Teaching Children to Cope with Stress

Author Linda Lantieri (of Building Emotional Intelligence) has developed a curriculum to help children cope with stress in a healthy and productive manner. The following exercises are recommended for children 5 years of age and older.

1. Check in - help your child recognize some of the signs of stress (tense muscles, fast breathing, upset stomach, jumpiness, etc.) as a step in teaching them how to release it.


2. Make room for silence - try to make silent breaks a part of your daily routine. It could simply be a few minutes at the beginning or end of a car ride or before a meal. Then ask your child(ren) what they hear, see or feel during the quiet time.


3. Create a peace corner - this should be a special area where the child can go to be quiet. The space can include calming elements, such as chimes, a coloring book or journal, peaceful pictures or quiet instrumental music.


4. Honor nature - being out in nature connects us to "a sense of something larger than ourselves and lets us disengage from day-to-day preoccupations."

Source: Natural Solutions

Decrease Your Risk of Developing Gout

The British Medical Journal found that men who drink two soft drinks per day (sweetened with fructose) have an 85% chance of developing gout, which is a painful uric acid buildup that usually occurs in the big toe.

Reducing the Appearance of Cellulite

Cellulite occurs when fat storage chambers swell from connective tissues between the skin and muscle becoming loose. Denise Fuller, aesthetician, says you can temporarily "erase this cottage cheese" look. Try the following:

1. Exercise - do regular cardiovascular exercise and strength training to burn excess fat and strengthen your connective tissues


2. A seaweed compression wrap - helps you sweat out excess water and burn more fat because kelp increases body temperature and metabolism; the compression from the wrap smoothes out bumps for approximately 10 days; avoid seaweed wraps if you take thyroid medication or are allergic to shellfish or iodine


3. Dry brushing - use a natural bristle brush to brush upward on your legs, buttocks, and hips for five minutes per day; dry brushing helps to encourage circulation and improve the appearance of your skin


4. Take a coffee bath - soak in a bath filled with coffee several inches high (with pantyhose on); the coffee increases the flow of fluids and the bath is essentially a do-it-yourself wrap; if you don't have time for a bath, use coffee grounds to exfoliate your hips and butt

Source: Natural Solutions

Preventing Ovarian Cancer

Watching your fat intake has been known to help prevent breast cancer, but new research suggests that it may also prevent ovarian cancer. The Journal of the National Cancer Institute reported that"postmenopausal women who trimmed their daily fat intake to 20% (instead of the average 35%) reduced their risk by 40% in just 4 years." Higher levels of estrogen are linked to ovarian cancer and eating a low-fat diet decreases the levels of estrogen in the blood.

Source: Natural Solutions

Improve Your Memory

Are you over 50 and want to improve your memory? You'll need to walk 150 minutes per week.

Source: JAMA

Not Getting Enough Sleep Can Make You Fat

A recent study from the University of Chicago Medical Center found that "adults who got five and a half hours of shut-eye ate 221 more calories from snack foods than those who slept for eight and a half hours. They also took in a higher percentage of those calories from refined carbs." So while getting enough sleep might not cause you to eat bigger meals, the end result is higher calories in the form of poorly chosen snacks. Stephanie Clark, R.D. says, "If you're exhausted, your body will crave carbs to replenish its energy reserves." If you know you aren't getting enough sleep, or know you are going to be stressed out in the near future, arm yourself with healthy, low-calorie snacks. Some ideas would include sliced fruit, lowfat yogurt, sliced veggies, granola bars, etc.

Startling Statistics

86% of Americans could be overweight or obese by the year 2030! Health care spending could ring in at $957 billion, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Don't be part of that 86%! Eat whole, unprocessed foods, exercise regularly (wear a pedometer and aim for 10,000 steps per day) and teach your children to live an active lifestyle by modeling that lifestyle for them.