Get Your Head Out of the Sand: Raw Foods to Fight Acne

by Stephanie Gadsden

The fight for clear skin can at times be frustrating for acne suffers. Here are some raw food secrets to get your skin looking great!

Acne Facts

Acne is a common skin condition characterised by pimples on the face, chest, and back. Acne can bare its ugly head at any age, so if you are an adult suffering from this condition, don’t worry, you are not alone. Acne occurs when the pores of the skin become blocked with oil, dead skin cells and bacteria. Factors contributing to acne include excess androgens (the acne causing hormones), a high Glycaemic Index (GI) diet, stress and even your genes.

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The Cheerful Chia Smoothie Compromise!

- By Marie-Claire Hermans

It’s a Wonderful Wednesday!  Especially when our friend, Marie-Claire Hermans from Ravishing Raw, wrote to us this morning to share her latest creation!

I’m sure it’s happened to you… the desire to make yourself something good that will perk you up, but nary a ‘nana and not a speck o’ spinach in sight.

As Marie-Clarie tells us, “These are the kinds of creations you come up with when the fridge is almost empty… It turned out great and sweet and smooth! Your readers will love it for sure.”

Let the loving begin! Read more »

Hormones Driving You Nuts? Then Eat Some!

~ by Eliza Ceci

Hormone fluctuations can affect us all. In fact, that is why some of us come to the raw food way of eating in the first place. These imbalances can occur at any age, and can show up in a variety of masks such as: PMS, headaches, weight gain, changes in mood, acne breakouts, low energy, allergies, low sex drive, food cravings, and more.

Lucky us!

One great way to help balance your hormones naturally and effectively is to add in more essential fatty acids (EFA’s). Read more »

Raw Raspberry Pudding – A Summer Surprise!

- by Veronica

This delectable dish was an accidental discovery on my behalf. I had made up too much raspberry smoothie and so I put the last 1.5 cups into the fridge overnight. When I was feeling a bit peckish this afternoon I remembered it was there. YUM!!!

I’m going to do this more often, and especially when it’s summer (it’s winter in Australia, but this will be a great summer treat for many of you!). This is also a great way to get lots of greens in when you aren’t used to them because you can’t even taste the greens in this raw food recipe. If you don’t tell your friends or family that you added spinach, then there’s no way they will know it is in there. Read more »

Diving into Detoxing the Easy Way!

- by Caitlyn Furness

Some of us are diving into the 6-week detox this week.  This means we are up to our ears in green juices and green smoothies.  Last week was a preparatory week for the detox, and this week is technically week one of the GI (gastro-intestinal) repair phase, which is supposed to last for two weeks.  We’re supposed to drink up to 2 quarts of the green stuff a day, either green juices or green smoothies.  I’m there now, but I had to work my way up to that over the last six months!  When I first started drinking  these, green juices especially, I had to add a lot of apple juice and lemon juice to it, but now, I can do more green juice and less fruit.  In fact, now I can munch dandelion greens straight and I even like them that way!  Don’t worry though, I still have a problem with wheat grass juice!  But thankfully, my favourite green detox drinks are simple to make.

In fact, my point of writing this post is to show how easy it is to make up a smoothie, even when you’re on the go.  Last week, a family member was in the hospital, and I was running back and forth because of it.  I never knew when I’d have to pick up and go in a hurry.  Smoothies and salads were my lifesavers!  I’d make a couple smoothies, put them in my stainless steel bottles (which happen to be bright pink!), and away I’d go with no worries about having food in a hostile hospital environment with take-out food everywhere!

Here’s one of the recipes I was carting around in my pink bottles:

Berry Blaster Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 2 frozen bananas
• 2 cups frozen blueberries
• 4 ribs celery
• 2 giant handfuls kale
• Small handful dandelion greens
• 1 T chia seeds
• 1 T coconut oil

Directions:

Put all the ingredients into your blender and blend (start with the softer ones first if you have a regular blender)!  You might have to do this in batches if you don’t have a high-speed blender.  Of course, you can use fresh bananas and blueberries in place of the frozen, but it’s winter, and this is what I have on hand now.

Enjoy!

It’s Easier Being Green Than You Think!