Did you know stress can make you sick?

Quick Ways to Help you Reduce stress RIGHT NOW!

Stress in our lives in our lives is sometimes unavoidable, but its how we deal with that stress that effects us. When you allow stress to get the best of you, there can be damaging effects to your health. Stress can cause headaches, backaches, high blood pressure skin rashes, indigestion, chronic fatigue and even the common cold. When you are stressed your immune system is compromised and is not able to fight off harmful invaders. Stress also overstimulates the immune system. What does this mean? When your immune system is over working its may actually begin to attack itself and start attacking health tissue rather than fighting off bacteria and viruses. Yikes! 

Here are some tips to help you de-stress and in turn, stay healthy! 

Why I love Kale

• Kale is packed with vitamins
• Calcium: More calcium in kale then in milk per calorie. Calcium is an essential at all ages to maintain bone health 
• Iron- Kale has more iron than beef! Iron is needed in the body for cell growth, liver functions and much more. 
• Vitamin C- as most of us know by now, vitamin c is essential for our immune system but also 
• Vitamin A-  This vitamin is essential for eye health but also helps prevent lung and other cancer. 
• One cup of chopped kale contains 33 calories and 9% of the daily value of calcium, 206% of vitamin A, 134% of vitamin C, and a whopping 684% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus. (WEBMD)
• Kale is great for detoxing because it is filled with fiber and sulfur, which detoxes you and helps keep your liver healthy.

• Kale is loaded with antioxidants 

• Kale helps lower cholesterol levels                             

• Kale is a great source of Omega 3 Fatty acids:
• One serving of kale contains 121 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids and 92.4 milligrams of omega-6 fatty acids.

Over all Kale is the super food of all super foods. With all the benefits packed in one serving, Kale should be a part of everyones regular diet. 


Even my bunny loves kale!! =)

My Favorite quote

This one of my favorite quotes that I wanted to share. Some people view people who are nice as weak and take try to take advance of them. I believe, being kind is quite the opposite of weak. Anger and hardness are the signs of weakness. It easy to walk away and turn a cold shoulder to those in need but it takes strength  to reach out to others and show emotion.  Being kind to others is not always the easy thing, but always the right thing. Anger and harshness are signs of your own weakness. Remember to be kind to others, you never know what that person is going through. 

Immune System Boosts

One of my favorite Kale recipes

POMEGRANATE, KALE, AND WILD RICE SALAD WITH WALNUTS AND FETA

25 Ridiculously Healthy Foods

Reasons to Get More (Beauty) Sleep

Don't Forget "Beauty Sleep" in your Beauty Regimen!

• Beauty Sleep is not a myth: 

• The Huffington Post reported that researchers  found evidence that  sleep deprivation does in fact change your facial appearance. “Sleep-deprived people appear less healthy, less attractive and more tired compared with when they are well rested” (Read the full story here)

• The effects of chronic sleep deprivation has shown to mimic the ageing process.
• Studies have shown that with sleep deprivation there are alterations in metabolic and endocrine function including elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, impaired immune and thyroid function, and early signs of diabetes- aka all of the things that happen when you get old, start to happen when you are chronically sleep deprived. (Read more about this at WebMd) 

• Dull Skin- 
•  If you don't get enough sleep your skin will look dull because it has not had the time to heal from all of daily stresses: harmful sun rays, pollution, bacteria, and chemicals. While you sleep, your body rejuvenates and heals itself. Beauty sleep will restore and rejuvenate your skin because sleep aids with cell regeneration. 

• Weight Gain- 
• People who get at least seven hours of sleep per night tend to have less body fat than people who don't. (1)
• When you don't get enough sleep, you body releases more of the hormone cortisol into your blood stream. These elevated levels impairs digestion and metabolism and can cause weight gain.  On the other hand, if you don't get enough sleep your body will not release enough Leptin- the hormone that tells your brain when you are full. Due to these lower levels of leptin, you will have food cravings, eat more, and gain weight. 

Theses are just a few of the negative effects of sleep deprivation- If you want feel better & LOOK better start at the basics and get a full eight hours of sleep consistently. 

 Links:

• Can't sleep? Check out sheknows.com's Top 10 Seasonal sleep tips
• Insufficient Sleep is a Public Epidemic-  CDC's data and statistics on sleep deprivation

1- http://health.howstuffworks.com/mental-health/sleep/basics/sleep-obesity.htm