Without active vigilance and awareness, our eyes, ears and nervous systems are bombarded with bad news, aggressive television, suspense, and drama. Since March 2020, that bombardment of stress and fear-inducing messaging has skyrocketed.

We have a nervous system igniter in the palm of our hand with smartphones available to give us our fear fix every minute of the day. The media we take in – the news clips, TV shows, books we read – are all part of it. You know what else is? The conversations we’re having with our friends, colleagues, and loved ones.

The human species is programmed to be on high alert for threats. That’s how our species has survived – by using our senses and impulses to save us from real-life threats. The intake of a signal, physical or mental, that the brain perceives as life-threatening shuts down our thinking (and our digestive processes, immune system, and other critical functions of the body to keep us healthy), and moves blood to the extremities so we can run. Basically, less critical functions are put aside so the life-saving ones can step up.

Now, however, it’s not the potential for a wild animal attack or an early frost that leaves us feeling like we’re fighting for survival. It’s every headline and ping of our phone or a billboard we walk by.

All of this contributes to how our brains get wired. As brain training lingo goes, what fires together wires together. Information we take in and think about, often in a repetitive nature, begins to hardwire in our brains. Because we naturally avoid anything that challenges the wiring in our brain, and instead the natural inclination is to continue cementing it in and seek out more of it. We are hardwiring our brains for negativity and fear, to function in a state of stress and reactivity.

It becomes cyclical. We get twitchy if we don’t get our dose. That feeling is addictive, and we seek out more and more of it to get our fix. What begins to happen is that even when we are in what should be a joyful state, or there is some good news, we bypass it all and let our brains take us to the bit that’s not right. We zero in on where and how we should be scared and worried. We have wired our brains to move to the doom and gloom.

This is why, now more than ever, taking active, intentional action to wire our brains for happiness is so critical. Rising above the chaos is in no way a simple or easy process. Your brain will create every excuse not to do it. You’ve hard wired a pattern that you are now trying to break and the resistance is strong.

Near the end of 2020, I hit my own breaking point. My brain felt absolutely fried. By what felt like divine intervention, I flipped open a book and landed on a page discussing neural retraining of the brain. I took a course and began to practice exercises that support the limbic system of my brain – the bits that deal with the stress response.

I began to actively rewire my brain for happiness. This has felt like a life changer, akin to the experience I had when I first began meditating back in 2006. It has invited me to seek out different information, consume different types of media, and create firm boundaries on who I will engage with and the topics I am willing to have conversations about. It has also changed what I share with my subscribers.

Why the excitement about this? Because this is a critical missing component for an optimal, healthy, and happy lifestyle. Our efforts are wasted if we’re deteriorating our health by allowing our nervous systems, limbic system, brain, heart, and body to be hijacked by bad news, violent media, aggressive music, and agitation-forming conversations and relationships.

The scary bit is that we don’t see and likely don’t feel this hardwiring as it’s happening. We simply don’t know about it. I didn’t know about it, at least. It’s not like falling off the wagon with other health goals, where there are usually physical signs that something’s not right. Hardwiring fear creeps up until you find yourself in a state of exhaustion, anxiety, depression, and general overwhelm. We know practicing loving-kindness, compassion, and gratitude are important, but we end up without the strength of mind to pull ourselves out of the fear cycle to see, accept and embrace all the goodness that surrounds us.

Let me tell you, there is a lot. There is so much goodness. So much connection. So much love and compassion and care; of course, you’d never know about it from the evening news. When we make these first steps to retrain the brain for happiness, slowly we can see the glimmer come back. We can come back to the joy inside and seek it out. We release the addiction we have to checking feeds, looking for the next thing to trigger us, and further hardwire the stress response in the brain. We begin to rewire the brain for happiness.

The goal is simple: look for the good. Retrain the brain to seek out the goodness, the generosity, love, and care. Focus on that. And slowly but surely, we can retrain the brain – and build up those synapses in the brain. Again, the thoughts we think matter. They build these connections in the brain. We need to fire new thoughts and ideas and build up new wiring. When we do that, the old patterns slowly break down and dismantle.

It’s time to rewire for happiness. The change is profound and life becomes a dramatically more kind, and beautiful one to be living. More so, even with all the realities of life, it becomes easier to live.

5 Ways To Start Rewiring Your Brain For Happiness

Mindful Of Your Media

Stop with the bad news. Seriously. Delete your news app, mute or unfollow the fear spreaders, or anyone who is in your network that triggers that feeling in the pit of your stomach. From now on, your evening entertainment is limited to nature shows, romantic comedies from the 90s, blooper reels, compilations of pets doing funny stuff, babies laughing, choreographed dancing flash mobs, or anything that is so lulling to your nervous system that basically makes it impossible for you to stay awake. Let that sympathetic nervous system rest and infuse your brain with joy.

Make That Gratitude Practice Real

Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know #grateful this and #grateful that but you have to find a way to make it real and make it easy to be consistent with. The simplest is to grab any old notebook and leave it beside your bed. In the morning, write down three things you’re grateful for, and at the end of the day, write down 3 wonderful, heartwarming things that happened that day. You can be grateful for a hot shower, seeing your best friend, or your pinky finger. A heartwarming moment could be seeing a little boy holding his mom’s hand. Keep it simple. This is training your brain to pay attention to the goodness that is abundant all around us. The more we tune into it, and take a mental note in the day of the heartwarming moments, the more we will seek them out. We begin tuning our brains to a new frequency.

Add More Heart To Your Day

This is an easy one. I’ve been doing a training with the Heartmath Institute and they teach a technique that is really simple to take on and practice multiple times a day. Basically, all you do is take a few deep and slow breaths, imagining that breath coming in and out from your heart. At the same time, tune into heart-led emotions like care, compassion, love, or gratitude. Feel that emotion in your mind and in your body. Do this 3 to 4 times a day for a couple of minutes. You’ll start to notice that in times when you feel stressed or rushed, you will want to take a pause and take a couple of heart-based breaths. I created a free Heart Coherence Practice that you can join in right here if you’re feeling inspired.

Change The Topic

It is difficult not to fall into step talking about the worst world events broadcasted in the moment, but starting to pay attention to conversations as they head in that direction is a great first step. The reality is that most people don’t really even want to talk about it, but like most people, it is probably all they are seeing and reading about, and it’s something to share. I like to have a few other topics ready, so if a conversation turns, I will say, “How about we take this in another direction,” and then I’ll ask a question like, What are you reading right now? Have you discovered any new music lately? Have you picked up a new skill in the last few months? Can you imagine where humanity will be in 400 years at this current rate of consciousness elevation? (Okay, this last one is reserved for certain audiences only!)

Change The Company

Joking, but not joking. Recent events of life have highlighted what many of us want more of in our life, and what many of us want less of. I want fewer obligatory friendships. I want to surround myself with people who are striving to elevate themselves, to keep learning, keep thinking critically and who are also looking for the bright lights in the world. As I have said before, I can’t do my work and best serve in business or in my personal life when I am being dragged down. So when attempts to change conversations to more positive and productive topics fail repeatedly, and that leaves not much else, it may be time to move on and focus time on those who are operating on the same level as you.

It starts with Awareness

Rewiring the brain for happiness is a process. It requires vigilance, and you’ll experience this as you begin to practice. When we’re tired or feeling stressed, it becomes much more difficult to work against the tide of fear. I mean, the human mind and our natural way of seeking out the dangers in our world are how we have survived for this long.

However, there may come a point when we’re programming our brain to believe we’re in a constant state of life or death when it’s just not true. As my friend Veronica Ciandre once said, “We are only one thought away from who we truly are.”

We get to choose that thought. We get to choose who we are. We also get to choose whether we want that glass to remain half empty or on the verge of empty, or half full and only getting fuller and fuller with love, care, compassion, kindness, joy, and happiness.

On My Mind Episode 10: How to Retrain the Brain for Happiness

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How are you curating the algorithm of your life?

If you use social media, you know about the loved and loathed “algorithm.”

As small business owners, we are constantly trying to figure out how to beat it, and then, of course, it changes.

As consumers of content, we know that more of the same—plus more of the same—will keep delivering us more of the same, landing us in an echo chamber. We become less able to see or hear what we’re not regularly seeing or hearing, allowing us to ignore anything that falls out of sync with our belief set. It’s a beautiful way to entrap yourself (and mostly your ego) in your own confirmation bias. Why be uncomfortable, challenged to learn or have empathy for another’s perspective when you can always just feel right?

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Full written post below.

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Let’s get technical for a moment: An algorithm is a step-by-step set of instructions or rules designed to perform a specific task or solve a problem.

When it comes to social media—and also our life—we get to choose the energy of our own algorithm. We have the capacity to influence it, guiding how we meander through our day and navigate life’s little and big challenges.

It can be easy to fall into the doom and gloom of what surrounds us, chasing the ongoing dopamine fix or adrenaline surge. If you’re not mindful about this, you may find yourself feeding a low-vibrational algorithm for your life. As humans, we are wired to spiral down. We are conditioned to keep our eyes peeled for threats. That survival instinct is why we still exist.

How Do We Break Free from a Living Doom Scroll?

How do we free ourselves from a low-energy life algorithm?

Recently, I was home alone for a whole week. Just me. This wasn’t in the plans, but it’s how it evolved. Suddenly, for the first time in as long as I could remember, I had no plans and no schedule. I became finely attuned to how my time was being spent. And without anyone else’s energy to bounce mine off of, I also became acutely aware of how I was feeling.

In short, I began to mindfully curate my life frequency—the personal algorithm of what I was willing to be served.

Is this easy to do?

No. Especially when you have a job, a partner, a pet, a kid (or three)—in other words, commitments, obligations, and responsibilities beyond yourself and your own basic needs.

You could also argue that when you have all of those things—people, pets, and life to take care of—you must be even more mindful of what you can control so you can capitalize on the opportunity to live at the highest vibration of life.

Is this making sense to you?

How Do You Shift This?

Start paying attention.

• Reading a novel that stirs up anxiety and makes it hard to fall asleep? Read something else.
• Using social media in a way that fuels isolation, wasteful wants, or less-than self-talk? Change who you follow or opt-out altogether.
• Working too much to avoid addressing what needs to be addressed in your life? Cushion your resilience so you can face it head-on.

When you start examining this, you’ll quickly realize just how much you have the capacity to shift.

If you’ve followed my work on energy, retraining the brain for happiness, the joyful rebellion, or taken my free coherence class, you know that I live and thrive (most of the time) by the understanding that what we generate and put out in the world will directly influence our experience of it.

This isn’t woo-woo—it’s the science of energy and the quantum field.

Just as we can choose the tone of voice we use to respond to someone, we also choose the energy we bring to our life.

When it feels like, time and time again, you’re being thrown off course—before blaming others or circumstances outside your control—first, ask yourself:

What is within my control that I can shift?

The answer will always be: Your own energy. Your own perspective. Your own response in any given situation.

Ultimately, the algorithm you are curating for your life.

A Small But Impactful Courageous Pivot

An easy shift of your life algorithm? Short of throwing your phone under the bus, start curating a highlight reel of your own life. Rather than mindlessly scrolling through others, take some time and scroll through your own camera reel. Remember the moments you have forgotten, seek out the joy and start noticing the highlights in your present day. Where our attention goes, our energy flows. Curate that algorithm mindfully, for as I said at the beginning, more of the same will deliver more of the same. Choose mindfully what you are calling in more of.

The post Curating Your Life’s Algorithm appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What is your purpose? Do you know? Asked another way – what gets you out of bed in the morning (and don’t say coffee or Wordle as the case may be).

Did you think you were clear on your purpose and what made you feel of service and useful, and then 2020, 2021, 2022, whatever this year is bringing is happening and you’re not sure anymore? Or perhaps the events and experiences of the last several years made that purpose clearer?

It can be very easy when we become overwhelmed by that which feels out of our control to attempt to go inward, to think about the self. Purpose? Who cares! This is survival, right?

How do I protect myself and my family?

How do we keep safe?

Concerning ourselves primarily with the self is our lowest intuitive order.

It is about our instinct of survival.

When we are in this state it is impossible to see the big picture, let alone shine a light on the parts we can’t yet see or that haven’t made themselves known, let alone be in a creative state. This is where our blind spots are biggest, and our dissonance most dangerous.

Creativity is shut off. Creativity, however, is where the healing happens and this is often when we need it most.

find your purpose amidst the unknown

The last time I felt this way was when I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disease in 2006. My priority, my only care, was about my own health– essentially, my survival.

That unexpected diagnosis turned my entire vision of my future upside down. At 26, I realized all that I had been working towards, that I had been wanting and envisioning for my life, no longer made sense.  It was the first time in my adult life that I had no choice but to walk into The Unknown.

Once again, the events of life are asking me to leap into The Unknown. I have a feeling that you’re reading this because, like it or not, you’re in it with me. Despite some semblance of ‘normalcy’ returning, none of us are coming through the last 4 years unchanged.

As uncomfortable as it is, I am trusting the process. I’ve been here before. You probably have been, too.

It was from my healing experience in 2006 that I found my way to the highest intuitive order – that of being of service to others. I did it through health education and cooking. This was my way in. I have no idea where or how the idea came to me to start teaching cooking classes. I didn’t even really know how to cook. But I trusted that inner voice and went for it.

Our highest intuitive order is about supporting other people’s survival – the survival and thriving of the whole.

be part of the light

We are seeing this play out all around us right now, the low and high actions, as the service and healing of the whole is what is needed desperately for humanity.

There are those that have made themselves known to only be about their own safety, survival, and personal power and those that are taking the path of serving the whole, the greater greatness in the spirit of love, unity, connection, and community.

Remember, the darkness enables us to see where the light shines, and also where the light is needed most.

In case you didn’t know it yet, you are part of that light. You are here for it, like it or not.

You can, of course, resist it – plug your ears and sing a song so you can’t hear that inner voice of your own. Or you can think it’s me or someone else and can unfollow, unsubscribe, even throw a nasty message on your way out, but none of those reactions have anything to do with anyone other than you. That’s just resistance or fear. Likely both.

Little questions can quickly become big ones. We’re not always ready for the answers.

Some are referring to what’s happening right now in our world as a mass awakening.  I am well aware of how terms like “awakening” can now be triggering or inspire others to shut down and back away. Stay with me. Words have been turned into weapons– let that go.

Whatever you want to call it, it is happening.

Over the last several years there has been a shift towards mass connection, and in recent months there has been a collective desire to grow stronger as a community – to be more loving, accepting, and kind. We missed each other.

Of course, not everyone is up for the adventure or is going to be a part of it. We have to accept that.

Opening our eyes, looking around, questioning things, seeking a higher purpose, and tuning into our intuition on all levels has nothing to do with anyone else. That is all you.

Resisting it will create suffering. Don’t believe me? Try and find out. There are a lot of us in this camp right now.

I am struggling in resistance mode. I’ve watched spiritually-inspired videos saying that we all asked to be here for this. I’ve heard us be called the “bridge generation”, and that we are raising little warriors. And I’m thinking– No. Both me and my soul want to be at the beach maxing and relaxing. Literally and metaphorically, I’d really, really like to get to a beach.

But here I am. Here you are.

surrender to your higher purpose

I thought that asking that first big question waaaaay back in 2006 “Can I heal this?” was just going to lead me to some green juice and yoga classes.

When I started my business in 2008, I wanted to show up, make some smoothies for you, get you to eat your greens, drink more water, get better sleep, and enjoy nature with a smile on your face and then retire at 35.

Cute, right? Maybe that was preparing all of us for this.

A couple of years ago, during the holiday season, I was hosting these free and open sessions called Wake-Up Wednesdays. They started small and then I had more than 200 beautiful humans joining me to meditate mid-day, mid-week.

I facilitated conversations I didn’t feel remotely equipped to facilitate and yet, people kept coming and then flooding my inbox with love and kindness. And I recognized my resistance as my own fear.

I often share this quote with my students from author and doctor Rachel Ramen: “Fear is the friction of all transition”.

Dear friends, I feel it right now. I feel this friction deeply. I feel the transition. Do you?

I am diving into a new calling, serving in a new way. I am not questioning my purpose so much as asking what is needed of me.

The answer always comes back crystal clear: surrender. This isn’t surrender from a “giving up” perspective. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s bowing to the truth of what is needed of me at this moment.

trust in the unknown

As such, I’m working on resting my nervous system while tuning in to what’s real and what matters in greater ways. It includes the following goals:

Rise above the chaos, go with the flow, tune into the heart, seek out the light and the light seekers, let go of that which no longer serves (and that includes relationships), and see where The Unknown leads.

Remember – there are plans unfolding. Big ones. Bigger than us all and bigger than we can ever know or figure out. Spending time down in the weeds of it all, only diverts us from the important urgent work that requires our energy, focus, and attention.

We can look at plans and events unfolding and throw labels on them, and allow fear to penetrate our being, but ultimately our lesson here is to keep rising. To trust in The Unknown for it is in The Unknown that absolutely any and every outcome is possible.

What if it all turns out dramatically more incredible than we ever could have imagined? That’s also possible.

At least from my experience, trusting the process continues to prove this. It doesn’t however, get easier. That, of course, is where we just have to close our eyes, get quiet, and leap.

Trust that higher intuition

How can you serve the whole of humanity? The planet? You can’t — at least not if that’s your goal. You’ll quickly become overwhelmed and stop.

It starts with you, your energy, where you put your time, how you engage and communicate with others, and most of all, by speaking, doing, and being in alignment with your heart. Not forever, just right now. And again in the next moment when you remember. And the next.

Doing the work becomes the easy part when you’re focused on operating from that higher place.

How do you get there? Start with a few deep breaths.

Get quiet and choose love.

We have to get quiet if we want to hear anything at all and it is the power of love that changes the world.

Just as words can be weapons, words can also be our medicine. This is my offering for your peace and wellbeing.

Lastly, if you want to tune in to that inner voice and take a low-risk dive into rising above the chaos, cultivating more peace and creativity in your life and tuning into your intuition, check out Rise and Shine, my newest instant-access course that will help you upgrade how you operate.

On My Mind Episode 27: In Pursuit of Purpose and Rising Together

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Photo credit: Nikki Leigh McKean

The post In Pursuit of Purpose and Rising Together appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

As someone with a predisposition to autoimmune disease, and having healed from Crohn’s naturally over a decade ago, I am extra mindful around this time of year to make sure my immune system is stable and strong. I am taking great care to support my busy schedule, and not fall prey to allergies or any other illnesses like spring colds and flu.

There are many things to consider when we truly want to strengthen our immune systems. Whether we believe we are sensitive to certain things or not, there are key things we want to keep to a minimum in our diet as well as know which supplements to take, and the lifestyle practices that will help with allergies.

Foods To Avoid During Allergy Season (And Maybe Always)

Wheat and Other Glutenous Grains

These will stress and strain the digestive system and are associated with leaky gut. If we are sensitive (which most of us are) and consume it, gluten may increase our sensitivity to other things like pollen causing hay fever.

Sugar

Glucose competes for uptake with Vitamin C, a natural anti-histamine, and so the more sugar we consume, the less Vitamin C we can absorb, weakening our immune function. Additionally, sugar is overall an immune depressant and leads to nutrient depletion. (Want to quit sugar? There are some fantastic tips in this podcast episode, or you can leap into my No-Sugar Challenge.

Dairy Products

Genetically, most of us don’t have the lactase enzyme required to properly digest the lactose in milk and other dairy products. Like gluten, dairy products can be very difficult on the digestive tract, potentially triggering the immune system to react. Dairy is also acid-forming in the body, and as such, creates a breeding ground for harmful bacteria. Additionally, dairy can make us really mucousy, adding to the congestion common with seasonal allergies.

Natural allergy solutions For Allergy Season: herbs and supplements

Short of moving to the arctic for the seasonal thaw, there are loads of natural allergy solutions and remedies you can add in at this time of the year. These are recommended by clinical nutritionist (and my husband) Josh Gitalis.

Quercetin

This is one of the best natural antihistamines. It works by stabilizing the membrane of histamine-releasing cells. It also has anti-inflammatory properties. (Up to six 500mg capsules a day may be needed.)

Vitamin C

This is a natural antihistamine and helps to support the immune system.

Nettles (Stinging Nettle)

An herb with anti-inflammatory properties that can help alleviate allergic rhinitis.

Sabalia

A homeopathic remedy that can be effective for seasonal allergies.

Echinacea and/or Astragalus 

These are herbs that help to support the immune system. (Don’t use for more than 3 weeks at a time.)

Vitamin B5

Helps strengthen adrenal function, which is intimately involved in the immune response.

Lifestyle Practices For Symptomatic Relief

If you’re struggling with seasonal allergies, these lifestyle tips can help.

Neti Pot

Using warm salt water in a neti pot allows you to flush your nasal passages, clearing out the sinuses. It also works to prevent sinus infections.

The Salt Pipe

I love this one! You breathe in through the pipe, inhaling the minerals and naturally cleansing the air through a sea salt filter. This helps cleanse the lungs, open the airways, and can also be a great relief for wheezing, asthmatic responses, and may even help you avoid steroidal puffers.

Yoga

Get yourself upside down! Inversion poses like shoulder stand, headstand, plow, or even bending over while standing will help drain the nasal passages and cleanse the lungs. Start for just 1–2 minutes to avoid too much pressure on your head if you’re heavily congested.

Steam Inhalation

Another great way to drain the sinuses and relax the lungs is through steam. Boil some water in a pot and then drop some food-grade essential oils of eucalyptus, peppermint, and/or myrtle. Put your head over the pot (cautiously so you don’t burn yourself), cover with a towel, and breathe in the goodness. I also have great recipes for how to make your own herbal steams in my course Everyday Herbal.

Air Purifier with a HEPA Filter

Using an Air Purifier with a HEPA filter is an amazing way to remove spores and pollen from the air. Ideally, you would have one for the whole house, but short of that, keep one in your bedroom with the doors closed while you sleep.

Skin Brushing

I do this all year round because I love it so much. Dry skin brushing helps to improve circulation, stimulates the lymphatic system, and helps to support overall immune system function.

Foods To Eat Lots Of During Allergy Season

Now we get to the fun and delicious part. I love great food all year long, but come this time of year, I pay extra attention to high, high, high doses of some potent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant-rich powerhouses. My favourite way to take all these natural allergy solutions is via the blender, either in a smoothie or an elixir, as they make a delicious, refreshing drink.

Turmeric

A potent anti-inflammatory root containing curcumin. This helps bring down any inflammation in the body, including in the lungs and gut, which are vital for preventing allergies and other immune-stimulated sensitivities. 

Turmeric Recipe to Try: Turmeric Tea or Turmeric Rice

Lemon

Bring on the Vitamin C/antioxidant power to help the white blood cells zip around and do their thing and also to work as a natural anti-histamine.

Lemon Recipe to Try: Lemon Lime Coconut Quench or Lemon Lentil Vegetable Soup

Ginger

Ginger is another anti-inflammatory food that also promotes the production of digestive juices to better help us process what we eat, and increase circulation through our body. Also, ginger stimulates the part of the immune system that produces antibodies, thereby amping up the body’s natural defences against foreign invaders.

Ginger Recipe to Try: Delicious Ginger Tea 

Cayenne

Cayenne supports immune system function and increases circulation throughout the body. It can be helpful in reducing pain and addressing intestinal inflammation, common in people who suffer from multiple food sensitivities.

Cayenne Recipe to Try: Fire Cider

Raw Honey

Raw honey has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties and is a powerful antioxidant, helping to strengthen the immune system. Honey has been shown, through homeopathic applications, to help eliminate pollen allergies by taking small doses (about 1 tsp, 2 times/day) to reduce allergies, similar to how an allergy shot might work. The key is to consume honey from your area, where the pollen you are breathing might affect you.

More About Honey: Guide to Honey: Types and Best Uses

Irish Moss, Chia Seeds, and/or Aloe

These foods all have a potent mucilaginous property, a sliminess that helps clear excess mucous from the lungs, and at the same time, supports the health of the lining of the intestinal tract – a key to reducing environmental and food sensitivities.

Aloe Recipe to Try: Cleansing Aloe Shots

Chia Recipe to Try: Chia Pudding for Digestive Health

If you’d like to use most of these delicious foods that reduce allergy symptoms in one go, I’ve got a fantastic chilled elixir for you. Experiment with the amounts of herbs and spices to your taste, then sip up and enjoy.

Allergy Season Elixir

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 1 serving

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Description

An elixir rich with nutrition to help you combat seasonal allergies.

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Ingredients

• 3 cups water or chilled herbal tea
• Juice of 1 whole organic lemon
• 1–2 Tbsp prepared Irish Moss, Aloe Gel or Chia
• 2 tsp raw honey (or more to taste)
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp fresh ginger root, grated
• 1/2 tsp each ground cardamom, clove, and coriander (for extra antioxidant power)
• Pinch of cayenne (or more if you can handle it!)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

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Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in your blender and mix until smooth.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Category: Beverage

For more spring seasonal recipe inspiration, be sure to check out:

• Rhubarb Butter
• Best Wild Foods: Guide to Harvesting and Preserving
• Spring Quiche
• Blueberry Jam

The post Natural Solutions for Allergy Season (with Recipe) appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

In the Spring of 2022, I wrapped up the live delivery of my two newest offerings, 4 Week Wake-Up and the Rise + Shine Intuition Masterclass.

I can’t speak for my participants, though many expressed a similar sentiment, but for me – sharing these workshops with the group offered a profound dose of peace to my soul. It’s the only way, however “woo woo” it may sound, that I can explain it.

We came together with a shared desire to live a life that is more at ease, tuned in, real and purpose-driven. It was refreshing, to be honest. But the fear persisted.

This past May marked fifeteen years since I started my company and in that time I have launched dozens, maybe even more than a hundred things – products, books, courses, events and a school.

Every time I create and get ready to put something out in the world, I am overcome with both fear that I am out of my depth and fear that no one will come along.

The same held true for this offering, which, by the way, I am re-releasing as one consolidated, self-paced course called Rise and Shine, so if you missed out on the live run, it’s not too late.

Here is the thing though– the work that I do feels purpose-driven for me. It gives me a sense of meaning. As such, to resist the inspiration, I have come to learn, is impossible. It only grows in my mind until it becomes all-consuming. Taking action becomes the only option.

Overcoming fear and building confidence

As we explored in the last week of the Wake-Up series, when seeking our purpose it all comes down to answering the question “How can I serve?”. For this reason, even though nearly every single day for the last fifteen years I wake up in the morning with some level of doubt and fear, I do it anyway. I move forward because I have learned to allow the drive towards fulfilling on my calling to be stronger than my fear or doubt.

This is how we continue to gain confidence and trust in ourselves to speak what is true; to say out loud (or via Instagram or Twitter or in friendly, calm and curiosity-driven conversations!) what so many people are thinking but are afraid to say.

See, when we can be grounded as the authentic superhumans that we are for most of our day, in the work we do, the relationships we keep, and the conversations we have, then what we are doing is strengthening our personal authority which directly dims the noise and demands from the outside world.

We get to enjoy the strength and calm that comes from building our confidence in being exactly who we are.

This is possible for everyone.

It’s not a special skill or knowledge you need to get from someone else.  It’s simply about taking the time to tune in and pay attention to what your soul is trying to tell you — maybe you call it an inner voice, that feeling in the pit of your stomach, instinct, intuition or a hunch. (How you describe it is irrelevant).

The fact is, when the path is right, you feel it. The energy is there. The inspiration is there. Yes, it may feel uncomfortable. There may be stress, fear and anxiety. But consider for a moment whether those nerves are actually part of your breaking through to living a bigger and more truth-driven life as you move closer to thriving in the full expression of who you are?

This, my friend, is how you get your energy, your inspiration, and your spark back.

This is where you get your life back.

Do you know where it starts? It begins with personal responsibility.

Now, this is something that has waned in popularity in the mainstream paradigm of late. It is of course a lot easier to blame rules, regulations, people, and circumstances outside ourselves for our current state of being — but that’s not going to change it. 

You get to write and re-write the instructions for how you operate in your life. Might I suggest that it is time, maybe even past due, that you write the instructions that invite you to live a life that gives you a sense of meaning, purpose and being of service? A way of living that is real and truthful and brave? Can you do it? Maybe you already are.

It’s time to live a big life.

This isn’t in an ego-driven / selfie-taking / public persona / public acceptance / out THERE thing. 

This isn’t about that at all.

This is about tuning in and rising up, ditching any fear or reservations you have about pursuing what brings you into the full expression of who you are. If we all operated from this place for as many minutes or hours of the day as we could manage, we’d be living in a very different world — on both the individual scale and the big wide world scale of things.

It is time to get your groove back, or maybe get to know it for the first time. 

Where to start?

If you have absolutely no clue what your first move is, I have some suggestions. 

That class/skill/thing you’ve been thinking about learning – do that. Sign up, get started, and make it happen. Do it.

The offering I have that swings that door wide open is the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program, which is my flagship baby. Yes, it’s about cooking but anyone who has done it will tell you it is also about a whole lot more. It’s about asking big questions, learning how to find the answers, experiencing firsthand what you are capable of, and how transformations can feel when guided gently. This program challenges, supports, connects, and inspires. It will shift your confidence and motivation in the kitchen, but also in your life. 

If you’re curious about the impact this offering has had on those who have done it, try a sample class. What would you like to learn? How to make a dairy-free, protein-rich milk? Or how about some sauerkraut?

Lastly, if you want to tune in to that inner voice and take a low-risk dive into some of the things I’ve shared here, check out Rise and Shine, my newest instant-access course that will help you upgrade how you operate.

Ultimately– just start.

Stand up, feet firmly planted on the earth, letting your heart lead the way. It’s time to shine.

Sending big love to you!

On My Mind Episode 31: Showing Up: This Is Your Time

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I can remember a defining moment for me. As a kid, from around the age of seven or eight, I sewed my own clothes. I loved it. They were awful and crooked and usually fell apart by the end of the day. The next day, I’d sew something new. I did get better over time, and was the student designer in my high school fashion shows and loved nothing more than spending hours creating in my basement sewing room.

Then I spent four years in fashion school and never sewed again. The joy of creation was taken out of the creative process.

That, I believe, is what plants the first seed of hesitation for our creations. We become too attached to the outcome, the critics, the judgements, the grand finale result, and the resistance becomes so strong that we don’t even start the creative process.

It applies to our work, too, you know. We have ideas – ideas for the company we work for, ideas for our own business or an idea of a new business, hobby, or initiative we want to do. We’re sparked, we’re excited and then do nothing. We don’t ever take the first step. We’re afraid it’s silly, or will be a lot of work, or won’t succeed and so… nothing.

taking the leap to create

One of my most favourite moments in the work that I do is during the first week of the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program when our newest students introduce themselves and share a bit of their personal story and inspiration for joining. There is always a huge majority of students who will include something along the lines of:

I’ve been looking at this program for years and finally took the leap.

I am so excited to finally be pursuing a dream of mine.

I’m retired/my kids are all gone / I quit my job… and I am finally doing something for me.

There is an energy that comes from finally taking that leap to create. The creative process itself is healing, grounding and resonates in profound ways, and yet, we allow our fear to stop us before we start.

how can we start the creative process?

What if creation could be part of our everyday lives? What if every single day we set the goal to do one thing that tapped into that inner creative force we all have to create something? Can you think of what your thing would be?

Maybe it’s as straightforward as trying a new recipe and making something new for dinner. Maybe it’s writing the first page of a book you want to write. Perhaps it’s putting paintbrush to canvas, or fingers to piano keys or guitar strings. Maybe it involves knitting needles, tap shoes, a garden hoe, or a roll of wallpaper.

Creation comes in all forms and bringing something new into the world that never existed is a powerful part of the experience of being human. Creativity is built into our make-up – every single one of us. It has nothing to do with left brain or right brain. Creativity is simply how our brains work, and what’s really incredible is like any wiring of the brain – the more you tune into the creative aspects of yourself, the stronger they become. Creative thinking, creative production, creative creating can be strengthened through practice.

how am i tapping into my creativity these days?

As you may be aware, I’ve been working on two things primarily these days. The first is running the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program (it’s the tenth run!) and connecting with my students and answering their questions (and digging in to find those answers) is one form of the creative work I am doing.

The other has been digging in deep, in myself and in research to create my new program. What’s been really incredible to experience is that as I do more and more work getting into coherence, calming the mind, nurturing the space in between and learning about the mind, brain, body and our capacity to create, my creative drive is exploding.

I am back to sewing clothes at long last, doing cross-stitch, getting thrifty and creative in decorating my new house, and pouring my creative energy into this new program. The program isn’t about creativity or the creative process, but as I’m working on it, I realize that one of the ways it will serve those who join is that by doing the work we’re going to do together, creativity is going to blossom.

I have long since come to trust that whatever experience I have in creating something is the experience others will have as they participate in it. I do believe that one of the greatest gifts for our wellbeing, our development and fulfillment and evolution as humans is taking the leap and creating without fear. And that creative energy, all of us thinking and being in the zone of creation, well that is needed right now more than ever. Go for it. Take it on. Make it happen. Send me a photo!

Photo Credit: Nikki McKean

On My Mind Episode 29: Why Are We Afraid to Create?

The post Why Are We Afraid To Create? appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

In fact, for me, writing is one of those things that fills a need for my mental wellbeing. It’s how I process ideas. Some of it you get to read, some of it never sees the light of day. I go into the zone where my heart and brain are in full coherence. I am in flow. You know this feeling, but perhaps haven’t given it the acknowledgement and appreciation it needs. If you have young children, it’s an absolute joy to witness them in this state. They’re focussed, calm and often can be found humming or singing, or even talking to themselves as they go about doing whatever it is they’re doing.

As adults we’ve been trained (and perhaps conditioned) to fill all the time we have. We fill it with perpetual busyness and when we don’t have something to do, we get twitchy. Hello phones! We scroll, we click, we formulate comments, we scroll and click some more until it’s time for us to do something else. More time filled.

With what? Every moment that passes us by, where we fail to be present is a potential wasted opportunity of just being; of enjoying that time in between where we experience absolute joy and happiness.

Look around yourself right now. If you’re in your home, consider that everything that surrounds you, all the stuff, was once money. And that money was once your time. Is it all worth it? It might just be. The next question of course is if you’re mindfully enjoying what your time and effort has provided for you, or have you already moved on to the next distraction? The next need?

As the weight of the world continues to feel heavier and heavier upon all our shoulders, it becomes ever more critical to create the headspace and the physical space in our lives to be able to be present for the time in between. We cannot do this if we are overwhelmed by jumble in our minds and homes.

When it can be exquisitely easy to be consumed by the chaos, the fear, the tragedy and the overwhelming feeling of helplessness, we can also choose joy. We can choose to find the times to be present with the big and small joys in our life. It always begins in our mind. Yes, some moments will be easier than others.

Here is what I can promise you: with your effort, you will reap the benefit. Maybe today it’s two minutes of just walking hand in hand with your child. Or maybe it’s looking up from your computer to watch a bird on a tree. Maybe it’s that first embrace with someone you haven’t seen in a long time. And maybe it’s taking a half day off of work to sit and read a book on the grass.

Stopping to enjoy the time we create to be still might just take the most discipline of all. But for those of you who are productivity junkies like me, here’s a tip – when you take those breaks, everything else works more efficiently. Your body, brain, and whatever it is you seek to create.

Take a pause.

And when you’re done, if you’re still reading, you’ll want to take a moment to look at how I’m working to help guide people to more peace, calm, and compassionate leadership. It takes time between the doing to do it all with heart.

On My Mind Episode 30: The Time In Between: How To Be Present

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Photo Credit: Nilkki McKean

The post The Time In Between: How To Be Present appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

It’s not easy right now. I mean, life is rarely what anyone would describe as easy – but as far as my lifetime goes, it’s never been quite this challenging to navigate while maintaining any sense of calm. I have come to trust that things unfold as they need to for our own greater evolution. To try and change what we cannot control is the greatest source of our self-inflicted suffering.

What I can change are my mind, my heart and my response in any given situation. This is well within all of our control and this is why understanding coherence and inner harmony is so critical right now. We need it more than ever.

A lot of us have a vision of what a happy life looks like. It might include a dream home, a vacation, a certain type of partner, or perhaps a certain level of wealth and financial security.

The reality is that none of that is the ticket if we can’t calm the nerves and flow more effortlessly through life. The desires for those things that we think will bring us greater happiness are not really what we need or want. What we truly crave is to feel at peace. It’s a lot easier and more obvious to crave material things or extravagant experiences than to sit for five or ten minutes, focus on our breathing and allow what we really want to wash over us. And what we want is that inner harmony.

What Does It Mean To Be In A Coherent State?

We know that the brain sends signals to the body. As I type this, my brain is telling my fingers to get to work on my lightning-fast, slightly manic, two-finger typing to get these words on my screen. That’s the brain sending a message to the body.

We also know that if we witness a scary or startling event, we feel a jolt of fear and our heart rate elevates. These are the efferent pathways of the nervous system: brain to body.

Very few of us actively acknowledge that the heart sends more signals to the brain than the brain sends to the heart and the rest of the body. These are called the afferent pathways.

When we can tune into that rhythm of the heart and bring it into coherence, we can directly impact how we feel from a nervous system perspective (anxious vs. calm) as well as how the frontocortical and motor cortex of the brain functions (responsive vs. reactive).

Optimally, we want to be in a coherent state where we feel calm and peaceful and where we are better able to make mindful decisions, allowing for critical, creative and solution-oriented thinking to dominate. As you might now be seeing, this is not the state most of us are in as we go about our day.

Most of us, most of the time, are operating in an incoherent state where we are experiencing stress, overwhelm, anxiety, uncertainty and fear. When we are in this state, our ability to think clearly, be compassionate, kind and caring is impaired. In short, we are not remotely at our best.

To be compassionate, one of the most critical heart-based emotions that we all need to be embodying right now, means tuning into the heart and bringing ourselves into coherence. What’s really amazing is that being compassionate brings us into coherence, and when we are in a coherent state, we are more compassionate, loving, kind, appreciative, grateful, calm and peaceful. A beautiful thing about this is that when we are in this state, we also directly invite others to feel more heart-centred as well.

Our level of coherence has been shown to directly impact the heart rhythm of those around us.

How Do We Cultivate Inner Harmony?

What I love about the technique I’m about to share is that you don’t have to sit quietly in meditation for 20 minutes to get there. You don’t need to remove yourself from life. Don’t get me wrong: it certainly helps to develop a dedicated meditation practice, as that will make the 30-second doses of coherence easier to achieve, but it’s not essential for impact.

The technique I’m sharing below is based on the teachings of the HeartMath Institute. There is no right or wrong way to be proactive; it’s all about steadying your heart rhythm and bringing your mind and body into coherence.

Inner Harmony In 30 Seconds

I have been doing this practice daily – sometimes for 5 minutes, sometimes for 20 minutes – for several years. It’s a bit of a personal check-in. Lately, however, I think I’m likely clocking in a lot more time because of my ongoing 30-second practices all day, throughout the day.

See, as I mentioned earlier, it’s tough out there. Tension is high, resilience is low and most people are going about their day operating from an incoherent state, making them reactive, short, fearful, and lacking patience and compassion. And I do my best to blast it out. I picture it a bit like the Care Bear Stare.

When I am standing in line, waiting at a red light on my bicycle, or even when my son is exhausted after a day of school and melt-down-ready, I mindfully slow my breathing and embody compassion while sending this emotion out to whomever is near me.

Imagine for a moment if 5% of us did this. Or what about 10%? If every 10th person we encounter was embodying love, compassion, empathy and care, we’d be living in a very different world.

If happiness is really what you’re after, you’ll get there a lot faster – in fact, you’ll get there today – if you take a few moments to get into coherence. It’s literally your next breath away.

And, well, this is my goal. Inner harmony and coherence will be playing a big part in the new program I’m developing. If you’d like to learn more about the evidence and experience coherence, I have this 20 minute training you can check out here. In these sessions, I will also offer the science that supports what I’ve shared above in greater detail. Learn more and get on the list here.

On My Mind Episode 20: Creating Inner Harmony In 30 Seconds

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Header Photo Credit: Nikki McKean

The post Creating Inner Harmony In 30 Seconds appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

This has been a summer staple in my family for ten years. It was actually one of the very first recipes I ever created, if I can even call it creating. Most crumble recipes are very similar. What makes this one super awesome is that it’s simple, hard to get wrong, and uses dramatically less sugar than most common crumble recipes. I don’t consume much sugar at all, and though this recipe does call for some honey in the fruit mix and the crumble topping, I typically omit it completely and just let the fruit do the sweetness dance.

I’ve also provided two versions below – one that is gluten-free, and a gluten-free and grain-free fruit crumble recipe for those of you on the grain-free train.

I’ll often make this using an assortment of berries (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries) or stone fruits (plums, peaches, apricots). This is also a great one to mix in some wild foraged berries like mulberries.

In the fall, rocking it out with pears and/or apples with ginger and cinnamon offers your crumble a fall vibe.

Popular Crumble Combinations

• Apple Cranberry: 5 cups of thinly sliced apples, 1 cup of fresh/frozen cranberries
• Apple Berry: 3 cups of apples, 3 cups of mixed berries
• Strawberry Rhubarb: 3 cups of each (strawberries halved)
• Strawberry Pear: 3 cups of each
• Peach Crumble: 6 cups of sliced peaches
• Summer Berry Crumble: 2 cups each of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries

Easy Gluten-Free and Grain-Free Crumble Baking Wins!

Of course, another rockstar quality of this dessert is that it’s an easy gluten-free winner. Baking gluten-free muffins, cookies and cakes is doable, but takes practice. If this is your first time out of the gates experimenting with gluten-free desserts, this will guarantee you a winner.

Now to modify my own recipe: in my book, I suggest adding a 1/2 cup of honey to the fruit mix, but personally, I prefer to skip that one. This much fresh, seasonal fruit doesn’t need any assistance in the sweetness department in my opinion.

Wild Berry Gluten-Free Crumble Recipe

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 8 servings

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Ingredients

For the fruit

• 6 cups fruit of choice (chopped roughly the same size)
• 1 tbsp arrowroot starch

For the Topping

• 2/3 cup brown rice flour
• 2/3 cup gluten-free rolled oats
• 1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp allspice

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix together the fruit and starch and place in a glass baking dish.
3. Mix topping until slightly crumbly and sprinkle by hand over fruit mixture, spreading evenly.
4. If fruit doesn’t look completely covered, can sprinkle on additional flour, nuts/seeds until surface is covered.
5. Bake 40-50 minutes.

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins
• Category: Dessert

And here is the version for those of you wanting to crumble but need to keep it grain-free.

Gluten-Free and Grain-Free Fruit Crumble Recipe

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 55 mins
• Yield: 8 servings

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Ingredients

For the Crumble

• 6 cups fruit of choice (chopped roughly the same size)

For the Topping

• 2/3 cup nut/seed flour (I recommend coconut flour, almond meal, pumpkin seed flour and/or sunflower seed flour)
• 1/3 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/3 cup pecans
• 1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup honey
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp all spice
• 1/4 cup coconut oil

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

---

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Put the fruit in a glass baking dish.
3. Mix topping until slightly crumbly and sprinkle by hand over fruit mixture, spreading evenly.
4. If fruit doesn’t look completely covered, can sprinkle on additional nuts or seeds until surface is covered.
5. Bake 40-50 minutes.

• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins

The post Grain-Free Fruit Crumble Recipe appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

It’s about listening. Or rather, being open to the idea that our minds are never really made up. Decisions, thoughts, and ideas are not, in fact, concrete.  We may also have differing opinions from one another, which is okay – just because we may not agree, it doesn’t mean we have to cast labels on each other.

What we think today isn’t set in stone. We may even find that the root of our suffering is actually stemming from thoughts and beliefs that don’t serve us – so we must be open to evolving.

Something I’ve been thinking a lot about recently, and have spoken in depth about during my classes with the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program, is confirmation bias. My objective in teaching this program is not to be the voice in everyone’s head. I don’t want anyone ever to do something because “This is what Meghan said”. Instead, I challenge my students to ask critical questions and seek out the answers, and learn to trust in their own wisdom and their own thinking.

Confirmation bias is the practice of seeking out and favouring information that confirms our existing beliefs. It effectively closes us off from seeking out, let alone assimilating, new information. We are more inclined to seek information that confirms what we already believe or supports our assumptions. We look for evidence to confirm what we think – this is easier and it ensures we’re right. (I have spoken about this before as it relates to creating magic in our lives.)

There are many ways this function of human nature is designed to be protective, but there are also times where it becomes self-limiting.

I’ve been reading a really great book called You’re Not Listening, What You’re Missing And Why It Matters by Kate Murphy. It has me thinking a lot about what kind of listening I am doing, and also if anyone is listening to anyone anymore, or just seeking confirmation. Basically, are we all just trying to be right?

Have we stopped listening because we’re all so focussed on being right?

We live in a time when most of our daily conversations are had via keyboards and screens, where social media is anything but social, and where opinions and beliefs are becoming stronger than ever as we experience greater levels of long-term chronic fear (and with that stress), shutting down the amygdala, the part of our brain responsible for critical thinking.

The result of this is that too quickly, rather than being able to have conversations, share ideas, get clarifications, respectfully disagree without making it personal (or taking it personally), or putting someone in a box and throwing an extreme label on that box, it has become the reflex to cast a judgement, make assumptions, delete, and move on. Or sometimes even throwing a hateful comment their way first, before moving on. (Being the recipient of these on a weekly basis, they’re not effective if the goal is for the recipient to actually care. A kind, respectful, human response goes a lot further.)

As such, we continue to fill our feeds and our lives only with the information and people that support our existing beliefs. This limits our own potential for growth.

We’ve stopped listening. And when we stop listening, we stop accepting new information into our awareness. We block the opportunity for our minds to be changed, our actions to be changed, or to accept that perhaps we have the same objective but different ideas on how to get there. We lose the opportunity to accept that maybe we’re not right. Maybe we have more to learn, and that’s okay.

There is power in conversation, in being able not just to hear but also to actively listen, share ideas, perceptions and experiences, and be okay with the fact that we’re not all going to agree, or that two differing ideas could both be right.

We’re all trying to find our way through the chaos and unknowns of life right now and to do so, we need less separation and more listening. We may need to respectfully disagree, but taking the time to understand different perspectives can go a long way.

With all the chaos out there, I’ve started meditating again and it has been hard. Really hard. Meditation and yoga and walking in silence and journaling and whatever else you do to calm your mind and process stress is super easy when you are not experiencing heightened levels of stress.

This is how I recognized that I needed to jump back into it. The first time I sat to listen to my breath and let my mantra come, I checked the time about 23,456 times in twenty minutes. It was excruciating, but I kept sitting. It’s the bubbling. Stress coming out can feel a lot like it does coming in. But I am committing to it.

The other thing I am working on doing more of is being in my kitchen and cooking. It has always been my go-to activity for stress relief but lately, it’s been all about just getting the next meal done. And so with my team functioning so well and I’m not as needed day-to-day, I can take the time to get back to creating.

Though both of these things feel like they are just for me, meditation benefits the meditator and everyone around that person, just as cooking does.

Is there something you’ve reconnected with in the last little while that has been a source of joy and calm for you? Do share!

On My Mind Episode 04: Have We Stopped Listening? Have All of Us?

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It seems to me that if we can all reconnect with the sources of joy in our lives, we just might be able to remember who we are, our source, tune into that intuition and as a result, become more open to new thoughts, ideas, inspiration and each other.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for always being so open to listening.

The post Have you stopped listening? Have all of us? appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Heart-led living requires us to tune into the whispers of the heart and invite those messages to be amplified. Easier said than done, no doubt, especially when we’re inundated with thousands of messages everyday triggering us to do the exact opposite.

To be clear, this isn’t about becoming ‘soft’ or weakened, or needing to hop onto the woowoo train. No. Leading and living from the heart invites us to tune in to the root of our confidence, where we are in complete alignment with our soul and becoming wildly strong.

To tune into our hearts, we must first quiet our minds and reflect on our core beliefs, and distinguish between those rooted in love or fear, abundance or lack, unity or division. Failing to do so makes us susceptible to societal chaos and propaganda, disconnecting us from the source of universal love and reality.

We cannot tune into our hearts when we have never taken a moment to try and tame our own minds, to ask the most basic of questions: 

What do I believe?

Why do I believe what I believe? 

Are the core beliefs I have built my life upon based on love or fear? Abundance or lack? ‘Us’ vs. ’Them’?

Without asking big questions of ourselves and sitting quietly to explore the answers honestly, free of ego, we become easy prey. 

When society is in chaos we get swept into the game. We easily become manipulated by the propaganda, the fear, and internal soul conflict that becomes reflected in our day-to-day interactions. 

Our pain points have been tapped and we are lost- further disconnected from the heart, the source of universal love, as our minds become less hinged to what is real.

We all have our inherent biases, but it is only when a foundational truth is challenged that more people wake up and rise up against the new agents of war: manipulative messaging, catch phrases, trending hashtags, and cancel culture, where every mobile device is the weapon. 

The thing about propaganda is that most people can only see it conflict strongly with a pre-established belief, and in most cases, there is a pre-existing social network that is also in agreement.

We think we see it so clearly as we ask:

How is everyone being manipulated by this? it’s so obvious… 

How can you of all people not see?

They’re spreading lies.

Can’t they see how clearly this stance contradicts what they were outraged about last month?

It takes a lot ego-checking to see the persuasive messaging and manipulation when it aligns with our existing beliefs and confirms our own biases.

We especially love when a person who, for all superficial reasons, should be with the ‘other side’ but instead affirms our beliefs and views. We love that. That gives us an I told you so and even one of *yours* says I’m right affirmation.

Challenging this is hard work for the brain. 

We watch the news networks, follow the accounts, and now it seems, keep only the friends that affirm us. 

We share the stories that make us right and call ‘misinformation’ to those that make us wrong. We immediately say the other is lying (and they may very well be), doing whatever it takes to make us feel more and more right. 

With all of this, what we are actually doing is disconnecting further from the heart. Without realizing it, as we feel so empowered and right, we too have become agents of division.

What a thing to witness, watching people shuffle around every other week to work out the new “team” they’re on with whatever issue we are to be outraged about, and working out who from the old team is coming along to this new one. Along with this, we now check in on who we are now disappointed by and must separate ourselves from.  It’s a rapid action of follows and unfollows to remain in our safe, belief affirming echo chamber.

It gets tricky though. 

For when we are persistently swayed by the all mighty external messaging powers, we lose our way, don’t we? 

Many of us can see it. Having complex beliefs around complex topics is complex to reckon with.

When you can see it from the outside, what you are witnessing is a complete loss of self as the heart and mind cannot contend with the ridiculous hypocrisy and most basic impossible conflict of how one stance can’t actually exist in alignment with the last one taken. 

We lose the ability to tame our own minds, to tune into our hearts, and to truly know thyself.

We forget that we are all human, and we are all connected. 

The human species requires deep connection for basic survival, but the ongoing need to align with a side only causes more division- especially when that alignment is based on what was read in memes or trending videos (which are, of course, just more of the aforementioned tools of control). 

To continue creating separation from others only serves our own growing sense of aloneness and separation from our own souls, while feeding the thin veneer of righteousness.

What we are all feeling is our basic sense of humanity:  outrage at the suffering, and a yearning for justice that will never come through aggressive, divisive action. 

Where does it end? 

We choose.

The answer to all of this is easy to speak, but takes a monumental amount of work to accomplish.

It can end when we all find ourselves standing alone, completely divided over the abundance of very real issues we are told to take a side on to the point where we each exist utterly and completely alone, afraid to broach difficult topics and have the necessary difficult conversations. The result of this culture, of course, is that we silence the now nearly inaudible wise whisper of our own heart, and give in to the pull of the tide, the all encompassing, ear splitting roar of the media machine. 

Or it can end when we decide to join hands, tune in and live and lead from the heart, to not allow that external voice to get any louder and instead work to amplify the whisper of the heart. It ends when we choose to love, allowing the infinite tidal wave of compassion that exists within all of our hearts to take the lead. 

It ends when, in our everyday lives, not as keyboard warriors, we are walking embodiments of peace. 

It ends when we look up from our screens and into each others eyes and see that we all want the same thing.

We smile.

We serve.

We love unconditionally.

We aim to be the joy, the delight, and the inspiration in someone else’s day.

We operate from kindness.

What if we extricate ourselves from the nitty gritty horrific details? Yes, you can know the news, but then step back and get centred. Get into coherence, into harmony, and ask, what can I do today to be an agent of love and peace? How can I choose, in this moment and the next, to live and lead from the heart?

The post Embracing Heart-Led Living Amidst Divisive Influences appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

I had originally intended on making a crumble, but it just didn’t happen. I had rhubarb getting flaccid in my fridge, and so I decided to turn this tangy, sour stalk, often found in back lanes across Canada, into something sweet, smooth and delicious.

Something you may not know: Rhubarb is higher in calcium than milk per cup – milk has 300 mg, rhubarb has 380 mg.

I know you are not going to go and eat a whole cup of rhubarb, otherwise you would end up with terrible…um…rapid evacuation (it always comes back to poop with nutritionists).

Today, I am sharing two amazing rhubarb recipes with you for fruity spreadables. We have straight-up Rhubarb Butter and a wonderful early summer variation of Strawberry Rhubarb Butter.

The main difference between a fruit ‘butter’ and a jam is that we’re pureeing the finished product to a smooth texture. You could, of course, keep it chunkier and call it a jam. As with all of the jams I make, I swap out the sugar for honey and use whole apples, or in some cases applesauce, in place of powdered pectin. This just helps to make the jam or butter a little more natural and unprocessed.

I eliminated all sweeteners from my diet several years ago (you can read more about exactly how I did that here), and if you’re trying to reduce or ditch natural sweeteners, you can swap the honey for more apples in the Rhubarb Butter, or more apples and/or strawberries in the Strawberry Rhubarb Butter. If needed, you can add a little bit of honey afterwards.

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This spread goes amazingly well on the Banana Berry Oatmazing Muffins from my cookbook, and also is perfect on a slice of my grain-free almond bread.

Rhubarb Butter

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.7 from 27 reviews

• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 25 mins
• Yield: 1 cup

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Description

An easy 5 ingredient rhubarb butter recipe using all natural ingredients.

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Ingredients

• 4 stalks of rhubarb (about 4 cups)
• 1 apple, cored and cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4–1/2 tsp cinnamon

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Instructions

1. Puree together the apple and rhubarb until smooth in your food processor or vitamix.
2. Pour apple/rhubarb mixture into a pot and mix in honey, vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally.
4. Reduce to simmer and continue to stir every 4-5 minutes or so.
5. Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until desired consistency is reached.
6. Pour into jar, (if canning, do your canning thing) and allow to cool.
7. Store in the fridge.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Category: Condiments

 As I mentioned above, adding strawberries to the mix makes an awesomely simple variation. You can also swap both the strawberries and rhubarb and do the same with apples, pears, plums, peaches or any of your favourite market-fresh fruit.

These butters also make an excellent filling for thumbprint cookies!

Strawberry Rhubarb Butter

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.7 from 27 reviews

• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 25 mins

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Description

A simple strawberry rhubarb butter using all natural ingredients.

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Ingredients

• 3–4 cups strawberries – remove stems
• 2 stalks of rhubarb (about 2 cups)
• 2 apples, cored and cut into chunks
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4–1/2 tsp cinnamon

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

---

Instructions

1. Puree together the strawberries, rhubarb and apples until smooth in your food processor or vitamix.
2. Pour the strawberry, rhubarb and apple mixture into a pot and mix in honey, vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally.
4. Reduce to simmer and continue to stir every 4-5 minutes or so.
5. Cook for about 30 minutes or until desired consistency is reached.
6. Pour into jar, (if canning, do your canning thing) and allow to cool
7. Store in the fridge.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Cuisine: Condiments

Featured Photo Credit: iStock/KayTaenzer
Strawberry Butter: iStock/8vFanI

The post Quick and Sweet Rhubarb Butter & Strawberry Rhubarb Butter appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

This is something you must nurture. You don’t have a choice.

I could finish right here, but I will offer you the courtesy of explaining what I mean in the hopes that it might inspire you to actually do it.

The last 14 years of owning a business have been a whirlwind of fear for me, along with all the gratitude, blessings, joy and the incredible community that has come along with it.

• The fear set in when I released both of my books, UnDiet and The UnDiet Cookbook.
• The fear sets in every year when we launch registration for the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program.
• The fear sets in whenever I host an in-person or live event about health and nutrition (though I’m not doing much of the former these days!)
• The fear sets in when I go live on TV, radio or podcasts.
• The fear sets in whenever I launch a new project or course, such as Healthy At Home, Everyday Herbal or Everyday Culinary Nutrition.

I’ve dealt with rejection – a lot! – from speaking agencies, media pitches, interview requests, and various other ideas that I, apparently alone, think are awesome.

braving a new path

The last several years haven’t been easy on most people. As the world has shifted and changed, so have I. Some of you may know that I have developed a passion for coherence and learning more about the brain – something that is different from cooking and nutrition, but very much related to our global health and wellness.

Some you also may know that this will be my last year at the helm of the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program. The school isn’t going anywhere, but I am taking a step back so I can focus more time and energy to help others tap into their intuition, be more human, be more present, be more creative and centre themselves so we can all rise above the chaos to become more kind and compassionate. (If you’d like to learn more, find the details about my upcoming Intuition Masterclass and weekly Wake Up Wednesday sessions.)

When I am asked when I realized that my business was working I always say the same thing: I will let you know.

I have a fear of taking the leap every single day. And every single day I continue to leap.

Why? Why do I continue to brave the fear when I could just coast along?

It’s simple: I have to. I have no choice. And you don’t have a choice either.

We have a duty to ourselves and the universe to fulfill our calling.

We all have one, it’s just that often it seems easier to shove that knowing into a deep and dark place. And where we shove that knowing is where we also start to experience aches and pains, anxiety, insomnia, deterioration in our relationships, financial challenges (often caused by our desire to consume ‘stuff’ in place of fulfillment) and most scary of all, loss of spirit.

It’s the loss of spirit that is the toughest. When we get too comfortable in what we believe is a safe space to exist with that reliable paycheck, health benefits, vacation days and regular schedule, all without feeling fulfilled, our spirit slowly dies away and we become apathetic. We rarely notice the transition towards ‘ho-humness” but if you start to look around at friends and family, your colleagues, your bank teller, your server – you might see it.  And what we see in others is often a reflection of ourselves.

That apathy chips away at the spirit until we forget who we are. We become consumed by fear of the unknown and in this consumption, create the greatest crime towards ourselves: we sacrifice what makes us uniquely awesome.

That fear we experience at the prospect of taking the leap might just be the greatest sign of all that we are leaping in the right direction.

That fear we experience at the prospect of taking the leap might just be the greatest sign of all that we are leaping in the right direction. We may choose to tune into those around us who try and dismiss our ideas as unrealistic. Don’t be swayed. Their judgments of our actions have nothing to do with us. That is their own fear talking.

Doing the work in the face of fear

The more fearful we are of answering that calling, the more certain we can be that it is exactly the direction that we must proceed. That doesn’t mean the end goal will match our vision of what we might consider a ‘success’, but that doesn’t matter. The intention behind why you started is what matters. The rest is simply your personal adventure in facing your fear and reigniting your spirit.

Doing the work in face of fear is not the same as living in fear. It’s quite the opposite.

Doing the work in face of fear is not the same as living in fear. It’s quite the opposite, in fact. I do not live in fear. I experience fear and doubt. I second guess myself often. I just don’t let the fear win. The fear can’t ever win. I let the fear fuel my efforts. In the face of fear, I respond by doing my best.

I have had fear in writing this post. Every single post I have ever written that caused me the most fear and anxiety, you have loved the most – and still I am afraid to hit publish.

for your consideration

As I’ve embarked on a new direction in my work and my writing, this is a decision most certainly made in the face of fear, which tells me it’s the right move. I have new offerings that you can participate in, if you choose.

If you are challenged by doing the work in the face of fear, I invite you to consider:

• If the world were to end tomorrow, what would you regret having never given your energy to?
• What are your barriers to answering your calling?
• What keeps you from igniting your spark and letting the dreams become your reality?
• What brings you the most joy?

The post Doing The Work In The Face Of Fear appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What happens during the other 364 days? We have to make them all count. I appreciate that many of us spend more than one day trying to help the environment. As a collective, there are so many little big things we can do – small efforts with big, cumulative impact.

My books focus on eating and living. The planet is a part of that. There is a chapter called “There Is No Away”, where I talk about the waste we make without considering it as a factor in our day-to-day living – and assuming that when we throw it “away” it magically disappears. I also recently wrote about the garbage we are all making and the myth of recycling.

We Create a Lot of Waste

Here in North America, we generate the highest amount of waste in the world: about 2.2 kg per person per day, which is almost double the second-highest region (Europe and South Asia), averaging 1.18 kg per person daily. We waste food, plastics, paper, technology, children’s toys, personal care products, furniture, home cleaning products and more. So much of what we buy doesn’t get reused or recycled: it simply ends up as waste. We’ve tried to ship our garbage to foreign countries, who have pushed back and refused to accept them in the last few years.

You can learn more about the garbage we create here.

A Few Staggering Statistics

In my first book, UnDiet, I share the following staggering stats:

A lot of the garbage we’re making comes in three very avoidable forms: paper, plastic, and food. The United States wastes the most food, which has an environmental impact globally. According to a report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the United States generates more than 34 million tons of food waste each year. Holy shmizer! In Canada, it is estimated that 27 billion dollars worth of food ends up in landfills each year. According to World Vision Canada, the residents in the city of Toronto alone toss out 16.5 million pounds (7.5 million kilograms) of food every month.

Food waste is more than 14 percent of the total municipal solid waste. Even more shameful is that less than 3 percent of the 34 million tons of food waste created in 2009 was recovered and recycled. That means that 33 million tons were trucked off to the place we call “away.” Food waste now represents the single largest component of municipal landfills and incinerators in the United States. Following close behind, for your interest, are yard scraps (which could be reduced if we all just planted edible gardens) and plastic. In the average American home, each week 12 percent of meat, 16 percent of grains and nearly one quarter of fruits and vegetables are tossed out. The cost of that averages out to be over 43 billion dollars worth of food waste annually.  As if that weren’t bad enough, 18 percent of vegetables that are grown, don’t even make it to the stores before they perish.

how to celebrate earth day every day

There are many ways you can reduce your impact, improve your health, and do a little something for the earth 365 days a year!

Reduce or Eliminate Packaged Foods

A lot of our waste comes from food packaging, especially plastic and paper – and that packaging can’t always be recycled. As well, many of those packaged foods aren’t as healthful as we think. Aim for a low-waste eating style, where you make the most of fresh ingredients. Staples like nut or seed milk, granola, cereal, sourdough bread, bone broth and more can be easily made at home.

Learn more about cooking package-free in my self-paced online course, Everyday Culinary Nutrition.

Cook Food From Scratch

I recommend purchasing fresh, local and organic foods as much as you can. You’ll limit the amount of travel a food needs to get from your farm to plate, lower your chemical exposure, and you’ll find your food tastes better too. Read about the top 10 questions to ask your farmer at the market, and learn about what to look for in natural meat and sustainable fish.

Buy in Bulk Where Possible

Sometimes buying ingredients in packages is hard to avoid, especially if there isn’t a store near you where you can bring your own containers. For those items – like nuts, seeds, flours, beans, legumes, dairy-free chocolate chips, nut butters, gluten-free grains, etc. – try to buy the largest size package. You’ll end up with less packaging waste and more financial savings.

Prevent Food Waste

As I mentioned in the UnDiet excerpt above, we waste a lot of food. Food waste is an enormous problem that costs us money, drives up food prices and depletes environmental resources like water and land. These tips will help you cut down on your food waste – plus, learn how to store food properly so it lasts.

Store Food Without Plastic

When we begin cooking from scratch, it’s common to buy plastic containers, plastic wrap, and plastic bags to store the goods. Learn how to ditch those kitchen disposables here. You don’t need to store your food in plastic – these are my five favourite alternatives.

Compost

Many municipalities throughout North America now have city compost pickups, which is great! If that’s not an option where you live, start composting in your backyard. If you don’t have an outdoor space you can have a worm compost on your balcony.

Try Growing Your Own Food

Whether you have a windowsill, a patio, a balcony, a yard or access to a community garden – there are plenty of ways to grow your own food. I’ve learned a lot about food, the earth, the environment and my place in the ecosystem by growing my own garden. Not only can you grow delicious, health-building food, but you can also plant to support the soil, clean the air, and attract and support bees and other pollinators.

Travel Wisely

The pollution that stems from air travel, car travel and cruise ships is significant. I invite you to consider the environmental impact of your travel plans and how you could possibly make them greener. This not only includes the method of travel but also how you pack for traveling and where you stay.

Instead of buying individual-sized shampoo, toothpaste, hair gel, etc., purchase a travel kit where you can regularly refill your toiletries (or check your bag and bring full-size items). Pack your own food and snacks for the plane. Look at staying at sustainable hotels or resorts.

Walk, Bike or Take Transit

The highways where I live are so congested it can take a long time to get from place to place. Cars simply sit bumper to bumper. There are times when a car is the best or only option, but many use cars as their first resort. Try to walk or bike, which offers you fresh air and exercise, or take transit. If you’re using a car, see if you can carpool.

Spend Time in Nature

There are a multitude of health benefits to spending time in nature. The more you surround yourself with nature, you will be more inspired to protect it.

Buy/Sell Second Hand

The clothing industry creates a lot of pollution. There are the chemicals used to make items, fast fashion pieces that we wear for one season, and the microplastics that end up in the oceans after washing our clothes. Get my ultimate guide to vintage shopping and learn all of the tips and tricks to finding great second-hand buys.

Get Your Complete Guide to Growing Food Indoors by signing up below!

Skip the Latest Tech Release

Do you need a new computer and phone every year or whenever there is a new version of what you have? Make do with your current technology until it no longer functions the way you need, rather than buying something because it’s new.

Limit Online Shopping

Online shopping is convenient, but it always comes in a package – and sometimes from faraway places. If you need to purchase online, wait to buy a number of things at once rather than purchasing piecemeal, and see if you can get all of your items packed together in one package. Also, if you are buying from a shop close to you, see if you can order online to save time, but pick up the items in person. You can also start requesting sustainable packaging from companies.

Value Quality over Quantity and Make Do With Less

The immense amount of waste we produce often stems from our compulsive need to buy and consume. For the last while, I’ve been practicing what I call intentional simplicity. This means being mindful of how and where I spend my money, how I spend my time, and who I spend it with. It’s not at all about deprivation but about selection. Discover the minimalist commitments I’ve made that have had an enormous impact on my life.

How do you make Earth Day every day in your home?

The post Celebrate Earth Day 365 Days A Year With These Tips appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

How badly do you want those knots of anxiety and worry to untangle? To not wake up feeling overwhelmed with the weight of the world (and your household needs) on your shoulders? What would it be worth to you to rise most days feeling loved, appreciated and with a sense of deep peace? It is all possible but there is a catch. To experience true joy in our lives requires us to live against the grain in just about every facet of life. Finding our way to such thriving requires that we question the accepted paradigms of the culture as it is today – that happiness ultimately will come one day when we earn more, spend more, have more, do more and be more. Too often this extends to the idea that in order to have it all, others must also have less.

The short version: Turn off the news, shut off your phones, and live your life. The deeper you go down the rabbit hole, the more you drag your spirit down, and the less joy you embody. The equation is that simple.

This doesn’t mean we are to ignore the absolute horrors and tragedies of our world. Not at all. But we also can’t let it all overwhelm us and determine the energy with which we conduct our lives.

To be joyful becomes rebellious.

We are trying to survive but have forgotten what it means to thrive. Our natural state of being is to be joyful, well, healthy, vital, brave, optimistic and experience a true sense of belonging, connection, and unity. This is a human in the full expression of humanity. We are born here, and as we exit childhood, we forget too quickly.

We can remember what it is we have always known, but it requires that we take radical responsibility for where we are today, have the bravery to accept what isn’t working and the discipline to do the work to change what needs changing in both our minds and the moment-by-moment choices we make in our lives. Like shooting for the stars, adjusting the trajectory even slightly can land us somewhere entirely different.

This of course, is no simple task. It’s not as simple as deciding it to be so.

To thrive and live joyfully means we are not eating the same food, working with the same goals, watching the same movies, reading the same news, shopping at the same stores, or valuing what we’re supposed to value in the ways in which we’re expected.

This is why living joyfully might be our greatest act of rebellion.

To be joyful is in direct contrast to the norms. We meet up with friends, and instead of gossiping, expelling on the chaos of our lives, or how we aren’t enough, we spiral up, we share, engage, hope and dream. We look for solutions for our challenges and how we can be part of a unified solution for the world. We live today as we planned for yesterday and continue planning to level up tomorrow. We think critically and question everything. Is this (still) working?

To live joyfully is shifting the metrics used to measure success

Doing this in our world today, amidst the divisive influences that surround us, requires us to deeply know our own minds and hearts, to learn to question just about everything, and of course, to brave real answers, even if the result could be a shattering of the foundational values we have lived from.

We have not been trained in our culture to separate the self from the mind, let alone be able to know one’s own mind and question whether what it tells us to be true. We may have heard wisps of the words that we are not our minds, but who actually practices this? To question what our minds tell us, that voice inside your head, is at the root of critical thinking.

Is this actually true?

What if the opposite is true?

Do I truly believe this, or is this just what I’ve been told my whole life?

To make the teaching of critical thinking standard practice would undermine a system that requires, for its own survival, that we follow blindly and accept the division as normal.

We get carried with the tide. We lose our joy. We wire into the fear and become lost to ourselves.

We pack our bags, and carry them on our shoulders, full to the brim with intergenerational trauma, the stories we are told by our parents and grandparents, the blatant lies and false beliefs we’re bombarded with from educators, headlines, government, and society in general. 

We carry these packs around with us as the anxiety, fear, and longing for peace bubbles up within without knowing how to touch it. We keep adding to our burden, and the joy slips further away. 

We were never given the keys to access this place within us, to get back what we lost.

In general, we have forgotten the skills we need, the work we need to do, and that it is available to us always. What we need to do is simple: amplify the whispers of our own hearts and follow the path of being well and joyful. We tap into our intuition, the heart wisdom that only knows the signs and signals of the present moment we are in. Can it really be that simple?

Simple? Yes. Easy? Not at all.

The challenge, why most are scared away, is because that inner knowing does not lie and cannot be denied. Once you listen to those whispers, they get louder, more powerful, and you see the accuracy of it all. We start to see that we can’t achieve the goal of joy, peace, love, health, and happiness with aggressive action, followed by instant gratification. It’s a slow creep of progress where one day we feel more joy in a single minute of the day than we did the day before. One drop at a time.

But when we can do this– ask the questions of our mind, and live with the exquisite intention of living joyfully, the work is being done. The baggage we carry falls away, slowly to be sure, but it’s happening, and we soon become buoyed by the tidal wave of both insight and compassion. We remember that all of life is connected.

Looking around. Is this working?

We are tired, overwhelmed, and burnt out. Health in mind, body and spirit is achieved by the few who have the mind to break free, while too many remain plugged into the screens that continuously highlight the lack in their lives, and that filling that void comes from everything other than the true solution of looking within and summoning the discipline to do the work.

In time, we may find ourselves on the brink of it. The distractions have gone quiet for a moment. The momentum and motivation are building, but then– BOOM.

We’re pointed in a new direction. Pointed at a new distraction. THAT is the cause. They are to blame. We remain plugged into the frequency of fear and make that our reality. Find the evidence to prove it to be true. Me versus them. Blame and shame so responsibility is never taken.

We must keep asking: What is mine? What have I collected that is not? What is true and real? What beliefs are beneficial to me and others, and which are harmful?

The one truth we can trust is that which is truly good and beneficial to the full expression of the human, is also good and beneficial to our collective.

To live joyfully in a world pushing us to be sick, divided, forever wanting, othering, heads-down working, and relinquishing any sense of personal responsibility is truly the greatest act of rebellion.

We each individually have more power within us than we’ve been led to believe. Now is the time to tap into it. Your health is your wealth. Your connection to your heart is your superpower. This could change everything. Joyful living, tuning into your heart’s wisdom, is what will make us wildly powerful, empowering, and magnetic.

The post How Living Joyfully Becomes A Powerful Act of Rebellion appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Locked in our homes for two years, glued to our devices, and our humanness has declined. What does it mean to be more human? What connects us? And most of all, how do we get it back?

In states of fear we lose our ability to think clearly. We seek out constant distraction to keep the truth out. When we have a moment’s pause in the day we pick up our devices and scroll through until we get a glimpse of what we should be thinking, what we should be feeling, who we should side with or against and if it looks like the safe thing to do, we post a comment. Though it may seem harmless in the moment – five minutes here and there, could it be that this is shaping who we now have become as a species?

All of this is happening without us taking a pause to consider who we are today, in this moment.

Let’s begin with children.

For the first seven years of a child’s life, their subconscious is being programmed. Their awareness is wide open as they watch, listen, and absorb everything spoken and unspoken around them. They are soaking in everything as one of their primary functions is figuring out how the world works and where they fit in to it.

Too many children these days, are left to their own devices, quite literally. Glued to devices, as addicted to them as we adults are. This isn’t meant to be a judgement on parents. It’s a fact. As much as we don’t like our kids being on them all day, they also don’t like us being on ours.

As a child engages in the dynamic world of their device their sponge-like brains are amplifying the instant gratification and dopamine hits, the fantasy, the idolizing, the ten-second videos. All of this is programming their programmable minds. The more in that world they are, the less able they are to engage fully in a human experience. The nuances and pace of a human experience can’t compete with a device, under their full control of every whim and flicker of attention.

Anxiety, fear, restlessness, lack of attention or ability to modulate emotional response become the norm for children as the three-dimensional human world around them simply doesn’t carry the same level of stimulation that their young brains are now wired for.

human interaction is key for healthy development

I am speaking here of children in general. I fully recognize that the spectrum of cognitive states, needs and special abilities are unique for every child. This does not apply in all cases. This is also not a judgement on anyone– parents, caregivers or children. It’s the reality of the times we are living in and needs to be acknowledged. And fun fact, the exact same thing happens in the brains of adults, for the most part we just tend to be better at regulating.

We also can’t disregard that one of the most important aspects of the development of a child’s emotional intelligence is interacting with other humans, seeing their whole faces and being in the same room to see the full expression of facial and body language.

You don’t need to be an expert in anything to know that being with humans, engaging with different types of humans in communication, sport, social, work, and day-to-day casual interaction is what helps us develop the depth of our own humanness. We are an intensely social species that are losing our ability to socialize in the ways our species is intended to.

What’s At The Root Of Our Loss of Humanness?

We don’t stop.

We don’t take time to take stock, gather information, form personal, complex, nuanced opinions. Too many of us leave it to memes to do the work that results in either a ‘like’ or an unfollow as we further curate our reality to avoid conflict or as the case may be, navigating our own complicated state of mind.

We react to, rather than consider or have compassion and understanding for alternate views. What we are losing in this process are the characteristics that make humans the most humane and kind form of human: the practice of love, compassion, empathy, gratitude, appreciation and care.

Signalling our compassion with a flag as your profile photo, or a frame around your image with the message of the moment now seems to carry more weight than smiling at the person who served your coffee, or striking up a conversation with the person behind you in the grocery line.

True humanness must begin with being present in our real-life experiences.

Connecting In With The Human Being

The human consciousness is more expansive than anything any of us can conceptualize.

We are barely scratching the surface of what we know and how we use it. As human beings, we have the infinite capacity for creativity, for love, and for connection. We are electrical beings, wired to connect with the beings who surround our immediate physical area but also in a global connection.

Those we thought of as the adults in the room have left the building. We are the adults now.

We are shaping the future of humanity in our every thought, and every action.

It starts with you and with me.

People will often talk about taking a ‘digital detox’ and disconnecting for a while. What is happening here is actually the complete opposite. We turn off the devices, the feeds and the monitors and we reconnect to what matters most. Ourselves. We connect to our thoughts and feelings, we connect to how our body feels and what it needs- nourishment, movement, nature, social community.

It is in the mass disconnection to what’s out there that we can find our truest version of ourselves. This is where we tap into the higher knowing, our intuition. It’s how we find that place of peace and ease within us. It’s where we can find the boundless joy, unconditional love and compassion – for ourselves and every human on the planet.

I know you already know everything I am saying here. It’s what might be considered a universal law; a truth we are all born knowing. Yet, we are allowing that stress response to continue. We’ve forgotten the programming we were born with and instead took on a different set of rules and unconsciously have passed it along to the next generation. The challenge, or perhaps the opportunity, is that it is clear this new set is broken.

What’s the Solution?

The solution, therefore, becomes wildly simple. We have to do the opposite.

We scroll for a dose of agitation, we get our endorphin rush from intense exercise, we take to extreme diets, we scroll some more. Our attention spans shorten- for both the media we take in and for the conversations with have with each other. We lose our patience and mid-sentence we pick up our devices, and we seek a distraction. A stimulation (or maybe a simulation!). We no longer feel capable of managing, let alone strengthening the relationships that matter most in our life.

Our partners suffer. Our children suffer. And our communities suffer.

I am not here to point fingers. Blaming is never the solution. With the massive change and transformation that is happening right now, we have to own exactly where and who we are in this moment.

How To Become More Human

We start by getting quiet.

For many, this will feel astoundingly uncomfortable. Our nervous systems are now wired to fire. Our brains are coded to fight and flee.

We need to work on rewiring.

Some of the simplest ways to begin this rewiring of the nervous system include:

• Lying on your belly, feeling supported by the floor and breathing.
• Walking in nature without any distraction of music or podcasts.
• Sitting down with a piece of paper and marker and drawing. If this feels daunting, set yourself a goal of 20 minutes to just doodle.
• You could cook something.
• You could try gentle movement.
• Play an instrument.
• Opening a bottle of essential oils and taking a few deep inhales.
• Breathing could be the most powerful of all. Sitting and counting 10 inhales and 10 exhales. Start over when your mind wanders and you lose count.

It starts with tuning back into our five senses.

When we can tune back unto our senses, we just might find that the deep inhales and exhales come more easily. The stillness becomes more comfortable.  The noise we’ve been drowning in becomes less tolerable and instead of getting sucked back in, we step away from it more and maybe just shut it off altogether. We find that we start to crave quiet. We tune in, in such a way, that we are fully aware of when we need some decompression time, when we’ve become overly activated.

Can we start to look each other, children included, in the eyes, smile, engage, and have real conversations? Ask questions and listen to the answers.

Maybe you’ll even get to a place where you feel calm and centred enough to engage in the difficult conversations, discover the nuance of someone else’s thoughts and feelings. The practice of humanness is to have compassion, kindness and respect enough to continue to listen and have a conversation even when you don’t agree. That is being human. That is being in community.

Coming back to the children

And the children. They need us to do better. Our children need us present, calm, patient, warm and loving. We have to do the work and keep doing it. In every moment. If it were effortless and easy we wouldn’t be feeling the way so many of us do.

I include myself in all of this by the way, as I am not sharing this from a place way up above. I share it because I know it, because I also need the reminder in nearly every moment.

Of all the things that have been said over the last two years that have triggered me “children are resilient’ might just be the one that has challenged me the most. They are, it’s true. But we all carry programs from our childhood into adulthood and run them subconsciously, unless we become aware, wake up and do the work, they keep on running. I have deep concerns over what children have seen and experienced over the last few years and many continue to. They will have long-term effects from this, if not countered with love and kindness and compassion – with an outpouring and openness of the emotions that make humans human.

Show your smiles.  Find the stillness. Be loving.

If we all disconnect more from what’s out there, and connect more with what’s inside, we will transform the outcome of our lives. And the more tuned in we are to what’s inside, the less impact what’s out there will have on us. It’s all up to us.

The limitlessness of our consciousness doesn’t need to be understood or believed. If we can tune into our five senses and then get quiet, that sixth sense tends to tell us everything we need to know on how to be more human.

If you haven’t yet found a practice that works for you, please take a moment and enjoy my free coherence class available here.

Photo credit: Nikki Leigh McKean

On My Mind Episode 28: How to Be More Human

The post How To Be More Human appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Beyond this, the rules get a little fuzzy. You could join ten different families for Passover on the same street and have ten different experiences of what Passover is. Even to this Hebrew-school-educated nutritionist, it gets confusing.

For example: wheat, barley, rye, spelt and oats are forbidden, unless those foods are labeled “kosher for Passover.” Matzoh, the primary symbolic  ‘food’ of Passover, is made most often with wheat, barley, rye, spelt or oats. Confusing, and you can throw your gluten-free dreams out the window. Food can get the stamp of approval if rabbis have determined that foods containing these grains are cooked in 18 minutes or less – after which time – the natural leavening in the grains would cause foods to rise.

Typically, “Kosher for Passover foods” are those made specifically for the holiday under the supervision of a rabbi. Unfortunately, I have yet to meet a nutritionist rabbi, and much of the kosher foods are loaded with hydrogenated and modified vegetable oils, monosodium glutamate, refined flours, and chemical preservatives.

Rice, millet, corn, beans, and lentils are additional foods that are usually forbidden during Passover. These are forbidden as they can be ground up and cooked like flour and therefore, can be mixed into stuff and baked and rise, therefore falling into the leavened bread category.

Quinoa is the saving grace of those trying to observe both gluten-free health and Passover.

I respect those who choose to follow the traditions of their culture, combining those with the traditions of their families.

The question I have is how a holiday that was intended to celebrate the freeing of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt, evolved into a holiday filled with heavily processed ten-pound matzoh bagels, kosher for Passover toothpaste and chewing gum, cakes that use a dozen eggs, the most constipating food combinations there ever were, ridiculously sweet bad wine, and the swapping of day-to-day dishes for disposables for eight days to avoid contamination (some people do have a second set of real dishes for this holiday).

Free Yourself From The Constipation Nightmare

And just as the Jews were freed from Egypt, you too can be freed from hours spent sitting on the loo, bunged up from the overindulgence of the previous nights’ Passover feast or the morning treat of fried matzoh. Keep the water and veggie game high, the matzoh meal containing foods to a minimum, and you should be good to go… literally.

The traditions have evolved, and some of these may not be working. I’m pretty sure this was not how people celebrated this holiday five hundred years ago, let alone fifty years ago.

What if “the way it’s always been done”, or the ways our families celebrate it,  just doesn’t work for our own personal values and philosophies? Then what do we do?

That’s where we ask: Is this working?

Ideas to Help You UnDiet Your Passover

• Instead of artificially coloured horseradish, make your own horseradish using beets.
• Instead of mystery gefilte fish with hydrogenated oil and sugar, make Quinoa Quiches. (Or make your own gefilte fish.)
• Instead of baked-to-death brisket, try this spiced lamb.
• Instead of sulphite-laden dried fruit compote, make baked apples.
• Instead of a Matzo Meal Cake that uses a dozen eggs, make these Sweet Potato Brownies (with quinoa flour)
• Instead of palm-oil crusted fruit flan, make a grain-free fruit crumble.
• Instead of faux chocolates with mystery fillings, make chocolate almond butter cups.
• Instead of those creepy jelly lemon wedge candies, make this almond honey brittle.

UnDiet Passover recipes

Some of these UnDiet Passover menu ideas are non-traditional – but don’t be shy about breaking from tradition!

Appetizer Options

• Simple Wild Leek Pesto
• Fermented Nut Cheese
• Grain-Free Flax Crackers
• Basil Mint Pesto
• Kale Chips

Soup Options

• • Simple Bone Broth Recipe (add chicken + veg)
  • Red Onion Soup
  • Vegan Celery Root and Apple Soup
  • Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Salad Options

• Cauliflower Couscous from The UnDiet Cookbook
• Simple Kale Salad
• Wild Rice and Quinoa Salad
• Sweet Potato Salad

Side Dish Options

• Balsamic Roasted Vegetables
• Sweet Potato Zucchini Latkes (use almond flour)
• Lemon Cumin Roasted Carrots
• Sauerkraut
• Mashed Cauliflower (eliminate the millet)

Main Dish Options

• Coconut Curry with Cod
• Shepherd’s Pie (rather appropriate, right?)
• Baked Salmon Cakes (use almond flour)
• All-Dressed Sweet Potatoes
• Slow Roasted Veg and Sausage (use zucchini noodles)
• Moroccan Inspired Lamb (use cauliflower rice)

Dessert Options

• Grain-Free Fruit Crumble
• Chocolate Chia Pudding
• Chocolate Cream Pie
• Baked Apples with Easy Dairy-Free Ice Cream
• Dairy-Free Maple Cream Custard
• Chocolate Dipped Vanilla Macaroons
• Chocolate Almond Butter Cups

What healthy Passover recipes are you cooking up this year?

The post Healthify Your Passover and Skip The Constipation appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Most conventional cleaning advice calls for cleaning and disinfecting every single nook and cranny of your home till it gleams. However, the problem with this is that many of the products designed to accomplish this are loaded with toxins that are worse for us than the dirt itself.

If you’re embarking on a home-cleaning project in the next few weeks, try implementing these tips to ensure your cleaning adventures are non-toxic and safe. We want real clean – not a chemical coating.

You might have a collection of cleaning products at home that are meant for cleaning a single part of your home – the shower, the toilet, the sink, kitchen counters, the air, windows, blinds, mirrors, floors, the list goes on. The truth is, you don’t need a billion products to clean your home thoroughly – just a few good multi-purpose products can get the job done easily.

The Ultimate Guide to Non-Toxic Home Cleaning

1. Clean Up Your Home Cleaning Products

Before you even start cleaning, it’s important to ensure you’re set up to use products that won’t increase your toxic load (this is the body burden we carry of chemicals found in our environment). As I just mentioned, conventional cleaning products are filled with dangerous chemicals that are detrimental to our health.

2. Take Stock of Your Stuff and What You’re Actually Using

I think any home-cleaning process needs to examine the possessions we own and whether or not they are serving us. There is no point in cleaning things that are just going to sit there and collect more dust that you’ll need to clean again and again.

Go through your home and assess everything from your knick-knacks to kitchen gadgets to the clothes in your closet. You can find my guide to decluttering your home here. What are you using on a regular basis? If you haven’t touched something in the last year, do you truly need it?

Box up the stuff that you’re not using or wearing and leave it for a month. If you haven’t needed anything in the box (or boxes) during that time (or forget what’s even in there!), give it away to friends and family or donate it to charity.

3. Clean Your Home Room by Room

Hopefully, you don’t just clean your home once a year! Regular maintenance will keep your house fairly clean, and you can reserve whole-house deep cleaning for the stuff you don’t do on a regular basis. Keep in mind that you don’t need to do everything all at once, or all in one day or weekend. Create a systematic plan. Maybe you do one room each weekend and spread out the tasks over several weeks.

Another thing to remember is that you don’t have to do this alone! If you live with other people, make it a team effort. This will lighten the load, make it more fun, and speed up the process. Throw on some great music and promise cookies or homemade chocolate bars or a pizza party when all the work is done.

4. Cleanse Those Thoughts, Too

Home cleaning isn’t just about your external environment – it also gives us the chance to look inward and work toward an internal environment that makes us feel happy and safe. Having a beautifully clean home is great, but if you’re miserable, you’re not going to enjoy it or reap the benefits.

Take stock of your work, your personal life, your relationships, your friendships – are these serving you right now? What makes you happy, and what is bringing you down?

Cleaning house – physically and mentally – may not be the most fun chore around, but wowza is it satisfying and we will no doubt reap the benefits from our efforts ongoing.

The post Ultimate Guide To Non-Toxic Home Cleaning appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Now, if the ongoing efforts aren’t feeling like enough, there are three optimal times to take on a more involved cleanse and they are:

• Today, or whenever it is you are feeling inspired and motivated to do it
• When the seasons change – always a good time to rejuvenate and at the same time reset some positive habits
• Spring/summer – when we move into the lighter version of our body with more outdoor time, fresh food, and activity

The tricky thing about cleanses is they tend to be restrictive and limiting; when really, this process should focus on expansion and possibilities – if you do it in the optimal way. If you spend a week drinking lemon water you’re just going to feel hangry, but if you focus on these simple cleansing tips, you’ll feel more energetic, focused, and vibrant ongoing. And as I mentioned, the best time to start is today. Okay, I’ll give you until tomorrow so you can prep your kitchen for it!

These are simple tips for easy seasonal cleansing you can take on for a reset.

1. Drink Lots of Clean Water

Hydration is key to protecting your insides from the effects of life. Fluids will help you flush out wastes, keep digestion regular, keep muscles and joints supple and flexible, and the brain functioning optimally. Clean water is a great option, but herbal teas, coconut water, elixirs, smoothies, and fruits and vegetables also contribute to overall hydration.

2. Load Up on Vegetables

Plants are incredibly nutrient-dense and can help provide you with the macronutrients and micronutrients you need to maintain resilience and optimal health. They are packed with fibre for great digestion and cardiovascular health, as well as antioxidants that help protect our bodies from damage. Dark leafy greens, mushrooms, berries, crucifers, citrus, and root vegetables are just some of the many detoxifying veggies you can include in your diet.

Remember, if you wash, slice, and properly store those veggies right after you get home from the store you’re more likely to eat them.

3. Eat Locally and Seasonally

If possible, try to eat food that was grown close to you and eat with the seasons. Eating seasonally is incredibly beneficial to your health because seasonal foods provide the best nutrients we need at that specific time of the year. For example, spring vegetables have many compounds that help us combat seasonal allergies, while fall and winter vegetables have nutrients that support our immunity for cold and flu season.

4. Ditch The Sugars

White, refined sugars can lead to a whole host of health issues including obesity complications, diabetes, tooth decay, hormone imbalance, while artificial sweeteners also have similar effects. During any cleanse, it’s useful to ditch the sugars from your diet. If you’re new to healthy eating, swapping the white sugar for natural sweeteners can be helpful – or try going on a 7-day No-Sugar Challenge which can be invigorating. I eliminated all sweeteners entirely and have never felt better!

5. Cook Food from Scratch

Try not to worry as much about the popular diet regimes and instead focus on cooking from scratch in your own kitchen using whole, unprocessed ingredients. With any dietary strategy, there are a ton of processed store-bought foods that go along with it, and often those foods aren’t beneficial to our health. Cooking yourself also allows you to control the amount and type of sugar, salt, and oils you add to your food.

6. Take Five Minutes to Sit in Silence

Cleanses are often about doing something – but when was the last time you actively did nothing? No music, no TV, no phone, no nothing. Sit and be quiet with your thoughts for five minutes. Start to notice the tape recorder we play in our minds and decide whether those thoughts are helping you or hindering you. Once you bring awareness to those thoughts, you can start to change them. And when you can change your thoughts and start to believe all the positive ones, it all gets a little sweeter.

7. Move Gently While Breathing Deeply

Studies have shown that gentle exercise combined with deep breathing such as walking and yoga will increase GABA production in the brain (a neurotransmitter), reduce cortisol levels (attributed to a multitude of chronic diseases), increase white blood cell production and circulation to support immune function, and increase lymphatic circulation (hello detox!). Dry skin brushing is a bonus practice that can help promote circulation in the body on the days that you just can’t squeeze in a movement practice.

8. Practice Gratitude and Try to Worry Less

Our thought patterns play an important role in our health, and excess stress has a negative impact on our brains and bodies. Focusing on the positives in your life instead of the troubles should be an important part of any cleanse – learn how to do that over here.

9. Cleanse Out The Clutter

The physical space that surrounds us affects our internal physical and emotional space. Being surrounded by stuff, mess and clutter can create the feeling of weight upon us, affecting our energy levels. It can be harder to think clearly, move freely, and bring in new thoughts, habits and patterns when we’re drowning in older, unneeded and unused physical stuff. This guide on minimalism or this one on cleansing toy clutter could be a good place to start.

Now, to get your daily cleansing started: go for a gentle walk to the store while deep breathing, pick up some fresh fruits and veggies, wash them well, blend some of that into a smoothie to sip on and when you’re done, just sit quietly for five minutes. You can do that! And while you’re doing that, have a listen to Episode 2 of the Today Is The Day Podcast: Do We Really Need To Detox.

A good cleanse focuses on the nutrition that serves (or doesn’t serve you), but it’s also important to cleanse your thoughts, physical space, work, relationships, and finances.

On My Mind Episode 08: Simple Tips for Easy Daily Cleansing

Subscribe today on your favourite podcast app and never miss an episode.

• Apple Podcasts
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• Castbox

The post Simple Tips for Easy Daily Cleansing appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Even now, after practicing yoga and having a regular meditation practice for well over a decade, the mastering of my thoughts is an everyday – every moment – practice.

Recently, we’ve experienced all kinds of cosmic coolness with a total solar eclipse, intense solar flares and a couple of meteor showers. Whether you believe in cosmic shifting or not is irrelevant because all the talk about spring and newness and change has a sweet and profound effect on the collective consciousness. This shift is simple: spring is here, and it’s time to hit the refresh button.

And so, before you dig in to clean out your shed, your closet, your kitchen, and your winter coat pockets, why not start where it all begins – in our own minds? Let’s get started by spring cleaning our thoughts.

How are you going to spring clean the root of all that you create in your life?

We think our thoughts are actually real and true and happening. We create these wildly dire scenarios and dwell on our greatest fears. We let our thoughts poke us in our soft and vulnerable spots, mocking us where we’re the most fragile. The first step towards blowing life open is recognizing that our thoughts are not real – yet. What we’re thinking passes through layers and layers of our own filters and the result is often a mishmash of reality – our greatest hopes and our deepest fears – all rolled into one. Thoughts are not facts. When we detach from our thoughts, we see that much of what we think about has been completely fabricated by our imaginations and isn’t serving us in any positive way.

3 Steps Towards Spring Cleaning Your Thoughts

1. Schedule Thought Cleansing Into Your Day

Block out 5-10 minutes in the morning to observe your thoughts. This might also be called meditation. Focus on inhaling and exhaling. When a thought comes into your mind, recognize it as a thought, let it go and return to focusing on your breath.

2. Tune In To The Physical Response To Your Thoughts

It’s not uncommon to have a physical response to things we think about that aren’t even happening, haven’t happened and aren’t going to happen. We create scenarios in our minds, tap into our greatest fears, spin a web with our wild imagination and the next thing we know our hearts are pounding, our stomach is tied in knots, our palms are sweating and absolutely nothing in our lives has changed in any way at all.

When we can start to notice the physical response we have to the thoughts that do not serve us, we can slowly begin to unwind those habits and release the fear, guilt, sadness or frustration to situations we’ve created in our own minds.

3. Replace The Old With The New

Our intentions create our thoughts, and our thoughts create our actions and our actions create our lives. So let’s begin by putting out the best of intentions with an open heart, honouring the child within us who knows that today is the day that anything is possible. This isn’t about expecting the best, but appreciating what is.

Notice how you feel when you smile at strangers, when you’re kind, when you laugh and smile. When you catch yourself thinking the same old, dusty, unhelpful, self-defeating thoughts, take that deep breath, let it go and work your hardest to replace that thought with a new and beneficial one.

If we are so easily inclined to believe our negative thoughts that don’t serve us, can’t we shift it up, upgrade the habit to begin to believe the thoughts that actually do serve us, our greater goodness, and our ability to live fully and happily in a life of our own creating?

Yes. Yes we can. Happy Spring.

(Photo by Catherine Farquharson)

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There was absolutely no reason to believe that “I can’t keep a plant alive” was true. I mean, I’d made it true by not caring for my plants, but subscribing to that belief made it easy to never try and change it. It was time for me to change it!

what inspired me to become a green thumb

This journey to becoming a green thumb and micro farmer began with the determination that I would learn how to grow vegetables. My experience since 2018, when I first started outdoor growing, has been so profoundly empowering, nourishing, healing, and plain old fun. When it came to facing a long, long winter, unable to travel to locales where fresh and local food is abundant, the timing was right to take on my own local food supply. Or at least my own lettuce supply.

The research began, and it quickly became way too complicated. I couldn’t find a simple process that told me:

• These are the supplies you need.
• These are the seeds to order.
• This is how you grow lettuce inside.

Alas, everything I read on indoor gardening was overcomplicating it for me. I didn’t need to know the very best for this seed or that. I didn’t want to know the pros and cons of the various light options. All I wanted to know is what I needed to get this operation off the ground. I didn’t need to be the best indoor grower. Heck, I just wanted to grow.

I also didn’t want to spend a lot of money doing it. Optimally, I wanted to use the supplies I had on hand and purchase the bare minimum. And voila! That is just what I did.

My indoor gardening criteria

My basic criteria for my gardening operation was this:

• Use supplies I had on hand as much as possible (Re-use, upcycle, borrow)
• Keep plastic/disposables to a minimum
• Keep it as simple as possible (no light meters, water meters, etc.)
• Grow something edible

And holy majoley! I have blown myself away with the success of this endeavour.

Below I have outlined my gear and process. Please grab this downloadable guide for my free step-by-step growing instructions.

REMOVING CHOICE: WHAT YOU NEED FOR indoor gardening

There are way more options than what I am offering below, but this is about simplifying. If you love the process of researching, comparing, reading reviews, and what not, by all means! Go for it (but grab my guide before you go!)

Shelving

I had metal Metro shelving leftover from when I ran a cooking school in-person and was thrilled to be able to use them in this way. Nearly any shelving will do to hold your plants. The key is to have a way to suspend grow lights from the shelf above.

If you’re not using grow lights for your indoor gardening, just ensure whatever your plants are sitting on, allows them to get maximum sunlight from a south-facing window.

Containers

Again, the objective here is to spend nothing and use what you have. Some options include:

• Aluminum baking pans (only if you have on hand; do not buy these! Poke holes for drainage)
• Glass Pyrex dish (for seed starting, only)
• Large steam pans with 2 1/2-inch sides (drill holes or buy the kind with holes already in it). This may not be a re-use of what you have, but you’ll be able to use this forever, unlike the black plastic trays.
• Plant containers saved from previous planting
• Berry and mushroom containers
• Stainless steel cookie sheets

I tried growing in toilet paper rolls and egg cartons, as I had seen online. But after a period, the paper started to get moldy – so they’re great for seed starting, but not long-term food growing.

Growing Medium

You can grow in soil or on a grow mat.

Seedling soil is recommended for starting seeds/seedlings. Grow mats are promoted as doing the same thing with less mess. Personally, I found that I loved soil for lettuce and herbs and the grow mats for microgreens.

There are likely more options but I don’t know them or remember, and this is supposed to be simple. Many people recommended coconut mats to me, however, I live in Canada and, well, coconuts don’t grow here. Hemp, however, grows in abundance and so I went with a hemp grow mat.

• Pro Mix Premium Seed Starting blend for growing lettuce, herbs, and sunflower sprouts (more details on growing process are in my free guide below)
• Terra Hemp Grow Mats for growing microgreens

Some people have suggested hemp grow cubes in place of soil for lettuce and herbs. I haven’t tried this so can’t speak to it. I also don’t know what the nutritional difference is, if there is any.

Lighting

This was likely the area I spent the most time researching and worrying over for my indoor garden. Firstly, you don’t need to buy artificial lighting. If you have a good south-facing window, and you’re doing this as a hobby project, that will work fine. I grew all the seedlings for my garden last summer with the light from a window and that garden and those plants thrived.

That being said, if you want to accelerate the growing process, a grow light will go a long way. You want to get a full spectrum light that’s easy to install.

• Lights: This was the one I purchased, and I am very happy with the choice as are my plants.
• Timer: I connected the lights to a timer and have them set to be on for 18 hours a day (from 5 am to 11 pm). If you have a timer for your holiday lights or while on vacation, that’s the timer to use. If you need to get one, any basic timer like this one will do.

Seed Suppliers

Shopping for seeds is for sure one of the most fun parts of this. I highly recommend finding local growers who are sharing or selling their seeds. As I am based in Canada, most of my seeds are from Canadian companies. These include:

• Westcoast Seeds
• Urban Harvest Organic Seeds
• Om Foods
• Mumm’s (Not Canadian)

Most of these sites will have a “lettuce”, “herb”, and “microgreens” section. Which should you start with? The ones that have the quickest grow time as that’s great for your confidence, and the ones that you’ll enjoy consuming the most.

Watering

• To keep your seedlings hydrated, I recommend watering with a spray bottle.
• Once your seedlings have been transplanted and are a little heartier, a mindful watering with a watering can is the way to go.
• Seedlings in a grow mat can be watered with a watering can as you want to ensure the mat itself remains very moist.

indoor gardening simplified

The abundance you can grow on a cookie sheet is a remarkable thing. One of my favourite things during winter has been to take a smoothie break when I work in the kitchen; I grab my scissors, walk over to my little farm, and cut a bunch of sprouts and herbs to add to my smoothies.

Every couple of days I come home with 3–4 days worth of an herb-rich lettuce blend for salads that are so flavour-rich that all I do is drizzle some olive oil or flax oil on it and add a sprinkling of salt.

And the best, best, best part is showing this little man how it’s done.

Because I wanted to grow more than a cookie sheet’s worth of food and didn’t have room at home for this set-up, I did it at my office. And once a week, either after dinner or on the weekend, my son and I head over to my office together. For him, it feels like a really special outing.

For me, it’s one-on-one time with him, where together, we do something that feels bigger than us. He is learning about where food comes from and what it takes to grow it. He eats things off the plants that he wouldn’t touch if I put it on his plate at dinner time.

As the chaos continues all around us, finding ways to empower my son to lead a greater future than the cards his generation has been dealt, well, that is truly worth every second of time and every drop of energy that has gone into this little indoor farm project.

I hope you’ll give this a try.

The post Simple Guide To Growing Lettuce, Herbs, and Microgreens Indoors appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

My top 10 Favourite Natural Cold and flu Remedies

Fire Cider

Have you tried this one? Spoiler alert: it tastes bad, but it’s one of the most effective cold remedies I’ve ever tried. It’s a mix of horseradish, garlic, onions, ginger, cayenne and apple cider vinegar, all of which have extremely potent anti-inflammatory and immune-supportive properties. This remedy is in tincture form, so it’s one of those natural cold remedies that you can keep in your pantry and it lasts a long time. It’s something you could use year round, but it may take some time for you to build a tolerance to the unpalatable taste!

You can get full instructions for my favourite fire cider-making method here.

Elderberry

Elderberries are the opposite of fire cider in the taste department, but they are no less effective at dampening colds and flu. They are packed with antioxidants, particularly Vitamin C, and studies show that elderberries can help shorten the duration of colds, and even help air travellers prevent and shorten the length of the common cold.

As a bonus, elderberry syrups are extremely tasty. Grab my favourite elderberry syrup recipe and enjoy!

Chaga and Reishi Mushrooms

Known as the king and queen of the mushroom world, chaga and reishi both help to support and modulate the immune system, protect against colds and flu, and they have anti-cancer properties. Tougher whole mushrooms like chaga and reishi will need to be boiled or tinctured for consumption, but you can also find mushroom powders in natural health food stores or cook with other culinary mushrooms.

Turmeric Tonic/Tea

Turmeric is a highly anti-inflammatory spice. It has anti-microbial properties and it can aid with respiratory conditions as well like bronchitis and coughs. There are many different ways you can consume turmeric in your diet, but when it comes to natural cold remedies I prefer these recipes:

• Turmeric Tea: One of the most popular recipes on my blog, which contains other anti-inflammatory spices.
• Cold and Flu Tonic: This recipe combines turmeric with citrus and ginger for extra Vitamin C and immune-boosting power.

Sign up below for more tasty turmeric recipes

Bone Broth (or Vegetable Broth)

Rich in minerals and amino acids, research indicates that bone broth can act as a remedy for the common cold. It’s also warm, soothing and easy to digest if you have a scratchy throat or an upset stomach. If you’re vegetarian or vegan, you can instead load up your broth with immune-enhancing veggies like garlic, onion, turmeric, ginger, mushrooms, goji berries and fresh or dried herbs.

Grab my ultimate bone broth recipe here.

Fermented Foods

Our digestive tract plays a large role in immunity, and probiotics and fermented foods help to support and strengthen our immune system. Research indicates that probiotics may help to prevent respiratory infections and a recent meta-analysis of 20 trials found that probiotics shorten the duration of colds in both children and adults.

While you can certainly add a high quality probiotic to your regime, fermented foods are a simple and effective way to consume a healthy dose of probiotic cultures. If you make them yourself, you’ll also save a lot of money! Some recipes to try:

• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Pickles
• Fermented Nut Cheese
• Coconut Kefir
• Kombucha (make sure you let this one ferment for a long time to eliminate the sugar, which can dampen immunity)
• Preserved Lemons

For fermented foods that have a brine, don’t forget to save it to drink or use in other recipes. Sauerkraut juice was one of the first things we gave to our son to build his immunity and gut health.

Raw Honey

Raw honey has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties and is a powerful antioxidant, helping to strengthen the immune system. The antiseptic properties of honey help to clean wounds, support the digestive tract and inhibit bacterial growth. It also promotes healing, reduces swelling and prevents infections.

Research on honey and the common cold shows that it can provide relief from cold symptoms, particularly coughing and mucus production. You can take a little bit of honey on its own, or mix it with one of the other cold remedies mentioned below.

Chopped Garlic + Honey

This is a tried-and-true remedy, and most of us probably have garlic on hand and honey in the pantry, so it’s simple to make. Garlic is fantastic for banishing symptoms of colds and flu, and for supporting the immune system. Mince or crush one large clove of garlic and down it with a spoonful of honey to help it go down easy. You can also try this trick with a bit of cinnamon too, which adds extra anti-inflammatory properties.

Ginger

Ginger is another wonderful anti-inflammatory herb and as natural cold and flu remedies go, it has a lot to offer. It reduces nausea, alleviates pain from a sore throat, reduces cold symptoms, and stimulates the part of the immune system that produces antibodies, amping up your body’s natural defences. My ginger tea recipe is a favourite of mine during cold and flu season and if you’re feeling brave, you could add a bit of garlic to this one too!

Citrus Fruits

Lemons, limes, oranges and citrus fruits are loaded with Vitamin C, a potent antioxidant that shortens the length of the common cold and supports immunity. Our adrenal glands use up a ton of Vitamin C during times of stress – and illness is certainly a stressful situation in our bodies. You can juice citrus, eat whole oranges or grapefruit, or add slices to hot or cold water. And don’t forget to use the zest – there is a concentration of nutrients in the zest, too.

Here is one of my favourite warm elixir recipes to help me keep my immune system running optimally.

Immune Booster Elixir

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 2 servings

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Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp raw cacao power
• 1 Tbsp dandelion root extract
• 1 tsp reishi extract
• 1 Tbsp hemp seeds
• 1 Tbsp prepared Irish Moss (optional)
• 1 tsp buffered vitamin C powder
• Raw honey to taste
• 2–3 cups warm or hot water or herbal tea

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Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. With less powerful blenders, you may want to pour through a nut sack or fine mesh sieve to ensure a smooth drink.
2. Drink up!

• Prep Time: 5 mins

The effectiveness of natural cold and flu remedies may depend on your constitution and resilience when you start taking them and your tolerance for the ones that aren’t as tasty. Try experimenting with some of these to discover which ones work best for you and your family. And let me know if there are more natural cold remedies not listed here that work for you!

The post 10 Natural Cold and Flu Remedies and Immune Elixir Recipe appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Broths and stocks can be as simple or as complex as you’d like them to be. In this Culinary Nutrition Guide to broths and stocks, you’ll learn everything you need to make, use and store a nourishing batch of broth every time.

What’s the Difference Between Broths and Stocks?

The terms ‘broth’ and ‘stock’ are typically used interchangeably. In our experience, it doesn’t make much difference in recipes if you use either a broth or a stock; however, from a culinary/chef perspective there are some key differences.

Broth

• Made using meat (no bones) and/or vegetables
• Simmered for a shorter amount of time
• Thin consistency
• Seasoned with herbs and spices

Stock

• Prepared with animal bones (bones are sometimes roasted first for more flavour)
• Simmered for longer periods of time
• Often unseasoned or salt-free
• Thick consistency, due to the gelatin from the bones

You may have also heard of bone broth, which has become very popular in recent years. Bone broth, because it has bones, is technically a stock but the term ‘bone broth’ seems to be more commonly used than ‘bone stock’. Confused? That’s why we like using broth and stock interchangeably, which works for most of us everyday cooks – not as restaurant chefs. But hey, even the award-winning James Beard says broths, stocks and bouillon are all the same. If he’s OK with using the terms interchangeably, so are we!

Culinary Nutrition Benefits of Broths and Stocks

Broths and stocks are:

• Simple to digest and comforting
• Great for boosting the immune system
• Hydrating
• Delicious in a variety of recipes
• Easy to enhance with more nutrition by adding vegetables, herbs, spices, sea vegetables, medicinal mushrooms and culinary adaptogens
• Rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients

Additional Benefits of Broth

• If using meat, meat-based broth is rich in protein for repairing tissues, boosting immunity, bolstering energy and hormone balance – and contain health-building fats that support cell membranes, joint health and the brain
• Quicker cooking than stocks

Additional Benefits of Stock

The bones used in stock are rich in:

• Minerals
• Gelatin for digestion, bone and joint health, and skin health (the gelatin also helps the stock thicken up and ‘gel’)
• Chondroitin, glucosamine and collagen for bone, joint and skin health

No matter which option you choose to make, you’re going to end up with a beneficial pot of nutrition!

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Why Make Your Own Broths and Stocks?

The foundation of the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program is making food from scratch as much as possible – not because we want to make life difficult or time-consuming, but so students feel empowered to cook the best food for themselves and their families. Homemade broths and stocks:

• Allow you to control exactly what goes into your pot
• Are often less expensive than many store-bought products, because you can make a much larger portion at home
• Contain simple ingredients
• Do not include processed or artificial flavour enhancers (such as chicken ‘flavour’, MSG/yeast extract), poor quality oils, excess salt (or low quality salt)
• Can be cooked in large batches and stored in the freezer for ease and convenience
• Can be given a nutrition boost with extra ingredients (see below ‘How to Boost Nutrition of Broths and Stocks’)
• Reduces packaging and are low-waste

Best Equipment for Making Broths and Stocks

What you need to make broth and stock is fairly simple:

• Large pot
• Fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth
• Large bowl to strain broth/stock into
• Storage containers for finished broths and stocks
• Cutting board and knife, if prepping additional vegetables or herbs

If you don’t want to be standing over the stove or constantly checking on your broth or stock, an appliance like a slow cooker or Instant Pot can be very helpful – an Instant Pot can also cut down on cooking time significantly.

How to Make Stock: Basic Recipe

This bone broth recipe is very flexible. You can alter the bone-to-water ratio (more bones will yield a thicker stock, or you can use less water for a more intense flavour).

Ingredients

• 1-3 lbs bones (chicken, beef, turkey, fish, etc.)
• Water, enough to cover the bones
• Any nutrition upgrades (see choices below)

Instructions: Pot on the Stove or Slow Cooker

If you’d like to roast the bones first (optional):

• Follow Step #1 below.
• Drain and dry the bones.
• Spread the bones out on a baking sheet.
• Roast the bones at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
• Proceed with Step #2.

1. Add bones and water into the pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. Drain the bones and clean any scum from the pot.
2. Add the bones and any nutrition upgrades to the pot on the stove or the slow cooker. Cover with fresh water.
3. If using the stovetop, bring to a boil then lower the heat. Cover and cook for a minimum of 2 hours. The longer you cook, the more flavourful and nutrient dense the stock will be.
4. If using the slow cooker, cook on a low setting for a minimum of 8 hours and a maximum of 24 hours.
5. Allow the stock to cool, until it can be handled easily without burning yourself.
6. Place the strainer over a larger bowl. Pour the stock into the strainer and discard the solids.
7. Store the broth in the fridge or freezer to use for later (see ‘Storing Broths and Stocks’ below).

Instructions: Instant Pot

1. Add bones, water, and any nutrition upgrades to the Instant Pot. Cover and set to ‘sealing’.
2. Cook for 30-60 minutes.
3. Allow stock to cool, until it can be handled easily (be careful – the Instant Pot gets very hot and takes longer to cool than the stovetop or slow cooker).
4. Place the strainer over a large bowl. Pour the stock into the strainer and discard the solids.
5. Store the broth in the fridge or freezer to use for later (see ‘Storing Broths and Stocks’ below).

How To Boost Nutrition of Broths and Stocks

Enhance your broths and stocks by adding extra ingredients. Don’t add all of these at once – pick four or so to start and go from there, especially if you are unfamiliar with using some of these ingredients.

Onions and Garlic

Health Benefits: Anti-viral and anti-bacterial, boost the immune system, anti-inflammatory.

Flavour Profile: Depending on the type of onions and garlic you use, they can be very pungent, bitter or spicy. Some onions like shallot or green onion have a milder flavour.

Ginger

Health Benefits: Anti-inflammatory, immune-boosting and good for digestion and nausea.

Flavour Profile: Spicy

Turmeric

Health Benefits: Anti-inflammatory, reduces pain, rich in antioxidants and cancer-fighting nutrients.

Flavour Profile: Bitter and spicy.

Maca

Health Benefits: Relieves stress, boosts energy levels, balances hormones. and increases sex drive.

Flavour Profile: Malt-like

Goji Berries

Health Benefits: Antioxidant-rich (including Vitamin C), high in amino acids for healing and repair, beta-carotene for eye health and immunity.

Flavour Profile: Slightly sweet, but they work surprisingly well in savory broths.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Health Benefits: Improves digestion and boosts immunity, and helps to draw nutrients out of bones.

Flavour Profile: Sour

Medicinal Mushrooms

Health Benefits: Immune-boosting and modulating, anti-cancer, rich in vitamins and minerals like iron, copper, Vitamin D, B vitamins and selenium.

Flavour Profile: Umami, earthy, meaty.

Sea Vegetables

Health Benefits: Rich in iodine for hormonal and thyroid health, high in protein and B vitamins, contain chlorophyll to nourish cells, immune-boosting and cancer-fighting.

Flavour Profile: Each variety will taste different – they all taste faintly ‘of the sea’, but also have a rich, umami and slightly salty flavour.

Parsley

Health Benefits: Rich in antioxidants, detoxifying.

Flavour Profile: Mildly bitter.

Dill

Health Benefits: Anti-bacterial, rich in calcium for bone health, helps to neutralize carcinogens.

Flavour Profile: Slightly sweet, tangy.

Carrots and Celery

Health Benefits: Carrots are rich in Vitamin A, which helps with immunity, inflammation and tissue healing. Celery is high in minerals like potassium, folate and sodium.

Flavour Profile: Sweet, mild.

Root Vegetables

Health Benefits: Anti-inflammatory, immune-boosting and good for reducing PMS symptoms.

Flavour Profile: Most root vegetables are sweet and starchy.

To Be Added After Cooking

Add these more delicate ingredients into your broth just before enjoying.

Dark Leafy Greens

Health Benefits: B vitamins for energy levels and managing stress, rich in fibre for good digestion, contain minerals like calcium and Vitamin K for bone health, have anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats, anti-cancer properties.

Flavour Profile: Depending on the green, the flavour ranges from mild to strong and bitter.

Sprouts

Health Benefits: Contain easy-to-digest amino acids and simple sugars, rich in enzymes, are anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting, inexpensive to make at home.

Flavour Profile: Depending on the sprout you choose, the flavour ranges from mild to bitter.

Fresh Herbs

Add more fresh herbs at the end for extra flavour and nutrition – for example, parsley, dill, oregano, thyme, mint, basil or any other herb that complements your broth.

Low-Waste Broths or Stocks

When you are meal prepping, batch cooking or simply making a quick meal, save odds and ends of vegetables in a container in the freezer. Then, when you have a full bag, add them to your broths and stocks – or use them to make vegetable-only stock. More low waste/zero waste tips can be found here.

How to Use Broths in Recipes

There are many uses for homemade broths and stocks! Use them in:

• Soups
• Stews
• Sauces and gravies
• Casseroles
• Marinades
• Cauliflower rice
• Gluten-free grains (use the stock to cook the grains)
• Mashed sweet potatoes, or other mashes and purées with vegetables
• Noodle dishes
• Risotto

Or just sip it alone in a mug!

Storing Stocks and Broths

Store your broth in an airtight container in the fridge if you are going to use it soon. Keep in the fridge for 4-5 days maximum. We like using glass or stainless steel for storage.

If you are batch cooking broth and freezing it, ensure you leave at least 1 inch of headspace at the top of the jar to account for expansion. Store in containers of various sizes (500ml, 1 litre, 2 litre) for a variety of recipes and also freeze some in ice cube trays for quick additions to sauces or other dishes.

Cooking your own broths and stocks is a very straightforward process, and you can keep them plain or adjust the flavour profiles as you see fit. What are you waiting for – grab a pot and get going!

Image: iStock/Cleardesign1

The post Broths and Stocks: A Culinary Nutrition Guide appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

I built the freedom of travel into my business and lifestyle so that I can get some warm rays on my skin in the winter months, but that isn’t an option for everyone and also isn’t the solution to six months of low sunlight. While I wouldn’t say I experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), I definitely feel the lethargy and lack of spark that comes from the long months of grey skies, cold and too much darkness. Over the years, I’ve developed some key strategies to prevent the winter blues that you might find helpful whether you’re working on staving them off, or to help you come out from under the weight of them.

Seasonal Affective Disorder vs The Winter Blues: What’s the Difference?

• Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): This is a specific type of depression that happens seasonally, usually in the winter but it can also happen during the summer. People with SAD have trouble properly regulating serotonin (a neurotransmitter that helps lift our mood), overproduce melatonin (a hormone that regulates our sleep-wake cycles) and underproduce Vitamin D. SAD can make you feel tired, irritable, sad, anxious and unfocused. Some may overeat (especially sugary foods) and others might experience a lack of appetite.
• The Winter Blues: People with the winter blues have much, much milder symptoms of SAD and not to the extent that it would be considered a clinical diagnosis, though could potentially get worse if action is not taken.

Who Is Most Susceptible?

The winter blues and SAD are more likely to affect those living further away from the equator, as they have much less exposure to natural sunlight. Fortunately, there are ways that you can bring some sunshine to your winter blues without taking a tropical vacation.

How To Prevent and Cope With The Winter Blues

Take Your Vitamin D

This crucial vitamin strengthens our bone health, helps balance our hormones, supports our immune system and nourishes brain function. Low Vitamin D levels are linked to depression and people with SAD symptoms often don’t make enough of it. You can get the full scoop on the latest Vitamin D research here, as it’s important to health in multiple ways.

The sun is one of our leading sources of Vitamin D and it can be challenging to get enough in the winter. Not only are there fewer hours of sunlight, but also we tend to cover up extensively when we’re outside due to the crappy weather. Vitamin D supplements are going to be your best bet for increasing your dose of Vitamin D. While there are food sources of Vitamin D such as egg yolks, liver, salmon, sardines, and mushrooms, you won’t get near the dose you’ll receive from a supplement.

Though I am not in the business of supplement recommending, most of us are low in Vitamin D. Step one is to get your level checked. When your doctor says that everyone has low levels and you don’t need to be tested, insist on it. You want to get a baseline so when you go back in six months to get checked again, you have something to measure it against. Josh Gitalis, functional medicine practitioner (and my husband pictured above with our son Finley) gives this recommendation: “To ensure you are getting a good quality Vitamin D, make sure the form is cholecalciferol. Most people need about 5000 IUs to maintain optimal blood levels.”

The typical dosage recommendations on labels are often too low, especially if you’re starting out low. Of course, you’ll want to check with your natural health care practitioner.

Go Outside First Thing in the Morning

Exposure to light when we get up in the morning helps to regulate our circadian rhythm and improve sleep. If you’re unable to get outside first thing in the morning (or are commuting while it’s still dark), try to get outside for a bit as soon as you’re able to, or try a few minutes of light therapy first thing in the morning. As well, that full spectrum of natural light needs to fill your eyes. You don’t want so much that you’re causing damage, especially if you’re in a very snowy area and the glare is high, but some natural light in the eyes everyday is important.

Get Some Full Spectrum Rays In Your Eyes Or Try Light Therapy

If you can’t go to where there is more sun, you can also bring some sunshine to you! Light therapy boxes or lamps are a simple way to enjoy a full spectrum of light during the long stretches of winter and may help prevent winter blues in the first place. Look for a light that has at least 10,000 lux (a measure of light intensity) and will also filter UV rays. Remember that a little goes a long way with light therapy and too much exposure can lead to eye strain, headaches or nausea.

Tanning beds are not a good solution for dealing with the winter blues or receiving broad spectrum sunlight. They primarily emit UVA rays which does not promote production of Vitamin D and can cause damage to our skin and health. You can read my full post about the risk of tanning beds here.

Take Advantage of The Warmer Months

Stock up on the benefits of sunshine while it’s around! Build up your stores of Vitamin D (like an animal preparing for hibernation!) and enjoy the health benefits of sunshine during the spring, summer, or early fall while the sun is strong. Keep in mind that people with darker skin need 3-5 times more sun exposure than those with lighter skin for optimal Vitamin D. It’s important that you enjoy the sun safely and these tips will help you with healthy sun exposure.

Spend Time in Nature

Nature is a restorative and powerful force – it can help boost your mood, improve immunity, reduce stress and support the nervous system. Being in nature is a full-spectrum activity: the fresh air, the sounds of wildlife, the sights, the forest smells and the exercise all contribute to our mental and physical health.

At some points in the winter, depending on where you live, it’s just too risky to be outside. In early or late winter, you may be able to go outside in short bursts and it helps if you are moving to stay warm!

One of my absolute favourite indoor winter activities is to visit the local indoor botanical gardens. See if you can find an indoor garden or greenhouse – many large cities have them. The smells in there are pure therapy. Drop me in the tropical room with the humidity and the orchids and I am a new woman.

Try Saunas for Warmth

I am a huge fan of my home infrared sauna! Aside from the comfortable heat they offer, infrared saunas are great for our health. They aid detoxification, boost immunity, improve cardiovascular function, reduce pain and can enhance relaxation. Get the full lowdown on infrared saunas and how to best use them here.

I’d recommend testing the waters in a public sauna (you can find them at some yoga studios and spas) before investing in one at home. You may never have the space or funds to buy your own and that’s OK too – that’s why it’s helpful to have a good public spot to use in the winter.

Stay Hydrated

We tend to focus on hydration in the summertime, but we can get dehydrated in the winter too – and dehydration can impair our mood and cognition. Water is always my go-to source for hydration. When it’s cold you can choose hot water, herbal teas, soups and elixirs for hydration, and remember we get water from fruits and vegetables too.

Move Your Body

Exercise is important for your physical and mental well-being. Evidence indicates that aerobic exercise can reduce levels of depression in SAD patients, particularly when paired with light therapy.

During the last several years, I’ve become obsessed with Obé Fitness and it’s had an enormously positive impact on my mental health. If you register over at Obé with coupon code MEGHAN50 it’s free for your first week without any obligation and if you decide to continue, you’ll get the first month at 50% off.

Of course, any physical activity you enjoy will help you beat the winter blues – walking, yoga, swimming, dancing, indoor cycling, etc. Whatever you can make into a habit will provide benefit.

Change Your Perspective

Winter doesn’t have to be an endless, dark void of cold and misery. Instead of griping about fewer hours of sunshine, try to shift your thought processes and look at the positive aspects of wintertime. Consider the winter as an opportunity to:

• frolic in the snow
• drink hot chocolate
• cozy up in warm sweaters and socks
• snuggle with loved ones
• hunker down on the couch with some great TV
• sleep in
• meal prep for your future self
• do the things you skip when it’s nice because you don’t want to ‘waste time’ inside
• grow food indoors
• try a new cooking project
• or a combination of the above!

During the last year, I’ve been focusing on a few practices that have an immense impact on my mental wellbeing. To learn more, check out these posts:

• How to Retrain Your Brain for Happiness
• Creating Inner Harmony in 30 Seconds

I also invite you to check out my free coherence session, a 20-minute class that shares breathing techniques that can help improve your mental state and brain function.

Winter is inevitable, but the winter blues don’t always have to be. There are many ways to mitigate the effects of the darker months on your mental and physical health. I encourage you to give some of the tips I’ve shared a try this winter.

What do you do to avoid the winter blues?

The post How To Prevent and Cope With The Winter Blues appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

No matter the season, one pot meals are always an easy and delicious way to get dinner on the table. One potters are my favourite meals because they’re comforting, simple, no-fuss, and a great reason to use up any lingering produce in the fridge.

One pot meals are flexible and forgiving, so there aren’t a lot of strict culinary rules to follow. However, I do have a few key guidelines that I use to ensure I don’t end up with a gloppy mess in the pot that more closely resembles doggy diarrhea than my dinner of choice. Here are some of the things to keep in mind when making healthy one pot meals.

The Ultimate Guide To One Pot Meals

1. Select a Quality Source of Protein

Protein is an essential meal component that keeps us satiated for longer and provides us with the amino acids we need for healing and repair. One of the reasons we get hungry after meals is that we haven’t given our body what it needs. A bowl of gluten-free pasta and tomato sauce is not a meal. That’s a carb-fest and will leave you snacking!

You can make a vegan one pot meal with organic tempeh, tofu, beans and legumes, or go Paleo with grass fed meat, poultry or fish.

2. Load Up Your Pot With Veggies

The best one pot meals are loaded with veggie goodness. I don’t have to remind you of this, right? The UnDiet Life is a plantiful one where the bulk of what we eat are fresh, unprocessed, non-starchy veggies. Fresh vegetables offer us the super keys that run our bodies optimally. I like to use a mix of hearty and lighter vegetables, which I’ll get to in a moment.

3. Layer or Stagger Your Veggies as Needed

Some vegetables take longer to cook than others, and you don’t want to end up with a pile of mush at the end. I like to layer my vegetables, with the ones that take longer to cook on the bottom like sweet potatoes, squash, parsnips, beets, carrots, celery root, turnips, etc – basically the winter + root vegetable family. Then I’ll put the lighter vegetables on top that don’t need as much cooking time and will get mushy if cooked too long.

Another option is to stagger the cooking and add the heartier vegetables into the pot first, then toss in the lighter ones 15 minutes later.

4. Add a Gluten-Free Grain (or not, if you’re grain-free)

Gluten-free grains add an additional source of fibre, which is great for our digestive tract, blood sugar management and cardiovascular health. They are also packed with B vitamins to boost our energy levels and reduce stress.

Some grains take much longer to cook than others, so for a one pot meal I recommend choosing a quick cooking grain like quinoa, millet or buckwheat. Remember that you’ll also need to add an additional cup of water for every cup of grain you use.

And if you’re not doing grains, a cauliflower rice makes an awesome addition to add a little heartyness to the meal.

5. Use A Big Pot!

This is an important one! Especially for people like me who are super torrents in the kitchen. There’s nothing worse than having an overflow situation or needing to switch pots as you add more ingredients. Use a big pot right from the start so you’ll have lots of room for whatever you need and won’t have to do any extra dishes.

Setting out a big pot is also helpful as you’ll likely make more that you can have for lunches the next day, or freeze for later.

6. Skip the Veggie Broths and Stocks

Sidestep the stocks and broths and pour water into the pot instead. For one, this is one less ingredient you need to have on hand. And unless you’re a pro and having homemade broth or stock on hand, 99% of the store bought ones are mostly salt and water. Or worse, check the ingredients and you may find monosodium glutamate or yeast extract (alternate names for the same thing), both of which are neurotoxic.

All of the veggies simmering away will create their own flavourful broth so make it easier on yourself and just use water and sea salt.

7. Pick a Flavour Profile

Just because you’re putting everything into one pot it doesn’t mean that you can just throw all herbs and spices in your cupboard in there willy nilly. Pick a flavour profile for your one pot meal, whether you’d like to go for curry seasonings, Italian spices or Greek-inspired flavours.

8. Load Up on Greens at the End

Dark leafy greens are delicate and they lose their nutrients the longer they’re cooked – they also tend to get mighty bitter and soggy. I love adding a heaping serving of greens to my one pot meals, but I always add them after I turn off the heat and then stir until the greens are just wilted.

This allows you to maintain the nutritional value, plus you’ll still keep the bright green colour. Grayish stringy greens are what I call barftastic.

9. Garnish with Herbs and Condiments

Add some freshness to your meal with a scattering of your favourite herbs and homemade condiments. I love piling on the herbs, and serving my one pot meals with a spoonful of something fermented like sauerkraut or kimchi. But you can use whatever herbs and condiments you love!

10. Finish with A Heathy Dollop of Fat

A good source of fat helps us maintain hormone health, nourish the nervous system, support the brain and joints, and stabilize blood sugar. I like to drizzle my one pot meals with flax oil or chia oil at the end, as these fats are sensitive to heat. You can also use olive oil, coconut oil or ghee if you’d like.

The post Ultimate Guide To One Pot Meals appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

And so, as the oxygen-giving leaves fall from the trees, CO2 levels rise, our exposure to sunshine, the primary source of Vitamin D (critical for immune support), decreases, our schedules tend to fill up and we spend less time in nature– well, that is the perfect recipe for viral infections to take hold.

With a little man at home, I appreciate that basic colds and such are essential for my son’s immune system development. I don’t want to be along for the ride, sniffling beside him. So in advance of the season of immune suppression, I employ extra care to stay as well as I can.

Most of my immune power comes from the way I eat and the way I live – and it’s pretty simple for you to arm yourself against the onslaught. Prevention is always the best way to go and though, of course, there is no surefire way to never, ever get sick. Taking on some specific habits when you know you’re prone to getting sick will help build up your resiliency, potentially shorten the suffering, and reduce the risk of complications.

Here are my top 5 go-to ways to ward off colds and flus, both during the cold and flu season and throughout the year.

1. Avoid Sugar and Alcohol

If you want to invite colds and flus into your body, having a piece of candy, chocolate, cake or alcohol with or after every meal is the way to do it. Excess sugar is linked to a wide variety of health problems, including blood sugar imbalances, diabetes, obesity, tooth decay, and cancer. Sugar dampens our immune systems, leaving us more susceptible to germs and illnesses.

You’ve probably heard that Vitamin C is an essential vitamin to support the immune system. In the 1970’s, researchers found out that vitamin C was needed by white blood cells so that they could devour viruses and bacteria. Glucose (aka sugar) and vitamin C have similar chemical structures, so when the sugar levels go up in the body, they compete with Vitamin C for entry into the cell. Unfortunately, the insulin receptors on our cells favour glucose over Vitamin C, so if there is more glucose around, there is going to be less vitamin C allowed in. It doesn’t take much: a blood sugar value of 120 reduces the ability of our cells to eat bacteria by 75%.

While there may be some benefits to certain types of alcohol in limited amounts, for the most part, alcohol compromises the immune system and leaves us more susceptible to infections. And most of us aren’t having the occasional glass of organic wine – many are boozing it up on the regular.

This study demonstrates that when subjects consumed 100g of either honey, fructose, glucose, or sucrose (table sugar), the activity of their immune cells decreased for 5 hours. 

So when you eat sugar or alcohol, think of your immune system slowing down to a crawl.

Read more about sugar here.

2. Get enough sleep

You can’t make up sleep. Not really. You can sleep in, and you can rest, but insufficient sleep will begin to weaken immune function.  When we have the flu, we feel our best in the morning, after we have rested. Symptoms tend to worsen by afternoon and then we improve again after a good sleep.

Does sleep actually suppress infection and boost immune function? Researchers have discovered that when animals are sleep-deprived, they become more susceptible to microbial and bacteria growth, which can lead to illness and infection. You might be thinking, ‘But Meghan! The flu is a virus, not a bacteria’. True, but weakened immune function is weakened immune function, no matter how it gets weakened.

A good night’s sleep doesn’t just benefit animals – it helps us, too. Evidence shows that sufficient sleep and a regular circadian rhythm boost immune function and help filter T-cells into our lymph nodes. Our lymphatic system is essential for eliminating wastes and defending our bodies from external invaders, so the moral of the story is a good night’s sleep is an important element to prevent colds and flus.

Having trouble sleeping?

• Podcast Episode: How to get a good night’s sleep
• Read: 10 ways to get better sleep

3. Reduce (Or at least limit!) stress

Chronic stress impairs the immune system’s capacity to respond to glucocorticoid hormones that normally are responsible for terminating an inflammatory response following infection and/or injury. Psychological stress (which, let’s face it, is largely self-induced) raises catecholamine (‘fight or flight’) hormones, which suppress the immune system and raise the risk of viral infection.

For example, researchers have shown that students taking exams have a lowered immunity compared to non-exam time. Also, a meta-analysis of 300 studies over 30 years concluded that chronic stress alters the immune system and can leave us more susceptible to disease.

So if you keep saying yes to everything, do more than anyone believes is humanly possible, and then continue telling everyone all about how stressed you are, you are a shoo-in to win the Flu Season Olympics.

Need to check that stress?

• Try: Stress-busting latte and stress-busting tips
• Try: These stress-reducing herbs

And remember, not all stress is bad. There are some benefits to stress!

4. Practise good hygiene and sweat it out

Germs are everywhere during cold and flu season! You can’t control what other people do, but you can control your own behaviour. Whether you’re at the grocery store, on public transit, at the gym or seeing friends and family, ensure you wash your hands regularly – especially when you’re eating or touching your face.

Rinsing your nasal passages with warm water and salt using a neti pot can help to wash out infections and reduce allergy symptoms. Having a good sweat will help you excrete toxins through your skin and raise your core body temperature, which will kill off potential pathogens. I like to use an infrared sauna, but regular exercise or hot yoga can also do the trick.

5. Load up on immune-supportive foods and herbs

A good diet loaded with plant-based foods is one of your best defenses to prevent colds and flus. And I don’t just mean a healthful diet the moment you feel a cold coming on – I’m talking about a continual commitment to eating high-quality produce, drinking plenty of water, consuming healthy fats, and loading up on quality proteins (protein is an essential part of our antibodies, and they assist with healing and repair).

Foods with Vitamin C (cauliflower, bell pepper, dark leafy greens, citrus), Vitamin D (eggs, fish), and probiotics (such as fermented foods) will also help to boost the immune system and keep your gut healthy. Since about 70% of the immune system lives in the gut, good digestion is crucial to healthy immunity.

For more immune-boosting power, try:

• Elderberry Syrup
• Cold and Flu Turmeric Tonic
• Healing Ginger Tea
• Simple Bone Broth Recipe
• Fast + Easy Miso Power Soup
• 10 Natural Cold and Flu Remedies

The post 5 Strategies To Stay Well Through ‘Cold and Flu Season’ appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

I once commented to a friend saying I wish I could just pack a bag and hop a flight for the weekend special at an all inclusive resort, but for me, that option is no longer an option. Knowing that the per guest food budget is usually around the $5 mark, makes me question what I’m eating, and how the staff are treated. The chemicals used in the cleaning products from what is sprayed in the bathrooms to what the sheets and towels are washed in are the things I like to avoid.

I also don’t like having plastic bottled water as my only option for drinking, or sitting on my balcony to find others on theirs smoking. And so it goes.

For most of my life, I didn’t think twice about these things. I now think a lot about them.

This has not stopped me from travelling however. It has simply changed how I travel, where I go and what the focus of my trips are. The simple goal for all my travel is that I want to return home feeling more refreshed, inspired, rested and restored than when I left. Simple. This goal doesn’t waver even when my travel is for business. When I travel for biz – there is always time for UnDiet living sweetness.

Years ago, I stayed at a very special place called Casa Bianca (pictured above). An estate house, that temporarily lived its life as a hospital, that has since been restored and converted into a guest house. I loved it because:

• They have a focus on supporting the health of their guests.
• They offer organic breakfasts as part of your stay.
• They use organic bedding and organic cleaners.
• The soaps provided are all natural and made locally.
• It has windows that open! (This should be mandatory in ALL hotels and it’s not).
• There are no air fresheners or other chemicals sprayed about the place.
• The shampoo they offer is in large glass pumps that they can refill, rather than mini disposable plastic bottles.
• It is right across the street from a park and they offer delightful walking and bicycling tour ideas.
• They have a kitchen that guests can use.

Check it…

Now that list might seem mighty long, but when you think about it, it’s actually not that tough to find as often all of those factors roll right on in together!

The strange, unique, and special spots I have laid my head while travelling are all part of the experience for me. The Holiday Inn just isn’t my thing.

One of my most favourite quotes from my friend Scott, a photographer I met on a random island in Fiji in 2002 is this:

“Travellers don’t know where they’re going. Tourists don’t know where they’ve been.”

To actually break this down, I will offer you my five main healthy travel tips for truly having a healthy holiday!

5 Healthy Travel Tips

1. Stay Somewhere With A Kitchen

This is a non-negotiable for me at this point. With so many options via AirBnB, HomeAway and VRBO, you can find an affordable, comfortable spot to stay anywhere in the world. With a kitchen, you are able to:

• Save loads of money by enjoying simple breakfasts at home
• Have a place to prep snacks and/or picnic lunches
• Where appropriate, get to enjoy the local market freshness and prepare beautiful meals in really fantastic spots
• Ask questions about who you are renting from – is there a blender, pots/pans, food storage containers, a cooler – and plan accordingly

2. Find Your Spot To Shop/Eat

Before you leave home, do a little searching around the area you’ll be going to.

• Map out a few key restaurants you want to try out.
• Look for the nearest health food store and/or supermarket to stock up on fresh produce.
• Check out the local farmer’s market schedule to make sure you include it in your itinerary. This is also a great way to connect with the local community and find out about local events and attractions.

3. Bring Your Own Healthy Travel Staples

This list may seem lengthy but once you get the travel staples, it’s really not. Even bringing all of these essentials, I can still travel for weeks at a time with carry on only. It’s one of the most awesome things about using all natural filler-free products. You often require only tiny amounts to get the job done, whether it’s a dropper full of laundry soap or a single drip of oil to moisturize your whole face.

• Bring your own refillable water bottles.
• Bring your own soaps and shampoos if they’re not providing the good stuff.
• Bring your own small laundry soap.
• Bring your own sheets if you’re super sensitive to detergents.
• Bring your own shower filter. What !?! Okay – consider this optional. If, like me, you react to chlorine and use a filter at home, it won’t take much for your skin to catch fire under the chemical if you’re not used to it.

Discover more about my travel essentials right here.

4. Be Snack Ready

Unexpected things often come up when we travel – whether it be delays, weather challenges or just plain old getting lost. Always have a few snacks prepped and ready to go.

• Trail mix – a must have. 
• Granola – the recipe in UnDiet is always my go to.
• Dried fruit or homemade snacks like these fruit roll ups.
• A few packaged food bars. I love the Raw Food Bars!
• A greens powder. Any which one will do. This is great to add to water in a pinch if you need an extra boost or a good starter if you don’t have a kitchen but need something to get going in the morning before your full breakfast.
• Elixir and/or your favourite teas. These are nice extras to have and can make any place feel like home.

Find more meal and snack ideas for travel here.

5. Get Sorted On Your Activities

Healthy holidays are going to include action! Know what you love, what you want to try and bring the right shoes and ensemble to make sure nothing stands in your way. Seeing places by foot and bike are some of the most interesting, freeing and fun ways to explore a new place. You may not go the same distance, but you’ll certainly remember where you were!

• Look out for bike rentals and/or tours (and know if you need to bring a helmet – safety first).
• Local hikes, self-guided or with a tour.
• Yoga fun in wild locations (a personal fave).
• Take public transit (where safe) as a great way to meet people and take the scenic route.

What are your healthy travel tips?

The post Healthy Travel Tips: Key Strategies For Healthy Holidays appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

When I shop for myself or presents for others, I always want to feel great about my purchases. I love supporting local or small businesses (I am an Etsy junkie!) and companies with ethical give-back programs. Also, if there’s a crystal on it, I will love it.

Of course, I am also a huge advocate for skipping the holiday shopping altogether and giving other things.

The Gifts That Give

Gifts that give back are at the top of my Healthy Living Gift Guide and for good reason! I have seven nieces and nephews and I found it challenging watching kids who have everything unwrap a ton of plastic garbage toys that were undoubtedly stashed away in a closet or broken within a month. So I voted to give each child one gift card to get something special, and to make a family donation to a cause that the kids could all choose together.

Given that we live in a very abundant culture, I am a big fan of the gifts that serve a greater purpose and can honour the ones you love by helping those who have less:

• Adopt a family and provide gifts for a family in need in your local community.
• Create a lending team with Kiva and give in honour of your family.
• Help provide families in your community with a holiday meal with Community Food Centres of Canada.

All of these organizations are set up to allow you to donate as a gift in honour of someone you love.

Of course, sometimes, we just want to give something tangible and thoughtfully chosen for the people we love. There is joy to giving presents and it’s good for our health too.

Below is a list of gift ideas that I’d love. Maybe you’ll find some inspiration here for yourself or for a loved one!

Ultimate Healthy Living Gift Guide

The Gift Of Chemical-Free Sleep

Why our bed tends to be the lowest on the rung of things we make investments on is beyond me. We spend 1/3 of our life in bed. Most beds are loaded with chemicals and most of us aren’t sleeping well. Could the bed make all the difference?

What if instead of buying each other a bunch of little things, you instead invest in the gift of a new bed? Something you will enjoy for optimally eight hours a night for the next 20 years.

I have long been a fan of Sunshine Mattress Co. They sell organic latex mattresses, foundations, and accessories and they’ve done the work for you. There is no mattress company with the standards and knowledge that they have.

Use coupon code MEGHAN5 for 5% off mattresses and MEGHAN10 for 10% off accessories at Sunshine Mattress Co. If you’re in the GTA and want to head to the store to try a bed in person, drop my name for 5% off.

CHECK IT OUT

Living Libations

If you’re looking to add some glow and goodness to your holiday gifting this season, I’m thrilled to share a few of my absolute faves from Living Libations. If you’ve been in my community for some time, you’ll know that I am completely obsessed with their products. Living Libations, based in Haliburton, Ontario, sources the purest essential oils from around the world. Their luxurious, plant-powered products never fail to wow, and they’re always in my self-care routine—whether it’s for my skincare, wellness, or even travel essentials.

Here are some items I know you’ll love just as much as I do: The Nose Glow is a red light therapy device that works wonders for nasal health, sinuses, and overall well-being—helping reduce inflammation and support healing. The Best Skin Ever Seabuckthorn Oil is packed with skin-loving nutrients for hydration, balance, and a radiant glow. For fresh breath and a healthy smile, the Triple Mint Tooth Enamelizer is a must, with its blend of essential oils that strengthen enamel and fights bacteria. And the Rose Glow Serum is an indulgent treat, deeply nourishing your skin with precious rose oils for a dewy, glowing complexion.

Whether you’re gifting these treasures or treating yourself, Living Libations offers the kind of luxurious, clean beauty we all deserve. Trust me—you’ll be hooked.

If you’re curious to learn more about the Nose Glow Red Light Therapy – check out this video.

Use this link for 15% off your Living Libations order (discount applied on top of any existing sale on their site and is applied at checkout).

CHECK IT OUT

Online Fitness: Obé

After the birth of my son, I found it hard to get back into a fitness routine that I could realistically maintain. That is, until I found Obé Fitness. There are very few things I’ve experienced in my life that I would call life-changing, but this habit that is new in my life absolutely has been. These workouts are on-demand, short, full of variety, and are utterly FUN. Most important for me, however, is the mental and emotional shift I am feeling. I feel stronger, and more resilient mentally.  In fact, after nearly six years, I am taking on my first Obe Program challenge and working towards a pull-up. I aim to get there before I hit my ten-year anniversary on the platform.

This is one of those gifts you may have to be mindful of – you don’t want someone to take it the wrong way ;) But I recommend making it a group thing and gift it to yourself and a friend and make it happen together!

Register over at Obé and use coupon code MEGHAN50 to get 50% off your first month, plus a 7-day free trial.

CHECK IT OUT

Hello Joyous Beauty Care

In 2023 my friends over at Joyous Health launched their stunning, conscious and extremely well-thought-out beauty line Hello Joyous.

Many of their products are completely scent-free which I appreciate and though I have yet to master the dry shampoo technique, I am loving the Magical Mist Toner and Hella Hydrating Serum for morning and evening use. I use the Ultra Moisturizing Body Butter nightly on my feet.

In addition to the quality ingredients, I also appreciate the thoughtfulness towards low and zero-plastic packaging.

Their teas along with the growing line of products makes this both a brand to love now and to keep an eye on as they grow and expand their product line.

You can use the code ‘MEGHAN’ at checkout to save 10% on your purchase.

CHECK IT OUT

BioMat

I’ve been using this infrared-heating wonder for over two years now, and I honestly can’t imagine my routine without it. It’s not just a heating pad—it combines infrared heat with amethyst crystals to create a deeply grounding, soothing experience.

I use mine 5-6 times a week, and love it – especially during the colder months when I’m craving warmth and relaxation. The BioMat can temporarily relieve minor muscle and joint pain, relax tight muscles, and support recovery from minor strains and sprains**. I find it to be the perfect way to unwind, especially when the world feels a little chaotic.

I’m not saying it’s a miracle worker (because that’s not how this works), but it’s definitely one of my go-to tools for self-care. I made this video about it here.

I recommend getting the mini- it’s portable, easy to stash away, and also can work on your desk chair or throw it on your sofa for end-of-day-slouch-mode.

Check out this brief video tour of my BioMat and see all the reasons why I love it!

CHECK IT OUT

**Specific medical advice should be obtained from a licensed health care practitioner.

Pact

Pact is my go-to for organic cotton clothing, and I especially love their leggings (plastic-free ones are really hard to find) and underwear, but they also make organic bedding and towels (which do make for a nice gift too).

What I love most about Pact is that their goods are certified Fair Trade, made with organic cotton because we really need to stop with the idea that sweating in plastic fitness clothes is okay (especially the ones that are all up in our business). Let’s be honest, plastic is plastic, whether it has a fancy name and trademark or is greenwashed as ecological because it’s recycled.

Organic cotton just feeeeeeeels good.

If you’ve never tried Pact before, you can use code ‘MEGHANT15’ at checkout to save 15% on full-price apparel.

CHECK IT OUT

Blue Blocking Glasses: Swanwick

As an owner of an online business, it’s nearly impossible for me to avoid being in front of a screen and the exposure to blue light that comes with that.

There is some debate as to the effectiveness of blue light blocking glasses or goggles. Some small studies conclude that wearing blue light blocking glasses helps to filter out blue light, improve sleep quality and quantity, improve mood, prevent melatonin suppression, and reduce symptoms like headaches, dry eyes, and eyestrain. Other research reports that there isn’t sufficient evidence that blue light blocking glasses are effective at preventing insomnia or improving eye health.

I have a pair of blue light filtering glasses from Swanwick, but there are a lot of non-prescription and prescription options out there, so in my opinion they would be a good gift for those in your life who spend a lot of time in front of devices.

CHECK IT OUT

Aires EMF Protection

You’ve probably heard me talk about the importance of coherence and harmony in our energy fields, and so I wanted to share a tool that helps me stay aligned, even in the midst of all the electromagnetic chaos. I wear an Aires Tech device around my neck—a little pouch that helps neutralize EMFs (electromagnetic frequencies) from things like Wi-Fi, 5G, and all the other tech we can’t avoid these days.

I’m not saying this is the only thing I rely on for my health, but it’s a key piece of the puzzle when I’m out in the world—whether I’m traveling, grocery shopping, or just in places where EMFs are everywhere. Aires Tech devices help create a more harmonious energy field around you, which supports your body’s ability to stay in balance.

The results? More energy, better sleep, and improved focus.

Use this link for 25% off your Aires purchase.

CHECK IT OUT

Tiny Ritual Candles and Incense

This small business specializes in beeswax candles and incense, though it also offers a few extra goodies like crystals and necklaces.

What I adore about Carlyn’s products is her focus on using the candles for ritual and intention-setting. I invited Carlyn to present a candle-making and intention-setting for a ‘Crafternoon’ session with my team, and she was chock-full of brilliant ideas for how to use candles mindfully to manifest your dreams and goals.

CHECK IT OUT

21-Day Embodiment Journey by Pause Breathwork

Looking for a meaningful gift that offers real transformation? The 21-Day Embodiment Journey from Pause Breathwork is a perfect choice. This program uses the healing power of breath to help release stress, unlock emotional blockages, and bring a deep sense of calm and clarity.

Normally priced at $497, the 21-Day Embodiment Journey is available to you for just $197 – that’s 60% off! It’s the perfect gift for anyone who could use a reset, some time to slow down, or a deeper connection to their mind and body.

Don’t miss this special offer – give (or receive!) this.

CHECK IT OUT

Elixir by Josh Gitalis

I am a huge fan of elixirs – I make them almost daily in my high-speed blender. Yes, I am a little biased because Josh is my husband. But also, I’m certain I would love this product no matter who made it!

This blend is incredibly tasty, sugar-free, packed with adaptogens and superfoods, and so easy to blend and use. This works in hot and cold elixirs, smoothies, homemade chocolates, nut/seed butters, and is a fantastic alternative to coffee too.

CHECK IT OUT

Rouge Red Light Therapy

One of the best investments that I’ve made within the last few years, was my Rouge Red Light Therapy. I use it daily to help regulate my circadian rhythm (hello sleep!), boost my immune system, and help get my hair and skin glowing.

It functions differently from a sauna for a few reasons, but generally a sauna is powerful by nature of it being a ‘stress’ on our body, where this feels like adding nourishment and relaxation. It offers a similar mood-boosting feeling as you get from laying out under the warm sun, an extra bonus in the darker, colder months of the year.

Yes, Red Light Therapy is a significant investment, but it makes an excellent gift for yourself or for a special loved one.

Use the code ‘MEGHAN’ to save $50 on your purchase of $400 or more.

CHECK IT OUT

Jaspr Pro Air Purifier

It’s not just an air purifier that helps keep your indoor air quality safe. It’s a medical-grade air purifier that delivers the highest level of performance for the most affordable price. I have this one and love it.

Jaspr is offering $400 off with code MTBREATHE.

Check out all the cool features of the Jaspr and see why it’s the only air purifier that I use and trust.

CHECK IT OUT

Kooshoo

If you’re looking for the perfect sustainable gift that’s both practical and stylish, I can’t recommend Kooshoo scrunchies and hair ties enough! These little beauties are made from organic cotton and other eco-friendly materials, so not only are they gentle on your hair, but they’re also kind to the planet.

Unlike those traditional elastic hair ties that cause breakage and leave you with hair tie dents, Kooshoo scrunchies are soft, comfy, and won’t pull or damage your hair. Whether you’re at the gym, running errands, or just relaxing at home, they stay put without causing any discomfort. Plus, they come in gorgeous, timeless colors and patterns that will brighten up anyone’s hair routine.

When you choose Kooshoo, you’re also supporting ethical production practices, which is always a win in my book! These are the perfect little gift to show someone you care—about their hair, their well-being, and the Earth!

Click here to save 15% off your first purchase.

CHECK IT OUT

West Coast Seeds

If you’re looking to gift something that keeps on giving, West Coast Seeds is your go-to. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or a newbie, their wide selection of organic seeds makes it easy to grow your own food at home. Imagine gifting a garden full of nutrient-dense, homegrown veggies and herbs—there’s really nothing better for your health or your soul!

West Coast Seeds offers everything from leafy greens to colorful flowers, all grown with sustainability and the planet in mind. The seeds are tried, tested, and sure to thrive in a variety of conditions, making them perfect for all types of gardeners.

Plus, growing your own food reduces your carbon footprint, supports biodiversity, and encourages a more self-sufficient lifestyle. It’s a beautiful, eco-friendly gift that nurtures not only your health, but also your connection to the Earth.

Click here to give the gift of gardening—and watch it grow.

CHECK IT OUT

* This post contains affiliate links.

The post Meghan’s Healthy Living Gift Guide appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

And yet the way we spend and value quality when it comes to beds and bedding doesn’t always reflect this. Too often the bed and our linens are an area where we wait for sales, or we put these items on the back burner because it’s not something anyone else sees or experiences.

What you choose to sleep on and in could be one of the most critical decisions you can make. And the best part is, you only need to make this decision a few times throughout your lifetime!

It’s therefore critically important to create a healthful environment that helps us sleep better. Of course, this also includes what we eat throughout the day, the temperature of our bedroom, the mobile devices that surround us, and what we choose to sleep on – meaning our mattress and our bedding. In other words, if we’re going to be spending a third of our lives in contact with the sheets (especially when we’re naked!), choosing top-quality bedding is definitely the way to go.

why conventional bedding options can be harmful

Conventional bedding options are often loaded with chemicals that get super cozy with our skin and that’s why as part of any healthy lifestyle, the natural bedding we sleep on is going to play a role in our overall health.

The goods news?  This is an easier problem to address than your clothing.

Given that my bed is actually my most favourite place to be (oh introverted me), when we got our new bed in 2016, I spent months researching every aspect to create the most perfect womb in the world!

(If you’re interested in learning about whole-home health, discover more about How I Created a Healthy Home here.)

The Dangers of Conventional Cotton

One of the most popular bedding fabrics is cotton. I love it. It’s a natural fiber, it’s crisp and fresh feeling, it breathes and it washes and dries easily. Unfortunately, cotton is one of the dirtiest crops in the world because it’s so heavily sprayed with pesticides.

Unfortunately, chemicals and pesticides don’t just disappear once they hit the shelves of our favourite department store or we toss them in the washing machine – we are exposed to them as we sleep or relax in the bedroom.

Conventional Bedding and Chemical Treatments

The fabrics used in conventional bedding, both linens made of natural fibers like cotton or linen and polyester options, can be treated with extra plastics, harmful dyes and pigments, or additional chemicals to make them stain-resistant, water-resistant, static-resistant, or fire-resistant.

One study of Wisconsin households tested exposure levels of one flame retardant, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), that are commonly used in a variety of products such as bedding and upholstery. Researchers found PBDEs in vacuum cleaner dust, blood serum samples, and in the air.

To clarify, these chemicals don’t stay confined within the weaves of the fabrics – we not only inhale them as we sleep, but they also spread throughout our homes and when we wash them, they have the potential to react with the chemicals in the municipal water to create harmful byproducts.

Dust Mites + Allergens

Our sheets can actually be quite gross – and I don’t mean gross like your children away at college who only wash them once every solar eclipse. Dust mites that live in our sheets can be highly allergenic and contribute to asthma symptoms as well. These little critters absolutely love our carpets, mattresses, and beds.

In addition, our bedding can also accumulate bacteria, pollen, animal dander, human sweat and other secretions, and fungi. Delicious!

One study of pillows showed the average pillow has between 4 and 16 different species of fungi. And speaking of pillows, you don’t have to be a germaphobe to be totally grossed out by the estimate that 1/3 of our pillow weight is actually dust-mites, dead skin and other critters and bacteria (which is why whenever possible I travel with my own! Would rather it be my own dead skin!).

While many dust mites and allergens can be greatly reduced by washing our bedding on a regular basis, be mindful of what you’re using to clean your sheets. Common household cleaners like laundry detergent and dryer sheets have an array of volatile compounds that are detrimental to our health. Check out some natural home cleaning options here.

The great news here is that natural fibers like organic cotton and wool are naturally resistant to mites, fungi and bacteria. Winning all around!

Bonus tip! You can also help reduce allergens in your bedroom by investing in a medical grade air purifier. The Jaspr Pro is the one I use and love (use code MTBREATHE at checkout to save big). 

Best Natural Bedding Options

• Organic and fair-trade cotton
• Natural linen
• Bamboo, hemp and wood pulp (also sold under the trade names Lyocell, Tencel and Legna)
• Wild organic silk

Natural Bedding and Dyes

• Organic bedding is now available in brilliant hues derived from vegetable and mineral dyes
• With white sheets, look for those treated with oxygen-based bleaches rather than with chlorine, which pollutes water supplies
• Undyed, unbleached bedding offers simplicity and purity – this one is often preferred for baby cribs

Natural Bedding for Kids

• I wrote an entire post about Healthy Nursery Essentials, where I share more about the sheets, crib, mattresses, and more we purchased for our son’s nursery.

some natural bedding options to start with

These are a few linen brands to get you started on your search.

• Pact Bedding
• Organic Lifestyle
• Coyuchi
• Sunshine Mattress Co
• Boll & Branch
• CB2

Natural Bedding: Pillow Talk

• Organic Buckwheat: Look for ones with an organic wool outer layer to muffle the ‘crunchy’ sound.
• Organic Wool: Wool is also naturally mold, mildew, and fire-resistant, they also wick moisture away.
• 100% Natural Latex
• Organic Cotton: Choose organic cotton pillows that are made without perfumes, formaldehyde, or dyes. Organic cotton pillows are very soft and will compress over time.

Let your bed be a place to rest and rejuvenate. You don’t need to toss out what you have now, but when it’s time to update and upgrade, you now know where to start in your search.

In the meantime, start washing what you have in natural, chemical-free detergents and check out what your pillows are made of, and follow the recommended cleaning instructions. Both of those small steps are a great start!

The post Natural Bedding and Linens Guide for Truly Sweet Dreams appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

We don’t drink dairy milks in my family. Not for the reason that I believe ethically raised and pastured cattle are killing the planet, but because dairy triggers eczema, diarrhea, seasonal allergies and impaired cognitive function in my household (you get to guess who gets what!).

As I haven’t wandered down the dairy-free milk aisles in years, I discovered there are a lot of new products on the market making a lot of healthwashing claims and way too much ‘start-up’ venture capital pushing the message on the masses (we’re talking billions!)

>>>Click here to get your in-depth guide to making real plant-based milks from scratch.

the plant-based milk industry

Plant-based milk is big business. Globally, the market for milk alternatives is currently worth close to $21 billion dollars, and that number is projected to rise to $37 billion by 2026.

Gone are the days when soy milk and almond milk were the only options. Dairy-free milk choices now include all kinds of nuts and seeds, beans and legumes, potatoes, grains and pseudograins (buckwheat, oat, rice, etc.), and coconut. Mostly they contain processed oils derived from genetically modified plants and heavily sprayed crops. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

In the US, consumers spend $2.9 billion annually on dairy-free milk; here in Canada, it’s $138 million – and those numbers are predicted to rise. And almost 40% of households now have a plant-based milk brand sitting in their fridge.

Long-established brands like Silk and Blue Diamond are still leading the sales pack, but newer alternatives like oat milk (Oatly) and pea milk are quickly gaining ground.

Let’s take a look at some of these plant-based milk alternatives, and whether they are as health-building as they claim to be.

notmilk

NotCo is a tech startup that uses an artificial intelligence (AI) program to formulate recipes that replicate animal products and dairy milk (they’ve nicknamed their AI Giuseppe- insert massive eye roll from me 🙄).

They have a plant-based burger, NotBurger, and a pea-based ‘plant’ milk called NotMilk. The word ‘plant’ is in quotes because of what actually makes up this milk.

Product claims:

• ‘sips, slurps and froths like milk’
• 100% plant-based
• 74% less energy used
• 92% less water used
• 74% less CO2 generated

Let’s take a look at the ingredient list for Whole NotMilk:

Water, Sunflower Oil, Pea Protein, Contains less than 2% of: Sugar, Pineapple Juice Concentrate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Gellan Gum, Acacia Gum, Salt, Monocalcium Phosphate, Natural Flavor, Cabbage Juice Concentrate, Vitamin D2, Vitamin B12.

Basically what we’re looking at here is water, oil and processed pea protein. Their choice of oil isn’t my favourite, as it’s a highly industrialized oil that has inflammatory properties and doesn’t support our health.

As for NotMilk’s environmental claims, in addition to the ones listed above they have a sustainability calculator. You can calculate how much water, energy and CO2 you save based on how many servings of their products you consume daily (they claim you can save 25 miles traveled, 12 hours of lamplight and 275 gallons of water by drinking NotMilk once a day).

All of their sustainability statistics and claims come from a ‘NotCo internal audit, 2020’, which I was unable to find anywhere. So consumers have no idea what they are basing those metrics on (perhaps Giuseppe is behind it).

ripple foods

This pea milk start up began in 2016 and since then, has raised $250 million from investors and you can find it in 20,000 grocery stores. Its CEO claims that their sales have grown 20% year after year. One of the co-founders is the creator of the popular cleaning brand Method.

Product claims:

• 8 g plant-based protein per serving
• 50% more calcium than dairy milk
• half the sugar of dairy milk (when compared to 2%)
• excellent source of Vitamin D

Let’s take a look at the ingredients for their shelf-stable original product:

Water, Pea Protein Blend (Water, Pea Protein), Cane Sugar, Sunflower Oil, Contains less than 1% of Vitamin B12, Vitamin D2, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Palmitate, Sunflower Lecithin, Tricalcium Phosphate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Mixed Tocopherols (To Preserve Freshness), Magnesium Citrate, Sea Salt, Natural Flavour, Guar Gum, Gellan Gum

So again – we’ve got a mix of water, pea protein and oil. And a whole bunch of extras like sugar, emulsifiers, anti-caking agents, and natural flavours.

The fact that this product has 8 grams of protein isn’t the biggest deal, when you consider the amount of protein in the following whole foods:

• Hemp seeds: 9g for 1 ounce (about 2 Tbsp)
• Almond butter: 6 g for 1 ounce
• Quinoa: 8 grams per cup
• Tempeh: 15.5 g per 1/2 cup
• Lentils: 9g per 1/2 cup
• Spinach: 5 g per cooked cup
• Oats: 6.9 per cup
• Green peas: 8.5g per cooked up

And while I realize that not everyone can consume common allergens like soy or nuts, there are plenty of plant-based whole food protein options available.

Ripple Foods claims to be an ‘excellent source’ of Vitamin D. However, it contains 6 micrograms, which amounts to 240 IUs. This is well below the amount needed to maintain and support health, and I’d hardly use the word ‘excellent’ to describe it.

As for its calcium claims, Ripple is fortified with calcium in the US but not in Canada due to Canada’s regulations. I’m also unsure of what form of calcium is in Ripple, as it’s not stated on the label. Ripple claims its milk contains a bioavailable form, and one could make the assumption that they’re saying it’s bioavailable due to the form of pea protein – but as consumers, we don’t know.

And let’s not forget about the added sugar – 6g, which is 1 1/2 teaspoons per serving. Not a huge amount compared to other plant-based milk products, but it can add up if you’re consuming several servings per day (there is an unsweetened version as well).

It may have half the sugar of dairy milk by grams, but keep in mind that if someone consumes plain 2% milk that sugar is in the form of lactose contained in a whole food – not an added sugar.

oatly

Oat milk is one of the newer types of plant-based milk and its sales are soaring. Oatly, a Swedish company, is one of the leaders in sales and popularity.

Product claims:

• enriched with vitamins
• enriched with calcium
• a source of beta glucans
• allergen-friendly

Let’s look at the ingredient list of The Original Oatly Milk:

Oat base (water, oats). Contains 2% or less of: low erucic acid rapeseed oil, dipotassium phosphate, calcium carbonate, tricalcium phosphate, sea salt, dicalcium phosphate, riboflavin, vitamin A, vitamin D2, vitamin B12.

I’m feeling a bit like a broken record here, as this product contains oats, oil (canola oil) and water – with emulsifiers. Its form of calcium, calcium carbonate, is one of the least bioavailable forms of calcium for humans.

Oatly has been criticized recently for its sugar content, 7g per serving. While there are no sugars in the ingredient list, they use a custom enzymatic process to break the oats down into maltose so it will be smooth and creamy. These simple sugars are high on the glycemic index, and need to be labelled as added sugars due to labelling rules.

DUG Potato Milk

This option isn’t available in North America yet, but some predict it’s poised to be the next big thing in plant-based milk alternatives. It’s another Swedish brand that promotes its low carbon footprint.

Product claims:

• smooth consistency that won’t separate
• vegan
• made with potatoes, and full of vitamins, minerals, fibre, protein and carbohydrates from them
• sustainable

Let’s look at the ingredient list for Dug Original:

Water, Potato (6%), Sucrose, Maltodextrin, Pea Protein, Rapeseed Oil, Acidity Regulator (Di-and Mono-Sodium Phosphate), Calcium Carbonate, Emulsifier (Sunflower Lecithin), Natural Flavour, Vitamins (D, Riboflavin, B12, Folic acid)

Once again, we’re looking at a product that is mostly water, along with sugar, oils, emulsifiers and non-bioavailable calcium. Dug claims that it’s packed with nutrition because it’s made with potatoes, but as just one example – you only get 1.1 grams of fibre in a serving, which is a fraction of what you’d get if you ate a whole baked potato.

>>>Click here to get your in-depth guide to making real plant-based milks from scratch.

Plant-based milk and sustainability

Most plant-based milk brands market themselves as a healthier, more environmentally-friendly alternative when compared to dairy milk or to other plant-based products (the pea milks say they’re more sustainable than almond milk, potato milk says they’re better than oats, etc). And there is research that backs up this claim.

However, we also need to remember that mono-crops, especially those that use a massive amount of pesticides and herbicides, are harmful to the environment too. To read more about this, the site Global Food Justice is a great resource.

And let’s not forget about the packaging of dairy-free milk alternatives. Plant-based milk packaging may have a lesser impact on the environment, but less doesn’t necessarily equate to good. We’re still buying a single-use package that probably won’t ever get recycled.

Remember: With all of the claims made about ‘net zero’ and energy saved, in most cases, the company or government as the case may be, is deciding when and where the math begins and ends.

Are they taking into account what goes into growing massive mono-crops of peas, what is sprayed on them, how this chemical load affects top soil, run off into waterways, the health of neighbouring communities, or nitrogen fixing measures? Does it take into account the manufacturing of the packaging and then the disposal of said packaging? The shipment of all ingredients, and package components to the factory, then to your local store and then to your home? See, it’s complicated.

are we bio-hacking our lives away?

I find it an interesting aside that many of these dairy-free milk and plant-based meat companies are tech startups and business ventures, designed for people who want to optimize their nutrition without the pesky inconvenience of cooking their food.

Humankind used to spend a lot of time growing, hunting, harvesting and cooking food. I’m not saying that we all need to return to that mindset, but there are certainly ways to cook with healthful, fresh foods without a constant reliance on ultra-processed foods.

What would happen if all of these brilliant minds creating dairy-free milks put that effort, time, money and resources into improving food security and food access, so more people could eat health-building foods?

making your own plant-based milk

A delicious, easy and environmentally-friendly way to enjoy plant-based milks is to make them yourself when possible. This is one of the first skills I teach in the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program, and my students are always amazed at how simple the process is. Once they start making them at home, it’s hard to go back to store-bought.

Homemade dairy-free milk is quick, easy to batch prep, is package-free and you can 100% control all the ingredients that go into it.

Learn how to make basic milk here, and oat milk here. You can also grab your free copy of my Dairy-Free Milk It Guide, which has a bunch of tasty ways to flavour your dairy-free milk.

The Bottom Line

I’m all for people consuming less factory-farmed meat and eating more plant-based foods, but are highly processed plant-based milks the solution? What if we called them what they really are: Homogenized and Enriched Oil Beverages. Yummy!

How about we eat more fruits, vegetables, seaweeds, gluten-free grains, nuts, seeds, beans and legumes if we want to follow a plant-rich diet, rather than pinning our nutritional and environmental hopes on diluted water and oil?

>>>Click here to get your in-depth guide to making real plant-based milks from scratch.

The post Is Plant-Based Milk Healthy: Oatly, NotMilk, Ripple and More appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

When I first shared a photo of this root on Instagram, I was surprised by the number of people who actually didn’t know what it was. It was showing up in their CSA boxes, but they didn’t know what to do with it.

The celery root, as you may have guessed, is the root of celery. The celery stalks are harvested much earlier in the season. In the fall, when the stalks have become thinner, darker, and wildly bitter to taste, is when you know the energy, power and flavour have moved down into the roots. Be sure to save the stalks, however. I wouldn’t recommend using them in a soup that you’ll be pureeing but you can definitely add them to veggie stock or bone broth.

Let’s move along and discuss this incredible soup.

Once steamed, the celery root takes on a very soft and creamy texture. This is what makes it so good as a replacement for potatoes in a mash. You could even use celery root puree as a topping in The UnDiet Cookbook‘s UnShepherd’s Pie (page 166).

To truly make the most of the fall harvest, this soup is one of those super local options where you can literally get all of the ingredients at your local farmer’s market or CSA box.

There are just four base ingredients – celery root, apples, onion, and sea salt. I added in a few more spices to round out the flavour. But it is actually that simple. This is a great soup to cook up and enjoy on a chilly fall day. This one can also easily be doubled for batch prepping. Freeze it in single portions in half-liter mason jars (leaving about 2 inches at the top of the jar for expansion).

This soup will likely become a regular part of your delicious fall repertoire!

Vegan Celery Root Apple Soup

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 30 mins
• Yield: Serves 4

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A delicious dairy-free soup using the best of the fall harvest

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Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp coconut oil or ghee
• 1 white onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 tsp dried ginger root
• 2 tsp sage
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 celery root, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 apples, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 tsp sea salt (or more to taste)
• 4 cups of water
• hot sauce to garnish
• gluten-free croutons to garnish

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Instructions

1. Melt oil over medium heat, add onions and sauté until translucent, about 8 minutes.
2. Stir in ginger, sage, and turmeric.
3. Add celery root, apple, sea salt, and water. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 20 minutes or until celery root is fork tender.
4. Using a handheld blender or a venting high-speed blender, process until smooth.
5. Scoop into bowls, add a dash of hot sauce, and a sprinkle of croutons.

• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Category: Soup

The post Vegan Celery Root Apple Soup appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Why am I even asking?

We’ve all done it before. It may happen again. Rarely, however, do we spend a moment considering whatever it was that just went down and whether there could have been a better way to handle it. All we can ever do when we’ve behaved or reacted in ways that leave us in a state of regret, shame, or needing to apologize to everyone in our vicinity is to try and do better next time.

Stepping back, taking a pause, and acknowledging this is hard, can be laced with shame and embarrassment, and is also vital to helping us continue raising our set point to become more compassionate, empathetic, emotionally available, and evolved humans.

We can meditate our hearts out, do yoga under a full moon by the ocean, and drink all the green smoothies in the world, but it’s only when we get pressed, tightened, and wound up that we can truly test whether we are taking those calm-making practices out into the world.

Our goal should be to be more spring-like – a slinky spring, a loosey-goosey one that can move and shake and wiggle, adapt, and bend as needed. Most of us, however, end up winding ourselves up even more in times of stress. If we don’t find a way to unwind, exercise those muscles, and use the tools we have, we instead wind tighter and tighter until we spring forth in a reactive mode.

When I see this happening to people (because it’s so much easier to see in others, right?) all I can think is how uncomfortable they must be feeling. Springing out like a Jack-In-The-Box never makes anyone feel good.

Learning to have kind and productive responses to stressful situations and triggers is hard. One essential key to limiting those stressful responses is by regularly finding ways to unwind. That way, when you start bringing attention to the tightening, you can catch it, undo it, and unwind it before you bust out in anger or overwhelm.

Best Strategies To help you Unwind

1. Move Your Body

When the body grooves, the brain moves. Not like inside your head, but it can help interrupt a pattern of stressful reactive thinking and move you into a more helpful state of mind and way of thinking. Get up from your desk, your chair, your bed, wherever you may be, turn on your favourite song of the moment, and just bust it out! Dance, dance, dance for a whole three, four, or five minutes. No? Then at least take a walk around the block. Breathe and calm. You’ll change up the blood flow in your body, you’ll get your lungs pumping a little and, most importantly, you can be a little bit silly. Silly goes a long, long way to unwinding.

2. Breathe

When we sit with our shoulders slouched forward, as most of us do when working on a computer or driving, we are limited to only being able to take quick, shallow breaths. When we do this, we switch our nervous system into fight or flight mode, making us feel more fatigued, stressed, and ready to fly off the handle. Make a point to frequently stand up, or at least sit straight, and take a deep, deep, deep inhale filling your chest and your belly. As you exhale, drop those shoulders down and back, keeping your chest open. This will feel so good that you might just want to do it again and again and again.

A slumped posture drains our energy and has been associated with increased feelings of depression and anxiety. Remember – stand, and sit tall, and breathe deep!

3. Get In Coherence

What’s this coherence I speak of? Well, it has to do with your breathing and your heart rate. The heart and brain maintain a continuous two-way dialogue, each influencing the other’s functioning. The signals the heart sends to the brain can influence perception, emotional processing, and higher cognitive functions. Heart rate variability is the measure of the naturally occurring beat-to-beat changes in heart rate. When we feel stressed or anxious, this beat-to-beat measure is more erratic and we experience cognitive impairment. When we have a steady beat-to-beat ratio, different from an irregular heartbeat, it is called being in coherence. We are better able to problem solve, feel joy and love, and think clearly and calmly in that state.

We describe positive emotions such as love or appreciation as coherent states because they generate coherence in the heart-rhythm pattern. Negative feelings such as anger, anxiety, or frustration are examples of emotions that lead to incoherent states and reflect incoherence in the heart’s rhythmic patterns. By taking anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes or more every day to focus on inhaling and exhaling calmly and steadily, you can move into a coherent state. This can have lasting effects throughout your day and positively impact sleep patterns as well.

4. Make A Date To Have The Time Of Your Life

Doing the laundry, washing dishes, commuting to work – these are typically not the time-of-your-life-moments that you will look back on fondly one day. But time-of-your-life-moments can actually happen every day if you decide to make it so. And when we are having the time of our lives, we are also allowing ourselves to unwind from stress and refuel our vibrancy. Try to make a date every day to do something, read something, watch something, be with someone, hug a tree, jump on your bed, blast some music… Something that invites you to have micro-moments that make you feel blessed, cherished, and most awesome.

And those dishes and laundry I mentioned (by the way, I love doing laundry – folding underwear pockets is my meditation of choice!), shift your mindset from the “I need to”, “I have to”, or “I should” to “I get to”, “I want to”, and “I can”. Acknowledge the blessings in the little things. It rewires your brain over time and this is one of the most little and subtle life-changers I know.

These intentional moments will unwind you, while simultaneously fueling you up and changing how your brain is wired.

5. Eat To Support Emotional Wellbeing

When we’re stressed, we are more inclined to indulge in contractive foods like salty snacks, alcohol, sugar, and other junk foods that contribute to our winding up. Try and bring a little awareness to this habit and instead choose warming, grounding, nourishing foods that are home-cooked, slow-cooked, made from scratch with loads of nervous system-supportive fats that will give you the reserves you need to truly feel the unwinding happen.

6. Focus on Quality Sleep

People of all ages feel cranky and tightly wound when they haven’t slept, or when sleep has been fitful or spotty. In the short term, sleep deprivation can negatively impact our mood, increase anxiety and make us impatient and quick to anger. In the long term, lack of sleep can impact our immune system and leave us susceptible to chronic inflammation.

A good night’s sleep has long been a struggle of mine – and I now have a solid system in place to facilitate sleep. You can read more about that here.

7. Spend Time In Nature

This is one of my top ways to unwind. Escaping the city to walk in the forests, swim, or go mushroom hunting immediately relaxes and rejuvenates me (with lots of extra bonus points if there is sunshine involved). Nature supports the nervous system and helps to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, lessen pain, and improve your mood. Even if you can’t escape to the woods, walking outside, going to an urban park, looking at flowers and plants, and even a home or indoor garden will help immensely.

8. Turn Your Bathroom Into a DIY Spa

If spas and pampering are your cup of tea, aim to create that level of peace and tranquility in your own bathroom. Taking a bath or shower with high-quality bath products and/or essential oils can be a very easy way to unwind. It doesn’t need to be fancy or complicated. I show you how to create the ultimate home spa right over here.

9. Be Kind to Someone Else

I know it can be tricky when you are wound up to have the space and bandwidth to help someone else. Yet being kind and compassionate to someone else takes you outside of your own needs, wants, and problems, and can boost your own happiness levels. These are nine ways you can show caring and compassion to others.

Life is undoubtedly stressful. We all feel the shift in seasons, the quickening pace of busy schedules and new routines. The best thing you can do to manage the Jack-In-The-Box syndrome of the wind-up is to catch it before you hit your breaking point, to pay attention today. Taking on these little habits every day will rock your soul and help your happiness flourish.

The post My 9 Best Strategies To Help You Unwind appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

To help you make this happen in your life, I have outlined below some of my go-to “rules” and also my favourite ways to indulge during those 60 minutes of true “me time”.

The Three Rules of the Nap-Time Self-Care Game

1. Get Over The Stress of Time

This is easier said than done. One of the things that is so tricky for me personally is figuring out what to do with my time on the weekends when my boy goes down for his nap. I nearly always end up with FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), if I don’t plan in advance how I am going to use my time during each of the precious naps.

My non-negotiable mom self-care tip: Choose one nap in the week that is 100% for you and your needs.

Set aside that nap and if you don’t have the defining nap to take advantage of, then your goal is to find that one hour that can be all yours. They key is to mark off that time in your week and commit to it as if it’s the most important meeting in your calendar.

Monday to Friday I work, some days from home and some days from my office. My one nap that is mine and mine alone is usually the first nap of the day on Saturday or Sunday. I commit to it in advance and plan out how I will use it.

2. You Must Turn Off Your Phone

I don’t want to hear any ‘buts’ about this. We are all guilty of mindlessly scrolling on our phones, wasting more time than I like to think about. What is it that we are looking for? And do you feel better or worse after having spent your time doing this? Watching mindless television or wasting away our time double tapping things on our phones may feel relaxing because you are not actively doing anything at all. The reality is that it is just the opposite. We are triggering our nervous system, increasing our level of fatigue and maybe most importantly as it relates to what we’re talking about here, it takes you away from the present moment. The whole point of this practice is to be present and indulge. Turn off those phones. It will be there waiting for you when you get back.

3. Making It Work At Home

Sure, I could suggest loads of out-of-the-home self-care options, but the name of the game here is to assume you have a little one sleeping and have just 60 minutes. Out of the house stuff usually also requires travel time so we’re confining ourselves to the space we are in.

8 Ways To Maximize Self-Care in An Hour Or Less

1. Home Spa Experience

This is my personal favourite so it goes first. I lock myself in the bathroom, start running a bath, pull out all of my favourite personal care products that I don’t get to use often enough and start taking care of me. I personally opt for Living Libations* products as the essential oils truly make it feel like a spa-like experience. Use what you have, lay them out, and determine your personal order of operations. The photo above was taken on Mother’s Day.

This is my line-up:

• Dry skin brush face and body (for the body I add Lymph Tonic* to the brush)
• Apply face mask (I use the Royal Rose Honey Mask*)
• Massage in a hair oil treatment (I use Crowning Glory*)
• I add epsom salts, eucalyptus and lavender to the bathwater and get in.
• Soak for 20 minutes without ANY distractions – no books. I might play some light music but mostly this is for silent time.
• Shampoo and condition my hair.

2. One Hour of Yoga or Physical Activity of Your Choice

30 minutes of yoga is easier to squeeze in. Even 45 minutes is doable. There is something magical that happens when you keep your body moving for a full 60 minutes. I am not on the up and up for online workouts, but a few of my favourite online movement hubs include:

• Yogaglo
• Obé Fitness, and register with coupon code MEGHAN50. It’s free for your first week without any obligation and if you decide to continue, you’ll get the first month at 50% off.

3. Take Your Own Nap For Goodness Sake

Make it count. I am the world’s worst napper but if I am tired enough, I may sleep. Often I end up just laying there with my eyes closed but do still feel rejuvenated. There is one key secret to a daytime nap. The sleep mask. Get yourself a cotton (and cotton or wool filled!) sleep mask. It’s a dream-maker. I have found great ones on Etsy and I use them for naps and nighttime sleep.

4. Meditate

I have been meditating for twelve years and am not even close to desiring to sit for sixty minutes. You don’t have to. That’s not the point. Maybe you sit for ten or twenty or thirty minutes. But create your ritual around it so that you really get into it deep. Perhaps you start with five minutes of deep breathing, then your 20 minutes of meditation, 20 minutes of shavasana (everyone’s favourite yoga pose), and then journal. There is your sixty minutes. What’s truly magical about meditation is though you may feel anxious at the time, that is the feeling of stresses and anxieties bubbling to the surface and untangling. Stay with it. The benefit of meditation comes from the practice itself, not the results. Trust that the results are happening even if you don’t feel them in the moment. With meditation, you’re playing the long game.

5. Do Something Creative

Remember once upon a time when you had hobbies? Me too! I am trying to cultivate mine again, but it’s not easy finding the time. Creative projects nourish different parts of the brain than we use when we work or do day-to-day activities. Whether it’s playing an instrument, creating a recipe or doing a craft project – it all counts. My crafts of late involve crocheting and macramé and I love the latter because a macramé plant holder is a project I can start, enjoy and complete in under an hour. I also recently killed a nap-time craft of sewing a washable stroller cover. The joys of the simple things.

So whether your craft is colouring in a colouring book, making a friendship bracelet, crafting in a scrapbook or any other number of creative endeavours, remember what you used to do with your free time and start doing it. Every moment spent doing something that nourishes your soul is a deposit in the happiness account.

6. Get Outside in the Sunshine

You need a yard, porch or balcony for this one but if you do have access, fresh air and sunshine by yourself is invaluable in regenerating the spirit. Perhaps you have a book you want to read (ideally not on sleep habits, feeding your baby or other parenting things), but that is pure fun. Sit in the sun and read this book, or drink that tea, or eat your lunch. We have a baby monitor that we use just for this purpose.

7. Plant Stuff

Maybe this isn’t directly related to your self-care, but caring for plants, repotting them, watering them, grooming them, maybe even getting fancy and propagating them can be supremely nourishing. Plants are a very new thing in my world and I’ve spent more than one nap reviewing my plant inventory and determining what I am doing wrong that seems to be killing all of them. Plants boost air quality in your home and improve mental and emotional well-being. Studies show that interacting with indoor plants suppresses psychological stress.

8. Take A Long Shower, Apply Products And Put On Fresh Clothes

This may seem like a silly one, but trust me. On most days, my showers feel more like running through a sprinkler. So when I am in dire need of some alone time, while also need to use nap time to prepare to leave the house, this is it. Similar to the Home Spa I outlined above, my long shower self-care routine includes:

• Dry skin brush face and body (for the body I add Lymph Tonic* to the brush)
• Shampoo and condition my hair.
• Scrub my skin with an exfoliating scrub. (I use this Ginger Scrub*)
• Moisturize all over (I use Seabuckthorn Best Skin Ever*)
• Put a decadent serum on my face (I use this facial serum*)
• Add some hair product (I use this hair mask as a leave on* that works awesome on my curly hair as an anti-frizz)

Make It Happen

Don’t ever feel guilty about taking this time for yourself. Guilt is never worth your energy. You deserve this a thousand times over. As mothers we give, give, give. If we don’t take some time to replenish our own stores, fill our tank a little, we will be running on empty. That is when overwhelm will hit us the hardest. Aim to set aside one hour per week that is yours, all yours. Own it. Enjoy it. You are amazing. Celebrate this. Some weeks will undoubtedly challenge you more than others. Some days you may feel like you are just slaying it all. The ebbs and flows of motherhood will never fail to bring us to our knees but I do believe this only lends us the opportunity to look up, and rise up higher than we ever thought possible. And it all begins with caring for ourselves.

*this post contains affiliate links

The post Nap Time Self-Care: Tips for Tired Moms appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Pumpkin spice, if you make it at home with actual spices, is an incredible mix of nutrient-dense aromatics like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Problem is, many of us aren’t actually using real spices for our pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin pies or pumpkin baked goodies – or real pumpkin, either. Instead, we’re grabbing pumpkin-flavoured processed foods and cruising by coffee shops to grab a $7 pumpkin spice latte. (I also just learned the horrifying fact that pumpkin spice hair colouring is a thing. Make it stop!)

Let’s take a look at a couple of coffee shop pumpkin spice latte menu items and see what we find.

Exhibit A:

This is a concoction of sugar, preservatives, imitation flavours, and dairy – all of which we know are detrimental to our health. Processed white sugar is a highly addictive substance linked to weight gain, dental caries, blood sugar imbalance, diabetes, and cancer. Dairy, in all its conventional forms, can cause allergies, digestive issues, antibiotic resistance, and deplete our bone health. Carrageenan is inflammatory, particularly in the digestive tract, while those other ‘natural flavours’ and food additives are anything but natural.

Exhibit B:

With the first example, at least there was some pumpkin puree and spices in the topping. Here, there isn’t any pumpkin puree or pumpkin spice at all – just a pumpkin-flavoured syrup loaded with fructose, artificial flavours and colours, and artificial sweeteners that are way, way worse for us than white sugar (you can read this post about artificial sweeteners for more info).

We can definitely do better.

Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Latte: The Spices

Spices are an important part of any dairy-free pumpkin spice latte. I like to buy my spices in small amounts to ensure freshness, and purchase them whole and grind them myself wherever I can. Even though spices are dried, they will still contain volatile, potent compounds that can dissipate with age (or if you aren’t buying decent spices, they won’t be there in the first place).

Another thing to watch out for in your spices is irradiation. Food irradiation is a growing problem as it damages the nutrients found in our foods, destroys helpful bacteria, and hasn’t been proven safe for human consumption. Ask your local grocer or health food store for non-irradiated spices, or purchase them online.

If you love adding pumpkin spice to everything you make from October through December, try making your own batch of pumpkin spice mix and use it throughout the fall.

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Pumpkin Spice Mix

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 1/4 cup

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DIY your own pumpkin-spiced creations with this simple spice mix

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Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground anise
• 1 tsp turmeric (super optional and not traditional but I love it!)

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Instructions

1. Measure out all ingredients.
2. Add to a small mason jar and shake shake shake.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Category: Condiment

Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Latte: The Pumpkin

A good pumpkin spice latte has to include actual pumpkin! So many pumpkin recipes call for pumpkin puree and most of us hop over to the store and buy a can of pumpkin. But pumpkin doesn’t grow in cans. It grows from the ground and grows a-plenty locally. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to make your own pumpkin puree from scratch.

Fresh pumpkin has an abundance of outstanding nutritional benefits. Pumpkin is:

• Abundant in beta-carotene, an antioxidant that helps maintain our skin and vision and prevents oxidative damage.
• Rich in carotenoids that help regulate blood sugar.
• Rich in dietary fibre to keep us pooping regularly.
• High in lutein and zeaxanthin. These funny-sounding guys are potent antioxidants that prevent free radical damage in the lenses of our eyes.
• Rich in Vitamin C, which keeps our skin, hair, and nails glowing throughout the winter.
• High in potassium – this is helpful for those concerned about blood pressure.
• About 90% water, making pumpkin very hydrating.
• You can even eat the flowers. If you grow your own pumpkin, make squash blossoms!

Try roasting or cooking your own pumpkin – it doesn’t need to be a gigantic one, you can find smaller versions – and then save the puree in the fridge or freezer to use in pumpkin spice lattes, smoothies, soups, and even chili or hummus. One can of pumpkin is equivalent to about 2 cups of fresh pumpkin puree if you’re using a recipe that calls for the canned version.

Here is one of my favourite dairy-free pumpkin spice latte recipes. With fresh pumpkin and spices, Dandy blend (a herbal coffee alternative), and natural sweeteners, this is a wonderful elixir that will fuel your day, rather than detract from your health.

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Best Ever Pumpkin Spiced Latte

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 1

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A delicious pumpkin spice latte using whole and unprocessed ingredients.

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Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups hot water (for a more decadent option, try almond milk or coconut milk)
• 1/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree
• 2 Tbsp Dandy Blend
• 1 Tbsp raw honey or maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil or ghee
• 2 tsp Pumpkin Spice Mix
• Pinch of salt
• For a chocolate version: add 1 Tbsp cacao powder
• For extra decadence: add coconut whipped cream on top (recipe below)

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Instructions

1. Add all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Category: Beverage

Need more Elixir magic inspirations?

Download my Ultimate Elixir Recipes Infographic, by simply entering your info below

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Dairy-Free Coconut Whipped Cream

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 15 mins
• Yield: 3/4 cup

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You won’t miss cow’s milk at all when you dollop your elixirs with this dairy-free coconut whipped cream.

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Ingredients

• Coconut Cream (this is the thick solidified top layer from a chilled can of full-fat coconut milk).
• 2 tsp honey or maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

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Instructions

1. Chill your can of coconut milk for about 8 hours in the fridge, and then remove the thick cream from the top and place in a large mixing bowl.
2. Add your sweetener and vanilla extract.
3. Use an electric hand mixer or some serious muscle and a whisk until soft peaks start to form. If it’s too thick, you can add back some of the remaining liquid from your coconut tin, 1 Tbsp at a time.

• Prep Time: 15 mins

And, if you’re looking for more pumpkin inspiration:

• Gluten-Free Pumpkin Waffles
• Coconut Pumpkin Curry
• Pumpkin Soup

Images: iStock/nata_vkusidey , VeselovaElena

The post The Best Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

When the seasons change, it’s a great opportunity for us to take stock of where we’re at and where we’re going. Maybe you feel amazing after weeks of raw foods, sunshine and playing outside, and you’re a teensy bit nervous about carrying those habits into the cooler months.

Fear not. As the weather changes, so should our routines – your autumn healthy lifestyle may look a bit different than your summer one, but that’s to be expected. Staying in tune with the seasons is key to being happy and healthy all year round.

Try out these essential health habits for fall. If you begin by adding two new practices to your routine each week, by the time autumn is fully present you’ll be very well-equipped!

10 Essential Health Habits for Fall

Heat Up Your Smoothies

You know it’s getting chilly out when you wake up in the morning, take one look at your blender and realize the last thing you want is an ice-cold smoothie. But by swapping your ice cubes for hot water, you can turn a summer staple into an autumn favourite. You can even incorporate vegetables into your blended drinks, like my pumpkin spice latte.

Swap your smoothies for hot blender drinks using this recipe inspiration:

• Pumpkin Spice Latte
• Turmeric Tea
• Dairy-Free Choco-Latte
• Stress Busting Latte
• 20 Dairy-Free Elixir Recipes
• The DIY Guide to Making Dairy-Free Elixirs

Serve Up Some Soup

If your soup-making routine fell by the wayside this summer, now’s the perfect time to get back on the wagon. There’s nothing more comforting than a hot bowl of soup, especially one made from scratch in your own kitchen.

Try these comforting soups on for size:

• Lemon Lentil Vegetable Soup
• Roasted Tomato Soup
• Red Onion Soup
• Lemongrass Coconut Vegetable Soup
• Celery Root and Apple Soup

Don’t Forget to Drink Water (or Tea)

We tend to focus more on hydration during the summertime when it’s hot, but we need to stay equally hydrated throughout the fall and winter months. Aim to drink at least 6 to 8 glasses of water daily, or you can opt for herbal teas.

Source Seasonal Foods

There are so many fantastic reasons to eat seasonal foods, but fall is an especially important time to load up on them. Eating seasonally is incredibly beneficial to your health because seasonal foods provide the best nutrients we need at that specific time of the year. Fall and winter vegetables have nutrients that support our immunity for cold and flu season. Seasonal foods will depend on where you live, but for me, a few that I count on are:

• Onions
• Garlic
• Winter Squashes
• Sweet Potatoes
• Carrots
• Celery Root
• Beets
• Rutabaga
• Parsnips
• Kale
• Brussels Sprouts
• Apples
• Pears

Support Your Immune System

Now’s the time to start supporting your immune system so you stay healthy all season long. These are some of my absolute favourite cold and flu remedies, as well as the things you might want to avoid like sugar and alcohol. (Now is the time to start your batch of Fire Cider, so it will be ready!)

Try these immune-supportive recipes:

• Simple Bone Broth Recipe
• Cold and Flu Turmeric Tonic
• Ginger Tea
• Fire Cider
• Homemade sauerkraut or kimchi
• Elderberry Syrup

Lifestyle practices also play an important role in immunity, such as:

• Adequate sleep
• Stress reduction
• Exercise
• Skin brushing
• Infrared saunas 
• Reducing your overall chemical load

For more, listen to my podcast episode about How to Supercharge Immunity.

Eat a Health-Building Breakfast

With fewer overall hours of sunlight and dark mornings, we may find ourselves waking up later and/or skipping breakfast. Try not to do this! Consume a fueling meal that includes protein, fat, and fibre. Remember: your breakfast doesn’t have to be an enormous meal to satisfy these essential requirements. In the winter, I often start my day with a fat-filled hot elixir.

More breakfast recipe inspiration:

• Best Fat-Fueled Breakfasts
• Tie Dye Breakfast Parfaits
• Grain-Free Fruit Crumble (I like to serve this with coconut yogurt!)
• Best Banana Pancakes
• Chocolate Chia Pudding
• Gluten-Free No-Cook Muesli
• 12 Vegan Breakfasts That Aren’t Cereal or Toast
• 20 Best Savory Breakfast Recipes
• Breakfast Frittata
• Gluten-Free Veggie Quiche
• 12 Vegan Breakfast Ideas (that aren’t cereal or toast)

Meal Prep Something!

Many animals in the wild have elaborate preparations and healthy habits for fall. Us humans used to do the same, but many of us have lost those homesteading skills. You don’t have to can everything in sight or buy an extra freezer for your freezer meals, but I do recommend doing some kind of light meal prep every week to make your busy days easier.

Some suggestions (you don’t have to do all of these every week; pick one or two):

• Roast a tray of vegetables
• Cook a batch of beans or grains
• Make some hummus
• Do some light vegetable prep (and save your scraps to make broth!)
• Bake a loaf of bread
• Hard boil some eggs
• Bake a batch of granola or muffins
• Blend up some nut/seed milk 

Many of these items freeze well, so you can double your recipes and freeze them for later. If you’d like to learn additional meal prep skills and recipes, consider my short course Everyday Culinary Nutrition.

Put Down Devices 1 Hour Before Bed

I get it: when the sun goes down at 4:30 pm, you turn to your phone, iPad or laptop to keep you entertained. That’s A-OK – but ensure you put your devices away at least an hour before bedtime to help you regulate your circadian rhythm and to help you sleep better. I am quite sensitive to using devices at night, so I personally try to put everything away several hours before bed.

Practice Gratitude

Gratitude has so many health benefits, including improving your mood, immune health, relationships, and sleep. And it’s one of those essential fall health habits that’s easy to do! Gratitude is something you can practice anywhere in both small and large ways. Visit this post for the full rundown on how to get started on your gratitude today.

Focus On The Exhale

There’s nothing like that back-to-school energy to turn your relaxed summer attitude upside down, but staying calm is key to staying healthy. Incorporate breathing and relaxation techniques into your routine now before the holiday season stress starts. This is an important part of your self-care.

If you’re not into yoga or meditation, even taking 5 deep breaths in the morning, or when you feel worried or stressed, can be a huge help.

I know this seems like a long list of things to do to maintain health habits for fall, but each one is straightforward and many of these take minimal time. Once you get into the habit of doing them, they will seem like less effort, with maximum benefit.

What health habits for fall will you be doing in the next couple of months?

On My Mind Episode 18: 10 Essential Health Habits for Fall

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• Castbox

The post 10 Essential Health Habits for Fall appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

The good news is there are many ways to help your child eat his or her school lunch. Here are the strategies I love to use that encourage kids to eat their school lunch.

5 Ways to Help Your Children Eat Their School Lunch

1. The Container and Lunchbox Must Pass the Open Test

One of the biggest challenges kids face at school is the amount of time they have to eat their lunch. In some schools, they allocate a mere 20 minutes while others are luckier with longer lunch times.

If your child can’t open their lunchbox or their containers and they have to rely on a teacher’s help, they are losing precious minutes holding their hand up and waiting to be seen and attended to. At worst, they can spend half their time waiting, leaving only 10 minutes to eat.

If your little one can’t open their container, return it and get a more kid-friendly lunchbox.

2. Don’t Use Too Many Individual Containers

It’s no accident that the bento-style lunch boxes became so popular. In terms of time savings, it’s huge. Kids literally just have to open one lid and all their food is ready to be eaten. Contrast that with the kid who is taking each container out of his or her lunchbox, opening each one individually, and figuring out which container is for snack time and which ones are for lunchtime. Not to mention they have to figure out what to do with the lids. The area of the table in front of them is a hot mess of containers and lids everywhere!

I found for my own pre-schooler, the sweet spot is to use 3 containers. Younger kids will have two snack times and one lunchtime. Two of the containers are dedicated for each one of the snack times, and one for lunch. All he has to worry about is to pull out the container dedicated to the meal he’s having. I love small containers that have a divider in the middle. You could even colour code containers or lids to designate the ones for snacks and the one for the main meal.

Don’t be afraid to ask your child for feedback. If they’re younger, they may not even know what’s bothering them about lunchtime.

Questions such as, “Was it easy to open your lunchbox/container?”, “Was it too messy?” and “Was it easy to get the food out of your container?” will all spark those conversations. You’ll be amazed how much useful information will come out of those conversations that will ultimately allow you to make meaningful changes.

3. Cut Everything Into Bite Sizes

For kids who love to chat with friends during lunchtime and “forget” to eat, this is my go-to tip. Cutting foods in a similar shape and size allows kids to chat away and still reach in their lunch container and grab a piece of food with little effort. These gluten-free and dairy-free bite-sized snacks will offer you some inspiration and can be modified if there are allergies.

I know it might seem like you are encouraging the chatting behaviour rather than eating, but this strategy is designed to encourage the volume of food they need as opposed to teaching them to focus. We have tip number 5 below to help with the focus part.

4. Protect Them From Sensory Overload

Eating is the only activity kids will do that requires them to coordinate all 8 senses. Eating in itself has a lot of information for the brain to sort through let alone when there are extra burdens placed on our sensory system.

That is the chaos of the cafeteria! They can be loud and bright. Visually, there are many distractions as well as lots of students, lots of movement, and the mess of scattered containers in front of them. Food smells meld together, which can be overpowering to some sensitive children. The easier we can make it on our kids from a sensory perspective, the easier it will be during lunchtime.

Making sure they can open their school lunch containers on their own, with minimal effort, sending fewer containers to open, and pre-opening any packaged foods are all helpful strategies to reduce the overload. If your child does not like bright environments, consider providing sunglasses. If your child is sensitive to loud noises, get them noise-reducing earmuffs.

Don’t be afraid to talk to your school and see if they can be placed in a quieter and less stimulating environment to eat if that’s what it takes.

5. Practice the School Lunch Routine at Home

Try practicing “lunchtime” at home right before school starts or after longer breaks like winter vacations or spring break. I also recommend doing this exercise whenever you feel that your little one needs to work on a particular skill.

Maybe they need to practice opening containers, tame their inner chatterbox, or simply need to work on eating around louder noises (in that case, turn up the radio during your practice lunch).

Pack dinner for everyone in a lunchbox and place your lunchboxes in a designated corner (this is a great way to practice your meal prep, too!). At dinnertime, ask everyone to go get their lunchboxes and come sit at the table. Each person is responsible for opening their own lunchbox and containers and eating as if it was at school. Set a timer for roughly how long children have to eat at school, and end the meal with everyone placing the containers back in the lunchbox. Next, have everyone place their lunchbox back in its designated spot.

You’re probably thinking that none of these tips have anything to do with kids doing any eating. That’s the next step. We first want to get kids in a place where they can focus on the food in front of them. If they are frustrated because it’s too hard to get the food out or they run out of time to eat, teaching them these skills will give them the foundation they need to move on and focus on the eating part.

Further Resources and Recipe Inspiration

• 25 Best Kid-Friendly Food Blogs
• 25 Nut-Free Lunch Ideas
• 20 Best Gluten-Free, Kid-Friendly Snacks
• 25 Best Bite-Sized Snacks
• 12 Family Friendly Recipes to Cook Together
• 3 Tips for a Healthy Lunch Box
• Back to School Nutrition Tips for Kids
• How to Survive When You Change Your Child’s Diet
• Are Your Kids Addicted to Junk Food? Here’s What To Do
• 6 Ways to Handle Picky Eaters
• How to Engage Your Picky Eater

The post 5 Ways to Help Your Children Eat Their School Lunch appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What is gluten?

Gluten is a protein present in wheat, spelt, kamut, barley, rye, and some oats. It’s gunky and glue-like and explains why you can roll a slice of processed white bread into a gooey little ball. It often gunks up the lining of the intestines making it tougher to absorb the nutrients from our food, and can contribute to many physical health symptoms from mood swings to constipation.

You can learn more about gluten, and its impacts on health from me and Josh Gitalis, in this episode of the Today Is The Day podcast:

• Is The Gluten-Free Diet a Fad?

Why are so many of us suddenly sensitive to gluten?

According to a 2009 study, the prevalence of undiagnosed celiac disease seems to have increased dramatically during the past 50 years. The current estimate is that one in 133 Americans have celiac and another 18 million have some form of non-Celiac gluten sensitivity. The reasons for this, though somewhat unconfirmed is due to the massive increase in gluten-containing foods in our processed standard diet combined with a modification of the grain itself to contain a higher gluten-concentration.

Watch Out, It’s Hiding In More Than Just Your Bread, Pasta, Cookies, Crackers and Cake…

You may be surprised to find gluten lurking in places you wouldn’t expect. Cutting out your favourite cookies and cakes is tough enough — you don’t want to be unknowingly sabotaging your efforts through hidden sources of gluten.

Check out the list of surprising sources of gluten below to make sure you aren’t accidentally eating more of it than you think.

17 surprising sources of gluten

1. Shampoo

Many gluten-containing ingredients are considered to be healthy for the hair, including ingredients made from wheat, barley, and rye. Watch out for shampoos that include any of those grain-based oils, or oat-based ingredients, as the oats they use may not be gluten-free. What you scrub into your scalp does get inside your body, so choose carefully.

2. Chewing Gum

Some brands use flour to coat pieces of gum to keep them from sticking to the packages. Check the brand’s website to be sure (I like PÜR GUM for gluten-free chewing) or chew on a sprig of fresh mint or a piece of ginger instead. Many commercial gums contain artificial sweeteners, so that’s reason enough to stay away.

3. Flavoured Potato Chips

Potato chips should technically be gluten-free, but many potato chip flavourings contain gluten (or the chips get contaminated with gluten in processing.) Chomp on gluten-free kale chips instead.

4. Soy Sauce

Did you know regular soy sauce contains wheat? Try organic, wheat/gluten-free tamari instead, or get a little adventurous and sample some coconut aminos.

5. Salad Dressings

Many salad dressings use gluten-containing ingredients as thickeners. Try making your own salad dressing instead.

6. Oats

Oats are technically gluten-free, but many brands may be contaminated with gluten. Oats are frequently grown alongside wheat, or the oats are contaminated with gluten during processing. Buy certified gluten-free oats.

7. Storebought Sauces

Many packaged and canned sauces contain gluten as a thickener (not to mention artificial colours, flavours and MSG.) Try making your own gluten-free sauces instead, like this Almond Dipping Sauce.

8. Puddings and Pie Fillings

Many puddings and pie fillings contain gluten-based thickeners. The best pie filling is plain old fruit (maybe with a little bit of natural sweetener like honey.) If you do need a thickener, arrowroot starch is a great gluten and corn-free option. And if you need a gluten-free pie crust, this one rocks.

9. Mustard

Some prepared mustards contain wheat flour. Check the ingredients label to make sure yours doesn’t.

10. Deli Meats or Prepared Meats

While meat is generally safe on a gluten-free diet, ready-to-eat or ready-to-cook meats can sometimes contain unsafe sauces or bread crumbs. Choose organic, local, fresh meats instead.

11. Whole Grains

Many whole grains such as kamut and spelt seem safe to eat, but they actually aren’t. While they contain a lower amount of gluten, they still have gluten. Watch out for orzo, couscous, triticale, and rye bread, too – they all contain gluten.

12. Ground Spices

Many spice mixes (curry powder, Cajun spice mix etc.) contain gluten as an anti-caking agent. Try making your own mixes from pure, whole spices instead!

13. Instant Coffee and Other Drinks

Many instant coffee brands contain gluten as a bulking agent, and powdered milk also contains wheat. There are great instant coffee alternatives. Dandy Blend is very popular, which is certified gluten-free, or try out these super cool instant chaga and reishi beverages from Four Sigma Foods. Be sure to try out these elixir recipes while you’re at it.

14. Canned Soups

Many canned soups contain wheat-based thickeners and loads of other preservatives. Try and get organic versions in cartons instead of cans and watch out that the only ingredients are the vegetables (maybe meat bones) and sea salt. Of course, you can always make your own and freeze it. Here’s a great vegetable soup and another amazingly healing bone broth.

15. Licorice (And Other Candy)

Some licorice brands and candies include wheat flour as a binding agent.

16. Alcohol

Many alcohols are made from gluten-containing grains. While the distillation process should theoretically get rid of gluten proteins, not all companies distill their products thoroughly enough to do so. Check the company’s website or enjoy a gluten-free mocktail instead.

17. Caramel Colour

Depending on the way it’s manufactured, caramel colour may or may not contain gluten. Best to steer clear of the whole business. Stick to whole, unprocessed options that are free of artificial flavours, artificial colours and ‘natural’ flavouring. and natural colour-free and flavour-free foods instead. Grab my guide to creating natural food dyes here.

Which of these hidden sources of gluten surprised you most?

The post 17 Surprising Sources of Gluten appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What does FOMO look like?

Researchers describe FOMO as a “pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent,” meaning we’re worried that we’re being left out of the fun. While feelings of exclusion aren’t new, what makes FOMO such a modern phenomenon is social media and our obsessive desire to stay connected through our devices. This is what makes FOMO so prevalent. In the past, we may not have known we missed out on a fantastic party until days or even weeks later, whereas now we know we weren’t invited instantly because we see posts from the party in real-time.

FOMO has become an epidemic, and perhaps it’s why we have constructed our lives in such a way that we are perpetually busy. If we keep busy then we feel justified in our own sense of place; we are doing something and therefore, the feeling of missing out is lessened. But busyness is not a badge of honour, nor is it the solution to make us feel more included, welcomed, or loved.

I am guilty of it too. I scroll through Instagram and I wonder why I hadn’t heard of that conference that everyone seemed to be at, or how I missed that awesome yoga class in the park.

can fomo be harmful to our health?

Research emerging in the last half-decade about the fear of missing out shows that this phenomenon can lead to:

• Problematic use of smartphones
• Excessive time spent on social media
• Missing out on sleep
• Distracted driving
• Lower life satisfaction
• Interrupted study or work time
• Fatigue and stress
• Overspending to keep up
• ‘Phubbing’ – snubbing people in favour of your phone

Much of this research is performed on teenagers and young adults, but I don’t know if the results would be all that different if people my age were the subjects. We all struggle with FOMO. What is more concerning about this prevalence in the younger generation is they often don’t know what it’s like to live without smartphones, the internet, or other technologies, and these consequences of FOMO are more likely to continue into adulthood without a course correction.

FOMO takes Us Away From Being in the Moment

The downside of FOMO for all of us is we become so chronically – or seemingly – busy, that we don’t ever get to be in the moment, here and now. We’re worried about where we need to be next and what everyone else is doing.

What most of us fail to notice, in those moments, is that where we are is exactly where we’re supposed to be. What we’re doing is just what we’re supposed to be doing. And how we’re feeling in that here-and-now moment is of our own choosing. We can fear that we are missing out, or we can take the time to find the grace, gratitude, and small bits of awesomeness that surely surround us right now.

Fortunately, the emergence of FOMO has led to another phenomenon: the joy of missing out, or JOMO. This concept invites us to enjoy and celebrate our disconnection from technology and social media and experience a healthier, happier life.

The trick and the challenge is learning how to pursue JOMO. That is our own work, something only we can do.

How to Overcome FOMO and Experience JOMO

1. Focus on the Exhale

It is in our breath, in the exhale, that we can release into the present. Too often, we get caught up in the stress of ‘busy,’ breathe shallowly, and then find ourselves holding that breath with slumped shoulders and contracted lungs, surging us straight into the body’s stress response. The simplest strategy to switch into the grace of here and now, rather than worrying about what everyone else is doing, is to focus on the exhale.

2. Change Your Relationship with Technology

Technology, and particularly social media, are the strongest influences that lead to FOMO. I own an online business so this is challenging, but it’s really challenging for all of us because many jobs require us to use devices and be available at the touch of a button. You don’t need to ditch technology or social media entirely, but it’s important to manage your consumption – not just to avoid FOMO, but to have more time to spend with the people who matter to you.

3. Practice Gratitude

We will always feel like we are missing out if we can’t appreciate what we have. Our experience of life can be as awesome as we want it to be. Sure, there will always be challenges, but maybe that’s the opportunity to learn an awesome lesson. We can find joy, fun, laughter, and beauty in just about anything. This is the practice of gratitude, using the moments that challenge us as the moments to look for the goodness.

4. Spend Time in Nature

Being outside has an incredible ability to ground us and improve our health. Disconnect – even for a short time – from technology and reap the health benefits of ‘forest bathing’, which include a boost to the immune system, a reduction in stress and pain, improved mood, and better respiratory and cardiovascular health.

5. Choose Happiness as Much as You Can

Every choice counts. Some of the sufferings we experience day-to-day are the result of questioning the choices we make or the result of giving that power of choice to someone else. What obligations or doubts can you release, knowing that every choice we make will build our emotional and physical health or work against it? Knowing that every choice counts, from diet to sleep to socializing to pooping, can you choose your own prescription for health and happiness? What choices would you make?

What are your best strategies for keeping yourself in the Here and Now, and warding off the evils of FOMO?

On My Mind Episode 26: From FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) to JOMO (Joy Of Missing Out)

Subscribe today on your favourite podcast app and never miss an episode.

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
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The post From FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) to JOMO (Joy Of Missing Out) appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

We first met a few years ago and I continue to be inspired by his massive knowledge in this area and how willing he is to share it. In this episode, we dive deep into air quality and he drops so many nuggets of wisdom and simple things you can do. This is a must for anyone who breathes – which is all of us.

Click here to get the Jaspr Air Purifier, the only air purifier that I use and trust.*

covered in this episode

• What air pollution and air quality are, and the difference between them
• Why outdoor and indoor air quality are often overlooked as part of the health equation
• The surprising reason why homes aren’t actually built for human beings
• The most urgent problem right now when it comes to air quality
• Common things in your home that dramatically affect the indoor air quality, and the toxins in indoor air you might not expect
• Whether plants and furnace filters truly work to boost air quality in the home
• What happens during an indoor air quality testing session
• Simple ways that people can improve their air quality at home and at work
• The most important room in your home to have an air filter
• What people should look for in air filters and air filtration systems
• How each of us can positively impact air quality
• The best thing you can do today to improve air quality

Click here to get the Jaspr Air Purifier, the only air purifier that I use and trust.*

about mike feldstein

Mike Feldstein is the Founder & CEO of Jaspr, an air science & technology company. He is an unconventional entrepreneur who sees challenges as opportunities and who is constantly finding solutions to problems others see as insurmountable. Jaspr, Feldstein’s latest venture, is the culmination of Mike’s diverse background in air quality, disaster restoration, and entrepreneurship and it is his mission to protect air quality and improve human health through innovative products and education.

• Jaspr Co.*
• Jaspr on Facebook
• Jaspr on Instagram

additional resources

• How I Created a Healthy Home
• Course: Healthy At Home
• Awair Element
• Benefits of a Clutter-Free Home and Decluttering Tips
• 10 Non-Toxic Home Cleaning Recipes
• Are Your Cleaning Products Too Toxic To Go Down the Drain?
• 15 Healthy Nursery Essentials
• 5 Essential Oils to Clean Your Home
• Is Your Shower Harming Your Health?
• The Unfreshening Ingredients in Toxic Air Fresheners
• NASA Clean Air Study

*This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I do earn a commission. I only champion products I have used and purchased myself. I have had my original Jaspr since 2021 and continue to be a super fan.

The post Episode 14: How To Improve Indoor Air Quality (And Why It’s Critical) with Mike Feldstein appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Josh takes his wild blueberry game very seriously. In 2017, he went so far as to drive over to the food terminal with our one-month-old son to get his annual bulk buy (while I got an hour of sleep).

We love our wild blueberries.

Wild blueberries are extra nutritious

Now to be clear, I love all blueberries. They are powerhouses of antioxidants, protecting us from free radical damage, whether it be from the sunshine or from the stress we create in our own minds. There is, however, some extra power in the wild variety.

Wild foods, like wild blueberries, need to be able to sustain themselves in the wild without the help of farmers or person-made fertilizers.  Compared to their cultivated counterpart, wild blueberries have a higher concentration of the antioxidant anthocyanin and therefore have a greater antioxidant capacity per serving than the cultivated variety. These antioxidants, as part of the diet, possess anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties, and they’re also noted for their benefit in preventing cardiovascular disease. My favourite benefit of antioxidants is their natural sun-protection abilities – eating wild blueberries in the summer can be protective against the damaging rays of the sun.

Don’t be fooled by labels on frozen berries in stores. You’d be hard-pressed to find true wild blueberries for sale in mass quantities. Recently, a Canadian food store changed their misleading labelling on frozen blueberries from wild to “cultivated high bush”.

True wild blueberries are the berries you’ll find at your local market for a short time each summer, often selling from eight dollars to 12 dollars per quart. They grow in the wild, usually on rocky outcrops, are labour-intensive, and time-consuming to harvest. They are also worth every penny when we consider the nutrients and flavour punch of each little gem of goodness.

Again, I will take blueberries in any chemical-free form. This summer I have even begun my blueberry growing adventure. As I write this, my family of three has indulged in a generous harvest of eight berries.

Favourite ways to enjoy blueberries

The best way to eat blueberries is, of course, by the handful. Second, I’ll take them in a smoothie, a muffin, topping some homemade ice cream, in a raw cheesecake, or a crumble, and these dehydrated blueberry ‘pancakes’ are a winner all around.

And for the sake of today, and for the sake of the two boys I share my house with, I will add jam to the list of favourites. There’s a small part of me that dislikes taking something so fresh and nutrient powered and cooking it down, as you do with a jam. But there’s a bigger part of me that just can’t buy sugar-laden jam, a sweetener with sugar and fruit concentrate in the store. So, even though I’m still on my pause from added sweetener in my life, I did make this jam for the boys to enjoy.

I love this recipe because it’s so easy to make, is free of refined ingredients and you get to control the consistency.

Click here to get access to my Jam and Thumbprint Cookie Recipes

 Let’s Make Some Jam!

Pectin

Pectin is part of what gives jam that jelly/jammy sticky texture. It’s what holds jam together.  Commercial store-bought packets of pectin are actually dextrose, a sugar derived from corn, one of the most genetically modified crops on the planet. So, I prefer to use an original whole source in my jam – apples. Blueberries also happen to be quite high in pectin as well, so that makes this a super jam-friendly berry.

Shelf Stability

My blueberry jam recipe below is not shelf-stable. It’s what I’d call a freezer jam. You can make loads, but your best bet is to store it in the freezer. In order to make a jam truly shelf-stable, you do require a lot more sugar than I want to use to ensure a specific pH level to prevent fur growth and whatnot. I am happy to make this in small batches and freeze the jars, or just freeze the berries whole and defrost some when it’s time to make a new batch of jam.

Homemade Blueberry Jam

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
• Yield: 2 1/2 cups of jam

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A simple homemade blueberry jam, naturally sweetened and no fillers.

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Ingredients

• 4–5 cups wild blueberries or regular blueberries
• 1 cup of applesauce (organic + unsweetened, or make your own)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• ½ cup (or more to taste) sucanat or coconut sugar

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Instructions

1. In a pot, combine berries, applesauce, lemon juice and sugar of choice.
2. Bring to a boil while stirring (uncovered).
3. Reduce to a simmer, uncovered, and continue to stir occasionally.
4. Leave it to cook down to about 1/3–1/4 of its original volume (around 45 minutes). It will thicken as it cools.
5. Once you are close to desired consistency, have a taste and add more sweetener if needed.
6. Transfer to a glass jar and store in the fridge once cooled.
7. Will keep in the fridge unopened for two weeks, once open, consume within 8–10 days. Keeps in the freezer for months!

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Category: Condiment

The post The Simplest Homemade Blueberry Jam appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What Is Sauerkraut?

Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that is combined with a brine or massaged to create its own brine, and sometimes herbs and spices. It’s generally used as a condiment on things like burgers, tacos, salads and sandwiches.

What’s The Difference Between Fermented Sauerkraut and Vinegar Sauerkraut?

The only type of sauerkraut I eat is the kind that has gone through a lactic acid fermentation process – basically fermented in naturally derived salt brine. During the fermentation process, various bacteria work on the cabbage to produce lactic acid. No special cultures, preservatives or chemicals need to be added.

Non-fermented sauerkraut is usually coated in a heated vinegar-salt brine and then canned. Often, food producers will use extra preservatives to keep it more shelf-stable and to ensure that the colours stay bright and vibrant. Most of what you’ll find in your supermarket has been pasteurized, which means all of the good bacteria have been killed. We want the good bacteria!

Canned sauerkraut has a very different taste from naturally fermented sauerkraut – the former is quite vinegary, while the latter is tangy and delightfully sour.

Health Benefits of Sauerkraut

Fermented foods like homemade sauerkraut are rich in probiotics. The word ‘probiotic’ means ‘promoting life’. Probiotics are the good guys; the beneficial bacteria we need in our gut that help keep us healthy. They support healthy digestion, immunity and our brains.

How to Incorporate Sauerkraut in Your Diet

I like to have a little bit of fermented foods, like sauerkraut, every single day. I also give it to my son Finn, as it’s one of his favourite foods. You don’t need a ton of it – a small amount, 1 or 2 tablespoons only, will do. If you eat too much (and aren’t used to eating kraut), you may end up with diarrhea.

Sauerkraut Troubleshooting

The recipe I’ve included in this post is very easy to make. However, I know that fermenting can be scary if you haven’t done it before! Fermentation can sometimes be a science experiment, where you don’t always know the results.

Some things to keep in mind:

• The sauerkraut must be submerged in brine to prevent mold. To keep it submerged, use a rolled cabbage leaf or a fermentation puck on top.
• Depending on where you live and the season (summer vs winter), fermentation can take different amounts of time. In a cold climate, it can take several weeks to ferment.
• Always taste test with a clean spoon.
• Don’t double-dip into your kraut. I like to make a big jar (my ‘main jar’), and then transfer to a small jar as I use it. That way, the main jar has less exposure to air or other bacteria, so it lasts longer.
• Sauerkraut will change colour as it ferments.
• If you get tired of massaging your kraut, leave the salt on it for about an hour before you begin massaging or pounding it. This will help naturally release the juices, cutting down on massage time.
• If I see mold, I throw my kraut out. Some people like to live on the edge and just scrape it off, but if there is mold on top, there is likely mold throughout that you can’t see.
• Your nose will likely tell you if sauerkraut has gone off. But when it doubt, throw it out. You can always start a new batch tomorrow.

Homemade Fermented Sauerkraut

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 20 mins
• Yield: 2 cups

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A delicious, probiotic-rich condiment that is very easy to make

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Ingredients

• 1 medium-sized cabbage (any colour)
• 1 Tbsp caraway seeds
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 2/3 cup grated carrot (optional)
• 2–3 Tbsp chopped or grated ginger (optional)

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Instructions

1. Remove large outer leaves from cabbage and set them aside.
2. Core and shred cabbage finely.
3. In a large bowl, mix cabbage with caraway seeds, sea salt and optional ginger and carrots.
4. Massage with your hands (or pound with a wooden mallet or tamper) for about ten minutes. Juices will be released.
5. Place into a wide mouth Mason jar and pound down until juices come up and cover the cabbage. Leave about 2 inches of space at the top.
6. Carefully place whole cabbage leaves overtop (inside the jar) to ensure everything is submerged completely. Seal jar firmly.
7. Keep at room temperature for about 3 days and then transfer to your fridge.
8. It may be eaten right away but will improve with time.

• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Category: Condiments

More Fermentation Resources

• My Favourite Probiotic-Rich Foods
• Fermented Nut Cheese
• Homemade Kimchi
• Coconut Miso Soup
• Coconut Kefir Ice Cream Pops
• Everything You Need to Know About Fermented Foods

The post How to Make Sauerkraut appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

If you’re staying close to home this summer, beyond having a dance party, cooking up something new and exciting, and tending your garden, I hope some of these staycation ideas help you pass the time with a little more fun and enjoyment.

9 summer staycation ideas

Berry Picking / Pick Your Own

There are loads of farms offering experiences for families. Whether it be berry picking, visiting farm animals, or helping out on the farm, explore the options in your area for a fun day in nature, with sweet treats to reward your efforts.

Home Spa Day

• making a facial scrub, lip scrub or a natural face mask
• skin brushing
• applying natural nail polish or makeup
• making a foot scrub and soaking your feet
• drinking infused water
• enjoying essential oils in a diffuser
• spending time in an infrared sauna

Outdoor Drinks or BBQs

If you have an outdoor space, like a patio or a backyard, take advantage and host something! Enjoy mocktails, BBQ classics like burgers and ketchup, iced tea, or anything else you and your friends and family would love. If you don’t have a backyard or patio, then visit a neighbourhood park (ensure you follow the regulations for the park you’re in).

Do or Learn Something Creative (Or Share Your Skills With Others)

Tap into the creative side of your brain by getting out some art supplies, starting a journal, taking a writing class, making jewelry, or whatever other creative endeavour you’d love to pursue. Even better, if it can be brought outside, invite friends over for a craft party and take turns hosting. It could become a really nourishing skill share event to look forward to.

Have a Concert, Comedy, or Movie Night

Neighbourhood Adventures

Go For a Walk in Nature

Enjoy a Picnic

City-Wide Scavenger Hunt (Or Keep It To Your Local Park or Backyard)

We’ve been doing this with our son by creating a game sheet with things to find based on where we’re going. It keeps him looking around and engaged, we get a long walk in the mix. You could also organize this with larger groups of friends or other families and have connected adventures for the whole day through. Here are some scavenger hunt ideas for adults, and this post has a fun little nature-based scavenger hunt for younger kids.

So these are my best summer staycation ideas. I am sure I am missing loads. Please post a comment below and let me know what I missed! Happy to keep this list growing to keep us all enjoying new experiences all summer long.

The post 9 Summer Staycation Ideas For The Whole Family appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Here are some helpful tips to help keep the family’s health on track while travelling with kids on vacation and even on one-day outings.

How to Keep Nutrition On Track With Travelling with Kids

1. Don’t sabotage your snacks

The worst culprit for sabotaging healthy eating are those moments when you’re off schedule, running around, coordinating activities and children and hunger strikes. This moment, affectionately known as ‘hangry’, is anger caused by hunger. It manifests as a cranky state from a lack of food. More precisely, ‘hanger’ is really a blood sugar crash and results in moodiness.

Whether you, your travel companions or children are hangry, the best prevention is having an arsenal of prepared and healthy snacks. I’m not talking granola bars, chips or Krispie squares, but rather a variety of nutritious, whole food snacks. Like their convenience-food counterparts, nutritious snacks must be portable, easy to grab and distribute, and simple to pack and store.

To make the most of your snacks and avoid ‘hanger’, follow the Protein-Fiber-Fat rule of eating to maintain blood sugar levels – which means include these three important nutrients in your snacks.

Here are some examples of blood sugar-balancing snacks:

• Mini Carrots, Baby Cucumbers and Grape Tomatoes with Hummus or Guacamole
• Apples, Pears and Bananas with Nut Butter
• Nuts, Seeds & Trail Mix
• Homemade Energy Bites or Muffins

Discover more meal and snack ideas for travel here.

2. Pack light and bring a suitcase with food

If you’re planning to visit a warm destination, all you really need to pack for clothing is your bathing suit, flip flops and beach towels. So pack light and reserve a suitcase to bring your and your children’s favourite foodstuffs. Most airlines allow you to pack food as long as it’s in the checked luggage.

I always pack:

• a tetra pack of non-dairy milk
• a variety of tea bags
• protein powder
• greens powder
• a jar of almond butter
• cereal

I also pack a small portable “bullet” blender, empty jars with lids (to shake a quick protein drink with water), reusable water bottles and insulated travel mugs. These accessories and food not only help with mornings, but they provide the comforts of home and help to establish a routine when you’re away. By starting your day by preparing your own breakfast, you’ll save time and money by not eating out, too.

3. Navigate the buffet and eating on the road with smarts

Eating out is inevitable when it comes to travelling, holidays or day trips. But eating out doesn’t have to mean you feed your kiddos at all-you-can-eat buffets, greasy spoons or drive-thrus. Your family can certainly eat nutritiously when eating out, you just have to be conscious about your food choices.

On cruise ships and all-inclusive destinations, the buffet is generally part of the package deal. Buffet doesn’t have to mean all-you-can-eat! The first rule when navigating the buffet line is to only fill your plate once. Browse the buffet menu options with your children before everyone grabs a plate, and encourage everyone to pick their 3 favourite items. Having a tough time deciding? Most buffets rotate and repeat their selections, so chances are, you’ll have another opportunity to try a dish that piques your interest. Reserve half of your plate for salad or veggies and portion the rest of your plate with protein and whole grains.

When eating out at a restaurant, the same rules apply. Pass on the deep-fried foods, refined carbs and appetizers. Instead order salads (with dressing on the side), wraps and substitute fries, potatoes, pasta and rice with extra veggies. Most restaurants will happily accommodate your requests. Include a protein with your meal – if you’re ordering meat or fish, make sure it’s grilled or broiled as opposed to fried.

4. Stay regular

If you and your kids eat healthy on a regular basis, then travelling or eating out can often affect everyone’s regularity! That’s why when eating out, I suggest including a variety of veggies and pack a greens supplement in your suitcase.

Staying hydrated with water, supplementing with healthy fats from Omega 3s, and a good quality probiotic will help to keep you and your kids regular, aid in preventing traveller’s diarrhea and reduce chances of constipation.

5. Keep moving – exercise and stretch

Car rides, airport lines and long waits are also part of travelling, vacations and day trips. Make the most of these situations by periodically moving and stretching to keep the blood flowing. Kids have a lot of energy to burn, so this will help them work off that extra energy.

If you’re lucky enough to include an excursion or activity in your plans, then make sure to properly warm-up prior to exercising. And follow-up strenuous activity with a cool-down to prevent injury and sore muscles.

Be adventurous and have fun during your vacation. Take an opportunity to try something new and get out of your comfort zone. Look for active and family-friendly events and activities to stay moving. Keeping kids active and busy is also a great way to get them to sleep! A welcome reprieve for parents after a long day, right?

With these tips in mind, you and your family can travel healthfully and return from your vacation refreshed and relaxed – not immediately in need of another vacation!

What tricks do you have to keep nutrition on track when travelling with kids? Please share in the comments!

The post How to Keep Nutrition on Track While Travelling with Kids appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

I’m a cottage-obsessed nature lover and can easily live without the city comforts and conveniences when I’m in the woods. I grew up in the prairies, in Winnipeg and went to summer camp near there where the mosquitoes were so big and vicious that if you swatted one, they’d often swat you right back.

No matter how bad the bug situation is, I can’t resort to using conventional bug repellents to protect me.

Most traditional bug sprays use DEET as the primary ingredient. And sure, DEET works, but it also comes with its own health risks.

Health Concerns of DEET

DEET has been:

• shown to inhibit the nervous system
• compromise the immune system in animals
• associated with sperm mutations and epigenetic changes in rats, when combined with other pesticides

Here in Canada where I live, DEET is permitted in bug sprays but the government recommends children under the age of 12 “do not use a DEET product on a daily basis for more than a month” and babies under 6 months should not use them at all.

What Else Is In Conventional Bug Repellent?

DEET isn’t the only ingredient in bug repellent that gives me pause. I took a look at a bug repellent made by Johnson and Johnson, one of our good ‘ol healthwashing friends. In addition to DEET, they use:

• Fragrance: This is an umbrella term for thousands of chemicals that are untested and potentially unsafe. Fragrance is also used in beauty care and cleaning products, and can trigger allergic reactions, respiratory issues like asthma, headaches and hormonal disruptions.
• Ethanol: Otherwise known as alcohol, ethanol is used as an emulsifier in bug spray and can also be found in disinfectants and anti-bacterial soaps and hand washes. It’s associated with skin conditions like dermatitis, psoriasis and eczema and can disrupt our skin’s microbiome.
• Butane, propane, isobutane: These propellants help spray the liquid from the can. Inhaling these petroleum products can impact both the brain and the heart, plus inhalant abuse – you may have heard of huffing – can impact children and teens. And these chemicals are highly flammable! They’re not the kind of thing I want around my campfire.

Natural Bug Repellent Options

The good news is that there are many natural bug repellent options and you can easily DIY your own bug spray. Many traditional bug sprays incorporate essential oils like citronella, eucalyptus, camphor, and others into their formulations, and with good reason: they work. Research shows that plant-based oils can protect against common bugs like mosquitoes.

Some of the natural bug repellent options are:

• Citronella and Lemongrass. Citronella can provide up to two hours of protection against mosquitoes. This small study of citronella candles and incense discovered they reduced bites by about 40% and 35% respectively. Interestingly, in this study of citronella and lemongrass, the researchers noted that the essential oils were more effective than DEET because the mosquitoes had developed a resistance.
• Clove. This study showed that clove oil tested 100% repellency for larvae, while another study found it protected against mosquitoes for 4-12 hours depending on the concentration.
• Coconut oil. Is there anything that this oil can’t do? Evidence indicates that coconut oil can deter mosquitoes.
• Eucalyptus. This study showed that eucalyptus oil tested 100% repellency for larvae, and can help repel mosquitoes, ticks and other insects.
• Peppermint. Peppermint can protect us from flies and mosquitoes.
• Ylang ylang. In one study of ylang ylang and lemongrass, the ylang ylang offered over 98% protection against mosquitoes.
• Witch Hazel. This plant is an excellent toner and astringent that is often used in natural beauty care. It can help address itchiness and inflammation from bug bites if they occur.

As I’ve mentioned before, the quality of essential oils you use is important. If you’re going to opt for a natural bug repellent, ensure that the essential oils will actually protect you and do what the company claims they will.

If you’re on board with making your own natural bug repellent, this is my favourite recipe to use. I whip up batches of this every summer and spray liberally as needed. And, unlike some traditional bug sprays, this one actually smells good too!

Natural Bug Repellent

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• Author: Meghan Telpner
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 2 cups

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A natural bug repellent that will keep those bug bites at bay.

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Ingredients

• 1 cup Witch Hazel
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp Vodka (optional)
• 10 drops citronella or lemongrass essential oil
• 10 drops clove essential oil
• 10 drops eucalyptus essential oil
• 10 drops peppermint essential oil

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Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in your glass spray bottle.
2. Shake before use.

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Category: Beauty Care

*This post contains affiliate links.

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Developing relationships with the people who grow your food takes time, but is well worth the effort. When you’re beginning to explore farmers markets and local food, there are a number of ‘first date’ questions you can ask to discover whether the farmer in question is right for you and values the same things you do.

So today let’s talk about the important questions to ask your farmer at the market. Farmers and food producers are an incredible resource because they’re the ones who are growing the food! I have never met a farmer who doesn’t take pride in his or her work – and farmers are usually happy to chat with you and answer your questions, even during busy market hours.

The key to asking questions is being nice about it. A part of my creed is to flirt with farmers. Now, in this context, I don’t mean flirt with them to get them into your bed (even if it’s an organic, non-toxic bed), but it’s genuinely a good practice to be respectful, kind and courteous when asking questions about where your food comes from. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, so be sweet.

Questions to Ask Your Farmer at the Market

1. What sprays/pesticides/herbicides do you use?

Some farmers markets have certain rules and restrictions about the types of farming practices they expect from their vendors. But not all do. Ask what kinds of synthetic sprays, pesticides and herbicides farmers use to grow and tend to their produce.

A meta-analysis of 343 studies concluded that organic produce is higher in antioxidants, lower in pesticide residues and lower in heavy metals than conventional. Reducing our exposure by purchasing pesticide-free fruits and veggies is a fundamental place to start.

2. What kind of pest control measures do you use? Do you spray all year or at the beginning of the season, or only as needed?

Some farmers may not use pesticides on a regular basis, but only in special circumstances when there is an infestation or maybe at the beginning of the growing season. Inquire about this, as well as the farmer’s approach to dealing with pests. Pest control is a part of farming no matter what – but methods to deal with it differ.

Do they choose certain varieties of plants that are more resistant to pests? Do they create an environment that attracts beneficial insects that eat the pests? And do they rotate crops and have other animals on the farm that deal with pests? (What’s a pest to us is dinner to another!)

3. What kind of soil do you use?

Fruits and vegetables get their nutrients from the soil – and that means a fruit or veggie is only as nourishing as the soil in which it was grown.

Great, fertile soil is its own ecosystem, with microorganisms and organisms that work together to break down and create nutrient-rich matter. Soil also works within the larger ecosystem of the farm, including the animals that fertilize or graze, the birds in the area, the water used, the sunshine, and more. A good farmer will understand this symbiotic environment and work to create soil that is nourishing.

Pesticides, monocropping and tillage all affect soil quality. Research shows that the vitamin and mineral content of our produce has declined in recent decades. An apple your grandmother ate as a child was actually more nutrient-rich than most apples available today.

Another major issue with soil is soil erosion because of our chemical farming practices. Fertile topsoil takes time to develop, but most crops aren’t given that opportunity. Scientists predict if soil degradation continues at the current rate, we’ll only have 60 years of farming left.

Scary? Yes. But thankfully, there are farmers who prioritize the integrity of their soil and make sure they create a farm environment that will support future generations.

4. Do you have any certifications?

Ask your farmer if he or she has any certifications, such as certified organic or any animal welfare certifications if the farm raises animals. These certifications will vary from country to country.

Now, normally I say that labels are for tin cans and certifications aren’t the whole story of a farm. But it’s good to know if your farmer has pursued any relevant certifications.

It’s definitely possible that a farm practices organic and biodynamic growing techniques, but can’t afford the expensive certification process. That’s why it’s equally important to ask about how they grow their food.

5. What variety of crops do you grow?

Ask your farmer about the kinds of produce they grow throughout the year and their crop rotation methods. This gives you an indication of whether they are trying to support soil fertility, as different plants take certain nutrients from the soil. Crop rotation allows the soil to rest and replenish.

Also, asking about what crops they grow tells you what you have to look forward to and if that farmer grows the types of produce you like. There is a cornucopia of fruits and veggies in the world, and maybe that farmer focuses on foods that aren’t your faves.

6. Do you use GMO seeds?

Just as the soil is important, so are the types of seeds that are planted in that soil. You know that I am not a proponent of genetically modified foods – you can learn why and how to have a conversation about them if you’re interested.

7. For animal products: How are the animals housed and treated? What are they fed? How much fresh air and exercise do they get?

If you eat and buy animal products, it’s important to ask your farmer at the market how they raise animals.

Organic, grass-fed and pasture-raised animals are more humane and from a nutritional perspective, they actually yield a more nutritious product. Grass-fed beef contains higher amounts of anti-inflammatory omega-3s, antioxidants and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which helps with fat burning and protects against carcinogens, artery plaque and diabetes. If you consume dairy, organic milk and organic cheese have more CLA and omega-3s than conventional.

Ask your farmer how they raise and treat their animals. For a full list of what questions to ask about each specific animal, check out this great resource.

8. Can I come and visit your farm?

Most farmers who are proud of what they do and have nothing to hide will be happy to welcome guests to their farms for visits and tours. But don’t show up unannounced whenever you want – ask for a scheduled visit so you know the farmer has the time to show you around when it’s convenient for them.

Remember that farming is hard work so there may be a certain time of the day that’s the best, so work around the farmer’s schedule.

9. What are your favourite ways to prepare X?

Don’t forget that farmers are a goldmine of ideas on the culinary side of things. If they are selling a fruit or vegetable that is unfamiliar to you, ask how to best prepare and use it. For veggies that you know and love, they may give you new ideas and inspiration for cooking and preparation.

They can also offer great advice about storage, preserving and fermenting, so tap into their culinary prowess.

10. Do you have a CSA program?

Community Supported Agriculture – CSA for short – is a wonderful way to support farmers and reap the benefits of the produce they grow. Basically, you purchase a share up front and then once the produce is ready, you get a weekly box for a certain number of weeks. This exposes you to seasonal fruits and veggies and may introduce you to things you’ve never thought to buy before.

Since you don’t necessarily know what will be in your box each week, it’s a great surprise and allows you to experiment with ‘cooking on the fly’. But if you are panicked by the Iron Chef-style surprise ingredient cooking, this may not be the best option for you.

More things to consider about participating in a CSA right over here.

Purchasing from local farmers helps to support the local economy, fuel your optimal health, and improve the environment by reducing the distance that food travels from farm to plate. Chat up your local farmers at the farmers markets and be curious and open-minded – I think you’ll be surprised at how much valuable knowledge you’ll learn.

Photo Credit: Catherine Farquharson for The UnDiet Cookbook

The post 10 Important Questions to Ask Your Farmer at the Market appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Back in 2016, we went through a home renovation. I was conscious about the choices we were making in terms of paint and other finishes, but as I started looking more into this, I realized that the structural components of the spaces we live in have less impact day-to-day than the stuff we choose to fill our house with.

The health of our homes and what we are inhaling, absorbing through our skin, and using to clean becomes extra critical. Health isn’t just about what we eat, how much we exercise, sleep, and practice gratitude. Those elements are actually the tougher ones to keep going. The health of our home? This is easy. Trust me.  As I prefer to approach health from a holistic perspective, meaning the totality of our health, we have to look at all of the factors that affect overall health. To that end, lowering the body burden of toxins becomes critical and the internal environment of our homes is one of the greatest contributing factors.

And guess what? I’ve done the heavy lifting for you– the work is done. Stay with me, here.

My Lightbulb Moment

As we were getting ready to move back into our 100-year-old house after our renovation, and I was in the early stages of pregnancy, we bought an air purifier to help offset some of the unavoidable lingering volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that were remaining post-renovation. We unboxed our new air purifier and the smell of the plastic was so strong (what we call off-gassing or releasing more VOCs into the air) that we had to set it up in a closed room where it could off-gas and clean the air from its own off-gassing.

I had this light bulb moment at the time, realizing that I had spent so much time researching things like what kind of paint was being used on the walls (which does matter, but in most cases, once it’s fully dry, becomes inert), but hadn’t given a lot of thought to the furniture I was considering filling my home with.

At the time, I was spending a full 1/3 or so of every 24-hour day sleeping on a mattress made of polyurethane foam – basically solid gasoline that is required by law to contain a certain level of flame retardants. Chemicals in flame retardants migrate out of the furnishings that contain them and become dust that we inhale and ingest. I tried to clear my concern about the off-gassing of my mattress assuming that as it was 10 years old, it was done that process. But when I looked further into this, I learned that there is no free pass on a mattress. Basically, it off-gasses for years, and then once that’s done, it starts degrading and freeing even more polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) from flame retardants.

Right about now, you might be experiencing a similar WTF moment that had me starting to look around the rest of my house and wondering what else was going on under the upholstery, shiny finish of build-it-yourself economical furniture, coating on carpets, and window coverings that heat up under the glare of the sun that were directly contributing to my body burden, one I wanted to keep as low as possible while carrying my baby, and of course, once he came into the world.

As I began digging into this topic, I realized that the health of the spaces we live in are critical and are too rarely addressed by medical or alternative health experts. This is what inspired Josh and me to create Healthy At Home, our course all about how to make simple and inexpensive changes in the home that have the potential to have dramatic benefits to overall health – especially our respiratory health.

The Big Investment Changes We Made To Make A Healthier Home

Neither of us were keen on moving out of the city to build a rammed earth, off the grid house (though as I found my way down the rabbit hole of chemicals used in homes, I was tempted). We had to work with the downtown Toronto semi-detached house we had just moved into. And so when we started considering how to allocate a rather limited budget on things that would carry the biggest health impact. We had to weigh things out.

The key here was that we were not rebuilding a home, just making switches to what we furnished it with and used within the home. That’s what makes this all so doable for everyone.

There were two main ‘big ticket’ investments we made when looking at how to make our home healthier.

The Bed

I was pregnant and exhausted, and with 33% of our lives spent sleeping, the bed was the first thing that was in desperate need of an upgrade. This was our biggest expense in terms of healthifying our home but it mattered to us. We swapped our aging gasoline mattress for a 100% natural latex mattress with a wool topper. We got ours from Sunshine Mattress Co, a Canadian company. (Use the coupon code MEGHAN10 for 10% off mattresses and accessories.)

Water

I called in a local company that came over and tested the water from our faucet. We live not far from Toronto’s water treatment centre and when our water was tested, it had close to the optimal level of chlorine as a swimming pool. The chlorine level tends to be lower further away from the treatment center as the chlorine evaporates. As a 10-minute shower is shown to be equivalent to drinking two litres of water, in terms of absorption of whatever is in the water, we went ahead and invested in a whole house de-chlorinator (I used the local Toronto company Nimbus).

As I shared in this post, when we shower, chlorine vapour isn’t just limited to the shower but can spread through the whole home.

Home Cleaning Products

Considering that the average conventional home care cleaning product is actually too toxic to be poured down the drain, what are we thinking when we buy the skull and cross bones stuff to clean the surfaces we touch and use multiple times a day? We committed to making most of our own home cleaning products. I have to do this once every 2 to 3 months so it’s really not a big deal at all. We’d previously been buying the ‘eco-friendly’ brands but often they contained ingredients that were still not optimal or essential. I’ve since mixed and matched between making my own and buying from shops that support refills for things like dish soap, laundry detergent, and body soap.

Choose Natural Rugs

We didn’t have any carpets and were in need of some. Once I started looking into all the stain-guard and 3M patented cocktails used on carpets, in addition to the flame retardants that must be added to synthetic rugs, natural fibers were the, ahem, natural choice. I focussed on cotton and wool (sisal is another option but rougher to the touch). What about staining, you might ask? Don’t buy white rugs or carpets! We got natural wool rugs for the most part and I also invested in a Spot Steam Cleaner (I got the Bissel one). I called the Toxic Taxi to pick up the container of chemicals it comes with and, instead, use a little vinegar and castille soap to steam clean any spills. We got through 4 years of having a child without any permanent staining on our natural rugs.

If you’re in a rental with wall-to-wall carpeting, a regular steam cleaning will be helpful. And if you have a little one crawling around, you might want to throw down some rugs. Those woven cotton rag rugs are a great machine-washable, camouflage-friendly option.

Opening The Windows

This is maybe the littlest big game-changer you can make. And you gotta! Unless you live somewhere with extreme air quality warnings, there’s a good chance the air inside your home is more toxic than the air outside your home. No matter where you live, open your windows every day. All of them. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air can be 2 to 5 times more toxic than outdoor air. Get air moving through your space. Open those windows, and put the fans on when you first wake up. That is the best ventilation of all!

Take Your Shoes Off At The Door

This video explains this simple and essential step for a Healthier Home

Get Your Ducts Cleaned

If you’re in an apartment or condo building, it’s worth inquiring how frequently this is done. At the very least, if you don’t have control over your ducts, you do have control over the vents the air passes through so ensure these are vacuumed regularly. If you are in your own home, get your ducts cleaned every year. This service is typically under $200 (more or less depending on the size of your house). The air you breathe in the colder months when the heat is on, or in sweltering months with your AC is on, pass through the ducts of your house. This is a simple way to reduce the recirculation of particulates that can aggravate lung and cognitive functions.

Change Your Filters

This also applies to both apartment and home dwellers. If you own a vacuum, optimally there is a vacuum filter to change. Find out based on what you have, how frequently those filters need to be changed and stay on top of it. You are using your vacuum to suck up the dust in your house. As I shared above, that dust can be from the breakdown of chemicals from upholstery or mattresses, or it can be lead dust tracked in on your shoes (or any number of the other things we track in with our shoes). If you have your own furnace, ensure the furnace filter is being changed regularly. Again, all forced air in your home is passing through this.

Ditch The Scented Stuff

Candles, air-freshening sprays, fragrances, body care products – all of it has to go. The toxicity in our homes is cumulative so the more easy swaps we can do, the lower the load will be that the body has to contend with.

And These 5 Simple Swaps

Don’t Feel Overwhelmed! I’ve Got You

As I have been researching, learning, and applying this information for the better part of the last five years, I’ve compiled loads of simple resources to get you started. Remember, there won’t be one specific essential thing for everyone. You have to determine what’s most critical based on your lifestyle. Take some time to review the other articles I’ve written here.

Want A Guided Approach? This is for you!

If you want a guided approach, checklists, referenced info, video lessons and a full tour of our home, please check out Healthy at Home.

All of the details are here for you.

You can get instant access and go through the course at your own pace. It’s an important one!

On My Mind Episode 07: How I Created A Healthy Home

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The post How I Created A Healthy Home appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

What follows is a nuanced view. This is not a black-or-white issue but one that is deeply complex and that requires more thought and action than news headlines and public figures are leading us to believe. Settle in, read or listen, and take your time getting to the end. We’re going on a journey.

Enjoy on the go with an audio recording of the post in its entirety.
Full written post below.

Also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Castbox.

I remember when it was a thing to calculate your ecological footprint before it was rebranded as ‘carbon footprint’. I was an early adopter of what I thought of as planetary care. I had my cloth tote bags, and glass straws, bought things in bulk, saved all my jars to reuse, and have always done my best at keeping single use plastic out of my home. Having long been a fan and advocate for buying second-hand (especially vintage for me!), I’ve also developed a love for fixing and mending or selling and donating what no longer serves to extend usage. Avoiding single-use plastics is my aim (because recycling really isn’t what we think it is) and every bit of plastic ever made still exists on our planet.

As a child of the 80’s, I remember talk of the energy crisis and acid rain, the hole in the ozone was big in the 90’s, and then came global warming in the early aughts. Now the global politics (and big money, and measures ‘for your safety’) of it all have swooped in along with the rebranding of ‘Global Warming’ to ‘Climate Change’, and ‘Environment Canada’ being renamed ‘Climate Change Canada’ in 2023.

With growingly intense political division and ideologies being adopted as personal identities, we also know that to ‘believe in climate change’ without question will align you with certain groups and policies. To question what we’re being told, or even any small aspect of it, will have you labelled a ‘climate change denier’ or worse, one of those crazy right-wing, tin foil hat wearing conspiracy theorists.

Where is she going with this!!?!?! Is she one of them or one of us?

Spoiler: I’m neither. I don’t think. Who knows, who cares. I’m just here asking questions because this isn’t about plastic bags, or plastic straws or carbon taxes. That is all a distraction from what’s actually critical here— the fact that we’re being told to look in one singular direction when there is nothing being done to address what might be most critical: a growing disconnection from nature, the actual environment, sacrificing our own mental and physical health. Instead we’re fostering an absolute reliance on tech-based solutions and government policies, taxing their way out of this, at the expense of citizens.

We do have an environmental issue. But it’s not in the way we’re being led believe. All we have to do is look to the declining health of all living things on this planet and ask whether the solutions are fixing that. They’re not. Because they’re not getting to the root cause.

Curiosity killed the cat and may just have me cancelled for trying to answer the questions that come to my mind on this topic. So far I’m still standing because I do believe that when presented with common sense and facts, it triggers something deep within people that may make them intensely uncomfortable but also resonates because of the simple truth of it all.

Take A Pause For A Moment

If your knickers are already getting knotted and you’re thinking– What is Meghan saying? What team is she on? Is she about to say what I think she’s about to say? Do I now need to unfollow, unsubscribe, and walk away from all the other work she’s done because of this one long format exploration of an idea?

First, take a deep breath or ten (or get yourself into coherence) and come on back in a calm state with your pre-frontal cortex turned on so we can be grown-ups together and do a little critical thinking and maybe have a difficult conversation.

Most importantly, remember for that we all live here, on this one sweet planet, and we need this planet to thrive if we are to thrive. Most of all, I ask and attempt to answer these questions because I don’t want my child growing up in a world where every move he makes is tracked, where he cannot choose what he eats, and mostly I want him to live in a healthy environment, a healthy and thriving planet so that he can be a healthy and thriving human alongside other healthy and thriving humans.

This is why this topic and the key difference between creating division among this global community of humans for the sake of ‘climate change’ versus what it means to live by (and be governed by) the principles of true ecological care needs addressing.

It’s Time To Wake Up and Look Around

The idea for this was sparked by a conversation with a good friend who has two teenage children being taught about climate change in school. She said that not too long ago she would have been all on board but now is not so sure where she stands as the policies, taxes, and general messaging seem to be more about protecting big business profits, governments, and global control over the population by unelected officials that seem keen on having us drink potato milk and eat lab-grown or ‘plant-based’ meat versus the actual wellbeing of humans and the planet. All of this is happening while our old-growth forests continue to be cleared with abandon.

My response to my friend was simple: We need to take care of the planet, be environmentally aware, and conscious about our role in this ecosystem if we as humans are going to thrive. Currently, the human population is degenerating, not thriving and no amount of technology will save us from our epidemic disconnection with the source of where we come from: nature.

We need to clean up our act in real ways, not simply by paying a carbon tax to offset our flight to an all-inclusive in Cancun where we’ll eat factory-farmed food, and drink from single-use plastic bottled water. A tree being planted to offset all that goes into manufacturing and shipping some plastic sneakers made in China isn’t quite an equal balance. We have developed an obsessive need for the newest yoga pants made from recycled water bottles, or even try and do the right thing by jumping on a climate-friendly plant-based diet without considering that the energy equivalent to get the food to us then we take in consuming it.

Is there anything wrong with going on vacation in Cancun or buying some yoga pants? No, I don’t think so. It’s the greenwashed ‘net zero’ initiatives in response that I have questions about.

Does all of this ‘offsetting’ help? Maybe. But it’s not enough to turn the tides.

I am not affirming or denying changes that could be happening to our climate (although this independent thorough review by The Fraser Institute counters what the media-approved scientists, politicians, and non-elected elite global organizations are saying, and I think it’s always important to read that which contradicts our existing beliefs). I have a healthy dose of common sense, a natural curiosity, and a pesky authority-defying streak. When I am told to look in one direction, I will strain my own neck looking the other way.

It’s really remarkable how we will often only see what we’re told to look out for.

More often than not, when we’re told to look for just one thing, we fail to pay attention to or even know what to ask that is not in full highlight.

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Is the climate actually changing Because of Day-To-Day Human Activity?

Most stores where I live have banned plastic bags. Everyone applauds. But this only refers to the free ones at checkout. You can, of course, purchase a different kind of plastic bag – this one in the form of a tote bag that might give you a few more uses, but ultimate ends up in the same place. It’s still plastic. I suppose we’re not supposed to notice that just about everything else in most stores is made of and/or packaged in plastic.

I have no idea if our little everyday actions are the direct cause of what we’re told is the main problem. I am not sure anyone does but everyone is picking a side anyway. You most certainly can find scientists who will say it is, and others saying it’s not and that this is the natural ebb and flow of nature on this planet over time

What I do know for sure is that you can find quality data that will support both views. One can argue the climate has always been changing – sometimes in subtle ways, sometimes in dramatic ways (hello, Ice Age). Humans have existed on this planet for a tiny fraction of time that the planet has existed and data has been tracked and collected for an even tinier fraction of time.

Is a change of one to five degrees dramatic over the entire history of planetary existence? Perhaps. Perhaps not.

Is it dramatic for human life and how and where we live? Looks like it is, but how much is naturally occurring cycles versus the impact of industry? And is that actually what’s happening?

More importantly, are you and I, as single individuals the ones causing it? Maybe. Maybe not.

But It Was ‘The Hottest Year On Record’

If you search ‘hottest year on record’ and put any year in front of that, you’ll get a slew of stories about that year (I went as far back as 1995). You can find the same pertaining to individual countries; the exact same headline with different countries slotted in.

Now, I am not giving a yay or nay on whether this is true because data can and is cherry-picked to tell whatever story is supposed to be told, and when this happens, we become so convinced that we don’t even know what questions to ask to challenge it. We never know what we don’t know and if I’ve learned anything in recent years, I will never underestimate the power combo of fear mixed with propaganda. When we’re told something enough times we tend to believe it. We begin to believe it was our own original thought and believe it just like every thought that pops into our mind.

This list of heatwaves is interesting to note because we know a couple of massive heat waves in a few places on the planet in any given year, when averaged out across the whole planet, can impact total average temperature, however, is that an accurate way to measure of change? Another question I have yet to find a reliable answer for.

The Forest Fire Problem

Here’s another one. We’re told to be terrified about the increasing amount of forest fires. In 2023 there seemed to be record fires that were cited as (simultaneously, in many different areas) caused by dry lightning. In Toronto, where I live, the city was engulfed in smoke for days, and up north nearly the entire summer. People were evacuated from homes across Canada due to the fires. To be clear, questioning the cause is in no way diminishing the very real damage and suffering caused by them.

It is, however, necessary to note that many were later (quietly) proven to be arson (in Alberta, Quebec, and Nova Scotia), not climate change. (Curiously, the ‘fact checkers’ were quick to debunk the actual trial outcomes saying people may have been at fault for starting them, but climate change was why they spread). Again, I’ll mention this report by The Fraser Institute that presents evidence that forest fires have actually been on the decline since 1995.

As humans, we want to be right always, and so we have a tendency to follow an ideology that aligns with most of our values and then seek out the news media, experts, and friends who continue to affirm what is now our own bias. Confirmation bias sets in and you will be served information, by the very nature of the internet, that continues to support what you already believe. We will look in the direction we’re being told that keeps us as comfortable as possible. It might be useful to note here that as the world seems to be racing towards the beast of AI, no one is talking about the massive carbon footprints generated by Data centres and AI.

ChatGPT And The Energy Grid

A quick sidebar for you:

• A report from the International Energy Agency estimates that data centers’ total electricity consumption could reach more than 1,000 terawatt-hours in 2026, which is roughly the energy consumption of Japan.
• In 2022 alone, data centres consumed 2% of all global electricity usage.
• ChatGPT uses on average 17,000 times more electricity per day than the average household in the US.

Should we not worry about this because maybe a tree was planted, or they’re donating to some new tech start-up that is inventing the technology to remove billions of tons of CO₂ from the atmosphere using things like limestone or some other fancy conversion or storage systems? I thought trees and biodiversity do this.

Some More Human-Made Problems

There are many things that are undoubtedly human-made problems that have a negative or unknown impact on the state of health of our planet including:

• Clear-cutting of old-growth forests which impacts rain patterns/drought and the natural carbon sequestering of trees themselves
• The decimation of quality topsoil by chemical-laden mono-crop big agriculture farming, which makes crops weaker and more susceptible to pests thereby requiring more and more chemicals
• The Great Pacific Plastic Patch, a mass of plastic debris floating in the North Pacific estimated to be the size of Texas,
• Out-of-control forest fire set off by arson (Is it possible that the ongoing clearing of forests in BC is actually what is inviting an increase in fires? Yes, yes it is.)
• Fossil fuel usage to convert plastic waste into new fast fashion and shipping packaging that is not recyclable (it is now nearly impossible to find clothing that is not infused with plastic)
• The amount of garbage from our online shopping habits, disposable face masks and plexiglass partitions, trendy brand name drinking cups, and on it goes
• Food packaging used for our obsession with ordering in meals (Just because we’re told a packaging is ‘biodegradable’, doesn’t mean it actually is. It all depends on where it lands after we dispose of it. ‘Biodegradable’ in theory doesn’t actually mean it will naturally decompose in the landfill.)
• The ongoing need to upgrade our tech, plus the built-in obsolescence by the makers (E-waste in Canada has tripled in the last 20 years. They’re trying to work out a better recycling system but again, none of this is actually going away).
• Our obsessive consumerism culture where we’re now buying more than ever because every store in the world is in the palm of our hand (In the US alone, 24.4% of online clothing purchases are returned and half of that ends up in the landfill and 54% of the global fiber market comprised from virgin fossil-based materials like polyester. More fun facts here)
• Cloud seeding / weather modification remains something that is flagged as conspiracy when discussed but is also very really with massive unknown impacts (more below)

See, to me these seem like really big things that need addressing, that would have vast global impact but of course, would deeply impact industry. We can not solve any of this by taxing our way through it but this seems to be the way.

A Note On Cloud Seeding and Weather Modification

First, if this is new to you, I am sorry. You will never look at the sky the same way. In the image above, is this regular air traffic or is this what weather modification looks like? Do you have photos from your childhood in the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s? Does the sky look like this in any of them? (Serious question, please send to me if they do!)

That photo above with a nearly clear blue sky aside from the jet streams was taken at 12:20pm in Palm Springs California on March 10th, 2024. The following photo was taken on the same day, 50 minutes later.

I am not looking to be conspiratorial but it does raise questions, as does the massive abundance of articles on the ‘chem trail’ conspiracy.

What isn’t a conspiracy theory, however, is that there are actual weather modification acts published on government websites, with the stated intention of curbing drought/extreme weather events through cloud seeding (you can search ‘cloud seeding’ with your province/state or country to see details).

From Wikipedia (which I do not deem as a reliable source on it’s own, but sharing to demonstrate how widely acknowledged this actually is).

When you dig deeper into this, you might just stumble across data that says there is a 0% margin of error. The spraying of the skies to modify weather isn’t new. It’s been going on for at least 70 years in some places. That doesn’t make it a safe and harmless practice.

What about Geoengineering?

In recent years, Bill Gates, a former computer programmer and billionaire with no actual environmental or health training, popularized the idea of ‘Solar Engineering’ or ‘Geoengineering’ which is spraying a dust into the sky to ‘shade the sun’ with the theory that this will help cool the planet.

The claim was ‘debunked’ by the fact-checkers…

But then it was done and as of April 2024, testing has begun….

Read more about it without the need to subscribe or pay here in Scientific American and here in Time Magazine (or just search ‘Geoengineering Test’.

The Scientific American article states “The experiment, which organizers didn’t widely announce to avoid public backlash, marks the acceleration of a contentious field of research known as solar radiation modification.”

When it comes to the variety of mineral cocktails being sprayed in the sky we might wonder if the impact is acute based on a single day of spraying? Or maybe there is a cumulative impact? Is there coordination between states or countries since ultimately we all share the same sun and sky? Do we know of the long-term safety for humans and/or the planet (our soil, water, wildlife, food supply etc.) of this? Again, just a few questions to get started on.

Very recently there was a story about massive flooding in Dubai where Bloomberg reported it the result of cloud seeding and just about every news outlet followed with copy/pasted headlines saying it’s not cloud seeding, it’s climate change.

Was it natural? Or was it bad and dangerous permissible weather modification? What are the implications of humans being able to acutely and dramatically change the weather like that?

What I can tell you is that in the midst of working on this, Tennessee passed a motion banning weather modification. Now, how this story was covered was really interesting as it falls in line with how every single story is covered that doesn’t follow a set narrative. It’s made a mockery of by trying to connect it with the ludicrous. Because what would happen if this legislation were reported seriously? Other places might also demand their skies not be sprayed to alter the weather.

Why Have I Taken You Down These Rabbit Holes?

No, it’s not because I want to ruffle more feathers and be seen as even kookier than I already am.

I share all of this here because it is a perfect example of the massive ways in which humans are in fact changing the climate, and not in the ways we’re being told, or more specifically the way you and I are being blamed as the culprits as we go about our everyday lives.

For the sake of what comes next, let’s assume the climate is changing, the next question is this: Are we measuring the right metrics, and what results we should expect?

Measuring Carbon: Is this An Accurate Metric of Responsible Climate Care?

Carbon is an element on the periodic table. It is an element naturally occurring in nature, and as a part of nature, it is also found in humans. We know that we take in oxygen, exhale carbon dioxide, and trees and green things on land and in oceans take up carbon dioxide in our environment and convert it back to oxygen so we can take another breath.

Yes, transportation, farming, manufacturing, cows farting (as the media likes to highlight), and most human activities of industry and day-to-day living (ie. breathing) will add carbon to the atmosphere. Dying would also make a hefty contribution since the human body is 18-20% carbon in dry weight.

But, and this is a big but, what does ‘offsetting’ this carbon actually do? What does ‘carbon neutral’ actually mean?

The theory goes that we can achieve a balance between the amount of carbon dioxide emissions released into the atmosphere and the amount removed or offset. But is this similar to a ‘calories in calories out’ theory to weight loss. Is all carbon created equally? Is all offset/reduced/or removed equally?

Does putting money into wind turbines in exchange for buying a 100% recycled polyester sweatshirt, originally derived from fossil fuels, making it a ‘carbon neutral’ purchase, really impact the overall health of our planet? Is this actually resolving what is being called a climate emergency?

Does having a company contribute to tech companies that are building reservoirs deep underground to sequester our excessive carbon outputs change the fact that the big thing we just bought will eventually be in a landfill somewhere until the end of time?

Is the banning of plastic bags at most stores even making a blip when 95% of what’s in that store is made of or packaged in plastic?

Are We Looking At This (And Measuring It) All Wrong?

In January 2024 there was a story sweeping the headlines about a study that found that backyard growing (Urban Farming) had a 6x greater carbon footprint than big ag monocrop farming. I read the study and I’d encourage you to do that, too. The simple thing that stood out to me was how blatant the bias was from the outset.

As with just about all climate headlines about ‘zero carbon’, the researchers focussed their research on parameters that served their message.

They did not take into account the carbon footprint of the production or residue of pesticides and fertilizers, the footprint of the machinery needed to tend the fields, the water needs, the impact of chemical runoff into waterways, the loss of biodiversity such as hedgerows that support local wildlife, and companion or rotational planting that serve the natural ecosystem and wildlife, the impact on topsoil, or, of course, on the health of the growers and surrounding communities. The list can go on.

We’re being told a ‘plant-based’ diet will save our planet. I wrote a book once upon a time supporting a ‘plant-based diet’ which I defined as rich in unprocessed plant-foods, you know, like broccoli and salad and topping it off with the protein that made sense for you. It certainly wasn’t asking that you drink potato milk and eat pea burgers. I have long said that health is about so much more than what is on your plate. Well, the carbon footprint of your meal is also more complex.

That bottom left photo is courtesy of Zandbergen, a manufacturing facility that makes Beyond Meat Burgers. Getting into this debate is beyond the scope of what I can cover here but Global Food Justice Alliance is the source to start with and of course know that if it takes more ‘calories’ worth of fossil fuels to get your food to you (think products from olives, coconut, and avocado), than you get consuming it then that is worth giving some thought to.

Electric Cars: The Cart Before The Horse or the Car Before The Battery

The same can be said about electric cars. The actual act of driving an electric car could register as more environmentally friendly than a gas guzzler – meaning there isn’t the exhaust fume from gasoline. But what is the total carbon impact from mining the lithium for the batteries (we’ll leave the working conditions of the miners out of this conversation), the manufacturing of all the electrical parts, and what I suspect will be the next big issues, upgrading the electrical grids, what to do with all the tech once it fails, and of course how all these batteries will be disposed of. What is the actual longevity of these cars. The reality is that this remains unknown.

The cart has most certainly been put before the horse here as much of the claims come down to how the car is being charged which relies on the power sources of the place in which the car is being charged. Further, the batteries weren’t built with their after life in mind so currently, what happens to these batteries remains a larger unknown. Much of the claims on their efficiency is still pending on advancements on technology to extend the life of batteries and other tech within the car as well as how these elements can be re-used, repurposed or break down in a sustainable ways.

Much like biodegradable drinking cups, the energy efficiency of these cars depends largely on it’s full life cylce and that is impacted by how and where exactly the car is operating.

To suggest that driving less overall may be the better solution and to walk, bike, and use public transit more, might make you sound like a ‘left-wing radical’. It is also a fact. But of course, this only makes sense if you live in a well-designed urban environment, the appropriate climate, and have a job where this can work.

Most studies and brands and politicians touting carbon-neutral policies, practices, and taxes are determining when the carbon counter starts and stops, and often looking at them as isolated case studies not actual real life human use (or human experiment. There are theories and then there are long range holistic views of human life which is vastly complex. These policies are not about protecting the people but about investment growth, industry, and control.

Worth noting as well is that none of these measures will stop the air-spraying of glyphosate over expanses of land that once held one of the best sources of carbon sequestration: big old-fashioned trees. But I don’t think we’re supposed to talk about that, or that fact that individuals who attempted to protect the old-growth forests on Vancouver Island were arrested by the RCMP and are now facing personal lawsuits from the logging companies.

On that note, this is my biggest question of all…

When we achieve ‘carbon zero’ or ‘carbon neutral’ status, what then?

This is what I ultimately want to know.

To even think about about any of this on a day-to-day basis is it’s own luxury reserved for those of us who have solid roofs over our heads and food in our fridges. This is, by no means the priority for those just trying to survive, though this bit is hardly discussed as billions are poured into the cause.

So yes, I think it’s fair and very important to ask what we expect all of this to solve when we live in a time when more and more people are barely getting by.

The reality as we look around today is that as a global human population, we are not thriving.

Despite the promises of GMO farming providing bigger yields, there are still people who are starving and food prices keep going up. To be food insecure is only increasing in numbers.

In addition, cancer rates are increasing for a number of reasons, and the people suffering from both cancer and other chronic degenerative diseases are becoming younger and greater in number every year.

Further, the dramatic increase in rates of neurological conditions in children, chronic inflammatory, autoimmune, metabolic disorders, and hormonal issues (ie. fertility issues, testosterone, and sperm count decline) are blowing up.

Could any of this have anything to do with the state of the physical environment in which we live? The fact that even with all these ‘climate change’ policies rolling in, we as a species are becoming sicker and sicker.

More plastic is being manufactured than ever before and where is most plastic derived from? Fossil fuels. We’re consuming on average, one credit card’s worth of plastic on a weekly basis. Microplastics shed from our plastic clothing, it’s in our air, our beds, our kids’ stuffies, and in our pharmaceutical-drug-infused tap water.

If this were really a carbon issue, then why isn’t there an immediate halt on private aircrafts, an end to energy rich data mining, storage and AI, limits on the operation of cruise ships and monstrous resort hotels, a ban on fossil-fuel derived materials (ie. polyester and acrylic) in our clothing and a requirement for all beverage and other food companies to stop packaging in single-use plastic? Can we ban plastic turf in place of grass or ground cover in residential yards?

Where is the education and incentives around regenerative farming, front/backyard growing, basic exercise and self-care. Where are the government funded disease prevention programs? And for the love of fresh oxygen, why is the clearing of old growth forests for export still happening?

We saw the dramatic and immediate changes put in place globally in March 2020. We know what can be done, and done quickly, when interests lie with those in power.

As trees continue to be cut down to be made into wood chips and shipped overseas (at a rate that has doubled since 2014), most of the measures being taken look an awful lot like a guilt-trip-infused cash grab of more taxes, population-control and the threat of ‘climate lockdowns’. What will happen if we don’t start cutting down on the meat we’re eating from our local farmers and switch over to soy or pea ‘plant-based’ burgers derived from subsidized chemically-drenched-mono-crops and sent to factories for processing, packaged in plastic, and shipped to the local supermarket to sit in freezers?

What does a ‘carbon neutral’ world look like?

Will we all be happy, healthy, and thriving? Will disease rates go down? Will wildlife and biodiversity increase? Will we have improved quality topsoil, and as such more affordable and nutrient-rich fresh food available for all? Will farmers growing without big ag/big chemical infusions be supported? Will there no longer be anyone experiencing homelessness? No one going hungry? Will street drug and pharmaceutical use decrease while mental health increases? Will we gain greater strength in communities and a deeper appreciation for the nature that surrounds us? Will we become better able to self-govern harmoniously and have less imposed upon us by the top down?

Will our climate temperatures stop fluctuating year-to-year or is this just what nature does when we let it be?

If any of these are right… If even one or two are what we can expect, count me in!

I am just not convinced the measures being taken, or what’s actually being measured, are bringing us to any sort of root cause solution to improve the metrics that inherently make living on this planet a unifying, loving, well, and joyful experience where we all thrive in harmony with the world around us and each other.

Instead of Counting Carbon Start Taking Care Of What’s Around Us

Imagine for a moment, if instead of pouring billions into carbon-sequestering technology, the government simply stopped permitting the clearing of our forests, and offered incentives to tend our farmland and forests in ways that are self-sustaining, and naturally carbon-sequestering. I mean, isn’t that how nature is meant to work? We take care of it, and then it takes care of us, and then some? And when we are taken care of, and our core needs met, we are better suited to take care of each other.

Government-imposed climate change measures and rebates, and tax-funded incentives for big tech solutions are, for the most part, avenues to greenwash industry, and while may encourage the appearance of accountability, it’s all still about growing in profitability.

The huge majority of climate change measures rely on technological solutions, policy interventions, and economic incentives to ‘reduce emissions’ and promote renewable energy. These are top-down initiatives and policies that may or may not have an impact over the 10-40 year projections.

My concern is that ‘Climate Change’ is becoming a big business much like cancer. When there is enough fear, and enough money involved, and a lot of centralized power, it becomes detrimental to all involved to actually resolve it. Why find the cure when the sickness is so profitable?

The parasite doesn’t want to kill the host, just weaken it enough so it can continue to thrive.

True Ecological Care Emphasizes a More Comprehensive Approach.

If this is going to be sustainable and not require billion-dollar line items on each annual budget, we need an approach that integrates ecological, social, and economic considerations that are practical and applicable day-to-day. This requires a cultural shift, a sense of not just personal responsibility but true care and understanding of how we are interconnected with what surrounds us. This is about prioritizing conservation, restoration, regenerative practices, and community engagement to achieve sustainable outcomes.

We don’t need more technology and external progress. It’s the internal progress that’s lacking where we focus on nurturing the world we actually want to live in, one that we take great joy and respect in caring for, and in turn, we are cared for by it. It’s called an ecosystem. Everything affects everything else.

Can we learn to tune back into our essential selves instead of trying to shop away the discomfort? Nature brings us back. The answer is so simple: Do more of what helps us to remember and less of what causes us to forget.

Easy as can be, right? If only.

True ecological care changes the parameters around the decisions we make and how we interact with the world around us. We need to care if we are to thrive and we have to own this. It’s not a political stance, it’s a human stance.

Healthy Humans Cannot Thrive In An Unhealthy Environment

The human body is not designed to live forever. There is a natural process of aging, the beauty of the life cycle. However, this does not mean that this life cycle should be riddled with stress, and disease and mental/spiritual dislocation– feeling unmoored, and lost to anxieties outside our control. This is, however, the reality for us as we live in polluted environments, while eating and consuming things that are synthetic and ultimately impact the natural expression of the cells that make up life.

Being taxed out the hoo-haw in the name of the climate, or using our financial privilege to ‘offset’ our extravagances, while spending time arguing about what is or isn’t real when it comes to climate change does not alter the fact that as a human species, as a collective, we are not thriving. Our environment is not thriving.

There is no greater harm to the planet than a human being out of balance. We are witnessing how this unfolds in real-time.

Look To The Trees

What if we focus on the trees? If you renovate your home in the city, you have to put this massive partition around the trees on your property. You cannot cut it down. If by some reason a tree needs to be removed, there are fines that have to be paid and a commitment to plant more trees.

Imagine if every tree in our forest required this level of protection?

Caring for trees is a profound expression of our connection to the earth and all living beings. Indigenous wisdom teaches us invaluable lessons about our role as stewards of this land, where trees are not mere objects to be turned into cheap particle board shelving units, but sacred beings, akin to ancestors, with a vital role in sustaining a healthy and joyful life. This understanding leads to a sense of stewardship, where we see ourselves as caretakers of the land.

When we put ecological care at the forefront, there’s a beautiful recognition of the interconnectedness of all life forms. Trees are integral parts of this web of life, and any harm to them reverberates throughout the ecosystem.

This has absolutely nothing to do with political party alignments, following the science, belief in climate theories, taxing people for heating their homes, patriotism, or whether you bring your own totes to the grocery store.

The focus, if one truly does care, is wildly simple: connect back in with the rhythms of nature.

We need to prioritize the health of humans from the root cause, not create more and more red tape to access natural health products. We must protect the trees, the rivers, and the oceans as if our lives depended on them — because ultimately they do. We must care for our earth in ways that are real and tangible, not hand it all over, along with our freedom, to top-down governance.

Most of all, we can not allow ourselves to be swept up in policies and ideologies that make no sense. Don’t ever fear the questions that rise in your heart that might just dismantle a previous belief or alignment.

I do believe our planet: our land, oceans, lakes and rivers, wildlife and humans are at a crisis point– but not in the ways in which we’re being told. The solutions are ridiculously simple but require enough of us to live as we intend to continue for generations to come. Everything we need to move forward in a healthy way already exists. The wisdom has been here long before any of us. It is imperative that we start to listen.

One Last Thing: The Seventh Fire Prophecy and Lighting The Eighth Fire

^{Photo by: Photo by Vipushan Ravi}

The mural pictured here is in my Toronto neighbourhood of Roncesvalles. Indigenous artist Philip Cote was the lead artist with Jim Bravo, and the painting tells the story of the first people who walked the lands in what is now North America. The mural is entitled The Original People Leading to the Eighth Fire.

The mural was completed over the summer of 2018 when my son was one. We would go for walks every day and spend time watching the artists work on the painting.

I had the opportunity to speak to one of the artists and asked about the story that was depicted. The story has stayed with me, and especially since the darkest days of 2020 and 2021 as the veil was lifting for so many as much darkness was becoming known.

The story of this mural is told in full in The Mishomis Book – The Voice of the Ojibway by Edward Benton Banai), and summarized in greater detail here by Philip Cote himself.

This is my attempt to summarize it:

The Seven Fires Prophecy, rooted in Indigenous beliefs, foretells a series of stages that ultimately lead to a golden age of peace. In more recent times, there came to be talk of an Eighth Fire, where Indigenous and Western knowledge unite, sparking a new era. The Seventh Prophet, described as young and visionary, predicted a time when new generations would seek guidance from Elders. The prophecy warns of a pivotal choice for us all between a path of wisdom and one of destruction, determining whether the Eighth Fire brings harmony or suffering.

As Cote writes, “In the prophecy, the people decide to take neither road, but instead to turn back, to remember and reclaim the wisdom of those who came before them. If they choose the right road, then the Seventh Fire will light the Eighth and final Fire, an eternal fire of peace, love brotherhood and sisterhood.”

It is my hope that we will all wake up in time to choose this path, to listen, to learn, to cherish and return to the earth in the ways that are available to us.

In the meantime, I will continue using my cotton tote bags while also asking big questions, supporting local mindful businesses, and farmers, and doing my very best to keep learning, and living what I learn. Despite living in a big city, there are ways to live in harmony with nature, as is continuing to learn about traditional medicine and plants native to these lands. Of course, we are all victims of our own hypocrisy and are blind to our own blind spots, myself included, but hopefully more kind, considerate and open conversations will invite us all to keep asking questions and seeking answers that deeply resonate as true to we can heal the divide and remember that we are all connected.

All photos within the post, unless otherwise indicated were taken by Meghan Telpner.

The post Climate Change Measures Versus True Ecological Care appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

Culinary Nutrition Benefits of Rhubarb

Nutritionally speaking, rhubarb is:

• rich in fibre, which aids digestion, blood sugar balance and healthy cholesterol levels
• beneficial for cardiovascular health
• supports digestive health and blood sugar balance
• a source of immune-supportive Vitamin C and bone-building calcium.

Rhubarb is very tart – some may even describe it as bitter – and tastes much better if you add sweetness to it (we like using natural sweeteners), though not so much that you mask its lovely acidity. While you can eat rhubarb stalks raw, as they are extremely fibrous, we prefer to cook them so they soften (this also releases some of its juice). Do not eat the leaves – they are poisonous!

Check out some of our favourite ways to use rhubarb below and let us know yours too!

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15 Ways to Use Rhubarb

Photo: Monika Grabkowska on UnSplash

Jam

Yes, rhubarb jam is a classic and that’s why it’s first on our list! With minimal ingredients, jam gives rhubarb the chance to shine. If you don’t have canning experience, you can easily make freezer jam. To help your jam thicken, add a bit of apple for its natural pectin or try a few spoonfuls of omega 3-rich chia seeds.

Pie

You can have apple pie at almost any time of the year – make your springtime special by baking up a delicious rhubarb pie.

Tarts or Galettes

A simple rhubarb filling or chopped rhubarb can take your gluten-free desserts to the next level. If tart crusts are too fussy for you, try making a galette – it’s free-form and rustic, and shows off rhubarb nicely.

Chutney

Rhubarb chutney offers a tart complement to many dishes. We like to use it as a savory sandwich spread, dollop it over meat or tofu, serve it with gluten-free crackers and dairy-free cheese, roll it up in dumplings with vegetables, and dip chickpea flatbread in it.

Muffins or Scones

Instead of dried fruit or chocolate chips, fold in finely chopped rhubarb into your muffin and scone recipes. If you’re puzzled by gluten-free baking, this Gluten-Free Flour Guide and Substitution Reference has you covered.

Fruit Compote

Rhubarb compote is extremely simple – you just stew rhubarb and a sweetener on the stovetop until it breaks down and becomes soft and gooey. It’s one of our favourite ways to use rhubarb! You can make this with rhubarb only, toss in additional fruits like apples, strawberries or raspberries, or enhance it with pantry spices like ginger or cinnamon. It’s amazing to eat on its own, and we love dolloping it on oatmeal, ice cream, dairy-free yogurt, dairy-free cheesecake, or brownies.

Popsicles

Blend rhubarb into your favourite popsicle recipes for a quick and easy frozen treat. This option is very kid-friendly!

Dairy-Free Ice Cream

We’ll never get tired of new ice cream flavours! Blend cooked or fresh rhubarb into your dairy-free ice cream recipes, or swirl some rhubarb compote throughout.

Smoothies

Add some tartness to your dairy-free smoothie recipes or smoothie bowls by blending in some rhubarb or drizzling some compote over top.

Kombucha

Flavour up your kombucha with some chopped rhubarb. Learn exactly how to do this in our Guide to Brewing and Flavouring Kombucha.

Crumble

There aren’t too many vegetables that go well in crumbles, but rhubarb is definitely an exception. Keep your crumble rhubarb-only or try it with a mix of different seasonal fruits.

Soda or Elixir Syrup

Simmer up some rhubarb and a natural sweetener of your choice, then strain the solids. Add splashes of the resulting liquid to soda water, mocktails, iced elixirs, iced teas, or sip a shot glass on its own.

Savory Sauce

Not all ways to use rhubarb are sweet treats! Add aromatics like onions, garlic, and ginger, as well as spices such as cumin, coriander, and allspice, along with apple cider vinegar and you’ve got an amazing savory sauce to complement fish, poultry, pork, meat or tofu. You could also amp up the creaminess with coconut milk or nut or seed milk, if you’d like.

You can also add rhubarb to your BBQ sauce or homemade ketchup for a bit of tang.

Get your guide to homemade sauces here.

Soups and Stews

If you’ve ever tried apple and butternut squash soup, paired grilled stone fruits or berries with a salad, or dotted your gluten-free pizza with fresh figs, you’ll know that fruit complements a wide range of savory dishes! Try chopping up some rhubarb for some zing in your next pot of soup or one-pot stew meal.

If you’re looking for an idea to start with, try adding a cup of chopped rhubarb to the pot the next time you make tomato soup. Blend up the mixture with some cashews or thick coconut milk for extra luxuriousness.

Oven Roasted

We adore the caramelization that happens when we roast rhubarb in the oven with the simplest of adornments such as coconut oil, honey, and cinnamon.

If you enjoy experimenting in the kitchen and trying new recipes, one of these rhubarb beauties may be the next thing you make!

Header Image: iStock.com/Anna_Shepulova

The post 15 Ways to Use Rhubarb appeared first on Meghan Telpner.

The consequences of persistent exposure to energy vampires can be as damaging to our health as poor eating habits or lack of sleep and exercise. Managing the impact of energy vampires is challenging. We have to be smart and committed! This requires our own discipline, delicacy and diplomacy. I have definitely not mastered the subtle art of dodging the human energy vampires, but as an art, it’s always a work in progress. Here’s what I have for you that has helped me better handle them.

What Are Energy Vampires?

The Human Form of Energy Vampires

The most common type of energy vampires are the human form. These are people who tend toward the “me, me, me” train of thought, and find it difficult to see beyond their own point of view. The biggest challenge with the human energy vampire is that because they are so focussed on their needs and wants, they usually have absolutely no awareness as to the impact they are having. They don’t see the pile of exhausted humans that trail behind their interactions. With a simple conversation, a passive aggressive criticism, where before you had a skip in your step, you’re now feeling zapped of your physical, mental, emotional or spiritual energy (or a combination of these).

The human energy vampires could be friends, family members, co-workers or romantic partners.

Human energy vampires can suck the wind from your sails in many ways:

• Overly dramatic: creating large problems or drama when there is in fact very little offence
• Whiny: constantly complaining about everything that happens to them, or having a ‘why me?’ attitude
• Negative: always seeing the bad things and never focusing on the good or practicing gratitude
• Blaming: nothing is ever their fault and they are reluctant to take personal responsibility; they can often play the victim
• Insecure: they feel sad, low or insecure about their lives and abilities, so they are constantly seeking affirmation from others
• Jealous: feeling jealous or resentful of what you or other people have going on, so they may behave with spite or try to downplay your accomplishments
• Dominant: always the centre of attention and very outgoing, but never stops to listen, pay attention or ask how anyone else is doing
• Gossipy: focusing on other people’s behaviour and constantly talking about (or judging) others
• Needy: relying on others too much, not developing resourcefulness or self-sufficiency
• Prone to giving guilt trips: using emotional manipulation to make you feel guilty so they can get what they want

In general, energy vampires have trouble coping with their own lives so they feed off others to sustain themselves. Unfortunately, that is very draining and downright unpleasant for those around them.

Thought-Induced Energy Vampires

Thoughts in and of themselves can be our own worst energy vampire. We can manufacture our own stress around the future, around an activity, a work assignment, a relationship and let those thoughts spin beyond our grasp. I often refer to this form of vampirism as The Iron Filings. Think of being a kid in the 80s when you were allowed to play with magnets and loose iron filings in school. You’d drag the magnet along the floor and the iron filings would magnetize and stick to others. This is similar to what happens with our thoughts – one challenging thought begins to pick up speed and as it does, starts collecting a whole bunch of other stressful and draining thoughts along with it.

Our own stressful thoughts are one of the greatest drains on our energy, and producer of stress in our lives. Most often these thoughts pertain to things that happened in the past, or that might happen in the future, yet both are out of our control, are unchangeable (especially if they happened in the past), and have no bearing on reality and most likely not going to happen in the future. It’s basically a stress we create in our own mind that we allow to dominate our emotions and drain us of energy.

Our thoughts can turn any communication, task or activity into an energy drain simply by choosing to worry, dread, fret or delay (yes, procrastination is another very common thought-triggered energy vampire).

And some of us (I count myself here) are simply more sensitive to our surroundings and internal processes than others. This is where empathy comes in.

empaths and empathy

Energy vampires cannot feed off one another – they need someone who will bear the load of their problems and emotions. This could feasibly be anyone who is kind and compassionate, but often it is empaths that are especially susceptible to energy vampires. Have you ever heard of an intuitive empath. You know at least one. Me.

Empaths are highly sensitive and highly intuitive people who easily absorb other people’s emotions. Dr. Judith Orloff, a psychotherapist, has written extensively about empaths and how they can best survive in the world when it so easy for them to become overwhelmed with the problems of others. You can read more about the common traits of empaths here, which include being introverted and feeling replenished by nature, among many other qualities.

Empathy is an incredibly important quality to develop and practice. It allows us to understand how other people are feeling from their point of view, which in turn allows us to be warmhearted and understanding. Empathy has evolutionary roots and we are biologically designed this way (though some of us have a more innate ability than others, it can definitely be taught).

While we tend to think of human survival in terms of ‘survival of the fittest’, the truth is we can’t survive alone. Empathy allows us to create communities, feel connected to one another, find our community, have satisfying social lives and help each other survive and thrive. In a medical context, empathy from doctors, nurses and other medical professionals leads to greater patient satisfaction and better health outcomes. Studies of healthcare professionals show that staff who are burned out tend to have lower empathy. This makes sense – when you are depleted, you have less capacity to take on anything else.

Not all people who are empathetic are empaths, and this may allow them to set more distinct boundaries with energy vampires.

Intuitive empaths become prime targets and prime reactionaries to the internal vampires that are their own thoughts and external vampires that are energy-zapping humans. We are simply more sensitive and responsive to both our inner and outer environments.

Health Risks of Energy Vampires

Our brains and bodies are intricately connected, and we are designed to bond and socialize with other people. Social interaction can produce oxytocin, a hormone that can facilitate love, security and calm the nervous system. When we interact with energy vampires, the whole ordeal can cause us to release the stress hormone cortisol. This induces a stress cascade that may lead to:

• Burnout
• Digestive issues
• Hormone imbalances 
• Fatigue
• Lowered immunity, which may leave us susceptible to minor colds and flu or serious autoimmune diseases
• Inflammation (this is basically the root cause of many diseases)
• Poor eating habits or stress eating

First Work On Yourself

Sometimes what we experience in the world is actually a mirror of how we are. If you notice that everyone in your life is sucking the life out of you, take some time to take an honest look at yourself. Are you in any way an active participant in the patterns that are unfolding? This doesn’t excuse anyone else’s actions, but it may help you change or reduce how often this is happening.

The other thing to remember is the role our own thoughts play in how we experience the world around us. We have the power to turn an innocent comment into a major drama, simply by thinking of it that way. To combat these tendencies, it’s important to find ways to make our minds work in favour of a positive and stabilized mood, such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), and allowing time to rest so we can be less reactive and have better responsiveness.

Yes, working on ourselves is key, but we also need to know how to arm against the energy vampires, too. I offer some guidance on how to work with them and, if needed, get away from them – because ultimately, we have the choice to decide how we respond to the world around us.

How to Deal with Energy Vampires in Life and At Work

In an ideal world, we’d “Marie Kondo” the heck out of those energy vampires and never have to deal with them (they certainly don’t spark joy!). Unfortunately, we can’t always avoid being in the presence of an energy vampire at work, at family gatherings or in social situations. And for those of us with active minds, even a passing, innocent comment can spark the internal thought-induced energy vampire. The magnet hits the iron filings and the cascade of spinning and draining begins. Thankfully, being around an energy vampire doesn’t have to suck the energy out of you.

A first step is realizing that we can’t change energy vampires (or anyone else, for that matter). We can only alter our own behaviours and attitudes. These tips can help you handle energy vampires and your own wellbeing at the same time.

The only thing we can ever control is how we respond to what’s happening in our minds and in our lives.

Reduce or Limit Contact with Energy Vampires

Set Boundaries and Say No

Call the Energy Vampires on Their Behaviour

Encourage Resiliency

Remind Yourself of Your Own Strength

Practice Physical and Emotional Self-Care

• Self-Care in the Chaos: You Got This
• Nap Time Self-Care: Tips for Tired Moms

Seek Out the Energy Boosters

Ask for Help

Keep It Professional at Work

One more thing before I leave you on your way to ponder the vampires in your life. You could be one, too. Just something to consider. What is the energy you are putting out, and what is the energy you are taking? This is something to consider in your own interactions. We want to aim for the balance. With friends and family, optimally the balance is over a lifetime. Sometimes we give and sometimes we take. Giving, however, doesn’t need to be a drain. It’s ultimately up to each of us to determine the boundaries, and set our own limits.

On My Mind Episode 12: How to Handle Energy Vampires

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The post How to Handle Energy Vampires appeared first on Meghan Telpner.