Healthy Fried Rice

Normally, the worlds "healthy" and "fried rice" don't bond very well.

But today, thanks to my son Josh, I'd like to share his favorite recipe for fried rice that's about as healthy as you're going to find.

Josh's Healthy Fried Rice

1/2 or 1 cup of uncooked white rice
2 1/2 cups grated cabbage, grated into ribbons
Two eggs
1 medium zucchini, sliced into strips
1/2 onion of your choice, sliced
Soy sauce
Bay leaf
Butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the rice, adding a little olive oil and a bay leaf for flavor. Let sit until ready.

Fire up your wok to the medium setting on your stove and add butter to coat it. When the butter's popping, add onion and zucchini. Let cook for five minutes or so, then stir, then let sit again so it can steam and get nice and soft.

When the onion is clearly cooked, drop two eggs in a separate pan like you're making an omelete or scrambled eggs. When they're done, cut up the egg in small pieces and add to the vegetables, stirring well.

Make a bed of veggies and egg and then add the rice over it. Immediately season with soy sauce -- we do five or six passes with the bottle. You want the the rice to be dark, looking like proper fried rice.

Stir the rice vigorously; this should take no more than two minutes. If you keep it in there too long, the rice will burn into the wok -- this is why the rice goes on top of the veggies.

Season to taste and remove all and place in a bowl. It's delicious already, but the secret ingredient is still to come!

Add more butter to the wok and drop in the sliced cabbage. Let it sit for a bit, then stir well, watching for it to be cooked and soft. Add two or three passes with the bottle of soy sauce, stirring well.

When it looks done, add to the rice and veggies, being sure not to dump all of it in -- just the cabbage, not the excess soy sauce and sludge.

Folks, if this isn't one of the best fried rice recipes this side of the Orient, I don't know what is.

Oh, good news. Josh significatly improved his healthy fried rice recipe in March of 2009, and you can (and should) give that one a try, too. Click here to check out Josh's new and improved version.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Spiritual Retreat Tips

You don't have to spend an arm and a leg for a spiritual retreat.

In fact, you don't even have to search for a guru, hike in the mountains, or drive to the beach,

Here are some quick tips for a do-it-yourself spiritual retreat in the privacy of your own home or office.

First, find a comfortable place. This will be a quiet place where dogs and family won't be bounching in and out. It'll also be a place where you feel safe and relaxed.

Next, turn your attention to your breath. Take a deep breath. Hold. Release slowly. Repeat several times. With each exhalation, relax and let go.

Now that you're relaxing, direct your mental attention to your legs.

As you continue to breathe, hold, release, and relax, visual your legs reaching down into the earth just like large roots of an ancient oak tree.

Imagine your legs extending slowly, growing down to the very center of the earth.

When you feel your legs secure in the center of the earth, gently whisper to yourself...

I am grounded to the earth... feeling vital and strong.

Now, and this is the cool part, feel the healing earth energy flow up through your roots and up into your entire body.

This energy flows in gentle, warm waves, and it fills every part of your being with inner peace, warmth, and vitality.

Breathe deeply into this healing place.

Feel peace and stillness flowing through your chest and heart.

Breathe, hold, release slowly, and let go.

And know that you can return to this spiritual retreat whenever you wish.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

P.S. If you like this spiritual retreat exercise, I know you'll want to click here and subscribe to my free EarthRain Meditation newsletter.

Acne Home Remedies

Here are a few acne home remedies that are said to be helpful:

• Apply lemon juice, let set for 30 seconds, wash with cool water, and pat dry with a clean towel.
  
• Apply cucumber juice, let set for 30 seconds, wash with cool water, and pat dry with a clean towel.
  
• Orange peel pounded well with water and applied to affected areas has been reported as being helpful.
• Drink plenty of pure water each day to impart a healthy glow to the skin.

Dr. Ben Kim has a natural approach to curing acne. Click here to read his excellent article.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Healthy Hair Tips

Here are four tips for healthy hair that anyone can do.

Lifeless Hair

If using a body building gel or mousse, don't use it on wet hair because it will make your hair go limp. Water will dilute the active ingredients in most volumizers. To use a gel or mousse properly, first towel dry your hair to remove excess moisture, and then massage the volumizer into your hair and style as usual.

Fading Hair Color

To lock in color, try using a shampoo that has a slightly acidic Ph. All shampoos designed to clarify, thicken, or control dandruff contain harsh, color-dimming ingredients and should thus be avoided.

Hair Breakage

Your hair is fragile when wet, so comb it properly. Here's how to do that.

• Always use a wide-tooth comb for detangling.
  
• Begin at ends and work through gently.
  
• Then go back and comb through from scalp.

Enrich Your Dark Hair Color Naturally

Brew a strong cup of espresso. Let it cool completely. Once it's cool, pour on your dry hair and leave on for 20 minutes. Rinse.

I think you'll find these four healthy hair tips quite useful.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Compassion Exercise

Today I'd like to share an excellent compassion exercise that comes from Harry Palmer's fascinating book, Resurfacing: Techniques for Exploring Consciousness.

Honesty with one's self leads to compassion for others.

Objective:
To Increase the amount of compassion in the world.

Expected Result:
Increase in understanding and a personal sense of peace.

Instructions:
This exercise can be done anywhere that people congregate (malls, restaurants,airports, events, beaches, etc.). It should be done on strangers, unobtrusively, and from some distance.

Try to do all five steps on the same person.

Steps:

1. With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: "Just like me, this person is seeking some happiness for (his or her) life."
   
   
2. With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: "Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in (his or her) life."
   
   
3. With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: "Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness, and despair."
   
   
4. With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: "Just like me, this person is seeking to fill (his or her) needs."
   
   
5. With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: "Just like me, this person is learning about life."

Try this exercise in compassion. I guarantee you'll like the way you feel after doing it.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Healthy Carrot Cake

There are some healthy and living carrot cake recipes that are so tasty they almost make you laugh with joy when you even think about them.

Today I have such a recipe for you, courtesy of Margaret Rosales, who shared it with me originally many years ago.

Living Carrot Cake with Lemon Cashew Frosting

Carrot Cake
1 cup soaked, raw almonds
1 1/2 cup soaked raisins (save water)
1 cup pitted dates, soaked and drained
6 cups carrot pulp
1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
zest of one lemon and one orange

Lemon Cashew Frosting
2 cups soaked cashews
1 cup soaked raisins
1 cup soaked dates
juice of one lemon

In blender, place almonds, raisins, dates, and raisin water. Mix. Add to a bowl and add pulp, spices, and zest.

For frosting, blend cashews and their water with the dates and their water and lemon juice until smooth.

Line 10-inch pie pan with plastic wrap and press cake mixture into it. Turn out onto plate and remove plastic. Spread frosting over. Do the second layer the same and spread frosting over all.

Delicious!

You're not going to find a healthy carrot cake recipe any better than this one. Try it if you don't believe me.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Constipation Diarrhea Remedy

Gosh, the title sounds like a contradiction, doesn't it?

Well, in reality, the lowly blueberry can serve as a remedy for both constipation and diarrhea.

And those aren't the only uses for the tasty and life-enhancing blueberry.

Read on...

The Swedes have used blueberries as a diarrhea remedy for ages.

On the other hand, so to speak, if constipation has you down, you should try eating some blueberries. German scientists have noted that fresh blueberries produce a laxative effect in some individuals.

Since blueberries also kill infectious germs, you'll find a lot of skiers on the slopes in Europe sipping blueberry soup as a cold remedy.

Did you know that some bacteria and viruses can be killed by the high concentrations of some compounds in blueberries? Well, in tests several years ago in Canada, crushed blueberries destroyed nearly 100% of polio viruses within 24 hours. (source The Food Pharmacy, Jean Carpenter).

Regular consumption of blueberries may also contribute to

• reversing the aging process
• protecting the body from stress
• providing some anti-cancer benefits
• preventing weakening eyesight
• helping urinary tract infections.
  

Best of all, blueberries are loaded with antioxidants.

And, hey, blueberries don't cost an arm and a leg, either, and can be purchased frozen any time of the year.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

Vitamin Supplements: Synthetic vs. Natural

Today, let's examine the controversy in the health world about the human body’s reaction to synthetic vs. natural vitamin supplements.

Many authorities argue that the small chemical differences between synthetic and natural vitamin supplements are of no consequence.

However, a number of studies suggest that the human body recognizes the difference and that the body more easily absorbs and assimilates natural forms of vitamins (including A, B-complex, C, D, and E). Thus, the natural forms provide many more benefits where deficiencies and disease are concerned than synthetics.

It just makes common sense that synthetic vitamins wouldn't be as healthy as the real thing, doesn't it?

Not only are synthetic vitamins highly processed, but the "vitamins" coming out of the laboratory no longer contain the micronutrients that accompany them naturally in whole foods.

The synthesized pills lack many important co-factors, including minerals, enzymes, co-enzymes, trace elements, amino acids, proteins, essential fatty acids, and phytonutrients.

Without the important co-factors, can synthetic vitamins possibly have the synergistic, nutritional, and positive health effects of vitamins derived from whole foods?

I think the answer to that one is obvious, don't you?

Get your vitamins from whole, unprocessed foods.

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com

P.S. Click here to read an interesting article about the three B-complex vitamins. Learn which is the worst dressed, best dressed, and fairest of them all.

Fig Recipe for Health

People have been enjoying figs since ancient times.

In the Old Testament, for example, King Hezekiah was sick unto death and Isaiah called for a lump of figs.

Guess what?

The King recovered by eating Isaiah's fig recipe.

Of course, I'm not saying here that figs are cure-alls.

Figs do, however, contain an active agent - benzaldehyde. The Japanese identified this ingredient in figs after giving it to cancer patients and seeing dramatic results.

Fig juice has also killed bacteria in test tubes and roundworms in dogs.

Additionally, the enzymes in figs -- called ficins -- aid digestion.

It's fun to eat figs, but they have other uses as well. Here's a fig recipe for healthy skin that I know you'll appreciate after giving it a try...

Fig Exfoliators

Fresh figs make wonderful mild exfoliators. They contain an active enzyme that helps to remove dead skin cells from the surface of the skin, just the way pineapple and papaya does.

Fresh figs are always best as exfoliators, but dried figs will do if fresh are not available. If using dried figs, first soak them in water for 15-20 minutes to soften them.

Using figs as exfoliators is easy. Just step into your shower, turn on the water, and scrub your body with the little fruits.

The tiny seeds in the figs will gently polish your skin, and you'll climb out of that shower feeling and looking like a million bucks.

And that's it for today's fig recipe for health!

Chet Day
Editor, The Health Circus
http://chetday.com