Modern Hippie Mag » Health

In the Kitchen with Natalia – Chocolate Cherry Truffles

Natalia KW — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 16:00:24 +0000

Cherries are one of my favorite summer fruits. I can eat them non-stop! Chocolate and cherries are a classic combo, but at first glance, there’s no way to tell there’s a sweet, fresh cherry wrapped up inside these little bites. I love surprises! The truffle base is so simple, you can play around with your favorite fruits, nuts and spices to create your own masterpiece. Have fun!

Makes one dozen

Ingredients:

3/4 cup raw cacao powder
seeds of one vanilla bean
pinch of salt
1/2 cup pitted medjool dates
1/4 cup raw honey
1 tablespoon coconut oil
12 pitted cherries
2 tablespoons raw cacao powder

Instructions:
Place the cacao powder, vanilla bean and salt in a food processor. Pulse gently to combine. Add the dates, honey and coconut oil and process until sticky and smooth. To make each truffle, roll about one tablespoon of chocolate into a 1″ ball with your hands. Flatten into a circle and wrap around the cherry. Roll again to make a smooth, round ball. Place the 2 tablespoons of cacao powder on a plate. Roll the cherry filled truffle in the cacao powder and give it one last roll with your hands for an even coating. Set in the refrigerator for one hour to firm. Consume within 2 days since you’re using fresh cherries, or freeze for longer storage.

Natalia

Natalia is the chef/owner of Glowing Temple, a raw and living foods inspiration, creation and education service based in Sarasota, Florida. She strives to create recipes focusing on local and seasonal ingredients and never compromises when it comes to organics. Natalia wishes to share the joy she has discovered through a clean, green diet. Recently, she created an organic live & vegan menu for Mi Pueblo’s University location. Find her on Twitter @NataliaKW and Facebook.

In the Kitchen with Natalia – Chocolate Cherry Truffles is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Your Daily Groove – Care For Your Earth Suit

Steve McAllister — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 11:00:54 +0000

“Take care of your body with steadfast fidelity. The soul must see through these eyes alone, and if they are dim, the whole world is clouded.” – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

Photo by Erik Johannson

As we prepare each day to go out and face the world, we put on our best outfits in order to impress, to exude an air of confidence and class, not only for those we meet, but to feel better about ourselves. Should we give any less consideration to the bodies which fill out our outfits?

From those who consider themselves as spiritual beings having a human experience, I’ve often heard the body described as an “earth suit.” As such, it is vital that we spend the proper amount of energy to ensure that our earth suits should bring us just as much confidence and class as the clothing we put on to cover them. Just as we want our outfits made of the finest material, we must consider our diet and the vitamins and minerals which will compose our bodies. Just as longer wear makes an outfit more comfortable, exercise makes a body more livable. And just as we seek out the best detergents to get the stains out of our clothes, we must be cognizant to remove any impurities that would pollute our bodies.

Regardless of what outfit you put on to cover it, the earth suit you’ve got on is the only one you get. Make sure to care for it and make it last.

Steve McAllister

In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author, filmmaker, and the man behind Your Daily Groove. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.

Your Daily Groove – Care For Your Earth Suit is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Weekday Vegetarian

Steve McAllister — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:00:27 +0000

Ever since reading The World Peace Diet, I’ve been toying with the idea of becoming a vegetarian and vaguely considering the idea of actually making the shift to veganism. For those of you who have made this shift, you know that it can sometimes be difficult. For those of you who haven’t, you probably think it impossible.

For me, it’s not necessarily that it would limit my epicurean options. After all, I have Natalia, a wonderful raw food chef, who shows me several vegan recipes in our video series In the Kitchen with Natalia. Nevertheless, eating meat has been ingrained in me since I was but a young ‘un. Other than the mornings I had cereal or oatmeal for breakfast, pretty much every meal I had revolved around some type of meat – pot roast, spaghetti with meat sauce, broiled chicken, barbecued kielbasa, pork tenderloin… okay, you get the picture. I mean, I was raised as a Baptist. We have barbecue for communion, for goodness sake.

Yet I know that American meat consumption is way over the top. The new KFC Ultimate Double Stack Artery Blocker is a testament to that (replacing the buns with fried chicken breasts? I mean, come on!). I know that the methane emitted by beef cows is not good for the environment and a possible contributor to global warming. I know that the practices used by many of our factory farms is far less than humane. I know that it takes more crops to feed livestock than it does to feed people. And I know that the runoff from these factories causes a great deal of our pollution. Even with all of that knowledge, giving up meat is no easy task.

But I did challenge myself to become a vegetarian for the month of July. And I must say that I’ve done pretty well. The first nine days went off without a hitch. I was eating plenty of leafy vegetables, Boca burgers, and raw foods. I even had a Chipotle burrito without the carnitas. Then my wife had a craving for a rotisserie chicken and I fell off the wagon. Nevertheless, I crawled back on, and I’m proud to say that I went to the all you can eat buffet at Troyer’s Amish Restaurant and managed to eat no meat. I had a great salad, potatoes, stuffing, corn, green beans, broccoli, and topped it off with cake and ice cream. And while I humbly admit that I slipped up in my vegetarian commitment, I’m not beating myself up over it.

What’s important to me is cutting down on my meat consumption. One of these days, I’m sure I’ll become a total vegan (especially if they invent a barbecue tree), but for the time being, I’m taking baby steps. I think too many people, myself included, get so caught up in the “all or nothing” mentality that they end up hating themselves for faltering while trying to change a lifelong habit. I’ve got plenty of things to get mad at myself about. I’d rather rejoice when I do well than get down on myself when I do bad.

Recently, I saw the following video on TED by the founder of Treehugger, Graham Hill, where he talks about his own struggle with going vegetarian. He brings up some pretty good points, and I thought I’d share it with those of you who are considering the transition, but become grim when holding your “last” hamburger in your hand. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time.

Steve

Weekday Vegetarian is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Conscious Ingredient: Coconut

Suncear Scretchen — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:00:45 +0000

Conscious Ingredient: Coconut

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had a fascination with coconut. I insisted on having it on any cake we made or bought- (who remembers Pepperidge Farm’s three layer coconut cake?) We also used to crack one open with a hammer, drink the juice and eat the meat. As it turns out we were doing something very beneficial for our hair, skin, nails and overall health. Fortunately, we can now get the benefits in easier ways that don’t involve using a hammer.

Photo by Kevin Holler

Coconut water is now becoming the drink du jour for fitness buffs. It’s a great way to replenish the electrolytes that are lost via sweat including potassium and sodium. It’s also used to maintain the health of the kidneys, urinary tract and bladder. If you don’t like the flavor of it alone, try substituting it for water in your smoothies. Here’s a recipe that’s perfect for summer. It’s both cooling and increases energy.

Coco water, mango, blueberries, chia seeds, greens of choice- (dandelion leaves are good for balancing out the sweetness and detoxing the liver.)

When researching remedies for my thyroid issue, I discovered coconut oil. The oil can be purchased in jars or in supplements. It has a high iodine content which makes it a good source for people suffering with hypo-thyroidism. In addition, it helps in maintaining low cholesterol, metabolism and dental and bone health. It’s also used to help eliminate candida yeast infections due to it’s anti-fungal properties. Coconut oil is a very good cooking oil as it remains stable under high heat (360 degrees). When purchasing this product you should look for virgin or extra virgin coconut oil. You want a product that is cold pressed from fresh coconut meat. It seems to work best when other elements of the coconut are consumed.

Adding to its multifunction, the coconut is not only great internally but topically as well. Because it’s an antioxidant, it’s perfect to use as a moisturizer for the skin and hair leaving them both soft and well-conditioned. Sun tanners will be glad to hear that it also protects against UV rays. Create your own body scrub by combining coconut oil, sea salt and your favorite essential oil.

If you prefer to just use the meat, put some flakes in your smoothies, on top of desserts or in a fruit salad.

In whatever form you chose to consume coconut, it has a plethora of nutrients that nourish both inside and out. And summer the perfect time for that pina colada so drink up- just use real coconut milk.

Suncear

Suncear Scretchen has had a life long interest in natural and organic products. After a bout of Graves Disease over 10 years ago, she began a quest of integrated wellness. Her research led her to the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and she is now a Health Coach helping clients lead healthier lifestyles. Her passion for achieving awareness in everything we put on and into our bodies is chronicled in her blog Conscious Chick. She is a Wellness Contributor for Creme Magazine and My TempO! with Morgan. For more info on Health Coaching visit SunCere Wellness.

Conscious Ingredient: Coconut is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Acne, Dairy and Soy: The Killer the Culprit and the Cure?

Shayna Teicher — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:30:01 +0000

For those who haven’t heard my story, a huge part of how I ended up opening Butterfly Effect and getting into this business in general was that I had constant skin problems starting from my early teens. From oily skin to hormonal breakouts to funny little patches of eczema, it was always something, and despite spending plenty of my money (starting with my earnings from working at a bead store from ages 14-17) and buying everything from high-end skincare to special makeup that was recommended to me by countless department store ladies/makeup counters/infomercials/health food stores, nothing ever seemed to make an improvement. I was on and off birth control which (while I was on it for the fourth time) did seem to help, but overall it just made me a crazy person- many of my friends will vouch for this, bless them. I also started eating organic and using natural products.

At this point, I realized that you can’t take anything at face value, not what the sales people tell you and certainly not what a product’s packaging says- they want you to buy their product when you read its label. Then I found mineral makeup. When I started wearing i.d. bareMinerals (I now custom blend my own mineral makeup) around my junior year of college, my skin saw a HUGE improvement, and I knew there was something to this whole “natural thing”, that there was benefit in putting less on your skin rather than more, and certainly in putting less chemicals on your skin in general. I hate to say it, but other than my introduction to mineral makeup, the biggest improvements I’ve ever seen in my skin have come from my own research and using deduction to rule out triggers, NOT from salespeople or physicians. That’s why when I recommend skin care products to customers, I always ask lots of questions and encourage them to pay close attention to things like their diet, activity level, chemical/product exposure, and daily lifestyle when trying to determine the cause of a skin issue (very different from the approach of too many MDs: “Treat the symptoms. If they go away, what does it matter what the cause was?” Sorry if it seems harsh, but this has been my experience.) I’ve seen people with breakouts caused by cell phones, shampoo, skin cream, natural extracts, wheat, dairy, soy, chemicals, mineral oil, etc…all who went to the dermatologist, who simply wrote them a prescription. Breakouts aren’t always caused by what you think.

Part of my journey in dealing with breakout prone skin and switching to a more natural, organic diet has been cutting back on dairy, which in turn has resulted in my eating more soy (thank goodness for Purely Decadent soy ice cream- See? All my posts really do go together!). I noticed a significant difference in both the oiliness, and in the amount, size and severity of my breakouts when I cut back my dairy. I went from consuming probably 3-5 servings a day to 1-3. As I started eating more soy, the breakouts seemed to improve even further. When I went online to see if other people had had similar experiences, I was surprised to find lots of people on opposite sides- either switching from dairy to soy made their skin worse, or it improved it. There was little in between and I was having trouble finding a source to bridge the gap.

In his abstract “Pathogenesis of Acne”, Dr. Toyoda M. Morohashi (Japan) explains that “Acne results from hyperkeratinization and obstruction of the pilosebaceous follicles secondary to androgen-stimulated failure of normal desquamation of the follicular epithelium, androgen-stimulated sebum production, subsequent colonization of the follicles by Propionibacterium acnes and other organisms, and variably, inflammation.” Basically androgenic (male) hormones stimulate sebum production (the mix of oils and dead skin cells our skin produces), which prevents the normal process of the natural shedding of the outer layers of the skin and leads to hardening of those cells and blocking of the sebaceous follicles, leaving them prone to acne-causing bacteria and inflammation. This explains why traditional, over the counter acne remedies rely on exfoliation (salicylic acid) and anti-bacterial (benzoyl peroxide) action, or else hampering oil production all together (accutane). The key word in Dr. Morohashi’s explaination is ANDROGENS: a group of “steroid hormones that stimulate or control the development and maintenance of male characteristics”.

If androgens are a culprit behind acne, how are so many women (over 75% of girls age 16-18 experience acne) being exposed to them? It seems highly unlikely that such a substantial portion of the population would all suffer from an overproduction of the same hormone. More and more studies are pointing to milk and dairy.

In a talk at Harvard University, Ganmaa Davaasambee, “a Mongolia-trained medical doctor, a Japan-trained Ph.D in environmental health, a fellow [in 2006] at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, and a working scientist in the Harvard School of Public Health,” discussed the link between cancer and dietary hormones, in particular the estrogenic hormones found in milk and dairy. “Among the routes of human exposure to estrogens, we are mostly concerned about cow’s milk, which contains considerable amounts of female sex hormones,” Ganmaa said. She also noted that dairy accounts for 60-80 percent of estrogens consumed. Where do all these hormones come from? In order for commercially bred cows to be most productive (for the nearly 300 days a year that they are milked!), they need to be kept pregnant. Those hormones that the cows produce are also in their milk, so when we drink that milk or eat dairy made from it, we are ingesting those hormones. While the high levels of estrogens in modern dairy may have a connection with cancer rates (the focus of Ganmaa’s study- which you can read about here), the same milk also contains androgens, progesterone (which breaks down into androgens), and androgen precursors. It’s the androgens (testosterone producing hormones) that are a trigger for acne, especially in women who are already biologically sensitive to male hormones.

Photo by Marijn van Braak

The level of hormones present in milk depends on how far along in the pregnancy the cow is. “Milk from the late stage of pregnancy contains up to 33 times more signature estrogen compound (estrone sulfate) than milk from a non-pregnant cow…” making “the milk we drink today quite unlike the milk our ancestors were drinking without apparent harm for 2,000 years.” Ganmaa isn’t declaring dairy itself a bad food, but she is questioning its safety when it’s produced using our modern techniques. “Milk is a food of great complexity, and contains high levels of beneficial nutrients, including calcium and vitamin D.” Even cows not treated with BGHs (bovine growth hormones) contain these hormones, because they’re still kept pregnant.

This would explain why many women experience improvement in their acne with the use of birth control- the estrogen hormones helps counterbalance the excess of testosterone/androgenic hormones. Unfortunately, this isn’t a cure, it’s just a band-aid.

In the experiences that people were sharing online, some people who tried switching from dairy to soy in an effort to improve their breakouts found that they were allergic to soy and that it actually made their breakouts much worse. Others found that switching to soy delivered an improvement- indicating not only that they may have been experiencing a dairy intolerance, but that the estrogenic compounds in the soy itself might be beneficial. Sheesh! The conclusion? While there may not be a definite answer, it’s relatively easy to use trial and error to find out if dairy and/or soy are behind your acne woes.

This would be my recommendation: If you currently consume dairy and soy, try cutting out only dairy for two weeks. You don’t even have to cut it all, just a significant amount; I just don’t want to give up my morning latte, but I’ve cut out all ice cream and yogurt, and most cheese. After two weeks, do you see any improvement? Then add it back and cut out soy for two weeks. What changes have you seen? I think many people will find right away that cutting out one or both of these food groups leads to improvement of acne symptoms. Note: many processed foods contain milk and soy ingredients, so if you eat a lot of those, be sure to check the ingredients labels to see if you’re getting dairy and soy in unexpected places. If you couldn’t see an improvement being either dairy-free or soy-free, then you have to try cutting out both.

For me, the experience of experimenting with my diet was well, WELL worth it. I learned that while I need to avoid dairy in excess, I can have a little, and soy (perhaps it’s the additional estrogenic compounds) seems to help, rather than hurt my situation. It’s also just another example of how where our food comes from and how it’s produced is just important, if not more so, than the food itself.

Have you had any skin revelations? Do you have experience dealing with dairy or soy reactions? Please share!

Resources:

http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2006/12.07/11-dairy.html

http://dermatology.cdlib.org/124/original/acne/danby.html#2

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11479771?dopt=Abstract

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desquamation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Androgen

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,835434,00.html

Shayna Teicher

After nearly three years managing a bath and beauty boutique, Shayna decided to go out on her own and open Butterfly Effect, a holistic, eco-conscious beauty boutique located in Sarasota, Florida. Our very own “Beauty Chick”, read Shayna’s other intriguing articles and product reviews here.

Acne, Dairy and Soy: The Killer the Culprit and the Cure? is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Minimizing Cell Phone Radiation

EarthTalk — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 13:00:43 +0000

EarthTalk®
From the Editors of E/The Environmental Magazine

Dear EarthTalk: OK, so are cell phones emitting dangerous radiation or not? If so, which phones are safer that others and what do we do to minimize exposure? — Luke Alderman, Santa Fe, NM

The jury is still out as to whether or not the radiation emitted by cell phones can cause negative health effects for callers. Mobile phones emit signals to communicate with cellular towers via radio waves, which are comprised of radio-frequency (RF) energy, a form of electromagnetic radiation.

courtesy Thinkstock

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) limits the amount of radiation any phone sold in the U.S. can emit to what it considers a safe level of 1.6 watts per kilogram of body weight (a measure of the energy absorbed by the body when using a wireless device). But some health practitioners are concerned that even this level of exposure may be too high, resulting in people unwittingly exposing themselves to potentially harmful radiation every time they make or take a call.

Such radiation is known to heat up living tissue it comes into close contact with by a fraction of a degree, but this level of temperature increase is less than that caused by exposure to direct sunlight, and the brain’s blood circulation typically disperses this excess heat quickly by increasing local blood flow.

Some recent studies have found higher risks for brain and salivary gland tumors among people using cell phones for 10 years or longer, while other research has found little if any risk. Other research has looked at the reproductive, cognitive and sleep effects of RF energy at levels similar to what cell/smart phones emit. Results have been mixed. More studies are now underway to resolve whether or not cell phones are safe for people to use, but some electronics manufacturers aren’t waiting around to cut down on the radiation emissions of the phones they make and sell.

If you are in the market for a new cell phone, check out the nonprofit Environmental Working Group’s (EWG’s) rundown on which of the thousand or so popular cell/smart phone models give off the most and least radiation. Levels vary widely, from as little as 0.3 to the legal limit of 1.6 watts per kilogram of body weight. Sanyo’s Katana II, Samsung’s Rugby, Nokia’s 7710, and the Blackberry Storm, among others, get top marks from EWG for giving off lower amounts of radiation (in the 0.3 range). Meanwhile, more than a dozen different cell/smart phones (including some of the most popular models such as Motorola’s Droid, Blackberry’s Bold 9700, LG’s Chocolate Touch and HTC’s Nexus One by Google) are categorized as “worst” by EWG for giving off larger amounts of radiation (pushing the 1.6 limit). Apple’s iPhone 3Gs is in the middle of the spectrum, leaking between 0.52 and 1.19, depending on usage.

Regardless of which cell/smart phone you use, you can minimize your exposure to RF radiation by taking a few simple precautions. For one, using a headset (these give off significantly less radiation) or speaker phone keeps the phone itself away from your head. Also, your phone emits far less radiation when used to text instead of call—and the phone isn’t next to your brain when texting—so the more you tap (just not while driving, please!) instead of talk the better. Also, a poor signal (fewer bars) means that your phone has to work harder—and emit more radiation—to connect up to a wireless tower, so wait to make that call until you are somewhere with a stronger connection.

CONTACTS: FCC, www.fcc.gov; Environmental Working Group, www.ewg.org.

SEND YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS TO: EarthTalk®, c/o E – The Environmental Magazine, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; earthtalk@emagazine.com. E is a nonprofit publication. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/subscribe; Request a Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.

Minimizing Cell Phone Radiation is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Mojo Boosters: 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Energy Output

Guest Contributor — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 16:00:43 +0000

Mojo Boosters: 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Energy Output

Is your mojo running in “slow mo?” Are you finding yourself dragging through each day, seemingly unable to move out of neutral? Are you fighting a bad case of the “grumpies?” Chances are, you need a mojo boost. Like most of us, your energy levels are being adversely affected by the negativity we are absorbing in the midst of the widespread challenges, both on Wall Street and on Main Street. Going to work when you’re constantly hearing about layoffs or reading about the latest company shutting its doors is difficult – and trying to remain creative, upbeat and productive can be twice as hard.

Before we begin to boost our mojo, we need to understand what mojo is. Mojo is reflected differently in each person, yet its essence is the same for all of us. Mojo is our internal energy, inspiration and power that propels us joyfully forward in life, allowing us to fulfill our goals and act upon that which we desire. In short, mojo is our fuel for a happy and productive life. Our tanks get low on mojo when we allow it to become stagnant, depleted or sucked away from us by others. However, we can fill our tanks whenever we wish. All it takes is some intention, conscious awareness and choice.

So how can we boost our mojo? We acquire more mojo when we choose activities that are healthy, balanced and blissful. At work especially, this means finding the silver lining, even when times are tough. But don’t despair! Below are five simple yet effective mojo boosters to help you out of the recession rut:

Be good to yourself. One of the most important steps you can take to boost your mojo is to adopt a rigorous plan for self-care. This includes choosing the highest quality fuel to run on. Choose healthy foods to eat and snack on, avoid eating on-the-go, and especially avoid too many empty (albeit comforting) sugary foods and simple carbohydrates. Get outside at least once a day to breathe in one of nature’s biggest mojo boosters: Oxygen! All it takes is a simple walk around the parking lot or office plaza to get your energy boost. Also, don’t be shy when it comes to getting those forty winks over the weekend, soaking in a tub, or getting a massage. Take care of your body so it will take care of you.
Photo by Arsel Özgürdal

Be playful. When is the last time you’ve seen a child without energy? It rarely happens! Most children have one agenda item on their list: have fun. They revel in the act of creating, exploring and playing. Their days fly by, and they never want to take a nap or go to bed for fear that they will miss something wonderful. We can learn something from these smaller teachers by incorporating a little more play into our lives. At work, think about the ways you can bring more play into your cubicle. Display your favorite bobblehead or figurine on your desk. Use your lunch break to play a board game with co-workers while you eat. Sign up for a joke-of-the-day e-mail. Outside of the office, pick shells on the beach, play with your family outside or even run on the Slip’nSlide in the back yard. Let your inner kid play again!
Be mindful. Our mojo gets sapped when our minds endlessly jump from task to task, or more precisely, obsess over problem after problem. Our computers need to be turned off every once in a while in order to function optimally, and our minds are no different. Take some time to mentally “defrag” through the act of meditation. If you are new to meditation, simply carve out a few minutes every day to comfortably sit in silence. DO NOTHING. Simply be. Take the end of your lunch break and use it to meditate. You will be surprised how much more energized you feel after letting your brain rest for a bit. Once you have incorporated periods of silence into your life, you can begin to add other mindful activities such as creative visualization or clearing your office space through de-cluttering and other simple Feng Shui techniques like turning your desk toward the door, placing plants in corners, and moving electrical equipment as far away from you as possible.
Photo by Tosaporn Boonyarangkul
Be present. A major obstacle to maximizing one’s mojo is the all-too-common practice of regretting the past or fretting over the future. We spend so much of our energy wallowing in previous so-called failures or fearing the absolute worst of what may happen instead of living joyfully in the moment. We don’t know what the future holds, and it is simply a waste of valuable time and mojo to try to control it. The best way to remain firmly planted in the present is to increase your awareness of yourself and your surroundings. Place your hand on your heart. What do you feel? Look around. What do you see? Our lives are rich beyond measure when we take the time to be fully present. It is, after all, the only thing we have.
Be grateful. Expressing gratitude is like receiving a shot of adrenaline. When we are grateful for what we already have – a home, a family, love, health, food, and shelter – we instantly get a boost of mojo that can help us through the tough times. The key is to make the expression of gratitude a daily habit. Think about starting and ending each day with a “gratitude rant.” Before you get out of bed and drive to work, or before you shut off the light to get back into bed, mentally rattle off all of the fabulous things in your life. Take note of the gifts contained within the challenges of the day. What was the blessing in the postponed meeting or client call? Did it allow you to spend more time on a project that had a deadline, or did it make it so that you were able to drive home a few minutes earlier to see your family? If you operate from a perspective of gratitude, then you will never have that familiar feeling of running on empty.

Even though it sometimes seems like our energy is dependent on our job status, the messages from the media, or the balance in our bank accounts, we can break that pattern by making these simple mojo-boosting choices over and over again, day after day, minute by minute. Choose to have a life of abundance, balance, and creativity, and then go about embodying those ideas, beliefs and actions that support it.

Theresa

Theresa Rose is a national motivational speaker and author of Opening the Kimono: A Woman’s Intimate Journey Through Life’s Biggest Challenges. She won the 2008 Royal Palm Literary Award from the Florida Writers Association and the Living Now Book Award from Independent Publisher. For more information, visit theresarose.net. You can also connect with her on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Mojo Boosters: 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Energy Output is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Chunks of Energy

Steve McAllister — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 14:00:53 +0000

Are you looking for a healthy, organic energy bar? Do you want some tasty snacks that are vegan, raw, and inexpensive,…and bite size? Dancing Star Natural Energy Products has just what you’re looking for!

Organic Chocolate Paradise

Starting Dancing Star in 1992, Michael Garfield-Wright combined his business acumen based on his experience working on Wall Street, his knowledge of natural foods gathered by working at Bread and Circus (now Whole Foods), and his passion for sustainability to create what would ultimately become Chunks of Energy. Instead of being prepared and packaged like most energy bars you might be familiar with, Chunks of Energy are sold in bulk, in bite sized cubes, cutting down on excess packaging and offering greater portion control. Best of all, with a wide assortment of flavors that keeps growing, they taste great!

High Country Gorp

Offering much more variety than a lot of the other energy bars out there, Chunks of Energy boast flavors like Mixed Berry Blast, Chocolate Paradise Organic, Cranberry Apricot, and High Country Gorp, to name just a few. I’ve tried my share of energy bars, and these are some of the tastiest I’ve had. Using all natural ingredients, they contain no MSG, and most are dairy free. They even have some that are 100% raw, Fair Trade, salt free, peanut free, and soy free. For discerning palates and food allergies, there’s sure to be something for everyone.

The chunks are sold in bulk bins or repacked in small quantities in over 2000 organic food stores nationwide in 50 states. By selling them in bulk, thousands of bar wrappers per month never make it to the landfill. You can also buy them through their website in 5 pound increments (5lbs comes to about 110 pieces). Depending on the flavor, they range in price from $5 to $5.90 per pound. Even if you buy one of the most expensive flavors, like Cacao Goji Berry Organic or Lemon Pop Organic Vegan, they still only come to about 35 cents per chunk. When compared with a lot of the other energy bars on your grocer’s shelf, that’s a pretty good price. But if you just want to buy a few to give them a try, you are still able to buy 8 oz. samplers from Nuts Online.

Beyond the great flavors and outstanding ingredients, it’s also worth mentioning how earth-friendly they are, environmentally and socially. Because they are sold in bulk, that cuts down on the packaging that needs to be thrown away. Proceeds from sales go to support charities like Buckland Public Library and Warm the Children. And they give preference to buying their ingredients from smaller, family farms.

So if you’re looking for something healthy, natural, and cost effective that’s good for you and good for the planet, give Chunks of Energy a shot.

Steve McAllister

In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author and filmmaker. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.

Chunks of Energy is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Sustainable sugar: An oxymoron?

EarthTalk — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:00:12 +0000

EarthTalk®
From the Editors of E/The Environmental Magazine

Dear EarthTalk: I am a bartender in Sacramento and I would love to be able to use some sort of locally made or sustainable version of sugar. What’s out there? – Ryan Seng, via e-mail

It sure would be nice if we could obtain all of our food and drink items from local sources, but sugar provides an excellent example of why such a desire may remain a pipe dream in the United States for a long time to come. The sugar we consume that is produced domestically comes from sugar cane grown in Hawaii and the Southeast and sugar beet from the Upper Midwest, Pacific Northwest, California and elsewhere. However, it is likely milled and refined hundreds if not thousands of miles from where it is harvested, and then shipped all over the country—causing untold greenhouse gas emissions—in various sized packages for our consumption in our coffee, on our cereal and, for some of us, in our cocktails.

Massive government subsidies and land giveaways to the sugar industry in the American Southeast beginning in the early 18th century established a market for American-grown sugar despite the fact that the region’s climate was not tropical enough to grow cane efficiently. To add insult to injury, the rerouting of south Florida’s fragile water table to irrigate thirsty sugar plantations contributed to the decimation of the Everglades, one of the nation’s most unique and diverse ecosystems—and now the subject of a multi-billion dollar restoration effort.

Ashe-villain, courtesy Flickr

While you might be hard pressed to find commercially available local sugar anywhere in the U.S., you could make your own. “Years ago, when sugar was an expensive commodity, many people of lesser means made their own sugar from sugar beets,” reports writer Kat Yares on the eHow.com website. “Every farm and every home garden had a spot reserved for beets, and a day was set aside to cook the beets down into sugar.” While very few of us grow our own food these days, growing sugar beets and making sugar from scratch can be a fun, educational and tasty project for parents and kids or for foodies intent on local sourced, preservative-free ingredients. Yares explains the whole process in her “How to Make Sugar from Beets” article on eHow.com.

If that all sounds like too much work, perhaps you can settle for store-bought organic sugar, which may not be local but which is at least produced without chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Florida Crystals, Hain, C&H, Domino and others each offer organic sugar varieties in many traditional grocery stores coast-to-coast. There are even more choices at natural foods specialty stores (like Whole Foods). Believe it or not, there are even vegan sugars out there—that is, sugars not processed with animal-derived bone char in the refinement process.

While sugar itself may be a staple item for many cocktails, some interesting alternative natural sweeteners, some of which may be locally sourced in your region, do exist. Agave nectar, honey or even maple syrup are some options that might just give that Tom Collins the extra kick it needs to make it stand out from the other bartender’s drinks down the street—or in your breakfast cereal, for that matter.

CONTACTS: eHow, www.ehow.com; Florida Crystals, floridacrystals.com; Hain, www.hainpurefoods.com; C&H, www.chsugar.com; Domino, www.dominosugar.com.

Sustainable sugar: An oxymoron? is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Your Daily Groove – The Value of Personal Health Care

Steve McAllister — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 11:00:47 +0000

“The . . . patient should be made to understand that he or she must take charge of his own life. Don’t take your body to the doctor as if he were a repair shop.” – Quentin Regestein

Photo by J.G. Ross

One of the considerations often overlooked in the recent discussions of health care reform has been the responsibility of the citizen to care for his own health. In a society plagued by rampant obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and little exercise, it is up to us, more so than it is up to our doctors, to navigate these treacherous waters of poor health and keep our bearing on optimal living.

Fortunately, with the rise in communication granted to us through the Internet and other media outlets, greater consideration is being given to good nutrition, alternative methods of healing, and various exercises. Yet despite this flux of information, it is what we do with it that is of the ultimate importance. As difficult as it may seem to be sometimes to take time to care for our bodies as the world offers so many things to fill up our time, minds, bellies, and arteries, it is up to each of us to decide where to focus our attention and to ensure our own mental, spiritual, and physical health.

Steve McAllister

Your Daily Groove – The Value of Personal Health Care is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.