Eat Your Meddies

Well, I'm back! I know you were holding your breath waiting for some more knowledge to drop. Humor me, would ya?

So recently I fell ill to who knows what - the ick. A co-worker was clinically diagnosed with influenza A, sinusitis & tested positive for strep. Yeah, she didn't feel so good. I continued on with my self medicating as I usually do during flu season around the pharmacy: warm honey-lemon water for my "coffee" in the morning (fabulous local honey from Bee Boys, I might add), rest, and plenty of vitamin C from foods. This go 'round (with her triple whopper in mind) I added a newbie to my arsenal. Garlic. Lots of it. I roasted garlic in our toaster oven in the pharmacy break room. The aroma was wonderful! I consumed whole cloves of garlic for days & offered them to my co-workers.

I did get sick. I felt genuinely ill for one day. I had a low grade fever, chills & was greatly fatigued. Who knows if the duration or severity of my illness would have differed? I don't. I do know, however, that we depend on food far too infrequently as our medicine. That leads me here to you! Let's talk about 'Food Medicine'.

You know I like those 'what if's' right? What if we handed out a prescription for education (from my last blog post here)? So...what if we made our dinner plate based on what we needed & not what it would taste like? Can you imagine? I know. It is hard. We westerners are so consumed with self fulfillment that we forget sometimes (okay, almost always) that food was actually meant to live by and not for. You know, 'eat to live, not live to eat'. Here's some inspiration to get you on my wavelength.

Decidedly, I made dinner for myself and the girls that evening with looming illness in mind. We humans are instinctively attracted to colorful food aren't we? I think so. Checking out my cold storage options I chose: grilled chicken tossed in a quick honey & lime juice mix, asparagus with peppers and garlic, and a side salad. So let's dive in to that plate!

My top three pieces of proverbial body armor are:

Asparagus

• rich in folate, a B vitamin essential to cell regeneration
• contains protective glutathione to keep free radicals in check
• fat soluble vitamin E makes a show here also (heart benefits)

Sweet Peppers

• among the most nutrient-dense vegetables you can buy, especially when it comes to vitamin C and beta-carotene (converted to vitamin A in the body), which plays a key role in keeping the immune system healthy
• potent antioxidants to fight free radicals
• contain substances shown to prevent clot formation (even more so in chili peppers)

Garlic

• excellent source of vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
• good source of manganese, selenium, and vitamin C
• contains allicin, among other sulfur-containing compounds, which has been shown to be effective against common infections such as cold, flu, and Candida yeast

Bonus: This meal also created some compost materials as I snapped the asparagus.

Double bonus: You know what else happens? Monkey see, monkey do. My oldest says "I want to try that" the minute I sit down with my colorful meal. Perfect. I love sharing.

Be an example worth mimicking.

So go forth in the world this week and make your plate with "meddies"! I challenge you to pack on nutrients instead of simple taste. Train your brain & your body to value nutritiously dense food. Choose to fight disease with body armor on your plate! I would love to hear about your defense or even to see your lunch box or dinner plate pics as we finish out cold & flu season!

Ta-ta,

J