When clients come to my practice reporting symptoms like fatigue, low sex drive, brain fog, weight gain, mood swings or trouble sleeping one of the first remedies I reach for after functional testing is the adaptogenic herbs. Adaptogens are a class of herbs derived from plant roots, tree bark and leaves that help regulate the HPA Axis — hypothalamus, pituitary …
Five Reasons to Start Your Day With A Protein Shake or Smoothie
Strolling through the business section of Barnes & Noble one afternoon I noticed four shelves worth of books on ‘How to Be More Productive.’ From one business coach to the next, they all seemed to offer on the same thing: organizational tools, apps and strategies for maximizing time. But in Lifestyle Medicine we think differently. It’s not about apps and …
Nutrigenomic Testing: Taking the Guesswork Out of Diet and Nutrition
From keto to plant-based to Atkins and Mediterranean dieting, how can you figure out the best nutrition and fitness plan for you? For years we’ve heard amazing weight loss testimonials and how some seemingly lucky person was able to drop three dress sizes by changing their plate and committing to five days at the gym. But what about the people …
The Pineapple Punch: Budget Friendly, High Power Nutrition
I’m a firm believer that one of the core tenets of optimal health is good nutrition. In my practice, food is the first medicine and no visit is complete without discussion about the challenges of eating well and a few tips on how to do it well on a budget. This is where my love of fruit comes in handy. …
Aloe Vera Gel: The Super Plant for Digestive Health
March is National Nutrition Month and the 2018 theme is “Go Further With Food.” This can mean many things but for me it means remembering the bountiful harvest nature gives us to maintain our health and well-being. You can “go further with food” by remembering that plants were our original medicine, long before factories and chemists figured out how to …
Magnesium: Nature’s Miracle Mineral
Many years ago while working as an Emergency Room nurse, I remember magnesium as the “miracle” mineral. If a patient had a life-threatening arrythmia (irregular heartbeat), you’d see one of us nurses rushing to the medication cart to grab the IV equipment. In the maternity ward, if a woman had pregnancy induced hypertension or was in danger of pre-term labor, …
Every Day Mindfulness: Cultivating ‘Beginner’s Mind’
Beginnings noun: the point in time or space at which something starts synonyms: dawn, birth, inception, origination, genesis, emergence, start, point, launch Recently I stumbled on a LinkedIn post that deeply resonated. The title was ‘September is the new January.’ The author described how the energy of autumn coupled with her memories of childhood make the season a perfect opportunity to consider new beginnings. When I …
Seasonal Wellness: What Can Spring Teach Us?
Restoration (ress-tor-ray-shun) (n): to renew; repair to bring back to former strength; to rebuild; to heal or cure; to amend; to reclaim True knowledge of health and healing is scattered everywhere, among cultures throughout the world. Ancient wisdom teaches us that natural health is more than taking steps to avoid illness. The greatest natural medicine comes from our own life choices, which …
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Hiring A Health Coach? 5 Key Questions to Ask First
The times we are living in are absolutely amazing. There’s no shortage of information and anything we need to know seems right at our fingertips. From heart disease to hanging roof shingles, it seems we’ve reached a point where there’s literally nothing we cannot teach ourselves. If there’s a medical topic that we’re unsure of, no problem! In five seconds …
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Confidence as the Vehicle of Joy
One week from now I will compete in my first T’ai Chi tournament. Am I nervous? Yes. Am I afraid of forgetting my form? Yes. Am I worried about the possibility of disappointment if I don’t do as well as I’d like? Yes. Then why am I doing this, you ask? There are a lot of reasons but the most …