These subconscious beliefs stay with us into adulthood, where we continue to associate sugar and sweet treats as exactly that, a “treat,” a comfort, something that will make us “feel better.”

Furthermore, we continue to subconsciously develop these associations and see them as further “proof” when junk food is advertised and marketed to us, claiming it will make us happy.Working with clients from royalty and rockstars to CEOs over three decades, Marisa Peer has built a stellar reputation impacting millions of lives and has shaken up the therapy industry by creating Rapid Transformational Therapy®️. Her decades of experience helping thousands of clients with their health, weight, and body issues has meant she’s also meticulously studied the association between food and its impact on our health and wellbeing. In this article, she shares the top five foods to avoid and replace to keep us healthy.

Dairy

Marisa Peer talks about milk having a growth hormone that not only tells your body to grow by 300% but has also been linked to cancer. “I use almond milk instead, which is also a great source of protein and some products claim to offer 50% more calcium than dairy milk. If you have to consume milk, try to make sure that you use organic milk where possible, to limit the amount of antibiotics and other unwanted additions.” 

Sugar

Our bodies are designed to get energy from the mitochondria, which are the powerhouses in each of our cells. This requires oxygen and nutrients and is the cleanest, most efficient way of sustaining long-term energy production. Sugar, on the other hand, creates a temporary energy hit but can be toxic to our bodies. This can lead to long-term metabolic syndrome—losing control of blood sugar levels— increasing the risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. Sugar is considered to be as addictive as cocaine and has a similar effect on the body. 

Wheat and Gluten

Or “glue,” as Marisa Peer refers to it when she says, “The word glutinous means sticky and is an adjective derived from gluten. Gluten can have a negative effect on almost every organ in the body. It affects our mental and physical health; humans were not designed to eat wheat. The very fact that it must be milled to make it digestible is a sign that it’s not good for humans. Even if we can tolerate gluten, for many people, 70% to 80% of their diet is now grain-based cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, pasta for dinner, and cookies and cake as a snack. We eat food our ancestors did not eat in huge amounts, and that food is now heavily processed. 

Marisa shares in-depth knowledge on the psychology of eating these foods in her 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge here. She says, “The gluten in wheat and other cereals is a big problem as it’s hard to digest and can cause allergies, fatigue, bloating, weight gain and Coeliac disease… When your baguette or pizza is broken down in your body it goes back to glue and coats your intestines with a sticky residue so that hours later if you eat some fresh berries or vegetables they will stick to this glue-like matter, this pap coats your gut, and ferments instead of being digested. As a consequence your body is crying out for nutrients not calories. You are full of food but still hungry because your body cannot get enough nutrition from the indigestible food you have put in it.”

Processed Foods and Refined Carbs

These foods have been linked to obesity, chronic illness, and disease. Marisa says, “When food is refined and processed, it is so chemically altered that our body cannot break it down properly or get nutrition from it.” Side effects from eating these foods can include fatigue, obesity, diabetes, tooth decay, arterial and heart disease, cancer, and dementia.

Margarine

Margarine is also considered one of the top five foods to avoid for healthy eating. Marisa states, “margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC.To prove to yourself just how bad for you margarine is, buy a tub and leave it in your garage or a shaded area outside. Within a couple of days you will notice that no flies, rodents or insects will go near it (that should tell you something!) You will notice that it doesn’t rot or smell, because it has no nutritional value; nothing will grow on it. Even microorganisms won’t grow on trans fats. It doesn’t decompose–why? Because it is nearly plastic. It’s about as real and healthy as the tub it came in and you wouldn’t melt it and eat that, would you?” 

Vegetables

It is important to eat as many vegetables as possible, especially leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables. Variety is important as it provides diversity to the microbiome in our guts, which has a direct link to our health, as the majority of our immune system resides in our gut. It has been suggested that we should aim to eat a rainbow of veg where possible—filling your plate with as many colors as you can. Ideally, we want to aim for organic, local produce where possible to ensure it’s not covered in poisonous pesticides and toxic chemicals, which is why it is also so important to wash fruit and vegetables before eating. 

Protein

Protein is important for our bodies to recover, repair, and grow, so it should ideally feature in every meal. Protein from animal sources (e.g., meat, fish, eggs, and dairy products) contains the full range of essential amino acids needed by the body. However, vegans and vegetarians can get all the amino acids they need by combining different plant sources of protein, e.g., pulses, nuts, seeds, and ancient grains.

Good Fats

The common myth is that all fat is bad for us, and we should be eating “reduced fat,” or even “fat-free,” which has been proven wrong. We need to eat fat to burn fat. However, the truth is that some fats are healthier than others. Once we start to understand the different types of fats, we can start to make healthier choices.

The Different Types of Fats

It’s Not What You Eat… It’s What’s Eating You

Eating more healthy is paramount to our wellbeing, but it is only one small part of the decisions and associations we make around our food choices in our quest for ultimate health. 

This is why Marisa’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenges are so successful, as she teaches us why we behave the way we do with our eating habits to transform our thinking at a core level for incredible results.

Our minds are so powerful that we will do anything we can to survive. So if negative eating habits (such as overeating) have become your normal, no matter how much you educate yourself on the right foods to eat, your subconscious mind is naturally hardwired to bounce back and find what is familiar to you. 

The truth is, no amount of healthy eating will give you your desired health and body unless you also train your mind to tackle the root cause.  

Marisa shows us that this survival instinct goes right back to when we were born, so it is not our fault that we default to these decisions and choices. We are unaware of what creates our eating habits, and we eat with our emotions. Our conscious minds can’t access that part of our thinking, which is why we repeatedly go over the same thought patterns and eating behaviors, no matter what we try and shift externally.

So how do we change these eating behaviors for the ultimate health? When you join the 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge, not only do you get to the root cause of any eating rituals you have through Marisa’s powerful meditations, trainings, and hypnosis audios—you will also find that you break negative habits for good and have the motivation to ONLY eat healthy foods. Marisa’s challenges enable your mind to open up brand new neural pathways so that nothing can hold you back, and making healthy choices becomes your new reality. 

This is why thousands have been transformed by Marisa’s challenges. People who have been stuck in that vicious cycle of dieting, exercising, calorie counting, binge eating, starving themselves, doing punishing workouts only to find themselves in the never-ending loop of weight loss and gain or health issues. These are people who had tried every single diet and regime out there—from fads, fasting, and feasting to nutritionists and health coaches—but still not getting the results they wanted.  

When you join the 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge, you join a thriving community, all ready to help keep you accountable on your ultimate health path. Marisa will guide you through the proven tools and techniques to be able to love yourself, feel amazing about your health choices, and believe in your potential to transform your health forever. In addition, the live element means you can have direct access to Marisa to ask those all-important burning questions.

You have the power to change your relationship with food and say goodbye to junk food and unhealthy eating habits. 

What’s more, you’ll discover how powerful your mind is, and once you master the incredible subconscious thoughts you are capable of, the results will astound you. 

If you’d like to take a deep dive into having ultimate health in your life, you can try it for yourself by joining the 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge here. 

We are in control of what we eat, think and do, therefore we are empowered to make choices that impact our day to day living and health. It is reassuring to know that we don’t have to wait until things go wrong and hand our health over to doctors and overstretched health professionals, we can be the expert on our own bodies and the leader of our lives.

This article is a simple guide to how to be healthy, sharing simple, practical ways we can take ownership of our personal power to live a happy, healthy and more fulfilled life through what we eat, think and do. 

We all know that eating vegetables is good for us, you were likely told to ‘eat your greens’ as a child. However, let’s face it, most kids would probably prefer to eat sweets and party food than spinach and kale! At some level we may have rejected the need to eat healthily as a chore and a bore. These subconscious beliefs stay with us into adulthood, where we continue to associate sugar and sweet treats as exactly that – a ‘treat’ – a comfort, something that will make us feel better.

We continue to subconsciously develop associations, especially with so much ‘junk food’ constantly being advertised and marketed to us, claiming it will make us happy.

“Don’t dig your grave with your knife and fork” – Old English Proverb

What A Doctor Says

Dr Myhill says: “All medical therapies should start with diet. Modern Western diets are driving our modern epidemics of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and dementia; this process is called metabolic syndrome. In Prevent and Cure Diabetes: Delicious Diets, Not Dangerous Drugs I explain in detail why and how we have arrived at a situation where the real weapons of mass destruction can be found in our kitchens. Importantly, the book describes the vital steps every one of us can make to reverse the situation so that life can be lived to its full potential.”

Dr Myhill, was the Hon. Secretary of the British Society for Ecological Medicine, which focuses on the cause of disease, prevention and treatment through diet, supplements and avoiding toxic stress. Dr Myhill, has spent “over thirty years bringing together medical testing and scientific knowledge to help people with debilitating chronic conditions realise the importance of nutrition and lifestyle.” She says:

“I spend more time talking about diet than I do all other subjects put together. This is in direct proportion to its importance. It may be the most difficult thing I ask people to do, but also the most vital. People want me to be prescriptive about diet and tell them exactly what they can and cannot do, but there is no such universal prescription – we are all so very different with respect to allergies, likes, dislikes, gut function, deficiencies, ethinic background and so on.”

Whilst there is no set prescription, there are certain ‘rules of the game’ which we can all adhere to. Here are some top suggestions for food to AVOID and ADD into your diet:

AVOID

Dairy

In this article Is Dairy Bad For You? Marisa Peer shares that milk has a growth hormone that not only tells your body to grow by 300%, but has been linked to cancer. I use almond milk instead, which is also a great source of protein and some products claim to offer 50% more calcium than dairy milk. If you have to consume milk, try to make sure that you use organic milk where possible, to limit the amount of antibiotics and other unwanted additions. 

Sugar

Our bodies are designed to get energy from the mitochondria, which are the ‘powerhouses’ in each of our cells. This requires oxygen and nutrients and is the cleanest most efficient way of sustaining long term energy production. Sugar on the other hand creates a temporary energy hit, but can be toxic on our bodies. This can lead to long term metabolic syndrome – losing control of blood sugar levels – increasing the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. Sugar is considered to be as addictive as cocaine and have a similar effect on the body. This article on the Facts About What Sugar Does to Our Bodies has more information.

Wheat And Gluten

Or “glue” as Marisa Peer refers to it when she says: “The word glutinous means sticky and is an adjective derived from gluten. Gluten is like glue and digestive issues arise when we eat glue for breakfast, glue for lunch and more glue for dinner and snacks.” In her book, You Can Be Thin, Marisa says: “The gluten in wheat and other cereals is a big problem as it’s hard to digest and can cause allergies, fatigue, bloating, weight gain and Coeliac disease… When your baguette or pizza is broken down in your body it goes back to glue and coats your intestines with a sticky residue so that hours later if you eat some fresh berries or vegetables they will stick to this glue-like matter, this pap coats your gut, and ferments instead of being digested. As a consequence your body is crying out for nutrients not calories. You are full of food but still hungry because your body cannot get enough nutrition from the indigestible food you have put in it.”

Processed Foods And Refined Carbs

These foods have been linked to obesity, chronic illness and disease. In Perfect Weight Forever, Marisa says “When food is refined and processed, it is so chemically altered that our body cannot break it down properly or get nutrition from it.” Dr Myhill says that the “cons with ‘standard western’ diets is that they are ‘high in refined carbohydrates such as sugar, fruit and fruit juice, potato, cereal, grains and junk food. This ‘induces metabolic syndrome with all its complications including fatigue, obesity, diabetes, tooth decay, arterial and heart disease, cancer and dementia.” This Good Carbs vs Bad Carbs comprehensive article has more information.

Margarine

Margarine is also considered one of the top 5 Foods to Avoid For Healthy Eating. Marisa states “margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC.To prove to yourself just how bad for you margarine is, buy a tub and leave it in your garage or a shaded area outside. Within a couple of days you will notice that no flies, rodents or insects will go near it (that should tell you something!) You will notice that it doesn’t rot or smell, because it has no nutritional value; nothing will grow on it. Even microorganisms won’t grow on trans fats. It doesn’t decompose – why? Because it is nearly plastic. It’s about as real and healthy as the tub it came in and you wouldn’t melt it and eat that, would you?”

ADD:

Vegetables

It is important to eat as many vegetables as possible, especially leafy greens. Variety is important as it provides diversity to the microbiome in our guts, which has a direct link to our health, as the majority of our immune system resides in our gut. It has been suggested that we should aim to eat a rainbow of veg where possible – filling your plate with as many colours as you can. Ideally we want to aim for organic local produce where possible (or even grow your own), to ensure it’s not covered in poisonous pesticides and toxic chemicals, which is why it is also so important to wash fruit and veg before eating.

Instead of seeing this as a chore or something you ‘should’ do, reframe it in your mind to make positive associations with how good it will feel to be healthy, vibrant and full of energy. Imagine the mitochondria of each cell is like a mouth  – imagine these mouths are open and drinking in all the nutrients you provide, so they can make you lots of lovely energy and help keep your body healthy and well.

#DailyVeg challenge

One way to make positive associations is to make the new behaviour fun! Have a competition with yourself, or friends, to see how many vegetables you can consume in a single day (I think 32 was my highest score!) You could even post your numbers using the hashtag #DailyVeg each day and inspire others to do the same. This makes it fun trying to pack lots of lovely veg into every meal. For example, for breakfast you could try a spinach and mushroom omelette with asparagus/avocado/roasted pepper or a bubble and squeak hash-brown made with any leftover veg. Lunch could be a salad or soup and for dinner you could have a stir fry or roasted veg. I am sure you can get creative in ways to challenge yourself to eat more veg. How many can you eat each day?

Protein

Protein is important for our bodies to recover, repair and grow, so it should ideally feature in every meal. According to the British Nutrition Foundation “Protein is essential for growth and repair of the body and maintenance of good health… Protein from animal sources (e.g. meat, fish, eggs and dairy products) contains the full range of essential amino acids needed by the body. However, vegans and vegetarians can get all the amino acids they need by combining different plant sources of protein, e.g. pulses and cereals.”

Good Fats

John Yudkin who was the Professor of Nutrition and Diabetes, Queen Elizabeth College, London said “Fat is the most valuable food known to man.”

The common myth that all fat is bad for us and we should be eating ‘reduced fat’ or even ‘fat-free’ has been proven wrong. We need to eat fat to burn fat. However, the truth is that some fats are healthier than others. Once we start to understand the different types of fats, we can start to make healthier choices.

The Different Types Of Fats

Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are considered ‘good fats’, as they are good for your heart, cholesterol, and overall health. There can be controversy over saturated fats, as nutritional experts and scientists differ on their views on how it affects health. However it is agreed that artificial trans fats, made industrially by “hydrogenating” vegetable oil, are considered harmful and can cause heart disease. The most common sources of trans fats include cakes, pies, frosting, fried foods, cookies and biscuits made with margarine. Marisa Peer calls Trans Fats ‘Frankenstein foods’ as they are artificially created and unnatural.

Good Fats Include:

Natural oils

Natural oils such as olive and flaxseed oil also provide a source of Omega 3, which we need to get into our diet as our body doesn’t produce it itself. “Omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation, and thus may help lower the risk of cancer,” according to the MD Anderson Cancer Center. Recent research also suggests that extra-virgin olive oil preserves memory and can protect the brain against Alzheimer’s disease.

The best ways to use good oils

Olive oil is great drizzled on salads and can be used for cooking at a lower temperature (up to 180°C / 350°F) , as it has a lower smoke point – the point at which it breaks down and smokes. Flaxseed oil shouldn’t be heated, so use in salads or smoothies.

Everyday health says: “Avocado oil is high in monounsaturated fatty acids and can promote healthy cholesterol levels and enhance absorption of some nutrients, according to a review of avocado benefits published in the May 2013 Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. Avocado oil also has a high smoke point and is therefore one of the best oils for high-temperature cooking. It can be used for stir-frying, sautéing, or searing,” Haas says.

Nuts

Nuts are a good source of fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals. According to Healthline: “Most of the fat in nuts is monounsaturated fat, as well as omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fat. However, they do contain some saturated fat. Nuts also pack a number of vitamins and minerals, including magnesium and vitamin E. Many studies have investigated the health benefits of increased nut intake… For example, nuts may reduce risk factors for metabolic syndrome, such as high blood pressure and cholesterol levels…. Furthermore, nuts may reduce your risk of other chronic diseases. For example, eating nuts may improve blood sugar levels and lower your risk of certain cancers.”

Seeds

Seeds are also extremely nutritious and can help reduce blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure when eaten as part of a healthy diet. According to SAGA “Seeds contain high levels of essential fatty acids, the full profile of amino acids needed to form complete and digestible protein, plus vitamins A, B, C and E and the minerals calcium, magnesium, potassium, zinc, iron, selenium and manganese.” You can get really yummy seed shaker sets, with roasted seeds or easily roast some yourself with a little (gluten free) soy sauce. Yum!

For more information on a healthy diet for a healthy life see The Foods I Rate and Hate. You can also enjoy this Free Mini Course: Health and Weight to develop and maintain the healthy body you desire.

As mentioned, a good way to change eating habits is to change the way we think and the associations we have with certain foods. In You Can Be Thin, Marisa Peer says “Changing your eating habits is not enough, you must change your thoughts, beliefs and words as well.” She explains that “moving towards pleasure and away from pain is a survival instinct. …Your brain is programmed to constantly move you towards pleasure and away from pain…because avoiding pain is how we survive.”

For example, we may have previously seen cake as a treat, a reward, a comforting indulgence. However, instead of linking pleasure to it, we need to vividly imagine it poisoning our bodies and the pain of being sick, fat and lethargic. We know that healthy cells do not need addictive sugar – so at best, sugar cravings are feeding a damaging habit and at worst, feeding disease.

Instead we can link pleasure to nourishing our cells with all the nutrients they need to thrive, so we can enjoy feeling our best and leading a happier, healthier life. By linking pleasure to healthy habits and pain to unhealthy ones, we can rewire our mind to support a more healthy lifestyle and teach our bodies how to be healthy. Our thoughts have the power to shape our reality, not just through ‘positive thinking’ but through physical biochemical reactions in the body.

Dr Lissa Rankin takes a “a closer look at epigenetics” in her book Mind Over Medicine and states “changing your thoughts can actually change how your brain communicates with the rest of your body, thereby altering the body’s biochemistry.”  She asserts that “the mind’s belief can actually alter the body’s physiology.”

In The Biology of Belief, Bruce Lipton explains the link between the mind and your biology, stating: “If you can change your beliefs you can change your life at a cellular level.” He also explains the science of how our beliefs are programmed into us as children, without our conscious control: “The fundamental behaviours, beliefs, and attitudes we observe in our parents become “hardwired” as synaptic pathways in our subconscious mind. Once programmed into our subconscious mind, they control our biology for the rest of our lives …or at least until we make the effort to reprogram them.”

Marisa Peer created Rapid Transformational Therapy(RTT) in order to teach people how to reprogram their beliefs and behaviours through the power of their mind. RTT brings together the most beneficial principles from neuroscience, NLP, CBT, hypnotherapy and psychotherapy and has won many awards for its effectiveness.

“What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday,​And our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: ​our life is the creation of the mind.”- The Dhammapada.

RTT works by identifying old beliefs deep within our subconscious, that have often become so automatic that we don’t even know that they are there. By understanding the root cause of an issue in the past, people are empowered to choose their futures and reprogramme their minds for success. By working directly with the subconscious mind, we can instruct and reprogram the mind to activate the body’s own natural intelligence on how to be healthy.

In Marisa Peer’s ‘Rules of the Mind’ she explains “The most powerful potential on the planet comes from your mind. Your words and thoughts are powerful and your mind is always listening. Every word you say and thought you think becomes a blueprint that your mind and body work to turn into reality. The strongest force in you is that you must act in a way that consistently matches your thinking.

Your mind does not know, and indeed it does not care if what you tell it is right or wrong, good or bad, true or false, helpful or very unhelpful – it just lets it in. Your mind’s job is to act on the words you tell it. Your job is to give your mind much more powerful, descriptive and positive words.

Understand the rules of the mind so your mind works with you, not against you. I am a great believer that we can’t fix what we don’t understand. I see so many clients who try to battle their minds using sheer force or willpower. Equally, they try to punish their bodies and force them to act or look different. They try to force family members and their children to change using cajoling, bribes or punishment with little success and a lot of frustration. You can’t fight your wiring, but when you understand how and why your mind operates you can then work with it, instead of against it, to get all the changes you want.”

Our thinking, imagination and beliefs shape our perception of reality and the meaning we attach to the world around us. We can change our thoughts and reprogram our beliefs, therefore we are infinitely more powerful than we realise. By understanding the ‘Rules Of The Mind’ we can work with our mind rather than against it.

Do what you love and love what you do. So many of us are consumed by the daily to do list that we don’t even have time to just stop to breathe, let alone do the things we love.

In her book ‘Ultimate Confidence’, Marisa says: “Evidence has shown that when people don’t follow their inner yearnings or do what they love, this can create depression. When people don’t take up the career they have a calling for, or a deep need to be involved in, this can lead to sadness, apathy and actual illness. So much depression is down to people not doing what they want to with their lives and suffering because of it.”

You may think that taking time out to do the things we enjoy – whether that’s a hobby, meeting up with friends, watching a movie or getting pampered – are little ‘luxuries’ that are ‘nice to have’. However, actually they are essential to our health and wellbeing. We need to re-prioritise self care as health care.

Do The Things That Move You

Doing gentle exercises for the body and mind, such as meditation, yoga, tai chi, and mindfulness really helps get the body in a relaxed healing state. It helps your mind to switch off and just enjoy being in the moment, just like when we get into a flow state during hypnosis, or when listening to relaxing audios and music. This helps quieten the mental chatter of our overactive, thinking conscious mind and allows our body to replenish, realign and restore.

When we relax our body and mind, we activate the parasympathetic nervous system, or the ‘relaxation response’, which puts our body in a natural healing state. In contrast, when the body is stressed or in an anxious state we are not in a healing state. Stress activates the sympathetic nervous system (AKA “fight or flight”), which releases cortisol, adrenaline and other stress hormones into the body. If these are not physically ‘burned off’ through ‘fight or flight’, then they can cause havoc on our bodies long term. Sustained stress and anxiety has been linked to a wide range of chronic illness and disease.

Relax Your Way To Health

Simple breathing exercises, visualisations or listening to a relaxation audio can help combat stress and activate the parasympathetic nervous system/healing state.

It’s not enough to just get rid of the stresses in your life. It’s love and joy in life that truly fulfils. You don’t find happiness externally or need anyone else to love you, happiness comes from within when you Learn to Love Yourself.

There’s also a lot to be said for slowing down, relaxing and listening to our bodies. Reconnecting to what is really important to us and our well being, then taking gentle positive steps in the direction of our dreams. When it comes to the importance of our gut, it’s not just about what we put into our bodies through food, but also listening to intuition and how to trust your gut instincts. Its about tuning in and following your own inner guidance, you are more powerful than you realize.

How To Be Healthy – Eat, Think, Do

If we are what we eat think and do, then we have a lot more control over our bodies and health then we may initially realise. You are in control of what you put into your body and mind and you can take positive action to do what’s important to lead a happy, healthy and fulfilled life.

If you want more support as you begin your journey towards a happier, healthier you, then why not consider joining Marisa Peer’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge?

When you sign-up you will receive daily training for three whole weeks, as well as audios and meditations to help your support your transformation. You will also become part of a thriving community of like-minded people all striving towards the same healthier lifestyle as yourself.

Undo your negative eating habits, wave goodbye to dieting, and develop a healthy relationship with your mind, your body, and what nourish it with. Click the banner below to find out more about the challenge and secure your spot today. 

First of all, what are probiotics?

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria and yeasts that support your digestive system. Your body is full of bacteria, both good and bad. Eating or taking probiotics can help restore the natural balance of bacteria in the gut and may help treat a number of health issues.

This article focuses specifically on how probiotics work and how they can improve your mental health and gut. Discover the health benefits of good bacteria and how your digestive system is directly linked to your mind.

What Are Friendly Bacteria?

What exactly are ‘friendly’ or ‘good’ bacteria? From a young age, we are conditioned to believe that bacteria are dirty and cause ill health, however, there is such a thing as ‘friendly’ bacteria which is essential for gut health.

An article on Holland & Barrett defines what the phrase ‘good bacteria’ means:

‘Next time you pick up a yogurt that is packed with friendly bacteria, take a look at the label. It may contain Lactobacillus acidophilus or Bifidobacterium bifidum―these are common bacterial cultures that have been shown to have a beneficial effect on our health. So, how do probiotics work? They’re called ‘good’ or ‘friendly’ bacteria because they can help restore the balance of bacteria in our gut following a bout of diarrhea, a course of antibiotics, or an episode of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), for example. Your gut bacteria are so important because they form a key part of the microbiome―the collective name given to the bacteria that live inside every one of us. Your microbiome is unique―a bit like your genes―and is formed from the moment you’re born. Scientists are now beginning to discover that what we eat directly impacts on the balance of our gut bacteria and, in turn, our general health.’

The Human Microbiome

Our bodies hold an array of micro-organisms that differ according to their location, such as the gut or skin etc. They are mostly made up of bacteria, but there are also archaea, fungi, viruses, plus microbes that attack bad bacteria. Altogether, these are called the human microbiome, or sometimes the gut microbiota. It is important to keep this system happy and in good working order as it has a direct effect on health. Medical News Today explains why:

‘Microorganisms have evolved alongside humans and form an integral part of life, carrying out a range of vital functions. They are implicated in both health and disease, and research has found links between bacterial populations, whether normal or disturbed, and the following diseases:

• Asthma
• Autism
• Cancer
• Celiac disease
• Colitis
• Diabetes
• Eczema
• Heart disease
• Malnutrition
• Multiple sclerosis
• Obesity

The human microbiome has an influence on the following four broad areas of importance to health:

• Nutrition
• Immunity
• Behavior
• Disease

The microbiota can affect the brain, which is also involved in digestion. Some have even called the gut microbiota a “second brain.” Small molecules released by the activity of gut bacteria trigger the response of nerves in the gastrointestinal tract. Researchers have also observed links between the gut microbiome and psychological disorders, such as depression and autistic spectrum disorder (ASD).’

Foods Rich In Probiotics

Probiotics are live bacteria. They’re often added to yogurts or taken as a supplement, and are often described as ‘friendly’ bacteria.

If you find yourself asking, “Do probiotics work?” The answer is a resounding yes. Probiotics help to restore the natural balance of bacteria in your gut. Healthline lists the following benefits of probiotics and which foods you can find them in:

‘Probiotics―which are usually beneficial bacteria―provide all sorts of powerful benefits for your body and brain. They may improve digestive health, reduce depression, and promote heart health. Some evidence suggests they may even give you better-looking skin. Getting probiotics from supplements is popular, but you can also get them from fermented foods.’

1. Sauerkraut

Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented by lactic acid bacteria. It is one of the oldest traditional foods and is popular in many countries, especially in Europe. Sauerkraut is often used on top of sausages or as a side dish. It has a sour, salty taste and can be stored for months in an airtight container.

In addition to its probiotic qualities, sauerkraut is rich in fiber as well as vitamins C, B and K. It is also high in sodium and contains iron and manganese. Sauerkraut also contains the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin, which are important for eye health. Make sure to choose unpasteurized sauerkraut, as pasteurization kills the live and active bacteria. You can find raw types of sauerkraut online.

2. Tempeh

Tempeh is a fermented soybean product. It forms a firm patty whose flavor is described as nutty, earthy or similar to a mushroom. Tempeh is originally from Indonesia but has become popular worldwide as a high-protein meat substitute.

How do probiotics work in fermentation? The fermentation process actually has some surprising effects on its nutritional profile. Soybeans are typically high in phytic acid, a plant compound that impairs the absorption of minerals like iron and zinc. However, fermentation lowers the amount of phytic acid, which may increase the amount of minerals your body is able to absorb from tempeh. Fermentation also produces some vitamin B12, a nutrient that soybeans do not contain. Vitamin B12 is mainly found in animal foods, such as meat, fish, dairy and eggs. This makes tempeh a great choice for vegetarians as well as anyone looking to add a nutritious probiotic to their diet.

3. Kimchi

Kimchi is a fermented, spicy Korean side dish. Cabbage is usually the main ingredient, but it can also be made from other vegetables. Kimchi is flavored with a mix of seasonings, such as red chili pepper flakes, garlic, ginger, scallion and salt. Kimchi contains the lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus kimchii, as well as other lactic acid bacteria that may benefit digestive health. Kimchi made from cabbage is high in some vitamins and minerals, including vitamin K, riboflavin (vitamin B2) and iron.

4. Miso

Miso is a Japanese seasoning. It is traditionally made by fermenting soybeans with salt and a type of fungus called koji. Miso can also be made by mixing soybeans with other ingredients, such as barley, rice and rye.

This paste is most often used in miso soup, a popular breakfast food in Japan. Miso is typically salty. You can buy it in many varieties, such as white, yellow, red and brown. Miso is a good source of protein and fiber. It is also high in various vitamins, minerals and plant compounds, including vitamin K, manganese and copper.

How do probiotics work in miso? Miso has been linked to some health benefits. One study reported that frequent miso soup consumption was associated with a lower risk of breast cancer in middle-aged Japanese women. Another study found that women who ate a lot of miso soup had a reduced risk of stroke.

5. Kombucha

Kombucha is a fermented black or green tea drink. This popular tea is fermented by a friendly colony of bacteria and yeast. It is consumed in many parts of the world, especially Asia. The internet abounds with claims about the potential health effects of kombucha. However, high-quality evidence on kombucha is lacking.

The studies that exist are animal and test-tube studies, and the results may not apply to humans. However, because kombucha is fermented with bacteria and yeast, it does probably have health benefits related to its probiotic properties.

6. Pickles

Pickles (also known as gherkins) are cucumbers that have been pickled in a solution of salt and water. They are left to ferment for some time, using their own naturally present lactic acid bacteria.

This process makes them sour. Pickled cucumbers are a great source of healthy probiotic bacteria that may improve digestive health. They are low in calories and a good source of vitamin K, an essential nutrient for blood clotting. Keep in mind that pickles also tend to be high in sodium. It is important to note that pickles made with vinegar do not contain live probiotics.

7. Natto

Natto is another fermented soybean product, like tempeh and miso. It contains a bacterial strain called Bacillus subtilis. Natto is a staple in Japanese kitchens. It is typically mixed with rice and served with breakfast.

It has a distinctive smell, slimy texture and strong flavor. Natto is rich in protein and vitamin K2, which is important for bone and cardiovascular health.

How do probiotics work in Japanese people? A study in older Japanese men found that consuming natto on a regular basis was associated with higher bone mineral density. This is attributed to the high vitamin K2 content of natto. Other studies suggest that natto may help prevent osteoporosis in women.’

The Link Between Your Gut and Mind

You know the feeling of butterflies in your stomach when you are dating someone new and falling in love? Or that ‘gut feeling’ you get when you know something is wrong or someone is lying to you? Often referred to as the ‘gut-brain axis’ or ‘gut-brain connection’, there is evidence to suggest that these two entities work in sync with each other. In order for us to have a healthy mind, our gut needs to be healthy too, and vice versa. An article on Healthline explains the connection:

‘Neurons are cells found in your brain and central nervous system that tell your body how to behave. There are approximately 100 billion neurons in the human brain. Interestingly, your gut contains 500 million neurons, which are connected to your brain through nerves in your nervous system. The vagus nerve is one of the biggest nerves connecting your gut and brain. It sends signals in both directions.

For example, in animal studies, stress inhibits the signals sent through the vagus nerve and also causes gastrointestinal problems. Similarly, one study in humans found that people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or Crohn’s disease had reduced vagal tone, indicating a reduced function of the vagus nerve.

How Are The Gut And The Brain Connected?

Your gut and brain are also connected through chemicals called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters produced in the brain control feelings and emotions. For example, the neurotransmitter serotonin contributes to feelings of happiness and also helps control your body clock.

Interestingly, many of these neurotransmitters are also produced by your gut cells and the trillions of microbes living there. A large proportion of serotonin is produced in the gut.

Your gut microbes also produce a neurotransmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which helps control feelings of fear and anxiety.

Your gut-brain axis is also connected through the immune system. Gut and gut microbes play an important role in your immune system and inflammation by controlling what is passed into the body and what is excreted. If your immune system is switched on for too long, it can lead to inflammation, which is associated with a number of brain disorders like depression and Alzheimer’s disease.’

Similarly, Health Harvard published an article that explained that in order to treat a distressed gut, you must take into consideration the mind:

‘The brain has a direct effect on the stomach and intestines. For example, the very thought of eating can release the stomach’s juices before food gets there. This connection goes both ways. A troubled intestine can send signals to the brain, just as a troubled brain can send signals to the gut. Therefore, a person’s stomach or intestinal distress can be the cause or the product of anxiety, stress, or depression. That’s because the brain and the gastrointestinal (GI) system are intimately connected. This is especially true in cases where a person experiences gastrointestinal upset with no obvious physical cause. For such functional GI disorders, it is difficult to try to heal a distressed gut without considering the role of stress and emotion.’

How To Improve Your Gut-Brain Axis

In order to keep your gut and mind working harmoniously, it is a good idea to take note of what you’re eating and how you are thinking. The Healthline lists the following food groups as beneficial:

Omega-3 fats

These are found in oily fish and also in high quantities in the human brain. Studies in humans and animals show that omega-3s can increase good bacteria in the gut and reduce risk of brain disorders.

Fermented Foods

Yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut and cheese all contain healthy microbes such as lactic acid bacteria. Fermented foods have been shown to alter brain activity.

High-Fiber Foods

Wholegrains, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables all contain prebiotic fibers that are good for your gut bacteria. Prebiotics can reduce stress hormone in humans.

Polyphenol-Rich Foods

Cocoa, green tea, olive oil and coffee all contain polyphenols, which are plant chemicals that are digested by your gut bacteria. Polyphenols increase healthy gut bacteria and may improve cognition.

Tryptophan-Rich Foods

Tryptophan is an amino acid that is converted into the neurotransmitter serotonin. Foods that are high in tryptophan include turkey, eggs and cheese.’

The Rules of the Mind

You have direct control over your mental wellbeing, even if you do not realize it, in terms of the thoughts and pictures that you create in your mind. Our subconscious picks up on the words we say and the thoughts we imagine, so it is very influential.

Marisa Peer explains the rules of the mind: “When I was training to be a therapist, I was challenged when I was told, “The mind is really complicated and very complex. It takes a lifetime to understand and to master.” I immediately thought, Well, how is that going to work then? No one has got a lifetime to master their mind. What’s the point of being 80 years old before you can finally work out your mind?

I have spent over thirty years studying the mind, applying leading principles with thousands of clients, and now I share what I have learnt so that everyone can benefit from it. Understanding how your mind works and applying these mind hacks will enable you to achieve lasting transformational change in your life. That is why I created Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) as a complete solution-based treatment, to bring together the most beneficial principles from neuroscience, NLP, CBT, Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy.

I am honored that my simple steps to produce dramatic and life-changing results have helped so many people and have been recognized with numerous international awards and accolades. I am excited to be part of revolutionizing the world of therapy, to help as many people as possible  achieve their own personal breakthroughs.”

Marisa teaches people that ‘every word you say forms a blueprint and your mind and body must act to meet that blueprint, even if it’s a terrible blueprint, it will stick. That’s why it’s so important to think positively and focus on what you want and what you’re good at.’

Closing Thoughts

To conclude, do probiotics work? Yes! ‘Good’ or ‘friendly’ bacteria is needed to keep your gut working seamlessly, but it is also essential to keep your mind focused too. Once you have catered to both, your gut-brain axis will work harmoniously for all-round good health.

If you have enjoyed this article and want to go even deeper into learning more about your health, how to nourish your body and how to live well, then consider joining Marisa’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge.

With a range of daily trainings, meditations and audios, you will learn how to overcome negative, destructive habits when it comes to your health, and how to rewire your brain to naturally choose healthy options that nourish and support your health.

Interested? Click the banner to find out more about the challenge, and secure your place today.

10–16th June 2021 marks the week of International Men’s Health. Men’s Health Week is celebrated annually just before Father’s Day to honor the importance of men’s health and wellbeing. It was chosen for this specific time of year to make use of the extra attention paid to male family members.

Men’s Health Week was created by Congress in 1994, to heighten awareness of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease among men. The focus for 2019 is men’s health by numbers. The Men’s Health Forum explains this year’s focus in a series of statistics:

Key numbers for men:

• ‘37 – a waist size of 37 inches or above puts you at increased risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer
• 150 – men should aim for 150 minutes of moderate physical activity a week
• 5 – men should aim to eat 5 portions of fruit and veg a day
• 14 – men should drink a maximum of 14 units of alcohol a week
• 10 – men who smoke cigarettes die 10 years younger on average than non-smokers
• 120/80 – is a normal blood pressure reading
• 75 – 75% of suicides (3 out of 4) are by men

Key numbers for policy-makers and service providers:

• 1 in 5 men die before the age of 65
• ​2 in 5 men die before the age of 75
• 3 out of 4 suicides are by men
• Men in unskilled work are three times more likely to take their own lives than men in senior management
• The richest men live on average 10 years longer than the least well-off men. Richer area = longer life.’

The 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge

If you are seeking to develop a healthier relationship with your body and how you nourish it, then consider joining Marisa Peer’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge?

Men aren’t always comfortable talking about their self-image, or challenges relating to their body and health. That’s why Marisa Peer has designed a challenge that can give you both a safe space to discuss your experience with like-minded people, as well as daily trainings that can help you develop a healthier relationship with food, learn how to accept and understand your body, and dispel any negative beliefs held about your self-image.

If you are interested in participating, click the banner below to learn more, and grab your space today. 

This blog article explores the types of exercises out there, the ones that are trending, and the effects they have on the body and the mind.

What Is Exercise?

Let’s start off with the basics. The Oxford Dictionary defines exercise as ‘Activity requiring physical effort, carried out to sustain or improve health and fitness.’ Upon looking up more definitions, it appears that the general meaning of exercise only takes into account the activity and the effect that it has on physical fitness―mental wellbeing is not considered.

What Types of Exercise Are There?

If I try to think of all the different types of exercise that I have participated in over the years, I could be here for a long time. My top 10 are the following:

1.   Aerobics

2.   Weightlifting

3.   Swimming

4.   Cycling/spin

5.   Yoga

6.   Pilates

7.   Walking

8.   Zumba/dance

9.   HIIT (high-intensity interval training)

10.   Running

These 10 types of exercise can generally be grouped into either cardio, resistance or flexibility. Bupa states the following: ‘Whatever your motivation for exercise, the best way to ensure all-round fitness and health is to do a mix of three different types.

1. Aerobics

For a healthy heart, lungs and muscles, it’s important to take part in regular aerobic exercise. This will also improve your fitness levels. Combine aerobic exercise with a balanced diet and you’ll be on the right track to maintaining a healthy weight too…

Aim to exercise at a moderate intensity for 2.5 hours (150 minutes) a week or at a vigorous intensity for an hour-and-a-quarter a week. Or you can do a combination of the two. You don’t need to do this all at once either, you can spread it out over the week.

2. Strength (Resistance)

Strength training involves moving your muscles against some kind of resistance, which is why you’ll sometimes hear it called resistance training. Having more muscle burns up lots of calories too, so building your muscles up will help you to stay a healthy weight…

Aim to do some strength training two or more times a week and work all the major muscle groups in your body. Don’t just go for the heaviest weight you can lift. Find the right weight at which you can do a set of 8 to 12 repetitions of an exercise. Begin by doing just one set and try building this up over time to three or four sets. Then start over with a slightly heavier weight, and so on.

3. Flexibility

Flexible muscles allow us to keep mobile and active. It’s important to do some regular exercises to improve your range of motion. Flexibility exercises involve slowly stretching your muscle groups without jerking or bouncing…

Aim to do some flexibility exercises at least two or three times a week, to stretch all the major muscles in your upper and lower body. When you are doing them, hold your position for between 10 and 60 seconds and do two or three repetitions.’

Livestrong also offers similar advice. They say: ‘The ideal fitness routine will have all the different categories of exercise, including cardiovascular, strength training and flexibility.

The overall goal for exercise is to get at least five days a week of moderate to intense aerobic activity for at least 30 to 60 minutes each day, for a total of 150 to 300 minutes each week. Additionally, you should participate in muscle-strengthening activities at least two days each week, with the goal of exercising all the major muscle groups. The types of workouts you choose to do on these days should include cardiovascular, strength training and flexibility exercises.’

History And Trends In Fitness

Over the years, there have been trends in fitness that have become associated with particular decades. Wellness360 takes a trip down memory lane with lifestyle blogger Trace Ferguson, to discover what fitness fads have come and gone:

‘Fitness is constantly evolving. Over the past 80 years, we have gone through a variety of fitness phases, some of which laid the foundation for modern-day exercise routines. Let’s take a walk through some of the most popular workout trends of the past eight decades!

1940s – Stretching

Exercise for women in the 1940s was characterized by stretching. Jumping jacks were adopted by the U.S. Army because of the low level of fitness amongst drafted soldiers, sparking this exercise to become popular among men. Jumping jacks and toe-stretches were thought to keep bodies toned and in shape.

1950s – Hula Hoop

The hula hoop was a toy trend that caught fire the moment it hit America. More than 400,000 were sold by 1957! Granted, it was classified as a toy when it first hit stores, but hula hooping for 30 minutes can be a great full-body workout. Nowadays, adults can use a weighted hula hoop as opposed to a plastic one if they want to feel the burn!

1960s – Vibrating Belt

It seemed to be a widespread belief in the ’60s that you could jiggle away unwanted fat. The machine originally gained popularity in the early 1900s, but had a big comeback in the ‘60s. You would loop a wide belt around any area problem area, turn it on and bam! Your fat would magically “melt” off. The vibrations were supposed to mimic a massage. At the time, massages were believed to cure fatigue, remove toxins, increase muscle tone and improve circulation. No sweat, no problem! Except that it did not really work. People eventually came to realize this, and the vibrating belt faded away.

1970s – Jazzercise

The ’70s brought in a new, high-intensity form of exercise called Jazzercise, which is still practiced today (although not as widely). Jazzercise is a mix of jazz dance (no surprise there), ballet, Pilates, yoga and kickboxing. The routines are usually set to a popular song of the instructor’s choice. This trend was the beginning of choreographed exercise set to music.

1980s – Aerobics

Aerobics sprung up as a spinoff of Jazzercise. While the two exercises are similar, aerobics is less of a dance routine than Jazzercise. It was originally invented in the ‘60s, but it was not put on the map until Jane Fonda came out with a book and aerobics workout tapes. The dance moves used were mixed in with fitness movements, like elevating knees or marching in place. Aerobics became a workout empire and inspired many different spin-offs, such as water aerobics and step aerobics.

1990s – Tae Bo

Karate master Billy Banks took over the fitness world in the ’90s. He created Tae Bo, a high-intensity cardio workout that combines martial arts, boxing, dancing, and hip-hop beats. At the height of its popularity, over 500 million Tae Bo videos were sold.

1990s – Spinning

Johnny Goldberg was a cyclist and personal trainer from South Africa who moved to the United States. One night, he was riding his bike and almost got hit by a passing car. From this scare, he got the idea to move cycling indoors.

Goldberg began teaching spinning classes in 1990 and it was the beginning of a workout revolution. With the addition of upbeat music, Soul Cycle was born. Fast forward to modern day where spinning classes can be found at almost every gym.

2000s – Zumba

Building on past dance-inspired workouts, Zumba emerged as a Latin-inspired workout. This fitness style mixes salsa, tango, bachata and flamenco dance styles to upbeat Latin or pop music. Zumba classes can be found in most gyms, and the exercise is popular in 180 countries worldwide.

2010s – CrossFit

CrossFit was born in 2000 by Greg Glassman. Glassman was a gymnast who wanted to get stronger in multiple sports and exercises. CrossFit focuses on conquering obstacles and training the whole body. It is a mixture of gymnastics, weightlifting, pull-ups and calisthenics. The first CrossFit gym originated in Santa Cruz, California. Now, there are thousands of CrossFit gyms and trainers across the country and a huge community has formed around the fitness trend.’

How Does Exercise Affect Your Health and Fitness?

I know that regular exercise has helped me to maintain a healthy weight at times and also helped to improve my strength and stamina. I would also say that when I have had a consistent exercise regime over a long period of time, I have had fewer colds/minor illnesses compared to when I have neglected my fitness routine.

Digital health company, Sharecare, lists the following physical benefits of exercise: ‘Exercise affects the body positively when done in moderation and gradually increased as all muscles become stronger. Any time you move your body in a sustained, continuous way―such as walking, jogging, bicycling, or dancing―you are using your muscles more than you do when your body is at rest, and that promotes good health. Studies show that light-to-moderate exercise is beneficial for people with heart disease. If you have heart disease or cardiac risk factors or are recovering from heart surgery or angioplasty, you should follow the medical advice you received from your doctor or in cardiac rehabilitation before changing your exercise program.

Exercise is most effective if is continued consistently. The benefits of exercise are greatest when a person exercises 3 to 6 times per week. Aerobic exercises, like walking, jogging, bicycling, dancing, and swimming, are especially good for your heart because they increase your breathing rate over time to meet increased oxygen demands and help your heart work more efficiently. Other forms of exercise are strength training, such as weight lifting, and stretching, such as yoga, which is also important for overall health.

The Benefits Of Exercise Include:

• Stamina. Muscles require more blood flow and oxygen during exercise than they do at rest and trains your heart to work more efficiently.

• Wellbeing. Your brain releases chemicals called endorphins during exercise that alter your mood by increasing a feeling of wellbeing.

• Strong bones. Bones benefit from exercise, too. To remain strong and resilient during trips and falls, they must be consistently “loaded” by carrying weight and responding to gentle stresses. Well-designed and moderate weight training is particularly useful for this benefit.

• Flexibility. Your muscles and tendons benefit from stretching. If they are kept limber, you will gain some protection against injury.

• Strength. Your muscles benefit from weight lifting and other exercises that make your body stronger while guarding against muscle wasting as you age.

• Weight control. Exercise makes your body burn more calories and can help reduce cholesterol levels and control diabetes.’

The Mental Benefits Of Exercise

The extract above from Sharecare touches briefly on the mental wellbeing aspect. I believe that I never feel worse after working out. I can feel down in the dumps, sluggish and fed-up before heading to the gym, yet I always feel lifted, motivated and happy with myself after I’m done and on my way home. My reason for feeling like this is the endorphins that are released. The Well and Good site asked J. Kip Matthews, Ph.D., a sports psychologist, what his thoughts were on this “high” that we all experience after exercising:

What Are Endorphins?

“Endorphins are neurochemicals produced in the body in the pituitary gland in response to stress and pain,” Dr. Matthews explains. In layman’s terms, they’re kind of like natural painkillers. They interact with opiate receptors in the body, which then minimizes our pain experience.”

‘Dr. Matthews says that scientists didn’t actually discover endorphins until the 1970s when a lot of research was being done on heroin and morphine addiction. “They were noticing that there were some specific receptors in our body that the heroin and morphine were acting on, and it didn’t make sense as to why we had these opioid receptions in our bodies,” he says. “That then led to the discovery of endorphins. And in fact, our bodies do produce these chemicals that have this painkilling aspect.”

Since then, researchers have found that there are actually a lot of activities that can cause an endorphin boost in the body: meditation, laughing, eating chocolate or spicy food, and even childbirth.

“In some ways, endorphins get too much of the credit for people having a blissful feeling when they exercise,” Dr. Matthews says. That’s because they don’t work alone: serotonin and norphenylephrine, two other feel-good neurotransmitters, are also released during workouts. According to Dr. Matthews, a serotonin and norphenylephrine boost actually happens before an endorphin one, in about 30 or 45 minutes of exercise. But the actual rise in endorphins doesn’t really happen until after an hour of intense exercise.

“After an hour or more of exercise, then the body has experienced significant enough stress that the endorphins kick in,” he says. Remember: endorphins are a stress response, released to reduce pain. So, you have to get your body to a pain point to actually get that release. Here’s the tricky part though: If you put too much stress on your body, Dr. Matthews says the response can backfire and your hard workout can leave you feeling aggravated or in a bad mood. His best advice for reaching that sweet spot: Listen to your body.

According to Dr. Matthews, the rise in endorphins during exercise can be so powerful that studies have shown it can be just as effective as counseling or medication when it comes to lowering depression.’

The NHS also reinforces the concept of exercise having a positive effect on mental health. Their website states the following:

‘We think that the mind and body are separate. But what you do with your body can have a powerful effect on your mental wellbeing. Mental wellbeing means feeling good―both about yourself and about the world around you. It means being able to get on with life in the way you want.

Evidence shows there’s a link between being physically active and good mental wellbeing. Being active doesn’t mean you need to spend hours in the gym if that doesn’t appeal to you. Find physical activities you enjoy and think about how to fit more of them into your daily life.’

Instagram sensation and online fitness guru Joe Wicks shared a blog post about exercise and mental wellbeing. Within it, sports journalist Kieran Alger said the following: ‘How do you feel after a workout? Even when you’re purple-faced and desperate for a lie-down, you feel pretty pleased with yourself for giving it a go, right? Once the initial breathlessness subsides after a workout, it’s common to feel like you have more energy and those troublesome problems might not seem quite so big as before. While they might seem intangible these benefits are as real as―and arguably more important than―the results you see around your waistline.’

How To Get The Mental Benefits Of Exercise?

The Mental Health Foundation explores how you can reap the mental benefits of exercise:

‘We need to change the way we view physical activity in the UK in order not to see it as something we ‘have to do’, ‘should do’ or ‘ought to do’ for our health, but as something that we do because we personally value its positive benefits to our wellbeing.

Being active doesn’t have to mean doing sport or going to the gym. There are lots of ways to be active; find the one that works for you and let’s all get physical!

Physical activity has a huge potential to enhance our wellbeing. Even a short burst of 10 minutes’ brisk walking increases our mental alertness, energy and positive mood.

Participation in regular physical activity can increase our self-esteem and can reduce stress and anxiety. It also plays a role in preventing the development of mental health problems and in improving the quality of life of people experiencing mental health problems.

Marisa Peer’s Views On Mental Health And Exercise

Marisa Peer is a world-renowned speaker, therapist, and best-selling author. With over three decades of experience in freeing clients from mental disorders, including anxiety and depression, she recognizes the importance of a regular fitness regime. In Marisa’s blog post ‘12 Tips on How to Heal Depression’ she says: “I have helped thousands of clients gain freedom from depression and mental health problems with Rapid Transformational Therapy, which gets to the root cause of emotional, physical or cognitive issues. I believe that when it comes to depression, we need to change our thinking, beliefs and behavior to achieve lasting change.” At number one of her 12 tips is exercise.

“Even though you really may not want to, exercise releases endorphins, which promote wellbeing and benefit our physical and mental health. You don’t have to go to the gym every day, even going for a walk helps, and taking up yoga is particularly helpful. Another effective cure for depression is movement through dance or tai chi. Uplifting music can also have a very powerful effect on our moods. No matter how brief, any kind of movement and exercise will help.”

If you enjoyed reading this article and would like to read more, please register below to receive our free Wellness Weekly digest, full of interesting blogs, special offers and free gifts for our readers at marisapeer.com.

Allergy Awareness Week, from Friday 23rd until 29th April 2021, aims to raise awareness of all allergic conditions, including food, respiratory, skin, and children’s allergies.

This article also looks at the causes and what can be done―how to stop allergies― with five practical suggestions to manage and even stop allergic reactions.

Allergic Reactions are Increasing

It is thought that one in four people in the UK will suffer from allergies at some point in their lives, and numbers are increasing year on year.

An allergy is the body’s reaction to a particular food or substance. Some of the common allergens, that can cause allergic reactions in some people, include:

• Foods, such as nuts, gluten, shellfish, cow’s milk, and eggs
• Tree pollen and grass (known as hayfever)
• Dust mites
• Animals (fur, skin or hair)
• Medication, including aspirin, ibuprofen, and some types of antibiotics
• Household chemicals, including detergents and hair dyes
• Mold, which can be breathed in as tiny particles into the air.

Whilst these substances may not be harmful to people who do not have a reaction to them, they can affect everyday activities to those that suffer from allergic reactions.

What Causes an Allergic Reaction?

Allergic reactions occur when cells in the immune system interpret a substance as harmful, overact and release histamine. It is your immune system that gives you the symptoms, not the substance itself.

This is an important consideration when it comes to how to stop allergies, as it reveals the positive intention of your body to try and clear the substance it has misinterpreted as a dangerous threat.

Once we realize that the allergic reaction comes from within, not from something external to us, it gives us the opportunity to address this and change from within, which is where Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) can be so empowering.

How to Stop Allergies: What Can be Done?

1. Stay away from allergens

The National Health Service advises that “in many cases, the most effective way of managing an allergy is to avoid the allergen that causes the reaction whenever possible.”  However, this isn’t always possible.

2. Medication

Medications are available to help control symptoms, including:

• Antihistamines that can be taken before exposure, or as soon as you start to notice a reaction
• Decongestants for unblocking sinuses for a short-term period
• Lotions and creams to moisturize and reduce skin itching and redness
• Steroids to help reduce inflammation, redness, and swelling​

3. Follow your gut

The immune system and gut are closely linked with up to 80% of your immune system residing in your digestive tract. Therefore food really can be used as medicine.

This IBS article talks about the low FODMAP elimination diet and here are Marisa’s Foods I Rate and Hate, which details the foods she considers healthy and those that should be avoided.

4. Treatment

Immunotherapy can be used with very severe allergies, which involves building up exposure to an allergen in a controlled way over a long time period.

5. Rapid Transformational Therapy – can it help?

The immune system is run by the subconscious, which is why Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) can be so effective. Using hypnosis we are able to communicate directly with our subconscious and instruct it, or begin to reprogram it, for powerful long term change

We operate from our mighty subconscious 95% of the time and once we learn how to work with it, through RTT, we can use the power of the subconscious mind to command our cells and systems as to what we want them to do.

RTT addresses the underlying cause of any issue, including looking into the role, purpose, function, and intention. This understanding has liberating transformative power. Command Cell Therapy and the Healing Vortex are just two of the many transformational tools of RTT, which can be used to help the body learn more appropriate responses to allergens and not to overreact to them anymore.

Book a session with an RTT therapist and help overcome your allergy issues

If you would like to see a real-life example of how powerful this approach can be, this is a testimonial Kasia Weglarz received from one of her RTT clients:

Real-life case study of RTT for allergies:

I went to my first RTT session with Kasia a little over a month ago for an enormous list of food allergies and asthma. RTT was a last-ditch resort and I wasn’t really thinking it would be able to do anything for me, but I had already run through my options: medications, allergy specialists, acupuncture, etc. I had become so allergic to peanuts that I couldn’t be in the same room as someone eating peanuts without a reaction and I had a myriad of other food allergies including anaphylaxis to apples and severe allergic reactions to anything containing celery, carrots or sesame. My asthma had also kicked in badly and I was using my emergency inhaler six times a day.

Prior to my RTT session, I had heard of muscle testing with allergies. I tested myself by having my dad apply pressure to my left arm while I held the allergen in my right hand. Sure enough, every food I had allergic reactions to, my arm would fall limp when the slightest amount of pressure was applied to it.

Two weeks after my RTT session, I had my dad try the test again with an apple in my hand and I was able to resist the pressure as he pushed down. I looked at him and smiled and said: “I think I’m going to go for it.” Mind you, the last time I had bitten into an apple I had ended up in the ER three years prior from anaphylaxis.

I bit into the apple and relished the crunch, aroma, and flavor I had missed for so long. I took another bite. My lips didn’t tingle, my tongue didn’t swell and I didn’t get hives. There was no allergic reaction! I celebrated by baking apple cake, eating apples and drinking hard cider.

I continued to try the foods I had been allergic to and to my delight, I didn’t have a single reaction. I haven’t needed my inhaler for asthma since I left her office a month ago. I have not tried peanuts yet, but I have been able to sit around people while they eat them without getting hives or tingly lips. I have also gone out for Chinese and Indian food which I hadn’t done in years. I feel like I have a new lease on life.  I know that all of this may sound too good to be true, but I am proof that RTT can get rid of your allergies. Kasia helped me discover that your life can be whatever you make it. Don’t waste another day of your life suffering. Thank you, Kasia, for helping me overcome the blockages in my life that were making me so sick!

– Danielle, Hooksett, NH, March.”

What is IBS?

IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) is a common chronic condition affecting up to 20% of people. It occurs in the large intestine and symptoms can include all or some of the following:

Diagnosis of IBS

There is currently no definitive test for IBS — although your doctor may ask you to undergo tests in order to rule out other possible causes of your symptoms.

Personally, I was diagnosed with IBS about 10 years ago after suffering from frequent constipation and bloating for most of my childhood and teenage years. I was advised to up my fiber intake, drink more water, and exercise regularly.

What Causes IBS?

Unfortunately, there is no definitive answer for what causes IBS. However, according to The IBS Network, common risk factors include an attack of gastroenteritis, suffering trauma, anxiety, and taking strong antibiotics. Some researchers have said that people with IBS have a specific genetic defect which can be inherited. Women are also more likely to be sufferers of IBS, as it has been linked to the hormones that are secreted around menstruation. Depending on your most common symptoms, different things can trigger your IBS flare-ups, and this includes what you eat.

What is The Best IBS diet?

IBS Diet – What You Shouldn’t Eat With IBS

The following foods have been commonly highlighted as triggers for IBS flare-ups:

Personally, I’ve found that white potatoes, Prosecco, pastries, and steak are my main culprits. As much as I love to consume these, I choose not to eat them regularly in order to keep my IBS under control. I actively try to lead a stress-free life where possible, as any anxiety, upset or anger causes my constipation to rear its ugly head.

Following a low FODMAP diet (which stands for Fermentable Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides, and Polyols) can help you find out what your main triggers are, and then learn how to alleviate your IBS.

Eliminate all high FODMAP foods for two to six weeks, or until your symptoms fade. You can then slowly reintroduce the high FODMAP foods back into your diet and wait to see if any symptoms reoccur. If you have a mild reaction to a certain food, then perhaps you can just eat small, occasional portions. If you have a severe reaction, you will then know to eliminate it for the long run. This will help you figure out what is best for your body and you can then follow a personalized diet that avoids your triggers. The main dietary sources of the four groups of high FODMAP foods include:

IBS Diet – What You Should Eat With IBS

These foods have been commonly highlighted as soothing choices for IBS:

However, there is no one-size-fits-all diet for sufferers of IBS. It’s important to be in tune with your body and use trial and error to find out what works for you personally, and what doesn’t.

See this article on Foods I Rate and Foods I Hate for an in-depth list of suggestions.

Treatment For IBS

Doctors prescribe a number of medicines to treat the symptoms of IBS including laxatives, fiber supplements, anti-diarrhea tablets, and even anti-depressants. The link between IBS and anxiety and depression can be explored through the gut-brain axis. The bacteria in your gut affects the health of your brain and vice versa. As the two are so dependent on each other, it’s important to address both your diet and the thoughts in your mind.

Hypnotherapy and CBT for IBS

A recent study published in the medical journal, The BMJ, involved 558 patients who suffered from IBS and had been undergoing standard medical treatments for a year or more. The patients were split into two groups.

One continued to receive the current standard IBS treatments, while the others were offered eight CBT sessions specifically designed for treating IBS.

A year later, the second group reported significant improvements in their IBS symptoms compared to the first. What’s more interesting is that the CBT sessions were conducted over the phone or online, rather than face to face.

Another study published in the research organization, Iffgd, found that hypnotherapy may help to improve symptoms of IBS such as nausea, fatigue, backache, and urinary problems. Hypnotherapy for IBS involves progressive relaxation, soothing imagery, and sensations. Noted findings from the study were ceased abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, and bloating.

Marisa Peer: The Power of the Mind

In addition to founding Rapid Transformational Therapy, Marisa Peer has spent over 30 years transforming the lives of her clients, including people who have suffered from anxiety, depression and a range of physical conditions, including IBS. She offers many powerful treatments, including those you can apply yourself at home, such as books, hypnosis audios, and online courses. Marisa’s techniques enable you to take control of the pictures you make in your mind, to communicate directly with your subconscious, which controls all the systems in your body, including your digestive system. You can create a natural feeling of well-being, boost your immune system, and make feel-good hormones just by changing the way that you think.

You can also consider joining the 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge to take direct action in learning how to make healthier choices to improve your diet and general well-being. The challenge, which runs over three weeks, will include daily training, meditations, and audios all designed to help you overcome your misbeliefs surrounding your diet and health, and rewire your brain to make choosing healthier food, easier, and prevent relapse into negative habits. Click the banner below to find out more and secure your place on the next challenge, starting soon!

Use your imagination to communicate to your body what you want it to do. Imagine your large intestine and colon working like a seamless orchestra. Tell yourself out loud every day, “I have a brilliant digestive system”. Praise yourself every day and you will start to feel better, happier, healthier, and in control.

Read more about healthy foods and how to achieve optimal well-being on Marisa’s blog.

Not only have we changed what we eat, but also when we eat. Our bodies are still like those of cavemen. Primitive men got up with the sun rising, ate what they hunted or picked during the day, and retired as it got dark. Today, it is the norm to eat a big meal in the evening and this leaves our bodies full of undigested food. Our metabolism slows down dramatically at night, even if we are wide awake. Nature assumes that we will be sleeping and therefore not as active, so our heart rate slows right down making digestion more difficult.

My Top-Rated Healthy Foods

Eggs

Full of vitamins, calcium and lutein (which protects against age-related eye degeneration). They are a superfood and studies have shown that having 2–3 eggs for breakfast suppresses hunger  for hours whilst boosting concentration.

Eggs are also full of serotonin, which can aid in the prevention of junk food and sugar cravings.

Avocados

Avocados are one of the best foods of all as they are literally packed with vitamins. They lower blood pressure whilst increasing serotonin levels which makes us feel happier.

Bananas

Full of dopamine and serotonin. Dopamine is a natural antidepressant—maybe that is why monkeys always seem happy!

Cinnamon

Just half a teaspoon a day brings down sugar levels in the blood which in turn encourages fat burning. It also reduces sugar cravings. Simply add it to curries, stews, oats, or tea.

Almonds

Full of B vitamins and zinc which helps stop sugar cravings. If bears and squirrels can survive solely on nuts, then they must be good. Not all the oils in nuts are absorbed by the body and they are not fattening in regular portions (a

palm-sized amount.)  Oleic oil feeds your hunger very quickly. Only eat raw, unsalted varieties. Walnuts and hazelnuts are also excellent snacks.

Seeds

Pumpkin, sesame, hemp and sunflower seeds are full of omega oils, which the body needs for almost all of its functions. A lack of these essential oils is linked to depression.

Brazil nuts

Full of selenium which blocks the body’s absorption of mercury. Buy Brazil nuts in the shell as chocolate coated ones do not count, sorry.

Cruciferous vegetables

Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and brussel sprouts all contain a rich source of fibre and antioxidants.

Milled Linseeds/Flax Seeds

These are super nutritious for the skin. Flax seeds are a rich source of omega 3. Linseeds clear the residue of old undigested matter from the gut. Just take three spoonfuls a day.

Apples

The skins contain pectin which is an anti-cholesterol agent.

Zsweet and Stevia

Natural calorie-free sweeteners that lower blood sugar while giving you a lovely sweet taste in tea or oats. Stevia is a herb and completely safe, unlike artificial sweeteners which are full of chemicals.

Air popped popcorn

Popcorn is full of lutein. Add a little light soy sauce for the perfect crunchy snack to eat when you are watching TV. It is great in children’s lunch boxes, too.

Edamame beans 

Just steam or fry in a wok for five minutes, then add a little sea salt or light soya sauce for a delicious snack that is full of protein.

Fish

Oily fish like mackerel, sardines and wild salmon are best for omega 3. If you eat fish more than three times a week, take a selenium supplement as it will stop your body from absorbing mercury.

Green tea

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirmed that green tea is rich in catechin (a natural antioxidant) that can reduce abdominal fat. It also speeds up metabolism.

Herbs and spices

Cinnamon, ginger, cayenne pepper, cardamom, and ginseng can help to stimulate thermogenesis (heat generated by the body) and promote weight loss. Hot spices can boost the rate at which calories are burnt by up to 15% for a few hours after eating. Chillies also speed up metabolism and reduce hunger.

The Worst Foods

I do not even like calling the rubbish below ‘food’. I call them Frankenstein foods as they are full of chemicals, additives, coloring, and preservatives, which the body cannot break down or use.

Margarine

This is literally one molecule away from being plastic. Rats, bugs, and flies do not eat it and that should tell you everything. No mold will grow on it and the body is unable to get rid of it.

Artificial sweeteners

Artificial sweeteners are another poison to our bodies and have been linked to cancer, Alzheimer’s, ADD and dementia. Sweeteners are made from wood alcohol and petrochemicals which the body cannot break down. Artificial sweeteners still raise your insulin levels even though they have no calories.

Sugar

This refined, processed and bleached chemical causes your body to store internal fat. Low-fat, high-sugar foods will never make you thinner, they will do the opposite. Sugar is made in a refinery and has no nutritional value at all. It also feeds anxiety and dramatically ages the skin.

Cow’s cheese

Most of the milk we consume comes from pregnant cows. Milk is full of cow’s pus and mucus, plus an insulin growth factor designed to make cows grow, which will also make you grow. When calves drink their mother’s milk it gives

them a 300% growth spurt. This has the same expanding effect on humans. The growth hormone has also been linked to prostate and breast cancer.

Processed foods

The chemicals in processed food disrupt your metabolism and the additives are so highly addictive that they have you craving more. They are also full of trans fats and preservatives so they do not break down in your body.

Wheat

It is chemically altered, indigestible and almost worthless as a source of nutrition. Modern bread has as much sugar equivalent to a cake. There can be up to three spoons of sugar in just one slice of bread. Starchy wheat-based foods like

bread, pastries, and pasta push up your sugar levels forcing your body to store fat.

Cola

I call this osteoporosis in a can as the phosphoric acid in cola ruins your teeth and leaches calcium from your bones. The chemicals in cola contain formaldehyde which is shockingly also used in embalming fluid.

Crisps

They may seem like just cooked slices of potato, but they are actually solidified fat, chemicals, salt and additives.

Salt

Salt is linked to high blood pressure and strokes. While a little sea salt is fine, it is better to cut salt from your diet and season with herbs instead.

Breakfast cereals

These are so high in sugar that you are basically eating a packet of cookies broken up and drenched in milk.

Breakfast bars

When you start the day with a high-sugar food, your insulin levels rise and you begin your day by storing fat and then continue fat-storing all day as your blood sugar levels stay too high.

Muffins

These are simply sugary cakes and we should not be eating cake for breakfast.

Modern yogurts

Sugary low-fat yogurts raise your blood sugar levels and encourage your body to store rather than burn fat.

My Healthy Food Plan

Breakfasts

• Eggs (boiled, poached or scrambled) with vegetables such as tomatoes, spinach, peppers, and onions. I also add ham/prawns/salmon and some coriander. Although eggs contain cholesterol, they will not raise levels in the blood unless you have an inherited cholesterol problem. You can eat far more than the previous guideline of five eggs a week.
• Soya yogurt with almonds and/or mixed seeds (sunflower/hemp/sesame/pumpkin/linseeds) and a teaspoon of cinnamon
• Oats made with water adding a little soya/hemp/ rice milk. Add linseeds, cinnamon, and a few nuts to push up the protein content.

Lunches

• Salad with fish/chicken/turkey/eggs/avocados and quinoa
• Any kind of protein with vegetables such as cooked chicken or fish
• Soup full of protein like chicken or ham with vegetables, and add quinoa if you want a bulkier soup
• Falafel made with chickpeas

I do not usually need a snack as I eat enough protein, but if I do want something I have fruit or nuts, edamame beans, or hummus and crudités.

Dinners

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• Chicken with stir-fried savoy cabbage and broccoli
• Steak and vegetables
• Grilled fish with roasted vegetables
• Turkey meatballs with garlic, spring onions, celery and spinach
• Bolognese with julienne courgettes
• Lentils or minced lamb and mashed cauliflower with olive oil
• Curry made with cardamom, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, ginger, ginseng, and chilli. I have bean sprouts or shredded cabbage instead of rice.
• Kebabs of steak/chicken/turkey/prawns/fish with green peppers and scallions
• Peppers stuffed with lean minced turkey
• Grilled prawns, peppers and spinach

I do not eat pasta or rice but occasionally I will have Dell’Ugo chickpea pasta. I also do not have too much variety at each meal as this stimulates appetite and overeating.

If I am out to dinner I do not enforce the above meals because as long as I eat like this most of the time, the odd difference really will not matter.

Join The 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge

If you would like some more information about how to nourish your body and make healthy choices, be sure to check out my new 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge. You will spend three weeks receiving guided trainings, audios and meditations specifically designed to help you overcome your negative eating habits, and help you make better choices that will allow you to look after your body, reach your goal weight, and maintain it. Find out out and secure your spot today by clicking the banner below.

You can also read more about maintaining a healthy relationship with food in my book ‘You Can Be Thin.’

In this article, I’ll explain why cereals and grains are one of the most indigestible foods for humans.

Man was not designed to eat cereals and grains, which are after all, are grasses for cattle and wild animals.

Cows chew for up to 20 hours a day, they make 100 to 150 litres of saliva a day to produce the enzymes to break down grass and they have four stomachs to digest grains. Humans in contrast have a much shorter digestive tract and a smaller stomach, as we are not designed to eat the same as cows.

The Modern Diet Is Making Us Sicker And Fatter

Grains have only been used by man as food for 10,000 years, and man has functioned very well without them for 2 million years.  70-80% of the food we eat today was not eaten by our ancestors and our bodies are still not adapted to these foods. Our ancestors could only eat food raw or cooked over an open fire.

Over the last 50 years, as carbs have been refined and processed and become the basis of our diet, we have gotten fatter and sicker.  They have also been modified to contain way too much gluten. Grains contain mycotoxins which are linked to the growing increase in diabetes.

“Which provides energy? Good carbs or bad carbs?”

When people say to me “‘Which provides energy? Don’t all carbs do?” I always reply “what do you think the Zulu and the Masai lived on for thousands of years?”  They could not carb load as no-one ate grains before mills and ovens were invented. In fact, cereals are indigestible and can be toxic in their raw state.

Your Body Stores Good Carbs and Bad Carbs As Fat

When you eat carbs or any starchy food, they turn to sugar very fast, your blood sugar goes up and you make insulin. The job of insulin is fat storage. It’s incredibly hard to lose weight once you have eaten carbs and it’s very hard to gain weight if you have not eaten carbs.

Your body won’t burn fat when carbs are present unless you exercise. That is why endurance athletes carb load before competing as they will have the stored carbs to use for energy, whereas protein is used too quickly. Bodybuilders on the other hand, who want to sculpt their body, cut out carbs before a competition so they burn fat.

What We Are Built To Eat

Good carbs and bad carbs alike, everything we are meant to eat was put on the planet by mother nature for us to find, gather or hunt. Our basic diet should be made up of protein, vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds and the good oils they contain.

Natural oils are good fats and we need good fat and protein to maintain muscle.  Also since almost all vitamins apart from vitamin C are fat soluble, without fat they cannot be absorbed. When you eat protein or natural oils, the body will use these as they are a building food.

The Good, The Bad And The Frankenstein

The oils from fish, avocados, olives, nuts and seeds are healthy and known as essential oils. Essential because the body cannot make them and absolutely needs them for good physical and mental health.

The oil from hydrogenated fats contained in margarine is what I call “Frankenstein food” no-one should eat trans fats ever as the body can’t get rid of them. Fatty meat can be eaten sparingly. The oil in cheese, cream and butter should be eaten in moderation. We need to know the difference between monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, saturated fats, and trans Fats. I do it this way, for mono think nuts and seeds, for poly think fish, for saturated think of cheese and cream, where the whole food is saturated in fat, for trans think Frankenstein.

“Eat Your Vegetables”

We should have up to eleven daily servings of vegetables and only 3 of fruit, ideally organic and locally grown. A wide variety of vegetables are far more important than fruits, they have more vitamins and antioxidants.  Fruit is still a sugar and too much of it pushes up insulin levels.

Fruit juice is not a good food at all, no tribesman started the day with the juice of 5 oranges, the fruit was seasonal and had to be shared out.

This Is How A Healthy Diet Should Look Like:

The 4 Rs – follow this simple guide

My 4 Rs will help you eat food that your body can easily digest and burn off. Our bodies are designed to eat everything that was on the planet when we evolved – food that grows and roams and is easily recognisable. If it rots, then it can be broken down by your body. Food in its most natural state is digestible.

Join the 21-Day Healthy Eating Challenge

If you have been struggling to work out the difference between good and bad carbs on your own, or struggling to make the healthy choices your body needs to flourish, then you don’t have to go it alone anymore. Introducing… Marisa Peer’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge. 

Over a period of three weeks, you will undergo daily training, and receive a variety of audios and meditations, all designed to help you rewire your brain to develop better eating habits, overcome your negative thoughts and beliefs about your relationship with food, and allow you to reach (and maintain!) your goal weight without having to go through yo-yo dieting.

Click the banner to find out more about the challenge, and secure your space today.

Free Mini Course: Health and Weight

• Discover what’s holding you back from the healthy body you deserve
• Take control over how you think about your health and wellness.
• Learn what may have been an issue for you and how you can change that now.

I have spent over thirty years helping people, including myself, make the right food choices. It’s a lot easier than you think.  You don’t need expensive gym memberships, diet pills or obsessive restrictive diets to maintain your Perfect Weight Forever.  Knowing the facts and scientific evidence about the food you eat, empowers you to change your associations with food and make positive healthier choices.

You deserve to be happy in your body, with a healthy relationship to food, not being controlled by food. Your body will also thank you for the changes you can easily make to feel healthier and more energised, instead of feeling tired, lethargic, fat and unhappy. Don’t plunge deeper into self-loathing reaching for another chocolate bar, soda or a slice of pizza, thinking it will make you feel better.  They will never make you feel better and I’m going to share with you why.

Why Should We Avoid Processed Foods?

When food is refined and processed, it is so chemically altered that our body cannot break it down properly or get nutrition from it.

Chips, cakes, chocolates, cookies, pastries, candy and ‘fast foods’ are NOT foods. So-called ‘Junk food’ and ‘fast food’ shouldn’t even be called ‘food’ – they are a cocktail of chemicals, colorings, sugar, trans fat and preservatives.

The body becomes addicted to these chemicals as they make the body release dopamine, the same way drugs do.  As with all addictions, we need more and more of the drug just to get the same effect. A study at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida, USA, found lab rats became addicted to a bad diet, in the way that people become dependent on cocaine and heroin. Studies are now finding similar effects on humans with addictive foods.

According to research, a diet of burgers, chips, pizza and cake will program your brain into craving even more foods that are high in sugar, salt and fat. Over the years these junk foods can become a substitute for happiness and can lead to binges and unhealthy behaviour and addictions.

5 Foods to Avoid and Why

1. Margarine

Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC.

To prove to yourself just how bad for you margarine is, buy a tub and leave it in your garage or a shaded area outside. Within a couple of days you will notice that no flies, rodents or insects will go near it (that should tell you something!)  You will notice that it doesn’t rot or smell, because it has no nutritional value; nothing will grow on it. Even microorganisms won’t grow on trans fats. It doesn’t decompose – why? Because it is nearly plastic. It’s about as real and healthy as the tub it came in and you wouldn’t melt it and eat that, would you?

It isn’t just margarine that should be in your “foods to avoid” list, many other foods contain trans fats including fast food, junk food, snack food, biscuits, pies, pastries, cakes, crackers, chips, crisps, powdered hot drinks and ready-to-eat meals should be too.

Trans fats are linked to weight gain, cancer, diabetes and heart disease. So look at that untouched plastic in your garden and remind yourself it’s a chemical, not a food, and can make you ill and fat. Remind yourself that it’s almost plastic and if it’s unfit for rats and flies it has to be unfit for you and your family. Rats know that and now you know it too.

Your body cannot break down and digest plastic (instead it wraps it in fat and stores it in your body).  Eating so-called ‘slimming spreads’ and diet foods can actually make you even fatter, even if the calories are low. Try organic soy or olive oil spread instead, or even better an organic cold-pressed olive oil, stocked by most supermarkets and health food shops.

2. Sugar

Sugar is made in a refinery and has no nutritional value at all, so the body lets you eat a lot of it looking for nutrition, which it never gets.

When we eat sugar our blood sugar soars; the body cannot burn off the excess and goes into fat storage. For many of us, this happens at every meal, as we consume sugar in our drinks, snacks, sauces, sliced meat, fish like smoked salmon, and countless other foods. A Mcdonald’s bun and meat patty contain so much sugar it would legally have to be classified as confectionary without the gherkin, which tilts it back into being classified as a savoury item.

Carbs are recognised and used by the body as sugar. Your body does not care if you are eating bread, baked potatoes, pasta, rice, or a bar of chocolate – it recognises all carbs as sugar.  Once you have eaten more than 3 teaspoons, it stores the rest as fat.

We all know now that sugar is bad for us and that also includes excessive amounts of fruit, smoothies, juices and dried fruits, which are concentrated sugar. We have to remember that when we lived in tribes, fruit was seasonal and shared out, no tribe-person started their day with the equivalent of 10 apples or oranges, which is how much you can consume in a glass of juice.

Stop consuming sugar and stop sugar cravings once and for all.

3. Artificial Sweeteners

Artificial sweeteners may seem healthier but they’re also in the “foods to avoid” list. They are made of petro-chemicals and have been linked to all kinds of illnesses including cancer, Alzheimer’s, and dementia.  They are actually banned in some countries and states, because of their link to mental decline.

Sweeteners are another Frankenstein food that poisons our bodies. Artificial sweeteners are made from wood alcohol and petro-chemicals, which the body cannot break down.  However, they can still raise insulin levels, even though they have no calories.

Aspartame is a particularly potent artificial sweetener used in diet drinks and ‘low-fat’ snack foods as a sugar substitute, to keep the calorie content of the product down. Reducing the fat reduces the calories, but also makes the flavour bland, so sweeteners or sugar substitutes are added to increase the flavour. However, when aspartame is combined with carbs it slows down the brain’s production of serotonin. Serotonin is a very important and essential hormone that elevates mood, which is why it’s known as the happy hormone. Research has found that bulimics, compulsive eaters and alcoholics lack the required levels of serotonin and low levels of serotonin are also linked to depression.

Natural sweeteners are healthier, like Stevia, which is made from a leaf, and Xylitol which is made from the bark of a tree.

4. Dairy

After the Second World War (when the population needed building up), the Milk Marketing Board heavily promoted milk as a health food and the promotion worked. However, milk is actually very unhealthy and should be one of the foods to avoid.

Non-organic milk is polluted with hormones, pesticides, steroids, antibiotics and is full of synthetic hormones. In modern intensive factory-farming, cows are kept in milk all year round, injected with bovine growth hormones. Milk can contain thirty-five different hormones and eleven different growth factors.

In factory farming, the cows are milked by machine, which extract cow’s pus and blood along with the milk. All milk can be 50% mucus and has to be pasteurised to kill the bacteria, but the pasteurisation process also kills any beneficial enzymes.

Cow’s milk is not a food for humans at all, it is designed to nourish calves through their biggest growth spurt and to give them a 300% weight gain within a year. Milk contains insulin growth factor (IGF) a growth hormone, plus oestrogen and progesterone, so consuming any dairy product will have an effect on your body’s natural hormone levels.

As I noted in my book You Can Be Thin, from the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (JNCI), dairy scientists admitted that the level of a very powerful hormone contained in milk, insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), increases in the human body after milk consumption. IGF-I has been identified as the key factor in the growth and proliferation of various cancers, including prostate cancer and breast cancer. Many experts believe that the IGF-I in milk and lactose may over-stimulate hormones, which may encourage tumour growth. The higher our levels of IGF, the higher our risk of developing certain cancers. Researchers at Stanford University and the National Institutes of Health found that high concentrations of the IGF-1 hormone stimulate cancer cell growth.

5. Wheat and Gluten – “Glue”

Wheat and other cereals in their most basic form are cattle feed – they exist on this planet to feed cattle. It took humans thousands of years to take the grasses that cattle and wild animals grazed on and make them available for human consumption by grinding, milling then baking them.

Cows have four stomachs to break down wheat as it requires a different digestive tract from a human’s much shorter digestive tract and small stomach. We don’t have four stomachs to digest wheat, but if you eat a wheat-based diet you might begin to look as if you do!

The gluten in wheat and other cereals has been linked to the rise in overweight Westerners, as it’s hard to digest and can cause allergies, fatigue, bloating, weight gain and Coeliac disease.

The word glutinous means sticky and is an adjective derived from gluten.  Gluten is like glue and digestive issues arise when we eat glue for breakfast, glue for lunch and more glue for dinner and snacks.

When your wheat-based food is broken down in your body, it coats your intestines with a sticky residue, like glue. If you then eat some fresh fruit or vegetables, they will stick to this glue-like matter and ferment instead of being digested. As a consequence, your body is crying out for nutrients not calories. You are full of food but still hungry because your body cannot get enough nutrition from the indigestible food you have put in it.

Cereals are cheap. We have been misled by marketing men into thinking it’s a health food. In truth, the low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet makes people fat because the refining process removes the fiber and all the good nutrients from rice, wheat and other cereals. What we are left with is empty calories that promote overeating instead of fullness. Definitely one of the foods to avoid!

Wheat, a type of grain, is comparatively new to our diets; we started cultivating grains about 10,000 years ago, which is new considering man existed without them for well over two million years. Genetically we are almost the same as we were prior to the introduction of grains, and the foods we are best adapted to are the foods mother nature provided for us.

The 4 R’s To Help You Eat Healthy

My 4 R’s will help you stick to the “foods to avoid” list and eat food that your body can digest and burn off. Our bodies are designed to eat everything that was on the planet when we evolved. Food in its most natural state is digestible.

Roams or Grows

Food that grows and roams and does not look too different once it has been prepared and placed on your plate is digestible and in harmony with your body. If you can still recognise it as food you can eat it.

Raw

Growing and roaming food does not include flour or cereals. Our ancestors only ate food that could be eaten raw or cooked speared over an open fire, so cereals were naturally excluded. Cereals and potatoes are actually toxic in their raw state and dangerous to eat uncooked with the exception of oats, which can be eaten unprocessed and uncooked.

Recognise

Recognisable food means that you can recognise what the item is made from, like eggs, pears, peas, chicken and raw nuts. When you get to bagels, pretzels, cakes, biscuits and packets of Twiglets, cheesy curls, chocolate and jelly beans you can’t tell just from looking at them what the raw ingredients are.  Recognisable food does not look very different from its natural state. Lastly, if it doesn’t rot then it’s not going to break down and be digestible in your body. It belongs in the bin, not in your body.

How good would it be to feel happier, healthier and more energised to do what you want?

Change Your Association With Food

The most effective way to avoid unhealthy foods and enjoy healthy eating is to change your associations with food. Before eating that junk food snack, consider the pain of feeling sick, tired, overweight, lethargic and out of control to addictive foods.  Instead, choose to feel great about your healthier choices and healthier habits, focus on how good it will feel to love your body and have the energy to do all the things you love.

If you stop eating sugary refined and processed carbohydrates and junk food, you will eventually stop craving them. It’s the same with all addictions: stop feeding the monster and it will die.

Just like any other addiction, you have to give up the source of the addiction, to see it as a poison for your body and keep away from it. Many people self medicate with food without even realising it. They use food to sedate themselves, to tranquillise themselves, to feel better and to elevate their mood.

So many people are addicted to sugar, salt and fat without even realising it.  When YOU are in control, rather than being controlled by food, you make the choices and enjoy the benefits.

If you think you might want expert guidance as you start your journey towards making healthier choices for your body, why not consider joining Marisa Peer’s 21-Day Healthy Living Challenge? Taking place over three weeks, you will join a community of people looking to change their lives for their better, and receive daily training, regular audios, and even some meditations. These are all designed by Marisa to help you overcome your negative eating habits, and change the way you think about food, and your health in general.

To improve your relationship between your mind, your body, and the food you choose to nourish them with, click the banner below to find out more about the challenge and secure your spot today.