Nutra Narratives Blog

Zonulin is an inflammatory protein that was discovered by Alessio Fasano and his colleagues in 2000. This protein regulates the permeability of the gut lining. Friend:  When pathogenic bacteria is present, zonulin is triggered and performs its part in protecting us by temporarily opening up or loosening up the tight junctions of the gut lining to release the bugs through diarrhea, helping us get rid of the bacteria. After the pathogenic bacteria exits the body, zonulin levels decrease and the tight junctions return to closure. Foe: No one is able to digest gluten. Six percent of the global population are gluten sensitive (not the same as allergies or intolerances). This is separate from those who have celiac disease. For the six percent who are gluten sensitive, gluten is a stronger trigger for zonulin. The result is higher than normal levels of zonulin for these individuals. With higher levels of zonulin, tight junctions remain permeable allowing toxins, undigested food, etc....

Eating well for gut health is not complicated.  Let's start with the basics! Taper down on pro-inflammatory foods:     Depending on your current gut health status, some may benefit from  TEMPORARILY keeping food and beverage items with added sugar and  refined carbohydrates at bay. These items can be returned mindfully and  occassionally after the state of inflammation in your gut has diminished. Bring on the nutrient packed anti-inflammatory foods:     Have fun alternating different vegetables and fruits that you enjoy according to the rainbow Savor those avocados and olives Crunch on the variety of nuts and seeds available Nourish the ecological community in your gut part 1: Consume a variety of prebiotic rich foods, which fuel the live micro-organisms called probiotics. Peanuts & nuts w/ skin Garlic Onions Apples Bananas Asparagus  Dandelion Greens Others! Nourish the ecological community in your gut part 2:      ...

Toxins is another key culprit in wreaking havoc on gut health. If ingested or inhaled, toxins  can result in dysbiosis leading to leaky gut or intestinal permeability. The truth is that toxins are everywhere. We cannot completely avoid them.  However, there are a few areas where we can at least escape some of them. First of all, let's look at the difference between the two words toxins and toxicants.  Toxins are poisonous substances that are naturally produced by plants,animals and insects. Toxicants are potentially poisonous and are either naturally produced or synthetically made. The major areas we can decrease our ingestion, inhalation or application of toxins and toxicants are the following: 1. Food 2. Cooking ware 3. Beauty products 4. Household cleaning products 5. Dental care products The following are a few companies that have certified determination of ingredients that are toxic and safe: 1. United States Environmental Protection Agency 2. Made Safe 3. BeautyCoun...

Stress is a viable culprit proven to affect gut health. In order to live BETTER, one must manage their stress levels.  It would be nice if we can get rid of stress, but especially as we're living through these unprecedented times, it's not easy to avoid stress all together. What's one aspect we can manage?  Well, let's look at the word diet.  People use the word diet when they want to lose weight or they have a medical condition and in order to control their medical condition, they say they are on a diet. For me, the word diet has connotations such as "you can't have this" or "you can't have that" when it comes to food. This places any individual in a position of restriction or restraint.  Our immediate human reaction to restrictions is that something is controlling us and we don't like it. The thought of deprivation results in wanting even more of that one thing we can't have.  These feelings of restraints results in unconscious...

Here's a quick-refreshing drink for the summer time! Ingredients: 4 pitted dates 1 whole banana (frozen and cut into one inch pieces) 3/4 cup milk of choice (I use unsweetened soy milk) Directions: Place dates, frozen banana pieces and milk in a blender and blend away!  Enjoy! JeJe's Website

The Live BETTER program that I developed and work with is simply the following.  This framework consists of six pillars.  They are: B-Breathe deeply through the stress. E-Enjoy moving it! T-Trust in the Lord. T-Tune out toxins. E-Eat well. R-Rest regularly. Each pillar is inter-related with each other to achieve your optimum gut health! Cheers to BETTER living! **************** JeJe's Website

We're not even going to talk about eating well to live well on this post for now.  Let's back up to the basics of understanding important definitions. The two words we will look at are eubiosis and dysbiosis. We all have a wonderful community that lives in our gut. This community consists of both beneficial bacteria and pathogenic bacteria. Beneficial bacteria helps us digest food that we eat and aids in absorption of nutrients.  Excessive amounts of pathogenic bacteria can lead to illness. Eubiosis is our goal for optimum health. Eubiosis is a state when there are more beneficial bacteria to pathogenic bacteria residing in our gut.  In addition, there is a good variety of different beneficial bacteria present. This balance helps keep the lining of our gut stay intact, which in turn helps us from getting sick.   Dysbiosis is the opposite of eubiosis. In dysbiosis, there is either more p...

I had purchased a whole bunch of ingredients to make two kinds of scones last Sunday. My plan was to make pumpkin scones and cinnamon scones. After I made the cinnamon scones, I changed my mind and didn't make the pumpkin scones. (I still plan on making the pumpkin ones though!) As a result, I decided last minute tonight to use the pumpkin I bought and I came up with a recipe for creamy pumpkin soup, which my taste buds were in the mood for. I was pleased with this rich in beta carotene good-for-the-eyes- soup that I'm posting it right away!  Ingredients: 1/2 cup of margarine 6 Tbsp of whole wheat flour 2 cups of almond milk 3 tsp McKay's Beef-like powdered broth 1 can (15 oz) Pumpkin puree 1 chopped onion, chopped into very small pieces 6 cloves of garlic, minced and chopped into very small pieces Pepper to taste Dash of cinnamon Dash of nutmeg Cilantro for garnishing (optional) Directions: In a medium-sized saucepan and on medium heat, combine margarin...

In creating this recipe, my mind went straight to initially developing a patty using carrots. That didn't work out as well as I would have liked it to turn out; however, yams presented itself as being the choice to take center stage of my patty recipe. The twist to this patty is that it is made in a panini maker.  It sure saves time making it this way! Ingredients: 1 14 oz tub of soft tofu 1 cup of shredded yam 1 cup of shredded light sharp cheddar cheese 2 cups of panko bread crumbs 1 of an onion chopped 3 eggs or 1 cup of egg substitute 2 tsp of McKay's chicken-like powdered broth 1 tsp of mushroom seasoning  At least 2 Tbsp of canola oil or vegetable cooking spray Directions: Mash/crumble tofu with hands and place in a strainer while preparing the rest of the ingredients. This will allow the water from the tofu to drain. In a large bowl, mix the tofu, yam, cheese, bread crumbs, eggs, onions, and seasonings together very well. Preheat panini maker, which o...

I used to be a member of Recipe Redux.  I had a great time with them creating recipes.  This was the first recipe I created for them. The theme for that particular month was legumes and beans created in a festive manner.   Since I love the wonderful taste of lentils, I decided to create a recipe centered on lentils embedded on top of a quinoa base stuffed in a beautiful green pepper.  For my recipe, I used green peppers and green lentils sprinkled with red pimientos on top.  However, you can also switch up this recipe by using red peppers and red lentils and sprinkling it on top with green onions to create a festive look. Ingredients: 1 cup uncooked lentils 1/2 cup chopped onions 2 cups water 2 tsp McKay's Beef-Style Powdered Broth 1 tsp mushroom seasoning 1 cup uncooked quinoa 4 cloves chopped garlic 2 cups water 2 tsp McKay's Chicken-Style Powdered Broth 1/3 cup diced tomatoes 2 tsp of lemon juice Salt to taste (optional) 6 green bell pepp...

I am thankful for having the honor of growing up in a loving, Christian home...and a especially an Adventist home.  So, if you grew up in the Adventist circle, you know all about the infamous "Special K Loaf"...or sometimes known as cottage cheese loaf.  It's a favorite in potlucks for sure!  Amazingly, there are so many versions of recipes out there for this popular cottage cheese dish. In addition, depending on who's version or conglomeration of versions you use, the saturated fat content can be astronomical.  However, I am a believer in moderation, so it definitely doesn't hurt to have it once in a while.   I was determined to make a spin-off version of this wonderful dish with maintaining flavor, but decreasing the saturated fat content.  The outcome is a lentil potato loaf. I have been working on this recipe for a couple weeks and I was able to fine tune it by the time Bible Study was at my house last Tuesday.  I made it for the gals and w...