Dr. Frank Lipman, The voice of sustainable wellness

Lose weight! Boost immunity! Improve your love life! If there were a pharmaceutical drug that did all three, there’d be a stampede to the pharmacy, but for now, no such pill exists. My advice? Build your own – not a pill, but a plan – an eating strategy that packs power, nutritional value and a host of benefits into every bite. Where to start? Simply load up on the “Super 7” – the 7 most nutritionally valuable foods you can buy. What makes them super? Few calories, little sugar or salt plus lots of soluble fiber, nutrients and health-boosting phytochemicals, and not a drop of guilt should you over-indulge! So, if you want to weigh less, look and feel great, the magic pill you’ve been looking for is in the organic produce aisle and at the seafood counter. Here are the Super 7 – the building blocks of excellent nutrition and sustainable wellness:

1.) AVOCADO
The myriad of nutrients found in avocados – oleic acid, lutein, folate, vitamin E, monounsaturated fats and glutathione among them – can help protect your body from heart disease, cancer and degenerative eye disease. Avocados taste great and are easily integrated into any meal – or even a fruit smoothie. Add a half an avocado to smoothies to add creamy texture and a powerful nutritional boost.

2.) BEANS
Dense and delicious, beans help raise levels of the hormone leptin which curbs appetite, and they deliver a powerful combination of B vitamins, calcium, potassium and folate. All of this will help maintain healthy brain, cell and skin function and even helps to reduce blood pressure and stroke risk. Pretty amazing, eh? To increase your intake, trying eating them as a filling side-dish instead of bread or potatoes. Beans will help keep you feeling fuller longer and deliver an excellent source of sugar-free energy through much of your day.

Read the Whole Article

What do climate-science deniers and “spin doctors” who attack environmental health protections have in common?  They’re like moths to the flame of an activist victory for safer products. Ever since my organization succeeded in pressuring Johnson & Johnson to get carcinogens out of its baby products,  the “boys who know best” are coming round to tell us not to worry our pretty little heads about cancer-causing chemicals in baby shampoo.

David Ropeik wins the prize for paternalistic, condescending framing in his Scientific American blog: “Warning! Health Hazards May be Hazardous to Your Health.”

Ropeik warns that “frightened, worried, scared, concerned” moms are at greater risk of stress-related illnesses (irritable bowel syndrome, clinical depression) than babies are at risk from getting cancer from formaldehyde in the bathtub; as if the only choice here is between soaking kids in toxic substances or making mothers sick with worry.

How about if America’s “most-trusted brand” just gets the carcinogens out of baby shampoo? And hey, guess what, Johnson & Johnson has already done that in other countries, where they have better laws, just not here! That’s the kind of thing that really makes moms sick to their stomachs.

Read the Whole Article

Eckhart Tolle discusses meditation and the value of “being” present.

For most of us, the post- holiday sugar and alcohol funk puts “cleansing” on our radar, so this is a great time to incorporate twists into your yoga practice. When you twist, the organs become compressed, which then pushes out blood filled with toxins. Twisting also stimulates circulation and improves digestion, stretches and strengthens the spine, and helps maintain flexibility in the vertebral discs and ligaments.

Make sure before you move into any twisting posture that you extend the spine by lengthening through the crown of the head as much as you can- the effort is on the inhale to elongate, and on the exhale relax deeper into the pose without contracting your abdominal muscles; twisting first from the lower lumbar spine then making your way up to the cervical spine breath by breath.

I hope you enjoy this video I made for you with three poses from my Xen Strength Yoga program. I use weights here, but if you are new to my style, or new to yoga in general, then feel free to try them without the weights.You can find more videos like, and my new Xen Strength Yoga DVD on my website: www.xenstrength.com.

When it comes to BPA’s – bisphenol A – I really can’t say a good word about them. They’re bad for the earth and terrible for our bodies – so the less we ingest (knowingly or not) the better. When you feel as strongly about sustaining wellness as I do, the best way to deal with BPA’s is to get them out of your life. And how do I loathe BPAs? Let me count the ways. First of all, biosphenol A is an industrial chemical, an endocrine disrupter, a suspected carcinogen and proven synthetic hormone that mimics the effects of estrogen! BPA’s have been linked to increased risks for heart disease, cancer and diabetes, as well as liver and brain problems. BPA’s are also credited with contributing to erectile dysfunction and the growth of breast cancer cells in adults, plus developmental problems in children. Need I go on?  Clearly, it’s time for all of us to kick it to the curb. Here’s how to start your BPA purge, preferably today:

Kick the can.
Virtually all canned food liners contain BPA’s, which leech into the food (yuck!). My advice? Don’t buy canned food. It’s as simple as that. Buy glass bottled items instead. Better yet, buy fresh, whole, organic foods and prep them yourself to minimize BPA exposure.  If you can’t kick the can completely, just be sure to use canned goods as little as possible.

Read the Whole Article

Last week I wrote about the Doctor-Patient Relationship of the broken, outdated, patriarchal health care system of The Old Medicine.  This week, I’m going out on a limb to suggest a new kind of Doctor-Patient Relationship, the kind I practice and I hope others in the new Pink Medicine do too. Here goes nothing.

It’s All About Collaboration

As doctor and patient, you and I are entering into a partnership. I will not give you orders because we will be collaborating, and your voice is as important as mine, if not more so. Because we will be partners, I feel it is important to clarify and agree upon what our relationship will entail, what you can expect of me, and what I expect of you.

I am here to support you, guide you, offer you tools, and support your process, but I will not “fix” you – for I don’t believe you are broken.

Read the Whole Article

Is there something you’ve always meant to do, wanted to do, but just … haven’t? Matt Cutts suggests: Try it for 30 days. This short, lighthearted talk offers a neat way to think about setting and achieving goals.

We’ve been taught that following through on New Year’s resolutions is all about willpower. But it turns out that willingness may be a far more valuable ally.

One popular characterization of insanity describes it as “doing the same thing over and over, expecting to get a different result.” And at no time of the year is that particular brand of insanity more evident than right now — the dreaded resolutions season.

Every January, there’s a lot of talk about the right and wrong ways to go about making change. Techniques and strategies abound (another serving of S.M.A.R.T. goals, anyone?), but most of them share a common underlying assumption: That changing your life is an act of will.

We Americans love the idea of willpower. It’s forceful, bold, intrepid. It reeks of individual determination, and it suggests just enough stalwart endurance to satisfy our stoic sensibilities.

The will speaks in a commanding voice: Go forth! Make it so! And there’s some kick-start value in that. But I would argue that the real key to creating positive change over time is not so much will as it is willingness.

Unlike the will, which is all the rage this time of year, willingness doesn’t get a lot of airtime in our culture. It comes across as too passive, perhaps, too cooperative, too eager to please, too… feminine. But I’d argue that when it comes to shifting personal behavior and establishing new habits, willingness is actually a much better and more reliable partner.

The problem with the will is that it’s one hard-driving taskmaster — but it tends to cement itself to a static idea of success and, thus, to constant reminders of the potential for failure.

Read the Whole Article

The 30-Day Vegan Challenge: The Ultimate Guide to Eating Cleaner, Getting Leaner, and Living is a joyful literary chaperone through one month of veganism, covering every topic imaginable; literally no stone is left unturned!  In her characteristic up-beat tone Patrick-Goudreau holds readers’ hands throughout the 30-day period, answering every question and addressing every challenge anyone’s ever made while maintaining a nonjudgmental, encouraging tone and helping readers make the transition joyfully, healthfully, and confidently. The 30-Day Vegan Challenge includes chapters on everything from reading nutrition labels and mapping out a grocery store, eating out and packing lunches, celebrating the holidays, traveling, living with non-vegans to all of the individual nutrients people are concerned about: iron, calcium, protein, omega-3 fatty acids and more.  The recipes are simple and overwhelmingly delicious, with menu ideas for every day of the week.  What’s more, the book itself is visually stunning, with gorgeous photos and a colorful, reader-friendly layout.  It is truly the quintessential vegan lexicon for new vegans and vegan veterans alike; anyone who loves good food and healthy living is guaranteed hold this book near and dear.

Although I am not a Vegan myself, there are a myriad of reasons to adopt a vegan lifestyle – to improve overall health, shed a few pounds, demonstrate compassion for animals, or help the environment for example – and Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has outdone herself with a timely challenge for all earthlings to explore.

Watch the 2-minute trailer video:

When I was training to become a physician, the rules of the broken, outdated, patriarchal medical system were made clear to me. They went something like this.

The Old Medicine

As your doctor, I will sacrifice everything in my personal life in order to fix what is broken in you. I will stay awake when I’m exhausted, cross my legs when I have to pee, ignore my stomach when it growls, neglect my partner and children when they need me, allow my health to decline, and read all my medical journals so I can stay up to date on the latest in modern science. I will show up sick to work, endure unspeakable traumas in order to learn what I need to know to be an excellent physician, and I will prioritize medicine over everything else in my life. I will study what my forefathers have learned, attend lectures, consult with other physicians, practice my skills, follow the Hippocratic Oath, and vow to first do no harm, and then, hopefully, to do some good.

I will ask you questions, take notes when you talk, interpret your vital signs, and listen to the rhythms of your most crucial organs. I will order laboratory tests and X-rays to figure out what’s wrong, write prescriptions to treat you, refer you to a specialist (if I can’t figure out what’s going on), operate when needed, and cover up or cut out any symptom that threatens to disable or destroy you.

Read the Whole Article