Coconut oil has many applications, and there is anecdotal and scientific evidence that coconut oil can provide a variety of health benefits.  For instance, it is suggested that coconut oil increases energy, aids in weight loss, provides natural antibiotic activity, reduces cholesterol, and stabilizes insulin.  If you spend any time on the internet researching coconut oil, you’re bound to stumble on anecdotal evidence like this: Pig farmers tried to fatten their pigs using coconut oil, only to find that their pigs remained lean and highly active.  The opposite was true when the pigs were fed unsaturated fats, including trans fat.

Coconut oil converts to heat energy rapidly—it can be substituted for sugars as a ready source of energy without stimulating the release of insulin.  There is quite a bit of anecdotal evidence, as well, with regard to coconut oil being used for hypothyroidism… Coconut oil is also used as a beauty aid—as a skin moisturizer and hair conditioner. I happen to use a coconut lotion, as I am trying to use more natural and organic personal care products, and I love it. 

Look for virgin coconut oil that has not been refined.  You can use it to cook with safely—up to 360 degrees.

Are there benefits to massage?  Yes.  There have been several studies that point to many different therapeutic effects of massage.  The big question remains, however: How does a massage prompt the therapeutic effects reported?  A massage recipient might report that he or she feels relaxed, less stressed, but how does the massage create this state? How does massage lessen pain?  Certainly, theorists have ideas: positive sensations move more quickly than painful signals, for example.  But review of current literature does not turn up clear answers. 

More research is taking place with regard to massage, to measure cellular, neural, and biomechanical effects, to name a few…

The good news? Massage in many instances is covered by insurers in combination with traditional medicine—to treat pain, reduce stress, and promote healing in people with health conditions, like cancer.  It has been suggested that massage can release natural painkillers and even boost the immune system. 

If you are experiencing anxiety, pain, sports-related soreness, or treatment for cancer, massage therapy might be a natural choice.   

It’s true, that in the recent past, persons with cancer avoided massage therapy in fear that massage would increase the circulation of cancer through their bodies—but there is no medical evidence to support this.  And in many cases, the cancer patient sees immediate results with regard to stress reduction, anxiety reduction, and even pain reduction. 

Be careful, though, before you jump in.  Make sure the person administering your massage is a licensed practitioner.  You also should seek clearance from your doctor in every case when seeking massage as medical therapy.  You may have to avoid massage therapy if you are undergoing radiation, you have osteoporosis, or you have cancer that has spread to the bones. 

A  little dark chocolate, roughly 7 grams per day, has been suggested to be the ideal amount eaten to help protect the heart. Yummy!  But wait a minute: How much chocolate is that?  

In your ordinary candy bar there are 100 grams. That means that to get the benefit, you can gorge on approximately...  drum roll please...  one half of a candy bar a week.  Humph.

The Research Laboratories of the Catholic University in Campobasso, in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute of Milan, conducted a study with over 20,000 participants that concentrated on “the complex mechanism of inflammation and subsequent cardiovascular disease.” 

Chocolate is a rich antioxidant source, so the researchers thought chocolate consumption might have a positive effect on inflammation.  Participants that consumed moderate amounts of dark chocolate regularly had significantly lower levels of a key protein that the researchers were looking for to measure the positive effect.  In fact, researchers measured a 17% reduction in participants eating dark chocolate—this is enough of a reduction to lower the risk of heart disease by one third in women and one fourth in men. 

Of course, the amount of chocolate is imperative to the benefit—again, only about 7 grams.  The amount is equal to a small square of chocolate 2 or 3 times a week—more than this reduces the positive influence.

The study states that less than half a bar of dark chocolate consumed during the week may be part of a healthy habit. What about the milk chocolate? "Previous studies have demonstrated that milk interferes with the absorption of polyphenols. That is why our study considered just the dark chocolate.”

Less is more, and dark chocolate is what your looking for!    
Catholic University (2008, September 24). Dark Chocolate: Half A Bar Per Week May Keep

Yes, it's true...  I've got a six-pack.  I've also got a belly button that sits a little off to the right, which by the way drives me crazy...  How did I get so lucky, you might ask?  Reconstructive surgery, much like a tummy-tuck, that used my belly fat to build a new breast after they removed the other cancer-filled one.  Please, don't feel sorry for me, though.  I have the breasts of a twenty year old now. 

In college, we used to do what was called the pencil test.  If you could hold a pencil, lengthwise, under your breast, then your breasts just simply weren't deemed perky.  Back then, I think I could hold 3 pencils stacked together under my breast--and now?  The perfect Cs.  When they rebuilt my right breast they had to reduce my left to match--and today...  Well, I can't complain.

So, what's my point in all this?  I can remember vividly thinking that if I were to just lose a few more pounds, if I were to have a flatter tummy, perkier boobs, then somehow my life would be transformed--I would be happier.  Guess what?  It doesn't work that way.  For all intensive purposes, I'm still the same person I was then, with the same fears, losses, happinesses.  You may or may not believe me, but tight abs don't make a person more or less interesting or happy.  Beauty truly does escape from the inside!

Still, if you find yourself wishing for a flatter tummy, a slimmer, trimmer you--because somehow you know that that will make you more content, then my advice to you is to start living today like you would once you have that perfect body.  Imagine yourself in that hot, sexy body, and ask yourself how you'd feel?  How would you live your life differently? Look, you'd want to take care of your new hotter self, right?  What would you change about yourself?  Would you vow to eat better, exercise? 

What I'm trying to get at is if you embrace those changes today, soon when you look down in the shower, you'll see your wiggling toes waving good morning to you...  And if you embrace a lifestyle filled with nutrition, whole foods, and proven supplements, hopefully you won't get a six-pack as a side-effect of cancer; you'll have a six-pack because you earned it!

What you can do today: Start today by taking a trip to the organic store or the supplement store.  Some healthy food choices that you can select to get you off on the right foot would be any of the super fruits and vegetables, like strawberries, blueberries, spinach..  Of course--you can always try my Juicy Alligator recipe; it won't disappoint!  Buy some flax meal and mix it with a low-fat yogurt or cottage cheese--it really helps to fill you up, and it gives you an energy boost, too. 

My picks for supplements?  I take maitake mushroom, turmeric, bee pollen, grape seed, cranberry, vitamin D3, and switch out other ones like selenium, potassium...  You will need to experiment and work with your doctor to find a regimen that's right for you, but you can't go wrong with a good, quality multiple vitamin!  What are you waiting for?  A new, beautiful, healthy you is lurking inside just waiting to come out because you decided it was time.  Stop wishing and start doing--today is your day!

What the heck are processed foods, and why are they so bad for us? 

Well, processed foods have simply been altered from their original state for safety reasons and/or for consumer convenience. For example, some of the ways that our food is being processed include freezing, refrigeration, canning, dehydration and aseptic processing.

When we hear “processed,” we automatically assume that it is “bad.”  But some foods that are processed are actually okay—like pasteurized products: milk, orange juice, and apple juice (although I would recommend organic whenever possible).  Frozen fruits and vegetables are also an example of processed foods.

So what are the processed foods that we should watch out for?  Anything with saturated fats, trans fats, high fructose corn syrup, sugar—you get the point…

A basic list of process foods to avoid when possible:

sodium filled canned foods
processed meats
chips and processed cheese snacks
packaged sweets/goodies
foods made with refined white flour
sugary breakfast cereals
processed meats

It is difficult to remove all processed foods from your diet, so start out slow.  One important step is to stop frequenting fast food restaurants—Americans are addicted, and if you don’t believe me, read Fast Food Nation.  Another step is to start reading labels.  I am appalled by how much high-fructose corn syrup is in the foods that we think are healthy.  Almost all the whole wheat breads you find in your supermarket have added this sugar as a preservative…  Another recommendation is to bake your own sweets.  It takes just minutes to whip up a batch of cookies, and you control what goes into them!  Your on your way to a healthier you!