The Common Denominator

As I have been much more conscious about the foods I eat, drinks I drink and products we use within our home, I am also more conscious about figuring out WHY I may feel the way I feel in any given situation.

The common denominator and also keeping in mind that actions have consequences.

Since shifting to a holistic lifestyle my body LOVES being healthy, loves living a healthy life where I truly do thrive. It has also gotten really good at letting me know when something is not right…

Sunday while doing groceries I saw at the grocery store a beautiful big ham hock on sale, so I picked it up for dinner that night – with full intentions of also being able to enjoy left overs a few times.

The ham was good, albeit salty, very very salty, so Sunday I made sure to drink a lot more water. What I wasn’t expecting was what happened that evening…

I barely slept. My legs were incredibly restless. All night. I first blamed it on the magic bars that I enjoyed as dessert after dinner. I am blessed to have a daughter who loves to bake and has been very open to learning to bake gluten free for her mama! I was up literally every hour peeing. I felt horrible. I couldn’t sleep no matter what I tried. I chalked it up to “too much sugar”. During the day the way I felt didn’t get better. My digestive system was not happy with me at all. Bloating (which began the night before and I chalked up to the high sodium) continued into Monday as well and after lunch, which was left over meat (cold) made into a bowl with some veggies and rice (cold) from the night before, my body quickly advised me this was not happening.

Last night, two days later, we used some of the meat in a casserole with pasta and corn. Both of which I have eaten and had no issues with. Last night, our son had a late hockey practice and after getting home and laying in bed my legs started up the same they did Sunday night. Intensively restless and I simply could not get comfortable. I took an Adaptiv before bed, which helped and I slept until about 3am (having went to bed just before midnight). After 3am, much like Sunday night, I could not sleep or get comfortable. It hit me… it was NOT the sugar the other night, it was 100% the ham.

I looked up online the product info and found the following ingredients that the ham was cured with: Water, Dextrose, Salt, Sodium Phosphate and Sodium Nitrite.

Initially when I read that I read the last as Nitrate, which I know cause me major restless legs, but then I re-read it and realized it said Nitrite… As I have read both of these can occur naturally, however much like my holistic lifestyle shift I choose to base ingredients on HOW I feel because we are all different. However, under certain conditions in the human body, nitrite can damage cells and also morph into molecules that cause cancer.

To be completely honest, we have shifted our meat purchasing to our local butcher, because with any of his products my digestive system is completely OK! What I find interesting is this quote, “There’s no difference whatsoever in the nitrite that you get from cured and processed meats versus what you get from vegetables. It’s the same molecule.” IF this is the case, why do I not get these adverse reactions from vegetables… I simply don’t.

This reminds me of my years fighting with the doctors that something was wrong and I kept being told I was “within the normal ranges” and was fine. My gentle nudge to you as a new year 2021 goal… deeply listen to yourself, your soul, from within. You will be guided to what is right for your body and mind, mentally and physically.