6 Things to Avoid in Health Food Stores

Just because something’s sold in a health food store doesn’t mean it's good for YOU!

This is a shout out to all the people who want to do good things for themselves, but feel confused. I get it. I’ve been there. None of us are immune to the elaborate marketing campaigns strategically designed to influence our choices.

That’s why I never stop studying and why I'm so compelled to share what I learn with you. Part of the healing process involves shopping at health food stores, but let me tell you – buyer beware!

Let’s take a close look at 6 things you need be aware of when you walk through the door of a health food store:

#1 Gluten-Free Foods

Good lord. This section of the store hurts my soul. While I am grateful for the rising awareness that food contributes to chronic inflammation, these are not value-added. Read the ingredients. What you normally see is a long list of gluten-free refined flours that are not really going to do your body any favors. They are often nutritionally void and contain a ton of sugar.

What you need to look for:

When you read the label, you need to see real food, and you may need to start baking at home. Click here to receive a free e-book of recipes titled Sweets in Peace. It can help.

Other than that, macaroons can often be a good choice (just watch the sugar content) and so is a company called Cappello’s.

#2 Protein Powders

At best, these are a crutch. Our ancestors didn’t have access to protein powders and they didn’t drink smoothies. Protein powders are a processed health food, and they lack an essential macronutrient: FAT.

That’s right. Mother Nature packages protein with fat. The yolk of an egg. The skin on a chicken or turkey. The oil in a nut. Protein is an important building block, but fat is your body’s preferred fuel.

You’d be better off eating a steak.

What you need to look for:

If you really want to supplement with a protein powder, animal is always best. That way you get the full profile of amino acids. Collagen, gelatin, and whey (if not sensitive to dairy) can all be helpful short-term. Great Lakes and Vital Proteins are both good brands to consider.

If plant-based is the thing for you, I like Innate made with pea protein.

And like I said, add the fat back. Put an avocado, coconut oil, or scoop of nut butter in your protein smoothie.

#3 Energy Drinks

Yes, these are still sold in health food stores. Do NOT under any circumstances consume caffeine outside of what nature intended. It is a synthetic manmade chemical that comes from China.

Did you know that synthetic caffeine at a high enough dose is a lethal powder? Yet, no one dies from coffee or tea consumption. It’s thought that nature packages the caffeine with protective phytochemicals. In addition, there’s only so much coffee or tea one can drink before you start to feel off or have digestive upset so that is protective as well.

And all of these great energy drinks with added herbs. Please. Oh please. There isn’t enough plant materials in these to do a damn thing. Enjoy your homeopathic dose of herbs, because that’s all you’re getting.

What you need to look for:

Unsweetened or naturally sweetened green teas are good. I’ve always enjoyed Honest Tea’s Moroccan Mint flavored with honey. You can also purchase Reishi Roast online from Farmacopia. There is enough herbal material in this beverage to have an effect. Reishi helps your body adapt to stress and gently calms the nervous system.

Check out a book called Caffeinated by Murray Carpenter to learn more about this drug in our food supply.

#4 Salad dressings and refined vegetable oils.

Canola, corn and soy bean oil are everywhere, particularly in health food stores because everyone is still stuck in an industry-driven paradigm: animal fats cause disease, while fats from plants support our health.

We are here today as human beings because our ancestors prized animal fats. The very thing that we have demonized gave us life and intelligence.

Canola, corn and soybean oil are processed, industrialized foods that are very new to our bodies. Is there anything oily about corn or a soybean? NO! Machines extract the oil and severely damage it in the process.

Here’s a rule of thumb: if you can’t theoretically make the oil yourself, don’t consume it. For example, I could have a cow, milk it and make butter. I could also take olives and press the oil out by hand with the right equipment.

Not so with canola, corn and soy bean oil. Here’s another way to think of it: if you were to step on the food that the oil is coming from, it should leave an oily stain on the floor. If not, think twice.

By the way, canola oil comes from the rape seed. Seriously, the rape seed. Does that sound like something that will promote your health and well being?

The key thing you need to understand is that inflammation underlies every single chronic disease in our modern world. The reason for that is that your cell walls are made of fat, and if you eat poor quality fat, then your cells will not communicate very well and are primed for inflammation.

What you need to look for:

Butter, ghee, coconut oil, lard, and olive oil.

Primal Kitchen is a good, tasty brand of salad dressing that uses avocado oil, but nothing is better than what you can easily make in your own kitchen.

Fatworks is my favorite brand of lard and if you want to read a good book, check out Primal Fat Burner from Nora Gedgaudas.

#5 Sugar.

God, why do I even have to write this? It’s so annoying. But I feel compelled to write this because the truth is that high fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners make sugar look like a health food.

We see it all the time on health food labels, "Made with REAL sugar," as if that's a good thing.

The truth is that sugar is a drug that causes disease over a long period of time. I’m not going to elaborate on this point. The less you consume, the better off you will be.

What you need to look for:

Read labels to avoid sugar, high fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners. Also, be sure to limit natural sweeteners, like honey and maple syrup.

Check out Gary Taubes new book The Case Against Sugar.

I hope that this is a helpful conversation as we navigate this confusing world of health and wellness together.

#6 on my list is one that you truly don't want to miss and warrants it's own conversation, so I've decided to include it in my weekly newsletter (it comes out every Wednesday). When you sign up you'll also get a copy of my super juicy booklet of all-time favorite resources. Don't worry - it's sugar free and contains no artificial ingredients.

Visit your health food stores in peace!

Love,

Charlotte

Recipe: Cleansing Soup

I’m half-way through my 40 days and 40 nights of The Nourishing Cleanse with Amanda Love. Her program is only 7 days, but when I got to day 6, I looked at my husband and said, “This is awesome. I want to take this all the way. Let’s complete the spiritual cycle of 40 days and 40 nights. Are you up for 6-weeks of this food?” He agreed, so here we are.

What’s even more significant is that I am also 40 years old, and I have NEVER felt better than I do right now.

One of the reasons I am sharing my experience with you is because I value transparency. I want you to see that human beings are always evolving, even the “experts” who appear to have it all figured out - struggle. We get sick. We get in ruts. We get bored. We go through healing crises.

Healing is an on-going process with right turns, left turns, and u-turns. It is not a straight line. On top of that, there is no destination. There is no point in the future when everything will be “perfect.” Life isn’t static. It is movement, and the Life coursing through your body wants to take you somewhere….higher.

If you need an analogy: I was the caterpillar creeping along the sidewalk who just turned into a butterfly. This has happened to me before and it is happening again. This is a pattern that repeats itself over and over again in all of our lives – if we are paying attention.

These are things I’ve noticed over the past 20 days.

All of these insights came from homemade broth, soups, green juice with avocado, and Amanda’s liver lemon flush.

-I’m waking up with joy.

-I have sustained energy through out the day.

-I’m losing weight.

-I look forward to eating, but my cravings are all gone. No coffee, no green tea, no black tea, no sugar, no honey, no maple syrup, and I feel fully alive.

-I’ve had about six red, hot pimples with pus. Look, I know that’s gross, but it’s really good! My body is pushing out what doesn’t belong.

-My acupuncturist and massage therapist have said, “Your body feels different. Your tissue has changed. Your pulse is different.”

-My mind is clear.

-I have more emotional options. What I mean by that is that when life happens and I’m faced with a stressful situation, my knee jerk reaction is either one of anger and protection or I just want to go hide. I can feel these extremes finding a middle ground. In other words, I’m not in my lizard brain. My prefrontal cortex, my thinking brain, is turned on. I’m off the rollercoaster of stimulants. I’m a nicer person and a better communicator.

-I don’t have the numbers for you, but I know that I am spending much less money on food. It’s healthy, paleo-style convenience foods that add up.

-I feel inspired in my kitchen again. I am learning how to make new dishes – one of which I want to share with you…

This is a healing, easy-to-make, nourishing soup. It is excellent when you are sick with a cold, flu or intestinal bug or if you just need a light meal, serve it with a salad or piece of fish or chicken.

Cleansing Soup

2 cups water

1 cup homemade chicken broth

1 Tablespoon freshly grated ginger root

1-2 Tablespoons miso paste (South River Miso Company)

1-2 green onions, chopped

1-2 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped

1 Tablespoon kelp flakes, optional (http://www.ryandrum.com/)

1-2 pinches cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon olive oil

½ lemon, juiced

Boil water in a small pot; add ginger and simmer on low for 10 minutes. Add chicken broth and heat it enough to warm it up. Turn off heat; stir in miso paste until dissolved. Add green onions, cilantro, kelp, cayenne, olive oil, and lemon juice. Cover and steep for 10 more minutes.

I want you to understand that whatever is going on for you, however bad it feels, is inherently good. I couldn’t have done Amanda’s Nourishing Cleanse before this point in time, but if I hadn’t been doing this personal work for fourteen years, I wouldn’t be doing the cleanse now.

Trust your process. Don’t give up. And heal in peace.

Love,

Charlotte

P. S. If you liked this post and my other blog articles, be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter, You'll get in-depth tips and more stories like this one to guide you along the way.

If You're Not Weird, You're Screwed

This last weekend, I had the pleasure of attending a seminar by Dr. Michael Gaeta, titled All Disease Becomes Autoimmune. While I learned a lot, Dr. Gaeta made a statement that moved me. He said, “If you’re not weird, you’re screwed.”

I’m going to tell you why. There’s an interesting thing that happens when you start healing. You will feel weird as you make new decisions, and in that, you will begin to see things differently. Your very existence will begin to challenge the status quo. In essence, you become more sensitive to life.

This concerns people. They whine, “But I can’t do the things I used to do! I don’t want to be the weird one!”

This is true. You can’t do as you please anymore because when you wake up to wellness, you start to pay attention to things you weren’t aware of before.

I spent decades numbing myself with sugar and excessive exercise. When I stopped using food and exercise as drugs, I started to FEEL.

It wasn’t always pretty, and still isn’t.

Feeling fully alive isn’t all “happy, happy, joy, joy.” Real healing is hard, it’s weird and it involves recreating yourself over and over and over again. Healing is work! As you expand in consciousness, the things that no longer serve you fall away.

From my perspective, here are 10 signs that your vitality is coming forth and that your weirdness is saving you:

#1 You start to annoy people (a lot).

In general, people know what they need to do to feel good. Eat more vegetables. Drink water. Move your body. Eliminate gluten. Etc. So when you start to actually DO these things, you become a reflection of their failures. They act irritated with you, but they are really irritated with themselves.

You’re not trying to be annoying. It just comes naturally!

These people might try to sabotage your diet and healthy lifestyle choices by saying things like, “Come on…you can have just a little pizza. Don’t be so uptight!” or my favorite, “Do you have a real allergy to that food or is this, you know, just a diet?”

Your job: Keep doing what you know is right for you. Don’t argue and don’t try to convince anyone of anything. Just do the next right thing for yourself with as little explanation as possible. Actions speak louder than words.

#2 You get new friends.

All change is a form of loss. Grieve the good times you had with your sugar-eating, beer-drinking buddies. It’s sad to say good-bye.

But you’re worth it.

Your job: Allow new people to come into your life. If you’re living in a model of wellness, then like-minded people will find you.

#3 Staying up late makes you feel sick.

The other day, I talked to a parent who explains their teenager’s curfew like this, “Nothing GOOD happens after 11PM.” It’s true when you’re a teenager and it’s true now.

Your job: Continue to go to bed as close to 9PM as possible. This is an exercise in discipline that will make you stronger in every other area of your life.

#4 You quit your job.

Toxicity can come in many forms. Sometimes it is your immediate environment; other times there is toxic energy. When your vitality starts bubbling up, don’t be surprised if your current job starts to make you spiritually or physically sick. It’s ok.

Your job: Find a new job that honors who you are becoming. You are a co-creator in your life. Follow your hunches and curiosity. Those little feelings are Spirit talking to you. As you heal, those messages will become much clearer and louder. You don’t have to have it all figured out. Just keep paying attention.

#5 You become intolerant to horror movies, violence, television, and soap operas.

I grew up watching movies and television shows that mirrored the physiological stress that I was putting my body through with my poor food and lifestyle choices. This type of entertainment literally makes me nauseous now, and that’s a good thing!

Your job: Seek out feel-good stories. Sweet stories about life that may make you cry healing tears. And just get rid of your television. The media does not portray reality.

#6 You realize that malls suck.

Once again, I grew up where going to the mall was a BIG treat. A special day. Not anymore, now going to the mall is a nightmare. I have to chew a Kava Forte just to pull into the parking lot. The chemical smells, the fluorescent lights, the processed foods, and the people working at the kiosks that assault you with their latest deal – all of it makes me want to vomit. Malls symbolize the misguided part of our culture that tells us that buying more shit will make you happy. It won’t. It’s a lie.

Your job: You are starting to learn that happiness is an inside job. It comes from eating real food, using herbal medicine, sleeping, and moving – not too much and not too little. Happiness is a result of hormonal harmony because you’re making the decision to support your vitality. You also realize that shopping at local businesses, like farmer’s markets and one-of-a-kind stores, is the way to go. Money is an exchange of energy, you pay attention to this now.

#7 Sugar tastes too sweet.

You go to a party and you eat the ice cream and cake and you realize that it’s way too sweet. This is a monumental occasion because you no longer have to live on will power. You now make dietary decisions based on the wisdom coming deep from within you. How liberating.

Your job: Consume bitter herbs, like dandelion root and artichoke leaf. Bitter is the antidote to sweet. Bitter educates your taste buds and the more that bitter becomes a part of your diet, the less you will want sugar.

#8 You get sick and love it!

Now, maybe love is an overstatement, but really, your relationship to your body changes when you start to cultivate your vitality. You understand that getting sick is healing. You understand that a fever is a therapeutic event that rarely, if ever, needs to be interrupted. You celebrate your snot and mucosal excretions, thinking to yourself, “Look how amazing my body is! I am an incredible self-cleansing organism!”

Your job: Be defiant. When you are sick, be sick. Stay at home. Rest. Fast. Take hot baths. And when you feel better? Don’t go back to work. Take 2 more days off to honor the convalescent period of healing. You know you will be stronger if you do this right and weaker if you don’t. You know in your soul that the world WILL go on without you. You know that being sick is a time to set aside your ego and let the body’s wisdom take over. You allow acute illness to transform you on all levels.

#9 You use the medical system for emergency care.

Unless you are dying or need immediate medical attention due to an accident, you don’t go to the doctor. You understand that the only person who has any business birthing a baby is a midwife. Being pregnant and giving birth are NOT medical events. They are sacred events and the body is best left alone during this time.

Your job: Develop your natural medicine cabinet. We don’t have drugs in our house. We have natural tools available from Standard Process and MediHerb. As you learn to trust your body, you will learn to trust all of life. The medical system is there if you need it, but it is a last resort, not the first line of defense.

#10 You get angry.

Vital people get mad and then go do something about it.

It’s hard to give a shit about anything while you lounge around the house on your couch like a zombie watching movies, drinking Coke and eating Cheetos.

But when you enliven yourself with real food, good sleep, and appropriate exercise, you have sustainable energy and can see the injustices in this world. What moves you and what moves me are likely to be two different things.

Your job: Trust that voice within you and go take care of that corner of the world.

God isn’t going to save us.

You are.

God isn’t outside of us, somewhere out there, pulling strings. God is life-giving energy that is in you and me and everything in between. It manifests as vitality in the human form.

As Dr. Gaeta said, during his seminar this weekend, “The primary function of a conscious person is to interfere with the status quo.”

So this is it, my friends, be weird or be screwed. It’s your choice. I know what mine is….

Be weird in peace!

Love,

Charlotte

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