Recently by Phuong Le

One of my friends asked me if there was a tea that helps with Hangovers and I felt the need to create one for him. For the life of the party, ONO Hangover Tonic is a must have! It tastes great iced too!

Marie: Hi Phuong!  What would you say is your best tea for bloating (not necessarily menstrual)?

TC: Hi Marie! ONO Moroccan mint is a great tea that helps with bloating. Peppermint in this tea is a digestive aid that helps to relieve bloating and indigestion. I created a delicious Strawberry Moroccan Mint Iced Tea recipe here.

Marie: I'm not a huge fan of peppermint. Is there another tea you would suggest?

TC: Of course! Fennel can work wonders to ease both bloating and gas. Just brew a tablespoon or so of ONO Throat Revival, which has a lot of fennel, and drink several cups a day. Fennel tastes like licorice and has anti-gas as well as anti-spasmodic properties. Here are a couple other tips too: Avoid chewing gum if you're prone to bloating - it can cause you to swallow a lot of air. Eliminate all carbonated beverages from your diet. because it exacerbates bloating.

Marie: Thanks for your very thorough answer, Phuong!

When I dream of Maui, I see images of sun, sand, surf, coconuts and pineapples. If I can't be on Maui every night, I wanted to at least experience a little getaway with a relaxing coconut and pineapple infused tea tonic.  This bath is great for your skin because of the presence of white tea.

Drinking white tea not only promotes healthy teeth and gums, but also radiant skin. Many factors can affect the skin's appearance, such as too much sun exposure, diet and stress. These factors can damage the skin and cause it to prematurely age. Through the consumption of white tea, you can protect your skin and help reverse some of the existing damage, leaving you with a healthier complexion.

Stephen Hsu, an expert on tea-related health issues and cell biologist at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta published his own study, in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, revealing that other chemicals found in tea are able to reactivate dying skin cells. "If we can energize dying skin cells, we can probably improve the skin condition," he said.

Here is my secret coconut bath recipe. This, a cup of ONO tea, a candle, and my favorite Ella Fitzgerald album always helps me unwind.

ONO Coconut Euphoria Bath Soak 

- 1 cup oatmeal, uncooked
- 1 cup brown rice
- 1 tsp coconut extract
- 1/2 cup ONO Coconut Euphoria White tea
- 1 cup powdered milk
- Cheesecloth

1. Mix ingredients in a bowl.

2. Cut two 8-inch squares of cheesecloth and divide the ingredients among the  squares.

3. Tie at the top with a string.

4. Toss both pouches into the bath under running water.

5. RELAX

Instead of quick fix solutions that inevitably lead to muscle loss and frustration, it's time to change your lifestyle. Here are some tips on staying Slim:  

1. Portion Control: Bigger isn't always better. In a world where portions are just getting bigger, moderation is extremely important. Eat small meals throughout the day, rather than a few large ones. This will keep your metabolism going, you'll burn more calories, and you won't fall into that "starvation" mode.

2. Snacking on fruits, veggies, and a handful of trail mix when you're watching your weight is actually a good idea. Snacking will keep you from over eating when it's time to have your next meal. Caramel Slender Puerh is a great tea to have with a healthy snack because it has a full body and rich flavor.

3. Don't skip breakfast. Have a bowl of high-fiber cereal with skim milk, a banana, and Slim it Sencha. Cereal is a carbohydrate-rich food that gives you energy while making you feel full and curbing mid-morning cravings. The fiber in banana is difficult to digest, leaving you feeling fuller for longer. In addition, the body burns extra calories when it breaks down fiber. If you have to run and don't have time for breakfast, at least have a cereal bar and a tumbler of ONO slimming tea.

4. Forget about restrictive diets that are hard to sustain. Just start drinking and eating fat burning foods:

The foods that will help you slim down the most are whole foods and foods in their natural state such as whole grains, wholemeal rice, wholemeal pasta, wholemeal bread and potatoes. These are also complex carbohydrates which will keep you feeling fuller for longer

Choose green and fibrous vegetables that are hard to digest such as asparagus, green beans, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and peas. Fruits and berries, such as pears, oranges, blackberries and pomegranates, are also great!

5. Eat foods high in water content such as broccoli and zucchini.

6. Increase fiber in your diet - Both kinds of fiber, insoluble and soluble can help you Your browser may not support display of this image. slim down.

7. Eat more Lean Protein - Lean protein can boost your metabolism after you ingest them.

8. Limit portions of foods high in fat: dairy products like cheese, butter, and whole milk; red meat; cakes and pastries.

9. Drink Hot Beverages - Drink hot beverages such as an ONO Slimming Tea after meals. Why? Because cold water will solidify any oils you've consumed which slows down your digestion.

10. Stop eating when you're full, even if there is food on your plate.

11. Control your calorie intake and increase the number of calories you burn through exercise. 30 minutes of physical activity a day is recommended.

You've seen those quick-fix slimming claims like "Eat All You Want and Still Get Slim!" or "Melt Fat Away While You Sleep!" Fad diets or diet pills sound tempting, but they do not lead to real weight loss. At best, they lead to rapid water loss (not fat). At worst, they lead to increased weight gain, a slow metabolism, depression and obesity. These short term solutions will not help you lose the weight and keep it off. 

Losing weight and staying slim takes effort, but you can speed up your personal weight loss with the ONO Slimming Program. In addition to a healthy diet and exercise, the ONO Slimming package may help you lose weight at a steady rate without starving yourself. 

3 Teas:  Simply Slim, Caramel Slender Pu-erh, Slim it Sencha

How they work:

Simply Slim - Polyphenols found in Black and Oolong tea work as a fat destroying enzyme. The compound helps destroy fat and boost your metabolism.  The polyphenols also help defy aging by battling free radicals - unstable forms of oxygen that damage cell function.

Caramel Slender Pu-erh - Named the miracle tonic, recent studies indicate that p-uerh has powerful cholesterol lowering effects, blood cleansing properties and aid significantly in weight loss efforts. By helping digestion (particularly of fatty foods), Pu-erh is the perfect tea after a heavy meal.

Slim it Sencha- Green tea is particularly rich in a type of polyphenol called catechins. These substances have also been shown to have anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties, but recent research in animals show that catechins may also decrease fat absorption, increase fat excretion, suppress appetite, and decrease cholesterol levels.

Directions:  Before each meal, have 1 cup of an ONO Slimming Tea. During and after each meal, have 2 cups of warm/hot slimming tea to increase digestion.  If you skip meals, your metabolism slows, and this means that your body's adjusting itself into starvation mode, and making your calories stretch. This is dangerous if you're trying to lose weight. When you're feeling hungry, just make yourself a cup of one of the ONO slimming teas. This will help suppress your appetite.

Kevin: I finally decided to quit smoking and was wondering if you had a tea that can help me through the process.

TC: Congrats! We all know that nicotine is bad for you but many people don't realize that the withdrawal symptoms can last from 2-5 weeks as your body is trying to cleanse itself of the toxins and nicotine. The two main withdrawal symptoms are nausea and insomnia. Ginger is a very popular ingredient that is known to help with nausea and it can be found in ONO Stomach Soother. If you add 1/2 tsp of honey and crushed ginger to 2 cups of Stomach Soother, it makes a delicious tonic for nausea. For insomnia I recommend ONO Sleepy Time. Rooibos will help with insomnia and nausea while chamomile will help you relax and unwind.

Kevin: That's great stuff! I recently tried your Throat Revival tea and absolutely love it! It tastes great and my throat feels really good after drinking a cup.

TC: That's because ONO Throat Revival is made mostly from licorice root. Millions of smokers use it to soothe their dry throats since Licorice root improves secretion of the throat mucosa. ONO Throat Revival is also used by singers, public speakers and others who utilize their vocal cords excessively. In addition, licorice root has acquired the name in China of "the Great Detoxifier." It is considered to be one of the primary detoxifying herbs in the Chinese herbal arsenal.

Kevin: WOW! Thank you so much! I'm going to ONO tea and ordering right now!

Amy: I don't feel like I'm losing weight after my workout.

TC: What do you hydrate with after your workout?

Amy: Usually a sports drink.

TC: Well, that is the problem. A 16 oz sports drink has roughly 100 calories. It takes an average person at least 30 minutes on the treadmill to burn that off.

Amy: Wow. What do you recommend instead?

TC: ONO Antioxidant Junkie has no calories and studies show that a cup of tea can burn 17% more fat during a 30 minute workout. You should drink Antioxidant Junkie during your workout. After your workout, I recommend ONO Fountain of Youth. This is a caffeine free green rooibos drink that is packed with antioxidants, and minerals (calcium, magnesium, zinc). Rooibos is also a good hydration source, replacing needed electrolytes (sodium and potassium).

Amy: That's awesome! That's like extra calories burning without the extra work. I'm going to http://www.iLoveONO.com and ordering Antioxidant Junkie and Fountain of Youth now! Thank you!

This past Thanksgiving I visited a good family friend who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. It's hard to watch our loved ones fade away, and finding that she didn't remember recent conversations was very heartbreaking. I talked to my grandmother, she is in her 80s, about how she stays so mentally sharp. She credits her healthy brain to having companions, keeping hobbies, and drinking her tea daily. That perked my interest and I decided to start researching the healthy benefits of tea for the brain.

According to WebMD, developing a taste for black or green tea may delay Alzheimer's disease.

A study from England's University of Newcastle upon Tyne shows that green and black teas may inhibit certain brain enzymes linked to Alzheimer's disease. The study's findings may lead to new therapeutic developments for dementia and Alzheimer's disease, which is estimated to affect 10 million people worldwide.

Coffee, in contrast, did not show any significant effects in the study.

Researchers including Edward Okello of the university's biology school found that tea stops the activity of chemicals in the brain associated with the development of Alzheimer's disease. Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease occur when brain nerve cells that process information and memory degenerate and die. Abnormalities such as plaque and tangles proteins form on nerve cells.

The first brain chemical, acetylcholinesterase (AchE), breaks down one of the brain's chemical messengers that helps transport and process information -- called acetylcholine. A drop in acetylcholine, in areas of the brain associated with memory and learning, has been linked to Alzheimer's disease. Medications used to treat Alzheimer's disease work by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase. Aricept, Exelon, and Reminyl are examples of these medications.

The teas also stopped the activity of other chemicals known to be key in making plaques and tangles in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. The second chemical is called butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE). However, green tea also inhibited a third and final brain chemical called beta-secretase, which is also involved in brain protein deposits seen with Alzheimer's disease.

Don't let that alphabet soup of chemical names throw you off. Green tea counteracted all three chemicals. Black tea was also powerful in curbing the first two chemicals, but only green tea inhibited beta-secretase. The researchers also found that green tea continued to have its inhibitive effect for a week, whereas black tea's enzyme-inhibiting properties lasted for only one day.

The researchers don't know exactly how to explain tea's effects. In news reports, Okello says he knows of no evidence that Alzheimer's disease rates are lower in tea-drinking nations. Traditionally, green tea has been popular in Asian countries, while black tea is often associated with England.

The next step is identifying tea's key components. Tea isn't being proposed as the much-hoped-for cure for Alzheimer's disease; however, it might inspire new treatments to delay the disease if these findings are confirmed by more research.

Don't wait any longer. Sip, savor, and fight disease today. It's never too late to enjoy the many health benefits of tea! 

Now you don't have to stare into your lover's eyes, fearing the moment before you kiss, because of your bad breath.  How embarrassing!  Oh, but you have a mint, you say?  That will only mask the odor and actually feed the bacteria that causes your halitosis, and yes, worsen your bad breath!  The sugar in these mints are feeding your stinky mouth!

Most other treatments will only temporarily hide your bad breath.  The majority of mouthwashes contain alcohol which dries and damages soft oral tissue thus leading to even faster odor causing bacteria and gum tissue damage, all ultimately making your breath worse.

Bad breath occurs because bacteria grows on your tongue and gum pockets. Tea will cure your problem!   Polyphenols in green and black tea kill the bacteria that's in your mouth. Yes, killing that bacteria that's causing your bad breath.   Rinsing with black tea will even inhibit plaque from forming as well as destroying acids that cause tooth decay.  So what are you waiting for?  Do everyone and yourself a favor, drink up and pucker up!

  Photo Credit © Yuri Arcurs | Dreamstime.com

No you cannot eat a steak on day 11! It is very important to EASE OFF the cleanse properly. One of my girlfriends had a turkey sandwich on day 11 and felt sick after. Yea, I warned her and she didn't listen. You've gone this far you can last a couple more days. If you haven't read my first journal, click here. For my second journal, click here.



Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner for Day 11

Day 11 (August 11): I woke up this morning and was happily surprised with a pitcher full of freshly squeezed orange juice with the pulp...I LOVE my Mom!!! Freshly squeezed OJ has always been yummy but this tasted AMAZING! It made me realize how I take the littlest things for granted sometimes. In addition to the OJ, I aslo added a new tea today to my regimine....ONO Serenity Now. The base of this tea is a green rooibos, which aids in the relief of stomach and indigestive problems like nausea, vomiting, heartburn, stomach ulcers and constipation. I didn't want to add caffeine to my system yet so this caffeine free blend was perfect and so delicious! The rest of the day I continued to have more OJ and alternated between Serenity Now and Holy Detox. Around 6pm Mom I went to the grocery store and it was pure torture. Everything just smelled so amazing. I picked up a bunch of parsley and it was as if I never smelled parsley before! I swear I could smell the dirt on the leaves. I bought a bunch of veggies for the soup I'm going to make tomorrow. Stanley Burrough's Master Cleanse said to not add spices to the soup, but anyone who knows me, knows I've gotta have spice in my life.  :)  If I can drink cayenne pepper and salt water for 10 days, a little oregano and pepper is not going to kill me. I can't wait to make my soup tomorrow!  A cup of Serenity Now and I'm off to sleep.

Day 12 (August 12):  Yay!!!  Food....vegetable soup!  I was so excited to make this today. I had 2 cups of freshly squeezed OJ and started making the soup. This is not one of my gourmet recipes, but trust me it will taste like 5 star dining after 11 days of drinking juice.


Here is my recipe:

1.5 C pasta
2 C mirepoix  ( 1 C diced onions, 1/2 C carrots, 1/2 C celery)
2 C beans of your choice (I chose cannelloni)
1 c. stewed tomatoes
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
1  bay leaf
1 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. dill
1/2 tsp. coriander
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne
2 T parsley
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

* Handful of spinach (optional)

Combine the above ingredients in a large soup pot, cover with water. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Throw in a handful of spinach about 10 minutes before the soup is ready.

You're supposed to just have the broth but I couldn't help it and ate everything! I know my body and I knew that it was ready for some substance. I ate mainly broth with some veggies for lunch with a cup of ONO Endurance. This tea has caffeine in it so I only had half of the amount of tea....1/2 tsp per 8 oz of hot water. Wow, I'll have to tell you...I was ready to take on the world. The little amount of caffeine in that tea gave me so much energy. I had a great amount of energy already from the detox but the tea took it to another level. I did some vinyassa yoga and felt amazing! I enjoyed 2 cups of Holy Detox before bed and was excited for the next day! Salad,  a croissant...YAY...and Slimming Goddess for me!

Day 13 (August 13): You won't believe it! I'm craving the lemonade today so I made myself 2 cups before devouring my yummy croissant!!! Yes, I had a croissant today, a chocolate one and it tasted so good! I had a cup of Slimming Goddess with the croissant to burn the calories. I wanted to maintain my weight so this was the perfect tea. I just loved how I felt and the way I looked the past few days. I had a spinach salad for lunch with delicious strawberries.  YUMMY! It was so nice to have real food and I wasn't craving meat at all....only veggies, fruits, and of course croissants.  :) I felt amazing and so proud of myself!

 


YUMMY!

This was not just a 10 day thing for me. My goal was to start taking better care of my body both physically and mentally. Here are a few tips on achieving a long-term healthy lifestyle.

1. Small changes over time are the most likely to stick. If you want to eat more vegetables, then sneak in that extra serving. Add your favorite veggies into every meal. If you need more whole grains, add barley or whole wheat pasta to your soup.

2. Keep saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, and sodium low, while keeping fiber, potassium, iron, calcium, and vitamins A and C high. Be sure to look at the serving size and the number of servings per package. The serving size affects calories, amounts of each nutrient, and the percentage of Daily Value.

3. Watch what you drink! Did you know that Vitamin water is one of the worst drinks? Coca-Cola's VitaminWater is more likely to increase a regular consumer's chances of being obese or developing diabetes, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Each VitaminWater bottle contains 33 grams of sugar...you're getting almost a Coke's worth of sugar and calories! Stick to natural, pure drinks that are loaded with antioxidants such as ONO Endurance, Antioxidant Junkie, Tee Time and Mighty Athena. Keep an eye out for my next blog : World's Unhealthiest Drinks...coming soon.

4. If you're looking to maintain the weight you lost, you should:

         * get at least 25 min of excercise a day

         * eat healthier (see #1)

         * stay away from artificial sweeteners. Please read my article: Sweetener For Your Tea.

         * incorporate energizing, SLIMMING teas into your diet. Please read my blog: Why You're Not Losing Those Last 5 lbs!

                    * Slimming Goddess

                    * Endurance

                    * Mighty Athena

                    * Geisha Green

                    * Holy Detox - great everyday tea.

 
Disclaimer: Although this worked for me, I am not saying it will work for you or should be construed as any type of medical advice or treatment instructions.  If you start any type of cleanse or treatment you should always ask your primary care physician.