Foods To Help Clean Your Colon
Kidney Beans: One of the most important nutrients in complex carbs is fiber. Not only does fiber help keep our bowels regular, but it can also aid in leveling our blood sugars. When our blood sugars our out of whack, we are at an increased risk for health problems. Make a bowl of chili this week!
 

Asparagus: As a great source of Folate, this green vegetable may help to stimulate immunity and promote the growth of beneficial bacteria in the colon.
 

Cayenne: This variety of pepper is actually used in a very popular cleansing recipe.  Cayenne contains a substance known as capsaicin which works by acting on the sensory nerves.  Its cleansing properties can help to detoxify the body.

Whole grain, High Fiber Bread: Helps keep you regular and prevent colon problems later in life too!

Drinking plenty of water is also important. Water helps to soften your stools. Fiber acts a lot like a sponge. It needs water to help cleanse our systems. With out water our bowels would turn hard and make us constipated. A high-fiber diet with plenty of water causes a large, soft, bulky stool that passes through the bowel easily and quickly. Because of this action, digestive tract disorders may be avoided or halted by following a high-fiber diet.

Don't Forget The Salads
Simple ingredients, simple prep, healthy summer meals
1. Start with a nutrient-rich lettuce such as Mesclun greens, chopped romaine, spring mix, or arugula/spinach. No iceberg lettuce!

2. Add colorful vegetables
Add colorful nutrient-dense vegetables such as chopped tomatoes, broccoli, zucchini, carrots, green beans, peas, red/green/orange sliced bell peppers, mushrooms, squash, beets, asparagus, and red cabbage.

3. Need sweetness?
Add a few halved red or green grapes, chopped apple slices, or grapefruit/orange slices.

4. Crunch
Try adding a few (and that really means a few) chopped nuts or seeds.

5. Protein
Add a little tuna and/or chopped hard boiled eggs.

6. Onions, Garlic and Herbs
One way to really pack some flavor into a salad is to sprinkle in something from the onion family – red, white, yellow onions chopped or in rings; chives or green onions make great toppers; and of course, fresh garlic is not only delicious, but nutrient-packed as well, and may just help lower your blood pressure too! From the herb garden add cilantro, dill, or basil.

7. Make homemade salad dressing!
Don’t take your beautiful salad and top it with chemical-laden, food dye colored bottled salad dressing.

Make your basic delicious vinaigrette with ¼ cup olive oil, 3 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar, and a dash of salt and pepper. You may also add a teaspoon of plain yogurt or sour cream for a creamier dressing or a teaspoon of raw honey for a little added taste. Zip up your basic dressing with some fresh chopped herbs or salad dressing herbs.

More Tips:
• Buy fresh and organic if possible!
• Keep things on hand to add to salads such as chopped nuts, fruits, tuna, eggs, and oil/vinegar/herbs.
• Start with a few of the above recommendations and work on making more out of your salads!
• Consciously add salads into your meal plans. Bring a salad to work for lunch today! You can make a meal out of it!

Fruits
How much fruit can or should I eat every day?
2 - Fruit Equivalents (Approximately 60 calories per 1 equivalent), such as:
• 1 medium piece of fruit
• 1 cup melon
• 1/2 cup fruit (such as berries)
• 1/2 banana
• 3/4 cup fruit juice
• 1/2 grapefruit
• 2 tablespoons dried fruit
As you can see the serving size for dried fruit is small because the sugar content is high, even in the "natural" dried fruit. The amount of calories that are packed into a serving of dried fruit is, on average, about double the amount of calories in a serving of fresh fruit.

Fruit Juice
See above, 3/4 cup (or 6 oz.) is a fruit serving.
Below is a list of juices and their calorie/sugar content, per 8 ounces. At the bottom of the list is the calorie/sugar content of soda pop. Notice that there is not much difference. The sodas listed are for 8 ounces servings as well.

100% Pineapple Juice: 130 calories 26 grams of sugar
All Natural Fruit Punch: 120 calories 31 grams of sugar
Natural Premium Orange Juice: 110 calories 22 grams of sugar
Berry Blast: 120 calories 26 grams of sugar
Super Protein Nutritional Juice: 190 calories 29 grams of sugar
Cola: 110 calories 27 grams of sugar
Ginger Ale: 95 calories 23 grams of sugar

Better Nutritional Foods For The Aging Bear
Less Calories BUT more nutrients
As we age our metabolism tends to slow down and consequently our need for calories usually decreases. At the same time, our vitamin and mineral requirements stay the same or even increase in some cases. A bear diet rich in nutrient-packed foods is the best way to get high nutritional value with lower calories.

Calcium
Getting enough calcium from foods like organic dairy products, collard greens, and salmon or from nutritional supplements help prevent osteoporosis as we get older. Recent studies show that calcium may also promote a healthy body weight.

Fiber
Adding fiber to your diet has shown to decrease chances of colon cancer and heart disease. Choose whole grain breads, pastas, and cereals and eat plenty of high fiber vegetables like broccoli, carrots, and celery. Beans are another nutrient and fiber-loaded food. Fiber supplements can also be purchased in bulk or tablet form to increase fiber intake and improve bowel function.

Know Your Carbs
Choose carbohydrates with caution. White carbohydrates, like white bread, white flour, and sugar, are devoid of nutrients and fiber, so avoid them as much as possible. Vegetables, whole grains, and whole fruits are the healthiest and most nutrient-rich carbohydrates. Choose organically grown fruits and vegetables, when possible since they are grown naturally without using unhealthy pesticides.

Choose foods low in hydrogenated fats, using good fats such as organic olive, coconut, and flax seed oils. Avoid "empty calorie" foods, which are foods and drinks with a lot of calories, but not many nutrients, such as chips, cookies, soda, and alcohol. Read more about carbohydrates.

Fast and Cheap Bear Meals
Here are some of our favorite “fast food” ideas that we use routinely when we are in a hurry to cook something up quickly.
 

Quick Egg Meals
• Make a poached egg and serve on top of an English muffin, with a slice of ham and cheese, served with some mixed green salad.

• Saute chopped vegetables in olive oil in a medium skillet, whisk 4 or 5 eggs together, pour over vegetables and cover, cooking over low heat – this makes a great frittata.

• Egg burritos: scramble up some eggs, stir in a couple tablespoons of your favorite salsa, chopped onion and serve in a whole wheat tortilla.

Tuna
Mix tuna with mayonnaise and your favorite chopped vegetables such as red pepper, celery, and onion. Zip it up with chopped pineapple, chopped pecans, craisins, or green olives. Serve on bread and toast for a tuna melt or on top of a bed of lettuce with a side of fresh tomatoes.

Stir fry
Start with a large frying pan or wok: 1 Tbsp oil, 3 Tbsp organic teriyaki sauce, 3 Tbsp organic soy sauce, 2 tsp minced fresh garlic. Stir in a handful of sugar snap peas, broccoli, red, yellow, and orange bell pepper, and cashews and cook until only slightly crisp. Stir in any left over chicken, beef or pork you might have or serve vegetarian atop your favorite whole grain rice.

Chef salad
Sometimes just take a little of this and a little of that and make a big salad with homemade salad dressing. Top the dark greens with a “meal” such as ham, turkey, cheese, cottage cheese, sliced beets, sliced fruit, chopped nuts, sliced onion, or fresh veggies. Or you can even stir-fry them and then serve atop fresh lettuce for that hot-cold salad!

Baked potato
We all like to bake a couple of Idaho potatoes ahead of time and put them in the refrigerator to eat later or bake them when you arrive home – to be finished by the time you complete your evening exercise they are ready. Top with sautéed broccoli and cheese or your favorite veggies.

Adding Vegetables to Your Diet
Add vegetables to a family favorite dishes such as chili or spaghetti. You can cut down on fat and add fiber and other nutrients to main dishes by using smaller amounts of meat with plenty of vegetables, which is particularly important for the Bear. Carrots and peppers in your chili or zucchini in your spaghetti sauce may sound a little odd, but once you've tried it, you'll wonder why you didn't do it years ago!

Puree vegetables and add them to soups and stews. A puree of cooked potatoes, onions, and celery makes a nice, low-fat stock to use instead of a cream base.

How To Eat For More Energy
Eat sensible portions
This is one of the main reasons why Bears feel tired after eating. Bears needs to focus on well balanced meals in moderate portions. Once you even begin to feel full, put the fork down and step away! Gorging yourself now will only mean sluggishness later.

Do not skip meals
This can be as bad as overeating, and can often be done by the same person who is overeating. Bears are not likely going to have a whole lot of energy on only one meal per day, especially if it is one huge meal and nothing else throughout the day. Bears do better with a routine: 2-3 meals per day, sometimes with snacks in between. Your body will repay you for this routine with more mental and physical energy.

Limiting simple carbs
Bears tend to overeat simple carbohydrates. We believe this is in part for convenience, cost, and “comfort.” Unfortunately, too many white pastas and breads, potatoes, sweets, and sodas eventually leave them feeling spaced out, hazy, and tired.

Dumping processed foods
The Hauser Diet is all about bringing fresh, whole foods back to the table. It is amazing the difference we often see in patients after getting them to drop the heavily processed meats, pre-made sandwiches, frozen and boxed meals, and get them to start cooking more from scratch.

Lastly, one of the key tests for any Diet Type that we do here in our office is a blood test for Food Sensitivities. This is often done as a part of Hauser Diet Typing, because eating foods that you may not even realize your body is sensitive to will only deplete your energy stores further. So, while all Bears should take action on the above diet recommendations, an individual should find out what specific foods are going to make his or her body more efficient and, in essence, healthier. Simply call or email us to learn more and schedule an appointment for your individualized Diet Typing.