Magical Leek Soup!

Made famous from the book "French Women Don't Get Fat", Dr. Miracle's "Magical Leek Soup" has made it's way to America from France. (I have a picture of Hilary Swank because she came up in the google search, and appearently she will be in the movie? Plus, maybe, if you do this detox you can look like her!! lol)

I guess this recipe has been used for generations of French women to detoxify. If you check out my early blog about fasting, you will see I am a supporter of fasting and believe it can provide many benefits to your body and mind. But, fasting can be hard. So having the support of a nutrious liquid over the course of a 48 hour fast can be very helpful. Leeks are also a known diuretic, speeding up the detox process.

If you like the taste of leeks, or just want to try something new, this may be for you!! Let me know how it works for you!

Recipe for Magical Leek Soup
Serves one for the weekend

2 lbs. leeks
Water to cover in a large pot

1. Clean leeks and rinse well to get rid of sand and soil. Cut end of green parts leaving all the white parts plus a little of green.
2. Put leeks in large pot and cover with water. Bring to boil and simmer with no lid for 20-30 minutes. Pour off the liquid and reserve. Place the leeks in a bowl.

Instructions:
The juice is to be drunk (reheated or room temperature to taste) every 2-3 hours, a cup at a time.
For meals or whenever hungry, have some of the leeks themselves, ½ cup at a time. Drizzle with a few drops of extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Season sparingly with salt and pepper. Add chopped parsley if you wish.
This will be your nourishment for both days, until Sunday dinner, when you can have a small piece of meat or fish, with two vegetables, steamed with a bit of butter or oil, and a piece of fruit.

Fat Kids

Well, it's not a very nice title. We're told not to call people fat. Especially kids. But fat is fat, and these days 33% of children are obese...that's not good. So, call a spade a spade and know when to make changes for your children.

In a recent study published in the journal Obesity it was shown when nutrition and exercise education was given only to parents, their children shed about the same amount of weight as kids who took part in the weight-loss classes with their parents.

It has long been established that weight-loss education for families is effective at helping children lose weight and keep it off. A 1994 study published in Health Psychology found that about one-third of overweight and obese kids who attended educational classes in childhood had decreased the amount that they were overweight by 20%. 10 years later, and 30% were no longer obese.

These findings have contributed to my personal interest in health education. The reason I write this blog, and the reason I began my own company, Wellness Initiatives. Currently, I am designing a wellness program for kids aged 12-14 that will teach them, one-on-one, the skills they need to lead a happy, healthy life. But this new research may mean that I need to make sure I include the parents a little more than I had already planned to!

 So...does this research mean it's YOUR fault your kid is fat? Well, frankly, yes. More than likely it is.

So what can you do? You can participate in a health class or educate yourself online or through books. You can enroll your child in a program like Running Start or a wellness summer camp. Either way, it's important that you give your child the skills to make healthy decisions in their own life in the future. And for now, make sure you provide fruits and vegetables at home and encourage exercise and other good eating habits.

If we establish healthy living early on, the chances of us staying healthy throughout our lives is increased phenomenally. So, give your kids the tools they need to live a happy, healthy life!!!

Corporate Wellness and Productivity

When you feel good physically, you feel good mentally. So, if you have healthy, fit and active employees, chances are you have more productive employees. A correlation between health and productivity has never been made using proper scientific methods, although I'm sure this type of research is not far off in the future. What we do have is our intuition and personal experiences, as well as the testaments of successful companies, to tell us that this correlation is real and accurate.

What type of program should your company have? Well, that depends on the needs and wants of the employees. Doing a small survey to see if your employees would use an on-site gym or fitness classes, if they would like seminars or a running group would be helpful. As would an evaluation of their current health, using an HRA (Health Risk Assessment). With this information, a taylored wellness program can reduce your insurance costs and absenteeism, and improve productivity, employee satisfation and be a great recruiting tool for new desireable employees.

If you are looking for a wellness coordinator or consultant, contact me at khand@wellnessinitiatives.net and I can offer some guidance!