​ 
I am a big fan of Christmas, I love the coming together, sharing gifts, food, atmosphere, it has always been one of my favourite times of the year.  But I can also recognise how stressful Christmas can be.  Everyone is rushing, in a panic, trying to get it all perfect, find the money for everything and meet expectations or hold their tongue for everyone else’s sake.  It can definitely be stressful.
 
So this year, remember it’s ok to take some time to destress and remember what Christmas is meant to be about.
 
My top 3 stress busting aids are:

1. Rescue remedy – I love this little bottle, just pop some drop into water and drink.  Rescue remedy are Bach Flowers, which are homeopathic in nature.  They do not interact with anything else, and work by help your body deal with the stress when you cannot remove the stressor.
2. Breathing – I no we are all breathing or we would be dead, but certain breathing techniques significantly reduce tension in the body and help the body release stress.  My favourite is box breathing -  inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds then repeat.  Start by doing this for 4 minutes
3. Remove yourself- that simple, if you are in a situation that is stressing you out, if possible remove yourself and go and do something else.  Sounds simple but far too many of us do not recognise our own boundaries and stay in uncomfortable situations for far longer than is healthy.

 
My wish for you all is a fun filled and peaceful Christmas but if that’s not on the cards I hope you remember these 3 tips and that they help you recentre and enjoy your Christmas.
 
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads
 

​Sometimes the best solution is the simplest one.  The same is true very often with health and diet.  I ate a very typical diet (years ago) so I didn’t think anything of it.  It was normal to eat lots of things that came in packets, crisps on a regular basis, fizzy drinks, etc.  Sure everyone ate like that, it was normal.  I was a vegetarian that wasn’t that keen on vegetables.
 
The thing is my diet was normal for my generation but completely different from the generations before me.  How had our diet changed so quickly?  A lot had to do with advertising, making foods that were not nutritious look normal, foods with added nutrients rather than food with natural nutrients.  We all started using microwaves, diets were in all of a sudden, you always seemed to be on the latest one, sure everyone was doing it.
 
20 years later and I am seeing increases in most chronic health issues, cancers, childhood health issues, maybe it’s time to simplify things a little again.
 
So here are a few tips from me to you on how to identify food that is beneficial for your health:

1. Buy live food – fresh produce, not something that could live in your cupboard quite happily for the next 2 years.  Most of your shopping trolley should be produce with a few products and not the other way around
2. Hydrate with water – Get a glass of water into yourself every 2 hours. 
3. Cook from fresh – it doesn’t have to be worthy of a Michelin star restaurant, even an omelette or stir fry is far better for you than something from a packet
4. Get creative – don’t eat the same thing over and over
5. Eat a proper meal – 2- 3 proper meals a day will curb cravings, picking and binging, give you energy for the day and a better sleep at night.
6. If your food looks beige you will eventually show signs of nutrient deficiencies (even if you supplement)  add colour (and I don’t mean ketchup)
7. Think more about what your grandparents ate than what your best friend eats. 

 
The interesting thing is, my diet is far more interesting and tasty now that I eat food that fuels my body rather than my cravings.
 
 
 
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads
 

So if you read my article last week you will see there are some fairly everyday reasons you might be hungry and some simple ways to rectify the situation.  We are all different and the best way to rectify a situation is to really understand how it has come about.
 
So here is a little list of 5 more reasons you might be hungry and how to resolve it:
 

1. You’re not eating enough vegetables.  If I’m honest this is the no 1 cause of most of our weight and diet related health issues today in my mind, we simple eat too little vegetables and what we do eat is lower in nutrients than our parents and grandparents had.  How do we adjust this?  Add more vegetables and what you add try to make it local grown organic.
2. You are eating in a hurry – we just don’t give our food the time it needs, we don’t see it as important for our wellbeing so other things in our lives are given more priority
3. You aren’t drinking enough water – you knew that was coming.  Hunger and thirst can often be misinterpreted by our body so if you are always hungry, think if you are drinking enough water.
4. You are stressed – as I said before about sleep, stress needs lots of calories and nutrients so this can increase your need for calories, the downside is you would think if you’re burning it off you would loose weight, but you’d be wrong!  Stress impacts the hormones and you tend to gain hormonal weight around the middle.  Another reason stress can make you think you are hungry is you may start eating your feelings, using food to suppress your emotions.
5. You’re just hungry.  Some people have higher metabolisms than others and you may just burn off the calories quickly which can mean you have a need for  a nutrient and calorie dense diet.

 
 
Follow myself and Shona @welovebreakingfads on Instagram and Facebook for recipes, tips and videos, and keep any eye out for our launch of our new and improved Breaking Fads Bodytype programs in Early 2022.
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads
 

 
Growing up I always struggled with my weight, on one diet or another.  A negative relationship with food always.  There was no real education on how to eat healthy, just some very vague ideas that didn’t always work for me.  I never really thought what food was doing for me or when I ate the wrong foods, what it was doing to me.
 
So here is a little list of 5 reasons you might be hungry and how to resolve it:
 

1. Too little protein in the diet – each meal you ideally need the palm of your hand in protein
2. You’re not eating enough – you may be on a starve binge cycle without realising
3. You’re not sleeping well – this puts stress on the body, stress burns calories, so you end up hungry.  Sleep also regulates and appetite stimulating hormone called ghrelin, sleep down – ghrelin up.
4. You’re eating too many refined carbs – bread, pasta, pizza, whire rice etc.  A simple switch to brown can make a big difference
5. Not enough fat in your diet – yep, you heard me!  We have had fat drummed into us for so long as a negative that many people don’t eat enough now.  Healthy fats help you feel fuller and more satisfied for longer

 
The truth that I wasn’t aware of was that if I ate like my friends, I gained weight when they didn’t, and that is very frustrating and destroys a good relationship with food.  When in fact all I needed to do was to eat in the way that suited my bodytype and suddenly everything fell into place.
 
Follow myself and Shona @welovebreakingfads on Instagram and Facebook for recipes, tips and videos, and keep any eye out for our launch of our new and improved Breaking Fads Bodytype programs in Early 2022.
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads

This is world student week and we all remember some of the meals we ate as students were not the most nutritious or healthy, but simply what we could afford.   This week I wanted to share a healthy, tasty, quick and easy recipe that any student could make on a budget.  Afterall you need your energy and brainpower on full when you are studying.  The bonus is it’s also a great family dinner too.
 
Spanish chicken tray bake
 
Ingredients

• Two chicken legs, skin on (you can swap for 4 chicken thighs, drumsticks or 2 chicken breasts)
• 1 cup of baby potatoes, quartered
• ½ cup of chopped or sliced chorizo
• 1 onion, peeled and roughly sliced
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced
• 3 tomatoes, quartered (you can swap for 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved)
• 2 Tbsp of rapeseed/coconut oil
• 1 tsp paprika 
• 1/4 tsp oregano 
• 1 clove garlic, minced/chopped. (you can swap for garlic powder)
• Salt & pepper

 
 
Method

1. Pre heat the oven to 200C
2. Chop the potatoes into quarters.
3. Place the potatoes on a large baking tray.
4. Drizzle with a little oil.
5. Season well with salt & pepper and bake for 15 minutes.
6. In the meantime, roughly slice up the onions and peppers. Slice or chop up the chorizo. Chop the tomato in quarters.
7. To make the sauce, In a bowl, mix the 2 Tbsp oil, 1 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp oregano, 1 clove of crushed/chopped garlic and a good pinch of salt and pepper. You can  adjust the amounts to suit your taste.
8. Remove the potatoes from the oven and add the other vegetables to the tray.
9. Pour over around 1/2 the sauce and mix together to coat.
10. Place the chicken on top and brush with the remaining sauce.
11. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C. Bake for a further 15 more minutes.
12. Carefully remove the tray from the oven and spoon any of the sauce over the chicken and vegetables.
13. Bake for a final 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are soft all the way through, vegetables are tender and chicken is thoroughly cooked through.

 
Let me know if you tried it and what you think.
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads

Recently I saw an advert on the  television.  It was a child coming into ask his mother if he could eat a packet of crisps, to which she replied “your dinner is nearly ready!”  Well you can imagine what happened next…  the little boy had a hissy fit wailing “buuuuut I’m Huuuuunngry!!!!!!”  This was when the mother realised all the little unhealthy snacks he had eaten throughout the day, from a number of sources and she said no, he could have cheese and crackers or fruit if he was hungry.
 
No how often do you pick because you convince yourself you are hungry, but really if it was hunger any food would do, when we pick it’s generally on unhealthy foods and this is a craving not a hunger.  So how can you tell the difference?
 
 
Hunger

• Hunger starts slowly and intensifies
• Hunger can be hormonal/physical
• Hunger is accompanied by:

         Tiredness
         Stomach rumbling
         And empty feeling

• Hunger is satisfied by a variety of foods

Cravings

• ​Cravings come on quickly and are linked to situations (e.g. watching tv in the evening)
• Cravings are mainly psychological but can be linked to hormones
• Cravings aren’t normally accompanied by physical hunger, it’s more a mental hunger where your brain won’t switch off the urge till it’s satisfied
  
• Cravings are normally associated with specific foods

 
So the next time you tell yourself you’re Huuuunngry, ask yourself if it s hunger or cravings.  If you get regular cravings you need to take a look at what’s missing to cause the cravings.  If you are always hungry you need to look at how to get more into your diet to satiate your appetite.  For every problem you face with food, there is a fix, and that fix doesn’t have to be complicated to work.
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads

We have all been there, picking like a lunatic at 11pm and just can’t seem to stop ourselves, or can’t just eat one (biscuit, cake, sweet, etc).
 
Most women crave something during pregnancy, when you are sick you crave specific foods, when you diet you crave foods, when you are trying to be good it’s like your brain is playing against you because all you think of are the foods you “can’t have”.
 
Well there is a common reason for all these cravings.  Your body is far more clover than you but not always clear in it’s communication.  Your body is trying to tell you that you are lacking something vital but it’s not being very clear.
 
If you are constantly tripped up by your cravings then you need to look at your diet and ask what you are missing.
 
The main cravings and missing nutrients
 
Craving -      Sugar
Missing -     Energy is low
                   Chromium
                   Carbon
                   Phosphorus
                   Sulphur
                   tryptophan
Introduce  -  Protein packed foods
                  Smoothies
                  Sweet potatoes
                  Rice
                  Fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds
                  Banana’s/avocado’s
 

Craving -      Starchy carbs
Missing -     Need a mood boost
                  Need an energy boost
Introduce  - Healthy fats
                  Vegetables
                  Nutrient dense foods

 
Craving -       Salt
Missing -       Could be feeling anxious or thirsty
                    You need healthy salts
                    Chloride
                    silicon
Introduce  -   Himalayan crystal salt
                    Steamed veggies
                    Raw veggies
                    Apples
                    Hydrating fruits and veg
                   Water

Craving -      Pizza or burgers (fast food)
Missing -     Fats
                   Sodium\carbohydrates
Introduce  -  Eat healthy fats
                  Nutrient dense food
                  Lean meats
                  Sweet potatoes
​
 
So the next time you think you aren’t control of your cravings look at what your diet is missing.  I always say start by adding more vegetables and removing more processed foods.
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads

​I have developed a real love of pumpkin, but I wasn’t always that passionate for pumpkin.

This time of year is perfect to make some pumpkin recipes.  Carve the pumpkin for Halloween and remove most of the inside to use for your pumpkin dishes.  

What can you make?  There are so many dishes to try:
• Pumpkin pie
• Pumpkin risotto
• Creamy pumpkin pasta
• Pumpkin soup
• Pumpkin and spinach quiche
• Pumpkin puree
• Pumpkin chai muffins
• Pumpkin curry
• Pumpkin ravioli
• Pumpkin hash
• Pumpkin fritters
• Buddha bowl
• Roast pumpkin
• Spiced pumpkin cake
• Pumpkin scones
• Pumpkin frittata
• Pumpkin chilli


One of my favourite pumpkin recipes is pumpkin curry

Perfect Pumpkin Curry

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup Yellow Curry Paste
• 1/3 Pumpkin, peeled, deseeded (or remove flesh from a pumpkin you’re carving)
• 1 lemongrass stem, pale section only
• 2 cups cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1can coconut cream
• 2 fresh kaffir lime leaves
• 2 courgettes, halved lengthways, sliced
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp fish sauce/soy sauce
• 1/2 cup torn fresh basil leaves
• Toasted coconut flakes, to serve
• Steamed brown rice, to serve
• Lime wedges, to serve
• Thinly sliced long fresh green chilli, to serve (optional)



Method
• Step 1
Preheat a slow cooker on High. Add curry paste. Cook, without stirring, for 10 minutes.  (you can also do this in a oven proof dish with a lid in the oven at 200C
• Step 2
Meanwhile, cut pumpkin into 2cm pieces. 
Smash lemongrass.
• Step 3
Add pumpkin and cauliflower to the slow cooker/oven dish. Stir to coat with curry paste.
Reserve 2 tbs coconut cream then add remaining to the slow cooker/oven dish with lemongrass and lime leaves. Cover and cook on Low for 3 1/2 hours (reduce the oven to 110C) or until pumpkin and cauliflower are tender.
• Step 4
Add courgette. Cover and cook for a further 30 minutes. Stir in sugar, fish sauce then basil.
• Step 5
Scatter coconut flakes and extra basil over curry. Drizzle over reserved coconut cream. 
Serve with rice, lime wedges and chilli, if using.


For more recipes check out my other blog posts

You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com 
www.breaking-fads.com 
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice  
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads

A good homemade curry paste is hard to beat

This is my go to recipe for Yellow Thai Curry Paste

Ingredients

• 1/2 to 1 stalk lemongrass, minced
• 1 to 2 yellow chiles, sliced (red can be used fi you can't find yellow)
• 2 shallots, sliced (white onion as an alternative)
• 1 inch galangal, sliced (ginger as an alternative)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce (soy sauce for vegan)
• 1/2 tsp shrimp paste (miso paste for vegan)
• 3/4 tsp turmeric
• 1 large pinch white pepper
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 Tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tin coconut milk, divided
  

Method

• Place all ingredients—lemongrass, chilies, shallots, galangal, garlic, coriander, garlic, coriander, ground cumin, cumin seeds, cinnamon, fish sauce, shrimp paste, turmeric, white pepper, brown sugar, lime juice, and tomato puree—using just 1/2 the tin of coconut milk, in a food processor or blender..  I use my Nutribullet. Add more coconut milk as needed to blend ingredients into a smooth paste or sauce. Process well.
• That's it!  Bet you didn't think it would be that easy :)

​

When I first learnt about Bodytypes, many moons ago, i was fascinated.  Not only did it describe to a T what suited me best with my food and exercise choices, it also helped me with what to avoid and explained a few of my personality traits and those around me.


Over the past 15 years of clinical practice, i have seen how accurate these Bodytypes are, and how they have helped so many of my clients get long term results because it suits them and they are eating in a way that they were always meant to so it becomes easier.  The only hurdle left is to get out of your own way.


Over the next few months we’ll be introducing Breaking fads on Instagram and Facebook at the pages below, but if you want to find out what bodytype you are go to www.breaking-fads.com. 




We use 5 Bodytypes, each one has a dominant hormone that affects them, and this can have a massive influence on weight and health. 


It also means if you keep trying different diets but not getting any long term results it could have been the diet didn’t suit you


What does this mean for you and how is it going to help?


A good place to start is understanding your bodytype, what benefits you and how to bring balance.


Hormones (and endocrine glands) really influence your health, especially in women.


These are chemical messengers which travel throughout your body, helping cells and organs to work and they play a key role in metabolism for example.  That is why they have such and influence on weight.




Knowing your Bodytype:
- helps you understands the foods that work best for you and the foods that work against you
- helps you choose exercises that get you the best results with least effort
- helps you understand why you feel or behave in certain ways
- means that you are working smart not hard


You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com
www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
It’s A Natural Choice 
We love breaking fads
Join Facebook group – The Natural Health Tribe
@itsanaturalchoice
@welovebreakingfads