Blog Posts by Tips on Healthy Living

Tired of your clothes? From a classic trench coat to a statement necklace, getting dressed for work or play is made easy with these essentials, says Barbara Reich, author of Secrets of an Organized Mom.

Shari Schmeltzer has been a personal shopper at Bergdorf Goodman for the past fourteen years. Not only is she enviably stylish herself, and endlessly patient in teaching others, she's also admirably practical. She knows that no matter how expensive or stylish an item is, if it's not wearable and versatile, then there's no point in having it. Shari is a big fan of having fewer items in your closet and having them all work for you in a variety of ways. Here is her list of what every woman should ideally have. Your individual life and work might require some alterations (and you might prefer red pumps to leopard-print), but consider this list an excellent starting point:

• Two pairs of jeans, one skinny or straight, and one flared or boot-cut
• Basic black cardigan
• Black

It's the time of year when we all want to look our best, fast. Juice fasts, colonics, and similar cleanses may be popular, but in The 17 Day Plan to Stop Aging, author Dr. Mike Moreno shares why you're better off without them.

There are a lot of products, diets, juices, and clinics out there these days that claim to have the definitive answer on how to rid your body of all the toxins we encounter daily in order to reverse aging. But many of these trends can be dangerous. Here are some examples of potential dangers. Consider yourself warned!

Colonics: This is a type of "detox" that is essentially like getting a massive enema. During the procedure, the technician will pump up to 20 gallons of water into the colon to "clean" out the rectum. It really scares me to think about people having this done, especially patients who have any type of digestive disorder. So much can go wrong! The risks include perforation of your bowel wall, electrolyte imbalance and dehydration, infection

Sloppy seconds? There's something really wrong with a woman who dates her friends' exes, says Big Ang, star of the hit reality show Mob Wives and author of Bigger Is Better: Real-Life Wisdom From the No-Drama Mama.

No matter how handsome or rich a man might be, if he's been with one of my friends, he is off-limits. I don't care if he was with the friend ten years ago, or twenty years ago. If she says she doesn't care who he gets in bed with, it doesn't matter. She might even believe it to the bottom of her heart. But if her pal got with the guy, and she found out-even if she hasn't thought about him in years-she'll feel betrayed, which will turn into anger. And, guaranteed, she won't be pissed off at the guy for putting his dick where it doesn't belong. She'll be furious with her girlfriend.

Men think they're the territorial ones. But women are much worse. Once a woman has been naked with someone, it's like she's put her mark on him. No matter how many other women he sleeps with, has

It can induce anxiety, just the thought of packing up a family (especially one with young children) and getting them through security and to your destination with luggage intact. These tried-and-true tips from organizing guru and Secrets of an Organized Mom author Barbara Reich will help you skirt disaster.

My family travels several times a year, and we've been doing that since my twins were babies, so I've figured out some handy tricks along the way. Here's my best advice.

Send heavy stuff in advance. If you're traveling for a week or more with babies or very young children, then diapers, toiletries, sunscreen, Benadryl, and all those other necessities could easily fill all your luggage, not to mention weigh a ton. Whenever possible, ship your toiletries (especially diapers!) to the place where you'll be staying a week in advance of your trip. There are several online drugstores that will ship for free and spare you that load in your luggage-or the risk of essential items going

Author Sarah Elizabeth Richards decided to freeze her eggs in her mid-30s while dating Paul, who wasn't interested in starting a family. She saw it as her future family insurance policy, but as time passed, Paul's opinion on babies didn't change. From her book Motherhood, Rescheduled: The New Frontier of Egg Freezing and the Women Who Tried It.

I started playing a little game with myself to see how a baby would fit into our lives. Throughout the day I asked myself, "If we had a baby right now, what would we be doing?" Could I still go swimming? Could we take her to brunch? When I woke up to use the bathroom at 5 a.m., I thought, "If I had to get up right now and couldn't go back to bed, would I mind?" On Sunday nights when Paul was working at his computer and I had finished watching Big Love, I wished I could help a child get ready for bed: chasing her down the hall after a bath, reading her stories or negotiating which stuffed animals she could have in her crib. I imagined Paul and

By Erica Brown
Author of Happier Endings
There is an art to the consolation note, the sympathy card, the letter marking loss and sadness-even if you cannot share in the sadness because the person who died is an absolute stranger. I find that what helps me write such a letter is meditating for a moment before I begin, particularly focusing on the reader's face when he or she opens the letter and skims its few sentences to see if they will capture a memory, share an as-yet untold story, or regurgitate a few unlovable clichés.

What words will somehow bridge the distance or offer a little sliver of solace? Maybe none. Maybe some. Maybe some, but only with time.

It is so hard to write a moving sympathy card, so hard that we often forget to get around to it, mostly because we never wanted to write one in the first place. But I know that many mourners need these cards. They are buoyed by the little postal gifts of love contained in small envelopes around small, heartfelt feelings of loss.

By Marci Nault
Author of The Lake House
"I have nothing left," my girlfriend said with tears in her eyes. The moment before she'd been strong, almost angry in her determination as she explained what she was doing to fight for her daughter in a school system that was failing her. But when I asked her what she was doing to care for herself a look of fear crossed her face.

"Too much," she said. "I'm taking time to figure skate three hours per week, and I know it's selfish so I'm giving it up. My daughter is too important right now."

"You have to take time to give to yourself or there won't be anything left," I said and that's when her determination broke, the tears began, and she confessed that she was already there.

I'm uncertain if it's genetic encoding or a societal pressure passed down through generations that have taught women their needs aren't important. Throughout my childhood I watched my mother put aside personal dreams to care for everyone else. For most of my life, I

By Kristy Ojala

In her book The Immune System Recovery Plan, Dr. Susan Blum, one of the most sought-after experts in the field of functional medicine, shares the four-step program she used to treat her own serious autoimmune condition and help countless patients reverse their symptoms, heal their immune systems, and prevent future illness. I found her quizzes and tips very helpful and I wanted to find out more about how we can live better-and be nicer to our poor, poor guts.

First of all, thank you for your book. If I hadn't picked it up at work, I wouldn't have been able to start taking charge of some major health issues I was not aware of. Your quizzes are very helpful. Why are so many of us in the dark about our diet and the importance of a "healthy gut"?

Dr. Susan Blum: Because we are in the midst of an obesity epidemic, and also a self-image crisis, everyone is very focused on being thin and counting calories. This is just the wrong way to look at food. One of my