Crowding Out

1. MODULE TWO Crowding Out How Clean Is Your Body? “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Michael Pollan One of the most amazing things that I experienced when I cleaned up my diet and dumped the junk was just how much mental clarity was possible. It’s a difficult thing to explain as you often don’t actually realise you have mental fogginess, until you haven’t got it anymore and boy does it feel different! As you may know, I converted to 100% raw diet overnight due to some shitty diagnosis but this isn’t necessarily what I would recommend to you. But certainly cleaning up your diet and taking inventory of what foods are leaking your energy can go a long way to helping you experience improved health and happiness. pHenomenal Health Different organs within the body require different pH environments. The pH scale is used for measuring how acid or alkaline something is. To give you some idea, the acidity scale ranges from 0-6.9 and the alkalinity scale from 7 – 14, with 7.365 being the optimal pH for our blood. Slightly on the alkaline side is where we should aim for our pH level to be and this can be achieved by eating a balanced diet rich in alkalizing oxygen-rich foods. There are some parts of the body, however, that prefer a slightly acidic environment such as the stomach, colon and bladder. By choosing an anti-inflammatory, alkaline, low glycaemic diet full of whole foods, we provide our body with an optimum environment in which to create health. An acidic environment however, creates the potential for our body to develop anything from a cold to chronic fatigue to cancer.

2. MODULE TWO Crowding Out pHenomenal Health It is really important to make the connection between the food you are eating and the effect it has on your body – to eat consciously. When the body is too acidic, the lymph system, liver and kidneys all become overworked trying to remove the acidosis from the body. This also puts our immune system under great stress which, if faced with an illness, is certainly not an additional problem we want to deal with. Acidity is caused by consuming too many highly acidic foods such as meat, dairy products, alcohol, white refined sugar and simple carbohydrates. We need some acidity in our diet but not as much as the average person is consuming through a Standard UK diet (appropriately abbreviated to SUK!). There are several types of acidic food and drink that feature heavily in the average person’s diet so depending on what level of health you desire and how much raw you want to consume on a daily basis will determine how many of the following foods you continue to eat. I do recommend eliminating as many of them as possible but I realise this might be a big adjustment. So, to make it easier for you, I have split these foods into three groups; 1) acidic foods that should be avoided at all costs; these foods are highly addictive, highly acidic, mucous-forming, allergenic and pro-inflammatory. 2) acidic foods that are highly acidic that should be consumed very occasionally if at all; these foods are highly addictive, highly acidic and pro-inflammatory but can be consumed on occasion should you wish to continue to do so. 3) acidic foods that offer nutritional benefits and should be consumed in moderation as part of a healthy diet.

3. MODULE TWO Crowding Out pHenomenal Health (1) Conventional and organically harvested peanuts contain a type of mould that produces a toxin called aflatoxin which is carcinogenic (cancer-causing). Non-organic and even organic peanuts are also heavily treated with pesticides.(2) See Reading Between the Lines (3) Buy un-sulphured dried fruits where possible to avoid consuming any harmful sulphur dioxide which acts as a preservative and can be an allergen for some people.(4) Nuts are packed full of healthy fats, enzymes, vitamins and minerals but some are more acidic than others which is why they fall into the moderation pile. They should be consumed as part of a balanced (mostly) plant-based diet.(5) Raw soy beans contain a type of mould that produces a poisonous toxin called aflatoxin. This is only removed during the fermentation process making soy, tempeh, miso and tamari safe for consumption. Westernised soy is processed and not fermented meaning that the carcinogenic aflatoxin remains intact.

4. MODULE TWO Crowding Out Taking Inventory From the above table, write down all of the foods that regularly feature in your diet and how often. Be honest! ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Now , from the above list, go back and next to each food, number it from 1 upwards in order of which would be the easiest to eliminate or reduce from your diet altogether. (For example, 1 might be white pasta which might be the easiest with 2 being coffee and 3 being bread..etc) Guess what’s next....yep! You’re going to work on reducing those foods from your diet starting with.....number 1. For the next 4 days I want you to completely cut out the food you have numbered no.1 and keep a record of how you feel not eating it. For example, you might find that you feel lighter, have more energy, feel less bloated etc. You don’t need to go about eliminating all of them, just number 1 for now. TASK

5. MODULE TWO Crowding Out Alkaline Foods Here is a list of alkaline foods which you should aim to consume generously. Apple cider vinegar Cold-pressed oils; olive, argan, borage, coconut, hemp, flax Coconut water and coconut butter Cultured and fermented foods; raw sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir Green leaves; kale, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, collard greens, watercress, rocket, endive, swiss chard Fruits; avocado, lemon, lime Herbs; parsley, rosemary, mint, coriander, basil etc Nuts; almond, brazil Seeds; flax, hemp, sesame, chia, sunflower Sea vegetables; arame, dulse, hijiki, kelp, nori, wakame, kombu Sprouts; alfalfa, broccoli, mung bean, lentil, quinoa, radish, sunflower etc Vegetables; asparagus, aubergine, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, courgette, fennel, green beans, leeks, onions, peas, raw tomato, etc Root vegetables; beetroot, carrot, sweet potato, turnip

6. MODULE TWO Crowding Out Inviting the Goodies In Read through the list on the previous page and circle a particular food or food group that you haven’t eaten before or are maybe unsure of how to eat it/prepare it. As you did in the earlier exercise, then rate each food item circled from 1 upwards with 1 being the one you would MOST like to try. Get your calendar out and starting from next week onwards, write in each food group that you have circled from 1 onwards as reminder of the food to buy and try that week. Make it your goal to research recipes online, print them out and get creative with in the kitchen. Here are some awesome vegetarian blogs to help inspire you: http://www.alkalinesisters.com/ http://sproutedkitchen.com/ http://www.veggiebelly.com/ http://veganyumyum.com/ Slowly you will begin to compile a recipe binder which will serve as your own personal recipe book. Providing you follow through with this exercise, slowly but surely you will start to eat a more alkalising and anti-inflammatory diet that will boost your immune system and keep you healthy. TASK

7. MODULE TWO Crowding Out Top 5 Offenders Thanks to billions of pounds of advertising year on year, we have been brainwashed into thinking that ‘foods’ that contain chemicals that we can’t even pronounce and that have a shelf life longer than us are good for us. Seeing as the government are constantly giving us misguided information, it is up to us to take back the reins on our health and take responsibility for what we put into our bodies. Here are the top 5 worst foods that you will benefit from eliminating from your diet altogether. These foods are all highly acidic, pro-inflammatory and extremely harmful to your body. Fizzy drinks: contain excessive amounts of sugar and cancer-causing aspartame. Coffee: highly addictive, acidic and stressful to the body. Meat: highly acidic, pro-inflammatory and contains the molecule IGF-1 which makes cancer grow. Cheese: contains pesticide and hormone residues, is pro-inflammatory and contains IGF-1 Corn, canola, sunflower, soybean oil are all pro-inflammatory and contain excessive amounts of omega-6. So now that you armed with this new information, you can begin to make more informed choices about what you put into your body. Your mind and body are connected so the sooner you eat consciously and consider the effect each food has on your body, you will start to feel better and experience more vitality. Ask yourself: Will this food nourish me or neglect me? Will this food clog or cleanse me?