Natural Awakenings Metro Phoenix & Northern Arizona, February 2022 Edition

EE R HEALTHY LIVING F

HEALTHY

PLANET

MINDING THE HEART

WHY THE HEART-BRAIN CONNECTION MATTERS

TIPS FOR FOSTERING PETS Sprinkling Love Around

The Transformational and Healing Power of Sex February 2022 | Metro Phoenix & Northern Arizona Edition | NaturalAZ.com

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Metro Phoenix & Northern Arizona Edition

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Nature’s Nature’s Virus Killer

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Natural Awakenings is a family of 50+ healthy living magazines celebrating 27 years of providing the communities we serve with the tools and resources we all need to lead healthier lives on a healthy planet.

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Contents 14 THE HEART-MIND

20

CONNECTION

How Thoughts and Emotions Affect Our Heart Health

17 LIVING IN THE

FREQUENCY OF LOVE

18 PARENTS AS ROLE MODELS

How to Help Kids Discover Positive Behaviors

20 FOSTERING LOVE

22

Tips for First-Time Pet Foster Parents

22 POWER UP

YOUR WORKOUTS

A Guide to Protein Powders and Shakes

24 TRULY MAKING LOVE Sex and Intimacy as a Healing Force

26 FERMENTING FOR FOODIES

Preserving Food and Traditions

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29 BILBERRY ADVERTISING & SUBMISSIONS HOW TO ADVERTISE To advertise with Natural Awakenings or request a media kit, please email PhoenixAds@NaturalAZ.com.

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Blueberry’s Cousin

30 SECONDHAND FASHION Online Used Clothing Stores Good for the Wallet and Planet

32 DAVID PERLMUTTER on the Role of Uric Acid in Metabolic Health

DEPARTMENTS 10 news briefs 11 health briefs 12 global briefs 13 eco tip 17 inspiration 18 healthy kids 20 natural pet 22 fit body

24 26 30 32 34 35 37 38

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HEALTHY LIVING HEALTHY PLANET

letter from publisher

Stress Effects

O

PHOENIX & NORTHERN ARIZONA EDITION

in my neck, resulting in nerve pain in my arm. It was especially bad when standing

or sitting; hence, laying down was pretty much the

PUBLISHER Tracy Patterson, BSc, MES

only option where I could obtain at least a little relief.

I likened this arm pain to a bad toothache I once

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had, which in a way made sense since they were both about nerves.

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ver the holidays, I suffered from a problem

At this time of year, finding a chiropractor was next to impossible, but eventually I was able to start chiropractic treatments, and acupuncture, and it slowly began to turn around … and I mean slowly!

I can say that I will be much more careful when it comes to slinging my handicapped dog around, which is how I think this problem came to be—holding my arm out in awkward

CONTACT US Natural Awakenings – Phoenix 17470 N Pacesetter Way Scottsdale, AZ 85255 Tracy@NaturalAZ.com NaturalAZ.com

positions beside me or in front of me, trying to jockey Katie through the door or into her stroller. Almost two years of this took its toll, and wow what a sharp reminder it was that we should always pay attention to how we are moving, lifting, and generally using our bodies, especially as we get older.

While reading the feature article on page 14, I was reminded of something I experienced during this painful period. I had a few instances where I was doing not too badly in the

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pain department, and then I became stressed about something. I could actually feel how stress impacts the body—the level of pain went from about a two to a nine almost immediately. And I noticed this on three separate occasions, so I knew it wasn’t just coincidence.

The science shows that stress affects us, but this was the first time I ever experienced the two paired so closely.

My thinking was in two parts: One is that I become stressed way too easily, and two is that I need some techniques to calm down or ward stress off before it starts. I periodically do some of the preventive steps suggested in the article, but these experiences made me realize that it’s definitely worth making sure that these proactive measures are daily habits.

© 2022 by Natural Awakenings. All rights reserved.

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Metro Phoenix & Northern Arizona Edition

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February 2022

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news briefs

Special Valentine’s Offer from NaturalAwakeningsSingles.com

When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace. ~Dalai Lama

T

acheria Interfaith Spirituality Center is a community where people can revive their heart, mind, body and spirit. “Tacheria,” a Yaqui word meaning inner spirit or inner journey, reflects both the native Southwest roots and the purpose of the center: to offer spiritual direction; to help people grow in spiritual maturity; to train spiritual directors/companions; and to provide an interfaith, inter-spiritual home through classes, workshops and retreats.

Tacheria serves as a home where people with diverse beliefs or experiences of the Sacred gather and share wisdom—where differences are honored. Believing love and peace to be gifts living in all of us, Tacheria Interfaith Spirituality Center is dedicated to promoting spiritual growth and companionship in groups and individually, so we may each serve as examples of wisdom in the world.

The schools—Tacheria Interfaith School of Spiritual Direction (Tucson) and Wisdom’s Way Interfaith School (Phoenix)—are open to all who are curious wisdom seekers. They are dedicated to promoting spiritual growth for those interested in serving as a spiritual companion/director, as well as for those seeking to go deeper in their own spiritual journey. Learn more and apply for the two-year programs at Tacheria.org/ schools.

Connect at TacheriaCenter@gmail.com and Tacheria.org. See ad, page 29.

Check website for service times.

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Advertorial

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For more information, visit NaturalAwakeningsSingles.com. See ad, inside back cover.

Tacheria Interfaith Spirituality Center

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s we approach two full years of dealing with the pandemic, many have taken the opportunity to do some serious soul-searching, and many singles have come to the realization that they desire a deeply connected, conscious and loving relationship. To help in their quests, especially during special days this month that usually provide many face-to-face opportunities for potential romance that the health crisis has inhibited, NaturalAwakeningsSingles.com is having a Valentine’s Sale from February 10 through 15 with all subscriptions being offered at 25 percent off of regular prices during this period.

The platform, a leading holistic, conscious dating site and a venue for eco-conscious and spiritual singles to meet each other, is not a superficial, “swipedy-swipe” app, but a truly “help singles meet their match” dating site. Each member exerts control over which profiles they view and with whom they choose to initiate contact. The detailed profiles allow members to read and learn about potential matches, which makes meeting someone compatible more probable. Further, its new video dating feature has been well received as it allows members to get to know each other before meeting in person.

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A

health briefs

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Try Probiotics to Lower Pregnancy Nausea and Soothe Fussy Babies Two new studies suggest that the right probiotics can offer relief for the 85 percent of pregnant women with nausea and for the 25 percent of fussy newborns with colic. In the journal Nutrients, University of California, Davis researchers reported on a study in which 32 pregnant women that had nausea, vomiting and constipation took a probiotic capsule twice a day. The over-the-counter probiotics formula contained 10 billion live cultures, mainly Lactobacillus. After 12 days, the number of hours participants felt nauseated was reduced by 16 percent, and they vomited one-third fewer times.

Constipation was also reduced. Quality of life markers such as fatigue, poor appetite and difficulty maintaining normal social activities also improved. Examining biomarkers in fecal samples, the researchers found the probiotics increased vitamin E and a bile salt enzyme that helps prevent vomiting and nausea.

In a second study published in Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics, University of Naples researchers explored whether a particular probiotic strain (Bifidobacterium animalis subspecies lactis BB-12) could help soothe babies with colic, a common gastrointestinal disorder in the first three months of life that studies have linked to maternal postpartum depression, parental guilt and frustration, drug use and long-term behavioral and sleep problems. They found that the probiotic reduced the duration of daily crying by 50 to 80 percent in the 40 infants that received it once daily for 28 days, compared to a 32 percent reduction among 40 babies receiving a placebo. The probiotic also had beneficial effects on sleep duration and on stool frequency and consistency. It increased gut production of butyrate, which positively regulates intestinal transit time, pain perception, the gutbrain axis and inflammation.

Eat Fewer Sweets to Save the Planet Sugary foods and drinks don’t just expand our waistline and hurt our health, they also harm the environment, according to new research from the University of South Australia.

Analyzing 20 studies on the environmental impacts of food consumption, researchers found that nutrient-poor foods like sugar-sweetened drinks, alcohol, baked sweets and processed meats account for 27 to 33 percent of food-related greenhouse gas emissions in Australia. Meat, grains and dairy contribute the most emissions, while fruit and vegetables are two of the lowest contributors. In New Zealand, the highest greenhouse gas emitters are meat, seafood and eggs at 35 percent, followed by highly processed foods such as pastries and ice cream at 34 percent. “Discretionary foods have a higher cropland, water scarcity and ecological footprint,” says review author Sarah Forbes. “By 2050, the world’s population is projected to reach 10 billion people. There is no way we can feed that amount of people unless we change the way we eat and produce food.”

Improve Sleep and Lower Anxiety with Black Cumin Oil Black cumin seeds that come from the flowering fennel plant (Nigella sativa) flavor cuisines from the Middle East to the Far East and have been used for centuries to treat chronic and infectious diseases. In a new study in the Journal of Herbal Medicine, Indian researchers report that 15 volunteers with insomnia that took 200 milligrams of black cumin oil after dinner for 28 days experienced significantly better sleep. They fell asleep sooner, slept longer and recorded increases of 82 percent in non-rapid eye movement sleep and 29 percent in rapid eye movement sleep. Stress and anxiety levels were also dramatically reduced.

February 2022

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Almond Joy

global briefs

Confined Kitties

Unfettered Felines Pose Toxic Hazard to Wildlife

A study by the University of British Columbia published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B discovered that free-roaming cats are likely infecting other animals with Toxoplasma gondii, the parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis, a disease linked to nervous system disorders, respiratory and heart disease, and other chronic illnesses that can be passed to both humans and wildlife. Conservationists have long emphasized the interconnectedness of human and wildlife health. Forestry adjunct professor Amy Wilson says, “It is important to understand the risk factors for this infection, because toxoplasmosis can have severe impacts on susceptible individuals, but even in healthy individuals, hosts are infected for life.”

Researchers analyzed more than 45,000 cases of toxoplasmosis in wild animals using data gathered from 202 studies that included 238 different species in 981 locations around the world. Only wild and domestic cats (felids) can spread the infectious form of toxoplasma into the environment through eggs, called oocysts, in their feces. “By simply limiting free roaming of cats, we can reduce the impact of toxoplasma on wildlife,” reports Wilson. “Domestic cats outnumber wild felids by several orders of magnitude, so when you consider their population size and that they can shed millions of longlived oocysts intermittently throughout their life, the potential for environmental contamination is considerable.”

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A study from the University of East Anglia School of Biological Sciences (UK) published in the journal Nature Communications suggests that our natural environment is becoming quieter and less varied due to changes in the makeup of bird populations. Researchers used annual bird monitoring data collected as part of the Pan-European Common Bird Monitoring Scheme and North American Breeding Bird Survey, plus recordings of birds in the wild, to reconstruct the soundscapes of more than 200,000 sites over the last 25 years.

Lead author Simon Butler states, “We’re living through a global environmental crisis with ongoing and widespread declines in biodiversity. This means that the quality of our interactions with nature is likely to be declining, reducing its potential benefits, but this has not previously been examined.” Other groups that contribute to natural soundscapes such as insects and amphibians are also declining, while road traffic and other sources of manmade noise are increasing. Butler explains, “As we collectively become less aware of our natural surroundings, we also start to notice or care less about their deterioration. We hope this study can help heighten awareness of these losses and encourage support for conservation through actions to protect and restore high-quality, natural soundscapes.”

To grow one orange requires 14 gallons of water, a cup of coffee 35 gallons, one potato 100 gallons, a glass of dairy milk 48 gallons and a half-cup of tofu 61 gallons. One almond (technically a seed, not a tree nut) needs about 3.2 gallons to reach maturity; almost 1,300 gallons are needed to grow a pound. The source of almond milk, although positioned as an eco-friendly alternative to cow’s milk, is usually treated with methoxyfenozide, which threatens honeybee health. With a global market of more than $5 billion, the beverage’s footprint is increasingly detrimental to the drought-plagued state of California. Walnuts, hazelnuts and pistachios consume as much water or more, but almonds are in higher demand. The “Eureka” state supplies 80 percent of the world’s almond supply, covering more than 1.5 million acres in the Central Valley. Water from ancient aquifers there is being pumped out for irrigation faster than it can be recharged.

According to the California Department of Pesticide Regulation, almond orchards were treated with more pesticides than any other local crop in 2017. Harmful chemicals are sprayed year-round to combat ants, mites, leafrollers, peach twig borers and weeds. Also, fertilizer pollution can spike drinking water with hazardous nitrates. Instead, consumers can purchase milk that is packaged in sustainably sourced and recyclable materials and buy shelf-stable milk to conserve energy from refrigeration.

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Sounds of Nature are Fading

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Nut Milk Carries Hefty Environmental Burden

Silent Spring

eco tip

Purposeful Shopping How Fair Trade Can Change the World eric isselée/AdobeStock.com

International, increased almost 10fold between 2004 and 2016, from $939 million to $8.9 billion.

Consider these steps to achieve ethical, sustainable shopping:

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Protect the rights of produce workers. Fair trade bananas, avocados, coconut products and cashews often come from small growers in Africa, Latin America and Asia, where cooperatives ensure them a living wage and better working conditions. These products may cost marginally more, but are readily available at many supermarkets.

Fair trade is an alternative international business model that puts people and the planet first. It is designed to help growers and producers in developing countries achieve sustainable, fair relationships with exporters and consumers in wealthier parts of the globe. It focuses particularly on commodities like coffee, tea, textiles and seafood, and works to ensure sustainable prices, better working conditions and higher environmental standards.

According to the Fair World Project, “The fair trade movement shares a vision of a world in which justice and sustainable development are at the heart of trade structures and practices both at home and abroad, so that everyone through their work can maintain a decent and dignified livelihood.”

At least five fair trade organizations certify compliance. While the criteria of each varies, certification typically requires companies to allow a third party to audit their business practices and monitor production to ensure standards are met.

Fair trade goods can cost slightly or significantly more than conventionally traded purchases, which may explain why ethical and fair trade products make up only 1 percent of the total market. But the trend is growing: In 2018, sales of fair trade produce in the U.S. rose by 30 percent, with 60 products available. International sales of a major German-based certifier, Fairtrade

Protect sustainable tea and coffee farming. On fair trade tea and coffee farms, agrochemicals and genetically modified organisms are strictly prohibited, sustainable farming methods are encouraged and stringent programs for water conservation and proper waste disposal provide environmental stewardship.

Protect the oceans with fair trade cotton. Buying clothing made with fair trade cotton means less synthetic apparel, so washing won’t shed microplastics that make their way into the ocean, fish and then our dinner plates.

Help build strong communities with fair trade cosmetics. When the shea butter, cocoa butter, sugar and coconut oil used in many skin-care products comes from fair trade producers, a fair price is paid, decent working conditions without child labor are assured and a portion of the money is returned to infrastructure or community projects. Makers of fair trade cosmetics often use vegan ingredients and animal-free testing, as well.

February 2022

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The Heart-Mind Connection How Thoughts and Emotions Affect Our Heart Health

by Ronica O’Hara

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Metro Phoenix & Northern Arizona Edition

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“D

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oes your wife show you her love?” In a study of 10,000 married men, this question turned out to be revelatory. Among men with high levels of anxiety, a whopping 93 percent that answered “No” developed angina-related chest pains within five years—nearly twice the rate of those answering “Yes.” This 1976 Israeli study was one of the first to clearly document how emotions affect the physical heart. Today, the research is so vast and compelling that last year, the American Heart Association issued a statement urging that psychological factors be taken into account in cardiovascular care—which may result in doctors asking patients about depression and anxiety as well as testing for blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

“What’s on your mind really does affect your heart,” says leading researcher and cardiologist Michael Miller, M.D., author of Heal Your Heart and director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical System. “Our hearts require emotional health in order to maintain cardiovascular health.”

Two emerging fields are probing the mind-heart connection: neurocardiology, which studies their neurological interplay; and behavioral cardiology, which examines how psychological and social factors lead to heart disease. Increasingly, researchers are documenting that the brain and the heart form an intricate feedback loop that works neurologically, biochemically and electromagnetically to optimize well-being.

What hurts one—be it artery-clogging foods or angry outbursts—can hurt the other. What heals one—be it exercising or a good belly laugh—can heal the other.

There’s good news in that, says Miller: “You can heal your heart by actively engaging in positive emotions each and every day.”

Unveiling the Heart’s Role

In Western medicine, the heart has been downplayed historically as a pump mechanistically taking orders from a bossy brain, but recently, the heart’s role is being reexamined: With 40,000 neurons, it sends more signals to the brain than it receives.

As integrative cardiologist Mimi Guarneri, author of The Heart Speaks, puts it, “The heart is a multilayered, complex organ, possessing intelligence, memory and decisionmaking abilities independent from the mind.”

The electromagnetic field it generates is about 100 times stronger than the brain’s magnetic range and can be detected up to three feet away from the body, report researchers at the pioneering Heart-

Math Institute, in Boulder Creek, California. They found that one person’s brain waves can synchronize to another person’s heart and two hearts can synchronize to each other, which may help explain why people are drawn to or repelled by each other. When the heart’s rhythm pattern becomes erratic and disordered during stress and negative emotions, they report, the neural signals traveling to the brain’s emotional centers also get disrupted, hindering clear thinking and reasoning—which may help explain why we make dubious decisions under stress.

The High Toll of Tough Emotions Although scientists debate whether emotions start in the brain, heart or from physical sensations elsewhere in the body, it’s clear through magnetic imaging technology that it’s the brain’s task to process and regulate emotions via the flow of neurotransmitters through the amygdala, hypothalamus, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and other brain regions. Emotions like anger, fear, grief and anxiety set off a cascade of reactions involving the hormone cortisol and proteins called cytokines, creating an inflammatory response that, if it becomes chronic, can promote the accumulation of plaque in the arteries that can become unstable and rupture, triggering blood clots that lead to strokes and heart attacks.

Surveying 25,000 participants in 52 countries, the landmark INTERHEART Study in 2004 concluded that about 30 percent of heart attacks and strokes are due to psychological factors, and ongoing research supports this finding.

DEPRESSION. Adults that are depressed are twice as likely to develop heart disease. In one study, moderate to severe depression quadrupled the death rate in heart failure patients.

ANXIETY. Researchers have linked chronic anxiety with a 48 percent increased risk of cardiac-related death over 11 years. It has also been shown to be a risk factor for angina, heart attacks and ventricular arrhythmia.

SHOCK. A sudden emotional or physical shock, like a death in the family or an earthquake, can trigger stress cardiomyopathy, known as broken heart syndrome, which resembles a heart attack.

ANGER. An episode of intense fury—described as “body tense, clenching fists or teeth, ready to burst”—increases by 8.5 times the risk of a heart attack within the next two hours.

LONELINESS. Being socially isolated and lonely is linked to a higher risk for cardiovascular death than hypertension and obesity—alarming information since more than 60 percent of Americans report feeling lonely, left out, poorly understood and lacking companionship, according to a 2020 survey.

Boosting Both Brain and Heart “There’s no damage caused by negative emotions that positive emotions can’t heal,” says Miller. A large body of research has shown that cardiovascular disease risk can be reduced by up to half with optimism, a sense of humor, forgiveness, social support, religious faith, vitality, gratitude, altruistic behavior, emotional flexibility February 2022

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and coping flexibility. People that are optimistic are less likely to be rehospitalized or die from heart disease, Finnish researchers report.

“For optimal health, maximize the health of both brain and heart. For example, if you eat well and exercise, but are still stressed out, your heart will suffer. Conversely, if you are not stressed out, but overeat and do not exercise, your brain will suffer,” says Miller.

Some heart-and-mind-healthy strategies include:

human isn’t nearby, even hugging a teddy bear has been shown to release oxytocin—which may explain why 40 percent of U.S. adults sleep with stuffed animals. Owning a dog, but not necessarily a cat, makes us more likely to survive a heart attack, report researchers.

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MINDFULLY LETTING GO. As studies with police officers, healthcare workers and firefighters have demonstrated, mindfulness training effectively lowers anxiety and depression, even for those in life-threatening situations. “To be present, ever acutely aware of our thoughts, emotions, feelings and how we are choosing to react is critical,” says cardiologist Cynthia Thaik, author of Your Vibrant Heart and the founder of the Holistic Heart Healing Center, in Los Angeles. “Once we are aware of our reaction, the ability to let go—of judgment, doubt, anger, resentment, fear, all our negative thoughts, emotions and feelings—is crucial to our healing process.”

DOING THE BASICS. Exercising a half-hour daily and eating a largely plant-based, Mediterranean-type diet that’s low in saturated fats has been found in numerous studies to lower the risk of both cardiovascular disease and cognitive decline. Working with health practitioners to get blood pressure, blood sugar and inflammation levels under control, perhaps using supplements or medications, is also a key preventive step.

GIVING AND GETTING HUGS. Oxytocin, the “love hormone” released from the pituitary gland during touching and hugging, lowers blood pressure and heart rate, and regenerates new heart tissue in animal studies. Proactively reaching out to family, friends, neighbors and co-workers can nurture affectionate ties, but if a

LAUGHING A LOT. Many of us have a chuckle deficit in our lives: The average 5-year-old laughs up to 300 times a day, the average adult only four. To lower the risk of heart attack and stroke, find ways to laugh long and hard—such as watching hilarious films or videos on YouTube or TikTok. Physiologically, the endorphins released by a hearty belly laugh bind to receptors that release nitric oxide, relaxing blood vessels.

BREATHWORK. To bring the mind and heart into a healthy, coherent rhythmic pattern, the HeartMath Institute suggests heartfocused breathing, which involves imagining that we are breathing in through the heart as we inhale in a smooth, comfortable manner to the count of five or six, then breathing out for five or six counts while visualizing that the breath is flowing out of the heart.

MEDITATION. People that practice meditation are significantly less likely to have a heart attack or stroke, perhaps because it has been shown to lower heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, oxygen consumption and cortisol levels. Alzheimer’s expert Dharma Singh Khalsa, author of Meditation as Medicine, advocates kirtan kriya, a 12-minute, daily meditation that includes chanting, finger movements and visualization. Research has demonstrated that it slows cognitive decline, eases depression and increases anti-aging telomerase activity at a cellular level by 43 percent in eight weeks.

YOGA OR TAI CHI. In studies, yoga has been shown to lower inflammation and metabolic syndrome markers linked to heart disease and reduce atrial fibrillation episodes. The slow, graceful movements of tai chi reportedly lower blood pressure and strengthen the hearts of people with heart failure.

MUSIC. Whether it involves listening, playing an instrument or singing, music has been shown to lower heart rate, reduce inflammation, enable longer exercise periods, ease anxiety after heart surgery and heart attacks, and help stroke victims regain the ability to speak. Choose music of whatever genre inspires joy and sing along for extra benefit, advises Miller. “If your partner is flummoxed by your enthusiasm for yodeling or your neighbor doesn’t exactly approve of your attempts at arias, kindly inform him or her it’s doctor’s orders,” he jokes in Heal Your Heart.

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Health writer Ronica O’Hara can be contacted at OHaraRonica@ gmail.com.

inspiration

Living in the Frequency of Love

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by Marlaina Donato

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ost of us refer to love as an emotion, but in essence, love is a verb, a powerful call to action. When we remember its true nature, we can answer its call with our unique signature. Some brave souls like Martin Luther King, Jr. leap into uncharted territory with authentic truths, while others sprinkle their quiet corner of the world with small gestures of kindness. Telling someone how much they mean to us, holding the door for a stranger, asking a cashier how their day is going or welcoming a new

neighbor is like handing out a piece of light. Added up at the end of the day or a lifetime, we create a mural of stars against the darkness.

The frequency of love not only inspires, but heals. The energy of giving and receiving is literally wired into our neurochemistry, flooding our bloodstream with endorphins that combat systemic inflammation, influence mood, accelerate recovery and raise the pain threshold.

We can freely stream waters of genuine kindness, love and affection, but if there is no waiting vessel for love’s outpouring, the potential of its power is diminished and incomplete. Our willingness and that of others to receive activates kindness, awakens what is dormant inside of us and quickens our capacity to thrive.

Mother Teresa once said, “We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair and hopelessness is love.” With our willingness to gift one another with our full and authentic presence, all else is possible.

Marlaina Donato is an author and visionary composer. Connect at WildflowerLady.com.

February 2022

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healthy kids

Parents as Role Models

How to Help Kids Discover Positive Behaviors

by Sandra Yeyati

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they’re angry. To teach them constructive ways to express anger—like taking deep breaths or running around the block— you’ve got to employ those tools yourself.”

Actions speak louder than words. “To teach your child good values, you have to demonstrate them through your deeds.

If you tell your child that they must always be on time for school, but you’re late for work every day, your child hears one thing, but sees another,” MacDonald explains, adding that kids are adept at sniffing out these inconsistencies.

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ike the familiar adage, “Monkey see, monkey do,” children learn habits, attitudes and values by observing and mimicking their parents. This phenomenon, known as modeling, is a double-edged sword. Sometimes parents unintentionally teach their kids by example to smoke, eat too much candy or bully people. On the other hand, with awareness, planning and strategic modifications, parents can use modeling to instill in their kids good habits, positive attitudes, healthy emotional intelligence and strong self-esteem.

“We parent what we know, very often on automatic mode,” says Debra MacDonald, a certified parenting educator at the Center for Parenting Education, in Abington, Pennsylvania. “How many times have you said, ‘I will never say that to my kids,’ and then fast-forward several years, those words are coming out of your mouth. Awareness is your first step.”

“Look at how you handle stress or express anger,” MacDonald suggests. “If you slam the table, break something and yell, that’s what you’re teaching your children to do when

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Saying, “Eat your spinach,” while regularly gobbling ice cream won’t inspire desired results. When MacDonald’s son was young, she realized she wasn’t setting the right example at the dinner table. “Slowly, over time, I began to improve our family’s lifestyle choices, and now that he’s in college, he knows how to cook healthy meals, practice portion control and clean up after himself,” she boasts.

Tackling Childhood Anxiety Through Modeling

“Research indicates that even though parents are trying to help, accommodations that rush to the rescue tend to maintain or worsen anxiety over time,” Lebowitz says. “I worked with parents of a child who had panic attacks at night and would say, ‘My heart is racing. I can’t breathe. I think I’m going to die.’ Feeling overwhelmed and scared, her parents would rush her to the hospital again and again, even after doctors assured them that she was healthy and didn’t need to come in. From the child’s perspective, when your parents rush you to the ER, that confirms that this is literally an emergency. You feel more worried and scared. When the parents were able to take a breath, give her a hug and say, ‘We know this is uncomfortable, but it’s going to pass, and you’re going to be okay,’ she began to learn that she didn’t need to be afraid of anxiety. She could handle it and didn’t need to avoid it.”

Sandra Yeyati, J.D., is a professional writer and editor. Reach her at SandraYeyati@ gmail.com.

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In his 2021 book, Breaking Free of Child Anxiety and OCD, Yale University Professor Eli Lebowitz offers a scientifically proven parental modeling program called Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE). Although the goal is to treat a child’s anxiety, parents meet with a therapist and learn tools to modify their parenting approach in two ways: being more supportive and reducing accommodations.

On the support side, SPACE parents learn to show a genuine acceptance and understanding of their child’s distress and

to communicate their confidence in the child’s ability to tolerate and cope with the anxiety. The support can be as simple as saying, “I get it. This is really hard. You’re upset, but I know you can handle this.”

“Supportive statements aren’t always intuitive for parents,” says Lebowitz, director of the program for anxiety disorders at the Yale Child Study Center. “Sometimes they don’t believe that their child is feeling anxiety. They might think that the child is being manipulative or attention-seeking.

Or, when parents do believe that their child is anxious, they want to protect, soothe and reassure them, but by doing these things, parents aren’t communicating their belief that the child can handle it, which is critical to helping them overcome the anxiety.”

The second change that SPACE parents learn to make is to gradually and systematically reduce all the accommodations they have been making to help their child not feel anxious, such as sleeping beside a child that is afraid of being alone or not inviting company to the house to avoid upsetting a socially anxious kid.

February 2022

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natural pet

Fostering Love Tips for First-Time Pet Foster Parents

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by Karen Shaw Becker

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check out the possibilities. In addition to Googling local animal shelters and rescue operations, online groups like PetFinder.com and PoorPawsRescue.com provide links to fostering options locally and nationwide. Visit local shelters to observe both how they treat their animals and how they interact with the fostering volunteers. Staff members can help with finding compatible pets and offer support when a foster situation doesn’t work for whatever reason. Also find out if the organization is involved every step of the way, including providing onsite veterinary care, or whether it relies

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heavily on the dedication and resources of foster parents. think about short-term fostering. To give it a try, volunteer for a short-term commitment—a few days or weeks. Vacation time is one big reason rescue organizations look for people willing to provide short-term fostering because they need volunteers to fill in while their “regulars” are away. be fair to other pets at home.

Don’t get caught up in the needs of a new kitten or puppy so much that the needs of other pets go unnoticed. Forever pets may even help out with newcomers. “In my home, puppies work well, as my dogs

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or people that love cats and dogs but can’t adopt one—or one more—a heartwarming solution is to foster pets without homes that need a place to temporarily lay their heads and be loved until a forever home comes along. Fosters are needed when a shelter is filled to capacity or has too many large or old dogs, or orphaned puppies and kitties, for example, or when a rescue operation needs to quickly place shelter dogs that would otherwise be euthanized. As important and rewarding as the task of fostering is, it also comes with responsibilities and pitfalls worth considering in advance.

mother them and show them the ropes on how to be a good dog,” says Stasia Thompson, of Doylestown, Pennsylvania, a volunteer with Almost Home Dog Rescue and Poor Paws Rescue. don’t stress about cost. Food, litter, toys and even veterinary care is often offered to foster pet parents. In other cases, rescue centers may be struggling for support or getting slammed with natural disasters that create an influx of homeless pets, and foster parents may be asked to help with such items as crates and carriers, food and water bowls, collars, leashes and treats.

“Homeowners who purchase items for their fosters can write them off as tax-deductible donations to the rescue organization, which is a great way to put your donation dollars to work,” says Karen Winkler, a volunteer with the Bucks County SPCA and the Animal Care & Control Team of Philadelphia.

it’s even fine to adopt a foster. It does happen sometimes; foster parents discover that the dog or cat that came into their home supposedly for a while happened to fit in perfectly, and no one can imagine living without it. While that’s been called a “foster failure”, it’s anything but. Any time an animal with no home finds one filled with love and caring, even if it’s their so-called temporary foster placement, it’s a success. Pet parents know when the animal they love is forever.

Veterinarian Karen Shaw Becker has spent her career empowering animal guardians to make knowledgeable decisions to extend the life and well-being of their animals. For more information, visit DrKarenBecker.com.

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don’t stress about placement. Possibly the most-asked question about fostering a puppy or kitty is, “What if they never find a home for her?” Never fear; shelters and rescue groups are constantly putting out feelers. Foster parents can get in on the action by posting sweet, winsome or funny photos of the animal on social media and extolling its virtues to others when out in public with it. Thompson found new owners for her foster dogs by walking them around town wearing bright yellow “Adopt Me” vests.

it’s okay to fall in love with a foster pet. Many people hesitate to foster pets because they’re afraid they’ll fall in love with a small ball of fur or a big pair of liquid eyes just begging to be adored. But that’s one of the risks of loving a creature with an open heart. “There is an amazing rush and deep sense of relief when you hear from the person who adopted your foster and you know the people found their true love in your foster,” says Winkler. “They know I helped save them. You can see it in their eyes.”

February 2022

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fit body

POWER UP YOUR WORKOUTS A GUIDE TO PROTEIN POWDERS AND SHAKES

by Maya Whitman

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rotein, from the Greek proteios, means “primary”, which sums up its vital role in the human body. Its structure of amino acids enables myriad bodily functions, from repairing and building tissues to creating biochemical reactions that form enzymes, hormones and neurotransmitters, and maintaining pH and fluid balances. When we fortify our diet with digestible, nutritionally dense, non-meat protein, we also amp up our fitness efforts, enhance immunity and offset premature aging. Whole-food and plant-based proteins like pea, quinoa and chia seeds are also strong allies against Type 2 diabetes, research shows.

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The Protein Promise

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Whipping up a protein drink before or after a workout can foster muscle and joint integrity, and it can nourish soft tissue after injury. “Protein is vital for muscle synthesis. An individual who exercises at a higher intensity should focus on getting more protein in their diet to aid in better recovery,” says Hannah Davis, a personal trainer and owner of Body By Hannah, in Cleveland, Tennessee. “Protein is also important in overall nutrition to better balance hormones that control hunger, blood sugar and mood.”

Dominic Kennedy, a Los Angeles trainer and the creator of The Dominic Effect health and fitness app, concurs.

“Protein is considered a ‘macronutrient’, which means we typically need a large amount to stay healthy. Certain protein powders can be very healthy for you and help to build and repair tissue.”

The average daily protein requirement for adults is 50 to 70 grams, but can be higher during times of stress, injury, illness, pregnancy or breastfeeding.

Vegan fitness and nutrition coach Karina Inkster, in Powell River, British Columbia, gives a nod to protein shakes for their convenience, but advises, “Just make sure you’re not relying just on protein powder to hit your daily protein.” She highlights the importance of diet diversity with other protein sources like tofu, tempeh, legumes, nutritional yeast, nuts and seeds.

Choosing Nutrition, Nixing Added Sugar

Thirty years ago, heavily sweetened, incomplete protein powders seemed to be the only game in town. “Nowadays, we have countless plant-based options for protein powders—pea, rice, soy, hemp, pumpkin seed, quinoa … the list goes on,” says Inkster. “I like to stick to the basics, as I have a lot of serious food allergies. I go with brown rice and/or pea protein. Single ingredients, no flavors and no sweeteners.”

For Kennedy, shakes and powders with sugar and dairy can contribute to bloating and store fat in the body, “which we need to work harder to burn off. I cannot stress the difference this has made in my body once I gave it up years ago. Not only do I look better physically, but most importantly, I feel better on the inside.

Sugar is highly addictive and can also affect your mood.”

Davis prefers sourcing her protein requirements from whole foods, but recommends whey-based powders when her clients want a reliable power shake and can tolerate it well.

Protein-to-carbohydrate ratio is paramount, especially for those with weight-loss goals or blood sugar instability. Reading labels is important, especially when food intolerances are an issue. Kennedy recommends experimenting with various protein sources. “If you are using whey protein and having trouble digesting it, it may just be a lactose intolerance. Trying one that is plant-based could be a game-changer.”

Among Inkster’s clients, brown rice and pea protein powders score high for digestibility and assimilation.

Fortifying Additions

From antioxidant-rich pomegranate powder to blood-sugarsupportive monk fruit and adrenal- and thyroid-nourishing maca, nutritional extras abound. However, Inkster notes that supplemental products marketed as superfoods, including collagen, do not necessarily pack a powerful punch to an already nutrient-dense diet. “When we ingest collagen or a vegan alternative, this protein gets broken down into amino acids in the exact same way as any other protein we eat.”

Kennedy points to super-green and pomegranate powders as ways to help the body combat chronic disease. “It’s a great way to get more greens and vegetables and in turn, promote a healthy immune system. We could all use more of that.”

Davis reminds us that one person’s nutritional ally can be another’s bane. “Supplementation is very personal. I always encourage focusing on a whole foods diet that includes a lot of variety to create a micronutrient balance in the body and then experiment with some supplements to see how they may help.”

Guide to Protein Powders Protein supplementation is an $18 billion global industry, so sifting through options for our own lifestyle and constitution can be daunting. These descriptions of protein powder sources may help: CHIA SEED : vegan and naturally gluten-free; heart-healthy, supports bone health and enhances insulin sensitivity; supports healthy weight loss due to fiber content; natural source of calcium (average protein percentage: 12 to 16 grams per scoop) EGG WHITE: lowers risk of cardiovascular disease and lowers blood pressure; improves muscle repair; cholesterol-free (average protein percentage: 25 grams per scoop) HEMP SEED: vegan and naturally gluten-free; easily digestible, nutrient-dense protein containing all essential amino acids; helpful in reducing inflammation and contains healthy fats and antioxidants (average protein percentage: 15 to 20 grams per scoop) NON-GMO PEA: vegan and naturally gluten-free; builds muscle mass and improves tone; contains all essential amino acids; promotes satiety and a natural source of iron (average protein percentage: 20 to 25 grams per scoop) ORGANIC BROWN RICE: vegan and naturally gluten-free; aids in muscle recovery, helps to burn fat (average protein percentage: 25 grams per scoop) PUMPKIN SEED: vegan and naturally gluten-free; alkalizing and high in zinc; lowers risk of certain cancers and improves reproductive and intestinal health (average protein percentage: 22 to 35 grams per scoop) WHEY (COW- OR GOAT-SOURCED): builds muscle mass via anabolic hormones like insulin; goat whey offers high nutrition and protein with fewer sensitivities than cow’s milk (average protein percentage: 25 to 30 grams per scoop)

Maya Whitman writes about natural health and living a more beautiful life. Connect at Ekstasis28@gmail.com.

February 2022

23

healing ways

Truly Making Love Sex and Intimacy as a Healing Force

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by Marlaina Donato

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Stripping Down to Basics A few lifestyle adjustments can do wonders for worn-out romance. Quality sleep itself can be a potent aphrodisiac. Women are more likely to be “in the mood” after a good night’s sleep, even with just an extra hour of shut-eye, according to a 2015 pilot study in The Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Therapist Kurt Smith, clinical director of Guy Stuff Counseling and Coaching, in Roseville, California, advocates limiting phone use and engaging in non-technological activities. “Phones have moved from being used as a communication device to becoming many people’s connection to the rest of the world. Unfortunately, when used as such, they pose a threat to the emotional connection with our partners,” he says. “With all distractions removed, sit on the sofa, face each other and talk. This suggestion can make many people very uncomfortable, because they have no idea what they’d say to their partner. Actually, talking to your partner without a purpose other than to just listen and connect with each other has become rare.”

An element of fun can go a long way in the quest to stay connected. “Approach your sex life like a science experiment or an art project instead of a math problem,” says Jamie Elizabeth Thompson, a holistic intimacy expert in Austin. “It’s an exploration with no one right answer. Attitude is important when it comes to sex because people can take it so seriously and place crippling pressure on having this fantasy Hollywood sex life.”

Aphrodite’s Plate Feel-good neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin all contribute to the pleasure response, and sharing luscious food with a lover can be sensuous, as well as endorphinfriendly. Nutritious foods such as almonds, walnuts, asparagus and avocados support reproductive health, and a dessert of dark chocolate and honey-drizzled fruits like berries, figs and cherries can support libido in both women and men. Nixing excessive alcohol and sugar is also a good romantic investment.

medicate and manage uncomfortable thoughts and emotions,” explains Smith. “Many men have no idea what they’re missing because they’ve never had an emotionally intimate relationship without the negative influence of porn. Porn makes sex self-focused, rather than what it’s supposed to be, which is the intimate connection of two people. Porn is selfish, rather than loving, giving and sharing with a partner.”

Thompson attests that lovemaking can help us align with the divine, especially “when people have reverence for the power of their erotic life force. When people open their view of what sex is, it can become an act of worship.”

Love prompts us to become more ourselves. “When erotic life force is flowing freely, the body is vital and the system is turned on. When channeled properly, this energy is highly creative,” muses Thompson. “It’s the fuel of your vehicle, the charge of your battery, and when you are full on life force, it organically overflows into service.”

Marlaina Donato is an author and composer. Connect at WildflowerLady.com.

Fun Homework for Couples From Kurt Smith: Remain connected by having “no-tech nights”. Try turning all devices off for an evening and find something to do together that doesn’t require them. This could be watching a movie, playing board games (yes, they still exist), going out for dessert, etc. It can be fun to brainstorm creative, low-cost ideas.

From Jamie Elizabeth Thompson: Journal about why sex and intimacy are important to you, how it serves the rest of your life and what you see available through having a consistent, potent, deep, hot erotic life. Share this vision with your partner and keep it somewhere you see it often. Knowing why something is a priority makes you far more likely to follow through.

Flirt with each other. Couples who flirt their way through their communication fight much less. Flirting creates a playful, fun flow of energy between you. It’s a way of keeping the fire stoked so you’re not completely restarting from cold coals every time you want to heat up the house.

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ntimately connecting with a loved one is one of life’s most precious gifts, but it’s easy to lose sight of our innate sensual energy in the maze of the mundane. Through lovemaking, we can harness our life force, and according to abundant research, reduce the risk of heart disease, lower blood pressure, manage pain and improve brain health. A significant correlation also exists between higher ejaculation frequency and a reduced risk for prostate cancer later in life, Boston University researchers report in European Urology.

Making love is also good for boosting our natural immunity.

College students that engaged in amorous activity once or twice a week—especially with long-term partners—had 30 percent higher levels of the antibody immunoglobulin A in their saliva, concluded research by Wilkes University, in Pennsylvania.

Partnership as Sacred Deep relationship is only possible when we are willing to be vulnerable. “Porn is a drug that people unknowingly use to selfFebruary 2022

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conscious eating

Fermenting for Foodies PRESERVING FOOD AND TRADITIONS

by April Thompson

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f fermented food is a trend, it’s the oldest one on the planet. More and more people are rediscovering the time-honored foodways of fermentation to promote health, boost flavor and preserve the bounty of the seasons. “There is huge potential to use high-quality fermented foods to enhance our health and well-being,” says Sandor Katz, a so-called “fermentation revivalist”, in Liberty, Tennessee, and the author of several bestselling books on fermentation, including the newly released Sandor Katz’s Fermentation Journeys: Recipes, Techniques, and Traditions from Around the World.

Katz caught the fermentation bug after moving from New York City to rural Tennessee in the 1990s and being faced with the “positive problem” of an overly plentiful garden to preserve. He’s since wandered the globe teaching and learning about fermentation traditions, from Korea’s spicy kimchi to Mexico’s funky pineapple tepache drink.

Fermentation is defined as the chemical breakdown of a food by bacteria, yeasts or other microorganisms. An estimated onethird of all foods are fermented, including coffee, cured meats, cheese, condiments and chocolate. Pickles and yogurt are traditionally fermented through lactic acid bacteria, while beer and bread are typically fermented through yeast. Kombucha, an ancient tea drink, is made using a symbiotic culture of yeast and bacteria.

Pascal Baudar, a Los Angeles writer, instructor and self-proclaimed “culinary alchemist,” turned to fermentation techniques to preserve the precious wild ingredients of the fleeting seasons. His

books and workshops cover unusual culinary territory, like fermented and aged vegan cheeses from acorns and “seaweed” made from fermented broadleaf plantain, a common weed, using methods he’s studied and perfected. “I investigate new and lost flavors, and conserve them as gourmet foods through preservation,” he says.

learning and kept experimenting. The more you understand the fermentation process, the more you can play with it creatively and push the envelope.”

Connect with Washington, D.C., freelance writer April Thompson at AprilWrites.com.

Fermentation with Benefits

No Starter Required “There is nothing you can eat that can’t be fermented, but the easiest and safest place to begin is with vegetables,” which need no special equipment or a starter like sourdough, kefir or kombucha, says Katz. To make sauerkraut, for example, simply shred cabbage, lightly salt and season it, and submerge it in a jar under its own juices, “burping” it daily for a week to 10 days to release the fermentation gases.

Katz and Baudar both like to debunk myths that fermenting foods is difficult or dangerous. “You don’t have to sterilize everything or have precise laboratory control conditions. People have been practicing fermentation for years, and they began before they knew bacteria was a thing. To the contrary, fermentation is a strategy for food safety,” says Katz.

While yeast or mold can grow on the top layer that is exposed to oxygen, Katz says “a lot of sauerkraut is needlessly discarded.

Most such growth is harmless and normal, and can be skimmed off the top.”

Baudar, a University of California Master Food Preserver, has kept foods he’s fermented for up to three years and only once encountered mold. “You need to work with the ferment,” he says.

“That means regularly burping it, then shaking or stirring to promote the acidity that prevents bad bacteria from taking hold.”

“If it looks or tastes bad, throw it away,” he adds. “Some of my early experiments tasted horrible, but I just took my failures as

Fermented Pickled Carrot Sticks YIELD: 1 QUART-SIZE JAR OF PICKLES

Wash and peel the skins of the whole carrots. Cut the peeled and washed carrots into carrot sticks. Peel and finely slice the garlic cloves. Wash and dry 2 sprigs of dill.

In a wide-mouth, quart-size jar, pack in the carrot sticks. (Tilt the jar to locate more places to squeeze in the sticks.) Add in the sea salt, then the sliced garlic and sprigs of dill.

photo provided by Tayler Silfverduk RDN

2 sprigs fresh dill 1-2 cloves garlic 2 lb whole carrots 1 Tbsp sea salt 1-2 cups distilled water

Cover the ingredients with distilled water (Be sure to leave about an inch of free space from the waterline to the opening of the jar.)

Place an airtight lid on the jar and let it sit for a week or until the carrots have reached desired taste. Make sure to burp the jar at least every two days while fermenting.

Once the carrot sticks have reached their desired taste, place the jar in the fridge for storage. Enjoy.

Notes: If using organic carrots, leave the skin on and just wash the carrots very well before chopping into snacking sticks.

When burping the jar, use this time to check on fermentation to make sure it’s growing healthy. Look for bubbles on top of the water and along the water line.

Seeing mold is a sign that good bacteria is struggling to start a culture and we may need to try again.

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Fermentation transforms the nutrients in food in several ways, Katz explains. In a process known as predigestion, it breaks macronutrients down into more digestible forms (think proteins turned into amino acids) and renders minerals more bioavailable.

Gluten, too, is broken down by fermentation, he says, as are potentially toxic compounds in foods such as cyanide and oxalic acid.

The process also releases vitamins B and K and other micronutrients as metabolic byproducts.

Fermentation reduces the short-chain carbohydrates that are poorly absorbed in the small intestine and are prone to absorb water and ferment in the colon, causing gas and bloating. Found in wheat, beans and other foods, they can pose digestive problems for people with irritable bowel syndrome and other conditions, says Tayler Silfverduk, a registered dietitian nutritionist in Columbus, Ohio, specializing in celiac disease.

“The most profound nutritional benefit of fermentation is the live bacteria itself. You are ingesting a rich biodiversity of beneficial bacteria that can potentially improve immune function,” says Katz, an AIDS survivor who considers fermentation an important part of his healing process.

Courtesy of Tayler Silfverduk, registered dietitian nutritionist.

February 2022

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Curry Kraut YIELD: 1 QUART 2 lb organic cabbage head 2 Tbsp sea salt ½ cup organic yellow onion, thinly sliced ½ cup shredded carrot 6 cloves garlic, minced 1 Tbsp fresh, grated ginger (1 Tbsp ground powder alternative) ½ Tbsp ground coriander ½ Tbsp ground cumin ½ tsp ground cayenne pepper ½ tsp ground turmeric ½ tsp curry powder ¼ tsp black pepper ¼ tsp cinnamon First, rinse all of the produce. Then peel the outer layers off the cabbage, saving a couple of the cabbage leaves.

Cut the cabbage in half (through the core), then in half again, then core the cabbage by placing wedges up vertically on a cutting board with the core touching the board and holding it at the tip. Position the knife at the start of the core and slice downward, cutting off the hard portion.

Place the cabbage on a flat side and slice shreds to desired thickness (about ¼ inch).

Start at the tip and work down.

Thinly slice the onion and then shred carrots using a cheese grater.

photo provided by Tayler Silfverduk RDN

Place it all into one very large or two nonreactive bowls (not metal). Pour the spices on top. Massage the mixture of veggies and spices until a lot of brine has been created and the mixture has shrunk down to about half its original size.

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Take the massaged veggies and spices, and start packing them into a 1-quart fermenting jar with an airtight lid. (The packing will help bring the brine to the surface.)

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After every scoop that’s put into the jar, pack it down with a fist. Leave several inches at the top of the jar.

Fold up the saved cabbage leaves and put them on top of the cabbage in the jar.

(Make sure the brine goes over the top of the cabbage leaves.) Place the weight—either a fermenting weight or rocks inside of a bag—on top of the cabbage leaves. Leave about 1 to 2 inches at the top of the jar.

Close the jar’s lid and put it in some sort of basin (I use a casserole dish) to catch the brine that comes out. The brine will come out of the jar because the cabbage will swell during the fermentation process, and the basin will catch the brine instead of it spilling onto counters.

Notes: Over the next few days, the mixture will turn into curry kraut through a lacto fermentation process. Bubbles and the bright green cabbage will become yellow.

How long to wait depends on the level of sourness desired and how warm the house is kept.

Check the curry kraut for taste. It’s good to check after about three to five days to see if it’s sour enough. It’s also good to do a quick check for mold. It’s likely a white, scummytype substance will form at the top of the brine; this is okay and part of the process. It can be scraped off or left there.

When curry kraut reaches desired taste, take out the cabbage leaves and the weight, close the lid and put it in the fridge.

Make sure to start with a clean surface and utensils. Dirty supplies can mess with the bacteria in the fermentation.

Courtesy of Kyrie Luke, Healthfully Rooted Home.

Blueberry’s Cousin

by Kathleen Gould and Madalyn Johnson

M

uch like the more well-known North American blueberries, bilberries are a rich source of anthocyanins (colorful plant pigments that may protect you from free radicals), but the anthocyanins are higher in bilberries.

These amazing little berries are antiinflammatory and benefit the immune system, heart and circulatory system, digestive system and brain.

Since we are addressing heart health in this article, we will stay mainly focused on that. Eating bilberries a number of times a week has shown to improve heart and circulatory health, as they have a soothing effect on blood vessels, which helps them to relax and expand so they can move more oxygen throughout our bodies. Bilberries assist in inhibition of platelet aggregation and muscle contraction, which has become of interest in these troubling times. These little superfoods are also great antioxidants.

Antioxidants scavenge free radicals from the bloodstream and help prevent cell destruction, which also helps to strengthen and maintain a healthy immune system.

And let’s not forget how rich they are in vitamins C and K; vitamin K helps prevent the formation of blood clots, reducing your risk of heart disease.

Bilberries, like blueberries, can be eaten fresh off the vine but have also traditionally been cooked into pies, muffins, jams and jellies, and they even make a very nice liqueur.

Also, they are a nice addition to smoothies, oatmeal and your favorite yogurt parfait.

Simply take your dried bilberries and grind them into a powder to add to your favorite breakfast or treat. If the bilberries aren’t quite sweet enough, add a touch of powdered stevia or your favorite sugar to your grinding process and viola … deliciousness!

Fresh bilberries are not always easy to get; they are grown best in the UK, eastern Canada and in a few areas of the United States with cool climates, so growing in Arizona

is a bit of a challenge. Thank goodness for dried bilberries. They can be used in many of the recipes where fresh is recommended.

To reconstitute dried bilberries, add 1 cup of dried berries to 1 cup of water in a bowl.

Mix and cover. Refrigerate overnight, and then these berries are ready for use. You can use them instead of blueberries in pancakes, muffins and breads.

In our herbal world, a popular way to get the health benefits of dried bilberries is to make an extract (tincture) of them. This is quite easy to do and very effective. In a quart-size jar, add 4 to 5 ounces of dried bilberries and cover with 100 proof vodka (or apple cider vinegar or vegetable glycerin if avoiding alcohol). Tip: Some herbalists believe that using a sweet brandy for their tinctures brings out the natural flavors of the bilberries a bit more than vodka. Cover and let sit on your kitchen counter for four to six weeks, shaking the jar every now and then. Strain and use the remaining liquid as your medicine. A dropperful a day is a nice starting dose. Note: Always check with your preferred medical adviser before starting

Kathleen Gould, registered herbalist, and Madalyn Johnson are proprietors of SW Herb Madalyn Johnson (left) and Shop and Kathleen Gould (right) Gathering Place. Gould has been an herbalist for 30-plus years and has extensive experience in herbal medicine. For more information, call 480-694-9931, or visit SWHerb.com or Store.

SWHerb.com. See ad, inside back cover.

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 Dedicated to promoting spiritual growth for those interested in serving as a spiritual companion/director as well as for those seeking to go deeper in their own spiritual journey.  Two-year interfaith program meeting monthly from September to June. tacheria.org/schools/

February 2022

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123rf.com/olegdudko (follow)

Bilberry

something new, especially diabetics and pregnant women.

One nonmedicinal, fun use for bilberries is dying fabric. If that is your pleasure, make a nice strong tea of bilberries and let cool.

Then add your desired white fabric to the mix, and mix and twirl often while soaking.

In an hour, you will get a lovely light purple color, but in several hours you will have a beautiful deep purple fabric that can be used to brighten your sewing project.

Incorporating plants into our lives, whether done in a medicinal, culinary or crafty manner, is such a wonderful way to learn about the natural world around us. And bilberries are a healthy and tasty addition to anyone’s world. Your heart will love you for it!

stokkete/AdobeStock.com

green living

SECONDHAND FASHION Online Used Clothing Stores Good for the Wallet and Planet

by Sandra Yeyati

T

he online commerce of used clothing is booming. According to ThredUp.com, a prominent virtual consignment and thrift store, the secondhand market is projected to double in the next five years, reaching a whopping $77 billion. “The pandemic and resulting economic downturn boosted this surge,” says Hyejune Park, Ph.D., associate professor of fashion merchandising at Oklahoma State University. “Stuck at home in 2020, people looked into their closets, found items they no longer wore or wanted and went online to sell and buy clothes to save money.”

Popular Resale Platforms Younger, tech-savvy shoppers are the principle drivers of this growth, and a host of apps and websites are responding to the demand, including UK-based marketplace Depop.com, which caters to cash-strapped Generation Z and millennial shoppers, and Poshmark.com, 30

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a leading social marketplace boasting 80 million users across the U.S., Canada and Australia.

Several well-known platforms serve vintage and luxury brand consumers worldwide, offering authentication guarantees to reassure buyers about counterfeits.

Among them are Santa Monica-based Tradesy.com, founded by women for women; Paris-based reseller VestiaireCollective.com; and TheRealReal.com, out of San Francisco.

Other notable players include brick-andmortar thrift store Goodwill Industries, which has partnered with resale app OfferUp.com to upload their inventories; eBay. com, one of the first online, peer-to-peer marketplaces; and Etsy.com, featuring vintage and upcycled fashion by smaller shops.

Brand-Name Manufacturers and Retailers React

this secondhand shopping boom. They educate consumers about how to take care of their gear, offer alteration services and encourage the long-term wear and resale of their clothes,” she explains.

The Secondhand Surge and the Environment

ThredUp.com’s marketing materials assert that by extending the life of used clothing, Many fashion brands are considering or fewer new garments need to be produced, have already formed partnerships with helping to reduce the carbon, waste and established resale water footprints platforms to reach associated with To protect the planet, this engaged, the production younger demoPark advises, the goal should of textiles and graphic of shopbe to buy nothing or buy less. apparel. In 2021, pers. For example, Manish Chandra, Gucci is partnerfounder and CEO ing with TheRealReal.com, while Adidas is of PoshMark.com, stated, “Consumers are working with ThredUp.com. In 2021, Poshprioritizing the impact that their purchasmark.com launched their Brand Closets es have on the environment.” initiative, inviting branded manufacturers Park cautions that even though resale to interact with their users and opening platforms tout environmental benefits, the platform to sell a combination of used consumer behavior will ultimately deterand new fashion. “The fact that all this is mine whether the online surge makes a happening is an indication that we’re witpositive environmental impact. In a recent nessing a new wave of e-commerce,” Park study involving young consumers living says. “I don’t think it’s a temporary boom. in Oklahoma, Park sought to understand From a retail business perspective, this is why they were choosing to buy and sell a huge trend that will go mainstream and secondhand clothing online. Their most continue to grow.” prominent motives were saving money Other brands are launching resale and shopping convenience. operations in-house, such as Levi’s Sec“Not many respondents saw this type of ondhand.Levi.com and fast-fashion giant consumption as a way to save the environH&M’s Rewear.hm.com, claiming to proment,” she laments. “If consumers buy vide a sustainable fashion-buying alternasecondhand goods to curtail their spendtive, but Park cautions, “I’m not confident ing on new clothes or to find better quality that secondhand fashion can solve the garments than fast fashion, then it will be sustainability issues that fast fashion has good for the environment, but if they buy created over the past decade. Depending and sell used clothes in addition to their on how brands are participating in their regular shopping as another way to shop resale operations, it could be a greenwash for marked-down products, then there claim—just another way to make sales and will be no environmental benefit.” reach more consumers.” Notably, H&M’s To protect the planet, Park advises, the Conscious Collection that is marketed as goal should be to buy nothing or buy less. sustainably-made clothing caters to only “It’s okay to purchase $10 jeans, but get a small fraction of its customers, sugone pair, not five. Don’t have a one-nightgesting that the company cares less about stand relationship with your clothes. Love environmental impacts and more about them, take care of them and wear them satisfying a segment of its customer base. until they’re falling apart.”

In contrast, Park says, Patagonia’s resale program is an enviable environmental Sandra Yeyati, J.D., is a professional writer example. “Patagonia began running their and editor. Reach her at SandraYeyati@ Worn Wear resale campaign long before gmail.com.

February 2022

31

wise words

David Perlmutter on the Role of Uric Acid in Metabolic Health

photo by Peter Russell

by Sandra Yeyati

B

oard-certified neurologist David Perlmutter, M.D., has written five New York Times bestsellers, including Brain Wash, Grain Brain and Brain Maker. His latest book is Drop Acid: The Surprising New Science of Uric Acid—The Key to Losing Weight, Controlling Blood Sugar, and Achieving Extraordinary Health.

A recipient of the Linus Pauling Award for his innovative approaches to neurological disorders and the National Nutritional Foods Association Clinician of the Year award, he has appeared on 20/20, CNN, Fox News, The Today Show, Oprah and CBS This Morning.

What is the most significant threat to our health and longevity today?

Metabolic issues like high blood pressure, increased body fat and high blood sugar are at the root of our most pervasive health challenges. According to the World Health Organization, the number one cause of death on planet Earth are chronic degenera32

tive conditions like Alzheimer’s, coronary artery disease, diabetes and cancer, all of which are fundamentally metabolic problems. Astoundingly, 88 percent of American adults have at least one component of what is called the metabolic syndrome, which means only 12 percent of Americans are metabolically healthy.

What is the basic premise of Drop Acid?

The book shows how uric acid elevation, previously thought of only in terms of gout, is the centerpiece for metabolic dysfunction and how you can easily bring your uric acid under control and regain metabolic health.

You can test uric acid levels at your doctor’s office or with a home monitor that you can buy online, so this is a powerful new tool to help you be healthier.

What is the role of uric acid in our body?

Having elevated uric acid was a survival mechanism for our hunter/gatherer, Pa-

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leolithic and primate ancestors because it allowed their bodies to make more fat to protect them during times of food scarcity.

Today, high levels of uric acid are leading to elevated blood sugar, increased production and storage of fat, and high blood pressure.

Everything we do that raises our uric acid puts us at risk for these profound metabolic threats to our health.

What foods and beverages should we reduce to control uric acid levels?

Alcohol, purines (the breakdown product of DNA and RNA in certain foods) and most importantly, fructose. In the 1900s, we consumed 10 to 15 grams of fructose per day, as opposed to over 70 grams today. The average American consumes 55 pounds of sugar each year. It’s absurd. High-fructose items like sodas, sauces and desserts are absolutely off the table, as is fruit juice, a powerful initiator of high uric acid. Fruit isn’t an issue. There may be five grams of fructose in an apple, and fruit contains

vitamin C, which dramatically lowers uric acid, and fiber, which slows fructose release.

High-purine foods are organ meats, shellfish and small fish like anchovies and sardines.

There are modest amounts of purines in red meat and chicken. I’m not saying these foods should be avoided; we want people to limit their consumption of chicken, fish and red meat to six ounces a day.

With alcohol, the big issues are hard liquor and beer. Beer contains a very concentrated source of purines because it’s made with brewer’s yeast. Though wine contains alcohol, it has polyphenols that help to reduce uric acid, possibly by nurturing the gut bacteria. Research demonstrates that a glass or two of wine is associated with either no change or a minimal decrease in uric acid. Coffee seems to lower uric acid.

Will these lifestyle choices really make a difference?

Patients are confronted with a mentality from marketing that you can do whatever the heck you want with your food and lifestyle, and then take a pill. I’ve been to dinner with diabetics who eat the creme brûlée then pop a pill. But pills don’t treat diabetes. They may lower blood sugar, but they won’t treat the underlying problem, which is that the body isn’t responding to insulin. The moment patients stop the drug, much to the joy of the drug maker, their blood sugars go right back up. You’ve only treated the smoke. You haven’t looked at the fire. This approach of lowering uric acid puts the fire out.

Are you hopeful that more people will make better lifestyle choices?

I see a bit of a trend where people are looking for more empowerment. They have greater access to data with wearable devices like continuous glucose monitors or an Oura Ring to tell you how you sleep. By better understanding moment-to-moment how our choices affect certain measurable factors, we’re slowly getting into the driver’s seat and becoming empowered to keep ourselves healthy.

Sandra Yeyati, J.D., is a professional writer and editor. Reach her at SandraYeyati@ gmail.com.

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Chiropractic Physician, Neurotherapist 928-242-4389 • DrLisonbee@yahoo.com DrLisonbee.com

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MacKenzie Kalt, Owner/Director 4050 E Greenway Rd, Ste 5, Phoenix 480-594-5052 • NatPainTreat.com

Providing some of the most advanced natural technologies for those struggling with chronic pain, injuries, stress, migraine headaches, PTSD, insomnia, Lyme disease, autoimmune disorders, skin conditions, and much more. Visit our website to learn more. See ad, inside front cover.

SW HERB SHOP & GATHERING PLACE

148 N Center St, Mesa 480-694-9931 • SWHerb.com Store.SWHerb.com

Kathy Gould and Madalyn Johnson, herbalists and proprietors, offer medicinal bulk herbs and specialty tea blends, herbal extracts, certification classes, community and therapist rental space, medicine-making supplies, and more. See ad, inside back cover.

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Pietrina Taranto 314-276-8330 Shop.SolexNation.com/Pietrina HelpingYourHealth44@gmail.com

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Valleywide Service • 480-994-4988 BennettsCarpetCleaningAZ.com

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Check the calendar of events page on his website for upcoming seminars. See ad, page 5.

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Melanie Icard, NMD 1430 E Missouri Ave, Ste B127, Phoenix 480-599-8370 • PhoenixAntiAging.com

Dr. Icard specializes in holistic anti-aging medicine, pain reversal, natural and traditional aesthetics, ozone therapy, and sexual health regeneration. She has extensive training in biological medicine, peptides, PRP, aesthetics and ozone therapy. See ad, page 17.

ENERGY HEALING KIM CARTER, MA, HTCP

15215 S 48th St, Ste 154, Phoenix Kim@IntuitiveKim.com IntuitiveKim.com

Kim is an Intuitive and Healing Touch Certified Practitioner offering guidance when you feel out of alignment with your authentic self. Stress, fear, anxiety and grief/loss throw us off balance, making it challenging to access inner wisdom. Sessions include reading and clearing your energy field; and simple, practical self-healing tools to keep you balanced and grounded.

GLUTEN FREE GLUTEN FREE CREATIONS BAKERY

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Delicious 100% gluten-free products. Many other food allergens and choices available, i.e., vegan, dairy free and grain free. Over 18 years of serving people with medical conditions or enjoying various food lifestyles. See ad, page 31.

HEALTH PRODUCTS SCNM MEDICINARY

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The SCNM Medicinary is the largest natural medicinary in Arizona, providing a wide variety of vitamins, E VID E N C E -B ASE D, N ATURALLY. nutritional supplements, books, herbs, homeopathic remedies, tinctures and other health products. Order by phone at 480-9700001 or visit us today – we offer shipping and curbside pickup! See ad, page 19.

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Standard Process is a Wisconsin-based, family-owned company that has been a leader in making whole food-based nutritional supplements since 1929, and is committed to changing lives by partnering with healthcare practitioners to support optimal health through nutrition. See ad, page 6.

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Roadrunner Park Farmers’ Market 3502 E Cactus Rd, Phoenix Saturdays Oct-May 8am-1pm | Jun-Sep 7am-11am Facebook.com/RoadrunnerParkFarmersMarket

Local Farmers’ Markets

Singh Meadows Farmers’ Market 1490 E Weber Dr Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays 8am-2pm Facebook.com/SinghFarms

123rf.com/lola1960

Sun City Farmers’ Market 16820 N 99th Ave Thursdays Oct-May 9am-1pm Facebook.com/Sun-City-Farmers-Market631299790224049

NOTE: Please check market websites and ArizonaCommunityFarmersMarkets.com for more information on days and hours, and any restrictions.

Ahwatukee Farmers’ Market 4700 E Warner Rd, Phoenix Sundays Oct-May 9am-1pm Jun-Sep 8am-11am Facebook.com/AhwatukeeFarmersMarket Anthem Farmers’ Market 41703 N Gavilan Peak Pkwy Sundays Oct-May 9am-1pm Facebook.com/AnthemFarmersMarket Care 1st Farmers’ Market 328 W Western Ave, Avondale Tuesdays Jul-Oct 8am-noon ArizonaCommunityFarmersMarkets.com Carefree Farmers’ Market 1 Sundial Circle Fridays Oct-May 9am-1pm Jun-Sep 8am-11am Facebook.com/CarefreeFarmersMarket Downtown Chandler Farmers’ Market 3 S Arizona Ave Saturdays Oct-May 9am-1pm Jun-Sep 7am-10:30am Facebook.com/ChandlerFarmersMarket Downtown Mesa Farmers’ Market 1 E Main St Saturdays 8am-noon dtMesaFarmersMarket.com

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Downtown Phoenix Farmers’ Market 721 N Central Ave Saturdays Oct-Apr 8am-1pm May-Sep 7am-11am DowntownPhoenixFarmersMarket.org Gilbert Farmers’ Market 222 N Ash St Saturdays Oct-Mar/Apr 8am-noon Apr/May-Sep 7am-11am GilbertMarket.com High Street Farmers’ Market 5415 E High St, Phoenix Sundays Oct-May 10am-1pm Facebook.com/Farmers-Market-on-HighStreet-2244771575799425 Mommas Organic Market Arrowhead Farmers' Market 7780 W Arrowhead Towne Center, Glendale Saturdays Oct-May 9am-1pm | Jun-Sep 8-11am Facebook.com/Getlocalazfarmersmarkets GetLocalArizonaEvents.com Mommas Organic Market Glendale Farmers' Market at Cabela’s 9380 W Glendale Ave, Glendale, AZ 85305 Sundays Sep-May 10am-2pm | closed for summer Facebook.com/Getlocalazfarmersmarkets GetLocalArizonaEvents.com Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market 3806 N Brown Ave Saturdays 8am-1pm ArizonaCommunityFarmersMarkets.com Power Road Farmers’ Market 4011 S Power Rd, Mesa Monday-Saturday 9am-5pm | Sunday 9am-4pm PowerrdFarmersMarket.com

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The Capitol Farmers’ Market 1700 Adams St, Phoenix Thursdays 10:30am-1:30pm ArizonaCommunityFarmersMarkets.com Uptown Farmers’ Market 5757 N Central Ave, Phoenix Wednesdays Oct-Apr 9am-1pm & May-Jun 8am-noon Saturdays Nov-Apr 9am-1pm & May-Oct 8am-noon UptownMarketAZ.com Verrado Community Farmers’ Market N Market Pl & W Main St, Buckeye Sundays Oct-Jun 9am-1pm Facebook.com/VerradoCommunityFarmersMarket

NORTHERN ARIZONA Flagstaff Community Farmers’ Market 211 W Aspen Ave, City Hall Parking Lot Sundays May-Oct 8am-noon FlagstaffMarket.com Prescott Summer Farmers’ Market Yavapai College, Parking Lot D 1100 E Sheldon St Saturdays May-Oct 7:30am-noon PrescottFarmersMarket.org Prescott Winter Farmers’ Market Prescott High School, 1050 Ruth St Saturdays Nov-May 10am-1pm PrescottFarmersMarket.org Sedona Summer Community Farmers’ Market Tlaquepaque/Creekside, 336 Hwy 179 Fridays May-Oct 8-11:30am Sedona-Farmers-Market.com Sedona Winter Community Farmers’ Market Wells Fargo Bank Parking Lot 2201 W State Rte 89A, West Sedona Sundays Oct-May noon-4pm Sedona-Farmers-Market.com

Certification Classes, Workshops & Seminars ... which will you choose, one or ALL? FREE Intro to Herbal seminars: February 6 & 12 Dig Deeper w/Christina Forbes, PhD, 3-week series 5-week Certification Class, starts Sat, Feb. 26th 2 Weekend Cert class: June 4, 5, 11, 12 Advanced Formulation weekend: April 30 & May 1 Classes are filling fast! RSVP at (480) 694-9931 or

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Hours: TUES-FRI 11a- 5p; SAT 10a- 3p, Closed Sunday & Monday Online store: www.SWHerb.com/shop

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