Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Little Tots, Big Ideas

I recently have had the pleasure of working with Tina McCafferty. Tina, like myself, is a SAHM, however she has 3 children and I have 1! I don't know how she does it! Her children, Puff, Buzz and Choo (as she refers to them on her blog) are 7, 6 and 3 respectively. Her blog, Little Tots Big Ideas is inspired by her own life, "the good, the bad and everything in between." Check out her blog, and my guest post!! You'll be hooked, trust me!

Guest Post: Natural Nutrion by Teddi Lee


Natural Nutrition has always been a passion of mine, for many reasons. Proper nutrition can not only increase your energy levels and make you feel better, but it will physiologically optimize your health by preventing certain diseases and assisting your body to rebuild and improve any current health conditions. I chose to focus specifically on the role of nutrition in chronic disease, including possible prevention or remediation by addressing nutritional deficiencies. I really want to get this point across as I don’t know if many people actually believe it: Most health conditions can be prevented or alleviated with a proper healthy diet! Period!

Unfortunately, our Pharmaceutical companies are making a pretty penny as they feed us pills that mask our symptoms and don`t even address the cause or cure of the problem. These synthesized medications can often cause more harm than good as they tax our kidneys and livers and create toxic build-up in our systems, creating further problems. I was pleased to research many amazing and naturally grown foods that can create the same positive effects of pharmaceutical drugs without the unhealthy side effects. As a disclaimer, it is important to note that in some instances, the use of pharmaceutical medications is necessary to support life, so consulting with your Physician is recommended.

After researching the true causes for many chronic diseases, it was evident that nutritional deficiencies played a major role in illness. Therefore, it can also be said that by rebuilding these deficiencies, many diseases can not only be alleviated but prevented. This would decrease the need for pharmaceutical medications and even eliminate it altogether.

This is great news! Unfortunately, the food quality today is not the same as it was back in the 1960`s. Due to National overproduction and nutrient-depleted soils, even our naturally grown or organic foods no longer contain the nutrients our bodies need to thrive. As our society becomes a more fast-paced culture, ``fast food`` and processed foods are alarmingly on the rise. All of these solutions to providing more convenience have created a drastic increase in Chronic Diseases and Cancers.

It is no longer an argument that supplementation is necessary to counter the above realities. When it comes to supplementation, proceed with caution; they are not all equal! Just like the medications we buy at the Pharmacy, many over-the-counter multivitamins contain man-made mineral blends that can be very detrimental and cause more harm than good. Some, if overdosed, can even be fatal. The absorption rates of pills vs. capsules and capsules vs. liquids vary dramatically. What`s the use in taking a solid multivitamin pill when studies have shown that only about 15-20% is being absorbed into your bloodstream? Did you know that a liquid supplement has a 98% absorption rate? It is important to be fully informed when choosing the most safe and effective supplements.

Natural supplementation is the only way that our Nation can ensure that we are safely consuming all of our needed vitamins and minerals necessary for the majority of our body functions. With proper supplementation, we can improve, cure and prevent illness and optimize health and well-being.
We would love to help you make a change for the better! For more information on what to look for in a supplement or on specific supplements recommended by the Nutrition Nurse, contact us at: contact@thenutritionnurse.ca

Teddi has been in health industry for 10 years. She received her Bachelor`s Degree in Nursing from the University of Athabasca in 2007. Over the years she has been involved in many aspects of Nursing from Neonatal intensive care to Psychiatry and more. In her career, she has always pursued the better health of her clients and patients. Recently, she embarked on the pursuit of helping as many lives as possible. She is currently a Registered Nurse in Private Practice and is the Founder and CEO of her company ``The Nutrition Nurse``. Teddi is a member of both The College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta and The Alberta Association of Registered Nurses in Private Practice. Having received approval from her governing body to act independently as a Nurse, she has been helping 100’s of people make dramatic health changes they never thought possible through her applied knowledge of proper nutrition and supplementation.


Friday, June 22, 2012

"Love, Peace, Happiness and Smiles..."

"Love, Peace, Happiness and Smiles..." what more can you ask for in life than that? Jen, the owner of Jen CYK Photography captures those very words in her photographs. I recently had the pleasure of writing an article for her, in which she included beautiful pictures she had previously taken. Let me just say, all of her work is breath taking!! Check out her blog, read her articles, learn more about her and remember to, love all, spread peace, spread happiness and always smile!

Thursday, June 21, 2012

OH BOY!!

Going to a baby shower? Can't think of a gift? Some unique ideas that would be great for any expecting mommy can be found over at "Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy!" A wonderful blog with wonderful ideas!    

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Are You Kidding Me?!?


Manhattan

Normally I like to remain neutral when discussing issues that can easily be debated. I like hearing both sides of any argument, as very often both have valid points. However, an article I just read from Shots Health Blog, has left me a little perturbed. Who thinks its ok to drink alcohol while they are pregnant? Not me- that's for sure! It seems like there is a study out there for almost everything in the world. This results of this particular study suggest that a few drinks a week, and even binge drinking, aren’t tied to developmental issues and may be ok to have. Really? 

I did some quick Google-ing and according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome effects up to 7 births out of every 1000 in the US, or about 0.7%. Ok, so while that may not seem like a huge number, out of the 4,130,665 births in the US last year, that’s almost 30,000 infants being born affected by alcohol!

To me that just seems unacceptable, and unfortunately these are the types of studies that get picked up by all the papers and news shows. I guess what I’m really nervous of is that people who don’t educate themselves beyond the headlines will read this and immediately assume it’s ok to knock a couple back during their pregnancy. I’m not trying to guilt or scare moms into never drinking again, all I’m asking is that, if you know for a fact your baby won’t be affected by alcohol by not drinking, is it really worth giving into temptation and having a couple just because some random article claimed it may be ok?


Full article can be found here

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Premama- The Prenatal Vitamin for Expecting Mothers


For a woman planning a pregnancy, or for a woman who is already pregnant, the importance of maintaining a healthy diet, getting exercise and taking prenatal vitamins is a constant mission for a mom-to-be. Keeping her body in the best condition to foster a healthy child is the goal of a woman and her medical team. For an expecting mother, knowing the best way to be sure she is doing all she can to stay healthy and fit may leave her feeling overwhelmed. Luckily, with products like Premama out on the market, staying healthy while pregnant is easy!

When I was expecting my child, a daughter named Lily, I was plagued with morning sickness and feelings of fatigue right from the start. I was worried that since I wasn’t craving much (mostly gyros and everything covered in blue cheese!), I wasn’t providing my baby with all of the nutrients she needed. I’ve also always been one to have a hard time swallowing pills—if medicine came in a liquid form that’s what I was taking! So prenatal vitamins were tough for me too. I of course took them (and adjusted my eating habits) to be sure that my baby was getting the best I could give her, but I wished there was something easier for me to take.

The prenatal vitamin drink made by Premama is exactly what I needed—made as a flavorless, on-the-go drink mix, this is the easiest way for an expectant mother to get the needed nutrients for baby without the discomfort of big pills or flavors that make her sick. For example, a few of Premama’s key vitamins are folic acid to help reduce birth defects, ginger root to help with morning sickness, and vitamin D3 to support bone growth.

It’s important to take prenatal vitamins when you’re planning, pregnant and nursing so your body is fully supported. An expectant mother has much to learn and many decisions to make about her delivery and her baby’s early life, things like pain management, umbilical cord blood banking and immunizations, so knowing that your nutrient needs are being met will be one less concern you and your doctor will have. Focusing on the fun parts of pregnancy like organizing a nursery, taking childbirth classes and meeting other mothers will allow you to be stress-free and relaxed throughout your term.


Monday, June 4, 2012

The No-Bake Diaper Cake!



One of my dear friends, (who's name also happens to be Katie- great name huh!?), is expecting and is due late July. At first I couldn't decide what to get her for her shower... should I go practical? or should I go extreme and buy things I know she wouldn't typically buy, like cutesy clothes and flower headbands? After a lot of thought, I decided I was determined to do both! What better way to do so than a diaper cake! Everything the cake is made of is 100% usable... I doubt she will reuse the pins though. 

Anyway, to start I collected my supplies:

Rubber Bands- I used 5 large ones
Two Boxes of Diapers (I try to get all white ones, sometimes there is a blue-ish hint to them)
Pins- a box with white pin tops works best
10" Round Cardboard Cake Board
1 Paper Towel Doily
Ribbon (Of your choice, I went with a green and a burlap for a vintage look)
Decorations- this include flowers, bows, socks, headbands, etc.
3 Cake pans/pots- these should vary in size, and will create the tiers for the cake

Now it is time for the work

Depending on what theme/look you are going for your supply list will vary. To start, take your largest cake pan (or pot, or whatever round object you have found) and start by fanning the diapers around the outside. There is no certain number of diapers to be used, it just depends on the size of the object you are using and the diapers. Eventually the diapers should circle around and create a hole in the middle, this is where the paper towel doily will be inserted to hold the three tiers together. Once the diapers are snug enough inser the doily and wrap a rubber band around the outside of the diapers. I used two just to make sure they were secure. Remove the bottom tier, with doily, from the pan and place it on the cake board. This is the base of your cake. Repeat this step two more times using the two smaller cake pans to make the next two tiers. Place each tier on the doily- usually the doily doesn't show through the top tier. 

*Note: The smallest tier only needed one rubber band because I was able to double it!

Now, that the cake is structured, let the fun begin! There are so many ways to decorate a diaper cake. For this cake in particular I started by measuring, cutting and pinning burlap around each cake tier. Then I did the same thing with the green ribbon, layering it on the burlap.

*Note: Line up the seems of each ribbon. That way they can all be covered up and used as a center point for everything else.

Once the ribbon is in place, start placing your decorations. I usually have a general idea of the look I am going for, but I always have a variety of supplies on hand to choose from. For this cake I chose to do big pink flowers down the front, and burlap bows down the back to cover the ribbon seems. I wanted to keep the cake very girly, after all she is having a girl! Everything is pinned onto the cake, so the diapers are not harmed. For added decor, I used two sets of booties, (which are adorable I must say!) and some head wraps. To top off the cake, I stuck a pink feather down the doily and added a little bling by using a green baby bracelet around the feather. 

Everything was very simple to do! I love making these cakes! Especially because I know Katie can use everything on the cake... I think I have said that 3 times now :) Oh well! 




To make the cake look more "present" like,  I wrapped it up in cellophane and tied a pretty pink and white checkered bow on top!  She LOVED it!