Deanna's Blog
There may not be an obvious link between sleep deprivation and your weight, but more and more research is showing just how important sleep is for your mood, mental performance, overall health and wellness, and especially when it comes to maintaining a healthy weight.
Many studies show that people who have a short sleep duration simply weigh more. And, in fact, as the levels of chronic (long-term) sleep deprivation have increased over the past 50 years, so have the growing epidemics of being overweight or obese.
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Monday, 22 April 2019 17:42
Natural Ingredients You Already Have at Home that are Great for Your Skin
Written by Deanna
Countless top-of-the-line skincare products line the shelves at your favourite stores -- and most come with a price tag that will make your heart skip a beat. Taking care of your skin is of utmost importance, especially with each passing year as your skin naturally ages.
What do you do when your mood is off or you’re stressed to the max?
Eat ice cream? Binge watch Netflix? Call your bestie?
After reading this article, you may consider yogurt, a handful of walnuts, or maybe even some dark chocolate as your go-to mood-boosters and stress-busters.
Today, we’ll unpack some of the exciting (and preliminary) new research about the link between your gut health and moods/stress.
We’ll talk about your friendly resident gut microbes (mostly bacteria), probiotic foods and supplements, as well as foods to feed those gut microbes and probiotics (aka “prebiotics”).
WHAT THE HECK ARE “GUT MICROBES? ”
Oh, our friendly “gut microbes.”
They are the trillions of microbes that happily live in our gut. They help us by digesting foods, making vitamins, and even protecting us from the not-so-friendly microbes that may get in there.
Believe it or not, these friendly microbes have mood-boosting and stress-busting functions too!
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Is just about everyone taking creatine to help them reach fitness goals?
Creatine is, actually, the most popular ergogenic (athletic-enhancing) supplement in history!
And there is always new research coming out about it. I mean ALWAYS.
If you don’t have the time or desire to sift through the tons of studies, I have a pretty nice summary here for you.
The bottom line is that there are a few reasons why it is so popular!
DOES CREATINE HELP PERFORMANCE (ACCORDING TO THE SCIENCE)?
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Caffeine is sometimes called “the world’s most popular drug”.
It’s a very common naturally-occurring stimulant found in coffee and other foods/drinks.
Its main effect is on the brain, helping to increase alertness and reducing fatigue. It’s also used for fat loss and in sports training.
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The keto health craze is here!
And if you’re wondering whether you should try it or not (especially if you’re an athlete), you need to read this!
The idea behind the diet’s popularity is that it can literally train your body to burn fat as fuel. This means your metabolism actually changes. You stop burning carbohydrates (your body’s preferred fuel), and start burning fat (and ketones) as fuel.
You become “fat adapted.”
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If you want to lose fat, improve metabolism, and experience other health benefits all without giving up your favourite foods, intermittent fasting might be for you!
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Saturday, 01 September 2018 13:14
Leaky gut, autoimmunity, and mental health - What are the links?
Written by Deanna
The gut (a.k.a. digestive tract) is not just a tube that absorbs nutrients and gets rid of waste - it’s a complex alive system that’s a huge foundation of health. And not just gut health, but the overall health of our bodies and minds. We know how important it is to get all of our essential nutrients from food - and this is a big part of what our digestive tract does. But, there is way more to the story than just that.
Natural Brain Chemicals and Your Mood
Brain and mental health concerns affect a huge number of people. But, where does it all come from? Does it start, or continue, because of the way the brain and nervous system is working?
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Wednesday, 20 June 2018 17:13
The Microbiome-Gut-Brain Axis: What you need to know for brain and gut health
Written by Deanna
Until recently, we didn’t know how much our gut and brain interacted. Some people thought that our brains controlled everything we did, consciously and subconsciously.
They were wrong!
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More...
Omega-3s get a lot of notoriety - and for good reason! Not only is one of them essential for good health, but we don’t get enough of them in our diets.
Omega-3s are a kind of fat. Fats are not just a storable source of 9 calories per gram. Different fats are used by our bodies for different essential functions. They’re part of the membranes that surround each cell, and are especially important in the brain and nerves. They can mediate the effect of our immune cells as well as influence the production of neurotransmitters and hormones. Omega-3s are anti-inflammatory, and have health benefits for the heart, brain, and our mental health.
Breathing is a part of life that's of utmost importance, but something we rarely spend much time thinking about -- our bodies naturally take care of this task for us without any thought. There's nothing sweeter than taking a deep breath of fresh mountain air, or breathing in the salty air as you look out over the ocean. But how often do you consider the air you breathe day in and day out in your living space?
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Vitamin D: Are you getting enough?
Vitamin D is an essential fat-soluble vitamin. It’s sometimes called the “sunshine vitamin” because our skin makes it when exposed to the sun.
It’s also the most common nutrient deficiency!
Like most vitamins, vitamin D has many functions in the body. It’s mostly known for its ability to help build strong bones. But, vitamin D is also important for a healthy immune system, digestive system, heart and mental health, blood sugar regulation, fertility, and resistance to cancer.
FUN FACT: Vitamin D is the vitamin with more scientific articles published since 2000 than any other vitamin.
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Saturday, 10 March 2018 22:05
Inflammation, diabetes, heart disease, and excess body fat
Written by Deanna
Diabetes and heart disease are on the rise worldwide. They’re serious chronic (long-term) conditions. They have a few other things in common as well.
For one thing, they’re both considered “lifestyle” diseases. This means that they tend to occur in people with certain lifestyles (i.e. not-so-awesome nutrition and exercise habits, etc.).
They’re also both linked with excess body fat, as well as inflammation.
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