As health-savvy humans, we have the ability to take our digestive wellness into our own hands. We can consciously think about what we eat, knowing the choices we make will affect not only our digestion, but our overall health. Unfortunately, your dog is not so lucky. As utterly loyal and trusting companions, they’ll eat almost any food you give them, whether it’s good for them or not.
I’ve lost count of the amount of people I’ve met who are in tip-top shape themselves, but who own dogs that appear to have serious health issues. While those people might have made a commitment to stay away from the doctor by eating well and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, they don’t think twice about taking their pet into the vet whenever their beloved pooch falls ill.
The fact is, you are responsible for ensuring that your dog receives the best possible food you can get your hands on. Combined with a suitable exercise routine and plenty of TLC, cleaning up their diet will ensure they can achieve optimum health, and you’ll ultimately save big on vet bills and worries. Not a bad tradeoff, when you think about it!
Your dog’s ancestors hold the key
Today’s everyday pooch has had about as much time as we humans to adapt to the typical “modern” diet. For most people (and most dogs), that means lots of grains, lots processed foods, and all manner of additives, coloring agents, and synthetic who-knows what. And like us, all of these ingredients are doing them far more harm than good.
Most canine experts now believe that humans began to domesticate dogs around 30,000 years ago. Around the same time that the agricultural revolution was taking place, as it happens. From this point on, the diet of your dog’s ancestors began to slowly but surely change, as those dogs began to eat whatever was available in and around human settlements. Dogs are opportunistic foragers, after all – they’ll eat almost anything, especially if they’re hungry.
The problem is, the digestive systems of domesticated dogs haven’t been able to evolve at the same rate that their diets have changed. Evolution just doesn’t work that quickly, unfortunately! If it did, gluten wouldn’t be an issue for our gut (which would make an estimated 18 million gluten-sensitive Americans very happy), and we could chow down on sugary treats without any ill-effects. The point is, the digestive system of your dog is still designed to process the foods it’s ancestors ate in the wild, rather than the humanized diet he or she receives today.
How to simulate a wild diet for your dog
Obviously, short of removing your dog’s collar, giving it a slap on the rump and watching it grudgingly trot into the mountains, it’d be rather difficult to exactly simulate the diet that your dog’s ancestors ate. There’s plenty of other factors to consider as well, such as different lineages, cross-breeding, and slight digestive adaptations that are bound to have occurred over 30 millennia or so. With that in mind, you need to work with the tools you’ve got, and as usual paleo is definitely best.
Before we dive in, I’d still advise discussing any planned major dietary changes with your vet. They’ll at least be able to tell you whether any of the foods you plan to give your dog are recognized as unsafe for their digestive systems. Best to play it safe, people!
After doing a whole heap of research and examining the eating habits and responses of my own family’s border collie, I was able to get a good idea of what a modern version of that ancestral wild dog diet might look like. Here’s some of the foods that make up the staples of our pup’s paleo diet:
raw meat (beef, lamb, venison, chicken…basically whatever. Grass fed/pastured and organic is best. This should comprise the bulk of your dog’s diet)
bone broth (usually around 1/4 to 1/2 cup per day, to maintain healthy bones, joints and skin)
raw, uncooked bones (beef, lamb and venison bones are best, as they provide a lot more chewing capacity and don’t run the risk of breaking off into sharp pieces like chicken bones tend to do)
organ meats (liver, kidney, heart, brain, etc. Similar to us humans, eating organ meats once or twice a week can make a big difference to your dog’s health)
eggs (only occasionally, however. Dogs are foragers, and there’s no doubt that they would have wolfed down the occasional egg when it fell out of a tree. Again, make sure the egg is at least free range, if not organic)
certain vegetables and fruit (this one is a little controversial, and experts continue to argue about whether dogs should eat vegetables or not. We occasionally give our pooch the ends of carrots, the odd blueberry, and the odd apple core (seeds removed!). She loves vegetables and fruit, and has never had any digestive issues from eating them)
probiotics (this is purely optional, but it may make a big difference to your pooch’s digestive health – especially if they’ve ever been put on antibiotics)
Keep in mind that the digestive system of your dog is designed to thrive on meat, organs and bones – basically everything they could tear off an animal they hunted down or carrion they came across in the wild. They would, however, have supplemented this primarily meat-based diet with other things, which is where your vegetables, fruit and eggs come in. Once again, put anything wacky past your vet before you give it to your furry friend!
Another thing to remember is that your dog’s stomach might get a little bit upset if you suddenly switch it from a lifetime of processed kibble to just raw food. Start slowly, introducing raw meat into his or her diet a few times a week, then daily, then make the full transition when you think they’re ready. Don’t rush, unless you want to have your carpet ruined!
For more information on this, I’ve examined the issue in further detail on our sister blog, Healthy Paleo Pets. Check out the post here!
When in doubt, observe
While we may not be able to ever really know EXACTLY what it was that your dog’s ancestors ate in the wild, we have a fairly good idea. And for any grey areas, there is always the power of observation! I make a point of closely monitoring my dog when she’s sniffing around outside, how she acts in the kitchen when I’m preparing food for myself, and how she reacts to the food I give her. If she runs outside with violent diarrhea after eating something, it’s obviously not good for her to eat. And if she actively seeks a certain type of food out, and makes considerable effort to eat it, that food should probably make an appearance on her weekly food rotation.
A couple of examples:
we took our dog around to a friend’s place a couple of weeks ago, and she was off like a rocket in the back yard. I followed her over and she’d found a large walnut tree. She then proceeded to sniff out walnuts that had fallen on the ground, artfully crack the shells and eat the walnut flesh inside. Clearly, this was a desirable food for her, and she didn’t seem to react badly to eating them.
my parents have something of a rabbit infestation on their property. Our dog occasionally manages to catch a rabbit (or find a dead one) and wastes no time in chewing it to smithereens. The only parts she seems to leave are the legs and the ears….she even eats the guts! This to give you an idea of just how much of an animal your dog’s digestive system is designed to eat. Each different part (organ, muscle, bone, skin, etc) would provide different vitamins and nutrients essential to the dog’s health.
Keep a notepad handy, and start watching your dog’s every move when it comes to food. He or she won’t get creeped out, I promise.
Foods your dog should stay away from
Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list…once again, if you’re unsure of anything, run it past your vet!
Here’s a list of some of the more common foods that your dog shouldn’t eat. The thing to remember is that their digestive system is very different to ours, so what is safe for us to eat may not be safe for them.
chocolate (everyone knows that one!)
caffeine
onions
garlic
avocado (I’m on the fence about this one. Some experts say dogs should stay away from avocados altogether, and others say the flesh might be fine for them to eat. For more on the matter, check out this article.)
macadamia nuts
milk and dairy products
xylitol
grapes and anything containing grapes (including raisins!)
salt (apparently they get all the sodium they need from raw meat etc)
yeast
Do your research, and know the limitations of your dog’s stomach. It just might save you a costly emergency visit to the vet.
Making your own dog food at home
There’s two ways you can go about ensuring your dog gets the best nutrition: thoroughly researching each manufacturer to determine whether their products cuts the mustard, or making it yourself. For buying dog food, we’ve compiled a selection of paleo-friendly dog foods and treats here. For making your own, it’s up to you what you put in their food – just make sure it is primarily meat-based.
You can also throw a whole lot of ingredients in a blender, then pour the mixture into molds and freeze for later use. Doing it this way, you can prepare as much as a whole month of meals for your dog, and just take them out of the freezer the night before. Here’s a few of the things you could consider throwing in the mix, ordered from most to least:
raw meat – try to get a mix of at least one red meat (i.e. beef) and one white (i.e. chicken). Don’t be afraid to buy the cheapest, weirdest cuts of meat at the supermarket or butcher – they’re often healthier than the typical steak, breast and ground meat you get for yourself anyway!
organ meats – again, raw. A little goes a long way here, and try to put a range of different organs in, as each contains different levels of vitamins, minerals and nutrients.
bone broth
raw eggs
Each time you feed your dog, observe how they react – and if necessary, change up the ingredients to better suit their digestion. Good luck!
Do you have a super-healthy dog food recipe that you’d like to share? Are there any foods your dog has eaten that didn’t go down so smooth? Comment away, we’d love to hear from you!
Bone broth has recently taken the paleo, primal, and ancestral dieting worlds by storm, and thats no coincidence. Not only is bone broth an excellent way to make use of all those leftover bones and carcasses you’d otherwise throw out post-roast, it’s also one of the most nutrient dense foods on the planet.
Bone broth benefits
If you’ve arrived at this article looking for a quick, easy recipe: you’ve come to the right place! So if you’re keen to just get stuck in and make some fine-ass broth, scroll down to the next section. But if you’d like to amp yourself up with some fun facts about why bone broth is just so darn good, lets dive right in.
As we explained in yet another ultra-informative Thrive Primal article, bone broth is a must-eat for just about anyone. It’s loaded with a wide range of essential minerals, many of which the typical Western diet is seriously lacking in. These include calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium. Our friend bone broth, also known in certain circles as stock, is chocka block with glycine and proline, two amino acids which are just the bees knees for your overall health and, well…your knees!
Bone broth also contains plenty of collagen, condroitin and glucosamine, all of which you need to maintain a healthy, fully-functioning body. Put together, all of these minerals and nutrients mean bone broth is an excellent way to improve your bone and tissue healing rates, keep your skin looking young and firm, revitalize your hair and nails, keep your joints supple, heal your gut lining, and improve detoxification.
Excited yet? You should be. Well, without further ado, let’s get broth making!
How to make bone broth the paleo way
There’s two ways you can make bone broth: the slow way, and the fast way. Because the fast way requires a pressure cooker, and we haven’t yet invested in one of those, we stick to the slow way. It’s no less effective, but it just take a few hours longer.
Equipment:
Slow cooker or crock pot (they’re essentially the same thing)
large glass jar or multiple smaller jars
Instructions:
Whenever you cook up a roast, lamb chops, or any meat with bones, set the bones aside and store them in a container in your freezer.
Once the pones have piled up to about two thirds the size of your slow cooker (less is fine, too!), you’re ready to go.
Throw the bones in your slow cooker, completely cover with cold water, and set the temperature to a low heat. The mixture should remain at a simmer the whole time, and should never boil over.
Add one to two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or white vinegar to the bone and water mixture. This helps to draw the nutrients out of the bones.
Leave the bones to do their thing, topping up water as necessary to ensure they remain submerged the whole time. We leave beef and lamb bones simmering for 18 to 24 hours to ensure all the nutrients are extracted into the water, and chicken bones for around 12 to 16 hours. The longer you cook them, the more nutrient-dense your broth will be.
After the allotted time, remove from heat, cover, and leave to cool down. Before the mixture cools completely, remove the bones from the bottom of the mixture and pour the rest into a large glass jar and keep in the fridge. It will keep for around 1 to 2 weeks – if you don’t think you’ll use it all within this timeframe, just place some of it in an appropriate container and freeze it!
Note that if you don’t have a slow-cooker or crockpot, you can also just use a large stock pot. Just make sure it’s big enough, and that it’s ok to leave simmering unattended for a long period of time.
Paleo bone broth recipe using pressure cooker
As we explained earlier, there’s a much faster way to fulfill your bone broth needs: the pressure cooker! If you’ve got one of these bad boys, you can whip out a decent batch of bone broth in 2-3 hours. Impressive!
Large glass jar or collection of smaller widemouth jars
Instructions:
Place your bones in the bottom of your pressure cooker. Make sure the bones don’t reach past the two thirds mark of the cooker, otherwise you’ll be dealing with a pressure cooker overload!
Cover with water, and add in 1-2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar. Any old vinegar will do, really.
Set your cooker to high pressure and leave for three hours. After this time, turn off the heat and leave to depressurize naturally.
Allow the mixture to cool to just above room temperature, then strain the liquid from the bones. Store in glass mason jars in the fridge, or place in the freezer for longer term storage.
That’s it! Pretty easy, right? You can also get snazzy by doing things like roasting the bones first (to give your broth a darker, more intense flavor) or adding in vegetables like leaks and carrots. But I like to keep things nice and simple, and knock back half a cup or so of broth each day to reap the health rewards. Enjoy!
And p.s. if you’re worried about lead toxicity issues, don’t be: according to Chris Kresser, the lead found in bone broth is nothing to be worried about.
It’s not that you don’t understand or agree with why it matters. You’re sold on the merits of eating whole foods, raising healthier kids, avoiding toxins and chemicals, getting fit, and using alternative remedies.
But sometimes it’s a whole lot easier to say than to actually do, right? Believe me, I’ve had the same struggles and questions as you. What on earth do you eat (and especially, what do you feed your kids)? How do you afford to buy healthier products? And where do you find the time to make and do all this stuff?
I know what it’s like to feel that healthy living shouldn’t be this hard, and it shouldn’t have to cost so much, either! Don’t you ever wish someone would just tell you exactly what you need to know and how to make these changes for less?
Because when you have the right info and tools at your fingertips, it all comes together so much more easily.
You know what to cook for your family. You’re more confident in choosing natural alternatives. You find ways to save money without comprising on what’s important to you.
You learn to replace store-bought products with DIY options that actually work and are easy to make. You feel better (and even look better, too). Healthy living becomes less stressful and more enjoyable.
That’s why Stephanie and her team have put together the popular Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle for the fifth year in a row (hurray!). They’re amazed at how many families are saying “yes!” to their health (over 64,000 and counting!) and taking them up on this super short opportunity to get a complete library of natural living resources for one teeny tiny price.
What’s included in the Ultimate Bundle?
You sort of need to see it to believe it, but the package includes 83 digital products and it’s worth over $2,400!
For the cost of a small bag of groceries, you’ll get a complete healthy living library to help you:
prepare whole & delicious real food
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plus learn about gardening & homesteading, meal planning, weight loss and so much more!
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Besides being so incredibly helpful and inspiring, one of the things I like best about the bundle is the price. By offering the bundle for a short time only, they’re able to give you access to over $2,400 worth of high-quality eBooks, eCourses and printables for a whopping 98% off!
How to get your hands on the goods
Here’s how it works:
Visit their website, take a quick look at all the goodness that comes in this package, then click the green “Buy now!” button to go through their simple and secure 3-step checkout process.
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Use their Getting Started Guide to pick the topic you want to tackle first and start making healthy changes!
The most important detail, though, is that this bundle is available for just 2 days! After Thursday night, December 29th, the sale ends and you’d have to buy all of these products individually.
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Get what you need for your healthy lifestyle. Learn more or get your bundle HERE.
(Psst… the bundle goes away at 11:59pm Eastern on Thursday, December 29th, so don’t wait!)
As soon as this bundle is released, I intend to get my hands on one effective immediately. Having been given an insider’s sneak peak a few weeks ago into what it contains, I’ve been doing my research…and it’s ridiculous how astronomical the savings are. Many of the publications are one’s which I’ve been working up to buying anyway, and on average just two of these ebooks would amount to the full price they’re asking for this bundle!
If you’ve got any questions, feel free to leave a comment and we’ll get back to you ASAP. In the meantime, check out this video for some healthy living inspiration!
It’s kind of a no-brainer, but I suggest you check out what’s on offer and make your own decision!
Eggs. They’re small, roundish, and surprisingly mysterious. You might navigate your way swiftly and surely through all the isles of the supermarket, only to be stumped by the dilemma that these nutritional powerhouses present.
Eggs can be an amazing source of essential fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals and beneficial compounds when they come from quality sources. The problem is, it’s not always obvious what those sources are, and how to pick out the healthiest eggs from an extensive selection which, to all outward appearances, look almost identical. In this post, I’ll explore why you really need to prioritize “good” eggs over “bad” ones, and then how to go about digging out those good ones from amongst the masses.
Why you need to invest in high-quality eggs
In the paleo, primal, bulletproof, and wider health communities, eggs have developed into something of a cult following in recent years. There’s a good reason for this – they’re an inexpensive, readily available, easy-to-prepare source of healthy fats, protein, and nutrients. Few foods rival the humble egg’s nutritional capacity, but only when those eggs come from healthy, happy hens. And while this may seem a simple enough solution, the agricultural industry is slowly but surely turning egg production into the stuff of nightmares.
When it comes to buying eggs, most people make the mistake of prioritizing price over quality. I myself used to be one of those people, heading straight for the lowest-priced eggs and feeling like I just scored a financial victory as I strolled towards the checkout. After doing some research, however, I later discovered that those decisions made absolutely no sense, due to the fact that I was paying far more in health problems from eating things like inferior eggs than I could ever save by tightening my budget in the store.
While for some foods the difference in price is simply due to branding, eggs are an excellent example of how price can be an excellent indicator of quality. In general, cheaper eggs are cheaper for a reason:
cheaper eggs come from hens that are jammed wing-to-wing into tiny battery cages inside vast, reeking warehouses. These cages offer little to no movement, certainly not the movement required for a hen to be healthy, but this allows farmers to squeeze in far more chickens into a small space – effectively increasing their productivity per square foot of warehouse space.
cheaper eggs come from hens which are given the lowest-cost feed available, feed which is designed to fatten the chickens up as fast as possible (and therefore get them laying faster) but not to support the development of healthy bones and organs
cheaper eggs come from hens which have their wings and beaks clipped to prevent harm or cannibalism in such as tight space, are injected with growth hormones to ensure they reach their egg-laying age faster, and regularly fed antibiotics to ensure they don’t get sick or die due to the cramped conditions.
The result is warehouses which can literally pump out thousands of eggs, increasing productivity and lowering the cost of these eggs. Unfortunately, the benefits stop there. Many of the toxins and health problems of the hens are passed into their eggs, meaning they contain antibiotic and growth hormone residues, a very poor omega-3 to omega-6 ratio (making them pro-inflammatory), and high levels of environmental toxins.
Eggs which come from healthy chickens, on the other hand, are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, have bucketloads of nutrients, keep you feeling fuller for longer, and are much less likely to contain harmful environmental toxins. For this reason, a 3 or 4 dollar difference in price could mean the difference between something which can harm your health and increase your risk of disease, or something which can nurture your body and actually work to heal any ailments you might be suffering from. Anyone who is aware of this difference and still goes for the cheaper eggs clearly doesn’t value their health at all.
Finding the healthiest eggs
While price is a good starting point for sorting the quality eggs from the bad, it unfortunately isn’t a hard and fast rule. Many companies market their pricey eggs as a higher-quality product, with fancy packaging and fancier words, when really their eggs are just as bad as the cheap ones. Here’s how to know to look out for the best eggs:
Pasture-raised: these are the best eggs you’ll ever find. Chickens which produce these eggs live on farms that allow them to roam freely outside, eating foods of their choice (like tasty worms and bugs!) and getting plenty of sunlight. These hens are free from hormones, antibiotics, and the hardship of a life spent inside a tiny cage.
Free-range: not as good as pasture-raised, but still a healthy choice. Hens that produce these eggs are permitted limited access to the outdoors, and don’t get kept in cages. They can move around, but for most of their lives it’ll be inside a large open-plan warehouse rather than outside.
Free-run: a slightly lower quality version of free-range, and often synonymous with “cage-free”. These hens don’t have access to the outdoors, but can move around freely and are much healthier than caged hens.
Cage-free: pretty self explanatory really! Cage-free can include all three of the above egg-types, however if you can’t see any other labels then chances are these hens are confined to the indoors.
Organic: The organic label assures you that those eggs come from hens which were raised on feed without additives, animal by-products, growth hormones and antibiotics. In certain places, this also means that such hens must be given access to the outdoors, perches, dust-bathing areas and stipulated minimum space requirements. Don’t be sucked in by “organic vegetarian fed” labels – chickens need to eat worms and bugs in order to thrive, meaning “vegetarian” is not necessarily a good thing.
At the end of the day, all of the above types of eggs are better than caged eggs. Generally, the price of eggs will go up according to how the hens were raised (pasture-raised being most expensive, cage-free being least expensive). Where possible, try to find eggs which tick more than one box – i.e. free-range eggs which are also organic. Also keep in mind that “omega-3” eggs are a bit of a gimmick, and you’re far better off getting high levels of omega-3s from eggs lain by healthy chickens than by chickens who have had artificial sources of omega-3 slipped into their feed.
If you’d like to find out more, this article provides a really good analysis of the various eggs available on the market and how to determine whether they’re good or bad.
Mention the word “dairy” to your average paleo enthusiast, and they’ll shake their heads and mutter to themselves about potential toxicity issues, food allergies, and the untrustworthiness of these types of products. And they’d be right – this subject area is a very difficult one to navigate, as dairy products are typically shrouded in mystery and have the potential to throw your clean dieting right off the rails.
In Part 3 of our food shopping series (check out our guide to fruit and vegetables here, and our guide to shopping for meat, poultry and fish here), we’ll explore how to tell if milk and other dairy-based foods are good for you, how to find high quality ingredients in your supermarket or at the farm gate, and hidden dangers you need to look out for.
Read on, to continue your training towards becoming a supermarket superstar!
Is dairy and milk paleo?
From a strict Paleo standpoint, dairy was not consumed in the Paleolithic Era (aside from human milk, that is!), and for this reason many of those who follow a regimented Paleo diet stay away from it.
But just because something wasn’t available to our ancestors doesn’t make it inherently bad. Good quality dairy is an amazing source of nutrition, designed by the animal that produced it to be loaded with saturated fats, beneficial bacteria, essential fatty acids, proteins, vitamins and minerals. As it is the first thing a newborn calf, kid (in the goat sense) or lamb drinks, it provides a vital burst of nourishment that this animal needs to survive the first phase of it’s life.
Now, while this milk was not designed for human mouths, there’s no reason why we might not gain benefit or nourishment from it. In my opinion, it’s the same as eating good quality eggs – they clearly weren’t designed for human consumption, but they’ve attained an almost godlike status amongst the Paleo community, and are celebrated for the vitamins, minerals, proteins and fats they can provide us. Milk is the same – we can benefit from the same compounds that the calf, kid or lamb would thrive on.
Where dairy gets a bad rap is with regards to lactose, casein and the potential for introducing synthetic toxins into our bodies. It’s important to note, however, that this is usually only a problem when buying regular, grain-fed, store-based milk or dairy products. These products are made from cows (and to a lesser degree, sheep and goats) which have been raised on a diet consisting almost solely of GMO corn and soy, while being confined to tiny pens inside horrific dairy factories, away from the sun. These animals are also regularly injected with hormones, to make them grow faster and produce more milk, and antibiotics, to prevent them from developing diseases due to their unhealthy living conditions.
All this nasty stuff gets into the milk, while all the good stuff (the beneficial bacteria, digestive enzymes, saturated fats) gets removed during the processes of skimming, pasteurization and homogenization. The result is a dairy product devoid of nutrients and healthy fats, which is now missing the very bacterial cultures and enzymes which make it easier for our stomachs to digest in the first place (and which would otherwise prevent us from developing lactose or casein intolerance).
Why raw milk is NOT dangerous
Unfortunately, the agricultural industry has made it ridiculously difficult to get your hands on good quality dairy. Most of the US states continue to impose a complete ban on the sale and distribution of raw milk, citing antiquated cases of people becoming sick or even dying from consumption of raw milk that was somehow contaminated. These fears are based on a system of pasteurization which was introduced back before the invention of refrigerated transport and storage, when milk or dairy products could become eventually become contaminated by harmful pathogens after sitting in a warm place for too long.
Well, as it happens, we have fast, refrigerated transport now, and cold storage, and fridges at home – so those claims about the necessity of pasteurization are completely redundant! What’s more, those stories of people getting sick from raw milk were almost always due to that milk coming from cows which were raised in undesirable conditions – like the small pens, with antibiotic-injected, hormone-enriched, grain-fed cows I talked about earlier. If the cows themselves are raised in pasture and allowed to roam free under the sun, these health concerns are even more redundant.
In actual fact, you’re far more likely to get sick from drinking regular pasteurized milk than you are from raw milk! One expert even goes so far as to state that “you are about thirty-five thousand times more likely to get sick from other foods than you are from raw milk”. So quit worrying! If, however, you still find yourself shaking in your boots at the very notion of drinking something which hasn’t been heated to smithereens, check out this article we wrote a while back.
How to buy good quality, healthy dairy products
Rather than going into too much more of a rant about the dairy industry and how it’s turning people against one of the most nutritious (not to mention delicious!) food sources available, lets get down to business. You came here to learn how to ferret through all those nasty dairy products and locate the actual good, healthy ones, and the below table should help you do just that. The table is laid out to present the most desirable sources of dairy first, then works down the list to products which you should probably just stay away from altogether. Remember – if you can’t find good quality dairy, it’s generally better to just cut your losses and eat or drink something else.
It turns out that making a table to show how best to prioritize your milk is a difficult task. Hopefully the above gets the point across: the highest quality milk and dairy is from humanely-treated, grass-fed cows (and sheep and goats) that have been raised on an organic farm (which implies that they’re free from hormones, antibiotics and probably GMOs). The best milk is also raw and full-fat! As you work down the table, the dairy becomes progressively less good for you when it is no longer organic or full-fat. To provide a rough indication, I’d recommend regular (daily to 2 or 3 times a week) consumption of dairy products which are found in the green category, occasionally (no more than once a month) for those products in the orange section, and never buying those products in the red. ESPECIALLY dairy which is raw but comes from non-organic, grass-fed cows…although you’re fairly unlikely to ever come across that!
Finding good quality dairy is difficult, but not impossible
During our time living in Canada, Liivi and I became obsessed with the idea of getting our hands on a regular supply of grass-fed, raw dairy. It was very, very difficult, on account of strict Canadian laws which prohibit the sale of raw dairy products, and because 99.9% of the dairy farms there are grain-feeding. After much searching, we eventually came across this website, which got us in touch with a cooperative that provided real, organic, humane, grass-fed, RAW milk and dairy products. They products were expensive, but boy, were they good!
In the US, state governments are slowly starting to loosen up the laws, following increasing pressure from the public. Check out this interactive map to see whether your state allows the sale of raw milk in-store, or at least at the farm gate.
If you live in an area that is prohibitive to raw milk, however, don’t dismay – you can generally still get your hands on some high-quality, grass-fed dairy products, even if they’re not raw. As we travelled through the States and Canada, we would keep our eyes peeled for either the Kerrygold brand or the Anchor brand. Kerrygold comes from Ireland while Anchor comes from New Zealand, and both are produced from grass-fed cows, with no hormones and no antibiotics (I would know: I used to work for Anchor as an environmental officer!). You’ll often find Kerrygold butter or Anchor butter in your supermarket, and sometimes also Kerrygold cheese. Elsewhere in the world, you’re more than likely to stumble across a range of Anchor products, including Anchor butter and Mainland cheese. Failing that, order them on Amazon:
Another great way to get many of the benefits of grass-fed, organic cows, is from this whey protein powder which I came across after days of painstaking research. Find out more about it, here!
I chose the topic for this post because I have a genuine interest in what ACTUALLY constitutes a good cooking oil. There’s a lot of hearsay around the topic, with many people swearing by this or that oil, but no actual idea why it’s better than the rest. Certain people will tell me that they’ve heard a particular oil is best for high heat cooking, but when I pose questions relating to smoke point and oxidation, the response is a sort of panicked confusion and a rapid change of topic.
And let’s face it, if you’ve gone paleo, primal, or just about any diet which realizes that saturated fat is a GOOD thing, oils are your best friend in the kitchen (and elsewhere, of course!). It’s time to know their strengths and weaknesses so you can enjoy all their benefits without denaturing their nutrients or pouring carcinogenic compounds into your body.
Let’s start with the basic questions that you need to ask when choosing the right cooking oil.
What type of fat is it?
There are two types of oil you can buy on supermarket shelves: saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fats are the simplest of these two groups, and the most stable. A good way to tell whether you’re dealing with a saturated fat is knowing that they turn solid at room temperature. Commonly used saturated fats include:
coconut oil
palm kernel oil
butter
ghee
lard
chicken fat
tallow
Unsaturated fats are a little more complicated, and come in the form of either monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and trans unsaturated. Commonly used unsaturated fats include:
canola oil
flaxseed oil
soybean oil
nut oils
avocado oil
hemp oil
sunflower oil
olive oil
You get the idea. While every oil contains varying ratios of each kind of fat (olive oil contains 73% monounsaturated, 14% saturated, and the rest polyunsaturated, for example), generally speaking the saturated fat group contains primarily animal-based oils, plus coconut and palm kernel. The rest is primarily unsaturated.
Another useful thing to know is that saturated fats and monounsaturated fats are more resistant to heating or cooking. This is due to the fact that they have less bonds, and are therefore less susceptible to chemical reactions which occur under high heat conditions. Polyunsaturated oils, like corn, walnut or sunflower oil, have multiple bonds and so are more likely to become denatured under heat. Trans unsaturated fats (look for the word “hydrogenated” in the ingredients of a product) should just hands-down be avoided.
What is the oil’s smoke point?
An oil or fat’s smoke point is the temperature at which it starts to produce smoke. Pretty straightforward so far, right? Treat this smoke as a warning sign (Tolkien fans might like to envisage the famed Beacons of Gondor, if reality is a little to dull for their taste) – it signifies the point at which your oil is beginning to break down due to heat.
When the oil or fat reaches this point, the free glycerol groups contained within it begin to get converted into acrolein. Acrolein is one of the chemicals found in cigarette smoke, and has been classified as a carcinogen. Thus breathing in the smoke from oil when it reaches it’s smoke point may be similar to breathing in the smoke from a cigarette. Nasty.
Here’s a list of oils and their corresponding smoke point, for some light bedtime reading:
The U’s in brackets next to some oils indicates that they are unrefined, while the R indicates refined. You’ll notice that the refined oils have a much higher smoke point than unrefined oils. Many paleo people may also be somewhat dismayed to see the low smoke point of butter, unrefined coconut oil and lard.
What is the oxidative stability of the oil?
While considering the smoke point of a cooking oil or fat is important, the oxidative stability of that same oil or fat is even more so. The oxidative stability of an oil refers to its ability to resist oxidation. Oxidation occurs when a fat molecule loses a hydrogen atom, allowing it to turn into a free radical.
Free radicals are highly volatile, and due to the way they interact with and attack our cells, can be seriously detrimental to our health. An increase in free radicals in your body means an increased risk of developing a wide range of diseases, and speeding up the aging process.
When oxidation occurs, an oil or fat becomes rancid. People know when an oil has become rancid due to oxidation as it tastes “off”, has a bad smell, or looks a bit weird.
Choosing the right oil for the task at hand
After reading the above, it’s possible you’re even more confused than before. Sorry about that. The point is, there’s no standalone winner when it comes to oils and fats – each has it’s own quirks, and can even vary considerably depending on whether it’s refined, unrefined, expeller pressed, cold pressed or chemical-extracted. You have to weigh up the various attributes of each and only use a given oil when it doesn’t have a high risk of oxidizing or smoking.
To help you in your quest, here’s a few pointers to keep in mind to ensure you get the best (not the worst) from your oil:
Temperature: no matter what the oil, the lower the cooking temperature, the better. Know your oil’s smoke point, and stay well below it.
Light: the sun’s wavelengths can increase the rate of oxidation. Try to buy oils which come in dark bottles (not really possible for coconut oil, but then it is fairly resistant to oxidation anyway), and store your oils in a cool dark place to increase their shelf life.
Re-use: try to avoid re-using your cooking oil, as each time it is cooked with it’s smoke point lowers.
Antioxidants: considering things like heating, air and light exposure can accelerate your oil’s rate of oxidation (rancidity), choose oils with higher levels of antioxidants. These antioxidants, found in high numbers in oils like avocado, olive, coconut and butter, actively offset the destructive damage free radicals wreak on your body. They can therefore help to neutralize the creation of free radicals during the process of oxidation.
Our top paleo-friendly cooking oil picks
With the proviso that, based on the above, there’s no clear-cut winner in the cooking oil contest, we DO have a few top picks. Here’s our thoughts:
Avocado oil: a good all-rounder. Has a high smoke point, particularly in the case of it’s refined form (520ºF), and is loaded with antioxidants (particularly vitamin E) so it doesn’t oxidize easily. Use for things like pan frying, grilling, roasting and in salad dressings and marinades.
Butter: delicious and loaded with an amazing range of nutrients when it’s from grass-fed sources, butter is unfortunately not great for cooking. It has a low smoke point, so should only be used for low heat cooking such as baking or slow-cooking. Has a short shelf-life and can become rancid quickly, so consume ASAP and store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Coconut oil: Once again, high in antioxidants, and very resistant to oxidation. Has a long shelf life, but should still be stored in a dark place if possible. It does have a low smoke point, however, so stick to low-heat cooking. Switching to refined coconut oil means you can cook at medium heat without creating smoke, but you lose a lot of the antioxidants so it’s a bit of a trade-off. Good for baking and smoothies!
Ghee: if you were disappointed at butter’s low score in the cooking department, ghee is your savior. Ghee retains much of the delicious richness of butter, has a slightly sweeter taste, and most importantly has a very high smoke point. This means it’s great for high heat cooking like pan frying or grilling, and has a long shelf life. Go for grass-fed ghee, if possible.
Lard and tallow: not great in terms of nutritional profile, but otherwise a great option for medium-heat cooking, due to their smoke point of around 390ºF. They’re also fairly resistant to oxidation, particularly in the case of tallow (beef fat). Really only good for cooking (it’d be a little weird to drizzle some warm lard on your garden salad).
Olive oil: despite claims, olive oil is still a good option for cooking, however the smoke point differs considerably between olive oil types. Extra virgin olive oil is the healthiest choice in terms of lack of refinement and therefore level of nutrients, which incidentally means it is highly resistant to oxidation. It does, however, have a low smoke point at 320ºF, making it suitable only for slow cooking or sautéing (great for salads and marinades though!). Virgin olive oil is slightly more refined and so has less nutrients and is a little more prone to oxidation. With a smoke point of 420ºF, however, it’s great for medium-heat cooking such as pan frying and roasting. Only buy olive oil in dark bottles and store them in a dark place to avoid rapid rancidification!
That’s a lot of info to take in, but I hope it helped to clear things up a little. Next time someone asks you which oil you think is best, you can bedazzle them with your oil and fat know-how.
Mankind’s relationship with grains might be considered a long one, tracing back to the agricultural revolution approximately 12,000 years ago. It was at this point in our history that humans developed the means to cultivate grains, and since this point they have come to be seen as the backbone of civilization. Humans treasured grains on account of their rapid growth rates, versatility, and long storage life, and they soon became a valuable form of currency: one which could dictate the rise and fall of towns, cities, and even empires.
Today, grains continue to be seen as vital to our existence, with politicians, media, and health specialists all urging mass consumption of whole grains in order to stay healthy. The notion of grains as staple food has become so embedded in our consciousness, in fact, that it is difficult to even consider life without them. After all, how would you get your daily dose of fiber? With what would you sandwich your ham, cheese and tomato? Indeed, where would you put your pasta sauce? A life without grains seems hardly worth contemplating.
So why, then, is there such a poor correlation between grain consumption and health? Why do the heaviest grain-eating populations, America in particular, continue to get sicker and more disease ridden?
Grains, explained
Alright, alright, lets back the truck up…what the heck IS a grain, exactly?
Well, grains are the reproductive embryos of plants. Each grain is designed to ensure the establishment of a new generation of a given plant species, and must be dispersed away from the parent plant in order to ensure that it does not compete with it’s dearly beloved. To promote dispersal, most plants encourage animals to ingest the grains then poop them out somewhere else, whereby the seed contained within the grain can take hold in the poopy soil and begin to grow.
While effective, this method of dispersal presents a problem. By encouraging the animal to eat its babies, the plant risks having them destroyed by the animal’s digestive system. The plant must then design its grains to be indigestible to animals in order to ensure the survival of its species, and it is this design which is responsible for many of the chronic autoimmune diseases we see in people today.
Grains are unhealthy? That’s preposterous!
In order to discourage digestion, grains contain a potent mix of anti-nutrients and gluten. Unless you’ve had your head in the sand for the past 10 years or so, you’ve probably heard of gluten. It’s also probable that many of you have adopted a gluten-free way of life after reading about the ravages this protein can wreak upon your gut and immune system. This is certainly a step in the right direction, but unfortunately it’s not enough.
Gluten comprises most of the protein found in wheat, rye and barley. It is a compound protein which causes gut inflammation in 4 out of 5 people, and can often trigger an autoimmune response when the body develops antibodies to fight the intrusion of alien proteins in the bloodstream. Gluten contains a protein called gliadin, which is very similar to certain proteins naturally found in the tissues of organs, most notably the pancreas and thyroid. As a result, gliadin can cause your antibodies to mistakenly attack your organs and result in chronic disease, particularly hypothyroidism and diabetes.
Added to this is the highly inflammatory effect of gluten, which causes the walls of your intestines to thin and promotes the development of “leaky gut”. A leaky gut allows bacteria and toxic proteins to enter the bloodstream, and further exacerbates your gliadin-induced health problems.
In summary, gluten is a nasty little hell-raiser. So, you cast aside any wheat, barley and rye due to their glutenous evil, and turn your dietary attentions to other, “healthier” grains. The problem is, while only certain grains contain gluten, ALL grains (yes, even quinoa!) contain anti-nutrients. The most troublesome of which are lectins and phytates.
Phytates are a derivative of phytic acid, a primary source of fuel for plants. Phytates hang out in your gut and bind to important nutrients which are essential for your health, including magnesium, zinc, calcium and iron. This process can prevent your body from absorbing nutrients from food, resulting in chronic nutrient deficiency disorders.
Lectins are toxins which have been designed by plants to prevent their digestion. These proteins possess the uncanny ability to bind to, and damage, the intestinal tract, further compromising gut bacteria and contributing to leaky gut. Prolonged exposure to lectins can result in the development of leptin resistance, which can set the stage for obesity and diabetes.
The link between grains and chronic disease
Certain animals, birds in particular, have evolved to eat and even thrive on grains, and can therefore digest them without experiencing their ill-effects. Humans, however, have only been exposed to sustained grain consumption for 12,000 years or less. When considering the evolution of our species, which took place over millions of years, 12,000 years is not a long time. Certainly not long enough to have allowed our digestive systems to evolve the ability to process grains and receive benefit from them. Added to this is the increasing commercialization of grains, whereby scientists modify the genes and cultivars of grains to encourage high density yields while sacrificing nutrients and other useful compounds found in wild or heritage breeds.
As a direct result of this, modern society is riddled with chronic inflammatory conditions. These conditions are closely associated with high grain intake, and include:
A growing body of evidence is also beginning to suggest that grain consumption may also be responsible for certain neurological conditions, such as multiple sclerosis, autism, and schizophrenia.
The solution is simple: stay away from grains
Based on the increasing number of studies showing the damage that grains can do to our bodies, if you’re suffering from chronic pain, it’s possible that grains are the cause. Here’s an idea: stop eating them! If you can’t bring yourself to remove grains completely from your diet, soaking and sprouting them can significantly reduce the concentration of anti-nutrients and make their vitamins and minerals more digestible.
2. Go-to natural remedies for common children’s illnesses (How to detox your medicine cabinet and replace OTC meds with corresponding effective natural remedies)
3. How to ensure safety when using natural remedies and essential oils for children
Many of these dangers, remedies and safety measures will be very much relevant for adults too. I will link to each article as I complete them over the next couple of days.
In part one of this series we talked about the majorly risky practice of giving babies and children over-the-counter or prescription medications. Despite the best intentions of parents and medical practitioners, medicating young ones is often a shot in the dark with unknown repercussions. Children are being given drugs more and more, despite the fact that they are rarely tested on children. Check out that article here.
In part 2 we’re going to get super optimistic and reformative, looking at how to detox your medicine cabinet! I’ve put together a pretty extensive list of go-to natural remedies for common children’s illnesses. Please feel free to contribute more remedies that you’ve found helpful or effective in the comments at the end of the article.
I’ll be matching up the typical conventional medications with natural alternatives.
A quick disclaimer before we get right into it:
This should pretty much go without saying, but please always do your own research and only use remedies you feel comfortable with. Consult a practitioner if ever in doubt. The information here is for education only, and you should never delay seeking in-person care from a professional if your child is seriously ill.
improve nutrition with less sugar/more fat & protein – corrects insulin balance
correct neurotransmitter imbalances by supplementing with magnesium/B-vitamins/whey protein
reduce use of electronics especially at night (yellow/orange glasses are recommended)
introduce a little movement in the morning to boost serotonin
Vetiver essential oil, Cedarwood essential oil, InTune essential oil blend ** ensure any oils you use on your family are pure therapeutic grade, not just made for good smell. ** Here’s where I shop. (a 2001 study using brain scans to evaluate essential oil effectiveness for common behavioral challenges in children showed improvements in 100% of subjects with Vetiver and 83% effectiveness with Cedarwood)
local raw (un-pasteurized) honey – contains enzymes that are like a natural allergy shot with no downside. Local honey to where you live is said to help your body adapt to local allergens in your environment. Buy from a local shop or market, dose kids with 1/3 to 1/2 teaspoon (adults a full tsp) one or more times a day
nettle tea or capsules – nettle is a natural antihistamine. When the leaves are dried they don’t sting anymore!
other probiotics such as raw capsules, unpasteurized kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut. Safe and beneficial in small amounts for babies and kids.
peppermint, lavender, lemon essential oils, doTERRA TriEase softgels (get pure, safe essential oils HERE). These oils bring down inflammation and calm an overactive immune response to allergens. For young children dilute the 3 oils in coconut oil and rub on the feet and along the spine.
heal leaky gut syndrome to prevent undigested peptides from damaging the brain (here is an article for reference, and this gut healing program is, in my opinion, the best out there)
asthma is considered an inflammatory condition, so soothe inflammation in the body by eating a whole real food diet (click the link for meal plans!) focusing on organic vegetables and animal protein, healthy traditional fats, fermented & cultured foods
For prevention or during an attack, instead of an inhaler (if it’s safe) try doTERRA Breathe respiratory blend essential oil – a blend of laurel leaf, peppermint, eucalyptus, melaleuca, lemon, and ravensara. Helps to soothe inflamed tissues, support the elimination of bacteria and viruses, and opens airways. I’ve read many articles and testimonials saying people no longer need asthma medication after starting to keep the Breathe blend on hand. Only $26.67 retail, or get a 25% wholesale discount. Get some HERE.
avoid sugar, caffeine, chocolate, not only for their direct effect but also because they promote Candida Albicans yeast overgrowth in the gut, which can cause anxiety
magnesium drink/rub/bath, and other mineral-rich foods such as homemade organic chicken broth, green smoothies (blend up cucumber, romaine lettuce, spinach, lemon, banana, berries), organ meats (try organic chicken livers made into gluten-free “nuggets”)
herbal teas such as chamomile, fennel, catnip (brew tea, steep with a cover on for 10 minutes, then let cool before putting in a safe bottle or cup for the child to drink from)
amber necklace – raw natural amber contains succinic acid, a natural analgesic and healing agent. Amber warms when worm against the body and the succinic acid is absorbed through the skin helping relieve anxiety, pain and other symptoms. I personally wear one 24-7!
Natural remedies for bacterial infections (alternatives to antibiotics)
Conventional treatment: Doctors frequently prescribe antibiotics just in case even if they don’t know that an illness is caused by bacteria, or which bacteria is causing it (source). This is leading to major damage to gut bacteria which regulates our digestion, immunity and much of our mood and mental wellbeing. It also leads to antibiotic-resistant bacteria which is a major threat to global health today. (source) I would highly recommend reading these articles for insight as to why your child probably doesn’t need antibiotics: Article 1, Article 2. As someone who has been a “victim” to likely unnecessary antibiotics MANY times in my life, and have struggled to re-balance my body in my adulthood, I would encourage you to seek alternatives and consult with a practitioner who treats antibiotics in a cautious and holistic manner.
oregano oil – please ensure you use a high quality pure oil from a brand that stands behind medicinal / internal use of their oils. This is the only place I buy therapeutic essential oils. Apply 1-2 drops diluted with coconut oil topically, in a bath, in a steaming bowl via inhalation, or by consuming in a vegetable capsule. You can also use a small amount in a neti pot with water.
garlic is a strong natural antibiotic which does not destroy beneficial gut bacteria. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride (of the GAPS protocol) recommends consuming an entire head of garlic daily as an effective internal antibiotic. I would recommend doing this by eating finely chopped raw garlic in something tasty like pesto, hummus, real-food ranch dressing with veggies (recipe ideas HERE). Freshly chopped garlic is best, let it sit for 10 minutes before using/consuming as the allicin content will increase.
turmeric extract in doses of 400-600 mg 3 times daily, or as directed on the package (source)
support the immune system with rest, fluids (with pink salt and raw honey for electrolytes), fresh lemon, fresh herbs such as parsley and rosemary, and homemade organic broth
melaleuca (tea tree) essential oil – add 3 to 6 drops to a teaspoon of coconut oil, keep this in a small container for first aid use. This is where I get quality essential oils free of additives, synethetics, or pesticides.
make a compress with a mix of cool water and a little white vinegar to lift the heat
lavender essential oil takes the sting out of a burn and has been shown to help skin heal much faster without scarring or scabbing. Use generously straight onto a burn without using a carrier oil, as carrier oils can hold the heat inside of the burn. You must purchase a pure high quality lavender essential oil to get good results. Many cheaper lavender oils contain fillers that smell like lavender but don’t have the medicinal effect. Here is where I buy top-shelf essential oils.
use raw honey as an antiseptic cream to speed healing
homemade organic crock pot chicken broth with finely chopped garlic, onion, celery (instructions in this post)
warm lemon water – make it with fresh squeezed lemon, and let it cool a bit before adding some raw honey to leave the enzymes intact
cinnamon – mix 1 tablespoon with 1 teaspoon of raw honey and stir into hot water to make a spicy and very effective tea that helps relieve cough and congestion and lower fever. Another option is to use capsules.
facial steam – a bowl of hot water with 3 drops each of oregano, thyme and rosemary essential oils (here is where to get essential oils good enough to use medicinally: link) Place the steaming bowl under the face and drape a towel over the head to make a “tent”. Inhale for several minutes, but be sure to supervise a child to make sure they don’t get too hot.
1 drop of oregano oil diluted with a little coconut oil and rubbed under the feet a few times a day
Conventional treatment: Dicyclomine hydrochloride, simethicone, Anaspaz, Bentyl, Donnatol, Buscopan, Zantac, leaving your infant with other caregivers for respite. Not many treatments recommended other than suffering through it as it usually rectifies after a few months.
removing allergens from the mother’s diet (if breast-feeding) – these could include things like wheat and grains, pasteurized dairy, corn, soy, eggs
removing excessive stimulation and stressors from the environment, since this could stress the baby and hinder a healthy digestive process (ie noises, lights, screens, etc)
massage and movement to help release gas
cooled ginger or peppermint tea in a bottle – these assist digestion
belly and back massage with a digestive blend essential oil (DigestZen is the one I use and love) – dilute 5 drops of oil in 1 tsp of coconut oil, warm the oil until the coconut oil is melted (24 degrees C) and place a couple of drops in the belly button, then work outward in gentle circular motions
apply a warm compress like a cloth from the dryer over the essential-oil covered belly to help the oils penetrate and to help the belly feel comfy
Conventional treatment: medicated shampoo, ketoconazole, anti-dandruff shampoo containing tar, selenium sulfide, hydrocortisone cream, petroleum-based mineral oil or jelly
According to this article, cradle cap is associated with overgrowth of yeast, so probiotics for both mum and baby will be helpful. For mum I use and recommend the doTERRA brand PB-Assist product since it’s double coated to make it past the stomach, and also contains prebiotics with the probiotics feed on; this encourages them to colonize the gut rather then just pass through. If you would like to buy doTERRA products, here is my page with simple instructions.
dietary adjustments in the mother – increase good fats and omega 3’s (avocados, fish, walnuts etc), increase alkalizing foods (vegetables, greens, lemon etc)
coconut oil with essential oils applied to the scalp – coconut oil is naturally anti-fungal so will help bring balance to the skin. Add a maximum of 5 drops of lavender or melaleuca essential oil to 1 tsp of coconut oil.
add 1/4 tsp slippery elm to a bottle, this encourages a healthy gut lining to prevent further yeast overgrowth
Conventional treatment: inhaled medications such as racemic epinephrine, oral corticosteroids (prednisolone, dexamethasone)
Use a cool mist machine or steam up the bathroom and crack a window to create cool, damp mist. Going outside at night also often helps if the air is damp. 10-15 minutes minimum. You can also fill a bowl with ice and make a tent with a towel, and inhale the cool, wet air.
Therapeutic essential oils – With 6 – 12 drops of coconut oil apply 2 drops each Respiratory Blend, Frankincense and Peppermint to the child’s chest area (dilute more for infants). The blend of oils may also be applied to the bottoms of the feet and back as well. Repeat every 1 to 3 hours until the coughing stops. Protect small children from transferring the oils from their chest, etc. to their eyes. Get essential oils good enough to be used medicinally HERE.
castor oil chest compress – apply castor oil to a cloth, place on the chest, and put a hot water bottle on top to help the castor oil penetrate. Castor oil is an expectorant which means it helps loosen phlegm, so the child will cough it up and get rid of, being able to sleep peacefully again. Check out this awesome testimonial. Get castor oil HERE.
plantain herb – a common backyard “weed” with many medicinal properties – read more here. Make a poultice of fresh or dried plantain leaf and bentonite clay with water to form a paste. Or you can buy a ready-made plantain salve. Also a good remedy for bites and stings, rashes, poison ivy.
witch hazel – apply a small amount of soothing witch hazel distillate directly to a wound. More info here or get some witch hazel for your non-toxic medicine cabinet HERE.
coconut oil is naturally antiseptic, antibacterial, antiviral and very soothing & protective to the skin. Apply this completely non-toxic remedy with confidence. Get some good coconut oil HERE.
homemade neosporin – check out this recipe from Wellness Mama
Diaper rash may be “common” but that does not make it “normal”. It’s caused simply by prolonged skin contact with urine and feces, with too much dampness and not enough ventilation. The skin gets very sore and can become infected. The simplest remedy is to allow baby to be diaperless for at least 20 minutes 3 times a day between diaper changes to allow the skin to breathe
Use non-plastic diapers that breathe better, such as these (imagine your butt wrapped in plastic all day, you wouldn’t be very happy either! Plus there is evidence plastic diapers can cause hormonal & fertility problems. If you need disposal diapers, Nature Baby Care is the best option)
Use less toxic wipes and ointments, or just use a warm cloth followed by some coconut oil each time. You can keep all the baby-bum-cloths in a separate odorless storage bucket with a few drops of tea tree oil in it, then wash them in their own hot water load (with unscented laundry soap)
Make natural ointment with coconut oil, lavender and melaleuca essential oils. Frankincense and Grounding Blend (Balance) also work well on some babies if they don’t tolerate lavender or melaleuca. (more info here) You only want to use the most safe, pure, effective essential oils on your baby’s sensitive young skin, so I strongly recommend investing in good essential oils. See mine HERE.
Conventional treatment: Though the majority of ear infections are viral, most doctors treat ear infections as if bacteria were present just in case, and will prescribe antibiotics (amoxicillin, cephalosporins, clavulanate, sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, azithromycin). Other common treatments include Tylenol and other OTC medications, puncturing the eardrum to drain fluid from the middle ear, tube insertion surgery, adenoidectomy
Fill a cotton or wool sock with oatmeal, rice or sea salt/pink salt (antimicrobial properties) and bake until it’s very warm but not burning. Use as a heat pack under the affected ear.
Cut an onion in half and bake until you can just start to smell it. Let it cool until it’s a tolerable temperature to touch, then apply to the ears (lying down) and hold it on gently by tying with a natural fabric like wool or cotton (ie a scarf or old t-shirt). The antiviral properties of the warm onion enter the ears. Leaving a chopped onion in the child’s bedroom overnight is also a great cold remedy.
Drop 1-2 drops of slightly warmed garlic and mullein oil into each ear (one at a time, let it rest a few minutes then let that ear drain onto a cloth while you do the other ear, then drain again)
Dip a cotton ball in some of the ill person’s urine, add a couple drops of rosemary or basil essential oil, and put the cotton ball gently resting in the ear. You may use a bandaid or masking tape to hold it in the ear overnight. (Think this sounds WHACK? Read more about the awesome medicinal properties of urine HERE)
the skin is the mirror of the gut, therefore healing the digestive system will heal the skin. Increase bone broth and organic veggies, decrease and eliminate processed/coloured/flavoured foods, wheat/grains, commercial pasteurized dairy, soy, non-organic corn.
use coconut oil as a soothing moisturizer, and add 10-20 drops of essential oils such as lavender, melaleuca, geranium or a topical blend. HERE is where I get essential oils good enough to use medicinally.
Conventional treatment: Tylenol, Advil, Motrin. Tylenol can cause altererd liver function in children and can even spur Febrile seizures. (source)
a fever in itself is not a bad sign – it shows that the body is fighting off bacteria or viruses, and the increase in temperature is one of the body’s main weapons. It heats up to make the body less hospitable to these invaders. It’s more important to keep the child hydrated and comfortable, using natural approaches to support the immune system, and not worrying about the number of the fever too much. As long as the child is still drinking, urinating and responding well, the fever can be monitored at home (read more HERE and HERE)
Don’t wake a child to give medication, sleep is more important.
Keep the kid hydrated and comfortable using remedies such as natural popsicles (recipe), homemade chicken broth (instructions), room-temperature water with lemon/pink salt/raw honey for healthy electrolytes
Apply cloths soaked in apple cider vinegar, lemon juice or egg whites to the feet (and put socks on top). People still swear by these age-old remedies; if they bother to still do them then they must work!
supplements such as calcium lactate (gives the body raw materials to make white blood cells, which it normally has to withdraw from bones, so by supplementing you get less of that achey feeling), a cup of raw apple cider vinegar added to a warm bath
Consider taking further action / visiting the hospital if an infant under 8 weeks old has a fever higher than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit, or if any fever has no known source or symptoms, or lasts longer than 5 days (source)
See remedies listed above for colds and fevers – in general, keep the ill person hydrated and comfortable, support the immune system, use smart herbal remedies listed above
How to support and heal food intolerance & digestive problems
a diet and lifestyle protocol to help remove bothersome foods without feeling overwhelmed or deprived, and healing the gut (I highly recommend this gut healing program)
DigestZen essential oil – a safe and very effective blend that you can get HERE
Conventional treatment: Most people just ride this out until they vomit or poop so much that they need to go to the hospital and get an IV to get re-hydrated. Over-the-counter medication to treat vomiting and diarrhea (which may be counter-productive because this is the body’s only way to rid the poisoning)
as soon as any stomach pain starts, prevent it from progressing by sipping a mixture of equal parts raw apple cider vinegar and water with 1/2 tsp activated charcoal mixed in, or use activated charcoal capsules. Drinking this strange black drink will absorbs and de-activate the invading bacteria, and should help within minutes.
Conventional treatment: Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, Aleve, Nurofen, Panadol, escalating to more serious interventions such as prescription drugs and injections for migraines
food intolerances are a common source of headaches, see the tips above for resolving this
ensure the diet is low in sugar and processed foods
essential oils such as Peppermint, Deep Blue and PastTense are totally awesome for headaches. Be sure to keep minty or wintergreen ones away from the eyes. Here is where I personally buy these high quality medicinal oils.
ensure enough movement and hydration, and don’t use screens too much
if a headache is due to jaw tension, PastTense oil (above) and an amber necklace can help calm the tension
mineral imbalances can cause headaches, try using pink salt instead of regular salt, and adding a magnesium drink/rub/bath
accupressure – squeezing and rubbing the fleshy part between the first finger and thumb quite firmly/aggressively for 5-10 minutes
Conventional treatment: as referenced in the first article in this series, children are frequently prescribed behaviour and mood-altering medications these days. Ritalin, Adderall, Wellbutrin etc.
balance sleep patterns with these excellent tips, trust me you need these!! – helps balance hormones and neurotransmitters for normal behaviour
improve nutrition with less carbs & sugar/more fat & protein – corrects insulin balance for less “hangry” times. Try these paleo-friendly kids snack ideas.
correct neurotransmitter imbalances by supplementing with magnesium/B-vitamins/whey protein
reduce use of electronics especially at night (yellow/orange glasses are recommended)
introduce a little movement in the morning to boost serotonin
Vetiver essential oil, Cedarwood essential oil, InTune essential oil blend ** ensure any oils you use on your family are pure therapeutic grade, not just made for good smell. ** Here’s where I shop. (a 2001 study using brain scans to evaluate essential oil effectiveness for common behavioral challenges in children showed improvements in 100% of subjects with Vetiver and 83% effectiveness with Cedarwood)
Soaking a chamomile tea bag in warm water and placing over an eye for 15 minutes every 2 hours will relieve pink eye in less than 24 hours. (source)
How to Treat a Seizure Naturally
I will work on expanding this section, however anecdotally I have heard that high quality frankincense essential oil is an incredible cure for seizures (source) Comment below if you have knowledge/experience of this?
Natural remedies for Teething / Tooth pain
amber necklace – raw natural amber contains succinic acid, a natural analgesic and healing agent. Amber warms when worm against the body and the succinic acid is absorbed through the skin helping relieve anxiety, pain and other symptoms. I personally wear one 24-7!
clove essential oil is said to work wonders for teething and tooth pain, but some babies might be sensitive. If you don’t feel comfortable using clove, go for German Chamomile instead. Frankincense is also great for tooth pain. These essential oils are pure and safe enough for use on babies and kids.
How to treat an Upset Stomach / Constipation / Diarrhea Naturally
a diet and lifestyle protocol to help remove bothersome foods without feeling overwhelmed or deprived, and healing the gut (I highly recommend this gut healing program)
DigestZen essential oil – a safe and very effective blend that you can get HERE
mineral imbalances can cause digestive issues, try keeping the person hydrated using electrolytes like pink salt instead of regular salt, and adding a magnesium drink/rub/bath
drinking a teaspoon of lemon juice or raw apple cider vinegar in a glass of water a few times a day can help stimulate better digestion
How to get rid of Plantar Warts and Skin tags Naturally
Conventional treatment: Salicylic Acid, Compound W, liquid nitrogen – scary chemicals that eat the skin away
oregano oil! Get a good one here. Apply 1-2 drops directly to the spot at least once a day for a month. If the oil is too “hot” on the skin, dilute with coconut oil. You can cover the spot with a cotton ball and/or bandaid to keep the oil on. I’ve had success with this personally on a recent wart! I didn’t even remember to use it every day and it went away in about a month, without having to endure any discomfort or cutting or burning or anything.
What do you have in your natural medicine cabinet?
What are your go-to natural remedies? Do you find they work as well as conventional treatments? Have you or your loved ones been able to stop using medications thanks to natural remedies? Share your experiences below, you could change someone’s life!!
