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Health and Well-Being

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Party food ideas for children

 

Making food fun for children gets them excited about eating and making good food choices. The foods listed below are all good sources of protein, antioxidants, vitamin C, essential fats.

Fun food suggestions for children's party

I could go on and on. Here are some suggestions:

  • Pineapple jelly cubes made from real fruit pulp/blueberry pulp, which are very popular with young children.
  • Fresh carrot sticks with hummus.
  • Fruit skewers with strawberries, oranges, grapes, kiwi, and pineapple blueberries use all the rainbow coloured fruits.
  • Spiced or cinnamon apple crisps dipped with yogurt.
  • Make your own tortillas: chicken, rice, grated cheese, avocado, grated carrots, fresh yogurt.
  • Fish bites good source of essential fats.
  • Cheese and fruit stick
  • Watermelon and mango slushy.
  • Pitta bread (these can also be shaped and cut with biscuit mold cutters) served with hummus, or olive oil and garlic.
  • Mini sandwiches with chicken, fresh tomato, hummus, and baby squash leaves.
  • Mini fresh fruit smoothies: Goat’s yogurt, blueberries or any fresh fruit of choice, also add in a little fresh apple juice.

Hope you enjoy the party!

If you’d like some help, I offer a 10-minute free telephone consultation.

10 Tips to aid sleep

 

Sleep hygiene is very important for our health and well-being. There are many reasons why sleep may be an issue. I have provided you with 10 tips to aid sleep and balance your internal clock.

Tip 1: Make sure your room is comfortable and it’s nice and dark, this may mean putting in some blackout blinds/curtains.

Tip 2: Make sure you look after yourself during stressful times or events, by taking a good vitamin B complex http://bit.ly/20DnYxz

Tip 3: Have a warm bath before bed and put in some Epsom salts

Tip 4: Magnesium is a natural relaxant, it may help you by taking magnesium 1 hour before bed time.

Tip 5: Doing deep breathing exercises before bed using your diaphragm rather than your chest to take deep breaths may be beneficial, most people breathe incorrectly. Do at least 10 to 15 deep breathing before bed or when you have a quiet moment.

Tip 6: Listen to some relaxing music before bed, rain and thunder work well for me.

Tip 7: If you have an active mind, try not to watch television an hour before bed, read a good book or do something relaxing that you think you would enjoy.

Tip 8: If you travel as part of your work, and you suffer from jetlag on your return, taking some melatonin may help you get back into a normal cycle of sleep, you can purchase this in any good health food store.

Tip 9: Adrenals/cortisol can play a major part in disrupted sleep, it may also be worth getting an adrenal stress profile test done, to minimise any issues.

Tip 10:  Take out any electronics which you may have switched on in the bedroom this can contributes to oxidative stress increases free radicals in the body and weakens the antioxidant defences

I hope you find these tips helpful

Sun tan lotions that have been tested by which?

Below is a list of sun tan lotions that have been tested by Which. This list may come in handy for you when you want a good efficient protection while on your holiday. if you like the blog, please do share it with others.

Avon Sun Clear Spray SPF30 (150ml)
Price: £12 (£8 per 100ml)

Pros: This spray passed our SPF and UVA tests and also went down really well with our panel of testers, who said it was easily absorbed.

Cons: It's a pricey option, costing more than £8 per 100ml.

Verdict: A great option if you don't mind spending more. You'll be pleased with the way it feels on your skin.

Availability: Avon

Boots Soltan Dry Touch Suncare Lotion SPF30 200ml
Boots Soltan Dry Touch Suncare Lotion SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £5.50 (£2.75 per 100ml)

Pros: This sun cream won't leave a white sheen on your skin and has a pleasant scent.

Cons: Some users said it left skin feeling sticky immediately after application.

Verdict: This sun cream will keep you protected from the sun and is reasonably priced.

Availability: Boots

Calypso Sun Lotion SPF30 250ml
Calypso Sun Lotion SPF30 (250ml)
Price: £2.99 (£1.20 per 100ml)

Pros: At just £1.20 per 100ml, it's the cheapest sun cream we've tested. It doesn't leave skin feeling oily.

Cons: Some testers found their skin felt a little sticky after application.

Verdict: It's a great budget option, delivering the claimed SPF for a fraction of the price of other products.

Availability: Home Bargains

Garnier Ambre Solaire Dry Mist SPF30 200ml
Garnier Ambre Solaire Dry Mist SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £8.50 (£4.25 per 100ml)

Pros: Our trialists said it was one of the nicest products to apply and didn't leave a white sheen. Most said skin felt smooth and dry after application.

Cons: No real weaknesses.

Verdict: It's ideal if you don't want to look and feel like you're wearing sun cream - on a city break, for example.

Availability: Widely available

Garnier Ambre Solaire SPF 30
Garnier Ambre Solaire Moisturising Protection Spray SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £7.00 (£3.50 per 100ml)

Pros: This spray has a pleasant scent and won't leave a white sheen on your skin.

Cons: You may find that your skin feels a little sticky after first spraying it on.

Verdict: Effective, effortless and easy to find.

Availability: Widely available

Morrisons M Sun Car SPF30
Morrisons M Sun Care Protect & Nourish Sun Spray SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £3.50 (£1.75 per 100ml)

Pros: Our panel rated it highly – it’s easy to apply, absorbs well and has a pleasant scent.

Cons: A few testers said that their skin felt tacky immediately after application.

Verdict: A great-value spray-on option.

Availability: Morrisons

NIVEA SUN Moisturising Sun Lotion SPF30 200ml
Nivea Sun Moisturising Sun Lotion SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £11.99 (£6 per 100ml)

Pros: Our testers were pleased with this sun cream, with most saying it didn't leave a sheen on the skin.

Cons: It doesn't absorb into the skin as easily as others, so needs a bit of rubbing in.

Verdict: It's effective and available in lots of stores.

Availability: Widely available

Nivea Sun Protect and Refresh SPF30
Nivea Sun Protect and Refresh Invisible Cooling Spray SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £15.99 (£8 per 100ml)

Pros: It’s very easy to apply, doesn’t leave skin feeling sticky and smells pleasant.

Cons: This product is pricier than many of our other Best Buys, costing £8 per 100ml.

Verdict: Grab it when it’s on special offer.

Availability: Widely available

Sainsburys Sun Protect Clear Spray SPF30
Sainsbury's Sun Protect Clear Spray SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £5 (£2.50 per 100ml)

Pros: You’ll find it’s easily absorbed and feels pleasant – there’s no stickiness, greasiness or white residue.

Cons: There’s no real downside to this product.

Verdict: An effective and affordable spray-on sunscreen.

Availability: Sainsbury’s

Superdrug Solait SPF30
Superdrug Solait Moisturising Sun Lotion SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £7.99 (£4 per 100ml)

Pros: Most of our trialists found this sun cream pleasant to apply, saying it didn't leave any kind of visible sheen after application.

Cons: Some of our testers didn't like its scent.

Verdict: It's a particularly good choice if you don't like products that leave skin feeling or looking greasy.

Availability: Superdrug

Tesco Soleil SPF30
Tesco Soleil Suncare Lotion SPF30 (200ml)
Price: £3.50 (£1.75 per 100ml)

Pros: Most trialists liked the scent of this sun cream. It’s easy to apply, too, and doesn’t leave a white sheen.

Cons: Some testers said their skin felt greasy after application.

Verdict: It’s a great affordable option if you prefer a lotion.

Availability: Tesco

Recent testimonial from one of my clients

Date testimonial was given 4th July 2015

Hi Christina,

Testimonial:

My son Jad who has cerebral palsy and does not speak, is ten years old. He had breathing difficulties throughout his life as he easily catches colds and tends to have a runny nose for longer periods than normal kids his age. He snored at night and breathed from his mouth most of the time, which would disrupt his sleep. I have taken him to many doctors and specialist including Harley Street clinics and none of them have been able to alleviate his breathing difficulties. It is one of the hardest thing for me to see my son suffering and not know what to do to help him.

It was not until I came to see you, Christina, to check on Jad's food intolerance that I was able to finally solve this problem once and for all. Jad exhibited intolerances to yeast and orange juice. To my surprise, you immediately mentioned these two items caused nasal congestion even thought I had not informed you of Jad's condition. I never would have imagined, and no medical doctor would have suggest doing a food exclusion, a food intolerance, or that specific foods would be connect to nasal congestion.

As soon as I started Jad on a yeast and gluten free diet including the foods Jad was intolerant to, his sleeping improved almost immediately. Today Jad sleeps like any normal child for the first time in his life. Even his poo has changed where it was yellowish in colour and very loose almost liquid. Now it is brown and solid like normal children’s.

Although Jad cannot talk I would like to thank you on his behalf for solving a problem that the best doctors couldn't.

Regards,
Salem

Suffer from migraines, then try this delicious homemade juice

Migraines can be quite a debilitating health issue, having first-hand experience on the subject.  They can leave you drained and feeling unwell, to the point where it can affect your life in general.  Everyone has different symptoms with onset of a migraine, some people have an aura, flashing lights, and it can cause partial vison blind spots.  In clinic, I have seen many clients who suffer from this health issue.  Puberty can be a trigger for migraines, as can certain foods, certain drinks, being too hot, being amongst a dense crowd can also trigger a migraine, the actual anxiety of thinking you may get a migraine during important events or meeting is stressful. Just as a helpful tip, there is a combination of vegetables and fruit you can juice as a drink, which not only helps with migraines, but tastes fantastic and cooling, all you need is a juicer to get juicing……………

I have found Philips works well for me, there are so many juicers to choose from, so do your own research and if you don’t already own one, I’d advise you to invest in buying one!

The list below contains a wonderful mixture of vitamins and minerals all natural, so let’s see what we have:

Vitamin A, B, C and vitamin E, potassium, chlorophyll, pectin, magnesium, folic acid, anti-oxidants, iron, amino acids, boron.

Ginger has always been one of my favourites for migraine check out the recipe below.

2 apples, choose ones that are a favourite, mine are royal gala apples, which work really well with this recipe.

1 handful of spinach

1 inch stem of broccoli

1 inch slice of cucumber

1 inch slice of lemon

½ inch of fresh ginger (you can tweak the recipe to your liking)

Put your apple, spinach, cucumber, lemon, ginger, broccoli and the last apple on top, Juice all these foods together.

It is great with crushed ice, and very cooling and satisfying.

Enjoy!!

What is a sugar craving and what can you do?

Are you one of those people who suffer from sugar cravings? If the answer is yes, then this newsletter will show you what sort of things you could do to minimise your cravings!

When you have a sugar craving, you have a powerful desire to consume sugar.  Sugar is highly addictive.  Yale University revealed that a dramatic fall in blood sugar can put your body into sugar mode, which tends to happen when your diet is not great. Your diet may consist of carbohydrates, like sweets, biscuits, all these foods that affect the part of the brain controlling impulse, for example when you eat chocolate don’t you feel better, happier this is because it affects your reward system, makes you feel high, affecting your dopamine levels, the same when you eat fast foods or processed foods, these make you “feel good” and eating lots of sugar will continue to feel rewarding, sugar behaves like a drug, and therefore consuming lots of sugar kick-starts a domino effect in the brain, too much too often causes addiction and cravings for sugar,  and things can go into overdrive, however having something sweet now and again, is fine.

Only you can answer this question, when you consume a lot of sugar, at first, do you feel good and full of beans, then, do you feel, fatigued and even lethargic?  This is because your blood sugar drops.   Excess sugar can also cause serious problems with your health, it can affect your thyroid, feed yeast infections and point you on the road to diabetes, especially if you already have a family predisposition to this health issue.

So what can one do to help minimise cravings?
Cinnamon is a great blood sugar stabiliser, you can add this to smoothies, cereals and drinks, by just adding ¼ tsp per day, will help balance your blood sugar. Taking chromium, is another helpful tip to minimise sugar cravings, Native Elements have a really good food state chromium which you can order at https://www.futurehealthmanagement.co.uk/shop/minerals/gtf-chromium/.  I hope that you will find these tips helpful, and easy to implement!

ecmartin@futurehealthmanagement.co.uk to arrange an appointment or recommend a friend.

How I Could Improve Health In Your Company

Health is a very important factor that can have major detrimental effects in our everyday life.

As a company you rely on your employees to do the work you have hired them to do. But what if they don’t perform their duties to their full potential due to illness and have to take sick leave from work due to an underlining health reasons?

Unfortunately, work absenteeism puts a further strain on colleagues as well as on the business. Stress is one of the major players at hand when it comes to having an unhappy employee at work, in particular if they have a very demanding and pressurised job where they are working long hours, like in industries such as banking, law firms and performing arts.

From my professional experience, health has to be one of the key objectives for employees to function at optimal level, to have a clear head, to maintain focus during their working hours. Most professionals I have spoken to take very few breaks, including lunch, or even if they have lunch it’s at a fast pace at their desk.

Stress has a knock on effect on general health and well-being. Here are some other health issues often linked to stress: Asthma, migraines, hormonal imbalances, insomnia and back pain.

For example, irritable-bowel syndrome (IBS) is something I deal with all the time, and this is not something one has to live with for the rest of their lives, given the right support it can be correctly addressed.

I offer my clients a friendly and supportive service with the option of Skype consultations. Workshops, talks and well-being days can also be scheduled accordingly. If you would like to know more, I’d be happy to arrange an appointment or a Skype call with you. My skype ID is: futurehealthmanagement

Feel free to send me a quick email at: ecmartin@futurehealthmanagement.co.uk

We’d love to hear from you!

Natural Remedies In Your Kitchen

Although we are getting towards the end of February, the cold and wet days are not over yet, and it’s a time of year when many of us keep getting the sniffles and feeling low on energy.

We are all tempted to top up on vitamins and supplements, which is a great idea (do check Native Elements’ February/March offer) but there is a lot of food in our kitchen that can help support our immune system and help us stay healthy – here are a few:

Ginger: Good for alleviating migraines or can improve blood flow and reduce inflammation in muscles including those in the uterus.

Cinnamon: This is a natural blood sugar stabiliser, it stimulates insulin receptors, and helps lower the blood-sugar lowering hormone to produce less insulin in order to create the desired effect.

Turmeric: This is a natural anti-inflammatory and good for those who suffer with things like psoriasis, thanks to the compound called curcumin.

Cranberry or blueberry: This is good for urinary tract infections. They contain a substances that inhibit the binding of bacteria to bladder tissue.

Garlic: Garlic is great for getting rid of parasites, it provides a sulphur containing amino acid that is anti-parasitic, plus garlic is also a natural antibiotic.

Oatmeal: Oatmeal can sooth rashes because it has phytochemicals that have anti-inflammatory properties.

Coconut oil: Great moisturiser.

Sea salt: This is great for disinfecting wounds or can be used as an exfoliator using one cup of sea salt with ½ a cup of a light massage oil.

Cucumber: Aids puffy eyes Cucumber is 95% water with a nice cooling sensation that causes blood vessels to constrict and reduce inflammation.

Prunes: Rich in insoluble fibre a key nutrient to help fight constipation. This type of fibre does not dissolve in water helping waste to move along.

Apples for heartburn: the pectin in the apple helps to absorb stomach acid.  Plus, the fruit contains two types of acid (malic and tartaric) that work to beat back any juices that flow up from your stomach (acid reflux)

I hope using these natural remedies will help you and your family stay healthy with high energy levels. To find out more about what Nutrition can do for you, do not hesitate to email me ecmartin@futurehealthmanagement.co.uk to arrange an appointment or recommend a friend.

Why should I trust Future Health Management?

I have been a practitioner for a few years now, plus I have many clinical years under my belt. This means that we do case history after case history to learn about what was affecting that person, look at their history, predispositions and many other factors that contribute to that person’s health deterioration.

Part of my journey to help others has also been based on my own health experiences. To give you a little background, back in 2002 before I became a practitioner, I suffered from fatigue, I put on a tremendous amount of weight, my sleep pattern was not good at all, I had achy joints and the soles of my feet were very painful. I visited my GP and he told me that I should go on a diet and that I was simply just feeling tired, even though I knew there was something wrong with me and that my body was telling me this.

I decided to investigate further and spent a lot of my time researching. Some of this research, I put into practice, but I feel that I needed more. I finally decided to take up nutrition, which I studied for quite a number of years. Once qualified, I then did a three year postgraduate degree in naturopathy. From then on I managed to take control of my own life and health. Changing my lifestyle and habits, changed my own life. These changes were not an overnight sensation, and in fact took me over a year to get back to normal, even then I still had to be careful with my diet. So my message to you is that I, more than anyone, have an understanding of how these things work and how difficult they can be. The positive side is when my health changed for the better, I never looked back. I look at everything I did in a positive way; I was able to focus more, fit into a few sizes smaller, sleep better and enjoy my family far more than I had.

When clients talk to me about their health, I understand exactly where they are and where they want to be………………