In this last month of winter, we still have cold and/or damp weather, and it’s wise to stay warm and protected from deeper coldness getting into the body. This is a health maxim in both Western and Eastern medicines. Here are some tips you can apply if you have trouble staying warm at this time of year. Ladies?

1. First look at your wardrobe, your clothes. Are they seasonal? When the weather is colder, think layers; be a “seasonal stripper.” This helps you adapt to being indoors or out, and makes it easier to warm up during the day or with outdoor activities. Wear a T-shirt (silks are great), another shirt, sweater and jacket. For your lower body, you have leggings or long underwear, and different weight pants. Use natural fibers whenever possible as they allow the skin to breathe, are less irritating, and more balanced electromagnetically. We also go in and out of differently heated environments, and this can affect our inner thermostat and immune system. Even though you may be buried under those layers, make sure you keep your body clean and fresh for better health protection. Also, wash your hands to reduce germ exposure and spread, clean under your nails, and floss your teeth to stay kissing clean.

Those flat brown spots that appear on the body can be freckles, sunspots, liver spots or age spots. Freckles can be genetic and be present at an early age, or they can be due to sun exposure if you have a hereditary predisposition to them. Freckles can even look sexy, as seen on many models. Age spots are not sexy and can age you beyond your actual age.

Age spots, also known as sunspots or liver spots, have nothing to do with the liver, but are typically associated with old age. Truth be told, age spots have very little to do with old age either or how old you are. Although they can affect young people, usually they appear in adults older than forty years old. They usually are flat gray, brown or even black spots of varying size.

Detoxification is a primary bodily function, not some newfangled process—our body does it consistently to neutralize, transform, and eliminate toxins. Detox is doing something to improve and optimize functions of our organs of detoxification and elimination.

When we reduce the body’s overall toxic burden we literally assist the body by providing “tools” necessary to support and rejuvenate currently overburdened systems attempting to deal with the toxic load; especially after those high fat, high sugar, calorie-rich foods consumed during the holidays. The time couldn’t be better to begin new habits by purging the old and then implementing a healthy daily maintenance routine; after all, the only side effects of effective detoxification are aging without looking or feeling old, naturally.

Our bones are constantly being broken down and rebuilt. Osteoporosis, meaning “porous bone,” arises when bone is broken down faster than it can be rebuilt. One in four women has osteoporosis and one in eight men. Bone fracture is a dangerous result of osteoporosis. Many people who have hip fractures as a result of osteoporosis never get out of long-term care facilities. And hip fractures result in death in up to 20 percent of cases.

Some years ago I came across Eric Pearl's book, The Reconnection: Heal Others, Heal Yourself—and couldn't put it down. An experienced chiropractor, Eric began to notice that his patients were healing spontaneously when he worked on them. He'd feel sensations in his hands, they'd feel sensations in their bodies—and the individual would oftentimes be instantly and permanently healed of their ailments. These could be cancer, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, chronic pain or even AIDS-related diseases—issues not generally targeted by chiropractic.

There is a lot of buzz about toxic ingredients in sunscreen, and rightly so. Everyone should consider their skin to be sensitive and focus on sensitive skin sunscreen. Most people use sunscreen to allow them to stay in the sun longer without worry of skin damage. Some studies have reported there could be health concerns with the ingredients in sunscreen, outweighing the benefits of their skin protection. Many sunscreens include highly irritating ingredients. Of course, there are many types of sunscreen to choose from, with most people focusing on the higher number SPF to maximize sun exposure. However, there is more to it than just the SPF number when it comes to choosing the best sunscreen for you and your family.

When it comes to women’s search for eternal beauty, not much has changed over the last several millennia. Women have always been on the lookout for potions and healing secrets that promise to help preserve and restore their natural youthfulness.

Of all the famous beauties from the legends of world history, the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra, still remains synonymous with alluring and eternal beauty.

One of Cleopatra’s favorite rejuvenating secrets was to regularly slip into a bath of sour goat’s milk. While this Egyptian beautifying practice may not be particularly appealing (or practical) to the 21st century woman, there is good reason to believe that Cleopatra was getting the right advice from her Egyptian beauty advisor.

Sour milk contains lactic acid. Lactic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid, slightly weaker than glycolic acid, which is regularly used in superficial chemical peels today. Perhaps Cleopatra was the first woman in history to popularize the skin regenerating benefits of exfoliation.

Soap is amazing stuff. The exact same ingredients can become a bar, liquid, gel, paste or spray—yet all made with the same ingredients. How cool is that?


At Vermont Soapworks (kind of a Willie Wonka™ factory for soap) we take oils, which make you greasy, and turn them into soap, which make you clean. This process is called saponification (making soap). Soap is fascinating stuff. It is actually a salt that foams! This crystalline nature of soap allows it to be made clear as glass when boiled in alcohol with sugars. That’s right! Your bar of soap (not detergent bar) is actually made of tiny soap crystals that grew in oil droplets.

EWG's 2012 Sunscreen Report now online.

No doubt, you’ve heard that you have a skin type. You may think you have dry skin, oily skin, or combination skin. Many people suffer with sensitive skin. Daily use of irritating ingredients in your favorite skin care products, such as sodium lauryl sulfate, could be a contributing cause. Symptoms of sensitive skin can vary from mild rashes, itching, acne, flakey skin to red patches appearing on your skin.

If you have sensitive skin, taking care of your skin the right way involves much more than searching for the most expensive products on the market. The truth is that most of the popular and expensive skin care products are not only costly, but also filled with irritating chemicals and toxins.

EWG's 2012 Sunscreen Report now online.

What exactly does it mean when you see sunscreen or sunblock on a product label? The store shelves offer so many to choose from, no wonder it can get a bit frustrating. Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not updated their sunscreen safety standards since 1978. In June of 2011, FDA posted new rules for sunscreen products to help clear up some of the confusion. The new stricter guidelines mandate products to describe how well the product protects your skin.

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