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Eat, drink, and be healthy this St. Patrick's Day!
For many around the world, St. Patrick's day is a fun day of celebration and a lot of Guinness. But there are ways to enjoy St. Paddy's while still sticking to your nutritional plan! Below are some ways we plan to celebrate our favorite Irish holiday!
Try a healthier version of a St. Paddy’s staple!
Irish Soda Bread:
A classic Irish recipe, Irish soda bread is unfortunately full of gluten. If you are following a low-carb or Mediterranean nutrition plan, you might want to try a gluten-free option like the recipe below!
For this recipe, we suggest leaving out the Xantham gum and trading the raisins or currants for the healthier cranberry!
Stout Cake:
Another St. Patrick’s day favorite, most stout cakes include copious amounts of gluten and sugar. For a low-carb diet, try the recipe below!
For this recipe, we recommend leaving out the xantham gum and trading the margarine for butter!
Get active!
Take an online Irish step dancing class:
Irish step dancing has a long and complex history in Irish culture. While the dance form looks very complex, everyone can pick it up! Baltimore Ravens running back Alex Collins credits Irish step dancing with “transforming his career” and making him a better athlete!
The dance is a great way to work your quads, hamstrings, and calves. Irish step dancing also targets the core muscles as you stabilize the spine to lift your legs.
Sign up for a St. Paddy’s Virtual Run/Walk
The annual St. Paddy’s Virtual Run/Walk is the perfect way to get active on St. Patrick’s day weekend!
There are options for 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon races! You can do the race on your treadmill or on a trail. You just submit your time results after you’ve finished the fun!
Proceeds of the event will go to ALS prevention charities.
Guilt-free Guinness!
A St. Patrick’s day classic, Guinness is actually much healthier than most people think. Unfortunately, the beer does contain malted barley (which contains gluten), making it unconsumable for those who have a high sensitivity to gluten. However, other health benefits of Guinness include:
Guinness is high in flavonoids, which are plant-based antioxidants found in dark chocolate. A 2003 study found that a pint of Guinness per day can decrease the risk of blood clots forming in arteries.
A pint of Guinness contains .3 mg of iron. As recently as 2010, it was used to replenish the iron levels of post-op patients and people who had just donated blood.
Despite the heaviness of Guinness, it only has 15 more calories than Bud Light and 5 more calories than a pint of skim milk. Making Guinness one of the lowest-calorie beers!
All beer contains phytoestrogen, a plant hormone that is essential in building dense bones. According to several studies, moderate beer drinkers tend to be less likely to have osteoporosis and lower risk of hip fractures.
Guinness has a relatively low alcohol content when compared to other beers. The average beer has an ABV of 5%, while Guinness is 4.2%.
Guinness contains more folate than any other beer. Folate is a nutrient utilized in DNA creation.
Guinness also has one of the highest levels of fiber amongst other beers.
Prevent the hangover with Avmocol and N-acetylcysteine!
While categorically NOT recommending that anyone over-consume alcohol, if you have a sensitivity to alcohol or maybe have that 2nd bottle of Guinness then the following may help.
Avmacol and N-acetylcysteine are both supplements that work to promote detoxification in the liver, among many other health benefits. The best way to quickly recover from a hangover is to reduce the amount of time the body is exposed to harmful byproducts of alcohol. Both of these supplements achieve that by supporting the body’s detoxification pathways.
Avmacol is a supplement that encourages your body’s natural detoxification process. The supplement contains broccoli seed extract, which supports the production of sulforaphane. Sulforaphane enters the nucleus of cells in your body and increases the production of Phase 2 detoxification enzymes. These enzymes are essential for the body’s elimination of toxins.
N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is used by the body to increase the production of glutathione, your body's master antioxidant. NAC decreases the symptoms of a hangover by cleansing the body of harmful byproducts of alcohol (ethanol). When ethanol enters the liver, it’s metabolized into a toxin called acetaldehyde. NAC encourages the production of an enzyme that breaks down acetaldehyde.
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