Happy Canada Day! True North Strong and Free.

CANADA

Canada is my country

and I'm proud to call it "Home".

Her beauty will always call me back

wherever I might roam.

God gave us this great country -

entrusting we'd keep it free;

And this is what we strive to do

as everyone can see.

Canada's people are diverse -

a balance to make us strong.

Variety is the spice of life

and our list of cultures is long.

From North to South, East to West,

each Province and Territory is unique -

But all "proud to be Canadian" -

nothing else would be complete.

On July 1st, we'll wave our flag -

the "Maple Leaf" will fly

In cities, towns, and open plains -

on water and in the sky.

We'll celebrate with music and dance

and, of course, "The Snowbirds" won't hide;

Our R.C.M.P on proud black steeds,

will entertain with the "Musical Ride."

At dusk, we'll watch the fireworks;

they'll be all across our land

And tiny tots to centenarians will know -

Canada holds us in her hand.

THANK YOU, CANADA!

Joan Adams Burchell

June 13, 2004

Day 2 Sugar Challenge: How G-Bombs Support Your Health.

I participated in a five-day Sugar Challenge, learning about foods that support our health and nutrition. Dr. Fuhrman, a seven-time New York Times award author and the mind behind the Nutritarian Diet, shed light on his G-BOMBS that are pivotal in maintaining healthy cells, reversing chronic diseases, and achieving longevity. You might be wondering, what exactly is G-BOMBS?

We should strive to include these foods to support our health and well-being.

G - Greens

B - Beans

O - Onions

M - Mushrooms

B - Berries

S - Seeds

During the video session, Nathan Crane, an award-winning Health Researcher, suggested the following recipe as a tasty and nutritional way to support your body.

Blend three servings (1 cup) of fruit, three servings (1 cup) of vegetables, and two scoops of plant-based powder. Add apple juice, orange juice, or water.

Feel free to customize the recipe according to your preferences and requirements. For example, I reduced the quantity of fruits and vegetables to suit my needs. I opted for 1/2 cup each of apple, orange, carrot, zucchini, almond milk, and ice cubes. I avoid apple and orange juice because of their high sugar content. The smoothie turned out to be healthy, tasty, and filling.

These G-BOMBS and the smoothie recipe are just the beginning of a healthy eating journey. As you move forward, think about how you can include these G-BOMBS in your diet! Try the smoothie with your favourite fruits and vegetables and enjoy its health benefits.

Capturing the Central Teachings of the Sugar Challenge: Day One.

AWARENESS, ACTION, REFLECTION

Nathan Crane, a Health Researcher, and Dr. Joel Fuhrman are the lead facilitators of the Five-Day Sugar Challenge. The challenge is designed to help you become more aware of the influence processed sugars have on your life and on our society. Each day, they provide doable actions and ask you to reflect on your awareness and actions in support of your health.

AWARENESS: Day one of the challenges supports you in understanding how processed sugar is at the root of many of our present-day diseases: cancer, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and chronic inflammation. It also teaches you how you can develop a solid foundation to increase your life expectancy, disease prevention, disease reversal, and optimal health.

It's alarming that the American Heart Association notes that the average American consumes 17 teaspoons of processed sugar daily. This sugar is often hidden in drinks, fast foods, snacks, baking and cooking ingredients, and more. What's even more concerning is that the Food Industry, fully aware of sugar's addictive nature, has strategically used this knowledge to create a crisis of sugar addiction within our society.

Not all sugars are harmful. Sugars in whole foods, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and beans are needed for optimal health. These sugars slowly enter our bloodstream alongside water, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and vital nutrients. Therefore, they have a low glycemic index. Sugar does not go directly to the brain, unlike processed sugars.

Processed sugars are similar to addictive drugs. Sugar enters the bloodstream at unnatural rates. This rate cannot be duplicated in nature. The sugar goes to the brain and stimulates the dopamine centres, just like drugs. The brain cannot distinguish between drugs and sugar. We keep eating sweets to get the bliss factor. This is one of the reasons the Food Industry adds sugar to everything.

What happens when we continue to eat unhealthy foods laden with sugar? Over time, our taste buds die, we cannot take in the natural flavours of whole foods, and our appetite control systems get turned off. This leads to cravings for these foods, and we open ourselves up to the diseases listed above.

When we reduce these foods in our diet, we initially experience fatigue, lack of clarity, agitation, and impulsive behaviour, as we consume food for short-term gain rather than long-term health.

ACTION: We were asked to keep track of the grams of sugar in the non-whole foods we eat for 24 hours. This is to help us be aware of how many grams of processed sugar we eat daily. This action is not to guilt us into feeling bad but to make us aware of our sugar consumption.

So, if you want to begin the Sugar Challenge, track your sugar intake by recording the grams of sugar added to the food and drinks you consume in one day.

I hope you will join me in supporting us in becoming aware of how processed sugar impacts us and our health. Day 2 will help you in introducing good sugars into your diet. Stay tuned!