Himalayan Salt Lamps for Mood Balance

I love the color orange. It's so soothing; my husband and I are currently looking for the perfect shade of orange for our living room! We've sampled three so far and will be sampling a fourth before we make our final choice. It will sure be an improvement from our pesto green colored wall that came in our home!

Himalayan salt lamps are a nice shade of orange and it is not only the color that produces positive effects on mood, but it is also the composition. Salt emits negative ions. In order to understand how negative ions can uplift your mood, think of nature's sources of negative ions: moving air in the mountains, the air after thunderstorms, crashing surf at the beach, waterfalls, and other moving bodies of water. All scenarios seem to create a feeling of peacefulness.

I recently wrote an article about Himalyan salt lamps for N.E.E.D.S. It's a great way to brighten up your dull office or cubicle. I suggest plants too! Bring some life into your office space and watch your mood elevate! It's a great thing to do this time of year for all of you in the North East when winter drags you down!

How NOT to Neglect Fruit and Veggies

Do you ever go an entire day without eating more than maybe one or two meager servings of fruit and veggies? I have! Once you’re used to nourishing your body, the effects of fruit and veggie neglect can feel awful rather quickly…slumping energy levels, major lack of motivation (do I really need to go the gym today?), and tendency to downward spiral into an unhealthy eating pattern every day. Don’t allow this to happen to you! Here are some easy ways to get in your fruits and veggies.

• Add berries to your morning cereal.

• Add sliced cucumber, alfalfa sprouts, parsley, or cilantro to your sandwiches.

• Keep a fruit bowl filled with seasonal fruit in your home and at your office.

• If you have limited time to whip up a healthy dinner, do the pasta thing, but add shredded carrots and shredded zucchini. This is one reason why I have fallen in love with my Cuisinart food processor.

• Keep some dried fruit on hand (make sure they are sulfate-free); have them combined with some raw nuts to keep your blood sugar balanced.

• Aim for originality when snacking. Lately, I’ve been buying the pre-washed and trimmed snap peas, which I keep at the office and eat with hummus.

• Try juicing or smoothie making! I do this whenever I need a major veggie or fruit boost. Awesome for detoxing after a weekend of unhealthy eating (or drinking).

Alice Waters on Nutrition

Alice Waters is such an inspiration and she GLOWS, so you know she walks her talk! Here's a recent quote from her: "We need to protect the planet because that is the source of our food. It is unimaginable to me that people could think about global warming without talking about food, because 40 percent of the emissions--the bad kind--come from the wrong sort of farming, ranching, and distribution of food around this planet. So if we were all to be asked to support the people who take care of the land, to buy our food carefully with intention, then I think we could make a dramatic difference." Read more about Alice Waters' edible school yard here.

Do you get the 3:00 Slump? Solution: Shannon's Grain Bliss

Many of my clients complain about fatigue they experience every work day around 2:00 PM or 3:00 PM. That's generally when they reach for their second or third cup of coffee or caffeine of choice. By reconfiguring their lunches, I have probably helped well over 100 people to overcome this incredibly unpleasant slump! If you experience this slump, look at your lunches. Are you getting enough complex carbs (such as brown rice, millet, quinoa, wheat berries)? What about lean proteins? You need BOTH for energy!! An easy answer could be a turkey sandwich on sprouted bread (rich in protein and fiber). A tastier option is Shannon's Grain Bliss. I make this occasionally on Sundays and blend it in with green salads throughout the week. It's tasty on it's own too. It's yummy served warm or cold!

SHANNON's GRAIN BLISS!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup dry red lentils soaked overnight
1 cup wheat berries soaked overnight
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 can "no salt added" organic chickpeas
1/3 cup Israeli couscous

Dressing:
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
2 Tablespoons Tamari
3 Tablespoons agave nectar
1 Tablespoon hot sauce

Boil the wheat berries for 2-3 hours until tender in huge pot of water. Drain.
Cook lentils in boiling water for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain. Bring just over 1/2 cup of water to boil. Add couscous. simmer for 5-8 minutes until couscous is cooked and all water is soaked up.

Mix all ingredients. Combine all dressing ingredients. Stir well. Pour over grains and mix well!

Buffalo for Dinner: My Buffalo-Turkey Meatloaf

Many of my friends are still in shock that I consume meat at all so announcing that I had buffalo freaked many out to an extent. My recipe creations are based on the combination of taste and health. The food has to qualify as delicious and has to be healthful. I get it right most of the time. Of course, I won’t be publishing a blog about the rice pilaf that I burned or even the grilled healthy turkey Ruben sandwiches I made whereby the bread stuck to the pan and the sandwich was no longer consumable as a sandwich (fork and knife were required)!

Anyway, back to buffalo! It’s so good for you! It’s a great alternative to beef. It’s leaner than beef. It contains very high levels of the fat-blocker and anti-carcinogen, conjugated linolaic acid (CLA). CLA can help prevent cancer, obesity, diabetes, and a number of immune disorders. Buffalo is also high in iron and vitamin B12.

I decided to make a meatloaf using ground turkey and ground buffalo. It was delicious! This recipe is easy and uses a lot of ingredients that I tend to have on-hand in the pantry.

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces ground buffalo
• 8 ounces ground turkey
• 1 egg whipped well
• 1 1/4 cup Trader Joe's bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 3/4 cup Newman's Own medium salsa (separated into 1/2 cup and 1/4 cup)
• 5 mushrooms chopped in small pieces
• 1 small onion chopped and sauteed in olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic minced

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well, reserving ¼ cup of salsa. Form into 9X4 bread pan. Bake for 45 minutes at 375. Pull out spread ¼ cup salsa on the top and bake for 20 more minutes! Voila1 I served this with roasted sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts.

Bloomberg to Require Restaurants to Reduce Salt!

New York City has been a model to follow when it comes to health initiatives. First it was no smoking in restaurants, and then no trans fats, and now watching the salt shaker. Mayor Bloomberg announced this week that he will take on the salt enemy with restaurants. This brings me much relief. Salt is a major risk factor when it comes to heart disease and for me, I find that often, "too much salt" is my only complaint at fine NYC restaurants. This move could lead to better health in a city where many people eat nearly all of their meals out.

Fight Depression with a Mediterranean Diet

So often people ask me what type of diet I follow. My eating style certainly doesn't fit "neatly" into any category, but if I had to classify it, I would have to say that it is a combination of clean and Mediterranean. I consume an abundance of vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, whole grains, fish, and olives are my friends!

It makes perfect sense that the Mediterranean Diet helps fight depression. It is an extremely balanced and healthy way to eat. Naturally, if your diet is balanced and healthy, you feel more balanced mentally. Trust me, I know. Run into me after a few days of not eating optimally; I am not the most pleasant person (you can ask my husband!!). Also, monounsaturated fats are high in the Mediterranean Diet and these fats are shown to be excellent for brain health. STAY TUNED FOR "MY FAVORITE FATS" series. In 2010, I will be contributing at least one blog a month on my favorite fats. Why? Because many of you are afraid of fats; I once was too. Not anymore; I couldn't imagine my life without them. You'll learn why next year!

Meanwhile, check out this summary about the study that explored the connection between the Mediterranean Diet and Depression:

Mediterranean Diet Helps Prevent Depression
The benefits of eating the Mediterranean diet on cardiovascular disease risk are well known. Now it appears that adhering to this dietary pattern also may prevent incidence of depression. Researchers at University Las Palmas in Spain followed 10,094 individuals for four years who, at study entry, were not depressed. Those people who adhered the most to the Mediterranean diet through the study period had a 30-percent lower incidence of depression than individuals who did not. The Mediterranean diet consists of low meat intake, moderate intake of alcohol and dairy products, and high intake of fruits, nuts, vegetables, cereals, and fish. The researchers found dose-response relationships for fruits and nuts, the monounsaturated-to-saturated fats ratio, and legume intake.Archives of General Psychiatry 2009;66:1090-1098.