Posts Tagged ‘Antioxidants’

Green Coffee Extract

July 29, 2011 Written by JP

Last week, I stopped into a popular coffee shop and ordered a large, iced Americano. While waiting to pay, I noticed an advertisement for a new line of icy, fruit flavored drinks that featured green coffee extract. That’s right, green coffee. Combining coffee and fruit may seem like an odd pairing, but, in reality, the flavor of raw coffee beans bears little to no resemblance to the brewed forms of coffee enjoyed the world over. Taste issues aside, you may be wondering why green coffee extract would be included in summery drinks and/or so called “functional foods” in the first place. Read more »


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Posted in Diet and Weight Loss, Food and Drink, Nutritional Supplements | 9 Comments & Updates

Ecklonia Cava Research

July 11, 2011 Written by JP

What do natural health aficionados and oceanographers have in common? Well, for one thing, they’re part of a small minority of people who are familiar with an edible brown algae known as Ecklonia cava. In alternative and integrative medical circles, a “unique polyphenol complex” derived from E. cava is marketed under the name of Fibroboost or Seanol. The manufacturer and resellers of the product claim that it possesses both fat and water soluble antioxidants which are capable of addressing and improving a wide array of conditions and diseases. But are the implied claims made in the product literature and on various websites accurate and responsible? Read more »


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Posted in Exercise, Heart Health, Nutritional Supplements | 4 Comments & Updates

Plastic Danger Revisited

May 16, 2011 Written by JP

There’s a fine line between being informed about the dangers in the environment and being paranoid about every move you make. An imbalance in this perspective could lead one not to exercise because there’s pollution in the air, avoid fruits and vegetables because they contain pesticide residues and even to become a recluse for fear of germs spread through casual contact with other human beings. Clearly, a balance needs to be struck. Read more »


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Posted in Children's Health, Detoxification, Women's Health | 7 Comments & Updates

Chocolate News You Can Use

May 6, 2011 Written by JP

At this years Natural Products Expo West, a new line of cocoa-based supplements received a great deal of attention. This is the latest example of a renewed sense of excitement surrounding the health potential of Theobroma cacao extracts and foods. However, not everyone is ready to embrace chocolate as a health food. Some health authorities are hesitant about giving their seal of approval, citing concerns ranging from increased cardiovascular risk to obesity. Who are we to believe? Should we place our faith in supplement manufacturers who suggest a broad array of health benefits or the skeptics that still consider chocolate merely candy? Read more »


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Posted in Diet and Weight Loss, Food and Drink, Heart Health | 12 Comments & Updates

Vitiligo Alternatives

March 30, 2011 Written by JP

Of all the organs in the human body, the skin receives the most attention the majority of the time. We consider whether it’s pale or tan, dry or oily, smooth or wrinkled. The appearance of skin also tells others a fair share about who we are. It can reveal clues about ancestry and genetic tendencies. One’s complexion can impart an impression of health when rosy and glowing or illness when pasty and pale. The choice of whether or not to use make up or how much of it also tells a story about who we are and what we value.
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Posted in Alternative Therapies, Nutrition, Nutritional Supplements | 13 Comments & Updates

Maqui Berries

March 28, 2011 Written by JP

Assume for a moment that you are looking for a new supplement to try at your local health food store. Now let’s say you happened upon a product that presented the following statements on its label or in the accompanying supplemental literature: “Age Defying Beautiful Skin”; “Nature’s Ultimate Antioxidant”; “Naturally Pure”; “Scientifically Proven”; “Supports Healthy Cholesterol Levels” and “Supports a Healthy Immune System”. What would your impression of this product be? If you’re a frequent visitor to this site, my hope is that your first instinct would be to do some research to try to verify these seductive claims.
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Posted in Alternative Therapies, Food and Drink, Nutritional Supplements | 8 Comments & Updates

Alternative Cancer News

March 3, 2011 Written by JP

A prerequisite for using natural medicine to its greatest advantage is to maintain a healthy reservoir of common sense. This is sometimes difficult to do when you or someone you love is diagnosed with a life threatening illness. In these vulnerable times, one has the tendency to trust otherwise unbelievable claims out of a desperate need for finding a cure. Regrettably, too many opportunistic authors and questionable healers in the alternative health community use this circumstance to sell books, devices and services. As you can imagine, the end result, can be disastrous and heartbreaking.
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Posted in Alternative Therapies, Nutritional Supplements | 19 Comments & Updates

Best Of Apples for Cancer Protection

January 20, 2011 Written by JP

Sometimes the best way to draw attention to a specific issue is to simply lay out the stark facts and figures. It is estimated that nearly 50,000 people will die in 2009 from colorectal cancer in the United States alone. If you look at the combined incidence of colorectal cancer in both men and women, it is the second leading cause of cancer related mortality. In the US, that means that over 106,000 people will be diagnosed with colon cancer and about 41,000 will learn that they have rectal cancer. What’s more, governmental statistics estimate that the lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is about 1 in 19 or 5.3%. These numbers may seem shocking because these forms of cancer simply do not receive as much attention as breast or prostate cancer for instance. But the news about colorectal cancer isn’t all negative. According to the US Centers for Disease Control, the “death rate” from colorectal cancer is on the decline, perhaps due to better screening and removal of pre-cancerous colon polyps. But, as always, I believe the most promising avenue in the field of cancer research involves the safe and judicious use of “preventive medicine”.
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Posted in Detoxification, Food and Drink, Nutrition | 5 Comments & Updates

Inner Outer Beauty

January 14, 2011 Written by JP

The world would be a much different place if our external appearance reflected the content of our character. In such a scenario, some prized beauties of the past and present would lose their luster. Likewise, the covers of glossy magazines and important newspapers would feature unassuming figures who truly make the world a better place. For better or worse, that’s an alternate reality that I don’t think will ever come about. However, there is a way to enhance outward beauty by changing what you put on your dinner plate.
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Posted in Alternative Therapies, Diet and Weight Loss, Nutrition | 12 Comments & Updates

Best Of Dietary Fiber and Cancer

December 31, 2010 Written by JP

Some types of foods are easier to incorporate into one’s diet than others. If your doctor advises you to eat more fruits or vegetables, you can quite easily select the varieties that you like best and up your intake. The same can be said for other commonly recommended health foods such as fish, nuts and seeds. But adding more fiber into your daily routine requires some planning because not all fruits and vegetables contain much and animal based foods are completely devoid of it. In my opinion, being reminded of the importance of fiber, while becoming more aware of foods that are abundant in this dietary component is the key to making it a priority.
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Posted in Detoxification, Food and Drink, Nutrition | 8 Comments & Updates

Juicing Alternative

November 22, 2010 Written by JP

Juicing is one of the more popular ways to increase one’s consumption of fruits and vegetables. This nutritional strategy can support virtually any type of diet depending on the selection of produce. In addition, there’s a subset of the juicing crowd that employs this culinary technique in another capacity – as part of a detoxification and/or fasting regimen. It may surprise you to know that I’m not a big fan of juicing. However, I do support a slightly modified way of deriving many of the same benefits and more. My Healthy Monday tip of the week is to blend your fruits and vegetables instead of juicing them.
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Posted in Detoxification, Food and Drink, Nutrition | 19 Comments & Updates

Vegetable Soup Medicine

November 15, 2010 Written by JP

Whenever possible I like to combine nutritional strategies that address more than one objective at a time. Eating more vegetables is a common goal for many of my clients. Likewise, drinking more water and curtailing overeating rank highly on their “to do lists”. It just so happens that there’s a simple technique that can support all three of these objectives and more. My Healthy Monday tip of the week is to include more homemade soup in your winter time routine.
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Posted in Diet and Weight Loss, Food and Drink, Nutrition | 14 Comments & Updates

Nutritional Lifesavers

August 13, 2010 Written by JP

Have you ever been in the presence of a truly gifted salesman? I think most of us have at one point or another. In fact, I suspect that merely asking that question conjured up an image or memory from your past. In all likelihood, the vast majority of you were thinking of someone who was selling something mostly for profit. Please don’t get me wrong. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with turning a profit. But I sometimes wish that it was as easy to sell the concept of charitable giving and good health practices as it is to sell alluring products.
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Posted in Heart Health, Nutrition | 4 Comments & Updates