Blended News

If you follow Blended, you know we're BIG into helping you stay healthy, supporting personal goals and getting you through health-hurdle times. This week, we're talking about something that everyone needs to know about: how Inflammation impacts your body AND mind. It's such an important conversation, we're breaking this into a 2-Part series.

In Part 1 of our Inflammation series, we're going to get into the what-why of inflammation, how it impacts your mind and body and tips on keeping it low.

In Part 2 we'll be getting further into the nutrition-factor and giving you a three-day inflammation nutrition plan for when your body needs more support.

Let's dive in.

The Inflammation What-Why

Inflammation refers to your body's process of fighting against things that harm it, such as infections, injuries, and toxins, in an attempt to heal itself. When something damages your cells, your body releases chemicals that trigger a response from your immune system. There are two types:

Acute: acute inflammation is noticeable within a few hours and is caused by injury or illness. It is short term and typically lasts a couple days.
Symptoms: pain, redness, loss of joint and/or muscle function, swelling, and heat (felt externally from the skin). 

Chronic: chronic inflammation has a slow on-set and can last several months to years. It can be brought on by untreated causes of acute inflammation, an autoimmune disorder, which involves your immune system mistakenly attacking healthy tissue, and long-term exposure to irritants, such as industrial chemicals or polluted air. Symptoms: 

• Body pain, arthralgia, myalgia
• Chronic fatigue and insomnia
• Depression, anxiety and mood disorders
• Gastrointestinal complications like constipation, diarrhea, and acid reflux
• Weight gain or weight loss
• Frequent infections

We're most interested in the Chronic type and the critical role nutrition plays in both prevention and treatment. 

Chronic Inflammation

Chronic inflammation has very negative physical and mental health consequences.  In addition to the symptoms listed above, it is involved in the disease process of many conditions including: Alzheimer's, asthma, cancers, heart disease, arthritis, diabetes. 

The Gut-inflammation Connection

The major source of inflammation is coming from your gut, which hosts the largest number of immune cells in the body. You also have a lot of bacteria in your gut, which helps regulate your immune cell response. When you aren't eating the right foods, including getting enough fibre, inflammation is the response. You need to feed your gut bacteria the right types of food (fibre specifically).

We love how Dr. Rhonda Patrick breaks this down the what-why of inflammation in the body, the key role your gut and nutrition play in regulating it, and easy tips for keeping your levels in check. Throw in your ear buds, take a walk & listen: Understanding Inflammation

Inflammation & Your Brain

Keeping your brain healthy is another key reason to ensure you don't end up in a state of Chronic Inflammation. Neuroinflammation is proving to play a powerful role in conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Lewy body dementia, and frontotemporal dementia. Rates for these neurodegenerative illnesses are increasing steadily with the aging population, and it is thought that worsening symptoms can be blamed on the havoc inflammation wreaks on brain regions involved in thinking, memory, and movement, or, in the case of frontotemporal dementia, personality, behavior, and language. Read more on this here: Inflammation Harvard Eu

The good news is that what you eat can keep inflammation low, and bring it down if you're struggling with high levels now.

Getting Your Fibre

For a healthy gut, you need to load up on fibre every day (aim for at least 30 to 40 grams).  Get 10 to 14 grams of fibre in one single Blended For You smoothie, soup or bowl.  Email us for a list of blends with the highest fibre count. 

Inflammation-Fighting Foods

Turmeric
Ginger
Pineapple
Spirulina
Olive oil
Berries
Almonds & Walnuts
Apple Cider Vinegar
Green Leafy Vegetables (spinach, kale)
Omega-Rich Fatty Fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines)

Your daily Blended habit is one way you can keep your gut health in check & keep inflammation levels down. Email us anytime for a list of recommended blends that are right for your taste buds and health goals.

Stay tuned for Inflammation Part 2: we've got more tips and tools for sticking to an anti-inflammatory diet. We've also got an exciting new blend package launching. Can you guess what it's all about?

Happy Blending!

Love for Your Immune System 

Remember the last time you had a bad cold/flu and felt incredibly grateful for not feeling sick any longer when it passed? Let's skip the sick part this year and make prevention the goal.

It's that time: start loading up on your Vitamin D, C, Bs & show your immune system some serious love. Here are the foods we double-down on as the cold/rainy season rolls in:

Zinc: reduces the risk of upper respiratory infections. Find it our Choco Banana Hero, Maca Energy, and Shroom Energy blends.

Probiotics: improve gut health which boosts overall immunity. Sources: yogurt, fermented foods (tempeh, kimchi), kombucha.

Vitamins B6, B12, C, D, E: boost your immune system & help your body fight off bacteria and infection. Check out our Immunity-Boosting & Recovery collection for healthy doses of each. The Remedy Smoothie & Greens Immunity Soups are your go-to in this category.

Garlic: helps the immune system fight germs. Are you cooking with it yet? Find it in our three soups.

Ginger & Turmeric: known for their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-boosting properties. The smoothies in our Deep Greens & Tropical Greens blends are packed with both. For those of you wanting a turmeric dose in a nutty-banana or berry flavor, try the Nutty Athlete or The Athlete smoothies.

Antioxidants: are powerful compounds in our foods that keep our immune systems strong. Many natural cellular processes in our bodies create waste, some of which form free radicals that raise havoc on our health. The ability of antioxidants to destroy free radicals protects the structural integrity of cells and tissues. Dark chocolate/ cacao, spinach, kale, berries are all amazing sources; loaded into a ton of our blends (take your pick!).

The Blended Cold & Flu Fighter combo gives daily immune system support and makes your supplement routine way more taste bud friendly. Unlike pill, powder and tablet forms, we make sure the ingredient combination maximizes your body's absorption of all those key vitamins & minerals. Hit by a bug? The blends will help with recovery and make nourishing yourself back to good health the easy part.

The Details: ten immunity-boosting, antioxidant-packed blends nourish your body with tons of essential vitamins and minerals including high doses of: Vitamins C, A, K, B12, zinc, iron, folate, potassium, magnesium, plus plant protein and fibre. Your one-a-day habit that keeps your body strong & taste buds happy.

Bonus: It's also a great gift for anyone who needs some love in the form of nutrition support. This 10-pack of blends includes:

2 x The Remedy
2 x Vita-C Immunity
Greens Daily Dose
Be Green
Greens Immunity Soup
Sweet Potato Coconut Soup
Green Beginnings
The Cherry Bomb 

Click, Shop The Cold & Flu Fighter 

Happy Blending! 

Foods for Your Good Mood

Mood can be impacted by several things such as stress, hormones, and, at the top of the list, the foods we eat.

Food and your mood: low-nutrient dense foods (think sugary, white fluffy, low fibre, processed, high in unhealthy-fats types of foods) can put us in a really bad mood. Why? The quick spike in your blood sugar from eating junk foods high in refined carbohydrates and added sugars can cause a surge in insulin, leading to a quick drop in blood sugar, which then leaves you feeling tired and cranky. Studies have also shown that high-salt foods/diets can cause fatigue in both adults and children.

Another big one? Alcohol. It's a depressant, so keep it on the under 4 drinks per week and skip it all-together in high stress and/or energy-challenging times.

Here are some of our top good-mood foods:

Avocados: avocados contain high levels of folate, and a deficiency in folate has been linked to depression. Their high antioxidant levels may also be protective against depression. We love combining avocado and spirulina in our Deep Green blends for a big folate dose.

Raspberries: raspberries are packed with fibre, which helps slow digestion and results in more stable blood sugars. Unstable blood sugar (sharp spikes and drops) has been linked to negative moods and irritability, which means stabilizing your glucose levels can help level out your emotional state.

Mood-Regulating Adaptogens: adaptogens (edible plants that have been shown to help the brain and body adapt in stressful situations) are high on our list for the combined mind & body support they give. Lion’s mane & chaga mushrooms are examples of adaptogens that have shown to help the body respond to stressful situations by functioning as a mood stabilizer and decrease symptoms of mild depression.

Chia Seeds: chia is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which aid in brain health and mood regulation. They're also a good source of magnesium, a calming mineral that has been shown to help with sleep. Low levels of magnesium are linked to depression and anxiety. Upping your intake of chia can have positive effects on everything from anxiety to insomnia and PMS symptoms.

Bananas: bananas are high in vitamin B6, which helps synthesize feel-good neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin. Combined with fibre (e.g., chia, spinach in your smoothies), the naturally occurring sugars in bananas are released slowly into your bloodstream, allowing for stable blood sugar levels and better mood control.

Bonus: they're packed into a ton of our blends to make it easy for you to get them in on the daily.

Stress-Busting

When stressed, your adrenal glands release the stress hormone cortisol. Too much cortisol can be the culprit of low energy, hormonal imbalance, weight gain, insomnia, digestive issues, immunity weakness, cognitive dysfunction, and more. When able to adapt to stress, we significantly reduce the negative impact it has on our bodies. Adaptogens help our bodies fight against stress by helping support our resistance to, and reduce the negative impacts from, physical and mental stress.

Here are some of our faves & the key benefits they’re touted for:

Ashwagandha: reducing stress & anxiety, boosting immunity, adrenal fatigue

Maca: hormone balance, adrenal function

Turmeric: inflammation reduction, brain function

Reishi: reducing stress & anxiety, boosting immunity, sleep quality

Cordyceps: boosting energy & stamina, adrenal function

Lion’s Mane: brain function, boosting energy

One Week to Healthier Habits

When you start feeling tired, sluggish, bloated, brain fogged and generally rundown, your body is telling you it needs something. Your gut and nutrition play a huge role in all of these symptoms (trust your gut!), which means both a focused heath reset & then regular daily nutrition habits go a long way in helping reduce inflammation and bloating, increasing your energy levels, keeping your immune system strong and mind healthy. Let's get to it!

7 Big-Impact Habits

Here are seven habits to practice when your body needs a recharge and reset on eating habits. Try sticking to all the tips for a full week, then do another week if that feels right for you.

If you don’t need a reset, but just want to get into better regular habits, try the 80-20 rule: keep it clean at least 80% of the time, use the other 20% as your wiggle-room for indulgences and ‘not-so healthy, but you love them’ foods.

1. Avoid refined sugar & syrups: this rule helps avoid all the treat foods that might be lingering in your cupboards. Naturally occurring sugars in whole foods like fruits and veggies are ok. Check the ingredient list packaged and prepared foods nutrition panels (watch for sugar, fructose, corn syrup, rice syrup, molasses, caramel, maltose, cane sugar, invert sugar).

​2. Drop the gluten (and any gluten-free foods that are highly processed): avoid breads, pastas & cereals and breaded foods. Bread-lovers, this is a short term thing - removing gluten from your diet for a week or more is a great way to tell if it is causing an inflammation reaction in your body. Reintroduce in moderate amounts.

3. Go Cow Dairy-free: skip the yogurt, milk, cheeses all together (small amounts of sheep & goat cheeses are ok). Keep it moderate post-reset, too. Pro-tip: watch for added sugar in plant-based yogurts.

4. Go whole foods & plant-based (or mostly plant-based): we love all things plant-based eating, but know it's not for everyone. During your reset, avoid all non-organic animal proteins and skip red meat and shellfish. The focus: veggies, fruits, grains (quinoa is a staple), sweet potatoes (and family), healthy fats, smaller amounts of proteins. Avoid processed and fried foods. If you'd like a foods list to follow, please email us for your Blended Clean Foods List (this is a great 80-20 list to follow).

5. Be Beverage-Wise & Hydrate: one cup of coffee a day is ok, but tea is a better bet. No sugary drinks. Alcohol gets a break (sorry, this is a big zero units). Check the sodium content on bottled bevs. Drink loads of water (+ lemon &/or cucumber) - aIm for 12 glasses a day (3 litres) during the reset week, then stick to a minimum of 8 to 10 post.

Pro-tip: put a hydration tracker on your data device & get your first 2 glasses (8 oz each) checked off as soon as you wake up.

6. Watch the Sauces & Dips: keep an eye out for high sodium, sugar-packed sauces and dressings. Stick to olive oil bases & natural ingredients.

7. Set Up an Eating Schedule: keeping your metabolism and energy up and also reducing cravings for quick salt/sugar/caffeine fixes. Check out the sample below and set one up that’s right for your daily schedule.

Post health-reset, stick to the above at least 80% of the time to keep your body and mind energized and healthy. If you have specific health questions you’d like help with and/or blend recommendations for your taste buds and health goals, please email us.

Sample Eating Schedule