The Youth Hormone

The Youth Hormone...

Everyone’s talking about it. But can it really reduce body fat, increase lean muscle mass, boost mood, heighten sex drive, give you plenty of energy, get rid of wrinkles and tighten saggy skin?

Barbara just had another birthday.

She watches her diet, exercises when she can, and is in pretty good shape. In fact, she could be the poster child for the “Fountain of Youth” headline we see on the covers of fashion mags around the globe.

What’s her secret? It’s not just the occasional Botox, peel or fit leer, or even her assortment of skin creams that could rival the anti-aging section of your local Sephora. Barbara, who was always “cutting edge,” has become a believer in what is fast becoming the most popular (if not the most expensive) anti-aging treatment in the USA… Growth Hormone Therapy.

t seems everyone is talking about human growth hormone lately. No less than the famed Dr. Oz began a recent show by asking his audience, “How many of you want to start feeling 20 years younger right now?” Allure magazine, in  its “Anti-aging Special” issue, highlighted growth hormone as its 2013 call-out. Shape magazine began a recent growth hormone article with the provocative lead in: “When you see a 50-year-old actress who can pass for 35, you can bet that good genes aren’t the only things responsible for her youthful glow.” Fox News, The Today Show, CNN, ABC, and CBS have all contributed to the current frenzy.

Love Bugged

Love Bugged

Nowadays, couples therapy isn’t just for long-term partners—more people in new relationships are seeking professional help.

Is it a waste of time or time well spent?

Jennifer and Henry’s* first date was right out of a rom-com. “We went kayaking and then

stayed up all night telling each other our life stories,” says Jennifer, who is 24, the same age as Henry. “After that we were just together.”

But the happy ending never materialized. “All of a sudden we couldn’t pick a movie without screaming at each other,” admits Jennifer, of Santa Cruz, California.

But they didn’t want to just give up, feeling like if they did, the time they’d spent together would have been wasted. So they went to therapy— right around the three-month mark.

Hope and Alex, both in their early thirties, together nine months, are the kind of blissfully happy couple who probably call each other “Boo” in private. Still, they spend Thursday nights in therapy. “Everything’s perfect now,” says Hope, of Sacramento, California. “But we want

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER

Research Suggests Good Nutrition May Manage Symptoms Decades ago, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a group of developmental disabilities in which patients have significant social, communication, and behavioral difficulties, was consid­ered rare, and the prognosis of those who had it usually wasn’t good. Many individuals were committed to institutions for the rest of their lives because of their inability to function in society. But times have changed.

The prevalence of ASD among adults and children has sky­rocketed over the last several years. Much more research on the etiology of the disorder and the different ways to treat and manage

All Fitness

All Fitness

Are you struggling to sort fitness fact from fiction? We asked the expertsto explain once and for all how extra activity affects your weight loss…

Myth #1 I have to exercise if I want to lose weight

When it comes to weight loss, experts agree that it’s what you eat that counts most, not how much you exercise. ‘When you’re Food Optimising, you’ll be eating at least 500 fewer calories a day, without feeling hungry. To burn off 500 calories by exercising, you’d have to run for about an hour a day, which most of us would find impossible,’ says Dr Jacquie Lavin,

Naturally Happy

Naturally Happy

Welcome to short and dark days, endless to-do lists and spirit numbing traffic. If the hubbub of the holidays leaves you more stressed than merry, you’re not alone. A survey by the National Women’s Health Resource Center revealed that almost two-thirds of the respondents experience holiday depression. Still, these feelings are hardly seasonal; stress and fatigue can strike on any given day. If your depression is ongoing and significantly interferes with your work or relationships, you may need clinical treatment, so talk to your doctor about options. But if the occasional bad day (or week) is taking too much of an emotional toll, these natural

mood boosters may be the best gift you can give yourself—and your loved ones—this season.

Get involved

One good way to lift a blue mood is to get involved in your community, and the holidays offer plenty of opportunity. In a study of more than 2,500 people published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, researchers found that volunteer work enhanced six aspects of personal wellbeing:

Spice Rubs and Marinades

Spice Rubs and Marinades

What are rubs, brines and marinades and how are they used?

Answer: Spice rubs, marinades and brines are some of my favourite cooking practices using everyday. It’s the opportunity where any cook can be creative in manipulating the texture,

tenderness and most importantly, flavour of meat. They can also help transform tougher cuts of meat into a melt-in-your-mouth meal, plus they are easy to make.

So, let’s start with brines and marinades. Basic brine is a saltwater solution, usually 3% salt to water weight (the brine should taste like sea water).

ARSENIC IN BABY FOODS

What We’ve Learned About the Safety of Rice Products for Infants and Children

After six months of breastfeeding, Kim was delighted to have reached the pivotal milestone of introducing solid foods to her infant daughter. Following tradition and the trusted advice of family and friends, Kim confidently chose rice cereal as her baby’s first solid food.

Shortly thereafter, in early 2012, researchers from Dartmouth College published scientific findings that revealed many baby foods, including rice cereal, contain significant levels of arsenic

COLD WEATHER SAFETY

If your clients live in a region that fully experiences the four seasons, cold, snowy weather creates opportunities for special winter workouts, such as Snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ice-skating on a frozen pond, sledding, hiking, and skijoring. Some people, though, like to stick with standard activities such as running and cycling, which can prove dangerous during this time of year.

The Risks of the Road

Runners and cyclists on winter roads increase their risk of the following dangers:

Avocado and Grapefruit Salad

Avocado and Grapefruit Salad

This salad is great garnished with fried garlic and shallots, if you’re up for the extra work.

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 T fresh lime juice

2 T fish sauce

1 T sugar

1⁄8 tsp red pepper flakes

2 avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and sliced

3 pink grapefruits, peeled and segmented

1⁄2 cup cilantro leaves

1⁄2 cup mint leaves, torn in half

1⁄4 cup finely chopped roasted unsalted peanuts

Directions

1. Whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, and pepper flakes in a bowl; set aside.

The Jeans- Body Workout

The Jeans- Body Workout

Jeans have the ability to make you feel yoursexiest…or to squish you in all the wrong places. These easy exercises will reward you with a flat stomach, tight butt, and slim thighs so you can rock any pair with total confidence.

Most women would rather eat nails than try on a bikini under the soul-crushing glare of dressing-room lights. But shopping for jeans can be almost as traumatizing. Unlike slipping into a skimpy two-piece that lets everything hang out, shimmying into a pair of jeans means squeezing everything in. And all too often, one of three culprits keeps you from a perfect fit: muffin top, thick thighs, or a flat butt. While you can’t solely target your trouble spots (no amount of crunches will instantly or effectively zap your belly fat), the right fitness routine can significantly help reshape your body. The moves here are meant to build

and define your backside, strengthen and flatten your core, and blast fat toslim your legs.

You can’t lose weight and keep it off

The sad reality is that you have about as great a chance of losing

weight and keeping it off as you do of winning the lottery. This is

just a simple fact of life. Everybody knows it. Every magazine article and

television show on the topic gives the same facts: 95% of diets fail, and

for those who do lose weight, it’s just about guaranteed that they’ll gain

it all back. When the media interviews experts who study weight loss

for a living, they all say this is true.

Myths and Weight Loss

Myths are a part of every society and culture. They help explain common

experiences that are mysterious, frightening, or difficult to understand.

Ancient civilizations used myths to explain aspects of the world

that they could not comprehend. Joseph Campbell, author of the book

The Power of Myth, explains that we need myths to survive and to

explain and understand our existence.

Myths are powerful. They can inspire us to great heights. But they

can also become traps when they mask the full truth. If you go beyond

the kernel of truth that forms the basis of the myth and believe that

every aspect of the myth is true, you can become paralyzed into inaction

because the myth seemingly explains everything.

LIVE NORI ROLLS

Nori rolls are convenient for meals on the go or as an elegant appetizer. You can serve

them with a simple soy sauce for dipping or with the Spring Roll Dipping Sauce (page

308). Nori sheets come either toasted or sun-dried. Use the sun-dried version for a truly

raw roll. The key for a successful raw nori roll is for the pâté not to be too moist or the

nori sheet will get soggy and spoil everyone’s fun. Here we provide two pâté recipes,

each of which lends itself to numerous variations.

TRADITIONAL HUMMUS

MAKES 1½ CUPS

1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans

2 tablespoons tahini

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon water

2 garlic cloves

¼ teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1. Process all of the ingredients in a food processor until well combined. You may

wish to add more water, for a thinner consistency. Start with 2 tablespoons at

a time.

2. It is possible to just mash the garbanzos up with a fork if you do not have a

food processor, then add all of the other ingredients for a chunkier hummus

experience.

How To Dehydrate Kale Step by Step

Kale is a nutritious vegetable and is considered to be a form of cabbage. It can be

green or purple and is a rich source of calcium, beta-carotene and vitamins.

Like broccoli kale contains sulforaphane, which is believed to have anti-cancer properties.

Kale chips are a popular and very nutritional snack and if you happen to have kale sitting in your garden, fridge or freezer and you are not sure what to do with all of it you can always dehydrate your kale. Dehydrating kale or any other collard greens is a relatively easy process and can be done in your very own kitchen using a dehydrator or the oven.

Mushrooms

Mushrooms are the edible fruit parts of a fungus. They are not considered a vegetable because they lack chlorophyll and the ability to make nutrients from the sun .

 

There are upwards of 38,000 varieties of mush­rooms in North America. They are available in Michigan year round.

How to select and store:
Choose firm, evenly colored mushrooms with tightly closed caps—visible gills are indicative of age. Avoid those that are broken or damaged with soft spots. Shiny and slimy skins are signs of spoilage. Store fresh mushrooms partially covered in the refrigerator to keep them from drying out but still allowing

Dieting is great, but healthy habits are better

Trying a new diet, and hoping it sticks, is like trying something new at a favorite restaurant. I often return to the eateries where I know exactly what I like. Occasionally trying something new is exciting, offering all sorts of possibilities, but in the end I usually wind up going back to flavors I have loved before. It is hard to adopt new foods or practices.

There’s a certain restaurant where my regular lasagna experience was almost ruined by a one-time encounter with a weird-meat stuffed ravioli. I don’t know what I was thinking. The ravioli looked so good on the menu, but tasted so odd. How could I ever go against lasagna? Lasagna is layered, for Pete’s sake! February rolls around and spring is starting to come into focus. Hopefully any weight loss goals set in January are still on the horizon. I know I made a few resolutions that are still in my sights. I’m feeling pretty good about them.

At their best: Sweetcorn & Pears

Sweetcorn Sweetcorn falls into the category of one of those things that when you eat it fresh from the cob

, nothing else will do. Tinned sweetcorn is very handy but could never match up to a boiled and grilled cob smothered with butter and black pepper. Sweetcorn is a form of maize which has become very popular here in the UK, stemming from Aztec backgrounds. It is harvested fairly young to make sure the kernels are sweet and tender but once harvested quickly deteriorates losing its sweetness, very much like peas. If you can, buy sweetcorn with the husks still on as this indicates freshness. This should be green and firm and the kernels should be firm and tightly packed. Make sure you eat them quickly to savour their sweetnes

CORN ON THE COB WITH THAI INFUSION

8 ways to go natural

Find an heir

Popcorn shouldn’t need to be smothered in butter to taste good, heirloom popcorn

enthusiasts say.

Companies cultivating the centuries-old plant using organic, sustainable farming practices are popping up nationwide, and proponents say their popcorn is more flavorful and easier to digest than commercial varieties. Plus, keeping heirloom plants in circulation helps preserve genetic diversity in our food supply.

 You’re good enough, and smart enough ...

If you suffer from chronic stress, here are three good reasons to carve some

me-time into your day: A brief selfaffirmation can relieve acute stress,

Why Protein?

If you are training on a regular basis, it is important to ensure that you are taking in adequate 

protein to assist with muscle repair and recovery. Lean muscle burns more calories at rest so ensuring muscles are trained, fed and rested is integral to muscle growth. How much protein per day?