Blog Posts by Tips on Healthy Living

Sick and tired of migraine meds that leave you drowsy and too many doses of over-the-counter cures? Since the Excedrin recall has many of us migraine sufferers scrambling for alternatives, it's time to explore other options. These natural products have shown impressive results in the treatment of migraine headaches, according to Michael T. Murray, N.D., author of What the Drug Companies Won't Tell You and Your Doctor Doesn't Know.

Riboflavin. One of the theories used to explain a migraine headache is that it is caused by reduced energy production within the mitochondria, units of cells of blood vessels in the head. Therefore, because vitamin B2 (riboflavin) can potentially increase cellular energy production, it was thought that this vitamin might prevent migraine. In one double-blind study with riboflavin-400 milligrams (mg) daily-the proportion of patients who improved by at least 50 percent was 15 percent for a placebo and 59 percent for riboflavin. There were no side effects

Bedroom boredom. Parenting pushing private time aside. All work and no spark. Fantasies of other partners. These are all common sexual issues couples face. When TV star Lisa Rinna found herself losing interest in sex after pregnancy, she sought guidance from renowned sex counselor Ian Kerner. Together, they created a plan to rejuvenate romance for others in The Big, Fun, Sexy Sex Book.

This month we're featuring your questions for Lisa and Ian in a weekly sex column. Here's what they had to say to help our reader Mojo-less Mama.

With at least one child in my bed every night, my husband and I have no private time to even talk, let alone rev up a dormant mojo. We both work full-time so a little day-time rendezvous while the kids are at school isn't happening. I'm all ears, Lisa and Ian!
-Mojo-less Mama

Ian and Lisa say:
Parenthood is about perfecting the "art of the quickie" and finding moments between the chaos and exhaustion to squeeze in some intimacy.

By Kristin Sidorov
Salt is a household staple, and most of us don't think twice about adding a pinch here or a dash there. But lately, salt has come under serious fire for its dangerous health effects if consumed in large quantities-which, as it happens, over 90 percent of us do. Yikes.

Leading to hypertension, heart disease, and potential stroke, high sodium intake is a dangerous habit that can be compared to the likes of smoking and excessive drinking. But most of us have no clue how much salt we actually consume. In today's market, additives have permeated the majority of our processed and prepared foods, and in no small amount.

Add that to a lack of consciousness about salt guidelines and some pretty confusing food labels, and you have the makings of a serious health issue. In addition, the body's tendency to adapt to and crave higher levels of salt is creating a full-blown addiction that may be difficult to break.

A moderate amount of salt is, of course,

By Keri Gans, MS, RD, CDN
Author of The Small Change Diet
Since we were little, we've all heard the same message to "Start your day with breakfast." Some of us have taken it to heart, while others rebel. The bottom line is that our moms were right (once again), we should eat breakfast for so many reasons.

Think of it this way: You can't run a car on empty, the same way you can't run your body without food. Food is fuel for our bodies-if you want to start your day right, you must eat. Without food it's harder to concentrate, you're more likely to be tired, and you're probably thinking about lunch way sooner than you should. Breakfast is the first step in keeping your day on track.

I tell my patients to eat within one hour of waking. I know for some people that's truly impossible, therefore I'm a little flexible with this rule and say you should eat as soon as you can. But honestly, the longer you wait to eat, the hungrier you're likely to get-and when you do get

By Sara Luck
Author of Claiming the Heart
Working together 24/7 can be put into context by citing every writer's chestnut. Character, obstacle, goal-that is the essence of drama. We have two characters, my husband and me, both of us are novelists, and the goal is to have each of us complete our novels on deadline. But it's the obstacles that make the drama, and being together all the time does create obstacles. We're both writers, but with more and more people working from home, our situation applies to others as well.

The first obstacle to be overcome is the need for individual work space. My husband likes to write to classical music; I don't like any distractions. So while we're in the same house, we each have our own writing space. You also must have mutual respect for each other's work, and it can't have a dollar amount attached to it. If one spouse is more successful than the other, then in a family budget, the work of the more successful partner may take

Limit the cheesiness factor and have a great theme party: Keep it classy with these guidelines from Tori Spelling's CelebraTORI: Unleashing Your Inner Party Planner to Entertain Friends and Family.

I like a party with a concept. Okay, I'm absolutely mad for concept-driven parties. But even I know that there's such a thing as going overboard. I want you to go over-the-top, but I still want you to keep it classy. Here are some guidelines:

DO: Maximize your color scheme.
DON'T: Buy out the Internet with any and everything related to your concept. Get the lay of the land before you make any purchases.

DO: Dress according to your concept.
DON'T: Take on some concept-related personality, like speaking with a Spanish accent at a fiesta party.

DO: Applaud guests for participating in the concept.
DON'T: Require guests to participate in the concept, or express disappointment if they choose not to do so.

DO: Go all out with concept-related desserts.
DON'T: Spend so

By A.J. Jacobs
Author of Drop Dead Healthy
Three years ago, I was fat. Not fat all over. I was what they call "skinny fat"-a body that resembled a python after swallowing a goat. My wife had a repertoire. She'd ask me when my baby was due. She'd subtly sing the Winnie the Pooh theme song. And she'd tell me about this legendary place called "the gym." If I went there, maybe I wouldn't get winded playing hide and seek with my kids. I ignored her. Then came a freak case of tropical pneumonia, a three-day hospital stay, and a now-urgent plea from my wife: "I don't want to be a widow in my forties."

Thus kicked off a two-year quest to remake my body, a journey I chronicled in my new book Drop Dead Healthy. As with my other books The Year of Living Biblically and The Know-It-All, I pledged to become the world's greatest expert in a field I know nothing about.

My goal? To test out every diet and exercise regimen on planet earth, and figure out which work best. I sweated,

The people we love the most hurt us the most, even if they don't mean to. Mary Hayes Grieco, author of Unconditional Forgiveness: A Simple and Proven Method to Forgive Everyone and Everything, shares how after 25 long years, she mended her broken relationship with her father.

Painful dramas aside, the people in our family are ours for a lifetime, to live with, to learn from, and to enjoy the best we can. All too often, we don't appreciate the goodness in these people that we see every day, and we take them for granted, like they're part of the scenery. It's a shame when we do not realize a family member's ordinary preciousness until he or she is gone. There is so much more enjoyment to be had in our relationships if we consciously try to see the good in people and take the responsibility to clear out the buildup of irritation that gathers inside us from a series of disappointed expectations.

I am so thankful that I managed to forgive and heal my relationship with my father,