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Exercise Leads to Better Night’s Sleep

by Paula Gallagher | January 31, 2012

If you struggle with getting a good night’s sleep, you may want to add some exercise to your daily routine. We all know that a good night’s sleep is important for overall health. But trying to get some good quality zzz’s remains elusive for many.

There are many drugs and supplements that promise a restful night, and for many these help…but a recent study in  the journal Mental Health and Physical Activity was able to show a direct link between regular physical activity and quality of sleep. Researchers found that mental alertness during the day was also improved.

The study looked at 2,600 men and women, and those that were active at least 150 minutes per week had a 65% decrease in feelings of being sleepy during the day, a 68% reduced likelihood of having leg cramps while sleeping, and a 45% decrease in having difficulty concentrating when tired.

So if you are having a hard time winding down, try incorporating 20 to 30 minutes of walking, running, aerobics or whatever you like, into your day. Sweet dreams!

Tags: Exercise, insmonia
Posted in Exercise, Stress Management & Lifestyle |
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Treat Mastitis Naturally

by Paula Gallagher | January 30, 2012

Breastfeeding is wonderful and natural, providing nourishment for babies and cuddle time for moms. It even helps moms lose those baby pounds faster. But sometimes it can also bring engorgement, which leads to pain and sometimes mastitis. Mastitis is an infection of the breast tissue that involves enlargement, swelling, lumpiness, and pain in the affected breast. It can lead to flu-like symptoms and localized redness and tenderness, and even worse, to an abscess that will have to be removed or drained.

The conventional treatment for mastitis has been antibiotics and many women have discontinued nursing because of this. However, there are many natural and easy options for treating mastitis that still allow you to nurse. Here are some tips to prevent and treat this very common condition in breastfeeding moms:

1. Empty your breasts: Let your baby feed completely from one side of the breast before switching over. After your little one is done nursing, pump the breast to completely empty it. The more often you nurse, the less chance there will be of mastitis occurring. This is also a great way to increase your milk supply. (more…)

Tags: breastfeeding, echinecea, mastitis
Posted in Health Concerns |
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Natural Support for PMS

by Paula Gallagher | January 26, 2012

PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is the name of a group of physical, emotional and psychological symptoms that occur in the last 2 weeks of the menstrual cycle, just before menses. Affecting four out of ten women, PMS symptoms can impact the quality of your life and the ability to do normal activities. While it is normal to have minor discomfort before your period, severe PMS symptoms such as anxiety, moodiness, irritability, pain, bloating, acne, and headaches may be alerting you to some internal imbalances. While it is not known what causes PMS, it is likely that changing hormone levels and brain chemistry play a role. Diet, activity level, and stress may also be related to the severity of symptoms. Giving your body the right nutrients can help to manage your PMS.

Evening primrose oil provides an excellent source of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA). GLA helps to promote the production of anti-inflammatory chemicals in the body and may be helpful for the discomfort of PMS, joint pain and swelling, along with various skin conditions.

Magnesium plays a crucial role in energy production. Unfortunately, diuretics, alcohol consumption, high stress levels, and unbalanced diets can result in a magnesium deficiency. (more…)

Tags: b complex, cholorphyll, everning primrose oil, magnesium, PMS
Posted in Health Concerns, Nutritional Supplements |
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What To Do After Gallbladder Removal

by Paula Gallagher | January 25, 2012

If you are one of millions of Americans who have had their gallbladder removed, then you are probably experiencing some unpleasant side effects when you eat certain foods. Fats in particular become very difficult to digest. In the past, the solution has been to avoid fats altogether. The problem with that is that fats are important, and without them skin issues, vision and eye problems, fatty tumors, bruising, and many other problems occur.

The gallbladder plays a key role in digestion of fats. Here’s how: bile acids are produced from cholesterol in your liver and then flow into your gallbladder, where they are stored until any fat you have eaten moves into the small intestine. The gallbladder then releases the bile to emulsify the fat – making it easier to absorb. However, if your gallbladder is removed, there is no storage place for bile, and so there may not be enough bile when needed. The failure of your body to release bile when needed decreases your body’s ability to properly digest fat and eventually leads to defiencies in fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids, as well as some of issues listed above.

To avoid these issues, it is important to supplement with bile salts. Bile salts, when taken with meals, will aid in digestion and assimilation of fats, and take some pressure off the liver.  (more…)

Tags: artherosclerosis, bile salts, gallbladder, rosecea
Posted in Health Concerns, Nutritional Supplements |
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The Triangle – A Strategy for Lasting Weight Loss

by Debi Silber, The Mojo Coach | January 24, 2012

For today’s weight loss tip it’s all about…the triangle. Watch the video below to see what I mean:

What shape do you eat in? I’d like to know.

Tags: mojo coach, the triangle
Posted in Diet |
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