Monday, December 31, 2012

FDA Approves First New Tuberculosis Drug In 40 Years

FDA Approves First New Tuberculosis Drug In 40 Years

WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved a Johnson & Johnson tuberculosis drug that is the first new medicine to fight the deadly infection in more than four decades.

The agency approved J&J's pill, Sirturo, for use with older drugs to fight a hard-to-treat strain of tuberculosis that has not responded to other medications. However, the agency cautioned that the drug carries risks of potentially deadly heart problems and should be prescribed carefully by doctors.

Roughly one-third of the world's population is estimated to be infected with the bacteria causing tuberculosis. The disease is rare in the U.S., but kills about 1.4 million people a year worldwide. Of those, about 150,000 succumb to the increasingly common drug-resistant forms of the disease. About 60 percent of all cases are concentrated in China, India, Russia and Eastern Europe.

Sirturo, known chemically as bedaquiline, is the first medicine specifically designed for treating multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. That's a form of the disease that cannot be treated with at least two of the four primary antibiotics used for tuberculosis.

The standard drugs used to fight the disease were developed in the 1950s and 1960s.

"The antibiotics used to treat it have been around for at least 40 years and so the bacterium has become more and more resistant to what we have," said Chrispin Kambili, global medical affairs leader for J&J's Janssen division.

The drug carries a boxed warning indicating that it can interfere with the heart's electrical activity, potentially leading to fatal heart rhythms.

"Sirturo provides much-needed treatment for patients who have don't have other therapeutic options available," said Edward Cox, director of the FDA's antibacterial drugs office. "However, because the drug also carries some significant risks, doctors should make sure they use it appropriately and only in patients who don't have other treatment options."

Nine patients taking Sirturo died in company testing compared with two patients taking a placebo. Five of the deaths in the Sirturo group seemed to be related to tuberculosis, but no explanation was apparent for the remaining four.

Despite the deaths, the FDA approved the drug under its accelerated approval program, which allows the agency to clear innovative drugs based on promising preliminary results.

Last week, the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen criticized that approach, noting the drug's outstanding safety issues.

"The fact that bedaquiline is part of a new class of drug means that an increased level of scrutiny should be required for its approval," the group states. "But the FDA had not yet answered concerns related to unexplained increases in toxicity and death in patients getting the drug."

The FDA said it approved the drug based on two mid-stage studies enrolling 440 patients taking Sirturo. Both studies were designed to measure how long it takes patients to be free of tuberculosis.

Results from the first trial showed most patients taking Sirturo plus older drugs were cured after 83 days, compared with 125 days for those taking a placebo plus older drugs. The second study showed most Sirturo patients were cured after 57 days.

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Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Sunday, December 30, 2012

LOOK: World's Oldest Identical Twins Celebrate 103rd Birthday

LOOK: World's Oldest Identical Twins Celebrate 103rd Birthday

On Monday, the world's oldest living identical twins celebrated their 103 birthday!

Charlotte Eisgrou and Ann Primack of South Florida and Daytona Beach, Fla. are still in the best of health, despite their age. Neither uses a hearing aide or reading glasses, reported the Daily Mail.

"I feel wonderful. I have all my faculties," Eisgrou told the Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Although the pair was unable to spend their birthday together since they are both recovering from recent falls, they still consider each other best friends.

Story continues after photo

oldest living twins

The twins were born two months premature in Chicago in 1909. They weighed a combined 7 lbs. Since they were born before incubators were invented, they wrapped in blankets and put in the door of a stove to keep warm, reported the Daily Mail.

From then on they remained inseparable.

Eisgrou moved to Florida in 1949, and Primack followed her in 1971. There, they enjoyed the majority of their lives, outlived their husbands, and had one son each.

They're both astonished by their record-breaking age.

"I can't believe it, that I've reached that age. The good thing is our minds are sharp. That's the only good thing," Primack told ABC.

Amazingly, the twins continue to live almost completely independently.

Eisgrou started driving at age 78, and didn't stop until four years ago, when her now 71-year-old son told her "I shouldn't get a new car with all the hijackings," reported the Daytona Beach News-Journal.

They both use a cane to walk, but are healthy and independent. Primack even survived ovarian cancer years ago.

Their longevity may in part be due to their sense of humor. They recalled to the Daytona Journal that they often used to switch husbands when they visited each other.

"I used to visit Daytona and we'd switch husbands and walk in the temple," Primack said, "And they'd say to me, 'Charlotte, you look so good.'"

"Nobody ever knew the difference. And by the time they found out, they were hysterical," Eisgrou told ABC. "We had so much fun."

"They are very funny," Jerry Primack, Ann's son, added. "They bicker constantly."

Although the sisters have always been close, they cannot agree on what has led them to live such a long life.

According to the Daily Mail, Primack credits genes and "never being fat" while her twin Eisgrou says it's because she drank lots of milk.

"Everybody asks me that. I don't know what it was," Primack told ABC. "I didn't watch my food when I was young. I smoked. We all smoked."

Eisgrou added: "I don't know the secret to a long life. And I wouldn't tell you if I knew it."

"We love each other and we always will," Primack told ABC.

Eisgrou and Primack are the second oldest twins in the world, born 39 days after non-identical twins Edith Ritchie and Evelyn Middleton from Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

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Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Cough Syrup Kills More Than 30

Cough Syrup Kills More Than 30

By ZAHEER BABAR, The Associated Press

LAHORE, Pakistan -- Authorities are investigating cough syrup believed to have killed 33 people in eastern Pakistan in the past three days, a government official said Saturday, the second time in recent months that suspect medicine is thought to have caused multiple deaths.

Also Saturday, an explosion ripped through a passenger bus while it was at a terminal in the southern city of Karachi, killing four people and wounding 40 others, police and hospital officials said. It's unclear if the blast was caused by a bomb or a gas cylinder exploding.

The deaths from the cough syrup occurred in Gujranwala and villages surrounding the city, said Abdul Jabbar Shaheen, the top administrative official in Gujranwala. Another 54 people are being treated at hospitals in the city who are also believed to have consumed the syrup. Those involved are thought to be laborers or drug addicts who drank the syrup to get high, said Shaheen.

Chemical samples collected from the victims' stomachs contained dextromethorphan, a synthetic morphine derivative used in cough syrup that can have mind-altering effects if consumed in large quantities, said Shaheen. It is being investigated whether the people affected by the syrup in Gujranwala drank too much of it, or whether there was a problem with the medicine itself, he said.

Twenty-three people died in the nearby city of Lahore in November after drinking bad cough syrup sold under the brand name Tyno. They were also described at the time as people who consumed the drug to get high.

Shaheen said the cough syrup involved in the incidents in and around Gujranwala was not sold under a single brand. He said there were some people in the city involved in the business of making cough syrup specifically to sell to drug addicts, and officials were trying to arrest the culprits.

Officials temporarily closed one Lahore-based pharmaceutical company whose cough syrup was found in the possession of some of those affected in Gujranwala and were investigating whether it caused any of the deaths, said Shaheen.

The blast that ripped through the bus in Karachi on Saturday set the vehicle on fire and reduced it to little more than a charred skeleton. Police were trying to determine whether the explosion was caused by a bomb or a gas cylinder, said police spokesman Imran Shaukat. Many buses in Pakistan run on natural gas.

The explosion killed at least four people and wounded 40 others, some of whom were in critical condition, said Seemi Jamali, a doctor at the hospital in Karachi where they were being treated.

Karachi has a long history of political, ethnic and sectarian violence. It is also believed to be home to many Taliban militants who have fled U.S. drone attacks and Pakistani army operations in the country's northwest.

____

Associated Press writer Adil Jawad contributed to this report from Karachi, Pakistan.

Earlier on HuffPost:


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Friday, December 28, 2012

Dunkin' Donuts Is Testing Gluten-Free Treats

Dunkin' Donuts Is Testing Gluten-Free Treats

Dunkin' Donuts, the company beloved for their use of sugary, less-than-healthy ingredients, has begun testing a gluten-free line of products in a few locations in southern Florida and the Boston area.

According to the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, the gluten-free products will be individually wrapped and are "dangerously delicious."

When asked about the additions to their menu, a spokesperson for Dunkin' Donuts claimed that the testing has been well-received. We haven't gotten any word yet about if or when Dunkin' Donuts could bring the gluten-free line to more stores across the country.

The coffee and breakfast giant joins a slew of other fast food chains adding gluten free items to their menys, including Wendy's, Arby's, Domino's and Chick-Fil-A. More broadly, sales of gluten-free products in the U.S. have been skyrocketing over the past few years; They rose 18 % on a dollar basis from 2011 to 2012 alone.

Also on HuffPost:

  • The Doughnut Vault; Chicago, IL

    Gilt Bar owner Brendan Sodikoff started selling big, fresh doughnuts out of a brick storefront in the spring of 2011, and lines continue from early morning until the handful of flavors sell out. Outside, there's a communal table for enjoying old-fashioned, chocolate-glazed and sometimes pistachio-covered rings, with $1 cups of coffee. <a href="http://thedoughnutvault.tumblr.com/" target="_hplink">thedoughnutvault.tumblr.com</a> <strong>Plus: <a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/americas-best-regional-desserts" target="_hplink">America's Best Regional Desserts</a> </strong>

  • Betty Ann Food Shop; Boston, MA

    This East Boston bakery, which has been around since 1931, specializes in classic sugar-rolled doughnuts, including a hefty cake option and rustic jelly-filled balls of fried dough. 565 Bennington Street. <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/best-grilled-cheese-in-the-us " target="_hplink">Plus: Best Grilled Cheese in the U.S.</a></strong>

  • Clear Flour Bread Bakery; Brookline, MA

    Christy Timon opened her bakery in 1982, hiring Abram Faber to help with deliveries. The now-married couple are revered as early champions of classic European baking. They continue to hunt down rare recipes, like light, baked currant doughnuts adapted from Robert Jörin, a third-generation Swiss baker at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. <a href="http://www.clearflourbread.com/" target="_hplink">clearflourbread.com</a> <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/americas-best-coffee-bars" target="_hplink">Plus: America's Best Coffee Bars</a></strong>

  • Primo's Donuts; Los Angeles, CA

    This mom-and-pop shop, run by Celia and Ralph Primo since 1956, still sells fantastic cake and yeast-raised doughnuts for less than $1 a piece. The soft, glazed rings are super-classic. <a href="http://www.primosdonuts.com/" target="_hplink">primosdonuts.com</a> <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/best-hot-chocolate-in-the-us" target="_hplink">Plus: Best Hot Chocolate in the U.S.</a></strong>

  • Doughnut Plant; New York, NY

    At his new Chelsea location, Lower East Side doughnut pioneer Mark Israel masterminded a glazed oatmeal cake doughnut, sprinkled with the usual granola suspects like dried fruit bits, oats and seeds. <a href="http://doughnutplant.com" target="_hplink">doughnutplant.com</a> <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/best-pizza-places-in-the-us" target="_hplink">Plus: Best Pizza Places in the U.S.</a></strong>

  • Dynamo Donuts; San Francisco, CA

    Owner Sara Spearin's menu changes all the time, with inspired flavors like lemon-pistachio and "banana de leche," filled with caramel-coated fruit. The bacon-maple doughnut, with smoky sautéed apples, is now available every day. <a href="http://dynamodonut.com" target="_hplink">dynamodonut.com</a> <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/best-burgers-in-the-us" target="_hplink">Plus: Best Burgers in the U.S.</a></strong>

  • Top Pot Doughnuts; Seattle, WA

    Some of the best doughnuts in the Northwest can be found in this two-story flagship beneath the Monorail. Top Pot's oversize rings and fritters come in flavors like chocolate-peanut and Valley Girl lemon -- and some have decorative flourishes like "feather boas," made from pink icing topped with shredded coconut. <a href="http://toppotdoughnuts.com" target="_hplink">toppotdoughnuts.com</a> <strong><a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/americas-best-doughnuts/9" target="_hplink">Click Here for More of America's Best Doughnuts</a></strong>


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Thursday, December 27, 2012

HGH Supplement Store

HGH Supplement Store
Are you too skinny or fat or have wrinkles on your face? All these questions make you feel shy to answer. Every one of us wants a good looking face and body. In today's world we are too busy; we cannot just stay dependent on diet and workout because we don't get time to do all this. Moreover we are so much dependent on the luxuries of life that we use cosmetics which have so many side effects. But, HGH (Human Growth Hormone) is luckily the product which gives you result in a short duration without side effects. The best thing about HGH products is that they can be used by both men and women.
Source: EzineArticles.com

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Arianna Huffington: Merry Christmas, HuffPosters!

Arianna Huffington: Merry Christmas, HuffPosters!

Merry Christmas, HuffPosters! As is our tradition, we have stuffed our Featured Blog Post stocking with a line-up of holiday inspired offerings. I am spending Christmas in Hawaii with my daughters, my sister, and my ex-husband -- reflecting on the year gone by and following my own advice on reducing holiday stress (if you missed it, you can read the post here). And I am continuing another personal tradition: spending more time today on HuffPost's Impact and Good News sections, celebrating those committed to making things better, than on our Politics section, fuming over those who are making things worse. I'm also filled with gratitude and counting my blessings, which, along with my family, include our incredible HuffPost community -- our HuffPost team, our bloggers, our commenters, and all of our readers. You have been the greatest gift of all.

Follow Arianna Huffington on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ariannahuff


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Friday, December 21, 2012

14 Immune-Boosting Recipes

14 Immune-Boosting Recipes

Flu season arrived early this year, so it's already time for the sickness-prone to start devising plans to defend themselves from the virus. One way to boost your immune system is to add a few super-foods, such as garlic and broccoli, to your diet.

We know it's tempting to spend the holidays snacking, boozing and indulging in pies, but saving room for a few almonds or cups of green tea can make a difference.

We realize that eating healthily can be bland, especially during cookie and eggnog season, so we've tracked down 14 creative, tasty takes on super-food cuisine:

Want to read more from HuffPost Taste? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Tumblr.

  • Garlic

    Get the <a href="http://www.theendlessmeal.com/honey-garlic-chicken/">Honey Garlic Chicken recipe from The Endless Meal</a>

  • Broccoli

    Get the <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/broccoli_chicken_and_almond_saute/">Broccoli, Chicken and Almond Sautee recipe from Simply Recipes</a>

  • Oysters

    Get the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/27/ldquonuderdquo-raw-oy_n_1061367.html">"Nude" Raw Oysters recipe</a>

  • Grapefruit

    Get the <a href="http://www.sweetsugarbean.com/2012/01/lighten-up-grapefruit-avocado-salad.html">Grapefruit & Avocado Salad with Shrimp recipe from Sweet Sugar Bean</a>

  • Yogurt

    Get the <a href="http://whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/granola-parfait-homemade-granola/">Granola Parfait recipe from White on Rice Couple</a>

  • Cabbage

    Get the <a href="http://www.immerwachsen.com/2011/09/07/red-cabbage-sauerkraut-pickles/">Red Cabbage Sauerkraut recipe from Immer Wachsen</a>

  • Oats

    Get the Oatmeal Muffins with Raisins, Dates, and Walnuts recipe from Simply Recipes

  • Red bell peppers

    Get the <a href="http://dineanddish.net/2012/05/its-a-salad-social-recipe-robust-bell-pepper-salad/">Bell Pepper Salad recipe from Dine & Dish</a>

  • Mushrooms

    Get the <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/creamy_green_beans_and_mushrooms/">Creamy Green Beans and Mushrooms recipe from Simply Recipes</a>

  • Chicken soup

    Get the <a href="http://www.howsweeteats.com/2012/12/chicken-pot-pie-soup/">Chicken Pot Pie Soup recipe from How Sweet It Is</a>

  • Salmon

    Get the <a href="http://steamykitchen.com/9069-open-face-salmon-sandwich-with-sweet-mustard-sauce-2.html">Open Face Salmon Sandwich with Sweet Mustard Sauce recipe from Steamy Kitchen </a>

  • Turmeric

    Get the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/06/shrimp-and-sweet-corn-cur_n_1325409.html">Shrimp and Sweet Corn Curry recipe</a>

  • Sweet potatoes

    Get the <a href="http://whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/sweet-potato-croquettes/">Sweet Potato Croquettes recipe from White on Rice Couple</a>

  • Green tea

    Get the <a href="http://asimplyrawlife.blogspot.com/2012/10/drink-matcha-green-tea-latte-with.html">Green Tea Latte with Almond Milk recipe from A Simply Raw Life</a>

Also on HuffPost:


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Healthy Skin Diet: Why Juicing Is the Key to Young, Vibrant Skin

Do you struggle with skin issues such as eczema, acne, or oily skin? Do you have a wedding, vacation, or other important event coming soon? If you want to have healthy, younger, vibrant skin, juicing is the answer! Read here

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Hepatitis C Drug Could Cause Potentially Fatal Skin Reactions

Hepatitis C Drug Could Cause Potentially Fatal Skin Reactions


Dec 19 (Reuters) - Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc warned on Wednesday its hepatitis C drug Incivek, which is used in conjunction with two other products, can cause serious, potentially fatal skin reactions.

Skin rashes were already a known side effect of Incivek, but an analysis of data since the drug was approved in the United States in 2011 has revealed a number of cases in which the reaction was more severe than those seen in clinical trials of the drug. Some were fatal.

The findings have led Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Vertex to place an enhanced warning, surrounded by a black box, on the drug's prescribing label. Black box warnings are the most serious available.

Incivek is Vertex's flagship product. It is approved to treat hepatitis C, a viral infection that affects the liver, in combination with interferon and ribavirin.

The company said the fatal cases of skin reactions occurred in patients who continued to receive Incivek combination treatment after a serious skin reaction was identified.

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Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Have You Ever Considered Medi Spa for Age Reduction Treatments?

Have You Ever Considered Medi Spa for Age Reduction Treatments?
There was a time when people used to visit medical centers to get even a small cosmetic surgery treatment. Today people know that they do not need to visit a doctor or hospital to get a cosmetic surgery like reducing the signs of aging. The advanced spa salons have multiple staffs and facilities at their place and so it is very easy to get such treatments done there.
Source: EzineArticles.com

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Chuck Gomez: Getting in the Christmas Spirit: Dad Knows Best

Chuck Gomez: Getting in the Christmas Spirit: Dad Knows Best

This Christmas, I put up a big tree. It was a five foot tall Fraser Fir -- the first large Christmas tree I had decorated in ten years. My friends encouraged me to go all out. I had survived a massive heart attack and two heart-related surgeries in the space of six months. My friends told me it was time to celebrate. I had lived through my ordeal for important reasons, they said. One special one -- to experience the holidays in all their splendor. And so I have. There's nothing like the smell of a real tree. The pine scent filled the room as I listened to holiday music. One of my friends helped me thread the blue and green twinkling lights. I carefully placed a variety of ornaments on my "arbol de Navidad." There were globes enscribed with the words from the Christmas song "The Twelve Days of Christmas." There were also cherubs with wings, smiling snowmen and angel in swings. My friend gave me an ornament depicting the Empire State Building. I hung delicate glass icicles on the boughs. And under the tree I spread out a bejeweled skirt. It belonged to a close friend's mother who had passed away. It was part of her Christmas tradition, and now it was a part of mine. I arranged some gifts under the tree -- but also a small embroidered red box. It had special meaning. Inside were the ashes of my dog and best pal, Nicky. He passed away in September. My doggie had celebrated 14 Christmases with me. Now Nicky was gone, but I felt he was certainly here with me in spirit. I stepped back and appraised the tree. It wasn't just a nicely decorated tree you might see in a store. It was deeply personal and festooned with ornaments I had collected over the years. Most were blue and silver. And each one brought back a special Christmas memory.

In previous years I had substituted the tree for a Christmas setting on my dining room table. I would prepare an improbable holiday tableau (an angel next to a nutcracker prince and a stuffed animal doggie wearing a Santa hat looking over the Baby Jesus in a manger). And as I placed these symbols of Christmas next to each other, I thought of my father. He taught me that there is no Christmas setting that is incongruous as long as it comes from the heart. And after all, isn't Christmas the time when tacky triumphs (plastic garlands, aluminum-colored icicles, tiny lights set on a timer)? Let me explain further.

Two years ago, at Thanksgiving, I traveled from New York to Hialeah to celebrate the holiday with my parents. My father (who is 85) takes care of my mother, 90, who has Alzheimer's disease. It can be a heartbreaking experience, but my father doesn't believe in self-pity. He believes that if you follow a routine, the act of going through the motions -- however mundane -- offers its own rewards. I recall that every afternoon at precisely the same time, my father fed my mom applesauce in which he had ground all the pills she needs to take for the day. He did this with a bright smile and many times, he told me, my mom rewarded him by singing an indecipherable tune. He may have never heard the song before, but he loved it.

And this brings us to Christmas. Every year for as far back as I can remember, my father has relished the art of preparing for Christmas. That year -- despite the death of some close relatives and the stress of being my mother's constant caregiver -- was no different. And so when I arrived at the home where I had grown up, he was eager to show me how he had decorated the house.

He led me by the hand and walked me outside to the front lawn. He showed me the foldable carboard Santa holding a sign that read "Merry Christmas." Next to that is a snowman who greeted passerby with "Let it Snow." Not far away was another faux Santa who proclaimed "Happy Holidays!" In front of those figures were three-dimensional and brightly lit foldables of an angel, Mary, Joseph, Jesus and the Three Kings. The foldable figures bathed in the glow of hundreds of twinkling lights he had arranged on the house in an intricate pattern.

If you stepped futher back (almost into the street) the incongruity hit you harder. On one side of the home he had attached a tile of "The Immaculate Conception" to the wall. On the other side, there was a tile of Cuba's Patron Saint, the "Virgin of Charity."

This Thanksgiving, I went to visit him under very different circumstances. It was the first time I had seen my dad since my heart attack in May. He embraced me tightly and whispered in my ear, "so glad you're with us, son." He led me to my mother's room. She smiled broadly as I walked toward her. I felt myself beginning to cry. She looked so frail and weak. She weighed about 90 pounds. My mom seemed like she was disappearing before me. But then I looked into her eyes. Although she didn't recognize me, her face brightened. It was still my same beautiful mom. Alzheimer's could not change that. I turned to dad. I asked him why he had not put up Christmas decorations. "I'm a little behind this year," he said. "But soon, soon," he added. My mother's illness has worried him. It has slowed him down a bit. But this is a man who has always rallied for Christmas. A few days later, my brother sent me photographs of my dad's Christmas display. There were all the familiar Santas and snowmen and penguins, too. He waited this year but I didn't question why. Dad always knows best.

During these tough times, when many of us are hurting economically, it can be difficult to get into the spirit of Christmas. We are especially saddened as a nation by the tragic and senseless shooting in Newton, Conn. So many innocent lives were lost. And so many families will experience a tragic holiday. But there is still hope. The Christmas spirit cannot be extinguished. It is there in what we give others. It is there in the love we show our children, godchildren, family and friends. It is there in the lessons we teach. We are living examples. The spirit of Christmas may strike you in the sound of a child's laughter as he stands in line to see Santa at the nearest mall. Or the spirit of the holiday might fill your heart as you gaze in wonderment at decorations that may seem ridiculous but are really sublime. I know one thing, My father's face is filled with the spirit of Christmas. So there is no excuse to withdraw from the hub-bub and whirlwind of this special holiday. There can be no Bah Humbug! As cars drive up Hialeah's 62nd Street, they can see my dad's proudly decorated home, even from a distance. It shines bright like a star on top of a Christmas Tree -- as bright as a star over a manger in Bethelem. Tacky, you say. Incongruous? Perhaps. But my father understands the holiday. It lives in his heart. And he's taught me to make it live in mine.

And so that evening, Christmases ago, I arranged my "dad-like" setting of improbable Christmas figures and ornaments atop a round table, and tried to be as careful as my father. In the middle, I placed a large, cobalt blue vase filled with branches of red berries. Next to that, I put an angel dressed in blue with a glittery silver crown and beside her, a nutcracker prince. Laying up against the vase was a large Christmas ornament of Chiquita Banana. And in front of them all, a figurine of the Baby Jesus lying in a manger. Two little stuffed pets -- doggies wearing Santa hats -- stood guard. "Silent Night" played on the stereo. On that night ,it hit me: the Christmas spirit! It was there. It was really there. And it's here this Christmas too -- for all of us -- if we just open our eyes and our hearts. These are precious lessons learned from a Santa-like father at Christmas time. And these are lessons I cherish.


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Monday, December 17, 2012

How Proper Nutrition Prevents And Cures Gray Hair

There are many people who want to know how proper nutrition prevents and cures gray hair. Eating right can have a number of benefits for the body, however, it is first important to note the many detrimental effects that the wrong foods can produce. For this reason, it is often better to focus on eliminating the wrong products from your diet and then work on building a healthier eating plan from this point. Source

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Erin Motzenbecker: Top 3 Foam Roll Exercises

Erin Motzenbecker: Top 3 Foam Roll Exercises

If you haven't been asleep for all of 2012, you've probably heard the praises of foam rolling. I'm not one to jump on trends for the trend's sake, but this is no joke! Foam rolling helps to create and maintain long, smooth muscles by massaging out the knots and releasing trigger points. It's also a fantastic and cheap way to release the fascia, which I'm sure you already know all about! Unless a doctor tells you otherwise, this is a fabulous addition to any healthy living routine.

Here are my three favorite exercises on the foam roller:

1. IT Band stretch: Lie on your side, using your hands for support. Bend the top leg to unload some of the pressure and maintain balance. Roll from your hip down to the knee and be sure to rest on any soft spots to encourage release.


2. Hip/Glute Release: Sit down on the meaty part of the muscle and roll around to release. Use one or both legs to increase or decrease the amount of support.


3. Quad Massage: Lie on the roller and roll from hip to knee using one foot extended to balance if necessary or if pressure is too intense with both lifted.


I'd even go as far as saying it's as good as a sports massage, so you can save yourself the $60 and pick up a foam roller for $15 instead.

For more by Erin Motzenbecker, click here.

For more on fitness and exercise, click here.

Follow Erin Motzenbecker on Twitter: www.twitter.com/erinmotz

FOLLOW HEALTH AND FITNESS


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Medical Marijuana Activists Demand A Clear Policy From Obama

Medical Marijuana Activists Demand A Clear Policy From Obama

SAN FRANCISCO -- President Barack Obama says he won't go after pot users in Colorado and Washington, two states that just legalized the drug for recreational use. But advocates argue the president said the same thing about medical marijuana – and yet U.S. attorneys continue to force the closure of dispensaries across the U.S.

Welcome to the confusing and often conflicting policy on pot in the U.S., where medical marijuana is legal in many states, but it is increasingly difficult to grow, distribute or sell it. And at the federal level, at least officially, it is still an illegal drug everywhere.

Obama's statement Friday provided little clarity in a world where marijuana is inching ever so carefully toward legitimacy.

That conflict is perhaps the greatest in California, where the state's four U.S. Attorneys criminally prosecuted large growers and launched a coordinated crackdown on the state's medical marijuana industry last year by threatening landlords with property forfeiture actions. Hundreds of pot shops went out of business.

Steve DeAngelo, executive director of an Oakland, Calif., dispensary that claims to be the nation's largest, called for a federal policy that treats recreational and medical uses of the drug equally.

"If we're going to recognize the rights of recreational users, then we should certainly protect the rights of medical cannabis patients who legally access the medicine their doctors have recommended," he said.

The government is planning to soon release policies for dealing with marijuana in Colorado and Washington, where federal law still prohibits pot, as elsewhere in the country.

"It would be nice to get something concrete to follow," said William Osterhoudt, a San Francisco criminal defense attorney representing government officials in Mendocino County who recently received a demand from federal investigators for detailed information about a local system for licensing growers of medical marijuana.

Assemblyman Tom Ammiano said he was frustrated by Obama's comments because the federal government continues to shutter dispensaries in states with medical marijuana laws, including California.

"A good step here would be to stop raiding those legal dispensaries who are doing what they are allowed to do by law," said the San Francisco Democrat. "There's a feeling that the federal government has gone rogue on hundreds of legal, transparent medical marijuana dispensaries, so there's this feeling of them being in limbo. And it puts the patients, the businesses and the advocates in a very untenable place."

Obama, in an interview with ABC's Barbara Walters, said Friday that federal authorities have "bigger fish to fry" when it comes to targeting recreational pot smokers in Colorado and Washington.

Some advocates said the statement showed the president's willingness to allow residents of states with marijuana laws to use the drug without fear of federal prosecution.

"It's a tremendous step forward," said Joe Elford, general counsel for Americans for Safe Access. "It suggests the feds are taking seriously enough the idea that there should be a carve-out for states with marijuana laws."

Obama's statements on recreational use mirror the federal policy toward states that allow marijuana use for medical purposes.

"We are not focusing on backyard grows with small amounts of marijuana for use by seriously ill people," said Lauren Horwood, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner in Sacramento. "We are targeting money-making commercial growers and distributors who use the trappings of state law as cover, but they are actually abusing state law."

Alison Holcomb, who led the legalization drive in Washington state, said she doesn't expect Obama's comment to prompt the federal government to treat recreational marijuana and medical marijuana differently.

"At this point, what the president is looking at is a response to marijuana in general. The federal government has never recognized the difference between medical and non-medical marijuana," she said. "I don't think this is the time he'd carve out separate policies. I think he's looking for a more comprehensive response."

Washington voters approved a medical marijuana law in 1998, and dispensaries have proliferated across the state in recent years.

Last year, Gov. Chris Gregoire vetoed legislation that would have created a state system for licensing medical dispensaries over concern that it would require state workers to violate the federal Controlled Substances Act.

For the most part, dispensaries in western Washington have been left alone. But federal authorities did conduct raids earlier this year on dispensaries they said were acting outside the state law, such as selling marijuana to non-patients. Warning letters have been sent to dispensaries that operate too close to schools.

"What we've seen is enforcement of civil laws and warnings, with a handful of arrests of people who were operating outside state law," Holcomb said.

Eastern Washington has seen more raids because the U.S. attorney there is more active, Holcomb added.

Colorado's marijuana measure requires lawmakers to allow commercial pot sales, and a state task force that will begin writing those regulations meets Monday.

State officials have reached out to the Justice Department seeking help on regulating a new legal marijuana industry but haven't heard back.

DeAngelo said Friday that the Justice Department should freeze all pending enforcement actions against legal medical cannabis providers and review its policies to make sure they're consistent with the president's position. He estimated federal officials have shuttered 600 dispensaries in the state and 1,000 nationwide.

DeAngelo's Harborside Health Center is facing eviction after the U.S. attorney in San Francisco pressured his landlord to stop harboring what the government considers an illegal business.

"While it's nice to hear these sorts of positive words from the president, we are facing efforts by the Justice Department to shut us down, so it's hard for me to take them seriously," DeAngelo said.

The dispensary has a hearing Thursday in federal court on the matter.

__

Associated Press writers Terry Collins in San Francisco and Manuel Valdes in Seattle contributed to this report.

Also on HuffPost:


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Thursday, December 13, 2012

4 Foods That Accelerate Aging

4 Foods That Accelerate Aging
Did you know that certain foods cause accelerated aging? Here are 4 foods that you need to cut out of your diet if you are interested in looking 5 or 10 years younger!
Source: EzineArticles.com

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Christine Hassler: On Getting Over Regret

Christine Hassler: On Getting Over Regret

Regret. We've all felt it at some point. Some of you are feeling it right now, and you are suffering because of it.

Something did or did not happen the way you wanted. You did or didn't do something the way you wished you would have. And you want more than anything to be able to rewind time and get a do-over. You've replayed scenarios over and over in your head, thinking of all the things you could have done or said. You're trapped in a shoulda/coulda/woulda perspective, and it's a miserable place to be, isn't it?

As much as you are aware that regret is a miserable place to hang out, you cannot seem to be free of it. But I have good news: Liberation from regret is 100 percent possible! And it is essential to your well-being that you commit to letting go of regret. Why? Well, because it feels awful, and feeling awful does not support the co-creation of an awesome life. Regret keeps you in the past, and when you are consistently looking behind you, you do not notice what is right in front of you. And, when you are hanging out in regret, you may be feeling depressed and beating yourself up -- and that's not useful in any way!

So how do you get out of regret? First, understand that when you are experiencing regret, you are evaluating a situation that happened in the past with the awareness you have in the present.

Let me break it down: Something happens. You react, you make a choice, you take an action. Then time passes. And you think about what happened. You analyze it, obsess over it and talk ad nauseam about it with your friends. You continue to gather more information and knowledge. Then you take all this awareness and information that you have now, and beat yourself up because you did not know it then. It is totally unfair and unreasonable to take what you know now and use it to beat yourself up for what you didn't know then.

Please take this in: You really truly did the best you could at the time! Trust me. And until you really take in this truth, you will stay stuck in regret.

The wonderful thing about regret is that it gets your attention and offers you a tremendous opportunity for learning and transformation. But in order to do that, you have to let go of the shoulda/coulda/wouldas!

Now that you have the awareness that it is unreasonable to use what you know in the present to judge your actions in the past, you are ready to move on to a three-step process that will support you in fully moving out of regret.

Step One: Look for the lessons. Take some time to do some journaling about what you learned from whatever it is that you are regretting. What did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about someone else? What patterns do you see? What are you noticing about your reactions and responses? All situations in life are rich with learning. When you look at your past, view it from a learning-oriented perspective rather than a shoulda/coulda/woulda perspective.

Rewinding time is not possible, but "do-overs" actually are. Of course, we cannot get a do-over of the exact same situation, but the universe will deliver to you similar situations where you will get to practice what you learned. The first time it happened, you didn't know any better. The second time you'll know a little more, so you can do a little better.

Step Two: Take action. Regret keeps us stuck in the past, so ask yourself what you need to do right now to support yourself in moving forward. Is there support you need? Is there a conversation you need to have? Are there some boundaries you need to set and hold yourself accountable to? Regret is a reactive response. Identifying and committing to action steps you can take now is proactive. Reactive responses keep you stuck; proactive responses move you forward. You want to move forward, don't you?

Step Three: Forgive yourself! This is the most important (and often most challenging) part. We all make so-called mistakes. Remember, you are a human being, so stop placing an expectation on yourself that you are supposed to get it "right" all of the time! Remember the truth: You did the best you could. You did the best you could. You did the best you could with what you knew at the time. Really. I encourage you to say to yourself, "I forgive myself for buying into the misunderstanding that I did something wrong. The truth is that I was doing the best I could." Repeat that several times. Breathe. Take it in.

You do not have to suffer from regret. You can stop beating yourself up; it is not serving you. Learn, take action, forgive and stop looking behind you. Turn around. See what is right in front of you... and, better yet, what lies ahead.

With love,
Christine

For more by Christine Hassler, click here.

For more on emotional wellness, click here.

Follow Christine Hassler on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Christinhassler


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

8 Natural Ways To Look And Feel Younger

8 Natural Ways To Look And Feel Younger
If the first thing you think every morning when you look in the mirror is "I look old," that's no way to look and feel your absolute best. Instead, consider these rules your new natural skin care regimen.
Source: EzineArticles.com

Maria Nemeth, Ph.D.: How To Have The Best Holiday Season Ever

Maria Nemeth, Ph.D.: How To Have The Best Holiday Season Ever

Richard is upset. He's got a list of things he has to do to make Christmas happen this year. There are cards to write, presents to buy, a tree to decorate. He wants to throw a party. But there's no time. On top of it, his money situation isn't what it was last year. He wonders how he's going to afford it all.

Does this sound familiar? Or at least similar to your own story this year? Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa: times of the year that are supposed to bring joy to the heart. Instead they come with a to-do list and a sense of dread.

"How am I going to make it through the holidays?" It's a common cry. But wait. What if it doesn't have to be like this at all? What if you could have the holiday season be a time of ease, satisfaction, and fun? Does this sound too good to be true? Well, read on!

Let's look at a shift in your point of view about the holidays and just what it will take to have a first-rate experience. After all, no one wants to have: "I survived the holidays!" emblazoned across his or her forehead. Instead, we will consider some simple practices that people have used to make the holidays a time to cherish.

1. Vision. You already know that people who are successful in life -- like many creative CEOs -- always begin with a vision for the business or a project. So, start with your vision for your "Holiday Project." For example, looking back on Jan. 2, 2013, what do you want to have experienced?

According to Dunn and Norton, authors of a forthcoming book on happiness, Happy Money: The Science of Spending, new data from a decade of research says your life satisfaction is substantially increased when you do two things with your money: spend it on experiences for yourself or give it away.

When you look at memories of your holiday experiences, you might find that they usually involved times when you did things with people you knew or loved. Below are some examples that I've collected over the years, talking with people about what made them happy during the holidays:

  • Sitting around with a fire in the fireplace, playing board games.
  • The walks we took in the snowy forest, followed by hot mulled cider.
  • The potluck where we ate pie and watched an old Christmas movie.
  • Having my grandchild help me make pumpkin bread.
  • Showing my young son how to create a great miniature Christmas scene.
  • Going snowboarding with my wife.
  • Watching the lights go up on the Christmas tree at our mall.
  • Serving Christmas dinner at our homeless shelter.
  • You can fill in the blank here.


The point is to project yourself forward, and then look back on the holidays. It's Jan. 2. When you think about the holiday just past, what will have made you happy?

2. Enrollment. People who are successful in their projects usually know how to enroll others in their vision. Make a statement about your vision for the holidays and invite your friends, family, or colleagues to share their own. Many won't know what you mean at first, but this is the perfect time to talk about what's most important or special.

For example, think about talking with your family. Let each person look at what they will want to remember. Have them write it down and read it out loud. It could sound something like this:

"This year I want to remember the times we spent together relaxing and talking. I want to cook a good dinner or two, see some movies, and play games with people I love. I want to find small, special ways to let people know how much they mean to me."

You may be surprised at how simple people's vision actually is. And you will see how much the holidays are about connection and contribution. I remember one man whose 14-year-old son told him how happy he felt after a Christmas Day when everyone just hung out together, opening a few presents and watching the family favorite movie: Elf. The son said, "We just had fun. We weren't rushing around with a plan."

So, you might ask yourself the following: Regarding the holidays, is it about the presents, or is it about being present with people I love?

3. Keep things simple. Successful people know that in order to be effective they need to focus on what's important and keep things simple. Whether it's developing a new IT process, designing innovative ways to deliver services across national boundaries, or finding a better way to make a chocolate cake, the simpler the better. Complicated processes often mask inefficiency. And the holidays are a time to be efficient so that you can be relaxed. In this case, consider the following suggestions for gifts. Keep in mind that you want to give people something they will remember fondly after Jan. 2.

One choice gift instead of a lot of "lesser" gifts

This age-old ritual works well even now. It's aimed at larger groups of friends or at families. Everyone makes a list of what they really want for the holidays. Don't be surprised if what they'd actually appreciate receiving often costs less then you had planned to spend. Agree that you will each buy one present out of the top three listed. A variation on this is to pair up with a "Secret Santa" who picks a friend/family member out of a hat and buys for that person only. It's fun to try and figure out who bought the present for you. Combine this with a potluck and you have a great event!

A coupon book

My friend Lynn showed me a homemade coupon book her partner Mary gave her last Christmas. In it there were coupons redeemable for such items as a 30-minute massage, the dessert of Lynn's dreams, an evening at a movie of Lynn's choice, a trip to the art museum, one day of "doing whatever I want," and a drive in the countryside.

You can bet that Lynn made the most of this coupon book throughout the year. It was truly a gift that kept on giving. Use your imagination with the people you love. They'll appreciate your thoughtfulness and remember your gift a lot longer.

The gift that keeps on giving -- literally!

There are a number of online programs that provide micro loans to folks in Third World countries who want to make a better life for themselves and their community. In some cases, a $25 loan makes a huge difference in getting someone started in a business. The payback rate for the loans is about 98.99%. Go to www.kiva.org and see for yourself. You can donate money in the name of the person receiving your gift. Here's where the fun begins: They go online and can actually designate where the money should go. They get a picture and story of the person who is receiving the money and occasionally an update as to how they are doing. Go to Google for examples of programs like this.

The give-away season

Did you know that health and well-being are directly related to your ability to be generous? Research in psychology shows time and again that making a contribution does almost more for the giver than the receiver. In a Nov. 29, 2012 blog, Dr. Lisa Firestone refers to a research study at the University of Michigan that indicates the positive effects of generosity include improving one's mental and physical health and promoting longevity. Dunn and Norton cite their own study, in which people who were given $20 to spend on others reported being happier than those given the same amount to spend on themselves.

Your gift to others could be in the form of money, time, food, clothes, cheer, or comfort. This year more than ever before, try the time-tested path to peace and a sense of prosperity: Find some place or program to contribute to, and do it! There are so many programs in your community that would cherish your help. Involve your friends, family members, and even your grandparents.

4. Use acknowledgement wherever possible. You know in your heart it's true: People love to be acknowledged. Acknowledgment is when you tell someone what they mean to you. You might point out something nice they did for you this year. You might underscore a particular quality or gift that they bring to your relationship. And remember to say the sweetest words someone can hear when you are acknowledging them: their name spoken on your lips!

Now, acknowledgment is different from a compliment. With a compliment you are talking about their style of dress, or the way they fixed a meal. These are important, please don't get me wrong. But acknowledgement is something else.

An acknowledgment points to what you see is special about a person. It is recognition of the traits or qualities that he or she possesses. For example, do you appreciate how thoughtful this person is? Is this person trustworthy, supportive or compassionate? Can you count on him or her to fulfill promises? Does his or her presence brighten your day? You see, there's that word presence again.

In the last analysis, it is all about presence, isn't it? Whether we are with family and friends, or are visiting people in community programs who need to experience a connection with others, holidays are about celebrating the human spirit. And when we design our "Holiday Project" around that knowledge, we will see that our presence is the present!

There is a Holiday Project program that visits people in convalescent homes and hospitals over the holidays. Go to www.holiday-project.org to find a group near you.

For more on holiday stress, click here.

For more by Maria Nemeth, Ph.D., click here.


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Monday, December 10, 2012

A Facelift With Face Fillers Is Apparently the New Plastic Surgery Craze

A Facelift With Face Fillers Is Apparently the New Plastic Surgery Craze
As you age, apparently you lose volume in your face, so the new solution is to have fillers injected into your face. The Dermal fillers, as they are known, are apparently used for wrinkles, Lips and Facial Shaping.
Source: EzineArticles.com

The Key To Lower Cancer Risk Lies Somewhere... IN The Rainbow

The Key To Lower Cancer Risk Lies Somewhere... IN The Rainbow

Micronutrients found in brightly colored produce could play a part in protecting you from cancer, a new review of studies suggests.

Researchers from Brigham & Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School found that women who have higher levels of carotenoids circulating in their bloodstreams also seem to have a lower risk of developing breast cancer, particularly estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer types.

Specifically, the decreased breast cancer risk was tied to high blood levels of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein and zeaxanthin, as well as overall levels of total carotenoids, the researchers found. Their findings are published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Researchers speculated that carotenoids may have anti-cancer effects because alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and beta-cryptoxanthin in particular because those compounds metabolize into retinol, the naturally occurring form of vitamin A in the blood, which in turn regulates the growth, development and death of cells. It does this by affecting gene expression, explained the researchers. Additionally, the compounds may improve communication between cells, cell defense and repair, they continued:

"Carotenoids also may be directly anticarcinogenic by several other mechanisms, including improved gap junction communication, enhanced immune system functioning, or antioxidant scavenging of reactive oxygen species; this may inhibit cellular dysregulation or DNA damage," they wrote.

The findings are based on the analysis of eight studies, which included a total of 3,055 people with breast cancer and 3,956 controls. TIME pointed out that produce like carrots, spinach and kale are particularly high in carotenoids.

This is certainly not the first time fruits and vegetables have been suggested to make a positive difference on breast cancer risk. Reuters reported on a 2008 study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, showing that breast cancer recurrence risk goes down by going above and beyond with eating produce.

Also on HuffPost:


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Kathy Freston: Could A Vegan Diet Help Prevent Cancer?

Kathy Freston: Could A Vegan Diet Help Prevent Cancer?

If you're anything like me, the "C" word leaves you trembling. But today there is very good news to report: Research suggests you can improve your odds of never getting cancer and/or improve your chances of recovering from it. Not with a drug or surgery, although those methods might be quite effective. This is all about the power on your plate, and it's seriously powerful.

A 2012 analysis of all the best studies done to date concluded vegetarians have significantly lower cancer rates. For example, the largest forward-looking study on diet and cancer ever performed concluded that "the incidence of all cancers combined is lower among vegetarians."

That's good news, yes. But what if we're looking for great news? If vegetarians fare so much better than meat-eaters, what about vegans? Is that an even better way to eat? We didn't know for sure until now.

A new study just out of Loma Linda University funded by the National Cancer Institute reported that vegans have lower rates of cancer than both meat-eaters and vegetarians. Vegan women, for example, had 34 percent lower rates of female-specific cancers such as breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer. And this was compared to a group of healthy omnivores who ate substantially less meat than the general population (two servings a week or more), as well as after controlling for non-dietary factors such as smoking, alcohol, and a family history of cancer.

Why do vegans have such lower cancer risk? This is fascinating stuff: An elegant series of experiments was performed in which people were placed on different diets and their blood was then dripped on human cancer cells growing in a petri dish to see whose diet kicked more cancer butt. Women placed on plant-based diets for just two weeks, for example, were found to suppress the growth of three different types of breast cancer (see images of the cancer clearance). The same blood coursing through these womens' bodies gained the power to significantly slow down and stop breast cancer cell growth thanks to just two weeks of eating a healthy plant-based diet! (Two weeks! Imagine what's going on in your body after a year!) Similar results were found for men against prostate cancer (as well as against prostate enlargement).

How may a simple dietary change make one's bloodstream so inhospitable to cancer in just a matter of days? The dramatic improvement in cancer defenses after two weeks of eating healthier is thought to be due to changes in the level of a cancer-promoting growth hormone in the body called IGF-1. Animal protein intake increases the levels of IGF-1 in our body, but within two weeks of switching to a plant-based diet, IGF-1 levels in the bloodstream drop sufficiently to help slow the growth of cancer cells.

How plant-based do we need to eat? Studies comparing levels of IGF-1 in meat-eaters vs. vegetarians vs. vegans suggest that we should lean toward eliminating animal products from our diets altogether. This is supported by the new study in which the thousands of American vegans studied not only had lower rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, but significantly lower cancer risk as well.

This makes sense when you consider the research done by Drs. Dean Ornish and Nobel Prize winner Elizabeth Blackburn; they found that a vegan diet caused more than 500 genes to change in only three months, turning on genes that prevent disease and turning off genes that cause breast cancer, heart disease, prostate cancer, and other illnesses. This is empowering news, given that most people think they are a victim of their genes, helpless to stave off some of the most dreaded diseases. We aren't helpless at all; in fact, the power is largely in our hands. It's on our forks, actually.

For more by Kathy Freston, click here.

For more on diet and nutrition, click here.

Follow Kathy Freston on Twitter: www.twitter.com/kathyfreston

FOLLOW HEALTH AND FITNESS


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Kathy Freston: Could A Vegan Diet Help Prevent Cancer?

Kathy Freston: Could A Vegan Diet Help Prevent Cancer?

If you're anything like me, the "C" word leaves you trembling. But today there is very good news to report: Research suggests you can improve your odds of never getting cancer and/or improve your chances of recovering from it. Not with a drug or surgery, although those methods might be quite effective. This is all about the power on your plate, and it's seriously powerful.

A 2012 analysis of all the best studies done to date concluded vegetarians have significantly lower cancer rates. For example, the largest forward-looking study on diet and cancer ever performed concluded that "the incidence of all cancers combined is lower among vegetarians."

That's good news, yes. But what if we're looking for great news? If vegetarians fare so much better than meat-eaters, what about vegans? Is that an even better way to eat? We didn't know for sure until now.

A new study just out of Loma Linda University funded by the National Cancer Institute reported that vegans have lower rates of cancer than both meat-eaters and vegetarians. Vegan women, for example, had 34 percent lower rates of female-specific cancers such as breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer. And this was compared to a group of healthy omnivores who ate substantially less meat than the general population (two servings a week or more), as well as after controlling for non-dietary factors such as smoking, alcohol, and a family history of cancer.

Why do vegans have such lower cancer risk? This is fascinating stuff: An elegant series of experiments was performed in which people were placed on different diets and their blood was then dripped on human cancer cells growing in a petri dish to see whose diet kicked more cancer butt. Women placed on plant-based diets for just two weeks, for example, were found to suppress the growth of three different types of breast cancer (see images of the cancer clearance). The same blood coursing through these womens' bodies gained the power to significantly slow down and stop breast cancer cell growth thanks to just two weeks of eating a healthy plant-based diet! (Two weeks! Imagine what's going on in your body after a year!) Similar results were found for men against prostate cancer (as well as against prostate enlargement).

How may a simple dietary change make one's bloodstream so inhospitable to cancer in just a matter of days? The dramatic improvement in cancer defenses after two weeks of eating healthier is thought to be due to changes in the level of a cancer-promoting growth hormone in the body called IGF-1. Animal protein intake increases the levels of IGF-1 in our body, but within two weeks of switching to a plant-based diet, IGF-1 levels in the bloodstream drop sufficiently to help slow the growth of cancer cells.

How plant-based do we need to eat? Studies comparing levels of IGF-1 in meat-eaters vs. vegetarians vs. vegans suggest that we should lean toward eliminating animal products from our diets altogether. This is supported by the new study in which the thousands of American vegans studied not only had lower rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, but significantly lower cancer risk as well.

This makes sense when you consider the research done by Drs. Dean Ornish and Nobel Prize winner Elizabeth Blackburn; they found that a vegan diet caused more than 500 genes to change in only three months, turning on genes that prevent disease and turning off genes that cause breast cancer, heart disease, prostate cancer, and other illnesses. This is empowering news, given that most people think they are a victim of their genes, helpless to stave off some of the most dreaded diseases. We aren't helpless at all; in fact, the power is largely in our hands. It's on our forks, actually.

For more by Kathy Freston, click here.

For more on diet and nutrition, click here.

Follow Kathy Freston on Twitter: www.twitter.com/kathyfreston

FOLLOW HEALTH AND FITNESS


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Saturday, December 8, 2012

Joy Weese Moll: 5 Ways To Avoid Gaining Holiday Weight

Joy Weese Moll: 5 Ways To Avoid Gaining Holiday Weight

When you want to lose or maintain your weight, December can feel like one food-focused festive event after another. In "Thin for Life" Anne Fletcher revealed a study that demonstrated why attentiveness during the holidays is so important for those seeking to maintain or lose weight, especially as we age. The study reported that the typical American gains a pound in the fall and winter.

"While a far cry from the five- to 10-pound gain commonly believed to accrue over the holidays, this small gain was not reversed during the spring or summer...Such insidious increments in weight explain why so many adults find their weight climbing as they grow older."

Diet books provide strategies to keep our waistlines smaller than Santa's. I pulled five books from the shelves to discover the tactics I'll be using throughout the holiday season. If you, like me, are determined not to gain that pound this year, let's take to heart the advice from "Thin for Life" and four other books about how to enjoy the twinkle and cheer of holiday parties without excess consumption of stuffing, champagne cocktails, and pie.

What Would My Thin Friend Eat? In "Thin for Life," Anne Fletcher interviewed 160 people who lost weight and kept it off. One maintainer, Joanna, displayed the power of positive self-talk during a party:

"I think of women I have known who control their weight and imagine what they would eat in this setting."

Getting to know you. Barbara Berkeley, author of "Refuse to Regain," learned a surprising trick for handling holiday parties from another successful maintainer:

"She diverts herself from food at parties by vowing to learn five things about each guest she meets. This has not only kept her weight off, but has provided the opportunity to have some fascinating conversations she would have otherwise missed."

Savor the Good Stuff. "The Biggest Loser Success Secrets" devoted a whole page to holiday tips from the cast of previous seasons of The Biggest Loser including this advice for special events from Pam Smith of Season 3:

"Don't go to the party or holiday meal famished. Being too hungry will set you up for gorging. Focus on those foods that you love, eat slowly, and give yourself permission to savor them. Another strategy is to bring some of your own healthy food to share."

No Idle Hands. "The SuperFoods Rx Diet" by Wendy Bazilian, Steven Pratt, and Kathy Matthews also included a long list of tips for parties. One bit of advice concerned alcohol. Decide beforehand how much alcohol, if any, that you will drink and then switch to water or tea. Another good party strategy is to carry sparkling water in one hand and something from the vegetable platter in the other. I imagine that following this strategy would make it awkward to shake hands, but it would also make it hard to grab something extra from the walking appetizer tray or the buffet table.

How Special Is It? My favorite strategy came from "The Beck Diet Solution: Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person." Judith Beck advocated changing our whole mindset around parties and celebrations. She warned that a sense of entitlement to eat more during special occasions can sabotage an otherwise successful program for weight loss and maintenance. Special occasions, especially in December, are not particularly rare and going overboard at all of them could easily provide enough excess calories to account for that extra pound we're trying to avoid. When the party is over, it can be difficult to return to normal eating. I'm going to try repeating this mantra from Judith Beck to myself before parties this month:

"Being thinner is more important to me than the momentary pleasure of overeating on special occasions."

If you see me at a party this year, let's agree to not shake hands while keeping them full of low-calorie treats and to take time with our visit, learning five new things about each other. With those techniques, we might all weigh the same or less on January 1 as we did on December 1.

FOLLOW HEALTH AND FITNESS


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Friday, December 7, 2012

A Favorable Skin Treatment Regime With Facial Skin Care Products

A Favorable Skin Treatment Regime With Facial Skin Care Products
Facial Skin Care Products are available with innumerable purposes. One can make use of the brands to fight acne, age spots, age signs, wrinkles, skin dryness, skin elasticity, skin inflammations, bacterial outbreaks and other common skin related issues.
Source: EzineArticles.com

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Will The Loose Skin Ever Go Away?, From Joy Bauer (WATCH)

Will The Loose Skin Ever Go Away?, From Joy Bauer (WATCH)

Health and nutrition expert Joy Bauer gave advice on dealing with loose skin after weight loss when she joined me on Mondays With Marlo. Unfortunately for the majority of people, the elasticity in skin won't bounce back after losing a significant amount of weight. Joy recommended focusing on the positives of your weight loss and trying out undergarments like Spanx, Yummy Tummie Shapewear and Danskin. If you want to consult a surgeon about removing the skin, you can, but Joy doesn't feel that it's necessary.

And for more seasonal health and nutrition advice, see Joy's holiday health tips:

  • Follow The "Rule Of One"

    At holiday parties, stick with just ONE of each deliciously tempting hors duerves, one plate of food (anything you want, just keep the portions reasonable), one alcoholic drink, and one dessert. You'll be able to enjoy every part of the meal, and you'll end the evening feeling light and content, not stuffed, heavy and bloated.

  • Go Easy On Cocktails

    Alcohol is double trouble for your waistline: it's high in calories and it lowers your inhibitions, which means you might end up eating more than you planned. Stick with the most slimming cocktails -- a glass of wine or champagne at 120 calories or a light beer at around 100 calories. You can also enjoy a shot of liquor with club soda and a splash of fruit juice for 100 calories. It’s also a good idea to drink water through the evening, it helps in not drinking too much alcohol!

  • Chill With Chatters, Not Chewers

    Eating is contagious. Research out of Georgia State University shows that people eat 75% more calories when dining in a large group, as at holiday parties - that's almost DOUBLE the number of calories you'd eat alone. Stay on track by hanging out with the talkers in the group rather than the eaters huddled around the buffet table.

  • A Healthy Holiday Food

    There are so many dips that are festive, delicious and definitely don’t seem like diet food -- bean dips, spinach-artichoke dip, and even hummus. And, don’t forget: <a href="http://www.joybauer.com">www.joybauer.com</a> has a ton of healthy dip recipes.

  • Stick To A Daily Calorie Count

    When trying to lose weight, women should aim to take in between 1,200 and 1,600 calories per day. For men, the count should be between 1,600 and 2,200 calories. If you’re within that range, the weight will come off.

  • Slim Down Holiday Treats

    To lighten up baked goods like cookies and cupcakes, reduce the sugar by a quarter. You can also slash calories by making your treats smaller -- scoop out smaller cookies or use a mini muffin pan instead of a standard one. In dips, substitute nonfat Greek yogurt for some or all of the full-fat mayo or sour cream. For mashed potatoes, try 1% milk in place of whole milk or cream and use just one tablespoon of butter to add a hint of richness.

  • Spice Up Your Menu

    Spices are not only great, low-calorie flavorings, but they also have medicinal powers. For example, ginger and turmeric are anti-inflammatory, so they help to ease aches and pains. Cajun seasoning and anything spicy can rev the metabolism and help to suppress appetite.

  • Eat These Three Foods

    If you had to choose any three foods to add to a diet, they would be: <ol> <li>Salmon, loaded with heart-healthy omega-3 fats</li> <li> Nuts, a low carbohydrate snack which contains fiber, protein, and those heart-healthy fats </li> <li> Lentils, which are healthy and great for your mood</li> </ol>

  • Press The Reset Button With Exercise

    Hit the gym or the pavement first thing in the morning after a day of holiday feasting. Jumping into a vigorous cardio workout will help you burn off the extra calories and sweat away bloat. Plus, it puts you in a positive mindset so you can get back on track with your healthy eating plan.

  • Eat Cholesterol-Lowering Snacks

    Try munching on pistachio nuts to lower your cholesterol. Pistachios contain a compound called plant sterols, which help absorb the bad cholesterol in the gut. And, 30 pistachios are only 100 calories. Nature Made also has a cholesterol-lowering pill called CholestOff that contains plant sterols and can be bought over-the-counter.

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Questions To Ask Yourself When Choosing Anti-Aging Creams

When it comes to anti-aging skin care products, it can be difficult to determine what the best option is for you. Anti-wrinkle cream? Wrinkle reducing cream? Eye wrinkle cream? The options for each can be overwhelming. Before you get caught up in the labels, you need to figure out a few things about your own skin and the products themselves. Source

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

What Women Should Eat To Keep Their Brain Healthy

What Women Should Eat To Keep Their Brain Healthy

Women who don’t get enough vitamin D as they age may be more likely to suffer cognitive decline and impairment, two new studies suggest.

The studies, published in the Journals of Gerontology, Series A (Journal of Gerontology: Biological Sciences and Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences), found that vitamin D, often called the sunshine vitamin, seems to play an important role in maintaining brain health in older women.

Read the whole story at AARP


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Friday, November 30, 2012

How to Find The Most Effective Anti-Aging Eye Cream?

How to Find The Most Effective Anti-Aging Eye Cream?
As we grow old wrinkles and fine lines start to develop under the eye area. To prevent these wrinkles around the eyes and help our eyes look young and beautiful, we should take time to find the most effective anti-aging cream in the market. Here are discussed certain tips that will help us find an eye cream that is really effective for us.
Source: EzineArticles.com

Jowls, Pouches and Facial Exercise

Do you suffer from sagging facial skin? Have you been unsuccessful in turning back the clock on your face? Have you spent tons of money on cosmetics, creams, treatments and still feel your face has not achieved the results you desired? Stop spending money needlessly and start exercising your face! Full article

Cindy Wigglesworth: On Love As Your Guiding Principle

Cindy Wigglesworth: On Love As Your Guiding Principle

"Love your neighbor as you love yourself." Sounds good. But am I really supposed to love him? You don't mean her, do you?

This is how my spiritual journey began. I was seeking practical steps to achieve what seemed like a very idealistic goal: living from love. Raised Roman Catholic, I deeply admired people who seemed to embody love -- Jesus, Mother Teresa, and other saints. Later, I added holy people from many faiths to this list, people who seemed able to love others well -- Gandhi, Buddha, and many more. Love became my "true north" -- my guiding principle for acting from my highest and best self. When I am confused and upset, I need something simple and easy to remember. So my "guiding question" in a tough moment is: "What would love do?" This orients me to my intention -- to show up as love in as many moments as possible.

When I began to create my definition of Spiritual Intelligence, many years ago, I naturally turned to the word "love" as central to what I was trying to express. Spiritual Intelligence, to me, was all about "behaving with love." But I ran into the problem that "love" in the English language is a very vague and imprecise word. We say, "I love my children," and "I love pizza." To express the kind of love that the great wisdom traditions point to, I needed something more precise.

One day I came across a definition of love from the East that read: "Love is a bird with two wings. One wing is compassion; the other wing is wisdom. If either wing is broken, the bird cannot fly." I got goosebumps all over. I knew that I had found what I was looking for. I felt that I was remembering a deep truth. Love = wisdom + compassion.

Now you can see where my definition of SQ comes from. I define Spiritual Intelligence as "the ability to behave with wisdom and compassion, while maintaining inner and outer peace, regardless of the situation."

Wisdom is the best of the "head" or mind. Compassion is the best of the heart. Wisdom not informed by the heart can come across as unskillful or even offensive or harmful. Compassion uninformed by our wisdom can mean well, but can create co-dependencies or enable people who need us to do the harder thing and set boundaries. Wisdom and compassion together became the two pillars of loving behavior. I had found the terms that would allow me to "operationalize" this thing called "love." They represent, to me, the best of the heart and the best of the head coming together to create loving behavior. How can we be loving parents? Loving friends? Leaders? Coworkers? How do we serve the world? We serve the world by being wise and compassionate -- that, to me, is the essence of love.

For more by Cindy Wigglesworth, click here.

For more on love, click here.

Follow Cindy Wigglesworth on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CindySQ21


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Stephenie Zamora: Are Your Dreams On Hold? How To Lift Your Life Out Of Limbo

Stephenie Zamora: Are Your Dreams On Hold? How To Lift Your Life Out Of Limbo

Limbo. It's that awkward place between where you are now and where you'll be "soon."

Maybe you're planning to move across the country in the near future. Or your lease is ending in a few months and you're not sure if you'll be able to stay. Perhaps you have to travel for work off and on for the next six months.

So you think to yourself... What's the point in trying to meet someone new and amazing, I'll just be moving soon. Why bother getting that little arts and crafts corner set up in my current place, I may have to box it all up. Why bother taking that class, joining that group or making new friends, I'll just be on the go and away from it all.

The point is that life is precious and way too short to waste in limbo.

Limbo is also the birthplace of unfulfillment, depression, frustration, isolation and general "meh"-ness. When you allow yourself to enter the mental space of limbo, you effectively put living, loving, dreaming, scheming playing, connecting and whatever other wonderful ing-thing you want and desire on hold.

You put life on hold.

And when life is on hold, it slips by fast -- opportunities go unclaimed, amazing love remains undiscovered, friends, laughter, adventures and happiness fade away before you even experience them. All because you're waiting for something that's going to happen "soon."

Your "soon" may be two weeks, two years or two months. Doesn't matter. What matters is that you deserve an amazing, joy-filled life with phenomenal people in it.


So how do you stop living in limbo?

Start living in the moment.

One of the most transformational lessons I've learned in my life thus far is how to live in this exact moment, rather than getting lost in the mess of thoughts, negative chatter, worry, fear or drama in my head.

Think about it for a moment. (Yes, I'm giving you temporary permission to go in your head.) Instead of putting yourself out there, falling in love, making amazing friends, having fun and exciting life experiences, you're probably sitting at home or work thinking about how you'd love to be doing those things, but can't, since you have this change happening "soon."

Here's the truth, you can have those things. So what if you're only here for two more months? Get yourself out there and do all the things you want to do! Date (maybe even fall in love), meet new people (find the bestie you've always dreamed of), take that art class (so you'll miss the final show... at least you'll have made some art)!

Start showing up to every moment of every single day fully present and engaged in what you're doing or who you're with. Stop thinking about how things "have to be" because of something happening later. Be here now for this moment and have the most amazing experience you can.

Stop being afraid of what you can't control or foresee.

Unless you're some kind of amazing psychic, you don't know what's going to happen with anything, so stop assuming that you do.

"They won't want to hang out with someone who's moving soon."

"No one would ever want to date me seriously the way I have to travel."

"I'm not going to be able to stay here, anyway."

You don't know that. It's not possible for you to know that, especially when other people are involved. So stop assuming! Your "soon" is in the future, not right now. For all you know, you could meet a kindred spirit that you connect so deeply with you remain best friends via text, email and Skype for the rest of your lives. You could meet the man of your dreams who, by the time "soon" arrives, is willing to make things work. Or, your landlord will let you stay in your place and you just wasted a couple months not doing crafts because you assumed you'd have to move.

Stop being afraid or "realistic" about things... just live your life.

Remember that you can't control everything.

I strongly believe that if something's meant to happen, it will happen, whether you're ready for it or not. So if you're supposed to connect with someone specific, come across a certain opportunity or be guided in a certain direction, it's going to happen. Trust that everything happens for a reason and start moving with the flow of life.

Don't try so hard to maintain "control" of your life and your plan. When you do, you miss out on amazing things. Unexpected job offers, the person you're supposed to spend your life with, that best friend you've always wanted,

Just because you planned to move, change jobs, get married or whatever else, doesn't mean that's what's supposed to happen for you. If life presents you with an opportunity and your intuition says "hell yes!" you'd better listen up and act accordingly. Trying to control every little thing just causes unnecessary stress, frustration and anxiety. Loosen up your grip, begin listening to and trusting your intuition, and start to enjoy the amazing journey that is life.

Most importantly, stop wasting time in limbo!

Take action now!

If you feel like you're living in limbo, grab a notebook or journal and answer the following questions:

  • Why am I so afraid/hesitant to do the things I want to do?
  • How would it feel to do them anyway and really start living and enjoying my life in the present moment?
  • Where can I relax my need for control and start moving with the flow of life?

Then... close your eyes, take a deep breath and re-engage in your life, in this moment (and every single moment after that) fully and completely.


Stephenie Zamora is the founder of www.stepheniezamora.com, a full-service, life-purpose development, design and branding boutique. Here she merges the worlds of personal development and branding to help young women build passion-based businesses. Click here to download her free guide, "The Unexpected Trick to Transforming Your Life With ONE Single Question."

Connect with Stephenie on Facebook and Twitter!

For more by Stephenie Zamora, click here.

For more on happiness, click here.

Follow Stephenie Zamora on Twitter: www.twitter.com/StephenieZ


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Dr. Jim Taylor: Athletes' Most Powerful Mental Tool

Dr. Jim Taylor: Athletes' Most Powerful Mental Tool

If you do anything to work on the mental side of your sport, it had better be mental imagery. Why, you ask. Because there is no more powerful mental tool than mental imagery and it can have a huge impact on your sports performance.

I say this with such conviction because it had that effect on me when I was a young athlete at Burke Mtn. Academy, a private boarding school in Vermont devoted to developing world-class ski racers (it was also the first full-time sports academy in the U.S.) One summer I took a course at a local college that introduced me to the power of mental imagery. I applied it to my sport as part of my final project for the class and then continued to use it throughout the following fall and into the competitive race season. The results were nothing less than spectacular. From doubt came confidence. From distraction came focus. From anxiety came intensity. From timidness came aggressiveness. From inconsistency came consistency. And, most importantly, from decent results came outstanding results.

When I studied mental imagery in graduate school, I learned why it is so powerful. According to Tony Morris, Michael Spittle, and Anthony Watt, authors of Imagery in Sport, this tool is used by virtually all great athletes; and research has shown that imagery, when combined with actual practice, improves performance more than practice alone.[1] Imagery also isn't just a mental experience that occurs in your head, but rather impacts you in every way: psychologically, emotionally, physically, technically, and tactically. Think of mental imagery as weight lifting for the mind.

In my more than 25 years of work with professional, Olympic, collegiate, and junior-elite athletes, mental imagery is the tool that I emphasize the most with them, and the one that I have seen have the greatest impact on their performances. Here's the bottom line. If you aren't engaged in a consistent mental imagery program, you're not doing everything you can to achieve your athletic goals.

Keys to Quality Mental Imagery

There are four factors that impact the quality of mental imagery: perspective, control, multiple sense, and speed. You can develop each of these areas so you can get the most out of your imagery.

Imagery perspective. Imagery perspective refers to where the "imagery camera" is when you do imagery. The internal perspective involves seeing yourself from inside your body looking out, as if you were actually performing your sport. The external perspective involves seeing yourself from outside your body like on video. Research indicates that one perspective is not better than the other. Most people have a dominant perspective with which they're most comfortable. Use the perspective that's most natural for you and then experiment with the other perspective to see if it helps you in a different way.

Control. Have you ever been doing imagery and you keep making mistakes -- for example, a basketball point guard sees the ball stick to the court while dribbling or a golfer sees her ball pop out of the cup? This problem relates to imagery control, which is how well you're able to imagine what you want to imagine. It's not uncommon for athletes to perform poorly in their imagery, and it often reflects a fundamental lack of confidence in their ability to perform successfully (when I started using imagery as a youth, I couldn't go three gates in a ski race course in my head without falling!).

If mistakes occur in your imagery, you shouldn't just let them go by. If you do, you'll further ingrain the negative image and feeling, which will hurt your performances. Instead, when you perform poorly in your imagery, immediately rewind the "imagery video" and edit the imagery video until you do it correctly.

Multiple senses. Good imagery is more than just visual, that's why I don't like to call it visualization. The best imagery involves the multi-sensory reproduction of the actual sport experience. You should duplicate the sights, sounds, physical sensations, thoughts, and emotions that you would experience in an actual competition. Visual imagery involves how clearly you see yourself performing. If sounds -- such as the quarterback calling the play at the line of scrimmage -- are important, you would want to generate them in your imagery. If you get nervous before an actual competition, you should get nervous in your imagery (and then take steps to relax).

The most powerful part of mental imagery is feeling it in your body. That's how you really ingrain new technical and mental skills and habits. A useful way to increase the feeling in your mental imagery is to combine imagined and real sensations. Imagine yourself performing and move your body along with the imagery. You see world-class athletes doing this before competitions.

Speed. The ability to adjust the speed of your imagery will enable you to use imagery to improve different aspects of your sports performance. In my experience, I've found slow motion to be effective for focusing on technique. When you first start to work on technique in your imagery, slow the imagery video down, frame by frame if necessary, to see yourself executing the skill correctly. Then, as you see and feel yourself performing well in slow motion, increase the speed of your imagery until you can perform well at "real-time" speed.

Be Realistic in Your Imagery

Imagine realistic conditions. Imagine yourself performing under realistic conditions -- in other words, always do imagery under those conditions in which you normally compete. That is, if you're usually competing in difficult conditions (e.g., cold or hot weather, snow or rain), imagine yourself performing under those conditions. Only imagine yourself performing under ideal conditions if you typically compete in ideal conditions.

Imagine realistic performance. If you're a young athlete, don't imagine yourself performing like a pro or Olympian. Instead, imagine yourself performing the way you normally do, but incorporate positive changes that you are working on.

Developing an Off-Sport Imagery Program

The key to getting the most out of mental imagery is consistency. You wouldn't expect to get stronger by lifting weights once every few weeks. You wouldn't expect to get better technically by practicing your sport once in a while. The same holds true for mental imagery. I've found that the only way to gain the benefits of mental imagery is to use it consistently in a structured way.

Set imagery goals. Set specific goals for what areas you want to work on in your imagery. Goals can be technical, tactical, mental, or overall performance. For example, you might focus on some technical change, being more relaxed and focused, or just going for it in your sport.

Climb imagery ladder. Create a ladder of practice and competitive scenarios in which you will be performing. The ladder should start with practice in a simple setting and progress to more demanding practice situations, less important competitions, and increase through more important events up to the most important competition you'll be in this year.

Begin your imagery on the lowest level of the imagery ladder. Stay at that rung until you reach your imagery goal. When that is achieved, stay at that step for several imagery sessions to really reinforce and ingrain the positive images, thoughts, and feelings. Then work your way up the ladder until you're performing the way you want in your imagery at the very top of the imagery ladder.

Training- and competition-specific imagery. Select practice and competitive situations that are appropriate for your level of athletic development. In other words, if you're a high-school soccer player, don't imagine yourself playing in a World Cup game against the world's best soccer players. Also, choose a specific competition in a precise location under particular conditions for each imagery session, thus reaching your imagery goals in a variety of competitions, settings, and conditions.

Imagery content. Each imagery session should be comprised of your pre-performance routine and your performance in practice or competitions. If you compete in a sport that is short in duration, such as sprinting or wrestling, you can imagine an entire performance. If you compete in a sport that is lengthy, for example, golf, tennis, or soccer, you can imagine yourself performing in four or five key parts of the competition.

Imagery sessions. Imagery sessions should be done three to four times per week. (Imagery shouldn't be done too often because, as with any type of training, you can get burned out on it.) Set aside a specific time of the day when you'll do your imagery (just like you do for your physical training). I recommend that you set your smartphone calendar to send you a reminder. Find a quiet, comfortable place where they won't be disturbed. Each session should last about 10 minutes.

Imagery journal. One difficulty with imagery is that, unlike physical training, the results aren't tangible. An effective way to deal with this problem is to keep an imagery journal. These logs should record key aspects of every imagery session including the quality of the imagined performance, any thoughts and feelings that occur (positive or negative), problems that emerged, and what you need to work on for the next session. An imagery journal enables you to see progress in your imagery, thereby making it more rewarding.

The Power of Mental Imagery

So, here's the deal. I can't guarantee that an mental imagery program is going to result in a quantum leap in your sport like it did for me in my ski racing so many years ago. But I will say that if you commit to a mental imagery program, there's a darned good chance that you will be much better prepared mentally than you were last year. And if you combine the imagery program with an intensive physical conditioning regimen and quality practice time, then I can say with confidence that, after a few months of committed imagery, when you head out to the field, court, course, or hill, you'll be able to say, "I'm as prepared as I can be to perform my best and achieve my goals."

For more by Dr. Jim Taylor, click here.

For more on success and motivation, click here.

References:

[1] Morris, Tony, Michael Spittle and Anthony Watt. Imagery in Sport. Champaign, Ill.: Human Kinetics, 2005. [Link.]

Follow Dr. Jim Taylor on Twitter: www.twitter.com/DrJimTaylor

FOLLOW HEALTH AND FITNESS


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Monday, November 26, 2012

Ann Brenoff: Forget Sitcom Perfection! 10 Ways To Reduce Stress And Enjoy The Holidays

Ann Brenoff: Forget Sitcom Perfection! 10 Ways To Reduce Stress And Enjoy The Holidays

There is no time of greater expectations -- or disappointment when those expectations aren't met -- than the holidays. It's a period when every blemish of your life comes under a magnifying glass: Your imperfect marriage, your imperfect children, your imperfect job/house/friends, and even your imperfect checking account are all there rearing their ugly imperfect heads.

For years, I blamed my unrealistic holiday expectations on those vanilla pudding sitcoms I grew up with. While Robert Young spewed pearls of fatherly wisdom to his little "Princess" on "Father Knows Best," my own family just never measured up to those never-screaming, always-nurturing Andersons. Never did the Andersons have an uncle who showed up drunk to Thanksgiving nor did Father Jim Anderson ever find himself scrambling for gifts in the open-til-midnight drugstore on Christmas Eve. For years well into my adulthood, I always exited the holiday season feeling that Mother Margaret Anderson would have pulled off another Hallmark-perfect holiday and mine surely wasn't.

But there's a new me in the saddle these days, one who benefits from the lessons learned over six decades. If I may share:

Overspending will only buy you a financial hangover.
All year long, we count our pennies and pride ourselves on sticking to a budget. We clip coupons, delay purchases and resist impulse-buying. Come the holidays, we spend like a drunken sailor on leave.

No, it's not the American way. Maybe it used to be, but welcome to post-recession 2013 folks. Give generously of your love and don't part with your credit card lightly. You will only regret it come January. And there is no greater stress than the one that comes with the feeling that you can't pay your bills.

Do things because you want to do them, not because you are expected to.
The only obligations I feel nowadays are to my family, my close friends and my job. I need all of them. Every other demand on my time falls under the heading of "optional." In discovering this course, I know I've hurt some well-intended neighbors, co-workers and acquaintances. I'm sorry for that, but with just 24 hours in a day, I can't please everyone. I'm down with that.

Some things are just silly. Stop doing the silly.
Long, long ago in a lifetime before Instagram and Facebook, people took their vacation photos and made them into holiday greeting cards that were sent by snail mail. For those who were seriously into piling on stress, they would also send out a holiday letter detailing all of the year's accomplishments. "Here's our new car, our new vacation home, our new boat!" Then it got uncool to brag about things, or maybe we just don't think "Lost our home in March!" has the same ring to it.

If I see you every day in the office or at school, there is no need to send me a holiday card. Just wish me good wishes and I'll do the same. As for the brag letter, that's why we have Facebook isn't it?

Push some social obligations into January.
People always feel the need to throw holiday parties in December, a time when everyone's social calendar is crammed to the rafters. I've learned to say no instead of trying to juggle three events in one day.

And please don't contribute to the madness by trying to hold your own party and then get upset when people can't come because they have other events to attend. Why not throw your dinner party in January, when nothing is going on?

Stockpile gifts so that you don't have to scramble.
I buy a stack of gift cards and keep them handy. I invariably forget to buy something for the coach, the tutor, the school bus driver who wakes up my daughter when she sleeps through our stop. Not everyone drinks coffee or shares your love of Starbucks, but everybody can use money; I make it a MasterCard or Visa gift card that can be used anywhere.

Is a gift card less personal than something I would pick out? You bet it is. It is also likely more appreciated.

Give generously ... to those who need it.
Charity is good for the soul. It feels much better to give to someone with nothing than someone with everything. So do that. Write a check to Mr. I Have Everything's favorite charity.

It's easy. It's quick. And it's the best way to spend money.

Give generously... to yourself.
A healthy dose of selfishness is the real cure for holiday stress. Accept the fact you can't be all things to all people and treat yourself to some me-first time. I know it runs contrary to the expectation that this is a time of giving. Think of it as giving to yourself. Go ahead. You deserve it.

Me time for me means telling the boss that I'll be at my kids' holiday concert instead of my desk. It also means telling my husband that no, I don't want to go anywhere for New Year's Eve. My best friend and I have already agreed to skip the holiday gift exchange and instead go away together for a girls' weekend in January.

Shortcuts you take will be noticed only by you.
One Thanksgiving, a friend showed up with an elaborate tray of wonderful moist cookies, beautifully plated and wrapped in colored cellophane. Her dessert was devoured by all to rave reviews; my made-from-scratch apple and pumpkin pies went largely untouched. It was one of my kids who outted her. "Mom, can you buy more of these cookies? I had them at Rayah's house last week and her mom got them at Ralph's."

Presentation, like many things in life, is everything.

Traditions change.
Sure everyone has gathered at sister Sue's house every holiday since the beginning of time. How many times have you said to yourself: "Self, just once I'd like to spend the holiday in my own house."

So what are you waiting for?

For midlifers whose adult children have families of their own, why not let the grandkids open first-night Chanukah gifts in their own homes? Ditto for Christmas morning. Traditions are lovely but eventually must fade to time. If you are together, does it really matter where?

Dare to dream.
My best holiday season was the one we sat out. We got both sides of the family mad at us and took a beach vacation. It was lovely. By the way, planes aren't as crowded if you travel on the day of the holiday.

Follow Ann Brenoff on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AnnBrenoff


Source: www.huffingtonpost.com