Monthly Archives: May 2015

Okay…so I admit it. Brushing one’s teeth with candy does sound a little off. But when you qualify the candy by what’s in it, it is not too big of a flying leap.

Case in point, xylitol candy, which is now up front and center in just about every grocery store I venture into. Xylitol is very well known to have beneficial effects on teeth, and after my Mexican dental clinic in Tijuana prescribed me a mouthwash with xylitol as its main ingredient, I decided to try brushing with a few candies I liked that had it, too.

Enter Xyla, XyloBurst and Spry Gems, all of which feature xylitol as the main sweetener, and it’s a sweetener with many benefits. Lots of cancer survivors I’ve talked to use it as one of their mainstays in addition to stevia. So why not use it for scrubbing the pearly-whites?

Considering some of the ingredients I’ve seen in “conventional” toothpastes (as well as those considered “natural” or “healthy”) – and given my knack for quick demineralization and the resulting teeth issues – I decided to give it a go. And now, four months later, I can honestly say my teeth don’t hurt as much as they used to, they are clean, not too much in the way of that scummy buildup on the surface and I don’t miss toothpaste too much at all.

My favorite candy to brush with (and this does involve chewing the candy a bit and letting it mix with saliva, then brushing) turns out to be Spry Gems, which have the added ingredient of calcium glycerophosphate, which has been studied for its anti-cavity effects.

Research on calcium glycerophosphate suggests a strong benefit in its ability to inhibit plaque formation and tooth decay (“caries”) in the mouth. An article entitled Calcium Glycerophosphate and Caries: A Review of the Literature, states:

“There is credible evidence that calcium glycerophosphate has the potential to reduce the progression of caries via all of these mechanisms if it is applied frequently and at a sufficiently high concentration.”

There is one caveat I will mention – calcium glycerophosphate, when ingested, can have the effect of lowering one’s stomach acid, and as one who has had serious problems due to low stomach acidity, I have to really watch this. Using the Gems as “mints” and ingesting them has proven not to be the best thing for me. This is why when I chew the Gems and brush with them, as with any regular toothpaste, I don’t swallow – I spit.

Still, the combination of the calcium glycerophosphate and xylitol is a good one, as long as I use it in a way that benefits me personally and not necessarily “as directed.” Even so, the Cinnamon flavored Spry Gems have become a favorite, and if I can’t find those, I sometimes make do with XyloBurst Grape or berry-flavored Xyla candies.

Variety is good, and if I find I want to skip the calcium glycerophosphate for a while, they are a fine substitute…and with these, I can swallow to my heart’s content…or not. If I’m feelin’ like I’m into that sorta thing.

The important thing is, my teeth love ’em all! And they are healthier these days than ever.

Enjoy,

Alison

Given all the advice I’ve gotten to rid my system of heavy metals (and radioactive elements – and keep them out), I’ve taken to eating seaweed salads on a pretty regular basis.

Seems seaweeds have a real knack for drawing heavy metals, et. al., out of sewer systems – and human bodies. They hide no secrets, and carry with them the histories of the systems they’ve travelled through. Just such a confession does a body good.

Not to mention my Chinese Doctor here in Vegas keeps reminding me they’re jus’ plain ol’ good for my type as well as my biochemical makeup, and there’s nothing like a really healthy seaweed salad to remineralize the works while wicking out the baddies.

This recipe is one which I categorize as On-The-Fly – that is, you add ingredients, not in exact amounts, but in relation to each other, depending on what you have on hand. It is entirely flexible, but here’s where I start (and by all means, use organic wherever possible):

You’ll also want to have on hand:

Pour your dried seaweed of whatever type into your glass storage container, just enough to cover the bottom, as in the middle thumbnail shot, above. Next, add about 1/2 – 3/4 inch of spring water. You’ll see the seaweed start to rehydrate, which is cool to watch. Cover loosely with the container’s lid and give it 20-30 minutes to totally rehydrate, stirring it around midway just a bit to distribute the water evenly and make sure there are no dried holdouts. It should look like this:

If there’s any excess water, drain it off into a shot glass and drink up – it’s got plenty of minerals, so don’t let ’em go to waste:

Now you’ll add your greens and/or veggies – if you buy them pre-packaged, it’ll save you loads of time, if you chop ’em yourself, just eyeball the amount you’ll need. I add enough cabbage to fill the container so it’s slightly heaping:

Don’t worry about everything fitting – the next step, you’ll use a pair of kitchen shears (or a very clean pair of office scissors) to “scissor” the cabbage so it starts to reduce in volume – and look more like confetti. I also rinse and add a healthy fistful of mixed salad or microgreens and scissor them a bit as well to de-vol:

You’ll start noticing how the salad is becoming more dense after adding and scissoring. This creates the best conditions for spicing and marinading. To start, drizzle some olive oil over your scissored veggie-rehydrated seaweed mix:

At this point, I’ll show you the spices I like to use at the moment – Fresh & Easy’s Rustic Tuscan, which has a selection of dried Italian herbs, vegetables and sea salt that makes this salad a winner. Pour enough on to give the top a nice coating, for flavor’s sake:

To finish out the marinade, drizzle vinegar over the whole thing. How much olive oil, spices and vinegar do I use? Approximately just under one tablespoon of olive oil, around the same for spices and slightly more for vinegar. It’s pretty scant, but these ingredients are the ones I’d categorize as “add to taste” – so start small, and if you don’t think there’s enough flavor, add a little more vinegar and/or spices later on.

Finally, gently and ever so slightly stir around your salad, just enough that the dried herbs and spices get mixed up in the oil and vinegar – they’ll need time to reconstitute, longer than the seaweed.

Once your mix is slightly stirred, secure the lid onto the container and place the whole container into the fridge for a few hours. At that time, take it out, stir it around so that everything is uniformly mixed together, then place it back into the fridge for another hour or two.

In just a few hours, the marinade will work its wonders and you’ll have a healthy salad to eat for days. And it can be extended or stretched to save you time and money – if you have extra chopped veggies or greens – or any old veggies that need using – you can add them and just a little more vinegar, oil and spices, stir them around, and you have salad for another couple of days.

Enjoy!

Yours in Great Health,

Alison