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By Jennifer Vagios, RD,
APOGEE’s Dietitian

Clients often come to me and ask about alternatives to wheat. Perhaps they’ve heard that wheat can be an irritant—even an allergen—causing sluggishness, indigestion, headaches, joint aches and more. APOGEE’s own integrative health advisor, Woodson Merrell, M.D., suggests removing wheat from your diet when you’re on his Power Up 21-day energy plan. “In my experience, wheat is the most sensitizing food,” says Merrell. “Nearly 50 percent of my patients become sensitive to wheat by age 40.”  If you’re in that group, Merrell says, you’ll feel more energetic when wheat is cut from your diet.

My advice? Choose breads and pastas made from kamut, an ancient form of wheat that’s 30 percent higher in protein than the modern hybridized wheat we eat today. It’s also a good source of fiber, iron, magnesium and antioxidants.

You can substitute kamut in most recipes requiring wheat—it has a slightly nutty and sweet flavor. Look for kamut in prepared breads and pastas, in flour and baking mixes, or as whole grain. Keep in mind that because kamut has less gluten than traditional wheat, baked goods made with it will probably be denser. (However, kamut is not an alternative grain for people with celiac disease who must avoid all gluten.)

My favorite recipe for kamut is as a substitute for oatmeal at breakfast: Measure out the dry grain; add the appropriate amount of water, milk, or soymilk; mash up a banana or add sautéed or fresh apples; then sprinkle in spices such as cinnamon, pie spice, or vanilla extract and heat.  Yum!

Learn more about energizing your life from Woodson Merrell, M.D., at APOGEE White Plains on December 2. Details.

Here comes Thanksgiving, with its mega-portions of planning, shopping, chopping and travel mixed with heaping helpings of friends and family. A wonderful holiday, but handling everything—and everyone—can be stressful, too. There are ways to dial down the stress levels: Physical exercise is one. Remembering happy events is another—specifically, keeping a gratitude journal. Writing just a sentence or two about what you are grateful for is proven to boost your mood and outlook—and could even help you fight off colds and flu.

The health benefits of expressing thanks have been studied extensively. “Research confirms what many spiritual traditions tell us: regularly expressing gratitude increases well-being,” says APOGEE’s integrative health advisor, Woodson Merrell, M.D. As an integrative doctor, Merrell considers the emotional, spiritual, dietary, environmental, and lifestyle influences that can affect health and healing. “A sense of well-being has been found to positively affect good health and immune function,” says Merrell. “Well-being enhances the release of antibodies responsible for fighting off viruses and improves important markers of cardiovascular health.”

The key is to identify and write down one thing you’re thankful for, whether it’s the fact that a grocery store clerk was helpful, your brother has offered to bring dessert to Thanksgiving or just the fact that the sun is shining and warm. Write your gratitude statements anytime and anywhere that’s convenient: on the back of your shopping list, or in your calendar or send them to yourself via e-mail. It’s best if you don’t analyze why you’re thankful—just acknowledge it.

We’re thankful for this opportunity to spread the word about simple actions that can make people feel good. We’ll post more messages about the healing power of gratitude this week. Feel free to write your gratitude statements as comments on this blog or Facebook page, or via Twitter.

Learn more ways to turn on the calm in your life in our Unwind workshops, starting in January 2011.