Are your cravings the result of Nutrient deficiencies?  
Here’s the Thing: When your body is lacking key nutrients it can turn up the volume on hunger and cravings. 
 
Are you like one of the thousands of people who have strong cravings for certain foods? 
The first questions you want to ask yourself when you are struggling with a craving is “Am I currently riding the blood sugar roller coaster?” If you have made an effort to each on schedule and have made some great whole food choices, then there could be an underlying nutritional need your body is experiencing that is contributing to your cravings.  
 
So how can you tell what your body wants? Sometimes the foods we crave can be an indication of nutrients we are looking for. An example of this is a craving for dark chocolate around your monthly cycle. Quality chocolate can be a source of magnesium, and a woman’s requirement for magnesium goes up slightly before her cycle begins. Craving greens could be a sign of needing more minerals, craving red meat or liver could be a sign of a body looking for more iron. I can easily be a vegetarian right up until my monthly time, at which point I turn into a carnivorous beast who is not satisfied until I consume some animal rich source of iron and protein (yes I strongly encourage plant based eating, but and sharing some real life truth with you). 
 
So how can you tell what you are really lacking, based on what you are craving? The honest to goodness, truth? You cant! Cravings can be an indication of deficiencies and if there is one thing I have learned about our nutrient requirements, its that we never need just one thing! 
 
Our body may be indicating the desire for a food that is high in a particular nutrient, but the important thing to know is that no one single nutrient is ever really needed on its own.  If you are not riding the blood sugar rollercoaster and you are continuing to experience cravings that you feel could be related to possible nutrient deficiencies, my suggestion is to focus on 80% of your calories from whole foods, they are in fact the most bio-available source of nutrition for our body. (fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, wholegrains and legumes)
 
If you struggle with eating this much of your food from whole food, or if you want to pump up the volume on the quality of nutrition you are eating, I also recommend all of my clients use a concentrated whole food supplement like Juice Plus+. This fills the gaps and adds more nutrient dense foods in concentrated form to your body every day!

In my previous blog post of Why are you tired all the time?  I touched on three common reasons people suffer from fatigue.  Dehydration, low intake of whole foods and low dietary intake of iron and B-12 rich foods.  These are far from the only reasons you might be battling ongoing fatigue, but they are some of the most common reasons and a great place to start, if you are looking at energy boosting strategies.
 
Now I want to talk to you about some simple strategies to help you naturally increase your energy levels.
 
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Tip Number One, Avoid skipping breakfast. Although I see the value in fasting to give your digestive system a break for 12-14 hours hours daily, and even fasting for a bit longer a couple times a month, Continuous fasting actually disrupts your metabolism.  

It is so common for me to hear people sharing how physically and mentally exhausted they are. As a Nutritionist I feel like I am working front-line within a chronic fatigue epidemic. 

Most of the moms who seek out the guidance of a Nutritionist do so for two reasons: 
1.  They are exhausted all the time.
2.  They want to improve body composition. 

In order to help these women achieve their goals I have to create a solid foundation in their daily nutrition so that we can ensure their bodies are getting the nutrients they need to function optimally.  
Simply put, I am seeing a bunch of undernourished people, who are so depleted, their body is no longer producing enough energy, and it's impacting their quality of life!  
 
Fatigue not only impacts your quality of life, but it also reduces motivation, can significantly decrease productivity and can even harm a relationship!! (Just ask the spouse of a person who is suffering from chronic fatigue)
 
So what can we do to change it? Well the solution thankfully is often very simple! And it all starts with what you put into your body.
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I am kindly requesting this be read with an open heart and mind. Talking about our dietary choices can be tough subject for many because well, our choices are personal. I write this with no judgement, but a simple goal to share my professional opinion and personal experience as a Nutritionist who is passionate about learning and helping others achieve optimal health..  
 
I started in the health care field in 2002 where I felt totally overwhelmed  with the amount of conditions I was seeing that were preventable. I made a decision then to play an active role in helping people prevent losing their quality of life, by teaching about healthy diets and lifestyles.  I have been researching Nutrition for 15 years and spent my last 11 years in the Nutrition and cancer field.  My Mission is to teach people how to protect themselves against disease.  

Well its that time of the year again, when we are incredibly aware of all the over eating we have done over the holiday season, and now with a New Year just begun, our first goal is to get on track with our diets and lifestyles.  
 
If you want to get results and keep them, then the secret to that my friend is in creating a new lifestyle. Now, I am not talking about turning your life inside out right at this moment.  No, if you want long-term results we need to make gentle shifts in your lifestyle all throughout 2019.  

With each step, you will acquire new results, and be able to keep the results you had already obtained.  If you want amazing results, you need to understand you are in for a long-term commitment.  However like most long-term commitments the BEST and most rewarding results are found in them!!! (Relationships, career, friendships, lifestyle etc.)
 
So lets get moving.  Here are my Top 4 Weight Loss Strategies.....

​Thank you again for sticking with me on this really important series. I am sure if you are on session 4 of this series, its because you are feeling me when it comes to the discussion of picky eaters in your home.  Session one we looked at what picky eating was, and when it is time to be concerned.  Session 2, I shared my TOP mom and Nutritionist strategies with you, and in session 3 I shared some tools you can print off and start using at home.
 
Session Four is about how mom and dad are handling picky eating at home. I Feel I need to take a moment to acknowledge that I am in now way a mental health expert. I am however a mom of 4 children, one of whom has food behaviour problems with sever picky eating.  I am also a nutritionist, who has worked with hundreds (if not thousands ) of families who have faced picky eating at home for more than 14 years! Experience is my friend here.

You may or may not agree with me, and I am ok with that. I do however want to share how we manage it at home and how many of my clients have found success at home.
 
So here we go, how to use a little tough love for picky eaters.