Healthier Lifestyle Tips

If you’re anything like me, you enjoy finding new ways to bridge frugality and natural living. For the past year I have been on a journey to better health. One aspect of this journey has been to start intentionally replacing consumer goods with natural versions of common household goods. Our first experiment? Organic natural DIY toothpaste! 

So you may be thinking, okay but it’s just toothpaste? Yes, that’s true. But there is also a undeniable link between natural living, nutrition, and oral health, specifically the ability of our teeth to remineralize and regenerate. To naturally, self-repair tooth decay.  

There is a lot of emerging information about tooth remineralization, a process that until recently was thought impossible by leading dental industry physicians, that not only can the process in fact take place but for the most part, can be done at home. While the largest part of this process rests on the assumption of the personal eating the ideal diet of a  no or low-grain diet, free from beans or nuts, limited in fruits and starches, but loaded with vegetables, protein, healthy fats, and one of my favorites, bone broth. There is also the assumption that good oral health care products are being used as well, and this is where the DIY toothpaste aspect of this post comes into play!

Over the past few months, with the help of natural toothpaste and a remineralizing diet, my teeth are in much better, healthier, cleaner-feeling shape than ever before. My teeth are whiter. My breath feels fresher. My sensitivity to hot and cold beverages has lessened, and I credit a lot of this transformation to making my own toothpaste blend. 

Another bonus? As this DIY toothpaste is flouride-free, its safe on babies, toddlers, and those with thyroid problems as well.

While it goes without saying that making your own toothpaste will save you money, but it will also give you a feeling of accomplishment, knowing your just one step closer to removing all of the harmful ingredients commercial toothpaste bring into your home.  

Oh and did I mention, it takes less than 3 minutes to prepare. Yeah, it’s that awesome! 

So, here’s how to make DIY toothpaste at home:

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1 tsp fine sea salt (optional but great for root health) 
• 15 drops peppermint essential oil (to taste)
• 1 tablespoon activated charcoal
• filtered water (add to desired consistency)

To make the paste:

1. Mix together baking soda, charcoal powder, salt, and peppermint.
2. Add a little water at a time, stirring after each addition, until paste reaches desired consistency.
3. Store in a glass jar. Each member of our family has their own jar.
4. When ready to brush, simply wet your toothbrush, spread as much paste as you like, and brush!

Cost Breakdown:

1. Baking soda: $0.33
2. Sea salt: $0.02
3. Peppermint essential oil: $0.28
4. Activated Charcoal: $0.13
5. Filtered Water: $0.07 (per my town’s water cost monthly breakdown)

Cost: $0.83 for per each 5.3 ounce jar batch of organic, natural toothpaste!

While this amount may seem marginal for those who coupon or shop at dollar stores, for those of us who used natural products such as Tom’s of Maine Spearmint Gel®, which costs an average of $4.98 for a 5.2 oz tube, this is a savings of $4.15 per tube, or $49.80 annually (based on a tube per month breakdown).  

That’s it, everyone!  How easy was that to get rid of bad breath, germs, and help naturally clean your teeth! I hope you all enjoy it, and if you give it a try, please leave me a comment below!

Here’s to natural living,

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MyCareGivingStory #Ad

When we’re busy growing up, we forget our loved one’s are also growing older. While we are finding our way in the world, they may find themselves trying to adapt to new and more difficult situations in life such as mobility, safety, and incontinence. 

Difficulties with using the toilet, including accidents and incontinence, can be troublesome for the elderly. This is especially true for people living with dementia, particularly as the condition progresses. These problems can be upsetting for both the person coping with embarrassing health ailments, and for loved one’s caretakers assisting them daily in these situations. 

At the age of twenty-five, I became caretaker to my grandmother due to her early onset, stroke-induced dementia. This was a very difficult period in my life. And despite settling into our new normal as caregiver and care receiver, one issue we struggled with in our care giving journey, bathroom incontinence. 

Consider a typical morning for us: My grandmother, an avid television binge watcher, would laugh at a humorous television program, have a little incontinence leak, begin walking to her bathroom, and then cry because she soiled her clothing in transit. She felt very sad, helpless, and embarrassing in those moments. In the early days I would feel resentful she didn’t let me know when she needed help.  My grandmother would not understand my reaction. It was an unending drama in my home my first year of care taking. 

I soon came to realize that someone living with dementia is more likely to have accidents simply because they may not being able to react quickly enough to the sensation of needing to use the toilet, to be able to get to the toilet in time, or not wanting to let others help with issues of bladder leakage due to embarrassment. 

It was through this knowledge that I was able to equip myself with the patience and understanding it required to help my grandmother with her incontinence issues. And after lots of time and patience on my part, as a caretaker, we were able to work together to create a plan of action that best suited my grandmother’s incontinence needs. We were able to turn embarrassing, exhausting moments into lessons in time management, preparedness, and compassion.

So, here are my best tips to help caretakers aid elderly loved one’s deal with incontinence. 

Keeping the urinary tract healthy is a good first step to preventing toilet problems and incontinence; loved one’s with overactive bladder symptoms should replace drinks that irritate the bladder, such as tea, coffee, cola, with water, herbal teas, and fruit drinks. As caretakers we must make sure our loved one’s drink six to eight glasses of fluids each day, being mindful that cutting down fluids for long periods of time, such as at night, can cause urinary tract infections and constipation. We must also help to keep our loved one’s as mobile as they can. Walking every day helps with getting loved one’s quickly prepared for quick trips to the bathroom. 

Giving regular reminders to loved one’s about using the can greatly help prevent accidents. For someone with urinary incontinence, the caregiver should ask loved one’s every 2-4 hours whether the person needs the toilet in a calm, positive manner. Prompting needs to be done sensitively. Avoid patronizing. This can help reduce the number of accidents.

Watch for signs that loved one’s need to go to the toilet, even if they cannot communicate this directly. Signs may include fidgeting, pacing, standing up and down, or pulling at their clothes.

Incontinence can lead to skin irritation and discomfort for loved ones. After an accident, it is important for caretakers to act quickly to make sure loved one’s feels comfortable again by making sure they wash afterwards with mild soap and warm water, laundering soiled clothing as soon as possible, and being aware of any irritating rashes that come about.

When dealing with a loved one’s incontinence issues as a caretaker, your best tool is to create an environment of success for your loved one. For us this meant creating a bathroom that promoted proper hygiene and health. A few ways we did this were by:

1) Dedicating an entire bathroom for my grandmother’s use only. This allowed her privacy, dignity, and autonomy over her own bathroom space. 

2) We cultivated a calm, neutral space. We painted the walls white and used breathable natural linens to ensure the bathroom would be a quiet, serene space. 

3) We created a Daily Bathroom Usage Station. We placed a visible, easy-to-access basket containing the hygiene products I could anticipate as her caretaker she would need for each visit to the bathroom.  Her basket was placed on top of her bathroom toilet, which gave her all the tools for success she needed to have successful bathroom visits at home each and every time. 

In her basket we included:

• Poise® Maximum Absorbency Pads (for daily wear)
• Depend® Fit-Flex® Underwear (for overnight support)
• No-Rinse 2-in-1 Shampoo and Body Wash
• Hand Sanitizer
• Bamboo wash cloths
• Pack of wipes
• Aloe Vera Plant (located next to basket for rash first aid treatments)

We also included a clipboard mounted above the toilet with My Daily Bathroom Visit Sheet. The sheet listed just little reminders so my grandmother was able to be gently reminded of how she needed to best safeguard her own health while using the bathroom, and maintained more of her dignity and autonomy in the process, too! Next to her reminders sheet, we keep a second clip board of paper and a pen to joy down any notes we need to mention on her next follow-up visit to the doctor, dealing with urinary or bladder symptoms. 

I’ve included a copy of my print out for those who could use it as well. Just right click to save. 

Now, of all the products we stocked in her Daily Bathroom Usage Station, we could come to consider the Poise® Liners to be one of our ultimate tools in care giving success. These awesome pads, which can be worn both day and night, help to draw fluids away from the skin, helping to keep my grandmother comfortable without chafing or leaking.

Another bonus? Should my grandmother have needed extra time in getting to the bathroom, Poise® Liners provided her with the extra absorbency needed to give you the confidence and protection for your Light Bladder Leakage to and from bathroom visits. And Poise® Liners come with absorb-loc® core technology, which quickly locks away wetness and odor, with leak-block sides that provide worry-free protection leaving your loved one happy, health, and secure. As any caretaker will tell you, sometimes the confidence in knowing you have just one extra minute in getting a loved one to the bathroom, can make all the difference in the world! This extra protection was a lifesaver for us both! 

I cannot tell you how much of a lifesaver it was to equip my grandmother with Poise® Liners because they helped her to maintain her dignity, and it made my job as a caretaker much easier during our first few seasons of  establishing my grandmother’s healthy bathroom habits schedule. 

While my grandmother always preferred the Poise® Maximum Absorbency Pads we also used the Depend® Fit-Flex® Underwear for Women for overnight needs, so we always made sure to keep them stocked-up at home! What was really nice is that not only did my grandmother love using her pads, she would often request them by name.

So, for me, it was super simple just to pick up a pack of Depend® Fit-Flex® Underwear and Poise® Liners when I was in-club at my local Sam’s Club, during my monthly shopping trips. And when she saw me bring in the big, purple box into the house, she always knew just who they were for!

And as a savvy saver, I appreciated being able to pick up my caregivers products like Depend® and Poise®, in club at Sam’s. Right by the pharmacy counter, I am also able to pick-up my other care giving demands like wipes, santizer, and No-Rinse products at affordable pricing, making Sam’s Club my one-stop destination for all of my care giving needs.  

Also, our local Sam’s Club has a pharmacy, an optical center, hearing aid center plus offer free health screenings every month.  So, when someone in our family, including my grandmother, needed any of these services Sam’s was always our first stop! Being a member of Sam’s Club saves me not only money, but time. Valuable time that could be given back to my family and care giving responsibilities.

Now, what really neat is that currently at Sam’s club, when you scan the new  and scan the new boxes of Depend® and Poise® products, you can access the Sam’s Club Family Caregiving website.  This site gives you tips and ideas for items that caregivers need on daily basis.  

Also, when in-club purchasing Depends and Poise products remember:

• If you download the Digimarc Discovery app, you can scan anywhere on the packaging, and it will take you to the Sam’s club Caregiver website.
• When you open your depend packaging, there will have a sticker inside, that you can use to redeem at your local Sam’s Club pharmacy for an awesome caregiver sample kit!

So, savvy savers? Do you know someone who could use a Daily Bathroom Usage Station?  Then I encourage you to be sure and check out Sam’s Club Caregiving website for more ideas.

Here’s to caring,

For so many, muscle stiffness and soreness are facts of life. Sometimes, it’s a good kind of intensity, such after an intense workout or while hiking. Sometimes, though, it can be a slow, debilitating, painful experience from stiffness that makes even the most mundane tasks seemingly impossible. However it happens, we need fast relief. Since starting my journal to better health, I choose to skip the pharmaceutical, chemically derived anti-inflammatory creams, and expensive over-the-counter knock-off products, opting instead to make my own, all-natural, holistic, essential oil-focused balm. 

As you may have guessed, using an essential oil-based liniment on sore muscles has numerous benefits. Not only do the blends various botanicals work deeply into the skin to naturally relieve pain and inflammation, but the aromatherapeutic effects can help to relieve stress associated with pain, fatigue, and discomfort. And if your congested, it works for that too!

Here’s a little breakdown for each oil:

• Cinnamon Oil cleanses, nourishes, and helps rebuild the skin’s cellular wall.
• Lemon Oil cleanses, nourishes, and helps rebuild the skin’s cellular wall.
• Frankincense Oil is an antibacterial, anti-fungal, antiviral, immuno-stimulant that helps with healing infectious wounds, insect bites, warts, acne, is anti-fungal, clears dandruff, reduces eczema, psoriasis and inflammatory skin conditions, promotes burn healing, and reduces itching and inflammation.
• Peppermint Oil, besides it’s relaxing scent nodes, is used to change brain wave patterns, as it is also a scent-based, brain-wave activity reducer which increases relaxation and relieves muscle tension.
• Ginger Root Oil contains natural, unprocessed vasoconstrictive properties that helps restrict blood vessel tension, which causes blood vessels to narrow and restrict blood flow, aiding in head pain relief within minutes.
• Clove Oil helps promote healing and helps minimize scar damage to the skin. 
• Coconut oil: Coconut oil acts as both a carrier oil to help with the even and safe distribution of essential oils on the skin as well as acts as a natural means of balancing hormones, which is known to help aid in headache and migraine relief. Please note, for those allergic to coconut oil, grape seed oil can be substituted as well. 
• This blend also contains Aloe Vera gel, known for its skin healing properties. 

Here’s what you will need for this blend:

• 20 drops of Cinnamon Oil
• 20 drops of Lemon Oil
• 20 drops of Peppermint Oil
• 20 drops of Frankincense Oil
• 20 drops of Clove Oil
• 20 drops of Ginger Root Oil
• 1/4 cup Organic Coconut Oil
• Glass Measuring cup
• Glass storage containers (I love the Ball half pint jars)
• Spoon or honey stick 

Directions:

1. In a half pint jar add 1/4 cup room temperature coconut oil.
2. Add all essential oils to carrier oil.
3. Fold oils into the carrier oil; oils can be adjusted to need and personal preference.
4. Let balm sit and meld for one hour to let oils fully combine. 
5. Balm should be stored in the fridge to remain solidify.
6. Balm will remain viable indefinably. 
7. Please note, to make your balm shelf stable, you can use a double boiler over medium heat to melt 2 tablespoons of beeswax pastilles, which can be added to your balm for on-the-go relief.
8. I also keep my blend in the fridge to help solidify the balm, and I prefer a cooling product when I have cuts, scrapes, burns, and the like. 

How to apply:

•  Massage a small dab of balm, the size of a dime, every 3-4 hours as needed. 
• Remember, breathe deeply while applying balm to help with the added benefits of tension relief by way of aromatherapy.
• Please note, follow-up with a medical professional for any and all serious cuts, scrapes, wounds, or infections, as needed. 

So, that’s it folks. I really cannot say enough great things about this balm. Not only is it natural and relaxing, it’s also affordable and great for your skin, too! I hope you will all try it should the need arise.

Here’s to your health,

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #TenaTips #CollectiveBias

“Even the most tedious chore will become endurable as you parade through each day convinced that every task, no matter how menial or boring, brings you closer to fulfilling your dreams.” – Og Mandino

If anyone was to ask me one word to describe my life, without hesitation I would say charmed. I consider myself to be a very fortunate individual and in many ways, “I have a big life,” a life that I never envisioned for myself. I have been able to attend law and graduate school, study the arts, and start a family of my own. I have always prided myself on being able to enjoy the joie de vivre each day. 

But for the past year I’ve also led a double life. You see, I’ve dealt with incontinence stemming from pregnancy and delivery as well as PCOS-induced weight gain. These issues caused much of my charmed existence to be placed on hold. And it was this hold on life which prevented me from being a continent person who traveled each weekend and most summers, to a person afraid of spontaneity. 

Thankfully, there are products like TENA® incontinence products for women, that have helped me get back into my full swing of life, including travel and dancing.  So today, I wanted to share five tips for travel this summer with bladder control leakage:

Researchers have found that the key to living with PCOS is all about managing insulin levels. So, wherever I travel, including quick trips to New Orleans for the weekend, I always make sure to pack my glucose monitors as well. For me, when my blood glucose levels are high, I tend to have more issues with incontinence as well! 

For those suffering from bladder leakage, recent studies have shown that Kegel exercises (pelvic floor muscles) help strengthen the muscles that help control the urethra. When these muscles are weak, the result can be urinary incontinence. Kegel exercises are really awesome to help you naturally ease bladder leakage issues. 

I’m a planner. I always have been. So, when I know I am heading out the for a family trip or vacation I always make sure to plan an in-case bag. For me, this includes:

• A wax-lined bag in case I need to carry food (which may leak), wet bathing suites, or any items which should need to be aired out. 
• An extra set of keys to our car and home.
• Any feminine or emergency items I might need. 
• A wristlet to hold the above, should I not want to carry a larger bag. 
• A money organizer which contains gift cards, emergency cash, and insurance cards. 
• A planner and pen.
• Sunglasses.
• Two coin pouches; one for tolls and transportation and one that holds bills for tipping while on vacation.

For me, it’s always a good idea to keep my in-case-of-emergency bag close at hand. This is especially true for me when going on trips that involve visiting large bodies of water, such as our family trip earlier this year to Niagara Falls. To say that bladder incontinence products like TENA® are a lifesaver, would be the understatement of the year in that situation! 

With TENA® incontinence products in my bag, I was free to enjoy my day of site-seeing, and the only leakage I had to contend with the mists of the falls! 

Another good way to help control bladder issues this summer is to avoid foods that trigger urinary incontinence. Some of these foods include: tomato products, caffeinated beverages, chocolates, citrus fruits, alcoholic beverages, artificial sweeteners, processed foods, and onions. A fun summer tip: Prep yourself small, make-ahead meals that help you stay hydrated, fit, and ready for your travels ahead. 

Bladder incontinence may be demanding. But what even more demanding is the need to live your life to the fullest each day! This summer, remember to find something each day that makes your heart sing. For me, this was a recent college reunion ball with my husband. It felt awesome to get back into my dancing shoes, with the confidence in knowing that bladder leakage won’t be an issue for me when I use TENA® pads. I was able to focus on being arm candy for my husband without the fear of embarrassing leakage issues. I was able to spend my time simply shining!

My favorite thing about these pads is their Unexpected Leak™ technology, which gives me the confidence in knowing that even perfect evenings are safeguarded when I use TENA® incontinence products. So, if you’re like me and suffer from incontinence and are worried about unexpected leaks during exercise, travel, and summer fun this season, then before you take to the road or gym this summer, just stop by CVS and pick up a package of TENA® liners, pads, or underwear. 

What’s even better is that you can shop in-store or online at CVS.com for the full line of TENA® products. 

And for all of my savvy saving readers, you can request a rebate on TENA® Pads/Liners/Underwear and Overnight Underwear on the iBotta savings app. So, you can keep living your life to the fullest and on a budget. 

Today starts like any other day. I am 33 years young, I am 5’6”, and weigh 238 lbs. I am down one pound since last week. I walk my dogs but beyond this am not terribly active. My lifestyle causes sedentary behaviors; I work-from-home, blog, run two internet businesses, and perform advocacy work online as well. I am an internet-based excuser! Today this changes! Spring has sprung, and so shall I! I have taken up yoga, and have started working out with a pedometer on as well!

I live with PCOS, or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, which can be one of the hardest and most intimidating diseases to cope with. To give you a little briefing of the disorder, PCOS is basically an imbalance of hormones in the female body that leads to a host of issues. Though the cause is unknown, PCOS is thought to be tied to being caused by poor blood sugar, or a family history of fertility and diabetes issues, though that isn’t always the case.

PCOS basically means that the hormones produced in the ovaries of a woman aren’t functioning as normal. Hormones are chemical messengers that trigger many different processes in the body, including growth and energy production. Often, the job of one hormone is to signal the release of another hormone, but in an individual with has PCOS, their hormones aren’t relaying messages correctly, which leads to the imbalance. What researchers do know is diet and moderate exercise, are two of the biggest ways to treat and possibly eliminate PCOS. PCOS affects women of all ages, races, weights and heights.

If left untreated, PCOS can lead to permanent infertility, Type 2 diabetes, depression, obesity and varying bodily changes such as irregular or painful periods, acne and facial hair.

With all of this said, for this weeks Battle of the Bulge: Budget Style, I wanted to share a few tried and tested ways I manage my PCOS:

1) Monitor your insulin levels: Researchers have found that the key to living with PCOS is all about managing insulin levels. Insulin is the hormone associated with your blood sugar. When too many carbohydrates are eaten, or poor quality carbohydrates, insulin spikes and then drops dramatically. This leads to a change in hormonal imbalance and greatly affects those living with PCOS.

Each day I limit carbohydrates such as sodas, candy and sweets, dried fruits, high sugar fruits, refined grains, starchy carbohydrates, refined and added sugar and any drinks containing sugar such as juices, coffeehouse drinks, etc. to between 10-12 grams per day; which means for me I have choices. I can either have a sugary soda, a small frappuccino, or a cup of pasta with a meal. I cannot have all three. This also goes for fruit, fruit juices, and power bars, too!

2) Make Fiber your BFF: Fiber is a girl’s BFF. Fiber balances blood sugar levels and also aids in removal of excess estrogen from the body. Excess estrogen can worsen PCOS, creating an imbalance of hormones. Daily, I eat 2-4 ounces of fiber-rich foods such as whole grain oats, brown rice, quinoa, flax seeds, chia seeds, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, celery, or celery. It’s also worth mentioning that fiber is also good for digestion, complexion, and helps stave off heart disease, type-2 diabetes, and over sixty forms of cancer isn’t half bad either!

3) 3:1 Ratios: We all remember the awesome old-school food pyramids in our elementary school cafeterias, which showed dancing, singing fruit characters, which encouraged kiddos, like myself, to consume our hearts desire in fruit each day. And,while fruits are healthy foods, veggies are the real all-stars, franchise players for those living with PCOS. Why? Fruits have more concentrated sugar, sucrose, which can affect those who are more sensitive to carbohydrates, such as individuals living with PCOS.

So for me, I make sure to remember my Veggie-To-Fruit ratios, which for me is 3:1, three veggie options, for each fruit option, or three cups of veggies per dinner, to one fruit, eaten at either breakfast, lunch, or in my case, my favorite summer treat, a one cup serving of frozen raspberries!

This strategy allows me to not only  eat more veggies than fruits, especially non-starchy vegetables, keeping starchy vegetables like potatoes, corn, peas, and winter squash to one small serving a day, I’m also more selective in what fruits I consume, such as berries, green apples and grapefruit; think of fruit as a candy, and remember…moderation first! 

4) Organic Dairy Only: This one is by far the hardest for me, and that is the restricted dairy rule. You see, I’m a cheese gal! I live for melty, gooey cheese. Even after having studied and lived in France for two years, if one was to ask me my top five memories of the country, cheese would be in the top three, for sure! Now before anyone starts rolling their eyes, and saying, but cheese is good for you, consider this. Though dairy is rich in calcium, dairy is also rich in natural hormones derived from cows. Avoiding any extra hormones is critical to living with PCOS.

So for me, I limit dairy to only organic cheese, yogurt, and spreads, twice per week, and in 2-3 ounce servings. 

5) Bust a move: Exercise has one of the most profound effects on managing your hormones and your insulin levels. for me included. Not only does exercise help the body remove excess insulin  into the bloodstream, which levels out hormones, it also helps to decrease negative food cravings by the increase in serotonin levels. Exercising everyday for at least 30 minutes has helped me to lose sixty pounds, feel better, and look better, too! Also, for those suffering from s amenorrhea, or the absence of your period, recent studies have shown that increasing exercise to five days a week, and losing five percent body weight, generally less than twenty pounds, helps regulate cycled naturally!

6) Quit smoking: I won’t harp on this topic…much. I have never been a smoker, but many in my family have, and let me tell you there is nothing awesome about PCOS or Smoking. If you smoke and have PCOS, the only option you have to successfully treat PCOS is to quit. Nicotine, along with alcohol, have been proven to worsen PCOS, not to mention a host of other issues. And if this isn’t enough reason, stop smoking because there is someone, somewhere that loves you to pieces, and wants to alive and well. Stop smoking…please! Public service announcement, ended. 

7) Always saturate colors, not fats: Researchers have found the best way to avoid hormonal imbalances is to avoid saturated fats, especially those found in animal products. Healthy plant  fats, including coconut, seeds, and fish, are ideal for optimal heart health. 

For me, I generally go with Meatless Mondays, which by cutting meat from your diet one night per week, can help you to:

• Limiting Your Cancer Risk. There are numerous medical journals and studies that suggest eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables may reduce cancer risk; noting that both red and processed meat consumption are associated with colon cancer.
• Potentially Reducing Heart Disease. A 2012 study from Harvard University study found that replacing saturated fats with foods rich in polyunsaturated fat, the lipids found in nuts and vegetable oils, reduces the risk of heart disease by twenty percent.
• Help Prevent Diabetes. Research suggests that higher consumption of red and processed meat increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.
• Help curb Obesity. Cutting meats out of your diet, even for one day a week, can help lower body weights and body mass indices, according to a recent study from Imperial College London.
• You May Live Longer. Red and processed meat consumption is associated with increases in cancer mortality and cardiovascular disease mortality.
• You Can Improve Your Diet. Consuming beans, lentils, or peas one day a week can results in higher intakes of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium. with lower intakes of saturated.
• You Can Reduce Your Carbon Footprint. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are accelerating climate change worldwide; which is 3-times the amount omitted by cars.
• Water Conservation. Going meatless for one day a week, can help conserve vastly needed fresh water supplies, as an estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef production; feeding the cow and the like. Soy, in comparison, uses only 220 gallons of water per pound consumed.
• You Can Help Lessen Fossil Fuel Dependence. Consider this, according to the FDA, 40 calories of fossil fuel energy are expended, for every one calorie of beef consumed in this country. Eating one day a week without beef, for example, is a great way to cut fossil fuel demand.
• Cutting Your Food Budget. Cutting meat out of your weekly menu by one day, will save you nearly $20.00 a month, and $240.00 annually!
• Causing You To Think Outside The Box. Going meatless one meal a week will cause you to look for new ways to prepare dishes. Think globally. Try more ethnic dishes. Going meatless can help expand your culinary palette!

So, for me I like to think you can always go hog wild saturating the world with color, not fat.

8) Healthy Proteins: Getting enough protein is key to managing your insulin levels. Protein satiates the body’s craving of amino acids, which boost brain function, manage hormones, increase energy, and increase metabolism. Most women with PCOS suffer weight gain, and eating more protein than carbs is a great way to balance hormones and lose weight.

For me, I eat at at least 20-30 grams per meal for best results on insulin levels; good options include pumpkin seeds, hard boiled eggs, beans, legumes, and limited amounts of hummus. 

I hope this list may help those who have PCOS, or those you know that living with the disease. So, readers…do you know anyone living with PCOS? Perhaps yourself? I’d love to hear your tips, advice, and bits of wisdom, too! 

Here’s to better health,