First of all, make a habit of learning to read labels – there are some delicious juice boxes that contain less than 11 grams of sugar per serving, which are preferred over less healthy  options.  Substituting whole grain or sprouted bread for white bread.  Deli meats should have no more than 3 or 4 ingredients!  Skip the mini-pack junk food snacks and instead pack veggies and fruit along with a favorite dipping sauce (hummus?)

In addditon, it’s important to do some homework of your own!  Your assignment – to work on including only sweet treats that contain less than 9 grams of sugar per serving.

Finally, don’t skip meals, especially breakfast!  Studies show, hungry children have a harder time foucsingm controlling moods, and leaning.

Keeping it green takes a little more work initally, but you will be surprised how quickly both you and your child will adapt it.  This includes buying a lunch box instead of using a brown bag; Replacing plastic baggies with  BPA-free reusable lunch containers or zero-waste Wrap-n-Mat.

And finally, a solution that touches both areas – soup in a thermos.  What kid doesn’t like chicken soup??

Did we miss anything? Feel free to stop by and give us your favorite healthy and/or green lunch tip.

With the advent of Labor Day, we start getting into the “back to reality” mode- meaning the summer is over and the children are back in school.  After three months of vacation, your child may need a little (or lot) help mentally getting back into the daily routine.  Most of this is simple common sense, but here are a few diet tips than can help, along with some recommended supplements.

Diet tips include avoiding foods high in sugar for breakfast.  Read the ingredients-even cereals that tout themselves as “healthy” contain enough sugar to cause your child to “spike” early and “bonk” shortly afterwards.

The same rule applies to fruit juices- do your home work and read labels!  The best breakfast contain protein and complex carbs – protein shakes, eggs, and oatmeal all fit the bill.

As far as the rest of the day goes, staying nourished is paramont.  Children should eat three balanced meals and two helathy snacks daily -  A HUNGRY CHILD HAS DIFFICULTY STAYING FOUCSED AND CONTROLLING EMOTIONS.  An orange for a snack helps children refuel energy naturally and maintain focus.  There are some great some good snack bars on the market that can go in your child’s backpack that are low in sugar and made with complex carbs.  Foods containing refined sugars, too many ‘junky’ carbs, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, have been shown to aggravate ADHD.  And make sure your children are drinking plenty of water!

Many parents have found supplements including fish oil (high DHA), a calcium/magnesium supplement to help with neurotransmitters and promote healthy sleep.  In addition, parents have found testing their children for heavy metal toxicity and food sensitivities has been helpful.

Remember – when blood sugar is low, it has been shown that it leads to decreased brain function.

Whether you’re going to school or not, taking a good muti vitamin daily is essential for everybody.  Of course, regular exercise also helps elevate your mood, attitude, and self esteem.

Here at Nature’s Temptations, we wish you a happy and healthy school year!  Class dimissed!

~Slow down!  Sit down in a relaxed, calm setting while eating, and chew your food slowly and completely.

~Limit your intake of high-carbohyrdate foods and avoid them altogether after 5pm.

~Reduce your consumption of processed foods including sugar, flour, chemical laden and artificial foods as well as artificial sweetners.

~Incorporate an enzyme supplement (such as Lypo Gold + enzymedica, CLA, chromium or L-carnitine) to aid digestion.

~Have your hormone levels checked regularly.

~Try replacing one meal with a healthy protein shake daily.

~If you overeat, try practicing meditation to relax.

~Sleep and exercise are essential for a healthy lifestyle for everyone-especially for those looking to lose weight.

The essentials:  Probiotics, digestive enzymes, greens, multivitamins, fish oil and vitamin D.  Men in particular should include a prostate formula along with these other supplements.  If you are having eye trouble, try an antioxident with astaxanthin.

Maintain mental sharpness with fish oil, ginko, CoQ10 and Zyflamed from New Chapter.

Keep inflammation down: Avoid foods that are inflammatory- coffee, meat, white flour, and wine.

Detox naturally: Consume more brightly colored vegetables- peppers, kale, carrots and spinach, amoung others.  Antioxident vitamins include A, C, and E along with alha lipoic acid.

Stay active!  Non-stressful exercise including walking, swimming, tai chi, and yoga.

Exercise! Most of us reach our peak bone mass in our 30′s, after which the strength and density begins to diminish.  Regular exercise helps to slow down the decline.  Standard weight-bearing exervise is mandatory-free weights, running, and walking.

Eat more foods that are part of the “alkaline diet.”  This diet is rich in minimally processed plant and animal foods, including fresh citrus, vegetables, nuts and legumes.  Limiting grains, dairy, meat, sugar,  caffeine and alcohol is also part of the diet.

Confirm you’re consuming enough calcium, as it is extremely vital to bone health.  Required supplements include Vitamin D, boron and calcium magnesium.  All women should get a blood test to check progesterone levenls and remember – teeth are bones too!

Stay hydrated!  A quick and dirty rule is to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces.  So if you weigh 150 pounds, then drink 75 ounces of water daily.  A simple way to stay hydrated is to drink on 8oz glass of water before every meal.  Right there, you’r up to 64oz.  Green tea also hydrates and promotes SPF protection.

Eat plenty of high antioxident foods.  These are generally colorful fruits and vegetables, including berries, peppers, spinach, grapes, oranges, and kale amoung others.

Step up the vitamins and supplements that promote healthy skin in the summer months, including Vitamins A,C,E, Bcomplex, and zinc.  Supplements that help  moisturize the body include essential fats like fish oil, flax oil, and sea buckthorn oil.

Apply sunscreen if you’re in the sun for an extended period of time, particularly at midday when the sun’s rays are the most damaging to skin.  Treat sunburn with sea buckthorn oil, and/or aloe.

And most importantly, schedule an annual checkup with a dermatologist.

 Why local?                                                                                                                                

• Higher nutrient content                                                                              Local food is fresh food, simply becasue it dosn’t have to travel very far- which also means better tasting and more nutritious – then food trcuked in from elsewhere.  In addition to being fresher, local produce retains a higher nutrient percentage of its chlorophyll then does produce that is shipped from afar.                               
•   Lower carbon footprint                                                                                 Most of the food available today comes from “somewhere else.”  This means transportation, which translate into more vehicles on the road, more traffic, higher emissions of carbons and a reduction of our natural resources.  Not a good way to reduce our carbon foot print.  
•   Supporting local farmer who helps the community intact          Supporting local farmers helps the entire community at large.  In addition, the local economy benefits by jobs that are created.  Bottom line- what is spent in the community stays in the community. 

The next time we enter a ‘big box’ store remember this:

 If we all spent $50 a week in 3 independant local retailers in our community- the return would be 68% of their income back to our local economy!                       

•   Overall reduction in food costs 

 Food that is produced locally can be surprisingly less expensive than you would imagine.  Locally produced meat and produced are immune from the high marketing, transportation, and logistical costs that make up a large percentage of the prodcut’s price tag.                       

•      Local businesses uses less infrastructure then chain box stores        With the ability to operate with greater agility and independence, local businesses are far more efficient dealing with resources when compared to national retailers.  These huge firms, whose headquarters are suprisingly out of touch with the communities they serve.



No matter if you’re a chronic allergy sufferer or barely notice the effects, there are a few things all of us can do to prepare ourselves and defend our bodies against the ravages of seasonal allergies.

First of all, your can limit the foods that are known to cause inflammation and/or mucus build-up. These include dairy products, alcohol, coffed and foods containing white flour. Add supplements that are helpful for lessening allergies, such as bromelaine, Sinusallia by Borion, oregan oil along with other anti-inflammatory herbs. Also double down on your daily Vitamin C intake.

Keeping the air free of allergens is another way to lessen the effects of seasonal allergies. THis inclueds checking for (and eliminating) any mold build-up in your house, including windows and air conditioning ducts. Keep your pets well groomed, and consider adding an air purification system to your home. Using natural cleaning products will also help.

Stop by Nature’s Temptations for more tips on how to loosen the grip of seasonal allergies.

To help cleanse your your body, the frist thing we recommend is to incresae your water intake.  A daily intake of 64 oz. is easily possible- that’s 8-oz. glasses of water a day.  While that can seem a bit overwhelming, it’s a far easier goal if you break it down.  Drink one glass of water before each meal, one with each meal, and one between breakfast and lunch, and one between lunch and dinner.

Other tips for helping clean out your body- eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, and doulbe up on the greens.  Avoiding sugar, flour, dairy, and processed food, along with eliminating coffee, tobacco, and alcohol, will go along way.  Studies have shown a daily regiment of fiber rich foods, and herbs, particulary herbs like milk thistle, will help detoxify your liver.

As far as your home goes, your best bet is to avoid harsh chemical cleaners, particulary products containing bleach.  Products that are natural and contain biodegradable ingredients are the safest and healthiest for your home.

All of us at Nature’s Temptations are looking foward tohelping you celebrate a happy, and healthy Spring!

First of all, understand that even in the best-case scenario, all of us (particularly children) are NOT getting all the necessart nutrients for whatever reason, whether it’s picky eating or due to nutrient-depleted soils. Therefore a multivitamin is mandatory for children (and adults) of all ages.

In addition to the obvious benefits mentioned above, there are some addition reasons to make a multivitamin part of your childs daily routine. Studies have shown multivitamins help with concertration and focus and can help promote a healthy immune system. In addition, calcium and magnesium may also help produce calmness and promote better sleep.

The entire staff at Natures Temptations wishes you and your family a happy and healthy spring!