Author: Christina Miller MD

5 Tips for Building Muscle on a Plant-Based Diet

Building muscle and strength are important for overall health. In fact, muscle mass has been shown to be a predictor of longevity, as shown in a study of older adults1. Building muscle improves quality of life and is the secret sauce for making life worth living.

Strength training can allow us to participate in activities we choose by making us stronger and more agile, helps strengthen bones, reduces inflammation, helps prevent falls, and even helps with growing brain cells2,3. Resistance training has been shown to lower chronic inflammation, which is the root cause of many chronic … Read the rest

Healthy Hot Cocoa

After a day of skiing, walking the dogs, or just spending time outdoors in winter, I find myself seeking a warm drink. There’s nothing better than a cup of hot cocoa on a cold winter day, especially if it’s good for me!

Cocoa comes from raw cacao and is packed with health-promoting polyphenols. Adding sugar and dairy have been shown to negate many of the health benefits, so this drink is, of course, sugar and dairy- free. Sweetened with dates and organic cacao, it’s a delicious, satisfying treat!

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Raw cacao and cocoa are considered superfoods because of … Read the rest

The Power of Friendship

This weekend I was lucky enough to spend time in beautiful Colorado with some amazing people. These are friends from my Emergency Medicine residency program at Denver Health twenty years ago. We’ve stayed close over the years and have become closer with time. We live across the country and only get to connect occasionally, and with COVID, it’s been a while for some of us.

We spent the weekend rapidly babbling to fill each other in on the stories of our lives, from our jobs in the ED (including navigating the chaos of COVID) and Lifestyle Medicine world to our … Read the rest

Plant-Based Diets and Autoimmune Disease – 7 Reasons You May Not Feel Better

There’s a lot of evidence that plant-based diets are beneficial for people with autoimmune diseases. By flooding the body with colorful antioxidants, comprehensive micronutrients, and diverse fiber, people with inflammatory conditions can really benefit from this lifestyle change.


Physicians have been using different versions of plant-based diets for decades now and noticed great improvements – sometimes even full reversal (!) – in their autoimmune patients.


So, many people will try a plant-based diet, and find they don’t thrive. Or they don’t get better. Or worse, they feel worse.


What’s going wrong???


Eating a whole-food, plant-based diet often isn’t enough for … Read the rest

Foods to Fight COVID-19

With the rapidly increasing number of COVID-19 cases and the potential seriousness of the illness, now more than ever is the time to focus on taking care of ourselves. Thanks to all the amazing scientists and medical teams working day and night, we have learned a lot about coronavirus, the immune system, and the points where they intersect.  Our bodies are designed to protect against foreign invaders; and like any effective army, we have to make sure our immune system has the right tools and training to do its proper job.

So what can we do to buff up our … Read the rest

Cran-Apple Sauce

Cranberry sauce is a staple in our house on Thanksgiving. I tried many recipes, looking for the perfect blend of sweet and sour, without tons of added sugar. This recipe seems to do just that: by mixing the tartness of the cranberries with the sweetness of cooked apples, it achieves a fine balance that seems to work. With the health benefits of cranberries, it may be just the relish we need this year.
 

Cran-Apple Sauce

Christina Miller MD
Sweet apples complement tart cranberries in this favorite holiday dish
… Read the rest

Apple-Blueberry Pie

This pie is as American as baseball and leisurely Sunday afternoons. I love to make it when guests come to visit, when it’s autumn, when we’re celebrating something, or during apple season in Fall. It was created as a hybrid of recipes by my friend Anthony Masiello, and when I first tried it, I was hooked . I like to add blueberries to it for a little extra sweetness. It tastes as good or better than any apple pie I’ve ever had. It’s not too sweet, and it’s just the right amount of apple-blueberry deliciousness to win us over every … Read the rest

8 Tips to Support a Healthy Microbiome and Reduce Chronic Inflammation

Systemic inflammation is intimately connected to our gut health and our microbiome. If we want to lower chronic inflammation, the microbiome is a good place to start.

This is a whole paradigm shift in medicine, and it’s one of the most fascinating things I’ve ever learned. And, it works!

70% of our immune system lies in our guts, just underneath the single cell endothelial layer that makes up all of our digestive tract (affectionately referred to as the “gut” here).

It’s there on purpose. Remember, one of the most important functions of the immune system is to recognize and eliminate … Read the rest

Easy-Pickled Beets

I’m just learning to pickle vegetables, and when we got a bunch of beets from our wonderful CSA, I decided to give it a try.

I got this delicious recipe from Fiber-Fueled, although I have altered it a bit after making it a few times and using what I had. This recipe is super quick and super tasty.

They store well for at least a week in the fridge, although we usually devour them in just a few days.

They really enhance salads, wraps, sandwiches, veggie burgers, soups, or any dish you add them to.

I love them because of … Read the rest

Old-Fashioned Vanilla Smoothie

I’ve been feeling very vanilla lately, craving that old comfort flavor. I was always a fan of vanilla everything. (It’s the most popular flavor, after all!) So, a vanilla smoothie became the flavor of the day, and wow, was this a hit! It literally tastes like an old-fashioned vanilla shake, but it’s loaded with greens and WAAAYYY better! Yum! I hope you like it as much as I do! Cheers!

Old-Fashioned Vanilla Smoothie

Christina Miller MD
… Read the rest

Spicy Peanut Slaw

This salad is quick, packed with nutrients, and best of all, it’s so delicious! Definitely one of my all-time favorites. It goes well with crunchy cabbage to make a flavorful slaw. The little spice at the end is a bonus and leaves you wanting more. It’s so good, you’ll almost forget it’s a salad!😃🌱

Spicy Peanut Slaw

Modified from drfurhman.com
A flavorful change from traditional cole slaw
… Read the rest

4 Ingredient Vanilla N’Ice Cream

Vanilla was always my favorite ice cream flavor growing up, and this n’ice cream brings me right back. Sweet and creamy and tastes like vanilla- it takes just 4 ingredients and a blender!

4 Ingredient Vanilla N’Ice Cream

Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Course Dessert
Servings 2

Equipment

  • High-powered blender

Ingredients
  

  • 2 bananas, frozen
  • 1/3-1/2 cup unsweetened, non-dairy milk I like unsweetened almond milk, plain
  • 1 tbsp raw almond or peanut butter (natural, low or no sodium) Can substitute other nut butters of choice
  • 1 tsp
… Read the rest

Crunchy Cinnamon Buckwheat Granola.

This granola is so easy to make and packs a powerful anti-inflammatory punch! It’s created as part of a meal to reverse diabetes from the experts at Masteringdiabetes.com, so it’s low fat and nutrient-dense. The cinnamon, ginger, and cloves add some intense flavor and major anti-oxidant capacity. We love it on smoothie bowls, as a topper for oatmeal, or when out hiking. Yum!

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Crunchy Cinnamon Buckwheat Granola

MasteringDiabetes.com
Super crunchy and packs a flavorful punch!
… Read the rest

6 Tips Manage Stress and Support Immune Health during COVID-19

  1. Follow the COVID-19 guidelines – SELF-ISOLATE is essential. Wash your hands and practice good hygiene. And then:
  • Breathe – Breathe in slowly and deeply for the count of 5, hold for a second, and breathe out for the count of 5. Do this 6 times, and this is 1 minute. You can trigger your vagus nerve and rest and restore mode with just these few deep breaths. Do it often during the day, and it can help break the cycle of anxiety and stressful thoughts.
  • Eat real food – Your immune system starts in your gut with your
… Read the rest

Chronic Inflammation and the Role of Diet

Chronic inflammation has been shown to be the common link among the leading causes of death and disability, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, autoimmunity, Alzheimer’s disease, depression, asthma, allergies, and premature aging.1Diet and lifestyle choices actually make a significant impact on the amount of chronic inflammation we experience, yet it is often overlooked. We know these illnesses are inflammatory in nature, and treatment is often with anti-inflammatory medications, such as NSAIDS (Ibuprofen, Aspirin, Naproxen), COX-2 inhibitors (Celebrex), steroids such as Prednisone, and biologics that block specific inflammatory cells, such as TNF-alpha, IL-1, or IL-6.  Often when we look … Read the rest

Springtime Broccoli Strawberry Juice

Cleaning out the fridge, I found a head of broccoli and a few strawberries to add to my juice. I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but it was so fresh and flavorful, not to mention a powerhouse of healing nutrients, that it’s rapidly become a hit for me.  I now make it regularly, and it tastes like spring has sprung every time!

Springtime Broccoli Strawberry Juice

Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cuisine American
Servings 36 oz

Ingredients
  

  • 1 head broccoli, chopped to fit into juicer Stems included
  • 4 large
… Read the rest

The Healing Power of Yoga

Yoga is never something I did on a regular basis. I was too busy for that. I ran, biked, hiked, skied, took HIIT classes, did “Insanity” workouts at home. These were how I “relaxed” and spent my little bit of free time every day. I had no time for yoga. Poses and stretching. Really?

But, as I have turned to study Integrative Medicine and tap into my own body’s ability to heal itself, more and more data about the positive aspects of yoga keep appearing. Yoga is not just about wearing tight yoga pants and assuming uncomfortable poses; it is … Read the rest

Three-Bean Sweet-and-Spicy High-Cruciferous Chili

This is a comfort dish on a cold day – warms the soul! By adding all the cruciferous veggies, it maintains healing-food status. The sweet potato and corn add the sweetness, and we love to add lots of spice.  It stores well and makes for delicious leftovers. Our chili is quick, simple, and hearty – a perfect weeknight go-to meal.

Three-Bean Sweet-and-Spicy High-Cruciferous Chili

Troy Miller
… Read the rest

The Joy of (Real) Cooking

I love my time in the kitchen. It’s meditative when I cut vegetables. It’s creative as I explore recipes and new dishes. It’s healing, because I use fresh, real, plant-based, anti-inflammatory foods. It supports local farmers whenever I can. It’s interesting as I play with new spices and herbs. It connects me with my history, as I enjoy flavors from my ancestry, and my friends, as I try their delicious recipes.

But, there’s so much more to it.

What I didn’t mention, is that it’s also hilarious. And messy. And sometimes too garlicky, spicy, or the flavors just don’t jive. … Read the rest

Creating Balance for Weight Loss

Even a whole-food, plant based diet may not always be enough to reach your goal weight, although it’s a great place to start. For some, it can take an overall healthy approach and re-establishing balance to see improvements. These upgrades are essential for reducing inflammation, lowering oxidative stress, downshifting stress hormones, nourishing the microbiome, supporting the immune system, and resulting in healthy weight loss.

 

  1. Eat more plant-based, whole foods.
    1. Emphasis on WHOLE foods and plants.
    2. This means lots of fresh vegetables, fruits, whole-unaltered grains, legumes, ¼ cups seeds and nuts per day. As Dr. Fuhrman says, the more raw
… Read the rest