Vitamins

It's always best to receive all the nutrients your body requires through a healthy diet rich in vitamins and minerals.  The reality of life, however, is that many of us do not eat the correct daily dose of our required vitamins. 

At Askenas Chiropractic, we sell a variety of high-quality vitamins that will round out your existing diet to ensure your body gets the nutrients it needs. 

Some of the vitamins we have available for purchase are Vitamin C, Omega 3 Fish Oil, Lysine, Glucosamine/Chondroitin, Kalms, Vitamin E, Calcium/Magnesium, Multi Vitamin, and Children's complete DHE/EPA (Omega 3 Fish Oil). 

Please ask the Doctor to explain to you what each of these vitamins does at your next visit. 

Please read below for some helpful nutritional information.

Pain, Inflammation and Diet

The right foods can be a powerful medicine when it comes to the inflammation and pain associated with injuries.

On the other hand, the wrong foods can exasperate symptoms and discomfort. Inflammation is your body�s way of increasing blood flow to an injury, bringing in nutrients that heal and white blood cells to swallow germs.

While the natural response of inflammation is an important part of the body�s strategy to repair damage, excessive amounts can result in accelerated tissue deterioration and a slowing of the overall healing process.

Keeping the following in mind will help control inflammation and pain as well as promote healing. Emphasize a whole foods diet. Choose and eat foods in their natural, whole form, or as close to how they occur in nature as possible.

This means limit over-processed foods, which are often found in bags, boxes, or cans. Increase omega-3 fatty acids, through foods like wild, cold-water fish, walnuts, grass-fed meats, eggs, and flaxseeds.

Look for DHA rich eggs. Although eggs have some DHA, some egg producers will add DHA-rich marine algae into the hens� feed, which naturally passes into their eggs. This makes the eggs more powerful at helping to control inflammation due to their fatty acid content.

Use flaxseed meal generously. For optimum freshness, grind flaxseed as needed (a blender or mini-food processor work well). Sprinkle it over hot or cold cereal, soups, salads, rice, fruit, cooked vegetables or add it to cottage cheese, applesauce, yogurt, smoothies, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, spaghetti sauce, burgers, meatloaf, or granola.

Eat grass-fed, naturally raised cattle graze on nutrient rich grass, which gives the end product a beneficial essential fatty acid ratio. Conventionally raised cattle are fed foods like corn and soy that they are not designed to eat.

Consume copious amounts of vegetables, and fruits-especially berries, preferably organic. If fresh berries are not available or are too expensive, opt for frozen.

Try berries mixed in yogurt or kefir, top your pancakes or waffles with berries mixed with maple syrup, add them to a blended smoothie, or make a blueberry or cheery pie for dessert.

Steam your veggies or sauté them in olive oil, butter, ghee, or coconut oil. Choose the brightest and deepest colored veggies available. For example, kale has more nutrition than green leaf lettuce, red cabbage has more than green cabbage.

Use the spices turmeric, rosemary, and ginger liberally in your cooking.

Make tea using green tea leaves, rosemary, or ginger root.

Eat pineapple and papaya when available.

Eat hot chili peppers if they appeal to you and aid your symptoms.

Drink clean, filtered water regularly throughout the day and avoid the "water-draining" beverages such as coffee, soda, and alcohol.

Foods to avoid

Do away with pro-inflammatory foods, such as refined foods, sugar, white flour, damaged fats, and hydrogenated oils and any foods with these ingredients.

Avoid coffee, alcohol, and other sugary beverages.

Find and eliminate your food sensitivities and see if symptoms improve.

Try eliminating the suspected foods for a few weeks and add them back in one at a time and evaluate for symptoms.

Be sure to keep a detailed food diary to help identifying the foods that work best with you and your unique needs.

Suggestions for Your Shopping List

Veggies and Fruits

Kale, Spinach, Red Cabbage, Carrots, Onions (red), Garlic, Broccoli, Hot peppers (if they agree with you), Sweet peppers, Zucchini, Tomatoes (unless sensitive), Cherries, Blueberries, Raspberries, Cranberries, Blackberries, Pineapple, Papaya, Apples Grains, Nuts, and Seeds Flaxseeds (organic bulk), Walnuts (organic bulk), Oatmeal, Whole grain flours for baking, Whole grain bread Meats and Eggs Wild, cold-water fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines), Grass-fed beef, Buffalo, Eggs (optional: DHA rich versions), Whole milk, Plain yogurt (if not sensitive to dairy).

Fats, Oils, and Condiments

Extra virgin olive oil (organic), Butter or ghee - organic (unless sensitive to dairy), Organic coconut oil, Hot pepper sauce, Fresh ginger, Ground turmeric, Rosemary, Green tea Snack foods and Sweets: Trail Mix (made with raw nuts and seeds, dried cranberries and dried coconut and chocolate chips), Stevia (herbal sweetener-be sure it is pure stevia with no additives), Raw honey (unfiltered and unpasteurized), Popcorn (popped in olive oil- unless sensitive to corn), Dried fruit (cranberries, blueberries, apples), Crystallized ginger, and Food Bars.

Planning Your Meals

Planning and shopping are critical aspects of a healthy diet. Planning helps create complete shopping lists so you can avoid the �quick� stops to the store that waste time and money. Planning also helps you organize the best meal for your schedule on any given day. Here are some tips to help you save time and money.

Standardize your breakfast and lunches

One of the easiest ways to be sure that you eat a healthy breakfast and lunch everyday is to PLAN! Get comfortable with about 5 to 7 breakfast and lunch meals that you enjoy and rotate them through your week.

Keep healthy snacks available

Keep a running list on your fridge to help keep you stocked on the things you know you need. Right when you realize you are out of something you can right it down so you are prepared when you go to the grocery store.

Bulk buy to save money

Usually when you buy bulk at a health food store you can get a discount. Good suggestions for bulk buying include: long storing winter vegetables in the fall (onions, garlic, winter squash, and potatoes) will last 6 to 8 months, whole grains can last up to 1 year in cool, dry container, and beans can last up to 2 years in cool, dry container. Join a food-buying club (or just get a group of friends together) to share items. Bulk cook when a meal or a �non-rushed� day lends the opportunity. Dishes that tend to freeze and re-heat well for a day you need a quick meal include: lasagna, muffins, waffles, small breads, pizza shells, soups, burritos, pot pies, and casseroles. (more) Have a list of �no-brainer� healthy meals that you and your family enjoy. With these types of meals you tend to have the ingredients always available (or ingredients that will work) and they require minimal preparation time and effort.

Healthy Cooking and Preparation

Preparing food to Maximize Digestibility and Nutrition

Why is soaking so important?

In traditional diets, seeds, grains and nuts are soaked, sprouted in order to neutralize naturally occurring anti-nutrients in these foods, such as phytic acid, enzyme inhibitors, tannins and help "predigest" the macronutrients (proteins, complex carbohydrates, and fats). It essentially makes the food easier to digestion, more nutritious, and less likely to cause any sensitivity in the body.

Whole Grains:  Soak desired amount of grain in an equal amount of water. Cover and let sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours. When ready to cook, add remaining required amount of water or stock and cook. If preparing grain berries to grind your own sprouted grain, follow the same instructions as above, let the berries sit in a strainer for 24 hours, and use the drying instructions for the nuts. The best way to check for doneness is to crunch a berry between your teeth. If it doesn't crunch they are not dry enough. This can take anywhere from 12 to 36 hrs.

Raw Nuts:  Place raw nuts in a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of sea salt, and cover with water. Leave at room temperature for 12 hours. Drain out the water. Place nuts on a cookie sheet and dry on low heat in the oven or a dehydrator (approximately 150). Option: In place of salt, add 1/4-cup tamari for tamari nuts. Raw Beans & Lentils Follow the same instructions as for whole grains, but POUR OFF the soaking water and replace with fresh water before cooking. Pour off and refill until there are no more bubbles on the top of the soaking water.

Vegetables

Steam your veggies for a few minutes then add butter or ghee, seasonings, and serve. You can also sauté your veggies in butter, olive oil, coconut oil, and then serve. Raw veggies with a homemade dressing are also good. Do not boil vegetables unless this is required to eat them. Cookware and utensils All cookware should be made of stainless steel, good quality enamel, glass, or cast-iron. Clay is also an option. Avoid aluminum, cooper, and non-stick coated cookware. The elements in these utensils can get into the food and are unhealthy for your body.

The Best Cooking Methods and Appliances

To preserve as much nutrition in food one of the best ways to cook is with lower heat and longer duration. High heat can destroy nutrients.

Two valuable cooking appliances for your kitchen are a crock pot (a great time saver) and a roaster. A wok for stir-frying (the kind that is placed right on the burner is best and only use stainless steel). The sloping sides and rounded bottom are designed so food can be quickly browned in the �belly� of the pan and them moved up to the sides where is finished cooking more slowly. A steamer (or a metal basket that sits in a pot) for steaming vegetables works great.

Steaming cooks and seals in flavors and a great cooking method to preserve nutrients. A blender is valuable for making smoothies and mixing soups.

Lastly a salad spinner helps dry green vegetables (e.g. spinach, lettuce, and kale).