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Food, Mood and Women's Health – Be your healthiest, look and feel great!

Deliciously refreshing ginger water kefir recipe

By Trudy Scott 6 Comments

Drink fermented beverages – they contain probiotics or good bacteria and are great for your digestion! Studies also show that probiotics help when you are depressed or anxious.  Kombucha is one example and another great one is water kefir.  And you can actually make them at home. I have to say water kefir is my favorite when it comes to home-made because it’s so quick and simple.

Here you go

  1. Dissolve 1/3 cup sugar with filtered warm water in a clean one quart glass jar.  I like to use turbinado or rapadura because they are not stripped of all their nutrients.
  2. Add water kefir grains (about 1 to 2 tablespoons)
  3. Add something to provide some flavor – I like ginger so I add 5-10 slices of freshly peeled ginger.  Another option is a few mint leaves.
  4. Place in spot out of direct sunlight.
  5. Cover jar with a clean dish towel.
  6. Let sit for 24 hours to 30 hours or to your taste. If you aren’t sure how it should taste, try some from someone else’s batch or buy a bottle of plain kombucha…it should taste similar to cider but less sweet.  The length of time will differ depending on the room temperature too and will take less time when it’s warmer.
  7. Strain water kefir grains from liquid and discard ginger or mint leaves
  8. Transfer liquid to another one quart glass jar and save in the fridge to start drinking
  9. Rinse grains and start over for an unlimited supply of delicious and nourishing water kefir loaded with probiotics or good bacteria!

A few other things

  • Don’t worry about the sugar as it’s mostly used up during the fermentation process
  • Your kefir grains will actually start to grow so you can share them with friends – getting from grains from a friend is a good way to get started
  • The grains sort of look like very baby cauliflower florets and should be kept cool when not being used

Foods for Your Moods on Fox 40: Anxiety, Depression, Irritability and Anger

By Trudy Scott 4 Comments

Did you know eating sardines and pumpkin seeds can make you happier and calm you down?  There are many foods that will help improve your mood. I was recently interviewed onFox40 Live| KTXL – Sacramento www.fox40.com by Annalee Penny. We chatted about some unique and delicious foods that can improve your mood…like help reduce anxiety, depression, irritability and anger!

Foods to Improve Your Mood
Wednesday, September 7 at 7:40am PST
You can watch the segment here

Just like my Good Day Sacramento interview, there is a really funny comment by the anchor at the end – about my “lovely” accent! Too funny!

And here is what we discussed – watch the video and read all about it!

[youtube  width=425 height=349]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBG7dgP0U_M[/youtube]

Can foods really affect our moods and help reduce a anxiety, depression, irritability and anger?

  • We often don’t think that foods can affect us mentally but there is much recent research about real quality food and improved mental health
  • And it’s the synergistic effects of all the nutrients in real food that is so great!
  • So we want to eat real whole foods instead of processed foods, junk foods and sugary foods – and eat how our grandparents ate!

Can eating sardines really help with depression?

  • They are affordable and are a clean fish (ie less toxins because of their small size)  and they are a great source of omega 3s, vitamin D and protein – all of which help with depression
  • In fact, there is less depression is countries that consume more seafood!
  • They are super right out of the can or with a salad.  I like to take cans with me when I travel – great emergency food. Check out more on my travel tips article
  • And yes, salmon is a good option too, as is grass-fed red meat

How do pumpkin seeds help with anxiety?

  • They contain both zinc & tryptophan, both of which help with anxiety
  • In a recent study, a functional food made primarily of pumpkin seeds helped with social anxiety
  • They are one of my favorite healthy snacks – lightly roasted with olive oil, sea salt, pepper, ginger and turmeric

Can coconut milk help with irritability and anger?

  • Coconut milk and oil are good fats and helps keep your blood sugar stable preventing blood sugar swings and the resulting irritability and anger
  • They are yummy in a smoothie or stir-fry or just eaten as is

What about sauerkraut for anxiety and depression?

  • Sauerkraut is fermented cabbage and like yogurt it contains probiotics or beneficial bacteria which are great for our digestion and both anxiety and depression
  • Make sure to buy raw sauerkraut or make it yourself!

Eat like this and you’ll feel on top of the world! And who doesn’t want this!

You can learn more and hear me present on this and much more in Scottsdale/Phoenix, AZ next week on Tuesday Sept 20 at 6pm  – here are the details.

If you can’t make it you can learn more about my book here and by searching for “anxiety” on my blog.

Food and Mood at Integrative Health in Scottsdale AZ

By Trudy Scott 4 Comments

Exercise is so great for a great mood! Here I am hiking Camel Back mountain when I was in Phoenix last year

Do you know that your anxiety and cravings could have a biochemical component and be related to nutritional imbalances? Have you heard about the very effective method of balancing brain chemistry with individual amino acids?  These amino acids are quite amazing! And do you know how important food is for your mood – check out my recent FOX 40 interview for a small sampling.

Join me in Scottsdale/Phoenix, AZ next week and learn more. I’ll be presenting on this and much more!

Food and Mood: 9 Steps to Calm your Anxious Mind & End Cravings!

A mini quiz will help you determine if your anxiety and cravings have a biochemical and nutritional component. You’ll learn the importance of real whole traditional food, including quality grass-fed red meat; why and how to quit sugar and control blood sugar swings; the effects of caffeine, alcohol and tobacco; the importance of optimal digestion and eliminating candida; the mood effects of gluten. You’ll learn the connection between mood and cravings and the very effective method of balancing brain chemistry with individual amino acids. You’ll also learn about correcting pyroluria with zinc and vitamin B6; the effects of other nutrients, low  vitamin D, hormones, toxins and medications; and finally simple lifestyle changes that include sleep and yoga.

Tuesday Sept 20 at 6pm
Integrative Health Clinic
9200 E. Raintree Dr., Suite 100
Scottsdale, AZ 85260

Call 480-657-0003 to sign up.

I will have copies of my new book The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood & End Cravings (June 2011, New Harbinger) available for purchase after the talk and will happily sign one for you.   Or can purchase a copy in book stores, Amazon, from my publisher via my site www.antianxietyfoodsolution.com.

You can learn more about Trudy here.

You can learn more about the Integrative Health Clinic here. I love this message they have on their home page: “Instead of masking symptoms with pills and procedures, Integrative Health discovers a purer perspective. We diagnose the true source of discomfort, then champion scientific and natural solutions. Solutions that work with your body, not against it. The only side effect? A healthier, happier you”.  I really look forward to meeting Dr Alan Christianson, co-author of “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Thyroid”.

Kirin Christianson, founder of Red Haute Mama is my friend and colleague and I was thrilled to be invited to present at her husband’s clinic.  Thanks Kirin! Kirin is quite amazing – she can literally take you from “Ordinary to Extraordinary”!  I did one of her workshops and all I can say is WOW!  She recently took part in the Mrs Arizona contest!

But back to Food and Mood … I hope to see you Tuesday Sept 20 at 6pm at Integrative Health Clinic!

8 Simple Tips for Relieving Stress

By Trudy Scott Leave a Comment

(1) Eat real whole food and skip the junk food, processed foods and sugar. Simply go back to eating the way your grandparents ate!

(2) Eat breakfast and make sure to include protein (like eggs, meat, whey, fish) to help keep blood sugar levels even through the day and therefore reduce stress

(3) Also eat three meals and two healthy snacks to keep blood sugar levels even. Some great snack ideas: some fresh fruit, a boiled egg, grass-fed beef jerky and even a packed lunch.  Raw baby carrots and ornamental green/yellow/red peppers are crunchy and tasty, especially dipped in hummus.  Another easy snack are left-overs from dinner, such as a chicken drumstick or wing.  Cans of sardines, oysters and salmon are good for emergencies if you get stuck at an airport or arrive late when traveling.  Pumpkin seeds are a great source of tryptophan and zinc, both of which help improve mood.

(4) Pass on the coffee (yes, really!) especially if it makes you more anxious and affects your sleep – try herbal caffeine-free teas instead. Licorice herbal tea is delicious, rooibos herbal tea from South Africa is rich in antioxidants and chamomile tea is calming.  If you can’t function without coffee and use it to give you energy then you need to figure out why – low iron, burned out adrenals, low catecholamines or underactive thyroid?

(5) Get outside and do some exercise – to raise serotonin levels to help you feel less blue and worried.  You’ll also get some vitamin D which improves mood and reduces stress.

(6) Enjoy yoga regularly – yoga, tai chi and guided imagery actually raises GABA (a calming neurotransmitter) to help you feel less overwhelmed

(7) Consider using a good multivitamin, a good B complex and the amazing amino acid supplements tryptophan or GABA for short-term relief of anxiety, worry and stress

(8) Slow down, make “me-time” a priority and learn to say no. Take care of yourself!

Chef Rachel’s Review of The Antianxiety Food Solution

By Trudy Scott Leave a Comment

Chef Rachel, The Healthy Cooking Coach, did a great review of my book The Antianxiety Food Solution and is offering a free copy of the book to her blog readers and those following her on social media.

We met a few years ago at a nutrition conference and have stayed connected. I was presenting on food and mood, and Chef Rachel did a wonderful cooking demo!

Read on for the review and see below for details of the book giveaway…

“Most people take food for granted. They don’t realize the profound affect it can have on their physical, mental, and emotional health. Our culture doesn’t teach us about this. We’re taught to think of what we eat as somehow separate from the workings of our minds and bodies. We’re taught to take prescription drugs when something goes awry.

But, the drugs have side effects, many of them as bad or worse than the conditions they are supposed to treat. “After decades of studies and billions of dollars of pharmaceutical industry funding, the best research findings suggest that conventional prescription medications are only marginally superior—if not equivalent—to placebos for the treatment of psychiatric disorders,” says James Lake, MD., President of the International Network of Integrative Mental Health.

“Physicians often advise their patients about reasonable dietary changes for the prevention and treatment of medical illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes; however, mental health professionals often overlook the importance of nutrition for both maintaining good mental health and treating specific mental health problems” says Lake.

I believe the reason is that few doctors have studied nutrition in depth and fewer still understand the intimate connection between what we eat and how we feel and function. They somehow miss the fact that what we eat is supposed to provide the building blocks for all of our cells, tissues, and organs. In many cases the food we eat is not only lacking what we need but also supplying extraneous substances that contribute to further imbalances in our brains and body chemistry.

You can read the rest of Chef Rachel’s great review here.

And if you’d like to win a copy of my book go here and follow the instructions to be entered into the drawing!

You can learn more about my book here and by searching for “anxiety” on my blog.

New Book Offers Insights on Anxiety & Mental Health: Insights that Patrick Kennedy’s “Moonshot” Research Team Will Find Compelling

By Trudy Scott 10 Comments

patrick kennedy moonshot

The first book by local Food Mood Expert and Nutritionist, Trudy Scott, is released this month: The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood & End Cravings. This release is hot on the heels of the CNN interview “Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports: Patrick Kennedy – Coming Clean,” where Patrick Kennedy discusses his own battles with mental health and addictions, his mission to help remove the stigma of mental health, as well as create a “moonshot” medical research effort to find solutions to all brain diseases.

This is all taken from a press release when my book launched. I commend Patrick Kennedy for openly discussing his challenges with mood and addictions, and for being a leader in the field of mental health research! For more information on Kennedy’s Moonshot research go here http://www.moonshot.org/ and for a review of the CCN interview go here.

And continuing with the press release….

Foreword writer and author of Textbook of Integrative Mental Health Care, Dr. James Lake MD, feels that Scott’s book  “marks an important contribution to the public dialogue on the appropriate role of nutrition in mental health care in general and anxiety disorders in particular” and he strongly endorses this unique resource.

Scott’s book offers four different antianxiety food solutions, all of which emphasize the importance of real whole traditional food, but address each person’s biochemical uniqueness. Other chapters cover: why and how to quit sugar and control blood sugar swings; the effects of caffeine; the importance of optimal digestion; the bad-mood effects of gluten; balancing brain chemistry with individual amino acids; correcting pyroluria with zinc and vitamin B6; low vitamin D, hormone imbalances, toxins and medications; and finally simple lifestyle changes that include sleep, exercise and yoga.

An editorial by Dr. Marlene Freeman MD, in the American Journal of Psychiatry offered a very powerful comment on the recent food-mood studies, all of which are included in this heavily referenced book: “It is both compelling and daunting to consider that dietary intervention at an individual or population level could reduce rates of psychiatric disorders. There are exciting implications for clinical care, public health, and research.”

Scott, who has a nutrition practice with a focus on Food, Mood and Women’s Health and is President of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals comments: “I truly don’t believe dietary intervention is daunting and I am living proof it does work. I have been able to overcome my own anxiety and eliminate my panic attacks using the very same methods I cover in my book. And I see the same success with my clients every single day. Food and nutrients are very powerful!”

Edmund Bourne PhD, author of highly successful The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook says that Scott’s book “provides clear, helpful guidelines for utilizing nutrition to overcome anxiety” and Dr Katherine Falk MD, feels Scott’s book “provides important adjunctive help in the treatment anxiety, depression, and serious mental illness.”  All this provides a compelling resource for Kennedy’s research team and for Kennedy himself, who said in his interview that he was looking to live a full life and not just survive.

The Antianxiety Food Solution is now available in major books stores, at Amazon and via www.antianxietyfoodsolution.com.

You can find the official press release document here https://www.everywomanover29.com/media.html