Natural Health Care

What's the most powerful step you can take to dramatically improve your health?

My answer is this:

Learn how to effectively manage emotional stress

All of my clinical and personal experiences over the years have me convinced that no other factor has more influence over your health.

I learned something interesting about probiotics this past week from a column in Alive magazine, a Canadian publication that can be found in most health food stores throughout Canada.

Francine Mondou, a microbiologist who specializes in manufacturing probiotics, suggests that it is optimal to take probiotics on a full stomach.

Her reasoning is based on the fact that an empty stomach has a very acidic environment - a pH of about 1.5 to 2.5. Right after a meal, the environment in the stomach becomes less acidic, rising to a pH of about 4.0 to 6.0. Read more »

Did you know that one of the reasons why laughing from the belly is good for your health is that doing so promotes a healthy lymphatic system? I'm not talking about polite laughter that we all engage in from time to time to make others feel comfortable. I'm talking about true belly laughter, the kind that can make your stomach muscles cramp up and even cause you to shed tears of jolly good fun.

Not sure how this can be? Then let's take a look at your lymphatic system to understand the important connection between genuine belly laughter and your health.

What is your lymphatic system? Read more »

An interesting study in the September, 2005 edition of the journal Heart provides useful guidance on how to use music to decrease stress and promote good health. Read more »

Just read your blog about understanding blood pressure, and I have a question. There seems to be a lot of information out there about people with high blood pressure, but what about too low - how low is too low, and what does it mean? Information about low blood pressure seems to be pretty scarce, and I think it would be a good thing for you to comment on.

The purpose of this article is to outline 13 ways that you can decrease your risk of developing any type of cancer. The following 13 ways to prevent cancer are presented in no particular order:

1. If you are going to be sexually active, be in a mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who is not infected by human papilloma virus (HPV) Read more »

Here are six simple steps that you can take to protect your eyesight for years to come and even improve your current eyesight:

1. Rest your eyes whenever you can.
   Whenever you take a short break from your daily duties, close your eyes while you rest. Closing your eyes for a few minutes every hour can dramatically reduce eye strain, tension headaches, and even fatigue.

A close friend of mine mentioned to me the other day that when she and her husband first married, one of the activities she enjoyed most was having him rub her feet in the evenings while they chatted about their day. She really loved feeling the warmth of his hands and the pressure on her skin, as well as spending the time with him. She enjoyed this activity to the point where, when she’d see him in the evenings, she would clear her throat and wiggle her toes at him as a way of asking for another foot massage. Read more »

A recent study conducted by researchers at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Center in Oxford, England concluded that intensive rehabilitation for chronic lower back pain provides just as much relief as surgery at half the cost.

This study is hardly news to many physical therapists and chiropractors who work at helping people with lower back pain through natural means on a regular basis. Read more »

Did you know that carrying a wallet in your backpocket can dramatically increase your risk of having a chronic lower back problem? Sitting down with one side of your pelvis slightly elevated because of a wallet can cause instability in your pelvic joints, which can cause intermittent lower back sprains and strains. Please thi