Q + A With Lana

First of all I'd like to say a huge thank you to those of you that sent in your questions for my first ever Q + A! They have all been incredibly interesting and I've absolutely loved going through them! If you'd like to get your questions in for my next Q + A stay tuned via Instagram and twitter where I'll announce the second round, enjoy :-)

1. What is a natural alternative to antibiotics and what is the best way to naturally treat infection?

My favourite natural antibiotic is Olive Leaf Extract. It definitely sits at the top for me in helping fight infection and as a natural antibiotic. Even better is that it works on a cellular level to strengthen the body's immune response and is also a natural anti-viral and anti-fungal! Unfortunately conventional or synthetic antibiotics receive a lot of bad press because they target the good bacteria as well as the bad but olive leaf extract destroys only the bad and protects the good. It does this by dissolving the outer lining of the infectious germs and then penetrates the infected cells, inhibiting the replication of the bacteria. I use it at any time I need to fight an infection or whenever I'm a little under the weather. It's also so important to supplement with probiotics to help build the good bacteria that resides in us as well as they majorly help in the defence of harmful organisms. One of my favourite blends for infections/colds & flus that consists of olive leaf extract but also other lovely herbal antimicrobials is: Wellness Formula

2. What are the best ways to use aloe vera gel?

Aloe Vera has been one of my favourite plants for a while now due to its incredible healing properties. You can read more on that here and so my favourite way to use aloe vera gel is straight on my face, after cleansing and before moisturising. I'll cleanse with a gentle cleanser, lather it on and then use an oil based moisturiser like rose hip oil or almond oil after. I also like to use it in my hair as its hydrating so after a shower I'll put some in the ends with some almond oil too just to give it a good natural conditioning. Of course its great taken internally as well for digestion and from the plant is always best otherwise you can see my favourite brand in the article mentioned above.

3. What are great ways to detox without juicing or starving?

So there's a big misconception that the only way to detox is through juicing. First of all it depends on the organs you wish to detox i.e kidneys, liver, colon, blood etc juicing definitely helps intensify detoxing as well as gives our digestive system a break whilst using that energy to heal whatever may need healing however, we are also able to detox through foods. For instance there are specific foods that aid liver and kidney detoxification or bowel elimination. Sometimes simply eliminating foods that exacerbate our issues such as sugar, dairy, wheat, gluten or pro inflammatory foods can begin a great detox in itself. Overall eating a healthy, whole foods diet is detoxifying enough and we can add things to it to help assist detoxing further with things like castor oil packs, juicing, milk thistle extracts, dandelion root teas, and bentonite clay.

4. Are there foods you can combine with natural sugars to make them more slow releasing?

Protein. Protein is essential at slowing down sugar release therefore stabilising blood sugar levels. It's important to have protein in every meal for these reasons. When we stabilise our blood sugar levels we are stabilising our hormones and energy. Great snack options would be a piece of fruit with a few nuts or any other complex carbohydrate with protein such as: an apple with almond butter, berries with a few cashew nuts, carrots or celery sticks with hummus etc.

5. Can tofu & soy products benefit fertility?

Yes, they can. Recently I wrote a little post on all the negative effects of soy focusing on people specifically with an estrogen dominance and people who may be effected by this. Hormonal imbalances are very specific to which hormones we may need more or less of, in the case of infertility and someone who may have a dominance of male hormones and not enough estrogen and progesterone, soy may help this but the biggest research around soy in infertility is the link it has to reducing harmful effects of BPA or bisphenol A, a synthetic compound found commonly in plastic that leaches into our food and acts as a hormone mimicker causing a great imbalance in hormones.

6. Can dairy help infertility?

Dairy has a lot of hormones in it to grow a baby calf into a cow. The only time I've ever heard of dairy in the cases of fertility are that if the patient is consuming dairy they are advised to consume it full fat and organic. That is because the female hormones are present in the fat and when milk is skimmed you're left with the male hormones, further exacerbating the issues of infertility however as a whole I don't think dairy is beneficial to balancing hormones at all. The best route for this is to stabilise blood sugar levels.

7. Is brown rice fattening?

Brown rice is a complex carbohydrate however, complex carbohydrates are our greatest source of energy. In fact they are our only source of energy and we need them to survive. Complex carbohydrates are found in vegetables and fruit also. Depending on each individual our recommended intake can vary however for someone trying to maintain weight or lose weight. When looking at a Naturopathic plate, complex carbohydrates only make up for a quarter of our plates. The benefit of complex carbohydrates like brown rice though, in comparison with simple carbohydrates like white rice is that they are a whole food, so they fill you quicker and convert to sugar slower. Excess sugar contributes to weight gain as we struggle to burn off excess sugar, it goes to our liver where it is turned into fat for emergency energy. Sugars to be aware of are refined sugars and processed refined foods like white rice, white bread, white pasta.

8. Is gluten bad for everyone?

Gluten is a protein found in wheat that causes an inflammatory response in everyone. Too much gluten is going to cause excess inflammation or in the case of an autoimmune disease like celiac gluten can trigger the person's immune response further attacking their own tissue/cells. If you don't suffer from an autoimmune disease, have a great digestive system, look after yourself and eat healthy, small amounts of gluten every now and again won't kill you.

9. Do cooked vegetables have less nutrients than raw vegetables?

There's a big misconception with cooked vegetables. For instance some vegetables produce more antioxidants when cooked such as carrots. Cooking vegetables also helps to break own their cell walls which make it easier for us to digest them and absorb their nutrients. For those with impaired digestion, cooked vegetables will always be best, until the digestive system is healed otherwise a bit of both is always great. All vegetables are a great source of vitamins and minerals and fibre.

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