When I’m pressed for time…it’s fermented tomato-ground beef, one of my favorite quick-fix meals. It’s an easy-to-make one-pot dish, wonderfully satisfying and nutrient-dense.

The star ingredient, of course, is grass-fed ground beef.

I buy mine from Whole Foods, which carries locally raised, grass-fed ground beef. Even raw, the meat looks enticingly “juicy”. Intensely red with white marbled flecks, it’s typically 90% lean, 10% beef fat, always looks fresh, and, when cooked, has a decidedly “chewy” real beef flavor. Next time, check out the shrink-wrapped “graying” ground beef at the supermarket—it simply can’t compare to grass-fed beef in terms of taste, quality and safety (grain-fed cows also have a higher risk of being infected with e-coli).

Yes, it’s pricier than conventional factory-farm ground beef, but the outstanding flavor and many health benefits of organic grass-fed ground beef are well worth the splurge—and a welcome treat on snowy days.

Until last year, I seldom ate—or had much desire for—red meat.  Maybe once or twice every few months.  Now, I crave red meat, especially grass-fed beef, on a regular basis—sometimes 2-3x a week.

The body is inherently wise.  As detailed in my previous post, I am recovering from Stage 3 adrenal fatigue.  As it turns out, one of the most nourishing foods for the adrenals is grass-fed red meat (beef, lamb, elk, bison, venison), particularly beef.

Historically, red meat has gotten a bad rap.  There’s a distinct difference, however, between cows that graze on grass their entire lives, and cows raised in CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations; in other words, factory farm cows).  Because of overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, CAFO cows receive regularly administered “preventative” doses of antibiotics as well as growth hormones; their conventionally grown feed, too, is rife with toxic pesticides as well as genetically modified soy or corn—all of which is passed onto the human consumer.  When cows graze on grass—by nature, they are grass eaters—grass-fed beef offers a host of health benefits.

Chronic exhaustion is one of the prominent symptoms of late-stage adrenal fatigue. Grass-fed beef is chock-full of energy-restoring nutrients: omega-3 fatty acids (usually associated with salmon), B vitamins, especially B6 and B12, and iron. In addition to containing beta-carotene, vitamin K , selenium, zinc and phosphorus, grass-fed beef is also an excellent source of quality protein, which the body requires when healing from adrenal fatigue.

Grass-fed cattle pass along the benefits of their grass-munching to us: 60% of fatty acids in grass are omega-3.  And omega 3-rich diets are rich in Vitamin E, heart friendly, brain friendly (research suggests less incidence of depression, ADD and Alzheimer’s), and linked to a reduced risk of cancer.  Grass-fed beef is also an excellent source of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a “good” trans fatty acid, which, in animal studies, has demonstrated anti-cancer properties. It is also been linked to slowing cancer tumor growth.  CLA is virtually non-existent in factory farm-raised cows.

This is my version of a “Lacto-Fermented Sloppy Joe”, a beloved family meal recipe from Sarah Pople, The Healthy Home Economist, who artfully sneaks in digestion-enhancing, probiotic-rich fermented foods, like liquid whey and fish sauce, into her homemade “ketchup”.

My lazy girl approach, however, substitutes organic strained tomatoes for homemade ketchup.  I also use more onions and garlic, two prebiotic foods (consisting of indigestible plant fibers) that help promote the growth of beneficial gut flora.

I add a judicious drizzle of fish sauce to the meat mixture. Wild black anchovies and sea salt are the only listed ingredients: it is free of MSG, preservatives and sugar).  Word of caution: fish sauce is extremely salty; add to-taste slowly!

Fermented Tomato-Ground Beef

1-1/2 pounds grass-fed ground beef
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 medium onions; apx. 3 cups finely chopped (by hand or in the food processor)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 to 1-1/2 cups organic strained tomatoes
1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons Celtic sea salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fish sauce, or to taste

Melt coconut oil in a Dutch oven over medium-low heat.  When a drop of water sizzles, the oil is hot enough.

Add finely chopped onions and sauté a minute or two. Reduce heat to low and cook about 6-8 minutes, or until onions are translucent (but not overly browned).  Stir in minced garlic, Celtic sea salt and pepper until well combined, about 1 minute.

Add ground beef, breaking up the meat and stirring frequently until most of meat is browned, about 5 minutes.

Pour in the strained tomatoes.  Depending on how thick you like the ground beef mixture, add in more or less pureed tomatoes.  Cook over medium-low heat, about 1-2 minutes, or until mixture begins to gently bubble.  Lower heat, cover and simmer about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat.

Drizzle in fish sauce, combining well with meat mixture.

Let “rest” for about 5 minutes, allowing the flavors to marry and deepen.

Ladle into bowls and serve with steamed broccoli.

“Tightness in the lower back and left knee is usually indicative of adrenal fatigue,” my chiropractor told me.  A marathon runner and triathlete, himself, he warned me of the perils of overtraining and recommended that I alternate cardio and weight-training and cut my workout time—by half.  I blithely ignored his well-intended advice.

But, this year, I experienced a full-blown adrenal exhaustion that was impossible to ignore.

My symptoms manifested as chronic upper respiratory infections; recurrent viral infections; severe allergies; hypersensitivity to sound and smell; loss of physical stamina; flat mood; and low thyroid. In February, I knew something was inherently wrong when my biggest challenge was getting out of bed in the morning (even after eight-plus hours of sleep); then, if I managed to do so, I moved through my day as though drugged.  The simple act of sitting in front of my laptop triggered anxiety and left me perspiring.  Even a short telephone conversation was physically draining. Going to bed bound tighter than a mummy, in layers of long underwear and two wool sweaters for warmth—yes, I was that cold!—wasn’t fun either.  And, for the first time in my life, I had absolutely zero desire to exercise.

I sought help, but conventional doctors didn’t seem to have any insight—or solutions, other than offering a prescription for an antibiotic; a steroid inhaler or oral medication for my allergies; or generic counsel along the lines of “Reduce your stress!”or “Take it easy!” before telling me to “check back in six months so we can ‘monitor’ your situation.”

I finally found an integrative doctor who asked all the right questions.  He ran extensive tests, which revealed that my cortisol was very low, indicative of low adrenal function.  I also had low thyroid, which frequently accompanies adrenal fatigue.  By this time, my other hormones were out of whack, and he warned me that it would be at least a year before I would feel any significant improvement.

Your two grape-sized adrenal glands—each one sits on top of a kidney—produce cortisol (a.k.a. the “’fight-or-flight’ stress hormone”) and the stress neurotransmitters epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine.  Cortisol raises blood sugar and increases blood pressure.  It also regulates your immune system, and when your immune system is healthy, cortisol helps reduce inflammation. Depending on what stage of adrenal dysfunction you are experiencing, your cortisol levels can be either too high or too low.  Chronically elevated cortisol levels suppresses the immune system, leaving you vulnerable to viruses and bacterial infections. Chronically low levels of cortisol leads to an overactive immune system, creating inflammation that may manifest as food sensitivities, autoimmune diseases (eg, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis), mood disorders and body pains and aches.

The adrenal glands also serve as a secondary source of sex hormones for both men and women.

Adrenal fatigue is all too common in our modern, multi-tasking, over-scheduled culture, where 24/7 accessibility (to products, services and people) is the norm.  Yet, conventional medicine does not recognize or treat adrenal fatigue unless you have Addison’s Disease (adrenal failure or adrenal insufficiency), a rare autoimmune disease from which President John F. Kennedy suffered.  Treatment protocol for Addison’s usually requires lifelong corticosteroid replacement therapy.

Adrenal fatigue can be mild (and temporary), like the college student who pulls an all-nighter.  But if burning the candle at both ends becomes a perpetual way of life, cortisol levels will be continuously high. And, as we know…what goes up must come down.  Eventually, as your adrenal glands falter, unable to keep up with a constant demand for cortisol, your cortisol will become persistently low.  At this point, you enter a more severe and debilitating late stage of stress—adrenal exhaustion.  The onset of adrenal fatigue can be gradual or triggered by a single traumatic event, such as a major surgery, toxic exposure or life crisis. Adrenal fatigue is democratic—anyone can experience it: a student, teacher, CEO, caregiver, mothers, even children.

Like a master conductor, the adrenal glands mobilize your body’s responses to stress—through hormones that maintain energy production, immune function, heart rate, muscle tone and other stress-coping mechanisms. The type of stress you experience can be emotional (eg, grieving the death of a loved one); physical (eg, over-exercising, illness, exposure to environmental toxins); or psychological (a hostile work environment, being in an abusive relationship).  Caregivers are especially susceptible to adrenal fatigue.  With little time to themselves and often having to divide their time between work, family, friends, spouse and care-giving, caregivers—whether caring for aging parents, someone with a disability, disease or Alzheimer’s—are at higher risk for physical health problems, as well as anxiety and depression.

Depending on your stage of adrenal fatigue (early or advanced), you can experience a collection of symptoms of varying intensity, including (but not limited to) high blood pressure, cravings for sugar or caffeine, electrolyte imbalance, light-headedness, fuzzy thinking, chronic fatigue, low blood pressure, lethargy, feeling overwhelmed, mild depression, difficulty getting out of bed in the morning, lethargy, strong cravings for salt and multiple chemical sensitivities.

In retrospect, I realize that I have had varying degrees of adrenal fatigue over the last five years.  The transition to adrenal exhaustion began in early 2012—a year already fraught with professional and personal changes—when I came down with four consecutive upper respiratory infections over five months—each lingering longer than the last. Ultimately, this led to imbalances in mood and gut flora, mineral depletion, digestive distress and hormonal imbalance.  At the end of last year, I was prescribed two separate courses of antibiotics, taken a month apart, further undermining my gut health and, consequently, my immune system.  In my case, chronically elevated levels of cortisol resulted in my experiencing recurrent bouts of bronchitis, asthma, sinusitis or other respiratory infections.  From an integrative health and functional medicine perspective, chronic infections are one of the most commonly overlooked sources of stress and resistant adrenal fatigue.

There is, however, a gift in every health challenge. My body gave me no choice but to slow the pace of my life from a sprint to a crawl—no easy task for an obsessive-compulsive Type A perfectionist (and workaholic).  It’s especially challenging in New York City, where taking yourself out of the fast lane can feel like career suicide. The upside?  I’ve learned life lessons that I would not have otherwise.  Like, making peace with being less than “perfect”.  Saying “no” becomes easier when you have little energy, as does focusing on what—and who—really matters. Most importantly, I’ve learned that recovering from adrenal fatigue is a holistic process: it takes more than an Rx for thyroid hormone or adrenal support to “snap out” of a depleted state.

Here’s the good news: with dietary and lifestyle changes, you can recover from adrenal fatigue, including later-stage adrenal exhaustion.  However, self-care must be a non-negotiable priority—it’s not a sign of weakness.
In the last eight months, I’ve made progress from what felt like Ground Zero—unrelenting chronic fatigue, zero tolerance for exercise (even walking) and limited social contact—to a place where I have more energy and cautious optimism.

Stayed tuned for my next post on recovering from adrenal fatigue….I’ll be sharing my journey.

Photo Credit: Badr Safadi

Green goodness: savory and satisfying

Does eating raw garlic for breakfast make you shudder—or salivate?

For me, it’s the latter: I love a raw garlic “high” first thing in the morning!

It wasn’t long ago that, upon awakening, I groped my way to mental clarity with a triple espresso (dark, organic French roast was my favorite) brewed in an Italian moka pot.  That was then! Mornings, now (entirely free of caffeine-fueled beverages), are when I find myself eagerly anticipating my “savory smoothie”—a green smoothie that includes 3 to 5 raw garlic cloves—as the first part of my breakfast.

My craving for raw garlic—and other sulfur-rich allium vegetables—intensified over the spring as I detailed in my previous post.  Nicknamed the stinking rose, garlic has many lauded medicinal properties—any or all of which my body could be seeking—it’s an anti-viral, a natural antibiotic, an antioxidant and contains anti-cancer properties.  Regardless of why my body demands so much garlic, it’s the star ingredient in my smoothie.

Raw garlic can be potent.  It can be hot.  It can have an aggressive bite.  But, I promise you: in this smoothie, its abrasive sting softens and blends beautifully in an elixir of leafy greens, spices, sea salt, avocado and coconut oil.  My husband loves this smoothie and drinks it with the same reverence that he reserves for a show-stopping Bordeaux.

Buy local or organic garlic: you can taste the difference!

Spend a few extra cents and buy locally grown or organic garlic.  In my experience, I’ve found supermarket garlic sadly inferior. Too often, I’ve had to throw out as much as half a head of supermarket garlic because the cloves were brown, mottled, soft, moldy or sprouting shoots.  Who knows how long it’s been sitting on the shelf—or where it’s from? Interestingly, the U.S. is the world’s largest import market for fresh garlic—and the majority the garlic we import is from China.  I won’t buy garlic from China, a country halfway around the world, rife with environmental pollution and questionable practices re: food safety, quality and pesticide use.

So, I willingly spend $1.50 for a head of garlic at the farmers’ market or buy organic garlic at my health food store.  And I’m rewarded with firm, plump, white cloves that impart an assertive bite as truly fresh garlic should.

After being diagnosed with Stage 3 adrenal fatigue earlier this year, I have found this smoothie—with its particular combination of fiber, protein, fat and spices—delicious, filling and effective in stabilizing blood sugar. When I finish blending it in my Nutribullet, I pour it into a wine glass and savor every verdant sip.  It gives me a marked energy boost—and effectively promotes elimination and detoxification.

Are you grappling with candida?  There is no fruit sweetness in this smoothie–other than lime.  If you’re able to tolerate raw garlic—add 2 cloves (working your way up to four cloves) to this smoothie.  Garlic is a powerful anti-fungal that can help inhibit candida overgrowth.

When it comes to eating raw leafy greens, some advice: Try—whenever possible—to buy organic.  Conventionally grown leafy greens, including spinach, kale and collard greens, are on the Environmental Working Group’s “Dirty Dozen Plus” list:  they contain pesticide residues, like organophosphates, that cannot be washed out.  Also: be sure to rotate your greens.  I love spinach, but because it is high in oxalates, a naturally occurring substance found in many plants, I am careful not eat spinach on a daily basis. Some other oxalate-dense greens include Swiss chard, beet greens and collard greens.  Oxalates protect plants from predators, forming oxalate crystals that can rip the teeth of insects attempting to eat them. The human body also contain oxalates, and our cells will convert certain substances—such as Vitamin C (ascorbic acid taken in high doses) or high levels of fructose—into oxalates.  Dietary oxalate restriction is recommended for those with hyperoxaluria (high levels of oxalates in the urine) or kidney stones. High oxalate foods can also be an issue if you’re dealing with leaky gut or other digestive issues.

I enjoy a variation of this smoothie most days, and I haven’t had an issue with oxalates.  But they can be a controversial topic in the nutrition world.  Just remember: more is not necessarily better! Be prudent and moderate your consumption of raw, high oxalate greens.

Savory Smoothie
6 cups of organic romaine, mixed baby greens, baby spinach, mesclun
mix, or other organic leafy green of choice
2 tablespoons organic whole flaxseed, then ground
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
2 teaspoons coconut oil
2 slices of avocado, cubed
3 to 5 cloves of organic or locally grown garlic
Juice of 1 large lime
1-1/2 cups of filtered water

Blend all ingredients until well combined in a Nutribullet or Vitamix.  Pour into a wine glass.  Enjoy!