We invite you to join us for a festive evening of good food, friends, and organic libations as we celebrate the over fifty nominees – and the ultimate winners – of the first annual Desert Health® Wellness Awards. The evening will include dining stations offering an array of power proteins, vegetarian delights, and Mediterranean delicacies.… Read more »
It was once thought that the term “post-traumatic stress” (PTS) was reserved exclusively for military personnel and veterans. More and more often, however, we are hearing the term used for many others— from women and children, to our friends and acquaintances. PTS not only occurs on the battlefield, but also in our communities and homes.… Read more »
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) prevalence is on the rise and recent estimates suggest it to be the third leading cause of death in the US behind cardiovascular disease and cancer.1 Affecting 30 million globally, women are at the epicenter of the epidemic and their chance of developing AD is now greater than that of breast cancer.2… Read more »
As we start a new school year in the Coachella Valley, many parents are seeking ways to help their children cope with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). According to a National Survey of Children’s Health conducted in 2011-2012 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 11% of school-aged children in the U.S. have… Read more »
Being a teen can be challenging, especially when you consider outside influences such as magazine covers and the desire to fit in with peers. Building on the success of a program she taught at the University of British Columbia, local yoga instructor Susan Alexander has developed a workshop for teens and tweens to address issues… Read more »
Creating a Desert Wellness Staycation Many of us take an exotic trip or adventure in the summer, only to return more exhausted than when we left, due to the stress and myriad of surprises that go along with out-of-town travel. Limited time and money, or merely the wish to simplify, might be reasons to stay… Read more »
Last November I had the privilege of working on Homeward Bound, a national fundraising telethon presented by Haven from the Storm Foundation that supports military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury. Programs and organizations like these are vital, as the incidence of PTSD among our military veterans is truly alarming. Recent… Read more »
Mariel Hemingway knows balance. The Academy Award-nominated actress continues to pursue her career, while also succeeding as a health activist and author, eco-enthusiast, executive producer, and a loving mother of two grown daughters. Getting to the “best place in her life” took hard work and much conscious thought. She is an inspiration to many and… Read more »
In Berlin, when I was 6 years young, my mother took me to the opera “Hansel and Gretel” by Engelbert Humperdinck (1812), based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale. It held many wonders for the musical imagination. My grandfather was a signal trumpeter with the Ulan cavalry under Emperor Wilhelm. My uncle Otto played the contra… Read more »
Reversing heart disease is a reality for many these days, and preventing it an attainable goal for millions more. It doesn’t simply take a pill or two from your doctor. It doesn’t happen solely by watching the foods you eat. Exercising alone isn’t enough, and there is no magic supplement. But through the advances in… Read more »
How many prescription drugs are you taking? One or two? You are not alone. Nearly 7 in 10 Americans are on at least one prescription drug, and more than half take two, according to a recent report by the Mayo Clinic and the Olmstead Medical Center.1 20 percent of us are on five or more.… Read more »
September is Yoga Awareness Month and we encourage you to give it a try. Although the popularity of yoga is newly on the rise in this country, it is one of the few practices which has sustained for thousands of years on multiple continents throughout the world. So there must be something to it, right?… Read more »
Many of us remember that chilling day in 1981 when the first diagnosis of AIDS was reported. It wasn’t long before this international epidemic took the world by storm as medical professionals and researchers worked feverishly to determine the cause, treatment and effect. Here in the Coachella Valley, a small group of concerned volunteers joined… Read more »
UPDATE: Eisenhower Wellness Institute has closed. When the Eisenhower Wellness Institute (EWI) launched three years ago, it was Eisenhower Medical Center’s inaugural effort to support the community by providing guidance for making healthy lifestyle choices. Programs were tailored to meet individual objectives concerning midlife changes, weight management, sports medicine, memory preservation, stress management, and integrative… Read more »
There are many ways that practitioners of yoga think about their practice. The term Hatha Yoga has been associated with physical training. Raja Yoga (also known as Royal Yoga) in contrast, has been associated with mental training by a variety of means. In practice, the two are inextricably bound. Anything one does is profoundly affected… Read more »
Bodhidharma, a Buddhist monk, is traditionally credited with introducing yoga to China in the 5th/6th century. He noted that the Shaolin monks were in poor physical health from sitting and meditating all day and needed to incorporate movement in their meditations for physical, as well as mental, well-being. Coming from the Indian subcontinent, he was… Read more »
As I look at three generations in my family–my mother, myself and my daughter–I find that proper nutrition and exercise are woven into the fabric of our family. My focus on fitness, contemplative practices such as meditation and yoga, and conscious eating are practices handed down from my mother, which I am now imparting to… Read more »
More than 2000 years ago, an Indian sage described yoga as “preventive, healing art, science, and philosophy” for the purpose of blending the mind, body, and spirit to achieve optimum health. Yoga is usually regarded as a practice most associated with healthy individuals. Some images portray yoga as a mystical, spiritual ritual associated with meditation… Read more »
When the audience at CVEP’s recent small business gathering were asked, “how many of you can identify stress?” only 5% raised their hand. It quickly became apparent that the first step in managing stress is being able to identify it. “Our cars tell us when the gas is low, but people aren’t born with dashboards,”… Read more »
Inspired by the federal government’s Healthy People 2010 program, which encourages fitness and disease prevention, the Desert Healthcare District built The Wellness Park at the corner of Via Miraleste and Tachevah Road in Palm Springs. The beautiful 5-acre park offers a quarter-mile walking/jogging loop with drinking fountains and benches at regular intervals, five exercise/fitness stations,… Read more »