 2pm to 3.30pm.
Bookings with payment in advance as places are limited.
GRASSROOTS HERBAL MEDICINE-Using Weeds from our garden as medicines.
This seminar is to celebrate National Herbal Medicine Week here in Melbourne and will be followed at a later date by a visit to a herb garden at the Melbourne Botanical gardens or the Indigenous Garden at Monash University.
DATE-CANCELLED
For other education events in Melbourne please click onto the WORKSHOPS & CLASSES link above.
MAXX PERFORMANCE with REDUCED STRESS
Are you studying and want to perform at your best without getting exhausted and feeling too stressed out ? Then this seminar where I will give you healthy tips for "brain & memory " foods, herbs and essential oils is for you to help you in your preparation for exams.Practical tips on how to reduce your stress and more. This event is a fundraiser for a student Anna for her World Challenge trip to Central America in 2015. Cost is only $15 per person or $20 for a parent with a school student.
DATE-Saturday 13 September at 2pm to 3.30pm.
Bookings with payment in advance as places are limited.
GRASSROOTS HERBAL MEDICINE-Using Weeds from our garden as medicines.
This seminar is to celebrate National Herbal Medicine Week here in Melbourne and will be followed at a later date by a visit to a herb garden at the Melbourne Botanical gardens or the Indigenous Garden at Monash University.
DATE-CANCELLED
For other education events in Melbourne please click onto the WORKSHOPS & CLASSES link above.
Wednesday, 9 July 2014
Natural or Bioidentical Hormone Therapy
This article of interest for all women is printed with the kind permission of the Jean Hailes Clinic for Women’s Health here in Melbourne, Australia.
Natural or bioidentical hormones
Most women will pass through the time leading up to menopause (peri-menopause) and menopause itself with only mild – or no – symptoms. However, a percentage of women will have symptoms so bothersome that they may seek help.
Symptoms related to menopause such as hot flushes, night sweats, sleep disturbances, problems with the urinary system such as urinary leakage or urgency, vaginal dryness, formication (sensation of crawling or itching under the skin) and joint pains are related to a fall in the hormone, oestrogen. However, other symptoms such as fatigue, irritability and difficulty concentrating may be more related to the hot flushes and night sweats that reduce the quality of sleep.
The problem for women is where do they go to seek help to relieve the symptoms. Many have become fearful of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) used to relieve menopausal symptoms, after the release of findings from a major study in 2002. The study indicated higher levels of breast cancer (26%) in women using HRT and increased risks of heart disease, blood clots and strokes. However, the study had major flaws, and a subsequent review has shown that when used appropriately, HRT is a safe and effective therapy for symptomatic women around the time of menopause.
However, women remain concerned about the risks and are turning in large numbers towards so called ‘natural’ hormone therapies, also known as ‘bioidentical’ hormone therapy.
Natural or bioidentical hormones are plant-derived products made up in pharmacies to provide individualised dosages for the relief of symptoms related to menopause. They are marketed as natural, safe, risk free, age reversing, sex enhancing, and as cancer preventing. However, women are being misled by these claims.
The main problem is that their effectiveness and safety has not been tested, and their use has been shown in some cases to cause serious health concerns such as endometrial cancer.
Fact 1# Natural is not always safe
The term natural implies ‘not synthetic’ or ‘artificial’, which is misleading. All plant-derived hormone preparations undergo a chemical extraction process to produce the final product. There is little difference between the end products used in bioidentical hormones and those used in many forms of HRT. Therefore, to claim bioidenticals are more natural is misleading.
Fact 2# Natural hormones are not the same as the hormones in our bodies
The term bioidentical hormone implies that the compounds more closely resemble hormones produced in the human body than HRT. The oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone used in bioidenticals are the same as those used in many forms of HRT.
Fact 3# Bioidentical hormones are not customised
Bioidentical hormones, which can be ordered over the internet, claim to monitor hormone levels via salivary testing as a way of individualising therapy. There is no evidence of a relationship between symptoms and measured salivary hormones, nor between salivary hormone testing and hormone tissue levels. In addition, many salivary hormone tests are not accurate. Hormone testing is not a reliable indicator of hormone levels due to irregular fluctuations, particularly around the time of perimenopause. Therefore, to claim dosages are tailored to an individual’s hormonal profile is not based in science. The only method to monitor the effectiveness of hormonal therapy for the relief of symptoms is via self-report.
Natural or bioidentical hormone therapy is currently untested for safety and effectiveness and is not approved by the regulating body (TGA). There have been documented cases of harm caused by these therapies. Conventional HRT, when given to women in the right age group (50-59), in the lowest effective dose, is approved by the TGA and is safe and effective for the short term relief of menopausal symptoms.
Published with the permission of Jean Hailes for Women's Health
1800 JEAN HAILES (532 642)
jeanhailes.org.au
Saturday, 10 May 2014
CREATIVE COOKING WITH HERBS
I recently did a cooking session with the Food Culture group at the Venus Bay Community centre using herbs from my garden, spices from my kitchen cupboard & some kindly donated herbs from Justine. I am sharing the recipes with you all as you might like to try the tasty dishes on a cool autumn day as it is here now in Melbourne.
BEETROOT SOUP
1 bunch beetroot with leaves (so you know it is freshly picked ), 1 white onion, 2 sticks of celery with leaves; fresh herbs such as dill, sage, oregano, marjoram & parsley to garnish; stock or vegetarian stock powder.
Cut beetroot into cube chunks with skin on for more nutrients, dice onion & celery. In a medium saucepan add 1-2 tbsps. olive oil or coconut oil, heat & fry onion until soft. Add beetroot, celery with enough water to cover & bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. Add roughly chopped herbs including fresh bay leaves and stock or powder & cook until tender. Add a few chopped beetroot leaves with stems & season to taste with salt & pepper. Soup if you wish can be blended but I served it as is with a dollop of sour cream & chopped parsley. This soup would be nice to serve with rye & caraway bread or sourdough bread with sprinkled seeds such as cumin or sesame with olive oil toasted in the oven.
As I had a bunch of left over beetroot leaves I made a soup last night using this in my creative way with pumpkin, carrots, celery, onion, dry dill leaves, thyme, oregano , cumin powder & seeds with a dash or two of vinegar. I cooked firstly all the vegies & beetroot stems in water to cover (except for the beetroot leaves ) until soft- then pureed & mashed this.Then I returned the mixture to the pan and added sliced beetroot leaves to cook for a few more minutes with added chicken stock & seasoning. We enjoyed it with a dash of sour cream- it was DELICIOUS & I have some left over for later.
BAKED VEGIES WITH HERBS & SPICES
We used a selection of roughly cut pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, red onion, red capsicum and garlic cloves in their skins. Oven was preheated to 200 C. We put in all the vegies except for capsicum & garlic to add later to an pan with olive oil. After cooking for about 15 minutes I added freshly torn bay leaves, oregano & thyme. After cooking for a further 15 minutes I added 2 tsps. cumin powder, smoked paprika powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, black mustard seeds, fennel seeds & nigella (black cumin seeds). Vegies were mixed to be coated with the spices and garlic & capsicum were added. Continue baking until soft and browned. Serve hot.
MIXED AND WILD GREENS SALAD WITH FRESH HERBS
Well you can put just about everything into this lovely green salad. I used dandelion leaves, nasturtium leaves & flowers, Centella asiatica leaves and a salad mix with rocket/ lettuce varieties. I also added some quartered tomatoes for colour 7 taste.Then lots of fresh chopped herbs- salad burnet, tarragon, chives, parsley and basil. Toss with a vinaigrette dressing of olive oil, vinegar & mustard.
BAKED APPLES WITH SCENTED PELARGONIUM LEAVES
I used golden delicious apples with skins on that had the core removed but leaving some apple at the bottom. Use a baking tray with a few cm of water in the bottom. Place each apple on a peppermint pelargonium leaf. Into each apple cavity add one tsp. of unsalted butter, a clove, sprinkle with cinnamon & nutmeg powder and a fresh nutmeg pelargonium leaf. Bake in an oven until soft. I forgot to bring raisins or sultanas to add and when I do I usually add a little juice to moisten the dried fruit. We served this with freshly whisked cream but you can use plain yoghurt or ice cream. Also finely chopped peppermint pelargonium leaves or a drop of peppermint oil added to the cream is a great taste sensation and aids digestion. Also on retrospect it may have been a good idea to cover the baking apples to permeate then more with the aroma from the scented pelargonium leaves.
BEETROOT SOUP
1 bunch beetroot with leaves (so you know it is freshly picked ), 1 white onion, 2 sticks of celery with leaves; fresh herbs such as dill, sage, oregano, marjoram & parsley to garnish; stock or vegetarian stock powder.
Cut beetroot into cube chunks with skin on for more nutrients, dice onion & celery. In a medium saucepan add 1-2 tbsps. olive oil or coconut oil, heat & fry onion until soft. Add beetroot, celery with enough water to cover & bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. Add roughly chopped herbs including fresh bay leaves and stock or powder & cook until tender. Add a few chopped beetroot leaves with stems & season to taste with salt & pepper. Soup if you wish can be blended but I served it as is with a dollop of sour cream & chopped parsley. This soup would be nice to serve with rye & caraway bread or sourdough bread with sprinkled seeds such as cumin or sesame with olive oil toasted in the oven.
As I had a bunch of left over beetroot leaves I made a soup last night using this in my creative way with pumpkin, carrots, celery, onion, dry dill leaves, thyme, oregano , cumin powder & seeds with a dash or two of vinegar. I cooked firstly all the vegies & beetroot stems in water to cover (except for the beetroot leaves ) until soft- then pureed & mashed this.Then I returned the mixture to the pan and added sliced beetroot leaves to cook for a few more minutes with added chicken stock & seasoning. We enjoyed it with a dash of sour cream- it was DELICIOUS & I have some left over for later.
BAKED VEGIES WITH HERBS & SPICES
We used a selection of roughly cut pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, red onion, red capsicum and garlic cloves in their skins. Oven was preheated to 200 C. We put in all the vegies except for capsicum & garlic to add later to an pan with olive oil. After cooking for about 15 minutes I added freshly torn bay leaves, oregano & thyme. After cooking for a further 15 minutes I added 2 tsps. cumin powder, smoked paprika powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, black mustard seeds, fennel seeds & nigella (black cumin seeds). Vegies were mixed to be coated with the spices and garlic & capsicum were added. Continue baking until soft and browned. Serve hot.
MIXED AND WILD GREENS SALAD WITH FRESH HERBS
Well you can put just about everything into this lovely green salad. I used dandelion leaves, nasturtium leaves & flowers, Centella asiatica leaves and a salad mix with rocket/ lettuce varieties. I also added some quartered tomatoes for colour 7 taste.Then lots of fresh chopped herbs- salad burnet, tarragon, chives, parsley and basil. Toss with a vinaigrette dressing of olive oil, vinegar & mustard.
BAKED APPLES WITH SCENTED PELARGONIUM LEAVES
I used golden delicious apples with skins on that had the core removed but leaving some apple at the bottom. Use a baking tray with a few cm of water in the bottom. Place each apple on a peppermint pelargonium leaf. Into each apple cavity add one tsp. of unsalted butter, a clove, sprinkle with cinnamon & nutmeg powder and a fresh nutmeg pelargonium leaf. Bake in an oven until soft. I forgot to bring raisins or sultanas to add and when I do I usually add a little juice to moisten the dried fruit. We served this with freshly whisked cream but you can use plain yoghurt or ice cream. Also finely chopped peppermint pelargonium leaves or a drop of peppermint oil added to the cream is a great taste sensation and aids digestion. Also on retrospect it may have been a good idea to cover the baking apples to permeate then more with the aroma from the scented pelargonium leaves.
Thursday, 13 March 2014
VITAL VIEWS NEWSLETTER March 2014
Southern Centre of Natural Healing Newsletter
We are now well into 2014 and the beautiful season of Autumn. And here FINALLY is my first clinic newsletter for the new year.
The topic for this month is the Acid and Alkaline Balance for Health and Wellness.
I listened last year to an interview with historian and author Professor Iain Mc Calman on the ABC radio who described the Great Barrier Reef as having “coral osteoporosis “ due to the effects of global warming and rising acid levels in the sea. I thought this comment most accurate considering that we as a human species now commonly have osteoporosis in our bones. This can be due to the effects of acid load in our bodies from our too “acid” diets, physiological effects of stress –such as cortisol leaching calcium from our bones and build up of toxins that puts a load on our bodies elimination processes. We are part of this living world our earth “Gaia”, and what we experience in our bodies and minds is reflected in the environment as well as the reverse. So as we heal ourselves , we heal our planet.
All cells in our body involve chemical acid-base reactions. The correct pH balance is necessary for a healthy living organism to function properly. The pH refers to the potential for Hydrogen ions H+ to form acidity, which is a ph value below 7.0 (neutral) or alkalinity when the pH is above 7.0. Our normal blood pH is between a narrow range of 7.37 and 7.43 for correct physiological function. This is maintained by compensatory functions of the kidney, lungs and digestive systems. But many factors can impact on our body’s ability to buffer acid due to decreased renal function as we age, diet, stress, toxic overload, medications, poor breathing and reduced cell oxygenation, and disease.
If our bodies carry an over acid load we will experience disease such as arthritis, fatigue, fluid retention, joint and muscle pains, itchy skin conditions, poor concentration and osteoporosis.
Our diets have become more acid forming with the over consumption of highly processed foods such as sugars & white flour products; too much protein, soft drinks, alcohol and the ever increasing levels of stress that we exposed to in this busy, polluted world of technology, noise and artificial light. How often do we relax, breathe deeply and correctly to help release tension & detoxify ourselves ? Do we get time to sit quietly by the sea or by the trees in a forest ?
So as modern humans, ourselves and our earth can suffer from disharmony due to over acidity. But we can regain balance again and return to a healthy constitution by eating more vegetables & fruit; drinking plenty of water; exercising regularly by walking, tai chi, dancing, yoga; enjoying nature and social time spent sharing with others.
As a natural health practitioner I can assist you:-
Upcoming Clinic Events
We are now well into 2014 and the beautiful season of Autumn. And here FINALLY is my first clinic newsletter for the new year.
The topic for this month is the Acid and Alkaline Balance for Health and Wellness.
I listened last year to an interview with historian and author Professor Iain Mc Calman on the ABC radio who described the Great Barrier Reef as having “coral osteoporosis “ due to the effects of global warming and rising acid levels in the sea. I thought this comment most accurate considering that we as a human species now commonly have osteoporosis in our bones. This can be due to the effects of acid load in our bodies from our too “acid” diets, physiological effects of stress –such as cortisol leaching calcium from our bones and build up of toxins that puts a load on our bodies elimination processes. We are part of this living world our earth “Gaia”, and what we experience in our bodies and minds is reflected in the environment as well as the reverse. So as we heal ourselves , we heal our planet.
All cells in our body involve chemical acid-base reactions. The correct pH balance is necessary for a healthy living organism to function properly. The pH refers to the potential for Hydrogen ions H+ to form acidity, which is a ph value below 7.0 (neutral) or alkalinity when the pH is above 7.0. Our normal blood pH is between a narrow range of 7.37 and 7.43 for correct physiological function. This is maintained by compensatory functions of the kidney, lungs and digestive systems. But many factors can impact on our body’s ability to buffer acid due to decreased renal function as we age, diet, stress, toxic overload, medications, poor breathing and reduced cell oxygenation, and disease.
If our bodies carry an over acid load we will experience disease such as arthritis, fatigue, fluid retention, joint and muscle pains, itchy skin conditions, poor concentration and osteoporosis.
Our diets have become more acid forming with the over consumption of highly processed foods such as sugars & white flour products; too much protein, soft drinks, alcohol and the ever increasing levels of stress that we exposed to in this busy, polluted world of technology, noise and artificial light. How often do we relax, breathe deeply and correctly to help release tension & detoxify ourselves ? Do we get time to sit quietly by the sea or by the trees in a forest ?
So as modern humans, ourselves and our earth can suffer from disharmony due to over acidity. But we can regain balance again and return to a healthy constitution by eating more vegetables & fruit; drinking plenty of water; exercising regularly by walking, tai chi, dancing, yoga; enjoying nature and social time spent sharing with others.
As a natural health practitioner I can assist you:-
- By determining your acid load using the Mineral Priority Index to help you understand your current acid load.
- Doing a specific Matrix Evaluation test that involves simple urine and saliva ph measurements to ascertain which is the best treatment protocol for you .
- I will provide you with a comprehensive and specific food chart that very simply shows you which acid forming foods to eat less of and which alkaline forming foods to eat more of.
Blender Greens
1 cucumber, roughly chopped
1 big handful spinach
2 kale leaves
1 handful fresh mint
few sprigs fresh parsley
juice of one lemon or lime
250-275mls coconut water or alkaline/filtered water-adjust as necessary
optional extras: fresh ginger root, dandelion leaves, lemon grass, other herbs like dill or coriander, chard, baby greens, sprouts, bok choy, zucchini, celery.
Method
Place all ingredients in blender and process on high until smooth and not very thick. This is ideal when it is a thinner consistency. Pour into your favourite glass and flood your body with this alkaline goodness. Repeat as often as you can with a variety of alkalizing green veggies
1 cucumber, roughly chopped
1 big handful spinach
2 kale leaves
1 handful fresh mint
few sprigs fresh parsley
juice of one lemon or lime
250-275mls coconut water or alkaline/filtered water-adjust as necessary
optional extras: fresh ginger root, dandelion leaves, lemon grass, other herbs like dill or coriander, chard, baby greens, sprouts, bok choy, zucchini, celery.
Method
Place all ingredients in blender and process on high until smooth and not very thick. This is ideal when it is a thinner consistency. Pour into your favourite glass and flood your body with this alkaline goodness. Repeat as often as you can with a variety of alkalizing green veggies
- GUIDED RELAXATION & MEDITATION sessions are on again this year on most Wednesdays from 2 to 3pm starting on 5 March. No cost to attend unless you want to offer a small donation for remedies for the Sacred Heart Mission clinic. Please let me know if you intend joining us.
- LOOK, TALK AND AFTERNOON TEA AT THE HERB GARDEN at the Royal Melbourne Botanical Gardens on Saturday 22 March between 2 and 4pm.
- Showing of the documentary film FOOD MATTERS at a time to suit, so please let me know if you are interested.
- ZING INTO LIFE SERIES of 3 talks/ workshops starting once a month from April on a Wednesday afternoon. I will be discussing how you can improve your energy and health with foods, herbs and lifestyle support techniques. These will be held at the Mordialloc Community Centre.
- A SOCIAL GET TOGETHER FOR LUNCH at a local Bayside café.
- A WALK AT BRAESDIDE PARK
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