His symptoms are still high fevers but thankfully, with advice from all my amazing physician friends, he discontinued the Advil!
Unfortunately he developed a cough, which led to a Pneumonia diagnosis. The positive news is he is being monitored by the best doctors and nurses. Health workers are totally on the front lines dealing with this virus, they are all so amazing and we should give them the utmost respect.
My stress level was pretty high today, so after my morning routine, and a few hours of work, I decided to bake. Baking helps me relax, I decided to bake a banana bread for Amir and blueberry muffins for myself. I wanted to use my hemp seeds and walnuts. Once they came out of the oven, I sat down with the Michelle Obama book, a warm muffin and a cup of Matcha green tea. Green tea can help help with immunity too.
Blueberry hemp seed muffins
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup plus 1Tbs butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 6oz Fage non fat greek yogurt
- 1 egg
- 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup hemp seeds
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
- 1/2 tsp cinammon
Method
Heat the oven to 375 degrees, beat the softened butter and sugar well, beat in the egg and and then beat the greek yogurt, vanilla essence and cinammon.
Mix the flour, baking powder, half the hemp seeds and salt in a seperate bowl and slowly mix with a spatula into the mixture, until just blended. The mixture will be thick. Fold in the blueberries. Use a tablespoon or scoop to put the mixture into the greased muffin pan. Sprinkle each muffin with 1/2 tsp of hemp seeds. Bake for 20 minutes.
The hemp seeds add a delicious crunch to the muffin and are high in omega 3 and many other beneficial micro nutrients. ( I need a photographer for my pics, sorry!!!)
Stress affects us all in different ways, but it is not always the stress that is harmful but our reaction to the stress. Thinking about the What ifs is not productive and can again lead to anxiety, which can then weaken the immune system.
One of my favorite quotes is ” Worrying about tomorrow, does not take away tomorrows troubles, it takes away todays peace.”
We all need to build a strong immune system, according to Dr. Amit Sood, “Immune resilience is having an immune system that attacks and eliminates the pathogen, without hurting your body cells or causing excessive inflammation.”
One of the ways we can build our resilience is through the food we eat.Foods contain nutrients and we need many of the micro-nutrients for disease prevention and wellbeing.
The best way to get those nutrients is from wholesome foods. Eating a variety of foods can help us get those nutrients. Fruits, vegetables and a variety of spices like turmeric, ginger and cinnamon can lower inflammation and help improve immunity. Fiber is also key in helping against over eating high calorie, high sugar processed foods.
We all have our favorites, pay attention to the color and if it is a grain, the fiber.
My personal favorites are:
- Blueberries
- Bananas
- Flax seeds, hemp and chia seeds
- Oats
- Kale & spinach
- Avocadoes
- Chickpeas
- Ginger/garlic/turmeric
- Lentils
- Nuts
Cooking at home, is a fun way to bond with your kids and teach them the importance of wholesome foods. Enjoy the indoor time in whatever way makes you happy.
Do not forget to keep moving in any way you can to keep your heart healthy.
Keep my husband in your prayers, I am very positive and so is he.
Good Night!