A Food Lover's Approach To Restoring Heart Health Naturally

A Food Lover's Approach to Restoring Heart Health

Naturally

Hi There!

I 'm Laura Frontiero "I help you fix your health so your body can keep up with your ambition."

@Laura.Frontiero www.LauraFrontiero.com

Table of Contents Diversify Your Food Phytonutrient Supplements Rainbow Food Chart Give Your Kitchen (And Habits) A Facelift Understanding Food Intolerances & Allergies Liver & Gallbladder Supporting Foods What About Grains, Nuts, Seeds & Beans?

Going Gluten Free Curbing Sugar Cravings Healthy Fats Clean Protein What About Caffeine?

Meal Prepping & Planning Traveling & Eating Healthy Save Money While You Eat Healthy Prebiotic Foods Gut Healing Foods Gut Healing Meal Tips How To Reintroduce Foods Food Reintroduction Log

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Diversify Your Food When it comes to your heart health, eating nourishing food is mission critical! Today’s food is not yesterday’s food. What I mean by that is the nutritional content of food has changed over the last 100 years due to farming practices, environmental chemicals, and processing techniques.

The key to a heart-healing diet is eating organic unprocessed food and DIVERSITY of plants! That means eating a wide range of plants so you can support more species of bacteria in your gut microbiome...which ultimately leads to simultaneously supporting heart health.

In addition to eating high quality protein from plant and animal sources, I recommend a diet rich in brightly-colored fruits and vegetables because they contain phytonutrients that act as antioxidants to ward off free radical damage!

Here’s the problem, the western diet is rich in fat, sugar, processed grains and convenience foods…. and it’s not very diverse in plants! You might be interested to know that people from areas of the world where more variety of plants are consumed, have more gut microbiota diversity and fewer problems with autoimmune conditions, heart disease, cancer, weight regain, hormone imbalances, and digestive issues. That’s because their mitochondria are healthy!

The bottom line, eating a diversity of plants matters to your health. Western cultures have a tendency to eat these same foods over and over again: peas, carrots, potatoes, soy, wheat and corn... with occasional servings of various greens. That’s not very diverse! In fact, there’s a whole rainbow of plant foods that supports your health with phytonutrients. The more colorful the produce is, the more beneficial it is to your body. Here’s some basic tips to be successful with adding DIVERSITY into your diet.

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1. GO FOR A MINIMUM OF 9 SERVINGS OF PLANT FOODS EVERYDAY. Yes, I said minimum of 9 and you get bonus points if you eat 12 or more! We need to consume this much if we want to prevent chronic disease. A typical serving is only half a cup of cooked vegetables, one cup of raw leafy vegetable, or a medium-sized piece of fruit. Try to have about 3-4 servings of plant foods per meal, so you can meet your daily requirement.

2. KNOW YOUR PHYTONUTRIENT SOURCES. It’s fun to experiment with new foods, new colors and new varieties. Sources of phytonutrients include fruits, vegetables, gluten-free whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds and herbs/spices.

3. EAT THE RAINBOW OF COLORS Our western diets are full of brown, yellow and white foods. For example at breakfast it is common to eat waffles, pancakes, cereal, sausage, toast and eggs. That’s NOT a lot of color! Take that same breakfast and instead have a smoothie with blueberries, peaches, raspberries and now you’ve added some color!

4. GO FOR VARIETY There are thousands of phytonutrients in nature.

Even if they are colorful, if we eat the same foods over and over again, we may be missing a lot of important phytonutrients in foods. One thing you can do is to try a new food every week to ensure that you are getting variety. Don’t get in the rut of eating the exact same broccoli and cauliflower saute every single day. How about trying some bok choy and parsnips?

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5. COMBINE YOUR FOOD Sometimes, there can be a “synergistic” result from combining certain foods. We may achieve a better effect than if we just ate the foods by themselves. For example, putting turmeric with black pepper together with olive oil could enhance the phytonutrient effects of all three foods on your health. Adding lemon juice to spinach could help the iron become more absorbed by your body.

6. HAVE FUN WITH SUBSTITUTIONS Some plant foods are just not that nutrient dense: like iceberg lettuce, white rice or white potatoes.

Instead of eating these every day, you can have fun substituting with a more nutrient-dense option.

For example, you could substitute iceberg lettuce for arugula, mashed russet potatoes with purple potatoes or sweet potatoes, and white rice with brown, or black wild rice. See how that works?

7. GET A LITTLE SUPPORT Sometimes we just don’t feel like cooking or we need to grab our nutrients on the go. For times like these, I reach for 2 products: PaleoReds® and PaleoGreens™. Please see the next page for more information.

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Phytonutrient Supplements For lowest cost and free shipping, visit https://www.designsforhealth.com/u/laura/, to order supplements directly from Designs For Health. Prices beat Amazon and shipping is free!!

PALEOREDS® From polyphenols in apples to natural vitamin C from the Amazonian acerola cherry, PaleoReds® combines over a dozen fruits and vegetables and their phytonutrients from the red/purple group to help support optimal health. This great-tasting fruit and berry formula is ideal for people who need antioxidants, yet are sensitive to synthetic vitamin C made from corn.

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It contains 220% of the daily value of vitamin C

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It’s equivalent to the antioxidant capacity of 4 servings of fruit!

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Low in calories and sugar

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Contains an exclusive digestive enzyme blend

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Perfect for people who avoid or limit fruit consumption

PALEOGREENS™ PaleoGreens™ is a vegetable, fruit, and berry blend with brightly colored and non-oxidized ingredients.

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These greens have a Paleo profile; they contain no grains, legumes, alfalfa, corn, gluten, fructose or artificial sweeteners

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Unlike other greens products, no added inexpensive fillers or bulking agents such as fiber, whole grasses, pectin, rice bran, and/ or flax, which account for 40% to 60% of the content of most other greens products

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Proven ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbency Capacity) value

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Great taste, with no added sugar

RED FOODS Apples Beans (adzuki, kidney, red) Beets Beets Bell peppers Blood oranges

BENEFITS Cranberries Cherries Grapefruit (pink) Grapes Onions Plums

Pomegranate Potatoes Radicchio Raspberries Strawberries Sweet red peppers

Rhubarb Rooibos Tea Tomato Watermelon

ORANGE FOODS Apricots Bell peppers Cantaloupe Carrots Mango

Nectarine Orange Papaya Persimmons Pumpkin

Bell peppers Ginger root Lemon

Squash (acorn, buttercup, butternut,

Tumeric root Yams

winter)

Sweet potato Tangerines

Millet Pineapple Starfruit

Summer squash

boysenberries, huckleberries, marionberries)

Cabbage

Bok choy Broccoli Broccolini Brussels sprouts Cabbage Celery Cucumbers Green beans

Green peas Decaf Green tea Greens (angula, beet, chard/swiss chard, collard, dandelion, kale, lettuce, mustard, spinach,

Limes Okra Olives Pears Snow peas Watercress Zucchini

Anti-cancer Anti-inflammatory Cell protection Cognition

Eye health Heart health Skin health Vascular health

Carrots Cauliflower Eggplant Figs Grapes

Kale Olives Plums Potatoes Prunes

Raisins Rice (black or purple)

dried beans or peas,

walnuts)

hummus, lentils,

Pears Sauerkraut Seeds (flax, hemp,

Mushrooms Onions

Anti-cancer Anti-inflammatory Cell protection

Cognitive health Heart health Liver health

BENEFITS Nuts (almonds,

low-fat)

Skin health Hormone balance Heart health Liver health

BENEFITS

Jicama Legumes (chikpeas,

peanuts, refried beans/

Anti-cancer Anti-inflammatory Brain health Cell protection

turnip)

WHITE, TAN, BROWN FOODS Apples Applesauce Bean dips Cauliflower Coconut Dates Garlic Ginger

Reduced mortality Reproductive health Skin health Source of vitamin A

BENEFITS

BLUE, PURPLE, BLACK FOODS Bell peppers Berries (blue, black,

Anti-cancer Anti-bacterial Immune health Cell protection

BENEFITS

GREEN FOODS Apples Artichoke Asparagus Avocado Bamboo sprouts Bean sprouts Bell peppers Bitter melon

Gastrointestinal health Heart Health Hormone Health

BENEFITS

YELLOW FOODS Apple Asian pears Banana

Anti-cancer Anti-inflammatory Cell protection Liver Health

cashews, pecans,

Shallots Tahini Naturally caffeine free tea (black, white)

pumpkin, sesame,

Gluten-free whole grains (brown rice,

sunflower)

quinoa)

Anti-cancer Anti-microbial Cell protection Gastrointestinal health

Heart health Hormone health Liver health

This list of food originates from the Institute of Functional Medicine’s Phytonutrient Spectrum Foods - Elimination Diet. Visit www.IFM.org for more information.

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Give Your Kitchen (and Habits) A Facelift HERE ARE OUR SIMPLE SUGGESTIONS: aside the processed snacks that are advertised as ‘healthy’: cassava chips, seed crackers, 1 Set granola, keto cookies, all of it! Plan to add in whole-food healthy snacks instead. If you want a healthy protein bar option, then consider meat sticks from Paleo Valley or check out Designs For Health Functional food bars by clicking here Laura’s personal favorite is the cocommune bar. It tastes like a Mounds and full of healingprebiotic fiber. this: exchange, reduce, or eliminate the caffeine. This is temporary and can be added 2 Consider back once you are complete with a gut restoring protocol. If you want to go all out, you can exchange coffee for yerba mate or green tea, which are rich in beneficial antioxidants. Note: a cup of coffee a day from high quality mold free beans is NOT going to sabotage your success.

Laura still drinks her daily cup! the fridge of sugary drinks like iced tea, juices, energy drinks, soda and lemonade.

3 Clean Replace these with veggie and fruit-infused waters and herbal teas. Make up a batch of cucumber or strawberry infused water. Herbs like basil can be added too. the processed pasta (even whole grain), rice, beans, processed plant-based ‘meat’ 4 Ditch patties, and the unfermented soy (like tufu). Replace with zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash, roasted portabella mushrooms, quinoa, and cauliflower rice. There are a few easily digestible beans you can eat, such as mung, lentils and adzuki, but be sure to soak the beans to remove the phytic acid.

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Replace butter with coconut oil and organic ghee. Ghee is butter fat with the solids removed.

Replace dairy milk with homemade or store-bought nut or coconut milk.

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Make your own ketchup, or find an organic brand without high-fructose corn syrup such as Primal Kitchen or Annie’s.

Note: If you have been diagnosed with candida, we highly discourage you from adding vinegar to your diet. The exception is Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar. It is best to avoid vinegar and make homemade salad dressing recipes.

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Instead of soy sauce, use pure tamari or Bragg’s coconut aminos. Most soy sauces contain gluten by the way.

10 Substitute table salt for pink Himalayan salt or sea salt.

11 Replace sugar with monk fruit or stevia. great gadgets for your home that make eating veggies fun, such as zucchini spiralizers, 12 Find food processors or a mandolin for thin sliced carrots, cabbage, radishes and more.

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UNDERSTANDING

Food Intolerances and Allergies It’s important to be aware of potential food intolerances and allergies, and how they may affect your body and your gut health. Did you know that most people suffer from unknown food intolerances without even realizing it?

When you consume foods that your body is intolerant or even allergic to, it has a negative effect on your gut and your entire body, including your mitochondria!

To restore your gut health, you must make yourself aware of potential food intolerances or allergies. However, it’s not always easy to identify food reactions, as symptoms can occur as fast as 10 minutes or as long as 72 hours after ingestion, and can manifest in many different ways.

Be on the lookout for the following signs, or anything else out of the ordinary for you: • White coating on the tongue • Acid reflux or heartburn • Bad breath • Constipation • Foul-smelling stool • Joint Pain

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• Headaches or migraines • Racing heart • Bags under the eyes, otherwise known as shiners • Canker sores or a sore tongue

• Poor concentration • Difficulty breathing or a cough • Sinus issues • Weight gain or weight loss • Clogged ears • Rashes or hives

• Fatigue • Poor sleep • Water retention • Gas and bloating • Dry eyes, a sign of liver congestion

If you experience any of these symptoms after eating a particular food, write them down in a journal and practice the concept of an elimination diet— remove that food from your diet for a week and reintroduce that food after your body has a chance to heal. If you experience the same reaction when reintroducing that food, remove that food from your diet for at least a few more months before reintroducing.

Keep in mind that once your gut health is restored, you may not experience the same food intolerances or allergic reactions you experienced before. Therefore, you may decide to reintroduce that food again in a few months.

Below is a chart of common inflammatory and allergic foods. Avoid the top 10 foods for the next 3-6months: cow dairy, gluten (wheat, barley rye), eggs, corn, peanuts, tomatoes, shellfish, sugar & artificial sweeteners (stevia and pure monk fruit is ok), alcohol, and soy. Some may be introduced back in one at a time once you are complete.

Some people are also sensitive to coffee, black tea, chocolate, beans (and other high lectin containing foods) and oxalates (like chard and spinach).

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The most common INFLAMMATORY & Allergic Foods

Cow Dairy

Gluten

Eggs

Corn

Peanuts

Tomatoes

Shellfish

Sugar & Artificial Sweeteners

Alcohol

Soy

Some people are also sensitive to the following foods.

You may consider eliminating them as well.

Coffee

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Black Tea

Chocolate

Beans / Lectins

Oxalates (like chard & spinach)

Liver & Gallbladder Supporting Foods Your liver and gallbladder work in harmony to support a strong immune system, balanced mood,and healthy digestion. Your liver is responsible for filtering and neutralizing harmful substances in your body. It has hundreds of metabolic jobs, which it cannot perform when overburdened with toxins.

Bile is produced in the liver and stored in the gallbladder.

A toxic and overburdened liver leads to impaired release of bile from the gallbladder, which affects the breakdown of fats and overall digestion For these reasons, consuming liver-loving foods should be a priority. However, it can be difficult for those with digestive issues to add a lot of roughage into their diets. If you find undigested greens in your stools, this means your body has trouble digesting them. Therefore, make it a point to puree or cook them.

You can also blend your greens into a smoothie or use a green powder such as spirulina or wheatgrass. Add them to your favorite smoothie.

When you work with me in any of my programs, we support your liver so you can detox faster, restore your gut health permanently, and rebuild your mitochondria energy production.

The more you support your liver, the faster you will release toxins and heal your body.

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List of Liver & Gallbladder Supporting Foods

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Artichokes

Asparagus

Dandelion Greens

Garlic

Nettle

Peas

Kelp

Bok Choy

Swiss Chard

Cilantro

Basil

Parsley

Chlorella

Spirulina

Mustard Greens

Dulse

Asparagus

Wheatgrass

Kombu

Chlorophyll

Spinach

Kale

Beets

WHAT ABOUT

Grains, Nuts, Seeds and Beans?

My goal is never to classify any foods as good or bad, but to determine which foods work for each individual. While grains, nuts, beans, and seeds are fine for some people, they tend to promote inflammation in others. The resulting inflammation can lead to problems including weight gain, digestive issues, skin problems, thyroid issues, aches and pains, and autoimmune diseases.

One of the reasons grains, nuts, beans, and even seeds (including flax and chia) causes problems in some people is because they contain phytic acid.

Phytic acid is a compound that comes from the phosphorous found in plants. Too much phytic acid can inhibit the thyroid, hamper digestion, and leach vital minerals from the body, such as zinc and iron.

Phytic acid also interferes with the natural enzymes your body needs to digest your food.

If you have digestive issues, an autoimmune disorder, chronic colds, thyroid issues, or acid reflux, you may want to eliminate grains during this program.

If you do decide to include grains, then we recommend limiting them to one very small portion per day.

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Suggested portion sizes are: • 1/2 cup cooked grains • 1/4 cup seeds • 1-2 tablespoons of seed butter

You can also try the following grains and note any bloating or reactions in your food diary: • Brown rice • Wild rice • Gluten-free oats

When consuming grains, beans, seeds, or nuts, soak them to reduce the phytic acid.

HERE’S HOW TO SOAK: • Add the grains, beans, seeds, or nuts to a bowl of warm or room-temperature water.

• Add 1 - 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar.

• Leave the bowl sitting on your countertop for 12-24 hours • Empty the grains, beans, seeds, or nuts into a colander, and rinse at least 6 times to remove any remaining phytic acid. You can also “double soak.” This means you soak them again in fresh water after the first 12 - 24 hour soak • Cook the grains and beans as usual, or store the seeds or nuts in your fridge for 1 - 2 days.

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These grains, technically considered seeds, are easier to digest: • Amaranth • Buckwheat • Millet • Quinoa

Going Gluten Free Gluten is a protein found in grains like wheat, barley and rye that is inflammatory to many people. Have you ever touched a ball of dough before? You know that elastic feel it has? That is due to the gluten present in the grain that was used to make the flour. Gluten is also what makes bread chewy and soft! Additionally, gluten is commonly used in a host of cosmetics and hair care products.

Many of my clients have found that going glutenfree is very supportive to restoring gut health, faster.

Why? This protein is hard for some people to break down and process which causes a host of digestive and nutritional issues such as bloating, gas, heartburn, intestinal permeability (leaky gut), malnutrition,anemia, malabsorption, and inflammation.

The main grains that contain gluten are:

Many people who cannot process gluten suffer from an autoimmune disease called Celiac disease. These people experience severe digestive issues, malnutrition, fatigue, and a weakened immune system that can cause more serious health issues in the future if not treated.

WHEAT (including: durum, emmer, spelt, farina, farro, Khorasan, and einkorn) –used in foods like bread,cereal and pasta

BARLEY –used in food coloring, malted products and malt vinegar

OATS

Though problems digesting gluten were once believed to affect only those who suffer from Celiac disease, it’s been proven that you do not need to have Celiac disease to have a histamine reaction or intolerance to gluten.

–used in many cereals and breads

RYE –used in cereal, bread and beer

SEMOLINA –an ancient grain that was first thought to be gluten-free, used in breads and pasta

Have you ever heard someone say, “I’ve been glutened!” Those who have a gluten intolerance may experience digestive problems, inflammation, lethargy, and a lack of energy after consuming gluten. Symptoms can last anywhere from a day to a week or more!

Remember to talk to your doctor before making any decisions about your health. There are several allergies that cause symptoms similar to a gluten allergy, but are not as broad. Examples of this would be lactose intolerance, an allergy to dairy, or a wheat allergy specific to the wheat grain, not gluten.

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Curbing Sugar Cravings Sugar, which is eight times more addictive than cocaine, often offers us a quick energy fix but not much else. In fact, after the quick fix, we crash, which leads us to crave more. It’s an endless, vicious cycle.

Not only is sugar addictive, it leaches minerals and nutrients from your body, is massively inflammatory, and leads to mood swings, fatigue, and of course, weight gain. We live in a stressful world and can often find ourselves turning to sugar-containing foods that take us away from our highest and best selves.

By eliminating sugar from your diet, you will find your cravings are significantly reduced. I was able to break my own sugar habit by substituting non-inflammatory sweeteners, eating when I was hungry, upping my intake of healthy fats/proteins and learning how to let go of stress.

Here are some simple tips that have helped me, and many of our clients, kick sugar cravings to the curb: 1. Get in the mindset of giving up sugar and understand that it is simply an addiction, just like anyother addiction 2. Eat healthy fats at each meal to sustain energy and combat sugar cravings 3. Consume amino acids, the building blocks for your cells, which are found in protein (whether vegan,vegetarian, or animal) 4. Be sure to hydrate adequately; the body often craves sugar when it is dehydrated.

5. Replace “treating yourself” with sugar by enjoying: • Nutrient-dense protein balls (see recipe guide) • Some low-glycemic fruits like berries, green apples and grapefruit, or fruit with cinnamon • A bowl of berries with coconut milk, flax meal and stevia or monk fruit

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• • •

A baked apple A smoothie with unsweetened almond milk, a scoop of plant-based protein powder/stevia/ ice A cup of herbal tea, with stevia or monk fruit

6. You can also take advantage of these top non-food suggestions for combatting cravings: • Find ways to destress - high cortisol levels lead to craving carbs and sugar • Go within: find the self-love needed to give you strength to give up on sugar - use affirmations • Write in your journal • Call a friend • Watch something that makes you laugh • Take a walk out in nature to connect with the earth’s energy

Healthy Fats Hopefully you already know this, but if not, hear me when I say, “fat is not bad!” - at least, not the good fats!

HERE ARE THE TRUTHS ABOUT GOOD FAT: • • • • • •

We need to eat fat to lose fat (that’s right, you can’t release weight without it) Fat is an essential component to balanced blood sugar and healthy brain-adrenal function Our digestive systems needs fat to help transport nutrients across the cells Our body uses fat to activate hormones and strengthen our immune function.

When we are in between meals, our body uses stored fat for energy Fat is an integral part of all nervous system functions. Our myelin sheath, the protective lining in our brain, is made up of 80% lipids (fats).

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Adding fat to your diet is actually pretty simple.

Here’s a list of healthy cooking oils and quick superfoods you can add to any salad or smoothie, toss them into your grain-free cereal (see recipe guide), or make a chia pudding:

Flax seeds: are high in omega-3 fatty acids and rich in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). They also supply other nutrients such as manganese and magnesium and contain a lot of fiber.

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Chia seeds: contain omega-3 fatty acids plus manganese, calcium and phosphorus. Just one ounce of chia seeds contains 11 grams of fiber.

Hemp seeds: contain all the omega fatty acids you need for a healthy body- 3, 6 and 9. You only need one tablespoon per day to get your daily dose of omegas.

Plus, they are high in protein.

Coconut oil: Its smoke point is 400 degrees, which means you can use this oil for sauteing, baking, frying, and roasting vegetables. It’s best to look for unrefined, organic coconut oil.

Ghee: Has been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine. It is lactosefree and casein-free which means it’s easily tolerated by most people. Ghee is the perfect fat for cooking since its smoke point is 450.

Sesame oil: Its fabulous to use as a finishing oil for its amazing sesame taste. The smoke point is 450 degrees, and I suggest using it at the end of a saute dish where you desire that Asian dish flavor, or use it to make a dressing. A little goes a long way!

Avocado oil: Has a clean and fresh taste and is ideal for roasting, sauteing and even frying. Plus, it’s great for dressings as well! This oil has a smoke point of around 500 degrees!

Extra-virgin olive oil: The smoke point of this oil is around 370 degrees. Olive oil is great for lower temperature cooking and to add after you have finished cooking. It’s perfect for dressings.

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Clean Protein Adding clean protein to your diet is also important for rebuilding your gut. Here are the best animal and plant-based, clean protein

Meats: nitrate-free, hormone-free, anti biotic-free and pasture-raised: chicken, turkey, bison, beef, lamb, any wild game.

Fish and Seafood: wild-caught fresh is best: pacific salmon, trout, sardines, anchovies, cod, butter fish, mackerel, any wild game, sole, catfish, squid, shrimp, scallops. If canned, look for BPA-free cans.

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Plant-Based Proteins: Hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pine nuts, flax seeds, avocado, nutritional yeast, chia pudding with an extra scoop of plant protein, spirulina, wheatgrass (it doesn’t contain gluten despite the name!), green algae, chlorella, spinach, broccoli, kale, sea vegetables, coconut flour & meat, nut & seed butters, protein powders such as hemp, pea. Beans and legumes are also a great source of protein and I recommend limiting in the first 2-3 months of gut healing due to difficulty digesting.

What About Caffeine?

Do you love a good, warm cup of coffee? Most people do, including me! The big question, is, “Can I drink coffee while I restore mitochondria function, detox my body, and heal my gut?” The answer is, ‘It depends.” Caffeine increases cortisol levels. It can also dehydrate your body .... which increases appetite.

Finally, most coffee is contaminated with mold ... which adds to the toxic load in your body.

If you drink one clean cup of coffee per day, It’s probably NOT going to prevent you from successfully healing your body. And you may benefit from the antioxidants coffee provides. If you drink multiple cups throughout the day, or if you drink coffee that isn’t tested and cleared for mold toxins, you may want to change your habit!

It’s a good idea to limit your coffee consumption to one cup of organic, mold-free coffee per day.

Also, if you usually use a dairy creamer, exchange it for unsweetened coconut or unsweetened almond milk.

Alternatives for coffee include yerba mate and green tea which contain beneficial antioxidants.

These options do contain some caffeine, so consume in moderation and early in the day so your cortisol levels have a chance to normalize before bedtime.

It’s ok to drink unlimited herbal teas like dandelion, nettle, peppermint, and chamomile. You can sweeten herbal teas with stevia, monk fruit, or add lemon for enhanced detoxifying effect. You can try substituting your coffee intake with seltzer water and infused waters.

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Meal Prepping and Planning I tell all of my clients: “If you’re not already a home-gourmet, you don’t need to fall in love with your kitchen, but you do need a simple system in place for meal planning.” This will prevent you from binging on junk food when you’re hungry and save you from fast food when your schedule gets too hectic.

HERE ARE MY TIPS: • • • • •

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•

•

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Choose a day to go food shopping and cook your protein and vegetables when you come home.

Make sure you take the shopping list that goes with the meal plan for that week to the store.

Alternatively have your food delivered from an app like lnstacart.

Plan ahead for the week and know what you can batch cook-meaning cook once and eat three times.

Roasting is easy. Toss your vegetables in avocado oil and bake in the oven at 375-400 degrees on a parchment lined cookie sheet until fork tender .

This is such a simple way to get the sweetness out of vegetables and combat junk food cravings. If you always have batches of roasted veggies in the fridge, you can snack on them.

Soups made in the crockpot or pressure cooker are what I call one-meal wonders. These meals can be put in the refrigerator and reheated for lunch the next day.

You can also make soup and freeze in portions.

Easy ideas for lunches are ‘salads in a jar’ (I skip the jar and use glass food storage containers). Pack your favorite salad from the suggested meals, add your dressing separately, and you are good to go for lunch.

Pack simple organic lunch meats with a side of lettuce leaves, olives, and mustard when you plan to go somewhere.

Traveling and Eating Traveling also poses a threat to an individual’s new way of eating, but it doesn’t have to for you.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS ON WHAT TO PACK WHEN TRAVELING: • • • • • • • • • •

Hemp seeds or nuts in a packet Meat Sticks: my favorite brands are Paleo Valley and Epic Healthy protein bars, free of sugar and inflammatory oils. Try these bars from Designs For Health Kale chips if you need a crunchy salty snack Healthy snack mixes like homemade trail mix Hearty fruit like apples, oranges, bananas that can be thrown in a handbag Shredded coconut Protein powder to mix with water with a portable, battery operated and rechargeable blender.

Try these protein powders from Designs for Health Flax crackers or nut crackers Individual wrapped Nut butter packets

Also, when staying in a hotel, call them and let them know you have special diet needs. You can call ahead and tell them you are dairy-free, wheat-free and egg-free and ask what meals could be made for you. Ask for hot tea with lemon every morning to support digestion.

Find a local health food market near where you are staying and have a salad, a green juice or a smoothie. Have food delivered to your hotel with Door Dash, Amazon Grocery, or lnstacart.

Ask the hotel to deliver a refrigerator to your room to store your food delivery.

Also, be sure to pack a probiotic and digestive enzyme. You are good to go! Safe travels.

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Save Money While You Eat Healthy Eating whole foods can be a bit more expensive than shopping from the dollar menu and tossing 98-cent ramen noodles in your shopping cart. But at the same time, your health is worth it! If you avoid pre-made convenience foods and follow my tips below, you can save money eating healthy.

And even though it might not seem appealing to buy the $6 carton of strawberries now, your wallet will seriously thank you down the road when you don’t have to shell out thousands in medical bills!

Plus, your quality of life will be exponentially better. Trust me! That being said, I still don’t expect you to break the bank. After years of trying to find the most affordable route through the grocery store, I’ve come up with a few key rules that will help you out as well: ORGANIC FRUITS AND VEGGIES IF YOU’RE GOING TO EAT THE SKIN. While going 1 BUY all organic is nice, you can save a lot of money by purchasing conventional produce when you don’t plan to eat the skin. For example, apples and berries should be organic while oranges and bananas can be conventional.

TO THE ‘CLEAN FIFTEEN’ AND THE ‘DIRTY DOZEN’ from the Environmental 2 ADHERE Working Group (EWG.org). Knowing which produce has the most pesticides will help guide your shopping and help you save money on the ‘Clean 15’ which don’t have to be organic.

LOCAL. If you live in a warmer climate, you may be one of the lucky ones who have a 3 SHOP farmer’s market near you all year long. If you live in a climate that has all four seasons, you can shop your local farmer’s market from spring to fall, excluding winter. This will help you save, keep money in your community, and it supports your local farmers who grow clean food without herbicides and pesticides.

WITH ONE-INGREDIENT FOODS. Fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts and seeds. With all of 4 STICK the fancy alternative flours, snacks, cookies, and even grain-free cookie dough out there, it’s easy to spend a small fortune. Stick to the basics! Fancy pre-made snacks can break the bank!

IN BULK. Instead of spending $10 on a little bag of cashews, scoop into the bulk bin and 5 BUY snag four pounds of cashews for $15. You can find some amazing deals!

A LIST BEFORE SHOPPING. Going to the grocery store without a list is a recipe for 6 MAKE disaster, especially if you are hungry. Make a list and stick to that list.

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CLIP COUPONS. Many in-store flyers have coupons, and you can also search online for coupons from the distributor. For example, the coconut milk yogurt you love so much may be ‘5 for $5’ if you can grab the coupon. You can also join your favorite brands’ social media pages and check them often for deals and coupons.

SHOP SALES AT MULTIPLE STORES. Sprouts or Whole Foods may have very different sales going on, and you may be able to benefit from both of them.

PREPPING YOUR MEALS WILL ALSO SAVE YOU TIME. I love to bake my chicken on Sunday and save it in the freezer or refrigerator depending on when I plan to eat it during the week.

This is great for adding clean protein to a salad for lunch or for dinner.

YOUR LEFTOVERS. Leftovers are great to toss into a soup mix. Don’t know what to 10 SAVE do with leftover chicken and veggies? Make some potluck soup with broth and get an extra meal out of that food.

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INVEST IN A WATER FILTER to avoid spending money on bottled water, which we all know is not 100% guaranteed to be clean .

IT A POINT TO EAT AT HOME and avoid eating out as often as possible. When you 12 MAKE cook at home, you have the benefits of knowing where your food came from, how clean the kitchen is, and you save money because you aren’t paying for the chef. If you don’t want to slave over a stove all day, use a slow cooker or electric pressure cooker (Instant Pot).

SEASONALLY. Pay attention to which foods are in season because they’ll be cheaper.

13 EAT Buy in bulk, place in the freezer, and you can eat them all year long. are also some great websites that can help you save money. I shop on many different 14 There websites for my staples. If you’d like to save even more online, check out retailmenot.com and dealcatcher.com to search for online coupon promo codes. Some common websites to shop and save are: vitacost.com amazon.com herbspro.com bulkapothercary.com vitaminshoppe.com iherb.com thrivemarket.com

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Eat More of These Prebiotic Foods

Okra

Jerusalem Artichoke

Dandelion Greens

Garlic

Leeks

Onions

Cooked/Chilled Potatoes

Green Bananas

Asparagus

Jicama

When probiotics ( good bacteria) feed on the prebiotics (non-digestible fiber foods), the byproduct is postbiotics. So think of it like this: probiotics + prebiotics = postbiotics. Make sense? There are several types of postbiotics produced by your good bacteria, most notably short-chain fatty acids, such as acetate, butyrate and propionate which provide an energy source to your colon cells. Other important postbiotics are lipopolysaccharides, enzymes, peptides and organic acids.

EATING MORE PREBIOTIC FOODS HELPS YOU REDUCE THE FOLLOWING ISSUES: • • • • • •

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Inflammatory conditions like irritable bowel disease (IBD) or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) Leaky gut syndrome, dysbiosis, or small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) Joint pain due to inflammation Side effects due to exposure to environmental irritants Skin problems, including acne or eczema Allergic reactions, such as dermatitis or conjunctivitis

Gut Healing Foods BONE BROTH Rich in collagen, minerals and gelatin, 3 components that are key for rebuilding the gut lining. Bone broth can be sipped throughout the day or added to soups and stews. It could even be considered a supplement because it is so medicinal when it comes to gut restoration and repair! The amino acids in bone broth support the healing of your intestinal lining. The gelatin in bone broth also supports your joints and skin health and reduces cellulite. It’s loaded with calcium, phosphorous and magnesium, and is great for those who have suffered from mineral deficiencies or often feel weak.

You can add sea vegetables such as dulse or nori flakes to your bone broth, as this is another way to add the vital minerals we do not get from our food and water source.

KOMBUCHA Kombucha is a fermented beverage made from tea, and is loaded with B vitamins. You can make this at home or buy at your local health food store. This drink is made by letting the tea ferment on the countertop for about a week to grow beautiful bacteria and beneficial yeast. If you’re making your own, I recommend buying a Kombucha starter kit from Cultures for Health.To find d etailed instructions on the brewing process for Kombucha, refer to the directions included in your starter pack from Cultures For Health.

COLLAGEN Collagen should be on your list of gut-health foods because it helps heal your gut lining. In addition, it’ ll boost your metabolism, increase your energy, diminish cellulite, support your bones & joints, beautify your skin, and help detoxify your body. I love the collagen from Designs For Health which you can find by clicking HERE. Add one scoop to your smoothies, a cup of water, your green juice or even mix it into coconut or almond milk yogurt for a boost of protein.

WATER AND COCONUT WATER KEFIR This is a fermented beverage made from water or coconut water with a kefir starter. It’s loaded with good bacteria and can be sweetened and fermented with different j uices t o e nhance t he t aste.

Coconut water kefir is a fermented beverage made from young coconuts. It contains the following minerals that support healthy digestion and a functioning thyroid: potassium, sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium. Kefir also contains many strains of probiotic bacteria and yeast. To make water kefir, I suggest visiting www.culturesforhealth.com to get a starter kit.

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BEET KVASS Beet kvass is a powerhouse blood and liver cleanser. It is made from fermenting beets with a salt brine and is loaded with healthy bacteria, vitamin B, vitamin C, and folic acid. You can make your own at home, or find it in your local health food store or farmers market.

CULTURED VEGGIES I recommend building up your intake of cultured foods because they are easy to make, and are loaded with natural enzymes and probiotics. Examples are kimchi, sauerkraut or whole veggie ferments. Start with a tablespoon once a day and build up from there. Eating Cultured food benefits you in the following ways: • Restores good gut flora by supporting healthy bacteria colonization • Improves digestion and aid in natural enzyme activity • Reduces sugar cravings • Cleanses the colon and intestinal tract, leaving your body free of toxic waste that hampers digestion

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Gut Healing Meal Tips Meals play a huge role in your gut healing journey. This is why it’s so important to understand some basic mealtime principles.

1. CHEW YOUR FOOD WELL: Your goal should be to make the food on your plate easy for your body to digest. Remember, your stomach does not have teeth; therefore, you should chew until your food is near liquid before swallowing it. By doing this, you’re boosting nutrient absorption and reducing your digestive system’s workload.

2. SIMPLE IS BETTER: When planning your meals, aim to keep them at or under five ingredients. The simpler your meal is, the easier it is for your body to digest. Most people who suffer from digestive distress have less stomach acid, and stomach acid is necessary for properly breaking down foods. So if your meals are complex, you’re not chewing properly, and you have low stomach acid, your digestive system is going to have to go into overdrive just to break down and assimilate your foods.

3. PROTEIN, FAT & VEGGIES: A balanced meal should include a protein and a fat with your choice of above-ground vegetables such as broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, kale, etc…and a side of fermented veggies! If you must have a carb, have a complex-carbohydrate like quinoa or sweet potatoes.

4. COOKED VERSUS RAW: If you’re seeing undigested food in your stools, reduce roughage foods or puree them into soups.

Also, cooking your veggies makes them easier to digest. You can try soft veggies instead, such as butternut squash and carrots. Undigested food in your stools means your food is not digesting properly and raw food may be harder for your body to break down. Once your gut and digestion is restored, you should be able to digest raw food again.

5. EAT AT HOME: In addition, fresh is always best from your own kitchen. If you are eating out, make informed choices.

Ask your server questions—is the meal made with gluten? Was it steamed, sautéed, baked, etc.?

Stick to the basics and stay away from sauces with unknown ingredients.

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6. EXPERIMENT: The amount of cool versus warming foods you should eat depends on your state of gut distress. This is why it’s so important to be best friends with your food diary.

For example, you may find that raw salads work great for you. Or, you may find that you can’t digest salads well, but you digest cool juices and cucumbers just fine. You must experiment with your diet to find out what works best for you.

7. TAME BLOAT: If you’re bloated, consider eating a low FODMAP diet and add ginger tea or Lemon Water Elixir in between meals to naturally enhance your digestive enzymes.

How to Reintroduce Foods After you have eliminated the main inflammatory foods outlined at the beginning of this guide for at least 3 months, you can start to reintroduce SOME these foods back, one at a time. I recommend you continue to avoid soy, artificial sweeteners, conventionally grown corn and wheat, conventional dairy, and sugar. You can add the other foods back following the guidelines below.

Here is a refresher of the foods you should avoid for 3 months: • • • • • • • • • •

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Dairy products (lactose and casein) Wheat (and other gluten-containing foods) Eggs Corn Peanuts/Legumes Tomatoes Shellfish Sugar & Artificial Sweetener Alcohol Soy

And maybe you also eliminated: • • • • •

Chocolate Coffee Black tea Beans/Lectins Oxalates (like chard and spinach)

Steps to Add These Foods Back into Your Routine 1

0nly re-introduce one food at a time every 4-7 days. Do not add more than two foods in a week to avoid over-exposure to highly sensitive food.

2

Take note of food reactions. Keep a journal record of how the food made you feel after you reintroduced.

3 4 5 6 7

If you experience old symptoms or new ones, stop eating the food. For example fatigue, mental fogginess, sleepiness, achy joints, stiffness, gas, bloating, indigestion.

If a food causes symptoms, try introducing it again in 2 months. In the meantime, keep following the principles for restoring your gut outlined in this guide. It can take a year or more for some people to clear up food intolerances. Sometimes you just have to accept there are certain foods you shouldn’t eat.

Caffeine and chocolate can be added back at any time.

Start with organic free range eggs. Document how you feel.

Next add organic dairy. Start with cultured dairy products like plain yogurt and plain kefir.

Avoid flavored dairy products because they will contain sugar or artificial sweeteners.

Document how you feel.

8 Next add non-GMO organic corn. Document how you feel.

9 Next tomatoes and any other nightshades you avoided. Document how you feel.

10 Next legumes/peanuts. Document how you feel.

11 Now Shellfish. Document how you feel.

12 Next add organic beans and lectin containing foods - pay attention to how you feel.

13 Now add organic oxalates like spinach and swiss chard. How do you feel?

14 And last wheat/gluten, non GMO and organic. Document how you feel.

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Food Reintroduction Log Food

Date

Reactions/Symptoms

Caffeine Chocolate Eggs Dairy Corn Tomatoes Peanuts/ Legumes Shellfish Beans Oxalates Wheat

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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This guide is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure,or prevent any disease. It is recommended you discuss a new supplement routine with your doctor or pediatrician before using.

i laura.frontiero f LauraFrontieroNP For additional information or support, contact: Laura Frontiero Support@LauraFrontiero.com www.LauraFrontiero.com