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Showing posts from March 2, 2017

Is Snoring Really a Health Problem?

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There’s a saying that people who snore always fall asleep first. My days of overnight sports chaperoning and group camping trips have frequently confirmed that notion. Most people would say that snoring is less a problem for the snorer than anyone lying awake in the vicinity, and on those specific nights in memory I probably thought as much. But the health researcher in me knows there’s more to the story. We know sleep apnea is a big deal. No one wants that. But regular, run-of-the-mill snoring? Is it really an issue? Everyone has someone in their family who does it. It’s often a running joke, in fact. Some estimates suggest more than half of us snore (although that might be an exaggeration, given that the estimated range is so extensive). How concerned should we really be? And what is there to do about it anyway? What exactly is snoring? Snoring is simply a case of air moving over the relaxed tissues of the throat, causing those tissues to vibrate during sleeping. That vibration ...

5 Ways to Improve Body Image

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In a social-media driven world full of perfect, curated images, it can be hard to not compare yourself to others, and love the body you are in. Since we could all use a little boost from time to time, we chatted with top fitness and nutrition experts on simple ways to promote positive body image. After all, there’s never a better time to start loving yourself than right now.   Exercise because you want to, not because you have to. Consider your relationship with exercise; do you do it because you have to or because you want to? When exercise is viewed as a mandate, essential only for desired aesthetics, it begins to feel like punishment, creating a negative experience that can last well after the workout is through. According to K. Aleisha Fetters MS, CSCS creator of Show Your Strength , “when people begin to exercise for performance, rather than trying to ‘fix’ something, their body image changes drastically.” Seeing your body adapting, progressing and performing tasks that ...

3 Things You Probably Didn’t Know Gut Bacteria Can Do

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3D medical background with DNA strands and virus cells   By Eirik Garnas, http://ift.tt/2gpqpXI The microbiome is all the rage these days. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past several years, you’ve undoubtedly picked up on the fact that the microbes that dwell deep in your intestine have a profound impact on your health and well-being. You probably know that they affect your metabolism, digestion, mental functioning, and immune system. What you may not know though, is that they also affect a long range of things that can seem completely unrelated to the gut. In today’s article we’re going to talk about 3 such things… They affect your cold tolerance Do you have poor cold tolerance? Can a drop in temperature throw you off balance? Do you feel freezing every time you’re out during the winter and just want to go home as soon as possible to take a hot shower? If so, then your gut microbiome is probably in a less than ideal state. I’ve long suspected that gut ...

The Woods Are Lovely, Dark, and Deep

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^^From a recent hike at the Monticello Trail and title quote from one of my favorite poems . I love that trail so much! I was thinking recently that I need a weekly checklist of things I need to remember to do. Kind of like those summer bucket list checklists? It would have things like: Hike the Monticello Trail Eat a tin of sardines Go to a yoga class Read for an hour Make a massaged kale salad Take a bubble bath Play a board game You know, all the things that make life extra full : ) I did do a lot of those this week though – sardines included! When I just have a smoothie for breakfast, sometimes I miss having something hot. Not just coffee, but something like eggs/toast/pancakes that is warm and cooked. But having buttered toast on the side satisfies that craving so a smaller smoothie + toast with butter has been my favorite breakfast combo of late. I made a great  Blue Apron dinner recently – Cajun Catfish & Spiced Rice with Collard Gre...