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Eat Naked Margaret Floyd interviewed by Trudy Scott

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margaret-floyd-eat-naked

I’d love to introduce you to Margaret Floyd, author of Eat Naked: Unprocessed, unpolluted, and undressed eating for a healthier, sexier you and its follow up cookbook, The Naked Foods Cookbook: The whole foods, healthy fats, gluten-free guide to losing weight and feeling great, which she co-authored with Chef and husband, James Barry.

We met last year at the Weston A. Price conference and saw each other again at the recent Nutritional Therapy Association conference, where I interviewed her about her two fabulous books! (I also met her lovely husband James and delightful daughter Sia)

You can watch this video to hear why she wrote this book…

You’ll hear Margaret talk about: real clean food… misconceptions about food… healthy food… simplify… and plenty of recipes

Margaret wrote Eat Naked for her clients and to educate the public at large. This book is an excellent introduction for people who are completely new to the concept of real nourishing food. And if you have been on this path for a while, you’ll receive validation and some interesting new facts. This book also meshes so perfectly with the eating message in the first chapter of my book The Antianxiety Food Solution and is a perfect companion for those who are familiar with my work, and yet want and need more detail, and more “meat” (no pun intended!).

You may be in for some pleasant surprises if you’ve given up meat for health reasons and no longer eat butter – and yet secretly long for these foods. They are back on the menu, but with the emphasis of quality of course! I knew I was in for a treat when I read Margaret’s dedication to her gamma: “You were right, butter is better.”

Here are a few of my favorite parts of Eat Naked:

  • It’s for people who love food, want to eat well and don’t have loads of time
  • It covers all the bad stuff: hydrogenated oils, sugar and HFCS, artificial sweeteners, soy
  • It covers all the good stuff: organic produce with some great information on pesticides and climate change and why canned tomatoes are a good choice
  • It addresses some interesting aspects of red meat: the Certified Humane Label, the sustainability of meat and a nice review of grass-finished
  • The discussion on eliminating sugar!  (why? because as you’ve heard from me many times, sugar is toxic, addicting, and can contribute to anxiety and depression)
  • How to transition to this way of eating and how to shop naked (don’t you just love the play on words!?)
  • Many delicious and yet simple recipes (try the Eggs on a Bed of Greens)

I LOVE recipe books and The Naked Foods Cookbook is a happy addition to my collection and is one I’ll use and recommend to clients. It fits the bill of having simple, fast and delicious recipes with the added bonus of them being super-nourishing too.

Finally, don’t you just love the covers of these books and the concept of naked undressed food!? How can that not make you fall in love with real food all over again!? And as Margaret says, eat like this and soon you’ll be proud to see your naked body!

Here are links to purchase these books on Amazon: Eat Naked: Unprocessed, unpolluted, and undressed eating for a healthier, sexier you and the cookbook, The Naked Foods Cookbook: The whole foods, healthy fats, gluten-free guide to losing weight and feeling great

Margaret Floyd is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Certified GAPS Practitioner and Healing Foods Specialist based in the Los Angeles area. She’s a passionate advocate for the healing power of a real, whole-foods diet, and works with clients all over North America and Europe to regain their health and vitality through food and lifestyle.

CA Assemblymember Jerry Hill speaks at NANP conference lunch – part 1

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Assemblyman Jerry Hill luncheon address at NANP conference

It was a real pleasure to have CA Assemblymember Jerry Hill (who  represents the 19th district) join us for lunch at the NANP conference.  We had met him and invited him to join us during the recent CA lobby days. We are so pleased he joined us and we thoroughly enjoyed his wonderful presentation.

Assemblymember Hill started off by saying “You represent everything that is good” and endorsed the conference theme of Holistic Nutrition Through the Ages, saying “what you are doing is so important”.

Assemblymember Hill then went on to mention a number of CA nutrition/legislative matters that are near and dear to the hearts of our members, and are encouraging for the health of all Californians:

(1)  On May 3, Gov. Jerry Brown  drafted a “Let’s Get Healthy California Task Force” to develop a 10-year plan to improve Californians’ health and reduce health-care costs.

Preventable and chronic health conditions are detrimental to every Californian’s quality of life, cause disproportionate social and economic burdens, and result in California spending 80% of the state’s total healthcare dollars on just 20% of the population.

The NANP and our members can be a big part of this, distributing wellness and nutritional information and helping people make informed decisions about their own health.

(2)  The labeling of GMOs was added to the CA ballot on May 2

In victory rallies across state today, supporters celebrated as the California Right to Know campaign filed 971,126 signatures for the state’s first-ever ballot initiative to require labeling of genetically engineered foods. The huge signature haul, gathered in a 10-week period, is nearly double the 555,236 signatures the campaign needs to qualify for the November ballot.

If passed this November, Californians will join citizens of over 40 countries including all of Europe, Japan and even China who have the right to know whether they are eating genetically engineered food.   

You can read why we need this GMO labeling to ensure the safety of food for California families and children and that even chickens refuse GM corn (or mielies as its called in South Africa)

(3)  California legislators enacted a tax credit for farmers who donate fruits and vegetables to food banks.  Here is information on AB152 prior to the bill being passed: http://www.cafoodbanks.org/docs/AB%20152%20Full%20Factsheet.pdf

Every dollar in credit leverages approximately 10-20 pounds of fresh healthy food for low-income Californians. California growers want to do their part to help low-income Californians eat more fresh healthy food. California would be following the lead of several other states, including Arizona, Colorado, North Carolina, and Oregon that offer tax incentives to encourage fresh produce donations from growers to emergency food providers.

You can read this great post by Amy Winterfeld: what lawmakers in other states are doing to encourage better eating and support local economies.

Assemblymember Hill also shared information about California Healthy Food Financing Initiative and school lunches and this, together with the award and  menu  will be covered in part 2.

[Note: I say “we” on behalf of NANP and the legislative committee, which I chair]

Melissa McLean Jory: Should we all be gluten-free to get the Gluten-Free Edge?

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Did you know that 1 in 100 Americans have celiac disease and most don’t know it? And that celiac disease is 5 times more common now than 50 years ago? And that osteoporosis and anemia are the two most common adult presentations of celiac disease?

I recently attended a great talk on gluten by Melissa McLean Jory, MNT. Melissa was one of the many great speakers at the annual NANP/National Association of Nutrition Professionals conference in San Francisco. Her talk was titled The Gluten-Free Edge: Digestive Health and Sports Nutrition for Active People.

Melissa said this: “There is no biological value in gluten” – for anyone! I find this so interesting because I’m beginning to think the same thing. In fact, I find that the majority of my clients with mood problems do better on a gluten-free diet.

Gluten can affect you in so many ways, whether you have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.  Melissa shared this list of gluten-related disorders:

  • Depression and anxiety, social phobia, schizophrenia […I added the last three here]
  • Gastrointestinal problems, nutrient deficiencies, fat malabsorption
  • Neurological complications, fatigue, headaches, ataxia, peripheral neuropathy, poor concentration
  • Dermatitis herpetiformis, skin rashes, vitiligo, alopecia
  • Dental enamel abnormalities, canker sores
  • Anemia (iron, B12, folic acid deficiencies)
  • Osteoporosis, osteopenia, arthritis, Dupuytren’s contracture, bone abnormalities
  • Reduced fertility in men and women, recurrent miscarriages
  • Endocrine conditions, type 1 diabetes, thyroid disease, Addison’s disease

What was new to me and fascinating was the athlete-gluten-performance connection that Melissa refers to as the “Gluten-Free Edge”. Over 60% of endurance athletes experience digestive problems such as abdominal pain and discomfort, diarrhea, constipation, gas and bloating. And because gluten causes inflammation, this can inhibit athletic performance and impair or delay recovery. The higher the sport intensity, the more likely the problem. Melissa shared that the Garmin Cycling Team went gluten-free for the 2008 season. They were the first pro-team to do so and this is what they found:

  • Less bloated and “heavy” feeling
  • Mentally sharper
  • Fewer stomach problems
  • Less stress on the immune system
  • Stronger performances

Wow! As Melissa says “Go gluten free – you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!”

Here is information on how to do a gluten elimination challenge.  I suggest you try it and see how you do

Melissa is wonderful and is so passionate about sharing this information. From her website: “I am Nutrition Therapist, have a degree in Exercise Science, am certified to teach yoga, and have a personal interest and expertise in celiac disease, gluten sensitivity, and holistic health. I’m on a mission to increase awareness of celiac disease and help people navigate the gluten-free lifestyle with confidence, strength, optimal nutrition, and renewed vitality. I know how difficult that can be because I have celiac disease and so does my daughter, but with the right lifestyle changes, optimal health is not only achievable, it can be fun and taste good too!”

Melissa’s new book will be available in June and you can preorder it now. I can’t wait to read it! The Gluten-Free Edge: A Nutrition and Training Guide for Peak Athletic Performance and an Active Gluten-Free Life by Peter Bronski and Melissa McLean Jory.

The whole NANP conference was superb! Other highlights included: The Consequences of Undiagnosed Vitamin B12 Deficiency by Sally Pacholok and Clinical Tools for Working with Libido by Bari Mandelbaum, NC, B Sc., I’ll share gems from these and other talks in future blog posts.

Earth Day tips that are good for the earth and good for your mood!

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Take care of the earth and take care of yourself, your health and your mood! Earth Day is a day early each year on which events are held worldwide to increase awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural environment

There was great event in Sacramento and I shared a booth with Donna Kelley. I had samples (and recipe) of roasted pumpkin seeds and herbal teabags. Of course, I also had copies of my book The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings. So much of what we do for anxiety and overall mood is just naturally also good for the earth – like eating quality food, avoiding pesticides, exercising and more! It was fun sharing a booth with Donna, a fellow nutritionist at Concepts of Optimal Nutrition. Donna had a drawing for potted herbs, a yummy recipe and information about her nutrition programs.

Here are some of the tips we shared:

  • Exercise outdoors! Good for the earth and good for your mood! : Ride a bike; Go for a hike in nature; Go for a walk or run; Grow a vegetable garden; Mow your lawn with a hand or push mower like a Brill (this is what I use and there is no noise pollution, no fumes and it is a great work-out)
  • Eat organic and GMO-free! Good for the earth and good for your mood! : Buy organic and GMO-free; Grow your own veggies, fruit and herbs – you can do this even if you don’t have a garden – check out this amazing rooftop garden concept; Make your own sprouts (alfalfa, lentil, mung bean); Eat real whole food; Demand labeling of GMO ingredients; Eat wild fish, grassfed meat, pastured chickens

We even made it onto KCRA/Channel 3 news at 5pm! Don’t blink or you may miss it – ha ha! It is right at the start as the announcer starts talking, at the 6-10 second mark, so a total of 5 seconds! It shows The Antianxiety Food Solution “You Are What You Eat Poster”. I’m “Zen Apple Girl” and Bruce is “Stressed Sugar Girl”! Here is the Earth Day video.

I think these little girls did a better job with being “Zen Apple Girl” and “Stressed Sugar Girl”. And the great thing is that the kids really got the food-mood connection with feeling awesome with eating good food versus feeling bad, anxious and cranky when they eat sugar and junk!

I’d like to end with this beautiful “Earth Day Anthem”

Joyful joyful we adore our Earth in all its wonderment
Simple gifts of nature that all join into a paradise
Now we must resolve to protect her
Show her our love through out all time
With our gentle hand and touch
We make our home a newborn world
Now we must resolve to protect her
Show her our love through out all time

It was super to see so many people out celebrating Earth Day. Great see some friend and clients and meet new people. It was also great to see all the other great vendors sharing about electric cars, organic produce and farmers markets and more. I hope you get to enjoy it every year and every single day of the year too.

Food, exercise, biofeedback and nutrients for anxiety at ADAA

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Trudy scott antianxiety adaa 2012

Great three days at the 2012 Annual Conference of Anxiety Disorders Association of America. I was accepted to do a poster presentation on Saturday night: Food and Mood: Case Study of Woman with Anxiety (using food changes and nutrients) and I had a lot of firsts – the first time attending this conference, my first poster presentation at a mainstream conference, first time meeting some of the excellent researchers in the field and first time exposure to some of the newest research on anxiety.

I thoroughly enjoyed it from the start… submitting my proposal, creating the poster, figuring out how big to make it so it could be read easily (it was 3ft high by 5 ft wide) and then standing with my poster answering questions for an hour and a half during the poster session. I am now I’m inspired to do some of my own food mood research.

My poster was a case study of a woman using real whole food, no gluten, no sugar, 5-HTP, GABA, zinc, vitamin B6 and other nutrients to end her anxiety and panic attacks. I was very pleased with the interest and was thrilled to share this important info about the food-mood connection!

Some other highlights from the conference (there were many!):

  • Keynote by Dr Spiegel on self-hypnotism – in one study, participants were able to increase their gastric acid secretion. We learned that hypnotism has much good research for anxiety but is not used that extensively.
  • Meeting and talking to Lindsey DeBoer, lead author of Dietary Supplements for Anxiety Disorders: A Systematic Review – to be included in a chapter in a new book called Psychobiological Approaches for Anxiety Disorders that I look forward to checking out
  • Great quote from a session on Exercise for Anxiety: “Do your exercise before a stressful event and you’ll do much better” ~ Michael W. Otto, Ph.D. At the same session Jasper Smits, PhD shared much of the evidence of the benefits of exercise for anxiety, OCD, panic attacks and social phobia. Otto and Smits have a new book Exercise for Mood and Anxiety that I look forward to checking out.
  • This short 2 min totally cool video!!! “Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator and feel better” is something we often hear or read in the Sunday papers. Few people actually follow that advice. Can we get more people to take the stairs over the escalator by making it fun to do? See the results here. http://www.thefuntheory.com/piano-staircase With thanks to Michael W. Otto, Ph.D and Jasper Smits, PhD for sharing this at the exercise presentation
  • Doing a biofeedback relaxation session
  • Meeting, listening to and learning from researchers, authors and editors of some of the major journals
  • Meeting new people and making new connections

(On a side note, the ADAA was previously Anxiety Disorders Association of America, and was just renamed this weekend to be Anxiety and Depression Association of America.)

More research and conference highlights will be shared in future blogs… and all this and more will be included in future editions of The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings, available in major books stores, at Amazon and via www.antianxietyfoodsolution.com.

Natural remedies for a cold, flu and sore throat

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On my recent food-mood trip to Boston, I was able to keep going for three days despite the fact that I had picked up a bug or two!  I had a slight sore throat before leaving and the long flight and time change didn’t help. It was also a pretty demanding 3 days of all-day presenting on Food and Mood: 9 Steps to Calm the Anxious Mind, Improve Mood & End Cravings.  Each day I lectured for about 7 hours and had about an hour of Q&A time answering questions. I really thought I might lose my voice by the end of day two but these natural remedies for colds, flu and sore throats really saved the day!

  • Vitamin D (5000IU), which has important antimicrobial properties
  • Vitamin C (1000mg 4 x day) and Zinc (30mg), both of which help with the common cold
  • Boiron Cold Calm, a homeopathic product that is amazing for cold symptoms
  • Boiron Oscillococcinum, a homeopathic product that is amazing for flu symptoms
  • Boiron Roxalia, a homeopathic product for hoarseness/voice strain. I love Boiron Cold Calm and Oscillococcinum and always have some on hand, especially when travelling. The Roxalia product was new to me but worked wonders for all the talking and I think should be a standard for speakers and singers! You can check out all the Boiron products here. Another favorite is the Arnica cream which I used on my aching feet (all that standing!)
  • I drank warm herbal tea all day. I had a jug of hot water up near the podium and enjoyed sipping on Throat Coat!
  • I also gargled twice a day with a few drops of tea tree oil diluted in warm water
  • And another new one for me was Manuka lozenges – lozenges made from pure manuka New Zealand honey, very soothing on the throat and with great anti-bacterial properties. This is a keeper too!

I did of course also make sure to eat well, drink plenty of filtered water and get a good night’s sleep. I hope you can benefit from some of these wonderful natural remedies too.