Okay, it’s time to spill some secrets. My number one health and beauty secret is…Coconut Oil! I eat it, use it in baking, cooking, and I use it topically on my skin. I believe it’s the main reason why I’m 99.9% breakout free. I don’t remember the last time I had a super pesky blemish. I use it to prevent premature skin aging as well. And of course, it’s way better than synthetic chemical laden skin products while being naturally free of gluten, soy, peanuts, legumes, and other common allergens. (If you’re sensitive to tree nuts, especially coconut, obviously this is not a good alternative for you).
While I can’t speak for the “health benefits” of these individual products, I can say that Coconut Oil in general has amazing antiviral, antifungal, antiparasitic, and anti-aging properties. Even though it contains saturated fats, it’s not the kind you need to be worried about. Coconut saturated fats are medium chain fatty acids that are not stored as fat by the body, but rather used for ready energy. Read more about the health benefits of coconut here. I’ve also reviewed Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil in an earlier post.
My top pick brands: I’ve personally tried these brands and checked for cross contamination issues with soy, gluten, peanuts, and legumes. These get my stamp of approval.
Have you tried Coconut Oil? Did you notice any improvements to your health? I feel it has also helped me heal from long term undiagnosed food allergy induced damages.
They are both fabulous, pure chocolate goodness on their own, and were equally as delicious when I incorporated them into some of my own original concoctions. While I received these products to try from Enjoy Life, I was not compensated in any way for these recipes or this post. This is my true opinion of these products, and my opinion is that Enjoy Life rocked it yet again for all of us allergen free folks! Enjoy Life makes products free of the top 8 allergens and gluten free. They consistently make my allergic life easier (I have Celiac Disease/gluten intolerance, and I’m highly allergic to Soy, Peanuts, and all Legumes [peas, beans, lentils, etc]). Thanks Enjoy Life!
My recipes that used the new products are as follows:
Double Chocolate Chunk Fruit & Coconut Yogurt Parfait
1/4 cup Organic Blueberries & Organic Strawberries
1/2 cup Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Chunk Granola
Assemble ingredients in layers starting with the yogurt at the bottom of a decorative glass. Layer granola, fruit, more yogurt, and top with the rest of the crunchy yummy granola. Looks and tastes gourmet in less than 5 minutes!
I received these new chocolate products from Enjoy Life Foods.
My second recipe features the new Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks:
Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks to taste (I used about 5 or 6 per pancake).
Combine ingredients and follow the recipe for the Pancake Mix on the Namaste Package. Add the raw cacao powder, cinnamon, and chocolate mega chunks. Fry each pancake in a bit of extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil until slightly crispy edges form. Top with fresh organic strawberries and use raw local honey for a light syrup.
What are your favorite ways to enjoy allergy free chocolate?
My picks for the best soy and gluten free beauty products and body care. All of the following have been stated as soy and gluten free either on the website, package, or by my personal inquiries.
CocoCare 100% Cocoa butter “Yellow Stick”–A great moisturizer and smells so yummy. Be careful with the non-100% versions as I haven’t confirmed their soy free status.
It’s safe to say my go-to soy free, gluten free products are mainly RMS Beauty.
It really takes the cake, so check out the actual website here: RMS Beauty
Ultrapure Cosmetics is truly amazing too, sending much love and thanks!
What are your favorite allergy friendly beauty picks? Leave me a comment below, and shine on!
Go back to basics. Your skin will thank you. (Photo Credit: Dreamstime.com Free)
Whether you have extreme allergies or not, going back to nature for beauty is key to avoiding exposure to harmful chemicals and additives that most of the conventional beauty industry is laden with (not to mention soy). Here are my favorite beauty fixes, sponsored by mother nature.
1. Honey — Use it in combination with mashed avocado for a hydrating face mask that will leave your skin glowing.
2. Coconut Oil– Use as a daily moisturizer for face and body. It is charged with loads of good vitamins and minerals. Try putting it on a burn or sunburn and watch the healing process speed up quickly. Since your skin is the largest organ, think of whatever you put on it as food. Feed your skin natural nutrients instead of chemicals, because everything sinks in and gets absorbed! I know it’s been said before, but “What goes on the skin, sinks in!” Keep it simple.
3. Lemon– The next time your skin has a breakout, try applying some fresh lemon juice or pulp to the area. It works better than any breakout medication I’ve used in the past. As a preventative measure, squeeze some fresh lemon juice onto a cotton swab or bit of tissue and smooth it all over your face and neck to remove dirt and makeup.
4. Olive Oil– Use it as a deep conditioning hair treatment. Coat the ends of your hair in olive oil and massage it through the rest. Leave it on for about 20 minutes then shampoo as you usually do.
5. Sea Salt or Sugar– Mix sea salt or sugar with olive oil, honey, and cinnamon (for scent, or your could use an essential oil of your choice) and use the mixture to exfoliate in the shower. The course sea salt or grainy sugar will buff off dead skin cells and reveal glowing healthy skin underneath. I love using this in the dry winter months to hydrate and exfoliate at the same time.
What are your favorite natural beauty tips? Leave a comment below.
This is the “part-2″ post of my detox and candida elimination plan. These diet tips and lifestyle changes are from my personal experience. I am not a medical professional and this should not be regarded as medical advice. Please see my previous post on Detox, and Candida albicans overgrowth here.
Whenever starting any kind of detox plan, it’s best to increase water consumption in order to help rid the body of toxins and reduce die-off symptoms. Focus on all the great foods you can eat instead of what you can’t.
One of the most important things to remember: Cut out Sugar! That being said, here is my personal list of foods to avoid, and foods to eat.
Foods to avoid:
Sugar
Gluten (wheat, barley, rye)
Oats
White Rice (opt for brown rice)
Most fruit and fruit juices
White Potatoes and other starchy root veggies such as beets and parsnips. Corn is also very starchy and is best avoided.
Alcohol (changes to sugar quickly in the body)
Yeast (some people do okay with inactive nutritional yeast that you may find in cheese replacement products. I’ve done okay with it).
Vinegars and fermented products (some do okay with apple cider vinegar, but be sure to source it. I used Bragg’s apple cider vinegar which is made on their shared equipment with soy and had a massive reaction. They have a product called “Liquid Aminos” which is basically straight up soy).
Farmed Fish (buy wild sockeye salmon if possible).
Citric acid, food additives, colorings, chemicals used in food production, and MSG.
Coffee
Soda (regular and diet)
Cashews and Peanuts, due to higher mold content
Soy and all soy derivatives (soy oil, soy lecithin).
Legumes – I avoid these since they are in the soy family, but mostly just avoid all beans due to the high starch content.
Most cooking oils (I use coconut oil and olive oil instead of canola, peanut, vegetable, or corn oils).
Cut out all processed foods if possible.
Dried Fruit –avoid like the plague! Very sugar laden.
Notes to remember: Avoid all dried fruit, as the sugars are more concentrated. Avoid all fruit juices, unless your are juicing tomatoes yourself or adding lemon juice to your hot water to start the day. I like to juice tomatoes, carrots, and celery with a dash of salt, pepper and cayenne for flavor.
Experiment with high sugar food replacements such as pureeing cauliflower and adding some coconut butter and garlic instead of your run of the mill sugar heavy mashed potatoes.
Foods to load up on:
-Lean meats (grassfed, not grainfed). See my post on sourcing your meat here and your fish here. Most commercial pork, chicken, eggs, and lamb were all raised on a soy-fed or grainfed diet. Non-soy fed meats cost more, but it’s a price I’m willing and have to pay in order to stay healthy with minimal allergic reactions.
All vegetables except for potatoes and other starchy veggies listed in the above section
Brown Rice Pasta
I do okay with spaghetti squash, acorn squash, and butternut squash in moderation.
Sweet potatoes in moderation were fine for me, but may not be okay for everyone.
Nuts and Seeds (Sunflower seeds, chia seeds, and almonds all agreed with me great).
It may take some time to feel and see results, but once you do it will all be well worth the effort. My energy doubled after a few month long detox and I look/feel a lot healthier. The key is to stick with it. If you are experiencing die-off symptoms (cold/flu/fever like symptoms), you are going in the right direction!
Many people stop at the sign of detox symptoms because they are feeling a bit sick, but don’t stop unless the die-off is too severe. Just cut back on the diet a little if it is too much. Then once you have the detox symptoms more manageable, increase your arsenal again.
The following post(s) will contain various favorite recipes of mine that are okay on the Detox or Candida Elimination Diet, one being Quinoa Tabbouleh. Wishing you good energies and luck =)
Feel free to comment below or start a support discussion. Email me with questions or comments as well if that is a better method for you, at: soyfreeglutenfreehaven@gmail.com
