These days it seems like eczema is becoming something rather common, almost like a rite of childhood. When my son started suffering from it at around the age of 2 I, like most other parents took him to our family doctor for some answers. We were given steroid creams and no answers. I reluctantly tried them, but found they provided no relief. It seemed strange to me to just treat the symptoms when I was more concerned about treating the cause. One trip to the Naturopath provided us with some much needed answers. He suggested we:

Continue reading Eczema Relief!

With the economy looking bleak, and food prices set to rise, is there a way to be mindful of your grocery spending, while still eating healthy and/or organic? Here are some tips and tricks…

1. Make a weekly menu and shop to it.

I can’t stress enough how helpful this is. Speaking from experience, I have found this to be the only way I can put nourishing meals on the table each evening. Usually on Friday or Saturday for about 20 minutes, I sit down with my cookbooks and compile a menu for the week. I outline 6 meals and write my corresponding shopping list. This way I buy exactly what I need for the week and don’t stray from my list in a moment of desperation or frustration.

Continue reading Recession Proof your Grocery Bill

With the new year comes a new list of resolutions. On the top of mine and probably many others is to cram a workout (at least 3x a week) into my busy schedule. Now, I have to be honest and preface that I have never, ever worked out. I am one of those naturally uncoordinated people. I can’t learn a dance routine or play a sport by just watching it or trying it once or twice, for some reason my body doesn’t move in that way. Regardless, any workout that I take on has to overcome 2 obstacles:

1. It can’t require too much coordination. No crazy dance moves (at least not yet)

2. It can’t take longer than 20 minutes.

I have found the perfect solution as seen on Oprah (well, not by me, but a girlfriend sent me the link to the workout she saw on Oprah): the Joel Harper 20 minute workout. I will have to vary it, so I don’t get bored, but for now this is perfect for my schedule. Let me know what you think!

All you Oprah fans will recognize the name Dr. Oz. He’s become a regular on Oprah with his integrative medicine approach.

To make your diet more healthy, Dr. Oz says to remember his “rule of fives.” Look at the labels of the foods you eat. If you see one of these five ingredients listed as one of the first five things used to make it, don’t eat it.

Continue reading 5 Ingredients to Avoid

We all like to start the new year with a list of resolutions. Things we want to improve about our health, relations etc… How about some new year’s resolutions for our planet? I took a few eco resolutions from a list of 7 over at The Daily Green and applied them to my daily life. I invite you to do the same. What’s encouraging is these are all simple enough for us all to do, and doesn’t involve going tree planting for a month in the outback….What do you think?

1. I will buy less useless crap that I don’t need.

I think we’re all guilty of impulse shopping, you know that crap we have hiding in that closet or cupboard that never gets any use. Your guilty pleasure could be clothing, notebooks, vases, shoes, whatever! I have several areas of guilt ranging from clothing to knick knacks. This year I will try to reduce my purchase of these items. As I saw on a tv program once, every time you buy something, you must visualize the exact location of where to put/display this item. I must remember that packaging, waste, and pollution are created to make these items available. It’s time to clean out, and stop the crap collecting.

Continue reading Easy, Eco Resolutions for 2009