Make time for friends—real life ones, not the re-runs of the television show! More and more, science is proving what we woman have known forever: close friendships can help you live longer, better and wiser. In fact, some recent research suggests that building and maintaining social networks can add 30 years to your life. So … Read more
We all need hugs every single day. As you’ll see from this article, human contact is vital for physical and emotional survival. Babies who are not cuddled, hugged and nurtured will not grow. They eventually may develop lifelong emotional problems or even die. Many years ago, we lived in Africa, where mothers routinely bundle their … Read more
Do you have any personal rituals? You may think that’s an odd question and you’d deny any such thing, but let’s try a few I use on for size: In fact, on Sunday mornings at 8:40 a.m. is the Sacred Moment: When NPR’s Puzzler comes on the radio. No one is to talk to me … Read more
Last night, I was sitting around with some friends and one woman mentioned that she suddenly had an outbreak of psoriasis, a nasty itchy, scaly skin problem. She wanted to know if there were natural treatments instead of the steroids and immune suppressant drugs doctors usually prescribe. So, I whipped out my trusty iPhone and … Read more
If you’re as old as I am, you’ll remember “Laughter is the Best Medicine” was the name of the humor column in Reader’s Digest. It was good advice 50 years ago and it’s even better advice, backed by science, today. In today’s world, it’s probably the redeeming value of Facebook, where I can count on … Read more
I am of the firm belief that everyone needs a pet. Whether it’s a dog, cat, bird or goldfish, I’ll go farther to say that a house is not a home without a pet. A huge body of research confirms that people with pets have healthier hearts, stay home sick less often, make fewer visits … Read more
We all love our chocolate and recent research has given us myriad health reasons why that daily dose of dark chocolate is good for us. Now recent research shows us that chocolate—or at least a component of chocolate—can also erase wrinkles. What’s not to love? The benefit actually comes from the flavonoid-rich cocoa pod, the … Read more
It’s that time of year. The holidays are over, the decorations packed away for another year, presents unwrapped and half of them returned. The party laughter has faded, the credit card bills are coming in and the world outside is gray and cold. So January makes you feel a little blue as the long winter … Read more
As the hubbub of the holidays passes, this is a great time for self-care. Yeah, yeah, I know you’ve heard about self-care before. You think your life is too busy to take good care of yourself. Actually, your life is too busy not to take care of yourself. Self-care is important and perhaps never more … Read more
When I was growing up, school always started in early September, followed by a “Clean Up, Paint Up, Fix Up” week in which we and our families were urged to clean out unneeded “stuff,” and give our homes and yards a tune-up and face lift. Maybe that’s why my mind always turns to de-cluttering and … Read more