Parents face many challenges trying to raise healthy children. Convincing kids to eat enough non-starchy vegetables is at the top of that list. This is no accident. Among other reasons, food manufacturers spend millions upon of millions of dollars “educating” the youth market on what’s cool to eat. But with a little creative parenting, there are ways of outsmarting finicky youngsters and junk food marketers at the same time. Read more »

Whenever possible, I like to turn the spotlight on alternative remedies to potentially dangerous medications. A class of drugs known as bisphophonates are best sellers in the senior population. Older women tend to be the primary recipients of prescriptions for Actonel, Boniva and Fosamax because they’re geared toward stemming the loss of bone density. My problem with bisphosphonates is the quality of bone they ultimately yield, which can be brittle, and their questionable side effect profile. Patients and physicians have reported instances of “acute influenza-like illness”, arterial fibrillation, esophageal irritation, gastrointestinal upset, musculoskeletal complaints and osteonecrosis (bone death) of the jaw that appear to be associated with long term use of these medications. (1,2,3)
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Before stepping foot in the Anaheim Convention Center to attend Natural Products Expo West, I formulated an introduction for all the exhibitors and representatives I planned to meet. First, I would introduce myself. Then I’d explain what my site is all about. Finally, I’d reveal my basic objective – to learn about the most cutting edge developments in the natural health industry so that I might pass them along to my readers and subscribers. I knew this was the correct approach for me because it fits right in with my overall strategy for this site. Simply put, I want to share current, “under the radar” medical information with you and those whose lives you touch. Every Monday you can count on me presenting at least five natural health items that specifically fit into this category. According to my calender, today is Monday, so here goes! Read more »

Some alt-med experts are suspicious of mainstream medical publications such as the The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). They generally believe that such periodicals are firmly in the camp or even in the pocket of allopathic medicine. While there may be some truth to that, it’s also accurate to say that unbiased articles do occasionally appear in these same journals that are often criticized. Read the following quote and tell me if it sounds like it belongs in a publication whose primary purpose is to support the existing medical and pharmaceutical paradigm: “The current drug-labeling practice for adverse events is based on the implicit assumption that an accurate portrait of patients’ subjective experiences can be provided by clinicians’ documentation alone. Yet a substantial body of evidence contradicts this assumption, showing that clinicians systematically downgrade the severity of patients’ symptoms, that patients’ self-reports frequently capture side effects that clinicians miss, and that clinicians’ failure to note these symptoms results in the occurrence of preventable adverse events”. That quote is taken directly from a current analysis entitled, “The Missing Voice of Patients in Drug-Safety Reporting” which is presented in the March 10th online edition of the NEJM. Read more »

Aging is a funny thing. When we’re children, we can’t wait to get older so we can do all of the wondrous things that we imagine adults do. By the time we reach adulthood, we realize that there are both pros and cons to this “grown-up” stage of life. That’s about the same time that we begin wondering what it will be like to be even older – a “senior citizen”. At first, many of the downsides of that proposition come to mind such as not being able to move or think as quickly as we used to. But often times, another concept rears its head: Growing old is a luxury that is not afforded to everyone. If you’re lucky enough to live a long life, then it becomes all the more important to make those extra years count. One of the best ways to enable this is to support your body and mind so that those so-called “golden years” can be both fulfilling and productive. Read more »

Did you know that cardiovascular disease is the #1 cause of death in women 25 and up? There’s not even a close second in the mortality race. You’d have to add up all the deaths from every form of cancer and multiply that number by almost two in order to equal the number of heart related deaths. Pretty shocking, isn’t it? Read more »