Magnesium

For those of us who are gluten sensitive, gluten affects us in three ways:

• Damage caused directly by the gluten.
• Damage caused indirectly as gluten reduces our ability to absorb vital nutrients.
• Distraction of our diets away from essential foods, namely vegetables and fruits, nuts and legumes.

One interesting nutrient that gluten inhibits is magnesium. I’m no expert, so here are some links to interesting articles I’ve found about magnesium:

Quick summary, easy to read:

Diet Blurbs

More in-depth but still very readable:

National Institute of Health

Here are some interesting facts I learned that hit home to me:

* Magnesium deficiency is responsible for nervousness that prevents sleep.

* Calcium and magnesium produce calming effects on the brain, essential for normal sleep.

* The lack of magnesium can cause leg cramps and may be associated with restless leg syndrome.

* Talking (and/or walking) in sleep may be related to magnesium deficiency.

Here’s a very interesting article on magnesium and sleep:

Yahoo! Answers

I’ve also learned that magnesium deficiency is associated with diabetes, irregular heart beat, and seizures.

If you are consuming sufficient quantities of magnesium and still have symptoms, you may still be deficient if your body has trouble absorbing it (maybe due to all that gluten!)

More Indulgence

 

Ostrich Fillet, squash, cabbage, red pepper, leek, mushrooms, brown rice, fresh basil, sea salt.

Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, plain yogurt, toasted almonds.

Tuna steak, cabbage, tangerine, purple broccoli, fennel, mushrooms, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme.

Pear, grapes, pumpkin seeds, plain yoghurt, cinammon

Salad: Beef fillet, bok choi, leek, fresh pineapple, fresh mozarella, fresh thyme, olive oil.

Chicken breast, red onion, fresh garlic, mushrooms, cauliflower, red pepper, yellow beet root, some sort of orange fruit that looks like apricot but tastes like mango, seaweed, apple, fresh chives, butter, sea salt (with coriander), brown rice.

Flowering green tea

Figs, mango, kiwi, lychee, plain yogurt.

Hard boiled eggs, carrots, spinach, mushrooms, grapes, yellow beet root, butter, sea salt

Smoked salmon, aubergine (eggplant), okra, cherry tomatoes, spring onion, fennel, seaweed, butter, sea salt.

 

Salad: Smoked salmon, mistralou cheese, purple broccoli, mushrooms, cauliflower, olive oil, fresh chives

Plum, kiwi, toasted cashews (unsalted), plain yogurt.

Barramunda fish, mushrooms, onion, courgette fleur (flowering zucchini), red cabbage, broccoli, dandelion, fennel, organic lemon.

Raspberries, blueberries, pistachios (unsalted organic), plain yogurt.

Indulgence, Mother Nature Style!

Two weeks ago when I called my brother Wayne on his birthday, I announced that I had gone gluten-free, in addition to sugar-free. Perplexed, he asked, "what's there left to eat?!"

In fact, I eat extremely well. I've discovered that Mother Nature is an unbelievably good cook. I'm so sorry for all the years I've wasted eating garbage food, when there's so much to be had that is so tasty, straight from Mother Nature's kitchen. And EASY - all I have to do is rinse, and sometimes remove the natural, bio-degradable packaging Mother Nature ships her treats in, heat, and EAT! That's it!

But, this seems to be a well-kept secret. It wouldn't be fair to keep this indulgence all to myself, so here - I'll share what I've learned!

There is really no recipe needed - or planning, since Mom N does all that ahead of time, for you and me, with amazing variety. Every Saturday morning, I take my Genuine Sholley Trolley to the local farmers market, and see what she has on for the week. I'm very lucky to live a 15-minute walk away from the world-famous Borough Market of London; might as well take advantage of that! I think Borough Market must be Mom N's national headquarters.

Here's what yesterday's haul looked like before, and after I unpacked my trolley:



It used to be that I could put the cover over the trolley for the walk home, but my appetite for Mom N's cooking has increased so much that I don't hold back any more, and the lid has to stay up. Believe it or not, all that food will be gone by next week! It's actually food for one and a half people (I count the occasional guest), for breakfast and sometimes lunch, and snacks in the evening and weekends.

Isn't it beautiful?? It is such a joy to unpack the beautiful treats from Mom N every week.

Here are some meals I've had in the last couple of days:



Ham cooked with pineapple, onion, and mushroom. Fennel, broccoli, red pepper, seaweed, spinach, green beans, dabbed with butter and sprinkled with sea salt.



Desert: Plain fresh yogurt with kiwi, grapes, pineapple, plum, and toasted almonds (I toast the almonds myself to ensure the integrity of Mom Nature's presentation). Credit for the beautiful arrangement goes to Drew (my personal trainer) - I usually dump and eat, but he likes to make it pretty, too!



Swordfish cooked with fresh rosemary, onion, and big mushrooms. Okra, cherry tomatoes, miniature turnips, spinach, fresh garlic, and pine nuts; dabbed with butter and sprinkled with sea salt.



Dessert: Asian pear, stuffed with chunky natural peanut butter (no emulsifiers, no sugar) and organic raisins. The top of the pear had gone bad, so I had to cut the top off. It was still lovely.



Tuna steak cooked with shallots and fresh basil. Purple broccoli, courgette (zucchini) in two varieties, organic lemon, and some sort of pretty lettuce (yes, you can cook lettuce, too!)



Plain fresh yogurt with strawberries and blackberries, with toasted cashews sprinkled on top (I toast the raw cashews myself, too - no additives of any kind!)



Spinach salad with purple broccoli, courgette, fresh chives - tossed with olive oil and sprinkled with fresh lemon juice, and dabbed with fresh ricotta.

Everything is fresh and pure - exactly as Mom Nature intended. Watch this space for more!