If you want to lose weight (and keep it off), improve your overall health and slow down the aging process, what’s the one thing you can do right now? Move more. Movement is essential for optimal health. The human body is designed to move. For most of evolutionary history, our ancestors were in constant motion—sprinting, climbing, […]
Resolution Rx: 10 Healthy Shifts for 2017
Did you make a New Year’s health resolution—like losing weight, getting fit, or eating healthy? In all likelihood, by end-January, that initial fire in your belly has faded. Maybe you’ve even reverted to familiar (but unhealthy) habits. An estimated 92% of people fail to keep their New Year’s resolutions, according to a University of Scranton […]
6 Mood Changers: How to Boost Mood Naturally
As summer wanes, with shorter days and a hint of cool, are you experiencing a mood shift—perhaps, feeling unexpectedly blue or in need of a “lift”? If you’ve ever had a “gut feeling” about something, experienced digestive upset, like nausea or diarrhea, when feeling stressed, or felt “butterflies” before giving a work presentation, then you’ve […]
Stress-Busting Basil
This summer, I fell unexpectedly in love with basil. At my favorite farm stand, I would rivet toward the herbs on display, drawn to the co-mingling scent of several varieties of basil, including Genovese (sweet) basil, lemon basil, Thai basil and holy basil, also known as tulsi. The uniquely aromatic, uplifting fragrance of basil […]
Want a Healthy Heart? Do the Math!
When you go for your annual physical (and, hopefully, you schedule one!), do you ask your doctor for a copy of your lab work? If you’re even vaguely concerned about your heart health, do you know your numbers? Or…is the following scenario more likely? When a lawyer friend in his late 40s told me that […]
Smart Exercise for Busy People
Are you challenged to find time in your day for exercise? It’s a common conundrum. You know that regular exercise has many health benefits, from decreasing risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke, to boosting mood and energy. But between meetings, work deadlines, the kids and a merry-go-round of obligations, spending an hour—even 30 minutes—at […]
Salad Days
“Any variety of herb in existence may go by the name of salad,” Prosper Montagne, the French chef and author of Larousse Gastronomique, once famously said. My appetite for salad is legendary. I eat a large salad at lunch every day—”large” means 6 to 7 tightly packed cups of leafy greens (yes, I was curious […]
4 Ways to Get Savvy about “Green Clean” [personal care products]
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If you’re Irish—even a smidge, like my nephews Thomas and Christian (one-eighth Irish)—a shout-out to you: Happy St. Patrick’s Day!! Today, whether you’re officially Irish—or not—green is celebrated with a vengeance—from shamrocks and leprechauns, to green beer and green “couture”. If we channel this same passion for green into “green clean”—making informed choices about everyday […]
Bacon and Cabbage 2.0
The roots of Irish cooking hark back to the farm and garden, and the classic Irish dish Bacon and Cabbage is a tribute to both. Many families grew their own vegetables and raised their own pigs. Traditional Irish fare is homey, unpretentious and based on ingredients at hand. The Irish have enjoyed pork since medieval […]
Homemade Hand Sanitizer
A few years ago when my immune system was weak, and I seemingly caught every virus that came my way, I started toting hand sanitizer with me everywhere I went. But I quickly fell out of the habit and went back to using plain soap and water because I didn’t like the way Purell felt—icky […]