Secrets for a Gluten Free, Plant-based Holiday!

Health

Simple Kneads brings fun and simplicity back to your holiday food prep… Here’s a few ideas that we have found amazingly helpful!

• Take Charge! Think Ahead and Be Prepared: Start looking through Amazon or take a trip to Barnes and Nobles and get a couple good cookbooks that will help you make traditional favorite dishes and desserts. Here are some we love that have plenty of gluten-free options: 7 Secrets Best Gourmet Recipes
• Host A Holiday Meal in Your Home: Ok, this may seem like a lot of work, and it may be! But in the long run you will have a wonderful time and not have to be looking with longing eyes and salivating tongue on risky spreads. You can also ask your guests to bring a dish! If it has gluten, you can label it. Chances are, they know you are wanting to stick to gluten-free, plant-based, and they will have fun coming up with something everyone can enjoy! In addition, they just might realize how amazing they feel after such a delicious yet healthy meal.
• Be The Change: Become “specialized” in making some favorite holiday dishes. When people realize that healthy food can be delicious, and they don’t have to miss out, they will start rethinking their own diet and be more likely to give it a try.
• Speak Up: If you are invited to a special gathering that you really would like to be a part of, talk to the host ahead of time! People really are They can share with their guests early on and everyone can have a chance to come up with something that all can enjoy. Also, there may be others that have allergies too! Of course, if your specific diet seems overwhelming to your host, then I would encourage you to “be the change” (above), be bold, and brave the gathering with lots of good cheer!
• Let Fun be the Main Course and Food the Appetizer: There are many things you can do with friends during the holidays that requires little or no food. Here are a few ideas:
  • Ice skating
  • Play board games. Provide simple finger food like veggies, crackers and dip, chips and salsa, fruit salad, or just tea. And don’t forget the holiday music softly playing in the background.
  • A holiday movie with festive popcorn. For popcorn flavor ideas click here
  • Get together and make crafts (a holiday gift or ornaments). You can provide some festive hot drinks like hot apple cider, hot cocoa, or holiday tea.

Last, but not least, remember, our 4 organic, gluten-free, sourdough, plant-based loaves are excellent substitutes for any holiday recipe asking for bread – whether it be bread pudding, French toast, croutons, stuffing or finger sandwiches!

We hope that you will give a gluten-free, plant-based holiday a try this year!

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development

Why We Don’t Use These…

Health

When it comes to crafting wholesome, allergen-free bread, it’s essential to be mindful of the ingredients that many people react to. At Simple Kneads, we prioritize the health and well-being of our customers by omitting common allergens and problematic ingredients. From wheat, dairy, and eggs to tree nuts, soy, and even rice, we’ve carefully selected each exclusion to ensure our bread remains safe and nutritious for those with dietary sensitivities. Our commitment to clean, simple nutrition is what drives us to continue refining our recipes, providing you with bread that’s both delicious and supportive of your health journey.

Wheat: Aside from the fact that most of our customer base is gluten-intolerant, wheat in the United States has been contaminated with glyphosate, pathogens, and mycotoxins. It’s no wonder that one third of Americans are trying to avoid wheat, even if they have not been diagnosed as gluten-intolerant!

Eggs: Eggs have not only been linked with heart disease, diabetes and cancer, but are often associated with allergy-related symptoms and autoimmune diseases (which is the case with most of our customers). For many, they cause an inflammatory response and wreak havoc in the body, leading to even more issues.

Dairy: Dairy is one of the most common food allergens. Its associated with a host of issues. When people cut dairy from the diet, they will find relief from skin problems and numerous digestive issues. Not to mention weight loss!

Tree Nuts: Although in many studies nuts have been associated with health and longevity, about 1% of the US population is allergic to them. Tree nuts (which would include nut oils and nut butters) are among the eight most common food allergies and can be lifelong and sometimes life-threatening.

Soy: When soy started its career in the health and wellness space, in the 1980’s, it was considered a superfood and was used in everything from plant-based milk to diaper ointment. Since then, however, many have discovered its darker side. Some are deathly allergic to soy and those with autoimmune disorders are instructed to avoid it. Furthermore, soy is often blamed for throwing off hormone balance. If you like soy, make it organic, and not a daily thing… For our product, it’s out altogether.

Peanuts: Peanuts, which are technically legumes, are another common food allergen that can be fatal for some people. Mold and mycotoxins are the main culprits. These little foes are known to cause a host of problems. Especially if you have candida or digestive issues. As always, organic options are far better than conventional.

Sesame: Years ago, SK used these tasty seeds, but they too have become recognized among the top allergens. When many of our customers requested them to be removed, we accommodated. Like the other allergens mentioned, for some individuals’ sesame seeds can be very dangerous. Thankfully, about 25% of children who are allergic to sesame, eventually outgrow the allergy.

Starches, Fillers & Gums: Not only are these ingredients completely unnecessary, but they cause serious digestive issues and contain little to no nutritional value! Lack of nutrition is one of the main reasons people are sick today! Our product is all about Simple nutrition, so starches, fillers and gums will not be found in our breads.

Baker’s Yeast: We make bread using the ancient method of leavening – sourdough! Sourdough contains wild yeast cultures while typical Baker’s yeast has a harsher and faster yeast made in a lab. True sourdough promotes digestive health and happy tummies. We are committed to giving you the very best for your health!

Rice: More and more people are becoming allergic to rice. Rice can contain high levels of arsenic and although it is a gluten-free grain, it is often contaminated with gluten. Also, it can be difficult to digest and many of our customers have serious digestive issues. So, no rice in our bread, only simple whole and healthy ancient grains, naturally leavened to happiness.

Through the years we have continued to perfect our product. Some of these changes have been initiated by the many requests coming in from our customers with serious challenges. It’s super important to us that we meet the needs of our customers, as far as we are able. We are so grateful for their support and feedback. It’s what has made our product what it is today.

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development

Doctor Trust

Health

When I was a young teen in the late 80’s, I found an old book in my grandparents’ storage. It was called, “As a Man Thinketh in His Heart, So Is He,” by James Allen. It was the first time I remember my mind being exposed to the idea that our thought-life has much to do with our physical wellbeing. A statement from that book that stood out to me was…

“Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts and cultivating toward perfection and flowers and fruits of right, useful, and pure thoughts.”  ~ James Allen

Although I kept the book for years, I wish I had been more attentive to the content at that early time in my life.

The truth is, we can put all sorts of wonderful organic, nutritious, whole-foods in our bodies, and do yearly or even monthly cleanses to purge ourselves of many impurities (and this is all very good), but what we put in our minds is there to stay. The things we dwell on affect us more than we think. Science is showing this to be absolutely true.

• “All illness comes from lack of energy, and the greatest energy drainer is mental and emotional stress, which I believe to be the root cause of all illness.” ~ Dr. Leonard Coldwell
• “75% to 95% of the illnesses that plague us today are a direct result of our thought life. What we think about affects us physically and emotionally. It’s an epidemic of toxic emotions.” ~ Dr. Caroline Leaf (communication pathologist and clinical neuroscientist specializing in psychoneurobiology)
• “75% to 90% of all visits to primary care physicians result from stress-related disorders.” ~ Dr. Paul Rosch M.D. (President of the American Institute of Stress)

Sickness of the mind prevails everywhere! No doubt, dis-ease is many times the result of our minds allowed to run wild.

“Man’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weeds-seeds will fall therein and will continue to produce their kind.” ~ James Allen

I won’t sugar-coat it. It takes a lot of intentional discipline to re-train the mind, but it is possible!!! Our brains are malleable! And if you haven’t seen a faster turn-around in your health, this may be an area that you are neglecting. Working on this area has made an amazing difference in many lives. Here are a few things that can make a huge difference in your health…

• On an index card, make a list of 3-5 meaningful things you are grateful for. Do this every day. Take this list wherever you go and take a moment to read it throughout the day. Not just when you are feeling low. This is important. Even reading it out loud when you are able; putting emotion into your voice and letting it really sink in. For an extra boost, add a positive, inspiring quote/biblical passage/etc. that impacts you. Lay it by your bedside when you go to bed and if you wake in the night with ruminating thoughts, take it and read it several times. A grateful heart will do more to promote healing than anything else!
• Binding negative thoughts with their counterpart. For example: when you catch yourself worrying, stop and choose to trust. You can say something like: “Worry is blind and cannot discern the future.” Make up your mind to bind the thoughts that are taking your life.
• Silently stepping away from toxic conversations or politely changing the conversation if you are able.
• Strength training. Crossfit is excellent! It does wonders for the mind!
• Fasting one day a week (check out The Miracle Of Fasting by the Bragg Family) (paste amazon link here).
• Focusing on others and their needs.

To get more out of everything in life, more out of everything that you EAT, a grateful attitude is key. Your body will get more out of the food that you eat, and your digestion will be better. So, the only thing that can make Simple Kneads better, is a happier you! It’s an experiential reality.

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development

Doctor Rest

Health

Our bodies are so amazing! When they get the right fuel, they can start to function properly, despite years of abuse!

VITAL HORMONES TO KNOW ABOUT:

You may have heard your parents or grandparents say: “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” If we go to bed late at night the effects soon become obvious, we’re cranky, irritable, tired and depression can set in. In this state of mind, we are not able to manage stress, and soon our physical, mental and emotional health goes spiraling down.

A friend recently turned her 3-month bout of depression completely around by going consistently to bed by 9 PM, waking by 5 AM and getting out in direct sunlight for an early morning walk as soon as the rays came out. It was astounding to her that these simple solutions could so profoundly affect her health! However, this makes perfect sense when you understand that serotonin, our mood hormone, is not sufficiently produced with continual late nights. In addition! Your body also produces serotonin when you can get into direct light within 20 minutes of waking!

Melatonin is another important hormone that is produced only in the hours of darkness. So having your sleeping quarters completely dark is crucial! Many like to have night lights, but this disrupts the body’s biological clock and significantly reduces hormone production. Start putting these simple little things into practice and you will find that when you’ve gotten your full production of melatonin in the night, you will feel energetic and ready to get up and go in the morning!

Then there is a hormone called epithalamion. This one is so important for kids to know about! This hormone increases learning capacity. Deficiency of this hormone can be most noticed in children who are allowed to stay up late. Not only can they be cranky, tired and even depressed at school, but they will show difficulty in understanding simple mathematical equations and retaining what has been taught in the classroom. And believe it or not, this hormone does not need to diminish as you age! In fact, epithalamion slows down the aging process!

The human growth hormone is released during deep sleep. Interruption of this sleep will stop the release of this hormone. Reducing your sugar intake and also vigorous exercise are some simple, and powerful natural ways to activate the human growth hormone. Studies have also shown a major increase of HGH levels when fasting for just 24 hours!

Then there is arginine vasotocin. This one affects how deeply we sleep and is obtained through our diet. Although this hormone is plentiful in many dairy products, those living on a plant-based, whole foods diet can obtain it through certain seeds. Pumpkin seeds are known to contain one of the highest concentrations of arginine. Other seeds with high levels are sunflower, sesame and watermelon. Whole grains are also a rich source of this hormone. Grains with an especially high amount are brown rice, buckwheat, oats and corn.

Some other culprits that decrease hormone production are:

• Stress
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Late evening meals

It’s amazing how many suffer from insomnia (one in three adults worldwide) but could actually do something about their situation if they only understood better how the body operates! If you suffer from this disorder, here are a few easy things you can do:

• Get a regular sleeping schedule going and stick to it. Remember:“early to bed, early to rise.”
• Circulation of fresh air by cracking a window can be very helpful.
• Get on a regular exercise program 3-5 days a week!
• Take a warm bath.
• Try to stay away from sleeping pills and alcohol. They keep you from the healing benefits of rapid eye movement sleep.
• Many like to eat before going to bed but this is not healthy. Your digestive system needs rest too and some hormones don’t even get released if the body is busy digesting food!
• Taking an evening walk, and also drinking a hot cup of herbal non-caffeinated tea is often helpful.

But rest doesn’t just have to do with getting a good night’s sleep. During the day we use up energy at work and with other activities, and the body needs time to repair! When a person overworks by working long hours without any rest, it is much easier to become restless and irritable. The opposite is also true, too much rest and not enough work will do the same. We can feel like we are not accomplishing anything in life and that can contribute to unhappiness and depression. We need to have a proper balance.

So many suffer from poor health because they just don’t know how their body functions and that there are simple, natural, low-cost solutions. “Knowledge is power” is certainly a true statement. So, take some time to know how your body functions and begin to take charge of your life!

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development

Doctor Pure Air

Health

Good health does not happen by accident. It is a result of intentionally applying the 8 natural laws on a daily basis. These are the true keys to ultimate health. Today we will look at the importance of pure air when it comes to maintaining and/or regaining health.

We all know we can go weeks without food, days without water but only minutes without air to breathe. Our bodies need a constant, daily supply. However, the kind of air you breathe makes a big difference. Studies show that lung cancer is much higher among city dwellers than those who live in the country. In fact, avoiding strenuous exercise that would require outdoor heavy breathing in the big city is important for brain health!

Deep breathing is also vital for creating pure clean blood. In fact, blood won’t flow like it should without it, and it’s crucial for healing the digestive system, and getting deep, rejuvenating sleep! The book Super Power Breathing For Optimal Health And Healing by the Bragg Family, is an awesome resource to have in your personal library! It is filled with powerful testimonies and many deep breathing exercises, teaching you how to replenish the oxygen your body needs for better health.

You can get started on deep breathing today with Wim Hoff’s simple but powerful deep breathing tutorial:

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development

Doctor Self-control

Health

In the last few weeks, we have been looking at 8 POWERFUL natural doctors! These are available to everyone, rich or poor!

The first was NUTRITION, followed by EXERCISE. Then we learned the importance of WATER! The last one we visited was Doctor SUNSHINE! And today meet Doctor SELF CONTROL.

This may seem like a strange one, but the laws of physical life would not be complete without this natural doctor. In fact, overall health would be impossible without self-control!

Overeating, overworking and emotional stress are three of the main causes of disease. You can quickly see that self-control includes more than just what you put into your body. Dr. Neal Nedley, president of Weimar Institute in California, shares some phenomenal information on what he calls The #1 Problem in the World. Check it out here:

You will quickly see that self-control is critical to health, body AND mind!

Most people, if they are honest with themselves, know what is unhealthy for them. Unfortunately, it’s not until sickness sets in that they begin to take action.

FASTING:

After sickness and disease have settled in, one of the most powerful ways to get the body back into health is through fasting. It’s also one of the most powerful ways to strengthen self-control!

Did you know that fasting from food for just one day a week, has incalculable benefits! The Miracle of Fasting by the Bragg family is a book with incredible information and testimonies on this! Here’s a link so you can check it out.

Fasting is also one of the most natural powerful ways to activate your stem cells! Check out this article.

If you have never fasted and would like to try it, you can do it a number of ways:

• Go to two meals a day for a couple weeks, leaving 6 hours between each meal. For example: first meal at 9 AM and your second and last meal at 3 PM. Should you get hungry between meals, that’s ok! Drink some caffeine-free herbal tea with a few drops of liquid stevia or monk fruit, if you would like it sweetened. This is always helpful! I have even gone on a one meal a day, 5 day food fast, and have had exceptional results!
• If you feel you are able to go straight into a one-day food fast, first pick a day you will not have much to do (preferably stay at home). On that morning make 2 or 3 quarts of an electrolyte-type of drink. Sometimes I will make the following “lemonade” drink on my weekly fasting day: Fill each quart with distilled or natural spring water, juice of ½ freshly squeezed lemon, a pinch of Celtic salt, around a tablespoon of organic maple syrup or a few drops of liquid stevia. Drink at room temperature. Feel free to drink caffeine-free herbal tea during the day to give you variety. I personally like to make mint tea. If you are not used to food fasting and get too hungry, have a light fruit smoothie, or a green smoothie. With time you will progress to a one-day water fast with ease. The important thing is, go forward with what you feel you can do. Whether you fast for a whole day or just one meal, believe me, you WILL feel the difference!

Did you know that you can also fast from other things besides food? Some of these things could be social media, your phone, texting, television, music, video games, gossip, getting angry, complaining, etc. I have a friend that fasted from all form of talking for a 24 hour period! She simply alerted everyone she would not be talking or texting on that day. She shared that the peace that she experienced was incredible! It’s interesting that talk, or speech fasting has been known to lower blood pressure dramatically in individuals who suffer from high blood pressure, and lower cortisol levels in others!

Now, how does Simple Kneads bread fit into all of this? Why not try fasting from all other kinds of bread and stick to Simple Kneads Gluten-free, sourdough for a few months and see how you feel! 😊 And stay tuned for Doctor Pure Air in our next email!

Sandy K Workman
SK Director of Brand Development