Most of us take vitamin supplements, but what about minerals? Minerals are natural organic matter created over time and found in the earth’s many elements. Before commercial farming, nutrient-dense minerals were plentiful in our soil and the foods we ate. Today’s fruits and vegetables are often void of these substances due to depleted soils, thus,… Read more »
With the “Food as Medicine” conference in town this September, I thought it fitting to spotlight one of the healthiest spices around, turmeric. Turmeric has climbed the spice ladder and is one of the latest crazes in food stardom. This fame is well deserved, from its sacred color to its long list of health benefits.… Read more »
Mark Hyman, MD is the author of more than 20 books on nutrition. Like me, he trained in family medicine and is now a champion for functional medicine. As a leader in the field, he has served as chairman of the Institute for Functional Medicine and the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine for many… Read more »
Nattokinase is an enzyme derived from the traditional Japanese food, natto, which is made from fermented soybeans and has been enjoyed for centuries. Natto is sticky with an earthy, slightly bitter taste, much like aged cheese and is believed to contribute to the longevity of the Japanese people. Nattokinase’s medicinal benefits were first discovered in… Read more »
Mother Nature’s goal for fall is to fatten us up for the cold winter ahead. So she gave us apples and pumpkins…which usually end up in irresistible pies…topped with ice cream. These nostalgic months tempt us with seasonal tastes we’ve been anticipating all year, and there is no reason to deny ourselves. With a few… Read more »
The date fruit is one of the oldest cultivated tree crops and has been grown for thousands of years, yet they are often misunderstood. When most people think of dates, they think of a sweet, sugary fruit that should be avoided, especially for those with diabetes. However, this is a proven misnomer. While not a… Read more »
Abbie Jaye, aka Chef AJ, is a nationally recognized champion of whole food, plant-based cooking and has been sharing its benefits for nearly four decades. I have had the pleasure of meeting Chef AJ several times and her enthusiasm and positive spirit are infectious. She has received numerous awards for her work and is recommended… Read more »
Mary Ann Martin was unaware of her Cahuilla Indian heritage until after her mother, Roberta Augustine, the last living member of the Augustine Band, died in 1986. In her early 20s at the time, she moved to the Coachella Valley with her three children and larger-than-life dreams to reclaim her history and re-establish the Augustine… Read more »
We are all survivors of food scarcity as our ancestors lived through multiple periods of famine. We survive by storing body fat. Richard J. Johnson, MD, of the University of Colorado, is a leading physician and scientist who studies fat storage as the “survival switch” to protect us from starvation. He shares his findings in… Read more »
For years, we’ve been told to cut back on red meat to improve health and reduce greenhouse emissions, and to eat more plants instead. For those of us who have, the one thing we can still crave is a big, juicy burger. How excited were we when Beyond Beef and Impossible Burgers hit the shelves? … Read more »
Glutathione has long played a crucial role in balancing oxidative stressors in our body which occur from such things as environmental toxicity, immune insults (infections and viruses) and inflammatory injury. Glutathione is one of your body’s most abundant and potent antioxidants. It aids in detoxification as a free-radical scavenger and plays an important role in… Read more »
Season is here! The sun is shining, swim suits are swimming, hot tubs are heating and cocktails are flowing. As the good times roll, it can take a toll and all too often, you feel it in the morning. The good news is you can now trade your traditional drinks for non-alcoholic (NA) cocktails without… Read more »
A study conducted in 2019 by the Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH), an AARP-sponsored independent collaborative of experts in their fields, concluded that keeping heart and blood vessels healthy reduces the risk of cognitive decline and dementia. The study showed that risks associated with cardiovascular disease like high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol… Read more »
If you’ve ever eaten a rich or greasy meal, then wondered how get rid of that heavy, sluggish feeling, let me introduce you to the perfect after dinner beverage to aid digestion and cut through the fat: pu-erh tea, a fermented drink from Yunnan Province in southern China that alters your gut bacteria and lowers… Read more »
If your 2022 resolutions include losing weight and/or enhancing mental sharpness, lowering carbohydrate intake is a good place to start; then, you can easily expedite your efforts by adding MCT oil. This natural, coconut additive can effectively curb your appetite, enhance energy and fuel brain cells when coupled with a healthy low-carb diet.1,3 Medium chain… Read more »
The sweet smell of cinnamon and sugar can bring back fond memories of grandma’s kitchen, especially this time of year. But too many of her holiday treats can leave you stuffed as a stocking and sleepy as a sugar plum fairy. If baking is on your Christmas list, why not consider natural sweeteners that taste… Read more »
There are few foods more comforting and versatile than butter. Although butter has been renounced by the medical and health community for years, it isn’t all bad. It’s true that butter is predominantly a saturated fat, and there is strong evidence that correlates the overconsumption of saturated fats with obesity and heart disease. However, maybe… Read more »
Fruit, by definition, is the sweet and fleshy product of a tree or other plant that contains seed and can be eaten as food. This has been a favorite point of gained knowledge for all my children around the fourth grade. They are fascinated that cucumbers and tomatoes are actually fruits, and not vegetables, and… Read more »
Microscopic nutrition is the study of your blood, cells and plasma. It offers the opportunity to see how healthy these life liquids are and what is really going on inside your cell body. The process involves a small prick of the finger to obtain a few drops of blood, which is then viewed under a… Read more »
Have you ever noticed the red and yellow bulbs growing on cacti? Did you know that these colorful little gems are prickly pear, a nutritious superfood that grows abundantly in our desert? They sprout from the fantail cactus and ripen from July through September. However, they earn their name, and harvesting can be a bit… Read more »
