Competition details are at the end of this post! Balanced Wellness is 7 years old today. We wouldn’t be here without you so thank you to all our customers for all your support over the last 7 years. In numerology the number 7 is a biggy. According to numerology.com It is the number of the truth seeker it is always trying to understand the underlying, hidden truths. In the teachings of Kundalini Yoga...
We see many clients who suspect they may have a food intolerance. Symptoms after eating include; 
One of the first places IBS sufferers go to find relief from symptoms including symptoms including bloating, heartburn, digestive pain, wind, constipation and diarrhoea. is the FODMAP diet. What is a FODMAP diet? The FODMAP diet which was created in 1999 by Dr Sue Shepherd when she discovered through her PhD research that limiting FODMAP foods alleviated IBS symptoms in patients. FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides and Polyols. In plain speaking, FODMAPs...
When I got my first patch of rough, dry, sore skin I didn’t think much of it. I was 20, the doctors said it was pretty normal after a tonsillectomy and sent me away with a tube of Dovebet steroid cream. Then the patches started to spread. They appeared on my torso, under my arms, on my back, in my hair, on my neck – and the worse bit – on...
Having left London when I was 5 years old, I grew up in rural Suffolk, a child of the 70s with the heat wave in 1976 being the hottest summer on record. TV was limited to Play School after school and Swap Shop on a Saturday morning, which allowed my parents to have a lie in.
My brother, sister and I would spend most of our free time exploring and playing in the great outdoors that was our adventure playground. Our nearest friends were a cycle ride away, the nearest shop, a farmyard tuck shop, was a 15 minute walk across the fields. Visits to friend’s birthday parties were a rarity.
We made dens with sun loungers, climbed trees, played badminton of sorts over a make shift net made of garden string, painted pictures outdoors, ran amuck amongst the bales of hay in neighboring fields, and squealed with delight as our gorgeous English Pointer of a dog would tow my younger brother, sister and I across the lawn on his blanket, gripping it between his teeth until his gums bled, such was his devotion to us. 
the biggest loser?[/caption]
This week Twitter has been a wash with concerns about the winner of the popular US show The Biggest Loser winner, Rachel Frederickson, and her extreme weight loss.
Rachel began the show at 260 pounds (18st5) and this week at the finale she weighed in at a staggering 105 pounds (7st5)! At 5’4 this is seriously tiny.
I do not like shows like the Biggest Loser.
I do like what they represent.
I do not like what they are telling us - that weight loss is everything and it doesn’t matter how you do it – whether its spending all day exercising, working out when you’re injured or dehydrating yourself before weigh ins – as long as you get skinny you will be successful. 
its dangerous to look at cameras when using tools[/caption]
I trap my middle finger in the spot light fitting that I am man handling down from the ceiling, scream out in pain and instantly burst into tears. It’s the umpteenth time I have hurt myself in the last month doing DIY. We are on a deadline to get our house up together so we can rent it out and it’s all hands on deck.
I have cut, bruised, trapped, broken, knocked, blistered and landed on so many different parts of my body I’m starting to get the feeling I am not cut out for this kind of work. I stop loosening the ceiling spot lights and hold my throbbing finger. My partner likes a ‘bright’ room and has fitted 105 light fittings in this house. I have only loosened 12 of them. 
smells like.... an apple?[/caption]
One of the biggest things I go on about in my clinic is getting clients to eat more fruit and vegetables. And I always recommend organic. Unfortunately our intensively farmed, pesticide treated soils aren't what they used to be. Fruit and veg no longer contains the levels of the oh so important vitamins and minerals that we need to keep our bodies doing their thing and this is contributing to the increase in illness and disease that we are experiencing.
I also hear its not always possible to eat a 100% organic lifestyle and so I read with interest the study by Americas Environmental Working Group (EWG) who buy a load of fruit and veg each year and analyse the pesticide content so identify the good, the bad and the ugly.
Nature is trying to show us something[/caption]
I’m struggling. I can’t do it. I have started so many blog posts today and have finished none of them. What is wrong with me? My nearest and dearest could probably provide a good explanation, life has some what turned upside in the last few weeks. But putting my personal life aside, I still need to run a business, see clients and write entertaining blogs.
So here we go. I’m going to stop trying to force and just go with the flow. Do you know what I really fancy writing about? How vegetables look like our bits. 
Wham knew it. Fun and sunshine, enough for everyone[/caption]
I was verbally attacked by a woman at my Bootcamp class. The reason for this tirade of insult and anger is because I don't wear sun cream. She felt that because I lecture about health it was hypocritical of me not to wear sun cream.
There are many reasons for this choice. Firstly I am fifth generation Indian and am blessed with skin that goes brown just by looking at the sun - of course I would burn if I was to lie out in it but I learnt my lesson a long time ago after a particularly nasty incident when I was 15 involving baby oil and a really hot day followed by sunstroke and needing to sit on a cold slide in a kids play park just to cope with the searing agony on the backs of my thighs. So these days I listen to my body, I sunbathe in 10 minute slots and alternate between sitting under parasols and having a nice siesta during a hot afternoon.
Another reason is that I loathe, loathe, loathe most sun creams. If I use normal ones I end up with horrific prickly heat as my poor skin can't breathe under all that petroleum and paraffin. They use chemicals to stop the sun and as you may have heard me go on about before, chemicals cause us alot of problems.
The Daily Mail actually ran an exposé about how sun creams are causing cancers because of the Endocrine disruptor chemicals in them.
Vitamin D just feels sooooo good[/caption]
I am solar powered. I know I am. The sun came out the other day and I ditched my mountain of work, sprawled out on a blanket in just my pants and enjoyed it. Heaven. Spring is coming and I am so ready for it. The sun makes me feel energised, light and happy and it’s magic Vitamin D that I have to thank. 
do I need drugs?[/caption]
I read something crazy this weekend. Doctors have made an incredible discovery – apparently Special K cures depression! No not the Kelloggs cereal. Special K is a nickname for Ketamine, the general anesthetic and recreational hallucinogenic common on the drug scene.
The researchers at the Ben Taub General Hospital in Houston Texas have discovered that Ketamine produces rapid relief for severely depressed patients. Well yes I bet it does. Ketamine is an anesthetic – its designed to numb the body and mind. Ketamine users describe the experience ‘as if the mind and body have been separated’ – does this sound like a cure for depression? Detaching from reality? What happens when the drug wears off? Back to square one. I understand that for someone on suicide-watch Ketamine could be a potential life saver. But what really worries me is if Ketamine becomes a regular ‘treatment’ for depression. And this could happen. Researchers said that if the initial clinical trial is successful, they will begin to test long-term effects, and if all studies yield successful results, it will be approved for use.
If researchers would like to know the long term effects of Ketamine use, all they need to do is to look at the users on the recreational drug scene. Since Special K became popular there has been a sharp increase in young adults suffering from ‘Ketamine Bladder Syndrome’. Ketamine causes the bladder to shrink and it permanently damages the kidneys and ureter. I have read stories of 20 year olds having their entire bladders removed from Ketamine abuse. So this Ketamine cure for depression involves bladder rot. Nice. 
Oh I simply LOVE the farmers market![/caption]
I have a favourite morning. It's every first and third Friday of the month. I do the school run and then spend a blissful hour walking around my local farmers market. I love it, whatever the weather I'm there because I believe it's truly the best way to buy food.
Farmers market food is fresh, its local and it tastes delicious. I now know the stall holders and have a chat with them whilst buying the Bream they caught yesterday or the tomatoes picked today and discussing all the things you can do with artichokes (ooh err). Yes you pay a little bit more but it's sustainable for the people putting in the extreme hard work.
The food available means we are eating seasonally which is so much better for health. Asparagus doesn't grow here in February so it's not a good idea to eat it. We have lots of beetroot and squashes around, combined with dark leafy greens which means the large amount of folates, iron and beta carotene that's naturally occurring is what we need through the cold winter. 
i'm not a fan of wearing deodorant... or clothes for that matter[/caption]
Aren’t breasts wonderful? I mean really. Boobies. Babylons. Bazongas. Breasticles. Baps. They, and all the ridiculously creative words used to describe them, simply are the best. Curvy, round, splendid parts of our bodies that symbolise womanhood, motherhood and sexuality. I salute you.
I felt the time was right to discuss our wondrous mammary hillocks (I discovered that phrase in an erotic fiction once and never forgot it) thanks to an interesting piece of research I saw today. Also a blog post that has the words boobies in it apparently gets more readers, I wonder if that’s true…
Anyway the researchers at the University of Reading have been studying breasts and in particular breast cancer and have found traces of parabens in the tissue of tumours. Parabens are chemical preservatives used by the cosmetic and toiletry industry in all of our favourite products from face creams, make-up, perfumes to shampoos and deodorants. 
My daughter turns 8 in January.
Like millions of other parents I am dutifully arranging her party and making sure she feels special on her birthday whilst trying not to spend the GDP of a small country in the process. This year is different however, this year I'm excited about the day and I'm also sad because I cannot believe how quickly my beautiful little girl is growing up. This sounds really normal and you are probably wondering why I'd bother blogging about it except for me it's not. It's a brand new feeling. The last seven years have passed in a blur of "going through the motions" and plastering a big fake smile on my face as I carry in her cake.
This time eight years ago I was thirty eight weeks pregnant and had that slightly desperate and fed up look of a woman about to give birth. I'd sailed through pregnancy which is an appropriate phrase as I was the size of an ocean liner but I was excited and ready for the big event. When my labour finally started I was two weeks overdue and I thought I was ready but nothing could prepare me for what lay ahead. 
And I'm ready to leave the house[/caption]
I've always been a bit scabby if I'm honest. Puberty kicked in at 13 and so did a face full of spots and a delightfully embarrassing flaky scalp. Head and Shoulders didn't shift it, Medicated Tar Shampoo that stank to high heaven didn't shift it, throwing a huge tantrum before school definitely didn't shift it and much to my dismay moving out of my terrible teens and into my 20s didn't shift it either.
I've spent years brushing off my shoulders, avoiding black tops and spending a fortune on a rather glamorous hat collection. (it wasn't all bad.) So it is with ridiculous joy that I hear my faithful hairdresser say to me today 'your scalp is as clear as whistle'.
I love my hairdresser. He has been with me 7 good years. Its one of the longest and most committed relationships I've ever been in. I would never cheat on him. I even trek up to London to see him and that's a biggy cause the London transport system and I do NOT get on.
I trust Craig with my hair. This is equivalent to saying I trust him with my life. A womans hair is her crown and I now wear mine with pride. Yes Craigs dedication and care is partly responsible but so are the changes I've made in my life. 
Laura and I were in a shoe shop (we are natural women with killer shoe collections) and a teenage girl entered the shop with her boyfriend. We smelt her before we saw her. She smelt of fake strawberries and other sweet childish stuff. She was actually orange and had obvious hair extensions, fake nails and more make-up than Madame Jojo's and it got us thinking. Is this what sexy is now?
I asked husband for his opinion. Always an interesting place to start. He blames low grade mainstream porn mags like Nuts and Zoo magazine for telling guys that's what's sexy. But these guys are missing a trick too. It takes courage to stand out and say "that's not what I want" when society deems it to beautiful and without that on your arm you are apparently a loser. We are being told what's sexy but actually sex appeal is a transient often intangible force combined of many different qualities. I've done my research and it seems to be a combination of talent, personality, presence, style, poise, intelligence, humour and lifestyle choices not just body shape or facial attributes. Certainly no one mentioned fake tan and nails. 
Claire fighting her MS beast in really good knickers[/caption]
The highlight of my week: "I can put my knickers on easily" says my client whilst standing up and doing me a demo.
It was funny, but it actually made me cry with joy.
This client is called Claire and is a pretty, bubbly, lovely young woman who was recently diagnosed with MS, not the one that comes and goes but the one that doesn't stop until it's taken everything you hold dear in your life and ravaged your body. I trained in physical disability so know only too well the effects this condition can cause.
When Claire contacted me, it wasn't for an "out there" cure for MS, she wanted some food sensitivity testing as she had put herself on a radical diet that can possibly halt the progression of the disease. I explained that the work I do could also support her body nutritionally and emotionally and give her body the tools it needs to fight back and give the disease no reason to progress.
This of course comes with no guarantee but it's better than waiting for the inevitable.
Claire had a leg that was dragging a bit and stopped her running. It would have probably gone undiagnosed had a brilliant Physio not spotted it. By the time I met her she couldn't run, had some instability in the leg, tingly arms and a diagnosis. But she decided that wasn't going to define her. She is throwing herself into the jaws of the beast, determined to keep her life.
Claire radically altered her life, she researched and requested an almost unknown drug, she works on positive thought programming, she is eating food which supports her body not depleting it, she is taking a lot of nutrition to give her poor nervous system the tools it needs to repair itself and more importantly we are working together as a team. 
I was invited round for dinner by some gorgeous friends of mine this week. They have a regular dinner club and I’m feeling rather privileged to make the cut and join them. As always I get the question ‘what do you eat?’ Hmm, good question. Over the last 20 years I have had some weird and wonderful eating habits. In my teens I was a so called vegetarian eating nothing but cheese. When I discovered the wonderful world of nutrition I became incredibly strict cutting out pretty much everything except brown rice and vegetables, then I became a raw foodist, a vegetable juicer, a blood group dieter, a pescatarian, I’ve cut out wheat, dairy, sugar, processed food, you name it I’ve tried it.
oh my, you're bigger than my head![/caption]
Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet ingesting her non-whey protein shake. Along came a spider and bit her on the boob.
I am Miss Muffet and this is my story...
So apparently we have biting spiders in the UK. They are stowing away on bananas and grapes from far off isles and then falling in love with our English spiders and making mean biting love child baby spiders with poor dental hygiene.
In August I unfortunately got bitten by said spider and ended up with a septic walnut sized abscess and flu like symptoms. I dealt with it the same way any sane hardcore "natural medicine" guru would and went running to the doctors for some nuclear strength antibiotics to stop my boob going gangrenous.
Two types of strong antibiotics and a few weeks later my abscess had gone and I was filled with joy but quickly noticed I wasn't feeling much better.
I haven't had antibiotics for 4 years so I had taken necessary precautions I'd taken zinc, vitamin C, bifidophilus and antioxidants combined with green juicing but the Hiroshima-style effect of the drugs was far reaching.
My stomach and small intestine have been in knots ever since and I've had headaches, low energy, poor immunity and felt rundown. 
tis the sneezon to be snotty[/caption]
I'm car-less at the moment. This is a personal disaster on many levels. I get stranded at houses and need frequent rescuing. I'm relying on the kindness of friends and family to give me lifts making me feel like an inconvenient teenager. But worst of all, I'm back on public transport. I say 'back' because for 5 years I was a London dweller and train timetables, tube maps and standing in peoples armpits were part of my daily routine. I didn't mind, I was in my 20s, I had other things to worry about such as how i was going to afford yet another new dress from Oliver Bonas. But I haven't been on public transport in 18 months and I'm all out of practice. A friend of mine sent me an email this morning "have you seen Kerry Katona in Heat magazine, she has put on so much weight!" I, like the rest of Britain, have been following the chaotic soap opera that is the ex-Atomic Kittens life and I logged on to take a look. Six months ago Kerry had a whopping £15,000 worth of surgery to loose 6 stone only to put...
As someone who makes her living as a "healer" I've always been a bit negative about the word "cure". When I mentioned this to my friend she replied "why don't you like the concept of curing? Surely if you are healed you are cured, the objectives are the same." Well this got me to thinking so I thought id do some digging. Given that I am a self confessed geek I...