I love Huggies Pure and Natural Diapers
You Don’t Have to Count Calories
You don’t have to count calories, as long as you’re eating food. Real, natural, as close to the way it exists in nature, preferably organic, food. Seriously. People are often surprised by what kind of food my family eats since my husband is a personal trainer, fitness model and Men’s Health Magazine contributor. We always say- you can eat whatever you like, as long as it’s good quality. Yes, you can have burgers and ice cream and chocolate and fries. Yes, you can have pizza and pasta and pancakes. In fact, we’ve had all of these things in the last week! Just shop at a natural market, and buy real food. If you make it yourself, you have control over the ingredients. You can make everything you love from whole organic ingredients. Listen to your body- eat when you’re hungry, take time to chew each bite thoroughly, and stop when you’re full. If you are eating real, whole food, you will feel totally nourished and stay satisfied longer. 
A recent dinner of ours: grass fed beef burgers on ezekiel bread with olive oil mayo, swiss chard sauteed in coconut oil and sprinkled with sea salt, and baked organic sweet potato fries- with organic ketchup of course! Does that look like a restrictive, boring, taste-free meal?
In The News: Papaya for Cancer Treatment
Researchers have found that papaya leaf extract has dramatic tumor-fighting properties against breast and cervical cancer.
University of Florida researcher Nam Dang along with researchers at The University of Tokyo documented papaya’s anticancer effect in a report published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology.
Dang used an extract made from dried papaya leaves, and the stronger the extract, the better the results. This is exciting news because the papaya extract did not have any toxic effects on normal cells, avoiding a common and dangerous side effect of many cancer therapy regimens.
Dang and his colleagues in Tokyo showed that papaya leaf extract boosts the production of cytokines which help regulate the immune system.
Papaya has been used as a remedy for a variety of ailments in many parts of the world for centuries. This study focuses on the leaves, but the fruit is delicious and full of beta carotene and digestive enzymes. Eat it while pregnant to avoid constipation.
It also makes a great first food for babies!
Andrew Weil’s Call to Action
Andrew Weil has written “A Health Care Call to Action” and it’s a good read. We can hope that one day this is how our health care will look.
“Learn how to take care of yourself!You can’t afford to get sick, and you can’t depend on the present health care system to keep you well. It’s up to you to protect and maintain your body’s innate capacity for health and healing by making the right choices in how you live.”
-Andrew Weil
Caesarean Births Hit Record High in US
C-section births are climbing steadily in the United States, affecting one in three babies. Click here to read the published report outlining the trend. It has become so commonplace that most women I talk to just assume they might have to give birth this way, not really giving it a second thought. It is, however, major abdominal surgery and carries risks. It is an amazing procedure when done to save mother or baby’s life, or in situations where complications have arisen, however often times today it is used for reasons other than life saving measures. Physicians’ fear of lawsuits, patients requesting scheduled births for convenience and inducing labor on a baby who isn’t quite ready to come out are all reasons the Caesarean birth rate is now over 32% in the United States.
What can you do to protect yourself from a surgical birth?
Take a birthing class. Many OB’s say they aren’t necessary, but that’s because the use of epidural anesthesia is 75-85% in the US, and once you have that you don’t need (and can’t use) anything you learned in a childbirth class. I would never have succeeded in a totally drug-free natural childbirth if it weren’t for my amazing teacher Shara at Real Birth in New York City.
Become informed. Watch The Business of Being Born
and read Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care
You will be amazed at what you learn and how much you can do to take charge of your child’s birth.