Epsom Salts and the Power of Magnesium for Health and Healing

While I was on a walk yesterday with my Health Coach friend, Emily, I discovered that she loves Epsom Salt baths just as much as I do. This turned into a 30-minute conversation about Epsom Salts and the power of magnesium for health and healing.

When we put our heads together and shared what we know about this inexpensive soaking solution, we were amazed by all of the super powers that this green-and-white-$5.99-milk-container contains…  

Why am I soaking in Magnesium?

I injured my back last October and can’t figure out how to heal it. I used to be very, very active and was running, boxing, interval training and doing everything under the sun until one day, while I was running on the beach (on my honeymoon actually), I felt a sudden pain in my lower back. It began to escalate from there.

Since that time I have needed to transition my high intensity work out routines to more gentle, stretching, and relaxation exercises - totally not my style. And wow has this been challenging and good for me… more to come on this…

See the article “11 Miraculous Ways Magnesium Heals Your Mind & Body” that Emily sent me on Magnesium below…

Just came across this article on my FB feed!

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-5473/11-Miraculous-Ways-Magnesium-Heals-Your-Mind-Body.html

11 Miraculous Ways Magnesium Heals Your Mind & Body

By Marcus Julian Felicetti

I could easily write a whole book on Magnesium and its very powerful healing properties. Indeed, many books have been dedicated to the subject, and I encourage everyone to read them. 

 

As a yoga therapist that has worked for many years using yoga postures and natural remedies to heal, Magnesium is always the first supplement I suggest. In a moment, you’ll understand why.

 

If you think that the amount of Magnesium you obtain from your food is sufficient without supplementation, then I would say thinking is for people who don’t know. Be sure by having it tested. And when you do have it tested, aim to have optimum levels of Magnesium, not just meeting the minimum.

 

Remember that even organic soils are depleted of minerals. And non-organic farming has virtually no nutrients in it. Furthermore, there are many ways in which Magnesium is lost from the body, e.g. alcohol, coffee, black tea, grains, soy, most pharmaceutical drugs, calcium supplements.

 

Regular supplementation is a reliable way to boost your magnesium levels. For more information on what kinds of magnesium supplements are well absorbed and utilized, see my website.

 

Benefits of Magnesium:

 

1. Better sleep - The sleep regulating hormone melatonin is disturbed when Magnesium is deficient. Furthermore, Magnesium brings balance and controls stress hormones. Stress and tension are often reasons why people suffer from insomnia in the first place.

 

2. Relaxes the nervous system - Serotonin, which relaxes the nervous system and elevates mood, is dependent on Magnesium.

3. Bigger, stronger muscles - Magnesium allows the body to produce more Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1), which is a major contributor to the growth and strength of muscles. Furthermore, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the cell’s energy store, and is created with help from Magnesium.

 

4. Better flexibility - Magnesium loosens tight muscles. Without Magnesium, muscles do not relax properly and cramps occur. Magnesium is important for flexibility, because low Magnesium results in a buildup of lactic acid, causing pain and tightness.

 

5. Bone integrity and strength - Magnesium helps to fix calcium properly. It may blow some people’s mind that the calcium supplements they’re taking are not only useless, but are actually contributing to osteoporosis! There are actually about eighteen essential nutrients that contribute to bone health; Magnesium is definitely one of the most essential, because it stimulates a particular hormone called calcitonin. And, it also suppresses a hormone called parathyroid that breaks down bone.

6. Remineralizes teeth - Magnesium deficiency causes an unhealthy balance of phosphorous and calcium in saliva, which damages teeth.

 

7. Alkalizes the body - Magnesium helps return the body’s pH balance. Magnesium reduces lactic acid, which is partly responsible for post-exercise pain (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness).

 

8. Hydrates - Magnesium is a necessary electrolyte essential for proper hydration.

 

9. Helps to relieve constipation - Magnesium can be used to cleanse the bowels of toxins.

 

10. Enzyme function - Enzymes are protein molecules that stimulate every chemical reaction in the body. Magnesium is required to make hundreds of these enzymes work and assists with thousands of others.

 

11. Diabetes - Magnesium enhances insulin secretion, which facilitates sugar metabolism. Without Magnesium, glucose is not able to transfer into cells. Glucose and insulin build up in the blood, causing various types of tissue damage, including the nerves in the eyes.

 

There are many other benefits of Magnesium: It helps prevent stroke, heart disease, period pain, and more. You can check out my website for further information on Magnesium and how exactly to increase magnesium levels effectively.

Swap the 409 for These Natural Cleaning Solutions that Actually Work!

This post is for everyone especially the Moms, OCD’ers, clean freaks, and everyone else…

Your know that feeling when you walk into your home and it has just been cleaned?? Ah! It’s refreshing, relaxing, peaceful and it smells good - no stinky trash, the laundry is clean, and everything is put back in its so called “home” within the home.

It’s important to love your home environment. It keeps you balanced because it reduces the cortisol (stress hormone) that your body naturally produces when you are in messy/chaotic/gross environment.   So do yourself a favor and have a clean home…

With that said, many cleaning solutions are actually toxic to us and our kids (for some of us that may mean pets or significant other). So below I have added some of my favorite natural cleaning solutions that I have been trying out for a few months now. Surprisingly, some of them actually work better than the chemical solutions like 409, Windex, Pledge etc…

3. Lemons
There’s nothing like a lemony-fresh smell, but that’s not all this sassy citrus has to offer. Lemons fight mildew, cut straight through grease and leave a streak-free shine.

• Remove mildew from bathroom surfaces
• Clean the inside of your microwave
• Clean wooden cutting boards and butcher block countertops

5. Hydrogen peroxide
The same properties that make this solution great for cleaning cuts and scrapes also make it fantastic at disinfecting your home. Just make sure it’s 3 percent; if it’s higher, dilute it with water.

• Sanitize kitchen surfaces: The kitchen sink is one of the dirtiest places in the home — so your countertops and stovetop can’t be far behind. Scrub them all down with odorless peroxide (but skip delicate marble).
• Disinfect anything: Soak sink brushes, toilet brushes, loofahs and litter boxes in hydrogen peroxide, or scrub away icky bacteria living inside your fridge.
• Remove mildew from hard surfaces: Fill a dark, opaque bottle with peroxide and spray directly on the surface affected by mildew. Let it sit for a few minutes, then rinse.

8. Rubbing alcohol
Isopropyl alcohol (a.k.a. the stuff in your medicine cabinet) is an all-natural antibacterial. Sure, it smells pretty pungent, but it’s great for tackling your germs and stains.

• Clean your telephones: Whether it’s your landline or your cellphone, you press it against your face daily and it builds up grease and germs. Swipe it with alcohol to clean and disinfect.
• Remove ink stains: You may have heard about using hair spray to remove ink stains. That’s because it contains alcohol, so go straight to the source.
• Make chrome and steel fixtures shine: Swab your faucets and fixtures with rubbing alcohol and let it evaporate to a streak-free shine.

• Banish mildew smell: Fill a spray bottle with two teaspoons of tea tree oil and two cups of water. Spritz the affected areas and don’t rinse. Then say goodbye to that musty odor.
• Disinfect laundry: For heavy-duty cleaning, add a teaspoon of tea tree oil per load of laundry.
• Use it as an all-purpose cleaner: For seasonal cleaning, when you want to make sure everything is germ-free, use a solution of two teaspoons tea tree oil and two cups of water in a spray bottle.

Well there you have it, I’m hooked.  I pasted my favorites above but Click Here for more tips… and for the original article posted by the Today Show.

Yours in good health,

Ciara

Happy National Grilled Cheese Day!

Check out this Awesome Recipe: Blue Cheese and Pear on Raisin Bread - YUM

Deconstructing a Craving: The “How-To’s”

Listen to your body and learn what it really needs

of the questions above, then let me provide some insight into cravings.

The body is like a bio-computer or an amazing source of intelligence. It is always there for you, pumping blood, never skipping a heartbeat, digesting whatever food you put in it and maintaining homeostasis. So, is this reliable, intelligent bio-computer making a mistake by craving ice cream or a hamburger or chocolate? Are cravings due to lack of will-power or discipline? I’d like to suggest that cravings are not a problem. They are critical pieces of information that tell you what your body needs.

Why you crave what you crave.

The important thing is to understand why you crave what you crave.

Perhaps your diet is too restrictive or you are missing essential nutrients. Perhaps you are living a lifestyle that is too boring or stressful. Your body tries to correct the imbalance by sending you a message: a craving. A craving for something sweet could mean you need more protein, more exercise, more water or more love in your life. The key to stopping the sugar craving is to understand and deliver what your body really needs.

Listen to what your body is telling you it needs.

No book or theory can tell you what to eat. Only awareness of your body and its needs can tell you. Of all the relationships in our lives, the one with our body is the most essential. As you learn to decipher and respond to your body’s cravings, you will create more health and balance.

How do I listen to my body?  The next time you have a craving, try to decipher the message your body is sending you. Figuring out a craving is powerful, and can help you really figure out what to “add in” to balance out.

Try these tips when you feel a craving coming on:

• Have a glass of water and wait 10 minutes.
• Eat a healthier version of what you crave. For example, if you crave sweets, try eating more fruit and sweet vegetables.
• Find out what’s out of balance in your life. Is there something you need to express, or is something being repressed? What happened in your life just before you had this craving?
• When you eat the food you are craving, enjoy it, taste it, savor it and notice its effect. Then you will become more aware and free to decide if you really want it next time. 

For more Healthy Tips and to learn about the nutrition program that I offer to my clients check out my website and schedule a FREE 45-minute Health Consultation over the phone with me: www.fittingintoyou.com

All in good health!

Ciara

Vitamin L, our bodys most missing nutrient

February, “the month of love” is here. Today is Valentines Day so I thought I’d share with you my secret recipe to increasing the #1 missing nutrient in our Standard American Diet (SAD)- Vitamin L. The LOVE vitamin!

Its important that we have healthy relationships all around us. At work, at home… everywhere in life. When we have healthy relationships we feel: love, support, freedom, compassion… and we have the ability to be unstoppable at whatever we’re up to.

 Why do we have a Vitamin L deficiency? 

• We spend too much time working in jobs we don’t love-Urgh
• We forget to say I love you to our loved ones
• We are afraid of hugs so we go in for The hand handshake
• We forget to spend time doing things for ourselves that we truly love  

How do you increase your Vitamin L?  

1. Find a new job, one that you love. Easier said than done huh? If this is you currently, simply pick up a hobby for now: reading a book, sewing, playing guitar, running, singing, whatever you LOVE to do. Start by doing your hobby for just 10 minutes per day.

2. Say I love you to everyone that you love. You have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain.

3. Or simply start by giving hugs. Yes, and the amount of hugs you give can make you feel better.  I recently heard the statement that most adults are touch-starved. Think about it for yourself.  How many hugs do you usually get in one day?

4. Smile or wink to a coworker or a stranger, I bet it will make their day and yours too!

5. Do one thing a day for 5 days that you truly LOVE but have put off for one reason or another. (shop, read a gossip magazine or novel, take a yoga class, go sledding… the sky is the limit)

Practicing self- love and love for others will surely fill our love tanks. In order to have healthy relationships its important to give and recieve love everyday. Love nourishes our mind, body and spirit for optimal wellbeing. Imagine all of the possibilities you can create with an abundance of vitamin L….  The best part is it’s FREE! … and I am already sending you lots of it!  

In sending you love and vitality,

Xo

Ciara