Awful, this summer heat, isn’t it? One sits, barely wants to move, and sweat runs out of every pore.
Actually, no! Sweating takes out toxins from our bodies; the skin is one of four elimination organs (the other three are kidneys, bowels, lungs). Sweating is beneficial. Enjoy your wet armpits – without them, you would age faster and might get cancer earlier. Sorry that I am so graphic. But the advantages of sweating are widely underrated.
People sit in air-conditioned houses, and at the same time they are shelling out big dollars for “colon cleansing.” Colon cleansing is a health scam. Eating better and drinking water or herbal teas will do the trick; colon cleansing will not make you purer - just poorer.
In the winter, a sauna does the trick. Not by accident was sauna in vented in Finland and Russia - cold, northern states that do not allow for sweat naturally. - Exercise can make you sweat. But don’t try too hard: Individual people start sweating at different points, and one should not exercise for the sake of sweating. Move for fun and purpose!
In the summer, let nature work for you: Sweat it out!
Heavy metals like nickel, copper, zinc, lead have been found in sweat in higher numbers than in the blood – but I wish, we had better studies available! For instance, I am only aware of a single study that saw mercury levels falling during a sauna protocol. Most medical studies are funded by pharmaceutical firms (and I don’t see any wrong in there, as long as they adhere to scientific ethics). But this situation leaves out studies on water, sauna, yoga, healthy food, to name a few – because not much money can be made of them. The only way to improve the situation is to demand such studies.
Medications may be released into the sweat, notably anti-epileptic drugs, amphetamines, methadone (but don’t get your hopes too high that sauna will get you through a drug test easily - it won’t!).
Sauna also prevents frequent colds and promotes better sleep. In Europe, people use saunas widely. Mostly, of course, for relaxation and fun.
Except for the very elderly and frail who are in danger of severe dehydration in the summer, an air conditioner is unnecessary. In our house, we have a built-in central air-conditioning system. We never – never! – use it (but we also live in Boston, not in the Deep South - perhaps I would feel different in New Orleans...). If it gets really sweltering at night, we run a simple fan in the bedroom. Summer is for sweating – and winter is for cold exposure; both have their health merits.
If you sweat, you lose salt and water. So drink enough! And put a pinch more salt than usually in your food to replenish – unless you tend to high blood pressure. - And before I forget it: Warm drinks are healthy; cold drinks - especially ice-cold - hurt you.
Instead of suffering through the summer months, take them as what they are: A free-for-all detox program – every year! Eat fruit and salads and enjoy the heat with a peppermint tea ... lukewarm. In the shade. Read More
Blog: On Health. On Writing. On Life. On Everything.
Summer Fare
July 19, 2010
In the summer, we don’t like to eat heavy foods. We have a natural tendency, an innate knowledge, to eat lighter in hot weather. Braised lamb red, cabbage and sweet potatoes is a combination I would not serve now; in the fall, with temperatures down, it will be delicious.
Here is a recipe for a light shrimp salad, easy to make:
• About five to ten cooked shrimps per person. Remove tails and slice the shrimp lengthwise. (Instead of shrimp, cooked lobster, chicken, mussels, crab meat, mushrooms would work).
• Add an onion, finely chopped.
• A can of mandarins or pineapples, or fresh apple or pear (or whatever fruit, you fancy).
• Walnuts or almonds or whatever nuts.
• A bit salt and pepper.
• Fresh or dried dill (or any herb).
• And mayonnaise – as little as possible. I prefer a mayonnaise made with olive oil. You can stretch the mayonnaise with juice from the mandarin can, or with a few drops of olive oil; or both.
• Serve the shrimp salad with corn on the cob, broiled (with sunflower or sesame seeds and olive oil) asparagus, and lentils or a multi-grain bread.
• End the meal with fresh fruit – a watermelon or cherries or strawberries from the field.
This is a good example how I cook: I use what I have at hand and what is fresh and in season and therefore cheap. It never tastes the same twice. And never ever ask me: How much? I am a “feeling” cook, not a measuring one.
This is a Sunday dish. Eating mayonnaise every day is not such a good idea for the waist line – even if it is finger-licking good. By the way, if you have a mixer, you can make your own mayonnaise: Separate eggs into yolks and egg white (use the whites for making meringues later). Beat the yolks until they stiffen a bit. Drop by drop add olive oil – never stop beating, slowly first, then faster. The secret is in never to add too much oil at a time so that the mayonnaise does not curdle. Takes five minutes to make.
Summer fare is about freshness and moderation. Thinking about it: It's the same in the winter. Except that in the summer, the heat helps you with the moderation part - it curbs our appetites. Read More
The Man I Most Admire
June 30, 2010
Today is the perfect summer day outside: Warm but not too hot. With brilliant light, the roses in their second flush. So I want to go out into the garden, and give you just a tiny thought for the day.
In my life, I have met interesting people of all kinds of walks. Can't say I tend to worship heroes - but here is one:
Many years ago I had a patient, a friendly middle-aged (aside: I am always astonished what Americans call “middle-aged”; where I come from, “middle-aged” is from thirty to fifty…) small man, a light-colored black man, working as a janitor. As it turned out, with some Native American blood thrown in.
The Native American blood must have made him prone to diabetes – he certainly was not overweight. But he was eager to accommodate to some lifestyle changes. When I said “No cake, no cookies,” he shuffled on his chair, and asked “Not even for birthdays?” We negotiated birthdays exceptions.
But for several visits, his sugars did not come down. I finally decided to get a bit deeper into the cookie business, mindful of the former hospital patient who had agreed to a “one cookie per day” policy, and whose sugars were so abject that we could not send her home. When I inquired about that one cookie, she nodded to the drawer of her nightstand, giving me permission to see for myself. I found a “cookie” the size of a dinner plate. Only one, though: She had stuck to our agreement…
With that in mind, I sat my nice little man down and asked him how many birthdays there were in his life. Turned out he had about ten children and who knows how many grand-children - it boiled down to at least a birthday a week!
You wonder why he is the man I most admire? He got all his children through college – including the one son who was wheelchair-bound from an accident. This nice, unassuming man had, against all odds, kept his family together and made a success out of his life.
Who is your hero? Read More