The finish line

The JOOS Reboot has ended...3 weeks and 10 lbs later...I must say, this experience was more than worth it! 3 weeks ago I gave up Meat, Wheat, Dairy, Artificial and heavily Processed foods, artificial sugars and caffeine. Additionally, I was having 2 JOOS per day...one in the AM and one in the PM. My biggest meal was in the middle of the day and snacks whenever I was hungry. The adjustment was a bit of a challenge at first but became more comfortable by the second week and somewhat of a habit by the end. I am now 2 days PR (post reboot) and I continue to observe many of the same principles that have made me feel so strong and healthy over the past few weeks. I have experimented with adding the "restricted" foods back onto my plate in a singular fashion as a way of examining how they make me feel. I have noticed that my body/mind has become much more aware and sensitive to the effects of food. Caffeine makes me wired (these effects were previously dulled due to the amount of coffee I was drinking prior to the reboot), Fish Taco's seemed to work well for me, Sweet tastes are much more noticeable and Beer made me feel a little bloated (several more tests needed to confirm this one!). Other than feeling great and losing a few pounds (not my primary intention going into this), I am definitely noticing an increased mindfulness around my eating choices. One thing that I am wrestling with, however, is what exactly is it that is causing me to feel great? Was it the JOOS? Was it the 1 big meal per day? or was it the elimination of a particular food that my body had a hard time digesting? Truthfully, I believe it is probably a synergistic combination of everything but I believe that the 2 biggest factors for ME were the mid-day big meal and the 2 JOOS daily. The mid-day meal was very satisfying and only left me slightly hungry in the evening. The JOOS and a small snack would hold me over and my body became primed to maximize its healing time while I was sleeping. I believe that this is why I was waking up with so much energy. I guess the interesting thing for me was that while I missed coffee,pizza and grilling a burger on the back deck during a beautiful summer evening...I also felt so damn good that I had to wonder which activity was serving me better. Yes, I will go back to enjoying those items once again, however, it will be tempered by my knowledge of the effect that it has on my system. There is most certainly an awareness within me that will guide my eating based on intuition, experimentation and listening to my body. Great experience and one that I will look forward to doing again soon...Thanks to those who have checked out the blog....blogs are an interesting concept to me (feels very self-important at times), oh well.. maybe i'll cover that one on my next post. Be Well -Dan

End of 2nd week on the Reboot

Today marks the 15th day of the Reboot. Started off the day at 6:00am when I woke up on my own (no alarm or crying baby)...still having loads of energy in the morning and not waking up hungry. This morning I had a JOOS Green Lemonade (Apple, Celery, Cucumber, bok choy, kale chard , collards, ginger, tumeric, lemon and lime). The joos was delicious, but I must admit that it tasted rather sweet to me. It is interesting how the sensitivity of my palate to sugar has changed over the past couple of weeks. Things that I once found to "normal" tasting, now taste sweet...amazing how desensitized we can become to the "experience" of our normal routine. In any event, energy has been steady throughout the day...even directly after lunch (which was usually a time in the past that I would hit a wall). At night, my sleep has been solid and I have been falling asleep seconds after my head hits the pillow. All in all, the reboot is making me feel great. 1 more week to go...I'll keep you posted.

Week 1..done!

Week 1 of the JOOS Reboot has come to an end and I am still alive. In fact, very alive! Tons of energy, enjoying the fresh JOOS first thing in the morning as a great way to jumpstart the day (it's much easier than eating 2 pounds of fruits and veggies first thing in the morning!). The energy that I have can only be described as "grounded" and "sustained". Very few fluctuations throughout the day and when I get into bed at night....i'm out. I'm not sure if this is related to the lack of caffeine but I must imagine this has something to do with it. I weened myself off the java to avoid headaches and now I am going without it. Of all the things that I had to part with for the reboot...coffee is the hardest. Interestingly enough...it is more of the tradition of having coffee that I miss more than the "kick" it gives me. So now, as I sit in a coffee shop writing this blog, I am doing so with an iced passion tea rather than a coffee...tasty, but not the same. I don't want to talk about it anymore or I'll cave-in.
I have received several questions from friends and family about the Reboot so I will use this space to answer some of them.

Nate in Boston wrote:
"To do the cleanse, you have to go somewhere every few days to buy the JOOS?" and "What are you eating for lunch while on the reboot?"

Dan:
Thanks for the questions Nate. I signed up for the JOOS Reboot on www.drinkjoos.com and selected the "depot" that I wanted my JOOS delivered to . I pick mine up at The Body Workshop in Dedham which is the most convenient depot to where I live. On pickup mornings (Monday, Wednesday & Friday) I pop over to TBW to grab my JOOS, exchange a "good-morning" with Frank (great dude who owns TBW) and set off with enough JOOS to last until my next pickup day. The payment however, does not take place at the depot locations, rather it takes place when I place the order on the website. The second part of your question regarding Lunch....For the most part, lunch consists of a grain like brown rice or quinoa (pronounced keen-wah, a delicious high protein grain and is loaded with calcium and other key nutrients), veggies and beans. I'm not a huge fan of tofu but I have used it sparingly. I have found that most ethnic restaurants offer several selections: Thai, Mediterranean, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican and Italian are all great options. This time of year is great for the Reboot because there is an abundance of fresh, local produce. We get ours from www.whitebarnfarm.org which is a small 4+ acre farm run by friends of ours Chris and Christy. If you are ever near Wrentham on a Tues, Wed, Fri or Sat...it's well worth stopping by their roadside stand.

Rory in New York wrote: "How does the JOOS taste" and "anything scary happening in the bathroom?"

Dan:
Thanks Rory- thanks for getting right at the good stuff. For me, the JOOS tastes great. My wife got me into juicing our own fruit and veg. about 3 or 4 years ago so I am used to the non-sweetened, non-industrialized, non-full of crapizized (my own word) taste of fresh juice. For some reason, the JOOS just tastes better than ours (and is much easier to clean up!). When the Reboot starts, the joos' start out sweeter (because they contain apple). As your body begins to adjust to being without excess sugar while on the Reboot, the amount of apple is decreased because you no longer desire such a sweet taste. By the middle to end of the cleanse, you are drinking JOOS that contains no apple and more green leafy vegetables (quite possibly one of the healthiest foods on earth). The amazing thing Rory is that I have met so many people who told me that before they start the reboot they could barely stand to take a sip of JOOS yet by the end of 3 weeks, they were physically craving it. It is pretty amazing how the human body responds when you treat it well.
The second part of your question made me laugh but it is a very valid question and probably one of the best indicators for me as to how this is working. I'll do my best to address this accurately while offending as few people as possible. The Reboot is a total body cleanse and not a colon cleanse....with that said, there have not been any total "blowouts" if you will (a welcomed relief for me as I have known several people who have done the colon cleanses and couldn't be more than 5 feet from a bathroom). I am in the "office" 1x a day and it is a casual affair that takes place first thing when I wake up (as apposed to having to be coaxed with a couple sips of coffee as in the past). Lastly, I would mention that there has been virtually no odor....almost as mind blowing to me as the fax machine.

more Q&A soon...

Reboot day 6- The International diet

6 days into the Reboot and feeling great. For those of you just joining the blog, I have embarked on a 3 week JOOS Reboot and have agreed to document my experience here on the JOOS Blog.

A little under a week ago, my wife, Jess and I committed to drinking 2 JOOS' per day and eliminating Meat, Wheat (gluten), Dairy, Refined Sugars, Processed Foods, Artificial Sweeteners and Caffeine (Jess went cold turkey on the coffee..I have been weening myself) from our diets. Today, on day six, we are both feeling GREAT...good energy level- especially in the AM and sustained throughout the day (including a workout). I have learned that I need to consume additional food on days that I exercise as I was getting light-headed after I workout. Mentally, I have a solid degree of clarity due, most likely, to the foods I am eating (and more likely, not eating) but also to the fact that there is an added degree of mindfulness applied to my food choices. I have enjoyed putting together our "big" meal of the day as I have been forced to utilize new ingredients and leverage multiple spice combinations to create delicious and nutritious feasts. Interestingly enough, if I think back on the meals that we have had since the Reboot started, almost all of them have been influenced by the cuisine from cultures outside of America. Mexican (Beans, Rice, Salsa & Guac), Thai (Green curry vegetables), Italian (Rice Pasta with Eggplant, portabella mushrooms & Garlic in a San Marzano and basil sauce) and Indian (Potato and garbanzo bean curry) flavors have been on call as I have struggled to find a solid American meal (Burger & Fries??) that satisfies the parameters of the Reboot. I find this quite interesting as I believe it speaks to a much larger issue in our culture around the sourcing, quality and cost of the "typical" American diet.

Day 3

As my first Reboot heads into the weekend, I'm feeling pretty good (although this beautiful Friday afternoon weather most certainly evokes my subconscious desire to reach for a beer while listening to the Redsox game and grilling something that was once swimming or grazing). I am becoming very aware of benign habits that I have developed over time...things like eating at a certain time of day regardless of whether or not I'm truly hungry, associating certain situations with certain foods (thinking about Buffs Pubs wings during last nights Patriots Game) or simply the subconscious visits back and forth between the fridge and pantry thinking that something was just going to magically appear in the time since I had last checked (usually under 10 minutes earlier!).

In addition the benign habits, here are a couple of quick additional observations on my first 3 days of the JOOS Reboot. First of all...I feel way more "conscious" about the way I am eating. Making decisions about what travels past my lips has moved from the sub-conscious to a point where I actually take a moment to ponder whether or not I am "allowed" to eat certain foods. Fortunately, I happen to be a food lover (with the exception of Goat Cheese...which I think tastes like dirty socks) so the Reboot has been more of a quest to determine what i CAN eat versus a struggle to eliminate things that I CANT. My big meal of the day (usually taken between the hours of 10 and 3) has consisted of brown rice, lots of veg, beans and fruit. I happen to love all of these foods so finding something to satiate my appetite has been no problem. This is a great time of year to Reboot since some many delicious fruits and vegetables are in season and can be purchased locally. One great thing about the JOOS Reboot is that it is not a starvation cleanse...rather it is an exercise in mindful food selection. I have been joking with Jess and calling it the "EATboot", with the idea being that you must EAT, but you also must avoid: mEAT, whEAT, swEET and anything from a tEET (dairy).
Ok, looking forward to sharing more next week. I have been getting lots of questions about the JOOS Reboot so I will try to answer some in future posts. Be well. -Dan

Day 1 in the books

Dan here...
So Day one of the Reboot is a thing of the past. I felt pretty good for the most part yesterday, however, last night I could have literally eaten my own leg (but of course...no meat!). My hunger was most likely out of habit more than anything else but nonetheless, I ended up having some veg & hummos to avoid going absolutely crazy. I woke up this morning feeling quite good. I had more more energy than usual (anyone with young children knows what kind of energy you have first thing in the morning!) and I attribute it to not having a large meal close to bedtime and giving my system the optimal recovery time during the night. I have met many people who have done "fasts" where they go for extended periods of time without eating as a way of cleansing the body...while this act of starvation ranks up there on my list of things that I have zero interest in doing (along with running a marathon, knitting and wearing a Yankees hat), I do believe that occasionally not eating food between the hours of 6pm and 6am gives your body a 12 hour fast and allows it to do it's thing...setting you up for optimal performance the following day. More to come

Ready...Set....REBOOT!

Hey There-
It's Dan here...Regional Manager for JOOS, getting ready to embark on a 21 day JOOS Reboot. I will use this space to periodically document this experience as both a personal account of my dietary transformation as well as an opportunity to educate others on the Reboot experience. My wife, Jessica, and I decided to do the Reboot together...sort of a buddy system kind of thing. Her experience with the Reboot will be slightly different from mine as she is currently nursing our daughter and will need to to modify her food intake accordingly.

Last night I had an amazing juicy hamburger for dinner...a final send-off if you will as for the next 21 days I will exchanging my omnivore tendencies for a diet rich in fresh, non-pasteurized fruits and vegetable Juices and free from likes of Dairy, Meat, Gluten and processed/preservative laden foods. While I have always taken an keen interest in the foods that I put into my body, the Reboot will force me to adopt a new level of "mindfulness" as I rethink my diet and reorganize my shopping list and refrigerator. The JOOS Reboot is a unique way to kickstart sustainable eating habits...which, if you are a busy human in todays society, can get out of whack every now and again. The program is pretty simple. JOOS in the AM, JOOS in the PM. Biggest meal in the middle of the day (this allows your body to maximize it's healing potential because it is not constantly diverting energy for digestion all day long). There are several other components to the REBOOT but for the sake of simplicity, that is the gist. An occasional "cleanse" or "reboot" is an amazing thing for the mind and body. It is essentially a way of stepping back from the routine and consciously thinking about a task (eating) that we all to often approach with an autopilot mentality. When you think about it....food is the fuel that determines how well our body and mind performs. For the next 3 weeks, I will be giving my body optimal fuel and nutrients in hopes of maximizing energy, increasing clarity and challenging myself to switch off autopilot and steer the ship manually.

This morning I picked up my Reboot package (6 JOOS, 1 Package of JOOS Bites and a Reboot Manual) at The Body Workshop (my local JOOS Depot) in Dedham. I kicked off the Reboot with a JOOS GREEN LEMONADE- fresh pressed juice made from Apple, Kale, Chard, Collard Greens,Celery, Cucumber, Tumeric, Ginger, Lemon and Lime. More to come soon! Be Well.....

Drinking from a toxic water bottle?

We all know that most plastics are toxic, which has prompted many of us to switch to aluminum water bottles. The problem is that there is uncertainty whether they, too, are toxic, as discussed in the following links:

http://www.ehow.com/about_5300319_health-risks-aluminum-water-bottles.html

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/165315-overview

Stainless steel is widely deemed as safe and non toxic, which is what I use for my children. There are several good products on the market, including Klean Kanteen, New Wave Enviro Stainless Steel Water Bottle, SIGG, to name a few.

8 Ways to Boost your Brain Function!

This month's Yoga Journal highlights seven ways we can keep our mind functioning well into our elderly years, according to medical experts:

1. Vitamin D: Research suggests that Vitamin D is essential for cognitive function and helps to keep our bones strong through metabolizing calcium.

2. Brain tonic: As foreign as this is to many of us, brain tonics have been around for thousands of years in Ayurveda, an ancient Indian medicine. The herb Brahmi has been highly recommended. My personal favorite is chyavanprash, which has been incredibly effective in immune support.

3. Frequent socializing, including dancing, travelling, volunteering, playing board games, etc. have been found to lower risk of dementia.

4. Positive outlook: Studies have found that negative thinking is bad for your brain! According to Jeffrey M. Greeson of Duke University Medical Center, chronic anger, hate and resentment produce stress causing your adrenals to release the hormone cortisol. High levels of cortisol shrink the hippocampus and can actually lead to more negative thinking.

5. Vitamin B12: Studies have shown that B12 deficiency is linked to memory loss.

6. Regular meditation: According to several studies, meditation can keep your mind nimble and clear.

7. Frequent Exercise: Simply put, habitual exercise promotes healthy brain function.

Here is one that Yoga Journal omitted:

8. Eat Dark Leafy Greens!!! They contain antioxidants, help reduce inflammation, lower cholesterol levels and protect the immune system.

Smooth flow => Happy mood => JOOS‏

Are you feeling any of these symptoms?
• Diarrhea
• Flatulence
• Nausea
• Constipation
• Fatigue
• Iron Deficiency
• Depression
• Acne
• Fullness
• Food Allergies
• Arthritis
• Osteoporosis
• Asthma
• Autoimmune Disease

If you answered yes, there's a good chance you have poor digestion, also known as indigestion.

There are several factors that could be causing it. Here are some:

• Eating a diet high in acidic foods (e.g., animal protein, gluten products, artificial sweeteners, processed foods, dairy)
• Not enough fiber
• Dehydration - not drinking enough water
• Eating too quickly
• Eating excessive amounts of food
• Stress mismanagement
• Not getting enough sleep
• Drinking too much alcohol
• Smoking

The links below from the University of Maryland Medical Center and by Dr. John Douillard give a more thorough overview of ingestion:

http://www.umm.edu/ency/article/003260all.htm

http://www.lifespa.com/article.aspx?art_id=107&https_check=true

A major way to reverse indigestion is to eat a plant rich diet. The problem is that many of us do not like to eat vegetables. I spoke with someone the other day who said he ate "high quality steak and supplements."

Supplements are not substitutes or replacements for foods!

JOOS is one of the best ways to enrich your body with the highest quality vegetables!

What are you waiting for to feel your absolute best? ORDER JOOS!

Should we really be grazing?

A doctor friend of mine told me he was astounded how much weight he lost just by eating a sensible lunch daily.

American doctors, nutritionists and trainers recommend that we should eat several small meals throughout the day. My question is if we're the only country in the world that grazes, could this be a factor in our being over-weight?

We need to give our metabolisms a break in order to burn fat. At the same time, we have to eat regular meals in order to keep our metabolisms function optimally. So what is the balance?

In most countries, people eat small breakfasts and dinners and hearty lunches. Sometimes they'll have a healthy mid-morning and/or mid-afternoon snack. Portion control is paramount. As a rule of thumb, we should wait 4 hours in between meals.

Most of us Americans eat minimally or starve ourselves throughout the day and then binge at night. Equally taxing on our metabolism is fasting, which is why on the JOOS Reboot we stress the importance of eating a sensible lunch.

If you're looking to get on track to optimizing your metabolism so that you can lose weight, improve your energy levels and even get a good night's sleep, they try doing the JOOS Reboot!

The Buried Truth about Lyme's Disease - A letter from Wendy's Father!

Dear Friends,

The truth about Chronic Lyme Disease is harsh, frightening, and at this time somewhat hopeless, as AIDS was a couple of decades ago. I’ve observed that though Chronic Lyme Disease has been around for decades it’s pretty much not understood by most Americans. I know that AIDS hasn’t been cured but it is now rarely deadly and is treated as a chronic condition similar to diabetes. Some day this will be the case with Chronic Lyme Disease.

Recently one member of our Wednesday Wheeler bike club, who hasn’t been riding with us lately, sadly wrote about the announcement I sent:
“It really struck home since it sure seems like I am the same boat as your daughter -- obviously there is no treatment since I know you must have pursued all avenues. It was pleasure knowing you and cycling/hiking etc.”
Unfortunately he now has a debilitative disease that the many conventional M.D.s he has seen failed to diagnose, which he suspects is Lyme.

I’ve decided to send this short essay (below) on Chronic Lyme Disease to my physician and health professional friends, most of whom are not Lyme-literate but might be in a better position to contribute to attaining the critical mass needed to cure this evasive and dreadful cluster of associated tick-born diseases. I’ll also send it to those of my friends expressing their sympathy on my daughter Wendy’s death, who may have told me that they didn’t know Lyme could be fatal.

Lyme disease is the fastest growing reportable infectious disease in the U.S. based on an analysis of CDC reported cases, which are recorded on a passive, not mandatory, reporting system. The CDC has acknowledged that reported statistics greatly understate the true incidence of the disease. The actual number of new cases probably exceeds ten times that number, or about 200,000 new cases per year. Massachusetts ranks fourth nationally in incidents of reported Lyme disease cases, behind Pennsylvania, New Jersey & New York.

A physician friend of Wendy’s who has been struggling successfully with Chronic Lyme Disease is planning to write a book and I agreed to collaborate with her on a chapter devoted to Wendy and her painful journey.

Thank you again for your friendship and your sincere expressions of sympathy. The world has become colder and lonelier for me and the many others, friends and family, who knew and loved Wendy.

~Sumner
________________________________

http://www.lymememorial.org/The_Buried_Truth.htm
The Buried Truth:


How is it that a ‘difficult to catch and easy to cure’ disease can claim so many lives? The answer is, at once, so simple yet extremely complex. It is this very dilemma that keeps the truth buried.

The simplicity relies upon the fact that Lyme and other tickborne associated diseases can be lethal. They are stealth pathogens that invade the body and wreak havoc on every inch of its systems. They know no boundaries, pass through all barriers and essentially use the patient's own immune defense forces as ammunition against them.

The complexity lies within the bacterial, viral, protozoan or microbial ability to become covert and therefore evade the most common diagnostic criteria and most standard treatment protocols. ‘Lyme disease’ for most infected patients is rarely only the bacteria known as Borrelia burgdorferi. We are now finding that most patients harbor a collection of multiple diseases that can be contracted by a single encounter with the most notorious vector- The Tick.

We are also finding that ticks are not the only vectors that carry these multiple diseases. Mosquitoes, lice, biting flies, fleas, chiggers, mites and sand flies are only a few of the known carriers. We also know that some tickborne diseases can be passed from person to person via sexual transmission, by congenital means, through blood transfusion and with organ transplants.

Animal to human transmission is also reported via exposure to infected animals such as squirrels, dogs, cats, birds, sheep and cows among others.

Tickborne diseases claim lives in many ways. The length from infection to fatality varies widely with the nature of each disease and with each patient. Some diseases are quick to claim lives and others linger at length until the patient’s body gives in to the devastation or the patient’s spirit gives in to the desperation.

It is not uncommon to see another cause of demise listed on a death report for the tickborne disease infected patient. Once the body becomes immunocompromised and multi-systemic infection occurs, the door is left wide open to other possible conditions that complicate the patient’s original diagnosis and prognosis.

Even under the most optimal conditions: with a swift diagnosis, the best of possible protocol plans and attentive physicians, the eradication of tickborne diseases is subject to the individual’s response to treatment.

Unfortunately, most patient care does not fall into the optimal condition category. Many go for weeks, months, years and decades before a proper diagnosis is made and a treatment plan is initiated.

These patients have endured dozens of physicians still clinging to misinformed protocols backed by misguided political forces. They have also been ravaged by inconceivable insurance nightmares that have led to extreme social, financial and personal loss.

The truth of what plagues their lives has been lurking underneath multiple misdiagnoses, indescribable pain to mind, body and spirit, denial of the patients' own experiences and the continued prevalence of a simple myth that pleads to be uncovered and recognized for exactly what it is…The Buried Truth.

-Melanie Reber
© 2006 The National Lyme Disease Memorial Park Project

Top 6 Ways to Get Your Family to Eat Healthy

Jan brings treats (e.g., cookies, crackers, juice boxes, etc.) to the play ground for her 3-year-old daughter, Samantha. Jan complains that Samantha is a picky eater and will not eat dinner at night.

Susan cooks multiple meals for three children at dinner time. One child doesn't like fish, another doesn't like rice and the third doesn't like chicken. Unsurprisingly, none will eat vegetables.

Stacey fills her cabinets with processed snacks. The kids eat them liberally. Stacey says she doesn't like to argue with them so she lets this slide. Like Susan, she wonders why her children do not like to eat vegetables and are overweight.

Carole takes her two girls for pizza, but won't eat a piece herself because, she tells them, she's on a "diet."

These are all true stories, but I've changed the names in each. All are loving mothers with good intentions.

I was very fortunate to grow up in a healthy household and have a mother who instilled in my brothers and me a balanced relationship with food. This is what she did:
1. She cooked one dinner and would say, "You get what you get."
2. She didn't bring snacks to the playground (although she did bring water). We went to the playground to play - not to eat.
3. She always kept fresh cut carrot and celery sticks in the fridge.
4. Most nights we had a home cooked dinner as a family and she gave us sensible portions.
5. We had our share of pizza, submarine sandwiches and fast food. Once in awhile, we'd go out for ice cream as a treat.
6. She role modeled for us a balanced eater. The question is, are you that role model to your children?

We'd love to hear your suggestions!

We will sorely miss Dr. Wendy Kagan Snyder

Today was one of the toughest days I've every experienced watching a beautiful and loving mother, wife, daughter, sister and friend buried after losing her battle to Lyme disease. Who knew how debilitating a mis-diagnosis of Lyme Disease could be!

Wendy is pictured above teaching a class about healthy living. Unfortunately, that's not enough.

I urge you to learn more about Lyme disease at http://turnthecorner.org/content/learn-about-lyme and please donate generously.

Bill Maher on health and wellness!

Can good health be boiled down to such a simple equation as:

Health = Nutrient Rich Food + Exercise + Stress Mgmt

The answer, according to many esteemed medical schools such as Duke, Harvard and UMich and many others, is YES!

The problem is that the pharmaceutical companies have convinced us that meds lead to good health.

As Bill Maher says in this provocative clip (link below), "If you believe you have to take all the pills the pharmaceutical companies say you do, then you're already on drugs."

Maher continues, "There is no money in healthy or dead people: The money is in the middle, people who are alive, sort of, but with one or more chronic conditions that puts them in need of (medications)."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot6x7cx9f7k&feature=player_embedded

Sugar even in sushi rice? Really!

I was astounded to hear how much sugar is added to sushi rice at a recent presentation I attended by a top Sushi in Boston. He recommended to add 1/4 cup sugar to 4 cups of rice. I had always thought of sushi as a relatively healthy food, but this revelation made me think twice.

I have been particularly sensitive to the poison of sugar after watching Dr. Robert Lustig's lecture, "Sugar: The Bitter Truth," on YouTube. As I wrote in the JOOS newsletter, it's worth the highly educational 90-minute discussion of the nuances of fructose biochemistry and human physiology.

Lustig is a specialist on pediatric hormone disorders and the leading expert in childhood obesity at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, which is one of the best medical schools in the country. He published his first paper on childhood obesity a dozen years ago, and he has been treating patients and doing research on the disorder ever since.

Find out why there are epidemic rates of obese 6-month olds!

Improve Digestion + Reduce Stress = Decrease Cholesterol

Stress and poor digestion raise cholesterol levels. Simply put, high levels of stress and/or poor digestion ultimately cause free radicals that damage the healthy cholesterol (the LDLs) and they, in turn, irritate the arteriole wall. This causes the cholesterol to clump and accumulate causing arteriole disease, as shown in the picture above.

Meditation is an excellent way to reduce the stress, but with our busy schedules, many of us find it difficult to find the time.

We need to make certain that our bodies have the ability to detoxify well, which is why it is especially crucial for all of us busy people to nourish our bodies with the highest quality, nutrient rich foods.

JOOS to the rescue!

JOOS is an alkalizing beverage, which neutralizes the free radicals and improves our digestion, enabling a healthy detoxification of our systems.

The Battle of the Sodas: Why do you drink poison?

Studies are coming out showing the correlation between drinking soda and heart disease, stroke and other diseases. The link below is a study by one of the researchers, Dr. Mitchell Elkind of Columbia Medical School, who stated, “What our study shows is that drinking diet soda may be associated with an increased risk of vascular events, by which we mean strokes, heart attacks, and other causes of death that can be due to vascular disease.”

While diet soda doesn't pack on the weight as does non diet soda, it is still filled with artificial ingredients that can wreck havoc on our systems and interfere with all of our metabolic (that is digestive) processes in our bodies.

What bothers me greatly and what I find so irresponsible is, with so many studies showing the ills of drinking soda, then why aren't medical doctors warning their patients? The fact is, most of them don't know. You know the phrase, "buyer beware?" Well, this time, it's "patient beware!"

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/02/09/diet-soda-linked-to-higher-risk-of-heart-attack-stroke/

The 3 Simplist Rules to reading labels that could save your children's health

Yesterday I was at a friend's home and she showed me the label of a muffin product that she thought was healthy. On the box, it read,"healthier than eating an apple," which in itself is a warning. As we read the label, there were countless ingredients that were barely readable, another big warning.

These foods can make us sick!

I take my children food shopping as often as possible because this is the best way they can learn how to eat foods that make their bodies strong.

Here are the 3 simplest rules to reading ingredients:

1. Stay away from foods with labels that say "high fructose corn syrup" and "trans fat" because those ingredients are poison.

2. If the ingredient list is long or if there are ingredients with names they are unable to read, there's probably a lot of chemical additives in the product, which means they could be risking their health by eating it.

3. Ingredients are listed on the label according to quantity, so if corn syrup is the first item, chances are that is not a healthy food.

What do you look for when reading a label?

The most telling question of all: Do you feel like you're deserving?

Kate Middleton was the pinnacle of poise and regalness at her wedding today, but from what we've seen of her over the years, this is not a surprise. To me, she acts like she is deserving of a happy and fulfilling life and I say this in the most positive way. Her figure is deserving of every superlative. She has a beautiful, warm, captivating smile. No wonder Prince William fell in love with a woman of pure beauty and grace!

As I write this, I wonder how many of us feel like we're deserving of a life of ease with a beautiful figure and surrounded by a loving family?

I heard a trainer say that the clients who have the most success with weight loss are those who feel like they are deserving of it. Are you?

I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Excess weight around the waist = increased risk of disease

Here's a message from the National Institute of Diabetics and Digestive and Kidney Diseases that may prompt you to incorporate a healthy diet:

Where excess fat is located on your body may be another risk. If you carry fat mainly around your waist, you are more likely to develop health problems than if you carry fat mainly in your hips and thighs. This is true even if your BMI falls within the normal range. Women with a waist measurement of more than 35 inches or men with a waist measurement of more than 40 inches may have a higher disease risk than people with smaller waist measurements because of where their fat lies.

http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/tools.htm

Studies showing that deficiency in Vitamin B12 leads to brain shrinkage

Please read this important article by Dr. John Douillard, one of the top Ayurvedic pratitioners talks about how deficiency in Vitamin B12 can lead to a shrinkage in the brain that can cause dementia and other diseases. He also states that if you are overweight around the gut is an indication of a compromised digestion. Check it out:

http://www.lifespa.com/article.aspx?art_id=138

What are you feeding your children for healthy snacks?

Whenever I see a parent give their child a soda, I always wonder if the parent really knows how poisonous that soda is. A friend of mine, a smoker, is aware that smoking is bad for him, but believes it's OK to drink soda. Then he rationalizes, like many of us, everything in moderation. True, a soda once in awhile will probably not kill you, just like a cigarette. The fact is, how fast one becomes two and two becomes three, etc. because caffeine and nicotine are addictive.

My question is, why would you, and even more so your children, eat something that you know is actually hurt your health?

JOOS' philosophy is to eat 90% of your diet as whole foods with 60% to 70% of those as alkaline forming, plant rich foods. The remaining 10% have a piece of cake or a cookie (with no high fructose corn syrup)or a glass of wine. The 10% is very important because if we strive for perfection, we will surely fail.

http://www.rd.com/slideshows/the-worst-foods-you-can-eat/7/

In our household, we keep on hand Trader Joe's Seaweed Snacks, hummus, Boca Burgers, a variety of fruits and vegetables and whole grain crackers.

What you give yourself and/or your children for healthy snacks?

Re-launching JOOS Blog thanks to all of your encouragement

Dear All,
Hard to admit, but yes I do fall under that middle-aged category, but I can say that in many ways I'm grateful for being here. True, there are many mistakes I've made that, if I could have done over, I would most definitely have chosen another path. The fact is that those mistakes, as painful as they were, have put me on this path, so this is the path I have to follow, but hopefully in a more intelligent and skillful way with all the wisdom I've acquired over the years.

Borne from those mistakes came what I consider miracles: my four healthy, beautiful children who bring me the utmost joy and love every day and my business, JOOS, which, for me, is like living a dream.

As I embark on relaunching my blog, I'd love to write about what I care about most: being a role model for my children. This includes how to teach my children to live a balanced life where they feel fulfilled, confident, loved, safe and secure. That's obviously a tall order.

So, as I write, I would LOVE to hear your feedback, thoughts and advice so that we can all help each other. After all, as I've learned the hard way, there is no manual for being a mother so hopefully we can all piece one together.

Love,
Lauri

The Inspirational Story of Ellen O'Brien's Life Turnaround

Ellen O'Brien came into my life approximately two months ago and has become one of the most inspirational people I have ever met.

We met when we were both guest speakers on a radio program. She is a professional singer and has the most stunning voice. The problem was that she was struggling terribly with a weight problem, which for her, is particularly painful because she is constantly performing on stage.

A self-declared "sugar, caffeine queen," her diet consisted highly of low calorie, fortified foods. The problem with these foods is that, despite the high mineral and vitamin count, our bodies simply do not absorb most of these "fake" nutrients so we are left undernourished. As a result, we're starving.

Ellen experienced a difficult childhood where her value was diminished. Not feeling worthy, she turned to the comfort of food. Like so many people, she yo-yo dieted throughout her life, which left her feeling frustrated and depleted.

Many people with weight issues believe they will be happy once they lose the weight. The problem is that when they lose the desired pounds, they're still stuck with themselves and their problems. As a result, they turn back again to the comfort of food and the cycle continues. Losing weight is the band-aide and, we all know, band-aides only cover the wound, but they don't heal it.

Ellen realized that she had to love herself first, where she was in her life at that very moment, with all the excess pounds. The first difficult step she took was to minimize communication with people in her life that had a negative influence. As harsh as this sounds, for many of us, this can mean cutting off contact with a parent, at least temporarily, if the parent is causing us so much pain.

Next, she looked around her and realized that she was surrounded by so much love and support. Even more crucial is that she saw that the more she showed love for others, the more love came into her life - and, little by little, the more she started to love herself.

The second step to healing herself was to nourish herself with the highest quality, nutrient rich foods. When I brought JOOS with me to the radio show, like many people on a highly processed food, acidic diet, Ellen gasped when she had her first sip. She knew, though, that she would have to make a radical change in her diet in order to lose the weight permanently.

Ellen did her first, 3 week JOOS cleanse at the beginning of January 2011 and was coached by JOOS Lifestyle Counselor Executive, Marissa Dana. Within the first three days of starting her JOOS Cleanse, she called me and said, "I'm addicted," and lost her craving for sugar and caffeine.

When I spoke with her this past week, approximately one month after completing her JOOS cleanse, she told me she already lost 30 lbs. More importantly, she learned that she has sensitivities, like many of us, to dairy and wheat. She also informed me that it was "the best thing that ever happened to me and my body."

Ellen is leading her first JOOS Cleanse in Winthrop. We are having an introductory meeting on Thursday, February 17th, at 7:30pm at Webtekk and Epidermis, at 260 Revere Street, Winthrop. The JOOS Cleanse will officially start on February 21st. I encourage you to join her for this incredibly inspirational experience.

Day 5 - Feeling calm and sleeping great!

This is going to be short because, as I write, I have nine kids at my home. Fortunately, they are all playing together beautifully, which affords me this quick break.

If I had to think of one word to describe my mood today, I'd have to say "calm." Feel like I'm hitting the groove with the JOOS Cleanse. I find after five days, you get locked in and then you start to sail.

I haven't had time to be imaginative with my food during this cleanse, but I'm highly satisfied with the foods I'm consuming. Keeping to dips, like hummus, lentil, etc. Drinking a ton of ginger tea, which I find very filling. Settling down to my hot healthy and highly satiating hot chocolate at night. Sleeping fabulously well. Exercising, but not over doing it. Kids are laughing. Life is good!

I had a great meetings today with our new Lifestyle counselor in Bedford, Lexington and Winchester, Alicia Brickman. She JOOSed throughout her pregnancy and is still JOOSing through breast feeding. I wish I had a picture of her. Her skin is glowing and the weight is peeling off of her. She looks gorgeous.

One thing she said that really interested me is that she is baffled how many women who are pregnant or breastfeeding disregard what they eat. They simply believe that there's no tie between the poor foods they eat and the damage they could be doing to their children. Alicia says that when she drinks the Green Power JOOS, her baby's poop turns green. How's that for a direct indication that what we eat goes straight into our babies?

Day 4 - Vibrant and Energetic are just two of the adjectives that come to mind

The hardest part about having these two Korean 11-year-old boys living with us was the decision to have them live with us. I am thrilled that I made that decision because our household is filled with even more joy. I wish all of you could be guests at our dinner table and hear the laughter.

My children wanted mashed potatoes as part of their meal. One of the Korean boys, whom I named Michael, gagged at the smell, the same reaction that we have when we Americans smell kimchee, which, by the way, I made tonight and almost gagged at the smell.

I also love listening to the boys and my children teaching each other their languages and customs. I'm actually starting to hear my children speak in Korean sentences. Pretty cool.

The reason I bring this up is because the hardest part about doing the healthy body reboot - JOOS Cleanse - is the decision to do it. After that, most people find it very easy to follow and enjoyable. In fact, most people feel more energy and healthy when they do it.

Victor Kiam, American entrepreneur and former owner of the NE Patriots, said, "Procrastination is opportunity's assassin."

You have a brillian opportunity to reboot your health. This is my fourth day of the JOOS Cleanse and, the longer I'm on it, the more mindful I become and the less hungry I feel.

We have special lifestyle counselors that will support you through this process.

Sign up for the gift of a lifetime: your health!!

Healthy Body Reboot - JOOS Cleanse - Day 3 - Cravings down, energy up, and all good.

I have two ll-year old boys from South Korea living with us for the month of January. After dinner tonight, my son asked one of them if he'd like some ice cream. The boy replied, "No thank you. It's too cold outside, only in the summer."

This innocent comment was yet another indication to me how out of touch we, as Americans, are with our eating habits. Why are we eating ice cream during the winter? We should be eating warm foods that warm us; not cold foods that make us want to eat more.

Many people tell me that they eat a salad for lunch and then have cravings at night. Of course they do. The body needs energy and simple carbs are the quickest source of energy.

Why are we afraid to eat large lunches? Our lunches should be so large that by dinner, we aren't hungry.

When I was growing up, we had supper; not dinner. It was a light meal. Why are we eating these heavy meals before we go to bed? Doesn't make sense!

So, today, for some reason, I wasn't really hungry. Must be because the JOOS is kicking in. I've been hearing the same from quite a few people.

Admittedly, it was a stressful morning. The trunk of one of our delivery people wouldn't open, which had all the JOOS for delivery to Southborough, Concord and Lexington. There were a lot of people who are on cleanses and were justifiably upset. I would have been one of them. The driver went to 3 different garages to help him open his trunk, but to no avail. At the time of this writing, his car is still in the garage.

Of course this is beyond our control, but it still causes stress because I want everyone to have a pleasant and fulfilling experience of the cleanse.

Today was my clementine day. For some reason, I craved clementines so I went with it. I also had my chips that I've been eating for the past two days, but I'm getting sick of them, finally. The Trader Joe Roasted Seaweed snacks are my staple and sipped ginger day throughout the day.

For dinner, I made the children lasagna, garlic bread on a whole wheat baguette and broccoli. I didn't have a temptation to eat any of it. Love, love, love how JOOS squelches the appetite!

Getting back on track with JOOS' Healthy Body Reboot - The JOOS Cleanse

I don't know if it's psychological, but over the past two days, I've felt more joy than I have in months. I believe it's due to getting back on track and feeling more control with my life, which is exactly what the JOOS Cleanse is meant to achieve.

This may surprise many of you, but it is even difficult for me to get on a JOOS Cleanse, but once I'm on it, I never want to stop and I often wonder why I did. It is incredibly easy to follow and it makes me feel just fabulous.

Today I did one of the most awesome yoga classes I've ever done with Natasha Rizopoulos. Awesome because I felt a big shift after the class from a bit stressed from a busy morning to complete relaxation.

I carried around with me my huge sports bottle of ginger tea, which I sipped throughout the day. I know that I have to drink at least 1 1/2 of these each day so that I'm hydrated properly and it's working. I had a facial a couple weeks ago and was told that my skin is hydrated.

I wasn't very original with my lunch. I really love those Trader Joe's Rice and Bean chips with Masala Lentil Dip. Couldn't be easier to prepare. I followed that with a few Sunspire grain sweetened chocolate chips. Mid-afternoon I had Trader Joe's Roasted Seaweed Snacks, essential to have on hand.

In the evening, I had some of the tomato soup I made last night and, I admit, a few more chips. Really hit the spot.

I'm about to have the healthy hot chocolate cocoa before I go to bed early. I stayed up way too late working and was up very early so I didn't get a lot of sleep. Are you aware that the optimal sleeping hours are between 10pm and 2am and that we shouldn't sleep beyond 6am. That will be left for another blog.

Picture above is Sasha with our new puppy, Windsor.

Feeling heigtened sweet tooth cravings? Read on why...

If you’re eating cold foods at this time of year, this could be contributing to an increased sweet tooth.

The reason is because our bodies crave simple sugars, the quickest form of energy.

As a suggestion, add ginger tea to your diet, which will warm you up and stimulate your metabolism. Some studies are suggesting that it may help to stop the spread of cancer by preventing or slowing the tumour growth.

It can also help in treating:

• motion sickness
• nausea and vomiting. A study published in the April 2005 issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology, ginger was more effective than prescribed anti-vomiting drugs (which can be harmful) when treating severe cases of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.
• burning and itching associated with athlete's foot (let your foot soak in it)
• relieves sore throat
• headaches
• minimizes symptoms of allergies, the common cold, and other respiratory disorders
• flatulence
• reduces excessive perspiration
• decreases blood sugar
• relieves menstrual pain
• freshens bad breath
• increases libido.

Trader Joe's sells Yogi Ginger Tea, which I purchase in boxes at this time of year.

Day 1 to Healthy Body Reboot - JOOS Cleanse - well almost...at least I got one JOOS

I was so very much looking to starting my JOOS Cleanse today, but many other people had the same idea and one of them forgot to place their order last night so I ended up giving her my JOOS. At least there was one extra for me. After a long, fun, crazy vacation week, the first thing I wanted to get back on my busy schedule was my JOOS.

Despite being short one JOOS, it felt great to get back on the JOOS Cleanse schedule. For lunch, my meal with Trader Joe's Rice and Bean chips with Masala Lentil Dip.

I met a friend at Cafe L'aroma at 15 Spencer Street, West Newton, for tea, my favorite: green cardamon tea mixed with cinnamon and hot apple cider. Just thinking about it, I wish I could have another. Will have to wait until tomorrow.

For dinner, now that I have six kids for the month of January, I made them a delicious tomato soup, sneaking in herbs that are so good for them like ashwagandha, turmeric, cardamon and ginger, mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts with a mustard butter sauce (although instead of butter, I used ghee) and Boca chicken patties. I had the brussel sprouts. Please let me know if you want recipes to these super easy to make meals.

I have to say that dinner time was hysterical tonight. Anyone would have loved to be a fly on the wall. There are two South Korean boys who came very late last night. They were so jet lagged today that they were literally walking into walls. They had never used a knife and fork so at dinner time, my kids had to display perfect table manners to show these boys how to eat properly. That was a joke in itself. The boys barely speak English. William, my 8-year-old, couldn't figure out how someone couldn't speak such an easy language. So glad he's getting this exposure.

The boys are attending a Catholic school here and, of course, the first words my kids teach them is "oy vey."

Tonight I am relaxing as I write with a healthy hot cocoa by JOOS, completely acceptable on the cleanse. It is made with special healing herbs and that stimulate the metabolism, relax you and give you more clarity of mind. I heat up almond milk, add the hot cocoa mix and some honey. When I'm not cleansing, I add ghee (clarified butter). Absolutely delicious and satiating. We're starting to give it out as samples for anyone who wants to try it.

Looking forward to Day 2!

Looking for a preventative and cure for colds, flu? Look no further...

Many of you have asked what my recipe is for the honey, turmeric, ginger mixture that we (the children and I) take all winter to help prevent colds and flu. Here it is:

Fill an approximate 8 oz glass jar with local honey. It is very important that the honey is local, since this will help prevent allergies in the spring.

Mix in an approximate tablespoon of turmeric power and an approximate tsp of ginger powder. As my children become more accustomed to it, I gradually add more of these spices.

It is important to add the ginger with the turmeric because studies have found that turmeric assimilates in the human body when it is mixed with ginger or black pepper.