Garlic is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world, having been around for more than 5,000 years. As such, it is no surprise that the believed powers of this ancient bulb are numerous and widespread. It has been used to ensure a healthy afterlife, to increase strength and endurance, to ward off evil [...]

Exercise, exercise, exercise!!! That is the message we send every overweight, obese and normal-weight individual. Health officials look at patients, assess their fitness and say “Good; now, get out there and get active. Keep moving and you will keep healthy.” It is an easy prescription, one that doctors dispense without worry and one that everyone [...]

Bite into a chili pepper and you are hit with a delicious rush of heat. It burns your mouth, sending you running for water, and then reaching for a second. You smile, bleary eyed, as your sinuses discover clear passages and your taste buds sweet, or rather, spicy satisfaction. The kick – it’s the lure [...]

If you’re anything like my mother, your holiday was preceded by the overwhelming fear that you simply did not have enough food. Your anxiety drove you to the store for six more bags of cranberries, five cans of yams and maybe one more turkey. Now your fridge is packed with pounds of leftovers. You will [...]

We are hours away from a day of family, friends and food – lots and lots of food. If you’re on a diet or watching your waistline, you may be anticipating the festivities with a mixture of glee and trepidation.  On the one hand, you are being handed a reason to indulge, to abandon the [...]

Turkey is the centerpiece of all Thanksgiving meals, and why wouldn’t it be? The delectable fowl is a staple in American history.  Native to North America, it was relied on by Native Americans for its meat and feathers and consumed by colonists in celebration of the first harvest. Ben Franklin admired the turkey so much [...]

Few people wield the power Oprah does. With one word from her, a celebrity can skyrocket from B-list to A-list or plummet from adored to abhorred. A book can be resurrected from the forgotten shelves and land smack-dab on the New York Times bestseller list. A charity can gain the funds it needs to continue [...]

What won’t you do to get your child to eat his fair share of fruits and veggies? You’ll make “choo-choo” and airplane noises. You’ll spiral a spoon through the air until he’s so amused he doesn’t notice it slip into his mouth. You’ll beg, plead and cry. You’ll bribe and bargain. You’ll swear on your [...]

Last week, I offered you some suggestions on how to incorporate fitness into your workday. One of those was sitting on an exercise ball, a change that would work your abs and improve your balance all day long. You probably read the tip with a touch of doubt. Who would trade in their chair for [...]

Your fragmented nights and drowsy days may be more than the result of light sleeping. You may suffer from sleep apnea, a condition in which you repeatedly stop breathing throughout the night, often for up to a minute or more. It can be caused by a blocked airway, your brain’s failure to signal your muscles [...]

Telling others that you are pregnant has its pros and cons. On the one hand, you are able to share your joy and excitement. On the other, you are essentially asking to be plagued with every opinion known to man or, truthfully, woman. Each person that you inform will have their own piece of advice [...]

Weight fluctuates. Your hormone levels, the types of food you eat and many other factors add and subtract ounces on a daily basis. Nothing reminds you of this more than yesterday’s perfect-fit jeans being a tad too tight today. But, sometimes the ups and downs are more than normal day to day changes. Sometimes, they [...]

It is almost Thanksgiving. In a few days, we will take a break from parades and football to sit down with our family and friends around a table laden with food. Turkey, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and gravy will incite great rumbles of hunger as we spoon each selection onto our plates. [...]

Several months ago, seven government officials in Japan’s Ise chose to guide their constituents by example. They began a “samurai” diet, designed to target obesity, cholesterol, blood pressure and inactivity.  Throughout the process, they met with setbacks, discouragement and even health crises, but they continued working and finally found success.  The mayor alone lost 12 [...]

20.8 million Americans have diabetes. At least one-third of them are unaware of their condition. As a result, they are making decisions daily that are worsening the disease rather than combating it. And unfortunately, many of those who know they have diabetes are making the same choices. They are opting for poor nutrition, little or [...]