a la mama

First off, this is the last Blooming Tuesday blog I’ll be writing, as my position at Mothering has been discontinued. However, you can still hang with me on Twitter @candacewalsh, on facebook (friend me), and at the Huffington Post. I’ll be the new managing editor at My Healing Kitchen starting next week.

Now on to the topic at hand…

You pack your children’s lunches lovingly each morning (I know we do) but do you give the same care and attention to your own midday meal? It has taken me years to snap to adding my lunch bag to the queue on the kitchen counter.

How empowering–to open my lunch bag and find items perfect for me–because I chose them. You might be wondering if I write myself a little love note on the napkin, but no, I’m not that far gone.

Lately, my lunch bag includes: a Dr. Praeger’s spinach pancake, a grapefruit, a Stanley stainless steel bottle of juice from my morning veggie/fruit batch*, and a red pepper with a container of Tribe hummus. I especially love their chipotle and red pepper flavors. I smear the hummus on big slabs of the fresh, crunchy red pepper…yum! Instead of eating everything at once, I tend to have small eating occasions all day long–per dietician Ashley Koff’s recommendation.

Today, my lunch stuff was thrown in a shopping bag, because I was in that much of a rush. However, wouldn’t it have been much better to avail of this beautiful Blue Avocado lunch tote? Only $20…such a nice price point.

It’s not bulky, but it keeps items hot or cold for 3 whole hours! It’s collapsible, PVC-free and made from 50% REPREVE recycled fibers. And it’s so darn cute. SOMEONE is going to win this thing and I have to say, that person is very lucky because this tote is adorable, practical and chic.

So here’s how you enter to win the contest:

Leave a comment below. Extra credit: tell me all about your favorite packed lunches.

Thanks! xox

PS: Here’s my juicer-juice recipe:

3 carrots, 1/2 small beet, 1/2 green apple, 1/2 lemon whole lemon, chunks of turmeric, ginger and burdock root, 3 stalks celery, 1/3 of a cucumber, 1/3 of a fennel bulb. It’s WONDERFUL and yummy, too.

By Nadine Artemis of Living Libations (my new very favorite source for aromatherapy, elixirs, and chrisms!)

Sometimes, helping children to brush their teeth, or getting children to brush their own teeth, is like herding cats and, when children do brush their teeth, even when they are teenagers, do they do a thorough job? Is their brushing effective?

In ancient times, children very rarely had cavities. Today, however, one of the biggest health concerns affecting little ones more than any other in North America and Europe is dental decay, ECC (Early Childhood Caries).

Is it because dentists are giving out lollipops? (http://mothering.com/health/does-coke-money-corrupt-kids-dentistry) Did the ancients have advanced civilizations that cracked the code on toothpaste?  Or, is it because breastfeeding fades in and out of popularity while processed formula proliferates?

When your child closes her mouth against the toothbrush, while you cheerfully chant “If you get up in the morning… and you want to find something to do, you brush your teeth ch ch ch ch, ch ch ch ch” by Raffi, know, (that your dentist may not say so), but brushing isn’t everything.

Dr. Weston Price (President of the America Dental Association from 1888-89) studied primitive skulls and traveled the world studying the teeth of cultures that ate only their traditional foods; cultures in which a cavity would be found in one in a thousand people. Cultures that had moved away from their nutrient-dense food and were plagued by white flour and white sugar had rotted teeth.

Decay of tooth enamel is not only from food stuck in it.  Dental decay occurs in two ways: internal and external. External factors are food in the mouth, acidity, bacteria, how the teeth fit together, and exercise. External factors play a role, but they are not the initiating factors in oral decay. Teeth are alive! They can regenerate, and this is why internal factors that nourish the teeth are so important. Real foods, hormonal balance, minerals, and the fluid exchange through the teeth are key. When the teeth are healthy, they are like trees, drawing their nourishment from the roots and the blood and digestive system are the soil. Nourishing fluid moves from the pulp chamber through to the dentin.  Stress, processed food, and inadequate nutrition reverse this precious flow and the tooth starts to draw bacteria and acids from the mouth into the tooth. Teeth start forming inside the womb, and pre-natal nutrition with a healthy dose of fat soluble vitamins, minerals, and whole foods starts the process of building strong teeth. Around 2-3 years of age, the permanent teeth are forming/calcifying into the jawbone and, if there is a nutritional deficiency  of minerals and vitamin C, D3, K2 and A at this time, teeth are formed that are less resistant to decay.  This also means that breastfeeding mothers need to be abundant in whole nutrition as well.

As teeth start to come in, wipe the teeth with a cloth dipped in salt water. This will help clear plaque and neutralize acids. Teach children to swish with salt water and spit it out, which will do most of the work. Later, brushing can begin using salt, baking soda or xylitol powder (from a health store). If a carie lesion begins, this does not necessarily mean a permanent cavity is inevitable. Know that the teeth are alive and brown enamel lesions could be reversed. When there is a carie lesion the salvia starts on the area to balance the decay, and the dentin inside your tooth will shot forth odontoblasts which regenerate new cells to the area. If this happens keep the tooth clean and look into the diet.

Healthy Teeth Tips

·              Avoid bonding molars on the cavities (this traps bacteria in the tooth)

·             Offer zero processed food

·            In the beginning, stick to breastmilk and water

·             Floss when the teeth start getting close together

·              Avoid Fluoride water and treatments (http://mothering.com/health/debunking-fluoride-cavity-fighter-or-toxic-intruder)

·              Phosphorus and vitamin C help ease teething

·             Breastfeeding is not the cause of cavities http://mothering.com/health/big-bad-cavities-breastfeeding-is-not-the-cause

·             Soak all grains and beans overnight before cooking to get rid of phytic acid

·             Avoid all commercial toothpastes (toxic) – stick to the basics: salt, baking soda, and xylitol

More:

8 Steps for Successful Self-Dentistry:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4d0BW0I-qI&feature=related

Oral Care for Children:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kulGkTY9SSI&feature=related

For serious question about oral care, and to find a holistic, biological dentist:

http://www.hugginsappliedhealing.com

Pregnancy and motherhood can complicate a woman’s fitness practices. It can also be a time that women connect with their bodies most meaningfully. I “got” yoga when I was pregnant with my daughter. Prenatal yoga classes dramatically minimized my aches and pains and restless leg sensations, and gave me a new avenue to inner peace. In today’s blog post, NBA athlete Marie Ferdinand-Harris, of the Los Angeles Sparks, shares her experience of being both an athlete and a mother.

Candace: Many mothers feel like they want to nourish themselves after birth, but don’t know where to start. Can you describe your journey? Did you work with a dietician? What were your food decisions, and what was the timeline in terms of getting active?

Marie: Throughout my pregnancy I constantly watched what I ate. I drank a lot of water and carrot juice and ate fruits and vegetables at every meal. I did not work with a dietician, but I read many magazines to research how to eat in a healthy manner.

I worked out consistently during my entire pregnancy up until the last trimester. My workouts were not, by any means, extreme, just light cardio. I either walked, lightly jogged on the tredmill, or used the stairmaster, I also lifted with light dumbbells to attempt and keep my muscles active and toned. I feel that my exercise routines throughout my pregnancy enabled me to not be so far back and out of shape after I gave birth to my son CJ. After giving birth and getting an “ok” from the doctor to really work out hard, I focused a ton on abdominal strength because the ab muscles are the weakest muscles after having a baby.

I worked with a personal trainer to strengthen my ab muscles, and to lift weights and get my muscles back in shape. I went step by step, feeling stronger and more active, and eventually feeling strong enough to get on the basketball court and work on basketball skills in order to get back into basketball shape.

I believe that my conscious eating and exercise made my pregnancy much less difficult on me, and I felt pretty good throughout.

Candace: When did you know you were “back” in terms of your strength and energy?

Marie: About two months after I was doing sprints and suicides (a type of running drill) on the basketball court. Although I was not yet doing full contact five versus five basketball games, I was able to do light two on two basketball games with some contact. As I played more and more, my cardio and strength kept improving so I could push harder and harder.

Candace: How do you balance your career with motherhood?

Marie: The luxury of the sport of basketball for me as a mother is that I have at most two and a half to three hour practices every day, giving me the rest of the day to be the great mother that I aspire to be. The time constraints of basketball practice allows me to be the mother that I am and the professional athlete that I am. I try to rest up while CJ is at school or napping so that I have the energy to be a great, active mom with him when I am with him.

I would not be able to balance my career with motherhood as effectively as I am able to without my husband Cedric. Cedric is the most supportive husband, he takes a lot of pressure off me and allows me to compete throughout each WNBA season without being stressed by helping take care of CJ. While in season, I focus on making sure that I give my husband the right advice to help him help me take care of CJ.