Matcha – why you should be drinking it now!

CS-matcha-powder_mediumYou’ve probably heard about it, possibly seen it on the shelves but do you know why it’s so good for you, and how you can try it?

I’m a huge fan, so thought I’d share with you the lowdown on why Matcha is so great, and some delicious ways to try it too.  Get ready to ditch your morning coffee and swap it for something just as energising, but natural and flood your body with powerful antioxidants!

What is it?

Matcha is finely ground powder of specially grown green tea, and just one serving (1/2 teaspoon) is equivalent to 10 cups of brewed green tea.

Why is it great?

You’ve probably all heard about the wonderful properties of green tea, well given Matcha’s potency, these benefits are even more amazing in just one serving.  I think if I’m honest, like most people, I would struggle to drink 10 cups of green tea a day, but with Matcha I know I only need to have one serving to be reaping the benefits.  Here are just some of them: –

– Immunity boosting & boosts mental awareness

– Helps control stress

– May help in weight loss due to it helping to boost the metabolism

– As energising as an expresso but without the rise in your cortisol levels (our stress hormone)

– Caffeine creates an instant boost for around 1 hour, but you will crash as the caffeine leaves your system, leaving you with an energy dip

– Although Matcha contains caffeine, it’s only around half the amount of a regular coffee

– Matcha is absorbed much slower too over a period of about 5-6 hours, giving a much preferred slow release of energy

– No impact is given to insulin levels, in fact Matcha helps to stabilise blood sugar levels, and contains I-theanine (an amino acid that aids relaxation)

– Helps the body get more oxygen and nutrients to cells, and can help with anti-ageing and producing radiant skin

What are the different types?

There are two main different types of Matcha.  Food grade contains slightly less antioxidants and is used for flavouring foods with Matcha.  Ceremonial grade Matcha has a much higher concentration of antioxidants, and is therefore far more potent and good for your health.

Like most things you do get what you pay for, so I would suggest you always look for organic and the best ceremonial grade Matcha you can afford.

How to drink it?

Matcha powder is quite versatile and can easily be drunk is many ways.  My favourite is as a Matcha Almond Milk Latte: –

Gently heat a cup or mug of Almond Milk (preferably home made) in a pan

Place 1/2 tsp of Matcha powder into a cup or mug

Add a little water and mix into a paste

When the milk is warmed through, add it to the Matcha paste and whisk with a spoon until combined

I like to then just add some cinnamon and turmeric, or some natural vanilla extract, but you can just drink it plain or add a little coconut nectar or raw honey to sweeten if you prefer

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Alternatively you can add Matcha to smoothies and juices to give them a boost of antioxidants!

So, the next time you feel like you need a coffee, have a think about switching to the wonders of Matcha……….

Enjoy

x

 

 

 

 

 


Did you know you had two brains?

Brain_Skin_Gut-600x618Yes, you did read that correctly, and I’m not talking some alien type image of a man with two brains!

I’m talking about your gut, that little place where all your food goes.  Your gut is central to all your body systems, and how healthy it is, and if it’s in balance can play a dramatic part in how we feel and how we react to stress.
Remember that feeling you get when you go for an interview, waiting to go into an exam or even the dentist? How about that similar feeling you get when something doesn’t feel right, or your anxious about something you’ve done?

You’ve probably heard the phrases “I’ve got the collywobbles” or “I’m listening to my gut instinct”?

We’ve all experienced some of these, right?  Well, these are great simple examples of the brain-gut connection.

A healthy gut environment is key to good mental health, and helps with our recovery from stresses once they’ve gone.

So what prompted me to share this with you? Well, if you’ve read about me, you’ll understand the journey I have been on to be where I am today.  My gut had been compromised with IBS, Candida etc, and with changing what I ate I healed my gut and felt amazing. The trouble is as you’re learning now, reading this, how you feel has a huge impact on how your gut feels. So when I went through the dark period of stress & depression, even though I was eating well, my gut was being compromised by the effects of the stress hormone cortisol.

Here’s the admission (takes a deep breath)! My emotional state also clouded my thinking, and whilst I thought I was lucky having the knowledge I have, as I was eating well during this time, my mind forgot to remind me that stress can impact the balance of your gut regardless.

What was my tell tale? My skin!

Your skin is a great place to analyse what’s going on inside, and I started suffering from rosacea acne, and flare ups got worse as I had a particularly stress induced emotional day.

So, I started to focus on healing my gut – you’d think just by eating healthily, this would cure it, but there’s a lot more to it than that.  Basically, when your gut is compromised it causes a state called “Leaky Gut”, this can cause a lowered immunity, enable bacteria to enter the bloodstream, and for absorption of vitamins & minerals to decrease.

Action plan in place, here’s what I decided to focus on. There is many conflicting information out there, but after lots of research I decided, these were for me:-

1. Removing foods and factors that damage the gut

– luckily for me I already don’t have gluten, dairy or processed sugar in my diet

– so in addition, omitting high sugar fruits, yeast, caffeine & alcohol (thankfully I have minimal consumption of these two anyway)

2. Eat more healing foods, including prebiotic rich foods to encourage good bacteria

– luckily I love and eat a lot of cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and am a huge garlic fan!

– Kefir and fermented products

– Coconut products

3. Repair the gut with supplements

I did a more research into this, and for me I decided to give this a try: –

– L-glutamine – this is an essential amino acid that is also an anti-inflammatory, and great for growth and repair of the gut lining

4. Put more beneficial probiotics in to my body

– I take a probiotic supplement daily anyway, and sometimes it’s good to change the strain, so I changed mine

My journey with healing is still ongoing, but my skin already looks so much better.  Time to heal depends on how long your gut has been compromised, but mine is so much better already 🙂

Have a wonderful healthy week

Love

 

Amanda

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