Why these 2 foods could be the real cause of that brain fog and chronic fatigue that is crushing your productivity and stealing thousands of dollars from your bottom line.

A day in the life of a Mompreneur

Or any woman entrepreneur… women are all nurturers, after all.

6am You wake up. You feel like a steaming pile of baby nasties. You want to get up. You know you need to get out of the house. Do some exercise. Even if it’s just a walk. But your head is cloudy.

You can’t get up. You hit the snooze button.

7:15am You’ve overslept! You fly up out of bed like a woman possessed. Only because that routine, and nurturing instinct, has kicked in.

You feel worse than you did the first time you woke up. There’s that brain fog again..

Tired doesn’t even begin to cover it.

But there is no time for that nonsense.

7 – 9am is a blur. Your body is not your own. Nurturing instincts take over.

You make breakfast. Pack lunches. Get dinner out freezer (if you’re that lucky).

You’ve snapped into go-mode. It’s all happening. And you have no idea how you’re even managing it (based on how you felt when you woke up).

But how else is it gonna get done?

Load up. School dropoffs. You don’t even remember when you managed to get that big handsome take-away coffee in your hand (thank woo woo for that!)

9:15 – 10:30/11am Work mode takes over. You’re running purely on momentum. You’re a busy multi-tasker. But by late morning, you hit a slump.

And you haven’t even checked anything off that endless, mammoth to do list yet!

More coffee.

Lunchtime soon – if you’re even breaking for it! You packed your loved ones healthy lunch, but where’s yours? Right – there was no time…

Maybe you eat something on the run. Ah yes, the trusty, fast and ever versatile…

Piece of toast.

Now it’s 2pm. And you gotta get ready for the next level of crazy in your day. You’re gonna swing that multi-tasking hat back on, and just get on with it.

You do some errands on the way to the school pick ups. Brilliant, 15 minutes ’til school is out, to check emails or maybe get a couple client call backs in.

By the time you get the kids home, dished out afternoon snacks, and started homework – it’s already 3:30pm.

4:00pm Slump No.2 hits. Energy dips to an all time low. If there was a way you could buy energy, at this point, you’d happily pay double!

Not the perfect time to have to help with Grade 7 Math… Sheesh, who are we kididng? At this point in your day, even Grade 1 Math is like climbing Everest – ok, maybe only to basecamp. You get my drift.

You drag yourself to the kitchen. If you don’t eat something, you might faint. Or at the very least, the neightbours will surely hear the next mighty ‘call’ your stomach decides to hollar out!

You meet it with another quick piece of toast, or worse – accompanied by yet another cuppa java.

5 – 7:30pm is another blur. And you’re just so tired, you can’t tell where the brain fog ends and the exhaustion begins. But you press on.

It’s a juggle between getting dinner ready, prepping for the morning, putting on a load of washing, finishing up homework, baths, stories and cuddles.

It’s 8 o’clock, and that vino is going down a treat. You sneak in a bit more email checking and replying, and maybe get a little side tracked, researching your next (well deserved) holiday which is way overdue.

Oops, it’s 10:30pm. Shower and in bed by 11:15…

Man, another night later bedtime than you’d hoped for. You’re tired, but it’s hard to get to sleep. And you hope you don’t wake up multiple times during the night like you have been lately.

Before the next hectic morning comes around…

Sound familiar?

Life is busy – are your choices helping or sabotaging you?

Now some people talk about how better to manage our time and schedule, but let’s face it. Life is busy. And yes, there are some tweaks you can do here and there to manage our time better.

But the thing we need to pay most attention to is how we are feeling and physically dealing with our daily life.

Waking up in the morning and feeling weak, tired and overwhelmed by brain fog, is not normal.

Having massive energy slumps throughout the day is not something we have to live with.

Not having the energy, mental clarity and vitality to tackle every part of your day, especially when it comes to being productive in your business, is killing your business – and is negatively affecting your bottom line.

You need to be able to maximise the time spent working on our businesses, and then still have the energy to enjoy being a partner/wife/mother/daugther/friend, in all the other areas of life.

And there are 2 foods that you eat every day that are sabotaging that very achievable goal.

I already mentioned them in our ‘mompreneur scenario’ above…

You don’t have to give up the foods you love.

Now, usually you’ll be given the low down on a food from some health nut (I admit I am one!), and most of the time you will be told to stay away from that food completely.

I don’t know about you, but I love having choices. And I don’t like to have to eliminate foods that I love. I’m sure you feel the same way.

The reason I became such a research nerd, was because I didn’t like how most health fads painted whole food groups in a bad light. Condemning me from touching them ever again.

All my research led me to the concept of Clean Eating, as an all emcompassing solution which basically means one still gets to include and enjoy most, if not all the foods you love. No food sacrificing necessary!

So, as we examine these 2 foods, we’re not talking about the food itself being bad, we are focusing on what’s in, on and done to the food that makes it not-so-clean (unhealthy, energy depleting, brain fog inducing)…

And of course, what you can do to change that…

It’s all about ‘Clean’ food.

Clean Eating focuses on avoiding the many layers of contamination our food usually comes into contact with, mostly due to the mass-production, commercial farming, and large-scale commercial food production models.

This has made a huge impact on what our food is ‘treated with’ and what’s added to it before, during and after processing and manufacturing. It also includes what our food is packaged, stored and served in.

I don’t talk about giving up the foods you love – that’s just cruel. And not very realistic!

I rather show you how to make a few adjustments, make a few better/more-informed choices of quality and origin of your food, and if absolutely necessary, how to use healthy alternatives to replace certain ingredients, so that you can eat clean but still enjoy food that is delicious.

As with all things in life, we can’t avoid all toxins and contimanants, but with a little knowledge we can drastically reduce the sheer number of layers and amount of contaimantion in the foods we eat.

Sound good?

So let’s break it down – what’s up with these 2 foods you eat every day?

According to my research, the following 2 foods are the most popular, quick ‘food fixes’ that entrepreneurs and mompreneurs rely on – actually, this is the case for most people I have spoken to, so these ‘go-to’ food choices are pretty universal.

These 2 food culprits are crashing your energy and sabotaging your productivity… And I am going to share with you some of the main reasons why.

PLUS, what to do so you don’t have to give them up completely!

The 1st is not really a food… but it’s a main staple of many a busy body. It’s the thing that can get you through that energy slump, make you power through work you just have to get done, and give you that extra vuma when you need it most.

#1 Coffee.

Now, I have nothing against coffee.

I love a cuppa every now and then, and if I’m busy with a project or launch, it is of course something I also use (just like everyone else) to power through long days, and to ‘get the job done’ when I need to.

We need to talk about what’s in, on and done to the coffee. And why these factors are more of a problem than the coffee itself.

Plus, there are the layers of contamination in all the things we put into our coffee (and what we drink it out of).

To help you understand what I see when I look at a conventional cuppa coffee vs a ‘clean-er coffee’, I have created visual references (below) which will help you to understand how to make better choices when it comes to your favourite cuppa Jo.

#2 Toast/Bread.

The same thing applies to bread/toast, which is the 2nd food/ingredient we are going to talk about.

And when I say bread/toast, I am talking about bread/toast that is made from the modern strain of wheat – (durum) wheat.

Many years ago, chemicals and other unnatural, toxic techiques were used to mutate wheat embryos in order to create more desirable growing traits like higher yields and drought-resistence.

Problem is, mutation of the proteins in wheat have very negative health consequences for human beings.

Even wheat grown organically (if it is durum/modern wheat) is still, in essence, a mutated grain. It produces the same adverse effects on our health, albeit with less pesticide and other agri-chemical contaminants.

And I would need to create a whole other post to deal with all the preservatives, and addititves and other ingredients used in the processing of mass-produced breads (I have included some good stuff on the pics below)…

To help you understand what I see when I look at a conventional piece of bread vs a ‘clean-er piece of bread’, I have created visual references (below) which will help you to understand how to make better choices when it comes to enjoying a piece of bread/toast.

Secret BONUS time!!!

Now that you know these dirty little secrets your coffee and daily piece of toast is hiding from you, and you have some idea of how to choose ‘clean-er’ versions of your favourite ‘go-to’ foods, you’ll be OVER THE MOON with what I created for you…

I have created an AWESOME Cheat Sheet, which is a ‘This for That’ Ingredient guide for making the best choices for these favourite foods.

You can download this handy guide for quick and easy future reference!

PLUS I have shared my top favourite ‘replacement’ Recipes, so you can quickly and easily make the ‘clean-est’, most delicious versions of these 2 favourite, ‘go-to’ foods at home!

I have spent many years and thousands of hours of research, finding answers, developing recipes and figuring out how to still enjoy the foods that you and your family love.

You don’t have to give up the foods you love to be healthier, you just need to know how to make slightly different choices so that you can ‘eat clean’ without sacrificing taste!

Click here to get my AWESOME Cheat Sheet (plus FREE Recipes) now!

The Toxic Fat Effect

So why am I telling you about all these layers of toxic chemicals and contaminants?

Because when you consume these foods, your body digests and absorbs these contaminants.

Many of the contaminants that are absorbed never leave the body.

The body is either over loaded with contaminants (xeno-toxins – unnatural toxic/foreign substances) which means the natural detoxification and eliminatory systems of the body can’t cope and deal with eliminating them,

OR…

These contaminants can’t actually be removed from the body naturally – as with POP’s (persistent organic pollutants), which need to be proactively removed from the body.

When the body is overloaded with contaminants (xeno-toxins) that can’t be removed, the body stores them ‘safely’ in the fatty tissues of the body – hence cellulite.

More and more, as years go by, and the body accumulates more and more contaminants (xeno-toxins).

Our brains also accumulate xeno-toxins, because they are 60-70% fatty tissue, and xeno-toxins are fat-loving/fat soluble.

We start to experience foggy brain. The more time passes, the worse our mental fog gets (due to bio-accumulation/storing of toxins).

The more xeno-toxins that are being stored in the body, the more fatigue, and the more brain fog you have.

This is why it is so important to become aware of, and proactively start helping our bodies remove toxins, as well as prevent further exposure to as many layers of xeno-toxins and contiminants coming into our bodies, as possible – especially from our food. Changing what we eat, is something we have control over. It’s something we can proactively change.

Our choices can either help reduce our exposure, or increase it!

This is why I created my AWESOME Cheat Sheet, which is an ingredient ‘This for That’ Ingredient guide to help you make better, more informed choices.

Along with some of my favourite Recipes, so you can take back control of your health and make your own!

Click here to get my AWESOME Cheat Sheet (plus FREE Recipes) now!

More Detailed Info below… If you like that sort of thing (Welcome fellow research nerd!)

Plus References and Resources below.

Definitions:

Xenobiotics (xeno-toxins) = toxic, man-made/foreign substances.

Xenoestrogens (endocrine disruptor) = Chemicals that mimic or antagonize the actions of naturally occurring estrogens are defined as having estrogenic activity (EA), which is the most common form of endocrine disruptor activity. Basically mimics and hinders healthy hormone production and function in the body.

PFOA

PFOA is a known developmental toxicant. There are many studies that refer to links between PFOS and PFOA with impaired fertility, with many studies showing that exposure during pregnancy can cause adverse health outcomes in offspring. It is an endocrine (hormone) disruptor.
*See referenced studies below.

Polystyrene (Styrene)

Styrene is described as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen”. Many studies refer to evidence of styrene causing genotoxicity in exposed humans. Studies using rats, showed that survival rate reduced down to 50% in at least one experimental group. And when styrene was inhaled, it was found to cause an increase in total (benign and malignant) and malignant mammary tumors. Many studies are linking polystyrene with breast cancer seeing as styrene is widely used for food storage and preparation. It is also released from building materials, tobacco smoke, and industry.

Plastics Pthlalates

Plastics that are ‘stressed’ (scratched/heated/damaged) release/leach more chemicals. Most plastic products release estrogenic chemicals which act as endocrine disruptors. Plastic pthlalates are described as ”reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen”.

Pesticides and Agri-chemicals in Coffee

Industrial Coffee production employs some of the highest agri-chemical amounts of any crop. This causes serious health and ecological concerns. Many of the chemicals used in coffee production are long-term persistent pollutants (hard to remove from the human body and envirnment). Heavy metals are also present due to fertilisers and other agri-chemicals used in production.

Published studies show that roasting the coffee seems to decrease toxins but the percentage remaining is still enough to encourage buying organic coffee. The impact of agri-chemicals on the communities where coffee is grown is also something to consider. Good quality, arabica, fair trade, organic coffee is one of the better choices, also to avoid mycotoxins which can be present in poor quality coffee.

Decaffeinated coffee is processed using a number of chemicals (many of which are described as carcinogenic).

Decaf Coffee

all decaffeination processes use a decaffeinating agent such as methylene chloride, activated charcoal, CO₂, or ethyl acetate

Methylene chloride, also called dichloromethane, is a volatile, colorless liquid with a chloroform-like odor. Methylene chloride is used in various industrial processes, in many different industries including paint stripping, pharmaceutical manufacturing, paint remover manufacturing, and metal cleaning and degreasing. The most common means of exposure to methylene chloride is inhalation and skin exposure. OSHA considers methylene chloride to be a potential occupational carcinogen.

Ethyl Acetate – HUMAN EXPOSURE AND TOXICITY: Short-term exposure to high levels of ethyl acetate results first in irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, followed by headache, nausea, vomiting, sleepiness, and unconsciousness. High concentrations can cause CNS depression and congestion of the liver and kidneys.

Dairy

Agri-chemicals and artificial fertiliser contaminants in GMO feed, which may have mycotoxin (mold) contamination, especially corn. Xeno-toxins (animals’ chemical body burdens) are released through dairy and is then absorbed by humans.

Steroid hormones are very potent compounds in dairy foods, which exert profound biological effects in humans.

Sugar

Highly refined, from sugar cane or GMO sugar beets – which are both sprayed heavily with pesticides and are contaminated with other agri-chemicals and heavy metals from artificial fertilizers. Several studies showed pesticide’s potential adverse health effects to humans as an endocrine disruptor. Ingestion of glyphosate-surfactant herbicides can result in acute kidney injury, electrolyte abnormalities, acidosis, cardiovascular collapse, and death.

Wheat

Wheat is a crop that is treated with some of the highest number of chemicals during growing and production.

Plus most wheat is refined into flour which causes blood sugar spiking when consumed (putting strain on pancreas).

Back around the 80’s, wheat embryos were experimentally exposed to industrial chemicals, such as sodium azide (fatally toxic to humans). This is what induced the chemical mutations found in modern wheat today. Other types of mutations include gamma and gabba (radiation mutation).

One of the main changes that have occurred is the the amino sequence within the Gliadin protein (which was non-existent in the 19th Century). This modern mutation of Gliadin destroys the finger-like projections of the intestinal lining, which are vital for digestion, and causes permeability of the intestinal walls (called leaky-gut syndrome). It is seen as closely linked to triggering celiac disease.

Another unsavoury (pun intended!) conseuqnece of Gliadin is its opiate effect on the receptors of the brain. Just like morphone is an opiate pain reliever, and heroine, an opiate high, Gliadin causes an opiate appetitie stimulation. This causes us to eat more even if we are not hungry – which is why the food industry puts wheat in EVERYTHING. That’s why some foods are so more-ish. It is food designed to make you hungry, and eat more than you need to.

References and Resources:

Books

Healing the Gerson Way – Charlotte Gerson

Wheat Belly – Dr William Davis

Genetic Roulette – Jeffrey M Smith

Superfoods – David Wolfe

Resources:

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov = The US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health

Xeno-toxin (man-made external toxin) exposure:

Study – Environmental exposure to xenoestrogens and oestrogen related cancers: reproductive system, breast, lung, kidney, pancreas, and brain – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3388472/

PFOA

Study – Perfluorooctanoic acid disrupts the blood-testis barrier and activates the TNFα/p38 MAPK signaling pathway in vivo and in vitro. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25743374

Study – Immunomodulation and hormonal disruption without compromised disease resistance in perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) exposed Japanese quail – http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749113001966

Study – Endocrine disrupting properties of perfluorooctanoic acid. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21397692

Study – Endocrine disrupting properties of perfluorooctanoic acid – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3335904/

Study – REPRODUCTIVE TOXICOLOGY: Study Associates PFOS and PFOA with Impaired Fertility – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2679623/

Styrene/Polystyrene

US National Library of Medicine Tox Town website – Styrene (Polystyrene) https://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/text_version/chemicals.php?id=87

Study – Long-term carcinogenicity bioassays on styrene administered by inhalation, ingestion and injection and styrene oxide administered by ingestion in Sprague-Dawley rats, and para-methylstyrene administered by ingestion in Sprague-Dawley rats and Swiss mice. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3389656

Study – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK241566/

Study – An ecological study of the association of environmental chemicals on breast cancer incidence in Texas. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15986119

Plastic Phthalates

Study – Most Plastic Products Release Estrogenic Chemicals: A Potential Health Problem That Can Be Solved – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222987/

Study – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2873014/ – Phthalates and other additives in plastics: human exposure and associated health outcomes

Scientific American Magazine (founded 1845) – Plastic (Not) Fantastic: Food Containers Leach a Potentially Harmful Chemical – http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/plastic-not-fantastic-with-bisphenol-a/

US National Library of Medicine Tox Town website – Phthalates – https://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/text_version/chemicals.php?id=24

Study – Exposure to phthalates and breast cancer risk in northern Mexico. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20368132

Coffee

Natural Resources Defense Council – ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES: HEALTH

NavTop.asp ENDNRDCTOPINCLUDE last modified – 11.14.96/dd

Coffee, Conservation, and Commerce in the Western Hemisphere – http://www.nrdc.org/health/farming/ccc/chap4.asp

many deaths of agricultural land workers, who grow that coffee you drink (due to agrichemical exposures)

Study – Concentrations of heavy metals (Mn, Co, Ni, Cr, Ag, Pb) in coffee. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24340307

World Health Organisation – IFCS Acutely Toxic Pesticides – http://www.who.int/heli/risks/toxics/bibliographyikishi.pdf

Pesticide residues in food – Food and Agriculture Organization (Fao), World Health Organization (Who) – https://books.google.com.au/books?id=-ILeM849P20C&pg=PA959&lpg=PA959&dq=study+pesticide+residues+in+coffee&source=bl&ots=9M7zgcyGYg&sig=u94-j6ghLByLW__08inmAd9wc78&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZ7fi_udPLAhXGSiYKHWXUDMAQ6AEIWTAJ#v=onepage&q=study%20pesticide%20residues%20in%20coffee&f=false

Decaffeination 101: Four Ways to Decaffeinate Coffee – http://www.coffeeconfidential.org/health/decaffeination/

Methylene Chloride – Safety & Health Topics – US Dept of Labor, Occupational Safety & Health Administration – https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/methylenechloride/

Ethyle Acetate, Human Health Effects – Toxnet Toxicology Data Network – http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+83

Commercially produced Milk

Study – Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals: An Endocrine Society Scientific Statement – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2726844/

Study – Foodborne pathogens in milk and the dairy farm environment: food safety and public health implications. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15992306

Study – Clostridium botulinum in cattle and dairy products. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20301016

Study – The concentration of fluorine in different dairy products made from contaminated milk – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3704624

Study – Contaminants in milk and impact of heating: an assessment study. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22684183

Study – Hormones in Dairy Foods and Their Impact on Public Health – A Narrative Review Article – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4524299/

Dr Mercola – Pesticides in Milk Causing Brain Damage – Support Raw and Grass-Fed Dairy – http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/12/22/pesticides-milk.aspx

Sugar

Study – Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases II: Celiac sprue and gluten intolerance – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3945755/

Dr Mercola – Monsanto’s Roundup Herbicide May Be Most Important Factor in Development of Autism and Other Chronic Disease – http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/06/09/monsanto-roundup-herbicide.aspx

Study – Genetically modified foods: safety, risks and public concerns—a review – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3791249/

Toxnet Toxicology Data Network – Glyphosate (pesticide), Human Health Effects – http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+3432

Seralini studies – long term toxicity of GMO;s and pesticides – http://www.gmoseralini.org/research-papers/

Wheat/Gluten/Bread

Coeliac Australia, Oats and the Gluten Free Diet position statement – http://www.coeliac.org.au/uploads/65701/ufiles/Position_Statements/CAPSOats.pdf

Dr William Davis – Article: Don’t Make These Mistakes – http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2014/07/dont-make-mistakes-starting-wheat-belly/

Dr Mercola – Article: These 5 Foods May Cause Problems Very Similar to Wheat – http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/07/05/other-nonwheat-grains-can-also-hurt-your-health.aspx

2 Foods You Eat Everyday, That Are Killing Your Business.