Set off sparks just in time for Valentine’s Day. Here are some natural ways to rev up the romance!

Good Clean Love
Good Clean Love products provide healthy and organic alternatives to the petrochemical and paraben laden intimacy products that dominate the sexual health market. Their mission is to increase both the quantity and quality of loving relationships on the planet by providing natural and organic products free of parabens and petrochemiclas. www.goodcleanlove.com

Love Crystals and Stones
Crystals and stones have been used for centuries to inspire love and passion. In fact, in the Tibetan culture crystals are considered to be sacred healing objects and ancient Egyptians utilized stones to bring power and clarity. So do crystals and stones really work? One interesting explanation is to look at crystals and their piezoelectric effect. Simply put, crystals help to harness and emit energy, which may explain their power. This is most witnessed in the quartz watch movement that uses crystal interaction.

Stones and crystals that are known to be specifically good for love and romance include rose quartz, amethyst, cornelian and chrysocolla. You can wear them, place them over an important picture or document, or even put them under your pillow at night. Please note: it is important to clean stones and crystals before use by emerging in salt overnight. This removes any stored up energy so that your crystal or stone is ready for your specific use.

Libido Boosting Foods
There are certain everyday foods that you can eat to help rev up the passion. Spicy foods like chilies are known to spice up your love life because they contain capsaicin, which revs up the blood flow and endorphins to promote arousal. Ginger Root is another choice because of its positive effect on hormones, which can help increase stamina and desire. A somewhat surprising choice is celery, which contains androsterone, the hormone that gives men a subtle smell that turns women on.

The average American eats almost four times the amount of sugar intake suggested by the WHO. There are many potential health risks from eating too much sugar. Foods that you wouldn’t even think have sugar in them do, such as ketchup, barbeque sauce, and that box of Valentine’s Day chocolates. (Just seeing if you are paying attention!)

According to an article written in The Business Insider, here are some scary potential effects of eating too much sugar:

1. Cavities
2. Insatiable hunger
3. Weight gain
4. Insulin resistance
5. Diabetes
6. Obesity
7. Liver failure
8. Pancreatic cancer
9. Kidney disease
10. High blood pressure
11. Heart disease
12. Addiction
13. Cognitive decline
14. Nutritional deficiencies
15. Gout

Yikes!
Here’s a tip. Eat natural, organic foods. Whole foods, like fruits may contain natural sugars but they contain other important nutrients that help fuel your body too, like vitamins, minerals, fiber and other natural possibly positive healthy ingredients that scientists have yet to discover. Yet, we know for a fact that too much added sugar is not beneficial to health.

I use a teaspoon of organic cane sugar in my coffee every morning. So when planning the rest of my day, I try to not indulge in foods with added sugar since I’ve already had my treat for the day.

Treat yourself in moderation. Fruit and other sources of natural sugar help sustain energy, while too much can leave us exhausted and prone to disease.

So just how do you cook with coconut oil?

The better question might be, how do you cook without it?

Not only can coconut oil be swapped out for almost any other cooking oil, but because it has the highest smoking temperature, it’s perfect for pan frying fish, poultry, vegetables and anything else that should be cooked as quickly as possible.

And celebrity chefs – as well as just plain celebrities — have also discovered its amazing benefits.

There’s Vincent Vanhecke, executive chef at the Valley Club of Montecito in Santa Barbara, Calif., who’s constantly singing the praises of coconut oil. In his write-up “A Chef Tells All: 5 Ways to Use Coconut Oil (In and Out of the Kitchen!),” he highlights the sauté aspect of the oil. “Coconut oil handles heat well and does not go rancid at high temperatures making it ideal for sautéing fish, meats, vegetables and eggs. The taste is great with fish especially with a squeeze of lemon before serving.”

Celebrity chef Giada de Laurentiis is another fan. Her favorite way of using coconut oil is to melt maple syrup and coconut oil together for about a minute and pour over fruits or use in dressings.

Coconut oil is also big with celebrities like Angelina Jolie. “Grazia” magazine writes, “Angelina has been known to start her day with little more than a spoonful of coconut oil and a handful of cereal.”

Possibly the most active celebrity proponent of coconut oil is Jennifer Aniston. Per thehealthyhomeeconomist.com, Jennifer has been “a devotee of the Coconut Diet for a period of time and was even spotted with a shopping cart full of coconut oil. The Coconut Diet is low carb and includes plenty of coconut in all its forms to speed metabolism and weight loss.”

But you don’t have to be famous, or even a famous chef, to find plenty of ways to use coconut oil every single day.

Some perfect ways that pop out include popping popcorn. Tip: Since coconut oil takes a higher heat to smoke, always toss a few kernels in to see when things are hot enough to pop. Then when the popcorn is done popping, pour on some more coconut oil as a buttery topping. It’s especially good when the oil is infused with sea salt – or any herbal popcorn toppers

There are also many uses for cool/hardened coconut oil, which readily serves as a butter substitute. It can be easily spread on toast or atop mashed or baked potatoes. It also flows nicely atop pancakes.

Hardened coconut oil also spices up nicely. Add herbs and seasonings to it as it begins to solidify, and then refrigerate. Afterwards, spread on sandwiches or drop into a heated skillet for an oil and seasoning in one.

One of the most healthful usages for coconut oil is in salad dressings. Here’s a simple recipe found at freecoconutrecipes.com:

•  1/4 cup virgin coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon raw honey
• 1/4 teaspoon Himalayan salt

Place coconut oil into a small metal bowl and add vinegar. Whisk briskly; mixture will be thick. Add honey and salt and whisk until well combined.

To thin mixture, place into a saucepan of simmering water and continue stirring. The dressing will quickly liquefy and when it becomes slightly warmer than room temperature it can be tossed easily with chilled greens.

And my favorite recipe that uses coconut oil is my very own mock mousse pudding with a “secret” ingredient. Check it out here.

Oh, and one other thing: forget all that stuff you might have once heard that coconut oil is bad for your heart. That was based on faulty studies done with partially hydrogenated oil, which contained trans fats. In fact, there’s nothing quite as heart-healthy as pure, unrefined extra virgin coconut oil, as the remarkably low level of heart disease among South Sea islanders will readily attest.

Read more about coconut oil here and here, and for Aisleagh’s great recipe to make a coconut stovetop fried chicken sandwich, check out her post here.

Do you remember what I told you about Metabolic Syndrome and why you don’t want it?  It is bad news and affects one of every three U.S. adults.  If you don’t remember the details, refresh your memory!

We spoke about the American Heart Association’s recommendation of the DASH Diet as a smart way to help with Metabolic Syndrome.

Today, we’ll talk about the Mediterranean Diet (MedDiet) and its effect on  Metabolic Syndrome.  First, what is the MedDiet?  It is a way of eating that is common in the part of the world that borders the Mediterranean Sea.  The MedDiet has nothing to do with calorie restriction, it has to do with food choices.  The MedDiet Food Pyramid has 4 basic food groups:
# 1  –  Every meal:  fruits, vegetables, grains (mostly whole), olive oil, beans, nuts, legumes, seeds, herbs and spices –
#2   –  Eaten often, at least two times per week: fish and seafood  –
#3   –  Eaten in moderate portions daily or less often but at least weekly: poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt  –
#4   –  Eaten on occasion: meats and sweets.

In a study published late last year,  researchers looked at the effect of eating a “Mediterranean Diet” on Metabolic Syndrome.  Here are some of the study details:
●  included 5,800 participants followed for about 5 years
●   participants were divided into 3 different groups  –  group 1 ate a MedDiet and were also asked to add extra olive oil to their diet daily;  group 2 ate a MedDiet and were also asked to add extra nuts to their daily diet;  group 3 ate a low-fat diet
●   participants could eat as much as they desired
●   there were no weight loss goals or physical activity goals
The Results?
●   Of the participants who started the study without Metabolic Syndrome, 50% developed Metabolic Syndrome during the study and ALL of the ones who developed it were from the Low-Fat Diet group.
●   Eating the MedDiet with added olive oil or nuts showed improvement in body weight, central obesity and blood sugar control.
●   In the participants who started the study with Metabolic Syndrome, there was a 28% reversal in that condition in the MedDiet groups only.

OK, in this study, the low-fat diet didn’t help prevent or reverse Metabolic Syndrome!

Both the Mediterranean Diet talked about here and the DASH diet talked about in my other blog do help Metabolic Syndrome!  What is really interesting is that the DASH diet (which was created by the U.S. National Institutes of Health) is, basically, the MedDiet!!  The MedDiet may contain more olive oil but that’s about it!

Here is my take-home message.   The Mediterranean Diet is good for Metabolic Syndrome.   The DASH Diet is good for Metabolic Syndrome.  Metabolic Syndrome is not good for you.  It is not difficult to make simple changes in how you eat and how you feed your family.  Start slow if you want, just start!  Say NO to Metabolic Syndrome and YES to a healthier life.  Hey, maybe we can start with a Mediterranean Cruise!

Okay, let’s talk a little basic biology.

As anyone who has ever taken an antibiotic—or administered an antibiotic to a sick child—can attest, not all of that medicine stays inside our bodies. Some of it passes through.

That’s why I was hardly surprised to see a report last month “finding” that the air surrounding feedlots in the High Plains was filled with dust containing antibiotics and feedlot-derived bacteria.

Antibiotic resistance is becoming a significant topic among a growing segment of the scientific community, and among the general public. And, there is growing agreement that the widespread use of antibiotics to promote rapid growth in farm animals is a large factor in that antibiotic resistance.

The USDA and the Food and Drug Administration years ago sought to protect the public from exposure to antibiotics in meat by mandating a period of time prior to slaughter when the animals could not be administered antibiotics.

But that doesn’t do anything to solve the problem because…well…a lot of those antibiotics simply pass through the animals. And end up in feedlot dust. And the soil. And the water.

The best way to keep antibiotics as a reliable tool for human health is to purchase meat, dairy and poultry products that were never ever administered antibiotics.