Women used to complain about their hips and thighs. Now, it seems, it’s all about belly fat. I suppose this could be my imagination since I have, in recent years, joined the post-baby ranks…and now share this particular preoccupation. Or maybe it’s the attention paid to apple vs pear-shaped physiques. Which is an important distinction, actually. […]

In recent years, you might have heard rumors about chocolate being good for your health. And you promptly dismissed said rumors as being way too good to be true. But this week a study was published that is seriously validating the idea of chocolate as health food. According to the folks at the British Medical Journal, chocolate is […]

So I talk a lot about coffee. I love my Starbucks. But what about tea? Yes, I love tea too. At my house, 3 pm is definitely tea time. This is more a cultural thing than anything else, for me, having British parents and having spent two sabbaticals in the UK. Most people have a […]

A new study found that celery (specifically, luteolin, a compound found within celery) had brain-boosting power in older mice. Yes, celery. So this got me thinking: are there other things you can do to upgrade your smarty-pants quotient? You betcha. Omega-3 fatty acids are well-known to boost brain function. This, in addition to all the other health benefits of omega-3, […]

In the short term, inflammation is not a problem. It’s the body’s normal response to injury, and it’s a healing response. It’s also part of our immune system, and how we fight infection. But when inflammation doesn’t shut off like it should, and becomes chronic? That’s a problem. Why inflammation is bad for you We’re not […]