5 Amazing Things Happen When You Drink Lemon Water

Archives for April 2016

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The first thing I do to start my day is to drink a glass of warm water with lemon. I do this morning ritual on an empty stomach.

A glass of warm water and juice of fresh squeezed lemon (half) is my first drink.

After a straight 7-8 hours without water (sleep) your body needs hydration.

Drinking warm lemon water helps to

•Humidify your digestive tract
•Remove toxins
•Rejuvenate all your cells instantly

5 Ways lemon water kick starts your body's metabolism

1. Detoxifies: Lemon and warm water are a perfect combo recipe for detox. The warm water flushes out toxins, while the vitamin C in lemon revives the cells.

2. Better digestion: Drinking lemon water helps liver function by flushing out toxins. It stimulates the production of bile, and aids digestion. When liver and bile function at their best, bowels are also regularized.

3. Boosts immunity: Vitamin C is an antioxidant and also has anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties. It improves sore throat, cold and flu.

4. Alkalises: Once metabolized by the body the acidic nature of lemon becomes alkaline. Your body functions well at an alkaline pH of 7.4. It is this pH the digestive function and body's metabolism operate the best.

5. Antioxidant elixir: Lemons are rich in vitamin C, and other antioxidants. Flavonoid compounds such as flavonol glycosides, and kaempferol are unique antioxidants. They fight off free radicals, and have anti-cancer properties.

Does lemon water help in weight loss?

So far, there are no studies that directly link lemon water leads to weight loss.

But, one possible way lemons can help with weight loss is because of their citric acid content.

Citric acid is a key part of the Kreb's cycle that takes place in every cell. Kreb's cycle also known as the citric acid cycle makes energy from oxygen and food.

In essence, the oxygen and glucose make energy from the food you eat via this cycle.

In other words, it burns calories from food to energy. This is important, because inefficient metabolism leads to production of less energy. Unused calories become fat in your body.

Now you know why drinking warm lemon water in the morning is good!

If you like sipping your coffee first thing in the morning, and wondering how to shift?

Here are some tips to get you started

Start with warm water: If you don't like lemon water as soon as you wake up, start with plain water. A glass of warm water without lemon can help you enjoy the same benefits. Once you get accustomed to this, you can add lemon for more benefits.

Fluoride-free water: Fluoride-free water is safe for drinking. It also improves the taste of lemon water for beginners.

Use a straw: Lemon contains citric acid, which is acidic and can erode your tooth enamel. Avoid plastic and instead use a glass straw to drink.

Wait 15 minutes:  Allow 15 minutes before drinking or eating other foods.

Quality Ingredients: Use only organic lemons for making your drink.

Remember, lemon peels are rich in antioxidants, don't toss out the leftover peel. You can dry and store them for use in salads, soups or as a flavoring.

Make warm lemon water your first drink of the day. It is an easy and inexpensive way to improve your health.

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this info. with your friends and I love to hear from you in the comments below. Do you start your day with warm lemon water?

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You may think that you're eating nothing but the healthiest of food choices. But are you really?

Unfortunately, many people are not. There are a lot of foods that seem healthy but could steer you in the wrong direction.

Don't Be Fooled By These 6 Foods

1. Fruit Juice 

Sipping a glass of orange juice to get your fruit quota met? Think again. Most fruit juices have almost no real fruit juice! Read the labels and you'll see how much sugar, high fructose corn syrup, dyes and other junk chemicals are really in these chemical cocktails.

All that sugar will rapidly spike blood glucose levels, setting you up for a crash. You wouldn't be doing much worse by reaching for a soda. (that's not a suggestion)

Your best bet it to juice your own fruit at home.

2. Wheat 

Wheat is another must-avoid in your diet plan. Even if it says ‘whole wheat’, don’t get misled. Most people can't fully break down modern day wheat based products as they should and too much wheat can set you up for inflammation of the body.

Plus, wheat will still spike blood glucose levels, which can set you up for fat gain and eventually, diabetes.

3. Tofu

Tofu is another seemingly healthy food, but I don't touch it! You shouldn't either.

Today's tofu products are heavily processed and have added fillers, making them anything but healthy.

What’s worse, the processing methods used may not fully remove the phytates that block mineral absorption in the body.  This could set you up for a nutritional deficiency.

4. Jello 

Sugar-free Jello may seem to be a great choice, right? Wrong. Packaged Jello is highly processed, has unhealthy dyes and artificial sweeteners. This can promote future sugar cravings.

There is nothing natural about Jello, so it shouldn't be included in your meal plan.

5. Cereal Bars 

Cereal bars are another food that you want to be on the lookout for and kick out of your diet plan. Cereal bars are heavily refined and have far too much wheat, white flour, and sugar. All this while lacking the protein your body needs to be satisfied.

Don’t let the fact that they claim to contain ‘real fruit’ let these fool you – often no real fruit is to be found in these bars.

6. Yogurt 

Finally, be careful about including yogurt in your daily diet. Unless you buy organic varieties, there’s a good chance there could be hormones or antibiotics that have been used on the cows in that yogurt that you're now taking in.

And, if it’s a fruit flavored yogurt, you’ll also be taking in a good dose of sugar as well. Some of those yogurt varieties can contain upwards of 10-20 grams of sugar per serving.

If you're going to have yogurt, opt for the plain Greek variety (I like Fage Total 0%) and add in some fresh berries for sweetness and taste.

So be on the lookout for these foods in your diet plan. They may come off as healthy, but it’s important you don’t let them fool you.

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this with your friends and I always love reading your comments below.

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If you're on a clean eating plan you're probably no stranger to my chocolate chip cookie dough balls, heavenly coconut balls and other sweet treats.

They are among my most popular recipes and for good reason!

 

I keep one of these recipes at the ready in my freezer at all times. They come in handy when I want a little sweet treat that won't expand my waistline. Today I have a brand new recipe that I am loving!

 

If you like carrot cake, you will LOVE these Carrot Cake Cookie Bites.

 

CARROT CAKE COOKIE

BITES

 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/4 cup no sugar added raisins
  • 1/4 cup chopped almonds
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon clove
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/3 cup almond butter
  • 1/4 cup 100% maple syrup or raw unfiltered honey

 

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a mixing bowl, mix together oats, shredded carrots, almonds, raisins, and cinnamon.

2. Add almond butter and honey or maple syrup and mix together thoroughly.

3. Place mixture in the refrigerator for one hour.

4. Shape into one-inch bites.

 

Hope you will enjoy adding these to your own freezer each week as much as I do!

 

Yours in Health,

Danette

 

P.S. Please share this delicious recipe with your carrot cake-loving friends. I always love reading your comments below too! Will you try these?

You may also be interested in:

Hello, Almond Butter Bites! (This Next-Level Healthy Sweet Snack is SO YUM!)

Easy Cucumber Hummus Bites

 

 

Danette May Carrot Cake Cookie Recipe

 

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By now you probably know how important probiotics are to your gut health.

But do you know the best way to get the probiotics you need?

Two of the best ways to get probiotics are by eating kefir and Greek yogurt. But which one is best?

Kefir

Kefir is a drink made from cow’s or goat’s milk.

Kefir grains are added to milk. These are really cultures of yeast and lactic acid. After they’ve been in the milk for 24 hours they multiply and ferment the sugars in the milk. The grains are then removed and can be used again.

Kefir has a taste like yogurt, but is thinner and more drinkable.

Six ounces of kefir contains:

  • 6 grams of protein
  • 20% of the RDA of calcium and phosphorous,
  • and 19% of the RDA of riboflavin.

Kefir packs a probiotic punch too! It can contain up to 50 strains of bacteria and yeasts, and each helps the body in a different way.

Don't eat dairy? You can still enjoy kefir. Look for either coconut or rice based kefirs.

Greek Yogurt

Greek yogurt is a thick, creamy form of yogurt. Its unique texture comes from being strained to remove whey.

Greek yogurt is a great source of probiotics, but every brand has different bacteria strains and quantities.

The same is true of kefir, though kefir generally has many more strains of probiotics in it than Greek yogurt. You just have to check the labels for number of strains and cultures.

Here's the Probiotic Smackdown by the numbers:

Kefir grown from kefir grains has between 30 and 50 different strains and approximately 5 billion cfu (colony forming units) per gram.

Kefir from the store is a probiotic drink made from a mix of 4-10 strains of bacteria and yeast and is approximately 2-3 billion cfu per gram. This usually isn't true kefir grown from grains.

Greek Yogurt is a single strain and is approximately 1-2 billion cfu per gram.

Another difference between the two is that the beneficial bacteria in yogurt is only “transient.”

This means these bacteria only reside in the intestines for a certain period of time. But, these bacteria maintain the balance of the digestive system.

On the other hand, kefir has probiotics which are more likely to colonize the intestinal tract. This means that probiotics from kefir can multiply and establish their colony there for a longer time.

BUT…please don't think this is a competition where you can only have one or the other, you can eat and enjoy them all, and benefit your gut in the process.

Remember that whether dealing with kefir or Greek yogurt, probiotics are living organisms.

It’s important to:

  • eat them while they’re fresh
  • make sure that they’re refrigerated
  • look for brands that are low in sugar and fat

If you want to make sure that you have a healthy balance of bacteria in your system, have kefir or Greek yogurt every day.

Either 4 ounces of kefir or 6 to 8 ounces of Greek yogurt that has a high quantity of live cultures will do you a world of good. If you’re having stomach trouble, double this amount until you start to feel better.

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this info. with your friends and I love reading your comments below. Are kefir and Greek yogurt staples in your fridge?

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Craving chocolate? You aren’t alone. Chocolate tops the list of food cravings.

Now, digging into a milk chocolate bar isn't going to do your diet any favors. You know this – as much as you may hate to admit it.

Regular milk chocolate is loaded with sugar, rich in fat, and contains nearly as much energy as a full meal.

That doesn’t mean you can’t satisfy your craving. There are healthier forms of chocolate that you can turn to. Namely, cacao and cocoa.

Not sure the difference between them? Let’s take a closer look so you know which option you should add to your diet – guilt free. And I'll fill you in on my own daily guilt-free pleasure, Cacao Bliss, a little later.

Cacao

A lot of people have never tried cacao, or even heard of it for that matter.

Cacao (like the kind I use in my Cacao Bliss) is the purest form of chocolate that you can eat so it’s far less processed than anything else you’ll get. As a general rule, the less processed a food is, the healthier it is for you, so that puts cacao on top.

Cacao is a rich source of

  • antioxidants
  • magnesium

This is important for active people because magnesium is required for maintaining strong bones, stabilizing blood sugar and keeping energy levels up. In fact, chocolate cravings and magnesium deficiencies have been closely linked.

Cacao comes from cacao pods, which grow on the cacao fruit tree. The pods are cracked open to release the cacao beans, which can then be processed to form either:

Cacao is great for baked recipes and is a terrific source of fiber and nutrients. You’ll also take in some monounsaturated fats with cacao, and even a small dose of protein.

Cocoa 

Cocoa on the other hand, is more processed than cacao is and is the form that you’ve likely used before. It’s widely available and comes in many different varieties – both sweetened and unsweetened.

If using cocoa, you’ll want to get the unsweetened variety to avoid excess sugar.

Cocoa is cheaper than buying cacao, and still a better option than milk chocolate as long as you choose one that's as natural as possible.

Make sure it doesn’t have any:

  • added sugars
  • added milk fats
  • oils

The big difference between cocoa powder and cacao powder is that cocoa powder uses a higher temperature of heat during the processing, so this means the antioxidant power of it won’t be quite as high.

This isn’t to say it doesn’t have any antioxidants, they just aren’t quite as significant as cacao is.

Studies also suggest that coco, as well as cacao, can help to improve heart health as well.

If you really want to ensure optimal health, opt for raw cacao in any one of the varieties it comes in, including Cacao Bliss.

Try subbing cacao nibs in for chocolate chips in your next baking recipe and you’ll be amazed at the flavor it brings.

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this with your chocolate loving friends and I welcome your comments below.

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If you suffer with joint pain this low impact water workout is exactly what you need. It's a lot more effective that it looks and it's fun too!

I love using water resistance to strengthen and tone. You only need a pool (or a beach) and a couple empty milk jugs or water bottles to crank up a fun fat burning session.

If you haven't tried aqua aerobics yet you might be surprised at what a serious workout this is!

Grab your suit, hop in the pool and let's get to work!

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this with your water loving friends and I want to hear from you in the comments below. Have you tried aqua aerobics yet?

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In case you haven't heard, Nutella is TERRIBLE for you. It's one of those foods that seems like it might be ok. After all, it's made from hazelnuts. They're good for you, right?

 

If you read the ingredients you will find the very first one is sugar. There are a whopping 11 grams of sugar in every single tablespoon of this stuff. No wonder people love it.

 

Then comes the palm oil (always avoid that) and then there's the soy which is a whole different blog post. These are ingredients that are better left on the shelf if you're striving to improve health.

 

Not all is lost! For every unhealthy yummy, gooey, well-loved treat, there's ALWAYS a way to make your own healthy version at home.

 

There is no shortage of Nutella lovers and I think you will love this recipe! Before you break out the spoon remember this is a treat and should be enjoyed in moderation if you are working to release weight.

 

 

Healthy Nutella

 

Ingredients

  • 2 cups raw Hazelnuts
  • 1 1/2 cups Dark Chocolate (70% Cacao or Higher), melted
  • 1/3 cup Coconut Sugar
  • 1-2 tablespoons unrefined Coconut oil
  • 2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon Himalayan Pink Salt

 

Directions

1. Spread hazelnuts evenly on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast at 400ºF for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned.

2. Remove the hazelnuts from the baking sheet and cover with a towel. Rub them roughly until skins come off; It’s okay if some of the skin remains.

3. Dump the nuts and coconut sugar into a food processor. Blend until a textured paste forms. Pour in chocolate and oil, and pulse until combined.

4. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth or to the consistency that you like. The mixture should be thick but soft, similar to store-bought Nutella.

5. Cover and store on the refrigerator for a thick fudge-like consistency or keep at room temperature for easier spreadability.

 

So that's how to make this iconic sweet treat healthier so you and your family can enjoy both the taste and the benefits of clean eating.

You may also enjoy:

Creamy Cacao Dark Chocolate Pudding

Cacao Vs Cocoa: Why One Heals And One Hurts

Chocolate Walnut Muffins

 

Yours in Health,

Danette

 

P.S. I hope you will share this recipe with your Nutella loving friends and I welcome your comments below.

 

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So you’ve heard that nuts are good for you, but is one nut better than the others and do they really boost weight loss?

Nuts are packed with nutrients. They vary depending on the nut but, generally speaking, all nuts offer 3 important things that help with weight loss:

1) A good dose of proteins

2) Healthy fats

3) Fiber (keeps your hunger in check)

2 Reasons You Should Be Snacking on Nuts Right Now

1. People who consume nuts regularly tend to report less hunger, this of course makes sticking to your meal plan easier.

2. A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition noted that folks who habitually ate nuts showed lower total body weights than those who didn’t.

Top 4 Nuts for Health and Weight Loss

1. Walnuts 

Topping the list of healthiest nuts to include in your diet is walnuts. Walnuts are great because unlike the other nuts, they provide a hearty dose of the omega-3 fatty acids.

These fatty acids can help to improve insulin sensitivity, and create a leaner body.

Walnuts are also great for combating heart disease as they can help

  • lower your cholesterol levels
  • reduce plaque build-up
  • lower the level of inflammation in your body

2. Almonds 

Next on the list of nuts to include in your plan is the almond. Almonds tend to be higher in protein than other nuts, so can help with the repair and rebuilding of muscle tissue.

Almonds are also a great source of vitamin E.  This is a key antioxidant! Vitamin E can improve recovery rates, fight inflammation and age-related memory loss.

If that's not enough, it keeps your skin, hair, and nails looking their best too.

Be sure when purchasing almonds that you buy plain almonds, not roasted almonds or those with added flavoring or coating.

These will only add unwanted salt and/or sugar, making them a less healthy option for your fat loss diet plan.

3. Pistachios

An often forgotten about nut, pistachios should also be included in your diet plan. The great thing about these nuts is that since the shelling process takes time, this may mean you consume fewer nuts when snacking.

4. Pecans

Pecans are another nut that is a smart addition to your diet plan. They rank in the top 15 foods for their antioxidant levels, so they work hard to combat free radical damage and oxidation in your body.

And, pecans are a good source of

  • magnesium
  • zinc
  • iron
  • calcium
  • selenium

These are all nutrients you'll need to power up an active lifestyle

They’re also a high fiber nut, so a great one that will help to control your blood glucose levels.

When shopping for pecans, here again, look for plain pecans and not honey coated.

3 Tips To Keep Nuts Fresh Longer

1. Be sure that you store them in a sealed, air-tight container to maintain freshness.

2. Store somewhere dark, away from direct sunlight and warmth.

3. If you plan to keep them for longer than six months, place them in the freezer for storage purposes.

If you add small amounts of nuts to your diet plan, you will be on track to great health and faster weight loss success.

Yours in health,

Danette

P.S. Feel free to share this with your loved ones and I love to read your comments below.

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There is a lot of information and misconception about food! I am going to clear all of it up for you right now.

Food can actually HEAL your body and help you stand in a body you love. Listen to what your body needs. You don't have to walk around “hangry” (hungry + angry) to release unwanted weight.

What if I told you “Fats are your FRIENDS?!” If you've been starving yourself to lose weight you NEED to see this video!

Yours in Health,

Danette

P.S. Please share this with your friends and I welcome your comments below.

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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.