AllergiesHealth Coaching

Why Do I Need Vitamin D?

Surely you have heard of vitamin D. You may even understand the role it plays in supporting your bone health. What many people don’t know is that vitamin D plays a critical part in the health of your immune system and is essential for long-term optimal health. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble nutrient essential for supporting the body’s natural defenses against viruses, bacteria, chronic disease, and autoimmune disorders. We know that vitamin D deficiency is linked to an increased risk…
Ashley
November 5, 2012
Gut HealthHealth CoachingNutrition Coaching

Acidophilus – A Team Player in the Health of Your GI Tract

You’d have to be waking up from a decade-long coma to not have heard the words acidophilus, probiotic or flora in the media - especially with Jamie Lee Curtis’ yogurt commercials making light of what happens “in the bathroom” and the hilarious Saturday Night Live parodies that followed. Acidophilus (specifically lactobacillus acidophilus) is one of at least 300 different strains of bacteria living in your intestines. Actually, there is an entire ecosystem of microorganisms living in your intestinal tract, called…
Ashley
October 8, 2012
Gut HealthNutrition Coaching

Cleaning “House” with Fiber

Fiber is one of the most important nutrients in our daily diet – it’s our internal housekeeper! Unfortunately, those of us eating the SAD way (ie. the Standard American Diet) are getting far too little of these substances to maintain optimal health. According to the Institute of Medicine, we need at least 25-38 grams per day, a far cry from the measly 10-15 grams we’re actually getting on average. There are two different kinds of fiber – soluble and insoluble.…
Ashley
August 6, 2012
Nutrition Coaching

What do you Consider “Good Nutrition”?

Surprisingly, I like Wikipedia’s definition of nutrition: “the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary (in the form of food) to support life”. These provisions are really macro-nutrients (protein, carbohydrate, and fat) and micro-nutrients (vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, fatty acids, etc) that come from our diet. Ultimately the foods in our diet are broken down into a simple unit of measured energy called a calorie. You’ve probably heard calories referred to as “empty” in certain circumstances –…
Ashley
July 24, 2012