There’s a lot of talk around collagen at the moment and collogen supplements.  Mostly it is aimed at keeping your skin looking youthful.  So, I thought I’d share some information on collagen, why we need it an the most natural ways to get it in.
 
What is collagen?
Simply put, collagen is the main structural protein that is found in your skin and connective tissues
 
Why do we need collagen?
It’s not just your skin.  Collagen is what gives elasticity to our skin and connective tissues.  This includes:

• Skin
• Joint
• Bones
• Muscles
• Blood
• Gut lining
• Bladder lining

 
Collagen decreases with age and can be an important part of why: 

• the skin looses elasticity
• the bladder becomes weaker
• the joints become stiffer
• the bones become more fragile
• Gut lining weakens
• and much more

 
What are the natural ways to get collagen?

• Foods – Bone broth, Vitamin C will help increase collagen, Mangosteen and other tropical fruits, eggs, chicken, soft boned fish, spirulina, leafy greens and more.
• Herbs – my favourite is Equisetum arvense (Horsetail), other herbs that boost collagen are – Nettles, Fo shu wu, Calendula, coriander, Aloe vera, ginseng and more.  As always check with a herbalist before taking starting on any herbs that you would not normally use.

 
Remember it’s not always about how to replace, part of the picture is also how to prevent the loss of collagen.  Some of the things that will lower your collagen levels are:

• Age – not much you can do about that
• Genetics – Not much you can do here either
• Smoking – Quit or cut down
• Inflammatory diet – this is the leading cause for most degeneration or disease in the body.  Reduce the sugar, alcohol, processed foods, red meats and start increasing the fresh fruits and vegetables and organic fish and poultry.
• Stress – who doesn’t have stress!  I have teamed with Vivianne Maloney and Jannah Walshe to bring you a fabulous Series called Rest & Reset to help show you the tools that will help you re-learn how to deal with stress and allow yourself to slow down and smell those roses.  Link is below.
• UV exposure – luckily we don’t see too much sun here in Ireland, but make sure you are wearing a good quality sunscreen when you go abroad to the sun.

So by helping to tighten your skin you might just help to resolve some stress incontinence at the same time.  Isn’t your body amazing!!!
 
You can follow carina at:
www.itsanaturalchoice.com  &   www.breaking-fads.com
Follow her journey on Facebook & Instagram:
@itsanaturalchoice  &  @welovebreakingfads
Rest & Reset program is available through the Rest & Reset page on Facebook or follow this link :

How can you change anything for the better if your motivation levels are gone down the toilet?  The biggest struggle I see when someone wants to make a positive change in their life is the rapid loss of motivation after the initial stages.
 
The good news is that this may not just be you feeling unmotivated, it could actually be a lack of Dopamine in your body.  Dopamine is managed by your nervous system but a disruption to this (like the stress of the last few years, cost of living, busy lifestyle, excessive exercise, world affairs, family affairs, illness) will deplete your Dopamine.  Short term this is not a problem, but long-term this can lead to some serious health issues.
 
So how do we get you dopamine to optimal levels and return your MoJo to get going?

• Foods -  Magnesium rich foods (Brazil nuts, Halibut, Cacao, rice bran, cashews, quinoa, pumpkin seeds, almonds, spinach), Green tea, Oily fish (salmon, sardines, tuna, kippers)
• Supplements – probiotics, Magnesium citrate, Vitamin D, fish oil
• Herbs  - Gingko biloba, Mucuna pruriens, Curcuma longa (Turmeric), Oregano, Panax ginseng, Berberis vulgaris, Hydrastis canadensis, .
• Exercises – Yoga, Meditation, Tai chi, Karate, Pilates

 
The main takeaway form this is to remember that you may be able to push through for a while but eventually you will need to slow down before you do real damage.  Always remember to get professional advice before taking any herbal medicines.
 
I have come together with Vivianne Maloney and Jannah Walshe to create a series of talks to give you the tools to do just that.  If you want to know more about our Rest & Reset series you can follow the links on our social media or go to this web address:  https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sh/fUVU3Op/RestResetWorkshopSeries
 
The first in the series is a free talk, feel free to sign up and join us.
 
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
 

​For anyone that has been following my articles you will know that I was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, otherwise known as metastatic breast cancer, it was in my breast, lungs, liver, bones and lymph.  For those that are reading my article for the first time this is my latest update on my journey.
 
So a quick catch up, I was:

• Diagnosed stage 4 grade 2 breast cancer August 2020 (mid pandemic, not the best timing), Started treatments straight away, No surgeries offered, Told no cure, Started my own research
• Christmas 2020 – doing well, tumour markers down from 110-mid 20’s
• Summer 2021 – got covid, got through, cancer still improving and tumour markers steadily at 13 (apart form when I had covid, then went to 19)
• Summer 2022 – My treatments have been taking their toll, making me very sick with a much reduced quality of life.  Transferred to a new oncologist and changed one of my treatments from steroidal injection to non-steroidal tablet.

 
I have been on the new tablets now for about 3 weeks and can feel the improvement already in my quality.  The next few months will see if I am doing as well on this treatment as I was before.
 
My own natural medicine box includes:

• Juicing – I am glad to say I am back on track, this had dipped due to me feeling so ill and lead boot tired
• Vitamin D, E
• Herbal medicines - Medicinal mushrooms, slippery elm & marshmallow, Turmeric and my own personal kick cancers butt mix for my personal cancer and needs
• Probiotics
• Nutritional yeast capsules – I’m vegan
• Lots of veggies  in my diet

 
It’s important to try to reduce stress when going through cancer (Oh the irony) but there are ways I do, I have a campervan I bought last summer (watch out for the photos on Instagram), I spend time with people who lower my stress instead of raise it, I go for counselling and reflexology and reiki when I can.  One of my home relaxation techniques is my daily Epsom salt bath which has the added bonus of relaxing my tense muscles and strengthening my bones.
 
The truth is everyone who is going through cancer will approach it in their own way, this is mine, this is how I find my strength, in knowledge, in understanding this disease and how I can conquer it in my own way.  That is what takes the fear out of that word that brings such fear to so many “CANCER”.
 
 
 
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
 
 

In the western diet we don’t often think of putting vegetables in our breakfasts, we are more inclined to use fruit at breakfast time.  Many other countries traditionally eat more vegetables at breakfast time.  It often comes down to what you are used to, the foods you grew up on.  So why do you want to add vegetables to your breakfast?
 
Vegetables are:

• High fibre
• Low calorie
• High nutrient
• Alkaline

 
So vegetables will help to:

• Alkalise your diet
• Lower inflammation
• Improve overall health
• Aid with healthy weight management

 
That’s all very well but how do you add vegetables into your breakfast without you feeling like it’s no longer like breakfast?
Here are my 8 easy ways to add more veggies to your breakfast:

1. Smoothies/smoothie bowls – you can add spinach, kale, avocado etc
2. Juices – these are great for hard vegetables like carrot, beetroot, cucumber etc
3. Omelettes – throw in the kitchen sink (not literally)
4. Scrambled veg – add spinach, tomato, onion, mushrooms etc to your scrambled egg
5. Grilled breakfast – lean/turkey sausage, with mushroom, tomato, onion, spinach
6. Loaded toast – my favourtie at the moment in avocado, tomato and cucumber with some rocket salad
7. Go international – think of dishes you might have had on holidays – breakfast burrito (Mexico), shakshuka (Israel), breakfast hash (Scotland) even the breakfast grill from Ireland
8. Veggie bread – this can be zucchini (courgette) bread, healthy carrot cake/buns, olive and sundried tomato focaccia, feta and vegetable loaf and more

 
Give it a go and add some veggies to your breakfast for the next week, see if it makes a difference to your day!
 
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