Julie Daniluk

Stocking stuffers can be one of those last minute things that people buy because it’s a tradition and it the kids expect it. But I am here to tell you that stocking stuffers can be fun for the whole family!

In the Daniluk household I am called Santa ‘cause I love giving gifts. One of my favourite traditions is filling my family’s stockings with good cheer and health treats.

Here are a few of my choices for this year:

Organic Fair-Trade Chocolate: What is a Christmas without chocolate? This holiday favourite can be a healthy and ethical choice if you read the package carefully. Be sure to vote with your wallet for ethically traded organic chocolate! Conventional chocolate is often produced with child labour and using toxic pesticides. Yes, organic fairly-trade chocolate may cost a bit more, but really no one needs to eat a huge amount of chocolate. Cocoa is very calorically rich and should be used sparingly unless you are doing a daily aerobic workout. Avoid a product that is sweetened with sugar (even organic sugar) and look for chocolate with dates or coconut palm sugar.

Lulu’s Chocolate is an excellent product and is widely available

throughout North America.

For more information on Fair-Trade Chocolate check out the Fairtrade website.

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Herbs and Spice and Everything Nice! Spice up your loved one’s life with organic herbs and spices. Many of these potent seasonings not only add flavour, they contain high amounts of anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. Conventionally grown herbs and spices are often put through an irradiation process to kill microbes. For more information about food irradiations, click here to check out my blog. 

The Frontier Co-op offers a wide range of herb, spices and

other cooking/baking supplies that are organic and fair trade. 

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Salt of the Earth & Ocean: For as long as humans have been traveling, salt has long been used for trade and gifts. This precious element can either feed us or deplete us. Natural unprocessed salts not only enhances the flavour of food, they can also provide many trace minerals that help to balance the body’s electrolytes. Regular processed table salt is only refined sodium chloride (NaCl) with a little bit of dextrose (sugar) and iodine added. Sodium chloride is harmful in large quantities.

For a gourmet guide to natural salts check out the Saltworks website. 

For your sodium reduced person on your list try Health-e-Salt. This product is higher in potassium and lower in sodium, yet tastes just like salt. Warning: This product should not be used by anyone with reduced or non-existent kidney function. Dialysis patients should never use a high potassium product without the consent of their nephrologist.

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100% Bees Wax Candles: There is nothing like burning a bees wax candle to set the holiday mood. The aroma and natural glow from 100% bees wax cannot be duplicated by its paraffin counter part. Paraffin wax is a dangerous product to burn especially in an enclosed unventilated space. Bees wax on the other hand doesn’t pollute the environment andit produces negative ions that circulate in the room and attract pollutants when burned. This helps to reduce pollutants such as dust, odours, mould, bacteria, viruses and other toxins.

From the Beelite website: 

“Paraffin is a greyish black sludge that is a by-product of the petroleum refining process. It is bleached, textured, coloured and scented using carcinogenic chemicals.

When burned, these carcinogens fill the room with toxins that coat the walls, furniture, and the inside of your lungs. For more information about the cancers caused by paraffin search “Paraffinoma” on the Internet."

Beelites is a wonderful Canadian company that makes high quality

bees wax products at a reasonable price. Their candles burn very clean

and do not need to be as closely tended to as other brands. 

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Organic Soap: Start the New Year with a clean slate! So many of the hygiene products on the market today contain toxic ingredients that our body absorbs. Detox your loved one’s bathroom by giving organic soap and other hygiene products.

Pure and Simple is a lovely Canadian business with a full line of body care products

from a variety of excellent companies including their own in-house brand.

Dr. Bonners Magic Soap is widely available and 

is great as a general hand and body wash. The peppermint soap leaves

you feeling invigorated! Great for those sleepy winter mornings.

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A Gift of Nature: With all the excess the our lives it is a great idea to put your gift money towards the conservation our planet and its resources.  

From the Nature Conservancy website:

“Today, natural resources that give us life, fresh air and water to food and medicine...not to mention breathtaking vistas and cherished memories...are in jeopardy.

That's why The Nature Conservancy has been working for more than 60 years to protect the precious resources we need to survive. And today, we are leading the way forward, forging innovative solutions that benefit both nature and people — some of which are highlighted in this 2012 Nature Conservancy Gift Catalog.

All of these gifts will do more — much more — than sit on a shelf or be worn only once. A gift of nature will not only make an impact on someone you care about but it will also make an enduring difference in the health of our planet and all of the people living in it.”

For more information on how to donate to the Nature Conservancy check out their website.

Dr. Suzuki is one of my biggest heroes. When I had an opportunity to work with him

a few years ago, he challenged and inspired the members of

The Big Carrot Natural Food Market to get serious about GMOs. 

Our Non-GMO Project led to a huge change in the natural food industry in Canada that

pushed producers to use organic and/or non-GMO ingredients.

To order on-line from The Big Carrot Natural Food Market

For more information about the Non-GMO Project

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Did you enjoy this information? Find more in my book, Meals That Heal Inflammation. 

Meals that Heal Inflammation was developed to help people who suffer from

arthritis, asthma, heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), skin conditions

and other inflammation related disorders by showing them how to prepare delicious

allergen-free meals that can assist the body's healing process.

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