Word of the year. This popped up on social media last week. What a long way we’ve come. 2017 was the year of the breast cancer diagnosis. The year of wigs, muscle loss and almost catastrophic consequences.
6 years on and cancer is a memory: A vivid one, yes, but a memory. It’s redemption time – all the hard work with diet and lifestyle, all the reading, watching, learning. This is the year when it all comes to fruition.
Same pose – VERY different reality: 2024 we’re coming for you!
Redemption time for this lady too. 10 years on Ella Mills aka Deliciously Ella is having the last word over online trolls, with an estimated 20M revenue that’s only going in one direction. Full Times article here.
The trolls are still there – but now they’re trying to hijack 100’s of Ella’s happy customers’ accounts as they apply for a copy of her new book: Healthy Made Simple, which is sitting at the No1 slot on Amazon UK for Vegetarian and Vegan cooking.
Success – take that those who questioned her, insulted her and ridiculed her.
Wise words from Dr Lipman, whose work features on our Healthy Body resource
Yes to Life are the UK’s integrative cancer care charity. They’re offering various Wellbeing Sessions this winter; from Mindfulness to Yoga, EFT, Breathwork and even a Book club. All except the EFT classes are completely free of charge. Here’s the link – an excellent way to help you heal or stay well.
SO many books on offer this month in Amazon’s New Year New You promotion. Here’s a few, starting with our first purchase of the year, just after midnight on 1 January. Start as you mean to go on!
Walk Yourself Happy – Julia Bradbury – £10 hardcover Amazon UK. 99c Amazon Kindle France.
Preservatives that are banned in pet foods because of their carcinogenic (cancer causing) nature continue to be added to processed meats for human consumption an article from The Times in the UK reports. You couldn’t make this up!
It says: ‘About 90% of bacon* sold in the UK is believed to contain nitrites, which research has linked with the development of colon, bowel, breast and prostate cancer.’
*From an article also in The Times, which is 5 yrs old this week – 5 yrs and still nothing has changed…
Is it about your greens, or your genes?
‘Identical twins change their diets and lifestyles for 8 wks in a unique scientific experiment designed to explore how certain foods impact the body.’
Reminder set for Monday 1 January 2024.
My ‘Clean’ Christmas gift: homemade lavender deodorant. Recipe from The Natural Living Family is here and you can watch our Jue in action below:
Here’s our Jue making it…
Carly Shankman is @carlyloveskale: Diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2019 this young woman healed and shares her new preventative lifestyle with her 138k Instagram followers. She shares love, light, positivity and details of her daily lifestyle. It’s inspiring – unlike the cancer stats in this pic…
Time for change – what we are doing is not working! (And no, this man doesn’t really have a foot growing out of his shoulder…). You can find Carly’s powerful healing testimony here. There are 1000’s of first-hand healing testimonies on our cancer resource – including Carly’s.
Butternut Squash Curry from Nora Cooks – SO good (even the teens that found their way home for Christmas enjoyed it!)
Here’s the lady herself; Nora started her blog when her youngest was 1yr old. It’s now their family’s income stream; her husband joined her when the blog became more known, they have a few million hits per month now. Welcome to our resource Nora.
Winter Solstice last week. Short days, nesting time, we’re missing the sunlight here in Europe. Be kind to yourselves folks (maybe time to supplement your vitamin D?)
Proud to both feature Dr Greger’s work at Nutrition Facts on our resource and echo his mantra. Science is where it’s at. EVERYTHING we feature and therefore endorse on Double-zero is science-based or from first-hand testimonies. EVERYTHING. No conspiracy theories, no unsupported opinions or beliefs.
We continue to work from a place of knowledge and integrity. You have our word that will not change in 2024.
‘80% of heart disease is environment and lifestyle’.
Dr Aseem makes the link between highly processed foods and insulin resistance, which drives heart disease in over 80% of cases. Throw in a sedentary lifestyle, with a topping of stress and not enough sleep and voila!
This highly respected cardiologist shares that: ‘The Lancet Global Burden of Disease Reports that poor diet is responsible for more disease and death than physical inactivity/smoking/alcohol combined’.
‘Life expectancy is regressing in the UK.’ A depressing reality. Dr Malhotra offers some solutions in this interview recorded earlier this year:
The World Health Organisation opposes their use, saying they are ‘undoubtedly harmful’ and unproven as a method of giving up cigarettes.
‘New research by the WHO has found that globally a higher proportion of children aged 13 to 15 had tried vapes than among adults.’ These are our children, that we should be protecting…
Danish start up Too Good To Go was founded in Copenhagen 8 years ago. A really positive article was in the FT last month sharing how they’re tackling food waste. Look at this shocker:
December; soup season round here. I tapped in ‘butternut squash’ into our website’s search function and it brought up this fave from an old blog: Spicy Butternut Squash, Sweet Potato and Coconut Soup from Rebel Recipes. Oldie, but goodie…
Made this from from The Pesky Vegan this week too – major hit round here: Scottish Barley Soup
Dr Connealy features on our cancer resource. She was sharing some more scary stats on Instagram last week – and offering some solutions too:
Rosie Made a Thing has a point, there aren’t many vitamins in mulled wine, but here’s a ‘healthier’ version that we enjoyed last weekend after some carol singing:
Really? Yep, a good quality coffee gives you a heap of health benefits. 1.3M views since this was aired to the Diary of a CEO YouTube channel 2 weeks ago. Fascinating. (Goes and makes herself one, it is fibre-filled after all…)
Niall’s on a mission to improve his health – on a long-term basis. Look what one weekend did to his stats.
We know it’s the ‘festive season’, but here’s one who’s decided it’s just not worth it:
Loads of solid nutritional advice that Niall uses can be found on our site.
‘Dr B’ (as he’s affectionately known) knows all about the fibre in coffee – and most other foods. We feature his book on our gut health resource. It’s endorsed on the cover by Dr William Li, whose latest book: How to Beat Your Diet is also on offer on Amazon this month.
Have made this twice this week… Comfort food at it’s very best. It’s from Elavegan, who feature on our recipe resource: Red Lentil Dahl.
Then there’s Mel
These women absolutely nail this: narcissism. Here’s a 10 min clip of their recent interview, which appears on Mel’s podcast. And here’s a definition from Help Guide, who feature on our Healthy Mind resource. What’s your True North? Protect it at all costs…
Numbers on produce. They’re appearing. What do they mean? Over to T-Nation: ‘Let’s take the Fuji apple, for instance. Its PLU code is 4131. That means it was grown conventionally, using the approved methods and chemicals of non-organic farmers. However, if you see a “9” before the 4-digit number (94131), that means the Fuji apple was grown according to organic standards. The same is true of all of the roughly 1,450 fresh produce items in the IFPS database.’ Good to know.
This ‘bargain’ kilo bag of chocolate coated peanuts had a little surprise for me. What’s E904? Over to The Vegetarian Society: ‘Shellac resin secreted by the female lac bug. Used in confectionery products as a glazing agent, and to reduce moisture loss in fruit. Alternatives include plant waxes. The female lac insect produces a resin to cocoon the eggs she lays. When the eggs hatch, they eat the female (which dies naturally after laying eggs). Once the newly hatched insects leave the cocoon, it is then harvested to produce shellac. Until January 2022 (when shellac was removed from the list of permitted ingredients), the Vegetarian Society Approved vegetarian trademark was only available to shellac companies that could demonstrate the quality of their lac beetle husbandry.’
No thank you.
As promised on Instagram, here’s Julia’s article. It’s from The Week and is entitled: ‘Otters’ Penises are Shrinking and why yours might be too.’
Possible? The science (and many people) say so. Here’s the trailer for a new film featuring Dr Dale Bredesen (Apollo Health), who has done exactly that for many of his patients.
Michael Bublé narrates – and shares the very personal reason that led him to discover the difference food and exercise can make to this disease.
‘Starving Cancer‘ is the book’s title. It’s a familiar one to us, in English. Today it made its French debut. It’s only gone and made No1 bestseller too!
Congratulations Jane, well deserved, with love from another ‘women with an extraordinary story, her courage and a discovery that could transform the life of millions of people.’ Double-zero and Jane McLelland are as one.
We know that lots of people know – and there is much research to support that knowledge. Shall we start with the ever increasing amount of hormones found on our land, in our food, in our personal hygiene products? Oh we know – and the health professionals on our Women’s Health resource will begin to put together the pieces for you New York Times. If that’s not enough hop over to our Sustainability resource and check out the information there, it’s there, in plain sight.
Seem to have spent a lot of time in the kitchen this past week cooking up a storm. Change of season? Cocooning? Preparing for friends visiting? The weight of the world on my shoulders? Maybe a bit of all of that. Here’s a few of the recipes, they’re from some of our faves on the website:
LOVE Niki’s work at Rebel Recipes too. This one’s still going, will last for days in the fridge. Currently enjoyed with rice, jacket potatoes, covered in vegan cheese…
So LOVED these… Oyster mushrooms; great texture, amazing flavours, massive hit with our guests. Will be making this one again. Thank you The Foodie Takes Flight. A new website for us, thank you Jeeca, may have been the first, but won’t be the last recipe I try!
One to add to our recipe resource.
Deliciously Ella was where it started for me. A friend brought Ella’s chickpea curry to our home the Christmas that I was healing from cancer. Several books later and Ella’s starting the new year with a new book and tour. We’ve tickets for the Bath evening – see you there?
Ed’s at it too! Same UK City, same evening, different venue, very different book, but also featured on our site. Ed Winters has a just released his second book: How to Argue with a Meat Eater (And Win Every Time). He’s a convincing young man, with science backing all his statements.
Oh to be in two places at one time… (Or I may have just gotten tickets to Bristol the following night..)
More cooking from The First Mess’s recipes – Does this look very much like a lung? Or is it just us? (The Winter Vegetable Chowder was delicious as usual.)
Did we get away with mentioning the ‘C word’ above? Yep, Christmas is on its way and I tried very hard to pick up a bargain this week. They’d dropped the price of Donna Ashworth‘s new book. It was a steal at £5 – sadly many others thought so too and it was sold out by the time I got to order a couple for Christmas gifts. At least someone will get to benefit from her wisdom and lift a little of the world’s heaviness this festive season. Go Donna!
At what price? And boy, was there a price. This young man shot to fame at 16 years old, lived a life of total excess and crashed, big-time, when he was still only 20 years old. This cathartic look at his life is fascinating and scary and you can’t help draw parallels with David Beckham aka Goldenballs, whose Netflix documentary we featured last month. World-wide fame, at such a young age, seems to equal mental health issues for these guys, will we learn lessons for the next young world-dominating stars?
Free to view film: Super Juice Me! Documentary
Juuuiiiccceeee! We’ve been juicing for years, on a daily basis, it’s what we ‘break our fast’ with. Jason’s website is called ‘Juicemaster’ and he does have form to make that claim. Stacks of free juicing recipes can be found there – why not have a go? Meantime we need to add this to our nutrition resource.
The Times newspaper in the UK led it’s Tuesday edition with ‘NHS approves preventative breast cancer drug for 300k at-risk women’ and went on to say ‘Thousands of women will avoid suffering breast cancer after a pill that costs 4p a day was approved as a preventive treatment for the disease.’
‘Almost 300,000 women at higher risk will be eligible for anastrozole, which studies have shown can nearly halve the chances of developing breast cancer if taken daily for five years.’
The comments began immediately. Here’s a screenshot from a couple of ladies that are not so sure of its benefits. Our cancer resource is an oracle of information on lowering your cancer risk – with only positive health and wellness benefits.
We’re signed up. Time to learn more about this disease… It’s free to watch 14-20 November 2023
If it’s half as good as the Cancer Breakthroughs Summit we watched last week this will be full of useful information to get to the root cause of Parkinson’s and help you manage, or prevent it. Our dementia resource already features many of the health professionals from the summit too.
‘le Double-Zéro’! Making the local newspaper after our efforts participating in our village’s breast cancer awareness event last month.
We’ll be promoting nutrition with home-made juices, smoothies and energy bars in the next sporting event day in May 2024 too.
One at a time.
‘Transcends language’… thank goodness for that!
As a native English-speaker in France I’m shining my little healing light!
One at a time.
No-one on our team wrote these words. Google using AI?
We think it kinda sums us up rather well.
Thoughts?
This book was recommended to us by a friend who runs the most wonderful Nourish retreats here in SW France. She’d been ‘zooming’ with Kirsten and brought along her copy for me to have a look at whilst we enjoyed a coffee in the sunshine together. Those outside coffee dates may have gone for a while – time for me to get stuck into Kirsten’s work before she arrives for the 2024 retreat!
Morning Light (again). It’s just such an amazing start to the day. (Sorry for being so predictable).
This particular little old lady has a degree in nuclear physics, a Ph.D. in the philosophy of quantum theory and has been called one of the seven most powerful women in the world by Forbes.
Powerful message in this award winning film. Powerful friends too.
Another powerful old lady here. Dr Gladys McGarey is 102. She’s affectionately called the Mother of Holistic Medicine. The title of her new book: The Well-Lived Life is in the wrong tense; she’s still living it! Fascinating powerhouse of a centenarian, you can watch her TED talk that she gave at 100 years old on YouTube, or head over to her website and see what all the fuss is about.
We’re up to Day 2 as I type: Dr Leigh Erin Connealy was powerful yesterday, Dr William Li gently explained what foods we should consume to help prevent and help heal from cancer. Today Dr Nasha Winters is excitedly explaining what is meant by ‘cancer is a metabolic disease’ and quite how crucial the health of our mitochondria is – all in an easy to understand manner. It’s free and you can sign up here.
Dale’s website is part of our Nutrition resource. Here’s one of his 20 (!) published books which is on offer this month.
Still pondering this one: spotted in a local Action store in France today. Water doesn’t have a fragrance. Unfortunately we are using chemicals to create natural scents; ‘scent of flowers’ this one says.
We’re using PFA’s (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) to create many of those substances too. ‘PFA’s are a large class of thousands of synthetic chemicals that are used throughout society’ a quick Google search says. It goes on to say: ‘However, they are increasingly detected as environmental pollutants and some are linked to negative effects on human health.’ We’re playing with fire, as this article from Le Monde shows.
Autumn colours. One week a year we get this treat. It’s worth the wait!Autumn Colours pt2. An easy 2 ingredient dessert. Cooking burns off the alcohol in the Marsala wine. Delicious, simple dessert.
Signed up. We will be posting Double-zero content during the month, but that’s it. No scrolling.
Happy to support Maddie Freeman in this non-profit venture, which was ignited after watching The Social Dilemma film, which we’ve featured on our resource for the past 3 years. This’ll be interesting – you can sign up here too.
As Dad’s Army’s Windsor Davies would say to the recruits!
This young man has every reason to hold his head high: Owen Farrell captained the England rugby team last weekend to within one point of a place in the World Cup Final. Leading by example he scored ALL their points. Leadership; some have it, some don’t. More shining examples of those that do can be found in our Healthy Mind resource.
Whilst we’re talking posture, here’s an article written for us by Jennifer McGregor, Publichealthlibrary.org
From Slouch to Stellar; The Benefits of Perfecting Your Posture
Image via Pexels
Good posture is not merely a cosmetic concern; it’s crucial for long-term health and comfort. The repercussions of poor posture extend from physical issues like back pain to emotional consequences such as diminished self-confidence. As technology draws us increasingly into hunched positions over screens, the urgency for better posture grows. In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of upright alignment and provide actionable steps to help you improve your posture, whether you’re an office worker or an active retiree.
Enhance Physical Balance The foundation of good posture lies in physical balance. When your body is in equilibrium, the muscles work in harmony to hold you upright without exerting unnecessary strain on any single area. Good posture distributes the stress of gravity evenly across your body, reducing wear and tear. This also lowers the risk of accidents caused by imbalance, particularly in older adults. Better posture allows you to move more freely, making daily activities easier and more enjoyable.
Sit Upright It may seem basic, but sitting upright holds considerable power in the journey toward better posture. It’s especially important for those who spend hours working at a desk. Maintain alignment by ensuring your head, neck, and spine are in a straight line. Keep your feet flat on the floor and resist the urge to cross your legs, which can throw off alignment. Simple adjustments like these can enhance comfort and productivity, while also benefiting your long-term physical health.
Strengthen Core Muscles To maintain an upright posture, you’ll need more than just willpower; you’ll need muscle strength. A strong core — encompassing your abdomen, lower back, and glutes — supports your spine and minimises strain. Exercises such as planks, sit-ups, and Pilates can be effective in targeting these muscles. As you strengthen your core, you’ll notice the effort required to maintain good posture will diminish, making it easier to stand tall effortlessly.
Stand Tall Standing tall has a significant impact on our overall posture. When we stand up straight, we are able to maintain a neutral spinal alignment, which allows for optimal functioning of our muscles and joints. Additionally, good posture improves our physical appearance and can leave us feeling more confident. If you want to see good posture in action, check out your favourite celebrity’s heights on How Tall Height to see how they measure up to your expectations.
Regular Chiropractic Visits Consulting a chiropractor regularly can be a game-changer for your posture. These specialists can identify misalignments and recommend adjustments to encourage better posture. For those committed to tracking their progress, keeping an organised digital record of your chiropractic or medical visits can be invaluable. Platforms that allow you to store your records in PDFs can be particularly useful.
Ergonomic Workspace Setup Your work environment has a profound impact on your posture. It’s crucial to set up your workspace ergonomically to maintain proper alignment. Your computer screen should be at eye level so you’re not tilting your head up or down, and your keyboard and mouse should be within easy reach. Make these adjustments to reduce strain and prevent slouching, which in turn, promotes better posture.
Enhance Strength and Flexibility A flexible, strong body adapts more easily to maintaining good posture. Strength training, along with flexibility exercises such as yoga, helps to balance the muscular system. This balance aids in keeping your body aligned and in preventing the muscle fatigue that often comes from poor posture. As you become more flexible and strong, your body will naturally maintain better posture, even when you’re not consciously thinking about it.
Invest in Supportive Seating For long periods of sitting, a supportive chair can make all the difference. Ergonomic chairs designed with adjustable height and adequate lumbar support can be lifesavers for your back and posture. Investing in such a chair encourages natural alignment and decreases the chances of developing problems related to poor posture, especially during extended work hours.
Practice Perfect Posture Better posture is not a myth; it’s an achievable goal with countless benefits. From enhanced physical balance and reduced discomfort to increased confidence and well-being, the rewards are indeed significant. By incorporating these simple yet effective tips into your daily routine, you are setting yourself on a journey toward a more comfortable, confident, and healthy life. It’s time to stand tall, both literally and figuratively, as you reap the benefits of better posture.
Thanks Jennifer – lots to think about!
Began Monday morning with this week’s podcast from Steven Bartlett aka Diary of A CEO. His guest was Chris van Tulleken, whose bestseller is aptly called Ultra Processed People. It’s a shocking indictment of ‘Big Food’ and the consequences for us all. Want to know what Coca Cola, Actimel, Cheerios and packaged sliced bread do to our bodies?
Why we need to prioritise cooking from scratch (see delicious recipe below…)
Vegetable and Pearl Barley Soup from Amelia Freer; a nutritionalist that was recommended to us by a fellow nutritionalist. This one ‘hit the spot’ on a blustery Autumn Sunday evening. Delicious – thanks Fi!
More recommendations for our recipe resource always welcome.
SO many of the speakers are featured on our cancer resource. The summit focuses on healing and prevention – with one in two adults currently hearing ‘you have cancer’ in their lifetime and those numbers heading in the wrong direction breakthroughs are dearly needed.
One of these beauties is on a plate by my side as I type. Coffee, one of these and a bit of the message below awaits me… Banana chocolate chip breakfast cookies from Yum Universe, featured on The First Mess’s website. It’s not breakfast time – who’s checking?
Anyone else? We already know the answer to that question. Heavy times. Look after yourselves, I’m off outside in the rain for a break…
Mrs Victoria Beckham’s pet name for her husband David.
Many call them The Golden Couple; this documentary shows another side too: ‘I don’t think I’ve ever talked about it just because I can’t’ David says. ‘I felt very vulnerable and alone’. His former team-mate Roy Keane says Becks had a choice after his sending off when England captain in a World Cup semi-final – sink or swim. We know which one he chose – just shows that our mental health is not protected by wealth or fame and boy, does it need protecting.
She did it! 21km/13miles – one week’s training. Oh to be 19 again… Thank you to our dear Hélène for raising an incredible £872 pounds currently – we’ve no doubt she’ll reach her £1k target. 61 people have supported her so far, there’s still time to help her reach that final goal. Monies raised go towards allowing us to continue the important work that is helping so many.
Juice money from the weekend’s Octobre Rose event in our little village: It’s Breast Cancer awareness month in France currently and we were delighted to introduce our local neighbours to the benefits of fresh vegetable juices and delicious smoothies. A hit by the looks of it!
A chilling warning from the Food Matters folks. Our Health Conditions resources can help you to not be part of a disaster waiting to happen.
‘A Global Journey to learn the secrets of the world’s healthiest people’
We’ve signed up to watch this 9 part series completely free of charge:
The Truth About Aging
The Gut & Immune System
Diet & Exercise
Toxic Planet
Sleep, Light & Disease
Raising Healthy Kids
Purpose, Gratitude & Community
Cancer & Alzheimers
The Way Forward
SO many familiar names from our site: Dr Rangan Chatterjee, Dr Mark Hyman, Sayer Ji, The Stern Family, Dr Jason Fung, Chris Wark, to name a few. The stars however are the centenarians – amazing.
This was lunch the day before yesterday AND supper last night (with mushrooms added). 1000’s more healthy recipes on our site. We ate ours with couscous…
How it began. Teamwork. That’s the ‘Purpose, gratitude and community’ section of the free series above ‘ticked’!
This little superstar is running to raise money – for us!
We’ve had an expensive time of late: Website hosting fees, business cards, banners…
She’s already at 32% of her £1K target – can you help her get ‘over the line’?
And before anyone points it out – her name is not Minnie – she bought the £50 (!) entry ticket from an injured friend. We’re glad she did – thank you Helene for your donation to our work – which stands at £321 as I type… You can give here.
Meantime we’re running a ‘transfer the website to a new platform’ marathon: Ending 3 years with GoDaddy MOVING to a new WordPress site.
Why? Unlimited content, much more flexibility, an efficient search engine and a TRANSLATION function! Many of our site visits are from non-anglophones and let’s face it, the information we share is for everyone’s benefit!
Sun’s going down after another day at a rather beautiful desk. No complaints here…
More MOVEMENT in an article published in the Flourish digital magazine last week. You can read how movement helped me when healing from breast cancer here.
Another job this week is getting juice and smoothie recipes printed for this event on Saturday. Double-zero will be offering samples of detoxing and energising drinks to all – and selling them for charity too. Come and see us! (Hoping our new banner arrives in time…)
Cancer prevention is key; the World Health Organisation states that 50% of all cancers can be prevented by dietary and lifestyle changes.
MOVE folks!
Through all the busyness I’ll always find time to MOVE in the morning light. As the sun rises there’s a special kind of energy. How stunning is this?
‘Wild Hope’ says this lovely lady’s t-shirt. It’s the name of her new book that was released last month. It’s a best-seller that will MOVE you and she was at the BBC this week sharing excerpts on national radio. Delighted for you Donna Ashworth, we’ve carried your work for a couple of years now, but it was only whilst moving our blogs to the new server that I realised you were behind the Ladies Pass It On Facebook group that’s been running for years.
Few overnight successes last, you are far from that, consistency is key and you’ve built your platform slowly, consistently, over years now. A well-deserved and long-term success awaits.
