The Night Before Breakfast Idea: Coconut Blueberry Chia Pudding

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by Sheleana Jennings – Sep 20, 2014

If you have a busy morning schedule, breakfast can be the most insane part of your day, up until lunch that is! To bring a bit of systemization into your life, try creating breakfast solutions that can be made the night before or even a few nights in advance. While chia seeds can lower blood pressure and may not be the most optimal solution for daily consumption for certain people, they are generally a very healthy option that provide good fats as well as support in flushing the body and supporting a healthy digestive tract.

Do you ever find yourself constipated? Chia seeds are a pretty sure way to get things moving due to their fibre content and gel like texture. Feel free to get creative with this recipe and switch up some of the ingredients by adding alternative fruits or even spices to the mix.

Ingredients:

1 cup chia seeds (white or black)
1 cup full fat coconut milk (add more water if you need extra liquid)
2 tsp vanilla bean or extract
1-2 tbsp honey or maple syrup
3 tbsp shredded coconut
pinch of salt to taste

Instructions: Use a large glass jar to store your breakfast in or separate the mixture into smaller “to-go” jars that people can grab and go with. You’ll want to combine your ingredients in a larger bowl to start and let sit with the liquid for at least 5-10 minutes until the chia seeds have absorbed the liquid and begun to expand. You’ll be able to tell if you need to add more liquid if the mixture gets extremely dry and difficult to move around with a spoon. Once the mixture is finished, store for up to 4 days in the fridge without fruit, 3 with fruit. You can add a different fresh fruit topping each morning or go without.

October 2014 BeFit Method™ Challenge: “Trainer Test”

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Challenge date and time. Monday, October 27th 6:15am
St Regis Bal Harbour Beach

The BeFit Method™ Quarterly Challenge is a series of Natural physical fitness events challenging our trainers to maximize their performance in individual tests of “SPEM” Strength, Power/Power Endurance, Endurance and Mobility. It is based on the Befit Method™ training principles. Consider the challenge a personal physical and mental screening.

**This WILL be a Pass/Fail event.
If you do not pass, it is an indication that you do not meet V Art of Wellness Physical Fitness standards. You have a 30 day grace period to re-test. If you still do not meet the standards within 30 days you will be on probation until you meet the test requirements.

Male Requirement
Pull-Up Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. – Base Requirement – 40

Push-Up Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. (only one resting out of 4 point stance permitted) – Base Requirement – 85

Sit-Up Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. – Base Requirement – 55

1.5 Mile Beach Run – Base Requirement – 11:45

Female Requirement
Recline Pull Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. – Base Requirement – 40

Push-Up Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. (only one resting out of 4 point stance permitted) – Base Requirement – 35

Sit-Up Drill – As many as possible in 2 min. – Base Requirement – 55

1.5 Mile Beach Run – Base Requirement – 13:45

Bioactive Compound in Turmeric Regenerates Brain Stem Cells

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Components of turmeric – a well-known ingredient in curry spice – are wildly studied today for its anti-inflammatory effects and cancer prevention.

It turns out, a lesser-known bioactive turmeric compound promotes stem cell proliferation and differentiation in the brain, according to new research recently published in the open access journal Stem Cell Research & Therapy.

Results suggest aromatic turmerone could be a potential for treating neurological disorders, such as stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. Of course, the potential for researchers lies in its becoming a future drug candidate.

The study looked at the effects of aromatic (ar-) turmerone on endogenous neutral stem cells (NSC), which are stem cells found within adult brains.

NSC differentiate into neurons, and play an important role in self-repair and recovery of brain function in neurodegenerative diseases. Previous studies of ar-turmerone have shown that the compound can block activation of microglia cells – which are a part of central nervous system immune defense. When activated, these cells cause neuroinflammation, which is associated with different neurological disorders. However, ar-turmerone’s impact on the brain’s capacity to self-repair was unknown.
Researchers from the Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine in Jülich, Germany, studied the effects of ar-turmerone on NSC proliferation and differentiation both in vitro and in vivo.

In vitro: Rat fetal NSC were cultured and grown in six different concentrations of ar-turmerone over a 72 hour period. At certain concentrations, ar-turmerone was shown to increase NSC proliferation by up to 80%, without having any impact on cell death. The cell differentiation process also accelerated in ar-turmerone-treated cells compared to untreated control cells.

To test the effects of ar-turmerone on NSC in vivo, the researchers injected adult rats with ar-turmerone. Using PET imaging and a tracer to detect proliferating cells, they found that the subventricular zone (SVZ) was wider, and the hippocampus expanded, in the brains of rats injected with ar-turmerone than in control animals. The SVZ and hippocampus are the two sites in adult mammalian brains where neurogenesis, the growth of neurons, is known to occur.

Lead author of the study, Adele Rueger, said:

While several substances have been described to promote stem cell proliferation in the brain, fewer drugs additionally promote the differentiation of stem cells into neurons, which constitutes a major goal in regenerative medicine. Our findings on aromatic turmerone take us one step closer to achieving this goal.

Of course, researchers are scrambling to isolate turmeric compounds to later produce patented pharmaceuticals. While their discoveries are a revelation, it shouldn’t diminish the power of consuming whole-food turmeric and letting all the compounds go to work. Inexpensive, bulk turmeric power can be easily found at the health food store or online. Tinctures are a concentrated form that can be taken in liquids, and capsules are preferable if the strong taste cannot be withstood.

This study shows that the anti-inflammatory benefits of turmeric extend to the brain and nervous system which could make it ideal in a diet to potentially help with neurodegenerative and auto-immune problems.

**This article was featured at Activist Post.**

V Art of Wellness 3rd Feature in DEPARTURES Magazine

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Chris and Tracie Vlaun referred to as “The Power Couple” In Departures City Confidential.