Let’s Talk: Omega 3 for Great Skin

Back in the day–way back, kids would line up to get their daily spoonful of cod liver oil from mom.  The old cod liver oil was an acquired taste…not!  I don’t imagine anyone could ever come to relish its taste.  I can imagine that there were a lot of threats and promises to cajole kids into taking it.   However, families then knew the importance of omega 3 (cod liver oil is high in omega 3) in the diet, but somehow that’s been lost in more recent generations.  Even my mom remembered being made to have a spoonful of cod liver oil daily, but she never gave it to her children.  Although, we did eat a lot of fresh fish, nuts, and fresh greens (food sources of omega 3). 

Well, the word is out.  Americans are deficient in omega 3.  We aren’t eating foods that are high in omega 3, instead our diet is mainly meat, processed foods, and junk foods–all low in omega 3.   Omega 3 is one of two essential fatty acids that the body needs; the other is omega 6.  These two need to be in balance.  Because of the typical western diet, American diets are high in omega 6.  Omega 6 causes inflammation, and omega 3  fights inflammation.  So, for skin inflammations, such as acne, bacne, eczema, and psoriasis having omega 3 in the diet is imperative.  Omega 3 also helps with oil production; this benefits dry skin and acne (by keeping oils in balance).

Omega 3 – Just the Facts:

•    Body does not make it on its own.   Needs to come from food.

•   Most Americans are deficient in omega 3.

•   Omega 3 and 6 need to be balanced.  Estimates are the typical American diet has 14- 25 times more omega 6 than omega 3.

•   Omega 3 has two main fatty acids, DHA and EHA.

•   EHA fatty acids helps the skin:
  boosts hydration – prevents and aids acne and eczema – slows aging process of skin – prevents collagen loss – repairs the skin – offers some protection against the sun and sun damage – regulates oil production – helps dry, itchy skin.

• DHA aids in brain function.  It’s very important that pregnant women get omega 3 so their babies aren’t born omega 3 deficient. It can affect brain, eye, and nerve development.  More than half the fat in the brain is DHA.
  

• Foods high in omega 3 fatty acids are:
  fish, especially salmon – salmon, flaxseed – chia, sunflower, and pumpkin seeds – walnuts – dark green leafy vegetables (a different kind of omega 3 is in nuts and vegetables).

•  Supplementation is another way to get omega 3.  Not all omega 3 supplements are equal; some contain little DHA or EHA.  Buy only those that have been independently tested.

• Omega 3 is good for other conditions, such as eye conditions, depression, ADHD, heart disease, arthritis and other inflammations, cancer, autoimmune disorders, and stomach disorders.

BTW – Just like “a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down…in a most delightful way…,” cod liver oil now comes in orange and lemon flavors.  As far as  “delightful”…well….

Click to Buy Our Great All-Organic Skincare Line:

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Reference:

“Omega 3 Fatty Acids,” University of Maryland Medical Center.  Online: http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-3-000316.htm

Yum Friday Recipe: Citrus Spinach Pecan Salad

I think I must have been close to scurvy this morning.  I had such a craving for citrus that I made this salad for breakfast.  Salad for breakfast?  Why not? 

Mother Nature knew what she was doing when she planned the citrus season for winter.  It comes at just the right time for us humans.  Besides giving us the health benefits of vitamin C right when we need it most, the sweet juicy tang of citrus fruit refreshes and says, “spring is coming.”  This salad sings freshness, just what we need for the doldrums of winter.

The stars of this food show are the oranges and pink grapefruit.  We round out the recipe with chopped spinach, pecans, and red onions.  Drizzled over top is a citrus/sweet dressing made from red ruby grapefruit juice.  It’s a great salad for the opening act of any meal–brunch, lunch, or dinner–and breakfast for the adventurous.

Citrus fruit is high in Vitamin C.  The body does not make it, so it is imperative that you eat foods with vitamin C in them.  While you may know vitamin C helps prevent colds and flu, it is also great and necessary for skin health.  Collagen production gets a big boost from ascorbic acid (vitamin C).  Collagen is needed for all skin types because it helps to strengthen and firm skin as well as repair it.  Dry, mature, oily, acne, wrinkled, sunburned skin all need vitamin C.  Skin wounds from surgery, cuts, etc. need it to help heal.

Dr. Andrew Weil even suggests asking your doctor for a vitamin C drip while having surgery to aid surgical wound healing.  That is how important vitamin C is to your skin.  I notice my skin becoming drier and duller if I don’t have vitamin C for just a few days.  Vitamin C is also high in antioxidants.  Antioxidants slow the damage caused by free radicals.  Free radicals are believed to be present in the cause of many diseases.  For the skin, free radicals damage collagen and cause skin dryness.  So, the moral of this story is get some vitamin C into you daily.  That reminds me: The body doesn’t store vitamin C, so it needs to be continuously replenished.

Spinach and the pecans in the salad provide another essential nutrient.  BTW, essential nutrients are those nutrients that the body does not make, and so we have to get them from food sources.  Spinach and pecans have omega 3.  Omega 3 acts as an anti-inflammatory in the body, which helps the skin.  Omega 3 is also important for brain development and function.  Spinach is also high in skin loving vitamin K.  Both spinach and pecans have other nutrients and phytonutrients that are important to the skin.  Onions  have several nutrients, especially flavonoids.  Flavonoids boost vitamin C, are ani-inflammatory, fight free radicals, and protect cell structure.  So, onions are nothing to cry about…..

Yum Recipe – Citrus Spinach Pecan Salad  – serves 2
2 navel oranges
1 ruby red grapefruit
½ cup chopped spinach
 1/3 cup chopped pecans
2 Tablespoon chopped red onion
fresh ground pepper

Ruby Grapefruit Dressing Ingredients
Juice from ½ red ruby grapefruit (about 1/3 cup) – remove any large seeds
1 ½ Tablespoon sunflower oil (or other light vegetable oil)
2 teaspoons agave or honey
pinch salt

Salad Dressing Directions
Make the dressing first.  In a blender or a bowl if using an immersion blender, add all the ingredients for the dressing.  Blend until thoroughly emulsified (1 – 3 minutes, depending on speed of blender).  The dressing will have a peach color to it.  Set aside.

Salad Preparation
Peel oranges and grapefruit, making sure to cut close enough to the fruit to remove the white part of the skin.  Section the fruit.  To section the fruit: cut sections away from the membrane on either side.  Using a knife, slice down the inside of the membrane on each side and using the knife lift the section away.  The other way to do this is to slice down the inside of one side of the membrane; bring the knife under the section and up along the other membrane side (the section is removed in one movement).

As you remove the fruit sections, place them in a colander over a bowl.  Once you are ready to prepare and serve the salad, put all the ingredients in a bowl.  Toss.  Drizzle the salad with the Ruby Grapefruit Dressing.  Grind fresh pepper on the salad after serving.  It’s also nice to plate the salad individually then add the dressing and fresh ground pepper.

Enjoy.
A Yum Scrub Organics Recipe

 

 

Click to Buy Our Great All-Organic Skincare Line:

YumScrubhttp://bit.ly/1jKksLG

Abe’s Market bit.ly/1rueto2

Yum Friday Recipe: Scrambled Tofu with Vegetables

For a long time I was afraid of tofu. Yeah. I would buy it, and it would sit in the refrigerator until past the expiration date because I didn’t know how to use it.  And most of the recipes that I came across had this elaborate method of draining the liquid from it.  It involved placing the tofu a day ahead in a strainer over a bowl with something heavy on it.  For some reason, finding the heavy object to put on the tofu was a stumbling block for me as well as the day ahead process.  Tofu was a mystery.  Except for adding it to hot and sour soup, I gave up on making recipes with tofu and ate it when out at restaurants.

 

Yum Scrub Organics Recipe: Scrambled Tofu and Vegetables

Then one day I had scrambled tofu at a favorite vegetarian restaurant in Denver, the Watercourse Foods Restaurant.  The light bulb clicked; I could make scrambled tofu.  Bravo!  Other recipes followed including buffalo wing tofu; an adventurous and creative family member even cut the tofu into the shapes of wings.  Some might say he has too much time on his hands.  But, my basic tofu recipe is scrambled with vegetables.

Skin and Other Body Nutrients
Many people know that tofu is an excellent source of protein.  However, it also has some pro-healthy skin nutrients, such as omega 3 fatty acids, selenium, and copper.  Copper helps with the formation of collagen and elastin.  Copper also has anti-oxidant properties along with the manganese found in tofu.  Tofu is also a source of phytoestrogens, which is good for peri-menopause and menopausal women.   Because estrogen in this group begins to wane, the skin becomes thinner and drier.  Phytoestrogens, specifically isoflavones, act like weak estrogen in the body.  Tofu is high in tryptophan and a good source of iron and calcium.

This recipe also uses turmeric for coloring.  However, turmeric has much more to offer than just pretty dressing.  Turmeric is valued in the Indian Ayurvedic and Chinese medical traditions as an anti-inflammatory.  Turmeric is suggested for people who have acne and people with inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn’s disease.  It’s also high in the anti-oxidant manganese .

Yum Recipe: Scrambled Tofu with Vegetables
The recipe below is a basic outline.  While tofu is bland just straight from the carton, the great thing about it that it absorbs flavors easily.  So, it will taste like what you add to it. Potatoes, onions, spinach, peppers, and garlic are the vegetables I used for this recipe, but you can add whatever vegetables you want.  I flavored this recipe with poultry seasoning, but you can use others, such as a curry or Italian herbs, ginger, or just the basics of salt, pepper, and garlic.

 

 

 

 

 

Scrambled Tofu with Vegetables – serves 4

 

 

1 container of organic tofu
5 – 6 cups chopped or diced vegetables
(potatoes, onions, peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, spinach, kale, etc.)
½ teaspoon turmeric (more for deeper color, but this needs to be balanced against how much turmeric flavor you want.)
1 Tablespoon + 2 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 -3 teaspoons herbs or spices (i.e poultry seasoning, curry, ginger, or Italian seasonings) – The amount depends on strength of spice.  i.e  Curry is very strong, so you would use less.
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper

Remove tofu from container and place in a colander over a bowl.  With clean hands squeeze the tofu, or use a spatula to press excess liquid from the tofu.  Tofu should break into pieces and look similar to scrambled eggs.  Empty the liquid from the bowl and place the “scrambled” tofu in it.  Sprinkle the turmeric over the tofu and mix it in until the tofu is colored uniformly.  Add the 1 Tablespoon olive oil, seasonings, garlic powder, and salt/pepper.  Mix thoroughly and then set aside.

Seasoned Tofu

Sauté the vegetables in the remaining olive oil.  Remember to add the vegetables according to how long they take to cook. For example, potatoes and onion take longer than most other vegetables.   Add spinach and other greens last.  Cook 1 minute then add the tofu.  Sauté the scramble for about 5 to 7 min, stirring occasionally.  Serve and Enjoy.

Light and Love to all.
A Yum Scrub Organics Recipe

Click to Buy Our Great All-Organic Skincare Line:

YumScrubhttp://bit.ly/1jKksLG

Abe’s Market bit.ly/1rueto2

Reference:
The George Mateljan Foundation for The World’s Healthiest Foods, “Tofu.” Online: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=111

 The George Mateljan Foundation for The World’s Healthiest Foods, “Turmeric.”  Online: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=78