A Spiritually Enlightening Online Magazine. January's Theme: "Health"
Volume 5 Issue 2 ISSN# 1708-3265

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Illuminations Aleesha Stephenson About the Cover Kara Glasgow The Bookshop Chapter Six Jennifer Kusz Why Eat Raw Foods? Jennifer Cornbleet How Much is a Tomato Worth? David Suzuki PhD Fasting The Formula For ALL Life Ray Kent Fasting 101 Tom McGregor and Miss Linda A Simple Formula to Recover "Youth" Alegria Imperial Shavasana - 61-points of Light Aisah Spirituality on a Stick Marlene Buffa Opening Doors To Healing Dj Brown Acting Out the Roles on Your Stages of Life Michael Levy Is It All in the Genes, Or Out of My Hands? Rev. Cheryl Jewett Life in the Raw Melissa Gilbert Lifetalks Dawn Baumann Brunke Being Mindful Janet Alston Jackson Pet-sense Jean Hofve DVM Walk Your Talk Aleesha Stephenson Wyrd Lynx John Sacelli Meditate a Moment Featuring: Aleesha Stephenson Nia - Unplugged - DVD Debbie and Carlos Rosas Nia - Global Unity - DVD Debbie and Carlos Rosas Raw Food Made Easy For 1 or 2 People Book and DVD Jennifer Cornbleet Atlantis and the Ten Plagues of Egypt Graham Phillips Transfigurations Alex Grey Lady of the Beasts The Goddess and Her Sacred Animals Buffie Johnson

Bananas have been dubbed "Nature's Wonder Fruit", all around our planet. Bananas provide the major vitamins thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, foliate, beta-carotene and they are the best fruit source of vitamin B6. Bananas naturally are a good source of fibre and potassium while having no fat or cholesterol. Why is the banana so popular? Let me explain.

Bananas provide muscle power: Research has proven that just 2 bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit consumed by the world's leading athletes.

Bananas provide brain power: To do well in school the brain has to be working well. The fuel your brain uses to think clever thoughts is glucose, the same fuel your muscles love to use. The glucose in your blood comes from the carbohydrates you get when you eat a banana. The glucose in blood is used whenever you think or when you learn something new. Research has shown this potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Bananas will help with depression and PMS: According to a recent survey amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein the body converts to serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally makes you feel happier. You can forget the pills and just eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect mood swings.

Bananas and anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Bananas for mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and skin irritation.

Bananas are high in vitamin B which helps calm the nervous system. Are you often feeling stressed out? Eat a banana. Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with a high-potassium banana snack.

The banana is used as a dietary food against intestinal disorders because of it's soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit which can be eaten without distress in over-stressed chronic cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Those who are keen on natural alternatives swear that if you place the banana skin, (with the yellow side up) on a wart it will disappear. Hold the banana skin in place with surgical tape.

When you compare the banana to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrates, three times the phosphorus, five times vitamin A and iron. Maybe it is time to change the well-known phase to, "A banana a day keeps the Doctor away!"

The ULTIMATE Banana Smoothie

• 3 ripe bananas
• 3 long celery ribs - deveined
• 3 large strawberries
• 1 cup of pure water

Place water, bananas, celery and strawberries into your blender and blend until smooth and creamy. If you want it cold, add 1 tray of ice or use frozen bananas.

Banana Cacao Pudding

• 4 ripe bananas
• 1 teaspoon Coconut oil - Put the oil in a small dish and the small dish into a larger dish filled with hot water to melt the coconut oil.
• 2 teaspoons of unsweetend shredded coconut
• 2 Tablespoons of either Raw Cacao Powder or Raw Carob Powder

Place all ingredients into your blender or Food Processor and blend until smooth and creamy. Put into individual serving dishes and pop into your fridge to chill for 1 hour.

As a variation I sometimes add sliced bananas into the serving dishes before adding the pudding to the top. Enjoy!

Melissa Gilbert is a Raw food Chef, a Certified Raw Food Nutritional Consultant, and a Raw Food Coach. She is also a Certified Personal Trainer and works with her client's nutritional goals as well as getting them established in an exercise regime. Melissa also owns and operates a Raw Vegan Daycare, called Little Sprouts Daycare.

A writer for Pear Magazine, a raw lifestyle publication, Melissa has decided to join us as a regular columnist and Associate Editor (staff member) here at Timeless Spirit Magazine.

Currently getting her Bachelor of Science in Holistic Nutrition and taking classes to become a Hygienic Doctor, she is mother to toddler, Alex and wife to David as well as mother to 2 grown children and 3 grandchildren. As if that isn't enough on her plate, Melissa and David have started The Sunny Raw Café in Denver Colorado, a Raw Vegan home delivery café for people living the raw lifestyle, or who simply want to eat more healthy foods.

In her spare time Melissa enjoys the great outdoors, mountain hiking, biking, snow shoeing, camping in the backwoods and sailing. A Shaman in training and Tarot card enthusiast, Melissa (and her family) practices Buddhism with Pagan influences. If you would like to learn more about Raw Foods you can reach Melissa via email or visit one of her websites: www.LoveRawLife.com, www.rawtoddleralex.blogspot.com, and www.rawmom.blogspot.com.

Copyright (c) 2007 by Timeless Spirit Magazine. All articles are the copyright of the particular writers and cannot be reprinted without their expressed permission. All rights reserved. International copyright laws prohibit reproduction of or distribution of this page by any means whatsoever, electronic or otherwise, without first obtaining the written permission of the copyright holder. We retain legal counsel to protect our copyrights.

Any advice given is for informational purposes only.