For thousands of years, yogis and sages from eastern cultures have understood the importance of diaphragmatic and deep breathing. More recently, through the efforts of mind-body thought leaders such as Jon Kabat-Zinn and Herbert Benson, the paramount importance and health benefits of deep breathing practices have been widely utilized in treating anxiety disorders and stress… Read more »
Integrative Medicine
A young filmmaker and health care journalist, Max Lugavere, teamed with a concierge wellness physician in New York, Paul Grewal, MD, to write Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While Protecting Your Brain for Life (HarperWave, 2018). After reading three detailed books on brain health and nutrition: Brain Maker by David Perlmutter, MD,… Read more »
In the past, whenever Alzheimer’s was mentioned, as a society and community, we focused on the tragedy and sadness of this disease’s inevitable outcome. Today there is a different outlook: While Alzheimer’s is a disease, it is a person with a disease, and the focus should be on that person’s many faculties and abilities which… Read more »
It is important news for the healthy nutrition world when Mark Hyman, MD, comes out with a new book. Dr. Hyman is the director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine and chairman of the board of the Institute for Functional Medicine. He practices and directs the UltraWellness Center in Massachusetts and served as… Read more »
Shay Moraga is a triple negative breast cancer survivor and shares her journey with Desert Health® readers in an ongoing column… Do you ever wonder why so many people turn to yoga after a life changing experience? It is because yoga heals us in so many ways. Yoga and cancer both teach us to accept… Read more »
The prevalence of autoimmune diseases has risen astonishingly in recent years. The cause has been attributed to multiple environmental factors including toxic chemicals and heavy metals, dietary factors, ionizing radiation, prolonged emotional stress, medications, postmenopausal hormone replacement, bacteria and viruses. The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association estimates that at least 100 different autoimmune diseases have… Read more »
It would be too easy to simmer the development of Alzheimer’s and other dementias down to a single etiology. Rarely are things so simple. Still the connection between dementia and diabetes has been acknowledged for many years now. Many have gone so far as to use the term “type-3 diabetes” in reference to Alzheimer’s and… Read more »
All of us will eventually have to face the end of life, but some of us will find ourselves confronted with that prospect more quickly and unexpectedly than anticipated—after suffering an accident, for example, or when diagnosed with a terminal illness. Or it may be that a loved one must suddenly prepare emotionally and in… Read more »
Three Tests That Could Save Your Life The unthinkable happened recently. My friend who was an icon of health, an exercise model and leader in teaching healthy choices died at age 57. She was an inspiration and a genuinely wonderful person. She left kids and friends and a devoted husband. As we all reeled with… Read more »
A cholecystectomy, or gallbladder removal, is the second most common surgery in the United States. The removal is a safe, conventional treatment for the diseased organ, but it can often result in various complications on a daily basis. A cholecystectomy does relieve pain, but 50 percent of patients still have digestive symptoms afterwards1 and most… Read more »
The Coachella Valley is fortunate to have Steven Gundry, MD, practicing restorative medicine here since 2002. The former head of cardiothoracic surgery at Loma Linda University, he changed careers when he realized the power of nutrition to transform health. I share several patients with Dr. Gundry and they all sing his praises and are grateful… Read more »
An excerpt from this article previously appeared as an opinion editorial in The Desert Sun. Full article is to follow. It still surprises me to realize that over half of our country now permits the use of marijuana. Now with California’s legalization of recreational use, a new Green Rush is sweeping both the Golden State… Read more »
Wanderlust, the world-renowned yoga lifestyle festival, is coming to Palm Springs with their latest innovation, Wellspring. The 3-day gathering will take place October 26-28 and feature leading health and wellness speakers and a large expo, as well as yoga, meditation and other participatory activities that CEO Sean Hoess calls the “Wanderlust magic.” For those already… Read more »
It has been said that we can only see what we expect to see. If this is true, it poses a difficult hurdle in finding answers to questions about our health and well-being. So often a patient will come to see me because they feel un-well or have specific symptoms for which they would like… Read more »
Recently, I have been inundated with clients presenting with kidney dysfunction. Our kidneys remove waste from the body while keeping the body’s chemicals and water in balance. Keeping the kidneys healthy is extremely important for overall health, and diet plays a huge role in doing so. There are a number of diseases that can develop… Read more »
The use of magnetic fields as a healing modality has long been practiced in alternative medicine and is now gaining popularity in integrative practices. Pulsed electro-magnetic field therapy (or PEMF) uses magnetic fields to energize the body and boost circulation and oxygenation while delivering energy to cells helping them to function optimally. It has been… Read more »
It’s been around for millennia, but not until a few decades ago has the American public become truly aware of the ancient healing art of qigong (pronounced “chee-gong”). So just what is qigong? Qigong is one of the four branches of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the other three being the more widely known acupuncture, herbal… Read more »
Testosterone therapy has been a very popular topic in men’s health over the past decade, but not much attention has been given to testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in women. With over 75 years of peer-reviewed medical literature from around the world, the evidence is overwhelming that TRT can improve quality of life in both men… Read more »
Indio High Health & Nutritional Science Academy (HANS) teacher Jason Tate has a dream – to build a comprehensive wellness clinic in his high school – and he is almost there. Tate has brought many dreams to fruition in his tenure as a biology teacher at Indio High including the formation of the HANS academy… Read more »
A year ago, I was soul-searching. There were great things happening in my work, and I was passionate about the wellness programs we were providing. However, I was starting to see new possibilities for greater impact and for me to live a more balanced life. Eventually, what I wanted became clear, so I am now… Read more »