EWG’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™, updated every year since 2004, ranks pesticide contamination on 48 popular fruit and vegetables. The guide, called the Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen, is based on results of more than 35,200 samples tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration.
By Jane Brody
When The New York Times hired me to write about science and health 52 years ago, I was 40 pounds overweight. I’d spent the previous three years watching my weight rise as I hopped from one diet to the next in a futile attempt to shed the pounds most recently gained.
Anyone who has ever been on a diet knows that the standard prescription for weight loss is to reduce the amount of calories you consume.
Planning saves time and allows the opportunity to pack the family meal with an extra nutritional punch. Before you make your shopping list and head to the grocery store, consider the following criteria for healthier options:
Family and friends are two important kinds of relationships in your life, no doubt. But when it comes to making you happier over the long term, you might be surprised which group is the more powerful. While family members are important, when it comes to better health and happiness, it’s friendships that make the biggest difference—especially as you get older, according to new research.
As the year comes to an end and you start thinking about new year’s resolutions, here are 12 rules to help increase your wellness in the coming year and beyond.
Aromatherapy is a fascinating alternative medicine that involves the use of volatile plant materials, also known as essential oils, that can be aromatically inhaled by patients of a wide variety of health conditions. It is often used to improve mood, change cognitive states, and can also be utilized as a supplemental medicine. Some of the most common health benefits of aromatherapy are explained in greater detail below.
Stress Relief: Perhaps the most widespread and popular use of aromatherapy is for stress relief. The aromatic compounds from many different essential oils are known as relaxants and can help to soothe your mind and eliminate anxiety. This is what most people who perform aromatherapy at home use it for, since the mixtures are very simple and the research on this aspect of aromatherapy is very well-known and widely studied. Some of the best essential oils for stress relief are lemon oil, lavender, bergamot, peppermint, vetiver, and ylang ylang essential oils.
Boost Energy Levels: We can all use more energy to get through the hectic daily tasks of modern life. While diet and exercise can also help, many people turn to aromatherapy to put a bit more pep in their step. Many essential oils are known to increase circulation, raise energy levels, and generally stimulate the body and mind. The best essential oils for giving yourself an energy boost include black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, angelica, jasmine, tea tree, rosemary, and sage.
Headaches: Everyone gets headaches from time to time, and aromatherapy can be a wonderful solution that may not only eliminate your current headache, but possibly reduce the stress, anxiety, or origin of your headaches to prevent them in the future. Some of the best essential oils that have been connected to reducing headaches and migraines are peppermint, eucalyptus, sandalwood, and rosemary essential oils. You can also mix these oils in a carrier oil and spread that oil onto your skin, scalp, neck, and temples. Some of the best carrier oils for headaches include almond, avocado, coconut, apricot kernel, and sesame oils.
Sleep Aid: Not getting enough sleep can exacerbate or cause a huge range of medical conditions and can leave us feeling unproductive and devoid of energy. Luckily, aromatherapy can provide us with a more balanced sleep schedule and even realign our Circadian rhythms so our body naturally gets tired at an appropriate time, sleeps restfully through the night, and is energized in the morning to face the day. Some of the best essential oils for managing your sleeping habits and having a healthy, sedative effect on the body include lavender, chamomile, jasmine, benzoin, neroli, rose, sandalwood, sweet marjoram, and ylang ylang essential oils.
Whatever your condition, and whatever essential oils you choose to use, always consult your doctor before embarking on a new treatment plan. Also, be sure to only acquire essential oils from approved sources and don’t attempt to mix and use oils unless you have been trained as a professional aromatherapist.
As a teenager, you may have rolled your eyes when your mom insisted that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” as you were running out the door. But guess what? She’s right. A new study just found a link between skipping breakfast and what may seem like an unrelated condition: atherosclerosis, otherwise known as hardening of the arteries.
In the study, those who skipped breakfast or ate very little for breakfast were more likely to have the condition — and also have unhealthy cholesterol levels and a higher waist circumference, blood sugar, and body-mass index. What’s the connection? Research suggests that eating a healthy breakfast may help to regulate your appetite throughout the day, leading to fewer cravings and more appropriate portions. So frequently skipping breakfast may spell bad news for your eating patterns, which can affect your heart health.
The researchers emphasized that people who eat little or nothing for breakfast tend to have a less healthy lifestyle overall. Which is why skipping breakfast may be a signal to take a look at your daily habits. Keep a journal for a week or two, without trying to change anything, and record your habits without judgment. Write down how much time you spend exercising, your ratio of whole foods (spinach, apples, legumes, brown rice, salmon) to processed foods (frozen pizza, white-flour bread, packaged muffins or cookies), how often you cook, order in or eat out, your alcohol intake, and your sleep. When you’re done, don’t try to overhaul your whole life at once! Get support from a health professional, and from family and friends, for any changes you’d like to make. And by all means, add in a bowl of oatmeal in the morning — try the steel-cut variety, with nuts and fresh berries.
Ergonomics is the science of designing the workplace. The ultimate goal of ergonomics is to design the workplace so that it accommodates the variety of human capabilities and limitations and prevents injuries. Working Americans spend about 2,000 hours per year in the workplace. All of these hours can take a toll on your eyes, back, arms, and neck. Here’s how to set up your workplace to make it a healthier and safer place for you to work.
The Power of Produce Club helps children ages 5-12 to make healthy food choices by offering educational activities, recipe tasting, and money to spend at the Fort Bragg farmers’ market!
Participating children will receive $4 each week of the program to spend on fruit or vegetables. Look for the POP booth at the farmers’ market, and enjoy fun activities like recipe tasting, seed planting, art and science activities. Read more about the program here:
Join POP at the Fort Bragg farmers’ market every Wednesday in the month of September: September 6, 13, 20 and 27 from 3:00 to 6:00 pm at Franklin and Laurel Streets in the heart of downtown Fort Bragg.
If you live outside the Mendocino area, go to Farmers Market Coalition to see if your local farmers’ market has a POP Club already. If they don’t, you can apply to start your own in your own backyard. Let’s keep the Power of Produce growing and our children growing stronger and healthier!
