Chances are, by now you’ve heard SOMETHING about the anti aging benefits of Vitamin D. This little miracle vitamin (specifically Vitamin D3) has been getting a lot of press lately.

If you haven’t heard about the benefits of Vitamin D, here is a brief list:

* inhibits inflammation (major cause of aging) * maintains calcium balance * helps to regulate blood pressure * boosts your immunity * protects against some cancers (mainly colon)

There are lots of other research studies being done with additional benefits discovered all the time.

But here is some controversial news about Vitamin D you may NOT know:

Fact: Your body produces Vitamin D naturally with sun exposure.

What you don’t know: Wearing sunscreen inhibits Vitamin D production. The melanin in dark skinned and tan people inhibits production of the vitamin, so if you are dark or tan, you may be deficient. As we age, we produce less Vitamin D from the sun, so if you are over 40, you may be deficient. Overweight people need more Vitamin D than slender people.

Fact: Most sunscreens actually block the rays that produce Vitamin D. And in fact, the incidence of cancer has actually gone UP since people started using sunscreen!

It turns out that since Vitamin D3 protects against some cancers, by inhibiting the sunshine from sunscreen, we are actually increasing our cancer rate.

Needless to say, the American Dermatology Association is all up in arms, saying it’s ridiculous to even suggest anyone go out in the sun without sunscreen.

Fact: The government recommends 400 units of Vitamin D per day What You Don’t Know: Most research indicates that 4,000 units per day is needed.

Although it is possible to have Vitamin D toxicity from taking too much, the incidences are actually quite rare. Testing is recommended.

Important questions to ask yourself:

Am I deficient in Vitamin D? How do I get tested? What do I look for when buying Vitamin D?

There are many easy ways to make anti aging a part of your life. Check the website below to get more information about Vitamin D and make an informed buying decision.

Recovering from an illness or injury can be a stressful time for both the patient and the patient’s family. That stress is compounded when chronic illness or disability is involved. Research has consistently shown that, when at all possible, recovering at home is the best option for the patient’s physical and mental health. Unfortunately, when the patient is elderly or too injured or ill to care for themselves, recovering at home is sometimes not an option.

Finding friends or family members to assist with daily tasks is not always feasible. Even when family members are in a position to assist, the burden placed on them often puts a strain on their other family relationships, as well as their career and personal life. The alternative to home recovery-having their loved one leave their home to life in a medical facility or nursing home-is often a last and regretful resort.

Luckily, there is another way for patients to remain in their beloved homes while receiving quality health care assistance: Home Health Care. Recent technological advance such as the internet and home infusion have made home health care available to many more patients than in the past. According to the National Association for Home Care, there are approximately 20,000 home health care providers today. While almost two-thirds of home care recipients are seniors over 65, home health care can assist anyone who requires some assistance while recovering from an illnesses or suffering a disability.

On average, the cost of elderly health care is $5,531 annually. Family members not only provide hands-on care but often dig into their own pockets to pay other expenses which include groceries, drugs and medicines, medical equipments such as wheelchairs, toilet seat risers and transportation. Many times family members have to miss work and lose out on their income to take care of elderly family members.

Many family members take loans, skip vacations and often ignore their own health. Government must start providing tax deductions and tax credits to family caregivers.

The expenditures incurred for elderly health care is increasing rapidly and reaching astronomical heights. Elders have many special needs when it comes to health care. One is often left frustrated when there are gaps in insurance coverage. Medicare programs offer only minimal assistance for serious health disorders.

There are some programs that cover senior citizens. It covers hospital expenses and doctor visits, even if you continue to work. All one needs to do is pay a premium every month. These programs are popular among a vast number of senior citizens.

Marilyn is a 72-year-old widow who recently underwent heart angioplasty surgery. She is preparing to leave the hospital soon. But recovering from open-heart surgery is a long process, and her family knows she will need continued medical assistance once she gets home. The family must find a reputable home health care agency that can provide licensed nurses as well as aides to tend to Marilyn on a daily basis.

Finding the right agency can be a daunting task, but not impossible, says Tilly Gambill, Manager of Marketing and Communications for the American Association for Homecare.

“People often receive home health services following a hospitalization or care in other care settings. Often the hospital discharge planner or social worker provides information on home health agencies,” Gambill says. “Ask the hospital for a list of home health care agencies in your community. In some communities, there may fewer available agencies. Physicians, friends, and family can recommend home health agencies, as well.”

The family got 2 references from the hospital and one from a family friend whose father with hypertension and diabetes receives home care services weekly.

The New York Times have tested 20 Manhattan restaurants and markets for mercury levels in their sushi, which revealed that a week’s portion of six pieces has more mercury than is regarded as safe by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The sushi was taken for tests in October and the fish could have been removed from 5 out of the 20 restaurants by the Food and Drug Administration, because it contained too much mercury.

According to Dr. Michael Gochfeld, professor of environmental and occupational medicine at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Piscataway, N.J., it is not safe to eat tuna meals in which the level of mercury is as high as found in the tested restaurants more often than once every three weeks.

Unfortunately, although New York City was the main victim of the survey, negative results are expected all over the country.

Although we all know how to use delicious, piquant cloves in cooking, few of us have heard about their long and glorious history and their curing and beautifying properties. Known as “tongue spice” during the rule of the Han dynasty in China, cloves have the unsurpassed power to clean breath and were the obligatory breath freshener used by courtiers when speaking to the emperor.

Lower we present you the recipes for breath-freshening (a super formula), healing bad digestion, protection against air transmitted microbes and relieving fatigue and stress, thus being very suitable for the holiday season.

Bad breath fighting formula

Stir 1 drop of clove essential oil in a cup of water, use the mixture as a mouthwash and then rinse with clean water.

Simple tip to freshen your breath:

Keep a clove in your mouth, or chew it to strengthen the effect.
Recipe that will protect you against air transmitted microbes, as well as assist you by tackling fatigue and stress and stimulate mental function
Fill the diffuser with 2-3 drops of clove essential oil.

The truth is that all the millions of corn acres in our country go two ways. The first is production of high-fructose corn syrup, which is undoubtedly unhealthy. And the second is forage for beef cattle. Before wondering what the problem with that is, imagine a long row of 100 thousand cows standing very close together in order to get fat faster. One disgusting scene in the movie shows vividly what happens to the poor animals because of consuming all the nasty corn and motionlessness. In short, they would blow up if they didn’t get slaughtered in time. That’s how Iowa corn works and where the cheap fatty beef comes from.

That movie put me off beef for sure, that’s why I ate my burger with turkey lately (I wouldn’t bear the idea that there’s a documentary about poultry mistreatment too, so don’t dare to mention it). I will try beef again only if I’m one 100 per cent sure it was raised on grass. All in all, too much corn is no good both for cows and people.

That was the goal of “King Corn” in 2007: to stimulate changing the farm policy of our nation. The opportunity for that was the debate in Congress on the Farm Bill. However, the movie didn’t succeed in changing the direction where our tax subsidies go and the way we eat, but it can change our mind about beef.

Beef raised on corn in the Midwest. That was the proud claim I saw in the menu of quite a good eatery I had dinner at lately. It really took me by surprise. I thought that most people would picture a herd of happy cows tucking in healthful veggies. However, belonging to the informed part of US population, I had a different image in my mind. The one from “King Corn” I had watched a few weeks before.

Generally, I prefer to watch something nice and fluffy in my spare time. In fact, that’s why I bought tickets for “Sex and the City” on opening weekend.

However, at times my husband manages to persuade me to have a serious and educational evening “watch”. And last Thursday I was taking in all the seriousness of a documentary about corn we hired at Netflix. Can you believe it?

It couldn’t be called the best movie of out time, neither would I rate it too high, if I were writing the review. To be exact, the first 3 quarters of an hour of “King Corn” could bore you to death. Still, we didn’t switch it off as we enjoyed ourselves poking fun at it. The main heroes are two friends that start growing corn in Iowa. The intrigue begins when they start realizing what happens with the more than 80 millions acres of US corn.

I must confess that being a great and diverse meat eater I never let myself ponder too much about the source of that meat. Still, I prefer buying free-range chicken eggs, and choose chicken and beef treated humanely before they are put to death. (I didn’t try to hide the irony of this). But until I had seen the “King Corn” revelation, it never bothered me so much why grass-fed beef is indeed so much better.

Cabbage is one of the oldest known vegetables and its history is full of surprising facts.

For example, the ancient Romans believed that cabbage appeared from Jupiter’s sweat, which is why they treasured this vegetable so much and used it as a cure for all ills.

Today mankind knows for sure that cabbage promotes good health in a great number of ways. Here they are:

Raw cabbage raises the efficiency of digestion and helps expedite excretion, thus being perfect for stomach and upper bowels detoxification.
It enhances immune function, makes the body more alkaline, strengthens protection against cancer, eliminates detrimental viruses and bacteria, relieves and cures ulcers, and clears the skin.
All kinds of cabbage protect the liver and other tissues from stagnating.
Cabbage is rich in vitamins and minerals. For example, it is abundant in vitamin C, vitamin E is mostly concentrated in the outer leaves, which also can boast of a big storage of calcium (three times more than in the inner leaves). Moreover, sulfur and iodine contained in cabbage stimulate circulation.
Red cabbage will give you added antioxidant protection due to its phenolic compounds.

For centuries civilizations have treasured sacred streams and fountains and ascribed to them magical qualities. The springs which were thought to accommodate nature spirits acquired special sacredness in the Indian tribes of America. Nowadays we refer to water from mountains (especially from glaciers) and certain deep streams as vitalized water. The taste of it seems so familiar and life-radiating. The springs do actually promote health and long life, as they have taken in the invaluable and unwasted mineral content of the ancient, untouched soil they have passed through.

The true magical property of vitalized water reveals itself in facilitating the work of all nutrients (vitamins, enzymes, etc.) in our body, thanks to the essential catalysts it contains.

You can revitalize water right in your kitchen, here is the formula:
8 ounces of water + several drops of citrus juice (lemon of orange) = healthy, easy-to-digest, gentle and delicious water.