Health Advice for Women

For many of my friends and family, the carefree spending and impulse purchases of the last few years will not be a part of their holiday this year. Many are cutting back on the number of toys they are giving their children and on the number of gifts they give to each other. And they are looking for gifts that have a lasting impact. They are looking for gifts that have special meaning rather than just a high price tag or a fancy gadget.

My favorite gift this year that falls into this category is AeroGrow’s indoor gardening appliances. I found the AeroGarden www.aerogrow.com online this year while looking for a gift to give a friend of mine that is a long-time gardener. When the winter months come around, she always bemoans the fact that she cannot get out into her garden. With the AeroGarden, she doesn’t have to wait for spring to appear, she can garden all year-round right in her own kitchen.

AeroGrow touts its product as “The World’s First Kitchen Garden Appliance”, but I think that makes it sound like something you stick under your kitchen sink. In fact, the AeroGarden sits right on your countertop. You can fill it with herbs, flowers, vegetables or greens. There’s a grow light on the AeroGarden that turns it on and off automatically so you can place the garden anywhere you like, and it will still grow. And it only takes a few minutes to set up, so there’s no impossible set of directions to follow or four hours needed to get this gift up and running.

The best part about the AeroGarden is that it truly is the perfect gift for all the people on my list this year. Amy, who likes to cook, will absolutely love having fresh herbs right on her countertop. Doug, who we all tease about his black thumb, will appreciate how easy it is to set up and grow things. And Kate, my environmentalist friend, will appreciate the fact that this is a long-lasting gift – no waste or pollution to think of, and yields hundreds of dollars of herbs.

The only thing I do not like about this product is that I did not discover it for my grandmother. She lived in an assisted living home, and spent much of her time in her own room. Since flowers are proven to increase happiness and overall emotional wellness, this would have been the perfect gift for her. And the products are so small that they do not take up a lot of space, which is important to the elderly in these situations.

So this year, I plan to give a gift that brings year-round joy to those people on my holiday list. No fancy gadgets, no fancy boxes; just a lovely little AeroGarden that provides for flowers, herbs, vegetables or greens. It’s a gift that will make my friends and family smile everyday and think of me. What more could you ask for?

The United States currently has the unfortunate reputation of being the fattest country in the world. Sadly, there are plenty of other countries catching up to us. Just Google “fattest countries” and you’ll see a slew of articles detailing the increases in obesity in countries such as Mexico and Australia. Food intake in these and other countries is becoming more concentrated on sugar, fast food and soft drinks and less on healthy, traditional fare.

Unfortunately, countries that have never been on the radar for obesity are now starting to show up there. They are beginning to feel the adverse affects of the influx of fast food and grocery store chains in their communities. Places like China and India, which are historically known for having thin populations, are now becoming fatter as they become more indoctrinated into the global economy. As a result, these and other countries are starting to see an increase in weight related diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

In India, researchers have also found that obese women are having a hard time conceiving. According to an article in The Times of India, this is because 90% of them, 35% of whom are within their childbearing years, suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). PCOS is a hormonal disorder that affects a woman’s insulin production resulting in irregular menstrual cycles and infertility. Women with PCOS can also experience increased body and facial hair, hair loss, adult acne, and the inability to lose weight solely on a low calorie diet, among other symptoms.

According to Dr Gita Gan guly Mukherjee, former Head of Department- gynaecology at R G Kar Hospital, Kolkata, there are two main reasons for the increase of PCOS diagnoses in Indian women: the adoption of unhealthy eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. Whereas older generations of Indian women eat traditional, lower calorie foods with less sugar, many young Indian girls today eat a steady diet of junk food. When these bad habits are combined with an extremely aggressive academic load, young girls simply cannot burn off the increased calories to maintain a healthy weight.

As a result of these increases, Indian doctors and patients alike are searching for solutions that will help women of Indian descent conceive children. Companies such as Insulite Labs (http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/) and support boards such as www.pcosa.org offer these women hope and solutions to their reproductive challenges. In fact, Insulite Labs reports seeing a noticeable uptick in orders of their 5 Element System – nutrition, exercise, vitamins, addiction/cravings awareness and support — coming from Indian women with PCOS living both in India and elsewhere.

Here are testimonials from two women of Indian descent that talk about how incorporating non-pharmaceutical solutions into their daily routines helped reverse the symptoms they were experiencing with PCOS:

“Thanks so much for the Insulite PCOS System. After being on it for 4 months I’ve conceived now and before that I had been trying for last 1 year but failed. Really, you are like lord for us.”

- Pankaj Anand, India

“Thank you very much for having changed my life. I am doing very well with the Insulite Labs PCOS diet and exercise regimen. I am exercising for 35-40 mins daily. My fat has drastically reduced and I now have a flat belly after taking your tablets. I am getting my periods regularly and there is a reduction of facial hair by 70%. I am very thankful to your support and the work you have done to reverse PCOS.”

- Rashmi Desai — Gold Coast, Australia

As illustrated by Pankaj and Rashmi, PCOS is beginning to affect more and more women around the world. Thankfully there are support groups and companies such as Insulite Labs that are working hard to sustain these women - until there is a serious effort to change global dietary and exercise standards that will help our populations maintain a reasonably healthy weight.

Not that long ago, the term “going green” conjured up thoughts of radical environmentalists going to extremes to save a forest in the name of “The Movement.” Today, however, “going green” means so much more. As individual awareness has grown regarding how behavior affects greenhouse gas emissions or hurts local water supply, home recycling and home energy efficiency has grown from energy efficient light bulbs to entire energy efficiency home conversions.

As an extension of this personal impact awareness, businesses are giving serious thought to how they can “go green” while continuing to make their businesses more efficient. Beyond in-office recycling and re-using coffee cups, companies are searching for solutions that provide the right combination of savings and benefits for both employer and employee, while enabling employers to give some intangible benefits to employees during tight economic times. One such solution is phone and web conferencing.

Phone and web conferencing by companies such as www.webpresentnow.com allows employees to hold virtual meetings from their own offices. It gives them instant access to co-workers, customers and clients without having to travel, thereby eliminating the environmental impact while lowering company costs.  When you consider that a roundtrip flight from New York to Los Angeles emits 2.46 metric tons of CO2 — the greenhouse gas that goes directly into the most sensitive portion of our atmosphere – you realize how much you can make a difference by simply introducing phone and web conferencing into your company culture. [1]

Phone and web conferencing also allows individuals to reduce personal stress and increase productivity by giving them the option to work from home on one or more days a week. Being able to meet virtually wherever they are means they can still hold impromptu meetings or keep recurring ones with ease. Phone or Web Conferencing enables individuals to use their time more efficiently – scheduling and keeping other appointments becomes easier.  Additionally, telecommuting using phone and web conferencing equates to cost savings on vehicle use — less wear and tear on vehicles. The result of using phone and web conferencing is that employees strengthen the work-life balance and, ultimately, companies are able to hire and retain happier, more productive workers.

Environmentally speaking, encouraging staff to use phone and web conferencing has many benefits. Already 12 million employees and another 16 million self-employed people work at home at least one day a month [1]. Collectively, these home-based workers now save the equivalent of 24% of Gulf oil imports and avoid producing 33 million metric tons greenhouse gases a year [1]. Also, according to a report released in April 2008 by the American Electronics Association, if every U.S. worker telecommuted 1.6 days per week, an estimated 1.35 billion gallons of gasoline could be conserved annually.

The positive results that phone and web conferencing make for the environment and in an employees life is something that any company can feel good about. What’s more, shareholders, clients, employees and investors, will feel confident supporting a company that employs such forward thinking, cost efficient and eco-friendly policies.
[1] American Electronics Association Report- April 2008

About the Author:
Heather Bishara lives in South Riding, VA, is a mother of two boys ages 1 and 4 and works as a business consultant for www.tricalyx.com part-time from home.

Halloween is always the harbinger of the winter weather and sure enough this past week the weather turned cold (finally) in Colorado. If you have eczema or just really dry skin, this change of season always seems to cause flair-ups. My hands look like they just emerged from the Sahara Desert. The best thing you can do is NOT use lotions made with petrochemicals. The hardest part is finding lotions that don’t have petrochemicals. You want to look at the ingredients and your safest bet is to go to a Whole Foods or health food store that usually only carries “healthy products”.

If you have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), you’ve come to the right place. I have lots of advice and it’s been a lot of trial and error along the way. If you are just finding out you have MCS the best thing to learn is patience. I’ve figured out I had MCS around 7 years ago and to this day I still keep finding little things to change in my life to help me feel stronger and more energy. Some days are better than others, but I keep thinking how much I have improved in 7 years. My goal is to share what I’ve learned and hope this helps you in your journey to heal.

The latest change I’ve made is in my diet. For years I’ve heard I should give up dairy and I did give up milk for a year. I love milk more than anything, so this was really hard. But just giving up milk didn’t make a huge difference. Two months ago I went on a gluten and dairy free diet! It’s all the rage here in the Boulder, CO area, but being the renegade I’m am, I didn’t want to follow the trends… but I did. As you know getting healthy is the goal, so I keep testing new theories and hoping I will be the healthiest and strongest old women alive. Back to the gluten and dairy free diet, I have to say I feel better. When your body is fighting so many things as it is when you have MCS, you have to slowly start removing the things that cause your body to react. I know it’s helping because when I fall off the plan and eat wheat or dairy I notice the difference. My digestion is better and I’ll won’t bore you with the graphic details.

I’ve removed as many chemicals out of my environment and I eat healthy food, but I didn’t realize some healthy foods just weren’t sitting well with my body.Many people with allergies and MCS are finding they do better eliminating dairy and wheat. You would be surprised at all the alternative gluten free products on the market now. I eat rice bread, rice pasta and rice crackers. Gluten free muffins are pretty aweful, so if you’ve got a good recipe let me know.

According to the Times of India: “More and more obese women in India are finding it hard to conceive. The reason: Nearly 90% of them suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), a complex hormonal disorder that affects a woman’s menstrual cycle, fertility and insulin production…… Gynecologists and endocrinologists report that nearly 35% of women in India in their reproductive age suffer from PCOS.”

A local Boulder Colorado company, Insulite Labs, continues to get emails and praises every day from customers that have been able to conceive after suffering infertility prior to going on the Insulite PCOS System. It’s great to see a natural solution for infertility that women are finding success with. Below are two women expressing their views.

“Thanks so much for the (Insulite Labs) PCOS System. After being on it for 4 months I’ve conceived now and before that I had been trying for last 1 year but failed. Really, you are like lord for us.”
- Pankaj Anand
India

And from a woman of Indian descent from Australia who has been guided by Dr. Heather DeLuca:

“Thank you very much for having changed my life.

I am doing very well with the Insulite Labs PCOS diet and exercise regimen. I am exercising for 35-40 mins daily. My fat has drastically reduced and I now have a flat belly after taking your tablets. I am getting my periods regularly and there is a reduction of facial hair by 70%.

I am very thankful to your support and the work you have done to reverse PCOS.”
- Rashmi Desai
Gold Coast, Australia

We have Cancer survivors and I’m a multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) survivor! I hope my blogs help you figure out how to treat your multiple chemical sensitivity.  I wish I could say I’m totally symptom free, but I now live an energetic healthy life. Multiple chemical sensitivity doesn’t rule my life like it once did. I have great energy every day, hike daily for 45-60 minutes up a mountain and live life to the fullest. I only tell you this because there was a time when I didn’t have energy to go to the grocery store much less enjoy life. I couldn’t go into Target without getting a headache from all the chemicals off-gassing in the store. So…how did I treat my multiple chemical sensitivity?

First off have you figured out you have it? (Read my blog on MCS to see if you have the symptoms) The most important thing is to get yourself in an environment that is not making your body sick or sicker. Initially I really didn’t know what to do and some of the things I was doing to help were actually harmful.

Get all the chemicals out of the place you live and sleep. Here’s your list of things to do:

• Take out the carpet and install ceramic tile - this will be huge. If you have hardwood floors this is good, just get rid of any area rugs in your room.
• Wash all your bedding in plant derived laundry soap. I like the Seventh Generation - Free & Clear products. They are not made with petrochemicals and have no perfume. If you have been using cleaning products made with petrochemicals (Tide, Cheer, ERA, etc.) you will need to wash them 3 or 4 times to get the petrochemicals and fragrance out.
• Get rid of all perfumes and fragrances in your house.
• Switch all your personal products over to fragrance free and petrochemical free. This is hard, so go to your local health food store to find this type of product. I’m talking shampoo, soaps, lotions, sunscreen, anything you put on your body.
• Switch all your household products over to non-toxic, fragrance-free and petrochemical free. Stick with Seventh Generation free& clear if you can find this line. Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage carry this brand.
• The clothes you wear can be killing you. Most people don’t know how many chemicals are in the clothes we wear. I love to wear my oldest cotton clothes that have been washed a million times! Do you know why, it’s because all the chemicals have been washed out. Don’t dry clean or have a laundry wash and starch your clothes because this will not help. If you have to buy something new, stick with natural fibers like cotton and then wash this new item at least 5 times before you wear it. I probably wash new clothes at least 10 times before I wear them. If I don’t I get a headache very quickly!
• Don’t buy new furniture or anything new if you can avoid it. Everything on the market these days is loaded with chemicals. It’s just that we are so surrounded with them, that most people don’t notice the chemicals until our body is overloaded. Until you can get your MCS under control, you need to control your environment very carefully.
• If you have the choice you should move to a very unpolluted place in the mountains or by the ocean to give your body a rest from the chemicals. Most of us don’t have that luxury, but the mountains are less polluted and your body can get a rest from the chemicals it is reacting to.
• There is a great book called “Creating a Healthy Household” that I used to help me initially turn my house into a safer, less-toxic home.
• Lastly, get as much exercise as you can. Hiking in the mountains everyday has helped me to continue to improve my health.
• Try not to drive your car if possible, the car is loaded with chemicals and puts off exhaust that weakens our body. I now drive a hybrid and it’s much better.
• Here’s a big one that took me a while to figure out. Don’t fertilize your lawn, this fertilizer is so toxic to our bodies and it lingers in the lawn for a long time.
• Don’t have your house sprayed with pesticides for insects, this is going to kill you. Use healthy alternatives to getting rid of insects.
• Don’t use bleach. Initially I thought I was killing the mold which was good, the bleach was killing me!
• Indoor air can be really toxic when all the windows are closed. Spend the money and buy some good hepa air filters. I use Healthy Mate from Austin Air. It helps a lot!
• Get rid of pets if you can. They are a major contributor to indoor toxins and allergens.
• Minimal decoration is best. Remove curtains and just have blinds or nothing on the windows. If you have just bought new furniture, put it in the garage until it can off-gas.
• Don’t park your car in the garage. The toxins from your car go right into the house!

Are you looking to give great green Christmas gifts in 2008 that are good for the environment and that are well received? Christmas is a wonderful time, but it’s also a time of huge waste, so let’s do something about it in 2008. Below are a collection of ideas, please send your comments if you have others to add!!

• Try to give organic gifts when possible, they use no pesticides which is healthier for us all.
• Give gifts that cut back on gas usage in the coming year. I gave my sister free web conferencing for a year, she can do all of her meetings over the web and not waste time and gas driving to her meetings. Here’s a link to the great low cost web conferencing I found www.webpresentnow.com.
• Give toys that are made with non-toxic paints or plastics and if possible made in the USA. Support local products if possible. I great website for finding toys such as this is www.kazootoys.com.
• Give your wife a new hybrid car. I love my Toyota Prias, it gets 50 mpg or higher around town!
• The packaging and gift wrapping usually goes right into the garbage 5 seconds after opening the gift. Try packaging and wrapping your gifts with another gift. For example, if you are giving someone a glass object, wrap it in some organic towels. This keeps it from breaking and there is no waste.
• Be creative this year with gift purchases and gift wrapping. Think of gifts that can last forever (diamond rings), gifts that can be passed down from one generation to another (jewelry), or gifts that continue to give like plants or flowers, check out www.aerogrow.com.

The female sex drive has been the target of many male jokes, but the truth is men and women can both have issues with their sex drive, especially as they age. Now you all probably think I’m referring to a low sex drive when I say issues? A low sex drive or a high sex drive can both be a problem, but in very different ways.

Many women in their 40’s and 50’s actually have an increase in their sexual drive. This stage is often compared to the teenage male’s sex drive. I guess that’s how the wild divorcee’ got such a crazy and sexual connotation. This high sex drive is usually a problem with the woman’s husband or boyfriend in that he can feel inadequate by not meeting her needs.

If you do feel like your sex drive could use a little boost, please talk to your OB/GYN or visit your local acupuncturist. Stress or prescription medications can be a major contributor, but sometimes your body is just a little out of wack. My advice is don’t wait to take care of this, “we all deserve to have a wonderful sex life”. This was a direct quote from an OB/GYN!

Are you looking for that perfect gift for your woman for Christmas 2008? Well look no further.

We have polled women far and wide to compile the 2008 Christmas List for Women. Here’s your top no fail gift list.

1. Jewelry - Guys if you want to score big go for the jewelry!
2. Chocolates - Go for fabulous organic chocolates.
3. Gift Certificate to a Spa - Pamper your love to her favorite spa.
4. Gift Certificate to a great restaurant - Its an event and fun.
5. Trip for Two to an Exotic Getaway - Enough said.
6. Indulge her Favorite Hobby - If she loves skiing, get her those hot new skis