One of the top questions people ask me is, ‘What do YOU have for breakfast, lunch and dinner?’ It’s an easy enough question but I always hesitate a bit in answering. For starters, the way I eat is not perfect by any means, and for some reason people tend to think as a nutritionist your diet must be absent of all things indulgent. Secondly, people can get stuck on ONE particular dietary option and replicate over, and over, and over, and….well, you get the idea 😉
Nevertheless, I thought I’d shed some light on a few of the foods and ingredients that I try to have on a daily basis and the reasons behind those choices. Below are my Top 10 therapeutic foods that I try to incorporate into my daily nutrition!
BONE BROTH
- Why: BB is jam-packed with minerals that do a body good. What’s more, it’s easy to incorporate into your day. Enjoy consuming it solo as a warm, soothing drink or use it to steam/sauté a meal for the family. Check out an awesome DIY recipe here.
- How: My favorite method involves ½ cup concentrated bone broth heated with hot water, lemon juice and a splash of apple cider for a treat!
- When: Okay, to be fair, I try to get bone broth in a few times a week. BUT I tend to be all or nothing based on supply. If I have it in my fridge / freezer I get a cup almost daily. If not in ready supply, it can be a couple weeks in between brew sessions.
COLLAGEN
- Why: Besides the fact that it’s good for my hair and skin, collagen is beneficial for joints, liver and gut.
- How: My go-to calls for adding 1 tablespoon to my daily smoothie. Tip: If you make the smoothie and then let it sit in the fridge for a few minutes it will thicken up!
- When: 1 tablespoon daily
GREENS
- Why: Kale, Spinach, Swiss Chard are all nutrient dense in vitamins and minerals as well as antioxidants!
- How: Again, my daily smoothie is an easy way to jam in a lot of goodness 😉
- When: 2 cups daily
PUMPKIN SEEDS
- Why: Zinc is my number one immune boosting nutrient. Zinc can be found in a number of whole foods, but is most concentrated in oysters, spinach, meat and pumpkin seeds.
- How: I love the texture pumpkin seeds add to anything. A favorite is on top of avocado toast with a little salt and pepper or as a salad topping.
- When: A dozen pumpkin seeds daily
BRAZIL NUTS
- Why: Selenium, like zinc, is closely tied to the immune system and is readily available in a variety of foods, particularly in Brazil Nuts. Just 3-4 nuts are all that’s needed to meet your recommended daily intake.
- How: Brazil nuts have a buttery taste – I love popping a few in combination with half a banana. Not only does it taste great, but the fat from the nuts will help keep your blood sugar level!
- When: 3 nuts daily
SALT
- Why: Sodium (Sea Salt in this case) is loaded with healthful minerals. It helps to support the adrenals, which are especially under stress this time of year. Note: be sure to get the bulk of your sodium intake through sea salt, as opposed to packaged foods.
- How: Salt on everything. EVERYTHING J
- When: Daily, multiple times daily.
EGGS
- Why: I absolutely adore eggs J No joke. They’re full of yummy fat and a complete protein. They’ve also got a good amount of B vitamins and minerals such as selenium and zinc. They’re chalked full of choline – an ultra important mineral for pre and post-natal women.
- How: I love a sunny side up egg heaped onto my salad. I pop the yolk and use it as my salad dressing.
- When: I try to consume 2 eggs per day to ensure my little peanut gets enough choline.
COCONUT OIL
- Why: Coconut oil is a medium chain fatty acid, which means even though it’s a fat, our bodies utilize it for energy as if it’s a carb. Even better, it is anti-microbial, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral so it can pretty much fix anything 😉 I like to think of coconut oil as the MacGyver of fats. SO MUCH GOODNESS AND SO MUCH UTILITY.
- How: I love using coconut oil instead of butter to lather up a baked sweet potato!
- When: I aim to consume 1 tablespoon daily
BUTTER
- Why: Butter is a great source of our fat soluble vitamins, specifically vitamin A. It’s also a good source of conjugated linoleic acid (a mouthful I know). But the gist is this helps us fight off disease. When loading up on the butter just make sure that it is grass-fed to guarantee that you get all of the yummy benefits without exogenous hormones or antibiotics that are found in conventional butter.
- How: I like to use butter when frying anything – it’s stable at high temperatures and adds a ton of flavor!
- When: 1-2 tablespoons daily
LEMONS
- Why: While one would assume lemons are acid, the juice is actually alkaline once it hits our mouth, helping to keep our systems in balance!
- How: My go-to salad dressing is olive oil, mustard, honey and lemon juice!
- When: 1-2 tablespoons every other day
