Friday 9 September 2016

Best poultice in the world!

I have a typical teenage boy full of hormones, 5 brain cells and the attitude to go with it! This also means that it takes a while to get that the hugely infected sore on your heel needs looking into...
He was wearing his runners without socks on a longer than anticipated walk. Subsequently his poor heel was red raw by the time he got home. To make a long story shorter, a few days later it was very tender, red and hot to touch. Inflammation was setting in. Next he got a raging fever that lasted 24 hours but I didn't know about the infection at this point. I found out the next day.

We tried hot Epsom salt foot baths for two days and clean dressings to no avail.
Now I was getting really worried.
Luckily Dr.Dilis Clare happened to walk into Health & Herbs(she wasn't supposed to be in that day) and I showed her Luke's foot(see below).

What is hard to see in the pictures is that a line of infection was starting to travel up his leg. Dilis recommended I put a poultice of slippery elm powder mixed with a blend of echinacea and calendula 90% tincture to form a paste. I applied to the heel and the line of infection. 
She also recommended some herbs to take internally because the inflammation was acute enough at this point to be in danger of him developing septicaemia or cellulitis. 
Within 48 hours the infection was totally reversed!
We continued with the herb bottle and rubbing some echinacea/calendula on the heel for a further 48 hours to be on the safe side. 
Thanks to the herbs we avoided oral antibiotics or worse.

This was last  week.
Below is today.
The poultice is also great for insect bites, healing lots of sores, cuts and other infections.
I will definitely be an important part of our first aid box from now on.
Happy health Tara.

Thursday 18 August 2016

Kale, Roasted Cauliflower & Barley Salad

Here is a recipe I made in my new 'Funky Salads Class' and it went down a treat. A great way to use your fresh kale (which I have in spades at the moment in my garden).
Kale is a super boosting vegetable packed with Magnesium, B6, Iron and B3 for energy, mood and stress support. Calms the nerves and soothes our aches. Lots of dietary fibre to keep you regular, Vitamin E for the skin and Calcium for strong bones and heart health.
Tip - if you are on thyroid medication lightly steam the kale for 2 minutes and plunge into a bowl of ice to keep it crunchy.




Kale, Roasted Cauliflower & Barley Salad
Ingredients:
200g Barley
½ cauliflower
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp Curry Powder
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
Olive oil
Sea Salt
150g Kale
½ cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 lemon Juiced
1 medium Onion
Rice or Soya Flour
½ Red Pepper or Tomato
1 tablespoon roasted pumpkin seeds
2 tblsp tamari/braggs amino/soya sauce

What to do-
Tear the kale from the stem, into bite size pieces. Discard the stem. Place in a large bowl and add 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and a squeeze of lemon juice and toss well. Allow to marinate for 30 minutes or longer.
Wash the barley well and place in pot along with 300mls of water. Add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, place a lid on top and simmer for 30 minutes. Rinse in cold water and drain well.
Heat the oven to Gas 7 / 220C.
Cut the cauliflower into bite size florets. Place in an oven proof dish. Add the turmeric, cumin seeds, black mustard seeds, curry powder, a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of cold pressed oil. Toss well. Place in a preheated oven on the top shelf and roast for 20 minutes until the cauliflower is tender, but not mushy. Set aside to cool.
Peel and cut the onion in half. Slice into half moon slices. Toss in brown rice flour, shallow fry in a pan or roast until crisp and browned. Remember to shake off any excess flour before frying.
De-seed the red pepper or tomato and chop into bite size pieces.
Add the prepared cauliflower, cooked barley, red pepper, toasted sunflower seeds to the bowl with the marinating kale. Toss well.
Season with 2 tablespoons of soya sauce. Add the fried onion, and toss into the salad. Serve.


By the way Barley grain is indigenous to Ireland which means our digestive systems are more tolerant to it so try to use in more in your diet. Very beneficial for kidney, bladder and heart health.

Happy health, Tara

Tara Canning NT,NCCCB,mNTOI
Nutritionist|Masterchef
Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner
@CanningTaraM
canningtaram(Instagram)
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087 9074701

Thursday 28 January 2016

Mindful Eating for Health and Wellbeing

Mindful eating for busy families.    

Mindfulness is the current buzzword that is the supposed answer to everything but what does it mean?
My definition includes thoughtful eating that bears in mind all the things we want our food to nourish. This includes nourishing our bodies, giving and experiencing pleasure, being sociable and even calming our souls.

It includes the blessings of gratitude in being so fortunate to have such abundance.

Above all else it is paying attention to the experience of eating. Tasting, chewing and swallowing food is an experience to be savoured.

We do this best by sitting down, choosing good food, switching off all distractions and ignoring everything that beeps, rings and disturbs our awareness.
Unfortunately we can’t switch off the children, so we need to teach them to pay attention too. Set time for regular meals, put everything you need on the table and sit down. Imaginary glue sticking you to the chair means you do not move from the table for anything short of medical emergencies!

For mums who eat left overs remember you have eaten your meal so step back from the leavings on others plates. They are not yours.

Before you eat check out how hungry you are, repeat this question before you reach for seconds.

Family meals where mother is up and down like a jack in the box or when meals are rushed increases your adrenal stress and leads to poor digestive function with too much stomach acid and speedy digestion with poor assimilation of nutrients (symptoms common with Irritable Bowel Syndrome).

Pay attention to the quality of the food, the welfare of animals you eat, the chemicals in the food chain and added chemicals in processed food and make the best choices you can within family budget constraints.


Include 7 fruit and vegetable portions per day on a regular basis and oily fish, a few nuts and seeds and avocado for Essential Fatty Acids (link to the leaflet on my website if you like)

The benefits of eating mindfully include more satisfaction, quality family time, better behaved children and a calmer household.

Herbs for calm and happy digestion include Chamomile, Fennel, marshmallow, Meadowsweet and Peppermint. These are in the Digestion Blend of Tea available online.
Open access , online series of talks including herbs for digestion and stress available via the website healthandherbs.ie
Clinics in Dublin, Sligo and Galway.