Natural Skin Treatments for Summer Weather Woes

100
















Summer’s gorgeous sunshine, soft breezes, and blooming flowers can make you want to linger outside for hours, but all the time outdoors can also make summer a bummer for your skin....





...
Read more...

Weekend reading: Elliot Coleman’s New Organic Grower

Elliot Coleman.  The New Organic Grower: A Master’s Manual of Tools and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener.  30th Anniversary Edition.  Chelsea Green, 2018. The first edition of this book came out in 1989 and it has been an essential tool for organic farmers and home gardeneres ever ...
Read more...

Is your heart soft or hard and has your tongue overridden your intelligence?

There is a question that needs to be posed: does everyone have a right to life? If so, do they have a right to a humane way of life, or doesn’t it matter if someone endures massive suffering to satisfy…
The post Is your heart soft or hard and has your tongue overridden your...
Read more...

Are YOU Conscious Of Losing Consciousness?

Everyday we put trust in people to do the “right” thing. People of all kinds, who eventually may put their belief system onto you. Therefore, it may not just be their own belief system, but your belief of their belief…
The post Are YOU Conscious Of Losing Consciousness? appeared...
Read more...

Berkeley sugary drink tax is working, new study shows

What if there were a public policy that rewarded industry for selling healthier products and led consumers to buy fewer health-harming ones, while at the same time raising revenue to improve people’s lives – all without damage to the economy? 
Turns out there is one. Meet the Berkeley sugary drink ...
Read more...

What can salad dressing tell us about cancer? Think oil and vinegar

Scientists have identified another way the process that causes oil to form droplets in water may contribute to solid tumors, such as prostate and breast cancer. Researchers found evidence that mutations in the tumor suppressor gene SPOP contribute to cancer by disrupting a process called liquid-liquid phase separation. Liquid-liquid phase separation is seen often in nature and is the reason why oil and vinegar separate in salad dressing.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180923141657.htm

New way to target advanced breast cancers

IL1b, a member of the interleukin 1 family of cytokines (proteins released by certain cells of the immune system) drives the inflammation often found in cancer, and appears as an 'IL1 signature' in women with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer. This signature can not only serve as a diagnostic tool for HER2-negative cancers but also offer an effective treatment target.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180920104421.htm

It's not just for kids -- even adults appear to benefit from a regular bedtime

Researchers found people with irregular sleep patterns weighed more, had higher blood sugar, higher blood pressure, and a higher projected risk of having a heart attack or stroke within 10 years than those who slept and woke at the same times every day.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180921082947.htm

Women seeking sperm donor online harassed

One woman says a potential donor turned out to be married and had undergone a vasectomy.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-45573053

"Don"t go cold turkey" to quit smoking

campaignThe annual Stoptober campaign launches with a warning to seek help when trying to kick the habit.

"Don"t go cold turkey" to quit smoking...
Read more...

Facial hair on pilots: Study busts myth

100Do airline pilots need a clean-shaven face to ensure a proper seal on face masks during emergency cabin depressurization? A recent study offers an answer.

Facial hair on pilots: Study busts myth...
Read more...

Weekend Reading, 9.16.18

pixabayMy current DI placement is at a nursing home that offers both long- and short-term care. I’m learning a lot about what and how people eat when they’re recovering from surgeries or in the process of rehabilitation. And I’m gaining a better understanding of...
Read more...

Secret royal code names revealed

“Could you bring the car round for David and Davina?”. Secret code names for Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge used by aides and bodyguards have been revealed.

It has been revealed that members of the Royal family are regularly given alternative monikers –secret code names to prevent their contact details from falling into the wrong hands. Thus Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are known as plain ‘David Stevens’ and ‘Davina Scott’, while Prince William and Kate Middleton are named as ‘Danny Collins’ and ‘Daphne Clark’ in their aides’ contact lists.

REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

The initials ‘DC’/ ‘DS’ in the secret code names allude, of course, to the royal couple’s title – the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Duke and Duchess of Sussex, reports the Daily Star.

“If anyone got hold of a phone belonging to a royal aide or security team member, they won’t find Harry Windsor and Meghan’s names in it,” said a royal source, adding, “it is far too risky in the wrong hands. They get given code names but they are changed regularly for obvious reasons.”

The code names were revealed at an event when one of Harry’s aides told a worker that someone was trying to contact him.

The post Secret royal code names revealed appeared first on MiNDFOOD.

https://www.mindfood.com/article/secret-royal-code-names-revealed/

Delayed childbearing is a growing source of multiple births

Assisted reproductive technologies are not the sole cause of multiple births -- naturally occurring multiple births due to women choosing to have children later in life is responsible for a growing percentage of multiples.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180912133520.htm

How cells handle a sticky, toxic, but absolutely essential molecule

A team of researchers has solved a long-standing puzzle by identifying the protein that 'chaperones' free heme in cells.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180914141419.htm

As Injuries Continue, Doctors Renew Call For Ban On Infant Walkers

Despite improved safety standards over the years, more than 230,000 children under 15 months old were treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries related to infant walkers from 1990 through 2014.

(Image credit: Mint Images/Getty Images)

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/09/17/646413330/as-injuries-continue-doctors-renew-call-for-ban-on-infant-walkers?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=shotshealthnews

Why Babies & Toddlers Hate Vegetables (and what to do about it!)

This post might be a rude awakening for some parents and it’s not meant to be a slap in the face, but I think it’s important to share the truth about foods that are marketed towards babies and toddlers. Especially since eating a processed food diet is the #1 reason why kids don’t...
Read more...

South Africa’s record-setting (not in a good way) Listeria outbreak: an update

100In April, I wrote about the deadly outbreak of Listeria-contaminated processed meat (“polony”) in South Africa.  Back then, the country’s Health Department explained what it was doing to try to stop the outbreak.  It’s now pretty much over, and the Health Department has ...
Read more...

Summer Squash and Basil Pasta

100This week is such a blessing – cool evenings that make for perfect sleeping weather and perfectly sunny and warm daytime temperatures that make being at work soooo incredibly difficult. Us Midwesterners…we appreciate the little things, let me tell you. I was heading home from ...
Read more...

Beginner’s Guide to Urban Gardening

100
















Who says you need wide open spaces and top-notch soil to have the garden of your dreams?...





Create the garden of your dreams right on your roof, balcony, or windowsill...
Read more...

Flexibility Training Is the Third Element of Your Fitness Program

Aerobic exercise builds cardiovascular endurance and burns fat. Weight-training increases strength and lean muscle tissue. If you work on those two elements of physical fitness, you’ve got a total program, right? Not quite. If you forget about flexibility training, you’re missing out on a key com...
Read more...

Infectious Theory of Alzheimer's Disease Draws Fresh Interest

Money has poured into Alzheimer's research, but until very recently not much of it went toward investigating infection in causing dementia. A million dollar prize may lead more scientists to try.

(Image credit: Ariel Davis for NPR)

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/09/09/645629133/infectious-theory-of-alzheimers-disease-draws-fresh-interest?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=shotshealthnews

National survey shows ocean and coastal recreation is big business

A new report by social scientists reveals that viewing or photographing the ocean was the top activity for ocean lovers in the U.S. in number of participants, days spent, and how much people paid to do it.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180907110419.htm

New guidelines for traumatic brain injury -- Built with input from rehabilitation professionals

Clinical practice guidelines play a critical role in promoting quality care for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). A new set of guidelines for rehabilitation of patients with moderate to severe TBI -- incorporating insights from the rehabilitation professionals responsible for providing care from initial assessment through long-term follow-up -- has just been introduced.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/09/180907182202.htm

Weekend Reading, 9.9.18

Two Aprils ago, I sat in my apartment with a college friend who over the years has become like a brother to me, though he lives on the West Coast and we see each other only a few times each year.

“You know,” he said, “I know it’s last minute and you’ll probably say no, but you should come to Passover at my Mom’s tonight.”

The invitation made good sense; I’d become close to his family when we were undergraduates, and, since his folks live only a few blocks away from me, we’d remained in touch. But my friend rightly suspected that my instinct would be to stay in. This was a few months after my breakup, and I’d been in hiding since. I wanted the consolation of friends, but I felt too numb and flat to reach out. Had Jordy not made a point of coming over, I might not have seen him on his visit to NYC at all.

Predictably, I told him that I needed to be myself, that I wasn’t in any shape to celebrate a holiday. I count myself lucky that he texted me a few minutes after leaving my place, reiterating how welcome I’d be and how good it might be for all of us to spend Passover together. And I’m so grateful that something made me reconsider and tell him yes, I’d be at his mom’s place in an hour.

In the moment, I told myself that I had to get out, couldn’t spend another night at home with my anxiety and sleeplessness. That was all true, but looking back, I realize that this was the moment at which I chose to start coming back to life. It would be a long time before I really felt healed, or ready to move on—as a good friend told me, “heart wounds aren’t the same as other wounds”—but this is when I accepted that things could, and would, change.

For all of my capacity to love and care, it’s often difficult for me to connect. When I’m in pain, and especially when I’m depressed, I develop a horror of showing myself to other people. This was true when I was in recovery, too—I could easily hide from friends for months at a time in those days. I haven’t figured out if it’s shame, or pride, or fear, or what, but there’s a part of me that starts to believe that I can’t be, or shouldn’t be, among people. And I feel especially resistant to peoples’ love and sweetness, which is as baffling and counterintuitive as it is powerful.

If I’ve consciously grown in any way in the last two years, it’s in challenging this pattern. Many of the old impulses to isolate and hide remain, but I push back against them at every chance I get. This isn’t the same as forcing myself to socialize when it’s not the right moment: I respect my introvert’s nature and need for independence. But whenever I feel that creeping sensation of being too monstrous to be seen, or trick myself into thinking that whatever I’m dealing with is too dark or complex to be communicated, I invite myself to do the opposite of what I want to do:  I share. I ask someone to bear witness. I don’t always say or share everything, and I don’t always share widely. But I fight back against the impulse to cling secretly to my pain, anxiety, regret, or whatever’s chasing me.

It has been a huge shift, and it’s affirmed what I always knew, which was that I wasn’t unlovable or loveless. I was, for whatever reason, terrified of letting people in.

Doing this very thing—letting people in, saying what I feel without apology or editing—has been so good for me. It’s helped me to soften my own judgments and harsh assessments of human foibles, which I realize now sprung from a place of judging myself—a cliche, maybe, but so true. It’s made me softer and more gentle, more able to empathize.

Allowing myself to just be in front of others, with all of my “stuff,” hasn’t always been easy. The more I work to stay connected, the more I find myself blurting out things that subsequently feel like overshares, saying things that later feel like the “wrong” things to have said, revealing hidden parts of myself and then feeling vulnerable and disoriented later on. But all of the messiness hasn’t made me want to go further into hiding. It’s only affirmed how much more tolerant and loving people are than I give them credit for.

Tonight, I’m celebrating Rosh Hashanah with Jordan’s family, whom I now lovingly call my “chosen family,” and my mom. I expected it to be sweet and fun and full of laughter and good food, which it always is, and I expect that I’ll do or say at least one thing this evening that will feel unedited or silly or embarrassing. I’ll be OK with it; I’ll remind myself that I love my friends in all of their realness and fullness, not when or because they’ve curated something presentable for me.

I’ll look around the room and consider how different things were just 18 months ago, and I’ll give thanks for the passage of time, the resilience of the heart, the fact that I was fortunate enough at that difficult moment to have a friend like Jordan, who reminded me of how much love and goodness I had access to even when things felt inescapably broken. I’ll be grateful to his parents and siblings for helping me to realize that true family can be shaped and created in all sorts of ways. I’ll thank myself for having had the intuition to be just a little more open and trusting that night, and in the months since. There’s no other way I’d like to welcome a new year.

Many of us aren’t celebrating a new year this evening, but all the same, it’s September, and I always associate this time of the year with a fresh start. I’m hoping to remain as loving and open as I can be this year, all the while exercising self-compassion in the moments when I shut down (and I know they’ll happen from time to time).

Sending all of you my loving wishes for health and happiness. Shana tova, and here are my recipe and reading picks for the week.

Recipes

Kristen’s Mexican pasta salad looks delicious, and like a perfect contender for my weekend batch cooking this fall.

Quinoa, golden potatoes, and tahini herb dressing?! My kinda bowl, courtesy of Sprouting Zen Eats.

Another bowl, this one with BBQ cauliflower bites as the star. What a great comfort food meal, courtesy of Sophia of Veggies Don’t Bite.

I love savory cobbler, and I’m totally smitten with Tessa’s end-of-summer, early fall cherry tomato version! What a beautiful dish.

Finally, wish I could pack one of Tomas’ no-bake chocolate pistachio bars in my lunchbox for tomorrow. Maybe next week

Reads

1. A cool profile of how 15 players on the Tennessee Titans—with the help of a great chef—have started to eat plant based diets.

2. An interesting review of Alastair Bonnett’s new book, Beyond the Map, which makes the argument that geographic boundaries as they were once delineated are becoming increasingly limited and inadequate.

3. Knowable‘s list of ten secrets about stress and its impact on health. Some of it may not surprise you, but the research is aggregated in an interesting way.

4. Today’s Dietitian takes a close look at all of the plant milks on the market these days. The article isn’t written from a vegan perspective, but I appreciate the careful nutritional comparison of different milks and what they have to offer.

I agree with KC Wright’s take on soy milk being the most nutrient dense option, and the one that’s most nutritionally comparable to cow’s milk for those who are looking for a direct substitution. That said, while I use soy most often in my breakfasts, I love having a ton of options these days, and I enjoy nut, seed, and oat milks for different culinary uses (sauces, ice cream, espresso drinks, etc.).

5. An entertaining look at the world of hyperpolyglots, via Judith Thurman and The New Yorker.

In other news, my first DI week is behind me. There’s a lot to adjust to and a lot to process, and I’m sure there will be more to say soon. For now, I can say that I’m learning more than I imagined was possible in only four days, which has been a meaningful counterpoint to the challenging bits. A new week starts tomorrow; goodnight, friends.

xo

The post Weekend Reading, 9.9.18 appeared first on The Full Helping.

https://www.thefullhelping.com/weekend-reading-9-9-18/

Clean Up Your Beauty Routine: How To Find Safe Makeup & Cosmetics

pixabayYears ago I took a hard look at all the beauty products I was using daily… everything from my shampoo, to my lotion, to my lipstick. I found that not only were most of them filled with controversial chemicals, but I was using way too many products that were not even n...
Read more...

Sleep: Health Benefits of Napping

pixabayNapping isn"t just for babies. It can be great for adults, too. Learn why.

Sleep: Health Benefits of Napping...
Read more...

Body"s own "bomb squad" can help protect against brain tumors

Researchers have discovered how a molecule can help prevent certain types of brain tumors by recognizing and "disarming" harmful proteins that cause them.

Body"s own "bomb squad" can help protect against brain tumors...
Read more...

Top Swimming Workouts to help you Lose Body Fat in the Pool

It is evident that workouts are as important as breathing and eating as they help in keeping the body in perfect shape. However, the majority of people tend to avoid it because of various reasons such as boredom, pain, discomfort, and excess sweating. Many people do not have an idea that they can cut down […]

The post Top Swimming Workouts to help you Lose Body Fat in the Pool appeared first on Get Holistic Health.

https://www.getholistichealth.com/77725/top-swimming-workouts-to-help-you-lose-body-fat-in-the-pool/

Easy Ways To Use Fresh Dates

Bruschetta with Date Chutney

Topped with date chutney, creamy blue cheese and walnuts, this tasty bruschetta is a lovely indulgence after a long day.

Click here for this memorable starter. 

 

Fresh Date and Sour Cream Tart

Thanks to their natural sweetness, dates make the ideal ingredient for baked treats and desserts, as less sugar needs to be used.

Find this recipe here. 

 

Sticky Date Buns

Thanks to their natural sweetness, dates make the ideal ingredient for baked treats and desserts, as less sugar needs to be used.

This recipe can be found here. 

 

Sticky Orange, Ginger & Date Pudding

Take this classic pudding to the next level with the warmth and spice of ginger and orange. 

Click here for this recipe. 

The post Easy Ways To Use Fresh Dates appeared first on MiNDFOOD.

https://www.mindfood.com/recipe/easy-ways-to-use-fresh-dates/

Weekend Reading 9.2.18

This summer began with the weight of my expectations bearing down on it, no matter how much I wanted to keep an open mind. It was to be my first summer without any graduate school classes since 2008, which alone felt major, and I was hoping to spend at least part of it celebrating graduation.

I was also intent on it being a summer of rest and restoration, friend time and play time and free time. Having worked myself into a state of burnout in the spring, I wanted to savor unstructured hours and to feel unattached to deadlines and projects for a little while.

Things didn’t quite go as planned, at least at first. I spent nearly all of May with various viruses and infections; by the time my birthday rolled around in June I was exhausted and battling waves of hypochondria, which tend to hit me when I’m anxious and have been somatizizing my stress. I didn’t want to catch up with friends or to enjoy summery, New York activities; I wanted to be home, by myself, where it felt safe and slow.

I gave myself permission to do that, which is the best thing I could have done. I took seriously the advice of a reader who emailed me “to echo the benefits—physically, emotionally and spiritually—of just staying put for a while and pulling your energies in.” It was better medicine than I expected it to be, both an affirmation of how good it feels to stay put and also the restorative time I needed in order to venture into the world a little more.

The second part of the summer has been the opposite; it’s felt full and energetic, sometimes downright hectic. I took on some work that I did expect to get, and wasn’t sure I could manage right before the DI, but was glad to be offered. The job made my summer more stressful than I’d planned on, but it was a good experience; it reminded me of how well I do with immersive projects, especially when I’m able to focus on them one at a time.

I said yes to things spontaneously this summer, which was intentional on my part and a new practice for me. Doing so made me realize how often I tense up against and resist opportunities to socialize and connect; it gave me a lot of interesting food for thought about how the suggestion of making plans often feels impinging to me. I’m still considering what that means and why it’s the case, but it’s been good—and occasionally uncomfortable—to set it aside and allow myself be a little more accessible to other people.

Now it’s Labor Day weekend, and everything is about to shift. I begin my DI on Tuesday, which is a day that I thought I could prepare myself for entirely, when of course I couldn’t. I don’t feel nearly as organized or prepared as I wanted to; I haven’t finished up all of the household tasks I wanted to check off my list before the fall. I haven’t batch cooked my meals for the week ahead. I only just wrapped up the study guides and coursework that I need to have completed beforehand. There are work projects that I entirely committed to wrapping up before my start date, which aren’t finished and will need to squeezed in when I can find the time. Oh well.

And of course there are things I wanted to do this summer that I didn’t do. There are so many more activities I wanted to share with my mom—plays I wanted us to see, dinners out that I wanted to treat her to. There are friends I meant to text and didn’t, people I wanted to catch up with and then dropped the ball. I had a now ridiculous-seeming fantasy of cooking tons of recipes for this blog and photographing them, so that I could seamlessly roll out content throughout the fall and early winter. That sure didn’t happen

But it’s fine, because among the many ways that this summer was good to me, it pushed me one tiny step closer to living in the present. Sometimes that meant throwing away my plans and doing nothing; sometimes it meant saying yes to things unexpectedly and allowing myself to enjoy them. I welcomed a few new experiences and new people into my life, and I’m so glad that I did. I spent a lot of time with my mom, not necessarily in pursuit of culture or shared meals at nice places, but sitting at home in her apartment, my childhood home, and that was sweet in its own familiar way.

More than anything, I know that my heart softened up a little at the edges this summer. After more than a year of processing a heartbreak, then pushing myself into a mode of “doing” in order to finish grad school, then feeling chronically unwell (and all of the vulnerability and protectiveness that can come with that feeling), I began this summer a little defended and shut down. Through acts of connecting, savoring nature, and inviting myself to perceive peoples’ friendliness and attention in a new way, I welcomed more tenderness into my life, and I opened my heart up along the way. I became willing to receive. What more wonderful thing could I say about the past few months?

On Tuesday, I’ll begin my first assignment, which is at a nursing home. The hours should be manageable, which will give me some time to keep up with writing and work. My first substantial clinical assignment will come later this fall, starting at the end of October. There will be a long commute and more demanding hours, and I’m expecting life to feel a bit turned on its head once that begins.

As I was telling someone close to me last night, though, it’s OK. Anticipating an uncertain schedule and having no “control” over my day-to-day routines certainly isn’t my comfort zone, but I’ll do my best. Another gift of the summer is a strengthened capacity for self-compassion, hewed especially in the last few weeks, as I navigated a wave of anxiety. If can remain connected to that—if I can take care of myself even when things are messy, uncertain, or a challenge to my need for order—the rest will follow.

Maybe you’ve got fun Labor Day plans for tomorrow; maybe you’re in a quiet, reflective mode like I am, thinking about the summer that’s about to be tucked away behind us. Maybe you’re simply experiencing the weekend. No matter what, I wish you a good Sunday and Monday, and many good things for the fall. Here are my recipe and reading picks for the past week.

Recipes

First up, Lindsey’s beautifully simple charred corn and poblano pepper soup.

Sarah’s vegan ranch bacon pizza is comfort food bliss!

A stunning whole roasted, spicy cauliflower from Erin, whose recipes are always so bold and flavorful.

I’m loving Miranda’s pumpkin and hemp seed granola—a perfect option for my make-ahead breakfasts this coming fall.

Finally, Hannah calls this “cheesecake for the ages,” and what an apt description it is!

Reads

1. It’s a couple days behind us, but I’m glad that Vox called attention to International Overdose Awareness Day.

2. National Geographic has published a pretty amazing, longform piece on the face transplant of Katie Stubblefield, the youngest US citizen so far to receive this still experimental surgery.

3. Also in medical news: Texas Monthly reports on the race to create the first artificial heart.

4. The Atlantic just published a piece about incrementalism and vegan activism—is animal rights outreach actually more effective when it’s less flexible? I see great value in an incremental and inclusive approach, and it’s the kind of activism I’ve always shared, but it was interesting to be exposed to a different perspective.

5. Finally, a new study from Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health underscores 5 habits that contribute to longevity. It can be so difficult for consumers to parse through complex (and sometimes conflicting) information on how to foster and maintain health. I appreciate this study for its breadth and the evidence-based, intuitive, and well-reasoned strategies it identifies.

Enjoy these awesome recipes, and I’ll be back later this week with a little comfort food of my own.

xo

The post Weekend Reading 9.2.18 appeared first on The Full Helping.

https://www.thefullhelping.com/weekend-reading-9-2-18/

Doctors' mental health problems 'last taboo'

The suicide rate among doctors in England is rising, with concerns about whether they can get help.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-45356349

The medical poison ’em by drugs profession

pixabayThe American medical profession, made up of the doctor-hospital-Big Pharma-commercial industry complex, is the largest pusher of poison chemical drugs in the world.
Roughly 90 percent of American medical doctors are poisoners and murderers and certainly not healers. Millions...
Read more...

New profiles share key lessons from Bay Area soda tax campaigns

In November, three more Bay Area cities joined Berkeley in adopting sugary drink taxes of one cent per ounce. How did they do it?

Three new profiles tell a little of the story in facts, figures and lessons learned. For example, did you know that more than $34.5 million was spent on the San...
Read more...

Why You Should Add These 10 Superfoods to Your Diet

Superfoods are one of the trendiest topics in the health and nutrition world. It’s almost impossible to read any book or article about nutrition without the mention of them!...





Ever wonder w...
Read more...