I’m always on the lookout for ways to combat stress . Stress can wreak havoc with hormone levels and, especially in women , can aggravate breakouts. This is because stress activates the adrenal gland. The adrenal gland is where we produce adrenaline, which the body pumps out in response to stress. Well, it just so happens that women make much of their testosterone in the adrenal gland as well. So, that means stress can alter testosterone... 

Don’t feel guilty for eating dark chocolate, you’re benefiting your health! While you may have heard that dark chocolate is effective in helping your heart, it’s also helping your stress levels. These reduced stress levels also indirectly benefits your physical health. Dark Chocolate Effects on Stress A study has reported that people who consumed chocolate daily for at least two weeks had lower stress levels. The stress hormones... 

Don’t feel guilty for eating dark chocolate, you’re benefiting your health! While you may have heard that dark chocolate is effective in helping your heart, it’s also helping your stress levels. These reduced stress levels also indirectly benefit your physical health. Dark Chocolate’s Effect on Stress A study has reported that people who consumed chocolate daily for at least two weeks had lower stress levels. The stress... 

While Mother’s Day isn’t perceived as one of the holidays that causes people stress and depression , some people do experience intense sadness. Mother’s Day can make someone extremely sad if she lost a child or has a sour relationship with one. As everyone else is enjoying time with her families, a mother who has a lot of sorrow over her relationship can feel utter depression over it. How to Deal with Mother’s Day Depression... 

For years I’ve been hoping to find a natural way to cure acne from the root. While some things help (zinc for instance), I’m starting to think there may be no silver bullet. Instead, I wonder if a cocktail approach might prove more effective. Here’s my gut read on what a natural cocktail, if indeed there were one, might consist of: Sun: Yes, this might be controversial, but I think …  Read More →

If you’re feel especially stressed lately, lack of sleep may be the cause. When you feel overwhelmed, it’s because your body has been at an altered state of stress and then when you’re confronted with more you become overloaded. When you sleep at night, your body repairs itself. It brings stress levels down to normal IF the levels are not extremely high. If you are already at a high stress level, your body begins to bring it... 

Just when you thought dieting and exercising was going to help prevent disease, a study is showing that it can actually cause you to develop one. We can’t win here, can we? The Study on Diet and Disease According to a study reported on dailymail.co.uk, individuals who dieted by counting calories produced more of the stress hormone cortisol. This hormone is believed to relate to the development of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. The... 

The mind-body connection is strong. Training your mind to manage extreme pain (physical and emotional) is possible. Stress management techniques can help you decrease stress, whether it’s from physical or emotional pain. In the following video, you will see child cancer patients show you how strong they really are in their fight against cancer. They are using martial arts breathing, meditation and imagery techniques to help them deal with... 

Many men are embarrassed to admit that they have erectile dysfunction . They may chock it up to stress and turn to their doctor just for a prescription of Viagra. While this may help a man’s erectile dysfunction, it may only be masking a more serious and deadly condition. Erectile Dysfunction Linked to Cardiovascular Disease Think about how you get an erection. When you’re excited, your arteries rush blood to your penis. Well, if... 

It’s April Fool’s Day! It’s time to take a minute to be healthy by laughing. Yes, that’s right. You can improve your health significantly but just cracking a chuckle. How Laughter Improves Your Health When you laugh you reduce stress hormones such as cortisol, epinephrine, and dopamine, which all increase when you are under high levels of stress. It increases hormones such as endorphins and neurotransmitters, which promote... 

When life gets difficult, it may be hard to determine whether you’re sad or have a bigger problem, depression. Feeling sad is a key component in depression but it’s not the only one. You’ll need to consider many other factors when trying to determine if you are depressed . The Symptoms of Depression If you’ve experience any of the following symptoms for more than two weeks and they have made it difficult or impossible... 

According to a review of studies in the medical journal of Neurology, eating chocolate may reduce your risk of stroke and help you survive one if you do have one. The antioxidants in chocolate are believed to help stroke especially those in dark chocolate. However, you receive some in regular chocolate too so it’s still a benefit. How Much Chocolate to Eat Eating too much chocolate can…  Read More →

PMS is a true medical condition, and is being recognized more and more as such. Physical PMS symptoms include, but are not limited to breast tenderness and heightened skin sensitivity, while mental and emotional PMS symptoms may manifest themselves in increased irritability, depression, and a desire to be left alone (in other words, feeling antisocial). PMS symptoms vary among women. Some suffer only minor ones, while others have severe PMS.... 

The importance of cardiovascular health for women originally did not receive as much attention as did cardiovascular health for men; however awareness is growing. This is evidenced in the increase in public service announcements and other advertisement campaigns geared toward women. Part of the reason why cardiovascular health for women may have been given less attention in the past was because men had generally been more prone to heart attack... 

Your happiness can affect your risk for heart disease according to a new study lead by Dr. Karina Davidson. People, who were optimistic or generally happy, were less likely to suffer from heart disease . While this is just a preliminary study, it can have great implications for people at risk for heart problems. Increasing Happiness and Reducing Stress for Heart Health With happiness, comes a reduction in stress. Some people are better able...