Hi Everyone,

This week I am doing my first app review.  I discovered a great new app: Wholesome that I talk about in this video:

It has the nutritional content of different whole foods including glycemic index for diabetics and pesticide risk for those of us that like to eat organic.  It also has storage and preparation tips.  The app is free!  Check it out!

I just saw this movie Plant Pure Nation.   It’s playing at Kahala theaters in Honolulu Thursday.  It talks about the legislative process in attempting to pass an amendment advocating plant-based diets for improving health in the Kentucky State legislature.  The film-maker Nelson Campbell, son of Colin Campbell, PhD, author of the China Study, offers a 10 day Jumpstart Plant Pure Diet for people with chronic medical problems such as Diabetes and high cholesterol.  Most people are able to improve their disease in just 10 days.  (They had their blood drawn during the jumpstart diet to prove this).

After staging the Jumpstart Plant Pure Diet in several locations, they went to the Kentucky State Legislature to try to pass the amendment, but even with the overwhelming evidence in favor of a plant-based diet to cure chronic disease and many in the legislature supporting the amendment, there were more legislators opposed to the amendment.   The candidates receive political contributions from the meat and dairy industry which likely played a large part in their opposition to the amendment.

Therefore, Nelson Campbell would like to create a grassroots movement supporting the amendment, since politicians are dependent on their voters.  It is a great idea, and I am hoping we can all create change together.  People should be empowered to change their lifestyle and diet to cure disease instead of being dependent on medications that are not a cure for their disease.  Check out their website:  http://plantpurenation.com.

This past weekend, I visited Maui.  I am going to dedicate my blog this week to healthy delicious Maui eats that I found on my trip!  My video is about Coconut Glen’s, which is dairy-free organic coconut ice cream.  It was delicious.  Here are some pictures:

 

We also went to the Coconut Glen hut on the road to Hana.  Unfortunately, it rained, so my pictures are not as bright:

 

Right next to Coconut Glen’s (on the same street) is Maka’s, which serves fabulous plant-based cuisine.

The restaurant is airy and bright with beautiful wall art:

 

They serve both raw and cooked food.  Here is the current menu:

 

I had the Teri-Coco Sandwich, which was delicious!:

We took a trip to Lahaina, and checked out the Choice Health Bar, which has vegan sushi from 6-9pm Monday-Saturday:

They had the specials on a board and the standard menu (to the right):

 

We had the dragon roll:

 

And the rainbow roll:

 

And the local fig compote and coconut kefir yogurt:

 

We loved it!

My last eatery stop was at Maui Kombucha which serves kombucha that they make themselves and delicious plant-based cuisine. Here is the menu:

 

We sampled the kombucha, which was delicious.  That’s coming from me, and I don’t normally like kombucha!  I had the black mango flavor and Jessica had the ginger lime flavor.

 

I had the burrito bowl:

 

 

Jess had the MK Threeway:

 

We had a fabulous lunch there!

That’s us with a photo bomber.  Check out these healthy Maui eats next time you go to Maui.  Enjoy!  I had a great weekend there.

Hi all,

I did a recent lecture for the hawaii vegetarian society which is now recorded and on youtube.  It is titled “Avoid a Visit to the ER with a Healthy Vegan Diet”.  The link is :

Check it out!

Synopsis:  I talk about some of the common complaints I see as an Emergency Physician, and talk about how these diseases can be prevented with diet.  I also talk about medication side effects.  Some topics include Diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, stroke, and heart attack.  Lastly, I address constipation and afflictions that can occur as a result of constipation including hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, diverticulitis, and rectal prolapse.

I am going to address constipation in this blog, since it is easily preventable by some changes in your diet.  You will see results relatively quickly when you make dietary changes.  Constipation is a common problem I see in the Emergency Room.  On any given day, I may see about 1-2 patients with constipation.  There are probably countless others that have less severe constipation that do not make it to the emergency room as well!  In the lecture I talk about how 90% of Americans do not eat 30 grams fiber daily which is the recommended daily intake.  Fiber consumption is about half the daily recommended amount.

I go over the fiber content of different foods.  In summary, animal products such as beef, chicken, fish, eggs, and dairy have NO fiber.  If you are eating these products and have constipation, you are setting yourself up for misery.  Only plant products such as beans, nuts, veggies, and fruits contain fiber.  I recommend at least 4-6 servings daily for my patients.  The processing of food takes out their fiber content.  Processed foods include rice, pasta, cookies, crackers, chips, and noodles.  You should limit your intake of these when you are constipated.  However, processed foods listed above still have more fiber than animal products which have none.  Even a cup of white rice has 0.6 g of fiber.  The less processed version (brown rice) is always preferable in terms of fiber content.  You will likely lose weight when you increase the fiber in your diet as the bulk will cause earlier satiety.  The weight will come off slowly, but weight that comes off slowly is more likely to stay off!

Other agents that can cause constipation include medications, such as diuretics and especially narcotics.  Exercise is also important to prevent constipation and drinking water helps as well.  I recommend patients drink half their weight in ounces of fluid unless they have limitations due to heart failure or kidney failure.  For instance, if you are 100 pounds, you should be drinking 50 ounces of water at least daily.  You may need more if you are sweating due to exercise or excessive heat.  How about juicing?  I prefer smoothies because juicing takes out the fiber in the fruit or vegetables.  I also recommend that patients stay away from diuretics, such as soda with caffeine, coffee, or tea, since that may cause frequent urination, causing the stool to be more dry and hard.

If you are really desperate, they do have many over the counter laxatives and enemas at Long’s or whatever pharmacy you prefer.  You can ask the pharmacist.  However, some patients become dependent on these laxatives for a bowel movement.  Some patients add metamucil to their food.  I am not against this practice, but it would probably be better to add something with nutrients such as fruits and veggies which are also delicious to your diet; instead of using metamucil.  I hope after reading this post, you will never be constipated again, and not need to resort to these practices!

 

 

Recipe:

Ingredients:
2 Avocados

1 tomato

+/- salt

+/- 1 tsp oregano

+/- cilantro

+/- Lemon

Chop up avocados and tomato and mix together in food processor or manually . If using a food processor, use S blade and “pulse” function.  Add salt if desired, but not if you have high blood pressure!  You can add a few sprigs of fresh oregano from your garden or one teaspoon of dried oregano herb.  You can also add a few sprigs of cilantro.  1 teaspoon or the juice of 1/2 small lemon can be added.  It will act as a preservative.  The pit can also be placed into the guacamole, which will help the mixture last longer.

I am using tortilla chips without trans-fats in this video.  Some tortilla chips have trans-fats, so please read the label carefully.  If you do not want to use chips, you can try carrots, peppers, or cucumbers work well too in dips.

What are trans-fats?

Meat and dairy products may contain small amounts of naturally occurring trans-fatty acids.  Most trans-fat is formed by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil, which causes the oil to become solid at room temperature.  This oil is less likely to spoil, so foods made with it have a longer shelf life. Some restaurants use partially hydrogenated vegetable oil in their deep fryers, so they can change the oil less frequently.

Trans-fats can contribute to heart disease and are considered even less healthy than saturated fats, which can also contribute to heart problems.  They can raise “bad” cholesterol and lower “good” cholesterol.  The FDA has required the amount of trans fats in foods to be listed on the backs of food packages since 2006, but companies are allowed to round less than half of a gram of trans fat to zero on the package label.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said food companies will be required to phase trans-fats out over the next three years.  Foods that commonly contain trans fats include: frostings, pie crusts, biscuits, microwave popcorn, coffee creamers, frozen pizza, refrigerated dough, vegetable shortenings and stick margarines. Trans fats no longer fall in the agency’s “generally recognized as safe” category.  Food companies can petition the FDA to use them.  The FDA has not targeted the small amounts in meat and dairy because they would be too difficult to remove.

 

 

 

Brownie Bites Recipe:

1/2 cup of cacao or cocoa powder

1 cup of dates

1 cup of almonds

1 cup of walnuts

Mix all ingredients together in a food processor.  I use the S blade and pulse function to my desired consistency.  Once I can roll up the mixture into little balls, I know I am done.  Make the bites to your size preference.  I personally like to make them 1/2 size of a golfball.  enjoy!

What is the difference between cacao and cocoa?

Cacao is the raw less processed form of cocoa powder.  Cocoa loses some of the benefits of cacao because it is heated at high temperatures.  Cacao has more antioxidants than cocoa.  Cocoa has been found to decrease blood pressure and improve cholesterol.  Both are rich in fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, manganese, and iron.

Dates:

Dates are high in potassium and fiber (with 12 g of fiber in one cup of dates!).  Dates are also a good source of B vitamins.  They have a high glycemic index (a lot of natural sugar), which is why we use them to sweeten recipes, but they may not be optimal for the diabetic.

Almonds:

Nuts have been shown to lower heart disease risk.  Almonds are a good source of Vitamin E, copper, manganese, zinc, protein, and fiber.  They contain much more unsaturated fat (the good kind) than saturated fat (the bad kind that raise your cholesterol).

Walnuts:

Walnuts are a good source of omega-3s!  Walnuts also contain much more unsaturated than saturated fat.  Walnuts are a good source of potassium, manganese, copper, and magnesium.

 

 

Recipe:

3 Tomatoes

1/2 cup cilantro

That’s it!  But you can add 1/2 red onion, jalapeños, or salt and pepper to taste.  You can either cut the cilantro and tomatoes into smaller pieces manually or use a food processor.  I have a Cuisinart 14 cup food processor, and I love it!  If you use a food processor, choose the S blade.  After washing your veggies, I chop the tomatoes up into smaller pieces before I put them in the food processor.  Then I use the “pulse” function until I get my desired consistency.

Other serving suggestions besides tortilla chips, include putting the salsa on bread or if you do not want to eat processed foods or on a raw diet, you can use cucumbers instead of chips.

Cilantro:  1/4 cup of cilantro (about 4 grams) contains 1 calorie and 0 grams of fat. It contains, vitamins C, A, and K, folate, potassium, and antioxidants like beta-carotene.  Oil extracted from the leaves of cilantro has been shown to delay spoilage. Cilantro leaves have also been found to have an antibacterial effect against Salmonella!

Tomatoes:  Tomatoes have high anti-oxidant properties and help lower cholesterol, reducing the risk of cancer and heart disease.  Tomatoes are rich in lycopene (anti-oxidant), vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin C and potassium.  They also have B-complex vitamins.

Here’s the episode that you have all been waiting for finally; it’s the No Excuse Fitness Workout!  You can follow along at home with your pause button.  Make sure to incorporate the stretching at the points that it cues you in the video.  Check out the No Excuse Fitness/Kickboxing Facebook page for more information.  If you would like some company working out, consider joining No Excuse Fitness at 5:45pm on Mondays at Magic Island.  Enjoy!

Benefits of Exercise:

1.  Exercise is helpful in stress management.  Exercise increases concentrations of norepinephrine, a chemical that moderates the brain’s response to stress.

2.  Exercise releases endorphins, creating feelings of happiness.  Exercise can improve depression.

3.  Exercise boosts the chemicals in the brain that support and prevent degeneration of the hippocampus (the part of the brain involved in memory forming, organizing, and storing).

4.  Various studies have shown that cardiovascular exercise can create new brain cells and improve overall brain performance.  A tough workout increases levels of a brain-derived protein in the body which helps with decision making, higher thinking, and learning.

5.  Exercise helps people fall asleep at the right time.  Exercise five to six hours before bedtime raises the body’s core temperature. Body temperature drops back to normal a few hours later, signaling the body that it’s time to sleep.

6.  Research shows that workers who exercise on a regular basis are more productive and have more energy than their sedentary co-workers.

7.  An exercise session can boost creativity for up to two hours afterwards.

8.  Exercise boosts high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good,” cholesterol and decreases (bad) triglycerides.

9.  Exercise can help prevent and manage health problems, such as stroke, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression, certain types of cancer, arthritis and falls.

10. Exercise helps prevent weight gain and maintains weight loss.  Engaging in physical activity burns calories.

11.  Regular physical activity can lead to enhanced arousal for women. Men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than their sedentary counterparts.