Fire Cider
Fire Cider is an old herbal folk remedy. The pungent, hot, sour and sweet properties of this herbal tonic is sure to kick out a cold. But Fire Cider is not only used to for cold and flu season. Fire Cider is a great immune enhancing formula that can be taken daily as part of your daily regimen. It can promote circulation and also aid in digestion. Sip it straight, add it to other beverages or even add to create a craft cocktail. You can even cook with it.
I love Fire Cider because it is simple to make, and uses ingredients that you may already have in your house or garden. There are hundreds of variations out there, and there really is no right or wrong. Here is my recipe: (This is a recipe that you should try to use all organic ingredients)
1/2 Cup grated organic ginger root
1/2 cup grated organic horseradish root
1/2 cup dice organic turmeric root
10 cloves organic garlic, crushed or chopped
1/4 tsp. cayenne powder
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
I medium organic onion chopped
Sprig of fresh rosemary plus 2 Tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
2 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh parsley chopped
1 orange, halved and sliced
1 lemon, halved and sliced
Zest of one lemon
1 Tbsp black peppercorns
1/4 raw local honey, or to taste
Raw organic unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar.
Prepare all your ingredients and place them in a quart or 1.5 quart size jar. Fill with Apple Cider Vinegar. If using a mason jar, place a piece of wax paper between the jar and the lid to prevent the vinegar from corroding the metal lid. Place in a cool dark area (cabinet) for 4 weeks and shake daily. After weeks, strain ingredients through a cheesecloth into a clean jar, squeezing every last drop out. Add more honey if desired.
You will want to immediately start your next batch, as you will see, this won't last very long!
Cheers to making food into medicine and staying healthy during cold and flu season!
Why I Got Vaccinated
Moderna Vaccine 1/21/2021 and 2/18/2021
Here is my gratuitous pictures of getting the Moderna Covid 19 vaccinations.
Many people are surprised by this. Many people assume, that as an acupuncturist, I would be opposed to getting vaccines.
If you know me, you know that I live a very healthy lifestyle. I will fight my doctor tooth and nail to not take medication. I fight him to not get the flu shot every year. I have worked so hard to successfully lower my cholesterol without having to take statins. Many of you have followed me on that journey. Starting with juicing and drinking celery juice every morning and then gradually switching to a vegan diet.
So why get the Covid-19 Vaccine? The answer is simple. To do my part.
I am a healthcare provider. I will do whatever it takes to protect myself and keep my patients safe.
I am a son. I will do my part to protect my elderly parents.
I am a partner. I will do whatever it takes to protect him.
I am sibling. I look forward to the day that my family can all be together again.
I am a Patriot. I am a proud American wanting to do his part to get this country back to “normal”
Oh yeah…. I support science too.
With that being said, is this vaccine foolproof? Absolutely not. I will continue everything I do normally to keep my immune system strong. I will still practice all of the safety protocols. Just as I tell my patients… Blending your eastern or “alternative medicine with your western medicine practices will only enhance your outcome.
Here’s to kicking Covid-19 in the butt.
Finding Hidden Gems During the Pandemic
Happy New Year! Can you believe we are in 2021? 2020 was quite the year that most of us want to put behind us.
It seems like yesterday when I was announcing that I was closing my office for 2 weeks. Those 2 weeks turned into 3 months. Even after re-opening in July, my practice has never looked the same.
We all put our lives on hold, lost jobs, figured out how to work from home and become a home school teacher as well. We lost the daily interactions of seeing friends and family. We learned how to zoom, how to cook and bake, how to garden, and how to get creative in our exercise routines. Yes we all gave in to binge watching television and drinking too much. It is ok to give in to pleasures as well.
When the world as we know it comes to a halt, we are forced to stop, slow down and re-evaluate what is really is important. These are what I like to call the Hidden Gems of the Pandemic. If we did not learn any valuable life lessons during this time, to me, it is time wasted.
When I re-opened my office a Hidden Gems that I found was that it really isn’t necessary for me to see patients back to back. I slowed down my pace for proper sanitizing purposes. But as time went on, I started to realize that I actually liked the slower pace. It allows me to spend more quality time with my patients and not feel so rushed. One of the many reasons I wanted to get into Chinese Medicine was to have that quality time with them.
When we slow down, we are able to see more clearly what was there all along. I hope you have been able to discover some self realizations along the way as well. I think when life returns back to some sense of normalcy, we will all be better people.
50 Days of Celery Juice
This week marked my 50th straight day of drinking celery juice. I embarked on this health journey because I have been a follower of Anthony William. After reading his book Liver Rescue, I decided to commit to doing the Liver Rescue Morning to see how it will improve my health. Specifically, I am hoping to lower my cholesterol, which at it’s highest was 314, despite my healthy lifestyle of clean eating and much exercise.
This program is not always easy. It takes a big commitment to make the celery juice every morning. Sometimes even finding celery in the store can be difficult. I have stuck with it, even when traveling. I have been to Mexico, where I was able to use a Vita-mix to prepare my juice down there. Even on long weekends away, I have brought my juicer with me. This past weekend I was in Palm Springs and Palm Desert and was lucky to have found a local juice bar in Palm Springs, and a Whole Foods in Palm Desert that served fresh celery juice. So I can say it is getting easier to find, even when bringing your own juicer ins not so convenient.
Although I still have until July until my next blood panel, I wanted to give a progress report of how I am feeling after 50 days.
First and foremost I can tell you my digestion has changed dramatically. This is something I was able to notice almost immediately after starting this program. I have had 50 days of bowel movements! While this may be “TMI” for some, this is huge for me. I have always had a slow transit elimination. Going to the bathroom every other day and sometimes every 3 days was normal for me. Having a daily bowel movement. Many people ask me if this type of cleanse will have you running to the bathroom, and I can safely say this is not the case.
I suffer from mild eczema. I have seen improvements on my skin as well. It has not completely gone away but I have had improvements in most of my flare up areas. I still have some itching, but that may also be due to chlorine from swimming 4 times a week. I also feel like the skin on my face is clearer and my eyes are more fresh with less black circles and puffiness.
I have a lost 10 pounds. Although weight loss was not on my list of reasons for doing this program, it just happened to be a secondary effect. Don’t get me wrong, I am not mad about this at all. Over the last several years, I have struggled to be in the five pound zone that I feel most comfortable in. No matter how clean my diet was or how intense my workouts were, I could not break into that zone. Since drinking the celery juice, I have been comfortably in that zone again. Even on some days I am below it, but I have never gone back above it. I definitely attribute this to my improved digestion.
Other than that, all I can say is that I just feel good. I feel energized, I do not get fatigued as easily when swimming. I feel an overall sense of wellness.
I still have until July for my next blood panel, so I will keep you up to date on those results. If you have any questions about this program, feel free to shoot me an email at antonio@bodyandsoulacupuncture.com.
Until July,
Antonio