Hi faithful blog readers!  

  Greetings, all! 

    I occasionally post blogs written by guest bloggers, especially when I think the blogs can broaden our horizon about health and wellness in other parts of the world. It's never bad to expand our understanding of global health.  Checking out my blog statistics, most of my readers are from the good ol' USA and England, so I'm happy to be posting a blog by Bir Gul Ahad, a woman who lives in Pakistan and happens to be a  passionate writer about all things health and wellness. She's also written for a couple of newspapers in Karachi and was Assistant Editor of HUMSAY magazine, which is Pakistan's only media magazine.   She promises to post more future blogs, but here is her first one on summer foods and drinks in Pakistan. I've never heard of them, but they sound good, so maybe I'll try one this summer.  
Thanks, Eeks :) 

  As most of you know, I make my own skin creams, because that way I know exactly what's in my cream and therefore I know exactly what goes on my face.  I refuse to spend a ton of money for "anti-aging/ miracle/ super-moist/ antioxidant-abundant...etc...." skin cream, because most of their claims are bullshit.  It's that simple. Their huge success often comes down to a few strong marketing buzz words.  "Anti-aging" is up there with "Detox" in terms of marketing potential.  ( Which is obviously why I included it in my blog title. ;) )  That said and cynicism aside, there are some great natural skin creams out on the market, and I rely on them when I don't feel like playing chemistry in my kitchen.  :) 

   

Hi Guys!
    A blog reader, Barbara, from Northern New South Wales, Australia was kind enough to pass this gluten-free recipe along, so I'm sharing it with you all. As Barbara noted in the email, the recipe was originally given to her using "xylitol" but she massaged it and made it her own using coconut sugar, which I happen to like a lot better than Xylitol, too.  It's gluten free and has a low glycemic load, two of my favorite food qualities! Enjoy and thanks again, Barbara, for sharing! :)



Apricot Amaretti Biscuits:


Ingredients:

  
  The results from a huge prospective cohort study involving 448,568 men and women, meat consumption, and incidence of cancer and heart disease were recently published in BMC Medicine.  The study, called the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), evaluated male and female meat-eating habits in 10 different countries (France, Italy, Spain, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Greece, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark).

 Since April is Autism Awareness Month, and since the Center for Disease Control just came out with the glaring statistic showing 1 in 50 kids are now being diagnosed with autism, I'm posting an interview I did with Vitamin D expert Dr. John Cannell.   I am also posting this interview, because it's all about Vitamin D, and everyone today is wondering whether or not he or she should supplement.  It's a good question considering the main source of Vitamin D is the sun, yet the rate of skin cancer, also caused by the sun, is rapidly increasing.   The answer to whether or not you should supplement is that some people will say you should and some people will say you shouldn't. Sorry, but it's that ambiguous, and the evidence is not yet clear enough to suggest one way over another. That said,  Dr. Cannell is someone who says you should supplement.  So who is he and what's all this talk about autism? 

  Dr. Cannell is a a board certified psychiatrist and American activist. In the past,he contributed to the Black Lung debate by airing anti-smoking commercials on TV and hiring workers to distribute anti-smoking material, and his work to reform public school systems and educational testing was noted in the New York Times, NBC and the Wall Street Journal. Currently, he is founder and executive director of The Vitamin D Council, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating the public about the health benefits of Vitamin D.  He is the author of two recent theories on Vitamin D, including Vitamin D and Influenza and Vitamin D and Autism?

Hi guys! 

    As an aromatherapy enthusiast,  I'm always looking for new essential oil blends to try, especially when I do not have time to make my own. You have to be very careful when purchasing essential oils, because they quality of oils on the market varies so much.  Unfortunately, if you purchase essential oils that are of poor quality, you will not get the same health benefits as you would if the oils were pure.  

    That said, I was very happy to discover the aromatherapeutic blends by doTERRA,  which you can purchase  from Modern Wellness.  I was extremely satisfied with their quality, the blends they offered and the aromas were fresh and wonderful.  If you check out their website, you'll see that they offer a variety of oils.  Some of my favorite ones were their blend, Elevation,  which I found to be quite energizing.  In fact, I put a few drops on my wrists before taking a few of my midterms for Public Health School.  The Lemon and Grapefruit blends were also great for a reliable energy boost.    

       For relaxation purposes, give their Lavender or "Breathe" blend a try.  I added a few drops to a relaxing warm bath, and the oils did not disappoint!   

     For digestive issues, consider inhaling or even ingesting a few drops of their Peppermint blend.  It gives of a very calming aroma and peppermint, in general, can help alleviate digestive turmoil.  
    The other great thing about Modern Wellness is that they frequently offer informative webinars that educate people on how to use the different aromatherapy blends for various ailments, as preventive strategies and also as relaxation tools.  I was very impressed with their webinars, as most aromatherapy sites don't do that, leaving customers in the dark on the best ways to utilize essential oils. 

    So all in all, I was very pleased with the quality of the doTERRA essential oils and they have my full endorsement and personal recommendation!   Try them out! They also make great gifts! 

Happy Smelling, 
     Dr. Eeks