I had a reader email me on Saturday morning when I was working in my fave cafe (Mylk Uncookies) sipping on an almond mylk latte. She confessed that she has an “insatiable” appetite for all things sweet and that everything she eats needs to be extremely sugary tasting. Fortunately she wasn’t binging on refined sugar and used stevia liberally which is a herbal, zero calorie sweetener.  But she felt that it was a bit of an addiction and asked me for any suggestions I might have.

So I told her that craving the sweet taste has a very strong emotional connection. It’s not always simply a blood sugar imbalance or a dietary problem.

If you find yourself constantly craving a sweet taste, ask yourself this:

Do you have enough sweetness in your life?

I know this might seem rather strange, but craving sweets is strongly associated with a lack of love, comfort and affection. Meaning, if you don’t have “sweetness” in your life, you will search for other ways to fill this void. So how do you get more sweetness in your life?

• Take a warm bubble bath, light some candles, put on some comforting music and chill out.
• Watch a warm and fuzzy movie, like a romantic comedy or Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
• Call your sister, best friend, your mom or whoever you adore and tell them how much they mean to you!
• Be open to love. Many people think they are open, but as soon as love comes knocking, they quickly run the other way or question loves integrity.
• Stop the self-critism. There are enough people in the world that are more than happy to be critical — from your boss to your siblings. So don’t add to the insult by being critical of you. Love yourself just the way you are. You are your own best cheerleader!! And believe or not, the universe actually isn’t against you.
• Think loving positive thoughts toward others. Especially those who might trouble you. This is a very POWERFUL affirmation to do. Thinking negative thoughts only increases stress hormones associated with ill-health for you. You will be absolutely amazed what happens when you send love off in the direction of someone who needs it.

Do you have a question for Joyous Health? Ask below and your answer may be featured in a post.

Have a joyous day!

Joy

Upcoming Workshops in 2012:

Winter Eat Well Feel Well 6-wk nutrition + yoga class
Superfoods for Natural Beauty: Feb 11
Gluten-free Deliciously: Mar 10
Spring Detox: Apr 14
Feel Good Food: May 12

Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.

Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first ste

This morning I woke up to a damp dreary weather, so I was inspired to eat something for breakfast to warm me from the inside out. With that in mind, I created this protein-dense, high fibre, gluten-free breakie bowl. It is a cross breed between porridge because it’s as comforting as a warm hug and muesli, because it’s stick-to-your-ribs “meaty-goodness”. What this isn’t however, is a breakfast that’s going to put you on the fast track to belly bloat because it’s gluten-free!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw oats (preferably soaked overnight or for a few hours to increase digestibility. Make sure you buy certified “gluten-free” oats if you truly want to make this GF)
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup teff flour (or brown rice flour)
• 3-4 mashed bananas
• 5 drops of stevia or drizzle real maple syrup once it’s cooked
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp chia
• Half a cup of water
• 1-2 cups of almond milk (depending how thick or thin you want it)

Combine the chia and water and let sit for 3-5 minutes in a cereal bowl so it becomes pudding-like. In a large bowl, mix the oats, almond flour and teff until fully combined. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas and combine with the almond milk, stevia and vanilla. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and combine. Place this delicious combo into a pot and heat for a few minutes until desired temperature is reached. Remove from heat and add your chia pudding.

Serves 2-4 depending how large your portion is. I sprinkled some frozen blueberries on top. This was absolutely delicious and such a lovely alternative to eating your standard porridge with steel cut oats. Plus the fact, I wasn’t wanting to nibble 2-3 hours later. I was perfectly satisfied till lunch!

EnJOY!

Two more fun things I want to share with you! I’ve got myself a lovely intern named Adam. He’s a graduate of the Holistic Nutrition school I want to and he’s doing some videos. Here’s a very informative vid on gluten-free eating and the benefits.

Lastly, I will be teaching a gluten-free workshop at 889 Yonge in March. Sign up today as it will sell out quick. At that time, I will also have a DVD/e-book ready for purchase of my best gluten-free recipes, a gluten-free ingredient glossary and all the tips and tricks you need to ease into a more gluten-free lifestyle. Keep in mind, that I personally am not 100% gluten-free but I certainly enjoy the variety gluten-free foods give me and it reduced my “wheat-belly” significantly when I started eating more GF years ago.

Upcoming Workshops in 2012:

Winter Eat Well Feel Well 6-wk nutrition + yoga class
Superfoods for Natural Beauty: Feb 11
Gluten-free Deliciously: Mar 10
Spring Detox: Apr 14
Feel Good Food: May 12

Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.

Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health. REASONS TO HIRE A HOLISTIC NUTRITIONIST.

This is such a pet peeve of mine because these toxic perfumes are SO bad for you. But I thought to myself, it’s not their fault because they probably have NO clue. If only more people knew just how toxic these stinky perfumes are to their bodies.

So I decided to write about it. Can you please do me a favour and pass this along to anyone and everyone you know? I’m really anti-perfume and cologne for so many reasons. Here are some of the reasons why you want to walk fast past the perfume counter at the department store and let your friends know their stink is toxic:

1. Fragrance can mean a cocktail of up to 3,000 different ingredients and most have NOT been tested for safety.
2. Many of these unlisted ingredients are irritants and can trigger allergies (runny nose, watery eyes, itching skin), migraines, and asthma symptoms.
3. Perfumes/colognes can trigger an asthma attack in 3 out of every 4 people.
4. In lab experiments, individual fragrance ingredients have been associated with cancer and neurotoxicity.
5. Environment Canada has stated serious concern with the bioaccumulative effect of synthetic musks which are toxic to both aquatic life (they settle in the fatty tissues) and human health.

Some fragrance ingredients are not even perfuming agents themselves but enhance the performance of perfume itself, which was the reason for the stink lingering in my parking garage.

Such as:

Diethyl phthalate, or DEP, is widely used in cosmetic fragrances for it’s lingering effect. Phthalates are cheap and versatile and used in most of the popular big selling fragrances.

I wonder if Britney Spears made sure her perfume is phthalate free? Probably not. More reasons to ditch your perfume/cologne, phthalates are dangerous to human health because they:

6. Interfere with hormone function, as per evidence from the European Commission on Endocrine Disruption7. Linked to early puberty in girls.
8. Reduced sperm count in men, and reproductive defects in the developing male fetus (when the mother is exposed during pregnancy).
9. Associated with obesity and insulin resistance in men.
10. As well, Health Canada notes evidence suggesting that exposure to phthalates may cause liver and kidney failure in young children when products containing phthalates are sucked or chewed for extended periods.
11. DEP is listed as a Priority and Toxic Pollutant under the U.S. Clean Water Act, based on evidence that it can be toxic to wildlife and the environment.

So you want to smell nice without a toxic cloud of fragrance? Me too. I like to smell nice but I do it naturally. Here are some suggestions:

1. Buy an essential oil (your favourite scent from the health food store) and dilute it with a carrier oil, like almond oil. Make sure the essential oil is clean.

2. Slather coconut oil on your beautiful body after you shower. You will smell like the beach!

3. Go completely fragrance free and let your natural scent (ie. pheromones) attract others to you. Pheromones actually have a biological purpose — to attract the opposite sex!

What is your chemical free secret for smelling nice??

Want to learn more about natural beauty? Then register for my “superfoods for natural beauty” workshop on February 11th! Don’t miss out because this will be a very popular seminar and will sell out quickly!

Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.

Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health. REASONS TO HIRE A HOLISTIC NUTRITIONIST.

Source: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/fragrance-and-parfum/

[Register early for Joy's Superfoods for Natural Beauty Workshop in February!]

I was watching a show and the expert was discussing products for hair health with the host. While I’m sure the expert had good intentions, every single product was FULL of chemicals!! So this inspired my post today because I know this is a very popular topic for women (and men).

If you want gorgeous, shiny, healthy hair then follow my tips because they actually work, minus the chemicals. Remember, your hair is a really good indication of the state of your overall health, especially if you have been experiencing unusual hair loss, dryness, breakage or dull hair.

This photo here is me. And I wish I had a “before” photo because if you saw my hair 14 years ago, you would see a significant difference! I am the result of good nutrition. Good nutrition provides the best possible environment for building strong, gorgeous hair — not slathering on toxic lotions and potions.

Disclaimer: Keep in mind you cannot expect immediate results. It takes a couple of months to start to see noticeable change as your hair actually grows. Six months to a year is when you will really notice change, so stick to it! Let’s get right to it, shall we?

1.  Reduce stress. This might surprise you, but stress is one of the most common causes of unusual hair loss. The hormones associated with stress can send your hair follicles into resting phase prematurely. Resting phase is when growth no longer occurs and the hair can easily shed from the follicle. This can occur up to three months after a traumatic event.

You can’t always control what happens to you, but you can always ease the burden of stress on your body by thinking positive thoughts, practicing optimism, doing yoga, being grateful and remembering that stress is YOUR reaction to a situation. Crappy things happen and while I don’t suggest you go into denial, you also don’t want it to take over your life.

If you have been through a traumatic event ie. death, surgery, accident, illness and have lost some hair, just wait it out. It will grow back.

2. Lack of protein. Many different nutrients contribute to healthy hair but protein is literally a building block. Your hair gets its structure from keratin and without enough protein for keratin, your strands will weaken and grow slowly. Hair loss is a common symptom of anorexia nervosa and extreme weight loss (due to lack of protein). The overall shine and health of hair is affected too, as starvation also depletes the body of other nutrients needed for healthy hair.

13-Bean Chili. Excellent source of non-heme iron and protein!

Good sources of protein are: eggs, fish, Greek yogurt, chicken and let’s not forget all the non-animal sources: chia, hemp seeds, quinoa, beans, lentils, bee pollen, green leafy vegetables, blue-green algae, nuts and seeds. Make sure you eat protein at every single meal and snack. But don’t overdo it either. Many people assume that protein is the only factor in hair growth. While it may be a raw material, it certainly isn’t the only factor.

3. Healthy fats. Lack of good quality fat in your diet creates lack lustre dull dry hair. Further, eating the wrong fats and not enough of the right fats promotes hormonal imbalance which can be a cause of dry hair and hair loss. Fats help to provide moisture from the inside out and will nourish the root of your hair — your follicle.

Kale Pasta Pesto: Loaded with vitamin C, protein, good fat and B vitamins!

Eat plenty of good fats including: coconut oil, extra-virgin olive oil, avocado, fish and fish oils, chia, flaxseeds, hemp oil, greek yogurt with fat, nuts and seeds such as chia, pumpkin and sunflower.  Avoid bad fats such as fried fats, fat found in processed baked goods and avoid cooking in high temperature heat with liquid fats ie. olive, sunflower, safflower, corn oils.

4. B Vitamins. Folate, B6 and B12 are all involved in the creation of red blood cells which carry nutrients to your hair. Without enough of them, hair is starved of nutrients which affects the health of your hair and you will be more prone to shedding, slow growth and weak hair.

Sources of these B vitamins include: leafy greens, chick peas, wild salmon, sweet potato, lentils, eggs, apricots, Greek yogurt, lean beef, berries, parsnips, broccoli, sunflower seeds, whole grains, wheat germ, nutritional  yeast.

Many people ask me about biotin for healthy hair, likely because they’ve read it in a magazine. The truth is, biotin deficiency is extremely uncommon, but lack of it leads to hair loss. Instead of taking a supplement, eat these foods for biotin: eggs, almonds, wheat bran, walnuts, swiss chard, whole grains, salmon, avocado, berries.

Vitamin C rich detox salad.

5. Vitamin C. There are various reasons this vitamin is extremely important for hair health. First of all, it helps your body use non-heme iron (the type found in veggies) to assure there is enough iron in red blood cells to carry and feed oxygen to hair follicles. Second, it is used in the formation of collagen, which literally holds our body together! Hair follicles and skin require collagen for growth and to maintain good health.

Lack of vitamin C can lead to dry hair that is prone to breakage. Vitamin C is really not hard to find in your grocery store! Eat more of these foods: kale, bell peppers, broccoli, brussels sprouts, grapefruit, berriers, lemons and so on. If you eat a large variety of vegetables and fruits every single day, then you will get enough vitamin C.

6. Iron. The most common nutritional deficiency is iron. Not only does low iron affect your energy and immune system, but it can also cause hair loss. I know this first hand. When I had low iron, my hair was falling out and this was very unsettling!

There are two types of iron, heme and non-heme. Heme iron from animal foods is more easily absorbed by the body than non-heme (vegetarian sources). However, if you are vegetarian and you eat plenty of iron rich foods with vitamin C rich foods then you will have good absorption.

Good sources of iron, both heme and non-heme include: All animal products, beans, lentils and dark leafy greens.

I could keep going on and on here giving your more tips for hair health but I think that’s a great start. If you want to read more, then research beta-carotene and zinc because they are also important for getting gorgeous sexy hair!

Remember it’s your overall health that affects your hair. Create beauty from the INSIDE out, instead of buying expensive lotions and potions. Also, be cautious of hair dyes, chemical treatments, harsh styling products and don’t overdo the heat on your hair. I used to dye my hair and put so much junk in it! However, now that I’m a nutritionist I haven’t dyed my hair in well over 10 years and I used the simplest of products ie. shampoo and conditioner – that is it! People ask me all the time how I have such nice hair and it’s not my products, it’s my good nutrition.

If you want to learn more about how to create beauty from the inside out, book my Eat Well nutrition session and I will create a completely custom plan for you.

I do hope these tips help you. Have a joyous day!
Joy

Ps. Want to read up on more beauty tips. I have a category devoted to beauty here: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/category/beauty/

Pps. Live in Toronto? I’ve got 2 workshops upcoming: Feel Fab for 2012 at 889 Yonge this Saturday from 1:30-3pm and Eat Well Feel Well 6wk nutrition & yoga program, starting next week.

Don’t live in Toronto? Then book your personal session with me via Skype and change your life for the better. If you don’t have the dolla dollas for a custom plans, then you can always book my January special for $80 and ask me all your burning questions! I’ve seen absolutely INCREDIBLE results with many clients over the years and complete transformations. I absolutely LOVE what I do and I want to help you feel your most joyous ever.

I hate to say it, but today is Blue Monday, the most depressing day of the year. But let’s not get all sad and mope about just because this is what we are told! That being said, I am still going to share tips with you for beating the winter blues because the colder months and lack of sunshine can some people down.

Here are my healthy lifestyle tips for beating the blues:

1. Happiness is choice. If you wake up feeling grumpy or as the day progresses you feel like the world is against you, do something about it! Remember, you always have a choice to let situations and people get you down or not. The absolute best strategies to get yourself out of a funk are:

• Say aloud to yourself “Today is wonderful day full of unlimited possibilities”.
• Count your blessings. Oprah has been advising us of this for as long as I can remember to state 5 things you are grateful for and actually write them down. Want a friendly reminder? Register for happyrambles.com and log your happy grateful rambles.
• Expect the best and watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFP2p0Y9gU8

2. Bring COLOUR into your life! Wear a cheerful bright coloured top or scarf, paint a room your favourite uplifting colour, put some fresh flowers or buy a plant and put it in your most liveable room in your home. Colour therapy is incredibly effective at boosting your mood. Try it!

3. Take your omega 3s and Vitamin D. Better yet, want a product that combines both and has a very joyful name? Get: “Pure calm+joy” by Genuine Health. This product has the best omega 3s: EPA and DHA, plus 400ius of Vitamin D. All three of these nutrients are mood enhancing!

4. Invite and allow love in your life. Often, single people think that being with someone will bring them love and sometimes, coupled people are constantly requesting more love. Guess what? If you start with yourself ie. saying/thinking more loving kind thoughts, then love will come knocking on your door!

5. Get some FRESH air and sunshine on your face. I already talked about the power of vitamin D, but the sunshine vitamin is truly the best source, so is getting fresh air. So bundle up and get your butt outside for some fresh air and sunshine. Just thinking about cold crisp air with a sunny blue sky will put you in a good mood. Even if it’s grey and damp, just visualize it!

6. Your happiness cannot be found in a tub of icecream, plate of white pasta or a bag of candy! These foods or rather, phood-like substance are a recipe for winter blues. Foods with zero nutrition tax the body and create a need for even MORE nutrients for their assimilation. What I mean by that is… if you eat processed “white” junk foods your brain will continue to crave nutrients and guess what? You end up craving even more sugar and refined carbs. How do you stop this? You eat NUTRIENT-DENSE DELICIOUS foods! Want some inspiration? Check out the dessert section of my recipes here: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/holistic-recipes/

Be joyous!

Joy

Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.

Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health. REASONS TO HIRE A HOLISTIC NUTRITIONIST.

• Kiss My Face Shampoo & Conditioner
• RMS beauty Lip2Cheek: You can use this product to make your cheeks rosy or your lips more kissable (not that they aren’t already).
• Weleda body spray
• Pangea Soap Bar: J’adore the smell of this soap bar and pretty much all their products. It makes me feel so very Canadian when I use it. And the best part is the packaging! You can plant a tree with it. I really love everything this company stands for. Check out their website: http://www.pangeaorganics.com/

You can get all these products at 889 Yonge and most health food stores.

I recommend them for two reasons.

1. They work!

2. They don’t contain a whole cocktail of chemicals.

The natural products industry has come a LONG way over the last 5-10 years. I remember back in the day using shampoo that turned my hair into a greasy mess – GROSS. And took several washes to get the gross oily film out. Thank goodness companies have done their research and reformulated their products to actually work, minus the chemicals. It’s not mentioned in my list, but I LOVE Green Beaver products too. In fact, I’m going to be doing a GREEN BEAVER giveaway in my next post – ya ya!

So the MOST IMPORTANT thing when shopping for natural beauty products is to look for what you do NOT want. Here’s the “dirty dozen” list: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/04/23/12-dirty-chemicals-in-your-personal-care-products/

And David Suzuki has created a nifty pocket guide list (<—–) you can carry around in your purse or wallet. Here’s the PDF you can download: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/publications/resources/2010/sustainable-shoppers-guide-to-the-dirty-dozen-ingredients-to-avoid-in-your-cosme/
If you are interested in more beauty products, do check out my youtube channel because I share a lot there: http://www.youtube.com/user/joyoushealth1

Have a joyous day!

Joy

Ps. If you are wanting to do a sugar detox, then sign up for my EAT WELL package for $420 Cdn. Take your health to a whole new joyous level, even if you live on the other side of the world! I’ve had many clients over Skype.

Pps. By the way, a new client I saw for the first time late December emailed me this a few days ago: “I have felt so much better after just one week. I find I am not as hungry and I haven’t really craved sugar!”. I hear these kinds of comments all the time which makes me very joyous because you CAN change

Here is the video from Dave Gerry and my shop at 889 Yonge. Check my press page if you want to see the other Global segment on Natural Beauty:

Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy.

Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health. REASONS TO HIRE A HOLISTIC NUTRITIONIST.

If you are a loyal reader of my blog or you know me personally, then you likely also know that much of the inspiration for my baking comes from my mom. As a kid, every year on my birthday she would always ask me what I wanted for dinner and she would cook something special, followed by her amazing homemade lemon cake which is FOODGASMIC. Yes, my love of lemons started at a young age!

So today, my mom turns 61! Happy Birthday Mom! I know you are probably blushing right this very minute but you are an amazing woman.

In my mom’s honour, I’m posting some of my most popular recipes on Joyous Health and guess what all of them have in common?! They are ALL her recipes or have been inspired by her love of real food.

Before I share the links, I want you to know 10 amazing things my mom has taught me (ps. I have no clue why the bullets are defaulting to A,B,C).

1. When you are outside in nature. Close your eyes for a few minutes and listen to the silence.
2. When you are looking at something very beautiful while on vacation, take a mental snapshot and then look at it often when you are back at the grind (in your office, sitting at your desk). How? Just close your eyes and envision it.
3. Give good hugs, no wussy hugs please.
4. Don’t be afraid to cry tears of joy or sadness in front of others. It shows you are human. Be vulnerable.
5. Say “I love you” more.
6. Always give others the benefit of the doubt.
7. Pay attention to funny things that happen to you. There are no mistakes.
8. Thank your parking angels. (LOL)
9. When luck comes your way, always thank the universe!
10. And lastly, cook with love.

Here are some of my best and most requested recipes, inspired by Ma McCarthy!

• Chocolate Chip Quinoa Cookies: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/11/07/gluten-free-chocolate-quinoa-cookies/
• Chunky homemade applesauce: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/11/10/rustic-chunky-applesauce-plus-the-health-benefits-of-apples/
• Avocado Tomato Salad: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/09/01/beautifying-local-tomato-salad-with-fresh-basil-avocado/
• Lentil Quinoa Loaf: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/08/29/lunch-box-favourite-lentil-quinoa-loaf-recipe-gluten-free-high-in-protein-fibre/
• Vegan Apple Crisp: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2011/12/19/perfectly-simple-apple-crisp-dessert-vegan-option/
• Gluten-Free Banana Bread: http://www.joyoushealth.ca/2009/04/20/gluten-free-banana-bread/

Have a joyous day!

Don’t forget this is your LAST week to register for our Mexico retreat and if you live in Toronto and want to take our January Eat Well Feel Well class, sign up before it’s SOLD OUT.

Joyous