Coping with Stress

Is it a good thing to do? You bet your bananas it is! When periods of stress and symptoms of tension arise, some psychologists believe that it is healthier to stop worrying and to take a completely different tack. Yell at the television. Make faces in a mirror. Do the mashed potato. Tramp around the house like Groucho Marx.  Hold an animated conversation with yourself.

We’ve all got a bit of the outrageous lurking beneath our sometimes overly self-controlled exteriors, and it can be healthy and tension-relieving to let a little of it surface. Anything will do as long as it’s unusual and fun but harmless to yourself and others.

Control Your Carbs to Resist Diabetes

Do you love breads, fruit, potatoes or anything with sugar in it? A diet heavy in high-carbohydrate foods like these may lead to insulin resistance and diabetes, say New York City-based physicians Rachael Heller, M.D., and Richard Heller, M.D., authors of "The Carbohydrate Addict's Cookbook" (Wiley, 2001).

Consisting of starches and sugars, carbohydrates are the body's chief "energy food." They influence the release of the hormone insulin, often referred to as the hunger hormone, since it signals the body to take in food.

There are two major types of carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates, found in fresh fruits and vegetables, contain complex sugars and starches and various types of fiber, all of which are digested slowly and help stabilize glucose and insulin levels. Refined carbohydrates, which include bread, snack foods, pasta and various forms of sugar, are digested rapidly and provoke surging increases in glucose and insulin.

Controlling Common Conditions in Aging Pets

While we’d all love to turn back the clock and have our pets puppies and kittens again (fully potty-trained, of course!), unfortunately, they too must deal with the same aging process that we experience. However, there are common conditions that you can help control by implementing preventative health care measures.

In addition, addressing slight problems right away can lead to reduced costs in long-term care, as many diseases are potentially preventable. As diseases advance, the cost of treatment also increases. Therefore, early detection and regular maintenance can go a long way to building a strong foundation for your pet’s health.

Combating Disease Through Diet

It has long been determined that diet and the foods you eat play a large role in influencing your health and well-being. The AARP has provided a list of certain foods and dietary nutrients that combat specific health disorders.

Calcium and Bone Diseases

According to AARP, osteoporosis is a disease that occurs when the calcium content in your bones is very low. Low calcium causes stiff, brittle and fragile bones which are easily fractured or broken. Implementing daily doses of calcium into your diet is essential, particularly for older individuals. Getting the proper amount of calcium can help you maintain healthy bones and teeth. The best food sources for calcium come from dairy and milk products. Calcium can also be found in a variety of fruits and vegetables. Calcium supplements are also available if you’re not getting the proper amount from the foods you eat. Check with your doctor regarding the recommended daily allowance of calcium based upon your age, gender and hormonal factors.

Cold Weather Pet Concerns

When winter temperatures plummet, there are a myriad of problems that can affect your pets. As always, prevention is much better than cure!

Take a few minutes to check out some of the top concerns your pets may face this winter and help keep your animals cozy and healthy!

Painful Paws

If you are a pet owner in a snow-prone climate, it is particularly important to protect your pet’s feet, as salt applied to streets and sidewalks to melt icy conditions can be extremely irritating and lead to tender pads.

Dry, cold air alone can cause your pet’s pads to become dry and cracked, so watch for signs of sore pads and discomfort to avoid a more serious condition like an infection. Your dog or cat may excessively lick his or her feet, and you may notice red skin between the pads or even bleeding.

Cold, Cranky and Sad? Help for Seasonal Depression

As the season changes from fall to winter and days become shorter, symptoms of seasonal affective disorder may begin to surface. According to Mental Health America, about half a million people suffer from SAD every year, with the highest incidences reportedly during December, January, and February. An even higher number of people may suffer from a milder case of “winter blues”.

What causes seasonal affective disorder?

Changes in daylight affect stimulation of the hypothalamus, a highly complex region in the brain responsible for many body functions. When light is reduced, the hypothalamus’ change in response rate slows various body mechanisms, which can lead to symptoms in certain people. Though it can affect anyone from children to adults, the disorder is more common in women between 20-40 years of age.

Coffee: More Than a Drink

Did you know that coffee first gained popularity in Europe as a medicinal remedy? Or that espresso is more than four times as fattening as filter coffee, or that it takes 600,000 coffee beans to fill one 132-pound sack?

Coffee World is there to enlighten you. In fact, the site will tell you so much about its favorite brew that you would probably have to sit up night, quaffing one cup of hot java after another, to take it all in.

Coffee World assures us the substance is far more than a beverage essence and is a useful ingredient in cookery, ranging from coffee pork chops to coffee barbecue sauce and fusilli with coffee ragout. Other recipes include a coffee-laced beef and cheese tortilla casserole, slow roast shoulder of lamb with coffee and cumin, and spaghetti al caffe.

Click Here for a Better Diet

If you need some online help planning a healthy diet, check out the Interactive Healthy Eating Index from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Web site offers graphics, tables and icons to not only measure an individual's diet, but also portion size, variety of foods and consumption of saturated fat.

"Giving Americans the opportunity to privately monitor their daily nutritional intake is an excellent way for people to determine what foods they should be consuming and how they can work these foods into a well balanced eating plan," says Edith Howard Hogan, a dietician with American Dietetic Association.

Chow Down on Mood-Boosting Foods

Tough economic times can be particularly devastating to one's emotional and mental well-being, oftentimes triggering depression, according to United States Department of Health and Human Services.

Many reach for comfort foods, such as chips, cookies and chocolates, to survive the turmoil, but the Mental Health Foundation found that daily exercise and healthy eating are part of a successful plan for treatment.

"The foods we eat may affect our brain chemistry as much as some medication," Laura Buxenbaum, nutrition communication program manager for Southeast United Dairy Industry Association, Inc., said. "In order to beat the blues, we need to pay attention to what we're eating."

Chill Out Diet for Hot Flashes

Although you may have experienced occasional hot flashes at some time in your life, when you're going through menopause, they can be unrelenting and even debilitating. The good news is that some small dietary adjustments may make a big difference in their frequency and intensity.

In general, the typical American diet includes a lot of white flour, fat, dairy, sugar, caffeine and meat. Replacing some of these items with whole grains, fruits and vegetables, beans, fish and small amounts of meat, would have many health benefits; one of which is that these food groups are high in concentrated phytoestrogens -- estrogen-like compounds that even out the hormonal fluctuations that cause hot flashes.

Child and Teen Obesity – Why Is It So Prevalent?

I cannot get through the news without seeing at least one reference to child/teen obesity.  Why is it such a problem in America? Is it the type of food that children today are putting in their mouths, and who is to blame for such behavior?

What’s the problem?

First of all, we must define what child and adolescent obesity really is. Childhood obesity is a serious medical condition that affects children and teenagers. It occurs when a child is above the normal weight for his or her age and height. The problem is that the children are showing a very high rate of obesity that can lead into health issues as they grow older, such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Check that Chronic Cough

If you smoke, have allergies or take blood pressure medication and suffer from a chronic cough, it may be more than just a coincidence. Symptoms of a chronic cough, one lasting more than three weeks, are: coughing up phlegm or blood; running a high temperature; being often drenched in sweat or losing weight .

Postnasal drip accompanying allergies is one possible cause of a chronic cough. Medical experts at the American Academy of Family Physicians suggest either avoiding the pollen, smoke and dust causing the allergy to flare up, or trying a combination of antihistamines and decongestants suggested by a doctor.

Celebrity Health: Why Losing the Baby Weight Made Jessica Alba Cry

You know how it always seems that celebs can have a baby and then seconds later--bam--they're back in shape? Sure, some of them just have really good genes, but others just work really, really hard. Jessica Alba gets today's healthy celeb award for being real...

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Months ago, after Jessica Alba had her baby, I remember being a teeny bit jealous. How in the world did she go from 9 months pregnant to flat tummy--seemingly overnight? We speculated about her new workout equipment and the fact that she (and other stars like her) can afford personal trainers and chefs. And then she posed for that calendar!

Cats and Dogs Get Arthritis Too

Arthritis is a disease that continues to get worse as your pet ages and the affected joints become inflamed. The cartilage in the joint is slowly destroyed by everyday wear and tear and once it gets to a certain point, the body begins to help further the destruction.

Many times you cannot even tell if your pet has arthritis. Other times you will be able to hear creaking in their joints or see the inflammation.

There are many things that can cause arthritis in cats or dogs including injury, infections and certain diseases. Some breeds such as bulldogs and dachshunds are more prone to arthritis due to their body and bone structure.

Caring for Fido and Fluffy’s Cold – Home Remedy Tips

While symptoms of cold and flu are distressful and a potential cause for concern there are a number of things you can do at home to nurse your pet back to health. Check out our tips for both cats and dogs.

How Do I Care for My Cat?

You will be required to address cat colds only if the underlying cause has been identified as a bacterial infection. Otherwise, a cat cold must run its course. Cats are likely to sneeze and sleep a lot during the course of the infection, which can last between 7 to 14 days, maximum. You can make use of some time-tested home remedies, herbal cures and homeopathic remedies to alleviate the symptoms.