Posts

Paleo iodine wraps nori-min

Paleo Iodine Wraps

11 Comments/in , , , /by

Since my new supply of himalayan salt arrived with a big warning on the outside “this does not contain iodine”, I've been craving salty foods.  I'm sure this is psychosomatic, but it has lead to quite a lot of reading about iodine deficiency in the last week.

Himalayan-Salt-Iodine-paleo iodine wraps-min

It does appear to be quite possible to become deficient in iodine when eliminating regular iodised salt and conventionally raised animal products.  Apparently they started adding iodine to salt many years ago – and to animal feed, as many people were deficient in the mineral.  Iodine plays a crucial role in thyroid function and is an essential mineral.  I had quite extensive blood work a couple of months ago but for some reason, despite my thyroid function being tested, iodine levels were not part of the tests.  I will get my levels checked out, but in the meantime, I need to make sure I get enough iodine, be it from my diet, or supplements.  Kelp Supplements seem to be quite popular, so perhaps they will be a good choice?

Wild caught fish is a good source of iodine, but I don't incorporate this in my diet regularly – this is probably something I need to change.  Seaweed is supposed to be an excellent source of iodine, so to that end, I created “Paleo Iodine Wraps” for dinner this evening, using Nori sheets.

The wraps were going to contain beef, but I actually found some fresh turkey today – and it was on sale, so I had to buy it (I've got no idea why it's so hard to find turkey in Australia – it's got such a fantastic nutritional profile!).  As you might have noticed I'm quite keen on putting fruit in with savoury dishes, so thought I'd experiment with some apricot to go with the turkey and seaweed flavours.  I'm really enjoying coconut aminos at the moment, so I used it to marinate the turkey and beef in.

Paleo-Iodine-Wraps-Ingredients-1024x1024-min

Ingredients

Fresh Turkey
Thinly Sliced Beef
Onion
Capsicum (bell pepper)
Zucchini
Mushrooms
Tomato
Lettuce
Avocado
Nori Sheets
Coconut Oil
Coconut Aminos
Coriander (Cilanto)
Himalayan Sea Salt
 

Method

I cut the turkey and beef into thin strips and let them marinate in the coconut aminos for a few minutes, whilst I prepared the rest of the ingredients.

I cut the onion, capsicum, zucchini, mushrooms and apricots into strips and then stir fried the meat in the coconut aminos and a spoonful of coconut oil.

Once the meat browned off I set it aside, and stir fried the vegetables and apricots in the same oil.  I added the salt and some coriander to this and kept the vegetables on the heat for a few minutes.

Whilst the vegetables finished cooking, I cut the lettuce, tomatoes and avocados into strips, since these did not require cooking.

Paleo-Iodine-Wraps-Making-1024x1024-min

When the vegetables were ready, I assembled all of the ingredients on one edge of the nori sheets, and rolled them until they resembled (paleo!) sushi rolls.

I was pleased with this impromptu dinner and will add it to my list of good foods to make for on the go!  I think these would store fine in the fridge overnight, so would be another good option for work lunches – or even as a grab and go breakfast.  I really liked the contrast of the seaweed taste with the sweetness of the apricot.  I think next time I'll use fish instead of turkey and beef to full embrace a sea theme for this dish – and to get in a bit more iodine!

Paleo-Iodine-Wraps-1024x1024-min

I've not checked yet, but hopefully if I incorporate Nori a few times a week, I won't have to worry about iodine deficiency.

I'd be very interested to hear your thoughts on Iodine intake and deficiency, is this something you actively address in your diet?

Paleo iodine wraps nori-min

paleo diet magnesium supplement vitamin D3 deficiency-min

Magnesium

11 Comments/in , /by

I spend a lot of time reading about various supplements, trying to work out what I should or shouldn't take.  I really don’t like the idea of taking supplements – it’s not exactly a Paleo activity we've evolved to do!  However, I know it is a lot harder not to get all of the micro nutrients we need today than ever before.  Mineral content in soils is severely depleted due to modern farming methods, meaning the produce that grows in that land and animals grazing on the land are also far lighter on mineral content. I've been especially interested in Magnesium.

 I'm fairly sold on taking Vitamin D3 and fish oil, but after reading “The Magnesium Miracle” and researching the mineral,  I recently decided to buy some Magnesium Citrate.

I had a lot of blood work done recently and whilst I don’t appear to have a Magnesium deficiency my magnesium mmol/L levels look to be lower than desirable.  Magnesium is an essential mineral involved in so many of the biochemical processes in the body, it is claimed to help with sleep, stress and help regulate blood sugar levels.  It's role in insulin sensitivity is especially interesting to me, with my current weight loss objective.

paleo diet magnesium supplement vitamin D3 deficiency-min

There are so many different types of magnesium supplements – I found magnesium oxide, magnesium hydroxide, magnesium carbonate, magnesium citrate, magnesium lactate, magnesium chloride, and magnesium sulfate!  I decided to try Magnesium Citrate as apparently it has a better bio availability, which means it should be better absorbed.   I believe this is the same form as found in the ‘Natural Calm” brand.

A lot of people get magnesium through skin absorption, either by bathing in Epsom Salts or apply magnesium oil – I might try this route in the future, but for now, I'll see how I fair with the supplement.  There are food sources of magnesium, such as green vegetables, bone broths, almonds and fish – but to achieve reasonable levels I'd have to eat such high amounts from the food source, that I don't think it would be realistic at the moment.

Do you supplement with Magnesium?  Interested to hear what benefits – or even downsides you've experienced with Magnesium supplementation!

Vvitamin D solution australian book review sun

The Vitamin D Solution

12 Comments/in , /by

I don’t wear sunscreen.  This is to the absolute horror of pretty much everyone I know.  Especially as I’m a fairly pale Brit who has moved to a considerably sunnier Australia.

I’ve been having my Vitamin D levels tested for the last year or so, and despite living in Australia – I am still not at an optimal level.  By the official standards, I’m certainly not deficient – but I want to attain an optimal, not survival, level of Vitamin D.

I’ve read a lot of books on Vitamin D, but sadly most of them are aimed at an American or British reader.  Australia covers such a vast area with significantly different latitudes – we therefore have very different sun considerations.  I’ve just got a copy of “The Vitamin D Solution” by Michael F. Holick Ph.D. M.D. and was thrilled to see it is an Australian edition.  The book contains tables identifying the latitude of all of the main areas in Australia and the equivalent safe and effective sun exposure requirements to attain sufficient Vitamin D production.  These tables are further split by skin type (with fairer skin requiring less sun than darker skin types), by time of day and then by season.

Vvitamin D solution australian book review sun

 

Most of my sun exposure occurs in the morning and evening on my commute.  Having read the tables I’m quite happy that I am not getting too much sun.  In fact, I’m going to wear shorts and shorter sleeves to further increase the amount of vitamin D I can produce in the mornings and evenings.

When I’ve had enough sun, I simply cover up, or get out of the sun – I much prefer these options to covering my skin in sunscreen.  There are rare occasions when it’s not so easy to avoid the sun, particularly on my face – this is the only time I wear sunscreen, as I realise burning is to be avoided at all costs.  When I do wear sunscreen, I’m really careful which one I use as many of them contain chemicals I wouldn’t want anywhere near my skin.  I also have some really good quality Vitamin D3 supplements that I take occasionally, particularly if I know I haven’t had much sun.  Hopefully these approaches will ensure I can increase my Vitamin D result the next time I have it tested.

What’s your Vitamin D/ Sunscreen approach?