An Oatmeal Recipe to Keep You Warm and Healthy

(Shutterstock*)

Hey Folks, here is a wonderful winter recipe from from South Loop Acupuncture.

Oatmeal Teri Style

• Good quality oatmeal (I usually use rolled oats or a combination of rolled w/ flax seeds)
• Rice milk
• Walnuts
• Dried cranberries or goji berries
• Honey

Walnuts are good for the brain. They are high in omega3 and contain good fats. They can improve brain function as well. The honey is a nice moistening agent for the intestines. Like goji berries cranberries are very good for the blood.

Follow the directions on the package for cooking instructions. I usually make mine stove top in an old iron pan. (Yes you do actually absorb iron from a pan when you are cooking from it. So if you are anemic it can help add more iron to your diet). I add in the goji berries and walnuts while cooking it to soften them a bit.

Oats, goji berries and cranberries. (Shutterstock*)

Key points

* When ever taking flaxseed be sure to grind up the seed, or to take the oil. Seeds are not digested by the body very easily. Therefore, you want to break them down before you consume them.

* You can not cook with flax seed oil! You must keep it in the refrigerator!

* Eat for the season. Food grows during certain times of year for a reason. They offer the nutrients that you need for that particular season. During the fall and winter months be sure to eat warm foods and not raw. In order to digest raw foods your body needs to bring it down to body temperature. If it is cold outside and you are eating cold foods your body has to work twice as hard. So if you must eat chocolate during the winter exchange the chocolate ice cream for some chocolate cake.

Enjoy!

Jennifer Dubowsky, LAc, is a licensed acupuncturist with a practice in downtown Chicago, Illinois, since 2002. Dubowsky earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology from University of Illinois in Chicago and her Master of Science degree in Oriental Medicine from Southwest Acupuncture College in Boulder, Colorado. During her studies, she completed an internship at the Sino-Japanese Friendship Hospital in Beijing, China. Dubowsky has researched and written articles on Chinese medicine and has given talks on the topic. She maintains a popular blog about health and Chinese medicine at Acupuncture Blog Chicago. Adventures in Chinese Medicine is her first book. You can find her at www.tcm007.com.

*Image of “oats and berries“ and ”porridge“ via Shutterstock