Levels of Healthfulness

Do you consider yourself healthy? Do you eat a healthy diet? I've been thinking a lot about health lately as I navigate the process of trying to diagnose an "off" feeling in my abdominal area. I've always felt that because I don't drink soda or smoke or eat fast food that that was good enough. I eat my veggies. I love veggies! We buy mostly organic and grow and forage some of our own food. I cook almost all of our meals from whole ingredients. Our family's diet is relatively very good. But it is easy to have a relatively good diet when so many Americans eat so poorly. And as long as you eat a fairly healthy diet and feel fine, why would you worry or make a change? The same goes for exercise. As long as you are feeling fine and can still do the things you are used to doing, why bump it up a notch? Oftentimes it takes a health issue arising for us to push our eating or exercise habits to the next level. But make no mistake, diet and exercise are some of our best medicine.


We really are facing challenging times health-wise. Sometimes even our best intentions are thwarted by our exposure to toxins and pollution beyond our immediate control. Due to outdated corporation-centric laws, the burden of testing chemicals used in consumer products falls to the FDA and not the company profiting from using or producing the chemical. There are tens of thousands of chemicals in use today and very few have undergone testing to determine their effects on human health not to mention the health of the environment as a whole. In other words, we are guinea pigs in a big chemical experiment. And clearly we are suffering. Sick-care is one of the largest growing industries in the world.


It is so strange to have to tell my son that things that they sell at the store are poison or "bad" for you. "Why are they selling things that are bad for our bodies, mom?" "Because it increases their profit margin, my sweet, precious, lovely angel."


As far as my own journey goes, I have eliminated gluten and dairy from my diet but unfortunately there are still days or parts of days where my "gut" feels uncomfortable. I'm not sure what my next step will be. There is a talented acupuncturist in town. There are a variety of western-medicine type doctors. There is a homeopath. I am still in the process of discovering what my body is trying to tell me and I am proceeding with a newly revitalized commitment to being as healthy as I can be.


Alright, enough musing and ranting. How about a super healthy, bump-it-up-a-notch, raw kale salad recipe? 

Spicy Kale Salad
 You will need:
1 bunch of kale (preferably curly leaf)
1 T. sesame tahini
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. tamari
1 T. water
2 T. nutritional yeast
1 clove garlic minced
1 pinch of cayenne 


Wash and dry kale. Remove leaves from stems. Tear kale into bite-sized pieces. Blend all of the other ingredients in a bowl using a fork or whisk until it forms a thick dressing. Pour over kale and massage the dressing into the kale until all pieces are well coated. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. This salad will not get soggy or wilt. Keep covered in the refrigerator and enjoy over the course of a few days. It just gets better. Raw kale is so good for you! This dressing makes it pleasurable to eat.

Enjoy and in health.