It’s a new year, time to make changes to improve your life. Hopefully one of your resolutions will be to adopt healthier lifestyle habits.  In order to stay  disciplined you must first set realistic goals for yourself. Most people fail because they want to change too much right away. I always recommend folks gradually adopt these changes,  you will have a better chance of sticking to your goals.   

Some suggested changes may include:
•  eating a healthy breakfast,
• eating at home more ,it is healthier and cheaper
• limiting caffeine, soda, processed foods, sugar and white flour products
• get rid of unhealthy snacks and replace them with healthier alternatives
• get more sleep
• adopt a fitness program you can stick with, starting out slowly  

• drink more water
• replace coffe and soda with herbal teas
• cut out “bad” saturated fats and replace them with essential fatty acids “healthy fats”
• visit a health market and try something new, experiment with new recipes using whole grains such as quinoa, maybe unusual fruits and vegetables that you have never tried,  cook with spices and herbs since they add great flavor and little calories to dishes
• supplement with good quality holistic health supplements, they provide a great insurance policy to your health
• investigate using  natural healing remedies instead of taking prescription and over the counter medications

I always tell my clients “you are in the drivers seat only you can make  changes, you are responsible for you health, you make the decision to be healthy or not.” I hope you adopt a new lease on life in the new year and make one of your new year’s resolutions to lead a healthier lifestyle.

Get Rid of Holiday Stress Naturally!

The holiday season can be a joyous time but it can also bring about stress and depression. Most people feel more fatigue and anxiety than normal. There is the pressure we put on ourselves to “get it all done” and also spend more money than we have.  Some individuals experience extreme depression and loneliness during this time of year.    Other contributing factors that can lead to despair can include poor eating habits (skipping meals, consuming excess sugar) and lack of adequate sleep. During this busy time of year many individuals fail to focus on a healthy lifestyle.
There are many holistic health supplements that can be taken to help ease the “holiday blues”:

• In the northeast and other regions that have less exposure to sunshine during this time of year, most folks are very deficient in vitamin D.  The recommended dosage is at minimum 400 IUs daily . Most individuals lacking sunlight exposure require much more, often up to 1000IUs daily.  Vitamin D helps support  the immune system and  maintains normal brain function. It is important for regulating the activity of neurotransmitters, chemicals that transmit signals within the brain. A correct balance of neurotransmitters including Serotonin, Melatonin, and Dopamine is essential to healthy brain function and mood management.
• B Vitamins are another important supplement to take throughout the year on a daily basis but higher amounts may be required during times of stress including the holiday season. A top-quality B complex vitamin will help maintain energy levels, support the nervous system and assist in balancing neurotransmitters.
• Magnesium is another essential supplement. Very few people obtain adequate magnesium; in fact deficiency in this mineral is the cause for a wide range of health symptoms. Magnesium supports the nervous system, assists with sleep; helps regulate blood pressure, aids in relieving depression, anxiety, and irritability. A minimum of 400mg daily is required but most individuals require 800mg or more a day to reap the benefits.
• 5-HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan) is an amino acid that can be converted into serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps evoke a feeling of peace and well-being.   Taking 100 mg daily of 5 HTP will also help with promoting a good night sleep, as well as curb cravings for sweets and starchy carbohydrates.
• There are several herbs that also will assist with stress and depression. Some of these include: St. John’s Wort, Oatstraw, Passion Flower, and Skullcap. I recommend drinking a soothing cup of herbal tea that contains a combination of herbs to support the nervous system. One of our most popular herbal tea remedies is the “Spirit Soother”.
Other suggestions to treat the holiday blues naturally include: breathing techniques, meditation, warm baths with essential oils, yoga, maintaining a regular sleep schedule, limit caffeine and alcohol, and try to follow a nourishing diet.
I encourage you to take time for you this holiday season and prioritize your health. This is the ultimate gift you can give to yourself.

A team of researchers from the Duke Sarah W. Stedman Nutrition and Metabolism Center, including scientists from the departments  of medicine, pharmacology and cancer biology performed tests on human muscle cells that showed supplementing with Carnitine might help older people with prediabetes, diabetes, and other disorders that make glucose (sugar) metabolism difficult.

Carnitine is made in the liver and recycled by the kidney, but in some cases when this is insufficient, dietary Carnitine from red meat and other animal foods can compensate for the shortfall.
 
After just eight weeks of supplementation with Carnitine, laboratory subjects restored their cells’ fuel- burning capacity (which was shut down by a lack of natural carnitine) and improved their glucose tolerance, a health outcome that indicates a lower risk of diabetes. These results offer hope for a new therapeutic option for people with glucose intolerance, older people, people with kidney disease, and those with type 2 diabetes (also known as adult-onset diabetes). Read the rest of this entry »

It is well known that phytochemicals promote cardiovascular health and help support the immune system. This study targeted how the phytochemicalcompounds in both garlic and onion may increase the bio-accessibility of iron and zinc, two essential minerals. According to new research data from India, consuming garlic or onion increased the uptake of iron by about 70 percent, and zinc by to 160 percent. The new results are published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry and could offer opportunities to tackle two of the globe’s major deficiency concerns.”Both garlic and onion were evidenced here to have a promoting influence on the bio-accessibility of iron and zinc from food grains,” state the research team from the Central Food Technological Research Institute in Mysore, India. “This novel information has the potential application in evolving a food-based strategy to improve the bioavailability of trace minerals and hence contributes to the human health benefit,” they added.Iron deficiency is reported to affect about a third of the global population, with two billion people anemic around the world. Read the rest of this entry »

Adrenal stress also known as adrenal fatigue has become a common health condition in today’s society. The purpose of the adrenal glands is to assist the body in managing stress. Due to the fact we live in a fast-paced demanding society, our adrenal glands are constantly being taxed. The adrenal glands affect the functioning of every tissue, organ, and gland in the body which is why it is critical to support them so they will function efficiently.

Weak adrenal glands can create a wide range of health symptoms, most of which can mimic other health conditions making it difficult to diagnose. In fact adrenal stress is unrecognized by most conventional doctors. Read the rest of this entry »

Energy Drinks have become the latest trend. All age groups are consuming them to achieve a quick energy surge.  Most people are dependent on caffeine for energy. They start their day with coffee or even soda.  Our adrenals have become so depleted and our bodies lack proper nutrients that most people are constantly exhausted. How do they remedy this? Grab an energy drink, right? Wrong!

While many people think it is only a drink, what exactly is in those drinks that give you an energy boost? For starters they are loaded with sugar which being in liquid form goes directly into the blood stream and spikes insulin levels. This can eventually lead to a blood sugar imbalance and a prediabetic condition. When insulin levels are high it can trigger cravings for carbohydrate rich foods. Excess insulin in the blood stream will also lead to weight gain.  High amounts of caffeine in these energy drinks can be detrimental to the nervous system and lead to sleeping problems. One of the most common questions I get is for advice on natural remedies for insomnia or restless sleep. The first piece of advice I give is to omit all caffeine from your diet. Read the rest of this entry »

I was scanning over the produce  at my local  Whole Foods market when I came across a sign for “Sweet Limes”. I had never heard of sweet limes before so I decided to take some home and try them.  After all one of my highlights of going to the market is to come home with something new and unusual to try.

Looking at a sweet lime it resembles a round lemon, my expectation was to bite into one and experience a tart tangy flavor. To my surprise it was extremely sweet!  This atypical fruit was really peaking my curiosity so I began some research of this fruit of unknown origin.
Sweet limes are native to India, Vietnam, Egypt, and on the Mediterranean coast. Sweet limes become yellow when ripe in fact the yellower the fruit the more sweet they are. Sweet limes have a unique flavor because they don’t contain citric acid: sour limes contain both a higher sugar level and citric acid which contributes to its tart taste.  Like other citrus fruits, sweet limes are high in vitamin c and fiber.  Health benefits from consuming sweet limes include: assisting with weight loss, lowering fevers, aiding in excessive thirst, helping detoxify the body, aiding in stomach ailments including nausea and vomiting. Some cancer patients receiving chemotherapy have reported less nausea when drinking sweet lime juice.

Sweet lime juice is commonly used in the  ayuervedic diet. Sweet limes can be sliced and eaten, placed in water for an exotic flavor, and  the zest and juice make a nice accompaniment on fish or poultry.

I encourage you to become adventurous and when you come across a sweet lime give it a try and experience this atypical fruit.

My family and I spent a wonderful weekend exploring sugar shacks across the state of NH.  As you drive through the White Mountains and western NH you will see puffs of smoke emerging from the chimneys of the rustic sugar houses. Here in NH from mid Feb. through mid-April is maple sugaring time. This is the time of year when  mother nature is just waking up and giving us her first gift from nature.

Turning sap into pure maple syrup is quite an interesting process. As the frozen sap in the maple tree thaws, it begins to move and build up pressure within the tree. When the internal pressure reaches a certain point, sap will flow from any fresh wound in the tree. Freezing nights and warm sunny days create the pressure needed for a good sap harvest. Read the rest of this entry »