Probiotics and coconut oil

These 2 are a must! A good probiotic is essential to your health. I am on the road right now so I can't give you all the benefits of these too that I would like, but I will at a late date. If you are not taking probiotics I highly suggest that you do! It helps balance out the bacteria in your digestive system...it is full of the good bacteria we need to better digest food and it helps keep your gut free of candida and other infections.
Coconut oil is also a must! It is a wonderful anti fungal for those with yeast infections! I can't even tell you how many other benefits it has. It helps clear up skin, heals cuts, helps you lose weight, is an amazing moisturizer, and an extremely healthy cooking oil! You can eat it and put it on your skin...how awesome is that!? I keep a jar in my kitchen and a jar in the bathroom. Make sure your coconut oil is organic! I have even used it as butter on my toast...delicious! I also have a new obsession with cutting up zucchini and cooking it in a frying pan with coconut oil! I have also been using it as a body and face wash and moisturizer. The cool thing about it is that below 75ih degrees its a solid and above that it becomes a liquid so just a scoop some into your hands and rub it together until it liquifies then lather it on! The yummy coconut smell is a nice bonus.
I have also been takin quercetin that is found in apples and other veggies but can also be taken in supplement form. It's supposed to help with hives. Apples are just so healthy for you!
One last thing because I am getting car sick...haha. Drink LOTS of water. I cannot stress how much you should be drinking water. Coffee and tea really dehydrate you so if you want I enjoy a cup make sure you drink extra water afterwards! Soda and most juices and soooo bad or you. Sugar to the extreme and so many strange names ingredients...just quit drinking them! Lol you should be drinking at least 64 oz of water a day but I say drink more! It really helps to flush out your system.
Okay that's all for now...I am on my way to Easton town center mall!!! Ill update later :)
Blessings,
Jami

Sugar Free, Dairy Free, Gluten Free

So what healthy lifestyle changes have I made already? Basically I have cut out gluten, dairy, and sugar from my diet (when I say diet I mean "what I eat" not the "I'm trying to lose weight" diet. I have researched both the candida diet and the anti-inflammatory diet quite extensively and have used the two as my basis.

I actually spent a week detoxing my body first...it was very difficult, and though a program I was following said it was not required I still thought it would be a good way to cleanse my organs of all the processed food I eat (as well as all the junk I ate over the holidays). This week of detox consisted of me eating ONLY fruits and vegetables and taking a fiber drink twice a day. I surprisingly did not starve, but it was still quite difficult.

After that was over, I started what I am now continuing to follow. The number one thing I knew needed to go was sugar. We all know how bad sugar is for you...causes you to gain weight, problematic to people with diabetes, etc, but for those who are prone to candida or have a yeast infection it is of extreme importance to avoid it at all costs...Candida feeds off of sugar so you can't truly eliminate it from your body until you cut off its supply. This is hard for me as a cake decorator, and you may think...I can't do that! I crave sweets! Well guess why you crave them?? And yes, it will be very hard at first to avoid the temptation, but once your body realizes its not getting anymore it kinda "gets over it". When I say "no sugar" I mean all forms including refined sugar, powdered sugar, honey, maple syrup, and all sugar substitutes. Many things you see out there that claim to be sugar free and actually filled with a sugar substitute such as aspartame, and this does just as much harm to your body. Most candida diets are more strict with the sugar than I am...they also exclude all fruits except lemons and limes, but I have also allowed myself to eat some apples and berries because they are just so good for you and have lower amounts of sugar.

Next thing I realized was going to have to go is dairy. Now that I have cut it out I realize how much of a dairy person I am. I had milk every day with my cereal, cheese usually in my lunch and often in my dinner as well, I love string cheese, yogurt was a daily thing for me, and my favorite dessert is cheesecake! I have tried before years ago to cut out dairy and failed miserably, but this time around it has been easier. Maybe I am just more motivated. I use almond milk now instead. Vanilla almond milk unsweetened to be exact. (The unsweetened goes back to the no sugar rule). It is okay by itself, but better in things like smoothies and oatmeal. There are lots of other non-dairy options with cheese and yogurt, but I have yet to try them.

So , I know what you are thinking...seriously, NO sugar, and NO dairy? Well now let me add a third really hard one for me. Gluten...some of you may not really know what gluten is. Gluten is found in foods processed from wheat and other grains alike (barley and rye). Why must it be avoided? Well for one it is connected to yeast, secondly many people are sensitive to it and don't even know it, and it's high in carbohydrates which your body turns into sugar. Let me tell you, I am a huge carb lover...I love bread, pasta, and potatoes, which are all "no no's" on this diet.

So here's what every one is probably wondering now, "what in the world can you eat then!?" Lots and lots of veggies (limiting carrots, potatoes, and other starchy carbohydrate filled ones), some fruits as listed above, brown rice, lean meats (but be careful...they need to be organic/free of antibiotics...wild caught salmon is great...absolutely great for you), nuts (not peanuts), beans (but limit these as well). To sweeten things I have been using packets of stevia, because everything I have read thus far "OK's" it, and for those of you like me that love pasta, they make pasta that is made from brown rice (found in health food section). Tortilla chips and hummus are a nice snack. Here are some meals I have been eating:

    Breakfast: Oatmeal, smoothies, eggs and turkey sausage, herbal tea
    Lunch:  Salad with lots of veggies and chicken (dressing is olive oil and lemon..the only okay vinegar is apple cider), vegetable beef soup (homemade of course), chili, tortilla chips...
    Dinner: Baked/grilled chicken, salmon, brown rice, broccoli (great for you), ground turkey with tomato sauce (no added sugar) and brown rice pasta.

There are tons more options and I will let you know of them as I update, but I think this is good for now. One last thing I want to point out. The first couple weeks on this I was doing great, but then started to get frustrated with the results and  got busy and went to a few parties (and made cakes) and I began eating whatever I wanted again..and within 2 days I felt sick every night and my skin became inflamed quicker and more often. Needless to say I learned my lesson and am giving this healthy lifestyle change the time it needs to reverse whatever I have been doing to my body for this long. It takes times...lots more time than you think to rid your body of the toxins that have been there for who knows how long. DON'T GIVE UP!

Next blog I will go more into detail with the supplements I take and other measures I am taking to get myself back on track! Leave me comments on what you think and any questions you have.

Have a blessed day,
Jami :)

First Blog Ever...Intro to Me :)

    I have been wanting to start a blog for a while now...I have had so many ideas and thoughts running through my head lately that I figured it would just help me to get it all written out somewhere. Also I have been making some healthier lifestyle changes that many have been interested in knowing how that is going so I figured this would be the best way to keep everyone informed :). I will get to all the changes in just a bit!

   I don't want this to get too lengthy, but I would like to give a little background information about myself first! My name is Jami and I have lived in West Virginia all my life. I used to want out of here the first chance I got, but I have learned to not only appreciate what this state has to offer, but also really enjoy the beauty of it. I attended Marshall University and received my bachelor's in Math Education. I am now a freshman math teacher, and currently taking graduate classes to get my masters in education. I got married July 24, 2010 and it was the best decision of my life. My husband is my rock. He is very supportive, helping and loving, and I am blessed to have him as mine.

   Unfortunately right after we got married, I developed a strange skin disorder called chronic urticarial (chronic hives) in the major form of dermatographism (which literally means the ability to write on ones skin. I have been told by doctors that it is an internal issue where my body produces too much histamine in order to defend any outside attack (i.e. a scratch, rub, or hot/cold contact to my skin).
All these doctor's wanted to do was put me n high dosages of anti-histamine and sometimes even medicines that were actually for depression and what not. Personally, I am becoming "not a fan" of all these prescriptions doctors are wanting to put us on, so I have begun to take matter into my own hands.

This is my arm a couple minutes after lightly scratching "hello"

   My healthy lifestyle change consists of a change in diet, taking more natural supplements rather than prescriptions, changing what I not only put into my body by on my body (skin), and working out more...which is where the sweats portion of this blog comes into play. I will get more into these changes I am making in other blogs, but I wanted to point out the greatest one for me to over come right now is sugar. As the other name of this blog sit, sweets, I love to decorate cakes and of course eat them haha.  But because I have had several bouts with candida (yeast) I am noticing they usually end up making me feel quite sick afterwards. So that is the first thing I am cutting out. No worries though, I will still be making cakes :)

   I have so many pictures of cakes that I have decorated in the past 2 years that I would take up way to much room posting them all, but here are a few of my favorite ones I have made thus far...

Well there's about me...I will be posting again soon to let you all know the changes I have been making for a fresh start to 2013!