Pure and Pumpkin

Happy Wellness Wednesday!

I have struggled with what to share with you this week. Why? Who wants to hear from a health and wellness expert during the holidays season? I could share ways to reduce stress during the holiday, or share how to's on the best ways to navigate the numerous holiday parties and make more healthful choices, assuming there are any to be made, or "is a gym membership the right choice for?" and so on. You get the idea. I have written three different Wellness Wednesdays this week... all great topics that I am sure you will enjoy reading and that will have very helpful information you can use but I am going to save them till you are ready, which I am sure will be soon as you start thinking about the lifestyle changes you want to make for 2012.

A heads up for those of you who asked and for those of you that are alumni and want to start the year off with a bang and for those of you that over indulge during the holidays and want to feel light and energetic by end of Jan, we will be offering Dr Pia's Purification Program the first week in January. Let me if you want in on this fabulous program. Below is just one of the many success stories

Dear Dr. Pia,

Before I began the SP Cleanse program I was not feeling very well. In fact, I was feeling fatigued every afternoon. Most meals

were leaving me feeling either nauseous or just "icky" no matter what I ate and I had hypo-glycemic systems if I went too

long between meals. Just to make my story even better my cholesterol numbers were extremely high. I followed the cleanse

plan to the letter and was amazed at how fast my digestive system felt so much better.The nausea went away immediately,the hypoglycemic symptoms left after day 5 when my blood sugar leveled out and I lost 5 lbs that first week. I found the cleanse

easy to follow and the shakes actually tasted good!

Now here is the best part. In three weeks I took my total cholesterol from 296 down to 161!

My tryglycerides dropped from 279 to 158!!! My doctor was truly impressed and I am thrilled to get this amazing result in just

3 weeks. It's been a month since I completed the program and I am still having SP Shakes for breakfast and snacks to maintain

my great results.

Thank you for being there everyday with your encouragement, support, and guidance. It helped tremendously to know I wasn't

going it alone.

In the meantime... enjoy every second of this magical time of the year and try my wonderful recipe for Butternut ( Pumpkin) Squash Soup.

Dr Pia's Pumpkin Soup

One Butternut Pumpkin peeled and roughly cubed.

One medium/large brown onion. chopped.

In a large pan, add a couple of tbsp s of olive or better yet coconut oil,

Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, a little ( too much is not good) minced ginger.

Add chopped onion and brown a little/soft. ( I also like to add ground pepper and some italian herbs and a pinch of sea salt.)

Add pumpkin and mix a little.

Then add organic chicken broth low sodium ( I know... I added salt above... I like to control the salt and the quality )

Almost cover the pumpkin with broth, bring to boil and the simmer till pumpkin is soft.

Drag out the Vitamix. Put in the pumpkin mix. If you want it nice and thick then you will not use all the liquid. If you want it a little thinner then add all the liquid. Blend. Careful it is hot!

Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream on top and a sprig of cilantro.

Let me know how it goes and if you like it.

Dr Pia

The Buzz about 11-11-11

I had to share this with you:

Many people are hearing the buzz about this special date and yet uncertain as to why it is so special. The words "portal, vortex, numerology" are swirling around and no matter what you make of it, there is a sense of SOMETHING IS HAPPENING! But the question is what? How does it relate to me?

The bottom line of all the hoopla is this: on 11-11-11 MILLIONS of people around the world, in one form or another, will be holding different ceremonies celebrating the shifting in consciousness on the planet. And this means that all those millions of people will be sending energy out into the collective consciousness grid which in turn feeds each one of us. This is quantum physics at its finest! Imagine a power surge of positive vibrations sent throughout the earth and beyond, focused on shifting the consciousness from the first three chakras energy of "protect and defend" to the higher chakras where we live in "balance & harmony."

We must be the change; it must take place inside ourselves. Participating in such a worldwide event shows that we take responsibility and actively engage in the lifting of consciousness. Perhaps this is why we chose to be born at this time, something to ponder.

Have a great day enjoy and look at all the ways eleven is already in our daily lives. EG: A lot of team sports have

eleven players on the field at one time like soccer, football, and cricket. The first lunar landing was made by Apollo 11, The deepest part of the ocean floor is 11 kms, the eleventh step of the 12 step program is meditation and courage, and the reason I and many of you first heard 11:11:11 was to stop in silence to pay tribute and remember the sacrifice of our veterans

Have a great week,

Namaste

Dr Pia

Are Vitamins harmful or helpful?

There has been a lot of alarming headlines in local and national newspapers this past two weeks regarding the safety of vitamins.

First: It is important for all of us to read the entire article and not just the headline. In the world of tweets and texts we tend not to read entire articles, nor do we look for further research that supports or refutes the information.

Second: It is important to understand that many of today's vitamins and supplements are fractions of the whole. In other words they are made in a

laboratory and are not from whole food.

Third: Vitamins are not an insurance policy against poor eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. The best nutrients for the human body are whole fresh foods that are found in nature.

Fourth: If you think you need a particular nutrient such as Iron or Calcium speak to your health professional to see if you infact need it. They can also help you understand how these nutrients work in the body from a physiological perspective. For example calcium requires adequate stomach acid to be absorbed into the system and not all forms of calcium are absorbable. Some forms such as calcium carbonate (chalk) are a total waste of money and harmful.

Fifth: It is always important to read the labels of supplements and fortified foods. If the supplement does not list whole foods as the source then it is chemical and can be harmful. There is a lot of hype and marketing and if it sounds too good to be true? Then ...... As many of you know I am food first advocate and if needed and based on individual needs I would suggest the use of whole food supplements and herbs from organic sources.

I Have included the link to the various articles if you would like to learn more and as always should you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me. http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/story/2011-10-11/Are-vitamin-supplements-healthy-or-deadly/50735214/1

Happy halloween and take it easy on the candy!!!

Dr Pia