Because my wellness boot camps in India are at a 1600-acre tea plantation, my guests and I have the good fortune of seeing how tea is manufactured from the initial picking of the “two leaves and a bud” until the tea is packaged for the open markets, so I thought I would share with you how this process works.
It starts with the harvesting of the tea leaves where as I had mentioned above, only the bud and the two youngest leaves are plucked. My boot camp guests and I are so fortunate to have the pleasure of hiking amongst the many trails and tea bushes of the vast estate and frequently come across the workers who manually do this harvesting, a pretty labor intensive process.
And did you know that an experienced worker can pick up to 60 pounds of tea a day which produces about 15 pounds of the final product.
These freshly picked leaves are spread out on trays and hot air is blown over them for up to twenty four hours to drive out the moisture. This is known as the withering process and during this phase the leaves lose about 40% of their weight. During the drying process the leaves turn a dark shade of green. Leaves that are to be made into black tea are then rolled and broken up with machines to release their enzymes and essential oils, preparing them for the oxidation process.
In my next post (part 2 of 3), I will discuss the oxidation and fermentation process. Part 3 will be the final section on tea where you will find out how manufacturing is done to create black, green, oolong, and white teas and what makes these teas different from each other.
The Goji berry is another fruit rich in antioxidants, specifically carotenoids such as beta carotene and zeaxanthin. It is found in China and the Himalayas and is a dark red fruit related to the cranberry and blueberry. Goji berries have a tangy sweet taste and are considered nutrient dense, rich in phytonutrients and containing essential vitamins and minerals.
I grew up eating Goji berries in the Himalayan foothills. My aunt had huge bushes on her property that grew these little berries abundantly by the hundreds. I would gather the large, ripe soft ones and eat them by the dozens. They were juicy and delicious!
And guess what! I found a website that actually sells seeds so I will be ordering some and growing my own. They are known to be very hardy plants so I am hoping to enjoy some fresh fruit in a couple of seasons. Can’t wait.
Do you have any experience with Goji Berries? I would love to hear about them.
The Acai berry also contains anthocyanins and flavonoids, powerful in helping the body fight oxidative stress and disease. According to experts, these substances play a significant role in the body’s cell protection system and a diet rich in antioxidants help counteract the aging process by neutralizing the free radicals in our bodies that destroy our cells.
Anthocyanins create the red, purple and deep blue tone in many fruits, flowers and vegetables such as red grapes, blueberries, blackberries and the acai fruit pulp according to some studies, indicate higher antioxidant properties than cranberries, strawberries or even blueberries.
Acai oil is also an antioxidant powerhouse as an ingredient in cosmetics as the processed oil appears to have a longer shelf life and the antioxidant levels continue to remain high.
So why am I writing these posts about these superfruits? Because I am exploring a “vitamin stick” product high in anti-oxidants from these superfruits, including the means to absorb them into our cells effectively so the body can function at its optimum for a longer, healthier life. I certainly don’t believe these superfruits are the cure all for everything and there are a lot of scams out there, however if they contribute to a healthier mind and body then I am definitely interested in finding out the best way to utilize them. After all, research has indicated that living past 100, in fact up to 120 years of age is not pie in the sky any longer, and although some of it can be attributed to out genes, how we live contributes significantly to this longevity. Therefore I am of the opinion that if we take care of ourselves holistically, coupled with advances in technology and medicine, we can become vibrant, active, and healthy super-centenarians.
For the next few days I will be focusing on seven different super fruits that are high in antioxidants.
Picture source: patagoniamaqui.com
The first super fruit I am starting with is the Maqui Berry. Did you know that the Maqui berry is one of the most powerful known botanical antioxidants?
Antioxidants are critical in fighting free radicals that contribute to our aging process. Fro example, they help protect our blood vessels from the oxidative damage of these free radicals, they provide anti-inflammatory benefits, help our nervous system and generally help us stay healthy. Although we cannot stop our bodies from growing older we can definitely take steps to improve our health as we age by paying attention to the nutrients we put into our bodies.
There has been some significant research on this purple fruit known as the Maqui berry found in the Patagonian region of South America, with findings that indicate its potential to improve our immune system and protect our bodies from a variety of health conditions.
The maqui berry is packed with anthocyanins and polyphenols, which have the ability to neutralize free radicals and help fight disease in our bodies, according to scientific studies. It also has the highest ORAC value per serving. So what is an orac value? Well, it stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbsion Capacity and it is the scale which measures the amount of antioxidants that food contains and its ability to absorb free radicals.
Keep in mind though that just because a food product has a high amount of antioxidants does not necessarily mean your body will actually use them all as the ORAC ratings do not calculate the actual absorption rates of the body. So you still need a mechanism to ensure that your body maximizes the benefits of these high antioxidant rich foods. I will talk more about this in future posts.
In my next post later this week, I will discuss the Acai berry and how it compares to the Maqui berry.
On March 11, I had the pleasure of meeting Pete Carcione, president of the Golden Gate Produce Terminal and owner of Carcione’s Fresh Produce, and experienced a wonderful visit and glimpse into the busy activities of the wholesale produce warehouses at the Golden Gate Produce Terminal.
Pete’s family has been in the produce business for over 90 years, starting with his grandfather who came to America as a teenager and opened a small produce store in San Francisco. You may also remember Pete’s father Joe Carcione, who hosted snippets of advice and tips for fruits and vegetables on television in the 1980′s. Joe also wrote a newspaper column, published two books, and was syndicated on about 80 television stations nationwide for his television and radio spots.
The family legacy continues through Pete Carcione, whose wholesale produce business has been supplying fresh, high quality fruits and vegetables for 35 years to over 400 stores and restaurants throughout northern California.
Pete is currently in the process of re-publishing one of his father’s books, The Greengrocer Cookbookwhich is currently out of print but appears to still be in popular demand, and I am so honored that some of the recipes from my book The Deity Diet are going to be featured in the upcoming release of The Greengrocer Cookbook.
As I drove through the gates of the Golden Gate Produce Terminal, I was absolutely amazed at the size of it – multiple wholesale produce distributors in huge warehouses spread out over 17 acres and 200,000 square feet – filled with farm fresh produce of fruits and vegetables, literally from floor to ceiling, spread out into the street – boxes and boxes of delicious, colorful oranges, apples, Swiss chard, rhubarb, crates of beans, avocados, pineapples, and mangoes from local farms and countries as far away as France and Chile.
It was an art just dodging the forklifts beeping and moving about while they load the shipments on trucks destined for local grocery stores and restaurants. By 9:30 AM most of the activity had slowed down as trucks took off for their deliveries.
I tasted succulent, crunchy baby cucumbers, and sampled fragrant, juicy Mandarin oranges that were dripping with sweetness. I learned about the Name, (pronounced “Nami”) a tuber which looks like an oversized potato but filled with antioxidants and vitamins, and how to pick the best mangoes (but that is another blog post).
I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the produce terminal is not just for business customers but is open to the general public as well. It is located near the San Francisco International airport at 131 Terminal Ct, South San Francisco, CA.
So the next time you are out and about you may want to drop in – maybe you will be lucky enough to pick up a fresh box of sweet, juicy Mandarin oranges for a lot less than what you will pay at your local grocery chain.
The following salad is delicious and filled with amazing health benefits and a rainbow of colors.
In addition to wholesome carrots, apples and nuts, one serving of this salad contains nutrient richKaleandSwiss Chardloaded with minerals andVitamins A, C and K(one cup of Kale provides over 300% of Vitamin A and 80% of your Vitamin C daily needs, while Swiss Chard provides 374% of your Vitamin K daily needs).
Red, Yellow and GreenBell Peppers are high in antioxidants,phytochemicals and lycopene,and known to fight heart disease, stroke and cancer; whileCilantro is powerful cleansing agent, good for the digestion and full of antibacterial qualities.
Ingredients
2 cups Red Swiss Chard, chopped
2 cups Kale, chopped
2 cups Romaine lettuce, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup red apple, chopped
1 cup red pepper, chopped
1 cup yellow pepper, chopped
½ cup shredded carrots
½ cup finely chopped cilantro
¼ cup slivered almonds (sprinkle over finished salad)
Directions
Wash vegetables and apples thoroughly, prepare and drain using a salad spinner so salad is nice and dry. Mix thoroughly in a large bowl.
Sprinkle slivered almonds over the top of the salad and serve with your favourite dressing.
This is an excerpt from my book The Deity Diet which highlights some of the personal experiences my American husband and children had, integrating with the culture of India and with my Indian family.
In the culture of Northeastern India, a baby’s first birthday is cause for celebration. We prepare a big feast for relatives, friends, and neighbors, who all gather to wish the baby well.
When my daughter was about to turn a year old, however, I was living in the United States with my American husband. Not a single Indian relative was here, and his family was so scattered about, it would have been impractical to get everyone together in one place.
We were fairly young and didn’t have much money, but I wanted so badly to take my daughter home and show her off to my family that we did what any proud modern-day parents would do: we racked up our credit cards and took off for India, baby in tow. Here is a picture of the happy baby before our trip.
At that time, I had six younger brothers and sisters still living at home, plus my mother, grandmother (sadly, my grandfather had passed away), a multitude of aunts, uncles, and cousins, and tons of old friends and neighbors.
You can probably imagine what it was like to bring an eleven-month-old baby into this lot, where the youngest child was my brother, age seven, practically ancient in comparison to his new niece. My daughter was passed around from one person to another, kissed, doted on, fed all kinds of very un-baby-like treats that I pretended not to notice, and was thoroughly spoiled.
And, of course, there was the complicated business of planning The Birthday Feast, who to invite, what to serve, how much to cook, who would cook it; and “should-we-only-have-tea-or-have-tea-and-then-later-on-dinner,” what music to play, who will provide the blessing, and so on and so forth. You would think we were planning a wedding.
By the time my mother and grandmother were through, it was almost like a wedding, with over two hundred guests. Most people in India think nothing of this – the celebration is both a feast and a religious ceremony – but to my American husband it was all a little mind-boggling.
Bitter Melon, also known as Bitter Gourd with the English name of Momordica Charantia, is an amazing fruit-vegetable that appears to have very interesting properties for fighting diabetes, cancer and certain infections and fevers. It is a green cucumber like food with a rough skin and is grown all over India (called Karela) and other Asian countries. It can be found in most grocery stores in the United States.
Bitter melon does have a very bitter flavour so it is an acquired taste for most people. I certainly acquired this taste early in my childhood from my grandmother and I LOVE bitter melon! My grandmother would steam it, mush it up, then add lemon juice, chopped garlic, onions, salt and fresh diced hot chillies to it and our family would eat it as one of our side vegetables with rice and curry.
Bitter melon has been used to control blood sugar levels throughout the centuries and science appears to support this. This gourd like fruit contains bioactive properties and could be apowerful treatment for Type II Diabetes. One of it’s benefits is that it allows the body the ability to improve glucose tolerance.
Research indicates that bitter melon has four components (momordicosides Q, R, S, and T with karaviloside XI) which create increased activity of AMPK, which is directly beneficial to fighting diabetes and obesity.
Additionally bitter melon has certain components that appear (again, according to research) to have a potential for treatment against breast cancer , prostrate cancer, and possiblyHIV related infections, however anti HIV properties are not conclusive and more research is needed. Some of its other herbal uses include treatments for digestive and skin diseases.
You can add bitter melon to your diet as either a steamed vegetable or juice this great little plant. For some people it is more palatable to eat it fried. It can also be taken as a bitter melon extract.
If you are taking medication for blood sugar levels, please check with your doctor before use. It is not recommended for people with liver problems and should not be used during pregnancy as it may stimulate the uterus. This information is for educational purposes only and for diagnosis or treatment of any medical problem, please consult your licensed health care practitioner.
While I was in India last Oct, I was fortunate enough to be able to visit a farm that belonged to a friend of mine and asked him if we could dig up some turmeric root so I can take a picture for my blog and here it is.
Turmeric is a plant in the ginger family with an earthy, bitter flavor and a mustard-like smell. It is a root that is boiled, then dried, and finally ground into a yellow-orange powder to be used as a spice. Turmeric is the ingredient that gives curry dishes their yellow color.
On of the main components in Turmeric is Curcumin. This component has been found to have amazing healing properties. I have consolidated some highlights of Turmeric below from my upcoming book The Deity Diet. Stay tuned for the release date.
Turmeric as a healing spice has been found to do the following:
• Produce bile that helps break down fats.
• Detoxify the liver, and assist in blood circulation and purification.
• Because of its antibacterial properties, used as an antiseptic for cuts and bruises.
• Has anti-inflammatory properties and known to be effective as a pain reliever.
• Assists in digestion and fights off intestinal parasites
• Works as an anti-oxidant, and helps reduce cholesterol and fight arteriosclerosis.
• Fluoride in turmeric is highly effective to strengthen teeth & prevent cavities.
• Used as a beauty treatment by brides in India, known to enhance the complexion.
• Turmeric’s distinct aroma and taste adds color to, & enhances the flavor of curries.
• Turmeric is also used in eggs and in salads.
One of the significant benefits of turmeric is its potential for preventing Alzheimer’s disease. According to a UCLA study, India has one of the lowest rates of Alzheimer’s disease in the world. The incidence of Alzheimer’s among Indian adults aged seventy to seventy-nine is 4.4 times less than that of the United States. Research indicates that curcumin, the main component of turmeric, inhibits accumulation of destructive beta amyloids that form the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Further studies are being conducted.
The next time you cook with Turmeric, think about the positive impact you are contributing to the health and well being of your body.
A wonderful thing happened to me recently. I belong to this amazing group called Ladies Who Launch (LWL). I consider myself very lucky to be involved with this group as they have been an invaluable for encouragement and feedback on some of my ideas and endeavors as I was launching Himalayan Boot Camp. They are also a great source for recommendations on resources ranging from web designers to insurance agents and more.
A few weeks ago, as I was finishing my book The Deity Diet and looking for people in the health and nutrition field to review and endorse it, I sent out an email to this talented and diverse group of women, asking whether anyone would like to check out my manuscript and endorse my book.
Parenting coach Chandra Giovanni, who I had never met but whose name I have seen often in emails back and forth in the LWL circle forwarded my request to Dr. Susan Lark, an authority on health, nutrition and balanced living and a bestselling author of 13 books. To my delight, a few days later Dr. Lark responded back that she had reviewed my manuscript and would be happy to endorse my book.
I have received just as notable endorsements for my book from other experts in the fitness and nutrition fields, to note just a few fabulous people to which I am thankful. What marvelous people surround us every where.
I would like to pose the following questions to my readers – have you experienced the power of women working together in your life? Were you at the receiving end? Or were you one of the women who helped someone else out? What motivated you to help? I am curious if you were blessed in some strange wonderful way.
I would love to hear your story. Feel free to comment or write me an email and I will take the top two stories and blog about you and your experiences. And remember, anytime I blog your story you receive a free autographed copy of my book. Lets connect and interact, it makes it so much more interesting that just myself as the lone writer of my blog.
Until next time, here’s to your Longevity and Abundant Living!
The information in this blog is for educational purposes only. For diagnosis or treatment of any medical problem, please consult your licensed health care practitioner.
nufactured from the initial picking of the “two leaves and a bud” until the tea is packaged for the open markets, so I thought I would share with you how this process works.
which is currently out of print but appears to still be in popular demand, and I am so honored that some of the recipes from my book 
