Winter Tips

Tip #1: Go for a Winter Walk

For many, looking outside onto a cold, snowy scene is a road map to the couch. But keeping physically fit in the winter is an important part of keeping your mood stable and staying connected to the outdoors. Take pleasure in bundling up in layers that will wick away sweat while keeping you cozy, then head outside, either alone or with a friend or your family.

Look around, and notice how different your neighborhood looks in wintertime, and savor the cool quiet of the season. Better yet, strap on some snowshoes and check out a local park for some truly refreshing—and warming—communion with nature.

Tip #2: Take a "Hot" Yoga Class

Practically any type of yoga practice gets your circulation going, but bikram yoga, also called "hot" yoga, literally heats up your core. Bikram yoga's 90-minute classes are conducted in rooms that are heated to 105 degrees, causing your body temperature to rise, your sweat glands to open, and your body to purify itself of toxins as your muscles are stretched at a deep level.

Practitioners of this type of yoga swear by its health-giving properties, though beginners should be careful—and all bikram yogis should be sure to stay fully hydrated. Talk about bikram yoga here.

Tip #3: Sip Herbal Tea

Herbal teas allow you the luxurious feeling of swallowing a warm drink, but spare you the calories of hot chocolate or the caffeine of coffee. With so many varieties of herbal tea to choose from, there should be something for every taste.

If you're looking for a soothing cup before bed, try chamomile. For the more adventurous palate, check out genmaicha, green tea brewed with brown rice. Not only will it keep you warm, green tea also has plenty of health benefits--it's high in antioxidants and may help prevent some forms of cancer

Tip #4: Cuddle with Your Pet

Nothing gives you the warm and fuzzies better than something warm and fuzzy, so make time when it's cold outside to snuggle up with your dog or cat. Let your pet remind you of the simple pleasures in life, the joys of making another living thing happy and comfortable, and the ways you keep each other physically and spiritually warm.

For more on how Beliefnet members are inspired by their pets, gaze at this adorable photo gallery.

Tip #5: Turn on the Lights

Do you find yourself feeling blue more often in the winter? Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a kind of depression related to changes in light. This usually makes people feel more depressed in cold months, when it gets dark earlier.

The website Light Therapy Products has a whole range of indoor lights that help alleviate SAD. Try the "dawn simulator," which imitates the sunrise in order to help you wake up naturally. You will definitely start the day in a better mood.

Tip #6: Bake Something Yummy

Nothing fills the house with comforting, warm scents more than something delicious baking in the oven. At the end of a yucky, cold weekday, whip up a batch of brownies from a mix to power down and warm up in a hurry. On a blustery weekend day, spend a little more time, baking a loaf of bread (swap your best bread recipes here) or making cookies or a cake from scratch.

This is a perfect activity to do together with kids, friends, or loved ones, and the rewards are as delicious as the waiting.

Tip #7: Take an Aromatherapy Bath

Since ancient times, people have recognized the restorative power of a hot bath. Adding essential oils to your warm water escape can lift your spirits even more than a simple soak.

Use peppermint to soothe headaches, citrus for rejuvenation, and lemongrass for inner purification. Smelling the oils sends the fragrances to your brain, where they affect your mood. Go here for a longer list of scents and their uses

Tip #8: Practice "Warming Breath"

Students of kundalini yoga do a "fire breath" to literally warm up at the beginning of class. To do this breathing exercise, first come into a seated position. Start by inhaling a full breath and then exhaling completely. Inhale again, then exhale quickly without taking a break.

Repeat this, each time faster, and soon it'll feel like your body is heated from the inside.
Tip #9: Curl Up with a Good Book

If it's sleeting outside and you dread the thought of putting on your heavy coat, stay inside with a good book instead. Here are two inspiring recommendations: Harvest for Hope: A Guide to Mindful Eating by famous biologist Jane Goodall, Gary McAvoy, and Gail Hudson, and Cancer Vixen, a funny, thoughtful memoir about dealing with cancer, written and illustrated by Marisa Acocella Marchetto.

Tip #10: Light a Fire

The mere sight of a crackling fire can get your body feeling warmer. (Why do you think those televised yule logs are so popular?) If you're lucky enough to have a wood-burning fireplace in your home, strike a match and settle in for a pleasant, cozy time.

Let yourself relax as you enjoy the sight of the leaping flames, the scent of the burning wood, the sound of its pops and cracks, and of course, the warmth of the fire. Check out these tips for burning the best, safest, fireplace fire.

Beverage Wars: Juice vs. Tea

Which is better for your brain -- a glass of juice or a cuppa tea?

When it comes to preventing Alzheimer's, juice may have the edge. In a recent study, three servings a week reduced Alzheimer's risk impressively.

Drink Up
Polyphenols in juice may be one of the best things that's ever happened to your brain. The ones in apple and citrus juices, in particular, are very brain friendly. That's because they're able to cross the blood-brain barrier. Once inside your head, they can protect neurons from a damaging chemical associated with Alzheimer's. Some of those polyphenols, like quercetin, also squelch inflammation. (Learn more about polyphenols here.)

Juice It Up
Want a super nutritious glass of apple juice? Toss a Red Delicious apple into your juicer, peel and all. Here's why.

Tea Is Still Great
Of course, this juicy news about protection against Alzheimer's doesn't mean it's time to toss your tea. Tea still has lots of other healthy benefits, like these:

Tea is great for your heart. Here's how the brew helps keep your ticker strong.
Tea may help thwart this deadly female cancer.
Tea turns down your stress response. Here's how.
Tea may help keep your knees feeling fine. Here are the key ingredients.

Prefer coffee? Discover the surprising health benefits.

High Vitamin C Level Linked to Decreased Stroke Risk

Content provided by Reuters

Saturday, February 9, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A person's level of vitamin C may predict his or her likelihood of having a stroke, according to a long-term study of some 20,000 middle-aged and older residents of Norfolk, United Kingdom. During an average follow-up of 9.5 years, 448 strokes occurred in the study population. Researchers found that people with the highest vitamin C concentration at the start of the study had a 42 percent lower risk of stroke over 10 years compared to those with the lowest levels of vitamin C.

The protective effect of vitamin C against stroke remained after accounting for factors that could affect the risk, such as age, sex, smoking, alcohol intake, body mass index, blood pressure, cholesterol, physical activity, diabetes, prior heart attack, supplement use, and social class.

Dr. Phyo K. Myint from the University of Cambridge, UK, and colleagues report the study results in the American Journal of Nutrition.

Myint noted that the level of vitamin C in the blood is a "good biomarker of fruit and vegetable consumption, which have many nutrients that may be biologically active and protective for stroke; this study supports the existing body of evidence that indicates the high fruit and vegetable consumption is protective for stroke."

In a related commentary, Drs. Sebastian J. Padayatty and Mark Levine of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, emphasize that fruits and vegetables are associated with many health benefits, including a reduction in strokes. "Because we do not know why or how the benefit occurs or what fruits and vegetables are effective, it is prudent to consume a wide variety," they add.

"The optimum intake for reduction of stroke and cardiovascular disease is unknown," they point out, "but an intake of 5-9 servings daily is associated with benefit and the public should aim toward the higher intakes."

Antioxidants for What Ails You?

Sneak These Disease Fighters into Your Diet

By Jill Weisenberger, MS, RD, CDE

Saturday, April 26, 2008

On a quest for the elixir of life? Something to fight cancer, prevent heart disease, keep your skin looking young, and head off the brain drain that comes with aging? Look no further than your local farmer’s market or grocery store, where you can find the fruits, vegetables and even treats (chocolate!) that are high in disease-fighting antioxidants. Find out which foods you should be eating, along with 40 easy, delicious ways to add more antioxidants to your diet…

How Antioxidants Work

You always hear doctors (and cosmetics companies) talking about the importance of antioxidants. But what do these molecules really do? In a nutshell, antioxidants shield our cells from free radical damage.

To understand how they work, think about peeled potatoes and sliced apples. If you leave them on the counter for several minutes, they turn an unappealing shade of brown. That’s because when you cut the apple or potato, you exposed the inner flesh to air, allowing oxygen to react with chemicals found under the skin. Sprinkle on some antioxidants in the form of orange or lemon juice, and you won’t have this unappetizing problem. The vitamin C in the juice is an antioxidant, a compound that combats oxidation and prevents cellular damage.

The same scenario can be found in your body. Pollution, toxins, smoking, and normal metabolism create those damaging free radicals – highly reactive molecules ready to pounce on any nearby molecule including proteins and DNA. Luckily, antioxidants from the foods you eat can protect your DNA and other molecules by stabilizing free radicals before they have a chance to strike.

By eating fruits, vegetables and other antioxidant-rich foods every day, you are increasing your body’s availability of molecules that can react with those free radicals. Push the salad bowl away and you’re setting yourself up for chronic disease and premature signs of aging.

Nature has provided us with an abundance of antioxidants. Some are familiar, others not. Perhaps the most commonly recognized are vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene (the plant form of vitamin A), and the mineral selenium. Others such as lycopene (found in tomatoes), lutein (green leafy vegetables), ellagic acid (berries), resveratrol (grapes) and anthocyanins (blueberries and pomegranate) may be less known, but they are just as important. These are phytochemicals – plant chemicals – that protect the host plant from infections and give them their distinctive colors. (See related article: 7 Foods That Fight Back: Immune System Boosters)

Antioxidant Over-Achievers

Many foods contain antioxidant properties, but a few give you the most disease-fighting bang for your bite. These antioxidant all-stars include: berries, walnuts, pomegranate juice and grape juice, unsweetened baking chocolate, brewed tea and coffee, red wine, artichokes, dried beans, dried cloves, cherries, cabbage, spinach, and many other fruits, vegetables and spices.

Getting the recommended 4 1/2 cups of fruits and vegetables daily will go a long way toward your quota of antioxidants and other nutrients. You don’t have to munch carrots and raw broccoli from dawn to dusk, but you do need to start thinking about fruits and veggies long before dinner. Four and a half cups – equal to nine servings – may sound like a lot, but don’t throw in the dishtowel yet. Here are 40 easy ways to boost your antioxidant intake.

Start Early

1. A small glass of 100% fruit juice is the perfect energizing start to your day. Vary your juices to balance your nutrient intake. Try the usual orange and grapefruit juice and the not-so-usual pomegranate and blueberry.

2. Top eggs with your favorite store-bought salsa.

3. Add sautéed mushrooms, onions, red and yellow bell peppers, or tomatoes to omelets.

4. Slice peaches, bananas, strawberries, or other fresh fruit onto your cereal.

5. Mix dried cranberries or raisins into your oatmeal.

6. Toss frozen fruit, low-fat yogurt and nutmeg or sweetener in a blender for a quick out-the-door breakfast smoothie.

Punch Up Your Cooking

7. Thread some pineapple, nectarines, bell peppers, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes in with your chicken or steak kabobs.

8. Add canned or frozen vegetables to soups.

9. Build your own veggie pizza. Top a plain cheese pie with spinach, fresh herbs like basil and tarragon, bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, or small pineapple cubes.

10. Use spaghetti squash in place of pasta.

11. Add zucchini, green beans or eggplant to your favorite jarred spaghetti sauce.

12. Pack pasta and potato salads with extra veggies. Be colorful and toss in broccoli, red bell peppers, carrots, and purple onion.

13. Perk up a dull green salad with nuts, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges, pomegranate seeds, apple slices, red beans, or jarred artichokes.

14. One to two days a week, wash, chop and separate raw veggies into plastic bags. You’ll have carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, bell peppers, celery, zucchini, and more antioxidant-packed foods readily available to toss into salads or add to casseroles.

15. Sneak in some extra beans. For example, thicken traditional chili or a favorite soup with a can of mashed white beans. No one will know they’re there.

16. Top nachos with kidney beans.

17. Mix apples, grapes and walnuts in your chicken salad. Try white beans and diced carrots in tuna salad.

18. Add fresh herbs to salads. When using them in hot food, add them toward the end of cooking.

19. Learn to cook with the most antioxidant-rich herbs and spices: ground clove, dried oregano, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, turmeric powder, dried basil, ground mustard seed, curry powder, paprika, and chili powder.

Snacks

20. Put individual servings of grapes, cherries or raw veggies into small plastic bags. Keep them at eye level in the refrigerator, not tucked behind the leftover takeout. Grabbing a high-fiber, antioxidant-packed snack should be as easy as grabbing a bag of chips.

21. Mix berries and nuts into nonfat yogurt.

22. Keep an old breath mint tin filled with nuts. Pull it out when you’re stuck in traffic and in need of an energy boost.

23. Add a variety of dried fruit to trail mix.

Out and About

24. In restaurants, start your meal with a vegetable or bean soup or a colorful mixed salad.

25. Swap French fries for a side salad or steamed vegetables.

26. Ask for extra veggies on sandwiches.

27. Bring five pieces of fruit to work every Monday for a different snack each day of the week.

28. If you’re unexpectedly out at lunchtime, run by the grocery store instead of the drive-through. Pick up a prepared salad and piece of fruit. (See related article: 10 Worst Soup and Salad Bar Choices)

Sip Your Antioxidants

29. Drink brewed black or green tea. Tea is our best source of a class of compounds called catechins, which are potent antioxidants. Green tea contains three times the catechins as black tea. Brew it up at home; bottled tea doesn’t offer the same health benefits.

30. Sip on vegetable juice, plain or with some hot sauce for extra kick.

31. Spice up your hot tea with antioxidant-rich ground cloves and cinnamon.

32. Enjoy a glass of red wine. Moderate drinking is linked with reduced rates of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Some scientists credit the antioxidant resveratrol for these positive effects. Moderate drinking is defined as no more than one drink per day for women, two per day for men.

33. Have a mug of brewed coffee as your early morning or midday energizer. Be careful what you put in it, though. Those lattes and mochas can turn coffee into a sugar and fat fest.

34. Opt for one of these antioxidant-rich juices: grape, pomegranate, cranberry, pineapple, and orange. Or mix and match them for your own unique blend.

Sweet Treats

35. Skewer some fresh berries, grapes and peach slices for a fun dessert.

36. Top ice cream with berries or pomegranate seeds.

37. Freeze fresh grapes for a delicious, all-natural frozen dessert.

38. For a sophisticated dessert that does antioxidant double duty, dip strawberries, pineapple cubes, and sliced apples and bananas into a dark chocolate fondue.

39. Make ice-pops from any 100% fruit juice.

40. Indulge in small amounts of dark chocolate or cocoa without guilt. Like tea, chocolate and cocoa contain catechins. Research suggests that they may help prevent the oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol, thus improving your risk for cardiovascular disease.

What's Your Food Cures IQ?

Food is medicine. That's the message from renowned nutritionist Joy Bauer. In her groundbreaking new book Food Cures, she reveals the foods that manage, treat and even cure common health concerns such as arthritis, heart disease, diabetes and more. Do you have the prescription for better health? Take this food quiz with facts from Bauer's book and find out.

Boost the Power of Your Tea With a Squeeze

By Kelley Herring

If you frequently enjoy a splash of citrus in your green tea, you’re doing your body a favor.

New research from Purdue University, published in the journal Molecular Nutrition and Food Research , shows that catechins - the primary antioxidants in green tea - are destroyed by digestion. In fact, less than 20 percent of these free-radical fighters remain by the time they’ve traversed your tract. But the researchers also found that citrus juice boosted catechin levels by more than five times. The most potent juice was lemon, causing 80 percent of the tea’s catechins to remain, followed by orange, lime, and grapefruit.

So don’t let the healthy benefits of green tea go down the drain. Give it a squeeze of zesty lemon, sweet orange, fresh lime, or tangy grapefruit. You’ll deliver pleasure to your senses and pack more potency into your cup.

[Ed. Note: Kelley Herring is the founder and CEO of Healing Gourmet (www.healinggourmet.com), and is editor-in-chief of the Healing Gourmet book series. Learn more about how simple lifestyle choices can improve your health by reading ETR’s free natural health e-letter.]

Grab a Bunch for Your Kidneys

Eating four of these a week can cut your kidney-cancer risk in half. Hint: You need to peel it.

Yep, we're talking bananas. They're bursting with phenolic compounds that appear to thwart renal-cancer cells. And that's not all the monkey's favorite fruit brings to your body . . .

Phenols, Potassium, and More
Phenols -- plant-based substances linked to all sorts of health benefits, from cancer prevention to heart health -- aren't the only goodies that bananas have to offer. No doubt you already know about the super potassium stores in the yellow-skinned fruit (450 milligrams in one banana!). But they're also a good source of B vitamins like B6 and folate, plus calcium, magnesium, and vitamin C. (Learn how the B vitamins in bananas could help you get happy.)

The Best Way to Beat the Flu

By Al Sears, MD

When I was a child, I was taught that if you felt a cold or flu coming on, the way to prevent it from blossoming into a full-blown illness was to go outside and soak up the sun - a bit of wisdom that had been passed down from my grandmother. Her theory was that a lack of "fresh air" and sun caused the infection.

This theory appeared arcane when scientists discovered that a virus causes the flu - but new research has found merit in it. And the next time you're exposed to the flu, it may serve you better than drug therapy.

Researchers at Harvard University concluded that a lack of sun during the winter months prevents your body from making the one thing it needs to ward off the flu: vitamin D. Which may explain why some people catch the flu, while others don't. I don't think I've ever had it, yet I am repeatedly exposed me to heavy viral loads while examining infected patients.

Fact is, vitamin D deficiency is rampant in non-tropical latitudes ... like here in the U.S. And during the winter, it gets worse - raising your risk of catching a cold or the flu.

When you can't spend time in the sun, cod liver oil is the most effective and reliable source of vitamin D. I recommend it for my patients, especially during the winter. In fact, I use it so much that I have begun importing my own cod liver oil from the cold waters of Norway. It's completely free of mercury.

5 Reasons to Relish Tomatoes

You know that rhyme every kid learns how to finish: "An apple a day . . ." Make that “A tomato a day” -- it may be even better at keeping problems away. Although tomatoes have gotten a bit of rotten press lately as their role in reducing the risk of prostate cancer has hit the "lack of evidence" skids, there's still abundant reason to overindulge. Tomatoes are stellar sources of vitamins A and C, folate, potassium, fiber, and all kinds of protective antioxidants. And organic tomatoes are even better -- when they're grown without chemicals, tomatoes contain much higher amounts of flavonoids, which have antioxidant, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties. Here are five healthy reasons to add tomatoes to breakfast omelets, lunch sandwiches, and dinner sauces and salads:

1. Lower your blood pressure. Try snacking on cherry tomatoes while driving your kid’s carpool or prepping for your Toastmasters speech. These fruits (yes, tomatoes are fruits, not veggies) may keep your blood pressure in check. In just 8 weeks, people with mild hypertension who got a daily "dose" of tomatoes saw their systolic blood pressures (the top number) drop a whopping 10 points on average, and their diastolic blood pressures (the bottom number) drop by 4 points.

2. Avoid colds and flu. When men who are deficient in carotenoids (like lycopene and beta carotene) drink tomato juice regularly, they bump up their ability to fend off bacteria and viruses. However, the immunity-boosting effects take a while to kick in. So if you start upping your T-juice intake today, you may stay a step ahead of sore throats and colds tomorrow.

3. Save your skin. Who knew this thin-skinned fruit would make a terrific natural sunscreen? But people who include lycopene-rich tomato paste in their diets for at least 10 weeks get much less intense sunburns when they're exposed to UV light -- another reason to enjoy all those tomato-sauced dishes that are staples of Mediterranean diets.

4. Control cholesterol. A tomato a day may keep artery and heart problems at bay. Four weeks of daily tomato munching can increase good HDL cholesterol by 15% while lowering artery-clogging LDL cholesterol.

5. Fight aging. Tomatoes are rich in two spectacular antiaging free-radical squelchers: lycopene and beta carotene. In some cells, these antioxidants reduce free-radical damage to DNA by 42%. Both youth-protecting nutrients are enhanced when tomatoes are heated or eaten with a little fat, like olive oil. These two yummy recipes fit the bill: Grilled Pizza with Pesto, Tomatoes and Feta and Fresh Pomodoro Pasta, White Beans and Olives (both are from our friends at EatingWell).

All of these tomato-triggered benefits can reduce your RealAge, but blood pressure is a particular biggie. Keep it low (115/76 or less) and you can make your RealAge as much as 12 years younger!

Are US Vitamin Recommendations Hopelessly Out of Date?

By Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS

In Part I of this two-part article, I talked about a new set of recommendations for vitamins. Now let's look at some of the major minerals.

Part II: Minerals and Other Essential Nutrients

Don't assume that because a mineral isn't being featured in this article that it's not important. Manganese, potassium, iodine, molybdenum, boron -- all play an important role in health. But most high-quality multiple mineral formulas will contain enough of them for most purposes. However, like all the nutrients on this list, there are therapeutic uses for some that go beyond what you can get in a normal multiple, even a high-quality one.

Biotin, for example, is an essential member of the B-vitamin family. It can be very helpful in managing blood sugar problems in doses many, many times that of what you'd get in a typical high-quality B-complex supplement.

But because a discussion of all possible uses of each vitamin and mineral would fill a book, I'm going to limit this to just a half dozen of the best known (and most important).

Minerals

Calcium: Get ready for a developing controversy over the accepted calcium recommendations: they may have been too high! It's far better to reduce the calcium robbers in the diet like sugar and sodas which contain phosphoric acid, then it is to overload on calcium supplements.

The jury is still out on this one, but I'm happy with a range of 800-1200 mg daily of calcium for men and women, unless there's a special reason to take more. Remember, calcium citrate is much more absorbable than calcium carbonate (TUMS is utter crap), and the combination of calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium is best for strengthening bones.^1,2

Magnesium: According to one widely quoted Gallup poll, at least 72% of Americans are not getting optimal levels of magnesium, which is needed for a couple of hundred biochemical and metabolic processes. It's found in most vegetables and fruits, but take an extra 400 mg a day anyway.

Zinc: Zinc is the unsung hero of the immune system, not to mention how important it is for sperm production. (Oysters got their undeserved reputation as an aphrodisiac because they're high in zinc.) It's also eaten up alive by stress. Take at least 15 mg a day, but 25-50 mg is better.

Chromium: Chromium is a really important trace mineral which helps insulin do its job better, and is therefore very helpful in managing blood sugar. Although the current RDI for chromium is 120 mcg, I think most people will do well with 200-400 mcg a day, and possibly more if you've got diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome, or blood sugar problems of any kind.

Iron: You've probably seen vitamin formulas come in two flavors: "with iron" and "without iron". That's because unless you're a menstruating woman, you have no way of getting rid of this mineral -- and when it builds up in the body, it's really bad news -- especially when you're not taking in enough protective antioxidants. I never recommend iron supplements for men and rarely for postmenopausal women. Everyone else can get 15 mg a day in supplements, or just eat some eggs or liver.

Selenium: In my book, The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth, I referred to this powerful mineral as "birth control for the hepatitis C virus". High cancer rates have been found when selenium levels are low. In China, selenium-deficient regions are known as the "disease belt". A large number of studies have shown that selenium reduces the incidence of tumors in animals.^3,4 And the relationship of selenium to the immune system is tremendous. Get 200 mcg a day.

Other Superstar Nutrients

Omega-3 Fats: They're not a vitamin or mineral, but I truly believe that if everyone in the US took omega-3's on a daily basis, our health as a nation would improve by a double digit percentage -- according to any metric imaginable.

Here's what's important to know: what's valuable about fish oil are two specific fatty acids called DHA and EPA. Only 1/3 or so of "fish oil" is actually DHA and EPA, so read the label and try to get at least 500-1000 mg of EPA/DHA daily. You can get that amount by eating fish a few times a week, taking gel caps, or using the actual liquid oil.

Note: Barlean's has a revolutionary new high EPA-DHA fish oil called Omega Swirl that's lemon flavored and awesome tasting. Even your kids won't mind it.

CoQ10: It's great for the heart, great for energy, and a powerful antioxidant -- and an excellent addition to a supplement program at a dose of at least 50 mg a day. Note well: if you are on a statin medication for cholesterol (like Lipitor or Zocor) you must -- repeat must -- supplement with this vitally important nutrient. The statin drugs deplete it and your heart will suffer. (If your doctor doesn't know this, I would change doctors.)

Statin users should take a minimum of 100 mg daily in a supplement, and some knowledgeable folks recommend up to 300 mg, especially if you have heart problems. Everyone else should be good with 50-100 mg.

Ginkgo Biloba: Ginkgo is not really necessary for everyone, but it's a powerful neuroprotective antioxidant that helps circulation -- especially in the brain. Not a bad idea for anyone over 40. Take 120 mg a day. Couldn't hurt.

Alpha-Lipoic Acid: You won't find much alpha-lipoic acid in food, but it's really a superstar supplement. Not only does it help control blood sugar and support the liver in detoxification, it also is a powerful antioxidant that helps "recycle" your vitamin C and vitamin E so that you get a double dose of antioxidant power.

Alpha-lipoic acid also causes the body to produce glutathione, one of the most important antioxidants and immune-stimulating chemicals in the body's arsenal. And because alpha-lipoic acid is soluble in both fat and water, it can move to all parts of the cells to neutralize free radicals.

Plus, it's the only antioxidant that gets freely into the brain. It might just be the perfect "anti-aging" supplement. Take 100 mg a day -- much more if you have blood sugar issues (diabetes) or liver problems (hepatitis).

Saw Palmetto: If you're a man over 40 and you make frequent night-time trips to the bathroom, pick up some saw palmetto. You probably have a harmless but annoying condition called benign prostate hyperplasia (enlarged prostate), and saw palmetto has been shown to help mightily.

Some cases of women's hair loss (but not all) are caused by the same biochemistry that causes BPH, so it's sometimes recommended to women as well. In any case, the dose is 320 mg a day, usually in two divided doses of 160 mg each.

In Summary

Let me be perfectly frank: I'm a big fan of supplements and probably take enough of them a day for you to think of me as an "extremist". I tell you that so you'll take what I'm about to say seriously -- supplements are not a substitute for food. It's true you can't get all the vitamins and minerals you need from food, but you also can't get everything you need for health from supplements either.

Much as I love them, supplements don't even begin to provide the myriad of phytochemicals, phenols, flavonoids (there are 4,000 flavonoids alone!), catechins, and other compounds that are in our most nutritious foods. And these compounds -- many of them still undiscovered -- work synergistically in mysterious ways that we haven't begun to completely understand.

So eat food. Real food. Food your grandmother would have recognized as food. Food with color. Food that spoils. Food you could have hunted, fished for, gathered, or plucked if you lived on the African savannah in the Paleolithic era. It's still around -- you just have to look for it. When last seen, much of it was hanging out in the outer aisles of your supermarket. It's the stuff that doesn't come with a bar code.

Eat real food in addition to taking the supplements I've suggested above, and -- at least physically -- you should have a healthy, robust life.

The rest is up to you.

A Bowl of Chicken Soup and a Tall
Glass of O.J., Please
By Dr. David Eifrig Jr.

A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal, and the common cold.
– Ogden Nash.

Everybody I know is suddenly sick.

It's that time of year when almost everyone I call is sick. My list from the last week goes like this: my dad, one of my sisters, my best friend from residency Rebecca, their baby, Rob (a colleague at Stansberry Research), a buddy from my Goldman days and two of his five kids... and it goes on and on. I'm probably next. I can't avoid forever, I'm sure.

The science of cold season is poorly understood. Theories range from temperature changes that release molds, spores, and latent bugs to increased travel and thus exposure to new strains to sunlight. In fact, theories cover both possible extremes – from not enough sunlight of winter to the increasing hours of exposure in the spring. The bottom line is that no one knows.

What we do know is that a few things have been tested and found to reduce symptoms and even shorten the cold's duration. The list is:

Echinacea
Vitamin C
Chicken soup
Nasal saline washes

Echinacea comes from the flower heads, leaves, and roots of the so-called Purple Coneflower. Although studies are equivocal as to its benefits, the mixed results are likely do to the failure to standardize the chemicals in the treatments given. In test tubes, the chemicals increase the natural killing process of cells and regulate chemicals that recruit other immune cells. In Europe, this is a very common treatment prescribed for upper respiratory infections.

Vitamin C, aka ascorbic acid, is probably the most controversial of all the vitamins. As most everyone knows, it prevents scurvy. And for years the federal recommended daily allowance was just the amount needed in our diet to prevent scurvy.

But what you probably don't know is that 250 years ago, the British medical establishment took more than 40 years to believe it truly prevented scurvy – something that today every first-year medical student knows as the "gospel truth."

James Lind, a Scottish physician, showed in 1753 very clearly that fresh vegetables and fruits would prevent the disease, yet it took until the next century for the all-knowing medical profession to believe him. This disease killed more than a million sailors. Interestingly, Lind was probably the first to do a random clinical trial with such profound benefit to human health. He chose 12 sailors in his study and split them into pairs. He gave one group of men citrus fruits that miraculously cured them of the dreaded scurvy.

In the past 30 years, numerous studies showed that vitamin C reduced both the symptoms and the duration of colds. Amazingly, vitamin C works as well as many of the expensive commercial products, Tamiflu for example. The best part is it's much safer. Vitamin C acts as both a decongestant (dries your mucous membranes out) and as an antihistamine (dampens the sneezing and overall symptoms of a cold).

Chicken Soup is known as "Jewish Penicillin" for good reasons. Studies show that chicken soup increases the velocity of nasal secretions... thus thinning the mucous and speeding up the clearing of a stuffy head. As it turns out, chicken soup also has chemicals in it that strongly aid the action of certain white blood cells, called neutrophils. These are the main cells that attack things such as bacteria and viruses. These short-lived cells quickly chew up bacteria and using highly reactive, bleach-like chemicals kill the intruders. Amazingly, chicken soup modulates the response of these cells, reducing the amount of inflammation these cells might normally create. Thus your symptoms are reduced, but the killing continues.

Nasal saline sprays have recently been found to reduce symptoms and duration of colds in both children and adults. Admittedly not my favorite anticold trick, people in the singing business swear by this for reducing phlegm and mucous production if they have a cold. The mechanism is perhaps due to a reduction of viral load in the nasal passage by shear mechanical removal as well as osmotic killing (the cell walls break due to differences in salt concentrations between inside and outside the cells). Some people believe it is the micro amounts of salts found in seawater (and replicated in these over-the-counter products) that helps cells fight off infections – metals like zinc and selenium.

When it comes to the common cold... what do I do?

1.	I increase my vitamin C dosage to 4 or 5 grams a day. I prefer buffered supplements in a sustained-release form with a blend other bioflavonoids thought to enhance the antioxidant properties of the vitamin C.
2.	I drink lots of chicken broth – preferably homemade and without any MSG added.
3.	I take selenium 100mcg. Vitamin E 400 IU-all natural mega doses of B vitamins, and high doses of zinc daily for about three days or until my symptoms are gone.
4.	I wash my nose out with salt water. Damn does that stuff sting... and I love the instruction on the label that says to insert it into your nose, but don't touch it to the inside of your nose. How do you manage that?
5.	I drink teas with chamomile as it helps me sleep, keeps me relaxed, and may even have some antibacterial properties.
6.	I eat garlic... it may help and it certainly keeps people from catching a cold from me.
7.	Finally, I call my massage therapist and let her know that I have a cold, but would like a massage... if she feels her health and body's resistance is strong enough to take me then I'm off to a massage ASAP... and boy the power of touch is amazing.

Here's to our health,

David Eifrig Jr., M.D., M.B.A.

Sex After Divorce
Get Back Into the Scene… and Into Bed
By Kim Droze, Special to LifeScript
Friday, May 9, 2008

After spending years or even decades sleeping with one person, the notion of adding another notch to your belt can be tough to accept. You probably never thought you’d be in this place again. But you and your partner have gone your separate ways, and unless you’re willing to settle for endless nights by yourself (or with a battery-operated friend), you’re going to eventually have to get back in the game. Here’s how to get started. Plus: Test your safe sex smarts…

Unfortunately, being single again is never easy, especially when it comes to sex. Many women can’t imagine opening themselves up enough to another man after all this time. However, other gals feel like they’ve been given a second lease on their sex life.

Renowned intimacy expert Ian Kerner says there’s nothing uncommon about either of these feelings. As the author of She Comes First: The Thinking Man's Guide to Pleasuring a Woman and Sex Detox (Harper Collins, January 2008), Kerner is a mastermind at tackling the toughest relationship issues – in and out of the bedroom.

Timing isn’t Everything

According to Kerner, the most important thing for divorced women to realize is that there is no one-size-fits-all game plan for getting back on the horse – everyone is different.

“I hear from a lot of women who’ve gotten divorced that they want to sow their wild oats,” Kerner says. “They no longer feel sex needs to be a part of marriage. There are women who are divorced that get up their renewed vigor for better or worse. But on the other side, there are often divorced people who experience a lot of anxiety and depression, which tends to inhibit libido. Very often they find the opposite thing happening. They’re divorced and single and don’t have a sex drive. (See related story: 6 Reasons You’re Not in the Mood)

“Regardless, for women divorce is a big transition for getting back in the dating pool and developing self-esteem and confidence to date different guys in different demographics. It does pose a lot of transitional challenges.”

The biggest questions that many divorced women face are: When is the right time? and How soon is too soon? You guessed it – there is no standard. It’s a personal decision that can only be made by the individual, because they’re the ones who know when the time is right.

“Some women get divorced and feel really lonely and feel like they need to give it a stretch of time before dating someone else,” Kerner says. “Other women don’t start to get their groove back or feel alive again until they get attention and start dating again.”

Although there is no general rule of thumb, Kerner says he doesn’t see the harm in women putting themselves back out there. In many cases, divorced women are even more appealing as they bring more life experience to a relationship, as opposed to women who haven’t gone through a marital trial by fire.

You may be ready to sow some oats, but beware of rebound efforts. You don’t want to fall into the casual sex conundrum. While diving into the dating pool again is positive and healthy, suddenly becoming overly promiscuous is not. According to Kerner, it’s all good… in moderation.

“I meet women all the time who say they had a passionless marriage for a year or two leading up to the divorce and didn’t have sex,” Kerner says. “They feel like if they’re not going to do it now, it’s never going to happen. They feel pressure and desire to be resexualized. Have fun with it. It helps build self-esteem. [But] I’m not advocating going out there and sleeping with everybody.”

Ditch the Ex, Keep Your Baggage

While there are plenty of proactive ways to jumpstart your sex life and start living again, there is one major mistake that divorced women should avoid: sleeping with the enemy. According to Kerner, sex with your ex can lead to an emotional entanglement that can be hard to escape. (See related story: Sex With Your Ex?)

“People think that’s the easy thing,” Kerner says. “It’s a crutch and it can really emotionally set you back. I’m not saying it’s better to sleep with a complete stranger because of safety issues. [But] you have to have a rule that your ex is your ex and stay away from him. A lot of people – whether they’re dating, living together or married – when they get lonely, the first person they think of is their ex. But I think sleeping with an ex is way too dangerous emotionally and in terms of self-esteem.”

With that warning out of the way, Kerner says there are plenty of steps you can take to form a healthy new sex life, a lot of which comes from the way you see yourself. For starters, don’t feel intimidated about dating or self-conscious because you’ve been divorced. You’re in good company; there are many women who have been through starter marriages.

Also, be true to your baggage. If you have kids or material possessions you’re looking to protect, don’t neglect them or be embarrassed. Be confident and accepting of what you’ve been through and know that it’s not a stigma.

Prepare yourself emotionally and physically for being sexually active again. Start simple by pleasuring yourself or allowing yourself to have sexy thoughts. Allow yourself to feel sexual. This can be a solid first step for putting yourself back on the path of sexuality.

5 Steps to Romance

Looking to start dating again? Kerner has five tips for women who are ready for their next romance:

1. Get online.

A lot of divorced woman who've never tried Internet dating are nervous and gun-shy at first. I can't tell you how many divorced women I’ve met who were terrified and confused by online dating, but then quickly figured it out and mastered it with an incredible sense of confidence and exuberance.

2. Don't be afraid to date younger guys.

It’s true: 40 is the new 30, 50 is the new 40. Whether you believe that or not, the truth is that if you're confident, feel good and take care of yourself, younger guys are going to be attracted to you. Don't dismiss their interest, or think it will never go anywhere because he's young enough to be your younger brother. (See related story: Here’s to You, Mrs. Robinson)

3. Make new friends.

Not that your old friends aren't great, but they know your baggage and hang-ups. There's real power in developing fresh friendships that will bring a fresh outlook and new pool of people to meet.

4. Develop new interests.

The best way to meet people is by expanding your world and cultivating new interests. It could be an art history class, a book club, volunteering at a non-profit, or joining the local chapter of an outdoor-activity group.

5. Go on lots of first dates… and don't worry about the second.

I like to say that everyone should go on 10 first dates (with different guys) without the expectation of going on a second one. It allows you to have fun, date without pressure, get a sense of who's out there, and date outside of your type. Go on 10 first dates before you decide who's worth seeing again. What's the rush?

For more about divorce recovery, visit ShouldIDivorceHim.com.

Want to learn more? Get your own copy of She Comes First and Sex Detox.

Are You Smart About Safe Sex?
When it comes to sex, there's more to know than just how or where you'll do it. There's also a little thing called your health to consider. And nothing could be more important than your body's well-being when you're getting down 'n dirty. Test your smarts with this safe sex quiz.

Decoding Your Face
What Bumps and Blotches Reveal About Your Health
By Shanna Thompson, LifeScript Staff Writer
Monday, March 10, 2008

What do you see when you look in the mirror? According to Chinese medicine, your face is a window to your health. Your forehead, nose, chin, right cheek, left cheek: Each of these five face zones provides clues to what is going on inside your body… if you know what to look for. And Maoshing Ni, an anti-aging expert and doctor of Chinese medicine, does. Better known as Dr. Mao, this healer shares insights from his book, Secrets of Self Healing (Avery, 2007). As LifeScript’s natural health specialist, Dr. Mao decodes those facial clues and helps you figure out what’s ailing you…

Waking up with a pimple on your nose or a rash across your cheek can be slightly embarrassing, from a vanity standpoint. Our typical reaction is to dab on concealer and hope no one notices. But have you ever wondered what caused the blemish in the first place?

Most people don’t realize that their face offers information about what’s going on beneath the skin’s surface. “Your body speaks a unique language to communicate the imbalances within it,” Dr. Mao says in his book. “Over the past 5,000 years, Chinese medicine has mastered the art and science of reading the body’s language.”

Dr. Mao’s face assessment puts your health in your hands. Who better to recognize subtle changes in your appearance than you? Your reflection offers visual cues to what may be happening with your heart, stomach, hormones and even your mind and spirit. Go ahead, take a look. What does your face reveal about you?

1. Forehead
Corresponding element: According to Chinese medicine, the forehead corresponds to the fire element. This connection indicates an association with the heart and small intestine organ network, as well as the mind and spirit.

What to look for: When examining your forehead, look for redness and small blood vessels that appear as discoloration, which could indicate a heart problem, Dr. Mao says. Skin discoloration could also be caused by a recent emotionally-charged experience, such as a breakup or loss. It is common for people whose emotions are in turmoil on a regular basis to have a constant furrow between their eyebrows. (See related article: Raw Emotions: 5 Ways to Buffer Your Suffering)

What it means: According to Dr. Mao, a heart attack can often be foretold by a subtle bluish-green hue on the forehead. If you have discoloration on your forehead accompanied by heart palpitations, dizziness, shortness of breath, and tingling or pain in your left arm, schedule an appointment with a cardiologist or immediately visit an emergency room if necessary.

2. Nose
Corresponding element: Your nose corresponds to the earth element, indicating a connection to the stomach, spleen and pancreas network.

What to look for: Symptoms of internal discord typically show up as a pimple on the tip or side of your nose, Dr. Mao says. Broken capillaries or redness across the bridge of the nose may reveal alcohol abuse or simply mean a person is under excessive worry and stress. Both causes put a strain on the internal organ network associated with the earth element.

What it means: People with blemishes or discoloration on their nose also likely suffer from indigestion, constipation or diarrhea. Think back to your dinner last night or lunch the day before. Did you eat a lot of spicy, deep-fried, fatty, or rich foods? How about chocolate? If the answer is “yes,” your choice of cuisine could be the problem. Your body is indicating its displeasure with your culinary selection.

3. Chin
Corresponding element: The chin area of your face corresponds to the water element. It is associated internally to your kidney and bladder organ network, including the hormonal system and glands.

What to look for: According to Dr. Mao, blemishes, discoloration and dark patches of skin around the chin and mouth could indicate problems within the kidneys or bladder. Recurrent acne breakouts around this area of the face may be due to a hormonal imbalance. The problem is most often due to the body producing excess estrogen or testosterone and tends to be a particular issue when paired with irregular menstruation in women and prostate symptoms in men.

Be sure to also check out your philtrum – the indentation just above your top lip. This small area relates to the uterus and ovaries in women and the prostate and genitals in men, Dr. Mao says. Horizontal lines, blemishes or discoloration across the philtrum may indicate infertility issues due to problems such as endometriosis or uterine fibroid cysts.

What it means: People who have a small chin, according to Chinese medicine, have a genetic predisposition to weakness in their kidney and bladder network. However, this doesn’t mean that small-chinned people will develop kidney disease, Dr. Mao says. The information is simply an alert that a tendency may exist, and patients can choose to make behavioral changes to prevent the development of a condition.

4.Right Cheek
Corresponding element: Your right cheek corresponds to the metal element, meaning this area of your face is connected to the lung and large intestine network.

What to look for: Problems in the lung and large intestine network present themselves as discoloration, blemishes and skin problems on the right cheek, according to Chinese medicine. A mild acne breakout, eczema patch or slight redness may mean a cold is coming on. Lung illness or upper respiratory ailments also trigger visual symptoms on the right cheek. (See related article: Cold and Flu Survival Guide))

What it means: People who are prone to respiratory allergies or asthma have a tendency to suffer from a reddish, scaly eczema, a slight rash or even a slight bluish-green hue along the right cheek. These symptoms often precede the actual attack, Dr. Mao says. The visual tip-offs are caused by too much heat or inflammation in the respiratory system or a lack of oxygen from bronchial constriction in the lungs.

5. Left Cheek
Corresponding element: In Chinese medicine, your left cheek corresponds to the wood element, meaning a correlation to the liver and gallbladder network.

What to look for: Broken capillaries and redness, especially up next to the bridge of your nose, indicate heat, inflammation or congestion of toxins in the liver, Dr. Mao says. Bulging veins, redness and rash can be symptoms of either a physical ailment or pent-up emotions in a patient. A yellowish hue under the left eye may indicate processing problems in the liver and gallbladder network.

What it means: Redness, discoloration, vein bulging or a rash on the left cheek may indicate that a person suffers from high blood pressure, gallstones or high triglycerides or cholesterol, Dr. Mao says. Problems in this part of the face can also reveal emotional issues, such as anger and depression, since the liver and gallbladder network includes the nervous system.

Want to learn more? Get your own copy of Secrets of Self-Healing and check out AskDrMao.com.

Have a question for Dr. Mao? Email him at DrMao@LifeScript.com. Be sure to include your first name and last initial. Plus, meet Dr. Mao.

Are You on the Road to a Heart Attack?
Every 20 seconds a heart attack is occurring somewhere in the United States. Coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in this country, contributes to the 1.5 million heart attacks that occur each year. Will you become a part of this statistic? Find out if your ticker is going to keep ticking with this heart attack quiz

10 Reasons Why You Should Eat Breakfast
By Katelyn Dieffenderfer, Nubella News
Increased energy levels. Decreased disease risk. Bigger memory capability. Smaller waistline. When it comes to that first morning meal, the reasons to fuel your body are virtually endless. So, the next time you’re about to dash out the door on an empty stomach, remember these 10 reasons why breakfast really is the most important meal of the day:
• High Energy. A healthy breakfast provides you with enough nutrients to energize your body for hours.
• Smart Eating. Studies have shown that people who eat breakfast consume more vitamins, minerals, and fiber, and less fat and cholesterol.
• Calorie Reduction. People who don’t eat breakfast are likely to eat more calories throughout the day than people who skip lunch, according to the Nemours Foundation’s Center for Children’s Health and Media.
• Decreased Diabetes Risk. People who eat breakfast are significantly less likely to be diabetic than those who usually don’t, according to the American Heart Association.
• Weight Control. A study by the National Weight Control Registry shows that eating breakfast actually helps keep people’s weight down.

• Full Focus. According to the American Dietetic Association, people who eat breakfast are better able to concentrate and be more productive throughout the morning.
• Making Memories. According to experts, eating breakfast improves memory and learning. In one study, college students who ate a morning meal scored 22 percent higher in a word-recall test than those who skipped breakfast.
• Urge to Exercise. Researchers believe that people who eat breakfast have higher energy levels and may engage in more physical activity than people who don’t.
• Happy Days. Skipping breakfast can make you feel tired, irritable, or sad. Even grabbing some fresh fruit or a bowl of cereal can help boost your mood.
• Stress Be Gone. The time you spend eating breakfast can be relaxing and help you to mentally prepare for the day. Eating breakfast also forces you to slow down, helping you to prioritize.
Keep in mind, however, that all breakfasts are not created equal—a healthy morning meal should be balanced and not too heavy. So, skip the eggs, bacon, sausage, and biscuits, and go for whole-grain cereals with fruit or juice instead. Or opt for an egg-white omelet filled with vegetables.

Get Sauced to Stay Healthy

As if the taste of your grandmother's spaghetti sauce recipe weren't enough incentive. Studies show that the yummy red stuff is a major cancer deterrent, too.

Your risk of developing certain cancers (like prostate, GI, skin, or breast cancer) decreases significantly when you eat 10 or more tablespoons of tomato sauce per week. S'getti, anyone?

Lovely Lycopene
Many scientists believe that the active ingredient responsible for the cancer protection is lycopene, a carotenoid known for its antioxidant properties. All tomato products contain lots of lycopene, but it's more available to your body when it's cooked. (Look up more sources of lycopene with this online tool.)

Soup It Up
While you're at it, add some cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli and cauliflower, to your sauce. They contain chemicals that prevent cancer, too -- so you get double protection. Discover more ways to boost the nutritional quality of fruits and veggies.

Did You Know?
Tomatoes help keep your mind young. We've got six more foods that give your brain a boost.

Heads-Up for Men
You know that tomatoes are a powerful prostate protector. Here's what else you can eat to help keep your prostate healthy.

RealAge Benefit: Eating 10 servings of tomato paste and tomato products per week can make your RealAge 1 year younger.

Aggression, Drugs, and the New Trilateralist Conspiracy

By Michael Masterson

A study reported in the New York Times sparked my interest.

Doctors gave 86 low-IQ adults antipsychotic drugs to reduce aggressive behavior. They wanted to see if these drugs -- Risperdal and Haldol -- were making a positive difference. What they found was that 65% of those taking the drugs responded positively. They were less aggressive. But 80% of those that took the placebo had improved behavior too. Wow!

The study is interesting for two reasons. First, it reinforces what we've been saying at Total Health Breakthroughs for a long time: that so many drugs prescribed by doctors today have little or no scientific basis. Most of them come to the market on the basis of studies funded by the drug companies that made them.

There is big money in promoting drugs. And good money in prescribing them. With that kind of a one-hand-washes-the-other arrangement, it's no wonder that drugs are such a huge part of our economy. This one class of drugs alone is a $10 billion a year business.

Antipsychotic drugs are used today to treat younger children with ADD, college students with depression, older people with Alzheimer's, and intellectually handicapped people that show signs of aggression.

That's interesting. But what's just as interesting is that 80% figure.

Placebos usually produce responsiveness of 25% to 35%. How do you explain 80%?

The article I read in the Times didn't even try. I wonder though. Could it be that we have more control over our emotions than we think? Could it be that even intellectually challenged people can control their tempers?

Eighty percent is more than double what you would expect from a placebo. What accounts for this astonishingly high improvement rate?

I don't know what the explanation is. But I know what the conclusion means. It means that most of us (80%?) can control -- to some extent at least -- our negative emotions and behaviors. And we can do that without drugs.

That seems like a heretical statement today. During my grandmother's time it would seem like common sense.

Deep down inside -- despite what the experts say -- we know this. We know from experience that we are sometimes more easily upset than other times. And that there are times when we are able to stay calm in the face of trouble. Even the most neurotic person has had moments when he has been able to calm himself down or cheer himself up.

The psychology industry (which is heavily dependent on drug money these days) wants you to believe that sadness, rudeness, anger, and aggression are all diseases. Why? Because the moment they are classified as diseases, they (by virtue of the FDA, which is in business to support them) can control the drug trade.

The government-sponsored, multibillion dollar drug trafficking in FDA sponsored drugs is many times larger than the illegal drug trade. And it's a good business from at least one point of view. Everybody on the government's side (FDA employees and employees of drug companies and doctors) makes money by prescribing drugs and preventing competition from purveyors of natural medicine.

Depression is a multi-billion dollar business. So are ADD and other learning problems. So is aggressive behaviors. Add them all up and you have an industry the size of big oil. We fight wars over oil. What will we do to keep the drugs out there?

The strategy of the trilateral conspiracy (between the FDA, the pharmaceutical industry, and the AMA) is to expand the range of diseases as much as possible so that more drugs can be prescribed to "treat" these diseases. It doesn't matter whether they actually work. What matters is that they produce a profit.

To expand the market, doctors and psychiatrists are coming up with new diseases every day. When I was a child there was no such thing as ADD. It was not a disease. It was a common behavioral problem that was treated with liberal doses of detention. This all-natural treatment worked perfectly well. Most of us who were afflicted with it (probably the same third that "have it" today) eventually learned to cope and even to succeed.

But that isn't good for the drug business. What the trilateral conspiracy wants is to make this very normal behavior an official disease. Once a disease, then natural cures are not tolerated. Doctors will call them irresponsible witchcraft. And government thugs will go after anyone brave enough to advocate them.

ADD has been claimed by the trilateralists and they don't want to give it back. That's why studies like this will be disputed and ignored. There is a small possibility that we could have a grass roots revolution against big medicine. But it is, as I said, small.

More likely, normal, natural problems like sadness, rudeness, and short attention spans will be classified as diseases and taken over by the trilateralists. In every case, the FDA and the AMA will celebrate the new drug treatments as they come on the market. And government goons will go after those who object.

My theory is this: Depression should not be considered a disease. And it should not be automatically treated with drugs. Drugs can sometimes help with depression. And they certainly help with real psychological problems such as schizophrenia. But most depression is simply an extreme form of sadness. Many books and studies support this theory. These books and studies are generally pooh poohed by the establishment authorities.

I am not making light of depression. I know something about it on a personal level. It is bad. It is dangerous. It can be lethal. But the way to treat it is to treat it as an extreme form of sadness. By that I mean to battle it with good nutrition and mental exercises that keep the mind strong and focused on positive things.

We must battle sadness first. Each of us every day. If we can defeat sadness then depression won't take hold of us.

It is like migraine headaches, which I've also suffered from. Anyone who has them knows that the way to treat them is early on...when they are still mild. If you get them then...by taking high doses of aspirin (which, by the way, is a natural substance), then you can beat them. But if you wait too long, it becomes a much bigger problem.

The same holds true for aggression. It is an extreme form of inconsideration. You can treat aggressive behavior by stomping out impoliteness. If you refuse to allow someone to be impolite to you then you won't have to worry about being bullied or abused.

The same holds true for rage. Rage is an extreme form of anger. If you allow yourself to be angry all the time then you should expect your emotions to darken. Eventually it will feel like you have no control over your anger. You will do things you regret. If you let your behavior get to this level you may end up in jail or in a treatment facility.

When you get there a psychiatrist will examine you and recommend drugs. You will take those drugs because, they will say, your rage is a form of mental illness. As a form of mental illness it is covered by medical insurance. You are classifiable. The drugs flow.

The way to defeat depression, rage, and aggressive behavior is to nip it in the bud. You can do that on a personal basis by eating well, sleeping well, and using simple behavior modification practices to defeat those negative feelings.

You can defeat these bad behaviors socially by creating a culture where anger and bad manners are treated as offenses, and sadness as an undesirable personal quality.

You can't control the culture of a nation or even a city, but you can control smaller, undemocratic organizations such as governmental institutions, businesses, and schools. And since so much aggression and abuse takes place in government institutions, schools, and businesses, one can imagine that improvements in these arenas can extend outward.

Most high schools tolerate a good deal of rudeness from students because their administrations labor under the philosophy that they are there to teach academic subjects -- and not to teach children how to think or behave. They also generally ignore how meanly some children treat others. This type of behavior is viewed as normal and impossible to stop, and beyond their authority anyway.

But that is ridiculous. You can detect and punish meanness just as easily as you can detect and punish cheating. Easier still because it is usually obvious and not hidden. And if teachers took a zero tolerance policy toward meanness, then other, worse forms of uncivil behavior would be drastically reduced.

I have seen this done at a public high school in Florida where the administration punished students for minor forms of rude behavior. The initial reaction was negative. Both the students and their parents objected to these "petty prosecutions." But as time passed, incidents of aggression and violence dropped steeply. Today that high school is an exception to the way high schools usually are: children are generally kind to one another and get along well without rudeness or aggression.

We must each take responsibility for our own behavior and for the behavior of those in our charge, including our employees, our students, and our children.

[Ed. Note: Marketing and business-building expert Michael Masterson is the founder of Early to Rise, a free, daily, e-newsletter full of useful ideas about marketing, business building, investing, natural health, and much more. He is also the bestselling author of Automatic Wealth, Automatic Wealth for Grads, Seven Years to Seven Figures, and Ready, Fire, Aim. To learn more, click here.]

Reverse Aging:
Getting High on Giving Back

By Jackie Silver

Top

Getting high on giving back "Kindness is always fashionable." Those are the words of 19th Century novelist Amelia Barr, author of the classic, Remember the Alamo. Volunteering and giving feels terrific. In fact, studies have shown that one's health can improve when actively and personally engaged in helping others, producing a sense of euphoria called the "helper's high."⁴

Research reveals that, while volunteering benefits everyone, older individuals are more likely to get the most health benefits.¹ According to one study, when older adults volunteered, they experienced lower rates of depression, even years later.² Researchers have also found that when patients with chronic or serious illness volunteer, they receive benefits beyond what can be achieved through medical care.³

Medical and scientific documentation supports that "volunteering results in a heightened sense of well being, improves insomnia, strengthens the immune system, and hastens surgery recovery time."⁴

Here are some tips for giving that will help you age backwards:

Get involved with your local YMCA. As a volunteer, you can lead an exercise class, read to a preschool class, coach a basketball team, cook for a bake sale, design a program brochure, serve as a role model for young people, and so much more. Every hour spent volunteering at the YMCA translates into caring attention a child or teen needs to grow up healthy and resilient.

Support your favorite charity. But first do your homework to find out if the charity you're ready to support is legitimate. Charity Navigator was founded in 2001 to help donors evaluate charities they are interested in supporting. Charity Navigator's team of professional analysts has examined tens of thousands of non-profit financial documents, allowing them to develop an unbiased, objective, numbers-based rating system to assess the financial health of over 5,000 of America's best-known charities.

Discover "VolunTourism." Many people are electing to combine their vacation time with giving back. VolunTourism combines volunteer opportunities in your chosen destination along with the traditional elements of travel and tourism -- arts, culture, geography, history, and recreation -- while in the destination. Check out VolunTourism.org.

Be a mentor. Merriam-Webster defines the word mentor as a "trusted counselor or guide." This guidance is done, not for personal gain, but for the benefit of the person being mentored and the trickle-down effect. Mentoring can be done in a structured situation through an organization, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, or in a way that is personal to you. Whether you choose to mentor someone at work, in your family, or through an organization, you will reap the benefits of giving.

Tailor your giving to your interests. Are you an animal lover? Consider volunteering at your local animal shelter. Perhaps knitting is your expertise. There are many newborn babies who would benefit from a warm, hand-knit cap donated to your local hospital. Maybe the environment is a concern of yours. Why not devote an hour on the weekend to picking up litter? You don't need to be part of an organization to volunteer. The satisfaction comes from within -- knowing what you've done even when nobody else knows.

Find your own "helper's high" by volunteering and reap the health benefits that lead to Aging Backwards.

References

Corporation for National and Community Service report: The Health Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Recent Research - Li and Ferraro, 2006; Van Willigen, 2000.
http://www.civicventures.org/publications/articles/the_volunteer_factor.cfm.
Arnstein et al., 2002; Pain Management Nursing, Volume 3(3), 94-103.
Luks A and Payne P, The Healing Power of Doing Good, 2001, iUniverse.com.

Nutritional Cleansing: A Missing Link in the Wellness Puzzle

By Dr. David Kamnitzer

If you are like millions of other Americans who feel that their energy level and/or weight is stuck at a plateau -- or maybe even spinning out of control -- nutritional cleansing could very well open the door to the breakthrough you are looking for.

Nutritional Cleansing is a process whereby we simultaneously cleanse and replenish the body internally.

This is so important because most of us have many impurities in our body AND we are nutritionally depleted. This combination is like an accident just waiting to happen!

In this state, our bodies tend to retain extra water and fat as a way to dilute and/or sequester toxins. Our energy levels will drop as cellular efficiency decreases. Nutritionally-depleted bodies are not well-equipped to undertake the process of cleansing the body internally ... A vicious cycle indeed!

Most of us have already heard something about cleansing. Fasting has been a part of most of the world's major religions. The challenge is that most of us do not have the ability to divest ourselves of our worldly obligations and commit a week to completely relax and fast.

In addition, in our depleted and stressful state, a radical fast can overwhelm our organs of elimination, producing uncomfortable symptoms including severe headaches, itching, achiness, and weakness.

Fortunately, there is a way out this conundrum! ... We can cleanse and replenish at the same time. I call this dual process nutritional cleansing.

I have seen people transform their bodies and energy so remarkably in a one to two month period with nutritional cleansing, that I literally almost didn't recognize them!

Here's what can occur: energy levels rise; mental clarity increases; mood swings level out; and hope is renewed. But that's not all. Lean muscle mass increases, while extra fat and water are no longer necessary. It is not uncommon for people to need a whole new wardrobe after only a month or two of nutritional cleansing.

With nutritional cleansing, the body's own healing power is liberated and lives seem to be changed at a very deep level. One of my patients told me that she feels like she got her life back!

It is often difficult for people to believe this is possible...I can assure you -- both from personal experience and from observing the results of hundreds of other people -- these results are very real.

How is this possible? ... Here's my take on it.

The synergy of high-quality easily absorbable protein, essential fatty acids, low-glycemic carbohydrates, vitamins, macro-minerals and ionic trace minerals, fiber, good bacteria, enzymes, naturally occurring fulvic acid, healing and cleansing herbs, and generous amounts of high quality water -- combined with moderate caloric restriction and the avoidance of foods that tend to trigger an inflammatory response -- produce these amazing results.

Continued...

Here are some specific suggestions for effective nutritional cleansing:

Use a whey protein powder that is UNDENATURED and that comes from grass-fed cows (as a good protein source). This will insure maximum bio-availability and effectiveness.
Make sure you are getting plenty of essential fatty acids. I like to use hulled hemp seeds, as they have an excellent blend of omega-3, -6, and -9 fatty acids.
Monitor the quality and quantity of your carbohydrate intake by keeping your carbohydrate count between 100 and 150 grams per day of the following foods: all green vegetables, beans, berries, apples, and small amounts of whole grains (if you are not sensitive to them), squash, and sweet potatoes. These low-moderate glycemic carbohydrates will help to re-establish proper insulin response.
Drink at least one ounce of water per day for every two pounds of body weight.
Include shilajit in your program. Shilajit is a mineral-pitch that has been used for thousands of years in Ayurvedic healing. It is extremely high in trace minerals and is a superior source of fulvic acid. Fulvic acid facilitates nutrient delivery into the cells, as well as helping with removal of impurities from the body.
Consider supplementing with a good multiple vitamin and mineral supplement that includes enzymes and beneficial bacteria.
Include herbs that are known for their cleansing properties. Some good ones include aloe vera, pau d'arco, and burdock root.
Make sure that you are getting at least 20-25 grams a day of a blend of soluble and insoluble fiber. This will help to ensure proper elimination of what your body is ready to release.
Use a blender to make your life easier! Many nutritious and good-tasting "meals" can be made easily and quickly with the help of your blender.

This Color Can Make You Healthier
By Michael Roizen, M.D., and Mehmet Oz, M.D.

When it comes to fruits and legumes, it's pretty much impossible to reach for anything bad. But often you can get extra goodies by reaching for red. Not only do naturally red foods make your meals look like they just arrived from a photo shoot, but they pile on the health benefits too. Try these three heavy hitters:

Red bell peppers: They have almost twice as much vitamin C as their green siblings. And getting ample C is credited with a 30 percent reduction in the risk of stroke, one of the top causes of death and disability in North Americans. Vitamin C helps your arteries stay young and keeps your immune system strong.

Red kidney beans. These are right up there with blueberries when it comes to total phytonutrient value. And phytonutrients -- protective substances found in plant foods -- help your body produce more of its own antioxidants. These defenders swiftly mop up free radicals, the cellular by-products that can damage DNA and lead to cancer, heart disease and early aging. So brighten up salads now and stews later by tossing in some crimson beauties.

Red grapefruit. The red varieties contain more lycopene -- a phytonutrient that may add extra anti-cancer and heart-health benefits -- than white grapefruit does. Lycopene is absorbed better, though, when fat is around, so try tossing red grapefruit segments into a saute or salad drizzled with canola or olive oil. Or if you love spooning out the sections one-by-one on Sunday morning, eat them with a side of whole-grain toast spread with peanut butter. You're good to go.

Wonder Foods

Posted Tue, Mar 06, 2007, 10:11 am PST

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Here's why these three foods are practically a staple among health - conscious celebs and foodies - plus how to pronounce them, so you can casually order an açaí smoothie with all the cool of George Clooney.

Açaí berries (ah-sigh-EE or ah-SIGH-ee) Brazilian surfers eat theirs with granola, and we know what their bodies look like! Packed with twice the disease-fighting antioxidants of blueberries, açaí has already made Oprah's list of Top 10 Superfoods and The Washington Post called the blackberry-flavored fruit the "new pomegranate." But you may find it easier to sip yours: Celestial Seasonings sells an açaí-green tea blend, and açaí martinis are on chic bar menus everywhere.

DIY açaí fruit soda: Just mix chilled sparkling mineral water with a few ounces of açaí juice, available at health-food stores. Sip. Look cool. Feel healthy.

Quinoa (KEEN-wah) Dry quinoa looks a bit like sesame seeds but when cooked it becomes fluffy with a hint of crunch, making it an excellent substitution for rice, cous cous, and pasta. Quinoa's major claim to food fame, however, is what RealAge researchers call its "nutritional profile." A cup of quinoa has more protein than a quarter-pound hamburger and more calcium than a quart of milk. Yowza. It's also loaded with iron, magnesium, and a bevy of other minerals and B vitamins. No wonder the Incas named it "the mother grain." Try it in this warm winter salad from our friends at Eating Well.

Quinoa and Black Beans
Stir in your favorite jarred salsa for extra zing.
This is also good the next day for lunch.
Makes 2 servings, about 1/2 cup each

1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed
2 tablespoons broth (or water)
1/2 cup hot quinoa (cook according to package directions)

Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add bell pepper and onion and cook until almost tender. Add beans and broth (or water) to the pan. Cook until heated through. Stir in quinoa.

Per serving: 162 calories; 4 g fat (0 g sat); 0 mg cholesterol; 27 g carbohydrate; 6 g protein; 4 g fiber; 60 mg sodium; 224 mg potassium.

Matcha (MAH-cha) When you drink a cuppa matcha (also spelled maccha), you're getting green tea's powerful antioxidants to the max, because you're actually consuming the whole green tea leaf in powdered form. In Japan, slightly bitter matcha is traditionally served syrupy thick. But in the US, you'll find matcha stirred into lattes, sprinkled on ice cream, and used to bolster energy drinks and turn smoothies into pick-me-ups (it's said to boost alertness). Just be respectful of matcha if you're caffeine sensitive: Ounce for ounce, it has almost as much caffeine as coffee.

To rev up a hot homemade latte, whisk in 1/2 teaspoon of the powder.
For a quick summer cooler, blend 1 1/2 teaspoon with a cup of milk and some ice cubes.

Can Muffins Prevent Gallstones?

Gallstones -- those pesky, painful pebbles that plague some people's gallbladders -- are no fun. But could a muffin keep you feeling fine?

Maybe. If it's an oat-bran muffin. Studies show that a diet high in magnesium-rich foods may reduce the risk of gallstones. Oat-bran muffins fit the bill.

The Moderate Muffin
One medium oat-bran muffin will serve up anywhere from 50 to 90 milligrams of magnesium, depending on ingredients. Just don't go eating so many muffins that you turn into one yourself. One of the biggest risk factors for gallstones is extra weight. (Find out who's most likely to get gallstones.) And you'll want a muffin recipe that doesn't go overboard on fat and cholesterol -- a diet high in either has been linked to gallstones, too. Here's a lovely, moist, low-fat muffin recipe that uses oat bran: Spiced Apple Butter Bran Muffins.

Magnificent Magnesium
Why magnesium? Without enough of the mineral, triglycerides can soar and HDL levels can drop -- a combo that's linked to cholesterol-packed gallstones. Just about any whole-grain food will boost your magnesium intake better than white-flour products, so check labels closely and make the swap. Here's what to look for.

Look up other magnesium-rich foods with this tool.

RealAge Benefit: Adequate magnesium intake (400 milligrams per day for women, 333 milligrams per day for men) can make your RealAge as much as 0.9 years younger.

4 Ways to Baby Your Liver

This Week's Tips:

Your liver is as vital to your health as your heart and lungs are. But do you know how to keep it healthy?

It can be as simple as living clean, adding crunch, and eyeing your supplements. Here’s what we mean by that.

Vital Parts
Your liver isn't just a place to filter out tequila shots. All of the blood that has visited your small intestine flows through the liver, where it gets detoxified. A big job, but something has to do it. Michael Roizen, MD, and Mehmet Oz, MD, RealAge experts and authors of the best-selling, newly expanded YOU: The Owner's Manual, have four tips for helping your liver help you.

Live clean. Reduce your personal pollution so there's less to filter out. Drink filtered water, eat unprocessed foods, choose veggie protein over red meat, and practice safe sex. And yes, keep the mojitos to a minimum. (For a teetotaler drink that's just as festive and tasty, try this Green Tea and Mango Splash.)
Add crunchy veggies. Cruciferous produce (like broccoli and cabbage), B-rich foods (like whole grains), and high C items (like citrus fruit and leafy greens) assist the liver's detoxifying process. (Here's what else cruciferous veggies do for your health.)
Consider a supplement. Lecithin (egg yolks and soybeans are good sources) and zinc (look up food sources here) support liver function, and you may want to consider supplementing your diet with them if you don't get much naturally. Herbs like milk thistle and dandelion may help liver function, too, but consult your doctor before taking them.
Don't take too much vitamin A. If you do, you risk liver problems, including cirrhosis. (Learn more about the dangers of vitamin A overload.)

Nubella News
It may be hard to believe that something as delicious as chocolate could actually be good for you. But according to a growing body of research, America’s favorite sweet treat comes with a host of surprising health benefits—from lowering cholesterol levels to boosting your brainpower. Read on for five guilt-free reasons to indulge in this decadent dessert (as if you needed any more convincing).
1. Healthier Cholesterol Levels. A recent study conducted at Penn State University found that people who ate a diet rich in cocoa powder and dark chocolate had lower oxidation levels of LDL “bad” cholesterol and higher levels of HDL “good” cholesterol.

2. Better Blood Pressure. According to a German study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a bite of dark chocolate a day may help regulate high blood pressure. The study’s authors suspect that the cocoa increases levels of nitric oxide, a compound that helps to relax and open the blood vessels.

3. Muscle Magic. It might seem like a strange choice for a sports drink, but chocolate milk may help boost athletic performance. In a recent Indiana University study, cyclists who drank chocolate milk between workouts scored better on fatigue and endurance tests than those who consumed standard sports beverages.

4. Brain Gains. According to the National Alzheimer’s Association, consuming dark chocolate can help reduce your chances of developing dementia later in life. In fact, a local chapter of the organization recently included dark chocolate in all the gift baskets it gave to attendees at the Maintain Your Brain program.

5. Disease-Fighting Power. Cornell University researchers recently found that cocoa contains nearly twice the disease-fighting antioxidants of red wine and up to three times more than green tea.

If people feel excluded, they mimic others

MADISON, N.J. (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say the less people feel they belong, the more likely they are to try to fit in by using mimicry.

Psychologists Jessica Lakin of Drew University in Madison, N.J.;Tanya Chartrand of Duke University in Durham, N.C., and Robert Arkin of The Ohio State University in Columbus, conducted several experiments.

The researchers predicted that if the female participants were ostracized by females and later interacted with a female confederate, then they would mimic the confederate more than other participants -- and they were right.

"People whose need to belong is threatened do not necessarily mimic the first person they see; they take into account aspects of the situation and act accordingly, all unconsciously," the authors said in a statement. "Conceptualized this way, automatic mimicry is certainly is a useful addition to the human behavioral repertoire."

The findings, entitled "I Am Too Just Like You: Nonconscious Mimicry as an Automatic Behavioral Response to Social Exclusion," is published in Psychological Science.

Your Health: Spicing Food Can Improve Your Health

Which Is Better: Butter or Margarine?

Beverage Wars: Juice vs. Tea

High Vitamin C Level Linked to Decreased Stroke Risk

Antioxidants for What Ails You?

Boost the Power of Your Tea With a Squeeze

Grab a Bunch for Your Kidneys

The Best Way to Beat the Flu

Sex After Divorce

Decoding Your Face

Get Sauced to Stay Healthy

Reverse Aging:
Getting High on Giving Back

Wonder Foods

Can Muffins Prevent Gallstones?

4 Ways to Baby Your Liver

This Week's Tips:

If people feel excluded, they mimic others

Your Health: Spicing Food Can Improve Your Health

Which Is Better: Butter or Margarine?

Beverage Wars: Juice vs. Tea

High Vitamin C Level Linked to Decreased Stroke Risk

Antioxidants for What Ails You?

Boost the Power of Your Tea With a Squeeze

Grab a Bunch for Your Kidneys

The Best Way to Beat the Flu

Sex After Divorce

Decoding Your Face

Get Sauced to Stay Healthy

Reverse Aging: Getting High on Giving Back

Wonder Foods

Can Muffins Prevent Gallstones?

4 Ways to Baby Your Liver

This Week's Tips:

If people feel excluded, they mimic others

Reverse Aging:
Getting High on Giving Back