Healthy Vegetarian/Vegan Eating!

May 29th, 2009

I received an email from a subscriber, Bill, that I want to share with all of you.  I couldn’t have said it better!

Thanks for your efforts to encourage wellness.  My wife and I have followed a largely vegetarian diet for the past two years and have seen significant benefits. Our original motivation was to save a few animal lives, especially given the cruelty in factory-farm food-animal production and slaughter. The positive health consequences were an unexpected benefit. There is also the satisfaction of knowing that reductions in meat eating will reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

(Here’s a bit more of their story from a separate email……)

My wife and I attended a meeting two years ago of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). On the way there, knowing we would be would be having no meat during the conference, we had double cheeseburgers at a fast-food place, and joked whether we would be doing the same following the conference, as we anticipated no long-term change in our eating habits.

Halfway through the conference, we realized what great vegan food we were having and had a better understanding of the cruelty associated with much of the meat industry, and decided we would give vegetarianism a try. We have not been absolute by any means, but the health consequences were dramatic and surprising. I am about 20 pounds lighter and continuing to play tennis and full-court basketball at age 70. My wife Linda saw her previously astronomical cholesterol and triglyceride numbers plummet.

In short, whatever your own eating habits may be, I hope you will include some discussion of vegetarian options in your series on healthy eating.

Any other vegetarians or vegans want to chime in?  Do so at the comment link below…..would love to hear from you! 

March is National Kidney month

Mar 25th, 2009

Here are some ways to protect your kidneys:
· Regular Exercise
· Limit use of over-the-counter painkillers
· Maintain Healthy Weight
· Regular physician check-ups
· Maintain Healthy diet
· Know your family health history
· Regular blood pressure & cholesterol checks
· Become knowledgeable about kidney disease
· Avoid tobacco use and alcohol abuse
· If you are at risk, be tested

EFT – Emotional Freedom Technique

Mar 23rd, 2009

Have you heard about EFT – Emotional Freedom Technique.  It’s a very interesting way to manage physical, emotional, and spiritual stressors.  You an get rid of headaches, learn to stick with a healthy living plan, calm down, or manage just about anything else. 

Here’s a 6 minute video that gives you a quick strategy for using the technique.  The EFT practitioner demonstrates the technique to get rid of a headache.

Have you used EFT?  What has been the result? 

KANSAS Diabetes Walk–Topeka, Wichita, Overland Park

Aug 28th, 2008

DIABETES WALK IN OVERLAND PARK, TOPEKA, AND WICHITA – sign up to join in!

Step Out and make a difference! Diabetes takes a devastating toll on more than 23 million adults and children in the US, and the number is growing every day. Diabetes is linked to nearly 300,000 deaths a ear, and increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, kidney disease and blindness. Chances are that a family member, friend or colleague has been touched by diabetes.

It’s time for Kansas to Take Steps Now to Fight Diabetes!

Join hundreds of people across the state in the annual signature event for the American Diabetes Association – Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes! The event raises funds to support the American Diabetes Association’s mission: to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. The ADA’s mission is carried out through educational programs and services for the public, as well as workplace support, camps for children with diabetes, support groups and research grants to cure diabetes. There are three walk sites throughout the state so sign up for one of them today! Register online at www.diabetes.org/stepout for one of the following walk sites:

Overland Park/Kansas City Area – Theis Park on the Country Club Plaza
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Registration and a Wellness Fair opens at 7:30 a.m.
Opening Ceremony and Walk begins at 9 a.m.
Questions? Contact Andrea Hughey, ahughey@diabetes.org, (888) DIABETES, ext. 6842.

Topeka, Kansas – Lake Shawnee
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Registration and a Wellness Fair opens at 9 a.m.
Opening Ceremony and Walk begins at 10 a.m.
Questions? Contact Andrea Hughey, ahughey@diabetes.org, (888) DIABETES, ext. 6842.

Wichita, Kansas – Sedgwick County Zoo
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Registration and a Wellness Fair opens:TBD
Opening Ceremony and Walk begins:TBD
Questions? Contact Jackie Nelson, jnelson@diabetes.org, (888) DIABETES, ext. 6911.

Thanks for joining this critical fight against diabetes!

What’s Cookin’ with Diabetes Workshops (Kansas)

Jun 11th, 2008

FREE – Coming this Fall to Several Cities in Kansas!

Do you or a loved one have diabetes? If so, attending a two-hour workshop hosted by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, K-State Research and Extension Services and Prime Therapeutics LLC would be beneficial to you. The main goal of the workshops is to inform people about self-managing diabetes and encouraging healthy lifestyle choices to delay or prevent complications. Workshops will be held on the following dates at selected cities:

Sept. 23: Topeka (English and Spanish)

Oct. 2: Pittsburg

Oct. 6: Hays

Oct. 9: Salina

Oct. 13: Liberal (English and Spanish)

Oct. 14: Dodge City (English and Spanish)

Oct. 16: Newton

For specific locations, please visit www.bcbsks.com, and click on the “What’s Cookin’ with Diabetes” box near the bottom of the home page. Or call 1-800-520-3137; if you live in the Topeka area, call 291-7062. The seminars are open to the public and are free of charge.  Please note that pre-registration is required because of limited seating. Food samples will be given to attendees.

The Drugs I Need!

Sep 18th, 2007

Did you ever laugh out loud when watching a drug ad on television – all the side effects – or were you just hopeful that taking the drug would fix whatever ails you? In the U.S., we have a love affair with drugs. Our motto seems to be “better living through chemistry.” Hey that sounds familiar!

Watch this little video on this topic. Funny, yes?
The Drugs I Need

How to Get Fat Without Really Trying

Sep 11th, 2007

Before his death, Peter Jennings produced a fabulous series of programs on How to Get Fat Without Really Trying.  He interviews experts in nutrition, farming, public policy, and others.  Each video is short but eye-opening.  If you want your eyes opened, watch this this series.

Jennings discusses farm subsidies and a variety of unintentional consequences of our public policies.  The interviews shine the light on the disconnection between U.S. agricultural policies and public health.  Also up for discussion is…who is responsible for Americans getting fat?  Is it the individual, the government, the media, agribusinesses?  You may be surprised by what you see.

Watch it!

Are you insulin resistant?

May 9th, 2007

A colleague asked me the other day about insulin resistance.  Because it’s an increasingly prevalent health risk, I thought you’d like to know a little more about it.  Here’s a wee bit of information just to get you oriented to the topic.  At the bottom I’ve listed links to a wealth of additional information about this condition including information about carbohydrate cravings, glycemic load, and lifestyle changes that help turn this condition around. 

The unfortunate truth is that anyone can become insulin resistant — even if they are thin. We are all at risk in our society where we have access to a lot of refined carbohydrates (white bread, sugar, bagels, pasta, potatoes, Coke/Pepsi, processed foods with added fructose, etc.). In fact, most of us are likely to be somewhat sensitive to insulin. It is just a matter of degree. The more processed and refined food that we eat, the more insulin we require to metabolize it. The more insulin in our blood, the less responsive our cells become. As we age, this continual exposure wears out our tolerance for refined carbohydrates and reduces our sensitivity to insulin.

If you suffer from high cholesterol, high triglycerides, or hypertension, you should get checked for insulin resistance, regardless of your weight or age. If you have high blood pressure, it is likely that you are also suffering from insulin resistance. High blood pressure medication will not cure insulin resistance.

The good news is that insulin and glucose levels are very easily influenced by changes in lifestyle, exercise, and diet. If you are diagnosed with insulin resistance, there is a lot you can do to reverse its course.

>>read the article

Related articles on insulin resistance:

• Explaining food cravings
• Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
• Preventing type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome
• Insulin control and the four food groups
• Using the glycemic index and glycemic load
• Micronutrient therapy for insulin resistance and diabetes
• Risk factors for diabetes
• Types of diabetes
• Complications of diabetes

National Wear Red Day – Friday, Feb 2, 2007

Jan 31st, 2007

On February 2, 2007, women and men across the nation will
wear red to support their mothers, daughters, sisters and
friends in the fight against heart disease.Why you should be concerned

♥ Cardiovascular disease kills more women each year than the next five leading causes of death combined.
♥ 64% of women who die from coronary heart disease have had no previous vidence of the disease.
♥ 1 in 2.6 women will die from cardiovascular disease or stroke.
♥ African-American women have greater risk of developing heart disease than Caucasian women of the same socioeconomic status.
♥ Smoking is the single most preventable risk factor for heart disease.
♥ Every minute a woman dies from cardiovascular disease.

Risk Factors

♥ Do you smoke?
♥ Is you blood pressure 140/90 or higher, or has your doctor told you that you have high blood pressure?
♥ Is your total cholesterol 200 mg/dl or higher, or your HDL less than 50 mg/dl or your LDL higher than 160 mg/dl?
♥ Are you overweight?
♥ Do you have diabetes?
♥ Do you get less than 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions you are at increased risk for heart disease. Each of these is a risk factor you can control or change.

Ideas for Go Red Events in your community

♥ Host a Go Red event or party.
♥ Encourage your co-workers to participate in Go Red Day.
♥ Create a display with a red dress and information about women and heart disease.
♥ Partner with local organizations such as health centers, extension offices, fitness centers, churches, 4-H or other youth groups to host and support events.

Resources

www.goredforwomen.org
www.cdc.gov
www.whitehouse.gov/firstlady/initiatives/womenandheartdisease2.html
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/hearttruth/

Holistic Indigestion Relief

Jan 23rd, 2007

Cindy Hebbard from the Wisdom of Healing has this to say about this digestive upsets:

Indigestion, acid reflux, acid indigestion, GERD; upper GI troubles go by many common names, but the problem is huge and growing! That ‘purple pill’ has been in the top five best selling prescription medications for years, grossing $5.7 billion in 2005, according to Forbes.

And it doesn’t have to be this way.  She recommends several holistic ways to support digestive health.  And she includes a description of several herbs and nutritional supplements that may provide digestive relief.  Her article even includes a couple of simple home tests to see if you have too much or not enough stomach acid.  Read her article here.