Vegan Cinnamon Swirl Cake Recipe

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

50 mins

Total Time

1 hr

 

This Vegan Cinnamon Swirl Cake is super Easy and Quick. A simple yellow cake, swirled with cinnamon sugar makes for a delightful treat. Add nuts to the swirls for variation, Make the batter into cupcakes. Vegan Nutfree Soyfree Recipe. Glutenfree option

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: cinnamon cake recipe, cinnamon roll cake, vegan cinnamon cake

Servings: 6

Calories: 316 kcal

Author: Vegan Richa

Ingredients

Yellow Vanilla cake

Wet:

• 1 cup non dairy milk such as almond or soy
• 1 tsp vinegar ( apple cider vinegar or white)
• 1/3 cup sugar 1 tbsp more for sweeter
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• a few drops of almond extract optional but wonderful
• a good pinch of turmeric for color optional

Dry:

• 2 cups of flour ( I use all unbleached all purpose, or a combination of all purpose and wheat)
• 1 tbsp cornstarch (optional)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Cinnamon Swirl:

• 3 tbsp sugar light brown sugar or a mix of brown and regular
• 1.25 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of cardamom or chai spice or ginger or orange zest for variation

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Prepare a loaf pan ( 9 by 5 inch) by lining with parchment or greasing. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F ( 180 deg C).
2. Mix the non dairy milk and vinegar and let sit for 2 mins. Then add the rest of the wet ingredients and whisk well to combine. Sugar should be well combined.
3. Add 1 3/4 cup flour*, starch baking powder, baking soda and salt (through a sieve or mixed in another bowl). Whisk well to combine. The mixture should be a flowy but just slighty stiff (depends on the flours used. You can also in some spices into the flour for other flavors.
   (*If using whole grain flour, start with 1 3/4 cup flour and add in more flour 1 tbsp at a time). 
4. In a small bowl mix the cinnamon, sugar and a good pinch of salt. Press down with a spoon and mix until the cinnamon is mixed in.
5. Add half of the batter to a prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle half of the cinnamon mixture on the batter. Pour the rest of the batter and even it out. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon mixture on top. Use a knife to swirl in lightly throughout the batter. Spray oil on top to seal in the cinnamon mixture
6. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes (depends on the pan and oven) Check from the center at 45 mins and continue baking till the toothpick comes out completely clean.
7. Cool on the counter for 10 mins then remove from the pan and continue to cool completely before slicing. Slice and Store on the counter for upto 2 days and refrigerated for upto a week. Slices can also be frozen. Add an icing for dessert.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

Variations: Add some chopped nuts on the cinnamon sugar layers for variation.
Bake into cupcakes with 1 or 2 cinnamon layer. Bake for 22 to 25 mins.

Gluten-free: Mix 3/4 cup white rice flour, 1 1/4 cup almond flour, 1/3 cup potato starch, 1/2 tsp citric acid and 1 tbsp chia seeds/flax seed meal. Use 1 3/4 cup of the flour mix and add more as needed.
See gluten-free christmas cake for details about process, need for citric acid and batter consistency. If making it without citric acid, bake the batter into cupcakes.

Nutrition is 1 of 6 serves ( 2 slices)

Nutrition Facts

Vegan Cinnamon Swirl Cake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 316 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 10g 15%

Saturated Fat 0.1g 1%

Sodium 269mg 11%

Potassium 212mg 6%

Total Carbohydrates 51g 17%

Dietary Fiber 1g 4%

Sugars 17g

Protein 4g 8%

Calcium 13.4%

Iron 11.7%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Aspirin-a-day does more harm than good if you're healthy

Older people are advised to take an aspirin a day as a just-in-case therapy to reduce their risk of heart disease—but the drug is doing more harm than good in healthy people and is increasing the risk of life-threatening bleeding.

The tipping point seems to happen around the age of 70 when any protective effects of aspirin are far outweighed by its dangers, say researchers. Only people with existing heart problems should continue taking the drug.

But even much younger people—aged from 45—shouldn't be taking aspirin if they are healthy; instead, they should be looking to prevent heart disease with a healthier diet and exercise, say researchers from Monash University in Australia.

The researchers looked at the effects of the drug on a group of 19,114 healthy people aged 70 and above, half of whom were given 100 mg aspirin a day and the rest a placebo, or dummy drug. But there was hardly any difference in the numbers of heart disease in the two groups after seven years—but the rate of life-threatening haemorrhage, including bleeding in the stomach and brain, was much greater in the aspirin group. Bleeding in the brain could cause a stroke, the researchers said.

The risk of bleeding seems to increase with age, and it may be to do with the deteriorating health of the arteries.

Aspirin is still a proven therapy for people who have heart disease or suffered a heart attack, but it's not safe as a preventative for healthy people, and especially as they get older, the researchers conclude.

---

References

(Source: New England Journal of Medicine, 2018; doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1805819)

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Drinking clean water, or is it?

Bluewater - Sep 28, 2018 04:13 EDT As more and more pollutants end up in our water system, it is becoming increasingly difficult to remove certain substances, says global offshore sailor Dee Caffari (Photo credit Jeremy Lecaudey) As an offshore sailor who has spent large periods of time at sea, being able to convert sea water to drinking water is an essential part of life onboard. Desalination is the process by which sea water has salt, bacteria and pollution removed from it to produce drinkable fresh water. For a long time, it was considered that this water was not as safe or healthy as regular tap water, however, opinions are starting to change as more research is carried out on tap water. It is widely considered that tap water, certainly in the UK, is safe to drink and amongst some of the very best in the world. However, as more and more pollutants end up in our water system, it is becoming increasingly difficult to remove certain substances, even when it has been through the water treatment process. So, what exactly is in our tap water? Well, to ensure it is safe to drink it is treated with a large number of chemicals to kill bacteria and other micro-organisms. These include, chlorine, fluorosilicic acid, aluminium sulphate, calcium hydroxide, sodium silicofluoride to name a few. Once treated, it then travels through underground pipes before it reaches us - some of the main underground pipes have been in place since Victorian times and many older homes still have lead pipes feeding into them, which could result in heavy metal contamination. Water companies test for around 20 chemicals, however, over 300 different man-made chemicals have now been detected in British tap water. Although banned in all other European countries, fluoride is still added to around 10% of the UK’s water supply. The aim is to help prevent dental decay, however, there is a potential downside. The thyroid gland is affected by fluoride exposure because its store of iodine is depleted. Lack of iodine depresses the thyroid’s metabolic and immune functions by shutting down production of thyroxine, the thyroid hormone that controls metabolism resulting in hypothyroidism and lowered immunity. Another addition to tap water is chlorine. In years gone by, epidemics of diseases such as cholera, dysentery, typhus, and hepatitis A killed tens of millions of people all over the world. It wasn't until the mid-19th century that scientists discovered that these were waterborne diseases and a major breakthrough in combating them was through the disinfection of water. Chlorine is used by the water industry worldwide to disinfect and maintain hygienic conditions within the public water supply. The WHO (World Health Organisation) has stated that any risks to health from chlorination by-products are extremely small in comparison with the risks associated with inadequate disinfection. So, maybe the safest thing would be to only drink bottled water? Well, it is true that bottled water doesn’t contain some of the chemicals that tap water does but it appears that they do contain microplastics. Microplastics are small plastic particles derived from a variety of sources such as cosmetics, clothing, industrial processes, packaging materials and the degradation of larger plastic items. They have now been found in tap water, beer and many other foods. WHO is reviewing new research that found an average of 10 plastic particles per litre of water, each one larger than a human hair, in ‘almost all’ bottled water brands. At this point in time, there simply hasn’t been enough research carried out on the long term effects of micro plastic consumption. With research lagging behind, it seems we don’t have enough information to be able to make informed decisions yet but with micro plastics present in water, they are now very much a part of our food chain. We all need to ask more questions around water pollutants and act on research outcomes. For now, while we are in the dark in some areas, perhaps consuming the cleanest possible water we can is the best way forward.

http://network.mynewsdesk.com/
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What you need to know about the latest wellness trend - superfoods!

 

If it feels like every week there's a story about a new superfood that will cure chronic inflammation or alleviate menopause symptoms, you've probably wondered to yourself "What is a superfood exactly?"

Even though the term is frequently tossed around, many people aren't sure just what makes a food a superfood in the first place. Another reason for confusion: Many of these supposedly healthy foods aren't all that "super" if you don't eat the right ones.

What is a superfood?

There are no universal standards for determining what a superfood is, and there is no one agreed-upon list of all the superfoods that exist, according to the American Heart Association (AHA).

That said, the general idea is that what makes superfood super is that they're nutrient-rich, usually plant-based foods (although some meat and dairy foods do make the list) that are good for your health. Brussels sprouts, quinoa, walnuts, teff, and tomatoes have all been widely considered to be "superfoods."

"Eating 'superfoods' won't hurt you. Most are very healthy," nutrition expert Penny Kris-Etherton, PhD, RD, said. "As a registered dietitian, I'd like to see people eat more of the superfoods like whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, fish, fatty fish, and all fruits and veggies."

However, the problem with the concept of superfoods is that it's not truly a scientific term, but rather a marketing tool. Food companies spend lots of money on ad campaigns that tell you a specific food is the be-all and end-all for treating and preventing certain health conditions. While these superfoods are certainly good for you, they work best when eaten in conjunction with an overall healthy diet.

"A lot of people have unrealistic expectations about these foods, thinking they'll be protected from chronic diseases and health problems," Kris-Etherton said.

"They may eat one or two of these nutrient-dense foods on top of a poor diet." But loading up on one type of food, even if it's "healthy," isn't going to provide your body with the full range of nutrients it needs.

What was the first superfood?

You may be surprised to learn that the first superfood is something that's routinely on your grocery list and has been for quite some time. The United Fruit Company undertook a passionate ad campaign aimed at increasing sales of the humble banana in the early 20th century, according to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

The idea of bananas as a superfood really took off at the time, thanks in part to a glut of studies praising bananas as a treatment for conditions like coeliac disease (researchers at the time still did not know that gluten was the real culprit) and diabetes.

The myth of the superfood

One criticism of superfoods is that processing may remove a food's natural benefits. Take green tea for example. This healthy brew is touted for its ability to potentially reduce a person's risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and breast cancer. Sounds like the epitome of a superfood, right? Well, the green tea in America is sometimes cut with inferior teas and brewed with tons of added sugar, thus negating many of its health benefits. If you want to really enjoy all green tea has to offer, make sure there aren't any added ingredients, and try and stay away from adding sugar.

The same can be said for sweetened superfood juices, which include fruits like acai berries, blueberries, and pomegranates. Sure, those juices sound healthy — but all the added sugar renders them the equivalent of taking a salad and loading it with fatty dressings, bacon bits, and croutons. Yes, it's still a salad, but in some cases it's no better than the burger you were trying to replace.

Another knock against superfoods goes back to how hard it is to define what a superfood is. It's not a scientific term, so many experts don't like to use it. Of course, that doesn't stop marketers from plastering the word in all their advertisements, which may prompt some people to load up on it in an unhealthy way.

"When we label these foods as 'super' and 'healthy,' people think they can eat them in unlimited quantities. But you do have to be cautious of the amount you eat, because you can gain weight from eating too much healthy food," Despina Hyde, RD, said.

Now, all of this isn't to say that your superfoods aren't truly super — because they certainly can be. You just need to make sure you're eating the right ones and that you haven't put on blinders to all the other good-for-you foods that no one's calling "super" just yet.

Via our sister site First For Women.

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Fall in strength and fitness of 10-year-olds, study shows!

Image copyright Getty Images

Children are weaker and less fit than they were 16 years ago, according to a British study.

Researchers compared the strength and fitness of 10-year-olds from Essex between 1998 and 2014.
They found children had become heavier and taller but scored worse in tests including sit-ups and grip strength - and the decline has been speeding up.
Authors said the findings were "worrying" and called for more fitness testing in schools.

• Older children 'exercise less'
• Twenty million Britons 'physically inactive'

Researchers from the University of Essex carried out strength and fitness tests, along with taking weight and height measurements, on 1,200 children from Chelmsford in 1998, 2008 and 2014.
They found that over that period, children's Body Mass Index (BMI) stayed broadly the same, because although they were heavier, they were also taller.
Authors had expected the children to be stronger and more powerful because they had grown bigger, but this did not prove to be the case.
According to Dr Gavin Sandercock, who led the study, there was a 20% decrease in muscle strength and a 30% decrease in muscle endurance over the 16-year period.
The children were tested on sit-ups, hand-grip strength, standing long-jumps, and bent-arm hanging.
The findings suggested children were doing less and less exercise, Dr Sandercock said.
"Inactive lifestyles are a health risk but physical fitness is the single best measure of health in childhood, adolescence and on into adulthood," he said.
"Poor fitness and inactivity lead to multiple health problems in their adult life."

'Healthy weight misleading'

The study also found that the loss of strength and fitness was accelerating.
Between 1998 and 2008 strength fell by 0.6% each year, but this more than doubled to 1.6% per year between 2008 and 2014.
Falls in muscular endurance were larger at 2.5% per year in the period from 1998 to 2008, rising to a 4% decline each year after 2008.
Researchers found levels of obesity among the children in Chelmsford had barely changed over 16 years, at 6%, while 80% of them had a normal BMI.
However, one in three of the normal weight children was found to be unfit, while 70% of those who were classified as obese because of their BMI were physically fit.
Dr Sandercock said the term "healthy weight" was misleading and said that using BMI in isolation was not an effective way to monitor health.
He added that more fitness testing in schools would give a more accurate picture of children's health.
The research has been published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.

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5 Ways to beat Migraines!

Put a stop to disabling headaches with these five simple solutions.

Migraine is the third most common disease in the world and the seventh most disabling. 

1 Apart from severe headaches, symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and increased sensitivity to light and sound.

While prescription drugs like methysergide, sumatriptan and ergotamine are available to treat the condition, they come with a long list of side-effects, from dizziness and drowsiness to chest pain and high blood pressure. Methysergide has even been associated with fibrosis, where scar tissue accumulates in the organs.2

Here are five natural ways to beat the condition instead.

1) Figure out food allergies

Certain chemicals in foods have been linked to migraines, especially in children and teens,3 so try to keep a food and migraine diary to pinpoint any potential triggers. A study of nearly 600 migraine sufferers found that sensitivity to cheese, chocolate, red wine and beer had the most clear-cut associations with attacks.4 Eliminating the key suspects from your diet may even lead to a full recovery, as it did for 93 percent of children in one trial,5 and 87 percent in another.6

2) Fix nutritional deficiencies

Not getting enough of certain nutrients could be a cause of migraines, so identifying and addressing any deficiencies could help to solve the problem. A lack of magnesium, for example, has been linked to migraine,7 and several trials suggest that supplementing with the mineral can reduce the frequency of attacks.8

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is also commonly low in migraine sufferers.9 Taking this vitamin-like antioxidant may cut migraine frequency by half.10

Suggested dosages: 200-600 mg/day magnesium; 150 mg/day CoQ10

3) Bank on butterbur

This popular herbal hay fever remedy also works against migraines, studies show. Pitted against a placebo, a standardized extract of butterbur (Petasites hybridus) significantly reduced the frequency of migraine attacks, with either no side-effects or just mild ones (like burping) being reported.11

Suggested dosage: 50-75 mg twice daily of a standardized extract of the herb, containing at least 15 percent petasins, the main active ingredients

4) Try 5-HTP

5-Hydroxytryptophan, better known as 5-HTP, is a naturally occurring amino acid that may help prevent chronic headaches of various types, including migraines, tension headaches and headaches in children.12 In one study, 5-HTP supplements were just as effective as the migraine prevention drug methysergide—and were especially good at reducing the intensity and duration
of attacks.13

Suggested dosage: 200-600 mg/day (20 mg for every 10 lb body weight for children)

5) Have a go at HIIT

Growing evidence suggests that exercise can be beneficial for treating migraine, but a particular type of exercise known as high-intensity interval training (HIIT)—where you alternate periods of intense exercise with less intense recovery periods—might be better than the rest. Scientists recently compared the effects of twice-weekly HIIT sessions with moderate continuous exercise and a control intervention and found that HIIT had the most beneficial results, significantly reducing the number of migraine days among sufferers.14 There are lots of easy HIIT workouts available online, but bear in mind that exercise can be a migraine trigger for some people.

 https://www.wddty.com/lifestyle/2018/06/5

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Drumstick Plants – Battling Fluorosis!

Flouride levels in 493 villages are exceptionally high.

Fluorosis Se Jung aims to help residents protect themselves from its effects.

Soumya Mathew

In August, Palak Ramesh showed no hesitation when the teacher at her government school in Haryana’s Khedli Khurd village asked her to spell out her name. But the next moment, when the 13-year-old student was asked to demonstrate a few stretching exercises, her confidence ebbed. When Ramesh tries to touch her ankles or stretch her arms, her joints, back and shoulders ache.
That pain seemed bearable. A more agonising wave of embarrassment swept over Ramesh and the quiet group of teenagers who had gathered around her when they smiled – they were conscious of their yellowing teeth. It’s not that they had ignored good dental-health practices. “Hum har din brush karte hai,” protested Ramesh’s friend Arseena Vakeel. We brush every day.
They are among the thousands of people in the region who suffer from dental fluorosis, or mottling of teeth, one of the most common effects of drinking fluoride-contaminated water. In March, the fluoride level in the groundwater of their village was recorded as 14 mg/litre of water. A level of 1mg or less is considered normal.
Fluoride is the second-most common pollutant of drinking water in India, said Tarit Roychowdhury, an associate professor at the School of Environmental Studies, Jadavpur University Click To Tweet. “Upon entering the body, the fluoride attacks calcium-enriched organs like teeth and bones – the former more than the latter,” he said. “This is why dental fluorosis is so common.”

Palak Ramesh.

Khedli Khurd is one of the 439 villages in Haryana’s Mewat district that has to deal with excessive flouride in its groundwater. Over the years, NGOs have attempted to make villagers aware of the problem and to install water filteration plants to help remedy it. In August, Alfaz-E-Mewat FM 107.8, a popular community radio station in Mewat, launched what is perhaps the most innovative effort to keep residents healthy. It kicked off a show titled Fluorosis Se Jung, or Battle with Fluorosis. This eight-episode series includes dramas and question and answer sessions with doctors.
The station has also handed out 8,500 moringa, or drumstick, plants, a species that is believed to help to reduce the effects of fluorosis. According to a study published by the Journal of Industrial Pollution Control in 2007, moringa is an effective “defluoridating agent”. It recommended that both Moringa pod as well as the leaves should be part of the diet of people living in fluorotic areas.

How it started

The idea for the initiative struck Faakat Hussain, a radio jockey at Alfaz-E-Mewat who hosts a question and answer show Tere Mere Man Ki Baat in March, when he received an on-air call from a shepherd from Khedli Khurd. The caller’s 40-year-old wife was finding it increasingly difficult to carry out her daily chores. When she worked in the fields or collected grass from the nearby forest, both tasks involved a lot of walking, her knees hurt.
During the course of that conversation, Hussain realised it was a problem faced by many women in Khedli Khurd. Shortly after, he visited the village with Dr Rizwan Khan, the district consultant appointed in Mewat under the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Fluorosis. They took a water sample from the village and Khan had it examined it in a laboratory at Al-Afiya General Hospital, Mewat. The water was found unfit for consumption.

(Left to right) Pritam Singh, a teacher at the government middle school in Khedli Khurd, Faakat Hussain, a radio jockey at Alfaz-E-Mewat and Sohrab Khan, a teacher at the school.

Since there was no awareness about fluorosis in the village, Hussain and his team decided to use the radio – the most common medium of entertainment and information in the district – to talk about the medical condition. The 20-minute sessions, hosted by Hussain, with Khan and Sanjeet Panesar, assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at Shaheed Hasan Khan Mewati Government Medical College, are brodcast every Tuesday at 10.50 am. The show is repeated at 9.35 pm the same day.
Among the segments it has featured is a play on Fluorosis Se Jung, with
a man talking to his friends about how his wife struggles with swollen, aching joints. His friends advise him to head to the Alfaz-E-Mewat station and pick up some moringa plants to help his wife. The plays and songs are aired twice or thrice every day.
“A lot of them still don’t know what fluorosis is, so we try to communicate in ways they understand,” said Hussain. “For them, their knees and ankles swelling translates to ‘ghutno mei hawa bharna’ or air getting filled in their joints.”Moringa is a good cure for that [problem] and eventually explain fluorosis to them."
Alfaz-E-Mewat was established in 2012 by the Sehgal Foundation, a charitable trust that is conducting research on flourosis. Lalit Mohan Sharma of the foundation says that the spread of the disease has its origins in region’s depleting groundwater levels. As residents dig borewells that are ever deeper, they are reaching water contaminated by fluoride-rich rocks.

The deeper the borewell, the greater the fluoride levels in the groundwater. Photo credit: ABHIJEET / Wikimedia Commons [CC Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported].

“Minerals such as calcium, magnesium and vitamin A and C are excellent warriors against fluorosis,” said Sharma. “They are readily available in milk and milk products. Since the villagers in Mewat cannot afford milk on a daily basis, we found [that] the inexpensive alternative of moringa plants [were] quite effective too.” Besides packing in nutrients, studies have shown that moringa seeds are adsorbents that can potentially remove fluoride from water. Click To Tweet
On August 7, Alfaz-E-Mewat invited several villagers, including children, to the community radio’s centre at Ghaghas village for a session conducted by Sharma, Khan and Panesar. They explained to the villagers that swollen joints were more than just a case of “hawa bharna” or air getting filled in their joints. Within two weeks after the session, Hussain says, the first batch of moringa plants was almost over.

The future

Mewat was added to the list of endemic regions by the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Fluorosis in 2011-’12. But, according to Khan, the government is yet to supply alternative sources of drinking water or reverse osmosis facilitators to most villages. As a result, villages like Khedli Khurd continue to depend on groundwater sucked out through borewells.

Faizan.

“Should we die thirsty instead?” asked 53-year-old Faizan, a resident of Khedli Khurd. Her son Jafruddin, 35, was diagnosed earlier this year with avascular necrosis, a condition in which the blood supply to the bones is obstructed. “I was in Gujarat for about 10 days after my doctor asked me to move out of Mewat for a while,” said Jafruddin. “I felt considerably better there, even without taking medicines. Now that I have come back, I will have to depend on the medicines again to move around.” When Jafruddin tried to squat on the floor, his teeth clenched in pain.
Sohrab Khan, who has been teaching at the government school for the past six years, feels he is losing his agility, even though he does not stay in the village. “I can sense stiffness in my joints,” he said. “Since I am here for most part of the day, I end up drinking the water at the school.” Sohrab Khan is among those who took a moringa plant from Alfaz-E-Mewat, hoping it would stave off the symptoms of ageing he is facing in his 30s.

Jafruddin.

Hussain is unsure what direction the fluorosis-awareness programme will take once the radio series ends. But the change in the villagers’ approach towards the condition has been heartening. “When they had come for the session in early August, many of them thought their problems were just a part of ageing,” he said. “Now many are careful. At least, that’s what their eagerness to grow moringa in their houses shows.”

All photos by Soumya Mathew

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8 Things Your Farts Can Reveal About Your Health!

Feel free to deny or walk away fast, but passing gas up to 20 times a day is completely normal. When your fart count goes higher, however, it could mean something else.

You always order the side of broccoli

iStock/Oliver Hoffmann

Or you eat a lot of beans, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, or bran—all good-for-you foods that contain fiber, which keeps your digestive system moving, helps regulate blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and keep your weight in check. The less-than-ideal, somewhat-embarrassing, but can’t-help-it side effect: you fart after eating. That’s because your stomach and small intestine can’t absorb some of the carbohydrates—sugars, starches, and fiber—in foods we eat. Notorious gas producers, like broccoli and beans, are high in a kind of carb called raffinose. “When indigestible sugars like raffinose reach the colon, the bacteria that inhabit that part of our digestive tract feeds on them and produce gas as a byproduct,” explains Rebekah Gross, MD, a gastroenterologist at the Joan H. Tisch Center for Women’s Health at NYU Langone Medical Center. If it makes you feel better, call it flatus—the proper way to say fart.

You eat too fast

iStock/AleksandarNakic

It doesn’t matter if you’re inhaling broccoli or a bowl of blueberries—the inhaling part is the problem. You swallow air every time you eat or drink, so the faster you do it, the more air you swallow. Burping typically gets the air out of your belly, but any that remains finds its way into your lower digestive tract and, well, comes out the other side. You may also swallow extra air when you chew gum, suck on hard candy or drink through a straw.

Your gut bacteria is imbalanced

iStock/Gawrav Sinha

Think of your digestive tract as one long muscular tube—food goes in the top and the muscle contracts to push it along out the bottom. “Normally, the small intestines makes strong contractions to sweep food into the colon,” says Dr. Gross. But sometimes medications, infections, certain diseases (such as diabetes or neuromuscular conditions) or complications from surgeries can interfere with this “clearance wave,” says Dr. Gross, allowing bacteria to get a foot-hold in the small intestine and overgrow, producing extra gas. Here are 9 more unexpected reasons you’re gassy.

You have IBS

iStock/Jacob Ammentorp Lund

That’s short for irritable bowel syndrome, a chronic condition that affects the large intestine. The coordinated muscle contractions that keep food moving from your stomach to rectum may be stronger, or last longer, with IBS—causing gas, bloating and diarrhea. Or they make be weaker than normal, slowing things down to the point of constipation. The nerves in your gut may also become extra sensitive to the stretch and distention that gas causes in the intestines, adds Dr. Gross, so you’ll feel more pain or discomfort. In many cases, diet and lifestyle changes may provide relief: “Exercise, for example, is critical for people with IBS, as it helps expel gas,” says Dr. Gross. Following certain diets that limit gas production also helps.

Drinking milk gives you “issues”

iStock/FangXiaNuo

So does eating yogurt, cheese, and all else dairy. Blame a little enzyme called lactase: it’s made in the small intestine and responsible for breaking down lactose—a sugar found in milk—into simpler forms the body can absorb. Low levels of lactase means lactose gets into the colon undigested, where bacteria breaks it down and your gas issues begin. Lactose intolerance is super common, according to Dr. Gross; and it usually starts in adulthood, when lactase production drops off sharply. These are 10 other surprising foods that cause gas.

You’re sensitive to gluten

iStock/chameleonseye

No one can digest this protein found in wheat, barley and rye, says Dr. Gross—but if you have celiac disease, eating gluten actually triggers an immune response in your small intestine. The reaction can cause a breakdown in the lining of the intestine, affecting its ability to absorb nutrients; and the damage can cause excess gas, diarrhea, and even weight loss. “People without celiac don’t have these same changes to the small intestine, but still may get gas and bloating in reaction to the gluten they can’t break down,” says Dr. Gross. Researchers estimate that only 20 percent of people with celiac disease may receive a diagnosis, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you suspect a sensitivity to gluten or celiac disease, talk to your doctor.

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Plant-Based Breakfasts for Vegan Bodybuilders (and Everyone Else)...

...or anyone who wants to eat simple whole foods that build and maintain a lean physique!

The skyrocketing popularity of vegan foods (yay) means that there are more and more great, fancy, and mind-blowing vegan recipes out there for fabulous vegan breakfast foods. Of course, that’s wonderful, and we all like to prove that vegan food can kick non-vegan food’s ass any day of the week. But let’s be real: who is making beautifully arranged açaí bowls every morning?!

The fact is that our family has been eating the same breakfasts for about a decade now, whether preparing for a bodybuilding competition, losing baby weight, pregnant, lactating, growing up…because we’ve been occupied doing all of these things, we like to keep it simple!

Here are the few simple plant-based breakfast options that have worked for us for a decade:

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Oatmeal in it’s infinite varieties

Typically, we buy bulk rolled oats, pour hot water over them in the morning and let them sit for a while, then eat! Derek brings his in a container to work, and the kids eat theirs when they wake up. Some of the many ways we top it to add variety and keep it interesting:

• blueberries and cinnamon
• vanilla plant milk (soy, almond, etc.) and dried berries, maybe some pumpkin seeds
• Chocolate: cocoa powder, stevia, and mashed banana – even a few vegan mini chocolate chips for special occasions
• PB&J: nut or seed butter and fruit-sweetened jam
• Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Oatmeal: walnuts, flaxmeal, powdered peanut butter, vegan mini chocolate chips, sugar free sweetener
• Apple Cinnamon: minced apples, nuts, cinnamon

There’s so many ways to spice up this cheap, simple food. An alternative grain that works for all of the same toppings is quinoa. Sometimes I prefer the drier, fluffier texture of quinoa to the creaminess of oatmeal, and it’s a great way to use leftovers. It works particularly well with dried berries, toasted nuts, and pumpkin seeds – if you have some leftover quinoa in the fridge, just reheat and top!

For a fancier oat-based breakfast on-the-go, I like these oat flour muffins from Julieanna Hever, the plant-based dietitian. The oats you have on hand can be ground up in the blender to make oat flour, which is a whole grain alternative to all-purpose flour. Some changes I make to the recipe are to use a sugar substitute (erythritol) and 1/2 or less of the chocolate chips called for. Blueberries can also sub for the chocolate chips.

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Beans & Greens Shake

Yup, beans for breakfast. Derek and the kids eat oatmeal, but lately I prefer a lighter breakfast that is more hydrating after getting dried into a prune over a winter’s night . It’s also a good way to get extra nutrition in, and you really can’t taste the white beans. Remember, the more beans you eat the greater your lifespan!

Our base bean shake recipe is right here, where you can even listen to Derek’s interview about it on Bite Size Vegan. MY breakfast version, that I divide three ways between myself and the kids, usually includes:
Base

• 2 bananas (pre-baked sweet potato works too)
• 2-4 Medjool or deglet noor dates for sweetness
• 1/3 – 1/2 cup white beans (Great Northern, navy, cannellini, white kidney)
• water or plant milk to desired thickness
• 1 ounce walnuts (optional)
• 1 Tbsp flaxmeal (optional)
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder (optional)
• 1/2 inch chunk of fresh turmeric for anti-inflammatory properties (optional)
• fresh spinach
• frozen greens (optional)
• fresh or frozen berries

Flavors

Mexican Chocolate: add 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract – even cocoa nibs

Cherry Vanilla Almond: frozen cherries, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1/8 tsp almond extract

Chocolate Peanut Butter: 1 Tbsp powdered peanut butter and 2 Tbsp cocoa powder

It looks like a lot, but I generally don’t put everything in there – just what is convenient.

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Give these plant-based, muscle-building breakfasts a try or share your own simple plant-based breakfast ideas with us in the comments!

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