The fruit that offers skin cancer protection from the inside out
Posted on: February 4, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

The fruit that offers skin cancer protection from the inside out

You’ve probably read much on Easy Health Options about the quandary that sunscreen poses. It’s supposed to protect you from skin cancer but at the same time exposes you to toxins and blocks the sun’s rays that help your body produce valuable vitamin D. Perhaps the most problematic ingredients in sunscreen are substances called benzophenones also known as oxybenzones. These chemicals block out ultraviolet light but may also produce problematic physiological…

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Your attitude now predicts better — or worse — senior living
Posted on: February 4, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Your attitude now predicts better — or worse — senior living

Everyone ages. There is no escaping it. It’s part of life, and how you perceive your coming golden years may affect just how bright — or tarnished — those years will be for you. Attitude can make all the difference in the world in a lot of situations. But would you have guessed it can impact how well you age? Or the status of your health as you do? Findings…

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MRSA-killing mud pie? Yes, please
Posted on: February 3, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

MRSA-killing mud pie? Yes, please

Do you remember being told not to play in the dirt when you were a kid because of the “germs?” Well, there’s some dirt in Canada that we all may want to make mud pies with soon. That’s because something about the dirt — clay, to be exact — kills some of the most resistant pathogens known to man. Around the globe, clay has been a staple in some of…

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7 ways to squeeze nutrition from every dollar
Posted on: February 3, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

7 ways to squeeze nutrition from every dollar

Diets rich in healthy options like veggies, fish, fruit and nuts, are more expensive than diets full of processed foods, meats and refined grains — about $1.50 more per day, per person on average. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but over time it forms a barrier that a lot of low-income families — and seniors on fixed incomes — can’t get past. Yearly it averages to $550 per person.…

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Simple movement keeps arteries soft and heart healthy
Posted on: February 3, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Simple movement keeps arteries soft and heart healthy

I love it when scientific studies prove the medical benefits of ancient mind-body methods extoled for their health-giving powers for thousands of years. China is a country rich in mind-body healing traditions, ranging from herbal medicine, bone-setting and acupuncture to meditation, qigong and tai chi. Recently, a study showed that tai chi may prevent onset of heart disease in arthritis patients. To practitioners of the art, this makes perfect sense…

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The long reach of a zinc deficiency
Posted on: February 2, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

The long reach of a zinc deficiency

As you age and your immune system becomes weaker, seemingly minor illnesses that you once brushed off can suddenly begin doing serious damage to your health. In some cases, they can even be deadly. Luckily, you can lessen the toll age takes on immunity with the help of a little zinc. Zinc plays a key role in cell division and growth, meaning the metal is essential to your body’s ability…

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Are your leftovers teeming with listeria?
Posted on: February 2, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Are your leftovers teeming with listeria?

The cold conditions that would kill other germs are no match for listeria. Where other germs die, it thrives. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says that listeria germs can continue to grow in your refrigerator. And that’s really bad news if you refrigerate listeria-contaminated foods — because the germs can multiply and even spread to other foods in your refrigerator. If you’re exposed — and very lucky…

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Surviving a toxic soup
Posted on: February 2, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Surviving a toxic soup

What we can learn from Flint By now, everyone has heard the news from Flint, Michigan. Disastrous political decisions have led to high lead levels in the public water supply, impacting every citizen. Water from the Flint River caused corrosion of the lead pipes that supply water to businesses and households leading to leaching of lead into the drinking water. This disaster will have long-term impacts on all age groups.…

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Benefitting from the best medicine
Posted on: February 1, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Benefitting from the best medicine

For decades there has been a chasm between conventional medicine and so called “alternative” health care. In this article I’d like to look at these two types of medicine, which can be blended together for an optimal “integrative medicine” approach to health care. The chasm I work in a busy Urgent Care practice nearly full-time. In this setting I recommend prescription medications and perform minor surgical interventions to solve these…

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Getting high could make your migraine go away faster
Posted on: February 1, 2016 Posted by: Michele Lee Comments: 0

Getting high could make your migraine go away faster

The migraine information you’re about to read isn’t from High Times, the magazine for weed lovers that features articles by Snoop Dogg and Willie Nelson. It’s from a medical journal called Pharmacotherapy whose contributing authors have M.D.s, Pharm.Ds, and Ph.Ds. It turns out some patients diagnosed with migraine headaches saw a significant drop in their frequency when treated with medical marijuana. On average, the number of migraines dropped from 10.4…

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