Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts

Monday, November 26, 2018

My Secret to Staying Healthy

My Secret to Staying Healthy

Staying healthy is not a goal of mine but a goal that has been reached and is now a lifestyle.  Of course my lifestyle includes eating well and taking whole food supplements but it also includes other daily habits that I feel are part of my healthy foundation.  These 3 habits are not individualized like the supplements and eating programs that I develop for patients.  They will, across the board, help anyone that is looking to get healthy and stay healthy.  I think life has it's course and if we don't enforce the basics on ourselves bad habits slowly creep in.  So start with these good habits and see how it feels to go back to the basics. Start incorporating all the habits at once or just start with one and then once that one becomes a habit incorporate another. 


10 hours before bed — stop drinking caffeine.

Now, when it comes to beverages, if you test well for it, caffeine can be healthy for you as long as you don’t fill it with stuff that’s bad for you, like sugar, sweeteners, or dairy.  I can do one small cup of coffee a day but I make sure I have it only in the morning.  If I don't have it with breakfast then I won't have it at all.  So I encourage you to put a hard stop on caffeine 10 hours before bed. For some of you this could include chocolate.  Even the caffeine in chocolate is enough of a strong stimulant, which can last well into the night before it finally wears off. And when that happens, you can kiss the quality of your sleep goodbye — which causes you to feel groggy the next day. So, it's important to give your body enough time to rid itself of caffeine.

At least 3 hours before bed — stop eating food.

I used to be guilty of this one myself. But the “midnight munchies” can often lead to weight gain, acid reflux… and let’s not forget, it’s a huge energy drain on your body! You see, when you snack before bed your body is forced to digest all of the nutrients in your food which puts a dent in your energy reserves. Instead of relaxing, your body is hard at work digesting. So, to enjoy more energy: I recommend you finish eating at least 3 hours before bed. This will give your body the time it needs to digest your food the way nature intended and allows you to wake up the next day feeling refreshed and full of life. 

1 hour before bed — no more “screen time.”

Electronic screens emit rays of “blue light,” which can throw your sleep cycle out of whack. Thankfully, during the daytime, these rays aren’t so bad. In fact, “blue light” can even help to boost your attention, reaction times, and mood. But, at night too much exposure to “blue light” can confuse your hormones into thinking it’s still daytime which wreaks havoc on your “internal clock” and robs you of energy.

So, as a general rule: I recommend you put the electronic devices away 1 hour before bed. (That means no TVs, cell phones, laptops, etc.) Personally, I love to read a good book before bed but now I'm busy enjoying the baby. 

I’m sure you’ll agree, energy is one of the greatest gifts we can have in life and these good habits will help you have more of it. As you can tell , if you are going to incorporate these healthy habits you need to know what time you are going to bed.  So for some of you, actually having a bedtime will be a new habit.  So if you don't actually go to bed around a specific time I suggest you start with that first.  

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Healthy Healing Holiday Gift Ideas


Gift Card

Give the gift of health this holiday season by getting a loved one a Healing Arts gift card.  Gift cards can be any amount and with no expiration so it can last for as long as you want.  Make 2018 the healthiest year yet! Call the office to purchase.

                                               






Haute Chocolate

Handmade in Brooklyn these chocolates are made with 100% organic ingredients and sweetened with coconut and maple sugar.  They are not as sweet as Hu chocolate and come in a variety of fun flavors.  My favorite is Lady Grey because I love Earl Grey tea which this chocolate is flavored with.  If you like spicy Mexican chocolate then you have to try the Cinnamon Chipotle chocolate, which had a spicier kick to it than I thought it would have. See website for locations or purchase there.

Your aura is your energy field and even though we don't often think about it as a part of us that needs attention it really does need to be supported.  There are different ways to work on your aura.  It can be cleansed from picking up other people's energy.  It can also be stimulated for an energy boost. To do either of these for your aura you can use healing sprays.  I fell in love with these Thai sprays the first moment I used them.  




When to use it
  • During meditation or yoga.
  • To clear homes or public spaces.
  • On your pillow before sleeping..
  • When waking up and before bed.
  • Possibilities are endless!
Purchase for $25 at the office.

Each spray contains a specific crystal formula that carries a certain healing vibration to tune into. They are handmade with organic oils.


There is Palo Santo (sacred wood) from Peru, flowers, incense and candles always involved during production and all the production is handled in glass containers. The production process is finished with a special Balinese Ceremony performed by a Balinese Priest to strengthen and to elevate the healing vibration of the sprays.  This ceremony is celebrated under the full moon.

Let Go Spray-
Crystals: Clear Quartz, Amethyst & Sodalite
We formulate a unique blend of pure organic essential oils which include Cinnamon (Cinnamon Bark) and Grapefruit (Grapefruit Pink) which we mix with Bach Flowers.
All the ingredients in this formula are intended to help process these emotions in order for them to go while loosening the attachment we’ve created to them.
Have you ever found yourself having recurring images and thoughts on certain situations and you wish they would stop? Do you ever keep on having emotions on past relationships/friendships and they don’t seems to dissipate with time?
To Let Go something organically would be to heal an emotion or feeling by acknowledging it in order for it to release peacefully. Many times there is fear behind these attachments. Fears can have origins, sometimes difficult to detect where they come from,  they are usually recurring.
Our energy field has a certain capacity and volume. Certain quantity of information and experiences can be held in our energy field. There is need to make some space in it by releasing things that have already been processed in order to have more space for new things to come.
Clear Quartz is known as the “master healer” and will amplify energy harmonizing the chakras and the auric field.  It is a good crystal for processing emotions and is intense in cleansing qualities.
Amethyst known for its power of spirituality and contentment, known for its metaphysical abilities to still the mind and inspire an enhanced meditative state.  Its inherent high frequency purifies the aura of any negative energy or attachments, and creates a protective shield of light around the body.
Sodalite, which has qualities of truth and loyalty to oneself, will help you know what is yours and what is not, for things to go.


Grounding Spray- 
Crystals:  Black Tourmaline,  Smokey Quartz,  Hematite  &  Clear Quartz
We use a unique blend of pure organic essential oils which includes Vanilla (Vanilla Planifolia Andrews) and Ginger (Zingiber Officinale). Bach Flowers.
To be grounded symbolizes the roots of a tree holding to the ground. Grasping and affirming to it.
This creates a connection to our mother Earth, bringing more stability and strength to our daily lives.
There is a flow between us and our Divine Mother below, which is always there for us and willing to receive what we have to give (eg. fear). The Sprays work on reestablishing this connection, this flow.
It prevents us from staggering in difficult situations, allowing us flow in our daily routine with less fear and more confidence.  The lower chakras, (especially the root chakra) are activated.
It is very important to develop a good foundation, a solid structure to develop spiritually, to grow upwards. The deeper the roots are, the easier it is to raise our spirit and our life experiences.
The more solid the foundations we build on, the stronger our spiritual growth.

Protection Spray- 
Crystals:   Citrine,  Black Tourmaline,  Smokey Quartz,  Tiger’s Eye  &  Clear Quartz.
Unique blend of Organic Essential Oils which includes Lemongrass (Cymbopogon Flexuosus) and Lavender (Lavandula Hybrid var. Grosso).   Bach Flowers.
Have you ever felt uncomfortable in a certain situation or place? Maybe near certain people?
Do you ever feel you wish you were stronger in certain circumstances and also you wish certain things and other peoples’ comments would not affect you in the way they do? Or that you could have said the right thing to defend yourself and you just didn’t, making you feel overwhelmed?
This Auric Spray helps you clean, transmute negative vibrations and strengthen your energy field, making it vibrate at a higher and more stable frequency so that denser vibrations dissolve, thus acting as a shield to other peoples negative projections. Where there is a more defined boundary between you and the rest and better definition of spaces.
For your aura to be protected the lower chakras should be strong, this allows to release tension and to transmute negative energies.
Tourmaline, in this case Black,  usually used as a talisman for protection, good in grounding and releasing.
Tiger’s Eye is used for transmuting energy and stability. It exudes authority, control, leadership, success, and influence.
Natural Citrine good in good cleansing and elevating the energy field vibration.
Clear Quartz is good at strengthening the aura and aligning chakras, so it’s a good integrator.

Pure Love Spray- 
Crystals:   Rose Quartz,  Jade,  Chrysoprase,  Aventurine  &  Amazonite.
Unique blend of pure organic essential oils which includes Chempaka  (Champaka White), Jazmin (Jazmine Grandiflorum) and Ylang Ylang (Cananga Adorata). Bach Flowers.
This Auric Spray enhances unconditional love, compassion, understanding and harmony.
All the ingredients in this formula, starting with the chosen crystals, the aromas, the green color and our selection of flowers; they are all intended to open up our heart chakra.
This chakra connects to the world from a perspective of unity and vibrates with the feeling that we are all one.
If you are feeling that you are closed or blocked in terms of something to do with love and understanding, this is the spray for you. It will help you open up to a situation from a space of compassion and integration, instead of a place of ego (duality) and separation. Many times we create a defense system that covers up, hides our heart, and this can be softened with Pure Love. The heart chakra vibrates in unity.
All Quartz crystals are very cleansing and carry noble energy. In this case the Rose Quartz vibrates with the energy of love, compassion, self-love and infinite peace. It carries these energies within. It is one of the most generous crystals and it will help you understand situations from the perspective that we are all one.
  • Chrysoprase serves us by opening and activating heart chakra.
  • Jade increases love, serenity and abundance.
  • Aventurine is a harmonizer and enhances prosperity.
  • And beautiful Amazonite is for good communication.
This Spray is unique as it has direct infusion of Bali Temple flowers into the water. So it’s not just the oils but direct energy from Ylang Ylang and Cempaka. They all enhance love.

Birthing Spray- 
Provides energetic support for soon-to-be mothers before, during and after birth.
Energetically clearing & charging the Aura with the protective, welcoming and loving energies of this blend, assisting the pregnant woman to smoothly transition to this new life stage, while supporting her to experience childbirth with openness, courage, and adaptation.
Full Moon
Brings fullness of the feminine energy of maternity & adjusts receptivity. Focuses protection, nutrition and Maternal Love; regulates breastfeeding and all the liquids in the body.
Earth DAY
Stimulates the root chakra and vitality. Assists in the processing of changes both biological and emotional. Regulates the pulses and new rhythms of the body.
Mercury
Helps with adaptation to new life circumstances.
  • Amethyst: Offers protection and stability, assists with divine connection and purification, relieves physical and emotional tension & pain.
  • Carnelian:  Restores motivation, energy, courage, and self-esteem.
    Helps women release fear around pregnancy & childbirth.
  • Chrysocolla:   Empowerment of the Goddess energy. Eliminates fear-based thoughts. Brings peace to the mind, heart, and serenity amidst situations in constant change. Alleviates pain associated with labor.
  • Malachite:  A powerful emotional cleanser known as ‘midwives stone’, it helps stimulate contractions, ease labor pains and promote safe delivery.
  • Moonstone: Gem of the High Priestess; promotes self-discovery, inner insight, harmonious relationships and soothing emotions. Relieves stress, fear & tension during childbirth. Also believed to aid contractions & promote healthy lactation.
  • Quartz Crystal: Known as the Master Healing Crystal. Contains the full light spectrum, working on every energetic level to bring the body into balance and harmony. Powerfully strengthens & stabilizes the bodies energy fields.
  • Rose Quartz:  Provides emotional balance, security & peace. Used as a protective gemstone during childbirth and pregnancy to help open the heart to unreserved love and to the magic of birthing. Cultivates deep connection with self, baby & the whole universe.

How to apply
To be used during pregnancy and after birth and during moments of transitions in life.
Shake the bottle before each use. Spray several times above your head and allow the mist to fall around you.
Take a few seconds to breath it in.
Use a couple of times a day for an effective realignment.
Can be used over a period of time to support a deeper transformation.

However you choose to apply these sprays would be beneficial.  There is no wrong way and I promise you will feel better after doing so!

Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Oliver Weston Products Now Available!



In giving the joy of health back to so many people throughout the years I have learned to help my patients as much as possible with the lifestyle changes that we recommend at Healing Arts. Knowledge is power and so I truly believe patient education is key in helping people take back their own health. That is why we have so many handouts on various health topics for patients to read and we do a variety of free workshops too. We are also aware that the lifestyle changes can be overwhelming and we do our best to help you through them.



It can be especially difficult for families who have one child that can eat wheat but another child that can’t eat it. How do you tell a 5 year old they can’t have their favorite chocolate cupcake for right now? It is not easy. I know from my first hand experience with raising my 8 year old. To make the healthier lifestyle changes we ask of you or your child we know it’s a constant commitment to tell yourself or your child ‘no’ to certain foods until they stop asking for it. That is why we built the website familynutritionnyc.com, to help families with certain tools and tips to make it an easier transition. The goal is to have substitutes around so the children don’t feel so deprived.

Let’s pretend your 5 year old can’t have wheat or sugar for 2 months and so his favorite desserts are gone but you can make him a paleo brownie using almond flour and maple syrup. It’s those types of ideas that are on the website. Did you know we can test babies? There is a video that explains how we do that!

To help all our patients we have also collaborated with a farm in upstate NY in the Hudson Valley called Oliver Weston that will deliver food to our office. I truly believe in eating local and what better way than straight from the farm to your table!

We now have a freezer full of Oliver Weston products that we sell with no profit that includes:

Chicken and Beef Broth (soy-free, pasture raised)

Plantain Sandwich Bread

Millet Flax Sourdough Bread

Buckwheat Hemp Sourdough Bread

Coconut sugar chocolates

Bacon (nitrate free, sugar free)

So next time you are in the office take the time to check out our freezer!

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Have a Sweet Tooth? Buddha Chocolate is Healing Arts Approved!

I know healthy chocolate is hard to come by. My two favorites so far have been making it myself with honey (recipe) or Hu chocolate which you can find at some Whole Foods and Hu Kitchen on 5th Ave. and 14th St. in Manhattan. Hu chocolate uses coconut sugar as the sweetener and it is delicious! Flavors come in regular, salty, mint, banana, cashew butter, almond butter and puffed quinoa, and hazelnut praline. I was just recently gifted Buddha Chocolate which is another great option I wanted to share! For about the same price you can have chocolate cups and bars of almond butter, coffee, fudge, lavender, s'mores, rose sea salt, mint chip, quinoa crisp, chia cookie, hazelnut and more! I love the artisanal flavors and the chocolate is handmade in Oregon and have made their way into these stores:


Commodities Natural Market
165 1st Ave
(between 10th St & 11th St)
New York, NY 10003
(212) 260-2600

Integral Natural Foods
229 W 13th St
(between 7th Ave & Greenwich Ave)
New York, NY 10011
(212) 243-2642

Westerly Natural Market
913 8th Ave
(between 54th St & 55th St)
New York, NY 10019
(212) 586-0422

Elm Health
56 7th Ave
(between 13th St & 14th St)
New York, NY 10011
(212) 255-6300

The Health Nuts
1208 2nd Ave
(between 63rd St & 64th St)
New York, NY 10065
(212) 593-0116

High Vibe
138 E 3rd St
(between 1st Ave & Avenue A)
New York, NY 10009
(212) 777-6645

Organic Planet Williamsburg
169 Bedford Ave
(between 8th St & 7th St)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 388-8320

Organic Planet Morgan Ave
43 Bogart St
(between Grattan St & Moore St)
Brooklyn, NY 11206

Organic Planet Pharmacy Driggs Ave
205 N 9th St
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(347) 799-2213

Perelandra Natural
175 Remsen St
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 855-6068


You can also order them online and try a variety pack. Also made with coconut sugar they are delicious!


Thursday, January 14, 2016

Hu Kitchen

Hu stands for Human, as in their logo, 'get back to human' and their food philosophy is paleo. My diet is paleo, minus the fruit, so of course, I love this place! But Hu Kitchen is so much more! It's fresh food is farm to people and it also has shelves stocked with paleo friendly food. If you aren't familiar with the paleo diet, just know that it is gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free, soy-free goodness! You also won't find any GMOs in this place.



What I love most is Hu Chocolate and instead of telling you what is in it, Hu tells you what is NOT in their chocolate. No refined sugar, soy lecithin, gluten, emulsifiers, GMO or cane sugar. They use coconut sugar as the sweetener which is paleo friendly. I suggest Hu chocolate so often to my patients as a healthier alternative that I can't believe it took me this long to get them in the office for patients' convenience. We are now selling them in the office for $5 a bar and we carry a variety. You can also make your own chocolate using honey with this recipe. For more info on how healthy cocoa is for you, read this article.

Bad news: there is only one Hu Kitchen, at 14th St and 5th Ave.
78 5TH AVENUE NEW YORK, NY 10011
to be exact.

Good news: you can buy their chocolate at the office!

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

For the Love of Chocolate

Over the past dozen of years or so, a steady stream of science has emerged, showing that cocoa possess extraordinary life-imbuing and disease-fighting properties. Most notably, cocoa demonstrates significant benefits for the cardiovascular system, helping to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, reduce the risk of high blood pressure, and even reduce the risk of cancer.

Cocoa contains over 700 known compounds. And for all we know, there may be many more that remain undiscovered. Of particular interest to scientists are the antioxidant compounds in cocoa. Antioxidants are compounds that plants manufacture to prevent their own cells from premature destruction due to exposure to heat, light, air, moisture and time. In the human body, many of these compounds prevent reactive oxygen species (ROS) from destroying cells and causing premature aging and disease. Cocoa is especially rich in polyphenols, a group of protective antioxidant compounds found in many plant foods such as red wine and tea. Yet, of all foods, cocoa has the highest antioxidant polyphenol content, and provides the greatest cardio-protection.



Cardiovascular disease is the primary killer of adults. The polyphenols in cocoa are cardio-protective in two ways. They help to reduce the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins (LDL), or so-called ‘bad cholesterol.” Oxidation of LDL is considered a major factor in the promotion of coronary disease, most notably heart attack and stroke. Additionally, polyphenols inhibit blood platelets from clumping together. This clumping process, called aggregation, leads to atherosclerosis, hardening of the arteries. By inhibiting aggregation, polyphenols reduce the risk of atherosclerosis.

Another dimension of the benefits of cocoa and chocolate consumption concerns mood. Cocoa is rich in agents that enhance the production of various feel-good chemicals in the brain, notably serotonin and dopamine. This means that cocoa possesses anti-depressant, mood-elevating properties. This is no surprise to the any millions of people who self medicate with chocolate every day.

Of the mood-modifying compounds in cocoa, one is PEA, or phenethylamine. This chemical, which occurs in chocolate in small quantities, stimulates the nervous system and triggers the release of pleasurable opium-like compounds known as endorphins. It also potentiates the activity of dopamine, a neurochemical directly associated with sexual arousal and pleasure. Phenethylamine increases in the brain when we fall in love, and during orgasm. The giddy, restless feelings that occur when we are in love are at least partly due to PEA. This adds a rather remarkable dimension to cocoa, and may account for why it is so highly prized. For while there are a great many agents in nature which boost libido and enhance sexual function, (High Libido Diet) chocolate alone actually promotes the brain chemistry of being in love. Chocolate is the gift of lovers for this very reason.

Cocoa additionally boosts a sense of well being by increasing brain levels of serotonin, the so-called feel-good brain chemical. For this reason cocoa provides a highly desirable mood boost to women during PMS and menstruation, when serotonin levels are often down. In fact, women are consistently more sensitive to cocoa than men. Women typically experience stronger cocoa cravings than men. And for many, cocoa is the perfect PMS prescription. A little cocoa can restore a feeling of well being.

The one thing that hinders chocolate from being a great super food is all the sugar we put with it. It is best to make your own using raw, organic honey. But if the craving hits and you need something convenient and cocoa nibs are not a choice go for Green and Black's 85% organic dark chocolate that is made with organic cane sugar or Hu and Evolved chocolate which are both sweetened with coconut sugar.