Niketa Wells - International Taekwon-do Federation of New Zealand

REGULARPractical TipsThe goal is not to count fat grams, or evento limit total fat, which has not been shownto be beneficial for health, but to includequality fat sources as a sensible (and tasty)part of meals. Here are some tips whichmay help: so include full-fat dairy products suchas whole milk and yogurt. After thatage you may consider offering lower fatdairy and a gradual decline is best butbe mindful that often low fat optionsare high in sugars and artificial additives. whether that be butter with toast atbreakfast, avocado on a sandwich oran entree with added fat. are made to be “low calorie” for adults. sources) as well as saturated fats(animal fats) as research shows thisdietary pattern does not cause heartdisease. An example is cooking withcoconut oil or using lean beef fortaco night while including toppingssuch as guacamole. Keep trans fats,the fat most negatively linked to heartdisease, to a minimum by checkinglabels for ingredients such as partiallyhydrogenated oils. salmon cakes, tuna and other types offish for DHA and EPA. If your childdoesn’t like fish, you may want toconsider supplementation.Niketa’s StoryIn 2011 Niketa was struck down withReflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD),now more commonly known as ComplexRegional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). By theend of 2011 she was unable to walk,confined to a wheelchair and in constantpain. New Zealand’s leading pain specialisttold her to forget about using her feet everagain. Niketa began to work with MasterMcPhail, initially in the limited capacity inwhich she was able to perform some smallmovements.From early on Master McPhail also hadNiketa eat coconut cream morningand night. She would mix a smoothiecontaining protein powder with coconutcream, and experimented with addingother ingredients too. He also had Niketasupplement with fish oil and Vitamin Ddaily. He had been interested in nutritionfor some time and was also on a high fatdiet himself and had read a lot about thebenefits of good fats and lowering theamount of carbohydrates in one’s diet. Oneday Master McPhail came across a podcastinterview with Dr Mary Newport and howshe discovered the benefits of coconutwith her husband’s Alzheimer’s diseasesymptoms. Master McPhail reasoned thatseeing as RSD was neurological in naturethat it might be worth a try to supplementwith coconut cream.Did the coconut smoothies andsupplementation help Niketa in her roadto recovery? We can’t say yes conclusivelyas her case was not a scientific investigation.However it is possible that based on ourcurrent knowledge and research, it mayhave helped. Niketa recently won Goldat the ITF World Cup in Brighton andwas voted ITKD Gup Student of the Year.Thank you to Niketa and Master McPhailfor sharing your inspiring journey with us.Ms Carolina DillenII Dan Warrior Taekwon-DoStrength & Conditioning Coach CrossFitEast AucklandCoconut is a well-rounded, versatile“real food” with some interestingcharacteristics and lots of offshootproducts. Unlike most food “products,”however, coconut products are thereal thing. They’re real food, and they’rereal good.A bit about CoconutBy Master McPhailCoconut is one of the richest vegetablesources of medium-chain triglycerides(MCTs). MCTs are used immediately by thebody to create energy. Coconuts are alsorich in lauric acid, which has very powerfulanti-bacterial / anti-viral properties and iswell known to support a healthy immunesystem and even facilitate brain function.Coconut Oil is incredibly heat-stable so isgreat for stir-frying and sautéing. CoconutMilk is made by mixing shredded, freshcoconut meat with water, then squeezing itthrough a sieve. Coconut Cream as coconutmilk without all the water. It’s the samestuff – pulverized coconut flesh mixedwith water – but coconut cream is thicker.There are so many other coconutproducts and all sorts of ways to usethem.And don’t be worried about supposedlyharmful effects of the saturated fat andcholesterol in Coconut products. As youread in Miss Dillen’s article, fat is good,and cholesterol too is essential andvital for good health. It is the oxidationand inflammation caused by so manycarbohydrates in our diets (processedfoods, sugar, bread etc) that is the maincause of health problems such as heartdisease and diabetes.Eat real food.ISSUE TWO, 201239