So, I have this friend named May Davies who pretty much speaks another language, and it totally cracks me up! (I love ya, May!) I like being with her just to get a good chuckle, which negates the notion that my children have about me not laughing enough (at least…

Part 1A If you do a Google search on “antioxidants,” the following information is what you will find under the top item that comes up, which happens to be a Wikipedia article. Oxidation reactions can produce free radicals. Free radicals can start chain reactions. When the chain reaction occurs in…

Introduction As a holistic healthcare practitioner, I am constantly exposed to new products, research, and concepts. In order to provide the best advice and care for my clients, I must take a critical look at the scientific theory and proof behind each of these items. It is imperative that I…

The Thanksgiving "Test Kitchen" With both sides of our family being local, Thanksgiving is usually a large family affair with cousins, in-laws, aunts, uncles, grandparents and grandkids. And my husband and I are the common thread between all of our relatives, so Thanksgiving is usually at our house. While I…

Part 5C Is Your “Oil Light” Flashing? Chinese Face, Tongue & Nail Analysis (cont'd) Do you have slick, raw patches on your tongue? Does the coating on your tongue have a yellow, white, or greenish tint to it? What about the color of your tongue itself-- is it purplish or…

Part 5B: Are You Running on Fumes? Chinese Face, Tongue & Nail Analysis (cont'd) Last time we talked about our facial characteristics being similar to the odometer reading on a car. The lines, coloring, and skin qualities of our faces all indicate what is going on below the surface of…

Part 5A: What Is Your “Odometer Reading?” Chinese Face, Tongue & Nail Analysis Do you believe that lines and wrinkles on your face are inevitable as you age? Much like an odometer indicates the mileage driven in an automobile, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), lines on the face are…

Part 4C: "Rewiring" Your Main Computer The Thalamus & Limbic System (cont'd) In Parts 4A & 4B of this blog series, we talked about how smell and taste are linked to memories and emotions, and how these two senses can enhance learning, memory and healing, both emotionally and physically. We…

Part 4B: Is it Time to Reset "Your CO Sensor?" The Thalamus & Limbic System (cont'd) In Part 4A of this blog series, we talked about the connection between our sense of smell and memories, and we learned that scent is the most powerful memory trigger. The thalamus is likened…

Part 4A: How to Do a “Factory Reset” on Your Brain The Thalamus & Limbic System Modern vehicles contain at least one computer, such as the Engine Control Unit (ECU), which I likened to the endocrine system in Part 3A of this blog series. As cars become more complex, additional…

Part 3B: Is Your "Accelerator" Stuck? The Adrenals As Americans we jam-pack our schedules so that we are always running here and there, and this stress can put our adrenals into a state of “fight or flight.” In fact, most Americans live in a constant state of “fight or flight,”…

Part 3A: Is Your “Check Engine” Light On? The Endocrine System Just as the spark plugs in an automobile must fire in perfect timing, bodily chemicals must be present in the precise quantities at the proper times for metabolic processes to take place. Utilization of fuel in a vehicle with…

Part 2B: The “Key” in Your “Ignition” The Exocrine System (continued) Additional non-digestive enzymes, or metabolic enzymes, and hormones are required to complete this conversion process. Enzymes are simply proteins that act as catalysts for chemical reactions within the body; they are chemicals that facilitate other chemical reactions. The human…

Part 2A: Is Your “Ignition Switch” Faulty? The Exocrine System In a sense, the ignition of an automobile can be likened to the many enzymes that begin the process of digestion. “Digestive enzymes break down the food we eat so that it can be used as a source of nutrients…

Part 1: Has Your “Paint Job” Lost Its Luster & Shine? The Integumentary System Comparing the human body to a machine is like comparing G-d to the internet in that no matter how sophisticated and complicated a machine or the world-wide web may become, these man-made inventions will always fall…

Recently while on vacation with my husband, I had some time for leisure reading. Being the health geek that I am, I picked up my copy of Choose Life or Death by Dr. Carey A. Reams. This man has been one of my heroes since the time I learned about…

Part VE: The Chemistry of Nutrition Here we are at the conclusion of this blog series on The Chemistry of Aging. To quickly review, aging is slowed and health is improved when we balance our pH by: 1) Managing Our Stress (including sleep) 2) Oxygenating Our System 3) Improving Our…

Part VD: The Chemistry of Nutrition We are winding down to the end of this series on The Chemistry of Aging and how to slow down the aging process. As I have said before, the same principles that decelerate the aging process are also the keys to health: What keeps…

Part VC: The Chemistry of Nutrition In this part of Staying Youthful Longer, we have been discussing The Chemistry of Nutrition as a factor that regulates the speed at which we age. There are four dietary recommendations that I make to all of my clients, and so far we have…

Part VB: The Chemistry of Nutrition This blog series has covered the key to health and youth: a balanced pH. We have discussed three factors that affect the rate at which we age: 1)Stress (including sleep) 2)Oxygenation 3)Digestion (including leaky gut) Previously, we began to delve into the fourth factor:…