18 Rules for Greater Health
Peter Brodhead CN - Certified Nutritionist
Brighter Day Natural Foods Market
1102 Bull Street Savannah, GA 31401
(912) 236-4703
E-Mail PeterHBrodhead@Gmail.com

1. Eat Colors – from as wide a variety of vegetables, fruits, berries, nuts, 100% whole or sprouted grains and beans as possible. Each color signifies a different anti-oxidant either from the carotenes or flavanoids in fruits and vegetables. Red means lycopene, yellow lutien, purple and blue anthocyandins, green carotenes.

2. Eat a mixture of carotene rich foods – from Beta and Alpha Carotene: Carrots, Kale, Collards, Sweet Potatoes, Winter Squash, Yellow Squash ( Spirulina a micro algae is an excellent source of carotenes) Lycopene: Persimmons, Red Bell Peppers, Tomatoes and all tomato products, Red Delicious Apples. Lutein: Egg Yolks (free range eggs can contain up to 11x more), Spinach, Kale, Collards.

3. Be berry good to yourself - from a mixture of flavanoid rich foods such as generous amounts of berries – if they are out of season buy unsweetened frozen berries – the bio-availability of the flavanoids are increased. Flavanoids fight inflammation and glue you together – they help all connective tissues in the body resist aging. Take whole fruits – apples, pears, plums, peaches, mangoes, kiwi, persimmons, mangoes, and berries with you as a snack.

4. Consider buying a juicer – this is the easiest way to consume lots of colorful vegetables and fruits – raw with all the live enzymes and get massive amounts of nutrients - carotenes, flavanoids, vitamins and minerals in a single glass of juice.

5. Eat some sulfur – from garlic, onions, shallots, leeks and green onions. The sulfur containing vegetables are very good for detoxification and supporting the cardiovascular system. Sulfur helps the body repair and build connective tissue.

6. Choose meat wisely – try to choose free range, maverick grass fed beef or certified organic whenever you can or can afford it. Look for hormone and antibiotic free and as lean a cut as possible. When a cow is grass fed only, or a chicken eats outside, the meat is high in the anti-inflammatory fat CLA. Feeding animals corn increases the amount of inflammatory compounds found in the meat. Keep arachidonic acid levels as low as possible by eating lean cuts (AA – arachidonic acid is the precursor to series 2 prostaglandins which are inflammatory). Series 1 prostaglandins (GLA the fat found in primrose oil, borage oil or black currant oil) are very good as well as series 3 prostaglandins (omega 3 fats) found in fish oil and flax oil are also very good because they fight inflammation. Bison – tends to be much leaner than beef. Lamb, although fattier, is usually raised with less hormones and anti-biotics. Ostrich is leaner than any other meat (much leaner than chicken or turkey and it has the flavor of beef). Take the skin off chicken and turkey – and especially for chicken look for anti-biotic and hormone free meat – free range or organic if possible. Eat free range or organic eggs also.

7. Get cultured – use low fat or skim dairy products. Cultured dairy is even better, such as yogurt and even more so with kefir. Both are exceptionally high in beneficial probiotic bacteria which balance out the flora in the intestines – helping the absorption of vitamins and minerals. Probiotic bacteria prevent yeast and fungal overgrowth, prevent constipation and diarrhea and support the immune system. The probiotics in kefir support the production of serotonin in the intestines – which the brain uses as an anti-depressant. Kefir supports a good mood. Cottage Cheese is cultured and is one of the most outstanding sources of high quality protein you can get – it offers more bang for the buck in terms of protein per serving of just about any food and is incredibly convienient.

8. Go nuts - nuts contain high amounts of quality protein, essential fatty acids both good Omega 3s & 6s. nuts are exceptionally high in the mineral magnesium. Brazil nuts are the highest source of selenium of any food. Seeds are also high in the same good things but have greater amounts of zinc – especially pumpkin seeds. Studies have shown that people who eat nuts frequently don’t get as fat as people who don't eat nuts. But nut eaters need to be mindful about quantities. Nuts are high in calories in large quantities, so the important thing to remember is that you don't need alot of nuts to feel satisfied and to get the required nutritional value from them. A little dab'll do ya!!

9. Change your oil – keep oils refrigerated or in the dark. Use a lot of olive oil – make it your top oil to use. You can sauté in canola oil and fry with coconut oil ( it can handle heat without breaking down – it’s a great popcorn oil ! ) Never eat margarine or any fat that contains the work partially-hydrogenated in it – use butter instead (moderately). Sesame, High Oleic Sunflower or High Oleic Safflower are ok too. Eat Omega rich foods, such as walnuts,flax seeds, hemp seed products, sardines, wild salmon – most canned salmon is wild – look for the word wild on any salmon label – substitute salmon for tuna in sandwiches and salads. Other cold water fish, such as sardines (that are not on the decline get the list from the Monterey Aquarium website) and fresh water trout are good. But aoid tuna because of the mercury it may contain.

10. Fiber out – eat whole apples, pears, whole fruit, whole carrots, sweet potatoes and 100% whole grains or sprouted 100% whole grains. Fiber is critical to normal detoxification and cholesterol reduction. Get the extra estrogen out. There is a lot of estrogen in our environment coming from pesticides and plastics DIM and indole-3 carbinols are compounds found in the cabbage family of vegetables that remove excess unwanted estrogen out of our bodies. These vegetables are cabbage, broccoli, broccoli sprouts, brussels sprouts, and Kale. Flax seed meal is loaded with lignans (compounds that bind to estrogen receptor sites in the body) that may help to prevent breast cancer and prostate cancer.

11. Spice up your life - spices are high in anti-oxidants (which is why they were used in the middle ages to protect food from spoiling) and many are high in antiinflammatory agents. Rosemary for example has a compound in it called carnisolic acid that is a “Redox” anti-oxidant that can recycle an anti-oxidant activity 3 to 4X before getting used up (Olives also have tyrisol a very potent redox anti-oxidant). Rosemary is very supportive to the liver and to detoxification of the liver and is great for the brain in supporting memory function. Rosemary’s anti-oxidants are considered much more powerful than vitamin E in protecting the fat elements in the body from going rancid. Turmeric and Ginger roots are in the same plant family and have strong COX-2 inhibiting effects and may work as well as prescription medicines in this regard. Black Pepper helps our absorption of the vitamins and minerals in our foods. All spices have numerous benefits – use them liberally and frequently in your diet.

12. Drink a little red wine - (or take your wine in a pill) red wine contains a compound called resveratrol one of the strongest COX-2 inhibiting factors found in nature.Resveratrol is also strongly cancer inhibiting. It comes in a pill form and although a pill isn't as romantic as a glass of wine, with a little candlelight you can fake it.

13. Eat a little dark chocolate - dark chocolate contains anthocyandins which protect the cardiovascular system.....in small quatities.

14. Take a spot o' tea - green tea contains catechins and flavanoids that are anti-inflammatory and cancer protective. Also, green tea contains an amino acid compound called Theanine that calms, putting the brain into an alpha wave state (more calm and meditative). In green tea although you get small amounts of caffeine which gives you a boost, the Theanine counteracts the caffeine by calming you down. The combination of energy + calming is great for the American lifestyle. If you just want the energy without the calming effect, drink black tea because in black tea the Theanine has been fermented out (so its effects aren’t calming like green tea). However, black tea contains Theafins that help with cholesterol reduction. Hint re black tea: don’t put milk in your black tea as milk will bind/inhibit the anti-oxidant effects.

15. Get your zzzzzzs – get to bed a little earlier – 10pm – 10:30pm – The liver does its major detoxification work between 10pm and 2am simultaneously, during that time period, melatonin production is at its peak. Sleep in complete darkness to optimize melatonin – melatonin is a powerful anti-oxidant – it has powerful effects on helping the immune system and preventing cancer. If you take supplements to support liver function such as Milk Thistle extract take a dose at bedtime to support liver detoxification.

16. Get out in the sun – be smart, expose yourself to the sun for short periods, such as twenty minutes a day. You can get up to twenty minutes of sun before applying sunscreen. But if you're very sensitive, apply the sunscreen before that -don’t burn yourself. The research on Vitamin D is coming at us in avalanches. Besides being critical for bone health, sun (in sensible amounts) is a massive regulator of cellular function in the body. It helps prevent cancer, regulates blood pressure, is an anti-depressant (especially winter depression), helps auto-immune function, and helps other hormones such as testosterone in men and estrogen in women.

17.Get moving - walk, run, play tennis, swim, bowl, dance, garden, get a dog that has to be pooped outside, get into an activity at least three times a week that you enjoy and that will help you feel better. The dog may need to go out more than three times a week!! Park in the furthest spot from the door of that favorite store or restaurant, rather than parking in the nearest spot. Move in place when you're on the telephone or watching television. Do whatever you can to keep fit as often a you can.

18. Stay hydrated - Don’t forget to drink plenty of filtered or purified water daily. If you drink coffee, drink a glass of water for every cup of coffee you drink. The DASH diet – was a study that found that a diet with reduced saturated fat and abundant in whole fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy foods can significantly lower high blood pressure. The DASH diet lowered blood pressure to the same extent as did antihypertensive drugs. Visit www.Cspinet.org/nah/dash.htm for more info specific to the diet or go to www.brighterdayfoods.com go to the links section – the first part has a link to a pdf of the booklet explaining the DASH diet in its entirety.