JUICE THERAPY AUSTRALIA: WORLD'S BIGGEST JUICE DETOX

JUICE THERAPY AUSTRALIA: WORLD'S BIGGEST JUICE DETOX: This would have to be one of the best ideas ever to come out of www.juicemaster.com . Sign up now for the plan at www.worldsbiggestjuicede...

WORLD'S BIGGEST JUICE DETOX

This would have to be one of the best ideas ever to come out of www.juicemaster.com.

Sign up now for the plan at www.worldsbiggestjuicedetox.com and be a part of a world wide juicy detox.

This is a great opportunity to find out how powerful doing a 7 day juicing plan really is.

The beauty of this site is that you will not feel like you are on your own if you cannot find any family or friends to do the programme with. You can go online anytime you want to and see what comments people are putting up, make your own comments, ask questions, the list is endless.

Jason Vale, aka The Juice Master, will also be giving daily inspirational videos to help you stay focused on the programme.

Feel free to ask me any questions on the plan.

Join Now!!

REFINED FRUIT JUICE

I was discussing the merits of using fruits to sweeten porridge when a client let it slip that he was adding fruit from a packaged container as opposed to fresh fruit. This led to a long discussion of fresh vs processed and thought I would share with you some findings.
Firstly I had to go to the supermarket to access the ingredients found in packaged fruits as this information is not readily available on their websites. I will not mention names here as all manufacturers seemed to do the same thing. There are too many varieties out there anyway. I ventured off to the supermarket thinking this would be easy. Read the ingredients, make my assessment of the ingredients and move on. The reality was that nothing is what it seems.  I have been working on this all morning very little information gained. Let me explain.
Sample one: Ingredients was 58% fruit, with refined fruit juice and ascorbic acid. This had me baffled. The product came in a plastic container so I could see the fruit packed inside. If there was 58% fruit, what was the other 42%? And then there was the Refined Fruit Juice!! Do you know that I could not find any information on what exactly Refined Fruit Juice (RFJ) meant?? I was unable to see if this was simply the juice from the fruit that occurs naturally or what it meant. Of course it is not natural juice or else this would be written in capital letters for all to see. No refined fruit juice could simply mean the water the fruit was cleaned in, washed in perhaps, who knows?
I decided the best way to compare fresh fruit and packaged fruit is to do a side by side nutritional chart. The results were quite amazing and here they are:

	Peaches Packaged in RFJ	Whole peach
	140gm	175gm
FAT	0.1GM	0
CHO	20.6GM	17
SUGARS	16.0GM	15
FIBRE	1.3GM	3
PROT	1.1GM	2
SODIUM	8MG	0
Kj	354	275

What do the results tell you?? The 8gm of sodium is due to the preservative factor. There is double the fibre found in fresh peaches vs packaged making me ask have the fruits been tampered with? How can there be less fibre??  The fruit in packaged products is certainly slimier and softer, has this evolved due to consumer demand? Have the manufacturers decided to get rid of the firmness and fibre because people are now too lazy to chew?

Next time you use processed over fresh, you are not really adding one of your five a day. You are more adding just another processed product the body has to work twice as hard to digest it, which can be difficult for those under a lot of stress, but that is for another blog.

bye for now

Julie Dargan RN, ND, BHSc

3 Day Raw Food/Juice Detox

For those of you who are interested in doing a 3 day detox in beautiful surroundings with like minded people then read on.
Julie Dargan is hosting two retreats, one in Daylesford, Victoria and another in Port Douglas, Queensland.
Julie is a qualified nurse, Naturopath and Natural Juice Therapist. All juices and raw foods will be supplied with lots of information and demonstrations throughout the day.

Group sizes will be limited to 16 so be quick to inquire and make your booking.
 For more information email Julie at juicemaster47@gmail.com

What's This Rash?

This article is going to incorporate a story in relation to my 11 year old son. It is an interesting story that I felt had an important message behind it.
Living in Melbourne we ventured like so many Victorians to the Melbourne Show. This is a great show that has something for everyone to enjoy. What the children were most interested in were the showbags. This is the first year my children have been to the show (living in Ireland there is nothing like the Show at all) so it was a great experience for them. Showbags were limited and one favourite was the XBox bag. Inside this bag was some LYNX Fever body wash as well as some other products used to entice our children, urging them to leave their childhood behind and become MEN!!

To those of you who know me, I was not impressed with these goodies. We use organic, gentle ingredients for not only what we put into our body but also cleaning products, shampoos etc. This is not very exciting for young boys. There are no MAN ads associated with Natural Products. As much as we are role models for our children, we also have to take a step back sometimes and let them discover things there own way and hope that they will make the right choices. My son knew how I felt about the LYNX products, but I let him try it out as a "treat". It took pride and place in the bathroom and we were all warned that it was his personal product (no chance of anyone else using this product in the bath!).

Move forward one week later and I hear a scream from the bathroom. I run in to see his torso covered in an ugly raised red rash. He also said how he could not stop scratching in class. He had a bath full of LYNX flavoured water but refused to believe it was the LYNX due to the fact that the rash was no where else and that he had been using it for a week with no other problems.

Next day I kept him home from school as I could not let him go while he had the rash. He stayed with me reading and watching TV for the day, while we both waited to see if a temperature would materialize to justify the rash. He was fine and the rash disappeared after a day or two. We were going to experiment with the LYNX again on the weekend. He wanted to prove me wrong while I wanted to prove to him that I was right. Two days later he put a small amount on the LYNX onto his hands, and we were both astonished at the results!! Rash on the torso within 30 minutes. We both agreed, LYNX was put into the bin!!

This scenario made me think of so many of my clients over the years. Coming to see me with  a constant rash that just seemed to come and go all the time. Steroid cream was always prescribed by the doctor but it kept coming back again. I would always ask what they were washing themselves with, or washing their clothes in, but would usually say the same thing that had always used and nothing new so it could not be the products.

If a rash develops it is one of two (or more) things.
1. A viral or bacterial infection
2. Our body is trying to get rid of a toxin it does not want in the system.

Perhaps this happens to everyone when they use such body washes. Over time we get used to the rash and decide that it is something that we will always have. I know for me, I always think, what could be causing this? Getting to the core of the issue, rather than just treating the symptoms. At least LYNX was half right with the name of FEVER on their product. Although in my son's case it created the rash without the fever!

To anyone that has a rash, itch, etc. Try and think twice before putting on a cream and see if maybe it is the body trying to say "WARNING TOXIC SUBSTANCE NEEDS REMOVING!"
Products that I would recommend:

Miessence

Click on the above link for more information.

POWERS OF JUICING

This article is a rather long one but one that I think many people should read.
Let me know what you think?

POWERS OF JUICING

BY JULIE DARGAN RN, ND, BHSc, JUICE THERAPIST

WHY SHOULD WE JUICE?

Many people ask me the question, “Why do I promote Juicing”. Why do I recommend juicing rather than promoting to eat more fruit and vegetables? The answer to this question is simple. In the ten years that I have been a Naturopath and trying to get people to eat more fruit and vegetables, very few people actually did change their diet. The majority of people found it too difficult, taste was a big issue, recipes, availability, and the list was endless. Then I discovered how easy and tasting juicing fruit and vegetables could be, as well as the positive changes in so many of my clients once they introduced juicing into their diet.

Juicing is all about extracting the nutrients from the fibre found in fruits and vegetables. It is in the juice where all the goodness comes from. By juicing, you are removing the indigestible fibre (but still retaining soluble fibre) and making the nutrients more readily available to the body in much larger quantities that if you was to eat the fruits and vegetables whole. The nutrients I am talking about here are not only vitamins and minerals, but also an array of enzymes, antioxidants and soluble fibre, all bursting with goodness and vitality, into order to nourish our cells and keeping us alive. Many people are not aware of the importance of eating foods with the enzymes intact. This is so important in helping the body to break down the nutrients in the foods we are eating.

When people think of juicing, they immediately think of fruit juices. At Juice Master, we incorporate many green vegetables into our juices as well as avocado, wheatgrass, spirulina, probiotics and yoghurt. By incorporating greens into the juices this promotes an alkalising formula and will help protect your body against disease and illness. Most diets create an acidic environment which increases the risk of disease and illness within the body.

At Juice Master we like to add avocado to our juices.  Avocado is a wonderful fruit. They are rich in fibre and healthy fats while naturally low in sugar and sodium. Within an avocado the majority of fat is the healthy kind: 60% monounsaturated fat and 12% polyunsaturated fat. Half an avocado contains 18g of the beneficial monounsaturated fat. They also have a strong antioxidant capacity to help prevent the healthy fats in avocados going rancid too quickly. Avocados contain not only antioxidant vitamins and minerals but also other natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds. Avocados are also a great protein source. Avocados provide all of the essential amino acids (those that must be provided by our diet), with 18 amino acids in all, plus 7 fatty acids, including Omega 3 and 6. Avocados contain more protein than cow’s milk, about 2% per edible portion.

Also added supplements include: Wheatgrass: a great aid to alkaline the body. Great to alleviate any sugar cravings that can occur. Spirulina: great as a cleanser, for maintaining health and energy as well as a great aid in weight loss. Yoghurt: protein source. Make sure to always look at the ingredients and that no sugar or sugar substitutes have been added to the product.

Juicing yields a high amount of easily digestible nutrients, fat burning compounds, vitamins and minerals, proteins, protective phyto-nutrients as well as healthy bacteria in order to helping you to build  stronger muscles and tissues as well as aiding your digestive processes. It is also cleansing for the kidneys and lymphatic system as well as a whole host of other nutritional values.

Most Western diets are commonly comprised of cooked and processed foods that are devoid of enzymes. Therefore our bodies must produce the enzymes needed to digest the food. When food is eaten with the enzyme intact (as occurs in raw fruit and vegetables), the breakdown of food begins in the stomach decreasing the workload placed on the pancreatic enzymes. By eating foods with the enzymes intact the body is able to focus on growth, maintenance and repair of the body rather than having to spend a great deal of time digesting food. Anyone who is ill or exhausted etc should not be putting further burden on the body. Eating foods with the enzymes intact assists the body in getting rid of wastes as well as taking stress off the pancreas. When we eat a diet mainly comprised of processed and cooked foods, the pancreas has to work harder to produce more enzymes.

Enzymes are destroyed by heat (40-45⁰C), processing methods (such as all processed foods), and microwave cooking.

Foods that contain no enzymes include high refined foods, over cooked foods etc. Preservatives are put into food to prolong their shelf life. The problem with this is that they also destroy the enzyme activity within the product (pasteurized apple juice contains no enzymes). Preservatives are also capable of destroying the enzymes naturally made by the body! You may be making yourself a wonderful green salad, but if you pour a commercial dressing over it and you may be contributing to decreasing the enzyme activity of the salad, rather than increasing it! A great salad dressing I recommend to all my clients is a mixture of Balsamic vinegar and Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Most, if not all, frozen vegetables bought in the supermarkets are flash boiled before freezing thus destroying the enzyme activity. Drinking carbonated drinks destroys enzyme activity as well as leeching calcium from the bones. If produce is picked too soon and left to ripen in transit, there is no enzyme activity available.

What many people do not understand that if you do not have sufficient enzymes to breakdown food nutrients, then the nutrient within the food is not released and delivered to the cells to be utilised. What then happens is that the cells are not nourished but starving and crying out for nutrients. You do not feel satisfied and continue to eat more food to feed the starving cells without enzymes to breakdown the foods the cells never receive the fuel that they need.

A common complaint many of the clients in my clinic have include bloating, IBS, constipation or raiding the cupboards after dinner. This is due to the fact that the lack of enzymes in the diet causes foods to be insufficiently digested. The undigested starch, sugars, carbohydrates can ferment while fats can go rancid. This also causes toxins to build up. Think of food left out on the bench on a hot day that goes rotten, smells, and gives off an odour. Well, that is happening inside the colon. No wonder the abdomen swells up like a balloon with resulting smelly gas/wind, constipation etc. You really need to try and visualise this if you really want to make a change. You need to give your body a good cleanse, just like you would give your car a grease and oil change 2-4 times a year to keep running in top condition and not break down when you least expect it. Fasting and juicing both go hand in hand in getting the body back on track, not pills!!

So to sum up, to clean out the colon- the back end of our digestive tract- you need to get the food particles broken down in the small intestine-the front end- way before it reaches the back end. A diet rich in enzymes starts getting to work straight away in the mouth, stomach and small intestine. Once in the small intestine, enzymes can heal any damage to the lining in the small intestine as well as facilitating nutrient absorption and digestion (great news for those starving cells). Nutrients then find their way to the cells rather than making an exit 24 hours later into the local sewage plants. This also helps the liver and the pancreas due to the fact of decreasing their workload.

A simple way to introduce more raw foods into your diet is to juice with a good quality juicer.

Drinking more fluids in the form of water and fresh juices, as opposed to tea, coffee and pasteurized juices, assists in flushing out toxins and helping to optimize organs such as the liver and pancreas, to function well. The body is able to absorb the nutrients from freshly squeezed juices efficiently which can assist the cleansing potential for anyone with low energy levels or recovering from surgery or illness etc.

It is always best to drink freshly made juices straight away due to the fact that storing juices does decrease the vital enzymes, antioxidants and vitamin content. But, please, common sense prevails here. If you have to make up your juices in the morning (or even the night before) to take them to work with you, then you will be giving yourself more nutrition than if you opted for a quick takeaway. There will still be nutrients in the juice, not as much, but still a reasonable amount. Sometimes we put too much pressure on ourselves, or allow the puritans to make us feel guilty in doing everything perfectly. In order to make any lifestyle changes to work, they have to be practical for anyone to commit to.

If you enjoy a juice before your evening meal (an excellent aperitif to give) then it should be taken at least 15 minutes before the meal and at least 1 ½  hours after a meal in order to allow food in the stomach to be mixed effectively with gastric enzymes and HCl rather than be diluted with the juice.

Lose 7lb in 7 days the healthy way.

Now is the time to be doing a spring clean and no better plan than Jason Vale's 7lb (3.5kg) in 7 days (one week!!).

After being in hibernation for the winter, this is a great way to get the body back on track after all those warming foods, hot desserts, too many coffee's with cakes we all like to indulge in during the cooler winter months.

This plan has it all from cleansers to proteins and loaded with information on what to do after the 7 days.

Juice Master Australia will also be teaming up with the rest of the world for the world detox in January 2013 but who can wait that long.

For more information on this great program click on this link.

Talks at work places and the hidden baddies in food.

Hi All,
the latest talk Juice Therapy Australia did was at Cavalier Homes North West. Cavalier Homes is run by Chris and Lorraine and they do a great job with house and land packages. I was brought in to show their staff how easy it is to juice and to sample some of our special mixtures. It is always great to see people's faces of interst when they realise just how tasty the vegetable juices are and how nutritious they are. We discussed the merits of eating raw foods, the ways ingredients are hidden into foods, what foods to juice vs what to blend. The fun bit is always the tasting once you get the information bit over with!!
I made one interesting discovery that morning while buying my fruit and vegies. I always like to make some yummy date balls (learn more at my talks on these delicious goodies) and was looking at one set of dates thinking how lovely they looked and in nice packaging, placed in the gourmet vegetable section so thinking these beauties must be really good, BUT NO, look at the ingredients and they are dates laced with glucose sryup!! I did not think I would have to look at the ingredients, but it just goes to show you have to look at everything to know just what you are buying!! This makes me so angry. The dates really should be in the lollie section...

Enough ranting from me. Next week is a girlie afternoon eductating some ladies on the easy way to lose weight without feeling like you are on a diet. Stay tuned for how that turns out.

Cancer and Juicing

I have been asked by quite a few people lately about what I would recommend for people with cancer. Is there a particular juice that I would recommend for different types of cancer is one popular question. Juice Therapy Australia’s aim is to promote a healthy system inside the body to create an environment that does not promote the growth of cancer cells, not matter what the type of cancer one is affected by. An acidic environment promotes rapid growth of cancer cells, so to create an alkaline environment is very important.

So how to promote an alkaline environment:

By limiting the amount of processed foods in our diet is the most important thing you can do. Most people get despondent when they find out that they have to make radical changes to their diet. They tend to focus on what they cannot have, rather than what they can have. This serves no purpose and you should not allow yourself to think like this. Juicing and raw foods may sound very daunting in the beginning but once you realise how much better you feel and what alternatives there are such as tasty juices, you will be converted.

Juicing extracts all the essential vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and many other nutrients from within the fibre of the fruit and vegetables you are juicing. By extracting the fibre, the body does not have to work its way through the fibre in order for it to be absorbed by the body. It truly is liquid gold of the nutrient world. Many people with cancer are unable to digest big meals, are too tired to make nutritious meals. They may be under stress, the list is endless. By juicing the food, the juicer is doing all the hard work for you so the minute it hits the stomach and then into the intestines it is ready for immediate absorption.

Be sure to add wheatgrass (an excellent alkaline product), or protein sources such as wheatgrass, avocado or yoghurt (by blending into the juice) to help with any muscle wastage that can occur due to the cancer.

Who else can benefit?

It never ceases to amaze me when I see my clients and their families in my clinic in the sense that the person with the ailment is the only one doing the things I recommend while everyone around them continues to eat the unhealthy lifestyle that the client used to eat. They are drinking coke at appointments while I am making up the juicers. We all need wake up calls. In order for is to keep our bodies in tip top condition to help it to cope with whatever we encounter means maintaining an alkaline environment. There is a great deal of stress surrounding those with cancer diagnosis. If it is a child, mother, father with the diagnosis that comes with its own stress and we need to make sure as the carers that we do not get sick. It also takes away the pressure of the client feeling isolated that they are making all the changes.

Feel free to add any comments at the end of this blog.

Juicing with Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is on the rise in the Western World. What used to be seen as a late adult onset disease, this condition is becoming more prevalent in the younger age group which is an alarm bell for improving ones diet. I am going to share some juicing tips for those who have Diabetes Type 2 or may be pre-diabetes (with raised blood sugar levels but not enough to warrant medication).

With Type 2 diabetes the pancreas is overworked and becomes exhausted and does not respond to fluctuating blood sugar levels correctly.

The best dietary approach is to slow the effect of blood sugar fluctuations. Diabetics do need to exercise caution when drinking fruit only juices due to the resulting rapid rise in blood sugar levels. Juicing with cabbages has been found to have a slowing effect on blood sugar rises. Another tip is to add avocado into your freshly made juices, and juicing cabbage into the juice to buffer the fruit sugars and assist in regulating the release of fruit sugars into the bloodstream.

Juices blended with higher proportions of vegetables and only moderate amounts of sweet fruits like apple and apple are preferable for diabetics. Adding plain yoghurt (full of acidophilus and with no sugar), Spirulina, Juicemaster Superfood Blend, Wheatgrass, or ground linseeds all help with adding protein and fibre to the juices, or adding and essential fatty acid oil blend (such as flaxseed oil) all help with buffering the fructose and slow the rise in blood sugar levels. The protein also helps with feeling satiety feeling.

Careful management of one’s diet can help reduce the need for medication but this must be done under the supervision of your health practitioner. It is recommended that you monitor your blood sugar levels closely with any major diet changes. By the reduction of processed foods and well as the inclusion of at least two vegetable juices daily can help improve one’s overall health, all under the supervision of your health practitioner.

Juice Talks now in action to the public.

JUICING FOR HEALTH & WEIGHT LOSS!

JUICE THERAPY AUSTRALIA is going to be a Michelle’Z Sweet Temptations doing talks on juicing fruit and vegetables. Talks take approximately 1 hour with plenty of time to taste test some wonderful creations for both adults and children. Talks are aimed at:

v  Juicing for Weight Loss

v  Juicing to Promote Good Health

v  Juicing to Cleanse your system

v  Juicing to increase your energy and vitality

Julie Dargan comes with a wealth of knowledge with a Nursing background for 20 years and now a Naturopath (BHSc).

When: Thursday 20^th September 10am   Cost: $20.00pp* (includes Juicing Book RSP $19.95)

Where: Michelle’Z Sweet Temptations 132 Inglis Street Ballan

Bookings Essential.       Email: juicemaster47@gmail.com       Phone: 041 407 6310

Blog: http://juice007.blogspot.com.au/

*Opening discounted offer, Classes normally $40.00 (including Juicing Book)

Ballan Rotary

Last night I did a great talk for the Ballan Rotary Group. The venue was held at Michelle's. Must say the lentil casserole we were served was delicious and sticky date pudding was a treat I have not had in a while. I do not usually do a talk to a group of men; most of my talks are aimed at women so it was a challenge. One participant already juices which always helps in a talk. Another participant was not happy when he saw me putting cucumber into the juice as he simply cannot tolerate the taste of cucumber. Great news is that he enjoyed my concoction!! I juiced 2 apples, chunk beetroot, chunk cucumber, chunk courgette, spinach leaves, some pineapple and wedge of lemon. Glasses were up for the ready (first juice was the sherbet lemonade which they loved) and down the hatch. The result was thumbs up all around. I was told it was a talk with a difference, and that is our aim, to make a little difference, to get the ripple effect going. Thank you to Ballan Rotary for having me.

ABOUT OUR TALKS

JUICE THERAPY AUSTRALIA

It is always a wise employer who will invest in their employees’ health and wellbeing. By being more proactive with their staff to have a positive attitude to health and wellness the workplace becomes a place of vibrancy, less sick leave and better team building. With clarity of mind, targets are met in less time than the national average. This is better for the employee with less time needed at work and better for the employer with more deadlines being met. It is a win-win situation.

 ABOUT JUICE THERAPY AUSTRALIA

At Juice Therapy Australia, our ethos is to promote healthy eating by education people about how to make the right food choices. There is so much conflicting information being pushed by groups with no interest in health and wellbeing, with money as their focus, making it difficult for people to make healthy food choices.

Julie Dargan leads the team of Juice Therapy Australia. Julie was a Registered Nurse for 20 years and found herself getting despondent with the attitude of the patients she would see come and go from the hospital. Very few people took the initiative to invest in their own health and take control of their lives. They seemed to be surrendering to the medical profession, taking their prescribed medication every day, without a thought as to how they could improve their health with initiatives such as walking every day, or making their own meals with more fruit and vegetables instead of processed foods. These people did not lack the want, they lacked the education. They did not know where to go to find such information. Hence Julie left nursing, and studied full-time to become a Naturopath with a Bachelor of Health Sciences. Now she is on a mission to educate anyone willing to listen.

WELL BEING PROGRAMS

Talks can be as small as 30 minutes, to half day to full day sessions.

Talks always include a Raw Food and Juice Samples, Recipes, Recommended Book to take home, question and answer session.

Presently we are based in Melbourne, but plan to venture to other states in due course.

 

 

For more information you can contact Juice Therapy Australia on:

juicemaster47@gmail.com

http://juice007.blogspot.com.au/

Phone: 0414076310

 

 

Going to a meet and greet tomorrow in Ballan, really looking forward to sharing ideas with some like minded people. I am taking along with me some home made raw chocolate.
Here is a sneak preview of what I am making:

Slowly melt 1/2 cup Raw Organic Cacao Butter with 1/2 cup of Virgin Coconut oil. Mix in Cacao powder a little coconut sugar and raw cashews. Spread into a tray, leave to set, cut up into pieces. Enjoy.

So, let us dissect the ingredients:
Cacao Butter: 
Can be truly referred to as one of nature's greatest superfoods. The core ingredient in chocolate (but not the chocolate that you might be used to), when consumed in its raw unprocessed state it is extremely rich in nutrients and health benefits.
Cacao contains the highest concentration of antioxidants of any known food by far, more than that found in blueberries, goji berries, red wine or green tea. It is an excellent source of magnesium which helps heart function and brain power whilst maintaining the body's alkalinity.

Cacao is rich in iron, chromium, zinc and sulphur (which help keep the skin beautiful. Cacao Butter is created when the pure edible fat is separated at low temperatures from the cacao bean solids. The result is a beautiful (stable) pale yellow butter with a mild chocolate taste and aroma.
It is also a good source of Vitamin E (beta- and gamma- tocopherols) essential fatty acids Omega-6 and monounsaturated Omega-9 (oleic acid, like olive oil) as well as stearic acid - an unusual fat in that it neither increases nor decreases blood cholesterol.

Organic Coconut Sugar: I am not an advocate of agave syrup, which many people are touting as the best sweetener but I disagree in its uses. In saying that, I always maintain a little bit of sweetness in life is okay, I only added 1 teaspoon of coconut sugar to this recipe which is not a lot. Some people make this chocolate without any sugar, whatever your taste buds are go with it.
Coconut sugar can be in place of cane sugar for me in much smaller quantities. It is richer in micro and macro nutrients than brown cane sugar and has a glycaemic index (GI) of 35 much lower than that of cane sugar. Therefore it is popular with those who wish to monitor their blood sugar levels. Coconut sugar is a great source of amino acids and minerals such as magnesium, nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium.

ENJOY THIS WONDERFUL TREAT, will let you know how it goes!

Linseed Crackers

A few clients have expressed I put this recipe up on my blog so here it is:

For those of you out there looking for a basic linseed (flaxseed) cracker here is a great recipe (does require a dehydrator).

1 cup linseeds (flaxseeds) soaked in one cup water for ½ hour. You will then see the mucilage come out of the seed and makes for a slimy mixture. Spread this mixture onto one or two dehydrator trays lined with sheets. Dehydrate at 45⁰C (110^oF) for about 3 hours. Then turn the mixture and dehydrate for another 3 hours until crackers are dry and crisp. Then simply break the pieces once cooled. This is a very basic recipe and once you have this mastered you can make many variations. Enjoy.

COCONUT OIL

Many people do not realise the benefits of coconut oil. Even though this oil is solid at room temperature do not let this put you off incorporating coconut oil into your diet. It is truly one of the most remarkable foods both internally and externally.
Coconut oil is referred to as a medium-chain triglyceride (MCT). This refers to the molecular size or length of the carbon chain in the fatty acid. MCT are easily digested and absorbed. Unlike other fats, they put little strain on the digestive system and provide a quick source of energy necessary to promote healing.  Due to the small size of the  MCT molecules, they require less energy and fewer enzymes to break them down for digestion. They are digested and absorbed quickly and with minimal effort so great news if you are under stress or suffer from digestive problems.
Eating coconut oil on a regular basis supplies the body with strong anti-viral, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoal properties. They are also essential building blocks for the immune system. If you take coconut oil on a regular basis, you are constantly replenishing the body, rather than waiting for an infection to take place in which you then have to mount a massive counterattack!

FOR WEIGHTLOSS
Many people have the misconception that all fats are bad for you. NEWS ALERT, COCONUT OIL IS NOT the enemy. Coconut oil increases the body's metabolism as well as promoting a reduction in dyslipidemia thus promoting a reduction in abdominal obesity. (Lipids Journal 2009). Coconut oil has also been shown to regulate a healthy functioning thyroid gland and helps to combat hypothyroid symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, and skin/hair/nail disorders.

FOR CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH
Virgin coconut oil has been shown to reduce total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL and VLDL cholesterol levels, as well as increasing HDL (the good cholesterol). It also helps in the prevention of LDL oxidation (one main component of heart disease we should be avoiding).

SPORTS NUTRITION
Due to coconut oil being easy to digest and absorb than other saturated fats they provide energy fast. This is great when coconut oil is incorporated into energy bars. The MCT's in coconut oil provide a longer release of energy and decrease the amount of muscle broken down!

SKIN BEAUTY
The antioxidants and fatty acids in coconut oil when applied to the skin rapidly penetrate the underlying tissues. It can help with reducing the appearance of stretch marks, as well as preventing the premature ageing of the skin. Coconut oil absorbs readily into the skin and keeps the skin soft and smooth. It also has a SPF factor of 5.
Coconut oil acts as a great hair conditioner when applied to the scalp and when used as a pre-wash conditioner can help to combat dandruff as well as strengthening the structure of damaged, devitalised hair.

USES IN COOKING
Coconut oil is highly heat resistant, it does not denature when exposed to high temperatures which can happen with other cooking oils. It can be blended easily into smoothies, dips, my special bALL's recipe (see my blog next week), as well as many raw food recipes (more at my talks).

WHAT PRODUCT DO I RECOMMEND?
When it comes to deciding which brand to purchase I always recommend a Virgin Cold-Pressed Coconut Oil. Nothing else should be in the ingredients. Expect to pay Aus$12-$15 for 500ml.
If buying in winter, you will find the oil hard in the jar. Make sure to buy oil in a glass jar. As summer sets upon us, you can expect to find your oil jar in the cupboard to liquefy.

ASK A QUESTION

Wow, my blog has been going for two weeks and the feedback has been fantastic. A list of questions is already starting to build up. Please be patient and I will work my way through them. This weekend I am going to be writing about the fantastic properties of coconut oil as well as comparing agave with honey and coconut sugar. Stay tuned!
Oh, and do keep the questions coming.

Juicing at work.

In talks with some corporate groups at the moment. Good to see businesses realising the potential of educating their staff on foods to boost their performance as well as their health. It is a win-win situation really. Educating people about the power of juicing and incorporating raw foods into their diets helps with their own self esteem, well-being, as well as performance at work and less sick days. Who could ask for more!!

Boost Your Metabolism

A client of mine recently shared with me the powers of juicing in relation to his metabolism. He relayed the story of in the years he has been swimming he feels the coldness of the pool and never really warmed up while swimming. He had only been juicing for one week when he next ventured into the pool and noticed it was a lot warmer. He asked the pool attendant when he finished his swim as to why had they turned up the water, but the response was that the water temperature was the same as always. Why did he feel so much more warmer. Read on for more information if you are interested!!

When we eat a typical western diet we are consuming an alarming amount of processed, stoggy foods. Whenever I am out shopping I find I always have to pack my lunch due the limited availability of fresh foods. I will leave the average food debate for another time, but for now I am talking about your metabolism and how to boost it. The secret is to TURN OFF the sluggish metabolism and TURN ON your metabolism to maximise your full potential.

It is the processed, high carbohydrate, high sugar (and all those Sugar Free's ) foods such as hot chips, hot dogs, pies, bread rolls, lasagne, the list is endless really,,. that is slowing the metabolism. You need to switch to raw foods to BOOST your metabolism.

Juicing is one of the best ways to get raw food into your diet. All it takes is one week of pure goodness and you will see the changes.

Spring is nearly upon us and now would be a great time to move your sluggish system into a Turbo Charge.

To fructose or not to fructose

There is a lot of information out there on the different types of sugar “substitutes”. As far as I am concerned there is no substitute for sugar. You either ban it outright or you decrease your intake. Having a substitute is simply allowing you to deceive yourself that you are doing yourself good, but in reality you may be putting the body under more pressure than is healthy. Another major problem with using substitutes is that people seem to eat more servings. They feel seeing as they are being “so good” they can have more.

Fructose is one of those products I am going to write about. Fructose has made a household name for itself, especially in the diabetic world, as being a great SS (sugar substitute). The mechanism behind fructose is that it does not go directly into the bloodstream after you eat it (as what happens when glucose and sucrose is digested). Fructose heads straight to the liver where it gets metabolised and is slowly released into the bloodstream. What happens is that insulin levels do not increase BUT it does increase your insulin resistance, which is a major contributor to Type 2 diabetes.

When large amounts of fructose are ingested, it is rapidly converted into fatty acids which are then added to your fat stores, especially in the liver and around the stomach. These fatty areas are very hard to get rid of and also are major contributors to developing Type 2 diabetes. When you ingest fructose you do not get the satiety feeling in the brain. Fructose does not cross the blood/brain barrier, hence you can find yourself eating more sweet foods sweetened with fructose because the brain has not registered that it has had enough sweetness.

Lastly, fructose can raise triglyceride levels, thus increasing resistance to heart disease. A study published in The Science Daily (2009) , found that obese people who drank a fructose sweetened drink with a meal had nearly 200% higher triglycerides levels than those who drank a glucose sweetened drink with their meals. I am not advocating drinking glucose sweetened drinks but you can see my point.

Steamers

I have been asked to discuss the merits of steamers. I have a steamer and use it most days. I like the versatility of a steamer. No more food being boiled dry was my main focus to begin with (how many have done that when we multitask and answer the phone or help with the kid's homework!).
So why steam? Steaming our vegetables helps to retain more of the nutrients. Vegetables need to be cooked for a very short time to try and retain most of the vitamins and minerals. Juicing is great for retaining the nutrients, but during the cold winter months juicing does not really warm us up in the evening.
If I was to recommend a steamer I would recommend that you physically go into  a shop and see what there is available. There are so many on the market and is all depends on your finances etc. What I would recommend is that you see the steamer out of the box. Does it stack easily? Some are so flimsy that it is hard to get the layers to sit properly. I once had a preset timer on ours so that we could put everything in the steamer in the morning, had it sitting under the exhaust fan (also put on a timer) and then we would have them steaming before we arrived home.
Rice can be made in a steamer so make sure to buy one that allows for this. Again it was the best way to cook rice with no rice sticking to the bottom of the pan!
Any casseroles made up the night before could be put into the rice container also, this is a fantastic alternative to the microwave for reheating your meals.

South Melbourne Market

Just had a great meeting with Janet about doing Juice Demonstrations at the South Melbourne market LG Kitchens. Any one interested in coming to these talks stay tuned to my blog for all the details which will be revealed in the coming week.

OVERFED AND UNDERNOURISHED

By Julie Dargan RN, ND, BHSc

1.       Do you want to lose weight?

2.       Do you want to feel good about yourself?

3.       Do you want to change your diet to a healthier one but lack the motivation, the know how or just need some simple direction?

If you answered yes to any or all of the above questions then Natural Juice Therapy can help.

NATURAL JUICE THERAPY: ü  Removes toxins, blockages, excess weight ü  Restores health, vitality and energy ü  Allows you to make the choice between living life with energy and vitality as opposed to one of lack of energy and over-weight.

What is Natural Juice Therapy?

Natural Juice Therapy (NJT) has been around in one guise or another for centuries. It has been used by some of the most renowned leaders in nutritional therapy and is slowly becoming recognised, even in the medical profession as a safe, natural way to supply the body with the right elements required for the prevention and treatment of disease.

At our classes you will experience the great tastes of  juicing vegetables, chance to ask any questions, work with different types of juices, see how easy the Juice Machines are to clean and how to store your juices.

Unlike conventional medicine, NJT is 100% natural, works with the body and has no adverse side effects. NJT relies on the natural healing harmony between nature and the body’s natural desire to get well and prevent disease. Within the fibre of all fruits and vegetables there are unique vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, polyphenols and more that can never be recreated in a laboratory.

By incorporating NJT into your life you are tapping into the healing properties found within the natural fruit and vegetable juices to assist your body into achieving optimal health. Your are furnishing your body with the perfect balance of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, anti-oxidants and enzymes, the way nature intended for us to receive them and NOT in the form of processed, adulterated foods that the body is under extreme pressure to breakdown and absorb.

NJT believes in the philosophy of 1 disease, 1 solution. We believe that disease/ailments are caused by either toxicity and/or deficiency. By removing the incoming toxicity, such as junk food, cigarettes, processed foods, alcohol, additives and preservatives, and replace nutrient deficiency, you will improve your health and decrease the signs and symptoms associated with your disease/ailment.

NJT addresses each individual deficiency vs. toxicity and how to go about incorporating raw juiced and blended foods into your life.

Our aim is to decrease the toxicity in the body and allow the body to absorb nutrients you ingest. What you absorb can be more important than what you eat.

AN EXAMPLE OF HOW JUICING CAN HELP IN CERTAIN CONDITIONS

DIABETES REALITY CHECK
BEING ACCOUNTABLE AND TAKING RESPONSIBILITY	NOT BEING ACCOUNTABLE OR TAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Accessing information on healthy foods that taste good, are easy to prepare and are inexpensive.	Refuse to address diet, suffer erratic blood sugar levels which can be difficult to stabilise.
Limit the amount of complication associated with diabetes	Suffer complications associated with high blood sugar levels.
Limit the amount of medication to a minimum level.	Risk of increased medication levels which can lead to more complications associated with side effects of the medication.
Money saved by getting your health back on track.	Saving money, less doctor visits, less medication.
Less sick days.	More time off work.
Being able to spend time with family and friends.	Too tired to socialise, go for walks etc.

*Please note we are not making any claims to cure diseases such as diabetes or any other disease, but are making claims of trying to improve your ability to cope with such illnesses and somewhat improve your quality of life.

Cost analysis of starting up juicing and completing Juicing Programs.

Many people are surprised by the sheer volume of fruit and vegetables in order to make “one glass of Juice”. The cost for the weekly shop of fruit and vegetables have to be compared with the cost of how much you would spend on “take away”, coffee mornings, alcohol in the evening, soft drink with lunch, the list goes on.

There is an upfront cost of a juicer, but this is an investment that is going to change the way you address your eating habits. A juicer is meant to stay out on the work top in the kitchen and used every day, just as you would use the kettle every day. Nobody stores their kettle in a cupboard, do they? By keeping the juicer out on the work top and not tucked away in the cupboards, in order to prevent the “hassle” of having to get the juicer out, hence a juice is not done.

	3 DAY DETOX PROGRAM	7LB IN 7 DAYS PROGRAM
Juicer	Starts at $179.99 up to $899.00	Starts at $179.99 up to $899.00
Blender	Philips $110.00	Philips $110.00
Book	$19.95	$19.95
All Food Required	Using Coles online $30.00	Using Coles online $90.00
Supplements	Juice Master Discounted package $85.50	Juice Master Discounted package $85.50
Sigg flask	0.6L x 1 $35.00	0.6L x 2 $70.00

The majority of this is the upfront cost of the juicer and blender which are a necessity but you may already have. Make up a Christmas wish list, birthday list perhaps. Supplements should always be included in the program as they assist with the cleansing process, supply vital nutrients and amino acids. We do recommend Juice Master Products for their purity and excellent absorption factors. By making juicing an integral part of your daily routine it will soon pay in abundance in return in terms of health and vitality as well as a slimmer waistline.

Some documented results with past Juice Enthusiasts;

Weight loss, clearer skin, increased energy, improved sleep patterns, clearer head, able to tackle difficult deadlines,  no energy slumps in the middle of the day, less colds, the list is endless.