Healing Candida - Get Your Life Back in Your Gut

Over these past few weeks I have been fasting off and on – but on my food days I am eating a lot of fresh greens and produce from my garden.  It has been more then 2 months now since I decided to eat mostly wild harvested vegetables….

And for the most part we have succeeded in doing just that. Actually, last week I got a few vegetables for our upcoming Summer Solstice celebrations and this was the first sweet potato I have bought in months.

I then spent the weekend preparing some foods ahead of time for later this week – I have goat meat marinating in a lemon/thyme/brine sauce and have made the mustards, sweet breads and some cheese.

This week I want to finish up with everything so I can just sit back and enjoy my day when it comes. Hopefully we will get a bit of that sunshine back as well- we sure need it after all this rain!

One thing I wanted to mention here is how much my diet has changed over these past nearly 3 months since I did the mother of all cleanses (30 days on water and herbal teas). I knew then, when we finished it that something big had shifted and it has…

Since that time I am eating a wider range of foods including many things I haven’t had in well over a decade and longer. Because I had ‘candida’ or some type of IBS – my gut had become overly sensitized to nearly everything.

For those of you who have been through this over a long period of time….we make changes to our diets, cutting out certain foods and then entire food groups….but in the long term – the gut doesn’t heal.

It just becomes more sensitive to the new diet changes – and then we need to change it again. It was a never ending cycle for me and I wanted off. So what I did, as many of you know is start incorporating fasting into my lifestyle….

And the rest is now history. Over these past 3 years I have taken my gut back to zero and hit some sort of a reset button. The 'candida' (and all that went along with it) is no longer an issue – I am feeling better and digesting my food properly, I am drawn to new foods and have expanded my diet considerably.

I am eating many of the things I never thought I would eat again – mushrooms, cows cheese (organic), wheat and rye flours, yeasted breads (wild fermentation), muscadavo cane sugar, apple cider…..

It’s as if my mind, body and soul have released the ‘fear’ along with the toxins – cleared out the old lining of my gut (that clearly did not work, like, ever!), some of the old nasty bacteria, viruses and candida died off – and I started over.

It has been quite a journey….but, I feel I am only now starting to really discover what it means to live. Perhaps because for the first time I have ‘life’ deep inside of my gut – and I know it wasn’t there before!

I am living proof you can overcome candida, IBS, chronic fatigue, cancer - healing, shifting and taking your life back....and all without drugs, supplements, treatments - just clean water and real food for me please!

April

Gosling with extra security!!

Sourdough Starter and a Healthy Gut

This week I have been busy watching my sourdough starter culture grow – it is fascinating to say the very least and such a lesson on life. I am interested in trying my hand at sourdough for a few reasons but there's no time like right now to get going with it.…

Actually I just love to cook, bake and eat – so that’s reason number one right there. I also love bread – good bread and I must say I get the most wonderful comments on my Irish Soda Bread from all over. And I wanted to expand out my bread experiences.

Then there is the adventure aspect of learning something new and doing something from the absolute beginning – then seeing it turn into a final product. One that only you and your own hands produced.

I love that part of it far more then anything else. I like that the starter culture which grows is mine and most likely unique to me, my family and the place where I live.

It has our own unique bugs in there – and that reflects the health of our guts. Which after many years of detox, healing, fasting, cleanses and being very careful with our diets are finally about as whole as they are going to be.

Right now I am eating a wider range of foods (all homemade) then I have ever eaten, organic, fresh, real and wholesome. And my energy is good, my digestion is good – I can actually sense more ‘life’ in my gut.

It feels different. Especially after this last cleanse – 30 days on water and herbal tea. Of course I would be different, it was life changing and I would recommend it to anyone. (supervised by a nutritionist might be better!)

So, back to my sourdough starter….on day 1, I placed some rye flour and some water (clean well water) in a jar, stirred it for 30 seconds and put the lid on. Then left it in the warmest spot in the kitchen for 24 hours.

Day 2 – I took out about ½ of the mixture and added another 2 -3 tablespoons rye flour and 2 tablespoons water, stirred for 30 seconds and then left it to stand for 24 hours in the warm place.

On day 3, I did the exact same thing. Then on day 4 it had bubbled up (you can see the air bubbles), it smelled sweeter – I threw out a little more then ½ of the mixture and then replaced it with more rye flour and water.

No, I was not fussing about exact measurements. I just added what looked like enough (the flour feeds the culture) flour and water and then stirred. I always use a  clean spoon for everything – the flour, then the water and stirring.

By day 5 I had a growing sourdough culture that was easily doubling in size (or nearly triple) in the 24 hours. It smelled slightly fruity and nice….on day 6 I used it for the first time….

And as of right now I have a sour dough bread rising (it’s a slow process) in the warm spot. I will keep you posted on how this goes…and my recipe tomorrow!

April

Sourdough Rye Starter 

Healthy Gut Bacteria - It Should be Alive In There

I have been talking about this topic for a very long time – my own body has been working away at being ‘alive’ for sometime with a lot of help from my intuition as I learn more along the way.

To be alive means something very significant these days – there are so many out there who want to believe they are living their lives and their guts are healthy, stable and living places, because they take a probiotic or some lab produced organisms.

Life doesn’t come in a pill. Nor is it made in a lab, with resulting quality and life sustaining properties. It is difficult enough these days to encourage it, nurture it and then to maintain life on any level.

Mainly because there are so many factors working against us all, everywhere we turn an entire society has the parameters of death well organized;

Chlorine in the water

Sterile food from the shops

Poor quality soil

Anti bacterial soaps

Over washing

Highly processed food from sanitized factories

Medication

Antibiotic use

Disconnection from environment

Imbalance in bacteria

Use of fermented foods when gut is not balanced

The list goes on. And so do the general gut problems of nearly everyone in the Western world because our lives are being flushed, washed, sterilized and medicated away.

For me, it has become a mantra – I want my life back. But, what I am talking about is on the inside, I want my gut alive with healthy colonies of bacteria, working with me to digest my food and keep my immune system up and running.

However, if there is no life in here, there is equally not much life out there – perhaps there are not many of us living our potential because of some of these reasons. Imagine all we could be doing if we had our lives back on the inside as well as in the outer world….

Over the years, I have been giving each of these areas mentioned above careful thought. And working down such a list in my mind to eliminate, change or alter each area as it has been identified.

For example – if you are in a position to have some ducks or geese, you can have your own eggs (they don’t need to be sterilized, and you eat them fresh). You are in control of your food when you grow your own, cook your own and raise your own.

That way it doesn’t have to be sterile. But – there is also something more going on here too. What’s with all this sterile food? Sterile water…..then amazement over so many problems related to antibiotic use.

I don’t know what we have been thinking – if you don’t feed the good bacteria in your gut they will die. And we cannot live without life – very much longer.

April

Our goat with her 3 kids

Sterile Food, Means Dead Food

Yesterday turned out to be a fairly busy day with our goat's arriving we had a lot to get prepared, secure the fencing and shift into goat owner mode. Right now our little barn is filling up with all of these animals some of which will be invited for Christmas dinner....LOL.

Right now we are all adjusting to having some new animals around as well as something very different from what we are used to with all the birds. It turns out that while goats tend to be quite stubborn, they are also very friendly, easy to handle and gentle creatures. 

These 2 we have acquired are brother and sister (twins) who have never been separated having spent the last 4 or 5 years of their lives side by side. And treated very well I might add. Perhaps that is part of the reason they have such a nice temperament...

My hope is to be able to at the very least have fresh milk year round - and perhaps to breed the female so that we can grow our own little goat herd. But right now, a little real milk is great! The reason I use the word real is because of the taste...

I don't know if you have ever tasted shop bought pasteurized milk and then taken some fresh from a goat. It is actually quite remarkable because the difference is huge. Of course I could never help but wonder if all those things said about the negatives of pasteurization are true.

When you do the least amount of research on this topic one of the first statements to be found is this: 'Farms are not sterile environments' ; therefore they cannot be trusted as far as providing fresh milk that would be bacteria free.

That for me as as far as I need to go with this issue. Perhaps the main problem with our guts, digestion, immune system and health right now on this planet, is the fact that there are those who are determined to eradicate every living thing from our bodies....

We are meant to be living. Inside and out - with teams of healthy bacteria working together especially within our guts helping us to digest our food, make vitamins and synthesize useful nutrients. They also have a huge role to play with our immune function.

Or basically, we cannot function without them. This constant eating and drinking sterile food is killing us inside - because sterile food means dead food. 

Of course, drinking raw milk would only be something I would do from my own animals (I know their care, feed and habits). And this needs to be part of the larger picture here of healthy eating and living. 

Personally, I feel it has taken us a few years to get our immune systems back to where they should be to function in this world. I can only imagine how people are faring who take medication regularly, eat rubbish foods and otherwise do nothing to support these vital processes. 

It is time to get back to health everyone!

April 

Welcome to the goats! 

Going Sugar Free... A Lifestyle Choice?

I have been sugar free completely and utterly for a while, pretty close to 9 years right now with no intention of ever going back to eating that nasty stuff. A lot of the time in my baking and cooking, I just take it for granted that I will substitute into the recipe something other than granulated sugar.

However, I do watch the adverts and read labels as well as keep up with some of the words being thrown around when it comes to foods that claim to be sugar free. But I will back up here for a minute, because I want to mention why I became sugar free in the first place.

Actually I am a few things free for nearly 9 years -- about that time all those years ago I was battling cancer and had no choice but to take full responsibility for my health or else (I took no medication or treatment and healed myself - that's another story!). Of course, my choice was and is clear - I want to be here, I want to raise my family and I will eat what my body needs to remain in good health. 

Nothing more, nothing less.

What I do know about sugar and it's cousins, is that it promotes cancer or any fungal condition within the body such as diabetes and hormone imbalance. Sugar is not a food, it is not needed for any function of the body - contrary to some opinions out there! (Glucose is a 'sugar' and is the fuel used by cells to function - this is something different entirely)

I remember those days, before my enlightenment around food and eating- feeling absolutely addicted to sugar. Since that time I have come across references used in association with sugar as 'slavery'. The connection being made back to the days of plantations and the use of slaves to work them.

Of course, everything about that level of business and trade was criminal - but it managed to get people the world over addicted to this new drug - more sweet then anything else available at the time - white, powdered and pure poison. 

There might be several ways sugar works - perhaps by suppressing something in the brain, and by feeding colonies of mold, yeast and nasty bacteria in the gut. It is an anti-nutirent meaning it will cost you something to digest it, not the best thing to be using in wholesome meals. 

In my cooking and baking I use honey, maple syrup and apple sauce (amongst others) to sweeten something. I do not go for sugar 'substitutes' such as the powdered granulated stuff in plastic bags - you might have seen it around. To me that would be like coming off of one drug and replacing it with another. 

Yet, I do like something sweet. However since I have given up sugar, my tastes have changed and I will find fruit, especially dates or figs are very sweet. I can enjoy them with a cup of dandelion coffee or in a dish and be totally satisfied. 

When a recipe calls for sugar - choose something that will work just as well perhaps it might be fruit or honey, you only need a small amount. Then adjust the dry ingredients accordingly, most likely add a little more flour. 

The resulting taste and texture is better then with the sugar! Think about it - not so very long ago, all these old recipes called for honey, fruit and natural sweeteners. There was no sugar around - perhaps it is time we got back to what is real.

Pull the sugar out of your diet, stop feeding nasties in your gut. Your body systems will run much better, your skin will be clearer and you will find you have more energy. 

April 

Our own honey being drained out through cheese cloth into a jar

Change Your Diet with the Seasons?

Seasonal eating is something we would have found easy to practice way back when we only had access to locally grown foods for the most part and had to preserve as much of our own for use later in the colder months.

Of course there is a fair amount of scientific and anecdotal support as well as common sense in this thinking while adhering to some very simple food ideas as much as possible. Eating organic, local, in season as well as unprocessed will take you pretty far down the road towards healthy digestive function. 

But why is that the case?

First of all organic should be a no-brainer for most of us - of course the presence of far less pesticide is better for you. How would more chemicals and poisons be good in any way? I have heard it said (it was attached to some sort of research) that organic is not any different from conventionally grown produce. I would love to know where they found the organic food used for the testing so I can avoid it, because it should be different. 

And yes, eating locally grown produce as much as possible would also make sense to those of us who consider carefully everything that goes into our mouths. Local food would not have travelled ten thousand miles to get to us, meaning it would at least be fresher. And usually it should contain local soil bacteria commonly found in our guts. All good for us.

When it comes to eating in season, what could possibly be wrong with eating strawberries in January or fresh peas at Solstice and Christmas when you live in a Northern climate? As an intuitive I would say it has to do with the lining of our guts, the bacteria living there and digestion (back to this again). 

The seasons on the outside of us change (in some locations they do) this also reflects an inner change. Right now for instance the gut is growing thinner towards the darkest time of the year. Until we reach Halloween - a time when we acknowledge the thinning of the veil between the worlds. 

This veil becomes thinner on the inside of us too. Meaning it is a good time to cut back on excesses in diet, hunker down for the winter, eat foods which will keep - root vegetables, a little fruit - and easily digested produce such as preserved foods. As much as possible. 

Gut flora undergoes the same seasonal changes inside of our bodies as the does the environment outside. Therefore, our ability to digest each of these foods changes with each season or at least it should. That is why in nature, the types of produce available for each season are quite different from each other or 'to everything there is a season'.

Your digestion, the foods you eat and the way to eat them will also change throughout the year for a healthy gut - all because of the way nature is reflected in us. Eating in season then, is along the exact same lines as choosing organic foods - it is vitally important. 

Some things just make more sense. 

Have a healthy day,

April 

Lamb, sweet corn and root vegetable stew