gluten-free

5 Simple Ways to Kick-Start Your Health

July 10, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Sometimes it can feel downright overwhelming to get your health back on track!

You want to eat better – and you’ve tried – but despite your best efforts it still isn’t happening.

You try to go to bed earlier, but get sidelined watching a favorite late-night show on TV.

Or, you’re convinced that you do your best work late at night. (more on that later)

You have days, perhaps, when you really feel like crap – and that’s when you tell yourself (again) that you really, really need to get a handle on things.

We’ve all had days like that, right?

Yet even when you know better, it’s often hard to begin.

My advice?

Slow down. Take baby steps.

Pick one of the following, to start – yes, just 1! (After all, you have to start somewhere).

Jump-start your digestion

Hardly a day goes by, that I don’t hear another tip for what you absolutely MUST do first thing in the morning.

Do You Have A Shag Carpet?

June 30, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

While it’s true that my background is interior design, this is not a post about how to choose the best carpet for your home.

Rather, it’s about those little soldiers that line the interior of your small intestine – the ones that have the appearance of little shags. In other words, they literally look like shag carpeting!

The medical term for those little soldiers is “villi”.

Their job is to be super vigilant about any intruders that might enter your digestive tract, and dispose of them immediately.

When they’re doing their job properly, they’re readily visible – waving about in the breeze.

However, as most anyone with Celiac Disease can tell you, what’s happened is that those villi have completely worn down – as in totally atrophied. Which means they are no longer able to do their job.

The only cure is strict adherence to a gluten-free diet.

That’s the good news!

While the condition is not permanent, it does require vigilance.

If you are struggling post-diagnosis to adhere to a gluten-free diet, you might want to consider working with someone who can provide support and accountability during this challenging time.

But wait – there’s more good news!

Options for bringing out change are available to you – and it makes no difference where in the country you are located.

(The hardest part is simply finding the time in your busy schedule).

Filed Under: EAT, HEALTH & WELLNESS Tagged With: Celiac disease, gluten-free, shag carpet, shags, small intestine, villi

Autoimmune Disease & You

June 26, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Did you know that Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition?

Did you also know that autoimmune diseases are on the rise?

In fact, statistically, if you’ve already been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, your chances of having two or three more are extremely high.

Kind of sobering, isn’t it?

By its very definition, autoimmunity means that your body – specifically your immune system – is attacking YOU.

It isn’t something that’s supposed to happen.

(And doesn’t, as long as your immune system is functioning properly).

But right now, we’re actually in the midst of an autoimmune epidemic – that’s how common these autoimmune conditions have become.

Yet, here’s something else that might surprise you:

Travel & Your Special Diet

June 16, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

How does your body handle travel?

Are you easily exhausted, or apprehensive about having enough food to eat? (By that I mean the RIGHT kind of food, of course).

Hopefully, you haven’t given up on travel, at least not yet.

While it can indeed be challenging, it doesn’t have to be mean deprivation or going hungry.

I recently flew to Austin, TX, to hang out with my son for a few days. My first night there, we enjoyed this fabulous gluten-free, Japanese inspired meal at a restaurant called Uchi.

(They were very accommodating to my special diet, by the way – which makes for a very stress-free meal!)

Now normally, I’m not a big meat eater.

But this Hot Rock Wagyu Beef totally blew me away. Not only was it delicious, but the presentation was rather awesome. And yes, you even get to cook the meat yourself on that very HOT rock (so cool, and so much fun!)

The rock was heated to 500-600 degrees! (I was curious, so I asked).

I also asked about the bed of salt underneath the rock, since I’d noticed cloves and juniper berries scattered among the crystals.

The reason?

[Read more…]

Filed Under: EAT, TRAVEL Tagged With: Austin, gluten-free, special diet, travel, Uchi, wagyu beef

Is Removing Gluten Always the Answer?

June 12, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Should you remove gluten from your diet?

I get asked this question a lot.

And the short answer is “It depends”.

It depends on what’s going on in your body.

It depends on the signs and symptoms you’re experiencing.

And it also depends on your test results!

Of course, if your tests come back negative, then you’re in the clear – at least for the time being – more on that later.

But it’s super important that you get the RIGHT tests!

And you don’t want to stop there, either.

How To Find Your Path & Stick With It

May 29, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Is exercise a challenge for you?

If so, I hope you know that you’re not alone!

Getting regular exercise wasn’t always easy for me, either.

Yet nowadays, people often ask me how I stay so fit and trim. (They don’t know that I use to be 15 pounds or so heavier).

I wasn’t an overweight kid, but I wasn’t skinny either – as much as I wanted to be.

(My mother would describe me as cute and round. Which I didn’t like at all.)

I also wasn’t the least bit athletic.

That all changed about 30 years ago when I went to my very first aerobics class.

I was instantly hooked.

Or rather, I was SO sore the next few days – every muscle in my body ached and I could hardly move.

I decided, in that moment, that I would never again let my body get to the point where it would be so PAINFUL to get back in shape!

Regular exercise instantly became non-negotiable!

And I’ve never gone back on my word.

Looking On The Bright Side

May 15, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you ever have days where you get caught up in negative mindsets?

Days when everything that’s happening in your life takes on a “woe is me” persona – when you end up wondering if things could possibly get any worse?

Well, I hate to break it to you, but yes they can!

(Things can always get worse – that’s the unfortunate truth).

At the same time, I totally get that – when your mind is in a funk, it’s hard to see the silver lining.

(I know – I’ve been there, many a time!)

Yes, the mind will do what’s it going to do.

However, there are ways you can ‘train’ your mind – and trick it into looking at the bright side, and the many possibilities that are just waiting for you.

Here’s my suggestion:

3 Things About Your Birth You Likely Never Thought About

May 1, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

If you’re 40 or older, you might be thinking “Isn’t it a bit late for me?”

Or, “Why should I care?”

So yes, it might seem like it’s a bit late.

But here’s a few sobering facts:

The odds of acquiring an autoimmune disease later in life, are directly linked to what you were exposed to in your mother’s womb

Cord blood from newborns is routinely shown to contain high levels of toxic chemicals

Children born today have a shorter life expectancy

So again, what does any of this have to do with you, given your current age?

Well, those toxic chemicals?

They reside in all of us – young and old.

(It’s a fact of modern life).

It’s also why I love to suggest ways you can reduce your environmental exposure – especially in the privacy of your home.

It’s one of the easiest things you can do for yourself!

What’s On Your Bucket List?

April 17, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

You’ve heard of a Bucket List, right?

That list of things you’ve always wanted to do, but never quite got around to?

In a nutshell, a Bucket List is a way of setting some goals for yourself, namely what you’d like to accomplish in this life, before moving on.

And it’s an awesome idea!

(Perhaps you’ve even seen the movie by that name?)

Today I’d like to share with you a different sort of Bucket List.

It’s an analogy, if you will, a way of looking at the hand you’ve been dealt – your medical history, along with your entire life trajectory and challenges along the way.

In other words, everything that’s you led to where you are today.

So, here’s the thing.

Picture a bucket of water – with the water level stopping about two inches from the top.

3 Simple Reasons to Cook at Home

April 3, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Are you someone who enjoys preparing and cooking a meal?

Or, would it be more accurate to say that cooking isn’t your favorite pastime – that, given a choice, you’d prefer someone else did the cooking for you?

Or better still – why not dine out?

Well, here are 3 simple reasons why it’s always a good idea to prepare your own food and eat at home.

You’ll Save Money

Do you balk at the price of organic produce?

Have you convinced yourself that only the ‘elite’ can afford to eat “that way”?

First of all, I want to stress that organic food is not a fad.

It’s not a food snob or an elitist thing – it’s a straight-up health thing.

Also – it’s the way food used to be grown. (Your grandparents will likely agree with me here.)

Think about that!

Second, if you frequently eat out (or rely on frozen or packaged foods for easy, quick meals) – you’re definitely not saving money!