Today, I am in awe........

Sometimes thing happen in life that knock you down, make you question yourself, make you wonder what your purpose is. These things happen and rock your world so significantly that it can be difficult to even want to greet the next minute, let alone the next hour, day, month, year. As we go along through life, we will have low moments and then we will have amazing moments of triumph that rock our world in such a way, we are speechless and in absolute awe!

Today I am in awe. I woke up as the co-author of a book that is an International Best Seller, "One Crazy Broccoli! My Body is Stronger than My Disease." Within the pages of this book are real stories. Inspirational stories of triumph over adversity, triumph over illness. When I think back to my darkest days, I am so thankful for that little voice inside of me, the voice that although faint continued to speak and cry out for attention. "Keep moving forward and you will find your path and purpose. Just keep going forward and asking the questions. The answers will come. Trust, Tracy. It's safe to trust yourself."

When the answers came, I had to be brave and move forward with them in faith. I had to press through my fear, my doubt, my apprehensions. The moment I did that, listened to my own voice and gave it for the first time, the acknowledgement and respect it deserved - the universe heard it too! I have stepped forward into the person that I truly am. The one that has been waiting for me for almost 50 years. Not the person I thought everyone wanted me to be. I appreciate her for all that she is and was for me and all that she has tried to do for me, but she is gone. I am finally me!

When you read "One Crazy Broccoli! My Body is Stronger than My Disease" you will be reading words from real people who are willing to be vulnerable and tell you their stories. This is no small feet. Our mission as contributors is to help as many people as possible move forward into a healthy body, mind and spirit as we have.

Again, I am in awe that Christine Marmoy found me and asked me to be a part of such a significant project. (Thank you Christine!) Another sign that yes, when you press through the darkest moments, move forward with your purpose and allow your true self to shine, the universe listens and even calls a few folks to tell them about you!

Many blessings to all!

Tracy

ps. Be sure to get your copy of the book by clicking on the following link. (You may even want to get some additional copies to give as gifts to those you love.)

http://amzn.to/1N115Bi

One Crazy Broccoli! My Body is Smarter than My Disease launches on Amazon today!

It is an honor to be a co-author of this powerful book!

A book to inspire and to give hope! "Today, more and more people end up suffering from chronic conditions without always understanding why. We are all witnessing a scary rise in diabetes, heart disease, auto-immune disease or even allergies. What will happen to our children when they reach our age? People are getting tired of the seemingly powerless solutions often offered by Western medicine, so they embark upon a quest, a search for an alternative in order to recover their health. This book is a collection of true stories, all sharing what people went through, how they managed to recover from fibromyalgia, diabetes, depression, serious allergies or even multiple sclerosis, just to name a few. What did they do differently? Did they heal? How long did it take them? All these questions and much more are addressed within these pages. Hope is not gone. You can change your faith today, right now, where you are, by implementing a few changes in the food you eat, the lifestyle you live, the way you move your body and by discovering and trying sometimes old but true healing methods that have been used for thousands of years. This is the promise of this book. This is your body; this is your life...... regain control and heal."  Order yours today on Amazon.

Learn More About Tracy and Her New Book By Clicking On Image Below

Things Are Not Always As They Seem

"Enjoy Natural Life."  "Start your day with Fremo Aloe Drink."

I was introduced to this Fremo Aloe drink a few days ago. Beautifully packaged. A wonderful juice with Aloe and Kiwi - obviously very good for you! Aloe is rich in vitamins, including B, C and E as well as folic acid, which fortify the body's immune system. Kiwi is a nutrient dense fruit, with vitamin C, A, Iron, Potassium and folate. I think I will drink this right now!


However, being inquisitive and an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach - I read the label first. I was completely baffled and frustrated to find yet another product that is being marketed as "healthy" yet it is completely the opposite. 

The ingredients list is as follows: Aloe Vera Gel, Sugar, Honey, Citric Acid, L-Abscorbic Acid, Gellan Gumfood Grade, Calcium Lactate, Trisodium Citrate, FD&C Blue No. 1, FD&C Yellow No. 5, FD&C Red No. 40, Artificial Kiwi Flavor, Purified Water

My first issue with this beverage is that the second ingredient is SUGAR and the third ingredient is HONEY. This tells me that this product is high in sugar overall. Before I address that however, I will list the ingredients.

1. Aloe Vera - At least Aloe Vera is the majority ingredient
2. Sugar - Sweetener
3. Honey - Sweetener
4. Citric Acid - As a Preservative, a controversial ingredient in this form
5. L-Ascorbic Acid - A controversial ingredient in this form - Synthetic Vitamin C
6. Gellan Gum Food Grade - Thickener, emulsifier, stabilizer
7. Calcium Lactate - Acidity Regulator, Emulsifying Salt, Firming Agent, Thickener
8. Trisodium Citrate - Preservative, Flavoring
9. FD&C Blue No. 1 - Controversial Food Coloring
10. FD&C Yellow No. 5 - Controversial Food Coloring
11. FD&C Red No 40 - Food coloring
12. Artificial Kiwi Flavor - I can't provide a link as I don't know 
13. Purified Water - Water

I will leave you to do more research on the ingredients, however feel free to click on the links I have added for ease. In regards to the added food coloring, when I poured this product into a glass, it had a clear look to it...... I ask myself, "Why are food colors added to begin with?"

Now on to the nutritional facts of this product. 

Serving Size = 1 cup
Servings per container = 3
Calories per serving = 80 (Drink the whole bottle, 240 calories. "Empty" calories that have no true value to your body.)
Total Carbohydrates = 20g (Drink the whole bottle, 60g of "refined" carbs, these are the bad carbs.)
Sugars = 20g (drink the whole thing, that is 60g of sugar headed right into your bloodstream.)

I am going to step up onto my SUGAR SOAP BOX now.
20 grams of sugar- What exactly does 20 grams of sugar look like? 4 grams of sugar equals 1 teaspoon of sugar. Therefore, a 1 cup serving of this beverage contains 5 teaspoons of added sugar. If you drink all 3 servings of this beverage, which would be very easy to do as 3 cups is not very much, you are consuming 15 teaspoons of added sugar!

Why is this so terrible? Consuming this much sugar as it is provided in this beverage will throw your body into an urgent state of sugar/glucose management. Your body has to quickly figure out what to do with the massive influx of sugar flooding your bloodstream. In response, your body must quickly produce high amounts of the hormone insulin to counter the spike in blood sugar. You feel the wonderful "sugar high" after drinking this beverage and then as the insulin urgently processes the sugar, you end up with what is called athe dreaded "sugar crash." Your body now has too much insulin flowing through it's veins and not enough glucose/sugar. You feel tired and fatigued at this point and now want sugar again to counter the crash. This is a vicious cycle which I need to write a separate blog for.

I am stepping down from my SUGAR SOAP BOX now. 

The lesson here: 
One very important thing you can do to improve your health and to stay healthy is to learn how to read labels. When I work with my clients this is one aspect we focus on. Be a wise shopper and look past the fancy, "healthy looking" labels. Investigate the fine print and spare your body the toxic assault of hidden and added sugars.

In Health,

Tracy